Submission

Chapter 25

Lorelei had lost count of how many mimosas she drank. She took a taxi to Jesse's apartment building and held onto the railing as she climbed the three flights of stairs to his floor. Her knees wobbled as she walked down the hall to his unit.

She let out a deep breath before knocking on the door. She had not called or texted Jesse, so she was unsure if he was home. He had called her three more times while she was eating brunch with Jody and her friends.

Jesse opened the door. His bright blue eyes went wide when he saw Lorelei. She was leaning against the doorframe to stay on her feet.

"Lorelei, why are you here?" he asked. "Why haven't you picked up your phone?"

She took one shaky step forward and pressed her finger against his chest. He furrowed his brows as he looked down at her finger.

"You lied to me," she said, her words slurring.

"You're drunk?" he asked, already knowing the answer. "This is why I didn't want you with Jody."

Lorelei snorted before laughing.

"Jody," she said. "Was she a better fuck than me?"

Jesse scowled before he grabbed Lorelei's wrist. He pulled her into the apartment and slammed the door behind him. Lorelei stumbled in her heels, and Jesse's tight grip on her arm was all that was keeping her on her feet. He grabbed her hip and pulled her over to the couch before pushing her down.

He sighed before kneeling down in front of Lorelei and unfastening the strap on her heels.

"You lied to me," she said.

"I never lied," Jesse said.

"Omitting information is the same as lying."

Jesse let out a deep breath and rolled his shoulders before undoing the buckle on her other shoe. She watched him as he went over to his bed and grabbed a pillow and a blanket.

"I was afraid to tell you," he said. "Girls don't usually like it when I tell them I am friends with my ex."

"It seems a little weird," Lorelei said.

Jesse set the pillow against the arm of the couch. He grabbed Lorelei's legs and pulled her so that she was lying on the couch. He tucked the blanket around her.

"Jody and I remained friends because we didn't know many other people in Toronto," he said. "Being part of the same scene we knew that we would run into each other again, so to make it less awkward we stayed friends."

"You didn't seem like friends at The Alibi," she said.

"Since she started dating Mateo there has been a little bit of friction between us," he said.

"Why's that?"

Jesse went into the kitchen. He poured Lorelei a glass of water and brought it and a bucket over to the couch. He set the bucket next to Lorelei on the floor. She rolled her eyes when she saw it.

"I'm not going to throw up," she said.

"You never know," he said. "What were you drinking? Mimosas? Those are Jody's favourite, but they sneak up on you."

Jesse sat down on the edge of the couch. He brushed a piece of Lorelei's hair out of her face, but she pushed his hand away.

"How did Mateo make things tense?" she asked.

"Mateo has always been Jody's photographer," he said. "I thought she had cheated on me with him."

"I know what that's like."

"Are you friends with any of your exes?"

Lorelei bit down on her lip. She broke eye contact with Jesse.

"I only have one ex," she said.

"And you don't talk to him anymore?" he asked.

"I try not to," she said. "But he is always calling me."

"Is that who called you the other day?"

Lorelei nodded, thinking back to their meal at the diner. Jesse grabbed Lorelei's chin and tilted her head up so that she was looking at him.

"Why don't you block his number?" he asked.

"I do," she said. "He keeps getting new numbers and calls me."

Lorelei sniffled as a tear rolled down her cheek. She hastily wiped it away with the back of her hand. She took in a sharp breath to try and control her crying. She had promised herself that she would not shed anymore tears because of Matthew. Being drunk made it difficult for her to filter her emotions.

Jesse cupped the side of Lorelei's face and wiped the tears off of her cheek with his thumb.

"It's okay," he said. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

She squeezed her eyes and shook her head. She had opened a door, and now all of the pain and betrayal of Matthew and her mother was consuming her. She could not stop crying after she caught them and she was distraught for weeks.

"He cheated on me," Lorelei cried.

"With someone you knew?" Jesse asked.

"With my Mom."

Jesse's thumb that was wiping her tears away froze. His brows were raised for a moment, and she could tell that he was trying to not act shocked.

"Your Mom?" he asked. "How did you find out?"

"I walked in on them," she said. "I came home from work early because I was not feeling well and they were in our bed."

"That's horrible, sweetheart."

"The worst part is that Matthew took me to the jewler the week before." Lorelei said between sobs. "We were talking about getting married."

Jesse reached for the glass of water and passed it over to Lorelei. Her hands shook as she took the glass.

"You need to drink something," Jesse said. "You're going to feel rough if you don't."

Lorelei nodded before taking a sip. Her chest was tight and heavy, but she had stopped the tears from flowing. The image of Matthew and her mother naked and tangled in the sheets together filled her mind. She closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose as she tried to push the memory away.

"I can't believe that I was going to marry that jerk," she mumbled.

She took another drink of water before handing Jesse back the glass. She pulled the blankets up and rolled onto her side.

"He used to be my whole world," she said.

She sniffled as a remaining tear rolled down her cheek. She reached out and grabbed Jesse's hand. They laced their fingers together and Jesse squeezed her hand.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," Jesse said. "I promise that I'll never break your heart."