Seriously, this woman.
Becky crosses her arms over her chest and quirks her brow at me. “What did you do?”
My mouth falls open. “Why do you think I’m the problem here?”
“Men usually are, they just don’t see it. So? Spill.”
I grind my teeth, feeling the irritation brewing under my skin. “What do you know about Jessy’s ex?”
There is a flash of surprise on my sister’s face at the sudden question, but her eyes go cold. “Besides the fact he’s a douche of epic proportions?”
“And here I thought that tidbit was a known fact,” I mutter dryly.
“Yeah, well… Not much else, really. Jessica rarely talked about him. Never brought him around much. The most I heard about the guy was when he was yelling at her over the phone or in real life. I swear that girl couldn’t do anything right if you asked him.”
Fucking asshole.
Becky blinks, her focus zeroing in on me. “Why do you ask?”
I work my jaw, processing this new information while she watches me like a hawk.
“Matthew…”
I lean closer to her, my voice low so nobody overhears us. “He slashed her tires the other night.”
My sister’s eyes widen, lips parting. “He?—”
“We were at The Hut celebrating the fundraiser. I went to the bar to order more drinks, and I heard him running his mouth.” I grind my teeth. Just thinking about the things he said, the way he said them, has the rage boiling inside me all over again. “I called him out on it.”
Becky raises her brow. “Please tell me you didn’t call him out on it with your fists.”
“I would have zero regrets if I did. I’m not going to let him talk shit about Jessica.”
My sister just shakes her head, but her expression softens, if only slightly.
“But, no. Jessica saw it and came in between us, forcing me to leave him alone.” I run my fingers through my hair, tugging at the strands. “Hell, I don’t even remember seeing him after that.”
I was so lost in her, I didn’t even bother paying attention to what he was doing. After Jessy and Mae left, Nico and I returned to The Hut to look for him, but he was nowhere to be found.
The dude is clearly not well. I should have paid more attention. Kept an eye on him. I should have?—
“Don’t do that,” Becky chastises, placing her hand on mine. “This isn’t on you. His behavior is his cross to bear, not yours.”
“Yeah, well… We went out a little while after that. I walked Jessica to her car, and that’s when I saw it. All four tires on her SUV were flat. I wanted her to make a report, but she didn’t want to do it, which is how we got into a fight. She’s just so damn stubborn.”
“Maybe,” Becky says softly.
“Why do I hear a ‘but’ coming?” I narrow my eyes at her. “You can’t possibly tell me what she’s doing is rational.”
“It’s not, but I can see her side. She’s trying to deal with it the best she can. It’s not easy to accept that somebody you had feelings for, somebody you dated for a year, is capable of doing something like that.”
“But what if he does something even worse because she refused to report him when she had a chance?”
“Then you make sure you’re there to help her.” Becky’s face turns grim. “You should know better than anybody that if somebody is set on hurting her, they’ll do it, regardless. A report will not stop him. As a matter of fact, it can sometimes make it worse.”
Fuck.
I hate it when she’s right.
