Page 63 of Ink & Ambition

“Sunshine…” he sighs and leans down a bit more. I close my eyes.

A bang on my bedroom door rips us apart.

“Margot?” A male voice. An angry male voice.

Pulling away from Alex, I open the door to see Ryan standing there, his face furious, a worried Danika and Sydney behind him.

“What are you doing here?” I step closer to him.

He looks over my shoulder and then back down at me. “What amIdoing here? What ishedoing here?” He motions with his hand toward Alex and I can feel Alex behind me, just as close as he was before but in an entirely different way. He puts his hand on my arm, not as a sign of affection. Almost as if he’s ready to pull me out of the way if he has to.

Ryan doesn’t give me a chance to explain as he steps back from the door and into the living room. “You haven’t been answering any of my calls tonight and you hung up on me before–”

“We’ve been having a girl’s night, dick,” Danika says, her voice full of venom.

Ryan looks over his shoulder at her. “Yeah, looks like it. Didn’t realize you had a sex change, Prescott.”

Alex steps up closer to me, the rage wafting off of him in waves. I push him back a step as I move closer to Ryan. “Can you calm down? You’re acting super immature right now.”

“Oh, I’m immature?” Once again, he looks over my head toward Alex. “You know, I was planning on using her against you but I guess you beat me to the punch.”

Everyone falls silent at his words, taking them in. The only thing we hear in the room for several moments is the sound of Ryan’s heavy breathing. It’s then that I notice the smell. He reeks of beer, his eyes glassy. He looks similar to Alex at the last party but more coherent.

When he looks at me at last, my eyes are like daggers.

“Get out.” My voice is stone. Leaving no room for interpretation. Yet Ryan tries it anyway.

“Margot, wait, let me just—”

“Get the fuck out of my apartment or, I swear I will call the police.”

Ryan blinks a few times. He looks over at Alex again before his gaze lands on me, lingering long enough that I have to look away.

“Fine.” Ryan raises his hands for a second and then points a finger over my head at Alex. “He’s not as innocent as you think he is. You’re making a mistake choosing him over me but fine. I’ll go.” Turning on his heels, Ryan leaves the apartment, the door slamming behind him. It’s not until that sound that I feel like I’m able to take in a full breath.

From across the room, Danika lets out a loud awkward laugh.

Turning around, I finally look Alex in the eyes. His expression still looks somewhat murderous but it’s relaxed a bit now that Ryan is gone.

“What did he mean by that?”

Alex raises his hands, his expression the picture of innocence and turmoil. “I have no idea, I swear.” He takes a tentative step closer to me but I find myself stepping back.

“‘He’s not as innocent as you think he is.’ What…what does that mean?” I’m stuck trying to make sense of all this and Alex is being surprisingly quiet. As if he has the answers but he’s not ready to tell them.

“Margot, listen, I…” His face looks distraught but I’m not ready to move on from it. Instinctively, I take another step away, landing closer to Danika and Sydney and farther from Alex.

Danika takes note of this and jumps into action. “Maybe you should go, Alex,” she says, her voice soft but firm.

A flash of something crosses Alex’s features but it doesn’t linger. He knows it’s best for him to leave and let me think through the events of the last five minutes but he’s clearly reluctant to leave like this.

He takes a hesitant step toward me but I shake my head once. With a sigh, Alex exits the apartment, leaving an air of confusion in his wake.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Margot

DanikaandSydneyfollowme into my bedroom where I sit on my bed and pull the pillow into my lap. With a blank expression on my face, I stare ahead, unsure of how to piece together what just happened with Ryan and Alex.

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