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I stare at the grinning man in front of him, and half a thought to run for the hills.
It has been a week since Liam dropped the bomb on me, and it has been a week since I went to work. I know I am being a total wuss about the whole situation but I would like to see who else has the guts to say that to my face.
God, I am done with myself.
If the situation is not bad enough, Dominic Grant has followed through on his statement and moved to the penthouse of my apartment complex.
And if that is not bad enough, then the words that Sally had spewed that day at the cafe resonate in my mind, making everything all the more confusing and complicated.
I am done.
Back to the grinning man in front of me.
Dominic Grant stands before me in something that I had never envisaged him in - a pair of loose grey shorts and a white tee, with three huge bags of groceries easily held onto by one hand and the one hand holding his phone and car keys.
"You are a sight to behold." He says and I have to wonder if he was mocking me or if he actually meant it because he harbored feelings for me like Sally said he did. I was in the same red hoodie I have been wearing for the past three days and my hair splayed all over my shoulder.
I know I am a mess and I am ashamed of it but I just can't bring myself to do anything about it.
I know that Nora is starting to wonder and Jeremy and Sally are starting to worry. I know that even my little girl is finding my behavior fishy. I need to get a hold of myself before I ruin everything for myself.
"I am sick. Give me a break." I say. It is not entirely false. I am sick. I even have a doctor's note which got me off work the past week.
"What do you mean?" He drops his bags immediately and eliminates the distance between us in two long strides, worry etched on his otherwise smooth features as he brings his hand toward my forehead.
I shy away from his touch, bringing my own hand up to where I could feel the ghost of his touch, soft and tender.
"I don't have a fever." I gurgle, taking a step back.
"That time of the month?" He asks. And there is no mocking about it. The way his nose crinkles as he asks it, it's as if he firsthand knows what it feels like to be menstruating.
I must have conveyed just how appalled I am by his question that he speaks up. "My sister, Theresa, who is a Swiftie as I have already told you - she gets the worst cramps and she just loses all her element when she is on her period. That's why I asked."
I nod.
"I am not. Not on my period. I just have an ear infection." I say and shrug. "I use an unhealthy amount of Q-tips on my ears and I can't stop and it just got infected."
I don't know why I give him the whole story. Obviously, no one wants to hear the nasty details of how often I use frigging Q-tips on my ears. But I am just blurting things out to him, aren't I?
Does this all mean that Sally is right about me having feelings for him as well?
No, right?
None of this makes sense.
Ugh, I can't deal with this right now.
My phone rings just then. And I think I am saved. But the relief only lasts a second when I realise the call is from none other than Liam. He is the cause of all my distress these days. Dominic had been at it for weeks and I was only annoyed by it, but it is after Liam decided to ambush me that everything changed.
"Liam." I say, my voice detached. I place my hand on the receiver and excuse myself from Dominic before walking away. "What do you want?"
I am aware of Dominic's heavy set of footsteps behind me. Well, we live in the same building now and the elevators are this way.
"Did you talk to Mom about my wedding? She has not called me yet and she still refuses to pick up my phone calls." I can hear the commotion on the other hand and I can tell from it that he is at a bar or a club. He could be drinking. Oh, I hope he is drinking. I don't want him using his sober for months card when the custody case is in trial.
I am a b***h but I make no apologies for wanting my child with me.
"I haven't." I say. "I just got caught up with a lot of things lately that it completely slipped my mind." It's a complete lie because this is all that has occupied my mind since he dropped the news. But he doesn't need to know that.
I press the call button for the elevator, keeping my own shopping bag on the concrete floor as Dominic comes to stand next to me.
"Oh." Is all I get from another end. I hear gulping sound and then a thud of glass meeting wood.
He's drinking.
Good. Good.
"I am on my way up to the apartment. I will tell her today." I say, feeling much more optimistic now that I have the alcoholism to use against him.
"Thanks Cass. Please ask her to call me. You too. We need to discuss the details of the wedding." He says.
"Sure."
I hang up the call and without glancing over at Dominic, enter the elevator.
He grunts as he follows me in. I press on both our floors, feeling sorry for him.
"Why are you balancing all of that in one hand?" I ask.
"Pulled a muscle moving things around at the apartment." He shrugs.
We don't talk for the rest of the ride up the elevator. But as I exit at my floor, he asks, "Aren't you going to invite me over?"
I turn around, raising a brow. But since I am feeling much much generous today, I say, "Why don't you come over around seven for dinner? Unit 3202."
"I know." He winks before he disappears behind the closing doors.
Am I going to regret this?
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