Page 42 of A Little Jaded
Rage simmers beneath my skin, and I shake my head. “How could you let him?—”
“You don’t know Drake.” She drops the napkin and pushes her half-finished plate further away from her. “And like I said, I didn’t know he was filming, so maybe you should stop looking at me like you’re disgusted to even be in the same room with me.”
Her gaze drops to a knot in the wooden table, and she folds her arms, refusing to look at me. To make eye contact with me. To let me past those impenetrable walls.
But her shame and embarrassment practically waft off her with a vengeance. It’s thick. Potent. Nauseating.
My own appetite vanishes as I stare at the girl across from me. “You’re right,” I concede. “I’m sorry.”
“For what? Being a judgmental asshole? Even if I had let him film us together—which I didn’t—it doesn’t justify him sharing it.”
“You’re right,” I repeat. “It doesn’t. Nothing justifies this. And I’m not disgusted with you. I’m disgusted with him. Sharing a piece of yourself with someone you trust, then finding out they misused that trust—especially like this—is fucked up.”
She scoffs. “You can say that again.” Wiping at the corner of her eye while still refusing to look at me, she whispers, “And now, he’s going to share it with even more people.”
“More?” I growl.
“The one of me sucking him off?” she offers. “Yeah. He already shared it with his friends. Didn’t even bother holding it over my head before he sent it. Look what my baby girl can do,” she mocks, mimicking his voice. “Like I was something to show off, you know? How I could deep throat his cock like a good girl. And then, when I called him out for acting like a dick, he told me it was a joke, and I should stop overreacting.” Her laugh is laced with resentment as she shakes her head back and forth. “The best part was when I showed up at his next game. You should’ve seen his teammates’ faces. It took less than two seconds for me to realize they’d all seen it. Called megood girlfor a solid month afterward like it was an inside joke or something.” She forces a smile. “What a bunch of gentlemen, am I right?”
The phone buzzes against the table again, interrupting her. This time, it’s a call.
I slide my thumb across the screen and bring it to my ear. “Hey, asshole.”
Drake’s voice echoes through the speaker after a short pause. “Let me talk to my girlfriend.”
“Yeah, she’s not your girlfriend anymore.”
“Give her the phone,” he seethes. “Now.”
“You lost the right to talk to her the moment you hit her.”
“Tell her if she doesn’t come home, I’m gonna?—”
“Careful,” I warn. “If you finish your sentence with a threat, you’ll regret it.”
His laughter booms through the speaker. I pull it away from my ear briefly.
“You think you know her, man. You think you know me. But you have no fucking clue who you’re dealing with. Raine is mine.”
“Raine is Raine,” I tell him calmly. “And if you don’t stop calling her, we’ll call the police.”
“Everett,” Raine whispers.
“Nah, I don’t think you will,” Drake interrupts, oblivious to Raine’s protest. “Your friend group already has enough heat with the police, don’t you think?”
My molars threaten to crack as I register his words. How the fuck does he know what’s going on with our group and the police?
“Stay away from her,” I warn.
“Yeah, I don’t think so. See you around, Taylor.”
The call goes dead, and my attention snaps to Raine. “Now, you need to call the police.”
She pales and shakes her head. “I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“I already told you. I don’t want to blow things out of proportion.”