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I glance at the bathroom door. Everything feels numb, as if I’m dreaming. Any moment he’s going to come rushing from the bathroom, telling me there’s been a mistake. It doesn’t happen, though. Of course it doesn’t. This is real life, and in real life, married men don’t leave their wives for the ugly, fat friend. My eyes water. He’s right when he said I should go home. I don’t belong here. I never did.
The check is still on the bed. I lift it. Fifty-thousand dollars. That’s the price he put on our time together. Anger rips through me and I tear the paper, dropping it on the bed.
Holding my head high, I walk out of the room. Razoul waits outside of the door. I’m barely hanging on, knowing that he’s been sent to take care of me. To make sure I leave…
“Mr. Jafar has asked that I give you a ride back to your hotel.”
I shake my head. “I’ll take a cab.”
“I insist.”
I can tell he’s not going to let this go, so I nod. He leads me to the elevator. The ride down is silent. I wonder how many times he’s had to do this for Jafar. A few? Ten? More? He’s calm as he opens the door to a car, waiting for me to slip inside. Soft music plays as we make our way across town to the hotel. When we come to a stop, I open my door before he can unbuckle.
“Thank you, Razoul.”
I bolt, not wanting to see pity in his eyes.
My mind races. I need to pack, book a flight, let Ty know I’m coming back to work early… Do I need to let the detective know I’m leaving town? And there’s Gemma. I need to reach out and let her know what’s happened. My stomach swirls. I just want to leave…
I’m deep in thought as I enter the hotel, and I run into someone.
“I’m sorry.”
“I’m sure you are.”
“Dru. What are you doing here?”
She gives me a long look. “I’ve been waiting for you. For four days now.”
“You’ve been in the lobby?”
She sighs, as if I’m slow. “No. I’ve stopped by several times. Each time they’ve said you’re out, which I knew.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
“Cut the crap, Ellie. I saw you leave the restaurant with Jafar the other day, and I have it on good authority that he took you to one of his penthouses before the two of you were seen leaving town.” She sneers. “How could you do this to Jasmine?”
Everything around me feels as if it’s spinning.
“What are you talking about?”
She doesn’t know where I’ve been. There’s no way she does. She pulls her phone from her pocket, lifting it. There’s a photo of me getting into Jafar’s car. I look distraught, but it’s the look on his face that makes my stomach churn. He’s looking at me like he loves me, which I now know to be a laughable thought. He just wanted to get his dick wet. But I know Jasmine won’t see the photo the same way. No, she’ll look at this and think I was the one who started everything. I mean, why would someone like him ever be with someone like me? It’ll be just like the situation with Al. Why would he have to rape someone like me? I should be thankful, after all…
Dru says, “I think you should leave and never return.”
I want to laugh and cry at the same time. Too bad she’s a bit late with her ultimatum. Doesn’t she know I’ve already been told the same thing once this morning?
“I think you’re right.”
She blinks, as if she can’t believe I’m agreeing. Pushing past her, I make my way to the elevator. The doors thankfully open and I step into the lift. But so does she.
“What are you doing?”
“Making sure you leave.”
I suppose I could call hotel security on her. She, in turn, would call Jasmine. I sigh. Having Dru here might be what I need. If I’m alone, my thoughts will go to everything that’s happened in the last four days. From Al to Jafar—all things I shouldn’t think about.
I lead the way to my room. Thankfully, everything is still in my suitcase from when the hotel staff packed my things to move them. I sit on the edge of my bed, looking up flight info. Dru walks around my room, but I try not to pay attention to her. No, I have tasks to do. I book a flight that leaves later this evening. It will give me time to finish packing and then I can wait in the terminal. Next, I schedule a car to take me to the airport. I start to text Ty, but then stop. I need to get my head on straight. Maybe when I get back home, I should take a few days to process everything that happened to me. My stomach churns. I don’t want to be left with those thoughts, so I send Ty a text.
