Page 40 of It's About Time
I roll over and meet her eyes. “You wouldn’t dare.”
Her arms are crossed over her chest, and one of her eyebrows is painfully high on her head. “Try me.”
“Fine.” Groaning, I roll off the bed onto the floor, landing with a thud. “Ow.”
“You did that to yourself.” But my eyes instantly fill with tears as I choke back a sob. Laney rushes over to me, helping me out of my blanket cocoon, holding me to her chest. “Hey, you okay? Did you hurt yourself?”
“No,” I mumble through my tears. “But my chest…” I place my hand over the center of it as pain radiates from the organ I wish I couldn’t feel right now.
Laney presses her lips to the top of my head. “I know, Dil. I know. Nothing hurts worse than heartbreak.”
“I hate him.”
“I do too.”
Wiping my nose on my sleeve, I shake my head. “Now I understand how you felt about Fletcher.” I lift my eyes to hers. “I’m sorry that I…”
Laney presses her finger to my lips. “Don’t apologize. You didn’t get it, but trust me. I wish you never had to.”
“Men. Such a waste. Why couldn’t God have just made the penises but not attach them to despicable human beings? Especially ones that stick their penises in other women when they’re supposed to be in love with you?”
Laney’s brow furrows in confusion. “Uh, not sure how that would work, but I get what you’re saying.”
Another tear slips down my cheek. “He used me.”
“I know.”
“I thought he was the one.”
“Been there,” she says, moving my head to rest on her shoulder.
“We should just get married to each other instead.”
Laney laughs. “Deal.”
I sigh. “I just hate that I let him in—that I trusted him.”
“Well, I’m pretty sure that the bear shit you left in the gas tank and engine of his Bel Air communicated that for you.”
My eyes land on my phone on the nightstand. “He’s left me several voice messages. I just…haven’t had the strength to listen to them yet.”
“You know you don’t have to, right?” I nod, but don’t say anything. “Are you hungry?”
“No.”
“Dilynne, you have to eat, babe.” Laney lifts my chin up so I can see her face. She’s blurry behind the tears filling my eyes. “When’s the last time you ate something?”
I shrug. “I—I honestly don’t know.”
“What if I ordered onion rings and burgers from Blossom Brews?”
My bottom lip trembles. “Vinnie loved the onion rings too.”
“Yeah, well, he’s not welcome to taste them ever again, so now you get to take ownership of them back, okay?”
I nod as Laney holds me in her arms again before helping me up and leading me to my shower. I’m so weak I can barely walk, which is probably a consequence of not eating.
It’s been a week since Vinnie Delatorre shattered my heart and betrayed me, but it’s been the longest week of my life. My older brother and my foster parents have been trying to check on me, but I won’t let them in. I don’t want anyone else to see me like this. The only person I trust enough to fall apart in front of is Laney—because she knows what this feels like.
