Page 82 of Devil's Bargain

“Please, what?!” He throws his arms wide. “What the fuck do you want, April?! You can’t come here and tell me this shit and not let me help you! I’m your friend. Josh, Matt, Steph, Nina, Dallas. They’re all your friends too, and we’re there for each other! So let us help you!”

My face crumbles. I bury it in my hands. “I can’t, Ben!”

“Look at me!”

I lift my head, sniffling pitifully. He’s shaking with rage as he points to the bruises on my face. “He did that?”

I place the bottle on the coffee table and get to my feet. “I shouldn’t have come here.” I grab my bag off the couch and hurry over to the door, but he blocks it before I get there. “Shit! Fuck, I’m sorry, April!”

“I don’t know why I came here.”

He searches my face. “I’m glad you did.”

“Will you please move?”

He drops his head and blows out a breath. “I won’t tell anyone.”

I peer at him.

His brown eyes search mine. “Just promise you’ll come to me when you need to talk.”

I chew on my bottom lip, then shrug. “Okay.”

He brushes his warm fingers over my tender cheek. “I’ll kill him, April. Just give me a name.”

“Please step aside.” I need to leave. The room is closing in. I’ve shared more with Ben than I feel comfortable with. If the others catch wind of this…

Ben steps aside. It’s not easy for him to do. His jaw grinds so hard I worry that his teeth might pulverize, but he opens the door and watches me leave.

I descend the steps and hurry over to my car without looking back. The wind is picking up. My hair gets stuck in my lipgloss as I open the door and get in the driver’s seat.

“What the fuck am I doing?” I whisper and put the key in the ignition with trembling fingers. “Why did you go to Ben of all fucking people, April?” I turn the key, and the engine sputters to life. “Fucking stupid!”

* * *

Somehow I find myself here again, inside the small diner I drove to after my car broke down.

When the same waitress pops her gums and beams, the relief I feel surprises me.

“Here for another cupcake?”

I smile at her. It’s funny how small things can lighten the soul. “Yes, but I’m paying for it this time.”

She shakes her head. “No, you’re not. You can pay for the day’s special. We have lots of it left, and it needs eating. The cupcake is on the house.” She winks.

And that’s how I find myself wolfing down this oxtail soup. It’s delicious. Outside, the wind whips the trees. A storm is on the horizon. My phone is still switched off, and it’s a relief, to be honest.

“Is it good?”

I tear my gaze away from the window and smile at the waitress. “It’s more than good!”

A couple of regulars over by the counter laugh with the chef.

She wipes down the table next to mine, her brown hair falling out of the ponytail.

“Have you tried it?”

She pops her gum. “I’ll take home whatever is left, and trust me, there’ll be enough leftovers for a week.”

“Doesn’t sound so bad.”

She pops her gum again and tucks her hair behind her ear. “It could be a lot worse.”

Someone gestures her over, and I watch her leave. She’s been nothing but kind to me, which I’m not used to. Not from strangers.

I pick up my cupcake and take a bite as I look at the TV over the counter. The weather forecast is on, and it’s not looking good for the next two days.

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