needed.
A car horn beeped. I came back to reality and accelerated, wondering how long the light shined green and how long I sat spaced out.
When I turned onto our street I wanted to turn around. I didn’t want to go home. Not yet. Too much to think about and process before I could face Jessie again.
I slowed down in front of our mocha-colored duplex and glanced at the cherry tree in our front yard.
A bouncy blonde hurried down the pathway—my pathway—clutching her purse as her sun-streaked hair shielded her face. I stopped, trying to make sense of what I saw.
The woman drove off and I wilted in my seat. I should’ve seen it coming. He liked blondes all along. His dad probably knew that. His dad probably knew our marriage would be ruined because I could never be gorgeous enough, too.
I got out of my car and walked to the house, not in a hurry to tell Jessie I saw his other woman leave our house. Our house.
I opened the door. Jessie looked at me from the dining room table, surrounded by folders and papers.
“We’re done,” I said, a single tear on my lip. “I can’t do this.”
“What are you talking about?”
“What is wrong with me? How can you even ask that?” I sniffed. “So much for wanting to start over, right? So much for not being able to live without me. I’m sorry I’m not gorgeous.” I ran off, hoping Jessie wouldn’t follow. I’d never felt so ugly in my life. In every way. And I didn’t want Jessie’s eyes on my imperfections.
But he followed. “What did I do?”
Digging through the closet, I ignored him. The soundtrack of my life stopped playing. A deadly silence permeated the room. I piled shirts on the bed, then jeans, trousers, socks. Jessie grabbed my arm. I twisted away.
He swept my clothes into his arms and threw them back into the closet. “You’re not leaving.”
“You can’t tell me what to do.” I stared up at his darkened eyes. “You did this. Not me.”
“Ally, we can work this out.”
“Work what out? What’s the point when you have Barbie? Why not just marry her? Oh, what? Barbie’s not intelligent enough for you? You just like the sex, isn’t that right?”
He exhaled. “What are you talking about?”
“I saw her, Jessie. I saw her leaving the house right before I pulled up. Are you really that stupid?”
He sighed. “She was my client’s wife. She just dropped off a file for her husband. Didn’t even step in the door.”
“I can’t believe you. She was prettier than me, wasn’t she? Gorgeous, wasn’t she? I’m sorry I can’t be that for you.” I knelt down in the closet and picked up my clothes. “I’m done.”
“Oh, Ally. Stop. You are beautiful to me, in every way. I didn’t have an affair with that woman. You have to believe me. I barely even said a word to her.”
I threw clothes on the bed.
Jessie stood in front of me and glided his hands down my arms, pleading with his eyes.
“How can I ever believe you? How?”
Chapter 10 Taylor
Cola got me through the next few weeks, although I had to keep taking more to feel the effects, and the more I took the more paranoid I became. Like marijuana, only worse.
Andy sent me to a local clinic to get tested for diseases. I went, not knowing what in the world the tests were for, but found out soon after that I contracted Chlamydia. Already. I didn’t even know what Chlamydia was.
“That’s okay,” Andy told me over the phone. “We’ll shoot with Gianna for a few days. Take your antibiotics and you’ll be back to work in no time.”
What a star, I thought. Thrilling lifestyle.
To cope with the good news, I spent the night with Cola. But I got so fearful of Mom finding me that I duct-taped clothes to my windows so no one could see in. I taped and taped and taped my entire apartment until I ran out of tape.
I didn’t want anyone to kidnap me. And the more I taped, the more I knew that the trees outside my window were spying on me and telling Mom everything. After I finally
A car horn beeped. I came back to reality and accelerated, wondering how long the light shined green and how long I sat spaced out.
When I turned onto our street I wanted to turn around. I didn’t want to go home. Not yet. Too much to think about and process before I could face Jessie again.
I slowed down in front of our mocha-colored duplex and glanced at the cherry tree in our front yard.
A bouncy blonde hurried down the pathway—my pathway—clutching her purse as her sun-streaked hair shielded her face. I stopped, trying to make sense of what I saw.
The woman drove off and I wilted in my seat. I should’ve seen it coming. He liked blondes all along. His dad probably knew that. His dad probably knew our marriage would be ruined because I could never be gorgeous enough, too.
I got out of my car and walked to the house, not in a hurry to tell Jessie I saw his other woman leave our house. Our house.
I opened the door. Jessie looked at me from the dining room table, surrounded by folders and papers.
“We’re done,” I said, a single tear on my lip. “I can’t do this.”
“What are you talking about?”
“What is wrong with me? How can you even ask that?” I sniffed. “So much for wanting to start over, right? So much for not being able to live without me. I’m sorry I’m not gorgeous.” I ran off, hoping Jessie wouldn’t follow. I’d never felt so ugly in my life. In every way. And I didn’t want Jessie’s eyes on my imperfections.
But he followed. “What did I do?”
Digging through the closet, I ignored him. The soundtrack of my life stopped playing. A deadly silence permeated the room. I piled shirts on the bed, then jeans, trousers, socks. Jessie grabbed my arm. I twisted away.
He swept my clothes into his arms and threw them back into the closet. “You’re not leaving.”
“You can’t tell me what to do.” I stared up at his darkened eyes. “You did this. Not me.”
“Ally, we can work this out.”
“Work what out? What’s the point when you have Barbie? Why not just marry her? Oh, what? Barbie’s not intelligent enough for you? You just like the sex, isn’t that right?”
He exhaled. “What are you talking about?”
“I saw her, Jessie. I saw her leaving the house right before I pulled up. Are you really that stupid?”
He sighed. “She was my client’s wife. She just dropped off a file for her husband. Didn’t even step in the door.”
“I can’t believe you. She was prettier than me, wasn’t she? Gorgeous, wasn’t she? I’m sorry I can’t be that for you.” I knelt down in the closet and picked up my clothes. “I’m done.”
“Oh, Ally. Stop. You are beautiful to me, in every way. I didn’t have an affair with that woman. You have to believe me. I barely even said a word to her.”
I threw clothes on the bed.
Jessie stood in front of me and glided his hands down my arms, pleading with his eyes.
“How can I ever believe you? How?”
Chapter 10 Taylor
Cola got me through the next few weeks, although I had to keep taking more to feel the effects, and the more I took the more paranoid I became. Like marijuana, only worse.
Andy sent me to a local clinic to get tested for diseases. I went, not knowing what in the world the tests were for, but found out soon after that I contracted Chlamydia. Already. I didn’t even know what Chlamydia was.
“That’s okay,” Andy told me over the phone. “We’ll shoot with Gianna for a few days. Take your antibiotics and you’ll be back to work in no time.”
What a star, I thought. Thrilling lifestyle.
To cope with the good news, I spent the night with Cola. But I got so fearful of Mom finding me that I duct-taped clothes to my windows so no one could see in. I taped and taped and taped my entire apartment until I ran out of tape.
I didn’t want anyone to kidnap me. And the more I taped, the more I knew that the trees outside my window were spying on me and telling Mom everything. After I finally
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