Page 17 of Broken Butterfly
“Who do you see?”
“Ryder and Jayson.”
“Then you’re not ready.” Fallon shifts on the sofa beside me. “Come here,” he says, and pulls me into his arms.
I’m tipsy and sad, and my eyes burn from crying. I snuggle into Fallon’s warm body and listen to his heartbeat. Old Elizabeth imagines it’s Jayson and remembers all the times she would fall asleep with her head resting on his chest.
“I hate you,” I tell her in a slurred murmur.
Right before I succumb to my drunken exhaustion, I think I hear Fallon say, “One day, kitten, you will truly hate me.”
I place a blanket over Elizabeth who is out cold on the sofa. I stand over her and watch her sleep for a moment. She was having fun tonight and I was right there with her. She didn’t even blink an eye when I punched that guy. When I saw him grab her ass, I wanted to do more than punch him. Elizabeth just watched as I clocked him, then she laughed and kept on dancing like nothing happened. Whoever this new, screwed-up, damaged version of Elizabeth is, I like her. She also looked hot as hell in that little red dress. I’ve always been attracted to Elizabeth and having her around me twenty-four seven has taken everything in me not to drag her to my bed. The non-stop urge to fuck her tight little body has me jerking off several times a day.Fuck. I allow myself one more minute to gaze down at her slumbering form, then pop a stick of gum in my mouth and walk upstairs.
I’ve been sending Ry text updates like I promised Elizabeth I would. It’s like he has the phone plastered to his hand or something because no matter what time I text him, whether it’s the morning or the middle of the night, he responds immediately.
Me: Your girl misses u.
Ry: I miss her so damn much.
Ry: Got into another fight with Jay. He’s going apeshit that she hasn’t come back. Jules isn’t much better. I’m getting a lot of heat here bc I agreed to let you take her away. We already missed over a year with her when she was in Seattle. This is killing me. It’s killing us. Tell me it’s worth it.
Me: First, hope u kicked his ass.
Me: Second, I can’t promise anything. She thought she saw u at the club tonight. She’s been a mess ever since she realized it wasn’t u.
Ry: I can be on the next plane to wherever u r.
Me: Like I told her 2nite, she’s not ready yet. Stay put.
Ry: Dammit, Fal!
Me: Talk to u 2morrow.
When I reach the top of the stairs, my phone vibrates since I have my ringer turned off. It’s an unknown number. Shit. What does he want now? But when I answer, it’s not who I think it is.
“What?”
“Where is she?” Jayson’s irate voice demands.
“How the fuck did you get my number?” I’ll make sure to change it tomorrow.
“Where is she, Fallon?”
“With me, but you already knew that.” I know I’m stirring the hornet’s nest and I take great pleasure in doing so because I can’t stand the guy.
“Put Liz on the phone right this damn minute, Fallon!”
“She’s sleeping. We had a long night and she’s exhausted,” I reply vaguely, feeling joy at riling him up and stirring the pot.
“You motherfucker! If you’ve done anything to her—”
“Shut the fuck up, Jay, and back the hell off. She’s upset and confused and needs time to figure things out. I don’t know why I’m even telling you this because I couldn’t give two shits about you. If you truly love her like you say you do, you’ll give her the time she needs. She’ll come back when she’s ready.”
I hang up and turn my phone off. It wouldn’t surprise me if Jay hired that shitty PI again to get my number. Well, I can guarantee tonight’s unexpected phone call won’t happen again.
I strip my shirt off and walk over to the bed. My back is stiff and a little sore. It’s the result of muscle scar tissue. Elizabeth is a very perceptive girl, and she knew exactly what she was seeing when she noticed the faded marks on my back. We are alike in so many ways, she and I. Alike in more ways than she could possibly imagine.
Chapter 6
