11. Chapter 11
Chapter 11
It had been a very long and shitty night, and it wasn’t even over yet.
Almost numb, David took an Uber home. As he stared out the window he kept thinking about everything Jules had said to him in regard to Ashley—how she’d been talking shit about Paige, then going on and on about his dick, both of which pissed him off. But it was one of the last things Jules said to him that had him utterly confused … about his opportunity to hear ‘all of that’ having come and gone. All of what?
After arriving at the house, he went directly into the kitchen and grabbed a Voodoo Ranger IPA from the fridge. Uncaring that it was just after 4 a.m., he opened it quickly and drank half of it, not even bothering with a glass. He was just leaning back against the island when Ashley came in. With sleep-tousled hair and her usual bedtime attire of a camisole and minuscule panties, she looked hot as fuck. But for once, it did nothing for him.
“I texted you several times,” she said.
She sounded like a bratty child, which only stoked his simmering anger. “I know.”
“You could have responded at least once.”
He took a drink while she glared at him. “I know.”
“So, why didn’t you?”
He gave her the obvious answer. “Because I didn’t feel like it.”
“David—”
He set his beer down on the counter, harder than he’d intended, cutting her off. “Are you even going to ask how she is?”
She crossed her arms under her boobs, raising them practically up to her chin; normally that would’ve been something he’d appreciate, but not tonight. “Well, I’m assuming she’s fine, since you’re home.”
“You assume wrong,” he told her coldly. “She has a concussion—a fairly bad one, too. You really hurt her.”
She sighed, but it seemed more aggravated than remorseful. “I’m sorry. I didn’t do it on purpose. I just … reacted badly.”
“No shit?” He picked up his beer again and took another drink.
“Look, I know you’re upset with me, but I honestly think …” she trailed off for a second. “I think I did you a favor.”
Had she come home and gotten high? “What kind of favor?”
“Well,” she said, drawing out the word as she crossed the kitchen and attached herself to his side. “Now Paige knows everything.”
“But the thing is, she didn’t need to.”
“Yes, she did. And I’m not sorry I told her.”
“I know you’re not, and that’s part of the problem. Christ, Ash, it was bad enough she found out we were together by running into us at a random restaurant, but she didn’t need to find out about Jacob. Not right then, and especially not by being blindsided like she was. She didn’t deserve that.”
“And I didn’t deserve to be told to shove my ‘Hello’ up my ass when I was being polite.”
He blinked at her, incredulous. “Grow up. That was no reason to go scorched earth on her. Fucking her up on purpose was a total cunt move, and you should cross your fingers and hope she doesn’t press charges.”
“It was an accident.”
He took another drink of beer and then just stared at her. She stared back for several moments before starting to fidget.
“Do you think she will?” she finally asked.
“Press charges? I don’t know.”
“You didn’t ask?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because asking her would’ve made me an asshole. And anyway, I’m sure you’ll be the first to know if she does.”
“That’s not funny.”
“None of this is. This entire night has been a complete shit sandwich thanks to you.”
He drained his beer and then stepped around her to put the bottle in the recycling bin, not even bothering to be quiet; Jacob slept like the dead.
Then, without looking back, David left Ashley in the kitchen and went to Jacob’s room to check on him. David wasn’t surprised to see his son was sleeping on his stomach with his head almost off the side of his twin bed; more often than not he ended up sleeping sort of sideways. Like he did almost every night, David maneuvered Jacob back to a normal position on the bed and fixed his bedding, all without waking him. Looking down at the sleeping boy, David knew without a doubt that the best part of him and Ashley wasn’t him and Ashley. It was Jacob.
When David stood up, he found her watching him from the doorway.
“So you and Paige were going to have a baby?” she asked.
“Yes,” he answered, stepping around her and into the hall.
“Why didn’t you ever tell me that?”
With her trailing behind him, David went to the linen closet and opened the door. “Because that’s not something I talk about.”
“Not even with me?”
Especially not with her. “Not even with you.”
“Is that the real reason you didn’t want me to get an abortion?”
“No. I just really don’t believe in abortion.”
Ashley tilted her head. “You named our baby after the one Paige miscarried.”
He didn’t say anything as he looked through their linens before grabbing a set of sheets and a blanket.
“You should have told me,” she said.
He pulled a pillow off the top shelf, then shut the closet door. But when he tried to move down the hall, she blocked him.
“So, every time you say Jacob’s name, are you thinking about Paige and the baby you were going to have with her?”
“No.” Technically it wasn’t a lie. He didn’t think about Paige and their baby every time.
This time, when he went to move down the hall, she didn’t stop him. She did, however, follow him to the living room, where he unceremoniously dumped all the bedding on the couch.
Ashley put her hands on her hips. “Are you seriously so pissed at me that you’re going to sleep on the couch? Jesus, I said I was sorry—”
“Yes, I’m seriously that pissed at you. But I’m not sleeping on the couch. You are.”
“What? Are you kidding?”
“Do I look like I’m kidding?” he asked blandly. “I pay the rent. I pay for the electric, the water, and the cable … do I need to keep going, or do you get the picture? I pay for pretty much everything, so I get the bed. Which I also paid for, by the way.”
Her response was to glare at him.
He almost turned and walked away but then stopped; now was just as good a time as any to break the really bad news. “But there is something you are going to pay for—Paige’s hospital visit.”
Her mouth fell open. “What?”
“That’s right.”
“The fuck I am.”
“The fuck you are. You can be as pissed as you want, but you are paying for it—”
“Doesn’t she have insurance?”
“I’m sure she does, but that’s not the point. Her insurance isn’t going to pay for what you did. You’re going to pay for what you did.”
“No. I won’t.”
“Yes, you will,” he insisted coldly. “No matter how much it is.”
“And how much do you think it will be?” she asked, with full snark.
He shrugged. “I don’t know. She hasn’t been released yet. But I spoke with someone in the billing department, and the bill’s going to be sent here and then you’ll find out.”
She exhaled heavily, her face flushing with outrage, looking not unlike she had right before she gave Paige the two-handed shove. “It’s probably going to be like a thousand dollars.”
“If you’re lucky. If she ends up needing an MRI or anything, it’ll be double that.”
Her mouth fell open again. “Are you crazy?” she practically screeched. “There’s no way I could pay for that.”
“Maybe not all at once,” he countered, as if trying to be helpful. “But I’m sure the hospital would accept monthly payments. That’s something you’ll have to check on, though.”
“Can’t you just pay it and then I’ll pay you back?”
In no way surprised by the suggestion, he was ready for it and shook his head. “I know how that will go and the answer is hell no. This will be between you and the billing department at Holy Trinity.”
He started back down the hall toward the master bedroom, wanting to get a few hours of sleep before he had to get up and go to work. Halfway there, he paused and said over his shoulder, “Oh, and Ash? You might want to watch your back the next time you’re in the organic produce section at Trader Joe’s.”