Chapter Seventeen
Ashton
The forty-five-minute ride to Olive Garden was long and silent. I could feel O’Shea’s eyes on me from time to time as I drove. My hands tightened on the wheel in frustration. When he’d said his family was coming to visit, neither of us expected his bitchy, psychotic ex to tag along.
“I swear I didn’t know she was coming,” he finally said.
“I’m sure.”
"You sure about that? Because you seem a bit off.”
"Yep."
"Are you mad at me?"
"Why would I be?"
"I don't know. Maybe because my ex is being a complete ass."
“Your ex has nothing to do with me. As I said, it's not like we're dating. You're a free man to do whatever you want." The words hurt as they left my mouth, reminding me that yes, we weren’t dating and there was a strong possibility that he’d leave with them now that his ex was pregnant.
He sighed. “Look, I’m sorry this is happening. I’ll talk to Kayla—”
“It’s fine. Congrats on your baby, by the way. Maybe you two should work it out for the sake of your child," I stated bitterly.
"What?" he asked. I sighed and shook my head. He probably thought I was being irrational to be upset over something he had no control over, and maybe I was. But this situation didn’t make me happy. I wasn’t too sure how much I could take her glaring at me or calling me names, but I knew that my patience meter was reaching its breaking point.
“I’m almost certain she isn’t pregnant,” he said.
“What makes you so sure? I don’t think she’d be making the scene she is if she weren’t,” I snapped.
He sighed deeply. “I’m not sure what you want me to say, Ashton. Like I said, I didn’t know she was coming.”
I sighed and ran a frustrated hand through my hair. “You don’t have to say anything. Just forget it.” It wasn’t his fault that Kayla was a bitch, nor was it his fault that I was in love with him and too much of a coward to tell him that.
He shook my head and looked out the window. This whole day was already going to shit and with Kayla purposely fucking with me, I could sense that it was only going to go downhill from there.
We finally pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. I got out of the car without a word, damn near slamming the door behind me. O’Shea reluctantly came over to join me on the sidewalk.
"Man, I'm starving!" his mom, Michelle, said as we walked through the door. The hostess behind the podium smiled at us as we entered.
"Welcome to Olive Garden! How many in your party?" she asked.
Michelle looked around and counted everyone. "Six."
The woman checked something on the tablet in front of her. "It's about a ten-minute wait for a table. Is that okay?"
"That's fine," she responded with a nod. The woman gave us a buzzer before she turned her attention to the couple who'd came in behind us.
"I'm going to run to the bathroom really quick," I said and walked away, moving through a couple of families before finally pushing into the bathroom. Releasing a long breath, I closed my eyes and counted to ten. Please let me survive this lunch without wanting to stab myself with a fork.
The door opened again, but I didn’t pay much attention to it until I saw Kayla’s reflection in the mirror.
“I know what you’re trying to do,” she said, leaning against the wall. Not taking my eyes off the mirror, I cocked my head to the side.
“And what would that be?”
“You’re trying to make me jealous.”
“Considering that I’ve hardly said anything to you or—”
“I know you’re fucking him, you little slut,” she spat. “Tell me, how good do I taste every time you kiss him?” The sneer on her face grew wider as she took a few steps closer. I was tired of playing her game. Now I’d give her a taste of her own nasty medicine.
I shrugged. “Not sure. Don’t taste anyone but myself after he’s licked me into several orgasms. You were an idiot to have let him go.”
“I’d advise you to watch your fucking mouth, Ashley—”
“It’s Ashton, and you can get the fuck over yourself,” I countered, turning to face her. She glared at me, encouraging me to continue. “But you know what, Kayla? I totally get your pain. I mean if I once had O’Shea’s long, thick cock fucking me and then lost it, I’d probably go psycho, too. Poor you.”
Kayla lunged at me. “You fucking bitch—”
“What is going on in here?” another voice said. Michelle walked into view and looked at Kayla in disbelief. “What are you doing?”
Kayla glared at me before forcing a sweet smile and turning back to Michelle. “We’re just talking, Mama Chelle,” she lied. Before anyone could say anything, the buzzer in Michelle’s hand went off.
“It looks like our table is ready,” Michelle said. Kayla stormed out of the bathroom, leaving Michelle and I alone. “Are you okay, honey?”
I let out a shaky breath and nodded. “Yes, ma’am. I’m fine, thank you.”
“Don’t let her get to you. I don’t know what her problem is.”
“I won’t. Thank you.”
She nodded and gestured toward the door. “Shall we?” she asked. I nodded and followed her out, colliding into O’Shea’s hard chest as soon as I turned the corner.
“Jesus, you’re like a brick wall,” I muttered.
His eyes were filled with concern as he looked at me. “You okay? I had to send my mom in there after you two because I don’t trust her being alone with you,” he said. I gave him a small smile.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s go eat.
"Yeah, I'm just fine, O’Shea. I'm the mother of your child and yet you're worrying about that bitch," she spat.
"Oh, fuck off, you bitter cunt," I retorted. Kayla looked at me with wide eyes, her nostrils flaring. Olivia put a hand on her chest, a cheeky grin forming on her lips.
"Oh shit! My girl has some balls after all," she said and laughed. Kayla took a step toward me, her white teeth showing as she snarled at me.
"Listen here, white girl—"
"Our table's ready! How about we follow the waiter to it so we can eat, please?“ Michelle interrupted, waving the vibrating buzzer in her hand. Kayla took a deep breath, looked me up and down, and turned to walk off behind the others.
"Don't let her get to you," O’Shea murmured, placing his hand on the small of my back.
"How the hell did you even end up with her? She's so not your type," I whispered.
"Sometimes I wonder that myself," he said with the shake of his head.
"Welcome to Olive Garden. I'm Dennis and I'll be your waiter this afternoon," a tall man with dark hair said after we settled into our seats. "Can I start you off with some drinks?" he asked, looking around the table. Michelle and O’Shea ordered water, while the rest of us chose wine. Michelle looked at Kayla in surprise.
"Honey, you shouldn't be drinking wine if you're pregnant," she said. The waiter also looked at Kayla and gave her a small smile.
"Can I get you something else?"
Kayla rolled her eyes and blew an annoyed breath. "Whatever. Just get me a lemonade."
The waiter nodded and left the table. Paris rested her elbows on the table and turned her attention to me.
"So how did you and my brother meet to become roommates?" she asked. I glanced at him, wondering what he’d already told them. I wasn’t too sure how it would look to his mother to know her son had called phone sex lines, so I figured it would be better to leave that part out.
"I was in a car accident and he fixed my car," I told her.
"What kind of work do you do?" Olivia asked.
Heat rushed to my cheeks as I scrambled for words. "I...well—"
"She's actually going to be starting her own interior design business," O’Shea mentioned, placing a hand on my knee. My shoulders sagged in relief as Paris’ eyes widened in surprise.
"Really? That's pretty cool! Looking at your apartment, you have good taste. I think you'd do well in that industry," Paris complimented. Kayla snorted, but didn't say a word.
I smiled. "Thanks. For now, I'm doing call center work until I can get everything going with my business."
"If you're willing to travel, I'll be your first customer," Olivia added.
Kayla sighed loudly. "God, Olivia, make sure you don't have shit on your lips from all the ass kissing you're doing," she drawled.
"Kayla, shut the fuck up and concentrate on keeping up appearances with your fake pregnancy," Olivia snapped back and turned her attention back to me. "Anyway, I kind of wish I did something not as stressful as med school."
"Med school is still cool. What are you specializing in?"
"Anesthesia. I'm in my third year of residency."
I leaned forward on my elbows. "That's so interesting! Was it hard?"
"I'm just ready to be done with school. I feel like I've been in school forever," she muttered, grabbing her glass of wine when it arrived.
Kayla took a sip of her lemonade. "This kind of reminds me of the homemade lemonade Shea made when he took me out on a picnic for our anniversary one year. Do you remember that?"
He rolled his eyes. "It was just powdered lemonade mix, sugar, and water, Kayla. Nothing special." She shifted in her chair and took a gulp from her glass before setting it down.
"O'Shea is such a romantic. He always goes above and beyond for his woman. You guys remember how he proposed to me, right? He even got me this beautiful ring. You guys remember, right?" she asked, looking at his sisters and mother. He leaned back in his chair and glared at her while everyone else remained silent.
"What I remember is putting my all into a relationship with you only to have you embarrass me in front of our family and friends. That's all I remember," he spat.
I cleared my throat to try to buff the drama Kayla created. "When I first met him, I'll admit I hated his guts," I said with a giggle. He relaxed a bit and focused on me.
"Yeah, I was a bit of an asshole back then."
"You're not so bad now that I've gotten used to you."
He laughed. "I'm pretty sure you'll be fussing at me and changing your mind about that by tomorrow."
"Y'all are cute together," Michelle said, making me blush. "I was a little worried to know he was down here all by himself, but I'm glad you two are friends. It seems like he's happy here."
"Things couldn't be better. I have a good job, a place to stay, and cool friends. I'm good,” O’Shea answered
The waiter eventually returned to the table. "Are you guys ready to order yet?" he asked. We all looked through the menu.
"Chicken parmigiana, please," I said, handing him the menu. O’Shea closed the menu and passed it to him.
"I'll have what she's having," he mentioned. Kayla snorted and rolled her eyes.
"I see who wears the pants in that relationship," she muttered.
"For fuck's sake, Kayla. Make your jealousy a little less obvious," Paris snapped.
"Girls, be nice," Michelle said, giving them a warning look.
The waiter collected everyone else's order and finally moved to Kayla. "And what will you have ma'am?" he asked.
"First, I want to talk to a manager because I need a glass of wine. For food, I'll have the chicken alfredo," she said, closing the menu.
"Oh man, O'Shea makes the best chicken alfredo I've ever tasted," I gushed.
"He really does. I actually miss him making it for us," Olivia said.
"I remember when he'd make that for us after we'd spent all afternoon making love all over our condo. He said the carbs would get our strength up for more rounds," Kayla added with a smirk.
"Okay, Kayla, now that's enough," my mother stated firmly.
The waiter shifted uncomfortably. "Chicken alfredo it is—"
"Wait, no," Kayla said. "Actually, I'm not in the mood for alfredo. I'll go with the lasagna classico instead." She smirked at me, but I only shook my head and took a sip of my wine. The woman screamed desperate for attention and I refused to give her what she wanted. O’Shea gave my knee a light squeeze, filling me with comfort to know he was on my side.
The rest of the meal was pleasant for the most part. Kayla kept quiet, eventually managing to get a glass of wine that she downed as soon as the waiter placed it on the table. From what O’Shea had said in the car and watching her nearly inhale her wine, I was a bit skeptical about her being pregnant, too. What pregnant woman in their right mind would drink alcohol?
"Kayla, what the hell are you doing?" O’Shea asked her when she flagged the waiter down again.
"Why do you care? You're too busy worrying about your white whore over there," she snapped, her words starting to slur.
"I'm seriously not going to keep sitting here and listen to her call me names," I said to him under my breath.
"Just be cool," he murmured, rubbing my thigh. I blushed when I noticed his mom looking down at our laps, seeing his hand resting on my thigh.
"Waiter! More wine!" Kayla all but screamed, grabbing the attention of the surrounding tables. The waiter came over to her.
"Ma'am, you've finished an entire bottle to yourself already. My manager has asked that we cut you off, as we're getting complaints from other tables about the noise over here."
"How fucking pathetic is she?" Olivia muttered, finishing the wine in her glass.
"Yeah, she's had enough," Michelle said. "Could we get the bill and boxes to go, please?"
"Of course." The waiter dashed off.
"And bring more wine!" Kayla yelled behind him with a hiccup. Michelle patted her hand.
“I think you've had enough, dear." She turned to Paris. "Can you take her to the car?" She handed Paris the keys and watched as my sister pulled drunk Kayla to her feet and away from the table.
He took my hand in his under the table, his thumb caressing the back of it. I relaxed under his touch, taking a few more bites of my food. The quicker we left the restaurant, the better.
Once we boxed up our leftovers and the bill was paid, we walked out of the restaurant, engaging in small chitchat. Kayla's voice was clear as day as we rounded the corner to see her ranting.
"He still loves me! I fucking know he does! That stupid white bitch is just brainwashing him!" she screamed. Paris did her best to try to reason with her to get into the car, but Kayla refused. Passing customers gawked at us as they made their way into the restaurant.
"This is getting out of hand," Olivia muttered, rushing over to help her sister with the drunk psycho. Kayla's eyes fell on O’Shea and me. She stormed over to us and slapped me. My cheek stung as I stumbled back a couple of steps in complete shock.
“What the fuck?” I exclaimed.
"You ruined everything, you bitch!" she screamed. “Shea and I would’ve worked things out and you had to come into the picture and ruin everything!”
O’Shea caught her hand before she had the chance to hit me again, pinning her against the car. "Have you lost your fucking mind?" he bellowed.
She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "I just want you to see that we belong together—"
"If you put your hands on her again or continue disrespecting her, we're going to have a serious problem," he growled. "Do I make myself clear?"
She stared at him for a few moments, her expression hardening. “Get off of me,” she spat. He released her and stepped away. She yanked the car door and practically threw herself in the backseat.
"You all right?" O’Shea murmured, taking my face into his hands and examining me. I nodded without a word, slightly pulling away from him. Guilt passed over his features as tears burned my eyes. Michelle rushed over to us.
"I'm so sorry about this, Ashton," she said with sad eyes. "O'Shea, why don't y'all go ahead and head back home? We're going to go to the hotel for Kayla to sober up some."
He nodded. "Okay then. Call me a little later," he said. "Do you know your way back to the hotel?"
"I have it in the GPS. Again, I'm sorry about this, Ashton. It was nice to meet you. I wish it were under during better circumstances."
"It's fine, really," I said with a small smile, even though it took everything in me to keep my tears at bay. We all got into our cars, his family pulling out before we did. He turned to me, reaching over to caress my cheek.
"Are you sure you're all right?" he asked softly.
I pushed his hand away and nodded. "I'm fine. Let's just not talk about it," I mumbled. He sighed and rested his head on the back of the seat. The sooner they all left, the better.
∞∞∞
"She fucking did what?" Alex all but screamed into the phone. I paced my bedroom floor, having been in here since O'Shea and I got back from the restaurant. He'd tried to talk to me, but I wasn't in the mood to deal with him, his ex, or his family at the moment. I knew it was going to be drama from the moment she walked into the apartment, her nose wrinkling in disgust as she looked around.
"O'Shea has the worst taste in people," she'd muttered to herself, running a finger along the entertainment stand and cringing at the dust she'd picked up. "Just filthy."
Hearing her refer to herself as his fiancée was enough to get me in a pissy mood. I probably shouldn't be mad at him or taking out my current anger on him, but I didn't know what else to do. Maybe it was my own fault for not telling him how I felt. Had I done that, we'd already be an official couple and half of the shit that happened today probably wouldn't have happened. To know that he was also expecting a baby with her broke my heart. It was like the situation with Steve and Clarissa all over again. O'Shea was probably mad at Kayla now, but I knew he'd probably end up doing the right thing; all good guys did. He'd go back to Virginia with them and then I'd be back to square one, alone, broke, and heartbroken.
"She's such a complete bitch. I didn't even say anything to her and she just comes up and slaps me out of nowhere," I muttered, flopping down on the bed.
"She's lucky I wasn't there. They would've had to call the police on me."
I giggled. "Of course you would. And don’t even get me started on all the baby references she made. She was all, ‘How could you care more about her and not the mother of your child’ and blah blah blah. The bitch had a whole bottle of wine at lunch today. I seriously doubt she’s pregnant.”
“She sounds so desperate.”
“Tell me about it. She called herself trying to intimidate me in the bathroom. I told her I felt sorry for her because I’d probably go psycho too if I lost a guy that’s amazing in bed like him.”
Alex cackled. “Oh my fucking goodness, what did she say to that?”
“I think she was going to hit me,” I said with a giggle. “But O’Shea’s mom came looking for us, so I was saved that time. I guess she got her revenge when we got outside.”
“So what's going to happen now? What's going on with you and O'Shea?" she asked. I sighed. My heart broke at the thought of letting him go, but maybe it was for the best. Keeping him around was giving myself a chance to hurt even more than I already was.
"I think I'm going to tell him he should go back with her. If dating him would be like this while she’s trying to get back with him, I don’t want to be bothered with that drama. Bad enough I have to deal with bumping into Steve around town,” I murmured.
"What? Why the hell would you do that? Not only do you need the money, but I'm pretty sure you have strong feelings for him, like ‘I love you’ feelings.”
"That's exactly why, Alex. This baby situation is just going to be a permanent reason for her to be in my life as long as he's in mine. Maybe he's just better off with her anyway. I don't have anything to really offer him."
"Oh, cut the bullshit, Ashton. You're fucking amazing, you're kind, and I see the way he looks at you and how protective he is of you. You'd be fucking blind and insane to not see that he's in love with you."
"If he is, he's yet to say anything," I said.
"Do you want him to buy a billboard to tell you? I swear you're impossible," she muttered. A light knock sounded on my bedroom door.
"Ash? Can we talk?" he asked on the other side. I sighed.
"Alex, let me call you back," I said.
"I hope you don't do anything stupid, Ash."
"I'm going to do what I think is best for my situation. I'll talk to you later," I said and hung up. I walked over and opened the door, meeting his sad and frustrated eyes.
"I know you're pissed about what happened—"
"Maybe you should go back with them," I interrupted, my heart skipping a beat as the words fell from my lips. Multiple emotions flickered across his face, ranging from confusion to hurt.
"What? Go back with them? I don't want to go back with them," he stated firmly.
"You have a baby on the way, O'Shea. You should be there for that."
"Ashton...do you not want me here anymore because of what happened?" he asked, his voice eerily soft. I swallowed the lump forming in my throat as tears threatened to form in my eyes. After weeks of him knocking down my walls, my defense mechanisms were quickly activating and taking over. My heart didn't want him to leave, but my mind wouldn't allow him to have the opportunity to devastate me. So I did the only thing I thought was left.
I took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes, my heart slightly breaking. "No," I said slowly.
He looked at me with a raised brow, a frown settling on his lips. "No...what?"
"I don't want you here," I said, barely above a whisper. His jaw tightened as he looked at me, hurt evident in his eyes. He looked away and nodded slightly.
"I see," he said tightly. He looked back up at me, searching my face as if he was waiting for me to change my mind. When I didn't say anything, he just sighed and walked away, entering his room and closing the door.
I closed my door, unable to stop the sob that shook through me. If this was for the best, why did I suddenly feel empty? Why did the thought of him leaving terrify me?
I moved over to my bed, stretching out and clutching a pillow to my chest. It was only a couple of days ago that we'd just been here together. I wished we could go back to the times were the only complicated thing was whether or not to tell him how I felt. I looked at the clock with wet eyes, watching as the numbers slowly changed until I drifted off to sleep.
∞∞∞
I jumped out of my sleep when a crack of thunder sounded. Rain pelted on my bedroom window, lightning brightening the sky before another crack of thunder followed. I slowly got out of bed and felt my way through the dark, feeling along the wall until I found the light switch. O'Shea. I needed to talk to him. I'd admit that maybe I was a bit too emotional earlier and probably should've given him the chance to talk.
Walking out of my room, I went to his door and knocked. "O'Shea?" I called out. There was no answer. Considering that nothing was on in the living room, his room was the only place he'd be. I knocked again. "O'Shea? Are you awake?" Still nothing. I pushed the door open and whispered his name again. After being met with silence once more, I turned on the light, dread filling me as I looked around the room. Everything looked as it did the night I'd set it up for him, empty and void of someone living in it.
My heart raced in my chest as I rushed over to the dresser and opened the drawers, only to find them empty. I yanked open the closet door and saw nothing but hangers. I looked around the room that no longer contained his things, slowly lowering myself on the bed as it clearly dawned on me.
He was gone.
And I had no one to blame but myself.