Page 55 of Come Here and Kiss Me

Refused to come back home with me.

But at least she didn’t self-destruct. Aspen is a good friend, and I’m glad Brook has her in her life.

Although I overheard her canceling plans with someone in the other room. Someone she doesn’t want us to know about. I thought the worst at first, but it seems Aspen has someone special in her life. Someone who’s a secret too. She can keep her secrets as long as they have nothing to do with hurting Brooklyn.

Out of everyone who could have done it, there’s no way it’s Aspen.

While I’m lost in thought, I’m also vaguely aware I’m half a bottle deep into Gerald’s collector’s edition of Heaven’s Door whiskey, and I don’t know how I’m not passed out by this point. I think it’s the spite and the desperation to figure out who the hell keeps fucking with us and why.

“I don’t understand why they don’t just leave us alone,” I mindlessly say and then recall all the ways I’ve fucked over as many men as I could to get ahead. That is the way. I did what my father told me. To grow my wealth and show everyone that I will get mine. I’ll come out on top.

Including when I screwed over her father. And my own when I forged my own path six years ago and went into teaching instead. Law and stocks are their game.

I got my wealth, and I left.For the past few years, I’ve tried to do better, but this feels like karma showed up and decided I didn’t do enough to right my wrongs. Fuck, I didn’t do anything to right them.

“It’s got to be him,” I murmur, thinking her father won’t ever let me have her too.

“Who?” Gerald turns to me, pulling his gaze away from an interception.

The dull roar of the TV is nothing compared to the pounding of my blood in my ears. I can’t look him in the eyes.

“She told Aspen. She wouldn’t have said shit to her if she didn’t think I did it.”

“Told her what?” he asks and looks at me like I’m a madman. How has he not caught on yet?

I ignore Gerald’s questions, my head foggy with exhaustion and also alcohol. Texts and emails have flooded my phone, and I can’t answer another fucking one.

Her father hit me with a lawsuit today, claiming I leaked the video. As if I could ever do that to her? Just the thought of a random stranger seeing her like that makes me fucking furious. “He’s gotten into her head, I think… I’m going to lose her.”

“Told her what and whose father? Aspen’s or Brook’s?”

I finally look Gerald in the eyes. Darkness rests under them, creating bags, and I glance at the clock and see it’s nearly three o’clock. Two hours is too many to be rambling conspiracies because I have nothing else.

“You think her father planted a video but removed you from it?” he asks, his eyes narrowed with confusion.“He hates you, not her.”

My head falls back against his sofa, and I stare at the ceiling, realizing that it doesn’t make a lick of sense.

“I don’t fucking know, man. The PI can’t find shit but a bouncing IP address, and I don’t know what the hell to do.”

“I don’t really understand what all is going on. Probably just some ex-friend or ex-fuck of Brook’s posting revenge porn, right?” Gerald guesses, and I realize he doesn’t know shit about the other half of it.

About how it’s not real.

About how her father is suing, and I initially sued him for what he did to Brook.

About the board nearly firing me and the web of lies we’ve told.

I dragged her into my old ways. She doesn’t deserve that. She wouldn't be going through this now if I’d never gone to her that morning. I would have lost any chance at tenure, but it would have never gone public. I doubt it even would have been shared among our friends. I should have stayed away. She’d be happy, off being her wild and carefree self.She wouldn’t be crying her eyes out to Aspen and thinking I’d do that shit to her.

Fuck, it hurts. My father is right. I’m meant to be alone.

“I would never hurt her, but I already did and didn’t know it,” I conclude to Gerald as emotions tighten my throat.

I reach for the crystal tumbler on the coffee table and throw back the rest of the amber liquor.

“Dude, what the fuck are you talking about? Did you do that? Did you send the video?” Gerald’s concern is clear as he shuts off the TV and squares his shoulders to look at me.

“No.Never.”I stare back at him with mywhat the fuckexpression.

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