Pieces of Summer(27)

“You’re not handling things if you’re in a relationship with a man who isn’t aware of your restrictions and rules. Sex was once a coping mechanism for you, Mika. Just like cutting. Destructive coping mechanisms aren’t healthy and could trigger a relapse into other destructive coping mechanisms. You know this.”

With Chase, sex as a coping mechanism doesn’t sound destructive. I wouldn’t feel disgusted with myself. I’d love every second of it. But that doesn’t mean he would. Being with me means giving up a lot of things that most people overlook or take for granted.

“Mika, I have another patient to see, but I want you to call me soon if possible. Okay? After hours. Call my cell phone and we’ll discuss this more thoroughly. In the meantime, please refrain from seeing him. Maybe the two of you could come see me, and it’s possible we could start building a foundation for a future for you with him if he’s serious about his commitment to you.”

Sheesh. I just started seeing Chase. There’s no way he would drive to New York to meet her, find out I’m bat-shit crazy, and come home to start living by all my restrictions. She has to know that.

“I’ll call you tonight or tomorrow, Dr. Stein.”

“And refrain from seeing him?”

“You know I can’t give definitive answers like that when there are uncontrollable variables involved. It’s against my therapy.”

I feel her smile. “Good answer, Mika.”

Hanging up, I stare at the message on my phone Chase must have sent while I was talking with Dr. Stein.



CHASE: Not sure what just happened, but I’ll come over if you want me to after I finish up here.



ME: Not tonight.



Time to break a habit and deal with the consequences. Hope nothing important gets broken.





Chapter 29



CHASE



MIKA: Not tonight.



I’ve looked at that message for the past two days, waiting on it to magically turn into, yes please. It never does.

Cursing, I lock up my shop, wondering why she hasn’t called me in two days. Or messaged me. It feels like she’s fucking playing with me, but Mika wouldn’t do that. At least not the Mika I once knew. It’s stupid to believe she’s exactly the same after all these years though.

Pulling up to the bar, I groan, staring ahead and considering my options. Have a beer with Blake or go over to Mika’s house and surprise her so that she’s on the spot and has to tell me what’s going on.

She left my shop without a word, and acted like she had been struck or something. I thought it was the Montgomery remark, but that doesn’t make sense. I let it be known I was sticking around without actually saying it. I wasn’t ever really considering Montgomery to begin with. Moving to Bama doesn’t appeal to me, just like Tennessee didn’t. Just like South Carolina didn’t. Just like nowhere else in general did.

Hayden, as fucked up as it is, is the only place I feel like I can call home, and that’s because of summer. Even before she came back and I hated summer, it still only felt right to be here because of summer.

Blowing out a breath, I climb out of my truck and head inside. Blake is waiting at a table for me, and he motions for the waitress to bring me a drink.

“You look like shit,” he says as I sit down.

“You look like sunshine and roses, grease monkey,” I tell him, motioning to the smudges of oil all over his shirt and neck.

“Rough day,” he says with a shrug.

“Same here.”

Lifting my gaze, I spot Whit in the corner, having a drink with Jessie Logan. Both girls swing their eyes toward me at once, and Whit stands to walk this way.

“Glad to see you here. You can buy me a drink to make up for loving someone else while dating me,” she says with a lopsided grin. She’s drunk. Definitely drunk.

“You remember you fucked someone else, right? As in while we were together?” I remind her. “But yeah, I’ll buy you a drink.”

She laughs as she drops to the empty chair beside me, and Jessie comes to sit down beside Blake, giggling like she’s just as drunk as Whit.

“Not working tonight, I assume,” Blake says to Whit.

“Nope. I have two days off back-to-back and I’m going to enjoy them. I do have a question though.”

“What’s that?” Blake asks her, but she turns her eyes to me.

“What’s the deal with Mika? It’s been driving me crazy. She refuses to look at schedules, she refuses to hear about anyone who has called in, and she refuses to look over any of the numbers for the bowling alley even though they’re really good.”

I shrug, because I have no fucking idea.

“And why move here from New York and open that place up if you don’t care about it?” Jessie prods.

So they’ve been sitting around discussing Mika?

“Mika really likes you, Whit. You just going to talk shit about her with someone who doesn’t know her because you’re pissed at me?” I growl.

Whit’s eyes widen, and Jessie scoots closer to Blake as she cowers. A waitress comes over and drops off a drink for all four of us.

“Damn, Chase. You’re crazy protective. I wasn’t talking shit, asswipe. I like Mika. A lot. She’s good to me, and pays me more than I’m worth. But I am curious. Sheesh. Just asking logical questions.”

Her words aren’t slurring, but she’s struggling to wrap her lips around the straw in front of her. It slaps her nose and cheek twice before she finally manages to get it where it goes.

“I don’t have those answers. Even if I did, I wouldn’t give them to you. Ask Mika if you want to know.”

“I have asked her,” she groans.

Deciding not to entertain this conversation, I shift it to the new camping grounds. It’s a boring and safe conversation.

After guzzling down two more drinks, Whit can’t sit upright. I still have half a beer in front of me, and she’s draining those fruity drinks like there’s no tomorrow.

“You’re going to have to give me a ride,” she mumbles as she drops her head to my shoulder.

“Yeah, sort of figured that one out already,” I grumble.

Blake rolls his eyes when Jessie’s head collapses to his lap, and he flips me off.

“What’d I do?”

“She wouldn’t be sitting here if you hadn’t dated Whit. Now I have a boner from an unconscious chick’s head.”

I huff out a laugh while slipping out of my chair, carefully picking up Whit. She wraps her arms around my neck, and I hold her behind the knees and back.

“I’ll get Jessie home,” Blake groans.

He’s had about as much to drink as me. Not fucking much at all.

The two of us carry them outside, and Whit nuzzles her head on my chest. I feel absolutely nothing. The only thing it makes me think about is how it feels when Mika touches me. It’s nothing even close to the same.

I never should have dated Whit. It wasn’t fair to her.

I should have gone over to Mika’s and talked to her, tried to figure out what was going on instead of meeting Blake.

Carefully, I unload Whit into my truck, and I walk around to the driver’s side. Whit leans against the door while fumbling with her seatbelt, finally getting it to click.

“Why are you drunk?” I ask her as I drive her to her apartment.

“Because getting drunk seemed like fun at the time. I was going to find a hot tourist boy, but none of them are as hot as Aidan.”

I almost laugh at that, and she slaps my arm. “He is hot. Really hot. He just doesn’t seem to want to talk to me. I’ve called him three times now.”

“He’s out of town, Whit.”

“What kind of guy is he? You know him, right? Because you’re in love with his sister.”

I don’t acknowledge that last part. “Never really talked to him while growing up. He was a typical rich douche. He usually had whatever latest tech gadget was out, and he was consumed by it or partying with the rich lake fuckers that came during the summer. He never seemed to really care about Mika. Guess he grew up, since he wants to keep me away from her. Seems overly concerned about her these days.”

“He doesn’t see the way you love her or he wouldn’t try to keep you away,” she sighs dreamily.

Again, I don’t acknowledge that.

As we pull up to the apartments, a familiar BMW catches my eye, and I study it as the girl who has been avoiding me steps out and walks toward the apartments. My jaw tenses because I have no idea what she’s doing here or who she’s here to see.

The apartments are one story and in a large L-shape. She walks up to one and knocks on the door as I coast into a parking spot far down from her and turn off my truck.

The door to the apartment opens, and I watch with rapt attention as Mika steps inside. Only, I can’t see a damn thing once she does.

“Who the fuck lives there?” I ask Whit.

Whit squints, trying to see, and she snorts out a laugh.

“Old Mrs. Penderson. Mika must have gotten roped into picking up her meds. That cranky old bitch pesters anyone she sees in town because she’s banned from the pharmacy after she tried to shoplift four bottles of aspirin.”

I visibly relax, and start to get out.

“You’re going to have to carry me. My legs have that numb thing going on and don’t want to work,” Whit tells me, slurring a little now.