Page 94 of Fumbled Beginning

“Okay,” I said, trying to think of some grand gesture to win her back.

“Yes!” He held his hand out. “Now let me see your phone.”

“You’re more shit-faced than I thought if you think I would allow you to text her.”

He rolled his eyes. “I’m just going to write out a text, see how it sounds. If you don’t like it, we tweak it until you’re satisfied.” He sat up straighter. “Actually, a poem expressing your undying love for her is more romantic.”

Him and his damn poems.

Reluctantly, I handed him my phone. I figured things couldn’t get any worse. He pulled up my last text exchange with her and hovered his thumb over the microphone button. “Okay, we are going to let SIRI do all the work because I don’t trust my grammar right now.”

“Roses are red, violets are blue. I’m so lost without you.” He smiled like a proud student. “Nah, that’s too childish.” He looked off to the side and grinned. “I got a better one.” He held the phone up to his face. “Baby, I was dumb, but I still like to cum, so if you forgive me, I’ll drop to my knees and blow on your pussy like a sweet summer breeze.”

“Give me the phone, you dumb idiot,” I shouted, shooting my arm out, but he held it out of my reach.

“Would you rather me say, my dick is limp, I miss you so much that I jack off to pics of your tits?” He laughed. “Hold on, let me delete it.” He hit a button and looked at me with panic in his eyes.

I snatched the phone out of his hands. “You fucking drunk moron, you just sent the text.”

CHAPTER30

RYLEE

I was scrollingthrough my phone when I heard the deep timbre of the male voice. “Hi.”

Very slowly, my eyes traveled up to a pair of familiar green eyes. I nervously glanced around the bar. What on earth was happening?

“JP, what are you doing here?”

“I’m meeting you.” He watched me cautiously.

I was beyond confused and damn near choked on my martini. “Um…no, you are not. I’m meeting someone about a potential job opportunity.”

He was dressed in a blue and brown checkered dress shirt. His hair was styled to the side, and his beard was neatly trimmed. He looked good, like always, and I cursed myself for being unable to control my reaction to him.

It took me days to get out of bed. Simple things like taking a shower and getting dressed felt like a chore. After losing my job and my boyfriend in the same week, I had no motivation to leave my house. Until Kinley called and told me she had a friend, Jake Smith, who worked for the University of Georgia. She said they were looking for someone to run their events.

I should have known she was lying. She didn’t even go to the University of Georgia.

His grin was timid as he held his hand out. “I’m Jake, it’s nice to meet you.”

I reared back. “You tricked me?”

He at least had the decency to look embarrassed. We haven’t talked since he ended things. He’s tried to call and send me text messages, but I needed time. Time to process, time to grieve. Time to figure out my next steps. Things felt too raw, and I was too upset to talk to him. Not even the hilarious ones I received from Rhett were enough to weaken my resolve.

“You wouldn’t talk to me or return my calls.”

He was right because I knew just the sound of his voice would break me. And I was still pretty damn angry about everything he said and the way he made me feel. But seeing him up close made the ache in my chest worse because I was still in love with the idiot.

“So, you thought you would show up and accomplish what?”

He rested his hand on the edge of the bar. “I don’t know. I didn’t think this through, I just knew that I had to see you. Try to make things right and fix the mess I caused.”

I didn’t know what to make of his words; all I knew was that my body still craved him, and I was barely holding it together.

“I’m not sure that’s possible.”

He walked away from me. He stopped trying. He gave up without a fight.

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