Page 80 of Pretend You Love Me

Brooklyn?

I’m trying to work this out. With the light and the guns and the choking, nothing is making sense.

“Brooklyn?” I finally say out loud.

“Yes, Brooklyn. What the fuck did you do with her? If you hurt her, I will personally murder you, and it will be a slow and painful death.”

At that moment, the patio door opens, and she steps out. “James, what are you doing?”

He relaxes his grip on me just slightly.

“Brooklyn?” I say. I’m still not sure what I’m watching.

The President’s eyes flash to me, confused, but then he looks back at her.

“I told you not to track me,” she yells. “You need to let him go.”

He moves his arms back slightly, and I can finally fill my lungs with air. Just as I’m gasping for breath, she steps into the light. When the light hits her, my stomach sinks. There’s a collective gasp as her face comes into focus - bruised, swollen, bloody. As soon as the President sees her face, he’s right back where he was before - only he’s really crushing my throat now.

“What the fuck did you do to her?” he growls.

“So you like beating up women, huh? Why don’t we show you what that feels like?” one of the other ones says.

“Stop,” she yells, running over. She’s pulling on the President’s arm. “James, let him go.”

The President is still looking at me. “What the fuck happened to her face?”

“She tripped.” Fuck, that sounds so bad coming out of my mouth. His eyes light up, and his whole body weight leans into me.

Of all the ways I thought I might die, being suffocated by the President was not one of them.

“The fuck she did,” he yells.

Ginger is hysterical now. “James, you’re hurting him. Stop. I did trip. I really did. Please, stop. Listen to me. I tripped over the dog.”

“And broke your arm?” he says.

“Well, that was a car accident.”

James growls. “What about the fucking marks on your neck? That wasn’t a dog or a car accident.”

He turns back to me, “If you put your hands on her neck, I will rip your throat out of your body...”

“It wasn’t him. James, stop. Please listen to me. “

His eyes flash back to her.

“I was in a little incident with a man at a bar...”

“Brooklyn...”

“Ok. It wasn’t little. Kip saved me, James. The other guy was arrested. You can check with the local police if you want, but Kip didn’t hurt me. I promise. Please. You have to let him go.”

James looks from her to me and back again.

“He never hurt you?”

“Never.”