I frowned at him, hating the disgusted tone in his voice. “Reece, he cares about you. We all do. And Ming asks about you all the time.”
He shrugged, once again avoiding my gaze. “Don’t turn this into a lecture now, Brooklyn.”
I nodded softly, holding back on, what he claimed to be, a lecture.
“I love you,” I whispered, not expecting a reply before I left the apartment.
48
BROOKLYN
Ihadn’t seen the inside of an arena in almost a month.
Ever since Tobias passed, Reece didn’t bother to leave the apartment, not even to take out the trash or just breathe in some fresh air.
I was kicked out of the competition since I hadn’t attended a single one in a month, and though it stung at first, I was kind of glad figure skating was one last thing I had to worry about.
I understood Reece was struggling, so it would’ve made me a bad person had I gotten mad at him for being a no-show for practice and competitions. Actually, he wasn’t even a no-show since Iknewhe wouldn’t have come even when he promised he would.
Watching him break every promise he made was painful, but I had no way of knowing what his father dying did to him. Sure, I saw he wasn’t okay, and I tried my very best to cheer him up… but he didn’t want my help.
All I knew was that if my dad died, I wouldn’t have known how to function either.
But I worried abouthim so much.
Since his father’s funeral, Reece had been keeping to himself—to an extent, anyway.
If Reece wasn’t attempting to fuck me every other hour, or I shot him down, he was drinking. A lot.
He didn’t attend his classes, no hockey at all, and, as already mentioned, no practice with me either. He skipped so many of his games and practices that his coach threatened to kick him off the team if he didn’t come back next week.
With every passing day, he turned more and more into a ghost. He drank so much more that just last Tuesday, I had to ask my dad to spend the night at our place because I couldn’t watch my own fiancé all by myself.
He barely ate, and if he did, it was only because we compromised, even though I somehow managed to convince him that it wasn’t a compromise so he wouldn’t feel bad about it. I offered to be late for classes every morning just so we’d have an extra hour in bed together, but in return, he’d have to eat breakfast with me. I did the same after classes and for dinner as well.
It felt like no surface of our apartment was safe anymore, and I hated it. I hated it so much that I started to stay out with Rina and Ming longer. I went to visit my family for hours without him because I knew that if I asked him to come—and he’d actually agree, which he never did—he’d just find a moment to drag me into my old bedroom to fuck me there.
I never thought I’d ever say this, but I wassodone with having sex. I needed a goddamn break, but I didn’t know how to tell Reece without making him feel bad about it.
It’s not that I didn’t want to have sex with Reece. I proposed the deals in the first place, and if I said no, he didn’t complain and accepted my decision. I simply wasn’t built for sexat leastthree times a day, every single day. It was more sometimes.
With a shaking hand, I unlocked the door to our apartment, taking a deep breath because I knew what was about to happen.
Only that instead of smelling alcohol and finding Reece glued to the sofa, he was standing in the kitchen, cooking.
He immediately looked at me as I entered our apartment, smiling brightly.
“Hi,” he spoke softly. “How was school?”
I dropped my bag by the door, slipping out of my loafers, and taking off my jacket. “Okay, I guess.”
After hanging up my jacket, I turned around just for Reece to stand right in front of me. Startled, I looked up at him.
“Did you take notes?” he asked, grasping my chin with one hand.
I held my breath as I nodded, waiting for him to kiss me. Waiting for that kiss to get more passionate until I found my dress on the floor and his hands all over me. To my surprise, he only quickly, softly pressed his lips on mine before making his way back to the stove.
He didn’t taste like alcohol this time.
