Christine snuffed out her cigarette in the overflowing ashtray, her hand shaking. She should really empty that out. As a matter of fact, she should clean up the apartment a little while she was at it. She should pick herself up from that chair, stop smoking all together, gather up the mess around her, and pull herself together.
At the moment, it was too hard. It was three days ago when she'd decided to quit drinking and partying cold turkey. Because it was three days ago when, while waltzing out of a club at five in the morning, a dumb, drunk grin on her face, she noticed a gossip magazine hanging in a news stand by the subway station.
The title had sobered her up faster than the cold November air. Freider Grant was dead. And she had missed the news, missed his funeral, because she'd been too busy sleeping during the day and partying her nights away.
Trying to numb the pain, to make herself feel adored and relevant had slowly and steadily pulled her away from her ultimate goal. Sam. Everything was to get Sam back. And yet, she'd missed being by his side in one of the worst moments of his life because she'd been to weak to face the pain, to face what she'd done.
And oh, how much she'd missed... Her hand lingered over a news article with a picture of Sam and a blonde woman together. In her drunken stupor, she had been so convinced that all she had to do was wait, that Sam would come back home and everything will be alright. Angie was nothing but a distraction, and Tom would nip it in the bud. He'd be lonely and he'd come to her, like he always did.
Never in her craziest dreams had she imagined that he could move on, find someone else. That woman. That mysterious woman no one knew anything about. The one by his side at the funeral. That should've been you.
She groaned and knocked the magazine off the vanity table, letting it join the rest of the papers on the floor. So much had changed while she'd refused to face the world. Jerry had found someone else, finally leaving Tina behind. The lack of attacks from Snitch Gravel. Freider dying. Sam and whoever that was.
Who is she? Why is she there? Where did he find her? Were they actually together? Of course the tabloids buzzed, but they used to buzz about Kyle and Jessie, so people were stupid. They could be just friends.
Her hand found the cigarette pack and she pulled out another Virginia Slim. She needed to quit smoking, but one vice at a time. Drinking first. She hadn't had anything in three days and the thirst withered her throat. But she wouldn't give in. She would get herself back together, be beautiful again, without the clammy skin, unplucked brows and messy hair. Then she would go find Sam again and that blonde would become a thing of the past.
If she could only renounce those vices faster. Withdrawal was taking up time she didn't have.
The sound of the keys in the door had her freezing with the lighter halfway to the cigarette. It was impossible, she had to be hearing things. There was no way someone had opened the door because no one had the keys except for...
The keys hit the table. Christine dropped everything she was holding and rushed to the doorway, her itching eyes scanning the living room. Sam was indeed there and had just shrugged his jacket off and tossed it on the back of the couch. He wore faded blue jeans and a red t-shirt, and looked so much more different than she remembered.
He seemed taller, broader, more mature than the last time she'd seen him. How long ago was that anyway, when she'd broken him outside the University? A month? A month and a half? Heat pooled into the pit of her stomach, bringing a dizziness to her head that was hard to shake off. Facing Sam like this was not a good idea, but it wasn't like he gave her any choice.
He completely ignored her and headed for the hallway closet, his gait calm and collected, as if being in there, grabbing a carry on, gathering his things, was the most normal thing in the world and he didn't care for her presence. The thought clogged her throat, made it impossible to let out a sound.
YOU ARE READING
Lose Control (The Jewel Project #5)
Adventure"It's never going to end, is it? The rivalry, the hatred, the madness. Not even now. Not even after so many years." It has been three years since the last jewel was recovered, and the Agency seems to have put the project to rest. They have a new tar...
