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I scowled as I stared at the back of the bottle, reading the dosage as Bailee turned on the bath in the adjoining bathroom. “How much do I owe you?” She asked, and I looked up to see her leaning against the door frame, staring at me stone-faced. “For the medicine, how much was it?” “You don’t need to pay me back.” “Well, I don’t want to owe you anything.” She snapped, and I lowered the bottle to my side. The little girl was sitting on the bed, playing with the unopened boxes, and I felt uneasy. I was unsure if she should be playing with them or if I should take them away. If I did, would she just start screaming again? “You don’t owe me. It’s a gift.” I said, and she held her hand out, palm up, careful not to touch me when I placed the bottle in her hand. Pushing off the door frame, Bailee grabbed the syringe from the box on the bed, opened the bottle, and filled it without needing to read the back like I had. She knew exactly how much her child needed off the top of her h
My knee bounced as we sat in the waiting room. I was nervous, but not because of my meeting with Mr. Collins.I was nervous about giving Alexander the apology he was owed. He had hurt me beyond belief when we were younger, but the way I had treated him today was unacceptable. Over the past twenty-four hours, he had been kind, stood up for me, brought me to a safe place to stay, and got medicine for my daughter.He deserved an apology, and I had been so caught up in my head that I wouldn't have realized it if it weren't for the damn jalapenos. After Brinley’s fever had been broken, I brought her into the kitchen to make breakfast, and the guilt I had been feeling tripled.On the kitchen island sat a take-out bag with several containers. One with bacon and sausage, another with hashbrowns and scrambled eggs. The last sizable take-out box had biscuits, and my mouth watered when I realized he had ordered a side of sausage gravy to go with it. Spreading them out onto the counter, I smil
Entering through the parking garage, I took my private elevator directly to my office, wanting to avoid passing Caleb in the main lobby, where I had Nathan seat him. He could have waited on my floor, but I didn’t want him to overhear anything he shouldn’t or go snooping. “Mr. Kingston!” Nathan greeted as he stood from his desk quickly. “What is the plan?” “Breathe, Nathan. There isn’t one.” I said calmly as I pushed the door open to my office. Nathan sputtered, following me in. A hot cup of coffee sat on my desk, still steaming, and I knew he had rushed to get it for me as soon as he saw the light above my elevator turn on. “Caleb Johnson is not a threat. He's just an annoying fly that won’t go away no matter how many times you swat at it.” “So, you're just going to let him in?” Nathan looked over his shoulder at the door to my office, and I smiled confidently as I nodded because, this time, I wasn’t going to just swat him away. I was going to crush him. I was angry after what
BAILEE “You bitch!” Caleb screamed. I had heard him call me countless times before, but it was humiliating having witnesses. Yet, even though he was shouting behind me and I could hear the commotion of the security guards escorting my ex-husband from my ex-boyfriend’s office, I couldn’t pull away. My body betrayed me, melting against Alexander’s as his fingers slid into my hair, and he kissed me deeper, his tongue meeting mine. The groan he let out sent a jolt of pleasure straight to my core, and my hands tightened into fists, clutching the fabric. It was heart-achingly familiar. His lips were just as soft as I remembered, and the butterflies I used to get with him returned. He was the only one I had ever felt them with. Yet, it was also new. Alexander's body was larger and harder, more defined from his time in the military. The scruff of his neatly trimmed beard, which he hadn't had before, scratched against my chin, waking me from the lust-inducing kiss. Pulling away, I b
EIGHT YEARS AGO (Sixteen years old)“If it isn’t Baby Evans!” Jacob mocked, pulling on a chunk of my hair and jerking my head back. “Ow!” I snapped, spinning around to swat his hand away. “Leave me alone!” “So touchy! What’s wrong, Baby Evans? I thought you liked getting your hair pulled. I've heard all about you.” Jacob said, grabbing a fist full and yanking on my hair again, this time forcing me back so far that I stumbled, crashing into a warm body. “Let her go,” The deep, familiar voice made me tense, but as his arms wrapped around me, I froze. “Come on, Xander!” Jacob laughed, grabbing the strap to my backpack and tugging on it. “Lighten up. Ben’s not here, and she’s not your sister. I’m just having a little fun.” “Don’t fucking call me that, and get your hands off her!” Alexander growled, and my hands grabbed his sides to hold myself up as Jacob gave one last tug on the strap. Ben’s friends hadn’t always bothered me, not until I hit puberty a few years ago, anyway. After
I held my breath as the housekeeper pushed open the hotel room door. The woman gave me a pitying look as I slipped her the cash I had promised in exchange for her help getting into my husband’s luxury suite. Caleb had been so rushed for his ‘urgent business meeting’ that he had forgotten his laptop. Like the loving wife I was, I raced over to grab it for him. I had made it my goal to make his life at home as easy on him as possible by helping where I could with the cooking and cleaning since he worked so hard to provide for us. It was never good enough for him, but little things like bringing him his laptop would surely make him happy.Only I had frozen in horror when I saw the messages popping up on his computer from his phone. The smiling, half-naked woman stared back at me. I could see her nipples through her lace bra, and she had one hand down between her legs, covering herself.His assistant. Lorna: I got your gift. I’m at the Rosewood Hotel. Don’t make me wait too long.Ca
“Bailee!” Caleb yelled as I threw open the door and rushed down the hall.I needed fresh air. It felt like the walls were closing in on me, and I could hear my blood pumping in my ears.“Bailee, would you stop for a minute?” The sound of my name on his lips as he zipped his pants made me feel queasy, but I held it down. A hand wrapped around my forearm, and I was yanked to a stop just before the elevator. “No!” My scream came out in a hoarse sob. “No! Get off of me, you lying piece of shit!” The rage and venom behind my words made him release me immediately, but he stayed close as he glared down at me. I took a step back, shaking my head at him. “You don’t get to touch me. You don’t get to ever fucking touch me again!” The elevator dinged behind me, and the doors opened, but I didn’t pay any attention to the people getting off until I heard them speak. “Bailee! Lower your voice! That is no way to speak to your husband!” “Mom?” Caleb asked, and I turned to face Helen and George
“You must be out of your mind!” Helen yelled, but I didn’t spare her a glance. This wasn’t between her and me…even though she wanted it to be.She thought the world revolved around her, the perfect senator’s wife. She loved putting on her over-priced, costume-looking jewelry and acting like she was the queen.Yet, her favorite pastime was picking fights, throwing little digs at me, and insisting everything I did was wrong.Much to her dismay, this was between Caleb and me, and I refused to let her be involved this time. He had dragged her into everything else. Mommy’s little boy.Only, he looked stunned as he stared at me, dumbfounded that I would be so bold as to bring up divorce myself, especially in front of his parents.“Don’t be foolish, Bailee!” Helen spat. “You have a child together! Divorce is not an option! That’s just lazy. You are lazy!”I glared at her, knowing that if she had heard her son throw it in my face like he loved to do, she would have supported and agreed with h