Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 77005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
He sounds so stressed I want to hold him and tell him it’s going to be alright. Shane handles adversity so well I sometimes forget he’s still hurting from the betrayal. You can’t just flip a switch, like he once told me. It makes me think of my father and how long he’s held onto his feeling for my mother. God, I hope that’s not what’s in store for him.
There’s a pause and then I think I hear feminine tears falling. “I just… I just wish we could go to counseling. I think if we did that, had we done it earlier, none of this would’ve happened.”
“We’ve been over this a hundred times. We don’t love each other anymore.”
“I still love you.”
“No, you don’t. And I don’t love you. And quite frankly––and I am not saying this to hurt you––I don’t think we ever really loved each other.”
Okay, so I shouldn’t feel good about that. But like… I do.
“You don’t mean that,” she continues.
“I do. I’ve had a lot of time to think about it.”
“Let’s talk about this inside,” she keeps pressing.
“No.”
“Are you seeing someone? Is that why you won’t go to counseling? I can be patient, Shane. Have your fun. I get that you want… I don’t know… revenge?”
My God, this woman is persistent.
“No, I’m not seeing anyone else. And no, I don’t want revenge. I don’t want to be with you. Do you understand? I don’t love you. I don’t think of you anymore, Kaya. Not ever.”
If he had taken a sledgehammer to my heart, it would’ve hurt less.
“You’re so fucking cruel. This is why I slept with Aidan. Because you’re mean and he understood that better than anyone.”
I have to put a stop to this before she destroys all the hard work Aidan and Shane have done to repair their relationship. To that end, I pat my hair down and make sure my t-shirt is tucked and tidy.
“Mr. Hughes? I’m done cleaning.” I say, stepping out of the trailer blank-faced. My gaze darts between the two beautiful high-fliers standing a few feet away, facing off. They look like a matched set.
Kaya examines me like I’m a spider she caught in her home. Kaya’s a red fox; beautiful and cunning, opportunistic. She’s wild like Shane. Not domesticated. If you try to domesticate her, you’ll come home to find it destroyed.
I’m pretty sure she doesn’t buy my little act, but it doesn’t matter. It’s an excuse to distract her and get us out of here.
“I’ll get my shoes and drive you home,” Shane mutters.
With an expression of disgust, Kaya shakes her head and opens the door to her new red Porsche Cayenne. “Fucking the housekeeper, Shane? Really?”
She gets in and starts the engine. Then she floors it in reverse. We have to jump out of the way to avoid being covered in dirt.
Once the taillights fade, I let my shoulders drop and take a deep, painful breath. “Take me home.”
If this was a date, it sucked.
“Can you say something?”
I turn the volume up on the radio and he turns it off. He looks worried. Well, tough turds. I’m devastated. It’s musical chairs all over again and I’m the odd man out.
Things I learned today: I am much dumber that I estimated. I’m like… in the top percentile of dumb people. I keep making the same mistake over and over.
He taps the steering wheel with his thumbs. A nervous tick. Does anyone care? Not me.
“If I told her we were seeing each other, she’d never leave me alone. She doesn’t care about me, Blue. She’s only interested in accumulating people and things. It’s a game to her. Once she knows she has you, she loses interest.”
All that may be true, but it still doesn’t make me feel better. It doesn’t make me feel valued and important to him. I’m still a third-class citizen.
“Blue…” Reaching over, he tries to take my hand and I rip it away.
“Please don’t.” I fold my hands on my lap.
We drive the rest of the way home in silence, the tension filling every nook and cranny in the car. By the time he parks in front of the guesthouse, night has fallen. The lights are on in Aidan’s trailer and the farmhouse.
This is where I belong. This is where I feel safe. “Maybe it’s for the best. You’re leaving soon anyway and I belong here. Despite what you may have heard, love does not in fact conquer all.”
I push the car door open and jump out.
“Blue, stop. I’m sorry.”
I walk away and he gives chase––not that I want him to. Especially not where other people can hear us.
“Stop,” he says in a regular volume and grabs my bicep.
“Keep your voice down,” I hiss.
“Why? Because you don’t want anyone knowing we’re together?”
“Because I don’t want to be humiliated in font of everyone I know when you throw me over, that’s why!” I hiss back.