“You wanna grab a bite to eat?” Antonio asks, poking his head in my room. “Roberto and I are taking Sofia to the station.”
I shake my head. “Nah, man. I’m good. Not hungry.” My stomach decides to call me a liar and rumble.
He frowns. “You sure?”
I nod again. “Yeah, man. I’m good.” I’m not great company right now, and I don’t need to dampen on my family’s good mood. We got the call earlier from social services that they were closing Sofia’s case. Roberto is old enough, responsible enough, and has his shit together as a retired vet to be trusted with the welfare of our baby sister. It’s good news. I should be with them celebrating but I just—I can’t get my mind in the right head space for it.
“Alright. Let us know if you change your mind.” With that he leaves, and I do exactly what I’ve been doing this past week. Think. But no matter how much I analyze my problem, I still can’t find a fucking solution. This isn’t like a mathematical equation with only one answer. There are too many variables and my brain struggles to figure them all out, but three weeks is three weeks too long. Something needs to give.
My phone pings beside me and I check the screen. A somewhat familiar number flashes and against my better judgement, I answer it. “Hello.”
“Hey, E—“ A breathy voice says on the other end of the line.
I roll my eyes at the ceiling and throw myself down on my bed. “What do you want?”
There’s a pause. “It’s me. Kaitlyn.”
“And?” I ask. Is her name supposed to mean something to me? I know at least four Kaitlyns. Five if you count Sofia’s friend, but I’m pretty sure she isn’t the one calling me. There’s a different girl hitting me up damn near every day. At first I played along. I wanted to see if it made Bibiana jealous. I wanted to know if she cared. But all it took was the one time I caught hurt on her face for me to put an end to that. Only now, I can’t get the girls to back off.
“So, I was thinking, umm, there’s this party.”
“Pass,” I say and hang up the phone, dropping it on the comforter beside me. Rolling to my feet I head for the kitchen, ignoring the buzz of my phone as another call comes in. Leave a voicemail, or don’t. Either way, I’m not answering and I’m not calling any of these chicks back.
I’m almost to the refrigerator when there’s a knock at the door that stops me. It sounds again. You’ve got to be kicking me. They’re showing up at my house now? This is going too far. I clench my teeth and storm to the door, jerking it open only to be greeted by the one asshole I definitely do not want to see. Not today. Not tomorrow. Not fucking ever.
“What are you doing here?” I bite out, hands fisted at my sides.
Jae stands there like the smug bastard he is. Dressed in black jeans, a white shirt so long it reaches mid-thigh, and a black beanie he glowers at me, almost like he’s just as unhappy to see me as I am to see him.
I lean against the doorjamb with zero plans to welcome him inside. “Well?”
His lips tighten and a muscle jumps in his jaw. “I’m here for Bibiana,” he says, and I fold my arms over my chest. Right. Because she would totally send this asshole to come find me.
I straighten. Wait. What if she did send him to find me? What if something happened? To her or to Luis. “What happened?” The words barely make it out of my mouth before I’m grabbing my keys off the counter and brushing past him.
He jogs to keep up. “Where are you going?” he asks, irritation in his voice.
“To Bibiana. What happened? Is she hurt? Is Luis—“
“No. They’re both fine.”
I pull up short. “Then why the fuck are you here?”
He exhales a harsh breath. “I’m here because she isn’t and because someone needs to talk some goddamn sense into you.”
I bark out a laugh. Oh. This is rich.
“Why the fuck do you care?” I swear it’s like I can’t catch a fucking break. All week I’ve had to watch my girl from a distance. I’ve had to pretend I’m fine with this situation when I’m anything but. I’ve had to watch her get out of this asshole’s car every goddamn morning only to climb back into it at the end of the day. And he’s here to what? Rub it in my face that Bibiana doesn’t want me anymore? That she was pissed off about something I didn’t even do and decided to make decisions that don’t only affect her life, they affect mine.Fuck.This is bullshit.
“Fuck off. I have nothing to say to you.” I turn to storm back to my front door.
His eyes narrow and he takes two steps forward, blocking my way and shoving his finger into my chest. It takes everything in me not to swing for his face. The guy has some fucking nerve showing up while he’s moving in on what’s mine. And no one can convince me that that isn’t exactly what he’s doing.
“Fuck me? Really. God, you’re such a child. Grow the hell up, man.”
My nostrils flare. “Get out of my way.”
“Not until you hear me out.”
