Slow Agony by V. J. Chambers Read Free Book Online

one.”
    “You expect me to believe that? I left you alone for a week in Boston, and you started stripping—”
    “Because I didn’t have money,” I said. “I hate how you always bring that up.”
    “You slept around a lot before me,” he said. “Do you deny that?”
    I
was
going to cry. I could feel the tears forming. “
Before
you.”
    “And during for all the hell I know.”
    “That’s not true,” I said.
    “I only have your word for that,” he said. “And I think you’re probably lying.”
    “I’m not. I swear to God, Griffin. I would never—”
    “I saw you.”
    Tears spilled out over my cheeks. “You didn’t. You didn’t see anything. You’re making it into something it isn’t and overreacting, and you
always
do that.”
    He clenched his hands into fists. His voice was hoarse. “Don’t cry.”
    I brushed at the tears, irritated. “I’m sorry.”
    “You cry about it like you’re sorry, but it doesn’t mean anything.”
    “I’ve had a really bad day, Griffin.” And the sobs overtook me.
    His shoulders slumped. “Yeah, well, mine hasn’t been peaches and cream either.” He pushed past me and went into the bathroom. A second later, he emerged with a roll of toilet paper, which he handed to me. “Sorry. I don’t have any tissues.”
    I took the toilet paper. I wiped my eyes.
    He gestured to the couch. “You want to sit down?”
    Gratefully, I sank into it. I blew my nose.
    “You hungry?” he said.
    “No,” I said.
    “Come on, what have you eaten today?”
    I thought about it. “I guess nothing. But I don’t want to eat. I... don’t eat all that often anyway. I just got out of the habit I guess.” Or I was so depressed over our breakup that food didn’t seem that important. But maybe I shouldn’t tell him that. He seemed to be handling everything so well. He’d even moved on. Another girlfriend. It made more tears squeeze out of my eyes.
    “You should have food,” he said. “I can make quesadillas. You okay with that?”
    Griffin was actually a pretty good cook. I sniffled. “Don’t go to the trouble.”
    “Hey, I’m starving,” he said. “And it’s easy. It’s not trouble.”
    I looked at the balled up pieces of toilet paper in my hands. “Okay,” I said in a small voice.
    He hesitated in the doorway to the kitchen. “Look, doll.” He stopped. “Leigh, I mean.” He rubbed his head again. “I, um, I’m really sorry about your friend. And I don’t want you to be miserable here with me. No matter what happened in the past, I don’t want anything to happen to you. I’ll always do whatever I can to keep you safe, no matter what.”
    I raised my gaze to meet his.
    He looked away. “It’s just that what happened... What you did...”
    I shut my eyes. “You said no blaming.”
    “I wish it didn’t bother me so much,” he said. “I really do.”

Chapter Four
    Griffin put on a movie while we ate. We sat awkwardly on opposite sides of his couch. He didn’t have any other furniture in the living room. Maybe that was why it looked so spacious. There was very little in it.
    I couldn’t really concentrate on the movie. I could only think about how screwed up my life had become in a matter of hours. Yesterday, I was a normal college student, eagerly awaiting graduation. Today, everything was different. My best friend had been shot in front of me. I was here in this apartment with my ex-boyfriend, who I’d never really gotten over. Not even a little bit.
    And he hated me.
    Oh, and there was the fact that some crazy guy was out there trying to kill me.
    Maybe I was simply going to have to get used to people chasing me. Maybe there was no way around it.
    The movie was one of those superhero ones—the ones with all the sequels. Griffin had all of them. When one finished, he put the next one in.
    We perched on the couch together, stiff and nervous, for hours and hours. And we didn’t talk.
    It had worked for one day, anyhow, but I didn’t think we could