Page 61 of Fly Back to Me
-B
PS. By the way, you look pretty today.??
“You threw us away for ‘pretty’?” I mutter, folding the paper.
I shove the note back in the center console, slapping the lid shut before tossing my head back against the leather seat.
I seal my eyes shut, fingers pinching the bridge of my nose as I breathe through it. My chest pumps through impaired lungs, the puncture so deep that I can easily suffocate any minute.
Jenna and I may have our problems, but the truth cuts just as painfully. Like a jagged saw slicing my heart down the very center.
The water of the shower is still running when I enter the foyer. After hanging Jenna’s keys, I enter my office before locking the door and sitting at the computer. My elbow is propped on an arm rest, fingertips kneading my forehead as I close my eyes.
Anger boils from deep in my gut. A hot storm looking to take down this house with high gusts of wind, as well as the relationship we’ve built for the past three years.
But before I know it, I’m searching the hospital website on my phone. When I click on the appropriate link, the homepage pops up, and I click on the “Find a Doctor” tab. Knowing Jenna works in Pediatrics, I filter the search engine.
My stomach churns with each swipe of my thumb upward on the touch screen, just waiting for this motherfucker’s face. And when I click on the fifth page, Blake Remien, MD shines his smug face at me.
B.
Young—probably in his mid-to late-thirties. Clean cut with blond hair and blue eyes. Not unfortunate looking. I’m thinking this is my guy.
I hastily toss my phone on the desk, the crash ricocheting off the walls of the small room. My hands slide into my hair as I sink back in the chair, fingers curling around my locks and tugging.
What the fuck did I do wrong?
I’ve given everything I could to Jenna, and she knew I’d lay down my life for her. I considered myself a decent boyfriend—always helping with chores around the house, pulling my weight financially, and making sure Jenna’s taken care of before me. Our sex was great, and she’s never had to fake anything with me.
What happened?
Could I have done somethingdifferent?
Could I have done somethingmore?
The shower cuts out before Jenna’s feet march above theceiling. The simmering fury bubbles more rapidly, and I know I can’t stay here one second longer. If I do, this house will be torn apart from room to room. Every wall painted with the blood from my knuckles.
I end up by my motorcycle, seizing the helmet from the handlebar before straddling the bike. But before I slide the gear on, I pause when the white feather cuts into my vision.
I lick my lips, gently nestling the feather between my thumb and forefingers. The gusts of wind inside me begin to mellow out likeshe’smy tranquility. The serenity I need to save myself from these demons I’ve been battling for so long. And as the pads of my fingers stroke the vanes, I think about what she said in her letter.
A letter I’ve memorized like the back of my hand.
I’m reminded of my value. What I can bring to the table and what I can contribute in this life.Shereminds me that I deserve better than what I’ve settled for.
I offered every part of my heart and body to Jenna, and if that wasn’t enough, then she wasn’t the one.
A bitter pill.
But sometimes, the bitterest pill is the most necessary.
Maybe Jenna can’t wholeheartedly appreciate everything I have to offer, but someone else can.
Shedoes.
Chapter 23
Olivia
