Page 32 of Wasted Memories
I wasn’t sure where I’d go tomorrow night, but I’d figure it out when the time came. My head hurt from all the chaos that ensued in the past couple days. My current stage in life seemed almost perfect up until a few days ago. But now it felt like a tornado had sucked me up and I was waiting for it to finally decide to spit me out.
He lived in a quaint little house a few blocks from the beach. The house matched the color of the sea, its charm making me feel like I was checking into a mini vacation. I had to remind myself this was only for one night, and it was anything but a vacation.
Inside, the place was quite bare. He didn’t have any family photos, no magnets on the fridge or mail littering the counters. There wasn’t a bit of clutter in sight. Either he was a minimalist or this was the first place he'd landed after getting out of Dodge.
He set his keys on the island and faced me. “I don’t have any furniture in the guest room so you can have mine.”
I was standing awkwardly in the living room, not sure what to do with myself. I felt like a nuisance being here. The last thing I wanted to do was inconvenience him further. “You don’t have to do that. I’m fine on the couch.”
He watched me from where he stood in the kitchen, a worried expression etched across his face. I hated it. I didn’t want to be pitied by anyone. It was bad enough he had seen the bruises, and now I was in his house like some poor damsel in distress and he was my knight in shining armor.
That’s why this had to be a one night thing. Jett would eventually give up on Stella’s house and move on, then I’d go back to Stella’s and come up with a long-term plan.
During my shift, I had Elijah switch the account my paychecks were going to. If I had it my way, Jett would never see another dime of my money. I’d be perfectly fine never seeing him again, and that’s what I think hurt me the most. Up until a few days ago, I’d never doubted our relationship and everything we’d built together. I quickly learned I had limits I wouldn’t let even Jett cross. I could’ve stayed through the alcohol, but I couldn’t take the abuse.
Wesley walked over to me and took my hand, leading me to the couch. “Relax for a little, okay? I know your head is probably going a million miles a minute right now, but you’re safe here. I doubt he’ll come looking for you here, and even if he does, I’m not going to let him anywhere near you.”
God, I hated this. I hated that this was my situation with someone I loved, and that some stranger felt like he needed to keep me safe.
I couldn’t look at Wesley as I sat down. I didn’t want to see the concern in his eyes. “Up until last night, I counted on him for everything. My mind can’t comprehend that all of a sudden, that’s not the case anymore.”
He pulled a sherpa blanket over my lap and sat next to me, leaving a few inches of space between us. “You don’t have to have everything figured out right away, Em. You can take all the time you need.”
I was tired of talking about this. I'd had enough of Jett clouding my mind the past few days. I shifted so my legs were curled up beneath me, leaning my elbow on the cushioned arm of the couch to find Wesley's eyes trained on me like he could see my mind trying to process my entire world crumbling down. “I feel like you know so much about me while I know nothing about you.”
He gave a close-lipped smile, seemingly glad I changed the subject as well. “What would you like to know?”
“Where’d you come from?”
“How’d I know that’d be the first question you ask?”
“You act like showing up out of nowhere doesn’t warrant my curiosity.”
He turned his attention to the blank wall in front of us. “Well, to start, I drove a few hundred miles west with no plan. I grew up in a small town in eastern Washington called Fortsworth with my parents and older brother.”
It felt like he was holding back, so I pressed further. “Why’d you leave Fortsworth?”
His gaze fell before he spoke again. “My father passed away.”
“So you lost a parent and ditched the rest of your family?” It probably wasn't the right thing to say with his confession, but I wasn't sure why someone would run after the loss of a parent.
He turned his attention back to me as he explained. “It wasn’t like that. My brother left home a while ago. He’s older than me and is starting a family of his own. That just leaves my mom, and she’s already moved on, seeing some fucking hippy barista.”
“And you couldn’t handle that,” I guessed.
He leaned back against the couch with one arm draped over the back. “It just doesn’t seem fair to my dad. They’d been together since high school.”
I could see where he was coming from, but I didn’t know the whole story to judge either side.
“It can be hard to understand someone else’s thought process while they’re grieving, but I’m sure she’s not intentionally trying to disrespect your dad.” I could tell his mom was a sensitive subject just by the look on his face. I didn’t want him to think I expected a response, so I did what I do best. Deflected. “I think Stella might be a little jealous when she hears where I’m staying tonight.”
Watching his demeanor change with the smirk on his face, the heaviness in the air disappeared.
***
I was getting out of the bath Wesley had drawn for me when my phone dinged with a million texts from Stella asking where I was and why Jett was parked on her block. I replied with an explanation and assured her I’d be okay for the night. She replied back instantly, promising that her lips were sealed on my whereabouts if he asked. I tried to ignore the winky face she added at the end.
I had fallen asleep hours ago on the couch after Wesley and I were done playing twenty one questions. Through our conversation, I learned he loved tacos, his childhood dog’s name was Rex, and that his favorite color today was blue. He made it a point to tell me his favorite color changed daily, and that I’d have to ask him every day to keep up with it.
