Read Online Back to You by Leighton Rose - Free Book Online Page A

I’ll just end up begging him to come home and I don’t want to be that pathetic person.”
     
    “You’re not pathetic, Tyler. You’re human. I just don’t think I could stand to see you end up like you were after he left all over again. I’m your best friend, man, and I’m only looking out for you.”
     
    “I know that and I honestly appreciate it, bud.” I leaned back in my chair and took a deep breath to try and release the tension that was building. “I really fucking need to get drunk tonight, you game?”
     
    “Oh, I’m definitely game.” He leaned forward and batted his eyelashes at me exaggeratedly. “Pick me up at seven, stud muffin, and don’t even think about getting frisky before I’ve had my first beer.” Best friend ever!
     
    We laughed and the guys came waltzing back in. That meant lunch time was over and it was back to work for all of us but I couldn’t wait for later that night. Drunken bliss, here I come.
     

Chapter 8
     
    Alex
     
    I woke up the next morning and rolled over to find that my bed was cold and empty.
     
    I had hoped that the events of the previous night were just products of another bad dream but, unfortunately, the lack of Donny’s warmth and smile in the morning was proof enough that I had indeed hurt him again by doing something incredibly stupid.
     
    Seriously, I should come with a fucking warning label.
     
    I debated on whether to call him right away and apologize once again or give him some space, a little time away from me to collect his thoughts and maybe realize that he’d be better off without me.
     
    The thought of doing either one of those things made my stomach turn, so instead, I dragged my stupid ass out of bed and into the shower to try and clear my head and think things through.
     
    But as I washed up, all I could think about was Tyler and what my continued calling him had done to him. Was I just hurting him more than I already had before? Because that was not my intention at all. I knew that if he was happy with his new boyfriend then I should leave him alone and let him keep moving forward with that Riley guy. The thing was, when I really got down to the heart of the issue, I realized that I didn’t want to let him go. The problem with that was that the longer I went on without him, the more I missed him and the more I wanted him back.
     
    Standing there in my shower, lathered in soap, reality smacked me upside the head. I’d wasted two years of my life going to therapy to try and convince myself that I’d done the right thing by leaving Tyler, pretending I was okay without him, but the truth of the matter was that I missed him more than I ever wanted to admit to myself.
     
    What in the world was I supposed to do with that realization?
     
    I couldn’t just break it off with Donny because of that, could I? I mean, I did love him, maybe not in the way I was supposed to, but in a real and true way. He was my best friend and probably one of the only reasons I’d made it through the two years of emotional hell after I’d arrived in Texas. Losing him on top of everything else would probably send me straight to the asylum.
     
    I knew just who I needed to talk to, so I shut off the shower, dried off, dressed then made a beeline for my cell phone and dialed that all too familiar number.
     
    “Alex!” was the greeting I got from the other end of the phone. “Hello, baby!”
     
    “Good morning, Mama! How are you?” It was always so good to hear her voice because I missed her so damn much.
     
    “I’m good, but I miss you, sweetie. When are you coming to visit?” That was the same inquiry I got every single time I called.
     
    “I’ll try to come soon, Mama, I promise. You know with work and everything, it’s crazy around here.” Not to mention how I can’t be trusted to be in the same city as Tyler without breaking down and running back to him.
     
    “I know it is and I’m still so proud of you for making it as far as you have.