He Took Me For Granted, I Said No

Chapter 4

A raucous wave of whoops and catcalls erupted through the room.

I couldn't stop myself from glancing over, and caught Monica leaning straight into Jasper's face, tilting her head up to press her lips against his.

He didn't pull away. His whole gaze was soft, wrapped around her like warm silk.

Hot tears burst from my eyes and rolled down my cheeks before I could even stop them.

At that moment, I knew for certain: he really did love her, completely and truly.

And me? I was just dead weight, dragging him down.

But this time? I wouldn't cling to him and ruin another fifteen years of his life.

Starting today, I will let him go. I'd give them the happy ending they wanted.

Suddenly, my stomach churned violently. The alcohol burned through my veins, and I shot to my feet without thinking.

I bolted for the bathroom, hunched over the icy cold porcelain sink, heaving and gagging until my ribs ached. I looked as messy and pathetic as I felt.

One second later, the bathroom door creaked open.

Monica stepped inside. That sweet, girlish smile of hers was gone, replaced by nothing but icy, biting mockery.

"Ella, how much longer are you gonna hang around Jasper like a freaking ghost?"

I stared at her through blurry, tear-filled eyes, my throat too tight to get a single word out.

Her eyes went even colder. "He's a diplomat, he's got a whole brilliant future ahead of him! What he needs next to him is a woman like me, someone who can hold her own at events, someone who makes him look good. Not a dumb fool like you. What do you ever do for him besides embarrass him?"

She stepped closer, dropping her voice to a venomous snarl. "Let me tell you something... his parents have been sick of you forever. They know I'm the better choice for him. Just get him to break that old promise he made to you before things get worse. Know when to quit and get the hell out on your own!"

My whole body locked up, and my blood drained so fast my face turned paper-white.

In my past life, I only knew that Jasper and our son didn't want me. I never even knew that before him and I got married, my own in-laws already hated my guts.

She saw me frozen in shock and huffed a sharp, mocking laugh. "Oh, right, I forgot... you're an i***t. Do you even understand what I just said?"

Those words sank like a sharp, jagged knife straight into the sorest spot of my heart.

I shoved her hard, desperate to get away from her.

But Monica clamped down on my wrist and wouldn't let go.

"Where do you think you're going, dummy? Gonna run crying at Jasper and tattle on me?" She laughed. "He's mine, and that's final. Even if you won't leave, you're leaving!"

Suddenly, she pulled an empty wine bottle from behind her back, crunched it hard against her own skull, and crumpled to the floor. Blood immediately began oozing down the side of her head.

I froze completely.

She shot me a sneering grin, then let out a high, screaming wail for help. "Jasper! Help! Ella is trying to kill me!"

He burst in seconds later. One looked at the scene, and his face darkened so much it was terrifying.

"What the hell happened here?" He hurried to scoop Monica up, and she threw herself into his arms, trembling like a frightened rabbit.

"Jas, you were worried about Ella not feeling well, so you sent me to check on her. I just told her she could go home early if she felt sick, and she... she smashed a bottle over my head!"

I waved my hands wildly, panicked. "No! I didn't hurt her. She did that to herself!"

But he didn't believe a word I said. His eyes, when he looked at me, were drowning in disappointment.

"Why do you always do this? Any time another woman gets close to me, you have to hurt her. Is your illness acting up again?"

The sharp, loathing hatred burning in his eyes sliced right through my heart.

In an instant, I was thrown back to my middle school days, back when he had a crush on our class' most popular girl.

I saw right through her game: she only gave him the time of day to make another guy jealous. She even made a bet with her desk mate that she could get him to jump off a building for her.

Scared that he'd get played for a fool, I grabbed a small knife and confronted her, trying to warn her off from messing with him.

But she just laughed at me for being an i***t and started fighting me. Next thing I knew, her face was sliced open.

After that, they locked me up in a mental hospital, and I became the rotten, villainous classmate everyone spat on.

He came to visit me back then, and he looked at me exactly the same way he is looking at me right now.

Disgust. Loathing. Fear.

I gestured wildly, stumbling over my words, trying to explain everything to him. After I got out and spent ages trying to make things right, our relationship went back to how it used to be.

I foolishly thought he believed I wasn't some dangerous monster, and that was why we got close again.

I never guessed that in his head, I'd always been that same crazy, stupid, unhinged lunatic who hurts people for no reason.

The explanation sitting heavy on my tongue dissolved into bitter ash, and I swallowed it down, along with all the pain.

What's the point of anything anymore?

Jasper Dawson... I think... I don't even like you anymore.