Page 63 of A Love Like Pumpkin Spice
“What do you want, Marissa?”
Her perfectly lined eyes, framed with fake lashes, widen in mock surprise and she clutches her chest dramatically.
“Well, that’s not very welcoming. I thought only nice people lived in this town. I only wanted to come visit my baby sister!”
“Is it money?” I lift my eyebrow, then glance at Lauren, our eyes speaking volumes without a word being exchanged. “I bet it’s money.”
“Come on, you’re overreacting again. I think it’s time we bury the hatchet!”
“You what?” I can’t help myself—I burst into laughter, and I’m not sure whether it’s because Marissa is being fucking ridiculous or if it’s hysterical. “Bury the hatchet?Oh my God, that’s funny. You planning to bury it in my back again, or twist the one you left there?”
For a moment, only one split second, her mask falters. Her nostrils flare, and her jaw clenches, but she quickly catches herself.
“Oh, Nic, you’re still too dramatic. You and Jay were never a good match to begin with. You must have realized that. You need to let it go. Let the past be the past.”
“No, thank you.” I shake my head. Marissa’s face tightens and Lauren tenses, and I gently squeeze her forearm. Marissa’s not worth catching a charge for violence. “I’m doing fine without you. In fact, I’m doing great. Way better than I ever did.” I let go of Lauren and step closer to Marissa, plastering my own overlysweet smile on my face. “And I meant what I said. You’re dead to me. Now, how about you turn around and get the fuck out of my life?”
Marissa’s smile doesn’t waver, but the belittling amusement leaves her eyes, making room for pure hatred. She takes one small, deliberate step forward, heels crunching leaves under them.
“You know”—her voice dips low, until only I can hear her—“I’d hoped you’d come to your senses, but I guess not. You’re still nothing more than a circus monkey, making a fool of yourself and hoping to find people who might actually love you.” Her head tips slightly as she gives me a once-over.
I’m not going to lie, it stings. Not ‘a thousand needles prickling my skin’ sting, the way it did on the evening I caught them. It’s a dull pain, like someone flicking the same spot thousands of times.
“And I thought you might actually get it through your thick skull that you will never get a penny from me.” I curl my lips into an emotionless smile. “Guess not,” I quote her mockingly and cross my arms in front of my chest. And then I decide to rub it in.
“Who needs a loving family when I’ve got money to live the life I always wanted? The fact I get to live it without you butting in? An added bonus. Now, let me be as clear as I can possibly be and spell it out for your goldfish brain: I never want to see you again. You will never, in any universe,eversee a penny from me. And trust me, Marissa, after that stunt you pulled, I am willing to go to great lengths to ensure that.”
She holds my gaze for a second. Then another. The facade crumbles as her smile slowly drops.
“For once, Mom and Dad can’t come to your rescue,” I continue, my voice sharp. I take a step forward, making her walk backward. “Because their opinion matters even less than yours. I’m done. With all of you.”
Shecatches herself, coming to a halt and plastering a fake smile back on her face, accompanied by a glare that could kill.
“You’ve always been so dramatic. Honestly, it’s exhausting.” She turns to Lauren and adds with a bright smile, “I don’t know how you put up with her. You’re a saint.”
Lauren’s about to open her mouth—probably to say something unrepeatable—but I shake my head. Not here. Not for her.
This is my fight. Not Lauren’s.
“Enjoy your little fantasy, Nic,” Marissa says as she backs away, her heels echoing across the street. “But remember—fairy tales always end. Usually right after someone angers the wrong witch.”
“God, your threats are laughable.” I roll my eyes. “What are you going to do? Run to Mom and Dad the way you did when you were ten? News flash, Marissa, the times where they could tell me to share my toys are over.”
She gives me a hard stare, her lips quivering, then spins on her heel and storms off, appearing completely unbothered to the unknowing eye.
But I know her.
I can see the anger in the way she flexes her fingers as she pulls out her phone, no doubt preparing to unleash whatever venom she didn’t get to pour out in person.
“A fault confessed is half redressed?” Lauren says with her eyebrow raised high, but I shake my head.
“You’ll never catch her admitting fault. Not even to herself. That notion doesn’t exist in her mind.” I take a deep breath. “Whatever. I’m ready.”
Chapter 25
Henry
“They’ve been hanging around town, more insistent than Scientologists on a recruitment mission,” Caleb mutters as he slides my coffee over the counter, exhaling an annoyed sigh. He nods toward the window, where Nic’s ex and her sister are leaning against their car, sneering at everyone passing by them more arrogantly than unimpressed judges at a talent show.
