Nathan
I took a step back while Jessica took a step forward, still naked and with clear intentions as far as what she wanted to happen. My gaze fell on the bottle of wine that was open on the desk, and my fists clenched. She was drunk.
Those few seconds were enough.
Jessica took the opportunity to step directly in front of me, pressing her body to me and her hands on either side of my face, locking her lips with mine. I stilled my hands, not wanting to touch her waist or any other part of her body. However, when I took hold of her arms, my hands accidentally brushed the sides of the breasts, and she giggled, stumbling backwards.
“See,” she smiled lazily, her blue eyes sparkling, “you want me too.”
I shook my head, wiping the feel of her lips on mine away with the back of my hand. I walked over to the area where Jessica had dropped the robe to give it back to her, trying my best to avoid looking at her. I couldn’t believe she was doing this, that she actually believed that this was a way to get my attention. I would never deny she was beautiful and attractive, but this wasn’t going to ever happen.
“What the fuck are you thinking?” I hissed, my fist holding the robe in a tight grip. Either our friendship never existed to her or she’d completely lost her mind.
Shit.
“You want me,” she murmured, arching her back provocatively as she spoke. “I can tell by the way you’re trying to hold back.”
I cleared my throat, stepping back until I was by the door.
Fuck it.
This was bad, bad no matter how I looked at it.
“Come here, Nathan.” She bit her lip seductively, destroying any remaining trace of our friendship.
“You’re fucking insane,” I spat, slamming the door shut behind me as I walked out of the office and later locking the door to the gallery.
I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut and wishing the image of Jessica away. Taking out my phone, I dialed the only person who could handle her.
“Hey, man,” Thomas greeted me.
Not wanting to linger there any longer, I went straight to the point. “Come get Jessica at the gallery. Now.”
I hung up without a further word and got in my car, my hands hitting the steering wheel with fury.
Evie was understanding, but fuck, something like this was too difficult to understand. And I stood there like an idiot too long. Far too long. She would hold me accountable for the few seconds I remained stupefied in front of Jessica. How the fuck was I going to explain that?
Talking to her in person had been a stupid idea.
I had to tell Evelyn; there was no doubt about it. She would end up hurt again, but hiding this from her would cause her much more pain.
It seemed as if all the problems would never end for us, each one of them proving harder than the last.
Finally, I pulled out and began my drive to the house, trying to come up with an explanation that wouldn’t drive Evelyn completely insane.
***
I arrived at the condo only to find it empty. It was night time, so I was sure that Evie was no longer at the hospital. With everything that happened, I didn’t check my phone, even when I called Tom. She’d sent a message earlier saying she planned on visiting Carter too. The air in the house felt constricting, the clothes I wore suffocating. It felt like I betrayed Evelyn just by seeing Jessica. Granted, what she did hadn’t been my fault, but it felt wrong.
I tugged at the shirt I wore, taking it off and throwing it in the trash. I did the same with the rest of the clothing, eager to never see them again. To me, it was all dirty, stained, and worthless. Another woman’s body had touched it. I didn’t need a constant reminder of it. Surely, Evelyn wouldn’t want that shit around, either.
Guilt appeared. I’d cheated on Hannah, my ex-wife, with her sister and never felt bad at all because I never loved her, and she didn’t love me.
This time, it hadn’t even crossed my mind to cheat, and just having seen another woman in that state was too much to bear. Though I knew Evelyn well, like the palm of my hand, I had no idea how she would react.
No matter how I tried to word the situation in my mind, it still sounded awful.
Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t even hear her arrive until the shower door opened. My eyes snapped open, meeting her curious ones that stared back already with many questions.
“I’m home.” She smiled, her eyes roaming my body briefly before they landed on my face. They were slightly red, a little bit puffy…she’d been crying. Her eyebrows furrowed, trying to think of what to say. “Why are you showering again?”
I swallowed. Evelyn was naive, yes, but she was intuitive. She knew something was wrong. “Just felt necessary,” I said.
Her lips parted as though she was going to say something. I wanted her to say something, anything, but she didn’t. Instead Evelyn nodded, closing the shower door, and retreating away from the restroom.
Fuck.
I hurried out of the shower, wrapping a towel around my waist as I set foot in our bedroom. Evie sat on the bed, hands clasped together over her thighs, her gaze set on me. For a few seconds, there was nothing but silence surrounding us, until she decided to speak.
“He’s not waking up,” she whispered, shaking her head.
“No improvement?” I asked, kneeling in front of her and taking her hands in mine. They were cold.
“It doesn’t seem that way.” Her eyes narrowed on me. “But what do we talk about? Derek or whatever happened between you and Jessica?”
I didn’t know how to answer. I cupped her cheek, catching the lone tear that escaped, unsure of what the fuck to do.
Evie continued then, obviously needing to get whatever she felt off her chest. “They took a CT scan, and he’s having seizures now. He has brain activity. It’s just a matter of when or if he wakes up.”
“He’ll wake up,” I assured her, kissing the back of her hand. I hated seeing her affected by this. I hated having to cause her more stress.
She nodded, squeezing my hand. By the look in her eyes, I knew I wouldn’t like what she had to say. “I need to see Hannah.” Immediately, I shook my head. “I don’t care if you don’t want me to see her, Nathan,” she interrupted. “I need to see her. I need to talk to her.”
“Why?” I asked with disbelief.
“Because she has the answers I need,” Evie snapped. She ran her hands through her hair desperately, tugging at the ends as if to relieve some of the pressure. “Nathan, I need to know the truth behind Derek’s relationship with my family. I need to know what the hell happened. If she’s the one that can give me the answers, then I will go to her.”
I stood up, growing irritated. It wasn’t Evelyn’s fault, but it was all taking a toll on our relationship. What we didn’t know, what we did…the things yet to learn. It divided us. “You don’t know if it’s a trap, babe. You can’t go,” I said, walking away from her.
She stood up, her hand taking hold of my arm unexpectedly. I turned back around to face her, the determination on her face rendering me speechless. “I’m not asking you, Nathan. I’m letting you know that I’m going.”
I scoffed. “That’s it, then? I have no say in this? It doesn’t matter that you’re pregnant with my kid, you’re still going to do what you want even if I don’t consider it safe?”
Her gaze softened. “Please understand, Nathan,” she whispered. “I have to do this.”
“I don’t want you to get hurt.” I couldn’t understand why the hell she’d put herself at risk.
“I’m not a child you need to protect.” Evie’s fists balled up to her sides, blazing eyes speaking louder than I ever thought they could. They said she was strong. They said she was ready. As if it wasn’t enough, Evelyn continued, her words reiterating what I could already see. “I am tired of living in the dark. I am tired of living in fear, Nathan. I won’t. I refuse to do it again. I have the right to know everything.” Evelyn paused, taking a step forward and placing her fingertips on my lips. “And that includes whatever happened between you and Jessica tonight.”
She held them up, and I saw her skin colored in a faded pink.
Jessica’s lipstick.
Shit.
I hadn’t even bothered to look in the fucking mirror, and clearly, I knew nothing about removing a woman’s make-up.
Everything was about to bubble over. The small fight was about to turn into a full-blown war. Evelyn was raging, and I could barely think about what left my mouth. It wasn’t the time to talk, but we couldn’t avoid it.
I dried myself off quickly, throwing on some boxers and not bothering with anything else. Evelyn stood waiting with her hands on her small belly. She was strong, but the way she soothed our baby as she drew little circles with her thumb told me she feared what I had to say.
And I didn’t know how to say it.
“Do you think this is a good idea?” I asked, raising an eyebrow, doing my best to not sound harsh. “Because I think it would be best to wait until morning.”
“It doesn’t matter,” she said, a mocking smile on her face. “I’ll be pissed either way.”
I nodded, taking a deep breath. “She got drunk in the office,” I muttered, nervous to tell her the rest. Evelyn didn’t say anything, however, knowing better than to think Jessica would just leave it at that.
Raising an eyebrow, she asked, “What else?”
“She kissed me.”
Evelyn nodded, not surprised and unfazed. Her eyes didn’t lie, however, and as she ran her hands through her hair again, I knew this was just beginning. She walked around the room, setting her hands on the dresser and bracing herself for whatever else was to come.
“I have the feeling there’s more. Why don’t you go ahead and tell me?”