Page 77 of Traitor

The phone rang three times before Elizabeth answered with a cheery, “Hello!”

“I was just informed that you’re to be wed…again. My congratulations.”

She giggled. “Well, thank you—”

I cut her off. “Where did you get your information on Lauren’s dating life from?”

Her laughter faded immediately. “Mike, I know it’s hard to hear, but—”

“Just answer the question,” I ground out through clenched teeth. David’s head shot up and he gave me a warning look before mouthing,“Don’t speak to her like that again.”

“Mike, I’ve been working out with her. Jimmy’s a good guy and he seems to really care about her. You have to let her go—she deserves to be happy.”

Jimmy?

Fucking Jimmy was still in the picture?

My head began to pound from the surge of adrenaline and my vision blurred. I hung up on Elizabeth and tried to stand. Instead, my legs were like Jell-O and I fell, striking the table on my way down.

David was on his feet and over to me within seconds. “Fuck, Mike. Are you okay? Did you have too much?”

I shook him off.She was cheating?Of all the things I could’ve imagined her doing, cheating wasn’t one of them. Was this payback for the ‘Sandra incident?’ Or her mom? Had she taken me back just to see if she could rip my fucking heart out all over again?

“I have to go,” I said, more to myself than David.

He tried to talk me out of it. “C’mon, you’re obviously in no condition to leave. Stay—maybe we can find someone here for you to talk to.”

I grabbed the front of his shirt and snarled, “I don’t fucking want anyone else. Okay?”

I was going to find out where Jimmy lived and pay him a little visit. I stormed out of the bar and into my truck, not giving a fuck if he was eight feet high or not.

That son-of-a-bitch messed with the wrong man.

I slammed the door of my pickup truck and hobbled up the front porch steps. There wasn’t a part on my body that didn’t ache right now.

“Christ, I’m not fucking your girl. We’re just friends.”

It turned out that Jimmy hadn’t wanted to fight me, right up until I threw my fist into his jaw. Instead of falling down like I’d hoped, he’d thrown several hits of his own—all while calmly explaining again that he and Lauren were nothing more than friends.

I listened a little better the second time around. Still, it didn’t leave me feeling good about things between us.

I’d slumped against his living room wall.“So, she’s been working out and shooting with you almost every day. Why didn’t she ask me to go with her?”

He’d shaken his head.“Man, I can’t help you with that. You’re gonna have to ask her.”

I let the screen door slam shut behind me before walking into the living room where she sat facing the television.

“You’re home early from boy’s night. I thought you’d be gone for hours.” Lauren paused the show she was watching and looked back at me.

Her face paled immediately and she jumped up. “What the hell happened? Are you okay? Was it the other gang?”

I shrugged off her attempts to help and stormed into the kitchen to grab an ice pack. “Jimmy says hello.”

And there it was. She blinked rapidly and shook her head. Some detective I was; how had I missed the deception in her eyes before? “Oh my god, your eye is so swollen. Jimmy did this to you? Why?”

I pressed the ice pack to my face and leaned against the cabinets. “Why don’t you tell me, Darlin’. Elizabeth said you two were hot and heavy. I just found out that I wasn’t taking you to their wedding re-do or whatever the fuck they’re calling it.”

Lauren ran a hand across her face and sighed. “Shit. Look, Mike, I just didn’t want to tell her that we were back together yet. Didn’t want to get their hopes up, you know?”

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