“Okay…” she trails off. “Do you want to talk about it? Feelings aside, I consider myself a good listener, but you have to excuse my growling stomach, I accidentally dropped my nut bar in the toilet.”
I laugh, welcoming the distraction. “Should I ask how?
“My pager was beeping, and my bladder was screaming. You’re a smart guy, work it out,” she responds with a grin.
“Here.” I pull one out of my top pocket and hand it to her. “Eat it.”
“I can’t take that.”
“You will because it’s doctor’s orders,” I tell her with a stern voice.
“Wow, you make that sound so hot,” she teases, bumping her side against mine.
I laugh loudly as she leans her head on my arm the same time I glance up and see Zoey staring right back at me. Her wounded expression soon follows with anger and resentment, the same expression she had when she busted her ex, Jess, cheating with her best friend. The sound of her footsteps echo against the floor as she stomps toward me wearing those wedged heels that make her legs look irresistible.
You miss her. Now is not the time to be thinking about her legs.
“Zoey,” I begin, then stall as Raine peels herself off my arm.
The green orbs that have taunted me since the moment she became my roommate stare back at me cold. It’s not the same Zoey. Miss Eats-Cheetos-on-top-of-ice-cream because it’s much easier than eating it in separate servings. Wears my trunks to bed claiming they’re more comfortable than her sleepwear. I tried buying her a pair, but she said it didn’t feel the same as my worn ones. Go figure. The same woman who lined up, or should I say camped, for two days outside the Staples Center waiting for KISS concert tickets.
“I don’t have anything to say.” She turns her back as I quickly move past the desk to follow her. She’s making a quick getaway toward the exit, and with long strides, I make it to her side latching onto her arm to stop her.
“You know? I do have something to say,” she raises her voice removing her arm from my grip. “You’re a bigger asshole than I thought. Here I was feeling guilty for stopping by Slater’s place which, I might add, was a work errand.” She takes a breath before unleashing again. “And then the whole pineapple thing, don’t get me started on that. But do you know what was the final straw?”
Waiting for my response, I keep my expression fixed knowing this isn’t the moment to answer.
“Finding out that you’re quick to point all blame on me when you spent the night with Sky, Leaf, or whatever the fuck her name is… at a sex club,” she shouts startling an old man smoking near the entrance.
“Zoey, I can explain.”
“Funny that I can explain what happened on Saturday, too, but sadly, I was never given the chance.” She pulls the ring off her finger extending it forward for me to take. “Here.”
I push it back determined to fix this fucking mess. “Don’t fucking do this, Zoey. It’s just all this wedding bullshit that’s fucked everything up.”
“Wedding bullshit? I’m sorry that I’ve exhausted myself in planning the perfect wedding for us.”
“For you, Zoey, not us, you.”
“No, Drew, that’s where you’re wrong. Everything I did was for you—” She stops mid-sentence, collecting her thoughts. “Except the doves, that was for Mia. If you took a moment to listen to me rather than push me away, you would have seen that. I chose VW Beetle wedding cars… for you. The venue? It’s the only one in the city that serves organic meals, which I paid extra… for you. The band I chose, the instrumental orchestra, they play the same kind of music that you and your dad listened to while fixing cars. In fact, they were the only ones who could play almost identical.
“Everything I did was with you in mind. You may think I was going overboard and called me a Bridezilla on more than one occasion, but all I wanted was to please you and be your wife. Make it a day neither one of us would forget.”
Crossing her arms, the corners of her lips remain flat as we stand in silence. I can see she’s in defense mode protecting herself from the big bad wolf—me.
“Zoey, I—”
“Nothing, Drew. There’s nothing left to say.”
There’s plenty more to say, yet she walks away, head held high as if her life hasn’t fallen into pieces.
I know right at that moment, she is the one.
So, I’m comfortable and, I’m settling for what I know.
But I am head over fucking heels in love with this stubborn woman. The air around me doesn’t exist if she isn’t part of my life.
Our foundation, the friendship that began many moons ago was buil