Changing Course (Wrecked and Ruined #1)(79)

"Okay."

"Stay on the phone. I'm about five minutes away."

"Caleb, I'm okay. Really. I think she just-"

"What did she say, sweetheart?" His voice returns to the gentle softness I've become familiar with.

"Um...." Crap, he is going to be pissed when I tell him she slapped me. Maybe I can just leave that part out. When I look in the rear view mirror and see my swollen cheek and a small trickle of blood on the corner of my lip I know it's a lost cause. "She said a bunch of stuff but the gist of if all was for me to stay away from Brett."

"Are you okay?" He's asking about my emotional state. It's the obvious question after the last time I had the pleasure of talking to Sarah. However, tonight it has a much more superficial answer.

"Um..."

"Fuck!" he screams at my non-answer. "What did she do?"

"Calm down, I'm fine. She slapped me and it busted my lip."

I honestly think I can hear his head explode over the phone. "She did what?" he booms across the line.

"Stop, really. I'm okay. I'm just a little shaken up that’s all."

"Grab your purse, I'm almost there. Park your car. You're coming with me."

"Okay," I say, relieved at the idea of not being alone.

Caleb doesn't say anything else, nor does he hang up. When he parks next to me, he doesn't even give me a chance to get out of car. He snatches open my door and drags me out, using my chin to examine my face.

"Stop, I'm fine." I try to bat his hands away but he crushes me against his chest. These macho men really treat me like a rag doll sometimes. He doesn't say another word until we pull up in front of a small brick house in a family neighborhood.

"Come on, I need to call Brett.”

"No! You can't call him. He'll be so mad."

"Well it's about damn time he got mad, don't you think? He treats her like a china doll. Sarah went too far this time. He should be pissed. Maybe this will cause him to finally get off his ass and do something about her bullshit.”

"Caleb, please don't call him," I begin to beg. Things have been so great with Brett and me recently. The last thing I want is him diving back into the guilt-filled pit of Sarah.

"Sweetheart. I'm calling him. A man deserves to know when his woman has been assaulted. How exactly do you think you're going to explain that welt on your face to him?" Dang it! He's right. Crap, Brett's going to lose his ever-loving mind about this.

"I'll call him," I sigh.

"Nope, wrong again, baby girl. If you tell him about this over the phone there is no guarantee he will actually make it over here to pick you up. I don't want to leave you alone, but I have things to do."

"What are you going to do, Caleb?" I ask, scared by the look in his eye.

"Nothing you need to worry about."

"She a broken, disturbed, and insane woman." I feel the need to remind him.

"Jesus Jess, I'm not going to hurt her. What the f*ck kind of * do you think I am? I'm just going to have a little conversation with her, and make sure it actually sinks into that crazy ass brain of hers," he says, putting his phone to his ear. "Sharp, get your ass over to my house. Jesse's here. Warning, you're going to be pissed." I hear Brett shout on the other end of the phone, but Caleb hits the end button.

"Well, that was a little dramatic, don't you think?"

"Probably, but it will get him here faster. Whatever bullshit he is making up in his head right now will probably be worse than what really happened. It should soften the blow for him."

"That's horrible and mean...but also brilliant!" I say, walking up to his front door. "Can we please go in now, I'm freezing."

I sit inside Caleb's surprisingly clean and well decorated house waiting for Brett. It only takes him about five minutes to get there, but I feel bad knowing he's worrying the whole way. He doesn't bother knocking when he gets there. He storms in searching for me.

"Jesse!"

"I'm in here," I cautiously yell from the couch.

"What's going on?"

I've been planning the way I was going to gently and reassuringly tell Brett about today's drama. I wanted him to know that everything was fine. We just needed to sit down and talk about the next step in trying to help Sarah. I wasn't quick enough though because Caleb rushes out the not so gentle facts.

"Sarah stalked Jesse down at the grocery store today. Yelling at her to stay away from you, then hit her before riding off on the crazy train again. Now, are you going to man the f*ck up and finally do something about this?" Well, okay then. I guess that's one way to break it to him.

"Jesus, are you okay?" Brett's eyes glide over me.

"I'm fine. It really wasn't as bad as it sounds."

"Why didn't you call me?"

"Umm, I didn't want to upset you." It's a statement, but my voice rises at the end, making it sound more like a question.

"You didn't want to upset me? What the f*ck, Jesse. You called Caleb instead of me?"

"I just thought..."

"You just thought what? That maybe I wouldn't want to know that my ex-wife hit you?" I expected Brett to be mad, I just never expected him to be mad at me. It's shocking and confusing, but mainly it's infuriating.