Page 67 of Crash
Clutching her stomach, she murmured a quiet ‘excuse me’ as she made a hasty retreat into the hallway. This was all too much. First Ruth, now this woman.
Why can’t I catch a break, for once?
Her ragged breathing sounded loud in her ears as she raced to the back. She needed to get out of there before she passed out from hyperventilating. The walls were closing in on her. Once she was in the stairwell, she ran up the flight of stairs, quickly locking the door behind her.
I am such an idiot.
She slammed her head against the door a few times and groaned, her heart still pounding in her chest.
She was about to walk away from the door when she heard stomping steps echoing from the hallway. Only one guess who it might be. Quickly, she fumbled to deadbolt the door and backed away just as a hard fist pounded at the door.
“Quynh! Open up!”
She jumped at his angry tone. She wasn’t scared of him hurting her. She just didn’t want to talk to him right now. It was humiliating enough being the other woman. She didn’t need to listen to any excuses or lies from his filthy mouth. Not when she needed to sort through her own thoughts first.
She owed it to herself to at least figure out what she wanted. It wasn’t like they were dating or exclusive. While she asked him if he was seeing other women, it never crossed her mind he would lie to her face.
It stung more than the betrayal. She didn’t think he’d been physical with any other women in the short time they’d been together.
What do I even know?
Griffin pounded at the door again.
“Goddammit, Quynh. Let me in. It’s not what you’re thinking.”
“Go away!”
Her voice was thick with tears, catching her by surprise.
“Sunshine, please.”
There was a soft thud at the door.
What was he doing out there?
“I don’t want to talk to you right now.” Her voice came out strong, unwavering in her conviction. This was a boundary she wasn’t ready to relent. She needed to be clear-headed and not let his eyes or body sway her from seeing the truth.
Despite being a mostly rational person, she was not immune to Griffin’s charms.
“This isn’t over, Quynh.”
She heard him swearing under his breath, having her ear pressed against the door when he’d stopped pounding on it.
When his footsteps retreated, and she heard the door close downstairs, she let out a breath.
“Yes, it is.”
Finally alone, she let the tears fall. Griffin could deal with taking care of his business without her for one afternoon while she hid and licked her wounds. She’d barelyprocessed what her encounter with Ruth meant for her, and then this happened. It was all too much. She needed to be alone.
Wincing, she was attacked by her conscience. She was planning to drive the newly revived Shelly to her father’s place later this afternoon for a visit, but there was no way she was fit for company. The time she spent with her father was mostly her talking. It was almost like a therapy session she hadn’t meant to sign up for. Sorting through her mother’s memories and wading through the emotional implications of her father’s guilt was…a lot. Sometimes, it left her emotionally raw, and she just wasn’t up to it today.
Tomorrow, though, she’d suck it up and be a big girl. She would pick herself up by her bootstraps and soldier on. Just like she had always done her entire life.
She didn’t need a man to make her happy. Even if Griffin was the first man in a long time to truly see her. Or the first man to take care of her. She hadn’t known how lonely she was until he started showering her with his attention. He was the desperate thunderstorm during a drought, providing the life-giving hydration to a wilted flower like her.
That’s what she was. A wilted flower that lacked the water or sunshine necessary to flourish.
She needed to deal with reality. It had been weeks since she thought about her apartment and what waitedfor her there. She needed time and space, and going home was exactly what she needed to do.
