Misunderstandings (Woodfalls Girls 2)

“Yeah,” I muttered, opening the door. “So, how did you find out I was here anyway?”

“Rob fessed up when the building operator called and told him his two visitors were stuck in the elevator. After the first hour, he called me, figuring I’d need to protect him from you once the elevator started moving again.”

“Why’d he do it, Mel? Did he think forcing Justin and me to have lunch together would suddenly right everything between us?” I asked, washing my hands.

“Well, he’s been pretty upset since I told him what really happened.”

“Speaking of which, you swore you’d never tell,” I chastised her, placing my hands on my hips.

“Au contraire, my dear. I swore I’d keep your secret as long as he was my boyfriend. As soon as Rob proposed, he no longer fit in that category.”

“Really? You’re going with the technicality clause?” I asked.

“Look, I was never comfortable keeping it a secret,” she said, placing her own hands on her shapely hips. “I did it at the time because I felt so damn bad about my part in everything that went down. It was a bad situation. But just so you know, I never agreed with the idea of you bearing the brunt of it. What Justin did to you in the courtyard was a shitty thing and wouldn’t have happened without my big mouth. I needed Rob to know the truth,” she added defensively.

“I understand,” I said, smiling at her astonished look.

“Really? I thought you would be ready to kill Rob and me by the time you made it off the elevator. I remember you hated elevators and was sick that you were cooped up in one for hours, with your ex no less.”

“I’m not going to lie, it got hairy there for a while, but I worked it out.”

“And Justin? Did he give you the silent treatment the whole time?”

“Not exactly,” I admitted. “We kinda worked some things out.”

“You did?” Melissa squealed, making me cringe as a couple of women looked our way.

“Shhh,” I said as the bathroom door opened. “We did, but let’s not make a big deal about it. I’m not even sure where we go from here. Maybe we’ll be friends, maybe not, but at least we don’t hate each other.”

“Oh my God. I’m so excited,” she said, bouncing up and down.

“Mel, chill,” I ordered as we headed out of the bathroom together.

We found the guys waiting for us in the lobby. “So, we kinda thought we’d skip visiting my office and maybe grab some grub,” Rob said, eyeing me sheepishly. >I was on my way to Smith Hall when a familiar voice called my name. I took a deep breath before turning to face Justin. Our eyes met and I was shocked at the hatred reflected in them.

“Is something wrong?” I asked, worried that maybe his father had done something. “Is it your dad?” I asked, reaching out a hand to comfort him without thinking.

“Don’t touch me, you lying selfish bitch,” he said, shaking with rage. He jerked away like I was poisonous.

“What the hell are you talking about?” I asked. If anyone should be angry at the other person, it should be me.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he shouted, drawing attention from everyone in the vicinity.

“Rob told you about the baby,” I said as more of a statement. “Justin, you don’t understand. I—”

“Yes, Rob told me,” he said, interrupting me. “How could you keep this from me?” he snarled as the onlookers crowded around so they wouldn’t miss a single detail.

“Whose fault was that? You were acting like such an asshole, you never gave me the chance,” I yelled. “It’s not like you were around. You were too busy hooking up with Shelly to care about the mess you left behind.”

“I didn’t hook up with Shelly. I took her to one party.”

“Right, a party where you had your tongue crammed halfway down her throat.”

He looked momentarily shocked at my words. “So I kissed another girl. That sure as hell doesn’t give you the right to do something like this without telling me first.”

“You’re kidding, right? Last time I checked, you’re not my father, and you have no right to tell me what I can or can’t do.”

“When it concerns my baby, I deserve the right to know. What kind of selfish person aborts her baby without telling the father? How dare you take that right from me, you fucking bitch.”