Page 38 of Worth Loving You

Holding the box out, I took one, biting off the tip as she sat next to me.

“So, spill the beans. What’s goin’ on?”

“Milo wanted me to go to New York with him this week on a business trip.”

She stopped chewing to gawk, slow blinking. “He wanted to take you to the Big Apple, and you said…no?”

“Yup.”

“Why? Girl, I would love to see New York.”

I rolled a shoulder and took another bite, catching a piece of chocolate that broke off. Pushing it into my mouth, I slurped at the juice trickling out. “Me, too.”

“Then why on earth did you say no?”

“To make a point. Milo always gets what he wants, no one ever tells him no. He’s going to learn he can’t push me around.”

She finished off her strawberry and flicked the leaves in the empty spot before choosing a second. “So, you made a statement.”

“I guess you could say that. He insisted, I told him no again, and he threw a fit. Even went so far as to start yanking my clothes off hangers while we were arguing.”

“Men and their egos.” She clucked her tongue, nibbling her treat.

“Yeah, well, I grabbed him by the elbow, forced him into the hallway, and locked him out the apartment.”

Again, she paused to stare incredulously.

“Oh, he did not like that!” I snorted, playing with the leaves on my half-eaten strawberry. “He was screaming and pounding on the door. Ordering me to let him back in, or else.”

“Or else, what?”

I rolled a shoulder. “I have no idea. I told him he had two minutes to leave, or I was calling the cops.”

“Chazzy! But the money—”

Wrinkling my features, I tossed the food back to the box and wiped my fingers on my sweatpants. “To hell with the money. I might, technically, be selling my sex to this man for a hefty price, but that doesn’t mean he owns me. My cunt is for sale, not my life.”

She snorted and slapped her palm over her mouth, turning beet red. “Chastity Lou, the things you say.”

“I told him to fuck off, we were over, and Milo got told a resounding, firm no for the first time in his life.”

A slow smile curled across her lips. “So, Chazz ain’t for sale.”

“Nope. My time is, but not me. Ever since, he’s been blowing up—”

As if he heard me, my cellphone started ringing.

Snickering, I motioned to it and slapped my palm to my thigh, leaning forward to swipe it off the coffee table. “My goddamn phone, leaving dozens of voicemails and text messages the last few days. And this morning, all this started,” I grumbled, waving around the living room.

She swallowed what was in her mouth, narrowing her lids. “You gonna forgive him?”

I stared at my screen. The call ended and almost immediately, I received a text.

You want me to suffer? Fine, I’m suffering. I’m fucking miserable. My entire trip is ruined. Please, Chazzy, talk to me. I can’t deal with this. Answer your fucking phone!

I smirked, swiping my thumb across the screen to dismiss the text. “Yeah, I’m going to forgive him. Milo is going to learn to respect me, however, or it’s over for real. I’m not like all those other chicks he has stashed around, ready to jump at the snap of his fingers. I will be respected, or he will have to kiss my fat ass goodbye.”

Trading the stem for a third strawberry, she shook her head. “I wish I had your strength, sugar. I would put my foot down with Gary in a heartbeat.”