Uncontrollable (10 page)

I’ve never seen Tate look so terrified. His eyes go
back and forth between her and me a few times. He must be thinking that she’s
talking about him being her brother but that can’t be true. As far as I know,
no one else in this town knows that information.

“What are you talking about?” I ask before this
gets any worse.

She narrows her eyes back on me “You told him I was
cheating on him with Tate,” she snaps. Tate starts coughing as if he’s choking
to death at that statement. “Then you made it sound like I am
still
sleeping with him. Like you two just pass me back and forth.” She’s almost
frantic, her hands waving around in the air. “You know, like a piece of meat,”
she spits out.

“Calm down,” I growl. “You don’t know what you’re
talking about. And where did you come up with all this shit?”

“He showed up at my work today.” She crosses her
arms over her chest. “You and Tate have him scared to death.”

Tate chuckles, and she gives him a death glare.

“Should he not be?” I ask her. “Do you want him
coming around? Because if you want that…” I spread my arms out in front of me
leaving the question hang.

“You are not going to do this.” She stabs a finger
into my chest. “You are not going to blame me for something you did.” She
throws her hands up in the air. “But just so you know, I’m okay.” She snorts.
“He didn’t try to touch me or anything.” She throws her hands out to her side.
“Not like you asked, but he just threatened me.”

I step toward her. “Threatened you with what?” I
snap.

She crosses her arms over her chest and sticks her
hip out. “Don’t worry, I took care of it. I filed a restraining order on him.”
Then she spins around before she storms off running up the stairs.

“Man, what the fuck was all that about?” Josh asks.
“Why would you be talking to Jax?”

I run a hand over my hair fucking stressed to the
max. He threatened her? Didn’t I tell the motherfucker to stay away from her?
“He showed up at my office a while back. And started going on about how she is
cheating on me with Tate.” I shrug. “I didn’t deny it.”

Josh looks over at Tate. “Did you guys have a
thing?” Then his eyes flick back to me nervously.

Tate looks like he wants to puke at that thought
and if shit hadn’t just blown up in my face, I would laugh.

“No, they have never had a
thing
. Remember
you were there when Tate entered the picture,” I remind Josh of when Tate
showed up her mother’s house after her death.

He nods his head as if he’s trying to put the
pieces together. “Then why didn’t you deny it?”

“Because I could care less what the fuck he thinks.
Back when he cheated on her, the fucker broke her heart,” I say gritting my
teeth. “I didn’t want him to think he actually had that power over her.” I sit
back down on the couch and release a sigh. Maybe it’s me who doesn’t want to
think he had that power over her. That she could have loved him enough for
that.

“What are we going to do about him?” Tate asks
sounding determined to get rid of this fucker.

“I know some guys who could do me some favors.” I
look up at them, my face serious.

Josh frowns, and Tate looks intrigued. “What?” I
ask Josh.

“Who owes you favors?”

“I’m a defense attorney.”
I wave a hand in the air. “I have let many people walk who deserved to spend
their lives in jail.” I shrug. “Call it returning a favor.”

He gives a fake laugh. “Funny,” he says dryly.

I wasn’t joking.

Tate pats me on the shoulder. “Let me do all the
dirty work my friend.” Then he points a finger to the stairs. “Just try to stay
out of trouble. The last thing we need is you pissing her off and her ending up
leaving.”

“Leave?” Josh arches an eyebrow. “You can’t make
her stay.”

“Yes I can,” I say before taking a drink of my
beer.

“I’m out of here.” Josh sighs.

“What? We still have another game to play.” I look
over to the pool table.

He shakes his head. “No. Looks like I need to get
home and let Courtney know we might be having company.”

I tilt my head in confusion.

“Because Sam is either going to come to our house
or go to Micah and Holly’s when you two piss her off,” he explains.

“Makes sense,” Tate concurs, as if that is an
option.

I shake my head. “She’s not leaving this house
tonight. Or any night,” I add.

Josh has a look of pity on his face. “Pick your
fights, Slade,” he throws over his shoulder before he walks up the stairs.

“Another game?” Tate says turning to the pool
table.

“Might as well.” I sure as hell don’t want to go
upstairs and deal with her at the moment. “Let’s have a drink with our game,” I
suggest, walking over to the small mini bar, and opening the rum to pour us
both a rum and Coke. Sometimes a beer just won’t cut it. I hand him his full
glass, we clink them together, and we both take a big swig before starting our
game.

Three hours later, after losing count of how many rum
and Cokes I’ve had, I find my way up the stairs. Tate follows slowly behind me.

“Go crash in the spare room,” I offer for the third
time.

He nods his head and heads off down the hallway to
our spare bedroom. I stumble to our bedroom and curse when I find the door
locked.

She locked me out.

I bang on the door a few times trying to wake her
up. I know her. She probably took a nice long bubble bath and then passed out.
She also probably thought I would try to get a piece of ass tonight. There’s
been several times where she has woke with my head between her legs or my dick
in her pussy after she went to bed mad at me. I could have easily restrained
her and had my way with her, but that would have just ended up pissing her off
more.

I release a sigh as I try the door one last time. I
could open it but just don’t really care right now. With my hands fisted down
to my side I turn around and walk down the hall into the media room. I pull a
blanket off the back of the couch and once I’m naked, I lie down and cover
myself up.

CHAPTER FIVE

I walk out of the closet
dressed and ready for work when I realize I don’t see Slade’s clothes anywhere.
I grab my purse and walk out the bedroom. I make my way to the kitchen and see
a pair of keys lying on the kitchen counter. Picking them up, I notice they
belong to Tate’s truck.

Did he stay the night?

Once the coffee is started, I make my way down the
hall to the bedroom in the back. I slowly open the door to find him snoring on
his stomach, still fully clothed.

I enter. “Tate,” I say loudly. He doesn’t even
budge. “Tate,” I call louder and shove him a bit.

His body rolls over onto his back and a small pill
bottle falls out of his jeans pocket. I frown and pick them up. I try to read
what it says but the writing on the bottle is worn off. I squint my eyes trying
to get a better look when it is snatched out of my hands.

I jump back with a yelp and a look of surprise on
my face as I look into Tate’s dark blue eyes.

He climbs out of bed, not saying a word, and walks
to the bathroom. I try to think of what those could have been for. Tate doesn’t
do drugs. Does he? I mean they seemed like they were legit. I roll my eyes at
myself. I’m sure druggies keep their illegal drugs in a prescription bottle as
one way to not look so obvious.

I make my way back to the kitchen and sit down at
the table waiting for him to come down the hall. As soon as I see him, I sit up
straight.

“We need to talk,” I say deadpan.

He gives me a look of annoyance. “What I do is none
of your business,” he says flatly.

My eyes drop to his pocket where I can now see the
pill bottle taking up the space. Does he always have them? “Drugs?” I ignore
him.

“I don’t do drugs,” he says flatly.

“I’m sure that’s what all drug addicts say.” I
cross my arms over my chest.

He slams his hand down on the countertop making me
jump. “Let’s get this straight. I do not do any illegal drugs. What my doctor
prescribes is between him and me. Got it?”

I hold his stare, trying not to let him intimidate
me. His dark blue eyes look bloodshot, and his jaw is hard. His lips in a thin
line. I sigh. “I don’t want to fight with you.” I run a hand through my hair.
“You’re right. It’s none of my business. I’m just worried about you.”

He sits down. “No need to be.”

“Tate I…”

He places his hand up and stops me. “I don’t want to
hear it, Sam.” He takes in a long breath before he lets it out. “Let’s talk
about what happened last night with Jax.”

“You guys are lying to me,” I accuse, already
knowing they have secrets.

“I lied to you. Well technically I didn’t lie. I
just didn’t tell you everything.”

I clench my jaw. “Tell me everything now.”

He looks up at me. “When you came and saw me at my
house, wanting to know about your mother, I told you that I had kept tabs on
you. I knew the night you went and stayed with Holly and Micah that you were
going back the next day to move out your stuff. That next day when they took
you to the hospital, I went to your house and beat the shit out of him.”

“What?” My mouth drops. “He said my boyfriend did
it.”

He looks nervous for a second as his eyes look
everywhere in the room except at me. “I told him that I was your boyfriend.”

“Why?” I frown. That makes no sense.

He reaches up and rubs his forehead as if he
shouldn’t need to explain this. “Because I didn’t want him coming back around
you. I didn’t want him bothering you.”

I put my elbows on the table and place my face in
my hands. “I’m not mad at you about that. But why couldn’t you just have told
me?”

He shrugs. “I didn’t feel it was necessary.”

“Isn’t that my call to make? Since it’s my ex we’re
talking about?”

“I guess you could see it that way.”

We sit there in the silence for a few seconds. “Is
there anything else you want to tell me regarding Jax?” I ask.

“Just that I’m going to kick his ass again,” he
says, and I swear the corners of his mouth turn up a little bit.

I laugh. “Okay then,” I reply, standing up.

He lifts an eyebrow. “Not gonna slap me like you
did Slade?”

“No. Slade pissed me off. I had time to sleep off
my anger. So you get off easy.”

“How did he piss you off?”

I take one last drink of my coffee before I rinse
the mug out and place it in the dishwasher. “Because I know he’s keeping
something from me.” Tate shifts uncomfortably in his seat. “I just can’t figure
out what it is.”

He stands from the table. “Give him a break. It’s
not easy living with you.”

I gasp, and he laughs. “What? I can’t imagine it’s
easy living with any chick,” he adds.

I smile and then shrug. “True. But it’s also not
easy living with a controlling male who thinks he runs the world.”

He chuckles as he turns around and starts to walk
out the front door. “Oh, Tate?”

“What?” He turns to face me.

“Just so you know, I’m throwing Missy a birthday
party here at the house tomorrow night,” I announce with a smile.

“I know,” he says releasing a sigh. “She already
invited me.” He waves his hand in the air. “Don’t worry. I’m coming.”

“You don’t have an option.”

He shakes his head at me but chuckles as he walks
out the door. I push Slade and last night out of my mind as I grab my purse and
head off to work.

I walk into the house with
Courtney later that evening, our hands full of sacks.

I throw my sacks up onto the countertop in the
kitchen and start to go through them. “Did you buy the entire store?” Courtney
jokes.

“Just everything having to do with turning
twenty-one.”

“Is everything okay with you and Slade?” she asks
pulling out a pack of balloons.

“Why do you ask?” I try not to let her question
bother me.

“Well, because you only spoke with him once today,
and you were real short. Usually you can’t keep him from calling or texting
you.”

“I was busy,” I say defensively.

“Rearranging your pens in your drawer?” she asks
with a smile.

I open the second sack and start to unpack it. “We
got into a fight when I got home last night,” I finally say.

“Oh I know that. Josh told me you slapped him.” She
gets a dreamy smile on her face. “Wish I could have seen that. I bet he was
shocked. Hell, Josh was in shock when he told me. But I’m guessing it takes a
lot to shock Slade.”

I look over at her a little shocked myself. “He
told you that?”

She nods. “He told me to make sure the sheets were
clean in the spare bedroom, because he figured you would end up crashing at our
house.” She drapes her arm over my shoulder. “Not gonna lie. I was totally
looking forward to having a girls’ night.” She sighs dramatically.

“I wasn’t going anywhere. I just went to the
bedroom, took a long bath, and then went to sleep. Of course I locked the
bedroom door so he couldn’t get in.” I smile as I recall him beating on the
door last night to let him in. I had fallen asleep but the pounding of his fist
on the door woke me up. There was no way in hell I was getting up to open it
though. I didn’t want to argue anymore.

“So you guys are fine now?” She removes her arm and
places a balloon in her mouth and starts to blow it up.

I shrug. “Not really. He left this morning before I
had woken up. Somehow he unlocked the bedroom door and got ready for work this
morning. I haven’t really talked to him today about it.”

“Gotta keep these men on their toes,” she says
between breaths while blowing up the balloons.

“Why are you blowing those up? I want them to be
full of helium.”

She stops blowing and lets it go. It flies threw
the kitchen making a strange noise as all the air releases.

“You didn’t tell me that,” she says pulling in a
few deep breaths.

I raise an eyebrow. “Only ten weeks pregnant and
you’re already out of shape?” I tease as she huffs and puffs.

She reaches down and picks up the pack of balloons
before she throws them at my chest. “That’s not fair,” she whines. “I’ve
already gained ten pounds. I have a feeling I’m going to look like a beached
whale by the time I have this baby,” she pouts, rubbing her belly that is still
flat. I think the ten pounds are in her head.

“Well then I will push you out to sea and set you
free,” I quip.

She gasps dramatically. “I can’t believe you said
that.” She holds a hand over her heart as if I hurt her.

“What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t try to
save a beached whale?” I try to sound serious, but I can’t get through it
without laughing.

“You can be such a little bitch.” She smiles at me.

I bow. “Why thank you.”

“That wasn’t a compliment.”

“I took it as one.”

She rolls her eyes then changes the subject. “What
did Slade say when you told him you were throwing this party for Missy?”

I had very shortly explained it to him when we
spoke today. “He said ‘oh yeah, I forgot about her birthday’.”

“Typical man.”

I nod my head agreeing with her. I feel my body
stiffen when I hear the door to the garage open. I keep my head down and
continue to pull a birthday banner out of the sack when I hear Slade enter the
house.

He walks in, and I feel my heart rate pick up as he
walks around the kitchen. He walks up behind me and pulls the hair off my
shoulder. He bends down and places a soft kiss on my neck. I curse my arms for
breaking out in goosebumps.

“How was your day, Angel?” he asks softly.

“Fine,” I say curtly.

He places another kiss on my neck. “My day was
great,” he answers like I had asked.

I roll my eyes at him and pull away. I’m still mad
at him. He had no right to talk to Jax about our relationship, not to mention
everything else he lied about.

“Anyway, I made a stop on my way home for you,” he
says turning away from me and placing his sack on the counter by the fridge.

I turn around to look at him as he pulls out my
favorite bottle of wine; Barefoot Moscato. “Just something I thought you would
want for the party tomorrow night,” he says with a knowing smile. “Or if you
just wanted a glass tonight while you took a hot bubble bath.”

 Courtney places her elbow on the table and her
chin in her hand. She looks over at him with a dreamy smile as she lets out a
small sigh.
Pushover.

“And also.” He then pulls out a box of Godiva
chocolates.

I narrow my eyes at him, and I look over to see
Courtney instantly drooling at the sight of them.

“Thanks,” I say taking them from his hands and
handing them to her.

“You’re very welcome, Angel,” he says sweetly. “I’m
going to go take a shower,” he announces before he walks out of the kitchen.

“Mmmmhmm,” Courtney says through a mouthful of
chocolates already. “He’s good,” she compliments, nodding her head. “Very
good.”

“Yes.” I sigh. “That he is.” I throw down the bag
of streamers and follow after him.

I storm into the bedroom and head toward the
bathroom. As soon as I walk through the bathroom door he grabs me and spins me
around. “I knew you would follow me,” he smirks. “Was it the chocolates or the
wine? I would like to know for future reference.”

I ignore his cocky attitude. I’m not in the mood
for it. “All I want to know is why you lied to him.”

He lets out a long breath as he slowly runs his
hands down my arms. “I know how much he broke your heart.”

I frown. “You weren’t there, Slade. You don’t know
anything.”

“I wasn’t there but I remember the way you sounded
when you called me.” His baby blue eyes look deep into mine. “I knew from the
second you spoke his name that you loved him.”

I don’t know where he is going with this but for a
moment I regret asking.

 “When he confronted me in my office he acted as if
you were nothing to him. As if he never loved you.” He pulls away from me and
starts to pace. “When he said you were cheating on me with Tate, I laughed. I
know that you would never do that to me.” He comes back and places his hands on
my face. “I know you love me, Angel. But I hate the fact that you once loved
him.”