Page 82 of Shamed
My eyes drift over to see him there in prison clothes, glaring at me. “You ruined my life. Now it’s your turn to pay.”
My pulse thunders against Dylan’s hold, breaths wheezing out of the tight space in my throat.
Eyes fixed on Jacob, I try to apologize, but no words escape. They’re trapped, caught somewhere below Dylan’s grip.
I didn’t mean to, I scream in my mind.I really didn’t.
But intentions don’t matter when the result is so disastrous.
Dylan’s fingers squeeze tighter. “Maybe I’ll damage her some more after all.”
His face comes closer, but then morphs, twisting into Jacob’s, the hold on my neck disappearing.
Jacob’s face is concerned as it hovers over me. “I’m just trying to help you.”
My hands shoot up and push him away without my permission, then he’s being carted away, staring at me the entire time.
“Why did you do this to me?”
I reach for him, but I’m drifting farther and farther away.
“Stop! No!”
I’m panting when I open my eyes and look up at the unfamiliar ceiling.
It takes a moment to adjust, and remember where I am: gray walls, black quilt, pink pillows. Mase’s apartment.
His comfortable guest bed feels like a cloud below me, which is a contrast to the thorns stabbing at me from the inside.
A knock sounds on the door. “Jayne?”
I push to a sitting position, lifting a hand to my still pounding heart. Was I screaming? “Y-yes?”
“I . . . heard some yelling. Everything okay?”
Flopping back onto my pillow, I cover my eyes, slight embarrassment touching my cheeks. What came out of my mouth?
“Yeah,” I call back. “Just a bad dream.”About your innocent friend and my actual attacker.“I’ll be out in a minute.”
Rolling my head to the side, my eyes land on the door. I imagine Mase on the other side, creased forehead as he stands there.
When I hear the faint sound of him walking away, I flip the blanket off to force myself up but end up staring at the ceiling again. I wonder if these dreams will ever stop? It’s more than likely they’ll plague me until the day I die.
It took a while to fall asleep last night after arriving home from work.
Being in a new bed, in a new place, and knowing Mase was sleeping across the hall from me was strange, to say the least.
Plus, my mind wouldn’t turn off the constant loop ofI shouldn’t be here.
But here I am.
As soon as my feet hit the soft carpet instead of the cold laminate floor of my bedroom, I close my eyes and take a moment to curl my toes into the threads.
It’s nice not to have the urge to dive back under the covers, because Mase’s apartment is properly insulated.
After slipping on a long-sleeved top to go along with my sleep shorts, and using the bathroom, I slowly wander down the short hall, unsure of what to expect here at eleven a.m. on a Sunday morning.
Lulu appears out of nowhere and circles my ankles, letting out a little meow. I look down at her bright blue eyes and can’t resist picking her up. “Hey, cutie,” I whisper, taking her with me.
