Page 5 of Runaway Girl
“That kiss didn’t mean anything.”
“It made me sick.”
When I was in the middle of typing out the next, I realised a bright red sign flashed beneath each text.Not delivered.Which was the only thing I was grateful for that morning. As I reread each statement, my shame grew exponentially. Fuck. Even to me, it sounded like a load of shit.
Before I could ruminate further, my phone rang, and I answered my dad’s call on autopilot. I shouldn’t have.
“My boy, what is going on!? I went fishing with Ralph this morning, and he showed me some video. A disturbing video. Tell me it isn’t you,” he said in a rush.
I sighed. “Dad.”
That’s all it took. That one word, said in such a guilty tone that it completely set him off.
“How could you, Ethan? I did not raise you to say such cruel things.I swore to Ralph that wasn’t my boy in the video. Iinsisted that my son wouldneverspeak about anyone like that, let alone a woman that he had been seeing for—what was it? Years?”
His disappointment rang true. Rudy Harris was a formidable man who raised me as a single father. He was my guiding light, and I respected him above all else. There was only one other who had ever come close to that type of calibre and meaning in my life… and I had just reduced her to the dirt beneath my feet for all the whole world to see.
Dad continued to berate me. “...is this the girl that you’ve mentioned before? The one you wanted me to meet next time I came to visit?”
I gave a sharp grunt—the only confirmation I’d allow. I didn’t trust my emotions enough to speak out loud, not knowing what would come out.
“Why would you say such horrible things about her, Ethan? Why would you embarrass her and kiss some nobody? What happened with your Alicia?”
“Dad!” I interrupted.Your Alicia.Hearing the name I had claimed as mine… God, I couldn’t take it anymore. Everything culminated in that tragic moment where I was on the precipice of losing it all.
I cleared my throat. “Dad,I fucked up.”
“Oh, son, you really have.”
Chapter 4
ALICIA
It was late in the evening, my parents’ house quiet as I sank into bed, exhausted and emotionally drained after one hell of a week.
All our focus remained on Dad and his recovery. I was thankful for my ex-brother-in-law, Owen, who was assigned as his physiotherapist.
I used to consider him as close as a brother. Until he cheated on my sister with one of her close friends. If that wasn’t bad enough, he managed to knock the bitch up.
Over four years had passed, and I could still see the residual pain in my sister’s eyes when he was near. I could also see the longing… From both sides.
Despite their history, however, Dad seemed to trust Owen’s word, which helped kick his old stubborn pride into gear. We also respected Alexis’ opinion, being a nurse. She was able to bridge our diverse levels of understanding and keep everyone informed and in the loop.
But that didn’t stop normal life from moving on.
My boss, Felix Johnson, had called me earlier that afternoon, wanting to discuss a high-level contract I had been negotiating for one of my clients. It was a big case, and one I had been preparing and working on for two months straight. The level of complexity the contract required meant it had the potential to catapult me to the prestigious position of Executive Financial Advisor—a role I had worked my ass off to achieve. And with that contract, I was truly on the cusp of moving higher professionally.
Although Felix was cutthroat and expected perfection from his employees, he was also severely family-orientated, as proven by his naming his entire company after his wife. So, due to my circumstances, he immediately reassured me and let me know he would take over my case if needed.
Except I didn’t give him an answer, requesting a little more time to think. My family needed me; myDadneeded me. But I couldn’t bring myself to fully let go of the opportunity, which made guilt eat away at my conscience. It was difficult to accept, to hand all my hard work over for someone else to reap the rewards.
So I gave myself a night. One night. To wallow in self-pity, lick my wounds and come to terms with my new reality.
I lost my man—who wasn’t even my man to begin with. I lost my pride. And now, I was about to lose my big contract at work.
Fuck my fucking life.
Silent tears began to run down my face until they turned into a torrent of sobs that soon became uncontrollable. I tried to keepmy emotions locked up, so I didn’t disturb my sister or nephew sleeping down the hall.
