Toxic Bad Boy(52)
I felt like a jerk doing this, but it was one date and most chicks would’ve let it go when the guy hadn’t called for the entire week afterward. “We need to talk.”
“Great,” she muttered, her expression becoming pouty as she lowered herself into the metal chair.
“I got back together with my ex,” I informed her as nicely as possible for a guy like me.
She snapped forward and a hissing sound escaped her mouth. I recoiled on instinct, expecting her to shoot venom into me with her fangs. “You didn’t say anything about a girlfriend.”
“Why would I? We were broken up.”
“And you were on the rebound? You couldn’t have been together long, you just got out of juvie.”
“We’ve been together since last fall. We only broke up for two weeks,” I defended. Normally I’d tell a chick to fuck off, but I felt mildly bad at messing around with Norah when she’d been expecting more.
“You led me on, made me think we had a connection.”
“The only connection we had was my fingers inside you.” The words were harsh, but this girl was freaking out on me after one date.
“You wanted me,” she asserted, her face becoming softer. “You were aroused.”
I leaned back, spreading my legs casually. “Any hot chick can give a guy a hard on.”
Her face expressed concern I wasn’t buying. “If you and your girlfriend broke up, don’t you think it was for a reason?”
A perfectly good reason, my girlfriend had been assaulted and was more than a little hesitant at resuming our intimate relationship. But that was none of Norah’s fucking business.
“We’re solid, me and my girl. No worries.”
“You love her?” she asked, fidgeting in her seat as she glanced away.
“She’s the only girl I’ll ever love.”
Green eyes flashed fury and envy. “Lucky girl,” she snapped sarcastically.
This particular situation was new to me, not brushing off a girl, but telling one that I loved another. “I’m sorry if you were hurt.”
It was hard to tell if her tears were from anger or anguish. We barely knew each other, so feeling anything other than anger would be ridiculous.
“I really like you. What’s so special about this girl?”
Holy hell, she had to be delusion.
One date!
“Do you really want me to answer that?” At her nod, I reluctantly explained vaguely, “Everything is special about her.”
“What’s her name?” she cut in.
“You know what? I’m not doing this.” No way was I giving Norah my girlfriend’s name. This chick was borderline delusional. I got to my feet with the intention of leaving.
“Wait, Caleb!” She grabbed my arm as made to pass.
“Yeah?” I asked impatiently, regretting briefly dating a girl I’d have to deal with on a professional basis.
“It’s really over?”
“It never started,” I stated bluntly, walking away from her.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“There are things like love and hate and jealousy that are just going to be there forever.”
-Shiloh Fernandez
CALEB
“So you and Gianna are back together?” my mom asked as she ate her bagel before heading off to work. She wore a business suit, letting me know her client today must be important. Usually she dressed more casually in her flowy bohemian skirts and dresses. She’d even pulled her black hair up into a sleek updo.
“Yep,” I replied, taking a bite of my omelet.
She opened her mouth to speak then snapped it shut with an audible click of her teeth.
“Just say it,” I said, rolling my eyes.
Finishing off her bagel, she rinsed off her plate in the sink. “I just wonder if the relationship is good for the two of you.”
I set down my fork, not liking what she’d suggested. “Meaning?” Gianna and I had been back together for five days and I thought it was better than good.
She shrugged one shoulder, turning to face me again. “It just seems as if the relationship may be a little...toxic.”
I scraped the rest of my omelet in the trash and brushed past her to rinse my plate, spraying water onto the counter in my annoyance. “You can hardly blame me or Gianna for Josh attacking her.”
My mom crossed her arms in a move that indicated her intention of digging in for an argument. “No, but the drama with her mom which led up to the attack, Julie filing for divorce and following through with it, plus you two running away together for a few days were all cause for concern. After all that, you ended up in youth corrections for eight months only to be jerked around by Gianna when you got out.” She let out an irritated huff at the end of her tirade.