Bound Together (52 page)
Authors: Marie Coulson
She shook me firmly and
finally able to move, I ran to where the two men were wrestling and
gripped each on the arm pulling them with every ounce of my
strength off of each other. They continued to throw blow after
devastating blow into one another. Ollie shoved me hard away from
them and I landed with a thud on my ass.
Mel screamed, yelling at
them hysterically. “You fucking jerks look what you’re doing to
her!” Turning his head in my direction Jared stared at me in horror
before releasing his grip on Ollie’s collar. I sat on the dirty bar
floor and rubbed my elbow which had knocked into the fallen table
as I landed. Great, I’d already acquired a busted lip, scratched
face, bruised jaw and now this. Happy fucking birthday.
Rushing to my side, Ollie
crouched beside me. “God Layla I’m so sorry I wasn’t even thinking.
Baby are you ok?”
Grabbing him by the
scruff of the neck Jared pulled Ollie to his feet and shoved him
hard away from me. “Don’t you dare call her that! You don’t have
the right!”
Mel and Amy pulled me to
my feet and I brushed myself down quickly, glaring at both men as
they panted and glowered at each other. I stormed away from them
and out of the bar door into the cool night air. It was sobering
and the light rain that was falling mirrored my mood perfectly.
Jared had been so busy warring with Ollie I wondered if he’d even
noticed I’d gone. Walking down the sidewalk cold, damp and alone, I
hugged myself as tears spilled from my eyes. I heard the pad of
running footsteps behind me as Jared caught up. He moved in front
me and gripped my arms forcing me to stop. “You kissed him? You
fucking kissed him!? I can’t believe this. After everything we’ve
said, everything we’ve been through you gave your heart to someone
else?”
I shook my head rapidly.
“No! He kissed
me
. I didn’t kiss him back I swear. I pushed him away and I
screamed at him for being so stupid. It was totally one sided. You
have to believe me. It happened weeks ago and I…”
He broke me off. “Believe
you? You want me to believe you? How can I ever trust you again
Layla? If you had nothing to hide why didn’t you tell me? I would
never keep something like this from you, no matter how much it
might hurt. Because right now, it hurts like a dagger through my
fucking heart. Did you like it?”
I stared at him,
bewildered and taken aback by his direct question. But I couldn’t
find an answer because the truth was too painful. I had liked it.
Another lie was leaving my deceitful lips.
“
No, of course
not.”
He glared at me as his
face leaned in, fractionally close to mine. “Took a very long time
to think about that Layla. I can’t believe this is happening to me.
When did it happen?”
I swallowed the lump in
my throat and stared into his pained blue eyes. The rain was
getting heavier and I could feel the water soaking through my
dress, seeping into my skin. “While you were in New
York.”
His face turned
ferociously dark. “I see. It’s not cheating if were in different
states huh? Was that how you thought of it? Is that why you didn’t
tell me? I bet the two of you had a good laugh about it didn’t you.
Boyfriend goes out of town on business so I think I’ll have a
little make out session with the guy across the hall. That sound
about right?”
A sob escaped me as his
callous and icy tone swamped me. “No! It was nothing like that. I
swear Jared, he kissed me and I pushed him away. It lasted about
two seconds and I screamed at him for what he’d done. Please you
have to believe me. I didn’t want to hurt you over something that
meant nothing to me.” Stepping away from me he ran his fingers
through his hair. “You want to talk about honesty Jared? How about
this secret you’re keeping about some woman who calls your cell and
hangs up. How about telling me the truth about those hushed and
secret phone calls?”
Looking at me as though I
had just torn his heart out, he shook his head. “I can’t tell
you.”
I strode up to him and
glared. “Can’t or won’t?”
Staring me down his tone
was icy and clipped. “Can’t. God I can’t do this right now. I have
to go before one of us says or does something they’ll
regret.”
He walked away from me,
striding fast across the parking lot. I tried to run after him
yelling, begging him to stop and talk to me but he ignored my plea,
getting into his car and speeding away without giving me a second
glance.
I couldn’t breathe. My
heart hammered in my chest and my stomach lurched and rolled again
as nausea threatened. Amy and Mel hurried down the street to me and
standing on either side of me, draped an arm around my shoulders.
“I can’t believe it’s over. He’s gone. I don’t believe it.” I’d
lost him and I had no one to blame but myself.
Mel leaned her head
against mine. “You don’t know that. Let him cool off. Come on,
you’re soaked through. Let’s get you home. It’ll be better in the
morning, you’ll see.”
Mel and Amy stayed up
with me for hours. Mascara flowed down my nose as it rained a
monsoon from my eyes. My body ached from the heaving I was doing
through being sick with grief. How was I ever going to fix this?
I’d lied again. He was never going to forgive me. Curling into bed,
I laid there staring at the wall. My eyes drooped and my body was
exhausted. I was in desperate need of peace and sleep but I
couldn’t stop thinking about Jared. I was in for a rough
night.
mind as I woke from my restless sleep. It will be better in the
morning she said. It wasn’t. I called but he wouldn’t answer. I
texted but he never replied. It was official, we were done. I
glanced over at Amy’s side of the room. She was sleeping fully
clothed as she and Mel had crashed out around three, when I had
pretended to be sleeping. I looked at the clock and groaned. Seven
in the morning.
Turning over, I tried
desperately to go back to sleep. But it was no use. I couldn’t
leave things this way, I had to see him. If we were really finished
I had to hear it from his lips. Creeping around the room, I pulled
on some jeans and a hoodie before slipping on my sneakers and
grabbing my car keys.
The drive to Jared’s
house felt like hours as I went over and over everything that had
happened and mentally chastised myself for my part in it all. What
would I say when I got there? How could I possibly justify my
actions? A thousand questions ran through my mind at lightning
speed and I didn’t have an answer for any of them. Pulling up
outside the gates, I punched in the security code that I had seen
him enter a thousand times and drove down the long driveway. I sat
outside his house just staring at the door. Fear and anxiety were
keeping me strapped to my seat. What if he kicked me out and we
really were finished? Going inside would make everything so final,
while outside in my car there was still hope. But I had to know
either way.
Taking a deep breath, I
climbed out of my vehicle and walked up to the door. Nausea and a
swarm of butterflies were turning my stomach inside out. I grasped
the handle and opened the door. It was never locked. With his
security system and the gates, he didn’t need to worry about the
front door. I could hear the sound of Elvis booming from the
kitchen. The song ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ echoed through the
vast foyer. I walked slowly and sullenly towards the kitchen, my
breathing labored as I tried to control my nerves. Rounding the
corner I stood in the door way and froze, gasping for
air.
Long brown hair and a
man’s shirt barely covering a long pair of legs were all I could
see as a woman stood with her back to me at the stove. The room
disappeared around her as I stared, unable to breathe. My heart
shattered and my body trembled as I stood staring at the back of
this woman’s head. The door that led to the dining room opened and
Jared strolled in, wearing a pair of sweat pants and no shirt.
Without seeing me he stood next to her and smiled, inhaling deeply
whatever she was preparing.
“
Smells
great. I’m starving.” She smiled back at him and stroked his arm.
“I’ve seen you eat remember? I thought there was no way you were
going to finish those pancakes. New York breakfasts are something
else though aren’t they?” My fists clenched beside me as fury
boiled in my veins. New York? Did she just say New York? My chest
constricted and my insides twisted with grief. “I hope you don’t
mind but I found this shirt in your closet and figured it’s already
stained so probably alright to cook in it.” She turned around and I
gasped in horror. She was wearing
that
shirt. Catching me standing
there she screamed. Jared immediately turned around and on seeing
my hurt and devastated expression his eyes widened and he
stuttered. “No! Wait, shit, it’s not what you think.
Layla!”
Nausea crept up further
and further up my throat, forcing me to gulp hard as I sprinted for
the door. He ran after me, pleading with me to stop. “Layla please,
wait, I swear it’s not what you think! I didn’t do it. Fuck!
Coffee!” Reaching the drive way I halted. Did he just safe word me?
Furious, I turned to face him. “You have got to be fucking kidding
me. A safe word is for bondage play Jared. It won’t stop me walking
out on you!”
“
I didn’t know what else
to say to make you stop. Please Layla, you have to believe me, I
didn’t do it.”
“
Didn’t
do what Jared? Didn’t get so pissed at me last night that you
decided to get back at me? Is that what she is? Revenge?” He tried
to reach for me but I recoiled and gave him a warning glare. “Don’t
you dare fucking touch me. I never want your disgusting, lying,
cheating hands on me again! New York? Is she what you went there
for?” Suddenly the realization hit me. All the calls, hushed tones,
secret conversations in his office and his sudden trip to New York,
it was all for her. The entire time we’d been together he’d been
involved with her.
I
was the other woman. My chest tightened further
and breathless I gawked at him. “I can’t believe you had the nerve
to say everything you did last night when all this time you’ve had
some skank in another state! How many are there Jared? One in each
place you visit. God all this time I believed you when you said it
was business. I knew there was something you were hiding but this!?
How completely stupid am I?”
He walked towards me but
I wanted none of him. The thought of him touching me after having
his hands on her made my skin crawl.
“
I do not have women in
every state Layla, there’s just you. I swear. Yes she’s the reason
I was in New York but I promise it is not what you think. You have
to believe me.” I stormed over to him and shoved him hard on the
chest. “Believe you? You’ve been lying to me since the moment we
met! If she’s not what I think then who the fuck is she Jared? Your
maid? Do they all wear your shirts!?”
I stood rigid as I waited
for an explanation. Shaking his head, he gave me a rueful look. “I
can’t tell you.” Raising my hand to his face, I slapped him hard
across the cheek. My palm stung and prickled as I remained silent,
glowering at him. Staring back at me, his face was contorted with a
deep sadness and tears pooled in his eyes. Squaring up to him I
clenched my fists as rage filled my body. “I wish you could feel an
ounce of how much it hurts to have something you value so much just
fall apart right in front of your eyes because the way I feel right
now is a fate worse than death.” Without thinking I stormed to my
car and yanked the trunk open grabbing the tire wrench that my
father always insisted I carry. I was livid, fuming, enraged and my
broken heart was making me crazy. Standing next to his sleek and
sparkling car I held the wrench firmly in my hands. “Who is she
Jared?” He shook his head and stared at the ground.
“
Wrong answer!” My arms
swung back and in a heavy swoop I crashed the wrench hard into his
side mirror, knocking it clean off and flying through the air. He
stared at me with the same wounded and devastated expression on his
face as before; as though I hadn’t just fractured his expensive and
beautiful Jag. His silence fueled my anger. “Last chance Jared. Who
is she?!” He shook his head again and stared at me. “I can’t tell
you.”
My blood boiled and all
my hurt, pain and grief was now flooding through my body as tears
streamed down my face. Uncontrollably, I smashed the wrench into
his car sending the other side mirror hurtling across the driveway
and landing at his feet. The windshield shattered as I struck a
devastating blow right into the center. Dragging and slamming the
wrench over the car, scratching and denting the body work, I
growled and sobbed as the aching in my heart consumed
me.
Dropping the weapon, I
dropped to my knees and cried shamelessly. My head in my hands, my
body shook with every deep and agonizing sob. Falling to the ground
in front of me, he took my hands from my face and held them in his.
“Please Layla, you have to believe me, I can’t explain but you have
to trust me. Please don’t do this to us.” Snatching my hands away,
I ripped the ring from my finger and hurled it at him. “I didn’t do
this to us.
You
did! You can take back all your promises because they don’t
mean a thing to me anymore and they obviously never meant anything
to you. You tell me she’s not what I think but won’t tell me who
she is or give me an explanation. I’m done!”
finally able to move, I ran to where the two men were wrestling and
gripped each on the arm pulling them with every ounce of my
strength off of each other. They continued to throw blow after
devastating blow into one another. Ollie shoved me hard away from
them and I landed with a thud on my ass.
Mel screamed, yelling at
them hysterically. “You fucking jerks look what you’re doing to
her!” Turning his head in my direction Jared stared at me in horror
before releasing his grip on Ollie’s collar. I sat on the dirty bar
floor and rubbed my elbow which had knocked into the fallen table
as I landed. Great, I’d already acquired a busted lip, scratched
face, bruised jaw and now this. Happy fucking birthday.
Rushing to my side, Ollie
crouched beside me. “God Layla I’m so sorry I wasn’t even thinking.
Baby are you ok?”
Grabbing him by the
scruff of the neck Jared pulled Ollie to his feet and shoved him
hard away from me. “Don’t you dare call her that! You don’t have
the right!”
Mel and Amy pulled me to
my feet and I brushed myself down quickly, glaring at both men as
they panted and glowered at each other. I stormed away from them
and out of the bar door into the cool night air. It was sobering
and the light rain that was falling mirrored my mood perfectly.
Jared had been so busy warring with Ollie I wondered if he’d even
noticed I’d gone. Walking down the sidewalk cold, damp and alone, I
hugged myself as tears spilled from my eyes. I heard the pad of
running footsteps behind me as Jared caught up. He moved in front
me and gripped my arms forcing me to stop. “You kissed him? You
fucking kissed him!? I can’t believe this. After everything we’ve
said, everything we’ve been through you gave your heart to someone
else?”
I shook my head rapidly.
“No! He kissed
me
. I didn’t kiss him back I swear. I pushed him away and I
screamed at him for being so stupid. It was totally one sided. You
have to believe me. It happened weeks ago and I…”
He broke me off. “Believe
you? You want me to believe you? How can I ever trust you again
Layla? If you had nothing to hide why didn’t you tell me? I would
never keep something like this from you, no matter how much it
might hurt. Because right now, it hurts like a dagger through my
fucking heart. Did you like it?”
I stared at him,
bewildered and taken aback by his direct question. But I couldn’t
find an answer because the truth was too painful. I had liked it.
Another lie was leaving my deceitful lips.
“
No, of course
not.”
He glared at me as his
face leaned in, fractionally close to mine. “Took a very long time
to think about that Layla. I can’t believe this is happening to me.
When did it happen?”
I swallowed the lump in
my throat and stared into his pained blue eyes. The rain was
getting heavier and I could feel the water soaking through my
dress, seeping into my skin. “While you were in New
York.”
His face turned
ferociously dark. “I see. It’s not cheating if were in different
states huh? Was that how you thought of it? Is that why you didn’t
tell me? I bet the two of you had a good laugh about it didn’t you.
Boyfriend goes out of town on business so I think I’ll have a
little make out session with the guy across the hall. That sound
about right?”
A sob escaped me as his
callous and icy tone swamped me. “No! It was nothing like that. I
swear Jared, he kissed me and I pushed him away. It lasted about
two seconds and I screamed at him for what he’d done. Please you
have to believe me. I didn’t want to hurt you over something that
meant nothing to me.” Stepping away from me he ran his fingers
through his hair. “You want to talk about honesty Jared? How about
this secret you’re keeping about some woman who calls your cell and
hangs up. How about telling me the truth about those hushed and
secret phone calls?”
Looking at me as though I
had just torn his heart out, he shook his head. “I can’t tell
you.”
I strode up to him and
glared. “Can’t or won’t?”
Staring me down his tone
was icy and clipped. “Can’t. God I can’t do this right now. I have
to go before one of us says or does something they’ll
regret.”
He walked away from me,
striding fast across the parking lot. I tried to run after him
yelling, begging him to stop and talk to me but he ignored my plea,
getting into his car and speeding away without giving me a second
glance.
I couldn’t breathe. My
heart hammered in my chest and my stomach lurched and rolled again
as nausea threatened. Amy and Mel hurried down the street to me and
standing on either side of me, draped an arm around my shoulders.
“I can’t believe it’s over. He’s gone. I don’t believe it.” I’d
lost him and I had no one to blame but myself.
Mel leaned her head
against mine. “You don’t know that. Let him cool off. Come on,
you’re soaked through. Let’s get you home. It’ll be better in the
morning, you’ll see.”
Mel and Amy stayed up
with me for hours. Mascara flowed down my nose as it rained a
monsoon from my eyes. My body ached from the heaving I was doing
through being sick with grief. How was I ever going to fix this?
I’d lied again. He was never going to forgive me. Curling into bed,
I laid there staring at the wall. My eyes drooped and my body was
exhausted. I was in desperate need of peace and sleep but I
couldn’t stop thinking about Jared. I was in for a rough
night.
Chapter
35
Unexpected
Guests
mind as I woke from my restless sleep. It will be better in the
morning she said. It wasn’t. I called but he wouldn’t answer. I
texted but he never replied. It was official, we were done. I
glanced over at Amy’s side of the room. She was sleeping fully
clothed as she and Mel had crashed out around three, when I had
pretended to be sleeping. I looked at the clock and groaned. Seven
in the morning.
Turning over, I tried
desperately to go back to sleep. But it was no use. I couldn’t
leave things this way, I had to see him. If we were really finished
I had to hear it from his lips. Creeping around the room, I pulled
on some jeans and a hoodie before slipping on my sneakers and
grabbing my car keys.
The drive to Jared’s
house felt like hours as I went over and over everything that had
happened and mentally chastised myself for my part in it all. What
would I say when I got there? How could I possibly justify my
actions? A thousand questions ran through my mind at lightning
speed and I didn’t have an answer for any of them. Pulling up
outside the gates, I punched in the security code that I had seen
him enter a thousand times and drove down the long driveway. I sat
outside his house just staring at the door. Fear and anxiety were
keeping me strapped to my seat. What if he kicked me out and we
really were finished? Going inside would make everything so final,
while outside in my car there was still hope. But I had to know
either way.
Taking a deep breath, I
climbed out of my vehicle and walked up to the door. Nausea and a
swarm of butterflies were turning my stomach inside out. I grasped
the handle and opened the door. It was never locked. With his
security system and the gates, he didn’t need to worry about the
front door. I could hear the sound of Elvis booming from the
kitchen. The song ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ echoed through the
vast foyer. I walked slowly and sullenly towards the kitchen, my
breathing labored as I tried to control my nerves. Rounding the
corner I stood in the door way and froze, gasping for
air.
Long brown hair and a
man’s shirt barely covering a long pair of legs were all I could
see as a woman stood with her back to me at the stove. The room
disappeared around her as I stared, unable to breathe. My heart
shattered and my body trembled as I stood staring at the back of
this woman’s head. The door that led to the dining room opened and
Jared strolled in, wearing a pair of sweat pants and no shirt.
Without seeing me he stood next to her and smiled, inhaling deeply
whatever she was preparing.
“
Smells
great. I’m starving.” She smiled back at him and stroked his arm.
“I’ve seen you eat remember? I thought there was no way you were
going to finish those pancakes. New York breakfasts are something
else though aren’t they?” My fists clenched beside me as fury
boiled in my veins. New York? Did she just say New York? My chest
constricted and my insides twisted with grief. “I hope you don’t
mind but I found this shirt in your closet and figured it’s already
stained so probably alright to cook in it.” She turned around and I
gasped in horror. She was wearing
that
shirt. Catching me standing
there she screamed. Jared immediately turned around and on seeing
my hurt and devastated expression his eyes widened and he
stuttered. “No! Wait, shit, it’s not what you think.
Layla!”
Nausea crept up further
and further up my throat, forcing me to gulp hard as I sprinted for
the door. He ran after me, pleading with me to stop. “Layla please,
wait, I swear it’s not what you think! I didn’t do it. Fuck!
Coffee!” Reaching the drive way I halted. Did he just safe word me?
Furious, I turned to face him. “You have got to be fucking kidding
me. A safe word is for bondage play Jared. It won’t stop me walking
out on you!”
“
I didn’t know what else
to say to make you stop. Please Layla, you have to believe me, I
didn’t do it.”
“
Didn’t
do what Jared? Didn’t get so pissed at me last night that you
decided to get back at me? Is that what she is? Revenge?” He tried
to reach for me but I recoiled and gave him a warning glare. “Don’t
you dare fucking touch me. I never want your disgusting, lying,
cheating hands on me again! New York? Is she what you went there
for?” Suddenly the realization hit me. All the calls, hushed tones,
secret conversations in his office and his sudden trip to New York,
it was all for her. The entire time we’d been together he’d been
involved with her.
I
was the other woman. My chest tightened further
and breathless I gawked at him. “I can’t believe you had the nerve
to say everything you did last night when all this time you’ve had
some skank in another state! How many are there Jared? One in each
place you visit. God all this time I believed you when you said it
was business. I knew there was something you were hiding but this!?
How completely stupid am I?”
He walked towards me but
I wanted none of him. The thought of him touching me after having
his hands on her made my skin crawl.
“
I do not have women in
every state Layla, there’s just you. I swear. Yes she’s the reason
I was in New York but I promise it is not what you think. You have
to believe me.” I stormed over to him and shoved him hard on the
chest. “Believe you? You’ve been lying to me since the moment we
met! If she’s not what I think then who the fuck is she Jared? Your
maid? Do they all wear your shirts!?”
I stood rigid as I waited
for an explanation. Shaking his head, he gave me a rueful look. “I
can’t tell you.” Raising my hand to his face, I slapped him hard
across the cheek. My palm stung and prickled as I remained silent,
glowering at him. Staring back at me, his face was contorted with a
deep sadness and tears pooled in his eyes. Squaring up to him I
clenched my fists as rage filled my body. “I wish you could feel an
ounce of how much it hurts to have something you value so much just
fall apart right in front of your eyes because the way I feel right
now is a fate worse than death.” Without thinking I stormed to my
car and yanked the trunk open grabbing the tire wrench that my
father always insisted I carry. I was livid, fuming, enraged and my
broken heart was making me crazy. Standing next to his sleek and
sparkling car I held the wrench firmly in my hands. “Who is she
Jared?” He shook his head and stared at the ground.
“
Wrong answer!” My arms
swung back and in a heavy swoop I crashed the wrench hard into his
side mirror, knocking it clean off and flying through the air. He
stared at me with the same wounded and devastated expression on his
face as before; as though I hadn’t just fractured his expensive and
beautiful Jag. His silence fueled my anger. “Last chance Jared. Who
is she?!” He shook his head again and stared at me. “I can’t tell
you.”
My blood boiled and all
my hurt, pain and grief was now flooding through my body as tears
streamed down my face. Uncontrollably, I smashed the wrench into
his car sending the other side mirror hurtling across the driveway
and landing at his feet. The windshield shattered as I struck a
devastating blow right into the center. Dragging and slamming the
wrench over the car, scratching and denting the body work, I
growled and sobbed as the aching in my heart consumed
me.
Dropping the weapon, I
dropped to my knees and cried shamelessly. My head in my hands, my
body shook with every deep and agonizing sob. Falling to the ground
in front of me, he took my hands from my face and held them in his.
“Please Layla, you have to believe me, I can’t explain but you have
to trust me. Please don’t do this to us.” Snatching my hands away,
I ripped the ring from my finger and hurled it at him. “I didn’t do
this to us.
You
did! You can take back all your promises because they don’t
mean a thing to me anymore and they obviously never meant anything
to you. You tell me she’s not what I think but won’t tell me who
she is or give me an explanation. I’m done!”
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