Total pages in book: 42
Estimated words: 38887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 194(@200wpm)___ 156(@250wpm)___ 130(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 38887 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 194(@200wpm)___ 156(@250wpm)___ 130(@300wpm)
I sigh, shaking my head. Then I go and fall into my long-awaited bed.
Chapter 12
I feel weird this morning. As I lay in my sleepy darkness, I try to wrap my sleepy mind around my sleepy memories. I roll onto my side and collide with something, and I smile. Raya.
Then everything comes back to me—her words, her running away from me. So who’s…? My eyes spring open.
“Morning.” Coral is sprawled out beside me. And she’s naked. Fucking naked. Except for a smug smile.
“What the fuck, Coral!” I jump up, too panicked to pay any attention to the pain that just bolted through my shoulder. “What the hell are you doing in my bed?”
She slides out and pulls on one of my T-shirts as she struts out of my bedroom as if she could live here. “Coffee?” she calls.
I look down my body, cringing when I see I’m naked, too. “What the hell are you playing at?” I shout, stamping after her as I fight my way into some boxers.
I find her helping herself to the kitchen, not at all affected by my fury. “You need to leave.” I march over and pull an empty mug from her hand, slamming it down on the side.
She smiles, all satisfied. It’s as much as I can do not to slap it off her face. “What are you so scared of, Drew?”
My jaw immediately aches with the force of my bite. “I’m not scared, Coral. I’m livid. Get out.”
She huffs, refusing to allow my rage to penetrate her as she passes me. My head drops back, searching the heavens for some restraint.
The doorbell is the only thing that saves Coral from being strangled. There can be no witnesses.
“I’ll get it!” she calls, dancing her way to the front door while I snarl at her back. She swings the door open.
And I die.
“No…” I breathe.
Raya hasn’t seen me just yet, her eyes set on Coral, who’s draped seductively in the door frame wearing next to nothing. “Can I help you?”
Raya frowns. “I’m looking for Drew.”
“You’ve found him.” Coral moves back, revealing me in all of my glory, boxers the only thing between me and stark bollock naked. I’m so fucking mad. So fucking mad, I can’t even speak.
Raya’s face is a picture of devastation, but I’m paralyzed by my anger, can’t even move my fucking eyeballs, let alone speak. As if this could get any worse, Georgia appears, too, making it a lovely wholesome scene of happy fucking families. “Mummy!” she squeals, running into Coral’s waiting arms. “Hey, Raya! Mummy, this is Dad’s friend. Her name is Raya.”
Coral casts an interested look my way. “Daddy’s friend, huh?”
Raya’s eyes meeting mine. The shock and hurt are rife. And there are tears. Fucking tears, caused by me. I want to stab myself repeatedly. “I’m sorry,” she chokes. “I shouldn’t have come.” She turns quickly on her flip-flops and darts away.
The door slamming snaps me back to life, followed by Georgia sprinting off into the kitchen in search of Coco Pops. I can’t see straight for the red mist sliding down my vision. I can’t breathe past the anger filling my lungs. “She seemed nice,” Coral says flippantly, slinking past me. I reach for her arm, grabbing it harshly. She’s pushed me too far. Drained me of patience.
I turn burning eyes onto her. “I fucking hate you.” I keep my voice low, mindful that Georgia is in the next room. I’ve sustained my civility for seven years in the presence of my little girl. I’m not about to change that now, no matter how much I’m seething.
“I’m sorry; shouldn’t I have answered the door?” Her face is so smug.
“Get out.”
“Oh my God.” She laughs, cold and cruel, yanking her arm from my grip and pointing to the door. “You mean to tell me you have feelings for her?” Her grin is sly. Cunning. She knew exactly what she was doing at that front door. “Why the hell would she want you?” she asks. “All you know what to do is fuck. And what is she, twenty?” More laughter. “Jesus, Drew. Any younger and you’ll be dating Georgia’s school friends.”
“Shut up, Coral.”
“Besides, she’s going to Australia.”
I recoil, alert. “How do you know that?”
She shrugs, like it’s of no consequence. “She texted you. I might have answered for you.”
My mouth drops open. “You did what?” I race to the bedroom to find my phone, frantically pulling up the messages. And there it is, a message from Raya telling me how sorry she is for her reaction, but she was shocked. She asks if we can talk. And I answer telling her to come over. She came here with hope. To try and fix things. And she got a strong dose of Coral instead.
Rage.
I turn and find Coral in the bedroom with me, a slap-worthy satisfied look on her face. God help me before I throttle her. I pace over, my nostrils flaring, and push my face close to hers. “Get the fuck out before I throw you out.”