Page 39 of Crave You

I turn my back, because I mean it. She won’t be left alone to cause more fuckery, but I really don’t want to see anything she might be flashing.

“Ok. I’m done,” she says after a moment.

I walk to the door and hold it open. She moves across the room and, flinching away from me. Good. I’m not going to hit her, but if she’s a bit scared of me she might leave me the hell alone now. I wait until she’s out of sight and then I move along the hallway and watch from the top of the stairs until I see her open the front door opens and leave. I go back to my room and slam the door.

I pull the sheets off my bed in a rage. I can’t sleep now, with the scent of her on the sheets. I make up the bed with fresh sheets and then I slip between them and lean back on the headboard, my hands behind my head.

Do I tell Leona what happened? I want to because I want to be honest with her, but will she believe that I did nothing to encourage Tilly? Will she believe nothing happened? I hope she will, because I believe we are past the point in our relationship where we lie and deceive each other. I decide to tell her. I need to because if she hears it from Tilly and I’ve kept it from her then she’ll never believe that nothing happened.

I check my watch. Another half an hour or so and Leona will be back from her parents’ place. She will come straight here. I decide to get up and shower and get dressed while I wait.

I leave my room and see Shawn coming out of his room.

“What did you do to upset Leona?” he asks.

“Nothing. I haven’t even seen her yet. She was back home last night wasn’t she,” I remind him.

“I forget she was meant to be going home,” Shawn says. “But either she didn’t go, or she came back early, because she was here this morning. Early. About eight. She was crying and she ran out of the house. I called after her, but she didn’t stop.”

“Fuck,” I shout. Then again. “Fuck.”

“What? What’s happened?” Shawn says.

“Why did you let her leave?” I snap.

“Umm, because I’m not in the habit of holding people against their will,” Shawn says.

“Fuck,” I say again. “Fucking Tilly sneaked into bed with me at some point after I fell asleep last night. Leona must have come back early and seen her in our bed.”

“Oh fuck,” Shawn agrees.

I go back into the bedroom and find my phone. I call Leona, but it goes straight to voicemail. I send her a text message saying I can explain and to please just call me.

I shower and dress dressed in a pair of black jeans, a pair of trainers and a white t shirt, as per my original plan. I will head over to Erin’s place. That’ll be where she’s headed. Maybe Erin will help me talk some sense into her. Erin has never been my biggest fan, but she knows my thoughts on Tilly.

I go downstairs and find the place empty except for Shawn, who’s in the lounge.

“I’m going over to Erin’s place to see if Leona is there,” I say.

I am trying my best not to be mad at Shawn for letting Leona leave. I know it’s not really his fault. He didn’t know what had happened, he will have just thought we’d had a fight.

There’s a knock on the door.

“Oh fuck,” I say when I see Erin and Laurel there but with no Leona.

“Well good afternoon to you, too,” Erin says pushing past me.

Laurel follows her and I follow them back into the house.

“She’s not with Erin then. Where else might she have gone?” Shawn says.

“My next guess would have been Laurel’s but obviously that’s not the case either,” I say.

“Have either of you heard from Leona?” I ask.

“Yeah, she texted me last night and said to come over for lunch with you guys. That’s why we’re here. Why, what’s happened? Where is she?” Erin says.

I quickly bring the girls up to date on what’s happened.

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