Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 136731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
I’m losing my only friend, and it breaks my blackened heart. This is not the Julius of four years ago. Hell, this is not the Julius of a month ago. I don’t know this guy, but the Julius I know would never let a woman lead him by the balls.
All I can do right now is offer him a forced smile as he falls apart over a stupid cunt of a woman, and offer, “Okay, boss man. What are we going to do about it?”
I fume in complete silence.
Look at him.
Look at what she’s done to him, to one of the only men I’ve ever admired.
Damn her. This is not going to end well.
She is going to get hers.
The bitch is going to pay.
Julius is quiet on the best of days, but the recent change in our relationship has me seeing a different side of him. Today, he has reverted back to the old Julius, the one who kept his other side hidden from the prying eyes of the world. He is closing himself off to me, and it doesn’t just hurt; it makes me angry.
How dare he give me something so beautiful, something I was scared to invest myself in, and then take it away only moments after I begin to cherish it? I am worried I’ll not be able to function in a world where his indifference eats away at me like a plague.
First, I thought it was all in my head, but as the day progressed, it became clear that perhaps his issue lay in me.
When I woke in the early afternoon, after having spent dusk till dawn with the Kellys, my first thought was to find Julius, wrap my arms around him, to be close to him. Reaching out under the covers, my fingers found his, and in a lazy but tender move, I wrapped my index finger around his, linking it as I stroked his thumb with mine.
Eyes closed, I smiled into the pillow, and my body went limp at the comfort I found in waking up next to this man.
As soon as I moved to shuffle closer, Julius slid out of bed without speaking a word and strode naked to the bathroom, his cock stiff with morning wood.
My stomach coiled at the unusual change in characteristic.
Had I done something wrong?
Flipping onto my back to stare up at the ceiling, I thought about it with a frown.
I wasn’t exactly sure. The only thing that came to mind was my dangerous flirtation with Connor Kelly the night before. But Julius was a straight shooter. If I had done something he didn’t like, he would tell me.
Or at least, I thought he would.
He certainly made it clear that communication was going to play an important part in our relationship, and there would be no room for misunderstanding.
In saying that, I wasn’t completely unaware of the current situation I had put us in. It was stressful, and the only time I truly felt at ease was when I was here, alone in bed with Julius. It was our time away from all the shitiness my life had wreaked on his.
And Julius was my champion. He took it all without complaint. I owed him so much that I steeled my unruly emotions and put a lid on them.
Everyone was entitled to a bad day. I certainly had a fair share of my own.
I would allow Julius this one day, but if when he awoke the next morning he remained withdrawn, we were going to have words. And if having words meant throwing a vase to force a reaction, I would do that, because Julius was worth fighting for, and throwing vases sent a solid message. I would tear the goddamn world apart to make things right with him.
We ate our late breakfast in silence. I nibbled at my toast while he shoveled cereal into his mouth. He read the newspaper, and I took the opportunity to look at him shamelessly.
After showering, he threw on a pair of charcoal-colored sweatpants and not a stitch more. He walked right past me without so much as a glance, and the indifference shook me to my core. Now I saw things I hadn’t seen before, or better yet, failed to notice. His handsome face looked strained, a two-day growth had set in that I ached to run my fingers over, and his full, kissable lips were stretched remarkably thin.
My heart clenched in sadness.
He was different today. He held himself differently, wore his features differently… he was just different. He was colder than he had been the day before, seemed unkind even.
My heartbeat stuttered, and my hope had receded.
It appeared all the progress we had made was gone.
Was he just now realizing I wasn’t worth the trouble I brought?
Shit.
I feared that most of all.
My plan was to show Julius how appreciated he was in hopes to fan the flame of desire he once held for me. The old Alejandra allowed people to walk all over her. The new Alejandra would tear the moon from the sky to provide a beacon of hope, and light the way for her beloved.