Big And Bad (Book Two)

Chapter Thirteen

 When I woke up, the sun was shining on my face. There was a white tray at the foot of the mattress. The tray had a bottle of water and a white plate of waffles on it. I devoured the waffles.

Travis walked in, holding my back up phone. He was surprised when he saw me. I took a sip of the water and waited for him to talk. But since he didn't, I spoke up.

"Thanks for letting me sleep here."

"You're welcome. Brandon, right?" Travis said.

"Yes. Why?"

"Merlot was going off about you last night. You're lucky he left early."

He walked over here and gave me my back up phone. I let out a sigh of relief. Merlot won't see me for awhile. What if he tried to kill me? I wasn't scared, this was just cautionary.

My headache was gone, but my hands were shaking. Why? I wasn't pissed off anymore. Travis glanced at my hands and chuckled.

"He's not here. You're safe."

"I'm not scared of him," I retorted.

"Right. Are your hands shaking because it's cold in here?"

"No. This is happening for no reason."

"Liar. Just admit you're scared."

"Fine. I'm scared. Happy?"

"Yeah. Your car is outside. Bye, Fuzzy."

I got up and left the cabin. That conversation was uncomfortable. I only said that I scared of Merlot, because I wanted to end it. Not because I was scared.

My phone rang. Merlot's phone number appeared on the screen. I didn't answer the call. It wasn't the right time to talk to him yet.

I got in my car. "Still Don't Know My Name' by Labyrinth played on the radio. My phone rang five more times. I still didn't answer.

Five minutes later, I parked in front of my house. My hands stopped shaking. As soon as I went inside,I smelled wine and Hennessy.

Oh hell no.

There was wine all over my couch, the floor and kitchen counters. I stormed down the hall. The sickness who did this will wish they didn't. The scent of Hennessy got even stronger.

I stopped in the doorway. Merlot was sitting on my bed, drinking a bottle of Hennessy. I just wanted some time alone, so I could think of a way to make things right. But he fucking ruined that.

" I don't remember giving you a damn key to my house," I said.

 "You didn't have a key to Grandma's house either, but you still invited yourself in."

"That's different."

"Explain to me how that's different."

"That night, I got hit in the ass with a dart. It was soaked in some drug."

"What happened after that?"

"I was in the house, and I suddenly got hit with another dart. Then, I woke up in the back of a Ford truck."

"Damn. That's crazy."

Merlot stared at me in shock. He covered his face with his hand and groaned. I blamed that on the liquor. That post-breakup walk on memory lane was fun.

It was so fun, I wanted a drink too.

I walked in, and took the bottle of Hennessy out of Merlot's hand. He sucked his teeth. After what happened last night, I couldn't stay mad at him. But he was still mad at me.

Those two other times I met Candy crossed my mind. Her rose perfume lingered on the comforter. I missed her.

"So, what the fuck is your problem? Are you jealous of me?" Merlot asked.

I furrowed my brow. "I'm not jealous. I just didn't trust you. And the fact that Beverly kept your relationship a secret upset me."

"Why not? You trusted Candy."

"That's different. She was transparent with me."

"If you wanted to know anything about me, you could've just asked. You jump to a lot of conclusions for someone who investigates people."

Damn. He didn't have to say that. Yesterday was the only time I jumped to conclusions. And I will never do that again.

I walked to the kitchen, and threw the bottle in the trash. Merlot stumbled over here from the hallway. He slipped and fell on his ass. I reached my hand out to him.

He grabbed my hand. I helped him up. He laughed. I laughed too.

"Thanks. I was hoping you'd slip instead," he said, leaning on the counter.

I took a deep breath. "I'm sorry for sabotaging your relationship with Bev."

"Oh. Well, I accept your apology. But I don't fully forgive you."

"I understand."