Page 62 of When You're Home
“Today is a new day,” he continued, “and today I need you to forgive me. I need you to tell me we’re okay or at least tell me that we’re going to be okay. I’m going to end things with Chandler as soon as she wakes up. She’ll be out of our lives forever, and I’ll spend the rest of forever making sure you know you’re the only one for me.”
Rhett hoped his groveling was hitting the mark. She hadn’t said a word since he started talking. He wrapped his arm around her and placed his lips to the back of her neck. When she still didn’t respond, he hugged her even tighter.
“Tori? Please say something…” he trailed off, kissing her shoulder and rubbing his hand up and down her bare arm.
“Don’t get any ideas, Wheeler,” she finally whispered. Rhett stilled and moved his hand off her arm. He wouldn’t dare touch her if she didn’t want to be touched.
“You’re gonna have to go find a condom if you want things to go any further.”
Rhett froze as his mind tried to process what she was saying. He told her he had just been tested last week. They didn’t need condoms. They had been together—condomless—all weekend. That had been part of their arrangement from the start.
She wasn’t making sense. Condoms were for people having casual sex. This wasn’t casual—nothing about them was casual anymore. Why would she tell him to use a condom? Unless…
No fucking way. Bile rose in his throat as his body jerked involuntarily away from her.
“What did you just say to me?” he growled.
“You heard me,” she replied. Cold. Calculated. She didn’t need to repeat the words with a tone like that. He knew what she said. He knew what she meant. His heart felt it in its deepest depths. He was bleeding out from the inside.
“Who?” he demanded, his vision blurring as rage built up in his body.
“It’s none of your business, but I’m sure you could figure it out if you thought hard enough about last night.” She was still facing the windows, her naked body unmoving under his sheets. “I told you last night that we were over. I tried to tell you so many times… Maybe now you’ll finally believe me.”
He let out a guttural groan. His eyes burned with rage—no, not just rage. Those were tears. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He couldn’t process how any of this had happened. He had laid awake all night in the guest room. He would have heard if someone had come upstairs and opened the door to his room. Wouldn’t he?
But Tori had gone to bed wearing a bathing suit and a robe, and she was completely naked under the covers now. Apparently there was a reason Fielding was nowhere to be found this morning. He had fled.
Fucking Fielding.
Rhett couldn’t lie next to her for another second. He shot up in bed and threw his legs over the side. He looked over at her, desperate for her to say something, to say anything, to deny it or take it all back. But she didn’t speak. She didn’t turn to face him. He could barely hear her breathing.
“So this is it?” he hissed, scrubbing the tears from his eyes before he turned around to look back at the wall. “You’re so determined to push me away that you had sex with someone else in my bed last night?”
Tori didn’t answer him, but at this point, he hadn’t expected her to.
“Message received, Tori. Message fucking received. Congratulations,” he declared. “You don’t need to worry about pushing me away anymore or ever again. I’m gone.”
Rhett rose out of bed and stalked to the door. He cast one last glance at her in his bed. She had rolled over to lie flat on her back with the covers pulled up all the way up to her chin and her hands resting on her forehead. Her eyes were cast up toward the ceiling. She didn’t even acknowledge he was leaving.
Chapter 36
Tori
“Oh,baby.Yikes.Youwerehotlastnight,butyou’rejustahotmessthismorning,”Jakegreetedherwhenshefinallydraggedherselfdownthestairs.ShehadlaidinRhett’sbedforhoursafterhestormedoff.Shehopedthatifshejuststayedtherelongenoughthemattresswouldconsumeherandshewouldn’thavetofacetherealityofwhatshehaddone.
She glanced at the couch where Jake lounged, scrolling on his phone. He looked freshly showered and not all that hungover. How was that possible after last night?
“Are we…” Tori started to ask, casting her eyes toward the sunroom.
“We’re alone,” he answered before she even finished her question.
“Where did he…” Her voice came out an unfamiliar whisper. She was wrecked, emotionally drained, and more pissed at herself than she had even been at him. Tori was grateful when Jake filled in the blanks.
“He came down here raging before eight. He woke me up, told me I was in charge, and demanded that I get everyone out of the house as soon as possible. He and Chandler left shortly after that. He said he’d be back sometime tomorrow.” Jake shrugged and shook his head as he eyed her up and down. “I have no idea what set him off.”
“That would have been me,” she confessed, plopping down onto the couch next to him. Her head was pounding. No, it was swimming. She was having a hard time deciding whether she was hungover or still drunk. Was it possible to be both?
“I figured as much. Come on,” he instructed, reaching his hand out to her.
