Stay For Me - Megan Smith Page 0,36
your head.
“Hey, look,” Fallon points to Jax’s. “Brian is here.”
My heart sinks to the pit of my stomach. A chill goes down my back and my hands start to shake. It’s sad really that this happens when I see him. As we get closer I see that he has dark circles around his bloodshot eyes. He’s either really tired or he’s been using drugs again, neither are good things. He’s moody when he’s sleepy and he’s downright nasty when he’s on drugs. Mix the two together and it’s explosive.
Fallon holds her hand up for a high five when she gets closer and Brian rolls his eyes at her as he slowly holds up his hand. “She’s six, Brian.” I hiss. “Don’t be an asshole to her.”
“Where the fuck were you?”
Fallon stops and turns around when she gets to the door of our apartment. I walk over and unlock the door for her. “It’s okay. Go on up, I’ll be right there.”
Fallon runs up the stairs leaving me alone with Brian. “I asked you a question.”
I hold up Fallon’s overnight bag. “She was over at Mrs. Stein’s house, she spent the night.”
“And where the fuck were you?”
“Fierce.” It’s a half-truth but he doesn’t need to have any more of an excuse to bitch at me.
“You said you didn’t have to work Saturday.”
I nod. “Right, I wasn’t working. I was just hanging out with Jaylinn and Cooper.”
“And Eli.”
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, Eli was there, too.”
I nod my head towards the door. “I’m going up. Are you coming?” I don’t want anyone in our business so if we’re going to fight I’d rather do it upstairs.
“Layla?” I hear my name being called before I see him. Shit. It’s Jax. I’ve been avoiding him because I don’t have the money to pay for this month’s rent.
“Hey, Jax.”
He curtly nods to Brian. “Do you have the money for the rent?”
Brian looks to me and then to Jax. “You didn’t pay him yet?”
Shaking my head, “I’ll have it for you tomorrow. I have to get it out of the bank. I didn’t realize it was due. Sorry about that.”
“Tomorrow, Layla.” Jax says lighting up a cigarette. Jax is a no-nonsense guy, as long as you don’t fuck with him, his money or his bar you were golden. You fuck with him and he’ll be sure that you never do it again.
Brian and I head upstairs. Fallon is on the couch watching TV. Well, she is for now until they turn the electricity off any day now.
“Why isn’t your rent paid, Layla?” Brian asks the second he shuts the door.
Fallon tilts her head so she can look past Brian to the TV. “Well, let’s see, when I came home from the dinner, which you were supposed to take me to, the house was trashed. I hide the money in a sweatshirt on the top shelf in the closet. She found it and took off. I haven’t seen or heard from her since.” It’s not like me to talk like this to him especially not with the storm brewing in his eyes but I blame him. If he would have cancelled I never would have went out and the money would still be where I put it.
“I told you I got held up at work. Nothing I could have done to get out of it.”
I roll my eyes and sit down on one of the kitchen chairs. “So you’ve said.”
Brian comes over to where I am sitting and gets in my face. “What are you trying to say, Layla?”
I back my head up, his breath smells terrible. “Nothing, I just don’t understand why this new job is taking all your time.”
He kicks the chair next to me out and sits. “Because it is.”
I bite on my bottom lip knowing I should shut up while I’m ahead but I don’t. “So work has kept you busy this whole week? You didn’t even show up for any of your classes.”
“Are you accusing me of something?”
Shut up, Layla, just shut your mouth. “I think you’re cheating on me.”
His head falls back laughing in a twisted sort of way. He’s on something for sure. “It’s no more than what you’re doing with Eli, Layla.” He spits.
My temper getting the best of me, “Fuck you!”
In an instant Brian grips me by the neck with one hand and slaps me across the face so fast I didn’t even see it coming with the other. My cheek burns like hell making my eyes water,