"Dad…"
"Get off the phone and go be an adult with your wife. Try talking to her and forget about her tits. We're hanging up now."
Click.
"That went well," Asia comments from her perch on the couch.
"Fucking great." Tossing my phone back onto the dresser, I scan the room for something to drink that’s nonalcoholic, because if I start drinking, I'm not going to stop.
"So it's not a mistake?"
Taking a soda out of the small refrigerator in the corner of the room, I shake my head at her. "Apparently not." I guzzle half the bottle. "For whatever fucked-up reason, they put us together. Probably to see how fast one of us runs for the door."
"Soda is bad for you. Especially gulping it like that. You should drink water."
I glare at her before I take another large gulp of the soda because I'm a rebel like that. "Don't even," I warn. "If you tell me you're one of those vegan, no-gluten, sugar-hating, non-meat-eating, smoothie-slurpin' chicks, I'm going to lose my shit right here."
Her eyes widen. "Okay, then…"
She looks lost, huddled up on the couch with that huge robe on, hugging herself, her eyes red and puffy. She's upset. I don't have to know her, or even like her, to see it written all over her face.
"I'm sorry," I say unconvincingly. "I don't mean to be such an asshole."
"It's okay… I shouldn't have said anything." She stares at the floor where her wedding gown lays in a heap. Shit. It's not supposed to be like this.
"No, it's not okay." I said some really mean things to her. This is what I didn't want anymore—stupid fights with women who don't care about me and who I sure as shit don't care about. I wanted better than this, and I'm sure Asia did too.
But a tiny light bulb goes off in my brain. I do care this time. Just a tiny bit, but it's there. My chest aches in a funny way seeing her upset, knowing I've hurt her feelings, and that she's scared of all this. And that's a first for me.
Maybe that means something.
Or maybe I just drank too much soda.
I sit back on the couch next to her and take her left hand awkwardly into mine, rubbing my thumb across the platinum band I slid onto her tiny finger just a few hours ago. She's mine. I'm not sure why, but she's mine now. My partner in this mess.
"We in this together?" I ask her, softening my voice.
"Yeah." She sniffles and squeezes my hand.