Page 9 of My Fake Fiancé

“Well, then I guess I should be going. Are you okay to be here alone?”

“Yes,” she says again, formally. She looks around the apartment gathering her purse off of the floor.

“Okay, well I should head home. Probably have a lot of explaining to do where Ashley is concerned. If she is even still there.” She nods and I catch a hint of emotion flash across her face but it quickly disappears. I grab a pen and notepad near the door and jot down my cell number. I tap the notepad to get her attention, “I’ll leave my number in case you need to call me.” I pause, waiting for a response, she turns to face me and I continue, “We should probably get together tomorrow to discuss a few rules. I’ll pick you up. For coffee or something. Is that okay?”

“I have work tomorrow but I get off at 2 p.m.” She accepts my offer of coffee and I smile, feeling as if I’ve made some progress.

“I’ll pick you up at 3 then, here.”

“Okay. Thank you, again.” I laugh because this may be the hundredth time she’s said thank you in the last two hours. Wow, has it really only been two hours? It feels like it’s been many more.

“I’ll see you at 3,” I say before shutting the door on my way out.

When I reach my car, I sit in the driver’s seat for a few minutes. Then, for the first time since this whole fiasco began, I check my phone. I have multiple missed calls from my mother. One from my father and I also have a few missed calls from my sister and of course, Ashley has left a few messages. I sigh and put my phone away. If Ashley is still at my apartment I’ll deal with her but everyone else can wait until tomorrow. I’m too tired tonight.

I pull into the parking lot of my apartment building and park my car in my spot, taking a deep breath when I see Ashley’s car still in the guest spot. I get out of my car taking my time, thinking about how to explain. When I reach my apartment, I pause before entering, then open the door.

“Ashley?” I call out. “Are you still here?” I toss my keys in my bowl on the kitchen counter and flick on the light. I don’t see her in the kitchen or in the living room but as I head down the hall, I notice my bedroom door is open slightly and a light is on. I push open the door further and am about to speak when I notice Ashley is fast asleep on my bed. I must have been gone longer than I realized. I cover her up with a blanket and head back into the living room. I sit down on the couch and listen to a couple of voicemails.

Hi, honey, it’s mom. How are you doing? Are you still coming to church this Sunday? We would all love to see you there. Anyway, I heard some news recently but just wanted to check in with you first. It’s getting late so I am going to bed in a few minutes. Call me tomorrow. Goodnight. Love you .

I laugh, my mother is so polite. She must know about what happened tonight. I wonder how she found out. I guess she will tell me tomorrow.

I lay down on the couch stretching out my legs. My couch is huge so I have plenty of room when I stretch. I prop a pillow under my head and drift off to sleep.

Chapter 10

Juliana

Beep Beep Beep Beep!

What the hell is that noise? I groan and shift in my bed, my hand searching for my alarm clock, more specifically, the snooze button. I can’t reach it so I wiggle around in bed to get closer to my nightstand and I lose my balance and land on the floor with a loud thud.

“Ow,” I grumble but the fall has woken me up a little. I hit the clock to make the noise stop then I head into my bathroom. I step into the shower, the cut on my hand stinging under the hot water, reminding me of last night’s events. I try to take a quick shower knowing I have work in 2 hours. I always set my alarm for two hours before I’m supposed to be at work. I know it is early but I like having plenty of time to get ready and then relax before working. After a quick shower, I wrap a towel around my body and another around my hair then walk into the kitchen to get the coffee started, noticing Tatyana hasn’t been back to the apartment yet. While waiting for the coffee, I find the first aid kit and put a new bandaid on the cut, biting my lip at the tenderness.

When I get back into my bedroom I lift my phone from my nightstand and turn it on. As I wait for it to turn on, I towel dry my hair in front of my mirror and I notice the screen of my phone light up in the background of my mirror. I toss my towel into the bathroom promising myself I’ll pick it up later then I grab my phone and stare at the numerous missed calls and unanswered texts from last night.

“Crap,” I say quietly then toss my phone on my bed and decide to toss myself onto my bed, sighing. My hand grabs my phone again and I look at the screen, breathing heavily. When I see an unknown number has texted me, I immediately call the number without reading the message, assuming it’s Kurt.

“Hello? Juliana? Is everything okay?” I hear on the other end of the call and I take a deep breath.

“So, last night really did happen, huh?” I say in lieu of a response. I hear a chuckle over the phone then the call sounds muted but I can make out someone in the background saying congratulations to him.

“You still there?” He asks.

“Yeah… Why did someone congratulate you?”

“Oh, it seems our news has gotten around,” Kurt explains. I gasp then turn over on my stomach and bury my face in my pillows.

“Juliana?” I hear and I force myself to sit up. “Are we still on for 3 p.m.?” I nod my head then realize he can’t see me so I speak up.

“Yes, would you like to meet somewhere?”

“No, I’ll come to you.” He states firmly and my heart flutters a little bit but I notice the time on the clock and shake off the feeling blaming it on my need to have relaxation time before work.

“Okay,” I say, not knowing what else to say.

“Okay,” he repeats back to me and I sigh, ready to apologize again but he seems to sense my next words and he stops me. “You don’t have to apologize. I’ll see you at 3.” Then he hangs up.

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