Betrayed by Love by Hailey Hogan Page A

a man.”
    Eva frowned. “Excuse me.”
    “Yes, I said it. You settle now; you’ll continue to settle.”
    Eva crossed her arms, but couldn’t get comfortable. She sighed. “Mo. I think it’s time that I go.”
    “Don’t get mad at me.”
    “I’m not mad. Just pissed to find myself in this situation.”
    Mo twirled his brush in his hands. “Do something about it. Don’t be a victim. Be a doer.”
    She walked up to Mo and gave him two air kisses near the cheek. “Thank you.”
     
    ***
     
    Garth surfed the channels on the television until he landed on the sports channel. He tried his best to keep busy to keep his mind off Eva and Trevor’s reunion. He should have been happy for his friend, but he wasn’t. He threw the empty can of beer on the floor and opened up another one. He normally didn’t drink unless it was in a social setting, but he needed something to relax his mind.
    How did he, mister bachelor, get himself tangled up in this mess? Out of all of the women in the world, he had to fall for Eva. He used to think she was a spoiled celebrity but after getting to know her, he knew she was like a delicate flower. She needed to be taken care of. It angered him that she settled for the way Trevor treated her. She deserved better, so much better. Until she recognized it herself; there wasn’t anything he could do about it. That realization stung. He drank until he passed out on the couch.
    Buzz. Buzz. Garth threw a pillow and hit the radio knocking it off the nightstand. Buzz. Buzz. The sound didn’t stop. It got louder and louder.
    Rubbing his eyes, he twisted his body so he could attempt to reach the clock to turn it off since his previous attempts didn’t work.
    “Ouch.” He rubbed the back of his hand. The clock read seven thirty. Where had the time gone? When he laid down all he could think about was Eva and when he slept he had nightmares about beating the crap out of Trevor.
    Garth decided he needed a break from the norm. He left a message for Caroline and curled back into bed. He needed one more of a sleep and then his body and mind could function. Before his head could hit the pillow, his cell phone was chirping. If it would have been anybody else but Caroline, he wouldn’t have answered.
    He listened as Caroline reminded him of a few meetings he had previously scheduled. All of which had slipped his mind.
    “Tre called in too and he’s not answering his phone,” Caroline informed him.
    He cursed under his breath. He would have a talk with him. He was letting his personal life interfere with their business. He shook his head. Who was he to talk? He was doing the same thing.
    Caroline called out his name a few times.
    “I’ll be there in about an hour. Please make my apologies. Order breakfast for everyone.”
    He hung the phone up. His day was already starting off on the wrong foot. He couldn’t forgo the meeting because the company could always use the revenue. This liaison could lead to other jobs and he was in business to make money. With that revelation, he shrugged off the “I don’t wanna” to an attitude of “let me go make some money.”
    He would deal with Trevor later. He knew Eva was at the forefront of why he didn’t show up. What he did in his personal life was no longer his concern. He was only concerned about him doing his part in their partnership.
     
    ***
     
    “Move,” Eva yelled.
    Trevor wrapped his arm around her waist even tighter. He had bad halitosis and she couldn’t wait to escape his foul breath. She pushed his arm off her and threw the cover back on him. He barely stirred. She was tempted to go open up the curtains so the dim light shining through would be at full blast, surely jolting her bed partner up. Instead of doing that, she gathered up some items and headed to the bathroom.
    As the hot water cascaded down her body, she reminisced about the night before. Trevor showing up late put a damper to her plans. Although he apologized and had come bearing