I did to Ford, Sky and even you.”
Her tone was beginning to change. “I never asked you to punish yourself.”
“No, but I’m sure you wished worse for me.”
I started messing around with a couple dishes, shoving them into cabinets so it didn’t seem obvious that I was eavesdropping.
“I may have said things, but I didn’t mean them. You hurt me so much, Shayne. I thought we had something special, but to you I was just a piece of ass.”
The room got quiet for a few seconds and I half expected that Shayne had gotten up and walked out.
“You’re wrong, babe. I may not have admitted it, but you were so much more than that. I was stupid for takin’ you for granted. If I had a second chance, I’d do so much differently. I’d start by makin’ sure everyone knows that you belonged to me and I belonged to you, but it’s too late now. You’ve moved on and it’s clear to me that I lost my chance.”
I approached the doorway, but didn’t peek my head out. Lacey was obviously crying. I could hear her sniffling. “All I ever wanted was for you to love me, Shayne.”
“I do.”
I shook my head knowing damn well Shayne didn’t love the chick. He dicked around with her heart and was pissed that he’d been caught.
“I want to believe that, Shayne. I swear I do. It’s just that I don’t think I’m ready to be able to trust you.”
“Yeah, I get it.”
Her next words made my stomach curl. It made it clear that the woman wasn’t ready to give herself to me, not when she was still holding that lit candle for him. “But I don’t want to let you go, either.”
“What are you sayin’, Lace?” Shayne needed to be slapped. She was clearly giving him hope and he was playing dumb.
What a douche!
“Can I meet you at your house later so we can talk?”
“No. My dad kicked me out last night. Apparently, havin’ a kid is against the rules, even if it ain’t really mine.”
I covered my mouth to avoid them hearing me laughing. He’d gone and fucked up even more with his family. How stupid could he get?
“Where will you go?” When she asked that I wondered if Shayne was lying to her to get her to sympathize. It was a good plan, and she was taking the bait.
“I reckon I need to look for a place. I was plannin’ on buyin’ a paper and callin’ some places today. It ain’t like I’m goin’ to show up for work. My dad needs a couple days to cool off before I get anywhere near him.”
“I bet. Do you want some company when you’re looking?” Maybe I should have walked out and made a big deal out of it, revealing his act.
“Won’t he be mad?” Shayne wanted to know my feelings? This dude was fucking ridiculous.
But he was right.
I was pissed. I wanted Lacey in my bed and I was so close to having it.
“I think it’s best if we don’t talk about relationships today. I’ll go with you as a friend.”
“I’ll take whatever I can get.” Of course he would.
I waited until the door closed before walking out and confronting Lacey. I probably had no business doing it, but she was in my house, making plans with her ex after getting freaky with me moments ago in my kitchen. “You’re leavin’ aren’t ya?”
“It’s not like that, Joey. Please don’t make this any harder than it already is.”
I had to leave the room. I couldn’t look at her tear-filled eyes for another second. My balls were going to be aching for pussy that I was never going to have. I was pissed at myself for even letting myself get this involved with the chick. This wasn’t me and I needed to walk away before I lost my manhood. “You don’t need to explain, Lace. I’m a big boy. I get it. Shayne wants another chance and you’re goin’ to give it to him.”
She followed me. “It’s not like that, but I’m not going to lie to you. I still love him.”
The more I tried to avoid her, the more I felt myself being drawn back in. She was making me crazy.
Then I looked down into those eyes and fought the
Sharon Kleve, Jennifer Conner, Danica Winters, Casey Dawes