Three Years Later, He Came Back Begging novel Chapter 23

Lawrence didn’t make things complicated until he started joking around. “If you like her that much, what if I date her instead?” he teased, totally casual about it.

Odette only laughed and called him shameless, telling him to go ahead and try if he thought he could get past Shirley.

Bonnie’s mom, Shirley, was Lawrence’s homeroom teacher. Whenever she put on her serious face, nobody dared mess around. Lawrence would always half-joke that he was way too scared of her to even think about dating in high school.

But then, out of nowhere, he actually pulled it off. He really did start dating Bonnie.

At first, Hannah had no idea the girl Lawrence was spending all his time with was Bonnie. She just figured he was using some lame excuse to ditch her birthday, and skip out on her promotion celebration. She’d just become a principal dancer and wanted her family to be there.

Hannah was annoyed, so she threw herself into her work in Russia, ignoring Lawrence the whole time. He basically disappeared, too. Even their little four-person family group chat was almost silent.

Finally, she called home. Odette picked up and joked that Lawrence was so into his girlfriend now that he’d practically forgotten the rest of them. She asked Hannah to guess who the girl was.

Right then, Hannah was in the middle of dance practice. Her foot slipped off the barre, and the pain burned through her ankle. Still, the ache in her chest hurt so much more.

Odette gave her the answer. “It’s Bonnie. Shirley’s daughter.”

Bonnie. The talented one. Gorgeous, from a good family, the kind of person who looked like she belonged next to Lawrence — maybe even outshone him.

In March, right after Hannah finished her exchange program, she rushed home just in time for Lawrence’s birthday. She cooked a huge meal and even made a cake all by herself.

Her parents came home from work, but, of course, Lawrence was out with his girlfriend.

Hannah wouldn’t let it go. She called him over and over. He kept hanging up, but she just kept dialing until finally, he showed up. He looked irritated, barely pretending to smile. Even when he made his birthday wish, his mind drifted somewhere else. The only sign he was even listening was a tiny twitch at the corner of his mouth.

After dinner, he said he needed to head out. Every couple of seconds, he’d check his cheap Longines watch. Twenty times in ten minutes, maybe more.

Hannah grabbed his arm and pulled him into her room. She talked non-stop about things she thought he’d care about — everything she’d experienced in Russia, how tough ballet was, the prizes she’d won.

She kept him there, talking late into the night.

But Lawrence still left. He walked out and got into his ridiculous, over-the-top Koenigsegg.

Hannah knew the family had set him up with a giant apartment downtown once he turned eighteen. She stood beside the bus stop across from the building, waiting in the dark for hours.

Lost in her thoughts, she barely noticed Nana offering her a ride home. Just as she nodded, a car pulled up in front of them and stopped slowly.

The driver’s door opened, and a guy stepped out, making Hannah blink in surprise.

Nana saw him first and called out, “Jackson? You’re back too?”

She gave Hannah a suspicious little grin. “Wait a second, are you back because Hannah’s back?”

Jackson just gave a small nod and came around to open the passenger door. He glanced at Hannah. “I happened to see you here, let me give you a lift. I also want to talk to you about some things for the company.”

Hannah dropped her eyes, muttered goodbyes to Nana and the others, and got into Jackson’s car.

They drove a few blocks in silence before Hannah finally closed her eyes and let out a tired breath. “Why are you back?” she asked. “I thought you were set on staying at ABT?”

ABT — American Ballet Theatre — was a dream destination for every ballet dancer.

Jackson’s voice was soft. “We’ve been partners our whole lives. If you’re not there… none of it really matters. Besides, I just want to be with you…”