He Turned Me Down, So I Dated His Best Friend Instead Chapter 13

He Turned Me Down, So I Dated His Best Friend Instead Chapter 13

Not long after we started dating,

Mason began taking over his family’s company and was swamped every day.

Whenever I had free time,

I cooked for him and brought the food to his office.

After my second visit, everyone at the company recognized me.

I could come and go freely and wait for Mason in the executive lounge.

That day, I walked in and saw a man sitting with his back to me, looking at his phone.

I stepped up behind him and covered his eyes.

Laughing, I said,

“Guess what I made you today. Get it right, and I’ll let go.”

But when I’d finished,

he said nothing for a long moment.

Something felt wrong. I started to pull my hands away, but the man seized my wrist. His voice was

ice–cold.

“You’ve got the wrong person. I’m not him.”

I pulled free at once. “I’m sorry. I mistook you for someone else.”

“I thought you were Mason…”

Julian stood and faced me.

His throat bobbed. “You really like him that much?”

I met his eyes.

“What happens between Mason and me is none of your business.”

Julian gave a bitter laugh.

“If I hadn’t turned you down back then, you’d be my girlfriend now.”

“Mason wouldn’t even be in the picture.”

The words were painfully direct.

And cruel.

I was about to fire back

when someone stormed in and punched Julian in the face.

Mason was even angrier than I was.

He moved in front of me and demanded, “I treated you like a brother. Is this how you talk to my girlfriend?”

“Let’s get one thing straight. My girlfriend is the one who doesn’t want you.”

Julian took the punch and made no move to fight back.

He stood there.

For a long moment, he looked between Mason and me.

Then he picked up his suit jacket from the couch, glanced at the containers of food on the table, and left the lounge without a word.

I turned to Mason. “I’m sorry I never told you about him.”

He smiled.

“It’s okay. Everyone has a past. You don’t have to tell me now, or ever, if you don’t want to.”

Hearing that,

without warning,

tears stung my eyes. I wrapped my arms around him and said his name. “Mason.”

His answer was soft and steady. “I’m right here.”

That night,

I removed Julian from my contacts and unfollowed him everywhere.

Even then, I could remember how thrilled I’d been when we first exchanged contact information, as though I’d been handed something precious.

Now, deleting him took only a second.