* * * *
When I returned home, I had to knock on the door to get back into the house. Eric let me in, a frown plastered across his beautiful face.
“What the hell is going on with you, Patrick?” he asked after closing the front door behind me.
“I’m just having a meltdown. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take my anger out on you.”
“What are you angry about? The fact that Clay’s marrying another man?”
“No.”
Eric was quiet for a few seconds. “Do you want him back?”
“No.”
“Then what is it?”
“I just—I guess I’m still bitter about being rejected. I didn’t deserve to be treated like that.”
“You didn’t, but it happened and you need to move on from it. I felt the same way when my old boyfriend Matthew dumped me, and you know what happened as a result of that.”