Semua Bab TWISTED AFFAIR: Bab 41 - Bab 50

JESS'S POVThe minute I heard the door click shut, I knew she was gone. Ashley.I sat on the bed upstairs, wearing Micheal's hoodie. The sleeves held tightly in my hand out of anger, knuckles white. I did not wish to hear the words, couldn't quite turn my ears quite enough to pay attention to what was being spoken. But I could feel it. In their voices, tension was there. The cracks. The silence that screams.And for a second….I hoped she'd stay gone.God, what's wrong with me?I rubbed at my chest, like maybe the pressure there would ease. But it didn't. It never did around her. Not when I saw her name flash on his phone. Not when he talked about her like she was everything. Not when he looked at her like she still belonged to him.Well, she did belong to him. And I hated it.I stood up, walked towards the window. The city felt so quiet. So blind. Micheal's apartment fell still again, the sort of stillness that convinced you that all else was sound. I saw myself reflected in the glas

JESS'S POV The quiet inside the house had been oppressive, as if it had its own weight bearing down on my chest.I folded my legs over one another at the bed frame, pulled up close, clasped my knees. My fingers picked at a thread that was loose on my sleeve and twisted, pulled it over and over again as if I pulled enough, then maybe the rest of things would come apart too.Micheal's words wouldn't stop cycling in my head."I don't think I should have loved her."I know he still loved her. Even though he didn't say it. I could see it clearly in his eyes. I could feel it in the way his voice softened when he spoke her name.Ashley.Even her name made me want to throw up.I got up and went to the window, opening the curtains a little. The street was quiet now. Quiet. Empty. The sort of quiet that I never got at home. I leaned my head against the cold glass and shut my eyes.It wasn't supposed to turn out this way.I never want to fall in love with him.At first, I just wanted to be ther

ASHLEY'S POV The door clicked shut behind them.Jess and Ryan, they were gone. But the damage…they left it behind like a mess in the middle of the room. And all I could do was stand there, frozen, holding the pieces I didn't even know had broken yet.My throat burned. But no sound came out of my mouth. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking.Micheal hadn’t moved. He was still standing in the middle of my apartment like he didn't know where he was anymore. Like this place suddenly felt foreign to him.I wanted to say something. But where do you even start when everything's been turned inside out.So I whispered the only thing I could. “I didn't lie to you.” He didn't look at me right away. His jaw clenched. His eyes still stuck on the same spot Ryan had been standing. I stepped closer, my voice barely holding together. “I should have told you about him. About what he did. About how I felt seeing him again. But I was scared. Not of him, but of you. Of losing this…of losing you.”Finally, he

MICHEAL'S POVMorning light fought its way through the blinds, a dim, gentle light on the room. Ashley leaned close to me, breathing slowly, her face peaceful for the first time in weeks. Her hair sprawled out on the pillow, her hand resting upon my chest.It should've felt right, right? But it didn't.My eyes stayed on the ceiling, unmoving. The weight in my chest wasn't going anywhere. It had been there since last night…maybe even longer. I glanced at her again. She was practically pushed up against me, and yet there was something between us that was fragile. Uncertain. As if we'd built something of glass, and I was just waiting for it to break beneath the pressure of all that we hadn't spoken.She shifted to one side, her hand moving with it, and I got the chance to slowly ease myself out from under it. My toes made contact with the cold floor. I only needed a minute to collect my wits. To catch my breath.But before I could stand, her voice, soft and sleepy, broke the silence.

ASHLEY'S POV I was halfway through clearing my inbox when my phone buzzed.I checked and saw a text from Micheal.Micheal: Be ready by 7. Dress like you're about to fall in love.I blinked. My lips curled before I even knew they were moving.It wasn't just the words…it was the way they felt. Warm, sure, and soft in that way only Micheal can pull off. I stared at the message for a second longer, my heart skipping like it was in some sort of secret dance. Then I shoved back my chair, picked up my bag,and made my way home, my pulse racing with every step I took.**********By the time it was 7pm, I was dressed in a wine satin dress. I hadn't worn it in months, maybe because I didn't have a reason to feel that pretty until now. He was already waiting outside when I stepped out. Standing against the car, looking like something out of a dream. Dark jacket that reveals his chest a bit, black jeans that fit perfectly. He looks extremely handsome with that quiet smirk playing on his lips.An