Page 147 of Forgotten Prejudice

After Ash left that evening, I went into a spiral. He didn’t pick up the phone, and I started having all these thoughts that he might be with someone else just to spite me; it hurt, and the pain wouldn’t go away no matter what I did, so I drove to the nearest liquor store and got my hands on the first bottle I saw. Back home, I placed it on the table and stared at the sealed bottle for about two hours until my phone rang. At first, I thought it was Ashy finally calling back, but instead, it was my kid calling to tell me he saw a shark while surfing. That little monkey… It was the wake-up call I needed. I’d planned to empty the scotch into the toilet and almost did, but at the last second, I changed my mind and instead just tossed it into the cabinet.

“Oh, Kai,” Ash gasped after I told him pretty much the whole story. “If I knew, I wouldn’t have ghosted your calls.” He then wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tight. “I’m sorry for not picking up the phone. I was just so angry with you,” he confessed.

Hugging him back, I leaned my head against him. “I know. It’s just that… I kept thinking you were with him, and that drove me nuts. But I swear I didn’t drink. You can even check the bottle and see it still has the seal on.” Closing my eyes, I took a deep inhale of his scent, forever my nicotine.

“I’m sorry for putting you in this state,” he whispered after a short hesitation.

Pulling back, I cupped his face in the hand that didn’t get burned. “You don’t need to apologize, Ashy. You had every right to be angry with me. But I can’t help it… Him being back in our life makes me insecure about us.”

He looked away, but that didn’t make me stop. Right now, I had the chance to get him back, or at least try. Ash could deny it all he wanted, but when we were in the police station, I saw the way he looked at Soren and the way Soren looked at him. Something had happened between them, and over my dead body would I let that asshole take away what was mine.

Not again.

Soren said it was my job to tell Ash the truth, and he had a point. Confessing first would give me an advantage in this race.

“There’s something I need to tell you,” I said.

Ash

On my way back home, I couldn’t stop thinking about what Kai had told me. To say I was angry would be an understatement. It might have happened years ago, but the wound felt fresh, and time didn’t lessen my anger. How dare he do something like this? What was he even thinking?

My anger bubbled in my stomach, giving me no rest. There was no way I’d be able to go home after learning what I just had. Not until I’d given him a piece of my mind. Without stopping to think, I did a U-turn the first place I could and drove straight to his place. What I said about not wanting to discuss anything other than the trial didn’t seem to matter in the moment, when all I cared about was getting answers. Getting the answers I deserved.

I didn’t bother parking my car straight before getting out of it and strolling to his front door. Vibrating with rage, I clenched my hands into a tight fist and slammed on his door as hard as I could while also buzzing the intercom repeatedly. Soon enough, the door opened, and Soren stepped out.

“Did you trick Kai into seeing us having sex?” The words were out of my mouth before I could even stop them. They just oozed their way into the world after I’d been thinking them for the past hour.

Soren didn’t seem shocked; in fact, he looked completely indifferent.

“So?” I gaped at him, waiting for some kind of reaction. “Don’t just stand there. Answer me!”

Shoving his hands into the pockets of his slacks, he nodded. “Yes, I did.”

I assumed he’d at least deny Kai’s words and that I would be forced to fight with him, but instead, he just confirmed it all? What the hell?

“Are you serious?”

“I am,” he said with a straight face, not a single emotion showing.

It made me even angrier.

“And did you use it to threaten him later?” I frowned, hoping that at least this part would be false, only for Soren to confirm it as well.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I snapped, more annoyed with his lack of reaction than anything. “How could you do this? To threaten to take away his child?”

He shrugged. “I guess I’m just a shitty person, Ashton.”

Why was he behaving this coldly?

“Why are you saying that?” I frowned, utterly confused by the situation.

“You came to hear the truth, and I’m giving it to you. Wasn’t that what you wanted?” He took a step closer. “You know what? While we’re at it, how about I tell you more? Let’s see.” He tapped his mouth. “Oh, I have a good one. I moved us to New York just to get you away from Kai.”

Taken aback by his words, I withered. “W-What are you saying?”

“What I said before. That I’m a shitty person, so how about you leave me alone and go back home to him?”

I clenched my hands into fists and was ready to answer him when I heard a voice coming from inside the house. I tried to peek over Soren’s shoulder, but he blocked my way.