Page 26 of Don't Date Your Ex Best Friend
“You look just like I had been dreaming about.”
How is it possible for this tiny woman to say a few words and make me forget about everything?
I wanted to ask her so many questions, yet I stayed silent, still overwhelmed with the feeling of having her back in my arms and whispering those sweet words to me.
Abruptly, she pulled away, her eyes looking anywhere but my face.“I should go.”
I nodded, she should.But a second later, I regretted letting her go when I watched her turn around, walking away from me.My heart was still beating wildly when she disappeared in the crowd.My palms were tingling where I had touched her back and cupped her cheek.
Fuck.Snap out of it, Ethan.It’s been six years and you’re still not over her.I chuckled at my conscience and grabbed a flute of champagne.One does not justget overKiara Sharma.Especially when you loved her as deeply as I did.
It had been six years since I last saw her, made love to her, watched her cry and then sleep peacefully in my arms.But I knew that since then, both of us had changed.Her eyes were a similar shade of brown but seemed mature.Her hair was longer and there was something about her that I knew she was doing well.
After reading her diary in the airplane, I had puked out my breakfast in the washroom because thinking about what happened to her still made my stomach clench.After three months of refusing to answer my calls and texts, she finally replied to one text.
Me:Are you okay?
She had replied when I had landed in New York for the first time since she left.
Bella:No.But I will be.Take care of yourself, Ethan Kane.
Somehow, that text had made me smile, knowing what she meant.She needed to get better on her own, and she was such a stubborn ass that I knew she would do this on her own.Be okay with herself and get better.
Me:You too, Kiara Sharma.
My hands clenched in a fist.It had been six years, so why was I still stuck on her?I had moved on.But seeing her a few moments ago with her soft voice and brown eyes and that familiar scent of black vanilla and coconut, it overwhelmed me.
I shook my head,no.Nothing is happening.Nothing has changed.I just met my ex-best-friend-slash-ex-girlfriend after six years.No big deal.Drinking down the champagne, I marched toward the hall to distract myself of all the thoughts.
“Ethan?”I paused and turned around to see none other than Jake O’Neal, the man who helped introduce me to modelling.“How’s it going, man?”
I smiled at him as we hugged and patted each other’s back.He grinned at me, his blue eyes twinkling as we talked about the event, the gala, and the fundraiser, and what was going on in each other’s life.
I caught the ring around his left hand and raised my eyebrow, “Getting married, huh?”
Jake looked down at the glinting ring and smiled warmly.Damn, he was whipped.“Yes, we got engaged at the end of May, glad she said yes.We are getting married next month.”
I grinned, seeing flustered Jake for the first time in my life.He had always been confident and charming, but to see his cheeks flush just talking about his fiancée was an odd sight.“Congratulations, I am happy for you.”
“Thank you, you are definitely invited to the wedding,” he said and looked around.“She’s right here, come on, I will introduce you to her.”
With a small smile, I went along with him.It was good to see him after such a long time.He seemed more mature than before.I could still remember the time when Elliot had contacted me for the first time for a modelling gig, when Liam and I had made it to the A-Level of qualifications.I had flatly denied.He had sent Jake to talk with me as he was also a basketball player before he focused on turning modelling into his career.He had always been a good man and to see him engaged, with the lovey-dovey look on his face, made me happy for him.
“Ah, there you are,” he murmured.“Babe, meet my old friend.”
I turned to see who he was calling, and my heartbeat stuttered to a stop when I saw his arm wrapped around her waist.She faced me and my gut tightened when I saw her wide eyes, her smile washing away.My eyes dropped to her left hand, and sure enough, there was a diamond ring glinting on her ring finger that I hadn’t noticed before.
Fuck.
“Ethan,” she said my name in a way that she was about to explain this to me, but I shook my head.She didn’t need to explain herself.She had done that enough already.
“Oh, you two seem to know each other,” Jake said, noticing the obvious tension in the air.
I clenched my jaw and looked at him and then fixed my gaze on Kiara.
“She was my ex-girlfriend.”
“He was my ex-best friend.”
