CHAPTER FOURTEEN
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LIZ
ALL DAY AT work, I couldn’t get Jake out of my head, no matter how hard I tried. The fact he hadn’t contacted me or come by my house only added to my frustration. I couldn’t understand why the switch had flipped the night before. I needed answers. I pushed open the front door and overheard the tail end of Nix’s phone conversation.
“The arrangements have been made. It’s all in the email. Notify me when it’s done.” Nix ended the call and looked at me uncomfortably.
“Was that the agency?” I asked, worried.
“It’s business. Nothing for you to worry about.” Nix pocketed his phone. “How was work?”
“It was good.” I set my bag down by the couch and sat on the arm.
“You heard from Jake?”
“Nope. I don’t know what the hell his problem is.”
“I had to suspend his colors today.”
“Why?”
“He punched Dillon after Dillon said he was going on a date with you.”
“Oh my God, I forgot all about that. Jake was that pissed?”
“Broke his nose.”
“Ugh, Nix, this is a mess. I need to go over to his house and figure out what’s going on. One minute he wants me, then he’s kicking me out, then he’s punching Dillon over me. He’s a freaking rollercoaster, and I’m starting to get motion sickness.”
“Go over then. Figure it out. You two need to talk.”
After a shower and something to eat, I got dressed in something semi-sexy and climbed into my Camaro. My stomach danced with butterflies over seeing Jake even though I was still confused about where we stood and what I meant to him. As I pulled up to his driveway, I sat for a moment, collecting my nerve. When I approached the door, I saw a light on inside, but no movement. I tapped on the door and there was no response even though his bike was parked in the driveway. I put my knuckles a little harder to the door, and finally, I heard Rocky shuffling in his crate as heavy footsteps approached the door. Jake opened it with heavy lids and a pungent smell of alcohol.
“Peach?” It was evident he was surprised to see me at his door.
“Can I come in? I thought we could talk.”
“Now’s not a good time.”
Disappointment seized me. “Oh, um, yeah, that’s fine.” I heard footsteps behind him. Jake tried to limit my view by narrowing the open door.
“I’ll come by tomorrow.”
The sound of a woman’s voice behind him brought a burst of anger rushing through me. I shoved the door open and saw a blond woman in lingerie stop abruptly. My eyes landed on Jake as the anger erupted like a volcano.
“Wow. You’re a real piece of work, Jake.”
“Damn it, wait.” Jake reached out for my arm as I turned to leave.
I jerked my arm from his grasp as the tears welled in my eyes. “I don’t know what we were, but whatever it was—we’re done. You’re such a fucking bastard.”
He took hold of me and pulled me back to him.
“Don’t touch me!”
“Peach, listen to me. She doesn’t mean a damn thing to me. Nothing happened.”
“Nothing happened? You were about to fuck her if I hadn’t showed up!”
Jake’s eyes narrowed on mine. “Suddenly I matter to you? I didn’t seem to matter when you were making plans to take a backseat on Dillon’s ride and suck his dick.”
“What the hell did you just say?”
“Didn’t think I’d find out? You want my trust, but it’s fine for you to sleep with one of my brothers?”
“I made the date with Dillon on Friday when I thought you were sleeping with Angela. I completely forgot about it because that’s how much he means to me. As soon as Nix reminded me, I had every intention of canceling it because I wanted to be with you. But I’m a fucking fool for thinking for one second that we could have something!”
“That’s it, then. You’re done?”
“I am.” With tears in my eyes and my chest throbbing with pins and needles, I turned my back on him and got back in my car. I didn’t look at him because I knew I’d lose it right there and needed to at least wait until I was home.
As soon as I pulled into my driveway, I lost it. I cried so hard, I was sobbing into my hands and the tears were soaking my shirt. I didn’t even hear the front door open, but I did hear knuckles tapping on my window. Nix stood outside of it motioning for me to come out. I tried to gather myself and opened the door. He opened it the rest of the way and gently pulled me out.
“Come here.”
I folded myself into his arms and chest and cried it out. He patted my hair, wrapped an arm around me, and guided me into the house.
“You’re done with him. I’ll tell him and Dillon both to stay the fuck away.”
“Can you call Jenna?”
“Yeah, I will.” He opened the door for me and guided me to the stairs. I climbed them with what felt like cement bricks on my feet. When I reached my bedroom, I crawled right into my bed and sobbed into my pillow.
Thirty minutes later, Jenna walked into my room with two pints of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, a bottle of wine, and a duffle bag.
“Nix filled me in. Let’s get drunk and bury our faces in ice cream.” She dropped the duffle bag on the floor and crawled into bed with me before handing me a spoon and one of the pints.
I was halfway through my pint and my second glass of wine when I heard loud pounding on the front door. The pounding stopped when Nix opened the door, and Jake’s voice bellowed through the house.
“I want to fucking see her!”
“Oh my God, Liz, he’s here.”
“Jake, you’re drunk. She’s not coming down!” Nix’s commanding voice barked back.
“Peach!”
“Jake! Get your shit together, man. She doesn’t want to see you. She found another woman at your house. What the hell were you thinking?”
I stood at the doorway of my bedroom listening.
“I wasn’t thinking. I just want to talk to her. Damn it, Nix, get out of my way.”
“Jake, she’s my sister! And I’m telling you no. You’re not coming in. She doesn’t want to see you.”
“I’ll wait out here all damn night if I have to. Peach, come down here!”
My feet started to move toward the stairs. Part of me wanted to hear what he had to say, but then I heard Nix pick up my keys from the end table.
“I’m taking you home. You’re too drunk to be sensible.”
The front door closed and their voices drifted off into the distance. Jenna wrapped her arm in mine and wiped the stray tear from my cheek.
“What do you think he wanted?”
“I don’t know. To apologize for being an asshole, for screwing up, either way it’s too late for an apology.”