Total pages in book: 235
Estimated words: 227851 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1139(@200wpm)___ 911(@250wpm)___ 760(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 227851 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1139(@200wpm)___ 911(@250wpm)___ 760(@300wpm)
My hope is dashed when I hear a thud and Lauren’s eyes move to the doorway. Fuck. Ava’s standing on the threshold, looking the most petrified I’ve ever seen her. God damn her.
“Oh my God,” she whispers, her eyes nailed to the blade in Lauren’s hand.
“Nice to see you, Jesse,” Lauren muses, a nasty, sinister edge to her voice, causing many horrific memories to come flooding back.
“No,” I whisper, so tense my body hurts. “It’s not. Why are you here?” Why now, after all these years, has she chosen to invade my life?
“I was happy to let you wallow in misery,” she says, making me pull in air, my questions being answered with that one scathing statement. It’s Ava. Happiness. Peace. That’s why she’s here. “Drink your life away,” she goes on, the knife swaying. “And try to fill the void that you created by mindlessly fucking about.” And there it is. She was happy that I was miserable. Hollow. In constant pain. “But then you went and fell in love.” She smiles, and it’s loaded with nothing but hatred. My God, how long has she been hovering on the sidelines of my life, watching me slowly dying? “I can’t let you have happiness when you’ve destroyed mine.”
“I’ve paid tenfold for my mistakes, Lauren,” I whisper, catching a glimpse of Ava. Her horrified face, her disbelieving, watery gaze. It crushes me. Absolutely fucking crushes me. It’s been Lauren all along. The drugs, the car, the threats. I wasn’t seeing things. I wasn’t going fucking crazy. “I deserve this,” I murmur, not sounding very convincing.
“No, you don’t,” she muses, like it’s a foregone conclusion. “You took my happiness, so I’ll take yours.” Her knife is pointing at Ava. My happiness. And Lauren’s happiness? That was me. It wasn’t Rosie. It was me. She’s here because I took me away from her.
“I didn’t take your happiness.” I was never going to be her happiness.
“Yes!” She explodes, her face flashing red, and I flinch. “You married me, and then left me.”
The sound of complete shock that bursts from Ava was expected. Doesn’t make it easier to hear. I want to explain, tell her the full story, build the picture, before Lauren gets to where I know she’s heading.
Rosie.
“You didn’t know?” Lauren says, seeing Ava’s reaction. “Well, there’s a surprise. It might also explain why you’ve stuck around.”
Jesus Christ, what the fuck am I going to do? Trying to pacify her won’t work. I’ve dealt with her enough to know what I’m dealing with, and I’m dealing with the same woman who lost her mind and gunned for me. If it were just me standing here, I’d take my chances. But it’s not just me. And I don’t like the crazed looks she keeps turning Ava’s way.
To Lauren, my wife’s the problem.
“Nothing can break us,” Ava whispers shakily, and I swallow, my heart turning. I want to believe it.
The sick feeling in my gut worsens as Ava gazes at me, scared, her head shaking mildly. I did this. Caused this. I walked her into the middle of this, and I don’t know if I can get her out unharmed. Get our babies away from this psychotic madwoman who has every intention of doing irrevocable damage.
“I’m so sorry.” How did I let this happen? What kind of man am I? “I should have told you.” Should have given her every detail, made her aware so she could at least recognize the signs.
“It doesn’t matter,” she says desperately.
“It does matter,” Lauren hisses. “She knows nothing, does she?”
I stare at Ava, wishing and hoping, wishing and hoping, my head shaking.
“She doesn’t know about our daughter?”
A sense of calm finality comes over me, my eyes closing briefly as I exhale, needing to escape the shock. But I catch Ava jerk and instinct has me moving toward her.
“Stay where you are!” Lauren screams, halting me, my breath held, my eyes set on my pregnant wife as she gasps for breath, feeling for something that isn’t there to steady herself.
“Ava,” I yell, startling her.
“Yes, we were married,” Lauren declares, proud. “And he left me when I was pregnant.”
What? No. She does not get to spin her tale. She does not get to be economical with the truth. “I was forced to marry you because you were pregnant,” I seethe, trying to keep a lid on the inevitable anger, pushing back visions of me walking on numb legs down the aisle. Walking toward my tragic fate. “I didn’t want to, and you knew it. We were seventeen years old, Lauren. We fooled around one time.” And she tricked me. Got me plastered. Helped me escape. Fuck!
“Don’t blame your decision on your parents.”
My parents? No. I blame her. “I was trying to right my wrongs. I was trying to make them happy.” And it was all wasted. I only made things worse. More tragic. “I—” I see Ava backing away in my side vision, but I don’t look her way. I keep Lauren’s eyes on me. Yes, get away. Run.