Page 40 of Second Chance Ex
Following the sounds and smells, I clutch the life out of Adam’s hand as I tow him with me under the watchful and frankly terrifying eye of a wall-mounted stag head, through an archway and down a dimly corridor until we come to the huge open kitchen and dining room that is currently so chaotic, nobody even notices our arrival.
Heather, Milly, Dawn, Madison and Bree, Maddy’s cousin, are all seated at the table, sipping wine and laughing over something on Dawn’s phone. Ryan, Carter, Bree’s fiancé, Heath and some guy I don’t know too well from Ryan’s brokerage, Teddy, are in the kitchen, standing around the huge island counter pouring shots. A man dressed in a chef’s hat is flitting about in the kitchen. It’s a lot.
With another quick scan of the room, I see no sign of Joey or his girl, and for the moment I breathe easy. But I know they’re here; Joey organized the whole weekend. Where are they? Suddenly, the unthinkable comes over me and my skin crawls at the thought of them up in one of the many bedrooms having sex. But that image is thankfully quashed when the swinging door across theroom flies open and I see the perky blonde burst through, Joey trailing close behind her, chuckling at something that must be hilarious if his dimples are anything to go by. Probably just finished a quick over-the-pants-hand-job in the other room. Ugh. Why am I like this?
“Oh my god, you guys, the hot tub ishuge!” the spritelycheerleaderexclaims, eyes flitting about the space. “We have to get in there after dinner.”
“I totally forgot my bathing suit!” Heather whines.
“Oh, babe. You’re totally fine. I’ve got you,” Jessie reassures Heather with a hand on her shoulder. “I’m, like, the unofficial bikini queen. I pack, like, ten suits wherever I go.”
I stare at the scene playing out before me. Is this real life? Like, seriously. Is this really happening? I feel like I’ve stepped into some sort of alternate universe where I’m long gone and Jessie has seamlessly stepped in and taken my place; like one of those sitcoms from the nineties where they replace the actor of a favorite character and hope no one notices.
I glance back at Adam, but he’s no use. He’s too busy eye-fucking the unofficial bikini queen. I nudge him with my elbow before making a point of clearing my throat, causing all heads to turn in our direction.
Silence. Crickets. Nothing but the faint sound of a rock song playing somewhere off in the distance. It’s almost like I’m a stranger; all eyes glancing curiously between Adam and me.
“Hey, sorry we’re late,” I say with a forced smile doing everything I can to avoid Joey’s penetrative gaze. “It started snowing on the way here.”
Adam suddenly sidles up to me, arm snakingaround my shoulders, tugging me closer into his chest. I glance up at him, and I can tell by the look in his eyes that he’s up to something.Don’t.
He grins down at me.Stop me.
“Yeah,” he says, looking out over the room of spectators staring at us. “We decided to pull over and then we just kind of lost track of time, if y’know what I mean?”
I swear you could hear a fucking pin drop. With a long, leveled look, I turn my head slowly toward him, wondering if he actually just said that. He did, but I still stare at him, my gaze hard.
In return Adam winks at me. Fuckingwinks.
“Hey,babe,” I say with absolutely no hint of affection. “Toothbrush.”
“Well, now, that’s not really how a safe word works,honey,” he murmurs with a low a chuckle.
Ignoring him, I grab the front of his sweater, purposely pinching his nipple region with my nails, and I drag him back out of the doorway, far enough away so that I can kill him without anyone witnessing the crime.
“This is bullshit. Absolute fucking bullshit!”
“Okay, calm down,” Adam says, holding a hand up in my direction. And he must be new at this because isn’t it common fucking knowledge that by telling an upset woman to calm down you’re effectively only pissing her off even more? It’s as if he’s asking to have my eyelash curler clamped around his balls.
“Donottell me to calm down,” I warn. “This is a setup, Adam. A goddamn setup, and the only reason we’re stuck in this room is so that we’re forced to hear them fucking each other’s brains out through the wall.” I glare at the wall that separates our room from Joey and Jessie’s, as if the wall itself has done me a personal injustice.
I shake my head. “We’re literally on the other side of the house. You’re trying to tell meHeath or that Teddy guy couldn’t have gone in here? They’re both single; they’d probably get off on hearing two people have sex.”
I glance at Adam to find him staring at me all wide-eyed, the hint of a grin tugging at his lips. “Jesus, P-Dubs, take a breather.”
With a huff, I smooth my hair back from my face. He’s right. Maybe I’m getting myself a little worked up, but come on. “I swear to God, at the first whisper of a moan, I am going to go and sleep in your goddamn Jeep.”
Adam laughs, pulling things out of his case, taking his bathroom bag through to the ensuite as I sit my ass on the edge of the bed. Yes, bed. Singular. Not only am I forced to sleep on the other side of the wall from my ex and his self-professedbikini queengirlfriend, but I also have to share a bed with Adam. I’ve already warned him that if he so much as breathes on me in his sleep, he’ll wake up with a black eye.
“Oh, shit.”
My ears prick at the sound of Adam’s voice coming from the bathroom. I jump up and run in after him, stopping to find him laughing. My brows draw together in confusion and he steps to the side, pointing to a second door, and my heart immediately sinks into the pit of my gut because you have got to be fucking kidding me.
“No.” I sigh.
Adam carefully pulls open the door and peers in. “Afraid so.” He turns to me with a smirk. “We’re sharing a bathroom.”
“Oh my god, I have a headache.” I rub my eyes with the heels of my palms as I walk back through to thebedroom, flopping onto the bed. “So, not only do we have to hear them fucking through the wall at night, but screwing in the shower every morning?”
