Page 284 of Bride of Choice

Sniffling, smiling my thanks as Mal offered me a bit of cloth to wipe my nose with, I blurted, “Was it because of Celuk? I- Was this his kind of revenge? I don’t. I mean, they had some kind of a disagreement following that but Rek wasn’t cross with me, I- He’d said he’d been working on a present for me.” And there came the tears again.

“Some fucking present,” Rosa harrumphed.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen her that absolutely, punch you in the face pissed like this. It was oddly endearing. My best bitches had my back.

Mal started tea while Rosa guided me over to my bed. Urging me to take a seat, Mal and Rosa pulled up chairs next to the bed.

Their presence and support were like a balm to my battered soul.

“I gave that asshole a pocket watch,” I blurted.

Rosa and Mal blinked at me uncomprehendingly.

“I wanted him to have something, a symbol of my love for him, that his dumb ass could pass down to our kids and shit,” I mumblingly rambled in reply in somewhat of an explanation to my nonsense. “It would have been b-beautiful.”

And despite my efforts not to, I burst into tears for the umpteenth time.

“Well, that’s…” Rosa struggled for the right words.

“It was stupid!” I got out between choked sobs.

“The sentiment was beautiful,” Mal countered, taking my hand to brush her hand over the top of it, forcing warmth back into it. I felt like all the blood in my body was pooling in my head. It was pounding so hard at this point I was worried it might explode.

“I have to get out of here. I can’t be near him. I’m so mad… I don’t know what I’ll do.” My confession was met with knowing nods, like if they were in my position they could understand. And while they could, they really couldn’t, not living it firsthand, but I appreciated their support.

“You could come to my place? We have plenty of extra room?” Rosa offered.

“I can’t go to either of your places. That’s the first place he’d look,” I muttered, hiking up my big girl panties and pushing down all the hurt and pain, that simmering anger to figure out my next step before I did something really ugly and drastic.

“You really think he’ll try to come to you, after all that?” Mal blurted.

She wasn’t trying to sound harsh but I winced all the same.

“He’s dumb enough to try,” Rosa mumbled, frowning.

“Go Hyde house,” a voice just outside my door suggested.

“But that’s,” Mal started to cut in, to Jeh-kal cutting right back in to talk over her with a grumbled, “Tree house.”

“And end up winding up preggo with your massive monster baby to push out? Then what? And then it’ll just push me away when it’s old enough because it thinks I’m too weak or small or human for the likes of it? I don’t think so. Pity fucking is off the table, permanently, and so is tree house hiding away,” I shot back.

Mal and Rosa sat there looking stunned, just shy of gaping, as their heads whipped back and forth, trying to keep up.

“Long story. Bum wants to be called Hyde, his form in agreement Jeh-kal, and his horny form Tor,” I muttered, which just served to send Rosa’s eyes widening and Mal’s mouth forming a tiny little shocked O of surprise.

Mal was the first to snap out of it, garbling out on a strangled breath, “Bitch, you’ve been holding out on us.”

“A lot. Not going to lie,” I muttered with a shrug, unable to meet their gazes.

“When you’re ready,” Rosa stated firmly in reply.

“When she’s ready?” Mal spluttered. “How long has this been going on? Who else is involved? Did Rek know? Was that why he was being stupid? Was he jealous because, I mean, Bum-bum is, you know, and Rek is, well, you know, in comparison and you mentioned something about Celuk… I-”

Rosa reached over and gently pushed her index finger under Mal’s chin, kindly urging her to shut the fuck up. “When she’s ready,” Rosa repeated, more firmly than the last.

“Of course,” Mal blurted, then shut her gob, thank god. “When you’re ready,” she agreed after a lengthy pause.

“Where else can you go that Rek won’t think to look?” Mal wondered aloud.

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