Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 86158 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86158 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“Come here,” I said, striding forward. She let me pull her against my chest, and she wrapped her arms around my waist with a shudder. Her forehead hit my sternum with a thud.
Seconds later, though, she was pulling away.
“You smell like her perfume,” she said hoarsely, avoiding my eyes.
Chapter 15
Charlie
I knew it wasn’t fair, but for the first time since I’d met him, Bishop disgusted me. I reached up to wipe off my face, but I could still smell the fruity perfume that Tabitha wore. I hadn’t liked it when she’d come to work and make the entire cart stink, but now it made my stomach churn with nausea.
“She was in my truck,” Bishop said, lifting his t-shirt to sniff it.
“You’re making the entire room stink,” I replied, wiping at my face again. Had it rubbed off on me?
“Sorry,” he said, taking a couple steps back. His brows were drawn together in confusion, like he couldn’t figure out why I was being a jerk.
I honestly wasn’t sure why, either. I just knew that I wanted him out. It wasn’t fair—but who the hell said life was fair? While I’d been hustling trying to get my life back on track, not exploring what Bishop I had, he had been dating the woman who was the whole reason my life had gone to shit in the first place.
What a cosmic fuck up.
“Can you just go?” I said, hysteria bubbling up in my chest. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could manage to keep my emotions in check.
“You want me to leave?” he asked calmly. I knew he was trying to diffuse whatever was happening, but there was no stopping it. My skin started to tingle and itch as I got another whiff of that fucking fruit perfume.
“Please,” I said, waving him off. “Please, you stink.”
He huffed in disbelief but he didn’t move. He just stared at me like he was trying to figure me out. Finally, when I reached up and covered my nose with my hand, he turned on his heel and strode out the door.
The smell was everywhere. No matter how I waved my arms around and opened all the windows, it still seemed to linger. Finally, I decided that the perfume must have gotten on me somehow.
I hopped in the shower and scrubbed, tears of frustration rolling down my face. God, how stupid I’d been.
Knowing that someone was badmouthing me was bad enough. I’d been a jittery mess all night while Draco, Kara and I had tried to figure out the best way to fix the situation. By the time Bishop had shown up with Tabitha, I’d already spent half the night in tears.
The sense of betrayal was so strong that I had no idea how I’d get past it. I knew that he’d had no idea. I knew that he’d done nothing wrong. But logic had absolutely no sway when it came to emotion.
I wanted to hit him. I wanted to hurt him. I wanted him to feel the way I was feeling. To hurt as bad as I hurt. I wanted to scream at him. To make him feel as small and embarrassed as I did.
It scared me, this overwhelming urge to get revenge.
Tabitha and Mary and Bishop had gotten all tangled up together in my fury and I couldn’t figure out how to untangle them.
I got out of the shower and toweled off quickly, throwing my hair up as I hurried back into my room. I couldn’t stay in the same house with him. I needed to get out of there before I did something stupid. I got dressed, and without bothering to pack a bag, I left.
I cried the entire way to my parents’ house. I wasn’t sure if it was anger or frustration or hurt that had me practically sobbing, but I guessed it didn’t really matter.
“The hell?” my dad asked, swinging the trailer door open after the third time I’d knocked. “Charlotte?”
“Can I stay here?” I asked.
“Stupid question,” he grumbled, stepping out of the doorway.
I made my way inside, running my hands along the walls as I climbed the stairs in the dark.
“What’s going on, baby?” my mom called from bed. I could hear her rustling around, and less than a minute later, she was there, wrapped in a hastily donned robe, her arms around me.
“It’s been a shitty night,” I replied, my voice wobbling.
“Who do I need to kill?” she replied, rubbing my back. “Don’t worry, your dad won’t let me get caught.”
“You’re too pretty for jail, Ladybug,” my dad joked as he scooted around us.
“Figured out why the business is tanking,” I said, my face still buried against my mom’s shoulder.
“You did?” she asked in surprise, pulling far enough away to see my face.
“The girls I fired have been badmouthing the cart,” I replied, the news no longer seeming as important as it had that afternoon.