Page 5 of Smudged Lines (Tattooed Hearts Duet 2)

Simon cut him off, standing and placing his hands out between us. “Okay, it seems we've found something. Slade, why don't you start and then Lenn. Both of you will wait until the other is done,” he stressed, looking between us both. “Thenwe can battle semantics. Okay?”

Slade gritted his teeth but eventually nodded, and looked at me. Anger had replaced the earlier grief, so I slouched back on the couch, folding my arms over my chest. There was no way he was going to blame this on me! Narrowing my eyes at Slade, I answered. “Fine.”

“Let's see, I waited atLayla’slike we’d agreed,” he stressed, giving me a look that screamed liar. “After fifteen minutes, I was about to leave when ‘you’ finally sat down. Or so I thought it was you. Everything felt off. You acted bored and didn't know half of the things I spoke about. When the bill came, something came over your face, and you smiled at me. Or well, who I thought was you.”

“I never met you until the day I walked into the tattoo shop.”

“Lenn, you promised to wait,” Simon sighed.

“Just keep on lying,James. You met me that night, just not at the restaurant. I guess the girl you'd paid to catfish me hadn't known all the details because she asked me if she'd been convincing enough to pass. Of course, I had no clue what she meant. When I asked her, she told me she’d been paid to be Lennox James.”

“That doesn't make any sense!” I shouted, jumping off the couch. “You texted me and told me you'd been pretending! You-you-you!” I couldn't form words as my mouth hung open at his accusation. My heart rate skyrocketed at his story. Shaking my head, I crossed my arms. “No. I don't believeyou.”

My anger caused him to stand and stalk toward me. “Good to know you can't follow directions,James. Seems I'm not the only one you lie to, you also lie to yourself.”

I moved to slap him, but he caught my wrist. My breathing had become ragged and I contemplated kneeing him in the groin next. The fury inside of me blazed to an inferno, my eyes feeling like fire. I wanted to hurt him for saying such hateful things. Simon stepped in between us, pushing us apart before I could take out any vengeance.

“As much as I’ve wanted to see the firework explosion between you two ignite over the years, even having dreamt about being in the middle of it,thisisn't the time. Lenn, you said you'd wait. I believe Slade. I think something else is going on here.Please.”

It was the final please that calmed my anger, and I stepped back, yanking my hand out of Slade's grip. Neither of us sat back down, though, our countenance agitated as we waited to prove who was right.

“Later that night, I found myself at that Honkey Tonk bar, and I helped you. You knocked into me and told me my tats were beautiful. Later, some guy was hitting on you, and I rescued you again and bought you a drink. We'd just started talking when Simon found you. You started arguing and ran off. Later, I found you in the hall. Some guy had you up against the wall. You didn't look right, but I figured you’d had a lot of drinks by then. I was walking toward you, going to break it up, when… “ he paused, shifting his eyes, “some guy stepped in. The other guy knocked into me, and I was about to rearrange his face when… “ he stopped again, blowing out a breath as he shifted on his feet. Throwing his head back, he scrubbed his hands down his face.

It was obvious it was distressing to him, and I wanted to feel bad for him, I didn't want to admit how most of what he said I couldn’t remember. That night was… hard to recall, period.

“The guy stopped and laughed. He didn’t notice my intention to pound his face when he started spouting off how he heard you’d been playing guys all over Nashville and were a huge slut, giving it up to anyone. When he saw me looking back at you, he told me I'd be better off staying away fromLennox James.”

Shaking my head, I couldn't believe what he was saying, the words wouldn’t form though as the memories climbed up my throat. I barely croaked out, “No, I, no,” before Simon stepped in.

“What happened next, Slade?”

“When I realized who she was, I left. I figured you deserved whatever happened to you. Well, I left after you threw up all over me. Thanks for that, by the way. I never could get the stench out of my favorite shirt.”

His words slapped me with force, the bitterness and hate so heavy in them that each one had felt like a slap.

“Deserved? You think I deserved what happened after that?” I wished the words had come out stronger, but they were weak. I was barely holding back my tears now.

“I didn't know any of that was going to happen!” Slade roared, his nostrils flaring as he pointed at me. I stepped back, the force of everything pushing me back.

“Okay, okay, we're getting off track again. Slade, was there anything else?” Simon interrupted again, attempting to keep it on track.

“Not from that night, no. I heard the next day about a wreck—”

“Stop!” I shouted, holding up my hand. I couldn't hold it back anymore, and I bolted for the bathroom, barely making it before everything I'd eaten that evening came up. Hands rubbed my back a moment later, pulling my hair back. “Ssh, it's okay, Lenn.”

When my stomach finally stopped cramping, I sat back on my legs and peered up at Simon. “I'm really upset with you still,” I hissed, “so incredibly angry.” He nodded, wiping my face with a cold wash cloth. He handed me a paper cup with some water, and I swished it around, spitting it into the toilet. He made an eww face and I laughed. Handing back the cup, he offered me some mouthwash next and I gladly took it. Swishing it around, I spat it in the toilet too, laughing now at his reaction. Flushing it for the third time for good measure, I addressed him again. Simon had always been so good at taking care of me when I was sick. ”Can I have a free pass for tonight? I just really need my best friend. I’ll go back to being mad at you tomorrow.”

“Of course, Lenn. Whatever you need.”

Falling into his arms, I cried all the tears I'd been holding back for the past two months, probably for the past three years. We sat on the small bathroom floor, cramped in the space, but neither of us complained or moved, needing the comfort the other had to provide. When I finally lifted my head, his shirt was a hot mess of tears, snot, and makeup, and it only made me do one of these tearful laughs.

“You think you're ready to finish the conversation.”

“No. But I'll do it.”

Sighing, I stood, my body stiff from the position. Stretching out my muscles, I found Simon staring at me, hunger in his eyes, and I realized I'd practically put my butt in his face.

“Oh, um, sorry.”

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