Total pages in book: 196
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
“We’ll be around. You know how to reach us if you need anything.” I felt kind of bad that these guys weren’t with the rest of their squad and were instead babysitting us, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t prefer it this way.
Even with my security and hers, there was no denying that Lyon’s guys had them all beat hands down, and I’d come to trust every one of them in the time that I’ve known them. Lyon doesn’t strike me as the type to work with anything but the best, after all.
She dragged the door open after checking the security camera and all but fell into my arms. “Ryder, what on earth are you doing here? Hi guys.” She grinned at them as they waved over their shoulders as they walked away.
They didn’t head back the way we came, but I didn’t think much of it since she was dragging me inside, and when her lips found mine, I forgot about everything else.
***
*Janie*
I jumped awake and stayed disoriented for a few seconds more, not knowing where I was or how I got there. The last thing I remember was the car behind me turning on their bright lights and then nothing. I was still in the car, strapped in with the engine off, and no recollection of any of it.
A quick look outside showed that it was still dark, full dark now, and I think I was on the same stretch of lonely road I’d been on since getting off the interstate hours earlier. I didn’t see anything else outside my window except the treetops, which kept the moonlight out.
It was still, too still, beyond the window, and it took me a second to realize that the chirping sound I heard was not birds but my phone going off with updates. I picked it up and tried to smack the nasty taste from my mouth. There was a lingering metallic taste from the pills I’d taken without water, and my eyes were still a bit hazy with sleep.
I sat up straight, all semblance of sleep gone when I saw what all the fuss was about. First, my friends were all asking if I’d seen something online, and the link took me first to Elena’s page and then to Ryder’s. The first image, the one she’d posted, looked exactly like the one the little bitch had sent me, and the one from his page was obviously taken on the same day because they were standing in the same window wearing the same clothes.
It was only then that I realized they were wearing pajamas. He wore the bottoms while she wore the top. In the second photo, it was hard to miss the edge of the bed, and from the angle, it was obvious that the camera or phone, whichever they had used, had been resting on something, unlike the first image, where it was obvious that he had been the one taking the picture.
The amount of thought that had gone into taking it was the first thing that hit me, then the comfy way they looked together like a loving couple just enjoying some downtime. I couldn’t even scream at first; I was too shocked to make a sound or get anything past my lungs.
And then I let loose and started beating the hell out of the inside of the piece of shit car, banging myself up in the process. The comments were worse than the fucking pictures, and I felt rage boiling beneath the surface.
People were congratulating them. Not just stupid fans, but other celebrities, some of whom I’d thought were my friends. Some people were talking as if they’d expected this all along and had only been biding their time.
For the next fifteen minutes, as I sat there and read, oblivious to my surroundings and anything else around me, I came to realize what those people really thought about me. It was as if they had only been waiting for an opportunity to open up and say what they truly felt.
Some made the comment that they guessed the whole black magic thing was true after all and told him they were happy that he was finally free of my evil. There was mention of how good the two of them looked together, how much healthier he looked compared to the way he’d looked during his years of marriage to me.
The comments were brutal and spared no feelings, but the worst was the way they tore me down. I felt the need to crawl out of my skin. I wanted to be in New York with my hands wrapped around that bitch’s throat, but I knew I still had a long way to go before I got there, and that was the worst feeling of all.
I was stressed and confused as I reached for another handful of pills, realizing then that the bottle was almost empty. I wanted to call someone, but who could I call? There was no one, and for the first time, I think I understood what it meant to feel like you were losing one’s mind. I was on the brink.