AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I’ll scream,” she warns.
“Be my guest,” I say, rolling my eyes. This is my club, and no one comes here without knowing the kind of men who hang out here. Men who won’t bat an eyelid to a woman screaming.
“Arthur, I mean it,” she says through gritted teeth. And then she begins to scream. A few people turn to see what the commotion is, and two of my security guys look over. I hold a hand up to let them know I’ve got it, then I pull her against me and cover her mouth.
“Stop, Amelia, or I’ll give you a reason to scream.” Rosey falls into step beside us.
“Should I take her home?” she asks.
“No. I’ll arrange a car to take you. I haven’t finished with Meli.”
“What does that mean?” she asks.
“Albert, take Rosey home,” I shout over to him, then I turn back to her. “It means exactly what I said, now go.” She’s torn. I can see it in her face as she watches me drag her friend towards the roof exit.
MELI
I kick all the way up the stairs to the roof space. He struggles to get me through the door, and when he does, he releases me and I run, putting distance between us. He slams the door closed and leans against it, glaring at me. “Who was that guy?” he asks.
“I have no fucking idea,” I yell angrily. “And I didn’t get chance to find out, thanks to you. I scream again, stamping my foot in frustration. “You fucking bastard men, you keep fucking up my life.” The emotions from the day catch up with me and I ball my fists by my side. “How can I grow up when none of you let me?”
“Get it out,” he says calmly. “Scream, shout, tell me exactly how you feel. Get it out, Meli.”
“You don’t want to know how I feel,” I cry. I rub my chest, as it feels tight, and I begin to pace. “You don’t care.”
“I do,” he tells me.
“You?” I ask, almost laughing through my tears. “Arthur Taylor cares about me, the home wrecking whore?”
“Don’t say that about yourself,” he mutters.
I take a few shuddering breaths, unable to calm myself. “You should go after Rosey,” I whisper.
“You need me.”
“I don’t,” I cry. “I don’t need anyone.”
“You’re derailing, Meli. I’m not gonna let you fall.” I want to scream in his face at how blind he is. I derailed years ago. I’ve already fallen. And no one was there to catch me.
It begins to rain, but he doesn’t budge from blocking the door. “You might not see it now, but I saved you from making a bad decision tonight,” he continues. “You would have woken tomorrow full of regret.”
I laugh, turning my back on him. “You have no idea how badly I wanted to make bad decisions tonight. It’s what it was all about, and regret is my middle name.”
“Sleeping with him wouldn’t have made you feel better.”
I walk to the edge and look down at the people below running for shelter as the rain pours harder. “Don’t act like you know me, Arthur. Sex makes me feel good. Men use women all the damn time. You did it to Jolene, so why can’t I do the same?”
I feel him behind me, and he places his jacket over my shoulders. He joins me, looking down at the crowds. “You’re holding it all in, and you go on these drunken nights to ease the ache in your heart. But it doesn’t help, Meli. You know it doesn’t. Fucking a nameless, faceless guy who runs out on you first thing . . . you deserve better.”
“I don’t,” I whisper. “I deserve everything I get.” I feel him watching me, but I continue to stare below. “I get used because it’s all I’m worth. Men look at me and see nothing. Nothing worth anything. Men don’t marry girls like me, they use me. I’m the dirty secret. The party girl who’s good for a quick fuck in an alley but not good enough to take home to meet mummy.”
“Jesus, Meli, why are you talking like that?”
“You wanted the truth, right?” I ask, glancing at him. The rain has soaked his shirt to his skin and his hair is flat to his head. The water runs down his face, dripping from his chiselled chin. “You said I should let it all out.”
He turns me to face him and brushes my wet hair from my face. “I don’t know who told you that bullshit, but they’re wrong. You’re perfect, Meli. In every single way.”
More tears leave my eyes, mixing with the rain. “You wouldn’t say that if you knew the truth.”
