I’m left staring as his low chuckle bounces off the walls and my heart silently shatters inside my chest. They’re just words. He doesn’t really mean that. I know he doesn’t. It was only one night together, but I know it had to mean something. I felt it.
Colton walks away from me and I watch as he pulls open a drawer and reaches in. The lump in my throat tightens and I struggle to breathe around it as another bottle of scotch is pulled out. The lid is opened and as he lifts the bottle to his lips, I feel the tears welling in my eyes.
Do not cry. Do not fucking cry in front of him, Oceania Munroe.
“Get the fuck out, Jade,” he says with finality, dismissing me as he swallows another mouthful of scotch. “I’m done with you. So fucking done.”
Struggling to catch a breath, I silently walk to the door and push my way out into the hallway, leaving him behind as I slam the door between us. The second the heavy thud of the door vibrates through my ears, I crash against it, feeling the emotions completely overwhelm me.
I slide down to the ground, slamming a hand over my mouth to mask the sound of my sobs as the tears fall free from my eyes, leaving me a complete, broken mess on the marble floor.
Chapter 7
Milo’s arm loops through mine as he leads me inside the church. I don't know what I was thinking coming here today. Maybe I just needed to see Colton, maybe I had an overwhelming need to say goodbye to the man who used to hit his children and wife, or maybe I just wanted to be supportive of the people around me. I don’t know. Anyway I look at it, it’s fucked up.
If I had my head screwed on properly, I’d be back at the pool house, keeping myself locked away and out of trouble. I know I can’t tell the difference between Cora and Casey but if one of them were to even look at me wrong today, I feel as though I might just break. After the whole suspension thing yesterday, a public scene like that might just throw my mom off the deep end.
As we walk through the church, I can’t help but look around. This place is huge. Like not just the Carrington mansion kind of huge, but shopping mall kind of huge. No wonder Harrison was so adamant that this would be the church the service was held in. It's all kinds of fancy with its high ceiling arches, candles, gold trims, and stained windows. It’s the kind of place a girl like me would literally have to die to get into. Even then, I'm not sure I’d be worthy.
This place screams elitist and makes me wonder how many times the little donation plate went around and how often the billionaires of Bellevue Springs have had to dip into their pockets. There’s no way a church like this would be able to survive on just prayers alone. There's a big financial backer here somewhere and for some reason, the name Carrington is flashing in my head.
There’s a woman at the front softly playing the harp and the music fills the church as the guests start pouring in. Milo leads me to a seat toward the back and near the rest of Charles’ staff who have been granted the time off to attend the funeral, though not all of them are here. There are still hundreds of people back at the mansion getting ready for the party this afternoon which is being held in Charles’ honor. To be honest, I doubt Colton even knows about the party, he’s been so distant these past few days.
Yesterday was the worst. It’s as though Colton has reverted to the old Colton, the one who existed when I first arrived. He was mean, blunt, and dangerous. He was someone who I didn’t want to fuck with, but did because watching him get so worked up was one of the sexiest things I’ve ever seen. The old Colton liked to torment me, watch me break, and knew that he had the power to do it.
I sat at his bedroom door crying for two hours, unable to pull myself away. I was lucky that the only person to walk by and see my shame was Harrison who actually had the heart to give me a sympathetic smile.