Page 13 of His Weekend Wife

“Don’t overreact, Ash.”

“Don’t overreact? You show up here with a gargantuan, nasty bruise and you tell me not to overreact? Start explaining.” She folded her arms over her waist and tapped her foot against the floor in agitation.

Abby bit her bottom lip. “I’m going to explain, but you must first promise not to flip out.”

Ash narrowed her gaze. “What happened? Phillipe hit you, didn’t he?”

“It was an accident.”

“Seriously? You’re going to try and pull that excuse over on me?” Ash could barely get the words out through her trembling lips. Her body hurt all the way down to her toes.

“He’s been under a lot of stress lately. His career is in the shits and he’s trying real hard to get back on his feet. We argued about money, things got out of hand and he hit me without thinking.”

“Oh, so let’s forgive him because he didn’t rationally think things through before hitting you.”

Abby rubbed her jaw. “If you do this, I’ll leave. I need you to hear me out.”

And Ash knew she meant every word. For the last six months, her sister had repeatedly chosen Phillipe over Ash, no matter what the circumstances. She’d been accused of being jealous to not wanting her sister to find love, but the truth was she’d known something like this would happen, eventually. Phillipe had started being controlling on day one. “Stay and I’ll listen, but whatever you do, don’t ask me to understand that he hit you.”

Abby nodded, sipped her coffee, then cleared her throat. “He apologized for most of the night, swore it wouldn’t happen again.”

“And you believe him?”

“I do.” She rolled her finger around the rim of the cup. Several fake nails were chipped. “Come on, Ash, don’t give me that look.”

“What look?”

“Like a mother chastising me for staying out too late.”

“Phillipe hit you, Abby. How many times has this happened in the past?”

Abby leaned against the back of the stool. “Only twice.”

Ash counted to ten, backward and forward. It didn’t ease the tension in her body, but she could not lose her temper. “Don’t you remember Mom’s boyfriend? The one who couldn’t stop hitting her because of one reason or another? He was stressed too.”

“This isn’t like that, Ash.”

“Oh, so it was wrong that Mom was hit, but right that Phillipe hits you?” Ash narrowed her gaze.

“That’s not what I’m saying.”

“I don’t get it, Sis. What does he have that you can’t live without?”

Abby sighed. “We make each other happy. He makes me laugh and he watches my back.”

“I watch your back. I always have, even if I’ve failed at times.”

“I’m not yours to keep safe, Ash.”

“There are places where you can go. People who can help. We can call the police. He’d be arrested and it might make him understand that he can’t get by with this.”

“Save your counseling for the interested, Sis. I’m not buying it.”

In that second, Ash knew no matter what she said she couldn’t change her sister’s mind. “I’m sensing that you haven’t come here to ask me to tie him up and cut off his jewels like we swore we would do if a man ever laid a hand on one of us…so then what is the favor?”

“I can’t work this week and I have appointments. Won’t happen, not with this shit on my face.” She touched her cheek and squinted.

Ash knew what she meant by ‘appointments’. “Then cancel, Abby. It’s going to take a few weeks for that bruise to heal.” Ash took a long gulp of her coffee, not caring that it burnt all the way to the pit of her stomach.

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