by Sandi Lynn
“What are you? The period keeper? Fuck, Alex. I can’t control when I have my periods.”
“Why the attitude, Em? I just asked a simple question and your pills control your period. So obviously, something is wrong.”
“Yeah. Maybe something is.”
“You need to go see a doctor then.”
Oh my God! He wouldn’t stop. One little mistruth and he made a huge deal out of it.
“I’ll call and make an appointment.”
He gave me a small smile and left the bathroom. As I was putting on my makeup, I decided to give him another chance to tell me about today.
“So what happened today? I know you said it was nothing for me to worry about, but I would like to know.”
“Just business stuff, Emerson.”
Strike two.
He obviously wasn’t going to tell me, so I dropped it, for now. I finished getting ready and I could smell his damn cologne infiltrating the bedroom. Shit. Walking into the closet, I slipped into a black and white strapless sundress and had trouble zipping it up.
“Here, let me get that for you,” Alex spoke as he walked up behind me and zipped up my dress. His lips softly touched my bare shoulder.
“Thanks.”
“Are you ready? Traffic is a bitch at this time and Phillip is waiting for us downstairs.”
“Yep. I just need to put on my heels,” I spoke as I grabbed them and walked out of the room.
****
Alex
Man, Emerson was certainly PMS’ing tonight. I was worried that she got her period so soon, which also meant no sex for a few days and, after today, I needed her more than ever. I didn’t even care if she was on her period, but she did. I didn’t attempt to talk to her in the car because it seemed like everything I said was wrong and irritated her. So we rode to the club in silence.
A good friend of mine had opened a karaoke club and we were going to celebrate it. Adam had just met this girl named Renee a couple of weeks ago and thought it would be the perfect opportunity to introduce her to us. He told us that he really liked her and couldn’t wait for us to meet her. Climbing out of the Bentley, I held out my hand to help Emerson out. Surprisingly, she took it and climbed out.
“You look so sexy. Just looking at you is making me hard,” I whispered in her ear.
“Sucks to be you,” she responded, deadpan.
I sighed. This was going to be a fun night.
Chapter 39
Emerson
He had two chances to tell me and he didn’t, so I went into bitch mode. I didn’t want to be like that towards him, but I couldn’t help it. I was hurt. Deeply hurt. Hurt down to the core of my soul. If he was keeping seeing her a secret, what else was he hiding?
We stepped into the club and I saw Adam by the bar. Thank God. I needed a drink like yesterday.
“There’s Adam.” Alex pointed.
“I’m not blind,” I responded. Alex shot me a look.
The minute we approached the bar, Adam hugged me and shook Alex’s hand.
“Renee, this is my sister Emerson and her boyfriend, Alex Parker.”
“It’s so nice to finally meet you.” Renee smiled as we lightly hugged.
Alex leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “It’s nice to meet you.”
I bet it was nice to meet her. And that kiss. Really? He couldn’t have just shook her hand?
“What do you want to drink?” Alex asked me.
“I’ll have a Cosmopolitan.”
Renee was a beautiful girl. She stood about five feet four inches with a petite figure, shoulder-length, blonde hair, and green eyes. She had a bubbly personality. She was the type of girl I could easily become best friends with. Too bad I was being such a bitch tonight, compliments of one Alex Parker.
“I’ll be right back. I see someone over there I need to talk to,” Alex spoke as he kissed my cheek.
Good riddance.
“What the hell is wrong with you tonight? You’ve been giving Alex stabby eyes since the minute you walked in,” Adam said as he lightly grabbed my arm.
“Period.”
“Enough said.” He rolled his eyes.
I didn’t realize I was giving stabby eyes. I’d better cool it. I didn’t want to start a scene in front of Alex’s friends. It wasn’t their fault he was such a douchebag. Finishing off my Cosmopolitan, I ordered another one. Renee and I talked a lot and I really liked her. Even though she and Adam had just met two weeks ago, I could tell they had really fallen for each other.
Alan, the club owner, got up on stage and began to speak.
“I want to thank everyone for coming here tonight to celebrate the opening of my brand new club. Let’s get this karaoke started!”
“Are you feeling okay?” Alex asked as he walked up to me.
“Yes. I’m feeling okay, but I’ll feel even better after another Cosmo.”
“I’ll get you one.” He smiled.
The four of us sat down as the first person got up and started to sing. Oh my God, he was awful and very drunk. It was quite entertaining.
“Here’s your drink, sweetheart.”
“Thanks.”
“Are you going to get up there?” he asked.
“I think I might.” I took a large sip of my drink.
As soon as the drunk guy finished and the alcohol kicked in, I got up from my seat and stepped up on the stage and began to sing “Ex’s & Oh’s” by Elle King. I found the song extremely appropriate. Everyone started clapping to the beat of the music. When I looked out into the audience, Alex was glaring at me. If looks could kill, I’d be dead. He wasn’t happy and I didn’t give a damn. Once the song was over, the crowd whistled and clapped. Instead of leaving the stage, I sang the song “Boston” by Augustana. Once I finished, I stumbled back to the table and sat down. Alex lightly grabbed hold of my arm.
“What the fuck were those songs about?” he asked sternly.
“They’re just songs. What the hell is your problem?” I glared at him.
“We’ll talk about this later.” He turned away from me and I noticed Adam and Renee staring at me.
I shrugged and Adam narrowed his eyes at me. I finished off my third Cosmo, started on my fourth, and Alex got up and went to talk to Alan. Getting up from my seat, feeling a bit dizzy, I went up to the bar and asked the sexy bartender to line up two shots of tequila. I threw them back one right after the other and Adam walked up to me.
“What are you doing? I think you’ve had enough to drink.”
“Come on, big brother, where’s your fun? Have another shot of tequila with me!” I shouted.
“Seriously, Emerson. You’re done.”
“What’s going on over here?” Alex spoke harshly.
“She’s drunk off her ass, Alex. You better get her home. She just downed two shots of tequila.”
“Can you walk?” Alex asked me.
“Yes,” I slurred.
The look on his face was angry as he lightly took hold of my arm. “Let’s go.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you as long as you have that attitude.” I wiggled out of his grip.
“Emerson, I’m not playing games. Let’s go home. Please.” He held out his arm.
I hooked my arm in his and tried to make my way through the club. After stumbling a couple of times, Alex picked me up and carried me to the Bentley.
“What were you thinking in there? You normally don’t drink like that.”
“Can’t a girl have a little fun?” I slurred.
“Yes, but not as a sloppy drunk.”
“Okay. You win. Everything is spinning and I need you to be quiet.”
“Trust me. I will be.” He turned and looked out the window.
I laid my head against the window and closed my eyes.
“Phillip, how much longer until we’re home?”
“About twenty minutes, Emerson.”
Fuck. The movement of the car was making me sick. I heard the gates open and I opened m
y eyes. Thank God we were home. Alex climbed out, opened my door, and helped me out.
“Come on. Let’s get you to bed.” He picked me up and carried me as I laid my head on his chest.
“Please don’t walk so fast. I’m going to be sick.”
“I know. That’s why I’m trying to get you upstairs to the bathroom.”
When we reached the bedroom, he set me down on the bed. “Are you okay for now or do you need to get to the bathroom?”
I fell over and moaned when my head hit the pillow. I could feel the alcohol make its way up my throat.
“Bathroom! Now!”
I put my hand over my mouth and he hurried me to the bathroom. I gripped the sides of the toilet as he held back my hair.
“I really can’t believe you drank so much. We’re going to have a long talk about this in the morning.”
“You really want to go there, Alex?” I spoke in between vomiting.
“Shh. No more talking.”
Once I was finished, Alex helped me up, unzipped my dress and let it fall to the ground. Helping me back to bed, he sat me up and quickly pulled my nightshirt over my head.
“Lie down and sleep it off,” he spoke in an irritated tone.
“Don’t have to tell me twice.” My head hit the pillow.
****
Alex
Perfect end to a shitty day. What the hell was she thinking? I stripped out of my clothes and climbed into bed. I was really pissed off at her and her behavior. And what the fuck were those songs about? I couldn’t even begin to comprehend what the hell was going on with her. The one thing I did know was that she better be prepared to explain herself in the morning.
Chapter 40
Emerson
Rolling over, I placed my hand on my forehead and moaned. I heard the door open and Alex sat down on the edge of the bed next to me.
“Are you ready to talk?”
“What time is it?”
“Noon.”
Both eyes shot open. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No, Emerson. I’m not.”
“Shouldn’t you be at the office?”
“I’ve been there and back.”
“Ugh. Why didn’t you just stay there?” I asked as I looked at him.
“Because we’re going to talk about last night.”
I closed my eyes so I didn’t have to see the anger in his. But then again, he shouldn’t want to see the anger in my eyes. Maybe they weren’t displaying enough anger and I needed to fix that.
“I smell coffee. Where is it?” I asked with irritation.
“I set it on the dresser. I wasn’t sure if you were ready for it.” He got up from the bed and grabbed the cup of coffee. “Here.”
I glared at him as I sat up with my back against the headboard. “You’re not a very good hangover caregiver.”
“Excuse me?” He cocked his head with a very small smile.
“Where’s the aspirin? You should be bringing me aspirin and water.”
He reached into his pocket and shook the bottle of aspirin as he held it in front of me.
“Oh my God, stop making so much noise,” I shrieked as I set my coffee on the nightstand, lay back down, and pulled the covers over my head.
He chuckled and pulled the covers back. “Take these aspirin. Here’s some water and then we’re going to talk.”
“Can you at least wait until the aspirin kicks in?” I asked, extremely irritated.
I knew damn well we were headed for our first huge argument and I wanted to not feel like shit when I took him down.
“Fine. I’ll give you an hour to get up, shower, and feel better.” He kissed my forehead with force.
“That hurt!”
“Good.” He winked as he walked out of the room.
After showering and putting on some clothes, I checked Alex’s office to see if he was in there. He was. Looking up from his computer, he spoke, “Are you feeling better?”
“Kind of. Are you ready to be taken down, Mr. Parker? Wait, speaking of Parker, where is he?”
“Jenna took him for a walk. And what do you mean am I ready to be taken down?” he asked with a glare in his eye.
“You’ll see.”
He sighed. “Sit down.”
“Nah. I think I’ll stand.” I folded my arms.
“Emerson, SIT DOWN!” he shouted.
Stand your ground. Don’t let him boss you around. This whole argument was stemming because of him. If he only would have told me yesterday about Bella, I wouldn’t be standing here right now, hungover and defiant.
“Please, Em. Have a seat and let’s talk about this.” His voice softened. “Couples need to talk things out.”
“But see, Alex, the only thing you want to talk about is last night. About me and how I drank too much. But let me remind you of something. Have you forgotten the night that I had to pick up your drunk ass up at the bar and bring you home? Was that night ever discussed the next day? Or any day for that matter? No. It wasn’t. You refused to talk about it, yet that was okay. But now that it’s me, it’s a different story.”
He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “We weren’t together and the circumstances then were different.”
Okay, he had point, but still, I wasn’t backing down.
“What was wrong with you yesterday? And I know damn well it had nothing to do with your period because you’re never like that.”
I stood there, leaning up against the wall, arms crossed and eyes staring at him. It was time just to lay it all out on the table.
“I went to your office yesterday with lunch to surprise you. When I reached your office, Olivia wasn’t at her desk, but your door was slightly open. When I peeked inside, I saw you and Bella locked in a tight embrace. I gave you the opportunity to tell me last night and you didn’t. Do you know how that made me feel seeing that? I’m going to tell you something, Parker. You’re fucking lucky that I’m still here.”
His eyes narrowed at me before he got up from his seat and began to walk over to me.
“Don’t you dare come near me,” I spoke in anger and he stopped. He knew I was serious.
“I was going to talk to you about that, but I didn’t want to last night because we were going to the club.”
“Really? You were really going to tell me? It seems to me that you’re just saying that because you got caught.” I hissed.
“Think what you want, but you’re wrong. So that’s the reason you drank so much last night?”
“Duh! You would too if you found me in the arms of another man. My God, Alex, I would never put you through that. I just wanted to forget it because that’s all I could see. My heart is so broken right now that it even hurts to stand here and look at you.” A tear fell from my eye and I wiped it away.
“I’m sorry, baby. Let me hold you.”
“No. I don’t want you to hold me. I want an explanation. If there even is one. Maybe you’ve been secretly seeing her behind my back. Maybe everything you’ve said to me was lies.”
“Are you doubting my love for you?” he asked in anger.
“Maybe I am.” I looked down.
He placed his hands on his hips and turned his back to me. “We hit one bump in the road and you doubt me and everything we’ve been through? Do you know how bad that hurts?”
“Not as bad as finding you in the arms of another woman when you supposedly are in love with me.”
He whipped himself around and the anger consumed him. “Supposedly? Fuck, Emerson. How can you say that?”
“All I wanted was for you to tell me why she was there.”
“And I was going to tell you today. But now, since you believe I don’t love you and all of this has meant nothing, there’s no need to discuss it because, apparently, you don’t believe anything I say. If that’s how you feel, then maybe you should leave.”
Oh boy, now he really had me fired up. My eyes burned into his. My heart pounded out of my chest and a wave of nausea overtook me
as he walked out of the room.
“Hey, Parker!” I yelled.
He turned and looked at me from the hallway. I held both my middle fingers up at him. “Bye, Felicia. By the way, I didn’t start my period. I. LIED. TO. YOU!”
He shook his head and walked down the stairs as I went to our bedroom and slammed the door. So much for things being perfect. If it’s too good to be true, then it probably is. Isn’t that how the quote goes?
I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs. I wanted to throw everything I could get my hands on, but I didn’t. I refused to let him break me. I was a fighter and a survivor and, apparently, a very jealous person. You see what he did? He turned it around and blamed me. Did I really doubt his love for me? In a way I did only because he was holding another woman and wouldn’t talk about it last night. What else was I supposed to think? I needed to get the fuck out of here for a while. I needed to clear my head and really think about what had just happened and I couldn’t do that in this house. I was heading down the only road I’d ever known.
Chapter 41
Alex
I went out the back door and down to the beach. I needed just to cool down. For her not to believe that I loved her killed me like nothing ever had. If she never would have seen me and Bella, we wouldn’t be having this argument. I would have told her today why she was there and she would have understood. She was hurt by what she saw, but to doubt that I loved her was crossing the line with me. I had given her everything I had. My heart, my soul, my world, and in one lousy fucking moment, she doubted me. That right there hurt me to the very core of my existence.
About a mile up the beach was a waterfront restaurant. I needed a drink to calm down and to think, so I walked there. Sitting at the bar for a couple of hours, sipping on the same drink, something hit me. I told her to leave. Panic settled inside me because that was exactly what she’d do. I never should have walked away from her and I shouldn’t have been so stubborn and not tell her the truth. I threw some money on the bar and ran up the beach back to my house. I ran as fast as I could as the wind swept across my face and the ocean roared. I flew in the back door and up the stairs to our bedroom. The door was open and Emerson wasn’t in there. I looked in the closet to see her suitcase gone and empty hangers hanging where her clothes hung. Slamming my hand against the molding of the door, I yelled, “Emerson!”