“No time,” I said. “I’ve already worked too late.” No getting in without my password.
Graham stayed bent like that for a moment. After the green turned black. He stared at it. I swallowed and took a step away from him.
Then he stood up, smiling.
My blood turned to ice.
I’d seen this smile before, the night we broke up. It was like everything died in him. His eyes went black. Smile cold.
“Another time then, darling,” he said, and left.
I waited for Graham to leave, and then I waited even longer after he left, staring at the empty doorway.
It hadn’t always been bad between me and Graham.
When I’d first met Graham, it was like one of the meet-cutes from my book. I’d been working late and got locked in the building. Graham was there, speaking with a scientist about investing in their tech, when the meeting went long. So we spent the night learning everything about each other, from hobbies to favorite foods to siblings. Graham had no siblings, and he was estranged from his parents.
The next day, he bought me a whole case of Charleston Chews because I’d mentioned I liked them once, offhand, but they were hard to find.
When I got home, I found the kitchen unusually clean. The normal pile of dishes in the sink washed, dried, and put away.
“Is she home?” I heard the muffled voices of Olly and Eames outside the door.
“I heard the door open,” Eames said.
“Maybe we’re being burgled…” The door opened and Lithie’s voice went from smothered to crystal clear.
“I told you she was home,” Olly said. “Lithie got us a new book!” She held up a neon-pink book with a haphazard title font. “It’s dark omegaverse.”
“No more bullshit triangles,” Eames said.
Lithie swiped her hands out wide. “Bow to me, your lord and savior of finding our next book hangover— What’s wrong?” Lithie’s face changed when she saw me.
I exhaled. “Nothing.”
“Bitch, if you lie?—”
“I saw Graham,” I said.
My shoulders felt like they weighed a million pounds. Dropping my bag to the floor, and without bothering to kick my shoes off despite our no-shoes-in-the-house policy, I went to the couch. They followed me.
“What did he do?” Eames asked.
“Nothing,” I said. “Really.”
I rubbed the fabric of my jeans.
Lithie inhaled sharply through her nostrils. “What did that abusive motherfucker?—”
“I wasn’t abused,” I said quickly, meeting her honey eyes. I ignored the little voice in my head trying to draw attention to a night not long ago, when I stayed up, learning about emotionally abusive relationships.
“Before Graham, you were confident and funny and a totalbrat.You don’t notice, but people are drawn to you, because you have such a light, Shay. And I will never fucking forgive him for making you feel like you needed to dim yourself to be loved.”
I worked my mouth.
“And knowing you, you hate it too,” Lithie continued. “You’re beating yourself up every time you have a negative thought about yourself.”
“He never hit me,” I said.
