Page 112 of Unexpected Prejudice

“Is everything okay?”

I saw Chief standing in the doorway with a worried look. Clearing my throat, I was about to tell him we needed some time when Levi moved.

“I’m going to stay with my mom for a while,” he told Chief, ignoring me, and continued packing his bag. He didn’t even look at me as he zipped the duffle bag and threw it over his shoulder.

“Levi…” Chief started saying as Levi made his way out of the room.

“It’s okay,” he mumbled.

Hold on a second.

“Your mom?” Finally able to form my question, I turned to face them, shocked.

“She reached out to me, and we’ve been meeting for a while now. She invited me to spend Christmas with her, and I’m going.”

“Hold on, hold on.” I squeezed my eyes and rubbed my hair repeatedly, trying to understand what the fuck he was saying. “She contacted you? When?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“But it does!” I shouted and stepped toward him, my hand reaching for his bag and holding on to it. “Your mom is back in your life? It’s fucking huge. How could you not tell me about it?” What else had I missed? How stupid could I have been?

My chest, tight until now, filled with warmth as Levi finally looked me in the eyes. Lost in the depth of his gray eyes, I didn’t care about anything else. He was looking at me. Levi was finally looking at—

“Maybe because you were too busy playing friends with Jordan.”

My world shattered, and he took advantage of my shock to step out of the room.

“Wait!” I screamed and ran after him, almost falling down the stairs as I tried to chase him to the door. “You can’t go. You can’t leave me.” I held on to him. “Whatever we do, we do together, remember?”

I searched in his eyes for the love he always held for me, but it wasn’t there, and all I could see was pain. Pain I was responsible for putting there.

“Come on, Babydoll.” Tears welled in my eyes, and I had to clear my sore throat to speak again. “Please. Whatever we do, we do together,” I repeated, and for a moment, his expression softened. I was sure he’d come back to me, but then I heard the door click and was blinded by the late afternoon light that broke through.

“Not this time.” He stepped outside.

Not thinking twice, I followed him, and ran to wrap my arms around his body, stopping him from taking another step. “Then I’ll come with you. I’ll be with you until you’re ready to come back.”

“Jessie—”

“No!” I shouted and buried my face in his neck. “You can’t go. You can’t leave me. We’re family. You’re my family.”

I felt the soft touch of his fingers tracing my arm before he took a deep breath. “I’ll come back. It’s not a goodbye, I promise.”

“If it’s not a goodbye, let me come with you. I’ll be good. I promise I’ll be good.”

“Please, Jessie…” His voice quavered, and he didn’t finish his sentence, but he didn’t have to. I knew what he wanted to say.

Please, Jessie, let me go.

So, I did.

I dropped my arms to the side and stepped back, giving in to his request even though it killed me. Was that how he’d felt when I asked him for the threesome?

“It will only be for a couple of days.”

But a couple of days away from you will feel like an eternity.

“I just… I need space.” His shoulders dropped, and he stood still momentarily before going down the wooden stairs leading to our driveway. I didn’t say a word. I was too busy crying to say anything.