Page 60 of Saving Graces
“It’s not isolating,” Rosalie said. “It’s personal space. It suits me.”
“Does it? You haven’t been properly happy in a long time.”
“Things have been stressful lately,” Rosalie reminded her. “That’s not the same as being unhappy.”
“I’m talking years.”
Roslaie frowned. “That’s… not accurate.”
“Remember what you always told me?”
“What?”
“You can lie to yourself, but not to your best friend.” Savannah gave her a small smile. Rosalie huffed.
They walked on in semi-comfortable silence for a while and eventually Savannah broke it. “So the sex…?”
Rosalie couldn’t help her smile. She tipped her head up and looked at the snowy tree canopy above them.
“Oh my god,” she said. “I don’t have the words.”
“You’re not even going to try?” Savannah nudged. Rosalie shook her head. “Well your face says it all,” Savannah told her with a smirk. “Are you going to keep seeing her when you’re back in Nashville?”
Rosalie sighed, shaking her head.
“I think we both know it’s better being kept as a vacation fling.”
Savannah stopped still. “Why?”
“Why?” Rosalie raised her eyebrows. She lifted her hand and counted on her fingers. “She’s eleven years younger than me. She’s literally this hot young rock star. You said it yourself, she’ll have women falling around her like flies. She’s Lane and Cassidy’s close friend, like what, are we going to double-date? How fucking awkward would that be? Honestly, what other reasons do you need?”
“You are so full of shit.” Savannah put her hands on her hips. “None of those reasons are worth anything.”
“They are to me.” Rosalie shot her a glare and started walking again. Savannah kept pace with her.
“It’s literally just your commitment phobia all over again,” she said, shortly.
“That’s a really judgemental way of looking at it. It’s a perfectly valid choice to want to be single.”
“Sure. If that’s what you actually want, and it’s not just a fancy way of saying you’ve given up fighting for your own damn needs.”
“Come on-”
“No, you come on.” Savannah stepped in front of Rosalie, making her reel back to keep from running into her friend’s steely eyes. “How many times have I listened to you tell me that you would be happy having a relationship if all the parameters were different? And I was like sure Rosalie, domesticity isn’t for everyone, there’s lots of ways to be in love. Yet here you are, faced with a stupidly hot woman who’s very much into you, and wants her independence and literally all the same things you want, so you’re like oh well let me quickly find a loophole that says it’s not going to work.”
“That’s not what I’m doing-”
“It’s trauma, Rosalie, we all fucking have it-”
“I know what trauma is!” Rosalie crossed her arms across her chest. “God, why do you have to be such a know-it-all, all the time?”
“Because I know you! And I fucking love you, you stupid asshole.”
They glared at each other until Rosalie cracked into a small smile.
“Well I hate you,” she lied.
“You hate me because I’m right,” Savannah gave her doe eyes.
