Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Abby
“You’re going to need to sex it up a bit,” Aspen says over FaceTime, her face filling up half my screen as she leans closer to her camera. “Tell her, Arlo. It just needs something . . . more.”
“Aspen’s right,” Arlo adds, his face coming into view beside hers. “The video is good, but you need some help. What sold me on Aspen’s channel was Zeland, though I didn’t know it was him at the time.”
I sigh heavily, dropping back onto my bed and staring at the ceiling.
“This is useless. I’m never going to be able to do this.
I don’t know how to be seductive, and the only reasonably attractive men I know are Leila’s brothers, who I will never touch again.
I would rather be homeless and living under a bridge with the local crackheads, jonesing for my next fix. ”
Aspen snorts, a knowing smirk spreading across her face. “You know, that whole love-hate aspect would sell incredibly well. Just think about it. Do you want me to get Ridge to find some dirt on them, and you can blackmail them into it?”
Now it’s Arlo’s turn to laugh, his face lighting up with amusement. “There is no way either of our blow job skills are good enough to get Ridge to do that after the way she insulted him when he fired her. We could easily convince Zeland, though. He’s the weakest link when it comes to us.”
Aspen smirks and nods her head enthusiastically. “You’re a genius, baby, and sexy as fuck.”
“Okay, you two,” I say, cutting them off. “Before you start dry humping each other while I’m on the call, I don’t think blackmailing them will do me any good. I might just have to suck it up and learn to be sexier.”
We say goodbye and end the FaceTime call, then I toss my phone onto the bed beside me. The house is quiet. Landon and Levi must have already left for the day, and I’m grateful for the peace. I need to clear my head, maybe grab some juice and think about how the hell I’m supposed to make this work.
I head downstairs to the kitchen as my stomach growls in anticipation of breakfast, and I make a beeline for the fridge. I pull out the juice bottle and pour myself a glass, then take a long sip. But I immediately gag.
Pulp.
There’s fucking pulp in the juice.
“What kind of human rights violation is this?” I mutter, staring at the glass like it personally betrayed me. Then I get to work making myself some food; I have to eat before I get hangry and take it out on anyone I come into contact with—especially since today I might have to look for a job.
I’m standing at the kitchen island with my half-eaten breakfast when I hear a noise behind me. Reacting on pure instinct, I whip around and bring my knee up hard and fast, connecting with something soft on the large body crowding me.
Levi drops to the floor like a sack of potatoes, his hands flying to his groin as his face turns a nice shade of purple.
“Holy shit,” he wheezes out, curling into himself. “What the fuck, Abby?”
“Don’t sneak up on people,” I snap, turning back to my eggs like I didn’t incapacitate him. My heart is pounding, but I’m not about to let him know.
He takes several minutes to recover, his breathing slowly returning to normal as he carefully pushes himself up onto his elbows. When he finally manages to sit up, there’s a grimace on his face that’s almost satisfying.
“Morning, sunshine,” he says once he can stand, and he heads straight to the fridge like he didn’t get kneed in the balls. “Sleep well?”
“Would have slept better if I knew you weren’t lurking around,” I say, not looking up from my food, though I stab at it a little more aggressively than necessary.
He laughs, pulling out some protein powder and milk, seemingly unbothered by his recent brush with permanent infertility. “Lurking? I’m simply staying here, just like you.”
“Yeah, and I’m trying to eat breakfast without having to look at your face, so maybe show some consideration.”
“Ouch,” he says, smiling as if he finds the whole situation funny. “I thought we might start fresh. You know, let bygones be bygones?”
I finally look at him, my fork pausing midway to my mouth.
He’s standing there in tiny shorts that are way too tight, probably just back from the gym based on the way his skin is still covered in sweat. Levi is looking at me like we’re old friends instead of being one of the assholes who completely shattered my heart and tossed me aside like I was nothing.
“Start fresh?” I put my fork down carefully, deliberately. “You’re a walking red flag, Levi Kane.”
He flashes that cocky smile that used to make my knees weak, but now it just makes my blood boil. “Red flags fuck better.”
Oh, that’s it. “You know what? Fuck you,” I snap. “You don’t get to come in here and think we can be friends after what you did. You don’t get to make innuendos and pretend like none of it matters.”
“Relax,” he says, his tone infuriatingly calm. “I’m just saying—”
“I know what you’re saying, and it’s gross and manipulative and exactly the shit that makes me realize you were never worth my time.” Grabbing my plate from the bench, I stalk toward the sink.
Though I can feel him watching me, I don’t turn around. I rinse my plate aggressively, the hot water burning my hands, but I don’t care. At least it’s something I can control.
“Abby,” Levi says, his voice softer now, almost apologetic.
“Don’t,” I say, cutting him off. “Don’t apologize or explain. And don’t try to charm your way out of this like you always do. You had your chance, Levi.”
I set the plate down gently in the drying rack, even though what I really want to do is throw it at his stupid, beautiful face.
“The past is exactly where it belongs,” I say quietly, finally turning to face him. “And I suggest you leave it there.”
It’s at that moment that Landon walks in. He’s still in his gym clothes and his blue eyes scan the kitchen, taking in the scene in front of him—Levi staring at me, me standing at the sink with my hands clenched into fists, and the tension between us thick enough to cut with a knife.
His gaze lands on me, and something flickers across his face. It’s gone too fast for me to identify, but the way his jaw tightens tells me he’s picking up on our argument.
“Morning,” he says, his voice neutral as he heads straight for the fridge. He pulls it open and reaches for the juice bottle—the one with the pulp, naturally. Of course he drinks pulpy juice like some kind of monster.
“You know that juice is a human rights violation,” I say, unable to stop myself. “I don’t know how you can drink that—it’s like drinking liquid sand.”
Landon glances at me, one eyebrow raised, and a slight smirk tugging at his lips. “Funny. I don’t remember you being so concerned about what I drink.”
“Yeah, well, I remember a lot of things I’d rather forget,” I snap back, turning away from them.
“Speaking of things you’d rather forget,” Landon drawls, “how’s the whole porn career working out for you?”
My head whips around. “It’s not porn, it’s adult content, and frankly, it’s none of your business what I do.”
“Adult content,” he repeats, but there’s a bite to his tone. “Is that what we’re calling it now?”
“Yeah, like Leila’s necklace isn’t a sex collar,” Levi says, laughing as he watches the two of us.
“Shut up, Levi,” both Landon and I say at the same time, glaring at each other.
Landon takes a long sip of his juice, his eyes never leaving mine. There’s something in his expression I can’t quite read, like he has the audacity to be hurt and angry.
“You know, blocking us with no explanation was real mature,” he says. “We deserved to know why at least.”
“You deserved a lot of things,” I say. “An explanation wasn’t one of them. Not after what you did.”
“What we did?” His voice rises slightly. “Abby, you ghosted us. You blocked us on everything. You walked away without a word.”
“Because there was nothing to explain,” I snap back.
Landon’s face darkens the moment he realizes I won’t budge on this. Whatever he was about to say dies on his lips; instead, he shakes his head and sets his glass down on the counter with more force than necessary.
“You know what, forget it,” he replies, his jaw clenching so tight I can see the muscle ticking. “Forget all of it. Enjoy your little content creation career, Abby.”
The way he says it—as if he’s disappointed in me or I’ve let him down somehow—makes my chest tighten in a way I absolutely refuse to acknowledge.
“Get out,” I shout.
He stares at me for a long moment, his blue eyes searching mine, like he’s looking for something I’m not willing to give him.
Then he grabs what’s left of his juice and stalks out, the tension in the room dissipating the moment he departs, leaving behind only the faint smell of his cologne and the bitter taste of regret.
Levi lets out a low whistle. “Damn, that was intense.”
“Shut up,” I mutter, turning back to the sink and gripping the edge so hard my knuckles turn white.
I can still feel Landon’s gaze on me, and I absolutely will not think about the hurt I saw flash across his face before he left.