2.8 | Miles Away

12 | twelve

  

A / N

Just gonna leave this here.

x Noelle

  

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1 2

(the one with Miles...for the time being)

I GLANCED AT the clock again and set my jaw in grim determination. Opposite, the guy at the administration desk didn't look a day over twenty-two. He was probably on his internship, and he squirmed nervously as I flicked a glance at him again.

Poor kid.

I felt a little sorry for him as I recalled what I'd done earlier. Perhaps it wasn't professional of me to storm into Hale & Co. and demand to see Miles, then stubbornly remain in the waiting area when administration said that he wasn't meeting anyone.

But I wanted—no, I needed answers.

Just then, the elevator doors pinged open. A light chatter filled the hall as workers streamed out. I glanced at them, searching for Miles as I'd always done whenever anyone left the elevator.

This time, however, I found him.

He was the last person to step out of the elevator. Dressed in a fitted black suit, his hair slicked back and files tucked under his arms, he fit the professional businessman look down to a tee. But unlike his friend Nate Johnson, who led the group with bright smiles and charming laughter, Miles ignored the conversation in favor for the document in his hands.

In a flash, I caught a glimpse of the boy he used to be. Studious, quiet, a wallflower. He had his head buried in books, escaping into fictional worlds because the one he lived in kept disappointing him. He built walls around himself to keep from getting hurt, but once he let you in...

You never wanted to leave.

I swallowed hard at the slow ache in my chest. I missed him—that version of him. He was here now, but he'd never felt farther away before.

I stood up, hoping to catch Miles's attention without drawing any to myself. Moments later, however, Nate spotted me. His eyebrows rose, but he nodded at me before turning to call Miles.

Miles looked up distractedly from the file, then froze when he saw me. "D-darcy?" For a moment, he looked so flustered that it was almost endearing. But then, he seemed to remember that we weren't alone, and his voice hardened. "What're you doing here?"

I tried not to falter under the stares from the other workers. Suddenly, it occured to me how out of place I must've looked—with a worn gray coat, curls tucked under a blue beanie and scruffy brown boots.

I took a deep breath and met Miles's gaze squarely. "I need a word with you—in private."

His eyes narrowed. Clearly, he realized that I was repeating what he'd said the day he dropped by Sereinn unannounced. He gave a short nod, and jerked his head in a silent gesture for me to follow him.

Deja vu flooded through me as we headed out to the balcony of Hale & Co. Where Sereinn's had overlooked the beach in all its natural grandeur, Hale & Co.'s overlooked the neighboring city. We were at a crossroad, in between busy traffic and towering buildings, looking out at a place with infinite opportunities and the chance to be someone after spending a lifetime in a town of no ones.

The only difference between then and now was that our roles were reversed.

As soon as the door shut, I spun round to face Miles. "We had a deal." Even though I tried, it was impossible to keep the edge of hurt out of my voice.

Miles's eyebrows rose. "And?"

"And?" I stared at him in disbelief. "You knew Sereinn wanted Blue Haven. And you promised that you'd at least look at my research before deciding anything. But it's not even been a week since you took the files, and Hale & Co.'s already bought over Blue Haven!"

He met my gaze steadily. "Did Sereinn bid?"

"That's not even the point—"

"Did Sereinn bid?"

I glared mutinously at him. "No, but we were going to—"

"When?" he asked. "A week from now? A month or a year?" When I fell silent, he folded his arms across his chest and leaned back against the railing. "Alpine Realty put Blue Haven up for sale five days ago, and Hale & Co. bought it because we could. What else would you have us do—wait around for Sereinn to raise funds that may or may not be sufficient to purchase Blue Haven? The opportunity presented itself—Hale & Co. took it because Sereinn didn't. That's all there is to it."

"Is it?" I couldn't help but ask. "So this has nothing to do with your old bullies at Blue Haven?"

His gaze hardened. "And what if it is?"

All the fire left me in a rush as I stared at him, feeling that slow ache from earlier intensify into a sharp pang. "Then I would be disappointed," I said quietly. "You know, Miles, when you returned to Caverly with Hale & Co. backing you, everyone else was suspicious. They thought you had some hidden vendetta against this town. I never believed them, because I believed in you. But now?" I let out a mirthless laugh. "Now, I'm not so sure what to believe anymore. You talk about how much you hate this town, then you buy over Caverly View and Blue Haven. You didn't even give Sereinn a chance—you didn't even give me a chance, even though you promised you would. I used to believe that you were the one person who would never, ever, intentionally do anything to hurt me. But I don't think that's true anymore."

If I hadn't been looking at him, I would've missed his flinch. A sharp sting of regret shot through me, and I almost wished to take my words back. But I'd meant what I said, so I didn't.

"You can go to your stupid events alone," I said, before I could rethink my decision. "Because our deal is done."

Without waiting for his reply, I spun on my heels and opened the door. As I left, I could almost feel his gaze on me, cold and heavy like the winter chill.