Wife's Bitter Revenge Against Neglectful CEO Husband-Chapter 99: Sucky Friend

"Did I do that?"

I stared at the scratches scaring both of Stiff’s cheeks.

"I take it back. From now on, Sampson can stay home. We’re releasing you on the bad guys," Stiff said.

"I am so sorry. I was having a nightmare. I must have mistaken you for a rat."

The rest of the van’s occupants cracked up.

Jake said, "Yup, that’s Stiff—huge rat."

Sampson added, "Where’s the tail?"

"Shuddup," Stiff said.

Ugh. The smell of the greasy burgers and fries with the grilled onions and just ugh.

"Can we get rid of the burger bags? The smell is making me sick," I said.

Anything to get rid of the image of the rats swarming toward me and the burgers. I had to get rid of that image before I could fully break away from the terror holding me in place while Stiff needed first aid for the damage I’d caused.

We were in the city by now. Trash cans were plentiful. Min pulled over at the next one and disposed of the bags. We continued the trip with the windows cracked to dispel the odor.

As soon as I was capable, I recovered the first aid kit I knew we kept in the van and tended to Stiff’s injuries. I was almost done when I noticed where we were.

"Aren’t we going to The Well Water?"

Jake said, "It’s four in the morning. The club is closed. Min talked to Ben while you were out. He arranged for an all-employee meeting tomorrow afternoon. We’ll get answers then."

"So where are we going?"

"Your boyfriend has been blowing up your phone. That’s why Stiff was trying to wake you. We’re taking you back to his place before he freaks out."

"I’d rather go to the hospital."

"We’re almost back to his place. Rest up and go to the hospital during normal visiting hours. The boys and Bea are resting fine. CK, Father DiMarco, and Bea’s mom are watching over them. They’ll be fine for a few hours."

"Bea deserves to know about our progress."

"She knows. I told her. You can tell her more when she’s rested."

I could always call a car after they dropped me off and go to the hospital alone. Even if I sat in the waiting area until Bea woke up, I’d feel better being nearby.

"Here, have some water," Stiff offered.

Water sounded good. I took a long drink and then another. I hadn’t thought about my thirst until he brought it up.

It wasn’t long after that when I felt woozy like I’d taken cold medicine that was meant to put me to sleep. I combined that thought with the guilt written all over Stiff’s face.

"What did you do?"

"You need sleep. I mean real sleep. If we let you go, you’ll turn around and go to the hospital alone."

He pointed a finger at me. "Yeah, that look tells me I’m right. You were planning to do just that."

My bones were liquid. All I wanted to do was kill Stiff for betraying me like this, and I couldn’t lift a finger against him.

The van pulled up outside Alec’s building. He was waiting for us.

"Is she alright?" Alec asked before it kicked in that Stiff was scratched up. "What happened to you?"

"That hellion you’re so into happened to me, but she didn’t mean it. She was having a nightmare."

"That must have been some nightmare."

"Yeah, she needs sleep. I dropped a double dose of sleeping meds in her water. She should be out for a while."

Only I wasn’t out. I was watching the whole exchange. I couldn’t participate, but I was aware.

Alec said, "I’ll see to it she rests."

"I’ll text you when we’re on the way to pick her up."

Alec nodded and ducked into the van to retrieve my numb body. As soon as I was cuddled against his warm chest, I let go of what was left of my consciousness. This wasn’t over, though. I was so putting laxatives in Stiff’s coffee the first chance I got.

When I awoke, the sun was peeking around the curtains. I was in the same bed as before. Alec was sitting on the bed next to me, working on his laptop. He was fully dressed and looked a lot more rested than before.

I stretched and hugged the covers up to my chin as the drug-induced fog cleared my brain. What was it with everyone thinking they could use my body as a medicine depository without my permission?

At this rate, I might as well have stayed with Lettie if I was going to let other people control my life.

"Are you hungry?" Alec asked as he continued keying.

"Thirsty. Angry." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"Rested?"

"How long did I sleep?"

"Not long. It isn’t noon yet."

I sat up. "I should go to the hospital."

Alec closed the laptop. "First water, then we talk. Then if you want to go to the hospital, I’ll take you."

Alec left to fetch water while I brushed my teeth. It was only then I realized I was back in the T-shirt and shorts. Alec had changed my clothes. The man had actually seen me and touched me while I was dead to the world. What a way to experience a first with a guy I was attracted to.

It was curious that I wasn’t upset about it or worried that he’d taken inappropriate actions with me. I had no reason to trust this man so much, especially considering my waking thoughts and my frustrations with the others over their attempts to control me.

I didn’t feel that Alec’s actions were meant to control me. It felt like he had changed my clothes to make me more comfortable. It was a good move. If I had to guess, the clothes I was wearing held that hamburger smell that had me so upset before.

When I left the bathroom, the bedroom door was open. Alec was waiting for me in the living room with the water.

Alec said, "You asked me to respect your wishes and to support you. I think I’ve done that. You asked me to wait here for you while you put your life in danger. I did that for you as well. All I asked in return was for you to text me and let me know you were okay.

"Teela, you couldn’t do that one thing for me. I sat here for hours, worried that you were the next one going to the hospital. I had to call Angie for Stiff’s phone number, or I might still not know what was going on, would I?"

"I’m sorry. I didn’t think."

"Yeah, I can see that."

"It wasn’t personal, Alec. I went from focused on finding the driver to trying to recover from what we’d just done to so far out of it that I forgot I even owned a phone."

"I bet you didn’t forget about Bea, did you?"

I felt like I had been slapped in the face. Alec was right. I took everything he offered. I made demands of him, but I wasn’t holding up my end of the bargain. The text messages weren’t an unreasonable request.

"You are right. I was wrong."

"So tell me, am I wasting my time here?" Alec asked. "Should I chalk us up as could have been but wasn’t and move on? Or should I continue to play chump?"

"Alec, no, you are not a chump. At worst, you’ve been friend zoned by someone who is a sucky friend. I sincerely hope you can forgive me and give me another chance. I have no idea if we have a future yet, but I like you in my life, and honest, I can be someone worth having in your life. I’ll do better."

"Friend zoned, huh?" Alec side-eyed me. "Do friend-zoned people still work out together?"

I smiled. "Yeah, Alec. As often as possible. And I did say worst case. Best case is we are a kiss away from lovers and destined to grow old together."

"I tend to win more than I lose. I guess I could take a chance on the lovers end of the spectrum." Alec moved closer to me. "Should we chance that kiss away from lovers bit and see what happens?"

"Or we could hold that thought until I finish what I started for Bea, so that we don’t face unwanted interruptions."

As if on cue, the doorbell rang, and I sat back with a sigh. I was literally saved by the bell.

I meant what I said, though, I fully intended to do better by Alec until I was able to commit or let him go.

Alec answered the door and called back to me. "It’s Stiff. They’re here to pick you up for the hospital."

"Oh, I’ll come down in ten minutes. I need to change."

Into what, I wasn’t sure, but I needed to talk to Bea. Fortunately, Stiff brought a suitcase of clothes this time, and I had plenty of choices. My attitude was much better after talking things out with Alec and changing into fresh clothes.

Alec was waiting for me at the front door. "Two rules, Teela. One, we never leave each other without a kiss, and two, you stay in touch when you are out playing detective without me. Deal?"

I walked right up to him and gave him a kiss. Not a passionate kiss but one filled with true affection. Alec didn’t complain.

"I take it we have a deal?" Alec said.

"Fortunately, you are a terrific kisser. Deal."