I almost believe him.
Almost.
“You were gone for hours,” I point out.
“I didn’t have a choice. She got one of her friends to lock us in together. Theo’s psycho parents put locks right outside his bedroom.”
I don’t know about the rest, but this part is true. There are locks outside Theo’s bedroom. I remember noticing them and thinking it was weird the first time we hung out at Theo’s place. Since it’s an old house, I assumed the last owners installed them. I can’t believe Theo’s parents put them there by choice.
Finn drags his palms down his face with a sigh. “Fuck, Dia, you have to believe me. Nothing happened.”
I don’t answer right away.
“I believe you.”
Shock colors his features. “You do?”
“Yes.”
“But?” he anticipates.
“But it doesn’t change the fact that you slept with Remy. Look, Finn, I just want to move on. I’d appreciate it if you let me.”
Against all expectations, he laughs. The asshole laughs as though I just told him a great joke.
“Who do you think you’re talking to, Gem?”
I’m about to reply when he fills the void between us. I stumble backward, struggling to keep up as Finn pins me against the wall and props his tattooed arms on each side of my head.
“Do I look like the type to give up on what I want?”
I. Can’t. Breathe.
“Dia, I love you. I don’t know how it happened, or what the fuck you did to me, but I’m in love with you. Do you understand what that means?” His breath mixes with mine, and my stupid body starts to ache for his touch.
What’s wrong with me?
Then he leans in closer to whisper against my mouth. “It means I’m not moving on from shit.”
I forget how to speak English for a moment.
“Yes, I slept with Remy,” he concedes.
I’m relieved to hear him say that. Don’t get me wrong, it hurts like hell, but at least he’s done lying.
“But I didn’t cheat on you. For fuck’s sake, Dia, we hadn’t even kissed when that video was filmed. We weren’t even close to getting together.”
Wait, what?
Could that be true?
No, no, it can’t.
“Then why did Remy say it happened recently?”
“Because she’s a fucking liar. That’s what Remy does. She sabotages things. For as long as I’ve known her, she’s destroyed every good thing in her life. She’s so mad at the world, she wants everyone to be miserable. Like she is.”
This version of events sounds too good to be true. It’d be so easy to just pin the blame on Remy.