How could I have been so naïve?
It had been right in front of me the whole time. I would have to build my walls higher than ever before, would have to fortify all my defenses so no one could ever break through them so easily again. Apparently, my judgment couldn’t be trusted.
A single hot tear ran down my cheek, and I roughly wiped it away.
The shame of having been deceived like this was almost worse than the betrayal itself. As if on autopilot, I began to pack my things, grateful that I had thought ahead.
How convenient that fate had put me in front of someone who was looking for a roommate just when I needed one.
Hopefully, Ella wouldn’t mind if I moved in a few days earlier than planned.
Fourteen
Dom
“Ugh, I can’t believe I only had one year of peace from you.” Ella dropped her head into her hands with a groan.
“You mean you dread the fact people at BRU are going to figure out how much cooler your brother is than you?” I popped a fry into my mouth and chewed obnoxiously. Repulsed, she peered up at me.
“I swear, you were five just yesterday. How did this happen?“
“No idea,” I said with my mouth full.
“You’re disgusting.”
Just to piss her off, I stuffed another fry into my mouth and chewed it with my mouth open.
“Will you stop?”
Just as I was about to answer, her phone went off, and she held up a finger to silence me. I rolled my eyes and made a face.
“Hey girl, what’s up?”
A female voice sounded on the other end of the line, and Ella listened intently, her eyebrows drawn together.
An expression of underlying concern spread across her face. “No, of course not. No worries. I won’t be around. It’s my brother’s graduation day, so I’ll be out of town for a couple of days.”
She began twisting a piece of her hair between her fingers, a dead giveaway that she was either lost in thought or something was bugging her.
Silently, I shot her a questioning glance, but she waved me off.
“Yeah, all right,” she said. “I still haven’t moved any of my stuff in, so it’s pretty much just bare bones in there. But I can call the leasing office and ask them to have the key ready for you.”
The ice clinked in my glass as I raised it to my mouth.
“I won’t be back until sometime this weekend. I’m sorry I can’t help you move your stuff into the apartment.”
Sipping the cold Sprite, I let some ice chips slide into my mouth and chewed them with a loud crunch. Ella shot me an irritated look, rolled her eyes, and shook her head.
“Okay, I’ll talk to you later, Sierra.”
The name hit me just as the next ice chip slid into my mouth.Sierra?
My head snapped up, and the ice chip rocketed to the back of my throat like a fucking missile. I choked, coughed, and sputtered — utterly betrayed by frozen water — while Ella threw me a look like I’d just ruined her entire life.
“God, Dom. Get agrip.”
I glared at her, took a gulp of my drink to wash it down, then cleared my throat, still wheezing.
