Temporary Fix | 18+

16

He left. We landed, and two cars were waiting on the ramp. He only instructed the driver to ensure I was home safely before he climbed into the other vehicle, pressing his phone against his ear without bothering to spare me another glance.

Unbelievable. I was truly unbelievable for not realizing that it didn't matter how appealing the man was; he was just too hard to read. I couldn't understand what was going on in his head. It was like I was doing a one-thousand-piece puzzle missing the edges.

It was late when I got inside, and I was happy everyone was asleep in their quarters. I climbed up to my room, lugging my suitcases quietly, one at a time. It was definitely easier getting them out of the house than in. It didn't help that I earned another one from Niccolò, who bought me additional pieces despite my constant protest.

I fell back against my bed and turned my head to the bathroom. I was exhausted, but I contemplated taking a shower, knowing the warm water would relax me. I stripped out of my clothes and paused when my shirt sent a whiff of Niccolo's scent up my nostrils.

Instead of going to the shower like I'd planned, I crawled up my bed, calling out to turn off my lights before snuggling under my blankets with the stained shirt thrown across my unoccupied pillows.

It felt like I'd been sleeping for five minutes before I felt the weight of another body landing on top of me.

"Wake the fuck up, you whore! Where the hell have you been?" I pried my eyes open to hazel ones staring down at me.

Jaz's curly hair was in a pineapple bun on her head, and I groaned, rolling my head away from her.

"Fuck off, Jazmine." My voice was thick with sleep.

Her reply was to yank the sheets from my body, exposing my clothesless self to the frigid temperatures of my room. I dug my head into my pillow, screaming into the plush material and allowed it to soak up my voice.

"Fuck off? You've been asleep for hours and I need to hear about this workshop you attended. Do you think I'm dumb? Every other time, you're hounding me for advice and spilling your guts with pros and cons about everything, but this time... you disappear without a trace?"

I rolled on my back, rubbing my eyes free of the remainder of my sleep. Jazmine straddled my waist again, and I tried to tune out her rapid questions, "Did you leave with Antony? No, but I saw him yesterday. Is there some sugar-daddy I don't know about? Oh my god, are you finally ditching the marriage?" Her voice fell to a whisper-shout as her wide eyes pierced mine.

She was wrong. It was the complete opposite. My weekend revealed I needed to forget about ditching the marriage; instead, I needed to accept it. I could only shake my head, and she frowned.

"I- I'm going through with the marriage. For real this time, one hundred percent." My voice was soft, and I tried to blame it on the fact that I'd just gotten up. Plus, there was the jet lag.

"What about you, Quinn? What happened to excitement and adventure? Not to state the obvious, but the most adventure you'll have is probably walking around the Chekov Estate." I gulped and pushed her off to stand from the bed. I dragged on an oversized shirt before moving to turn on my shower.

It was also an excuse to give myself time to reply. Jaz was my confidant; she knew how I felt about the marriage and how my mind had slowly changed. She was always insisting that I say fuck it and leave it all behind. It was harder said than done when, for the past four years, that's all my parents had been gushing and praising about.

These thoughts weren't supposed to be running through my head. It was almost too late to stop now. We'd be moving in together soon. I would be moving into Antony's condo, closer to the city than I'd like, into the penthouse he bought just for us.