Or not.
I pulled up short as Sasha straightened from peeking through one of the windows on the front of the house.
“What’re you doin’?” I asked with way more chill than this day deserved.
Sashashriekedandjumped,wheeling around only to sigh a second later. “Cal, you scared me.” Her shaky smile imitated relief.
“Why’re you here?” I asked.
Sasha ducked her chin as she inched closer. “For the holiday, of course. Remember, we’d talked about me coming over.”
Jesus, fucking, Christ. She’d left me in peace, and stupid me thought it was over. God, I was so damn tired of this.
“No,” I said on a long exhale. “I don’t remember, but if we had, any plans like that were automatically called off when we broke up.”
Sasha giggled and slid her hands around my forearm. “Cal, why’re you so mean?” she whined in a way that probably got her whatever she wanted. Probably even from me in the past.
“I’m not tryin’ to be mean. We broke up.” I tugged my arm to get away from her, but she held firm.
“No, silly, that was a fight. All couples fight.”
“Sasha, I’m tired of having this conversation with you.” I pulled from her grasp again, but she snaked her fingers up thesleeve of my sweater so quickly and gripped me like a vise. “Ow, dammit, stop. That hurts.”
“I can’t hurt you. Cal. You’re so big and strong, and I’m so small.”
Small or not, she was a viper.
I reached with my free hand to pry her off but dropped it just as quickly and gritted my teeth. Every time I touched her, she’d said it had hurt. And shewassmall. I could take this.
Sasha clocked every flinch and grinned. “See? Ain’t this better?”
“No. Let go of me and leave, Sasha. This is long past ridiculous. We broke up. You shouldn’t be here.”
She dug her sharp nails into my skin, and her pleased expression turned downward. “We’re not over, Calvin.”
I jerked my arm away from her, fighting like mad not to wince at the sting when she only tightened her hold. “Yes, we are. I’m not doin’ this shit with you anymore.”
“Shit? Shit!” she shrieked, and I glanced around as the sound echoed against the house. “This was never shit! You can’t do this to me. We belong together. You’re mine. I ain’t lettin’ you go.”
And she wasn’t, literally. The sting had moved on to a sharp pain. She had to be drawing blood, but I couldn’t turn from the face of the girl I’d once let into my life as it twisted into this crazy person in front of me.
“Sasha, let go,” I barked in her face, making sure not to touch her.
And she did. Sasha dropped my arm and backed off like a scolded puppy. Confused at the drastic change, I stood there, not moving away as I should’ve, so when everyone filed outside on the porch, probably drawn by our shouting, that was what they saw.
Sasha stood close to me—no,cowered, while I towered over her in anger.
Fuck.
“What’s goin’ on out here?” Paw Paw asked.
“Nothin’,” I said, then to Sasha, much quieter, I said, “Nothing,” emphasizing the word slowly. “Now, leave.”
Her chin wobbled as if she might cry, but it was all for show. She made to move around me, stopping at my side, and softly said, “Come back to me, or I’ll never stop makin’ your life hell.”
I didn’t know how to respond but slumped in relief when she walked to her car parked on the street and left.
“You okay, Cal?” Paw Paw asked.
