“How could you say that? He left that poor girl pregnant and alone to raise their baby by herself while he took the easy way out.”
Ian sighed. “Then maybe she should’ve been more careful.”
Oh, shit. I knew he didn’t just say that. It takes two people to make a baby.
“Why is it up to the woman to be careful? What about the guy? A woman doesn’t get pregnant by herself, Ian.”
“Listen, Rory, I’m not arguing about this with you. It’s stupid. Okay, she’s a single mom. I pay her well, so she shouldn’t have too much trouble paying the bills.”
“Give her a raise,” I blurted out.
Ian wiped his mouth on his napkin and looked at me. “No, I’m not giving her a raise.”
“For the bullshit she had to put up with concerning your father, I think she deserves one.”
“What are you talking about?”
Shit. I didn’t mean to say that.
“What are you talking about?” Ian asked again. “You know, Rory, you’ve had an issue with my father from the first day you met him and I don’t understand why, but it’s really starting to piss me off.”
Breathe. Breathe. Okay, this time, the breathing wasn’t working, and I was all fired up.
“Piss you off?!” I exclaimed as I got up from the table and pointed my finger at him. “Your father asked me to give him a b**w j*b this morning and then he had Mandy pinned up against the wall. So, the only one who should be pissed off here is me! Not you, Ian, because you don’t get to be pissed off. You can go f**k yourself because I’m done here. You’ve defended that disgusting pig one too many times.”
I stormed up the stairs and slammed the bedroom door. Tears started to fill my eyes and I was so burning mad that I couldn’t think or see straight. I needed to take to heart what Dr. Neil said about Ian. I paced back and forth across the room. A while later, the door opened and Ian stood there, staring at me. “Why are you pacing back and forth?” he asked.
“Get out, Ian. I don’t want to see you.”
“I called my father and he admitted that he did those things.”
I stopped dead in my tracks and turned to him. “Of course you called him, because my word wasn’t good enough.”
“What did you do to him?” he asked as he stepped inside the room and shut the door.
“Nothing. Why?”
“He said you’re a crazy bitch and I need to kick you out of my house before you hurt someone.” He smiled. “What did you do or say to him?”
“Did you ask him yourself?”
“Yes. But he just said that you’re crazy and he wouldn’t tell me anything else.”
I walked over and sat down on the bed. “I just grabbed him by his balls and told him that I’d rip them off if he ever looked my way or Mandy’s way again.”
Ian busted out laughing. “Are you serious? I would’ve given anything to see that,” he said as he walked over to the bed and sat down next to me. He put his arm around me and pulled me into him.
“I’m sorry, Rory. My dad has some serious issues and it all started when my mom left. I told him that he’s to apologize to you and Mandy on Thanksgiving.”
“What did he say to that?”
“He said he didn’t want to talk about it right now and that he probably won’t be coming for Thanksgiving.”
“I’m sorry, Ian.”
“Don’t be. It’s his problem, not ours. I’ll have a talk with Mandy tomorrow.”
“She didn’t want you to know. She’s afraid that you’ll fire her.”
“Why would I do that?” he asked.
“Maybe because you intimidate people.”
Ian sighed and pulled away. “Do I intimidate you?”
“No. You just irritate me.”
“Is that so?” he asked as he pushed me back on the bed and started tickling me.
I wiggled around, trying to make him stop. Finally, he did, and he looked into my eyes as he ran his finger along my face. We stared at each other for a moment before he leaned down and softly brushed his lips against mine. We didn’t just have sex that night. We made love. It was beautiful and I knew Ian felt something more.
Chapter 21
Hollis, Indiana. The town where I spent the last thirteen and a half years of my life in pure misery. To come back to this place caused me pain and anxiety. Ian rented a car and we drove to my aunt’s house. As we pulled onto the street, I started to get extremely nervous and my chest felt like it was tightening.
“It’s right here,” I said as I pointed to the white vinyl house on the right. The fall air was a lot cooler here than in Malibu.
Ian pulled up to curb and grabbed my hand. “You’re strong, Rory. This place made you strong, so there’s nothing here that can hurt you anymore.”
I smiled at him and we both got out of the car. I could see the look of disgust on Ian’s face as we walked towards the door. I lightly knocked and was shocked when I saw Shane open the door.
“Rory?”
“Hi, Shane.”
“It’s good to see you, girl. Get in here.” He smiled as he hugged me.
“Ian, this is Shane, my aunt’s drug dealer. Shane, this is Ian. He’s a friend.”
Against Ian’s better judgment, they shook hands. The house was a mess. Shit was lying around everywhere.
“Where’s Aunt Nancy?” I asked.
“She just ran to the store. She’ll be back soon. What are you doing here?” he asked.
“I came to put some closure on my past. My therapist said that I needed to. You know, the therapist I have to see because of the f**ked up life Nancy provided for me.”
Shane didn’t say anything as he walked to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer. “You want one?” he asked Ian and me. We both said no. “Nancy told me that Stephen attacked you. Is that true?”
“Yes,” I said as I lifted up my shirt and showed him the scar. “He caught me off guard. Came at me from behind.”
“I’m sorry, Rory.”
“Yeah, me too, Shane. He’s in a psychiatric hospital, getting the help he needs.”
“That’s good. That’s real good. That boy needs it.”
“Why are you here?” I asked.
“I’m living here now. My house caught on fire about a month ago, and Nancy was kind enough to take me in.”
“Yeah, I bet she was. Let me guess; the house fire had something to do with you cooking up some crystal meth, didn’t it?”