Fallacy (Apprehensive Duet Book 1) by Kimberly Bracco

time to prepare. I honestly thought he’d give me an extra week.
     

     
    I have a huge fucking migraine.
    The last few days have been a fucking nightmare.
    I’m not built to handle all this drama. I don’t have the tolerance for it. But I’m trying to temper down my anger because Ash is hurting.
    Our discussion about me having to go back to work didn’t go well, which I expected. But I didn’t expect her to tell me I was overbearing! I’d like to see how that ungrateful twat would handle things if she had to worry about me waking up from a three-day coma.
    Then the stubborn bitch insisted on staying home alone claiming she’ll be fine. I spent the weekend rearranging her bedroom to make it more functional for her while she’s on her own.
    “What’s wrong, angel?” Alex asks as he walks through my front door to find me drinking a very large glass of wine.
    “I’ve had the day from hell,” I sigh, bringing the glass to my mouth.
    He drapes his coat over the back of the couch and joins me on it. “I figured as much from your text. What’s going on?” he asks as he pulls my feet into his lap and rubs them.
    “I spent the entire day being berated by my father for letting my files slack for the last month. Nothing was lacking. I checked in with all the investors and the CEO’s of my clients today. Not one had anything bad to say,” I divulge, enjoying the way he’s rubbing the tension from my body through my feet. I was surprised by everyone today. Neither my clients nor investors know exactly what happened. Just that I had some personal matters to attend to. Hearing everyone tell me how glad they were to have me back was very rewarding and unexpected. It was nice to hear I’m appreciated by them.
    I continue getting everything off my chest. “I wasn’t prepared for the shit show going on when I got home, either. I should’ve known it was too good to be true when everything went all right today. I hadn’t gotten any calls from Ashley, so stupidly I assumed everything went okay.”
    “Stop being so hard on yourself. I guess since we’re here and not at the hospital it wasn’t anything too bad,” he says trying to make me feel better.
    “I walked in to find a fuming Tanner. Ashley fell coming back from the bathroom and got stuck on the floor for over an hour. She couldn’t get to her phone, and she passed out on her bedroom floor.” I’m thankful as fuck Tanner agreed to check on her, or I would’ve come home to Ashley stuck on the floor in her bedroom for hours. “She somehow wound up falling on her bad knee, and now we’re worried she did more damage. She’s going to the doctor tomorrow, and Tanner has to take her. Guess who’s getting the brunt of her anger?”
    “Quinn, you can’t do this all on your own and Ashley isn’t going to ask for help. Let Tanner help you. He needs this as much as you do. He needs to feel like he’s doing something. You’re going to wear yourself thin trying to do everything,” he advises me while applying pressure to the arch of my foot, which right now feels better than getting off.
    He continues, “Ashley’s a big girl. She’s grieving, and her body is mangled. Her whole world is upside down. She’s going to lash out at you to express her anger. But don’t let her use you. Don’t let her use your compassion against you. You can still be here for her while standing up for yourself.”
    “No matter what I do, it’s wrong. First I was overbearing, now I’m a bitch, and she’s an inconvenience for me. Everything I say lately is being manipulated into something else. I don’t know what the hell to do with her,” I sigh, utterly exhausted. Too much shit in a short period.
    “I know you want to do whatever you can to help, and you will, but don’t let this overtake your life, angel,” he says, dropping my feet off his lap and pulling me into his arms. “You’ve given her everything you can over the last month. She needs to start pulling herself