I pace the apartment as I grow madder, so damn mad I can’t help the angry tears falling down my cheeks.
When Kent gets home he’s laughing about something on the phone. I’m stalking the living room and holding the soggy blueberry bag to my mouth. He looks at me and his eyes light up. But his smile falls when he sees my face. “I’ll call you back, Jake.” He tosses his phone on the couch and stomps over to me. “What happened?”
“Don’t touch me,” I order, holding my hand up to stop him.
He pauses. “What happened?”
“One of your couch participants fought me in the laundry room.”
He looks confused for half a second. Once he understands his eyes ice over and fury dances in his gaze. He heads for the door.
“Kent, don’t,” I beg, and break down. Tears fall down my face.
His face softens and hardens at the same time. He pulls me over to the couch and sits down, pulling me onto his lap. “Let me see.” He removes the bag from my mouth and growls. He tenderly touches my puffy swollen lips, kissing me softly. “I’m so sorry, baby.” He wipes my tears and then touches my eye. “I’m sorry.” He kisses my eye. “I’m so damn sorry.” He kisses my cheek. “What happened?”
“You.” I shove at his chest. “She said you were going to leave me too and you didn’t want me. But she’s wrong. You want me.” I touch his handsome face and scrape his stubble.
“I want you,” he promises forcefully. “It’s her ass I don’t want. I’m so sorry, baby. I can’t believe she did this to your beautiful face.”
I lean forward until my head is on his shoulder. “Promise me you won’t say anything to her.”
“Rain.”
“Promise me or I’ll listen to my common sense.”
“What’s it saying?”
“You don’t want to know.”
He sighs and rubs my back. “This is what I get. Everything I ever did wrong to all those women is coming back on you. The one girl I don’t want to hurt, I’m hurting more than anything. What can I do for you?”
“You can let me up. I have to go switch my load to the dryer.”
“I’ll go do it. Go lie down in my bed. I’ll find some aspirin.”
“No!” I shout. What if Arissa is still there? I don’t want him anywhere near her.
“Go lie down.”
“Let’s go together. I need help carrying my load of clothes anyway.”
Relenting rather ungraciously, Kent follows me downstairs. Sure enough, Arissa is talking to someone on the lawn between the apartments.
When she looks over and sees Kent her face pales and she takes off.
“Kent, no!”
He drops my basket and takes off after her, running so fast she barely gets around the corner before he’s on her. He grabs her by her arm and pushes her against the wall. I can’t hear what he’s saying but she turns her face to the side and tries to pull away. He grabs her arms and pushes her back, holding her in place.
“You don’t really want her, do you?” Arissa cries.
Her face is swollen and red and tears stream down her cheeks. She reaches up and touches his face tenderly.
He shakes her touch off. “What goes on in my life is none of your business, Arissa. I am not yours. We hooked up and then you went psycho on me. Leave me alone. I don’t want you. Do you get it? I don’t want you!” he shouts.
She flinches but tries to touch him again. “What we had was beautiful.”
“We didn’t have anything! I fucked you. That’s it.”
She starts to sob uncontrollably. Even Kent can tell something’s wrong with her. He lets her arms go and grabs her chin. “Look at me, Arissa.” His voice softens.
She does so unwillingly.
“I’m sorry I treated you the way I did. You didn’t deserve that. I’m sorry. I used you for the wrong reasons and that wasn’t right of me. But Raina didn’t do anything to you. No one hurts her. No one. I’ve done it enough.”
“If you’re sorry, show me.”
“How?” He sounds tired.
“Kiss me,” she begs.
“You need help. Get help, Arissa. You’re sexy and from what I can remember you were feisty and knew how to have fun. You can have any guy you want. You don’t want me, do you? Some asshole who uses you? You deserve a man who loves you; someone who’s happy to see you. Don’t you want to be loved? I want to be loved again. Don’t you want that too?”
My throat