Page 41 of A Little Jaded

“Too late. I already decided,” he announces. “Talk soon.”

The call goes dead before I can push him to explain what he meant. I let my hand fall to my side. It’s over. My apprenticeship is over. It sucks. It really freaking sucks.

What the hell am I going to do now?

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

EVERETT

She looks cute in an apron.

She’s also a terrible cook.

There’s too much salt in the sauce. The noodles are far from al dente, and it took her twenty minutes to grate the cheese. Still. It might be the best lasagna I’ve made since cooking a batch in the kitchen with my dad as I watch Raine slide her fork into her mouth and take a bite. When the cheese hits her tongue, she practically moans.

“You like it?” I ask.

“This is incredible.”

I nod, taking my own bite when her phone vibrates against the table.

It’s been buzzing off and on since we started boiling the water for the noodles. Her muscles tense, and she pushes the mute button, grabbing her glass of wine and bringing it to her lips.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d say this feels like a date.

Until her phone goes off again.

“Haven’t blocked him yet, huh?” It isn’t an accusation. It’s an observation. One bothering me more than I’d like toadmit. Reeves gave her rules for a reason, and I’m not one to waste my time.

“He’s using his friends’ phones,” she counters.

My frustration triggers, and I stand up, reaching for her cell on the round table. Before she can stop me, it’s in my hand as it vibrates with another message. There are at least a dozen of them. Some from the same number. Some from different ones. Her phone isn’t password protected, so I can see everything. Part of me wonders if it’s because he didn’t trust her enough to let her have a lock. The other part doesn’t want to know, in case my theory’s correct. It’ll only make me feel more sorry for her, and I have a feeling it’s the last thing she wants.

As I sit my ass back down, another message pops up and I stare at the screen. It’s a picture. I click on it, and the image expands. It’s a screenshot of the security footage. My hands on her. Raine looking up at me. Her back pressed to my chest. Before I pushed her against the door. Before she labeled Drake as her ex and promised she’d never go back to their apartment. The footage is convincing, even if it’s relatively innocent. The way I stare down at her. The way she stares up at me. All innocent and ripe for the picking. Wide eyes. Lips parted. Fuck. My hand threatens to crush the phone as a text follows.

555.321.4924:

What the fuck is this?!

I’ll tell you what this is, asshole. This is proof that Raine isn’t your girl anymore.

“What’s he saying?” Raine asks, interrupting my inner dialogue.

I glance up at her and force my grip to relax. “He sent a picture of us from your doorbell camera.”

She nods but doesn’t ask to see it when the phone buzzesagain. This time, it’s a video message. Against my better judgment, I click on it, and a silhouette of a girl comes into view. It might be dark, but I can tell it’s Raine. She’s naked on a bed. Her head is thrown back, and she’s moaning. The sound shoots straight to my cock until I register what I’m seeing. It’s a sex tape. She’s fucking someone. Scratch that. Someone was fucking her, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out who. My gut knots as I shut the phone off but don’t give it back to her. I stare at my lasagna, but it’s like it’s tattooed in my mind. The image of Raine riding his cock.

She must’ve heard it. Recognized the sound of her writhing. Moaning. Begging.

Her phone vibrates against the table, but neither of us reaches for it.

“Did you know he filmed you?” I rasp. Jealousy licks up my spine and fucks with my head.

Her fork clinks against the edge of her plate. She picks up her napkin and crumples it in her hands. “Not when he was doing it.”

“But you know he has the footage,” I push.

“He has three videos. One of me sucking him off. One of us in our bedroom. And one of us in the shower.”

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