Free Heven & Hell Anthology (Heven and Hell) by Cambria Hebert Page B

watching them through the window tonight, the way he had pulled her close, the blankets piled on the couch.
     
    Eventually, the tears stopped and reality returned. Sitting on Travertine tile was not comfortable, even if it was heated. I stood, wiping my face and grabbing the latté from the machine. I went upstairs where I dumped half a bottle of my most expensive bubble bath into the Jacuzzi tub and turned the water as hot as it would go.
     
    In my room, I took off the red dress and stared down at the bright red color.
     
    I was angry.
     
    No, I was pissed.
     
    I was done being friends with a girl who would treat me this way. I was done being in the shadows. It was time for a little payback. And as far as I knew, payback couldn’t be bought at Walmart (wouldn’t that be convenient?).
     
    But maybe… maybe I had my payback right here.
     
    I glanced down at the little green bottle sitting innocently beside my bed.
     
    Without another thought, I grabbed it and tilted it to my lips.
     
    *    *    *
     
     “Cole,” I gasped, surprised that he was standing there. “What are you doing here?”
     
    He looked tired. His usually clear blue eyes were dull, and he had that look that said there was something wrong. I felt a moment of happiness because he came to me with whatever was bothering him and not Heven.
     
    “Sit down. What’s wrong?” I asked, preparing to be the best comforting girlfriend I could be.
     
    “I came to apologize,” he said, catching me off-guard.
     
    I sat up in the lounge chair, dropping the magazine I had been barely paying attention to. “Apologize for what?” Like the fact that you slept with my best friend? I couldn’t stop the bitter thought from spearing through my head.
     
    “For the other night, when we got into that fight. I acted like an ass. I had too much to drink and I’m sorry.”
     
    “You’re forgiven.” I sniffed then and drew my feet up so there was room for him to sit next to me on the chair.
     
    “That’s the thing, Kimmie,” he said, sitting in the chair next to mine. “I’m tired of being forgiven. I’m tired of fighting.”
     
    “We wouldn’t fight so much if you would stay away from Heven,” I snapped. This was not going the way I thought it would.
     
    “I told you there is nothing going on between me and Heven. Why won’t you believe me?”
     
    Because I saw you with my own two eyes. I saw you touching her. “Because you’re lying to me.”
     
    Cole sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose with this finger and thumb. “I want to break up.”
     
    I stilled, wondering if I heard what I thought I heard. “Excuse me?”
     
    “I’m sorry. I still care about you, but this isn’t working anymore. I’m tired of fighting, of hurting you, of you not believing me.”
     
    “You’re breaking up with me!” I demanded. If that wasn’t confirmation that he was sneaking around with Heven, I didn’t know what was.
     
    “I really hope we can still be friends.”
     
    “Oh, no,” I said, rising from my chair, giving him a full-on view of me in my new killer bikini. Let him eat his heart out. “ I don’t get the friends speech. I give it.” He didn’t even have the grace to check me out, but kept his eyes on my face. “Oh, it’s definitely over,” I spat. “You’re going to regret this.”
     
    “I’m sorry. I never wanted to hurt you, Kimber.”
     
    “Yeah, well. If anyone should be sorry, it’s me. I’m sorry I wasted so many years on such a jerk!”
     
    I stepped over the chair to run past him into the house, but he grabbed my wrist and spun me around. “Don’t be like that.”
     
    I gave a halfhearted attempt to pull away before giving up. This was probably the last time he would ever touch me. Sure, we had broken up a million times in the couple of years we were together, but this seemed final somehow. “Like what?”
     
    “Like all my time with you was a waste. It wasn’t.” His voice was low, and