Ip had a heck of a time sleeping again. He was mentally kicking himself for crying in front of Paige, and kept revisiting the moment she had kissed him on the forehead. His emotions kept rocketing between embarrassment and hope. The fluttering in his belly wouldn't leave him alone no matter how much logic he threw at it.
When he got up in the morning, Paige was nowhere to be found. He knocked lightly on her door and she answered appearing as tired as he felt. With no makeup on her face, the bruising was pretty brutal- dark purple and brown. Her lip was almost healed though, and her eye was no longer swollen. She was in the same clothes he had seen her in last night. Cotton shorts, navy blue shirt, gray zip up hoodie.
"Hey", he said. "You want to get some breakfast before I head out?"
"I just woke up and I need to put some makeup on this mess first. Do you have time to wait for me?"
He smiled. "For you? Always".
She smiled and flushed slightly in her good cheek.
"Come on in then", she said, heading to the bathroom.
He sat on the edge of her bed and waited.
"What are you doing for New Years?", she asked from the bathroom.
"Heading out with Tim and Lia".
She stuck her head out the bathroom door. "Can I be your date, or do you already have one of those?"
He felt his eyebrows raise and his heart flop uncomfortably in his chest.
"You think you'll still be here then?", he asked, surprised.
"I'm not sure but it's only five days away. My guess is yes".
"Rev will be okay with that?", he checked, frowning.
She shrugged. "I don't see why he'd care. I'd think he'd want me doing things instead of sitting here by myself".
"Does he want you going places with me, though?", Ip clarified.
Paige's face turned annoyed, her forehead wrinkling up and her eyes narrowing.
"Rev doesn't tell me what to do and if he did I'd tell him to fuck off. If he said one thing about it, I'd remind him of everything he's done undercover and how he was just having sex with someone else for months prior to Brad dying. If I want to go somewhere with you, I will".
Ip's mouth dropped open.
"Rev cheated on you, too?", he asked, horrified.
She scowled. "Yeah. And I can't even say or do anything about it because it's not technically cheating. I've been with Brad this whole time, cheating on him with Rev. Rev and I weren't technically a couple. But Rev never told me or talked to me about it until I brought it up".
Ip sighed. He had a lot to say about this but he had a feeling she wasn't going to want to hear it.
"Cheating is cheating", he started. "It's hurtful and wrong no matter the reasons. Regardless of your arrangements, I know all of it hurts you and affects you negatively, whether you want to admit that or not".
The annoyance dropped from her face and she simply stared at him, still holding her makeup in one of her hands.
"I'm sorry you got hurt by them", he continued. "You deserve better".
YOU ARE READING
Whiskey River, Drown my Soul
Romance*Third in the Fire Whiskey series* With the tragic loss of her beloved Brad, Paige does what Rev did when she cut him out of her life before...she gives herself a mission so large there's no time for anything or anyone else. She ghosts everyone and...
