Page 40 of Fighting for the Forbidden
“Have you spoken to Erica?” She shakes her head. “I think you should.”
“You seem to have a lot of opinions on what I should do for someone who hardly knows me.” Her words cut, but I can’t really argue. I do feel like I’ve just been slapped with her change of attitude, mind you. “I’m sorry,” she whispers. “I just…ugh. All this shit just happened all at once. I need to process one thing at a time, and you might be surprised to hear thatyouwere more persistent.”
“I don’t know what you mean. Has she tried to talk to you?”
“Yeah. She’s been texting me for days, but I just…she was sleeping with him, Ben”
“I know, but I really think you should hear her out. She said she was in a bad place after her ex and—”
“He was a dick.”
“He manipulated her. She didn’t willingly sleep with him.”
“I know, I know. It’s just…” She sighs and drops her head onto my shoulder. I want to feel happy about the fact that she’s using me for comfort, but the truth is that she’s just exhausted and overwhelmed. She’s had so much to try to deal with and process in only a few days. It’s no wonder she doesn’t know what to deal with first.
“Just promise me you’ll talk to her. Don’t let him ruin your friendship.”
“I promise.”
The rest of the flight and the taxi drive into the city are pretty quiet. We’ve both got too much on our minds to do much talking.
“It’s on the right here,” Lauren says, twisting in her seat, getting ready to get out.
I was less than impressed when she immediately gave the driver her and Joe’s address when we got in, but I’m not sure what I was really expecting. This is her home.
The taxi pulls to a stop outside her building and my heart falls into my stomach. I’m not ready for our time together to come to an end already. I don’t really feel like I’ve achieved all that much, other than the fact that all our words are no longer shouted at each other.
“Well…uh…thanks for gate crashing, I guess.”
I think back to my journey through the airport to find her, and it feels like a lifetime ago, not three days.
“You’re welcome. I hope I didn’t totally ruin your time away.”
“Not entirely. There were a couple of good bits.”
“A couple?” I try to make it sound light and playful, but I seriously miss the mark.
Her sympathetic eyes turn on me and she smiles.
“Thank you, I think.”
“Wait,” I call just before the door closes. “When can I see you again?” Her mouth opens to respond, but no words pass her lips. “I’m not giving up here, Lauren.”
“I…I don’t know. I’ll call you in a couple of days, and we’ll sort something out.”
Before I get a chance to respond, the door’s shut and she’s walking away, tugging her small suitcase behind her.
“Fuck.”
“Where to, mate?” the driver asks, ignoring my frustration. I rattle off Mum’s address.
Resting my head back, my exhaustion takes over and I sleep the whole journey. The driver actually has to wake me up when he pulls up in front of the driveway.
“Shit, I’m sorry. How much do I owe you?”
I pay him and stagger out. I don’t have anything; the few bits that Lauren picked up for me I either left behind or squeezed into her case.
Letting myself through the gates, I find both Mum and Chris’ cars in the driveway. Thinking nothing of it, I unlock the front door and head towards the kitchen for a drink.
