Page 322 of Nobody's Girl

“Laura!” I shout. “Stop. He didn’t do anything wrong.”

She ignores me as she directs her anger straight at Kyle. “Then you let Ally get out of the truck. You helped her out, for God’s sakes,” she yells at him. “Those fucking dogs could’ve ripped her apart. Then what? You don’t think. You don’t fucking think!”

Kyle looks shell shocked. “Why don’t you tell me how you really feel, Laura?”

“Okay, Laura,” Eden says as he takes her hands in his, standing in front of her and looking into her eyes. “We’re all okay. That is what’s most important. I can see we need to work a lot more on how we handle situations. You’re right about the danger we put ourselves in. However, Kyle is not to blame for any of this.”

Laura shakes her head back and forth. “The hell he isn’t.”

“This is my fault, Laura. I shouldn’t have taken the chance of flying around a place that’s so close to the capital of Texas. It was dumb and reckless of me,” Eden tells her.

“You just wanted to have some fun with your wife, Eden,” she tells him. “You two have had little fun and so much more drama. You saw a chance to cut loose and you took it. The reason I’m upset with Kyle is because he needs to take this commitment to your safety seriously.”

Kyle moves towards her as he sees Eden has finally calmed her down. “I’m sorry, Laura,” Kyle tells her. “You’re right. I should’ve directed that a whole lot better. I am a little new to this, though, so cut me some slack, please.”

She smiles at Eden, then takes her hands out of his, turning to Kyle. “I’m a bitch. I know that. I’m sorry for over-reacting.”

“You are not a bitch,” Kyle tells her as he takes her in his arms. “You take your responsibilities very seriously and there’s nothing wrong with that.”

Eden comes to me, putting his arm around my waist. “Let’s give them some privacy,” he whispers in my ear as he leads me quietly up the stairs.

“You want them to be happy together, don’t you?” Eden asks me as we sit on the bed in the guest room.

“I do, but we may have to get used to the fact they might not be together.”

“Why would you say that, Alyssa?”

Changing into a silky, red nightie, I glance at him as I say, “Like so many relationships, this one is built on their physical want for each other and that seldom lasts. At least, according to my mother’s theories.”

“I see. She must have confided in you,” Eden says.

“Yeah, and get this, Eden. She heard him dreaming last night. That’s why I sent you guys the message not to say anything about how he and I are sharing them.”

A knock sounds at our bedroom door. “Can I come in?” Kyle asks.

I slip under the blanket to cover myself, then Eden answers, “Yes.”

The door opens, revealing a very unhappy Kyle. “Laura left.”

I pick up my cell phone and call her, but she doesn’t answer, so I call her again. “She still isn’t answering her phone.”

“I don’t like this at all. Why would she do this?” Eden asks me.

“Do you think she’s going back to Cloudcroft?” Kyle asks me.

“I don’t know. Kyle, tell us what happened, exactly as it happened,” I say.

Kyle sits down on the bed. “I thought everything was going all right between us after that fight. Then she went all crazy again, telling me I didn’t really love her and I only wanted her for her body. Like a dumbass, I agreed with her, then she stormed out the front door.”

I shake my head. “I can’t believe you said that to her. Are you trying to get her to break up with you?”

“I’m not, Ally. It just came out of my mouth before I could stop it. You don’t know what a jackass I feel like. If she would just answer her phone, I know I could make it better,” Kyle says. “I was just kidding!”

“How long exactly do you think it was before you went outside to look for her?” Eden asks.

Kyle plays with the bottom of his shirt, something he does when he’s nervous. “I waited about thirty minutes, so she and I both could cool off. Then I walked out to see the garage door open and her car gone.”

“She never came back inside the house. Did she have her keys with her?” Eden asks him.