Her Prince (A Sequel to "His Princess")

15. Who Could Do This?

"Who's Teresa?"

Oh shit.

"Um... Teresa is our boss, Natalia. What are you doing in New York?" I ask, setting up the cash register.

"I'm going to this good school here, and I needed a place to stay. It's pricey so I obviously needed a job too." She explains, twirling her hair around her finger.

"Oh."

She adds, "That and I missed my cousin."

"Oh." I repeat, wondering why the hell Teresa would hire her.  I raise my eyebrow and look up. "Hey Nat, why don't you be the cashier up front, I'll organize the back."

She nods her head and walks to the back of the counter. "Kay."

   I head in the back and whip out my cellphone.

On the third ring she finally answers.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Teresa! Did you hire a new girl recently?" I ask, getting straight to the point.

"Ah yes. It completely slipped my mind, sorry I didn't tell you. Isn't she sweet?"

I chuckle humorlessly. "Well, me and her weren't exactly best buds in high school."

I hear Teresa sigh through the phone. "Give her a chance, Ave. If something happens again and it doesn't work out, just tell me, okay?"

"Okay... Bye."

"Bye sweetie," she says, hanging up the phone. I groan and slam my phone back down onto counter.  Needing a bit of fresh air, I sneakily head out the back door and chill outside, leaning against the wall.  Once I've calmed down and come to the fact that I'll have to work with Natalia, I walk back inside. My phone vibrates on the counter but I just ignore it, wanting to get the back room organized again.  After about ten minutes, I hear the doors of the store slam open, with someone stomping inside.

"Where is she!" The person growls in a deep voice. Is he talking about me?

   My heart stammers in my chest and I start to freak out.

"She's in the back." I hear Natalia say, ratting me out. 

   I start to breathe frantically and I grab a hanger for protection. The door flies open and I see an outraged Ryder storm into the room.

"Who the hell is Bren?!" He demands, stepping closer to me.

I back up into the wall behind me and raise my eyebrows in confusion. "Who?" I ask.

"That's what I'm asking you! Who the frick is Bren?" Ryder shouts, clearly aggravated.

"I don't know! Why are you asking me?"

Ryder's eyes hold nothing but anger as he whips his phone out of his pocket and shows me his messages.

"I didn't send that!" I defend myself.

"Obviously you did! It came from your freaking phone! Who the hell is Bren?!" Ryder shouts, stepping closer to me.  My eyes widen and I whimper, turning my head away from him in fear. I've never seen him this angry... It's terrifying.

Ryder sighs. "When you figure all of this crap out, then you can talk to me." He hisses, before stomping out the back door. 

      Once the door shuts, I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. Tears stream down my cheeks and I quickly wipe them away. Grabbing my phone and purse, I walk out of the store, not knowing where to go.  If Teresa thinks Natalia could do the job, she shouldn't have a problem taking over the store for me. That's the least she could do right now. 

     I decide to walk all the way home. I figured it would give me time to process what had happened.  Finally reaching the apartment, I start to head up to our floor.  Walking up to the door, I pull my key out of my purse and unlock it, stepping inside.

"Ryder?" I croak. 

Silence.

Taking off my painful heels, I stumble my way to his door.  About to knock, I hear something ruffling around inside. I lean my ear against his door quietly, listening for anything. 

That's when it starts.

      I hear him sobbing. Like, full on sobbing. Ryder's not one to cry and I hate to know that I'm the cause of this.  Holding back a few tears of my own, I head into my room and pull out a duffel bag. Quietly, I place all the necessities inside the bag, slinging it over my shoulder.  Calling for a taxi, I think of a game plan.

• • •

Knock. Knock. Knock.

The door opens.

"Hey... Avery? What the hell happened to you?"

I sniffle. "Could I stay here?"

"Brooke and I don't have another guest room. Does this have to do with Ryder?" Bailey asks.

I nod my head.

"You guys need to talk it out... C'mon, you both are literally the perfect couple!" Bailey says, trying to cheer me up. In reality, it just makes me feel worse on the inside.

"I guess you're right. I'll just head back home..."

      I don't wait for her response either. I just turn around and call for another taxi. I feel bad for lying to my friends like that, but I can't go back there. How could I sleep hearing Ryder cry all night like that?

      The taxi pulls up at a motel. After paying the man, I shrug my bag higher on my shoulder and walk inside.  Once I pay for the room, I start to walk towards it.

• • •

      I get all settled in for bed, but once I closed my eyes, it's like my brain replayed everything that happened at work today.

Everything Ryder said.

All the emotions his blue eyes held.

Sadness.

Betrayal.

Could we really be over?

Burying my head into my pillow, I sob myself to sleep. Just like Ryder.

Who could do this?

Well, the only person that was there.

Natalia.

A/N:

Hello my fellow fishies! Here's a spicy chapter for ya'll. So yea, Natalia is backkkkk. God, I hate her so much. Haha... So, what do you thinks gonna happen? Comment you're predictions, and maybe, just maybe, I'll give you guys a hint. Love you all!!!

Xoxo - Batman