Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 119152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 596(@200wpm)___ 477(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 596(@200wpm)___ 477(@250wpm)___ 397(@300wpm)
I shake my head. This is silly. She didn’t set the fire, and she’s not sabotaging my relationship. I’m just tired, and all things Ben are in my head. The children return from lunch, and I spend the rest of the day focused on cutting construction paper, learning about frogs, and counting how many fingers and toes we have. When the end of the day finally approaches, I gather backpacks and line everyone up.
“Remember to tell your moms and dads about the field trip permission slips.”
“My mommy is in Mexico with her girlfriend. Can I ask my nanny?”
I pat Elizabeth on the head. “You sure can. Everyone, have a great rest of your day.”
Once all the children disperse, I go back to my desk and pull my phone from my drawer. I have a missed call from Hannah and a text from Ben.
Ben: Fire right before shift ended. Carpool with Mary. She’ll drop you at the station. You can ride me home from there.
I snicker at his innuendo and smile, shaking my head. I could really get used to this treatment. I may stall a bit longer getting a new car. Grabbing my work bag, I shut my light off and walk down the hall to the office. This giddy feeling is new for me, and I never want it to end. Aunt Karen pops into my mind. I can’t wait to call her and update her on my life. That poor woman has sat through way too many Ben Wallace rants. She’s going to fall out of her chair when she gets the latest update.
I reach the office and walk in. “Hey, Christine. Is Mary still here?”
“Of course, but she’s in a meeting.”
“That’s fine. I’ll wait.” I take a seat and pull out my phone. I’m texting Ben back when a call interrupts. Jenny. My finger hovers over the answer button. Oh, just answer it. Friend or not, she tried to sabotage my relationship. Lying like that is not cool. Did she think I wouldn’t find out? That Ben would come home, believe her lies, send me packing, and run into her arms? Well, it almost sent you packing. I groan at the horrible fight. All because she lied. Screw this.
“Hey,” I answer.
“Thank God you answered. Hey, can we talk?” Her voice is laced with guilt.
“Um. . . sure. What’s up?”
Jenny releases a dramatic sigh. “Mak, I’m so sorry. I did something yesterday I’m so ashamed of.”
Her confession surprises me. Then again, I respect her honesty. She’s not a bad person. She has feelings, and people make mistakes. “I know. It was probably not the coolest thing to do. I thought you were my friend. Lying to Ben like that, that’s messed up, Jenny.”
“I know. And I’m so ashamed, but I have to tell you why I did it.”
“Okay. . .”
“I shouldn’t have said the things I said to Ben. It was in the heat of the moment. Our fight got so intense, it just came out.”
Them having a fight is news to me. “Fight?”
“Yeah. He was so mean. Said all these awful things to me. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to hide what we were doing, but I didn’t know you two were a thing. He told me you weren’t.”
Okay, now she has my attention. “Wait, what were you hiding?”
A sob breaks through the line. “Mak, I tried to warn you. Tell you he’s not a great guy. He’s been playing us both. When he’s not with you, he’s been here. He told me nothing was going on between you two. It was just him feeling bad because he was a dick to you when you were kids. He fed me all these lies. Told me he loved me.” She breaks down, but I’m still stuck in some alternate universe where she just told me Ben has been sleeping with her. After what she pulled before, she thinks I’m going to fall for this? Ben has pegged her to be exactly what she is: Certifiable.
“Jenny, slow down. You’re trying to tell me you and Ben have been. . . together?” This is ridiculous.
“Yes, I’m so sorry. I’m a horrible friend. But he’s so convincing. He led me to believe he really did love me.” My head starts to spin. My gut tells me to tell her off. Then again, I’m sitting in the school office with Christine not four feet away. “If you don’t believe me, I have proof. I’ll show you all the messages.”
Not only do I not believe her, but I’ve had enough. She’s taken this way too far. “Jenny, I really don’t know what to say. . .” Except you’re crazy. God, why did I never see the signs earlier?
“Where are you? Can we meet?”
I’m hesitant to reveal that information. But then I realize, maybe it’s obvious. “I’m at school. Now’s not a good time—”