Page 15 of Crashing Without Justice

“Paige, I just want you to be careful,” she finally said. “What you’re doing could turn into a legal nightmare.”

I scowled. “How do you figure?”

“What you’re doing could be considered harassment,” she answered evenly. “Harding could report your texts and phone calls, especially the one about the kids.”

I arched a brow. “Again, it’s not what you think someone’s done, Heady. It’s about what you can prove, and as of right now, no one can prove a damn thing.”

“Those early texts and calls came from your phone, Paige,” she pointed out.

“But can they prove thatIwas the one that made those calls or sent those texts?” I pushed back. “Anyone could have gotten my phone and used it for their own amusement.”

“Paige, no one is going to believe that,” she said softly.

Done with this conversation, I asked, “Are you on my side or not, Heady?”

“Of course, I’m on your side, Paige,” she quickly replied. “You’re my best friend.”

“Then act like it,” I snapped as I stood up, then grabbed my jacket from the back of my chair. “And for the record, I don’t appreciate this little ambush of yours.”

“It wasn’t an ambush-”

“Also, remember whose side you’re on the next time Harding calls you,” I finished as I put on my jacket, not even bothering to look back at her as I left the café.

Once I got to my car, I counted to ten, not wanting to pull out onto the slick roads as upset as I was. I needed some time to calm down, not willing to put other people on the road at risk.

Pulling out my phone, I logged onto my social media, needing to share this second betrayal.

God does not weigh our shoulders down with anything that we’re not strong enough to carry. Betrayal can come in many different forms, often disguised as compassion, help even. However, when your character is stronger than the wickedness that surrounds you, you will always win. Remember that always, and God will protect you like any parent would protect their child.

I set my phone in my car’s cup holder after making my post, my anger at Harding and Heady very much alive. Instead of calling me, Harding had dared to call Heady, knowing that she was my best friend, and that was another unforgivable sin. He was trying to deprive me of any emotional support, and what kind of monster did that? Was he just going to keep taking and taking from me until there was nothing left to take? Was that his plan?

As the flurry of light snow coated my windshield, I thought about what I should do next, and it was obvious that I needed to fight fire with fire this time around.

Chapter 11

Harding~

Trista was curled up in my arms, both of us just trying to catch our breath. The past couple of days were finally taking their toll, and while she really shouldn’t be here, I needed her here more than I needed to keep up appearances.

We were cozied up on the couch, the television just a distraction of noise in the background, neither of us caring about what was on. After dropping her kids off with Frank, Trista had come over about an hour ago, and I could only assume that it’d been to remind her of what we were fighting for here. While my commitment to this thing with her was solid, it was possible that the threat to her children might have changed the way that she was looking at things now.

It was also incredible to think that only a couple of days had passed since my confession. I was due to go back to work tomorrow, and the very thought felt exhausting as hell. While it was going to be embarrassing as fuck to face the guys after what Paige had done, that was the least of my worries. I needed to prove that I could still do my job, regardless of the clusterfuck that I was wading in right now.

“Have you heard back from Heady?” Trista asked quietly, and I couldn’t help but wince.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “She said that Paige didn’t want to hear it, and to never put her in that situation again. She said that she’s going to be there for her friend, nothing more.”

Before Trista could comment on that, my phone was ringing, and I had no choice but to answer it. With Paige allowing her emotions to get the better of her, I couldn’t afford to not answer any calls that came through. However, seeing Luke’s name flash across the screen, I felt a little better. He was more than likely just calling to check up on me, and I appreciated that more than anyone could guess right now.

“Hey, Luke,” I greeted. “What’s up?”

“You want to know what’s up?” he barked, making me straighten immediately, causing Trista to sit up next to me. “Your fucking wife is what’s up, Harding.”

Jesus Christ.

“What happened?”

“Amy got a bunch of texts from an unknown number, telling her that I was fucking cheating on her,” he practically raged. “The texts told her to check my phone for hidden dating apps, and that they even knew who I was cheating on Amy with.”

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