Chapter 343
SIERRA.
“Wait… you’re telling me your Adrian is Noah’s best friend?” Lilly asks, shock still plastered across her face minutes after I told her what happened yesterday.
“Yes,” I murmur, shifting in my seat, trying to get comfortable.
I won’t lie, the whole night and part of today were spent crying. I still can’t believe fate can be such a fucking bitch. I thought I’d finally found the right guy for me. Thought I was finally, happily, making my way toward a happily ever after… And then fate decided to play the cruelest joke on me and fucked everything up in the worst possible way.
Honestly, it’s been hard. It feels like something is lodged between my lungs and my heart, making it difficult to even breathe.
I’ve been waiting for Adrian to call me. Waiting for him to show up at my door. Waiting for a text like he normally does, but there’s been nothing. Just silence.
Part of me wants to understand him, because I know I might have jumped to the same conclusion if I were in his shoes, but the other part of me thinks he should know me by now. That doubt shouldn’t even be an option.
“I knew Noah had a friend called Adrian… Gunner has mentioned him a couple of times,” Lilly says thoughtfully. “But I never imagined it would be the same person p>
“At least you knew something…” I mutter. “I didn’t even know Noah had another best friend besides Gunner p>
“And he didn’t believe you had no clue p>
“Yeah,” I answer. “He said it was too much of a coincidence that I just happened to date him p>
“Maybe you can try explaining again p>
I don’t let her finish. I jump up and start pacing.
“I did try,” I say, frustration bubbling over. “Over and over again. But he wouldn’t believe me. He walked out thinking I had some kind of ulterior motive from the start p>
“Maybe give him some time,” she suggests gently. “Let him cool down and think things through. When the shock wears off and his head clears, maybe then he’ll realize you wouldn’t do something like that p>
I drop back into the chair, completely drained emotionally, mentally, and physically.
I’m exhausted. I want to sleep. I want my mind to just shut up for a while. But every time I close my eyes, that moment from yesterday plays over and over again. I couldn’t fall asleep no matter how hard I tried… and I really fucking tried.
“I want to believe that, Lilly,” I say quietly, “but you didn’t see the look he gave me yesterday… I don’t think Adrian will believe a word I say. Not when his mind is already set p>
“You said he hasn’t reached out since yesterday… but have you?” she asks.
I turn to her and glare. “Why the hell would I do that p>
“Because you care about him and you’re hurting p>
“Yeah,” I snap, “but I spent years begging Noah to believe me, and he never did, not until there was evidence… I’m not about to do the same damn thing with Adrian p>
I can feel my anger rising again, mixing with frustration, but I’m not even surprised. It’s been like this since he walked out. one moment I’m heartbroken, the next I’m furious.
Lilly just nods, understanding written all over her face.
I do want a future with Adrian but I’m not going to beg him to believe me. I did that with Noah, and what did it get me? Pain upon pain, over and over again. I know I didn’t plan any of this, so I’m not about to bend over backwards trying to prove my innocence.
“I guess it all makes sense now,” Lilly says, her voice cutting through the silence.
“What makes sense?” I ask, frowning.
“Your lawyer,” she replies. “Remember when I asked you about her p>
I nod. “Yeah p>
“That’s because she’s a Whitmore lawyer,” Lilly explains. “So, I found it strange that she was representing you p>
“Whitmore…” I murmur, my heart stuttering as things begin to click into place.
“No wonder she was able to get so much evidence on Jocelyn p>
I stare at her, confused. “What are you talking about? Weren’t you the one who got all the evidence p>
“Only part of it,” she says. “We got evidence proving Jocelyn fabricated everything, but the rest—the part about her selling company secrets—that wasn’t us p>