Page 12 of Even Exchange

“Charlie, I—we didn’t…” Jonathan stammers while having the sense to pull sweatpants on. “It’s not wh?—”

“If ‘it’s not what it looks like’ comes out of your mouth, I will cut your dick off and feed it to you,” I snap. He reaches toward me, and I slap his hand away, stepping backward.

His eyes wander over me, expression relaxing, a lazy smile spreading across his face. The sight of it causes a nauseating feeling I haven’t experienced since Halloween. “I knew you’d show up.” He glances at Kendra, and her entire demeanor shifts to mirror his. “We were waiting for you.”

“Yeah,” she says coyly. “Jonathan thought you might want to experience something different to spice up yourvanillasex life.” I shake off the sting of her labeling our sex life after a dessert flavor. Although she’s not entirely wrong. She sits up, pushing her tits out, attempting seduction, and I surprise the three of us when I throw my head back, laughing.

“Really?” I ask, seething at Jonathan. “That’sthe best you could come up with? That you planned a threeway on the off chance I showed up tonight? Get the hell out.” I pause. “Actually”—I spin around—“how aboutIget the hell out?”

He grabs my wrist, and I glance at it, then back to his now hardened eyes. “Please, wait.”

“For what? The encore? I’m not going to sit here while you fuck this blonde bitch into next week!” I scream at him.

“Excuse me?” the bitch has the nerve to say.

“You shut the hell up!” I shout, pointing at her, unsure where my brass balls came from. “It’s obvious you know who I am, otherwise you’d be having a very different reaction to me walking in on you two fucking, so why don’t we cut the shit.”

“Charlie,” Jonathan snaps, and my eyes flick back to him.

“How long have you been screwing behind my back?” I fold my arms over my chest, feigning confidence.

“Char—”

“How. Fucking. Long?” I ask, snubbing another bullshit excuse.

His silence tells me all I need to know, and my eyes glide back to the bitch on the bed. “How long,Kendra?How long have you been fucking my boyfriend?”

“Sweetie, he hasn’t been your boyfriend for months.” A sardonic smile creeps on her face, worsening my nausea.

“Kendra,” Jonathan snaps.

I didn’t think it was possible to get angrier once your blood hits boiling, but I’ve hit molten. My face is on fire, and I blink hard as tears threaten to pour out.

Don’t let them see you cry.

Rage surges through me, and my hand takes on a mind of its own, swinging the takeout bag through the air, hitting Jonathan repeatedly. “I can’tbelieveyou!”

Crushing plastic squeaks and cracks. “Stop!” he pleads as fried rice and orange sauce fly across his room.

“You’re insane,” Kendra shrieks, an egg roll nailing her in the face.

One point, Benson.

“Fuck!”Whack.“You!”Whack.

The sack bursts, scattering sticky bits of food over every surface of his room. The ripped plastic floats towards the floor as I make my escape.

“You’re blaming me like this is all my fault,” he calls out, quick on my heels.

Spinning around, I throw a hand over my heart oozing so much blood it’s definitely dripping onto the floor. “Are you suggesting I positioned your dick in front of her pussy?”

“No.” He narrows his eyes at me, and if I weren’t so devastated, I’d laugh at the sight of egg roll guts stuck all over his hairy chest.Point two for Benson.“But did you honestly think we were going to work living so far apart?Youchose to go to CBU instead of here.”

“Because CBU’s closer to the twins!” I say, exasperated. “And I try to see you as often as possible.”

“Yeah, which is few and far between,” he snaps. “And you rarely want to have sex.”Because you never like anything I do. Last night included.“A man has needs.” My teeth grind, jaw aching. “Not to mention you sure as hell never finished me off without explicit directions.”

My open palm flies through the air, delivering a stinging slap to his cheek. “Four years. Four. Fucking. Years,” I spit out through tears, unable to contain them any longer. “And this is how you treat me? You could’ve at least waited twenty-four hours before fucking someone else. If you gave me an STD, I swear to?—”

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