Unraveled (Holding On Book 3) (8 page)

“I wish I could’ve been there with you,” Quinn said. “I’m sure you could’ve used the support.”

Carly finally laughed. “Well, I’ll forgive you just this once. I mean, you are in the hospital, you know.”

Quinn smiled but Carly could tell she didn’t mean it. “What are you going to do now?”

Carly knew that Quinn was asking about the long-term. Since she didn’t have an answer to that, she didn’t try to give one.

“Now? Now I’m going to hang out with my big sister and nieces until the nursing staff kicks me out of here.” She glanced at her watch, checking to see how much longer visiting hours would last. “I’m guessing that will be in less than two hours and then, I think I’m going to give Jemma a call.”

7

“I don’t know if I can handle you being in town much longer,” Jemma admitted. “I’m not as young as I used to be. I don’t remember the last time I went out drinking two nights in a row.”

Carly tilted her beer toward Jemma in a half-salute. “Neither can
I. But, you know, desperate times and all. Besides, I’m working through the four stages of being dumped. It’s easier to do with a beer in hand.”

Jemma cocked an eyebrow at her. “Do I even want to know what that means?
The four stages?”

“First, I was shocked.
Then crushed. Next comes pissed. The. Hell. Off. That’s where I am right now,” she conspiratorially admitted as she leaned in. She gave a little shrug. “Next? I’m over it.”

Jemma nodded slowly as if not sure she agreed. “So you’ve already pretty much worked your way through this break-up?
Even though it only happened
yesterday
?”

Carly gave her a solemn nod before taking a sip of her beer. “I have. And do you know why?
Because he was such a douche about it. It makes it a whole lot easier to get over him.” Her eyes glittered with anger.

“I doubt you’re almost over it. You were engaged to the man,” Jemma pointed out.
She was positive Carly was nowhere near ‘over it’. But if it helped her friend to pretend that she was, she wasn’t going to argue. Then Jemma smiled. “However, you do have the good and pissed down to a science.”

This brought a smirk to Carly’
s face but it quickly fell away. “I know I should probably be glad he wasn’t cheating on me.” Carly noted the surprise that flitted across Jemma’s face. “But I think in some ways, that would be easier.”

“Why in the hell would you say that?” Jemma demanded.
She had her head cocked to the side, her drink poised in mid-air.

Carly
tried to organize her thoughts from the other morning into something that would make sense. “I don’t know. Maybe because at least I’d feel like there was a reason? Right now, I feel like there isn’t a reason. I mean, other than the fact he simply doesn’t want me. And I don’t know why. I don’t know what I did wrong. At least if there was someone else, I’d know why.”

Jemma was quiet for a moment and Carly was sure she was processing that.
And probably trying to come up with a way to refute it. “You might think that now,” Jemma finally said, “but I’m sure if there had been someone else, you’d be feeling a whole lot differently.”

Carly shrugged, looking completely unconvinced. She took a sip of her beer instead of arguing her point.
Jemma was probably right. When it came right down to it, break-ups sucked no matter what. And broken engagements? They sucked doubly bad.

“So last night…?” Jemma asked in a leading tone. She was obviously trying to lead Carly’s thoughts away from Nolan.
“You and Jesse? I heard you went home with him.” She kept her tone completely flat but Carly could tell she was dying to hear what happened.

She shrugged. “You’d probably be disappointed to hear that
nothing
happened.”

“I find that hard to believe,” Jemma said with a smile.
“You and Jesse? You just have this chemistry.”

“And a really crappy history,” Carly reminded her.

“It’s not all crappy,” Jemma said firmly. “In fact, the way he was looking at you last night?”

“Yeah, I don’t think so,” Carly said before Jemma could elaborate. “I mean, I went home with him and nothing happened.
Nothing at all.”

Jemma shook her head and pointed at Carly’s ring.
“Because of
that
. He couldn’t stop checking out your ring last night.”

Carly glanced down at her hand.

“Did you
want
something to happen with him?”

“What? No! I mean, I didn’t really think about it,” Carly said.

“Maybe you should think about it,” Jemma told her. “I think a few hours alone with Jesse would be the perfect cure for your broken heart. You should’ve told him you weren’t engaged. I think he’d really like to know that.”

Carly let out a bitter laugh. If anything, Jesse had the power to shatter her already broken heart completely.

“You know, I was thinking,” Jemma said as she leaned forward on her elbows. She pointed to Carly’s left hand again. “That rock you still have on? Maybe you could hock it. That has to be worth at least a few months’ rent.”

Carly glanced down at her hand. The stone sparkled back at her.

“You don’t think I should give it back to him?” she wondered.

Jemma made a face at her, letting her know that
no, she did not think Carly should give it back. “That ring is
yours
. It would be one thing if you’d been the one to call things off. But you weren’t. So no, as far as I’m concerned…Hell, probably as far as any court would be concerned, that baby is yours to do with as you wish. And if you wish to sell it, I say more power to you!”

In seconds, she was twisting it off
of her finger. She knew she should’ve taken it off yesterday but until just recently, she’d still kept up the façade with her family. Now, she didn’t need to do that.

“I don’t know why
even I still have it on,” she said. She opened her purse and unzipped an inside pocket. She dropped the ring into it and zipped it back up again. “But,” she said as she brought her attention back to Jemma, “that’s actually a really good idea. You’re right. It’s not like the bastard deserves to get it back. And I sure as hell don’t want to keep it.”

For the first time all evening, a look of relief settled onto her face.

Jemma cocked her head to the side. “Are you sure there’s no chance of fixing things? I mean, I know you’re good and pissed right now, and you have every right to be, but what if he was just having a jackass moment? What if he shows up, begging for you to take him back? Maybe you should hang on to the ring for a while. Just in case.”

Carly made a face to let her friend know she didn’t think that was going to happen.
She could clearly see the cold, detached way he had looked at her. She could clearly hear his cruel words, ricocheting through her mind. “I do
not
think that’s going to happen. And even if it did,” she said with a shrug, “I could never take him back after that. I think getting rid of it in exchange for some rent money is a great idea.”

“That thing is enormous,” Jemma said
with a great deal of appreciation. “You should definitely get enough for it that you can buy yourself a little more time.”

“You,” Carly said, “just made my night. I wasn’t with when he bought it. In fact, he surprised me with it. I mean, I have no idea what he paid for it
. But right now, anything will help.”

“Well,” Jemma said with a grin, “considering Bart and I have been looking at rings lately, I’d guess that one of yours is worth
a small fortune. I’m sure you could get a few thousand for it.”

“Really?”
Carly asked, not daring to get her hopes up. If that were the case, added to the meager amount she had in her savings, she could get by for several months. In the meantime, she could try to find work, something part-time. Maybe, just maybe she could get through the rest of the semester without having to admit
everything
to her parents.

“Really,” Jemma assured her.

A smile spread across Carly’s face and she leaned back in the booth. “Then I am done worrying for tonight. I’m ready for some fun! But first, you need to tell me a little more about you and Bart. I didn’t realize you were looking at rings!”

Jemma nodded hesitantly. “We are. But you know
, we’re still taking things slow. We’ve
looked
but marriage is still a long way off.”

Carly tilted her beer Jemma’s way.
“Or maybe not.”

“Or maybe not,” she agreed. “But I’m not hitched yet. And tonight, I’
m going to make sure you have a good time.”

“I plan to,” Carly assured her as her eyes scanned the bar crowd. Her gaze settled on a man—someone she didn’t recognize—playing pool. From this distance, he looked like a good prospect. She wondered if he’d look just as good close up. “I plan on having the kind of good time that will make me forget
all
about Nolan.”

Jemma laughed.
“Yeah? Well, pace yourself Carly. This night is just getting started.”

~*~*~

Carly knew exactly what Jemma was up to. Or so she thought. Jemma had seen her eyeing up the hottie by the pool table. Instead of encouraging her, she’d distracted her. She’d distracted her for such a long time that before she knew it, the guy was gone.

In a town as small as Lanford, the selection of good-looking eligible bachelors was pretty limited. There were guys at the bar, sure. But they all seemed to be with women, wearing wedding rings
, or simply just not Carly’s taste. Thanks to Jemma, she’d missed out on the one prospect that had interested her.

Since it seemed she wouldn’t be distracting herself with the company of a male, she decided to distract herself with alcohol instead.

“You’ll thank me in the morning,” Jemma said with a smirk.

Carly swung her gaze back to her friend. There was no question about it, whoever the guy was, he was gone. Carly was sure of it. She’d done a thorough visual scan of the place. She stuck her lip out in a playful pout. “You just couldn’t let me have my fun, could you?”

Jemma’s smirk turned into a grin and she shook her head. “With that guy? No.”

“What was wrong with that guy?” Carly asked, feeling somewhat defensive of the stranger for no real reason at all. “You don’t even know him.”

“And neither do you,” Jemma pointed out. Her phone chirped at her and she picked it up to glance at it. “I know you get a little crazy sometimes. But if I’d let you leave with that guy, you would’ve regretted it in the morning.” She returned her attention to her phone.

Carly tried not to scowl. Jemma had been texting intermittently. Carly could only assume she was texting Bart. Any other night, she would’ve thought it was…sweet.
Tonight? Not so much.

“Here I thought you were the fun one,” Carly grumbled.

“I am,” she said as she slid the phone back into her purse.

“Well, I’m going to get another beer. Do you want anything?” Carly
asked Jemma as she slid out of the booth.

She glanced up at Carly and smiled. “I’m good.”

Carly gave her a little nod before turning to weave her way up to the bar. She really probably didn’t need another drink. This one, she told herself, would be her last. She had no desire to get stupid-drunk like she had the night before. After this one, she’d let Jemma know she was ready to go anytime her friend was.

She
had just taken her place when a hard body slid up behind her. Then an arm like steel slid around her, as the other one braced against the bar, caging her in. Fingers skimmed up her shirt just far enough to not violate a modicum of decency. In that first split instant she was about to retaliate by blasting her elbow into the man’s kidneys. Then a receptor in her brain stopped her before she even knew why. The familiar body pulled her close.

Without looking back, her body began to realize what her mind knew instantly. It was Jesse. She would know him anywhere. Her body would respond to his anywhere
.

Throw me into a crowded, dark alley blindfolded and my body would pick his out in a heartbeat,
she unhappily admitted to herself.

“Carly,” he whispered in her ear.

Possibly she should’ve been offended by his hardness so presumptuously pressed into her backside. She wasn’t offended. The traitorous heat between her legs let her know she was already responding to it, though it was the last thing she wanted to do.