Page 4 of Claimed by an Alien Warrior

“We’ll figure it out,” Josh said, stepping closer and raising his hands to touch her. “You’re hurt, I und—”

Zoey flinched away. “Don’t touch me!” Knowing that those hands were covered in both his and Bridgit’s filth made her sick to the stomach. “And if I have to tell you one more fucking time to get out…” she gritted through her teeth, staring into his eyes.

His face visibly paled, and his tongue slid over his lips nervously. “I’ll come back when you’ve calmed down. I can’t deal with this right now.”

He grabbed a shirt off the dresser and walked past her. She didn’t try to stop him this time.

His car keys jingled as he tugged them off the hook beside the door. “I’ll text you later,” he said.

When the door closed behind him, Zoey’s legs gave out and she crumpled to the floor. She covered her face with her hands and cried.

She couldn’t even lie in her own bed; the rumpled blanket and sheets likely meant he’d had sex in it with that woman. How many times had Zoey slept beside him without knowing he’d had another woman in her place while she’d been gone? Everything about their home, about their relationship, was tainted. It had all been a lie.

What stung most was how hard she’d lied to herself.

“I can’t stay here.” She straightened and wiped her eyes, laughing without humor when she saw the rent notice on the bed. “We were going to get kicked out anyway.” A fresh torrent of tears spilled from her eyes. “What am I going to do? All alone, no job, no home…”

I have nothing left.

Placing a hand on the bed, she pulled herself to her feet. She managed a semblance of numbness as she retrieved her purse and walked to the couch, plopping down and settling her bag on her lap.

She glanced down at the pizza box. The empty cans remained, but the leftover pizza was gone. That rekindled her anger; he’d cheated on her, used her, spent her money on meaningless shit, and after everything, he couldn’t even leave her a couple slices of goddamned pizza?

Zoey dug her phone out of her purse, scrolling through her short list of contacts and selecting the only person she could talk to aboutanything. It rang three times before Melissa picked up.

“Zoey! I haven’t heard from you in ages! How are you?”

“Josh cheated on me, Mel. Used me for money and cheated on me,” Zoey replied, suddenly fighting back more waterworks.

“Oh, my God. Sweetie, are you okay? Well, of course you’re notokay, but are you okay?” Melissa’s voice had softened, brimming with love and concern. “Do you need me to come visit? I think I can get my baseball bat through security if it’s in a checked bag.”

“No. I’m… I don’t know, Mel. I’m so lost right now. My landlord is kicking me out because Josh blew the rent money, and I got fired today, and I came home to…”

“Don’t even think of that piece of shit. He’s not worth it.Sonot worth it.” Melissa sighed. “I know you don’t want to come back to Iowa, but…you can come stay with me, if you want. You know I’d love to have you as a roomie again. It’d be like old times.”

Zoey wiped tears from her face with the heel of her palm. “Mel, I—”

“What’s there for you in California? I know you wanted to get away, to start a new life, but what’s there for you, really? You can goanywhere, Zoey, and all I’m saying is I’d love it if you came back here.”

She looked around the apartment. In the months she’d lived here, she’d accumulated items to make it feel homier — a few pictures, a couple plants, some strange-but-appealing wall décor, and two or three pieces of old furniture, most of it obtained at secondhand stores. She’d taken pride in what she’d accomplished here. Though her job had sucked, she’d busted her ass working double shifts to have a decent place to live and make sure her bills were paid. She’d planned to eventually build a life out here. With Josh.

But that, apparently, wasn’t meant to be. This was just a place. It wasn’thome, and never had been.

She’d forgotten what it felt like to have a home, by now.

“Come stay with me,” Melissa urged.

“Okay,” Zoey replied.

“Wait, what?Really?”

“Really.”

“Yay! We can spend Christmas together!” Melissa yelled so loudly that Zoey had to pull the phone away from her ear. “Do you need help with a flight?”

“You don’t have to do that, Mel. I think I’ll drive. I don’t want to sell my car, and it’ll be easier to fit my things in it.” What did she really have to bring, other than clothes? Nothing else here had any meaning for her. “It’ll also give me time to…to think.”

“Take all the time you need, Zoey. And if you need me for anything —anything— just call. Day or night.”

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