Page 53 of Bad Boy Done Wrong
“Yes.” She sipped some tea. “And I guess some part of me saw a future that I’d never have.”
“You’ll have a better future with a better man. Like Zach.”
“Zach,” she said softly. “What the hell did I do to that man? Just picked him up at a bar, handed him my wish list, and fucked him senseless for two weeks.”
“Nothing wrong with that.”
“Everything’s wrong with that! That’s not me and you know it. I don’t even know who I am anymore.” She stared off in the distance. “I’m lost, Ally,” she whispered over the lump in her throat. “I might never find myself again.”
Ally squeezed her shoulder. “You will, I promise. You’re one of the most practical people I know. Not everything is as bad as it feels right now. Okay?”
“It feels pretty shitty.”
Ally sighed. “I know. You want to binge-watchGilmore Girlsand eat ice cream?”
“Yes,” she said in a small voice. It was their little comfort tradition.
By the time dinner rolled around, she was feeling a lot better. Nothing like escaping into another world to make the present more bearable.
“Pizza?” Ally asked.
“Sure.”
Ally called and put in their usual order for pepperoni and mushrooms. Only a few minutes later, the doorbell rang.
“That was fast,” Ally said and went to the peephole. She turned to Carrie. “It’s Zach. Are you up to seeing him?”
Carrie pushed her hair out of her face. She hadn’t even brushed it. “No, I look terrible. I’m in my pajamas.”
“Hurry up and get dressed!” She unlocked the dead bolt and Carrie scrambled off the sofa, taking off toward her bedroom.
She dashed inside her room and locked the door. Then she heard Ally say, “Hi there! She’ll be out in just a minute.”
Zach grumbled something in reply.
Carrie hurriedly stripped out of her kitten pajamas.
“Wait!” Ally exclaimed. “She’s getting ready.”
A knock on her door. “Carrie, I left you several messages,” he boomed through the door. “We need to talk.”
She stilled, surprised at both his volume and his urgent tone. “My phone was off.”
“Open up.”
She pulled on a bra and fumbled the straps.
“Now,” he said in the deep voice of authority. She stiffened. He wasnotthe boss of her.
“You will have to wait!” she barked back and adjusted her bra.
“I don’t care what you look like.” The knob jiggled. “Get your pretty ass out here.”
Her eyes widened at theaudacity,ordering her around and complimenting her at the same time. “My pretty ass needs some shorts.” She reached for her T-shirt, slipped it over her head, and looked around for the matching shorts.
“You better not be coordinating colors and shit.”
She heard Ally giggle and then suddenly quiet. Zach probably glared at her.
