Page 32 of The Rules Of Attraction
“Summer, what the hell? Okay, talk to me. Which boss did you sleep with? I wasn’t told which brother you’d be working for. Please tell me it was Alex, because Preston is a prick.”
My shoulders slumped at the sound of his name. Alex.
“It was Alex.”
“Yassssssss.” She shrieked. “Summer, that guy is hot, as in smoking hot, hot damn hot, hawwwwwt.”
I stifled a groan. “I’m aware of that, Eilesh. Honestly I am. But please come back to reality. I’m a mess here.”
If I knew nothing else it was that Alex Sullivan was most likely the hottest man alive, and God knew exactly what he was doing when he made him. In fact, hold that thought. I would go out on the limb and bet my last dollar — which I was nearly at— that God reserved him, slotting in some extra time just for Alex so he could create a masterpiece.
I’d never seen anyone alive look like him, and that unearthly look was probably a thing. Just thinking of his eyes confirmed it.
Silver gray wasn’t an adequate description of the color, especially when he was turned on. Something like maybe slate, or gunmetal went in a little deeper for description.
“Oh honey, I’m sorry. Right, start from the top. Tell me what happened.” Eilesh sounded more like her usual self now. The friend who was my listening ear, and my comfort.
I told her what happened. All that happened . So that included telling her what happened with Becca and the wedding invitation.
“Tom, that fucking evil son of a bitch.” She cursed. “Did Becca even call you?”
“No. We haven’t spoken in months.”
I almost laughed. Becca and I hadn’t spoken on the phone as friends since the week of my father’s funeral. That last call must have been a way of testing the waters to see when it would be best to tell me the wonderful news about her and Tom.
“Months? Summer, those people were never friends.”
I could have laughed at the situation. Better to do that than to cry. Nothing was truer than what Eilesh just said. I just never saw it.
“No, they never were.”
“You should have called me.” Eilesh snapped. “Look, I can come back early and see you. They don’t need me here. Also sweetie, you still haven’t told me where you live.”
I shook my head. No way was she going to see where I lived. I couldn’t allow anyone who knew me to see this dump. No way.
I felt bad enough about myself as it was. I didn’t need to feel worse with people pitying me. This place highlighted the depth of how bad things had become.
And, I’d just hit a stumbling block again.
“Thank you, but I’d rather you didn’t.” A tear ran down my cheek.
“Why?”
“It’s just this place. I’ll get a better apartment soon. Then you can visit.”
“Jesus, Summer you’ve been through so much. Do you really think I’d make any kind of judgement of you if I went to your house? Plus I told you, you could stay with us.”
I didn’t want to impose on her and Cody that way. “You’re helping me enough as it is.”
“It’s what friends do.”
“I won’t be here for long.” I think that was more for my benefit. I had to tell myself that because thinking anything else would be a disaster.
I’d gone from earning six figures a year to having nothing.
My father never told me how bad things were until it was too late.
He kept everything from me, including the fact that he had lung cancer and was terminal.
