Page 78 of Drive Me Crazy
She nods. It may not be the most mature thing, but I can’t deal with him right now. Josie makes us tea once I’ve calmed down a bit, and I sip it gratefully. My throat feels raw from crying, the hot green tea a much-needed antidote.
Theo starts calling Josie incessantly. She turns her phone on silent, letting each one go to voicemail.
“Blake’s going to show up here sooner or later, babes.” She looks at me for direction on how to proceed. “What do you want me to do?”
“Idon’t care.” I don’t have enough energy to care. “I just don’t want to see Blake.”
She answers Theo’s next call on speakerphone with a curt, “Hello.”
“Is Ella with you?” Theo greets Josie with a strained voice. “Blake’s absolutely losing his mind trying to find her.”
“Yes,” Josie reveals after a long pause. “She’s here.”
We can hear him telling Blake that I’ve been located like he’s some fucking secret agent. “Blake’s going to—”
“Theo, she doesn’t want to see him,” Josie interrupts, her voice stern. “The front desk of my building knows not to let him up, so don’t bother trying.”
I can’t help but crack a small smile. Josie lives in a walk-up, but neither of them knows this.
“Um, that’s … not going to go over well.” Theo sighs. “Will you talk to Blake, at least?”
“I have nothing to say to Blake, so no.”
“Josie,” he stresses. “The guy’s a fucking mess. At least let him know she’s okay.”
“He’s a mess?” Her voice rises with incredulity. “How about his girlfriend? You know, the one he just sandbagged on national television? He can go fuck himself up the arse for all I care.”
My jaw drops at Josie’s words. I don’t think I’ve ever heard her swear so aggressively.
“Well, I’m not going to tell him that.” Theo chuckles quietly. “Please just talk to him.”
An uncomfortable silence settles between them. “He has thirty seconds,” she decides with finality.
“Josie?” Blake’s voice comes through the phone loud and clear. “Is Ella okay?”
“I don’t know, Blake,” Josie says, each word more sarcastic than the last. “Would you be okay if the situation were Uno-reversed?”
“No,of course not.” His voice is so husky it’s almost imperceptible.
“So then obviously she’s not okay. Is that all?”
“Can I talk to her? Please, Josie.”
She cocks her head at me. I take a deep, steadying breath, gathering the little energy I have. I feel each heartbeat pounding in my throat as I turn the phone off of speaker-phone and press it against my ear.
“How could you?” I murmur quietly. Every nerve in my body seems to cry out. “How could you do that to me?”
“I am so fucking sorry, Ella,” Blake says hoarsely. “I lost it and I know that’s no excuse, but I need you to know I did not mean to hurt you.”
“Well, you did,” I snap fiercely, the betrayal in my voice harsh. “I told you that inprivate, Blake.You know it’s not something I like talking about or want people knowing, yet you told the fucking world.”
“Tell me how to fix this.”
“You can’t.” I rub my eyes. My contacts are long gone, cried out somewhere in the streets of Waterloo. “It’s already out there.”
“I’ll have them stop it from airing and I’ll issue an apology. Or I’ll—”
“Stop,” I plead, my voice so low it’s barely audible. “Please.”
