“Hey Aiden,” I say before the phone is pulled away from me. He hangs up then turns to stare at me, his jaw clenched.
“What the fuck?” I snap, reaching out for my phone.
“You can’t work and study, Paris, it’s too much! Especially when you don’t have to!” he growls, starting to pace up and down. “Why can’t you just let me take care of you?”
“So what, you just want me to rely on you for everything? So I’ll have to ask you for money, since I won’t be making any? Will you what, give me a weekly allowance or something?” I yell.
He stops pacing and fractionally turns to stare me down. “I don’t know why the hell you’re with me when you obviously think so little of me,” he says, before grabbing his keys and walking out. He doesn’t slam the door, but it closes with a resounding thud all the same.
I hear the sound of his car leaving as the first tear drops. Doesn’t he understand? I can’t not earn any money, or live off him. It’s not who I am. I want to pay my own way. I don’t want to have to ask him for money when he has already done so much for me. He thinks that I think little of him—but that couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s because I don’t want to take advantage of him. He’s so giving, so loving. I try and call his number, but he doesn’t answer. I really messed up this time. I ring him one more time before I give up.
Then I crawl in bed and fall asleep.
My phone rings, pulling me from my deep sleep.
“Hello?” I say sleepily.
“Paris, it’s Leah, sorry to wake you,” she says, speaking loudly. There is music in the background, like she’s at a club or bar.
“No problem. What’s up?”
“You might want to come and get Grayson…” she says, sounding worried. “I’ll text you the address.”
“Okay, is everything okay?” I ask, sitting up.
“Yeah, he’s fine. Just a little drunk,” she says.
“Coming now,” I say, hanging up the phone. I check the time, ten pm. I can’t believe he never came back after that. Sure, we had a fight, but he’s never left me like that before. I text London and ask her if she can come and pick me up, and she says yes. I quickly dress in jeans and a white tank top, shoving my feet in my ballerina flats.
“What mission are we on?” she asks when I get into the car.
“Mission pick up drunk Grayson,” I say, lifting my head back. “We had a fight.”
“Put the address in the GPS,” she says, handing me her phone. I type in the address, and we let the GPS guide us. We pull up to a bar about twenty minutes from home, and I see his car parked out front straight away.
“I can go in and get him if you want?” she offers.
“No, I’ll go and get him,” I tell her. As I walk to the bar, I smile at the bouncer and show him my ID before walking in. The place is packed out. I walk to the bar, Grayson coming into view. Only he’s not alone. Dylan sits beside him. They clink their shot glasses together, then drink. I see red. I storm up to him, only to get side tracked by Leah.
“He didn’t do anything,” she says quickly, eying Dylan and grimacing. “He came here with me and then she rocked up.”
Just. Fucking. Great.
I walk right up to Grayson, pick up his bottle of beer, and tip it over his head. I get he was mad, but he’s gone too fucking far right now.
“What the f--” he growls, standing up. When he sees it’s me, his eyes widen. I’m confused as a small smile makes an appearance on his lips. Dylan puts her hand on his arm, and he glances down at it, then at her. Realisation comes to him, as his face blanches. He pushes her arm off him, and steps closer to me, his movements slow. He’s drunk. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him this drunk.
“Babe,” he says, taking another staggered step closer to me. I put my hand up, halting his movements. He lifts his shirt up, revealing his six-pack, and wipes the beer off his face.
“I’m going home,” I say.
“Decide to join the party?” Dylan says, standing next to Grayson. He ignores her, dark eyes on me. I step forward and grab Dylan by the neck.
“Listen here, you bitch, he doesn’t want you. Have some fucking self-respect. I’m having his baby. So why don’t you go find someone else to harass?” I growl, seeing red. She tries to pull out of my hold, so I squeeze tighter. “Nod if you understand me.”
She nods. “Great,” I say in a sarcastic tone. I feel Grayson’s arm wrap around my waist. So I let go of her. She instantly takes a few steps back, holding her neck. Her eyes are wide with shock and fear. Okay, so I may have lost my temper a little.
“Let’s go home, babe,” Grayson says, pulling me away from Dylan. I snatch my arm away.
I turn to Leah. “Can you take him home?”
“Of course but…”
“No, Leah,” I say, shaking my head. I know she wants me to take him home, to make everything better. But this time I can’t. I turn and walk away. I hear him calling me, and then I hear him yelling. I power walk to the car and slide in, slamming the door behind me.
London winces. ‘Don’t take it out on my baby.”
“Sorry, we need to leave now,” I say, staring at the door. Grayson walks out, looking frantic. He finally spots our car and comes storming toward us. I lean over London and lock the doors.
“Drive?” she asks.
“Drive,” I repeat, ignoring Grayson’s calls. Let him enjoy his time with that bitch while I sit at home crying and pregnant with his baby. My phone rings, but like he did to me, I ignore him.
“Want to come stay at mine?” she asks.
“Please,” I say, my voice cracking.
“You two will sort it out, Paris. Don’t stress, okay,” she says. I know she’s worrying about the baby.
“I’ll be all right,” I tell her, forcing a smile. When she stops at the supermarket, I turn to look at her.
She shrugs. “I figured you would need some ice cream.”
I smile again, and it’s a real one this time.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Later that night, I get a text message from someone I never thought I’d hear from again.
Diamond - I didn’t want to do this, but boss insisted. He wants you for an event next week. A one-off thing. 10 K if you’re interested. Take care, sugar.
Ten thousand dollars for one night? Where the hell was this event when I needed to pay off London’s debt? I look down at my stomach. That money could do a lot for me right now. I could buy all the things for the baby and cut down on a few shifts at work. Was I really thinking of doing this? I send a text message back to Diamond, then go to sleep.
My phone doesn’t stop ringing, so I put it on silent. I hear the banging on the front door first thing in the morning. I put a pillow over my head from where I’m sleeping on the couch and ignore it. I don’t want any drama today, I just want to sleep. My body aches, and I feel exhausted even though I haven’t really done anything. Except create new life inside me. London appears from her bedroom door, hair all over the place, scowl on her face.
“Are we loving Grayson this morning? Or hating?” she asks as she stares at the door.
“Definitely not loving,” I say, unable to say I hate him. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to say I hate him.
“All right,” she says. “How did you sleep?”
I wince. “I’ve had better.”
“I told you to sleep on the bed!” she growls, hands on her hips.
“I’m pregnant, not an invalid.”
She gives me a look that says she clearly doesn’t understand the difference. The banging commences again.
“Shit, I have to answer it. The neighbours will complain,” she says, walking to the door and opening it. “What the hell do you want, drunko?” I hear her say.