Page 73 of XO

“Why is this necessary?” I ask, feeling a rush of panic.

“You’re in the Mad Scientist room. Your first job is to escape your chains.”

She disappears out the door we came through, and I tug on my chain which is attached to the very first wall. Jacob is a good few feet away, his chain attached to the prison bars framing the next stage.

“Fucking great,” I mutter, just about done with the universe having a bullshit sense of humor. I pull again in frustration until the metal handcuff digs into my skin.

“That’s not going to help,” Jacob mutters his ownhelpfulresponse.

“Well, what’s your brilliant idea to get us out of these?”

He shrugs. “Find the key.”

Oh.

I scan the darkened walls. On one side, next to the door we came through, is a whole lot of scientific and mathematical formulas written and drawn in glow-in-the-dark chalk on the black wall.

“Could I have been given a worse room?” I ask myself, annoyed that math and science has somehow found its way back to haunt me.

“Don’t sell yourself short. You know this stuff.”

“I knew it long enough to complete the SATs, and then I promptly and deliberately forgot it.”

“That was a waste of library tutorials.”

I raise a brow, thanking God the room is mostly dark. I wouldn’t say they were wasted. Academically yes, but otherwise no.

“I don’t think there are any clues on there to help us find the key. There’s nothing on my side, how about yours?”

I run my hand along the wall and feel nothing. “Nope.”

“We’ve got to be missing something really obvious. Look again.”

Gritting my teeth, I search the walls in reach and still come up with nothing. “It has to be on your side.”

“I just told you it isn’t.”

“Well, it’s definitely not on mine.”

“You can’t feel any raised areas of the wall? See any codes?”

“If I did, I’d tell you,” I snap back, irritated. “Because I’m honest like that.”

And there it is, a big, steaming pile of innuendo slung his way.

“Really? That’s what you’re going to do? Wait until we’re handcuffed and chained to start launching your missiles?”

“If I had a bomb, I’d set the fucker off right now.” I could slap myself for saying something so callous being that I’d heard from Vicki, the best man was retiring after eight years in the military. “I’m sorry, that isn’t appropriate.”

“Rosie, you don’t ever need to apologize to me. There’s a time and place we should talk about everything, but right now, in here, it’s not the time.”

“Funny how you get to dictate when is a good time. Just like you dictated ten years that you wanted to cut off all communication. And you still expect me to follow your orders? I’m not one of your soldiers, Jacob. I was the girl you swore you’d never leave behind. When you said ‘nothing can ever tear us apart,’ or was that just to get up under my dress? I was the girl you left after fucking. Was I really that terrible? Was I such a lousy fuck it was just better for you to leave town?”

Jacob yanks on his chain in frustration, his hand balled into a tight fist. “Is that what you’ve been thinking the last ten years? That all I wanted was a fuck and then to leave you?”

“You didn’t leave me a lot of variables to run with, Jacob.”

“Rosie, I’ve thought about that night on the rooftop every day since. It’s what gets me off, remembering you on top, your long hair falling over your breasts as you ground your pussy against my cock.”

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