Page 100 of Strong and Wild
I work to pull it off my keyring, and I hold it out with the cash.
She snatches up all of it, but throws the bills back in my face.
“Get fucked.” That’s the last thing she says before walking out.
“Guess we’ll be getting a hotel,” I mutter. I pull out my phone to look for vacancies for Anna and me.
As soon as she slams her apartment door across the hall, it sets me off. I clench my jaw and punch the air.
“Fuck!” I roar.
Anna steps out of the bathroom, blotting her hair.
“Whoa, dude.” She freezes. “Did I interrupt something?”
“Do you have a bag? We’re going to a hotel.”
“I thought we were staying at Freya’s?”
“Yeah, so did I.” I hesitate to ask, but I have to hear it from her. “Did you steal three hundred dollars from her?”
“What?”
“Did you steal money from Freya?”
“No! Is that what she told you? See? I told you she’s trying to break our family apart.And when did she say Istolethis three hundred dollars, hm? Jesus, Rhys, I can’t believe you would even ask me that.”
“The night of your detox.”
“Are you serious? I could barely walk, much less dig around her purse looking for cash. You need to find better girls to fuck. Lay off the crazy bitches.”
It makes my teeth grind together. I may be upset with Freya, but that was out of line. Especially after everything she did for Anna.
“Don’t ever call her that,” I grit out, pointing. “She was there for you when I couldn’t be.”
Her jaw drops open. “She’s accusing me of stealing, so sorry if I’m not her biggest fan! I’ve trashed my reputation enough, I don’t need her lying about something I didn’t even do.”
“She had an ex that died doing the same stupid shit you are! It messed her up, so how ’bout you cut her some fucking slack.”
My stomach suddenly wants to empty itself. I shake my head, the stress piling on, and finish scrolling through my phone to book a hotel reservation.
I didn’t think it would end this way.
THIRTY-FIVE
Ibring my knees to my chest, clutching the mug of lavender tea to me. The warmth spreads through my palms, and I try to find some comfort in it. It’s been a week since I’ve heard from him. Did we break up and I just haven’t realized it? I figured I would give him time to get his mind right. He didn’t mean the words he said. He’s struggling. He had a bad game, was tired from traveling, then came home to his apartment full of police after it’d been ransacked. And to top it all off, that’s when I decided to hassle him about Anna. It’s no wonder he snapped. Though, I expected him to apologize by now. Maybe I should be the one to make the first move.
We were both looking forward to his four days off, but we spent them apart. Now he’s on the road again, traveling with the team, and I’ve been here. Missing him.
I wish he’d just deal with Anna. She’s still living across the hall. I trust Rhys when he tells me his sister is a good person, I believe that she is. But she’s also an addict, and it’s the addicted person I can’t trust. She’s driven by a physical dependency out of her control. It’s not a choice for her, it’s a disease. Unfortunately, Rhys is getting the brunt of the side effects.
Never did I want to pit him against his sister, I only asked that he set up boundaries for both their sakes. A couple months ago, I would have relished pushing him down an endless flight of stairs. Not anymore. Seeing him happy, supported, and cared for is all that matters. The team has been a great family for him, but I love him too.
Instead of doing a livestream today, Birdie came over to keep me company while I moped and bitched, but when the Lakes flight was about to land, she had to head home. She misses Lonan like I miss Rhys. Even when we hated each other, we spoke more than we did this week. It’s not the fighting that scares me, it’s the lack of communication.
Feels like we’re extinguishing the fire we worked so hard to kindle.
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