Page 21 of Goose

Ellie Jo has her arms wrapped around Goose and he’s kissing her. Full on kissing her after everything.

I hold back my tears as I run to my car and start it. Driving home as fast as I can, I hold the tears in until I pull into my parking spot.

As soon as I place my car in park, the dam breaks and tears flood down my face. Snot, tears, the whole fucking ugly crying nonsense.

I blindly grab my purse through the tears and run up the stairs. Unlocking my door, I throw it open and quickly shut and lock it behind me.

My empty apartment is just another reminder of the hole I have in my heart. I run down my hallway and throw myself on my bed. I have five hundred things to do, but right now I’m going to lay here and just cry my fucking heart out.

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ABOUT TWO HOURS HAVEpassed and I’m sitting on my bed eating straight out of the ice cream container from Mama Crawford. She makes the best homemade ice cream in the world.

Fuck going to that party tonight. I can’t face Goose after what I saw. Lilah can let Striker know, and everybody will understand. I take one last spoonful of the lavender honey ice cream and sit the empty container on my nightstand.

Groaning as I get up, I make my way to my closet and browse through my clothes. I need to get dressed and check-in downstairs with the girls. Tonight, we’re announcing we’re looking for new girls to spotlight.

They will get to try-out at the clubhouse tonight at the party. Studio Forty-Eight is closed for the night for the big party.

I spot a pair of fishnet stockings and slip them on. I can hear knocking on my door but ignore it.

Rummaging through my clothes, I find a Devil’s Highwaymen shirt that I had made into a tiny little dress. It hangs a little loose but looks cute. The one side hangs off my shoulder and the dress comes to the middle of my thigh.

The knocking gets louder and I sigh. I’m going to finish getting dressed instead of dropping everything. If it’s one of my girls, they would text me before coming over. Whoever it is, is gonna have to wait. I need to put myself first for once.

I find my thigh high black velvet boots and slip them on. Walking out of my room, I head to the front door. Looking in the peephole, I can see Goose standing on the other side.

His green eyes are dark with anger as he pounds on my door again. “Fucking let me in, Bambi!”

I roll my eyes and unlock the door to open it. Goose pushes in before I can even open it all the way.

“Um, excuse me. Want to not be such a brute?”

“Cut the shit, Bambi. Want to explain to me what happened back in the clubhouse?”

I slam the door behind him and turn to face Goose. “What do you mean? She attacked me, Goose. What was I supposed to do?”

He slams down on my couch and shrugs. “Walk away like you do to me all the time.”

I can feel the tears form in my eyes, but push them away. “Fuck you, Goose. I was behind the bar and I’m tired of letting that little bitch ruin my life. While we’re on the subject, maybe you want to explain what happened in the parking lot after?”

Goose’s dark green eyes pin me in place. “Whatever you think you saw wasn’t what really happened, Bambi.”

“Then please explain it to me. Because from the looks of it, you and Ellie Jo were getting pretty hot and heavy.”

He sighs and pats the spot next to him on the couch.

I shake my head, “No. I’m fine where I am. We need to stop playing these games, Goose. You can tell me what happened from a distance.”

Goose scrubs his hand over his face and looks up at me. I can see the turmoil in his eyes, but I stand strong.I would not give in.

“I walked Ellie Jo to her car to get her to leave. I yelled at her the entire time. As soon as she heard the door open, she launched herself onto me and shoved her tongue in my mouth. I pushed her off, but you were long gone already. She’s crazy, Bambi...”

I nod and amble over to the couch. Sitting down, I try to put as much distance as I can between us.

“I know. Fuck, do I know. I just... I don’t like her.”

Goose reaches out and places his hand on my leg. My body, the traitor, responds right away. Goosebumps spread down my leg and I can feel my body heating up.

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