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Being a hole for men to use is all she’s good for.
He considers me for a long moment before slowly nodding. “If you made that decision for yourself, because it’s what you want, then I support you.” His pinky brushes mine. “Whatever you decide to do, Evie, just know I’m in your corner.”
My throat goes tight at his declaration and I smile appreciatively, unable to put into words how grateful I am for him, for his support.
“Now,” he breathes, lightly clapping his hands together. “Are we past this?”
“Please,” I mutter. “Let’s go back to how things were before you saw my—” I trail off, swallowing thickly.
“Deal.” He grins as he slides his attention back to the laptop, his smile slowly fading.
“What?”
I move to the stool beside him, looking at the screen as he runs his hand through his hair. “I’m talking to a realtor in California.” I blink at him.
“Why?” I ask, drawing the word out. Is he thinking about moving there? “What about Oli? She won’t survive without you close.” And Roman. Will he move with him?
He gives me a guilty look before letting out a long sigh. “I’m buying a pet sanctuary for Oli,” he mutters.
“You’re…you’re buying her a pet sanctuary? In California? Even though she lives in Georgia and we both know she’ll never move from her house?” He glares at me from the corner of his eye.
“I don’t know what else to do.” He throws his hand toward the screen. “I fucked up by telling her I sent those mice to a mouse retreat. And I know how badly she wants to open one herself.” He scrubs his hands over his face. “I don’t know what to do.”
“You could tell her the truth,” I suggest, but he shakes his head.
“She was so upset when I talked to her about the mice. I’ve never seen her that torn up before. Even with everything she’s been through, losing those mice really hurt her.”
“I know,” I whisper. “But she doesn’t have to be coddled all the time, you know? She’s strong.”
“She’s been through enough, and if I can do something to help her never fall back into the place she was, I’ll do it. I’ll buy her a million farms. I’ll replace all the mice. I’ll do anything I can to never—” He cuts himself off, his voice thick. “I almost lost her once, Eve. I can’t ever come close to it again.”
I understand. I almost lost her, too. The things she’s gone through, the fight she fights every day, it’s inspiring.
“What can I do to help?” I ask, and he gives me a soft, grateful smile.
“Can you convince her to stop being so pissed at me? She’s barely said three words to me.” I hesitate before resting my hand on his forearm, squeezing gently.
“She’ll come around,” I murmur. “She never stays mad for long.” He runs his hand through his hair again, looking stressed.
“Yeah, but she was really upset this time. Could you please talk to her?” He barely looks at me, and I nod.
“Of course.” Dropping my hand back to the counter, I hesitate before getting to my feet, grabbing the bottle of water as I do. I make it almost to the kitchen entrance when his voice stops me.
“Why are you really here?” he mutters. “Roman won’t tell me everything, and Oli’s as tight-lipped as they come. So, what happened?”
I squeeze my eyes shut, the bottle shaking in my hand as I take a deep breath. “They used me,” I say softly. “They pushed and pulled until I broke.”
He doesn’t ask any more questions. He just lets me leave. Tears sting my eyes as I go back into Roman’s room and sink onto the bed. The chill from the bottle keeps me grounded, helps me not go back to that moment on the coffee table. I can still see Roman’s eyes, the way they’d darkened. The way he hadn’t looked like himself.
I take a deep drink of water, forcing myself to calm down. It wasn’t that bad. I’m not traumatized by it, I’m just hurt. Not physically. Just emotionally.
The two men I thought I loved, that I thought loved me, were using me as a toy, both trying to pull me closer to themselves. But in the end, the toy broke, and we were all left empty-handed.
“Here, bitch. You drive.”
I barely dodge the keys thrown at me before they collide with my cheek.
“I could have lost an eye,” I hiss, shooting Oli a glare as I bend to scrape the keys from the parking lot outside the loft. My scowl flits from her, to her beat-up old car, then back again. “And I’m not driving.”
