Ambushed by M.E. McAndrews
Chapter 33
Austin
What the actual fucking hell are you doing?”
Iz sits across from me, her face expressionless except for the slight furrow of her brow. Her dark hair is pulled back away from her face, revealing large, dark eyes and flawless skin.
“Austin, I'm sorry. I—”
“You lied to her. To her face.”
“I know,” she says. “But I couldn't help it. She's just so gullible.” Her eyes look impossibly sad. They fill with tears, and she looks away, shaking her head. “Oh, Austin, don't you understand? What does it look like? I'm trying to protect you, dammit.”
“By lying to her? By pretending to be her best friend? Are you really that selfish?”
“No,” she says. She groans and rubs her forehead. “It's just that Olivia and I have been best friends since we met. I couldn't imagine what she would have done if she found out I was a fraud. So, I just couldn’t tell her. She hates you, you know.”
“You're unbelievable,” I say.
“I was trying to get close to her. I never expected her to be this nice to me!”
“Why?” I snap. “Are you that naïve? She was extremely vulnerable, and she put her faith in you, and you betrayed her. You're going to destroy her.”
Iz looks disgusted, shaking her head.
“Jesus, why do you care so much about her? Everyone knows you want to rip that property out from under her.”
My jaw clenches as I do my best to hold back my temper. There's no point in fighting with Iz. That's what she wants, for me to lose control. “What the hell are you doing? Honestly. Stop bullshitting me, Iz.”
“I'm not doing anything! I have a friend. Is that illegal?”
“Come on.” I gesture to her. “The hair, the way you dress the same as her, even the way you're sitting. It's like you're mimicking her.”
“Fine,” she says. She runs her fingers through her hair, doing it up in a bun, like the style Olivia wore today. “Fine, yeah. You're right. I just want to be more like her. She is so sweet and nice to me.” She gives me a hard stare. “Like it's not hard enough to go through a divorce. She treated me like I'm her actual friend. Austin. It was nice.”
“Why, Iz?”
She looks at me sharply. “If you care so much about her, then you should be happy that she has someone else who wants to take care of her, too. Just like you’ve been taking care of her.” She turns her head, her eyes shimmering with tears. “Like I said, I'm just trying to protect you.”
“How is that protecting me?”
“She hates you, Austin. She'll never want you back, not after everything you put her through. But—” she stands, resting her hands on her hips. “You have me now, and well, I think I fit the part of Olivia, don’t you?”
“Iz, you’re sick. Shut the hell up!”
“Austin, please. I love you. I don't want to see you miserable; don’t you understand? I'm trying to help you.”
“There is nothing I want or need from you. So, why are you here?”
She sits back down on the chair and pushes her hair out of her face. “Maybe, Austin, it could be something to do with how you once loved me. How we once loved each other.”
“Did you change your hair because you thought that looking like her would make me want you back?”
“Austin,” she whispers, sounding shocked, but I know it’s all just an act.
“Did you?” I repeat.
“Fine. Yes, I suppose I did. But I can't help it. You're in love with her, aren't you?”
“It doesn't matter if I am or not. You’re not her. And you cannot manipulate me.”
She sits there, lost, like she's trying to plan her next line. “I don't know what you mean.”
“Oh, Iz, stop playing your games. I know you are still trying to weasel your way back into my life. And listen, I understand. It's just that I don't want to be with you.”
She takes a deep breath, toying with a strand of her hair. She looks down at her hand, then back up at me. “I'm not trying to get back with you.”
“Yeah, you are.”
“Austin, I really have changed. I love you more than anything, but I'm not going to lie to you.” A clap of thunder rumbles in the distance.
I throw up my hands. “I don't care about that. I thought you had changed, that maybe you'd finally grown up. But I can see you haven't.”
“You're right,” she says. “But I can change. I can be better. I was good to Olivia, wasn't I?”
“No, you weren't. You're the same selfish bitch I married.”
She smirks. “Austin, you had her, and you lost her.”
“Just tell me what you want.”
“I want you to be happy. I want to help you. I want to make you feel good,” she says. She stands again, stepping toward me.
“You've had your chance.”
“But I haven't,” she says. She caresses my arm. She leans against me, and I smell the scent of her perfume coming through her rain-soaked clothes, the same perfume Olivia wears. But somehow, the effect is not quite the same. On Iz, the scent repulses me.
“Austin, I'm crying out for you.”
“You've got to be kidding me.”
“She doesn't love you. You know that, right? She'll never take you back. But I will.”
“Iz, I don't want you.”
“But I want you,” she whispers. She strokes my face and kisses me.
A rush of anger rages inside me, and I push her away. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Iz? You thought this would work by fucking with Olivia, hurting her?”
“You're just as much a monster as I am! Don't start acting all high and mighty now!” She grabs my arms. “Austin, Olivia's a bad person. She manipulated you. She's a mess, and she just sees you as a piece of meat! A paycheck! And that makes you feel like shit, doesn't it?”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
“Austin, Olivia knows how to get you. And how to keep you. But you're better than that. I can love you. I can show you genuine love. I can be the one person who knows how to treat you right. All you have to do is give yourself to me.”
“Get the fuck out of here, Iz,” I snap. “Now.” My hands clench into fists as I struggle to keep my temper under control.
She monitors me, her eyes wide and wet, her lips slightly parted. I can see her pulse throbbing in her neck.
“Fuck you, Austin.” She grabs a few things from her bag and dashes toward the back door. It swings open, and she steps out into the night, slamming it shut behind her. I feel my fingers shuddering as I watch her. I don't move from the kitchen, still standing there ten minutes later, as the rain pours down. It's like a storm has broken loose and it's pouring down on the roof over my head. Little hammering sounds, like an army of tiny men on the roof, pounding away.
My body feels like it's on fire, my blood boiling inside. My hands shake as I try to calm myself down. I hate that Iz is still such a pain in my ass. I hate how she thinks she can walk back into my life and just screw with me and Olivia.
Poor Olivia. Iz is right. I doubt she wants anything else to do with me now.