Total pages in book: 198
Estimated words: 186242 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 931(@200wpm)___ 745(@250wpm)___ 621(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 186242 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 931(@200wpm)___ 745(@250wpm)___ 621(@300wpm)
Up the stairs I went.
I put some things into my duffel bag for tonight and tomorrow morning. I knew it was a little immature, but I hadn’t put the jacket that Rhodes had bought me on that morning, instead using my thinner one, and I left it where it was on top of the mattress. And yeah, I hadn’t worn the boots either, and I left them on the side of the bed too.
They could be mad, but I could have my feelings hurt too, right? I was tired of people just . . . not talking to me anymore. Just letting me leave. It sucked, plain and simple. Maybe I’d gotten over a lot of things over the last year and a half, but the betrayal of not just the Joneses but my “friends” too stung the hardest.
So yes, chances were I was being extra sensitive, but there wasn’t much I could do about it. There were only so many emotions you could talk yourself out of, and this ache wasn’t one of them.
Finally ready to leave, I clutched my keys as I circled toward my car and tossed my bag in the back. I happened to look up toward the deck and found Amos standing there, watching me through the window. I lifted my hand and ducked into the car. I didn’t wait for him to greet me back; I couldn’t handle having him blatantly ignore me.
Then I left.
Chapter Thirty
I’d be a lying son of a bitch if I said that a couple of tears didn’t sneak out of my eyes on the way to Clara’s.
Wiping at my face when one of them brushed the side of my mouth, I listened to the navigation warn about an upcoming right turn and immediately get cut off when a call came through.
The screen showed “TOBER RHODES CALLING.”
Was he calling to tell me bad news? To tell me to move out? Dread wrapped its fingers around my stomach, but I forced myself to hit the answer button. I’d already learned the hard way what happened when I tried to avoid bad things.
Might as well embrace them and get them over with.
“Hello?” Even I could hear the uneasiness in my soul.
“Where are you?” came the rough voice.
“Hi, Rhodes,” I said quietly, more quietly than I thought I’d ever talked to him before. “I’m driving.”
He didn’t say hi back; what he did say was a curt, “I know you’re driving. Where are you going?”
His Navy Voice was back, and I didn’t know what that meant. “Why?”
“Why?”
I sucked in a breath through my nose. “Yeah. Why are you asking?” I had to just . . . face it. If he wanted to tell me to get my things and leave, even though I didn’t think that was something he’d want to do, might as well find out now.
That made my stomach clench painfully.
He took a breath so loud and haggard, I was surprised it didn’t blow me away even over Bluetooth. “Aurora . . .”
“Rhodes.”
He muttered under his breath, then seemed like he pulled his phone away from his mouth to say something to who I could only imagine was Amos before coming back on the line and repeating the same question. “Where are you going?”
“To Clara’s,” I told him, still speaking quietly. Then I decided to take advantage of the call because why not? “I’m sorry for not telling you the truth, but I love you and Am and didn’t want you to think I was a loser, and I hope you’ll forgive me. I don’t really want to cry while I’m driving, but we can talk some other time. Okay, bye.”
Like the chickenshit I didn’t know I was, I hung up. I wasn’t sure if I expected him to call me back or not, but he didn’t. And I realized when my heart started hurting again that I kind of had hoped he would. I’d fucked up.
I was so stupid.
But I couldn’t bear the thought of hearing him say something hurtful. Maybe it was for the best that we hadn’t spoken until now. The more time he had to cool off, hopefully the less my chances were of getting my feelings hurt more.
That still didn’t make me feel better though. Not really. I’d rather get into an argument than get ignored. I really would. I would have rather heard him tell me that I’d hurt his feelings and say he was disappointed that I’d kept the truth from him than get brushed off.
Parking in Clara’s driveway, I got out with an even heavier heart at the same time the front door opened, and she was there and waving me in.
“Come on,” she invited, her smile gentle and welcoming.
“Are you sure everyone’s fine with this?” I asked, going up the steps.
Her smile stayed the exact same. “Yes. Come in.”