When I took in the scene in front of me after walking through my front door, I dropped my bags. Men were gathered on my couch, drinking heavily and laughing as Jayden scanned my face. His company took a shot of tequila and Jayden, shot in hand and eyes on me, followed behind them. I felt the danger of the situation in that moment. And in that moment somehow I knew Jayden shouldn’t be drinking. I decided the battle could wait because I sure as hell wasn’t ready for war.
“Hey, Mrs. Monroe,” Jordan, Jayden’s best friend who had recently come home from overseas, greeted me. “Sergeant,” I said back in polite reply.
There were a few other guys in the room I didn’t recognize and Jordon quickly introduced me. “This is Tye and Gary. These are my tour buddies, and this is Mrs. Hilary Monroe.”
“Nice to meet you guys,” I said, my eyes never leaving my husband’s. “I’m just going to put this stuff down. Pour me a shot, would you?” I made my way to the bedroom with my bags and dropped them on the bed then lay back. I had two choices: be the nagging, bitchy wife and hold a grudge, or try to be good company and play along with Jayden’s attempt to avoid our argument. I opted for option two and quickly started changing my clothes when Jayden walked in.
“Jordan called and asked to hang and I didn’t want to be rude,” he said simply with his hands in his pockets.
“It’s cool. It’s not like we have company all the time. I mean do you want me to make myself scarce? I could call Gerri and find some trouble to get into.” I pulled a t-shirt off a hanger and slipped it on.
“You are so fucking beautiful,” Jayden said from behind me as he stood at the closet door. “Baby, do you know how pretty you are?”
I paused before zipping up my jeans. “So are you,” I said honestly. “But I’m still upset. Just promise me we will talk later.”
“I promise.” He pulled me to him and I sighed. He smelled incredible and I wanted nothing more than to feel him surrounding me. He leaned in to kiss me, and though I swore I’d made peace with our situation, he felt me stiffen when he leaned in. “What the fuck, Hil?”
“Don’t get upset, Jayden. I’m trying to let it go.” He pulled away, shaking his head. “Yeah, well, you are doing a shitty job.”
“Thanks,” I huffed, pushing past him. “And you are suddenly the authority on handling situations maturely, right?” I didn’t bother to wait for an answer as I exited the bedroom, rounding the corner and heading straight for my tequila shot.
“Let’s make some noise, fellas,” I said, pulling up my shot for a toast as Jordan handed Jayden another. “I got a raise today.” I saw the surprise and a flash of anger in Jayden’s features because I hadn’t shared with him as he absorbed my words. I couldn’t help the small amount of satisfaction that I got from seeing his irritation. I knew I was playing with fire, but at the same time, I deserved a little happiness. I’d earned it. As the guys cheered with my admission, the first shot went down smooth.
Four hours later, I was slightly hammered and swallowing mouthfuls of chips and dip as the guys around me held their liquor with grace. Even Jayden impressed me with his ability to handle his alcohol as if he’d been drinking casually. Face burning with alcohol and feeling like shit, I made a decision to go for a swim. It was still a little cool, but I knew that the water would relax me and the sudden noise level from the living room was becoming a headache. I excused myself and went to get into my suit. It took me five minutes to get it on as opposed to the typical two. Grabbing a towel, I walked into the living room only to hear the cat calls of the boys.
“Hot damn, Jayden. You lucky son of a bitch,” Jordan remarked as I wrapped the towel around myself.
“I’m out of here, fellas. You guys are too much for me. Make yourselves at home. No one is driving,” I scolded. I made it out the front door before Jayden gripped my wrist in the breezeway. “What the fuck are you doing?”
I looked up at Jayden’s who face was twisted in anger.
“I’m going for a swim. Chill out,” I said, yanking my hand away. “Have fun with your friends. I won’t stay gone long.”
“It’s fucking two o’clock in the morning, and you’re drunk,” he snapped.
“And,” I said with big eyes. “I used to do this all the time.”
“Get back inside. You’re being rude,” he said, his blue eyes commanding.
“How about you get back inside your impromptu party that I’ve entertained long enough. I’m going, deal with it.”
“Just had to parade your ass around in a bikini, huh?” he commented as I took my first step. I paused and turned back to glare at him.
“Jesus, Jayden, that was the last thing on my mind. I’m hot. I’m buzzed. I want the water.” I walked off, refusing to entertain his hissy fit further. I heard the door slam behind me and sighed. This wasn’t going to end well. But honestly, I didn’t give a shit. It seemed he could do whatever the hell suited him, and in the last few hours, I felt like everything I had done was all wrong.
The water was freezing, and at the same time refreshing. I managed to swim a few laps and spent the rest of my time wading in the water. I heard my phone go off and ignored it, sure I wouldn’t like the incoming call. I spent longer than necessary at the pool, avoiding Jayden and his unreasonable behavior. I was the one who was lied to, I was the one with hurt feelings, and eventually I was the one who realized I was freezing her ass off and suffering because of his actions.
With my newfound anger for the situation, I resolved to go to bed. I walked into a quieter party. Two of the guys were passed out on the floor while Jayden and Jordon battled it out on the Xbox. I walked into the hall closet, and pulled out spare pillows and blankets and set them on the couch.
“I’m off to bed. Goodnight.” Jayden glared at me out of the corner of his eye as Jordon gave me a polite but distracted goodnight. Sometime later, I felt the bed dip next to me and waited for Jayden’s arms to wrap around me.
They never came.
“Oh, Jesus,” I rasped, voice sore and head pounding the next morning. I reached out next to me and got nothing. Peeking up at the clock, I saw it was still early. I rolled over to go back to sleep when I heard the vacuum start. Deciding to give my bladder some much needed relief, I stumbled into the bathroom, emptying the last two Advil into my hand and cupping water to wash them down before taking care of business.
I looked up to see Jayden staring at me from the doorway before he eyed the empty bottle. “If the bottle’s empty, why not trash it? I’m not your maid.”
“Good morning to you too, dear husband,” I snapped sarcastically. He snatched the empty bottle from the sink and made his way back to his noisy chore.
No longer willing to deal with Jayden’s shit, I cornered the bathroom as he wrapped the cord around the vacuum.
“Is the house nice and tidy now? Is it safe to go back to bed? I mean, I know it’s only seven a.m. on Saturday and the day is wasting, but some of us like to sleep on our days off. Oh, and I’m almost sure you forgot to pick that stick out of your ass while you were cleaning,” I said as I hoisted a bottled water from the fridge and headed back to our bedroom. Knowing I had poked the bear and not giving a damn, I buried my head under the covers.
Jayden walked in minutes later carrying a laundry basket full of clothes and slamming the drawers as he put everything away.