Insatiable (Completed)

Chapter 33- Fragile

Riley

I took a seat at the edge of my bed, watching as he paced in front of me. Showering for an hour and exhausting all of the remaining hot water helped a bit. I heard him knocking on the door the first time but I didn't think I was mentally or even physically ready to deal with him.

"Are you going to speak because your 3 minutes are almost up?" I asked, waving the screen of my phone at him to emphasis my point.

"I did not use you for sex," he said, finally taking a seat on the couch in the corner of my room. He ran his hands up and down his thigh nervously as he spoke. "You think after all I've done to prove that I wanted this, wanted YOU, that I'd just throw it all away after one quick fuck?"

"Jesus, Richard lower your voice." I was surprised by the raw and real words he used even though I knew Richard was anything but subtle but I didn't want Anna hearing this. She was probably eavesdropping if I knew her well.

"Sorry, but you didn't even give me a chance to explain."

"Do you blame me? How could I have possibly believed anything that you said after that, when what Caitlin said was the only thing ringing in my head?"

"Caitlin is no one important and definitely not someone you should let get to you."

"Why? Because she told me the truth?" I asked. Pain and anger built up inside me and I could tell that any minute now I'd have my floodgates wide open.

"No because she's a fucking lying, manipulating psycho." I was silent as I pulled the sleeves of my top over my hands. Richard took that as his cue to continue. "After Jessica and I broke up, I went on a bender. Doing reckless shit that could've landed me in a lot of trouble," he started explaining. "It wasn't for long though. Erick and Joel slapped some sense into me after like a month or something but during that time Caitlin came into the picture."

I hated having to listen to stories of his past relationships but I guess it was the only way I was going to know the truth right? Fuck, this is why I stayed away from all of this for years. Relationships, drama, just men in general were so much more trouble than they were worth.

"I slept with her once. One mistake. The only reason she said that shit about the studio is because that's where we kissed and then one thing led to another and-"

"Yeah, she was in your bed. I heard her loud and clear. No need to make me relive that," I interrupted him.

"I regretted it immediately but she obviously wanted more and when I rejected her, she started doing this. Everytime she'd see me with a girl in the studio after that, even if it was as innocent as another producer or someone from accounting, she'd tell them the same thing she told you just so they'd run the other way. I guess she just assumed those girls meant something to me."

"Did they?" I was genuinely curious.

"Fuck no. I never slept with any of them, in that studio or elsewhere. You were the first and only person I took there."

"Then why did you if you KNEW she was going to be there and possibly do what seems to be her usual shit?"

"I didn't! You think I'd risk exposing you to her crazy ass, knowing that what we have is fragile as it is?" That was rethorical obviously so I didn't want to answer.

Deep down I knew that this wasn't his fault, I got that but that didnt mean it hurt any less. He stood up and walked towards me. He sat besides me and clasped my hands in his. I shifted awkwardly and pulled away from him, unable to find it in me to be so forgiving so easily. His gaze fell when I did that.

"Riley, I'm so fucking sorry."

"Yeah. I know," I faked a smile when I looked at him for less than a second. He reached for my cheek but I pushed him away with a palm to his chest. "Please don't," I told him. As much as his touch comforted me and almost always sets my body on fire, I was not in the mood to feel any of that right that moment. "Can you leave? I'll call you tomorrow or something."