Instead, he’d decided to come back to his house and try to take care of the situation at hand. It wasn’t going to be easy, which was why he wanted to put it off as long as possible.
Walking through the house, he didn’t notice anything different, but he didn’t hear a sound coming from the guest room. Maybe Jessie had left. Sticking his head in the room, he found it empty. His hopes ignited. How would she have gotten home?
Turning to his bedroom, he found the door shut, which immediately set his senses on high alert. He hadn’t shut the door, never having reason to. When he pushed the door open, he found Jessie lying in his bed, sprawled out naked.
“Damn it, Jessie.” Alex said, immediately turning back the way he’d come. “Fucking get dressed and get out of my damn bed.”
“Alex, wait.” She called out to him, and he froze in the doorway, his back to her.
“Jessie, get dressed. Then come talk to me.”
“No, wait. I need you.” She said, and Alex heard her attempt at seduction. He wasn’t buying it.
“No, you need to get your shit together so I can take you home.” Feeling like a total jackass that she’d played him yet again, he stepped into the hallway.
“I love you.” She called out.
Was this her way of showing it? Did she think sex constituted love? “Get dressed.”
He slammed his bedroom door and went to the kitchen.
That’s where he found the something different.
His liquor cabinet was open. And there were two empty bottles of Jack Daniels sitting on his counter. That would have been his first sign that she’d fallen off the wagon. The fact that there were two glasses, both containing the last remnants of an apparent drunken bender made his hackles rise.
Who the fuck was in his house?
He rushed back to the bedroom, not giving a shit whether she was dressed or not. He threw the door open, sending the solid wood into the wall behind it, echoing in the open space.
“Where the fuck is he?” He asked, knowing exactly who she’d invited over.
“Who?” Jessie asked, trying to sound innocent and not making any attempt to cover her naked body.
“Jeff. He better not be in my fucking house, Jessie.” Alex moved through the bedroom, a man on a mission. He threw open the bathroom door, but it was empty. Turning to the closet, he glanced at it and then back at Jessie. Her eyes widened as he moved to the closed door.
Opening it slowly, he found exactly what he was looking for. A naked, and very drunk, Jeff was sitting on the floor.
“Get the fuck out.” Alex said, trying to keep his anger in check.
He’d been played again.
“You’ve got five seconds to get the fuck out of my house, so you better move quickly. I’m about to call the cops.”
How could she? Alex took a step back, holding his fists at his sides to keep from punching the shit out of the asshole hiding in his fucking closet. He was half tempted to start counting, but the idiot was fumbling enough as it was.
When Jeff was finally out of the house, five minutes, not five seconds later, Alex turned his attention on Jessie.
“Get your stuff together. I’m taking you home.”
“But...”
“I don’t want to hear it, Jessie. For years, I’ve listened to your sob stories. Came to your fucking rescue more times than I can count and how do you thank me? You live in a house that I pay for. You drive a car that I pay for. And you keep putting yourself in the same situations over and over again. I’m done.”
He left her sprawled naked and intoxicated in his bed. It was time to do what he should have done seventeen years ago. It was time to cut ties with his past and strengthen those of his future. As far as he was concerned, Ashleigh was his future.
Now he had to convince her of that.
~~*~~
“Will you read it?” Ashleigh asked, holding her breath in anticipation. She’d never asked anyone she knew personally to read her unfinished manuscript.
Sure, she had a couple of critique partners who would contribute, checking for errors, or making sure the flow was good, but never had she requested someone she knew to give it a glance.
“Of course.” Sierra squealed into the phone. “Oh, my goodness. I’d be honored, Ashleigh.”
“Just keep in mind, its rough.” She told her friend over the phone.
That morning she’d managed to put the finishing touches on the rough draft, finally getting it where she wanted it. Now she needed to sit back and give it a little time before she polished it for the final draft.
“I’ll stop by your house this afternoon and pick it up. I’ve got to run some errands anyway.” Sierra said.