Page 28 of Ruthless Desires, Vol. One (Ruthless Desires Series Extended Editions #1)

Wren

“So?” Ava says, shooting me a look as we walk into the back and dump our stuff in the break room. “Tell me everything! How was your Valentine’s Day night of debauchery? Oh, and who the hell dropped you off? I couldn’t see through the windows.”

“Actually,” I say, grinning, “it was a whole weekend of debauchery. And I may have gotten three boyfriends out of it. Rhett dropped me off.”

Ava’s jaw drops. And then she’s laughing and clutching her stomach as she yells, “I KNEW IT! I knew they all liked you! Was it good? Was it amazing?! Oh my god, did they all go at you at once? Tell. me. everything.”

I fill Ava in on as many details as I’m comfortable sharing, which isn’t many, since I don’t want to betray the guys’ trust by blabbing about everything we did. Thankfully, she seems satisfied with what I decide to tell her.

We go through our opening routine smoothly. I move slower than normal, thanks to my cramps and stupid lack of painkillers. Maybe I can stop by the store on the way home and grab some.

A half hour after we clock in, there’s a knock on the glass of the front door. Rolling my eyes, I head out to where some regular is probably waiting, thinking they can get their coffee early because they have a familiar face.

But my heart skips a beat when my eyes lock with Rhett’s. My god. Will his calm, steady gaze ever not take my breath away?

I certainly hope not.

As I unlock the door, he gives me the faintest smile.

“Hey. Ummm. What are you doing here?”

He holds up a white plastic bag, and I can just make out a variety of pill bottles sitting at the bottom. “I wasn’t sure what kind is best for period cramps, so I bought them all.”

As I take the bag from him, warmth spreads through my chest. He got me pain meds? Has anyone ever done something this sweet for me? Maybe Ava, I suppose. “Rhett. You didn’t have to.”

“I didn’t want you to be in pain all day.”

If I could get away with dragging this man into the bathroom and kissing him—and maybe more—until he can barely stand, I would. But, unfortunately, I can’t.

“Thank you.”

“Anything,” he says gently, a callback to what he told me last night.

I know this is all overwhelmingly fast for you, but I want to make this work. And last. So please—if I’m ever not giving you what you need from me, just tell me. I’ll do anything to keep you, Wren.

I’m pretty sure I’m melting. But the warm fuzzies I’m feeling freeze over when a flicker of discomfort flashes across Rhett’s face.

“I should go,” he says, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Right. Yeah. Um, thank you. Really, you just made my day a lot less miserable.” I reach out and squeeze his hand.

He relaxes a little. Then, with a quick kiss on my forehead, he leaves.

“What a sweetheart,” Ava says with a sigh, pressing her hands over her heart. “He’s officially forgiven for not laughing at my joke a couple weeks ago.”

I snort.

“What? It was a good joke!”

I open one of the bottles and wash two pills down with some water. Then I smirk. “It was all right. I guess.”

She swats at me, and I laugh. And then we’re back to work, getting everything prepared for our first morning rush.

***

Despite the painkillers, my shift still sucks. When I’m finally done and grab my stuff from the back, I scroll through my notifications on my phone. Rhett texted me when he got home, which was really sweet. Unfortunately, in the early afternoon, my mom called me multiple times and left me with a wall of texts.

Mom: We need to talk.

Mom: I just spoke with Adam’s mom. What’s going on?!

Mom: Young lady, answer me!

Mom: You’re messing everything up. Wren, you’re meant to be with Adam. You’re perfect for each other. What happened to the family you were going to start? You can’t make babies forever, you know. Clock’s ticking.

I cringe. There she goes again with her traditionalist bullshit. If that’s what a woman wants, then fine. After dating Adam for a while, I thought it was what I wanted—he always told me he was going to be the provider for me and the family we were planning on having eventually.

Funny, considering he wasn’t. We both had to work our asses off to make rent.

I sigh. As if I needed another reminder that I either have to get a new roommate or find a cheaper apartment. Or a better job. My savings will only last for a few months.

Problem is, I don’t want to move. I love this neighborhood. It’s so full of life. We have a thriving arts and culture community here, and I love spending my weekends getting lost in the different types of music, food, and ways of life.

“Let’s just get this over with,” I grumble. After wishing Ava a quick goodbye, I start the walk home. Thankfully, the sidewalks are shoveled.

My mom answers her phone on the second ring. “Wren! Finally! Why have you been ignoring me?”

“I’ve been at work.”

Of course, she wouldn’t understand that. She hasn’t had a job—besides raising me—since before I was born.

“Well, whatever. Maybe if we talked more often, I would be able to remember your schedule.”

I roll my eyes. It’s been the same for almost two years—first shift, Monday through Friday. “What do you need?”

“What do I need? Are you kidding me? Your boyfriend was in the hospital over the weekend, and Mary Anne says you didn’t even visit him.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.”

“Wh-excuse me?”

“He’s not my boyfriend, mom.”

“Last I checked he was!”

“Well, I broke up with him. A while ago.” I just didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to deal with you freaking out on me.

Of course, my mother doesn’t even ask why I ended our years-long relationship. Doesn’t even assume that maybe Adam was the problem. Instead, she launches into a rant I’ve heard a thousand times over the years whenever one of my “rebellious” cousins is brought up.

I barely listen, focusing more on avoiding people on the sidewalk and watching out for patches of ice. At least the sun is out, which helps to counteract the bitter cold biting at my skin.

“Adam was going to give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of. Everything a woman could want! Financial stability, a loving husband and father of your children. What more could you ask for?”

I grimace. Loving? Once upon a time, I would’ve called Adam that. If we were still together, I probably still would be. But now? Now that we’re broken up, all I can see are the ugly parts of him.

The parts that made me feel unwanted. Annoying. Like he was bored with me, only staying with me out of obligation. I was never good enough, never submissive enough, never like his friends’ girlfriends.

“He was going to propose, you know. And you didn’t even visit him in the hospital. How could you be so cruel?”

“He was going to what?” I screech so loudly that I get a few surprised glances from people walking past.

He was going to propose? While he was actively cheating on me?!

I’d tell my mother that, but I know her well enough to be able to predict how that will go. Either she’ll tell me it was my fault, or she won’t believe me.

Best to avoid that trainwreck.

“You broke that poor boy’s heart. And then he got jumped in his own home! Can you believe it?”

“He… what?” My voice is too high. I ball my free hand into a fist. There’s no way I can let on that I know what happened to Adam—or, more specifically, who happened.

“That’s right! He could’ve died.” My mom sighs. “I thought this is what you wanted, Wren. Adam is on track to be a very successful young man. What happened to your future together?”

I hesitate. Is that what I want? Before I met Adam, I had a plan—a dream. It was silly, maybe a little na?ve, but it was mine.

All I wanted was to become a freelance graphic designer, learn a lot of languages, and travel the world. I figured that if I could work from anywhere, I could stay in lots of different countries, learn their languages, and experience their cultures.

I could spend time outside hiking and exploring. I could learn lots of cool new words. Discover new ways to cook. Listen to people tell their history, their stories. So much learning. And I thought that maybe I could make a living designing things like book covers and logos and social media graphics and—

I stop dead in my tracks. Where the hell did that dream go? Why did I ever stop pursuing it?

You know why, I tell myself. You’re just too ashamed of yourself to admit it.

“Wren? Wren, are you still there? Hellooooo?”

I hang up, ignoring my phone vibrating in my pocket when she tries to call me back. The last thing I need right now is my mother lecturing me.

When I get home, I drop my bag and coat on the floor. After stripping, I step into the shower. The hot water warms my frozen skin, and I imagine it washing away my mother’s words, too.

It doesn’t work.

And all I’m left with is the cold, bitter realization that I’ve lost myself, and that the past years I’ve spent with Adam have all been one gigantic, messy waste.