Page 94 of No Longer Safe

“Hmm?” I closed my eyes and tried to clean the remaining smudges above my cheeks.

“Don’t look at the tabloids, okay?”

What had they already heard we’d broken up? That was quick. At least I wouldn’t have to hear about it from Tavon until Monday.

“Okay.”

“Promise me,” Her anger had faded some and when I opened my eyes, I found a concerned face staring back at me.

“It’s not that big of a deal, I mean the press was going to figure out we broke up eventually, right?”

“Just promise.”

“I promise.”

Except it didn’t matter how many times I promised when Lu texted me the pictures I threw up what little dinner Georgie sent up to me. On the front page was Alexei pictured with a leggy blonde in a micro-dress. She looked like she’d been sewn into it, it was so tight. She was breathtaking and based on the screenshot I’d been sent, her father was the CEO of a global hotel chain. Alexei wasn’t smiling but I couldn’t focus on him orI would start crying again and I’d promised myself, shortly after Carina went to bed, that I wouldn’t cry over him again. He didn’t deserve my tears.

I turned my phone off and decided I needed to have a little bit longer of a pity party. I would get through this, it just wouldn’t be tonight.

Chapter Sixty

Audrey

Every weekendthere was a new girl on Alexei’s arm. They were seen at pizza places, hot dog corner carts, Central Park (I’d learned to stay away on my lunch breaks from now on), and even swanky restaurants. I threw myself into my work, it was all that mattered because when I was done, I knew I couldn’t stay in the city that reminded me so much of him. He was a plague and the only way I could rid myself was if I left.

I was sitting cross-legged on my bed, eating a pint of ice cream, watchingI Love Lucyre-runs when Carina kicked my bedroom door open holding a big cardboard box. I put the spoon in the small container and set it on my nightstand.

“What's that?”

She threw it down onto my bed with a thud. I peeked under the closed flap and inched away slowly. It was my things from Alexei’s place. She grimaced.

“He called Ace and told him that someone would need to come get your things because he couldn’t keep them at his place anymore. I assume it’s because he hasguestsand doesn’t want to explain anything, but ya know.” She shrugged.

“Ace went to get them?”

That’s when she grinned. “Oh no, I volunteered happily.”

Here was my psychotic best friend in the flesh. I’d almost forgotten about the time she set her ex-boyfriend’s backseat on fire because he’d cheated on her in it. The truck was never salvageable, she wasn’t caught, and she’d made a name for herself.

“Why?” I didn’t know if I wanted to ask.

She held up a finger. “So I could steal his toilet paper.”

“And?”

“Replace his toothpaste with diaper cream.”

I tried my hardest not to laugh. “Keep going.”

“I hid all of his left shoes.”

“Uh-huh,” I motioned for her to continue.

“I cut the belt loops on his pants.”

A grin slowly stretched across my face as she kept going.

“I turned his hot water heater off.”

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