The Girl Next Door
Chapter 51

"You really said that?" Alyssa gapes before shoveling the last of my enchilada into her mouth. It's been sitting untouched in the refrigerator for days. "To Dr. H?" she mumbles around a mouthful of tortilla, cheese, and chicken.

I swing away from her as she sits on the couch in our living room. "Yup."

"Damn, girl!" she hoots, slapping her thigh. "You are seriously my hero!"

I tunnel my fingers through my hair and groan. Days later and I'm still reeling from the encounter in the bathroom at El Toro.

"No, I'm not." I spin toward her again as I continue to pace. A mixture of nerves and nausea makes it impossible to sit still.

My bestie shakes her head. "Are you kidding me? Everyone on campus has heard the rumors about Hayes. It's about time someone called her out on her bullshit."

"I've heard the gossip, too," I admit, "but I never suspected there was any truth behind it." I blow out a slow breath. "If I hadn't seen it happen with my own eyes, I still wouldn't believe it." Which only makes me feel like more of an a*****e because I sat there in the library and brushed off Beck's concerns. Then I called him a liar and pretty much told him to f**k off.

"What are you going to do? File a complaint with the university?"

"I don't know." My teeth sink into my lower lip before worrying it. "I need to talk with Beck. He's the real victim in all this. I'm not sure if it's my place to say anything." "When are you going to do that?"

"I have no idea." I drop onto the leather armchair across from the couch. A mirthless chuckle escapes from my lips. "After the way I treated him, it's doubtful he'll ever speak to me again." I lift my fingers to massage my temples. A headache brews behind them. "And I can't blame him for that."

The look she gives me is full of pity. "Yeah, blocking him on your phone and all social media probably wasn't the best move. You kind of went nuclear on his a*s."

I wince. Her assessment of the situation isn't wrong. I have no idea if there's a way to come back from this.

A soft knock on the apartment door has both our heads whipping toward the entryway. Alyssa's eyes widen. "Do you think that's him?"

"Why are you whispering?" I glance at the door. "Do you really think he can hear us?" She sticks out her tongue before jumping off the couch and jogging toward the door.

We're both surprised when she swings it open only to replace Colton on the other side.

I crane my neck to see what's going on. Their voices drop, becoming hushed. Their heads are bent together as if sharing secrets, but that can't be. Alyssa hates Colton with the passion of a thousand burning suns. I strain my ears to hear what's being said but can't make out anything other than whispered tones.

Well, well, well...isn't this an interesting turn of events.

I'm tempted to sidle up to the pair and stick my nose where it doesn't belong. When Alyssa shoots a furtive glance over her shoulder, I don't bother to hide my interest in their conversation.

Wait a minute...is Alyssa blushing?

That can't be. The girl doesn't have a bashful bone in her body. Not only is this exchange becoming more fascinating by the second, but it's taking my mind off Beck and the disaster I made of our relationship.

She swings toward me. Her gaze darts around the living room, landing everywhere but on me. "So...we're going to grab something to eat."

"Really?" I point to the empty food container on the coffee table that she practically licked clean. "You inhaled an entire enchilada."

"I have a big appetite." Her eyes narrow. "Are you trying to food shame me?"

My shoulders shake with laughter. "Not at all."

If it's possible, more color seeps into her cheeks.

Damn, but I really need to replace out what's going on between them. Because obviously something is. And the b***h hasn't mentioned one word. Looks like I'm not the only one keeping secrets.

"I'll see you later," she mutters, swiping her purse from the credenza near the front door.

"Yes, we'll definitely-"

The sentence isn't even out of my mouth before she slams the door shut behind her, leaving me to my own devices.

I wave a hand at the empty doorway. "No, no, that's all right, I'll stay here," I call out, raising my voice to add, "thanks anyway for the invite!"

With a sigh, I allow my body to sink into the chair before staring at the ceiling. I need to figure out how I'm going to handle the situation with Beck. No matter what happens between us, I need to apologize. Read more free novels at Ebookex.com There's a knock on the door as my phone chimes with an incoming text. I jump from the chair and glance at the message. It's from Alyssa.

Heads up.

My brows slam together.

Could she be more cryptic?

I need a decoder to figure it out.

Or maybe I can buy a vowel.

I pad to the front door and pull it open. My heart stutters before beating into overdrive at the person I replace standing in the hallway.

"Dad." My fingers bite into the handle. I'm so tempted to slam the door in his face. Especially after the lunch with Mom. "What are you doing here?"

He's the last person I expected to replace knocking on my door.

Make that the second last.

Looking strangely nervous, he shrugs and stuffs his hands into the pockets of his slacks. "I thought I'd stop by so we could talk."

"Oh....I wish you would have called first."

His lips ghost into a thin smile. "Maybe if you would have answered my calls, stopping by unannounced wouldn't have become necessary." "Yeah," I mutter, "I guess."

When I don't budge from the doorway, he says, "Are you going to invite me in?"

Begrudgingly, I step aside, giving him room to pass. Once he's inside the tiny entryway, I close the door and head into the living room before dropping onto the chair. He follows me in, settling on the couch across from me.

He looks around the room, taking in all the little details that have been added. Both of my parents helped me move in, but he hasn't been back to see the finished product. "I like what you've done to the place, it looks nice." "Thanks." I shift on the chair as an uncomfortable silence settles over us.

We both fidget, looking everywhere but at each other.

This is beyond awkward.

What sucks is that my father and I have always had a close relationship. He's the one who introduced me to tennis. When I was a kid, he would take me to the courts, and we would spend hours hitting balls and working on my serve. I have a lot of great memories of my dad that revolve around tennis. It's difficult to swallow that he blew it all to s**t with one traitorous action. I'm not sure if it's possible for us to get back to that place again. The man sitting across from me doesn't resemble the one who filled those memories. Nerves stretch tautly across my skin as he releases a sigh before dropping his gaze to his clenched hands.

"I'm sorry, Mia."

"For what?" Now that the shock of his visit has dissipated, fury rushes in to fill the void. I can't stop dwelling on my lunch with Mom and the anguish and humiliation he inflicted upon her.

"For lying," he says, "and hurting you. Most of all, I'm sorry you found out about my affair the way you did. I should have handled the situation differently."

My eyes narrow. "So...you're sorry for hurting me and that I found out the way I did but not for cheating on your wife and breaking up our family." Maybe I'm being a little harsh, but that's too damn bad. I refuse to make this easy on him.

His shoulders slump under the weight of my words, and suddenly, he looks much older than his forty-eight years. "I've been in love with Mandi for a long time." He searches my eyes before admitting, "And now that we don't have to sneak around, it's like a huge weight has been lifted from my shoulders. Everything is out in the open, and I'm no longer stuck..."

Did he seriously just say that?

It's only after his voice trails off that I realize my eyes have widened, and my mouth is hanging open.

"Wow." Slowly I shake my head. "I guess it all worked out for you, Dad."

"I didn't mean it like that," he says, attempting to backtrack. "It's just a relief not to be living a lie. The last two years have been stressful."

I bet.

His words are like a punch to the gut.

"You've been sleeping with this woman for two years?"

He jerks his head into a nod.

"That's it then?" I stare at him as a fresh wave of shock washes over me. "You're not going to try to fix your marriage?"

Guilt flickers in his eyes before they skitter away. "No. Our marriage has been over for a long time." He clears his throat. "I'm sure your mother would agree with that."

"It might have been nice if you'd had a conversation with her about it before you slept with someone else."

He hangs his head. "You're right. I shouldn't have allowed the situation to spiral so far out of control. I take full responsibility for that. After Brianna died, your mother and I drifted apart. When you left for college, I realized how unhappy I was in our marriage. I thought about leaving at that point, but your mother was still in such a fragile place. So, I waited and hoped things would get better." He shrugs helplessly. "But they didn't."

I press my lips together, refusing to say anything. If he's looking for sympathy, he won't get it from me.

"Is it so difficult to understand that I wouldn't want to spend the rest of my life in a loveless marriage?" He waits for a beat before continuing. "Your mother and I have become more like roommates than anything else. Old friends who are stuck together, making the best of a situation." He searches my eyes. "But the thing is, I love Mandi. She makes me feel young and hopeful again. This is my second chance at happiness, and I need to take it before it passes me by."

I'm rendered speechless by everything coming out of his mouth.

Who the hell is this guy because I sure as hell don't know.

"Mia? Did you hear me?"

I jerk back to our conversation and shake my head to clear it. "No, sorry." I'm on information overload. I can't process anything else.

He leans forward, and excitement leaps to life in his eyes. "When you're ready, I'd like to introduce you to Mandi."

He wants to introduce me to the woman he left my mother for?

The same woman he's been cheating with for two years?

I don't even know what to say. Wrapping my lips around words feels impossible. I can only sit and stare at him.

"She has two kids. They're still in middle school, but you're going to love them." He pauses, enthusiasm growing in his voice. "They can't wait to meet you."

I shake my head. "No."

Is he insane?

Or am I the one who has completely lost it?

I can't tell anymore.

He tilts his head. "No?"

"I'm nowhere ready to meet the woman you left Mom for, and I have no desire to meet her kids either."

Surprise flickers across his face before he mumbles, "Well, I didn't mean this very minute. I was thinking more like a month or two. Christmas is right around the corner, and I was hoping we could have everything smoothed over by then." Nope, it's definitely him. He's lost his ever-loving mind. He'll be lucky if this is smoothed over by the following Christmas.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, Dad," I shove a hand through my hair, surprised I have to explain myself to him, "but I don't think that will happen."

Happiness drains from his eyes. "I guess you'll let me know when you're ready to be part of my new life."

You know what?

I have zero desire to be part of his new life.

In fact, he can take his new life and shove it where the sun doesn't shine.

How can he be so oblivious to the damage he caused?

It's like he wants to sweep it all under the rug and pretend it never happened so he can move on with someone else and start his new life. Meanwhile, Mom and I are trying to pick up the tattered pieces of our old one. It's a relief when Dad rises to his feet.

"I suppose I should go." He shoves his hands into his pockets. "You probably have homework or studying to finish up."

I nod, unwilling to tell him any different.

Neither of us speaks as we walk to the entryway. The man beside me no longer feels like my father. He's nothing more than a stranger. Once we reach the door, he pulls it open and pauses. "You'll keep in touch?"

Even though it's a lie, I nod. Maybe, at some point in the future, we'll be able to get our relationship back on track, but it'll take time. Whether or not he realizes it, he's inflicted a lot of pain that I need to work through. When he wraps his arms around me, I stand frozen, unable to return the embrace.

"Remember that I love you, Mia. None of this is your fault."

I suck in a sharp breath before gradually blowing it out. If I don't keep a tight rein on my emotions, I'll lose it. Not for one damn moment did I ever think I was to blame for the destruction of his marriage. The fault for that lies entirely with him. Once Dad releases me, his lips lift into a smile. After he disappears down the hallway, I close the door and sag against it.

This has officially become the week from hell.

With a sinking heart, I realize it's not over yet.