Freedom (The F-Word #5) - E. Davies Page 0,60

of crappy motel pillows and mattresses, simply waking up in his own bed was delightful.

The drive home had been long as hell. Henry was a trooper, never complaining about it, but when he’d left Jaden’s house, it felt…

Well, it felt quiet. Too quiet. Smaller, colder, and lonelier.

It was barely a few minutes before seven. Almost time to start his shift. After years of rolling out of bed to his desk, Jaden hardly remembered commuting at all. He’d barely have time for breakfast before he started, but that was okay.

He only really came to his senses after he’d made himself coffee and fed Cece. He’d walk her on his first break. Jaden scoffed his bagel as fast as he could, keeping an eye on the clock. As long as he logged on in the next couple of minutes, he’d be fine.

He was barely dressed before there was a knock on the door.

Wait, is that… Henry? Spence was never up this early. But it was first thing in the morning, and Henry was supposed to be up anyway—on his way to another day trip. Maybe it had been cancelled.

Jaden scrambled to his feet with a grin and headed for the door, already thinking up ways to not show up for his shift. Could he call in sick? His bosses wouldn’t mind; Jaden never took time off work.

But when he opened it, it wasn’t Henry at all.

It was that asshole Ron, the property manager. He was sneering at Jaden again, like he always did. “The dog’s yours, isn’t it?” was his greeting, like he’d won some game Jaden hadn’t even known they were playing.

“Uh…” Still half-asleep and groggy, Jaden didn’t have anything to say to that.

“I thought as much. Dogs aren’t allowed in the building. You’ll have to get rid of her, or send her to live with your…” Ron trailed off meaningfully, raising an eyebrow.

Whoa. Wait. Not cool. That made Jaden jolt to life, his back stiffening. “What? No, sir,” he responded, trying not to grit his teeth. “She’s an emotional support animal, not a pet.”

“I don’t care if she’s a circus pony.” Ron waved off his attempt to interrupt and keep explaining. “We can’t have pet hair in the building, and that’s just that.”

Jaden had done his homework beforehand. Cece had sensed his distress and come over, and she was leaning on his leg now to ground him. Jaden put a hand on her head instinctively and drew himself up. “No, I know what the law says.”

“Look, kid.” Ron sighed and scratched his jaw, rolling his head back like he’d rather be doing anything else. “You got a choice. Your better option is to quietly leave at the end of the month. I’ll even put in a word about your damage deposit.” He glanced over Jaden’s shoulder like he expected to see Cece-shaped holes in the walls or something.

Jaden’s whole body went stiff with fear as Cece leaned into him even harder. He couldn’t think of anything else he could do or say to this guy, when he’d so clearly made up his mind.

So he shut the door in Ron’s face.

“Shit,” Jaden whispered after a few moments of staring at the now-closed door in stunned silence.

Cece tailed him to the living room, and as soon as Jaden sat, she draped her weight across his lap.

Okay. That helped. A little bit, anyway.

What the hell was Jaden going to do? Should he fight back? How much would that cost? God, then he’d have to go out to a courthouse or something.

The more he thought about the idea, the more he hated it.

But however hard Jaden tried to think about it, he couldn’t come up with an answer. He called in sick to work, and as he’d thought, his manager was cool with it.

God, how he wished he had a better reason for pulling a sickie than trying to figure out how to stop his life from falling apart just as it seemed to fit together.

Jaden finally recovered his wits and texted Henry. He had no idea what exactly to say, so he dithered about it for a few minutes before finally settling on something neutral. He’d wait to drop the bombshell until they were in person. That was better, right?

Loved this morning <3 Free tonight?

Henry’s response was surprisingly fast—and terse.

Can’t come today babe. Raincheck?

Jaden stared at the message for a good few minutes, trying to sort out his feelings. Was Henry mad at him? Was he tired of him? Was he second-guessing their