Page 19

CHAPTER 19

Billie

“ S tupid fucking blowtorch doesn’t fucking work with a little bit of rain. You stupid piece of shit.” I throw the contraption to the ground and storm over to my rental car. I open the trunk and pull out the shovel and bleach.

I push my soaked hair out of my eyes, then start digging letters into his front lawn. “If the fire won’t work, then I’ll bleach the fuck out of your grass. Thank you very much, internet.”

I’d furiously scrolled through ideas all day while fuming over the stunt he’d pulled. “Have to be a crazy woman to be this dedicated to give you a message like this, but boy, oh boy, do you deserve it, asshole,” I say to myself as I continue digging. I’d researched that shoveling the grass and then pouring bleach over it will permanently keep it from regrowing.

I sigh because I loved the idea of the blowtorch—it felt cathartic in a way and would have been poetic justice—but it just wasn’t effective due to the rain.

“You’re lucky I like the fucking cat, or it would’ve been your house I tried to burn down,” I grumble. I know I’m seeing red. I know there might be consequences. But fuck him. He doesn’t own or control me. “Stupid fucking egotistical men, throwing around their big dick energy.”

I shovel for an hour, cursing the entire time and constantly wiping the rain out of my eyes. After the digging is done, I pour the bleach across his lawn. By the time I’m finished, I’m exhausted but proud as I lean against the shovel and take a breath, looking over my handy work.

The words “Limp dick asshole” with a heart next to them are carved into his front lawn. I fucking hope every neighbor notices its artistic flare. I take in the darkness of the night, only a few lamp posts shining through the gloom.

“Shitty neighbors anyway,” I say out loud. If someone did notice me out here, they probably know better than to make any kind of complaint regarding Ford’s home. Despite him living in suburbia, I’ve never really seen any of his neighbors walk past his house as if they know to avoid it at all costs.

Well, now they’re all going to know he’s a limp dick asshole.

“Humph.” I smile, my mood suddenly so much better. As the rage slowly drains from me, I feel depleted from the rain. I throw the stuff back into the trunk of the car and then use the key he gave me to walk into his home.

“Felix!” I call excitedly as the little kitten bounds down the hallway and meows at me. “Who’s a good boy? I bet you’re hungry, aren’t you!” I coo, picking him up and scratching under his chin. He still looks a little feral, but that’s most likely because Ford hasn’t even thought to bathe him, and he still doesn’t have a collar. “Maybe we should have a shower together before we feed you.”

I take him into Ford’s room and head straight for the en-suite. I run the water in the sink and wait until it’s warm. “I don’t even know if I can use human soap on you. Maybe we’ll just rinse you with water until we get you something else.”

The moment I put Felix under the water, he claws up my arm. I scream, letting go of him immediately, and he jumps toward the doorway, looking over his shoulder and hissing at me before sauntering off.

“Ow. Little fucker.” I look at my arm and laugh at the small claw marks. Okay, that’s no to baths. I’ll let Ford enjoy that himself.

I peel off my loose pants and long shirt, then step into the shower. I let the water run down my back as I consider how crazy this might seem. I’m showering in the bathroom of the guy whose lawn I just destroyed. But I don’t give a fuck. I’m proud of it. And the asshole is out at all hours of the night. I doubt he’ll even be back tonight. Or, who knows, maybe he’s with someone else…

“Shut up,” I say to myself, tired of that stupid narrative playing in my head. I mean, I was the one who went on a date, not him.

I enjoy the heat of the water, not having realized how cold I’d become outside. It just shows how determined I was. But now, all the energy is sapped out of me. I use his shampoo and conditioner. I sniff them both. Yep, definitely smells like him—deep and rich. I lather my hair and body, my nostrils flaring at the familiar scent.

I rinse off, then step out and grab a towel. After drying my body, I run the towel over my hair as I walk into his closet to find a shirt. Of course, all of them are black.

The first time I waited for him to come home, I snooped through his things. It turns out Ford is a very boring person: no vices, secrets, or abnormal discoveries. The most peculiar thing about him is the tattooing.

I put on one of his black shirts that’s so big it hangs to my knees, and continue towel drying my hair.

When I step back into the bedroom, I see a shadow leaning against the doorframe, and every hair on my body raises as a cold chill takes over the room.

“Are you ready to be punished, Chaos?”