I scramble to get out from under the covers and get decent. I throw on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt while I watch the surreal scene unfolding before my eyes.

Liam is totally naked as drunk Jack babbles to him about something I can’t quite make out.

“That’s what I’m saying.” Liam growls as I draw near to the door frame. I want to admire the handsomeness of his naked body, but due to the sheer ridiculousness of the current situation, all I do is step in front of him. And tell him to go put some shorts on. He reluctantly agrees, leaving me alone with Jack for a moment.

“Oh that’s really fucking fresh, Haley. And you said you’re not sleeping with him until marriage.”

I roll my eyes. “You never did have a sense of humor, Jack. Especially when you’re drunk. So why don’t you just tell me what you came here to talk to me about.”

Jack shifts his weight a little from side to side, seeming uneasy. Liam is back standing behind me, now with shorts on. He still looks scary as hell, with all of the tattoos he has wrapping around his torso, neck, and arms.

“All I can say,” Jack says, “Is that it’s extremely important. And I can’t tell you in front of him.” He nods his head toward Liam, who has the meanest expression I’ve ever seen a man have. I notice his fists are clenched. He wraps an arm around my shoulder.

“Anything you have to say to Haley you’re gonna have to say in front of me.” Liam drawls. “Because I don’t trust your conniving city ass one iota.”

“Oh? What the fuck do you know about me, buddy? You don’t know me. Haley and I were together for two years.”

“It was three,” I correct.

“Whatever. It was a long time. And I need to talk to you. Now. In private.”

“No,” Liam interjects, crossing his arms. “Not happening. I’m not letting you say one fucking thing to her right now. How fucking drunk are you, City Boy? You look like you are having an allergic reaction.”

“That how your relationship goes, Haley?” Jack appeals to me. “You just gonna let him run your life like that? Just come in here and control you.”

I take a deep breath. As bad as Jack was to me, one little conversation can’t hurt. And I hate to admit it, but he’s right. I could use some closure, and if right now is when he’s going to give it to me, I might as well do it.

“It’ll be alright.” I say to Liam, running my hand down his chest. “I’ll just talk with him a moment in private.”

“No!” Liam snarls, his tone nasty. “I don’t know what it is about this guy, but I don’t trust him as far as I can throw him. Which is pretty far, since he’s clearly never been in a real fight before. But I don’t like abusing men who are too weak to defend themselves.”

“Yeah, I bet you don’t.” Jack barks back, suddenly cocky. “I can see it, smell it on you. You’re a fucking thug. The worst breed of person. Me? I’m a Harvard grad. You lay a hand on me and I’ll have you carted off so fast.”

“How fast?” Liam says. “You never finished your metaphor.”

I giggle a little. Jack never was one for being quick on his feet.

“You know what, fuck you. You know what I mean. Haley, come with me so we can talk for five minutes.”

I press my palm into Liam’s chest. “Five minutes, honey. Just five. I’ll be right back. Just need a little closure.” I whisper. “It’ll be good. It will make tomorrow less awkward if the air between us is cleared.”

“No,” Liam still snarls. “I’m looking this man in the eyes, and I can’t trust him. He gives me that snake-like, sharky, city slicker feeling. I can’t let you go.”

My emotions bubble over. “What the fuck, Liam? You can’t just control me like this! This isn’t some game now, this is my life!” I push him away, and slam the door in his face. He stops it from shutting all the way, but not before Jack and I take off down the hallways and disappear at a half trot. We take the elevator up and enter Jack’s room.

* * *

A half-finished fifth of vodka sits on the desk in Jack’s hotel room, and I lift it up. “Jack, what the hell?! How drunk did you get tonight?”

“Drunk enough to realize what a mistake I made with you.”

I exhale.

Even a week ago, I was still pining over Jack. Checking my texts. Wondering if maybe, just maybe, we had a glimmer of hope.

“Where’s your date, anyway? Isn’t she supposed to be here?”

“She had a family emergency tonight,” Jack says. “Had to go home. Have a seat, Haley. There are some things I need to tell you.”

A little reluctantly, I sit. He’s clearly drunk. I’m a little flustered myself now too, with the way Liam got all defensive over me.

Look, I’ve only known you for three days. Sorry I’m not sorry, I’m a big city girl and I can handle myself.

“Look, Haley. I’m sorry about the way I acted. And I decided, I want you back now.”

I blink. “Excuse me?”

“I said ‘I want you back now.’ I was stupid to break up with you. So let’s get back together.”

He smiles, a little awkwardly, and walks toward me. A chill runs through me and I wonder if it’s just the booze, or if Jack has actually turned delusional.

I actually laugh a little out loud. “Jack. No. This, you and me, are not happening. This is not a thing anymore!”

“Oh what, and you and Mr. Big Cock is a thing? After what, three months? The way you lied to your family, saying that you weren’t doing it yet, and you clearly are…something’s fishy to me about you and him, Haley, and I think I know what it is.”

“You know what’s wrong with my relationship?” I scoff. “Alright, Dr. Drew! Hit me! Bestow thy infinite wisdom upon me.”

He puts his hands on his hips and rolls his head to the side a little, takes a big breath. “You’re still in love with me, Haley. I can tell. You haven’t gotten over me, and you still want to be with me. It’s totally understandable. I get it.”

My eyes bulge, and I jump to my feet. “That is the creepiest thing I have heard in awhile,” I say. “And I live in New York. I’ve heard some creepy shit.”

Jack steps toward me and stands uncomfortably close, not even a foot from me.

“Stop.” I snort. “You’re getting really weird. I think I should go.”

He licks his lips, and grabs the fifth of vodka. “Stay Haley. I even have a chaser to make it go down easy.”

He takes a pull of the drink and follows it with a swig from a liter bottle of orange juice. “Have some. I insist.”

“I don’t want any, Jack.” I say firmly.

This is one of those times in life where I don’t know why the hell I can’t move. But I’m frozen for a moment, like I’m bearing witness to my own life. Rooting for myself to just leave. But powerless to move for a moment or two.

In the next split second, I heavily regret my own hesitation. In a move too quick for a man as drunk as Jack, he sets the booze down on the desk, pushes me against the wall, and kisses my neck, holding me against the wall.

“Stop it!” I yell, and try to knee him in the balls, but he turns his hips so my attempts to harm him are in vain.

That’s when I hear a pounding on the door. “Haley. That you in there?” Liam’s voice booms through the room.

I go to scream, but Jack puts a hand over my mouth. “Don’t you fucking dare say a word!” He growls.

“I can fucking hear your drunk ass, Jack!” Liam drawls.

“Haley,” Jack grumbles, looking at me with a sort of innocence all of the sudden. “I know you love me. Why don’t you admit it? Why don’t you come back to me?”

Pinning my arms against the wall, he licks the side of my mouth and I recoil. The door pounds, Liam’s fists reaching a dangerous volume. I wonder what it’ll take to have him bust through the door.

“Hey Jack,” I mewl, defenselessly, giving him the best puppy dog eyes I can muster.

“What?” He says, suddenly letting my arms down and sliding them to my sides.

“Don’t ever fucking touch me again.” I hit him with an open palm to the face, and he screams as blood drips from his nose.

“You bitch!”

He takes a swing at me, and I scream as I duck.

“Haley!” Liam screams, and he breaks. The. Fucking. Door. Down.

Even drunk ass Jack’s eyes go wide when he sees Liam barge in, having just taken a steel hinge reinforced door down like it was a damn member of the Chicago Bears offensive line.

“I didn’t do anything!” Jack pleads, his hands up.

Liam rushes to my side. “You hurt?” He asks me, breathing hard, his voice full of a tenderness I had no idea the outwardly harsh man even possessed.

“Ahhh!” Jack screams, charging at Liam with the vodka fifth. Before Liam sees him, he breaks the bottle over his shoulder.

Liam brushes his shoulder like a gnat just nipped him, not like a bottle just got freaking broken on his body. He touches the wound and sees that Jack has drawn blood.

Liam turns, and his profile is positively handsome. His expression is positively menacing. He squints and snarls like the devil himself has just leapt into his body for a moment.

“Please,” I plead. “Don’t hurt him.”

“Ha! You ogre. You can’t hurt me. You can’t even touch me.”

“I ain’t gonna hurt you.” Liam drawls. “I’m just gonna fucking kill you!!”

“My dad’s a lawyer!” Is the last thing Jack yells before Liam knocks him out cold with one punch to the nose.

My eyes glaze over and my thoughts scramble as I try to process what the hell just happened.

“Liam, go on! Get out of here.” I urge.

He looks at Jack, still angered, and walks out.

I dial zero for the help desk.

“Yeah hi.” I say. “My friend is really drunk and he just fell. Can you send a nurse up here or something?”

“Uh, a nurse?” The guy answers on the other side of the phone. He sounds like a teenager.

A bead of sweat rolls down my forehead. “How about can you just bring an ice pack to room 723?”

“Uh, sure.”

He comes up, and I tell him a white lie that Jack suffered a fall.

Eventually he comes to. Satisfied that he’s alive, I head back to my room.

I look at Liam, say nothing, then dive under the sheets to get some much needed sleep.