Page 79 of Awakening

“What? No.” He looks at me then back at the road. “How could you even ask me that?”

“Because that woman started to call me a name that starts with Lu, and she acted like she was in on a secret, which I obviously wouldn’t remember.”

Ethan sighs, shaking his head. “Olivia?—”

“Who is it, Ethan? Lucy? Luanne? Just tell me. Have you been seeing a woman all along, or did you just need a warm body while I was away?” My emotions take me by surprise, and my eyelids flutter as the tears burn in my eyes.

He jerks the car over to the side of the road, braking hard. Turning to me, he says, “How dare you fucking ask me such a thing. I spent every waking moment searching for you when you were taken from me. There never has been, nor will there ever be another woman. It’s only you, Olivia. The only woman I’ve been able to think about since the day I fucking met you, is you!” His jaw clenches and the tires screech as he pulls back onto the road.

My heart thunders in my chest as we pull into the garage. I get out of the car, slamming the door behind me. Storming into the house, I head for the stairs. I go into our bedroom, slamming and locking the door behind me there too. Ethan isn’t far behind me, pounding on the door.

“Olivia, open the fucking door. We aren’t done with this.”

“Until you decide to tell the truth, then yes, we are!” I take my phone out of my purse and the first name that comes up on my texts is Anthony from earlier today. Staring at his name, I know his words of validation would make me feel better in this moment, but I can’t rely on him for this. I have to stand against Ethan on my own. My heart beats hard in my chest as Ethan continues to yell and pound on the door. The door is suddenly hit with such force from the other side that it comes flying open, and I scream, holding my phone to my chest.

My mouth drops open. “Did you just kick the door open? What the hell is wrong with you?”

He points his finger at me. “You will not run away from me. There is no other fucking woman, Olivia. I love you. Only you.”

Shaking my head with a frown, I say, “Just leave me alone, Ethan.”

“Who the fuck are you texting?”

“I’m not—hey.” He grabs the phone out of my hands. “Give it back!”

He looks at the screen and his jaw ticks. When he looks up at me, it’s with pure anger in his icy blue eyes. “You have the audacity to accuse me of being with someone else, and then you come in here to text him about our fight? What happens in our relationship is none of his fucking business!” He throws my phone across the room, it hits the wall, and I gasp as it shatters into pieces. Ethan’s fists are clenched at his sides as his chest rises and falls. “Why would you text him about us?”

“First of all, if you’d bothered to pay attention, you would have seen that I didn’t text him anything about us,” I say as the tears start to fall. “Was I tempted to text him? Yeah. I was. He’s been my friend, Ethan. I love Chloe, but since I’ve been back, she makes it clear she’s on your side. Sometimes it’s just nice to have someone to listen to me and understand without defending you in the same breath.”

“No, you want someone to tell you that you’re right. Well, you’re not. Chloe is on our side. She wants us together and happy. I am doing every fucking thing I can to understand your side of things, Olivia. I want you to be happy. That fucking dick, Moretti, is only thinking of himself. He is not your fucking friend. He wants you back and he’ll say whatever it takes make that happen. You fucking know this! He told you himself!”

“What was I supposed to think, Ethan? That girl acted like she had some kind of thing with you, and then she started to call me something that started with Lu.”

“Olivia,” he says more calmly now, taking my hands and raising me from the bed. “I have never had anything with Tiffany. Not ever. Has she had a thing for me? Yes, but she’s been with Mitch the entire time, and I’ve made it clear I’ve never been interested. I haven’t even seen them since I met you. As far as the Lu thing, I don’t know what to say. There is no Lu anyone. There’s only you, Olivia. I have only ever loved you.”

I nod as he pulls me to him. “And, Ethan, you don’t need to worry about Anthony. I told him I’m focused on my relationship with you. I don’t think Anthony would try to get between us anymore. He’s not malicious like that.”

Ethan’s body goes rigid, and he pulls back. “The fuck he’s not. That’s such bullshit. That’s exactly what he’d do.” He pauses to take a few breaths. “Olivia, how often do you talk to him?”

“Ethan—”

“How often, Olivia?”

“He’s texted me a few times since I’ve been here just to see if I’m okay.”

With his hands on my shoulders, he walks me backward until my back is against the bedroom wall. “I told you I won’t share you with him, or any other fucking man, for that matter.”

“You aren’t sharing me. It was a couple of completely innocent texts.”

He tilts his head to the side and his neck cracks, appearing to relieve some tension. “I don’t want you talking to him or texting him anymore. You are to have nothing to do with him.”

I push him in the chest, but he doesn’t budge. “You can’t tell me who I can and can’t talk to.”

“Tiffany is someone I know from my past. Can I talk to her whenever I feel like it?”

“That’s not the same as Anthony and me.”

“No, it’s worse with you and Anthony because you had a fucking relationship with him! I’ve never had anything with Tiffany.” He backs away, crossing his forearms. “I’m going to ask you again. Did you let him fuck you while you were there?”

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