Rising from the Ashes by Jessica Prince Read Free Book Online Page B

point across that she was walking on thin ice.
    No such luck.
    “If you say so. But if it matters for anything, I think he’s fine as hell, girl.” With that, she sauntered off.
    “You didn’t even take our order!” I hollered after her.
    “You’re getting the meatloaf because that’s what you always get, and Ben is getting the pork chops because they’re awesome!” she yelled back as she made her way to the kitchen.
    “She’s like a food ninja,” Ben said, totally in awe of Emmy’s gift at guessing people’s orders.
    “Yep, being annoying clearly isn’t her only skill.”
    “I didn’t find her all that annoying,” Ben said with a smile.
    “That’s because she called you fine.”
    He glanced over at me with a little grin. “Well, she’s obviously a very smart woman.”
    Ben and I sat for a while longer, enjoying each other’s company and our delicious lunch. Of course, Ben loved the pork chops, and Emmy couldn’t help but come by to gloat a little.
    Shortly after we finished eating, Ben excused himself and headed to the restroom. I’d just finished putting the rest of our lunches in a to-go container when the chair across from me squeaked loudly against the tile floor. Looking up, I was surprised to see Jeremy sitting in Ben’s unoccupied seat.
    “So, you two dating now?” were the first words out of his mouth.
    No hello or how’s your day going? Nothing like that.
    It didn’t take a genius to realize this conversation was going to go downhill fast.
    I rolled my eyes and leaned in to prevent the other diners from eavesdropping. “No, we aren’t dating, not that it’s any of your business. We’re just two friends who had lunch together.”
    I could see the muscle twitching in his jaw as his brows furrowed.
    “That guy wants in your pants, Savannah.”
    My anger was starting to slowly boil beneath the surface. If Jeremy pushed me any further, I was going to go off. “Again, Jeremy, that’s none of your business,” I snapped.
    I started to stand, but he reached across the table and grabbed my wrist, keeping me in my seat.
    “So, you are screwing him then.” It wasn’t a question.
    I jerked my wrist out of his hold and leaned in close enough for only him to hear. “Despite what you might think of me, I don’t fuck every guy I’m seen in public with.”
    “I didn’t—”
    I raised my hand to cut off his protest. “When I said it was none of your business, I meant that you have no right demanding to know who I am or am not sleeping with because you have a girlfriend, Jeremy. The day you got into that relationship, you lost all right to worry about my sex life.”
    “We’re still friends, Savannah. Or have you forgotten that?” he said between clenched teeth. It was obvious he was having a hard time keeping his anger in check.
    Unfortunately for him, I didn’t have that kind of strength. “No, I’m not the one who’s forgotten we were friends. You’re the one who’s been AWOL for months. You’re the one who runs away the minute your girlfriend snaps her fingers. And you’re the one who hasn’t said more than a handful of words to me since you and Charlotte got together. I knew that things would be different when you started dating, but I didn’t expect you to act like we hardly know each other.”
    “That’s not how I’ve been acting,” he insisted.
    “Isn’t it? We might not have been a couple, but you still picked up the phone and called me every night just to see how my day was. When was the last time you called me?” I didn’t even give him a chance to answer. I just continued to pour out everything I’d been keeping locked inside me for so long. “Tell you what—you go about your business, and I’ll go about mine. I’m officially releasing you of any obligation you might feel you have toward me. I don’t need people in my life who are only there out of a sense of responsibility. I grew up with that, and I won’t tolerate it from anyone—least of all,