34. Chapter 34
Chapter 34
“Fucking Ashley,” David muttered, as he started his car and began the drive home, dreading getting there almost as much as he looked forward to it.
He and Ashley were going to have a conversation.
Luckily, his photography studio didn’t open for another two hours, so there would be plenty of time to have it … as soon as he woke her ass up. It was only half past eight, so he didn’t expect to see Ashley up when he got home—and not surprisingly, she wasn’t. She logged no less than nine hours of sleep a night, claiming she needed that many, but that was bullshit; no one needed that much shut-eye.
Once inside the house, he immediately went to the master bedroom and found her asleep, wrapped up like a burrito. For a sadistic split-second, he pictured himself grabbing the bedding and lifting, then dumping her onto the floor in one quick roll. However, he figured it wouldn’t work quite like that, so he turned on the overhead light, instead, assuming it would achieve the desired result just as well.
It did. As soon as the room was flooded with light, Ashley made a screeching noise, full of outrage.
“David! What the fuck?”
“Good, you’re awake,” he said, deadpan. “We need to talk.”
Clapping a hand over her face, she squinted at him through her fingers. “Are you out of your mind? Turn the goddamn light off.”
“I’ll be in the kitchen,” he said, then turned and left, keeping the light on.
He sat down at the table and waited. Five minutes later, she shuffled in with messy hair, wearing pajama shorts and a matching tank, and headed straight for the coffee maker. When she saw the pot was empty, she stopped and looked over at him.
“No coffee?”
“There was coffee two hours ago.”
With an aggrieved sigh, she abandoned her quest for coffee and changed direction, dragging her ass to the chair across from him. Lowering herself onto the seat, she drew her knees up and gave him a flat look. It pissed him off enough that he decided to get right to it and not fuck around.
“Did you get into my phone and block Paige’s number?”
Her eyes widened and she stared at him, now totally awake. “What?”
“You heard me. Now answer the question.” His voice was deceptively soft. “And don’t you dare lie to me.”
She swallowed, hard.
“I’m waiting,” he prompted.
“Yes,” she finally answered, her voice low.
He’d known in Paige’s office that Ashley had to have been the one to do it, because no one else had access, but having it confirmed was a kick in the balls. He exhaled loudly. “Un-fucking-believable.”
“How did you find out?”
So, she wasn’t going to lead off with an apology, he mused, without any humor. “I found out during my talk with Paige.”
She straightened up. “You talked with Paige? When?”
“This morning.”
Ashley glanced at the clock on the microwave. “This morning?”
“Yes. I went to see her at work.”
“You saw her?”
“Yes.”
It probably made him an asshole, but her alarmed reaction didn’t trigger any empathy at all. If anything, he kind of enjoyed it.
“Why would you go see her?” she demanded.
“I wanted to talk about her book.”
“I thought you were just going to read it.”
“That was the plan, but I decided I wanted to talk to her about it first,” he explained patiently. “I couldn’t reach her by phone—which shouldn’t be a surprise to you, since you’re the one that blocked her number—so I went by our old house.” He didn’t tell her he’d done that the night before because that part of the story really didn’t matter. “But she wasn’t there because she’d sold it, so I had to go see her at work. Which is when I found out she’d been blocked.”
She didn’t say anything to any of that and David watched her for several moments before asking, “How did you get into my phone?”
“I knew what your passcode was.”
He wasn’t surprised by this. “When, exactly, did you block her? And why?”
She held up her hands. “Look, it wasn’t like I decided one day to get into your phone and block her. It wasn’t like that—”
“Then what was it ‘like’?”
“I had just found out I was pregnant and our relationship was still really new. She called one night when you were in the shower and left a message, and …”
“And what? Did you listen to it?”
“Yes.”
Of course she had. “Why would you do that?”
“I wanted to know why she was calling you.”
“Did it ever occur to you that it was none of your fucking business?”
“Yes, and I didn’t care. I had to find out if she was trying to get you back.”
Her unapologetic response floored him; he’d been expecting her to at least fake it a little bit. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. I was pregnant, David. And I wasn’t taking any chances that she might be saying something that would make you leave me and run back to her. Losing you was not an option.”
“So you went behind my back and invaded my privacy to find out,” he said coldly, feeling unbelievably violated.
Ashley nodded slowly.
“Well? What did she say in her voicemail?” he asked. He already knew the answer, but he was curious to see if she would tell him the truth.
“She said she needed you and wanted you to call her.”
“Was that it?”
“Yes.”
“She didn’t say why she needed me and wanted me to call her?”
“No. But she was crying and sounded sort of upset, like she’d been drinking. I thought she was drunk-dialing you.”
“You thought. You didn’t know that for sure.”
“No, but it seemed pretty obvious.”
“Uh huh. So what happened to the message?”
“I deleted it.”
“Even though, as far as messages go, it was fairly benign? I mean, she didn’t ask me to pack a bag and run away with her, right?”
“I was afraid that if you heard it at all, you’d feel sorry for her and call her back and it would lead to … more.”
“More? Like me packing a bag and running away with her? Even though I had a baby on the way with you?”
“You were still kind of hung up on her, so I didn’t know what you might do. I just thought it was safer to not let that door be opened at all.”
“Is that when you blocked her?”
“Yes. I was worried she might keep calling all night, or worse, call some other time when I wasn’t around. So, that’s when I blocked her number.”
Hearing her talking about blocking Paige’s number in such a cavalier way almost made him lose his shit. “The irony is that Paige wasn’t calling that night to try and get me back. She was actually calling because she was at the emergency vet clinic with our cat, Spook, who had to be euthanized, which is why she was ‘crying and sounded sort of upset’. She was trying to get in touch with me because she thought I might want to be there when it happened,” he said, his expression glacial. “She was right.”
“I didn’t know that.” Ashley’s expression flattened a little. “I’m sorry.”
“Even if I could believe that, it still wouldn’t mean jack shit to me. God damn, I loved that cat. I really did. And I know you probably think I’m overreacting right now, but it fucking sucks to find out Spook died four years ago and I missed the chance to say goodbye to him. And all because you stepped in and took decisions away from me—which you had no right to do.”
He stopped to take a deep breath, hoping to calm himself, but when it didn’t really work he continued to forge ahead. “But I’m not the only one you fucked with, Ash. You fucked with Paige, too. She was going through something really shitty and because of your selfishness, she thought I was ignoring her and being an uncaring asshole. And I don’t like that she thought I was being an uncaring asshole. Because I wasn’t. Had I known what was going on, I’d have been there.”
“I’m sorry! I am. You can believe that. And you’re right. I made a really bad decision, but I was afraid and I didn’t want to lose you. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone.” Ashley dropped her feet to the floor and leaned forward so she could reach for him across the table. “I’ll make it up to you, baby, I promise.”
He pulled back, not wanting to feel her touch and her expression soured at the rejection. For a second, he remembered Hale warning her at Bender’s not to give him her ‘resting bitch face’ and David almost recycled it for his own use; it was totally applicable. Who did she think she was, being pissed at him?
“You can’t make it up to me,” he told her flatly.
She shook her head in disbelief. “You don’t mean that.”
“The hell I don’t. It’s not like you can give me back what I lost. And I don’t mean just what I lost with Paige. I’ve also lost my trust in you.”
“David—”
“This was a gross violation, Ash, and will be a huge problem going forward. Do you understand that?”
“Yes, and I’m sorry. I really am.”
He pinned her with hard eyes. “Did you do anything else with my phone?”
“No,” she quickly denied.
Ashley sounded and looked sincere enough to be believable, but even if she was lying to him, there was nothing he could do about it now, except take solace in knowing that she wouldn’t be getting into his phone again.
He pushed away from the table and got to his feet. “I’m going to the studio,” he announced, feeling exhausted, even though it wasn’t even 9 a.m. yet. “Alone. I don’t want you there today because I don’t want to see you for a while.”
She looked like she was going to argue with him, but then she backed down. “Fine. I’ll stay home.”
He left without another word.
Fifteen minutes later, as he was opening the back door to his studio, his phone alerted him to a text message. He almost didn’t even look, thinking it was probably from Ashley, but he did, just in case it was someone else, like his mom. To his surprise the text was from Paige and he quickly opened it as he made his way to his office.
PAIGE: Here are some pictures of Spook for you.
There were three of them, the first two of Spook looking as David remembered him, happy and healthy. The last one was a selfie of Paige holding Spook, obviously taken at the emergency vet’s office, with Paige looking devastated and Spook looking like he’d checked out, his green eyes dull with pain.
PAIGE: And this.
‘This’ turned out to be a thirty second video of Spook chasing a laser light with Paige talking to him in the background. David sat at his desk and watched it three times, not knowing if it was because of Spook, or because of Paige talking smack (“You’ve got to really want it, Spook!”), before deciding it was both. With a smile, he saved everything to his Photos app and then changed his home screen wallpaper to a close-up of Spook’s face.
When he was done, he texted her back.
DAVID: Thank you for the pictures of Spook.
PAIGE: You’re welcome.
DAVID: The video was great, too.
PAIGE: This is kind of embarrassing, but when I looked for one to send you, I realized I had like, fifty of them.
DAVID: Feel free to send me some more. Not fiftymore, but maybe a reasonable amount more.
PAIGE: A reasonable amount. Got it.
He took a breath, turning the conversation to something less pleasant.
DAVID: So, I talked to Ashley.
PAIGE: Already? That was fast.
DAVID: I didn’t see any reason to wait.
PAIGE: How did it go?
David stared at the text, debating how to answer. Going into too much detail would probably be awkward, especially the aspect of Ashley’s pregnancy being a reason for her blocking Paige, so he decided to keep it generic and simple.
DAVID: Well, the condensed version is that after you called and left the first message, she thought you were drunk-calling and possibly wanting to get me back, because you said you ‘needed’ me. She was afraid you’d keep calling me when she wasn’t around to run interference, so she just deleted your message and then blocked your number.
The three dots appeared, indicating she was typing something, then they disappeared, reappearing and disappearing a second time. When it happened a third time, David stepped in.
DAVID: What’s going on?
PAIGE: Sorry. I was going to say something and then changed my mind.
DAVID: Three times?
PAIGE: Yes. I was trying to figure out a way to make myself not sound … deranged.
DAVID: Deranged? Now I have to hear it.
PAIGE: No, you don’t.
DAVID: Yes. What were you going to say?
Almost thirty seconds passed before she replied.
PAIGE: That I was feeling a little flattered.
DAVID: Flattered?
PAIGE: I said it was deranged.
DAVID: Well, I wouldn’t say it was deranged, exactly, but … a little context wouldn’t hurt.
PAIGE: Because the pornstar version of Megan Fox felt the need to block little old, ugly me. So I couldn’t ‘get you back’.
David’s amusement at the over-the-top reference to Ashley dimmed at Paige’s ‘ugly’ reference to herself because he knew where it came from.
PAIGE: Which means she thought I could, that’s why. What can I say? I try and find the silver lining in everything.
PAIGE: Don’t get me wrong, though. I’m still extremely pissed she blocked me. Although, knowing it was her—and not you—makes it better. When I thought it was you, it kind of broke my heart.
DAVID: I’m glad you know it wasn’t me. The fact that you thought I was an uncaring asshole kind of broke MY heart.
PAIGE: Well, I don’t think you’re an uncaring asshole anymore, so that can be your silver lining.
DAVID: Thanks.I needed one.
PAIGE: You’re welcome.
DAVID: So … I still need to talk to you. Do you have some free time when we could meet? The sooner the better.
PAIGE: I work tomorrow, but I’m free on Sunday.
David hesitated. Sundays were usually reserved for him and Jacob at their favorite park, but he could make it work.
DAVID: Sunday’s fine. How about noon, at the Starbucks across from Highland Park?
PAIGE: That sounds good.
DAVID: Great. I’ll see you then.
When David got home that night with Jacob, he found Ashley standing at the stove, making dinner. She was dressed in her usual lounging attire of leggings and her favorite zip-up hoodie, but tonight she wasn’t wearing a camisole underneath it—the lack of which, along with the hoodie being only three-quarters zipped—gave him an unobstructed view of her cleavage. Her dark hair was also styled in loose, sexy curls and her make-up was expertly applied.
In short, she looked like the pornstar version of Megan Fox.
“Dinner’s almost ready,” she told him with a hesitant smile.
It smelled like spaghetti, but he knew it would probably be a meatless sauce from a jar, so he didn’t get too excited about it. He also noticed it looked like she’d cleaned the house a little, which told him she was really trying to get back into his good graces.
Meat might have given her a better chance, though.
David sat down at the table while Jacob began unpacking the day’s artwork from his backpack, laying it out in front of David so he could admire each piece. After David had chosen his favorites, Jacob started the process of removing the old artwork on the fridge to make room for the new, like he did at Valerie’s.
After giving Jacob a somewhat absent pat on his head, Ashley then walked over to where David was sitting and took the chair next to him. Then she leaned forward so that she was able to take one of his hands and hold it between both of hers, rubbing it a little. “I did a lot of thinking today,” she told him.
“You did?”
She nodded. “And I wish I could go back and not do what I did. Because I should’ve trusted you when it came to Paige. We had a baby on the way and you wouldn’t have left me for her, especially since she never made you happy.”
“What makes you think Paige never made me happy?”
“Because you never looked happy, baby.”
“That’s because I was on the verge of getting separated and then going through a divorce.”
“Right! And people don’t get divorced if they’re happy in the first place—”
“So, you’re assuming she was the one ‘at fault’?”
“Well, it hasn’t been that hard for me to keep you happy, if you know what I mean …”
She said it with a knowing look, obviously referring to their sex life, which had always been good; he wasn’t going to lie to himself about that. But for the first time, it occurred to him that what he had with Ashley was almost the polar opposite of what he’d had with Paige. Love had been the driving force behind his connection with Paige, while sex was the driving force behind his connection with Ashley … and Ashley apparently thought that was the key to a happy relationship.
For her, maybe it was. For him, not so much.
“Anyway, I just wanted you to know that I know I was wrong and I am sorry.” Then, adopting her patented sex pout, she pleaded, “Now, can we please talk about something other than your ex-wife?”
“We can,” he agreed. “Right after I tell you that I’m meeting her at noon on Sunday.”