Page 34 of The Final Straw

“Never. Now, fuck me.”

It’s all he needs. His fingers slip out before they are replaced with his cock, thrusting inside of me. I can’t help the gasp that explodes from my mouth.

Tonight may not be ending exactly as I wanted, but it’s a damn good ending, nonetheless.

Chapter 18

Van

The meeting with Barbi was a shit show! A fucking nightmare!

Nothing went right. Trying to make Barbi confess ended up being a total flop. Plan A down the drain. What made the situation even worse was seeing Olivia there, surrounded by those men who could easily pass for her father. The only good thing that happened was that she left before Barbi arrived.

The past day and a half since I left the restaurant has been a blur of self-pity and excessive drinking, and now I’m dealing with the consequences. The last thing I remember before I got shit-faced last night was sending a message to Bre.

When I woke from my drunken stupor, it was to a message from her telling me to meet her at The Grind, a coffee shop near her house at ten am. I’m still lying in bed, trying to make myself get up.

Placing my phone on the bedside table, the faint light from its screen momentarily fills the dim room. As I stand, the world seems to sway, a constant reminder of last night’s excessive indulgence. Despite my stomach’s protest, I push myself forward, knowing I have to move swiftly to make it in time.

Stepping into the shower, the glaring light in the bathroom intensifies the throbbing in my head. I seek solace under the cascading hot water, allowing it to cleanse me of the lingering effects of the night before. I forcefully scrub my mouth in an effort to eliminate the persistent flavor of whiskey. Unfortunately, the toothpaste only does so much to help.

In a rush, I slip into a hoodie and sweatpants, finding comfort in their softness as my stomach continues to bother me. I hurry downstairs, eager to escape the confines of my apartment. Stepping outside, I take a deep breath, the refreshing morning air awakens my senses as I make my way toward my car, eager to meet Bre.

I get there before her and order our drinks, a plain black coffee with a shot of espresso for me and a Caramel Macchiato with soy milk for her. I’ve gotten coffee for her and Olivia enough to know what both of them drink.

As I scan the shop, my eyes land on a secluded table tucked away in the back corner, far from the bustling crowd. It’s perfect. I don’t need everyone hearing the chaotic mess that is my life.

Sitting down, I sip on my coffee, my knee bouncing nervously under the table. With each passing minute I wait, my anxiety grows.

Finally, I see her coming around the corner through the window. She has her hair up in one of those ponytail things and sunglasses on her face. Bre’s definitely dressed for comfort in a baggy shirt and some leggings.

The door jingles as she opens it and a chorus of ‘Welcome to The Grind’ rings out. I see her looking around and I lift my arm. The place isn’t that big, so it’s not like she wouldn’t see me, but still.

“Good morning,” she groans as she drops down in the chair in front of me. I slide the coffee over to her. “Thank you. I need this.”

When she removes her sunglasses, I notice the dark circles under her eyes and the smudged makeup that seems to have been applied the day before.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, just hungover, which, by the looks of it, I could say the same thing about you.” She cradles the cup in her hand.

“Yeah. We need a new plan. The first one was a fucking flop. Olivia still thinks I cheated on her. I need a foolproof confession from Barbi to convince her and prove my innocence. It’s the only way I’ll get Olivia back. I can’t live without her. It fucking hurts too much.”

“Okay, tell me what happened at the meeting and I’ll share something with you after.”

A heavy sigh escapes my lips. “Fine. I got to the restaurant and was set on getting Barbi to confess. But then I saw Olivia. She was with these two older men, and they looked chummy. She looked at me and fuck, Bre, I could see the pain in her eyes. I wanted to run to her, pull her into my arms and kiss her, but I was frozen. Then she scurried out of there, which was a good thing because no sooner than she left Barbi showed up. If Olivia hadn’t left, she could have seen her. God only knows what she would think.”

I can see the change of expression on Bre’s face and a sinking feeling hits my gut. All of a sudden I feel sick and I’m not sure why.

“Umm…” she starts.

“What is it, Bre?” My heart races, knowing it’s going to be bad.

“She told me about seeing you. But that’s not all. She also saw Barbi coming in as she left. She knows she was there to meet you.”

“Fuck!” My fist slams down on the table, catching the attention of the patrons in the shop.

“Sorry,” I say loudly. Thankfully, I had a lid on my coffee and Bre was holding hers or they would have spilled.

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