Breaking Promises

by M. A. Lee

  A shrill laughter floated through the phone and all four of us jumped at the sound. “Don’t you dare threaten me, Isaac. You knocked me up.”

  “I didn’t sleep with you!” Isaac screamed as he now held the phone in the air like a weapon.

  There was silence for a moment and I watched everyone around me as though I was having an out of body experience. This couldn’t be real life.

  “And how do we prove you didn’t?” Tiffany shot back. “You were so hammered you couldn’t even walk to my car. Everyone at the bar saw you hanging all over me as I helped you to my car. When we got back to my house, you crawled into bed with me. I guess you just couldn’t resist me,” she finished with a snap. I could only imagine her smirking on the other side of the phone.

  Suddenly, it all became too much for me to handle. I began to gag as vomit raced its way up my throat. I rushed toward the bathroom with Melanie close behind me.

  “Lauren, are you ok?” she asked as I heaved myself in front of the toilet and began vomiting the contents of my stomach.

  Grabbing a washcloth, she quickly dampened it with cool water and then brought it to my forehead. When I was done puking, she wiped my face clean and helped me up off the cool, tile floor of the bathroom.

  Cole and Isaac were standing just outside the bathroom door, the phone still in Isaac’s hand. As he stared at me with sorrow filling his eyes, Isaac pulled the phone up to his mouth and began to carefully construct his words.

  “You are a liar. I doubt you are even pregnant and besides if you are, I know it is not mine. I will find a way to prove that I never even touched you. What I want to know is, what do you want from me? Why are you doing this?” Isaac had so much venom in his voice, I swear if he were to bite you, he could kill you on the spot.

  “Well, I will need some money for doctor’s appointments, buying things for the baby, and I guess to keep my mouth shut. I mean, you don’t want me to go around town telling people I am carrying your child. Especially not since you are getting married to that little princess,” Tiffany said with a laugh.

  “I’m not giving you anything without a DNA test and a lie detector test,” Isaac spit back into the phone.

  Cole and Melanie traded glances and I couldn’t help but sense the worry between them. I hoped they believed Isaac.

  “We will see about that. You have two weeks to get me one thousand dollars or I start telling everyone that you cheated on your girlfriend and are refusing to take care of your baby.”

  And with that, Tiffany hung up and ended the call. We all stood dumbfounded by what we had just heard.

  “She’s not even denying what you said. All she wants is money,” Cole stated as he wrapped an arm around Melanie. She was visibly upset by all of this.

  Thoughts began swirling through my mind. Something wasn’t right here. Her threat was too calculated. Her victim, Isaac, was just too convenient.

  “I think Tiffany knows what you did,” I said in a calm voice.

  Everyone turned and stared at me like I had just grown three heads. “What are you talking about?” Melanie asked.

  I pushed past all of them and left the bathroom. “Isaac, only a few months ago you were into a dangerous money-making scheme. Now, this girl has selected you to target to give her money. She has to know that you have money, or at least know how to get money fast,” I said as I walked around the living room.

  For some reason, these puzzle pieces of insanity were putting themselves together in my mind and I knew I looked like a crazed woman as I spit out my findings.

  “Even if that were true, I am done with that lifestyle. I told you, Lauren, I got Marco arrested. I am on probation, I can’t and won’t do anything to hurt you or get myself into trouble again. The risk is too great. Especially now that I have you back,” Isaac paused. “I still have you don’t I?”

  Rushing to him, I wrapped my arms around Isaac’s neck and hugged him tightly. “Yes, you still have me. We will fight this. We just need to find out a way to prove she is lying and is somehow blackmailing you,” I finished.

  I had more strength in my words than I could have imagined. This girl would not destroy my life. I was going to fight back.

  20

  ISAAC

  This can’t be happening again.

  After everything I had gone through to get Lauren back, it was all for nothing.

  One drunken night ended it all.

  The worst part was, I didn’t even do the things I was now being accused of doing. While parts of the night at Wild Thing’s was still fuzzy, I knew without a doubt that I would never, ever, sleep with another woman.

  I may be a lot of things. A liar. Stupid. Selfish. But, I wasn’t a cheater.

  I remembered Tiffany dragging me into her apartment and someone helping her carry me inside her room. I even remember laying alone in an unfamiliar bed while I puked my guts out. But, I never touched that girl from the bar. And now, she is trying to say she is pregnant?

  She was obviously blackmailing me, but for what reason, I wasn’t sure. All I knew was I had to make sure Lauren believed me. She could walk away from our relationship and from me. I would even understand her reasons. But I couldn’t live knowing she thought that I could betray her by even touching another woman.

  There isn’t a woman in this world who compares to Lauren. My love for her would outweigh any desire or drunken stupor. My love for Lauren is strong enough to keep me from doing anything else that could possibly cause me to lose her.

  Hopefully, she feels the same way too.

  21

  Lauren

  Later that night as I lay in bed, I couldn’t help but feel broken inside. After Cole and Melanie left, I had walked into our bedroom and shut the door- shutting Isaac and the rest of the world out. It had been a few hours and Isaac had granted me the alone time I needed.

  I heard his footsteps coming down the hall and I knew he was going to come into our bedroom. He would want to talk. He would want to ask me how I was doing. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to talk yet, though.

  As the bedroom door slowly opened, a sliver of light from the hall crept into the darkness I had been hiding in.

  “Lauren, can I come in?” Isaac asked softly.

  “Yes,” I replied in an almost whisper.

  He opened the door wider and made his appearance in the room. He stood for a moment beside the bed, just watching me as I lay there watching him.

  I offered him a smile, letting him know while I was upset, I wasn’t done with him or us. Taking my cue, Isaac sat down next to me on the bed. He placed a hand on my back and began slowly rubbing my shoulders.

  “Thank you for believing me,” he said as he looked deep into my eyes.

  He was so sincere with his words that I had to fight back the urge to jump up and hug him. I was so conflicted; torn with just how to act toward him.

  “Don’t make me regret it,” I said. My words came out harsher than I had expected them to, but there wasn’t any way I could speak without my anger showing itself.

  Isaac nodded his head and lay down next to me. “Lauren, I don’t deserve your trust or your belief in me. I know that with everything in my heart. But, I am not lying to you. There isn’t any woman in this world who compares to you and I would be a fool to do anything to lose you.”

  I lay there in the darkness listening to him pour his heart out to me and I felt my heart soften a little bit. I needed those words, but more importantly, I needed his touch. I needed to know he still wanted me.

  Sensing my desire, Isaac slowly moved his hand to the bottom of my shirt and began to carefully and methodically lift the fabric so that he revealed my lower stomach. His hands began to roam over my sensitive skin and I watched him with a careful glance as he moved.

  Heat swelled through my body as my need for Isaac grew more intense. Leaning down, Isaac began trailing kisses up my stomach as he continued to lift my shirt higher. When he freed my breasts, he lifted my shirt over my head and moved his
mouth to my now taut nipples. I couldn’t help the moan that escaped through my lips at his sudden touch.

  My sounds and the way my body writhed underneath his touch made Isaac more alert and needy. As his tongue licked and sucked on my breasts, his hands slipped under my shorts and removed my panties. I lifted my hips, allowing him the space he needed to crawl on top of me. He quickly pulled his jeans down and then before either of us could think, he was deep inside of me.

  As he filled me completely, we began rocking to a tune of desire, hurt, and love. This moment wasn’t just about sex. This was about us becoming one again. We both needed this affirmation that we were a united front. That our love could withstand anything and anyone who tried to come between us.

  “Lauren, you feel so good,” Isaac moaned as he continued to rock in and out of me.

  I opened my mouth to speak, but no sound emerged. I was too engrossed in his touch and the way his body felt as it connected with mine. The heat between us could have sparked a wildfire and as my climax grew, I could feel Isaac reaching the brink of release too. We continued to move in synch with one another until we came together in a release of bliss.

  Rolling off of me, Isaac turned his head to face me. “Thank you for loving me enough to let me back in,” he said as his breath panted from the wild ride we were just on.

  Nodding my head, I turned my head to face him too. “Isaac, we will get through this. I don’t know how, but we will. I believe in us enough to know that,” I said.

  Taking his hand, Isaac cupped my face as he stared deep into my eyes. “I love you so much,” he said as he leaned in and placed a soft and passionate kiss on my lips.

  We lay entangled in one another’s arms until we both fell into a deep and relaxing sleep.

  I WOKE SOMETIME AROUND two in the morning. Isaac’s arms were still wrapped tightly around my body and his breathing was even and calm. Wide awake, I couldn’t seem to go back to sleep. My need to know more about this girl named Tiffany refused to let me rest.

  Slowly, I lifted Isaac’s arms off of me and I crawled out of bed. I crept down the hallway to the living room where my laptop was sitting on the couch. I sat down and opened the computer and pulled up the internet. I began to type Tiffany’s name into my Facebook search engine. Her online profile appeared with links to her Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and personal e-mail.

  I clicked her Facebook profile page first. Her photo was a selfie of her behind a mirror, a dumb duck face pout on her lips. All of her pictures were of her at parties, holding up beer cans and dancing with sexy clothes on. I checked her other social media accounts and they all kept up with the same theme as her Facebook posts.

  This girl was definitely a narcissist, but it didn’t tell me anything more than she liked to party. As I continued to research, I found that she worked at a local bar named The Saloon, on the east side of Lexington. I had never heard of the place before, but I knew one thing for sure. I was going to have to pay this place a little visit.

  22

  Lauren

  “You want to do what?” Melanie asked as she looked at me like I was insane.

  ‘You heard me. We are going undercover and we are going to stake out this bar. There is something up with Tiffany and I am going to find out what it is,” I stated as I took a sip of my coffee.

  We were sitting at Melanie’s favorite coffee shop drinking coffee on a sunny Saturday morning. Melanie had brought bridal magazines and pictures she had saved from Pinterest of cute table decorations for the wedding. I had lured her here on the false pretense that we would be planning the wedding, not preparing for a stakeout.

  “Shouldn’t we be planning your wedding? Isaac said he is going to make Tiffany take a DNA and Lie Detector test. Why should you get any more involved?” Melanie asked as she pouted her lips at me.

  Sighing, I placed my coffee cup down on the table. “Mel, I can’t plan my wedding until this drama with Tiffany is over. Isaac can’t plan our life together with something this monumental weighing us down,” I argued.

  Melanie considered me for a moment. I knew she wanted to argue with me, but she also understood what I was saying. “Fine. But the moment this is all over I want your undivided attention on this wedding,” she stated.

  Laughing, I smiled as I looked at Melanie. She was a true friend indeed.

  “Alright,” I clapped. “It’s time to prepare to take this bitch down.”

  AFTER WE DEVISED A plan which included us heading to the bar tonight to watch Tiffany, we went back to my apartment and dressed in all black.

  As Isaac and Cole watched us get ready, they shook their heads in disbelief.

  “So you two are going to go stalk some chick who is trying to blackmail Isaac?” Cole asked as he shook his head.

  “Yes,” I said as I continued to fix my hair in a ponytail. “She is going to ruin Isaac’s name. She thinks she can blackmail him for money. I want to know why,” I finished as I turned around.

  “I should probably tell you this is a bad idea, but it’s kind of hot that my girl wants to fight for me,” Isaac said as he slipped his hands around my waist.

  Shimming out of his touch, I turned around and faced him. “Let me be very clear. I am fighting for your name. If you and this Tiffany chick had hooked up, there is no way in hell I would ever fight for you. I would never take you back if you cheated and disrespected me like that. However, I believe you. I believe that you are a better man than that. Do I think you a dumb idiot for getting so drunk at a bar that this girl had to help you home? Yes, I do. Do I think that you made a mistake by putting yourself in a situation where someone knows you are an easy target? Hell yes. But, I know in my heart you are innocent and that is what I am fighting for,” I finished as I stared deep into Isaac’s eyes.

  Melanie and Cole watched us with a wild fascination. What I said was hurtful but honest. It needed to be said.

  “Alright then. Just be careful and call us when you find anything. Tiffany gave me one week to get her the money. We need to get dirt on her before she can spread any lies,” Isaac stated firmly.

  I kissed Isaac, grabbed my purse and car keys, and then walked out the front door.

  Twenty minutes later Melanie and I found ourselves sitting outside The Saloon. We watched as people walked in and out of the bar. Sitting in my car, Melanie and I found ourselves growing bored and frustrated from the lack of Tiffany sighting.

  Finally, after an hour, Tiffany walked down the street and toward the bar.

  “Mel, she’s here,” I yelled as I pointed to the girl I had recognized from the Facebook profile picture. She had fake blond hair and long legs.

  “That’s her?” Mel asked as she scrunched her nose in disgust.

  “Yep, I recognize her face from her Facebook profile picture,” I stated.

  Turning her head, Mel gave me a curious look.

  “What?” I asked.

  “Have you been stalking her social media?” Mel questioned.

  “Of course!” I exclaimed. “How else would I know what she looked like? I tried to ask Isaac, but he couldn’t remember much about her,” I added.

  “This is crazy, you know that right?” Mel asked with a sly smile.

  “And that’s why you love me,” I laughed as I opened the car door. “Come on, we have to go catch this crazy train,” I stated.

  Melanie and I ran across the road and followed a couple inside the bar. Once inside, I noted how dark the lighting was. The bar lined the entire far wall and there was a makeshift dance floor with small tables surrounding the space. Melanie rushed over to a table far in the corner, hidden in the shadows where we could remain unseen. As we sat down, I instantly spotted Tiffany behind the bar. She was filling drink orders as customers sat on barstools at the bar, making conversation and filling the air with laughter.

  “What do we do now?” Melanie asked as she leaned over the table to talk to me. Her caramel colored hair bounced around her shoulders as she talked.

  The music
blared from a jukebox not far from our table and with the chatter from the other patrons and the country music playing, it was almost too difficult to hear anything she said.

  “We wait and watch. I need to find out who this girl really is,” I yelled over the noise.

  Nodding her head, Melanie pulled out her phone and began texting someone. I was sure it was Cole who was probably worried about her. Some might think he is a little overprotective, but to me, he is just a man in love.

  After an hour of watching, I was about to give up and call it a night, but then something caught my eye. A man wearing a brown leather jacket sauntered up to the bar and began smiling at Tiffany. I knew that look of love and lust filling his eyes as he took in Tiffany. She smiled back at him and as he made his way up to the bar, they began talking to one another. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it didn’t matter. As soon as he got close enough, he leaned over and kissed Tiffany on the lips.

  “Mel, look,” I said as I took her phone away and pointed toward the bar.

  Mel turned just in time to see Tiffany and the man kissing before their lips parted. “She has a boyfriend,” I smiled.

  Tiffany made her way around the bar and as I watched her, I couldn’t help but notice her outfit. Her jeans were skin tight and her crop top shirt showed off an amazing set of abs. A stomach too toned to be pregnant. “What the hell,” I seethed as I realized that Tiffany didn’t just have a boyfriend. She wasn’t pregnant either.

  “What?” Melanie asked as she tried to see what I was so shocked by.

  “Look at her stomach. That girl is not pregnant,” I stated through gritted teeth.

  “Wow,” Melanie said as she looked at Tiffany too.

  Just then, Jagger walked into the bar and Tiffany’s smug smile turned down. Fear washed over her face as she quickly pushed the man away from her and rushed back behind the bar. It was clear, seeing Jagger wasn’t what she had expected. Lying about her situation wouldn’t work if Jagger saw her with her boyfriend, or whoever the guy was that she was just kissing. Noticing Tiffany’s unease, Jagger nodded her way and then sat at a table near the bar. Melanie and I watched him, intrigued by his presence here. He was obviously here to upset Tiffany, to let her know she was messing with the wrong group of friends.