“I don’t know,” I said, a small knot forming in my stomach.
He wouldn’t just leave me here… would he?
I sighed. “I guess I’ll go see if I can find him in there.”
I gave Lucy and Owen quick hugs before heading toward the building, clutching my purse with my new phone tucked safely inside.
Hopefully, my fake boyfriend was somewhere around here.
The building was much quieter than the lawn outside. Only a handful of people lingered near the bar and along the hallway.
Theo stood off to the side, talking with a middle-aged couple. When he noticed me walking through, his brow furrowed slightly, like he could tell something was off. But I just gave him a quick wave and kept moving.
I checked the hallway outside the bathrooms first.
No sign of Miles.
Maybe he was inside?
But when I stepped into the men’s restroom entrance and called, “Miles, are you in there?” there was no answer.
Okay, then.
I slipped into the women’s restroom to use it before heading back outside.
But as soon as I closed the stall door, I heard someone sniffle quietly in the stall next to mine like they’d been crying. My gaze drifted downward, and I immediately recognized the sparkly gold wedges visible beneath the divider.
They were Alessi’s wedges.
I’d noticed them earlier because they were so cute.
Why was Alessi crying in the bathroom?
The toilet beside me flushed, so I hurried to finish before stepping out to wash my hands.
Alessi was already standing at the sink, pumping soap into her palms. When she looked up, I caught her reflection in the mirror.
Her eyes were slightly red.
So, yeah. She had definitely been crying.
“What’s wrong?” I asked gently.
She gave a small, shaky laugh, clearly still recovering from whatever had upset her.
“Oh, nothing,” she said. “I’m just… I don’t know. I’m in a weird headspace today.”
“Oh,” I said softly. “I’m sorry.”
I dried my hands and then stepped forward, wrapping her in a quick hug. After a moment, I asked, “I saw you and Miles arguing earlier. Does it have anything to do with that?”
Alessi let out a long sigh. “Yeah… I guess.”
“Want to talk about it?”
“Not really.” She shook her head almost immediately, pulling back from the hug. “It’s dumb.”
“Okay,” I said, studying her face for a second. I didn’t want to push if she didn’t want to talk.