Your Dad's Perfect (Ruby)

I wake up alone. Rolling over, my hand reaches out, but Alaric isn't there. Sitting up, I look around, confused, and grab my phone.

Your locks are changed. Don't give my son a key. Stay safe, Ruby. A x

I want to believe this wasn't the end, but something tells me it was. Standing, I walk down and see Ivy and Bex in the kitchen. Sitting on a chair, Bex hands me a coffee. "Fun night?" She smirks at me.

"You two were home, right?" I didn't even consider that. Which says a lot, as with Jake I did, every thought was there making me worried and paranoid.

"Oh, we were..." Bex grins. "Jake wasn't happy. He let himself in, heard you, called your name, and tried to open the door. Then, he left swearing about how he would win you back." Win me back? "He didn't give in?" He should have realised that was the moment to give up.

"Nope." Ivy stands and places flowers on the table.

"Where did these come from?"Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

"Jake, after your friend changed the locks this morning. Jake came by and was pissed off he couldn't get in. Then he asked that we give you these."

How did he get money for flowers? I don't even want to know.

"He's only doing it to try to gain back the money. He needs to stop." He's wasting time trying to play pretend with me when he needs to fix himself.

"Well, he heard you screaming, Daddy, last night, and well, his face said he was shocked. I almost filmed it." Ivy laughs.

"You two were standing outside the room?" My cheeks heat up.

"I heard the door downstairs, so I came out and saw Jake walking upstairs. I tried telling him you were busy, but he made out like that was impossible because he wasn't with you." Bex laughs. "He asked who was with you and was honestly confused by the fact you didn't stop when you heard him. If anything, you got wilder."

I groan, hearing Ivy.

"Your keys." Bex places them down. "When are you seeing him again?"

"I'm not." Things are done, over and finished.

"You said that when you came home." Ivy laughs.

"Last night was different, and he had been invited there already."

"No, he just had to see you in the dress one more time." Bex giggles.

"Okay, enough. We agreed we wouldn't do it anymore, and we're not." Even if I want to.

"Let me see your list." Bex holds out her hand. Grabbing my bag, I hand her it.

"You crossed out a lot," she says, raising her head. "You've not missed a pill, right?" She laughs slightly.

"Trust me, I haven't. I wouldn't have done it if I wasn't certain I took every single one on time." She smiles and nods.

"So, you had a threesome?" She looks at me, confused.

"No, Alaric had me cross out some that weren't safe. Any crossed out with black are the ones he deemed unsafe." She grins at me. "He's taking care of you," she says. I laugh slightly at her words.

He was, though-he really was. "He called himself a plaything." They looked at me. "I had doubts and said he was nearly my father-in-law. He told me that now he's my plaything, that call Daddy and get pleasure from."

I laugh slightly, and they join in.

"He is... kind of. You did use him for pleasure."

"Not use." That's crazy to consider,

the fact that I would be happy to get into something more serious with him. I would swap the fun, no

strings, for commitment with Alaric.

I'm not going to see him again, though. We need a clean break. We failed at it already, so now I aim to ensure we stick to it.

My day is spent in my room, mostly catching up on missed sleep from being with Alaric. When I wake, 1.get ready and go to my course, but my mind is constantly going to Alaric.

I want to message him, but he has Jake to think about. I was barely paying attention to the course.

"Cheer up." Bex looks at me from across the table. I watch as Ivy places down the shots. "Drink up." Bex pushes the glass to me.

Picking it up, I drink it down in one swallow. Groaning as it burns my throat.