Free Falling (Fighting Free Series Book 3)

by Chapple, GL

  “Great! You made it – I need help. Come and help me – I need more than two arms, these”- she waved her arms around as she slurred and laughed manically -“they aren’t doing what I need them to! I need to be quicker. Come with me!” She latched onto my hand and tried to pull me after her, then stopped abruptly. “Shoes!” she yelled, startling me. She laughed again. “Fuck your shoes,” she muttered to herself before yanking on my hand again.

  She pulled me after her into what I could only assume was their bedroom: there were clothes strewn over the floor and the bed. A large suitcase was open on top of the bed and was overflowing with clothes. Two empty bottles of wine lay on the floor, and there appeared to be another one on the go beside the bed. No wonder she was in such a state.

  “Maddie, what’s going on?”

  She’d released my hand and was throwing clothes into the case. She spun around and wobbled, righting herself just as I darted to catch her. She slapped my hand away.

  “I’m OK. I’m alright…I’m packing…I’m leaving!” She announced, then added, glancing quickly towards the door, “I need to be gone soon. Help me!” Her composure slipped.

  “Mads, are you…?”

  She cut me off, nodding emphatically as if to drive home her assurance. “I’m sure…I’m fine…I just want to go…I need to go.” The break in her voice was my undoing.

  Jesus, Nate was going to bollock me for this. I began to help her, trying to force her clothes into the case as she moved around the room picking up random things and throwing them to me. Within half an hour most of the chaos seemed to be contained in her case. She’d sat on it for me to zip it, and it was bulging dangerously.

  “Mads, I’m not sure this case is going to hold.” She was standing beside the bed, staring at a picture of her and Christian.

  What the hell was I getting myself caught up in?

  She turned abruptly, pushing past me and storming out of the room. “Let’s go!” She called over her shoulder.

  I grabbed her case - how the hell could clothing and her junk weigh this much? She was waiting by the back door and pointed to the lift opposite – No shit, Sherlock!

  She shut the door and stared for a moment at the keys in her hand before posting them through the letterbox and turning to me with a triumphant grin on her face. She joined me in the lift, and we travelled down to the ground floor. The minute the doors opened, she walked out. She swayed slightly as she exited the building, but she didn’t turn around or glance behind her. She went straight to my car and leaned against the doorframe until I clicked the door open and put her case in the boot.

  I started the car and pulled away. “Do you want me to drop you at Lena’s?”

  She shook her head, and my heart sank. Shit, what the hell was I going to do with her now?

  “I’ll um…I need to find…shit…I need to think…” She was chewing her thumb aggressively, like a starved piranha - forget drawing blood; she was going to hit bone if she carried on like that!

  “I can take you back?” I ventured. “I’m not sure making decisions while you’re angry and drunk is sensible.”

  She turned and glared at me. “I’m not going back. I just can’t go home or to Lena’s. I’ll find a cheap hotel.”

  “Mads, you’ll have to come back to mine for now.”

  This was a bad idea - the worst in a line of bad decisions. I wanted to go back in time and kick the shit into myself for the stupid text message I’d sent the previous night, and then for the even dumber follow-up message.

  “I’m not going to impose, Marcus. I’ll go to a hotel.”

  “Mads, they won’t let you check in yet, it’s too early…”

  “Oh…Ok, well, I’ll come back to yours for now…then a hotel!”

  “Yeah, coffee first, and maybe sleep. Have you been to bed?”

  She rolled her eyes, but I could see that the reality of her situation was slowly dawning on her.

  As I drove home, I could see that, with each mile her bravado seemed to slip further away. She didn’t meet my eyes as she got out of the car. I took her case from the boot as she waited at the front door. I unlocked the door and pushed it open, leaving her case at the bottom of the stairs.

  “Thank you, I’ll go straight to the spare room and lie down,” she mumbled over her shoulder as she raced past me and up the stairs.

  I watched her for a moment before pulling the front door shut behind me and sitting awkwardly on the arm of the sofa. I contemplated calling Lena, but Maddie’d been adamant that she didn’t want Lena involved at the moment.

  My phone beeped to indicate a message from my sister that she felt much better but wouldn’t be home until late afternoon.

  The bedroom door opened and I heard Maddie run across the hallway, I raced up the stairs towards her, praying that she made the bathroom. Kelly wasn’t here, so any cleaning up would fall to me, and I drew the line at cleaning up the sick of a girl I hadn’t even shagged.

  Hell! I wouldn’t do it for someone I had had sex with!

  I heard her throwing up in the bathroom and cringed. Shit! What was the etiquette for this? Was I supposed to go in and rub her back? Hold her hair back?

  I pushed the door open and peered in. “You ok?”

  She nodded - or at least tried to. Her head was propped up on her forearm, which was resting across the toilet bowl. She was breathing heavily, but she wasn’t being sick. I inched into the room, feeling more uncomfortable by the minute.

  “You need a hand?”

  “I donhink I n gup.” Her voice was muffled against her hand.

  “Huh?”

  She lifted her head slightly. “I don’t think I can get up.” I reached around her to catch her under the arms, lifting her upright. She turned and wrapped her arms around me, and I stood there, holding her awkwardly.

  “All men are bastards and liars and…and…I hate them.”

  “Not all, but most. C’mon, let’s get you into bed.”

  “Now’s not really the time to proposition me, Marcus.” I was pretty sure she was joking, but I didn’t have time to check with her as she began to wave her arms around, unbalancing herself again. “Wait! Wait! I need toothpaste; I smell like sick.”

  “Maddie”-

  “Sick, Marcus, I smell like sick. I taste like sick. I don’t. like. sick.” She jabbed her finger in my direction, a determined look on her face which made me press my lips together.

  I sighed, picked up my toothbrush and paste, squeezed a little onto it and held it out to her. She grinned and wagged her finger at me in an exaggerated way.

  “You’re moving too fast for me. I’m not ready to share bodily fluids with you yet.” She chuckled to herself before her bottom lip began to wobble, and her eyes began to shine with unshed tears.

  Fuck me! Dealing with sick and now tears - this was my own personal hell. If she thought living with Kelly meant I’d be the one to come to for consolation and comfort, she was wildly mistaken.

  I thrust the toothbrush at her. She brushed her teeth, and I marched her towards the bedroom. She sat on the bed, and, just as I reached the door, I heard her say quietly,

  “I could be pregnant.”

  I froze, blinking rapidly as my hands fisted at my sides. I couldn’t respond…I didn’t trust myself to speak. I had no idea what to say. She continued talking, oblivious to my inner turmoil.

  “He said we were fine. I thought he’d used a condom. Who the fuck does that? Why would he try to get me pregnant without talking to me? I was so mad! I argued with him, and he went to sleep. His phone lit up”- she paused and took a ragged breath in. I hadn’t moved, still facing away from her, looking at the floor of the room as she sat on the bed behind me.

  -“He always puts his phone on silent and then in a case, so if it receives a message or a call, it doesn’t light up, but he’d gone to sleep and he hadn’t. I don’t know why I looked; I have no idea what made me do it. It lit up - there was a bright light in the room, and I went over to i
t, I picked it up and saw the message on the front screen. He’s cheating on me. He’s sleeping with someone else. Why would he risk me getting pregnant if he’s sleeping with someone else?”

  I didn’t know what to say to her. How could I respond to that? I was still stuck on the part about her possibly being pregnant as I stood there in silence, she sniffed, and I knew she was fighting back the tears again, but I couldn’t go to her.

  She spoke again, her voice quiet. “I really need the morning-after pill. I meant to ask you to stop and get it on the way but I forgot. I’m sorry. ”

  “Where do I get it?”

  “Most pharmacies will stock it. I’ll need to come with you, though. I’m really sorry! I don’t want to leave it any longer. I can’t be pregnant, Marcus.”

  “I think you should call Lena. I’ll give Nate a ring now.”

  “No! Please, no, Marcus! I really don’t want to put this on Lena. She’s happy at the moment. They’ve had so much crap to deal with. Let them be happy…”

  I should look at her, I should turn around and face her, but I can’t. I don’t want to deal with this anymore.

  “Thank you for your help. I’m sobering up now. I’ll call a taxi and get out of your way. You don’t need this hassle.”

  I wanted to agree with her. I didn’t need this hassle. I didn’t want to get caught up in her relationship problems. But her voice was so small, she didn’t sound like Maddie at all, and I clenched my fists together. She might feel a little better after throwing up, but she was far from sober.

  “I’ll take you. Are you good to go?” My voice was clipped, strained, even to my own ears. I still hadn’t turned to look at her. I didn’t want to deal with this, but I hadn’t left myself much choice.

  “Yeah, I’ll just”-

  “Good. I’ll wait downstairs. As soon as you’re ready, I’ll drive you into town and you can get it.” I walked out of the room and down the stairs.

  Fuck my life! I did like to overcomplicate things that were once so simple and easy.

  We drove into town in silence. I parked, and she jumped out and ran to the pharmacy, coming back about twenty minutes later. I checked if she needed to go anywhere else, and she shook her head. She was exhausted. Laying her head against the headrest, she closed her eyes and fell promptly asleep.

  Parking outside the house, I looked over at her. She’d washed her face before leaving the house, and she was fresh-faced and make-up free. Even in her sleep she looked tense, a frown marring her face as though she was still not totally relaxed.

  I shook her arm gently, but there was no reaction. I got out of the car and went around to her side, opened her door and tapped her knee gently. She didn’t react at all. I went to unlock the front door before going back to the car and leaning in to unstrap her and lift her out. She moaned quietly before snuggling her head into my chest. I kicked the car door shut with my foot and walked with her in my arms into the house.

  I glanced up the stairs but decided against it. In the living room I laid her down on the sofa. As I tried to move away, she gripped her arms around my neck. “Please don’t leave me!”

  I stiffened in her arms before slowly peeling them from around my neck. She sighed softly and turned onto her side, but as I moved away, I heard her murmur sadly, “Everyone leaves me.”

  I stopped in my tracks and looked at her. Her eyes were closed but her mouth was tight, her shoulders bunched up and her posture stiff as she lay there. Against my better judgement, I sat down beside her, placing my hand softly on her back. She turned and curled herself around me, her posture softening almost immediately. I moved slightly, allowing myself to lift her legs and drape them over me so that I could sit against the back of the seat, then leaning my head back, I closed my eyes.

  Oh shit! Everything hurt. My head was pounding and my stomach felt queasy. I opened my eyes and immediately noticed I was draped over Marcus.

  Not good!

  Just as I was trying to decide whether to edge off him or stay still in case I woke him, I felt him stirring. I quickly pulled my legs from his lap and sat upright beside him.

  “Hey, thanks for helping me out…” I fidgeted awkwardly, unable to meet his eyes. I had no idea what I’d told him, my memory was like Swiss cheese at the moment with huge blank spots. He wasn’t looking at me with pity, though. I can’t have embarrassed myself too much.

  “You’re good, but I still think you should call Lena today. She’s not going to appreciate being kept in the dark.”

  The sound of the front door slamming interrupted us, and we both turned as Kelly walked in. She looked at me in surprise, her eyes sweeping over the two of us before narrowing and fixing on Marcus.

  She looked unimpressed. “What’s going on here, then?”

  It suddenly hit me that she thought I’d spent the night after seeing us throwing down shots together. She had her arms crossed and was giving Marcus a filthy look. He didn’t seem in the least perturbed, matching her glare with a cocky raised brow.

  “Marcus helped me out this morning. I messaged him; he came and picked me up. I’ve left Christian.”

  Saying the words out loud made it real, and I felt the nausea rise up again. I blinked. I wouldn’t cry, not in front of people. I shook my head as if trying to clear my mind before meeting Kelly’s gaze. “I need to find a hotel or somewhere to stay, but it was too early to check in anywhere. That’s why I came back here. I’m sorry, I hope you don’t mind. I’ll be out of your way soon.”

  Her gaze softened, and she came to sit next to me, shooting Marcus another quick look, but it wasn’t one of apology - she still seemed to be pissed at him.

  “Oh, Mads, come here, honey. What’s happened?” She wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tight.

  Marcus stood up and walked into the kitchen, allowing us some privacy.

  “He’s cheating on me,” I whispered.

  As painful and humiliating as that was to admit, it was easier to say that than to tell her that he’d fooled me into sleeping with him without any protection. The fact that I could have got pregnant without realising made me feel worse than knowing he was sleeping with someone else. The two actions seemed so at odds with each other I couldn’t comprehend what he could have been thinking.

  “Fucking bastard!”

  “Yeah, he is.”

  She smiled back at me, but I could see the concern on her face. “What are you going to do now?”

  I shrugged. I had no idea. I’d resisted his suggestion to sell my house when we’d moved in together and had rented it out instead. For that I was now feeling incredibly grateful, but that wasn’t going to help me at the moment. The current occupants had signed a lease for six months, and they still had just over seven weeks left before that was up for renewal. Obviously, I’d need to let them know straight away that they wouldn’t be able to renew, but I had no clue how I was going to manage until I could move back in.

  “I can’t go back to my house for another few weeks. I’ll have to let the occupants know that they need to look for alternative accommodation as soon as I can, but they still have a few weeks left on their lease.”

  “What about Lena?”

  I shook my head. “Not if I can help it. She’s living with Nate. I’m not getting between those two. Besides, they’ve both had a rough time lately. They don’t need this. They deserve their happiness. I’ll have to try and sort something out.”

  I chewed my lip as I tried to think of a solution. I really didn’t want to involve Lena, but it might be that I wouldn’t have any other choice. I couldn’t afford to stay in a hotel long-term and there wasn’t anywhere else for me to go.

  Kellie squeezed my hand, and I looked up at her. “Stay here for as long as you need to. We have a spare room, so it’s a no-brainer.”

  “That’s really kind but”-

  “Tell her, Marcus!” Kellie spoke over me whilst looking towards the kitchen.

  I felt so uncomfortable I wished the ground would swallow m
e up.

  Before I could respond, Marcus spoke up. “We have the room. Stay until you figure something out. Just, please, speak to Lena too.” He walked out of the room, and I heard him going up the stairs.

  I turned back to Kelly. “I really don’t think”-

  She held her hand up to quieten me. “Simple! Don’t! Marcus is like that a lot of late. Don’t take it to heart. Look, I’m going to be spending less time here - he doesn’t know that yet” - he pulled a face, -“so it’ll be good for him to have some company around. He needs to get himself out of this rut he’s in. I saw you guys last night; you get on. You’re one of the very few people who have managed to get a real smile from him. I know you’re both hurting, and, as long as he doesn’t screw it up by trying to get you into bed, I think you’d be good for each other.”

  I laughed and rolled my eyes at her. “I’m pretty sure Marcus doesn’t see me that way.” I cringed.

  Certainly not after the state he saw me in last night. I was mortified.

  She shook her head and patted my hand patronisingly before walking into kitchen.

  I picked up my phone, my mouth going dry as I saw the number of missed calls from Christian. My chest felt tight, just saying out loud that I’d left him had made my heart rate spike and my anxiety level to soar. I didn’t know what to do or say. Was leaving him the right thing to do? Or was I overreacting? The thought of being on my own again filled me with dread. I tried to remember exactly what I’d read on his phone, but the amount of alcohol I’d consumed trying to forget seemed to have done its job. I considered whether I could have misunderstood a message; deep down I knew that the evidence must have been pretty damning, but I willed myself to keep an open mind.

  I should speak to him; I needed to hear him out - give him a chance to explain, at least – but, despite my sleep, I still felt drained.

  “I’m uh…” Kelly turned to look at me as I indicated upstairs. She smiled and nodded, waving me off.

  I clutched my phone in my hand as I walked up the stairs and into the spare room. I sat on the bed and looked around me, feeling lost and confused, I honestly didn’t know what to do or how to feel, but I couldn’t deal with speaking with Christian at the moment, so I sent him a quick message, simple, straightforward and to the point: