He Hurt Me, Now He Wants Me Back novel Chapter 3

Imogene Scott

For the next few days, I stay in a hotel. I have nowhere to go. My own father had cut ties with me long ago when I went against him and chose to marry Damien.

He has even forbidden any of his family members—my stepmother and Fiona—from contacting me. But I don’t even consider them family to begin with. Not after what Fiona did to me.

My mother is no more; she died of cancer ten years ago, and my father married his deceased driver’s wife, Sasha Nice, a few years later. Talk about being shallow.

It’s as if my life is at a standstill. I’ve stayed in bed for the past few days and haven’t stepped out of the hotel room. My gallery opening is on hold, and I just want to be alone. I just need time alone to think, but I’ve been doing nothing but sleeping my problems away.

Because I can’t summon the resolve to do anything else. As long as I can sleep, I feel numb, and numb is good; numb doesn’t hurt. To top it off, I’ve been down with a slight fever followed by constant nausea and backaches. But the fact that I’ve barely made any bowel movements these past few days can be the cause of it.

The glow of the screen in the dark room wakes me as much as the chirping song. I fumble instinctively for it on the nightstand, and somewhere in my mind, I’m registering the early time on my clock—4 pm—somehow trying to sort through the dream I’m losing.

My fingers wrap around the phone and I hold it close to my face for reading. It’s an unknown number. My dream is gone, and all that is left is the reality of a random number calling me when I haven’t received any calls in days.

Damien hasn’t even reached out to me after I mysteriously disappeared. Even though I hate him right now, one part of me wish he would call, but another part of me knows I will go running back to him if he does.

Am I so insignificant to him that he has completely forgotten about me in a few days? My chest aches and I swallow hard.

“Hello?”

“Imogene, it’s Elinor. I was wondering if you needed anything. I’m about to come see you.”

“Elinor.” I fall back on my pillows and close my eyes. I feel relieved, but I’m too tired to try to sort out why. It’s just that it’s her, so it’s okay. She’s my only friend, and we’ve known each other since our college days. She’s also the only one that knows about my current situation.

“I don’t think I need anything,” I murmur.

“How do you feel now?” Elinor’s voice trailes off at the other end.

I swallow back the nauseating feeling crawling up my lungs. “Not better.”

“Well, I’ll see you in a bit.”

The call ends, and I drop my phone beside me. I curl on my bed into a ball, and fresh tears start streaming down my face again. This time, I’m not sure why, but my heart aches like crazy, and I let out a gut-wrenching cry.

Why the fuck did this have to happen to me?

About forty minutes later, there’s a knock on my door. I wipe my tears, but my face is already swollen. I open the door and let Elinor in. She’s wearing a white boat-neck top and dark brown slacks. Both look fabulous on her slender figure. Her feet are in dark beige walking shoes, and her strawberry blonde hair is in a bun.

She hands a plastic bag to me with a pharmacy label on it. A shiver runs down my spine. Time slows; the air in my lungs thins as I bring out the pregnancy test stick in the bag.

“What do I need this for?” I ask with a laugh to cover a surge of mild are-you-kidding-me annoyance.

“I stopped by the pharmacy and explained your symptoms to the nurse. She thinks you might be pregnant.”

I stare at Elinor, frozen in horror. There’s basically no way I can get pregnant. After a miscarriage five years ago, I was told that my fallopian tubes are blocked. I hadn’t been able to get pregnant since then.

I look down at my belly with horrified shock, then at Elinor, who gives me the go-on look. I walk into the bathroom to take the test. Not that I think it’s going to come back positive, but I just need to eliminate the possibility.