“We’re almost to the house,” Junie says, looking out the window. She grows tense again. “Remember, it was Grannie’s, so it’s a little cluttered at the best of times and I have no idea what state David left it in. I obviously haven’t seen it in over a month. But I’m too tired to deal with it now, can we just crash in bed and start damage control in the morning?”
“Of course.” I rub her neck, trying to melt the tension in her muscles. “I feel like I could sleep for a year.”
A yawn hijacks my body. She’s so soft and warm. It’s a struggle not to lay my heavy head down on her pillowy thighs.
We creep like zombies into the house. I want to examine the space, see what I can learn about Junie from the things she owns, but my eyelids are starting to droop.
“Bed’s this way,” Junie practically slurs, leading me by the hand toward a dark, cool room with a giant canopy bed. We fall back on the pillows.
“Hey, gorgeous?” My eyes are closed, so I reach blindly for her and tangle my fingers in the silky strands of her hair.
“Mmmm?” she mumbles sleepily.
“I want to fuck you on a new continent so bad, but I think I have to sleep first,” I mumble, finding her waist and yanking her closer. I bend my body around hers until we nestle together as one.
I couldn’t lift my eyelids if I tried. We drift off like that, on top of the covers, wrapped in each other’s arms.
We both wake to the sound of a door slamming shut. Junie sits up in bed with a gasp, looking at me with raised eyebrows. She rubs the sleep from her eyes and crawls out of bed. I’m right behind her.
“I don’t know who that could be,” she says softly, creeping toward the door.
“Does anyone have a key?” I ask, prepared to jump in front of her.
“A couple people. David, obviously.” A light flicks on in the living room and slips through the crack in the door, illuminating her face. I see the color drain out of it. Her eyes dance around the room. “Oh no.” She shakes her head and pushes through the door.
“David, what the fuck are you doing here?”
Now that I know it’s her ex and not a potential murderer or thief, I’m not sure what my role is. Should I run in there and flex my new boyfriend status, or should I let her fight her own battle?
She doesn’t seem like a damsel in distress when she stomps across the carpet. With each furious step, she takes up more space in the room. If I were him, I’d be pissing myself. I decide to hang back and watch her work.
“Honey, you’re home!” David grins, throwing up his hands as if to embrace her. He’s smarmy looking—dark hair slicked back and greasy. If he touches her, I might not be able to help myself.
“I gave you two weeks to pack your shit and get out of my house. It’s been over a month. What are you still doing here?” Her head swivels as she takes in the room for the first time since we arrived. “Have you packedanything?”
“Junie, baby, we had a fight. All couples do. I knew you’d calm down once you were home. Now you’ve got this travel thing out of your system, we can get back to what really matters—us.”
I can hear her deep breaths from where I stand in the shadows. I want to take her in my arms and help her calm down, but this is something she needs to handle on her own. If she wants my help, she knows where to find me.
“David. We are over. This house is inmyname. You need to find somewhere else to go. Now.”
When his hand circles her wrist, I can’t hold back any longer.
“The lady asked you to leave, mate.” I step into the living room, straightening my spine to let my true height intimidate the small man.
He sneers up at me. “Oh this is fucking rich. Who the fuck is this, June?”
She rips her hand out of his grasp and clings to my side. I hate the way she’s shaking.
“It’s none of your business, David. We’re broken up. I told you in no uncertain terms to get out of my grandma’s house. Don’t make me call the police.”
He blinks and seems to remember himself. His face is red and splotchy but between my presence and her threat, he seems to see the situation clearly now.
“I underestimated you, Junie.” His eyes narrow before he steps back, puffing out his chest. “I’ll get a hotel tonight, seeing as you have company. But this isn’t over. I’m still willing to forgive you.”
She splutters, clearly lost for words. Fuck’s sake, this prick is full of himself. How long has Junie been stuck with him? No wonder she needed a holiday.
I keep her pinned to my side, holding her steady, while he marches into the bedroom and throws some clothes together. The living room is silent as we wait, thick with tension.
