Page 28 of Daddy's Rule

They’d known all along Jake wasn’t for me. Apparently, everyone else had seen right through him. Shame it took me just over five wasted years of my life to figure it out on my own.

“Jazz, geez. Take a breath. First food, then wine, then the interrogation! Don’t you know anything about ‘welcoming home long lost girlfriend’ etiquette?” Crissy lectured, wagging her finger at Jasmine with a smile on her face.

“Right, right, of course.” Jazz regained her composure for about three seconds before screaming again and giving me another hug. “I’m just so glad you’re here.”

Out of the three of them, I’d probably been closest to Jasmine. As a result, she knew Bas better than the rest of the girls, and she’d always teased me, expecting that I’d end up with him. I’d almost believed her, too, until I met Jake and fell head over heels, forgetting myself. I couldn't wait to tell her everything that had happened since I’d returned. She’d be excited but not surprised.

“I’m glad I’m here, too.” I hugged her back and held back the tears. I should have never let these friendships fizzle.

“My turn.” Taylor came up behind Jasmine and tapped her on the shoulder.

Taylor was the most even-keeled out of the four of us. It took a lot to get her riled up, but I could tell by the hug I got that she was just as excited to see me as the other girls had been.

“Welcome home Ny-Ny.”

“Thank you.”

“Okay okay, enough of the mush. I’ve got enough food to feed an army, enough booze to get them drunk off their asses, and a DVR full of trashy tv to keep us entertained for a good long time. Let’s do this.” Crissy clapped her hands, and we all grabbed an individual charcuterie board that had been carefully crafted by Crissy herself.

“This is a far cry from the bags of chips and containers of dip we used to consume during girls’ night in college,” I mused.

“We are adults now. That means we get to eat like the classy bitches we are,” Jasmine joked.

“We aren’t fooling anyone. The chips and dip still come out after we’ve eaten all this, and we still eat them straight outta the bag,” Taylor revealed, and I laughed.

“Ain’t nothing wrong with that.”

I let everyone grab their seats, figuring they had “usual spots”, then I picked my own. Crissy turned on the television and they all filled me in on previous episodes and stuff as we snacked. We laughed at the ridiculous behavior of some of the people as they tried to figure out who their perfect match was. The show really was over the top, but I was instantly hooked.

Still, I was only half watching as my attention shifted between the screen and my friends. The wine and conversation flowed easily. It felt like no time had passed at all, and when the episode ended and all attention turned back to me, I was loose and comfortable and ready to fill them in on the last four years since the wedding, and more importantly, the past two weeks. I shared everything: how quickly Jake’s behavior had changed once we were married and how I’d been too much of a pussy to fight him or go against his wishes. I told them about his reckless spending and how he got progressively meaner as time went on. How our sex life had gone from exceptional to nonexistent. They called him every name in the book when they found out he’d bled my accounts dry.

“What an asswipe,” Taylor grumbled as she grabbed some summer sausage and cheese and shoved it in her mouth.

“Well, as much as all that sucks, I’m glad it brought you back. Now, have you and Sebastian hooked up yet?” Jasmine, not one to beat around the bush, threw out the question I’d been waiting for.

I took a deep breath and looked at the three excited faces waiting for my answer. I don’t know if it was the wine or the fact that I was so comfortable with the three of them or a combination of both, but it didn’t take any coaxing before I spilled all the beans about everything, including Club Rent-A-Daddy and our recent play session at the club, and how everything had gone back to normal afterward, even though everything had changed. Crissy grabbed a magazine from her end table and fanned herself.

“Is it getting hot in here? Holy fuck, girlfriend, why are you even here and not underneath that man where you belong?”

I almost spit out my mouthful of wine at her brazenness, but it didn’t surprise me one bit. I somehow managed to choke down the sip of wine before I burst out laughing.

“He usually goes to the club on Friday,” I answered without thinking.

“And Daddy didn’t mind you skipping out on club time to hang out with us?” Jasmine asked.

My stomach dropped to my toes and my throat constricted.

“Are you okay? You look like you’re about to pass out.” Taylor leaned forward. “Or maybe puke. Please don’t puke because if you puke, I’ll puke. Somebody get a bowl or something.”

“I’m not going to puke. I just… I just remembered I didn’t let Bas know I was coming here. Last he knew I was filing the paperwork for my divorce.”

“Uh-oh. Somebody’s gonna be in trouble,” Jasmine teased. She did not look the least bit unhappy or worried about the fact that my ass was presumably grass.

“I’m sure it will be fine,” Crissy placated. “If he was worried, he would have called, right?”

“Right, except I have no idea where my phone even is.” I jumped from the couch and went to the hall closet to grab my purse from where Crissy had stashed it. As I fished out my phone, I sent up a silent prayer that he hadn’t called, while in the same thought I hoped he had cared enough to call.

I hit the side button to wake up my phone and nothing happened. It was dead. My stomach sank. I was seriously screwed. “Does anyone have a charger?” I turned around and tried not to let the dread show in my face. He was not going to be happy, not in the slightest.

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