Page 51 of High Rise Secrets
“I don’t know, Mom. I said some really shitty things and hurt her pretty bad last night.”Like calling her a whore.
“We all say and do things we don’t mean. It’s how we handle the fallout and aftermath that defines us.”
Chapter 33
Addison
I’m not even sure how I got home last night. Brian, my assigned security guard, came barreling into my room last night after Ethan took me roughly and tossed money at me like I was worthless. I laid on the floor crying for what felt like hours. I vaguely remember Eden coming into my room and laying down on the floor behind me, holding me. Someone must have called her because she wasn’t on the schedule last night.
She asked me several times if I wanted to talk about it, and when I refused, she helped me over to the bed and tucked me under the covers, telling me she’d be back. I know she asked about what happened so she could help. She’s always protected us girls, been like a mother hen to us.
She came back into the room a while later with my stuff, and I felt a strong pair of arms lift me up, cradling me against a firm chest. I didn’t have to open my eyes to know it wasn’t Ethan coming back to say he was sorry and let me explain.
No.
Ethan was gone.
My past messed everything up, just like I feared it would.
God, why the hell didn’t I tell him all my secrets sooner?This all could have been avoided because then he would know I was telling the truth and that there was no one else—hasn’t been since we got together. I would never do that to him.
I love him.
That thought makes the tears fall down my cheeks, landing on the soft pillow below my head. Sobs wrack my body, and I shiver under the blankets, wrapping my arms around myself. My phone dings from the nightstand, but I don’t have the energy to look at it, nor do I care. I want to wallow in this self-pity for as long as I can.
What the hell am I going to do on Monday?I can’t keep working for him, not when he thinks I’m sleeping with clients and, even worse,his dad.God, I would never touch that man again. The lap dance he got was enough, but when he tried to force me to have sex with him, I was done.
I can only imagine the lies Paul told Ethan about me to have him react the way he did. What did I ever do to him to make him hate me so much? I would love to drive to his house and ask him why he wants to ruin his son’s life, but I don’t want to see his face.
My phone buzzes again just as there’s a knock on my front door. “Go away,” I call out from my room. I know I’m too far away for the person to hear me, but it doesn’t stop me from doing it and pulling the covers over my head.
I hear my front door unlock, and there is only one person it can be—Eden. All the girls still have a key to my place, but Eden and Everleigh are the only ones who would actually use it. Since Everleigh is probably still cuddled up in bed with Luca, that leaves Eden.
She pulls the covers down from my head, and when I try to pull them back up, she rips the whole comforter off the bed.
“Get up.”
“Fuck you, Eady. Leave me alone.” I turn away from her and curl up again. She smacks my ass hard, and I barely flinch.
“Harder, Roxie. You know I like a bit of pain,” I mock her.
“Don’t make me pull out my whip. You’re not gonna stay here and wallow in self-pity. Ethan was an asshole last night, and he’s lucky I wasn’t there to shove my boot up his ass, but there’s nothin’ you can do about it right now. You both need time to cool down and then discuss everything.”
I turn and glare before getting up to stand in front of her. She has only about an inch or two on me, but even she seems to shrink back with the anger rolling off me. I keep my voice low and even. “He fucked my ass, called me a whore, and threw money at me. Not sure there’s much to discuss there. So, I suggest you march your ass out of this Goddamned apartment right now before I do something I regret.” I point to the door.
Her brows crease as my words sink in, and pity takes over her features. “I’m sorry, Addy.”
“Nothing to be sorry for. It’s my fault for not opening up to him sooner and telling him everything about my past. I honestly didn’t think it would be that big of a deal, especially when I had the chance to explain, but he never gave that to me. I’ve been in love with a man who I didn’t even really know.” I shrug and walk to the bathroom. “Please don’t be here when I get out.”
I close the door behind me and lock it.
* * *
I take a longershower than needed, only getting out because I run out of hot water. I contemplate hanging out in the cold water, but my body repels the idea, and I start to shake under the spray. I wrap a fluffy towel around me and look at my reflection in the mirror. I still look like the same girl from last night, but I feel as if I’ve aged a hundred years.
My phone is buzzing like crazy on my nightstand, and I finally drag myself away from the mirror to look at it.
Missed calls from Eden, Everleigh, Lia, and Aiden from work.