Page 47 of Rules Of Our Own

He lifts from the wall and straightens. “Your schedule’s pretty easy to find at the hospital. Says you were gone all weekend.”

“Why do you care?” Unease starts to settle in my bones. That’s a level of creepy I’d like to avoid.

“You haven’t texted me back.”

I’m entirely too tired for this right now. “That’s because there’s nothing left for us to talk about.”

“The hell there isn’t. We’re good together. You know that,” he snaps, and his words slur at the end. He’s drunk. I fold my arms over themselves, remembering how he’d manhandled me the last time he drank.

My body tenses out of instinct, and alarm bells sound in my head. You always hear about exes snapping and going psycho, and there’s something way off base about him showing up like this.

I keep my voice soft.Deescalate.“You’re the one that broke it off.”

“Yeah, because I thought you needed a reminder that you can’t ignore me.”

I’m ignoring you fine now.Rage builds in my chest, but I bite back my words, acutely aware we’re alone. “I told you I wasn’t ignoring you. I just have a lot on my plate—”

“Yeah, your internship and yourcharity.” He practically spit the last words, and my nose scrunches in revulsion. What the hell was I thinking dating this guy? He continues. “I told you I would take care of you. You didn’t need that job, plus you’re not even getting anything from the charity you spendallof your free time on.”

I breathe in slowly, trying to keep my heart rate steady. “You could have done it with me, you know? If you’d been willing to go to an event, maybe you wouldn’t have felt like you were stuck at home. You know I needed help.”

“Help you? With what? Your pointless charity that’s only managed to help a few kids? You are delusional if you think this is taking off. Look at the time you put into it. What do you have to show for it? Nothing!”

I flinch, and the back of my eyes burn as his words hit their mark. “Just stop. We’re not together anymore. Why are you doing this?”

He stalks closer, leaving only two feet between us, and sneers down at me. “You know what I think? I think you’re doing this for the clout. I think you want to be able to go around all high above everyone and say how you helped theneedychildren.”

“They aren’t needy!” A spark of anger burns through my self-preservation. “I have the opportunity to make people’s lives better. What’swrongwith you?”

“Nothing, Love,” he says, and I wince. It somehow sounds slimy when Jason says it. He takes another step. “I love you. Come home.”

“We. Are. Not. Together.” I grip the handle of my bag in both hands, prepared to swing it at him if he comes any closer.

He scans me, and his eyes narrow. “What are you wearing?”

“What?” The question is so out of nowhere that I look down. Oh shit.

“Whose hoodie is that?” His voice is low, sharp, angry. He grabs my arm hard, and a pained cry breaks free.

“It’s…it doesn’t matter.” Fear alights my nerves, and I try to shift back. My shoulder blades connect with the elevator door. My heart skips frantically. I’m trapped.

He uses his hold on me to shake me. “Where the fuck were you? Were you out there fucking someone else?”

“You’re hurting me.” My mouth freezes open, and his eyes widen.

“You were. You are such a selfish little slut,” he hisses at me. “That wasn’t very smart. You wouldn’t want me talking with the board, would you?”

I swallow back the bile threatening to climb my throat. His dad sits on the hospital’s board of directors, and he has more influence than he should. It’s not the first time he’s tried to use it against me.

“Hey, buddy. Get your hands off of her.” My head whips toward the new masculine voice, and my breath comes out in a whoosh. Mark. I’ve never been so grateful to see my neighbor.

He glances toward me. “You okay?”

I swallow. “Yeah, fine.”

Mark’s brows pull up, and he tilts his head toward Jason. “This guy bothering you?”

Yes.“He’s my ex. And yeah, he is.”

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