Page 82 of Fumbled Beginning

“I’m sorry,” he slurred and ran his hand through his sweaty hair. “I’m drunk and wasn’t thinking. I got carried away.”

“That’s no excuse. Don’t ever touch me again!” I stormed off the dance floor and ran smack into Diego and Noelle.

“Rylee.” Noelle stumbled into me. “I’m sorry I left you.”

“Everything okay?” Diego asked, his eyes bouncing back and forth between Dom and me.

Dom waved his hands in the air. “Everything is fine. It was just a simple misunderstanding.”

I scoffed and crossed my arms. “It was more than that and you know it. I was trying to be nice and you took advantage of that.”

“Rylee, come on, cut me some slack. Don’t cause a scene. We’ve all been drinking.”

“I’m ready to leave.” I set my drink down on the ledge. I couldn’t believe how quickly this night went downhill. I didn’t even want to think about the fallout if JP ever found out what had happened tonight. If the situation were reversed, I would be livid.

Dom stepped back, creating a little distance. “I’ll order our Uber to take us back to the hotel.”

I took a deep breath, attempting to calm myself down. I just wanted to go back to my hotel room, crawl under the covers, and forget this night ever happened.

The black SUV pulled up to the curb. We all jumped in. Noelle and I sat in the second row, and Diego and Dom sat in the third. I rested my head against the back of the seat, watching the neon-colored lights whizz by.

I was missing JP, so I slid my phone out to text him and let him know I was thinking of him, but my battery was dead. I threw it on the leather seat and felt my eyelids grow heavy from exhaustion.

Noelle tried to talk to me, but I was too tired to keep up a conversation. I had changed my plans to a six-a.m. flight and needed to get a few hours of sleep. The past week had been weighing me down, and the longer I sat, the more guilty I felt. Dom’s kiss played in my mind like a bad dream on repeat.

Maybe tonight was the universe’s way of telling me never to touch a drop of alcohol again.

CHAPTER26

JP

Normally,I was calm and collected, even during the most extreme circumstances. It was rare for me to feel this out of control. I don’t ever remember feeling so caught off guard in my life.

The last thing I ever expected to find while scrolling through Instagram were tags of my fucking girlfriend dancing with another man. I could almost look past that because there had to be a reasonable explanation, but what really sent fire through my veins was the second picture of her and Dom. His arms were wrapped around her waist, and her hand was on his chest. They looked pretty damn cozy, and there was no denying the way he looked at her. Like he was one second away from taking her right there on that dance floor.

What. The. Fuck!

I spent these past two nights missing the hell out of her and torn up about how I treated her. All I wanted to do was make things right and get her to understand how much she meant to me. Meanwhile, she was out getting hammered at a club, letting him put his hands all over her.

She was so damn busy that she couldn’t spare me a five-minute phone call, but she had time to hang out with him. Yeah, she looked busy all right.

My fingers squeezed the phone case so hard I was afraid it would crack. I was going to kill the son of a bitch. Sure, my ego took a hit, but I couldn’t let this one slide. He had to make a move on her when I was hundreds of miles away. Just like he had to have known there would be a price to pay.

I should have listened to my instincts and begged her…to what, not leave with him? That was absurd. I had no control over her work schedule, but I should have insisted on driving her to the airport at least, instead of just backing off. After looking at these pictures, giving her the space she asked of me was the wrong move.

A sharp burn stung my eyes. I was going to destroy the weaselly fucker with my bare hands. I snatched my keys off the counter and stormed out the door.

My knuckles were white from gripping the steering wheel so hard as I sped along the interstate. By the time I reached my destination, my jaw was locked with fury. I sat in my truck like a stalker, waiting for either of them to pull into the employee parking lot. Showing up when I was this upset probably wasn’t my best plan, but I had to confront both of them—two birds with one stone and all that.

If Rylee would just pick up her phone or return her messages, I wouldn’t be as pissed off as I was. Rationally, I knew there had to be a damn good reason for all this, but my mind wouldn’t settle down until I talked to her.

My eyes were trained on the main entrance of the hotel. Guests and employees were making their way through the parking lot, and a row of rideshares were waiting in the circular driveway, ready to drop travelers off at the airport.

I had no idea what I would say, but when I spotted the fucker exit his white Tesla, I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t think twice. I threw my car door open and stalked toward him.

His head was down as he maneuvered around the parked cars. He must have sensed me because he turned just as my long strides caught up to him. The look on my face should have sent him running in the opposite direction. Instead, he pushed his sunglasses up to the top of his head and smirked.

“Can I help you?” His smile was sleazy as fuck.

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