Page 4 of Back to Me
“Dallas, I…”
“You what, Ally? What could you possibly say to me right now? You were closer to me than any of my sisters. Austin wasn’t the only one destroyed when you left. Then to find out you were home from the one person I spent years hating for keeping you away, then find you in here talking to him, in my bar. Let’s hear it because I really want to know.”
ChapterThree
Austin
After heading backout to the bar, I drank the last of the beer I had taken from Tye’e office and retook my seat. Tye came back over to me and refilled my glass.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“You remember when I came back from wanting to work things out with her but found her with another guy?”
“Yeah, I wanted to beat the crap out of you after you came home.” I glared at him.
“The feeling went both ways.” He just rolled his eyes, but I continued. “Turns out that he was just her housemate, who was gay.”
“Seriously?”
“Yep.”
“So, this could have all been avoided?”
“Yep.” I took a drink and eyed the hallway that led to their office, knowing she was going to out here at any moment.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“I call bullshit on that.”
“What am I supposed to say? I have made so many mistakes since she left but I can’t just magically make that disappear, and just because she is back it doesn’t change things. Tell me how you would feel if you were getting ready to propose to Dallas, but instead, she tells you she is leaving and didn’t even factor you into that decision. I wouldn’t have stopped her! I would have supported her the whole time! I would have been her biggest fan! I would have been here waiting for her when she came back. Got a shop ready for her if that was what she wanted. I would have my business and she would have hers. She didn’t give me that option and that’s what hurt the most. That she thought after everything, I wouldn’t have been there for her. She didn’t give me a choice in how the rest of my life was going to turn out! Instead, she walked right out of it!”
“You feel better now?”
“No! I don’t. Why is everyone pushing me on this? My sister-in-law tries to bring us back together. You are giving me the third degree. I just want to deal with the fact that Ally is back in town however I need to deal with it. That doesn’t mean me spilling my guts to every person in my life. I came here to blow off steam after work and deal with the news.”
“While avoiding the situation in front of you.”
“I am not avoiding it! Did I not just talk to her about it?”
“Yes, but you ran at the first chance you could!”
“I’m sorry, I love my life and Dallas looked like she was ready to kill. So yes, I was fucking running out of there.”
“Can’t believe you didn’t stick around and listen in!”
“Are you good? Do you not know your fiancée?”
“Oh, come on! She isn’t that scary.”
“To you maybe. She blames me for Ally leaving and not coming home. I’m sure she will tell you about it anyway.”
“Back to the topic at hand. What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know, Tye. I really don’t. We have both made mistakes, me some fucking big ones. I don’t know if there is any going back from that. Too much damage has been done. Can I trust that she isn’t going to walk out on me again? Can she forgive me for all the hurt I caused her? Then there is all my Holly baggage. I should have listened to all of you and just stayed away.”
“Hindsight is a wonderful thing, Austin. If you had of listened to us, who knows what would have happened. I believe you and Ally are meant to be together. Had you have not gone through all that shit with Holly, you could have settled down with someone else.”
