Page 76 of Healed Heart
“Shocking,” she says dryly.
I draw in a deep breath.“You really want to know what happened?”
“Well, yeah.”
“He literally wanted me to fuck him.He had a great big old boner, and he wanted me to climb on top of him and fuck him in his hospital bed.”
She doesn’t say anything.
Her jaw doesn’t drop.She doesn’t go rigid or anything.
Wouldn’t most people after I just told them that?
Finally she speaks.“Angie, don’t lie to me.”
I laugh.Seriously, let out a guffaw.“That’s not a lie.You can go ask him if you want, though we all know he’s a big liar, so…”
That’s all I can say to her.Jason is still her professor, and he may not want me throwing the information around that he’s been arrested for the attack on Ralph.
I can’t believe I ever thought he might be guilty.
I love Jason.I know him.Or at least I thought I did.But when the wordsassaultandarrestedfirst reached me, my brain hesitated.Not because I believe he’s capable of something so awful, but because the world teaches us to doubt, to wonder if we ever truly know anyone.
And that hesitation?That fleeting moment where my mind wavered?It feels like a betrayal.
I want to shake it off, pretend it never happened, but it lingers like a stain I can’t scrub away.Jason is sitting in a holding cell right now, scared, alone, probably wondering if I truly believe he’s innocent.
I press my hands against my temples, trying to will the guilt away, but it doesn’t budge.I know he’s innocent.I know it.
I tent my fingers in front of my nose, take another deep breath.“Tabitha, I can’t make you believe me.And I’m sorry I lied at first.Of course Ralph didn’t want to see me about school stuff.He could’ve asked anybody about school stuff.Eli, for one, who is much more of an academic than I am, and he was there earlier.So I’m sorry.Sorry I lied.I lied because the truth was disgusting and I didn’t want to repeat it.But it is the truth.He wanted me to screw him.”
She bites her lip.“Damn.He must have it bad for you.”
“I don’t know.”I frown.“I honestly don’t get that vibe from him.”
“He tried to kiss you at your place.You told me.”
“He did.And it shocked the heck out of me because I didn’t get that vibe from him, like I said.”
She scrunches her forehead.“What do you mean thatvibe?”
“You know.”I lay a hand over my heart.“When you feel something for someone, and you have that feeling they feel something back.Or if youdon’tfeel something for someone, but you get that vibe from them that they feel more for you than you want them to.”
She frowns.“I’m notoriously bad at telling when someone likes me.For example, you keep telling me Eli likes me, and I don’t get that vibe at all.”
I sigh.“I don’t know.Maybe it’s just me.My cousin Ava always says I’m intuitive.”
“Your cousin Ava?”
“Did I tell you about her?I can’t remember.She’s a baker, lives at home in Snow Creek.Doesn’t take any of our family’s money.”
She widens her eyes.“What?Why would she do that?”
“She’s the only one of us who doesn’t.We all respect her for it, but we also kind of think she’s nuts.”I sigh.“Anyway, she’s very intuitive.Reads tarot cards all the time.Not that I really believe in that stuff, but it’s amazing how accurate she actually is.She says the cards don’t actually tell the future.It’s more that they allow you to realign your way of thinking, which requires some good intuition.And she always said I had a lot of that.Maybe I do.Because I do usually get a vibe when someone’s interested in me, whether I return the feeling or not.”I cross my arms.“And I’m good at telling when a guy is a creep, too.Got that the first time I ever laid eyes on Ralph.”
“I wish I had some of that intuition,” she says.“I seriously get nothing from Eli, and I thought I was kind of getting something from Ralph.But maybe that’s just because I was attracted to him.”She shakes her head.“I’ve kind of always had a thing for older guys.My best friend in college, Toby, had a daddy complex, but that’s ridiculous for me, because I have a great relationship with my dad.”
“Trust me, I totally get the vibe from Eli toward you.I really like him.As a friend, of course.”
