Replace Me by Jennifer Foor Page A

me. It wasn’t right to be with Shayne when I was thinking of someone else.
    Peyton hugged me right away. “I missed you.”
    “I missed you, too. How are you?”
She shrugged. “I didn’t think I’d miss Parker, but I do. Dad is being even more ridiculous with this whole baby situation. I can’t believe you’re standin’ here when Shayne got another girl pregnant. What are you doin’ with him?”
“We’re trying to be friends. He’s told me the truth about everything. There’s no more secrets between us. It doesn’t solve things, but it gives us a clean slate.”
    “Shew, you’re a brave woman. If my boyfriend slept with two girls at once, I don’t think I could get over that.” She was calm and serious.
    My mouth literally dropped open and I saw him walking into the kitchen. He put his head down and started shaking his head. “Take me back to the car, right now!”
    Shayne waited until we got into the car to talk to me. He called his sister a few choice words before the kitchen door shut. After realizing she’d stuck her foot in her mouth, she didn’t offer a goodbye to me.
    I refused to look at him as he drove us back to my car. All I wanted to do was get away from him. I’d asked him to be honest and he couldn’t do it, again. How was I supposed to move forward or start over when he couldn’t tell the truth. Our relationship depended on trust and I had none.
    When he pulled up to my car, he hit the lock button so I couldn’t jump right out. “Lacey, please wait. Hear me out, at least.”
    “Screw you!” I slapped him on the arm. “I can’t even look at you, right now. Two girls, Shayne? My god, I thought that cheating was bad enough, but now I get why you had to do it. One woman will never be enough for you, I guess. Save your speeches. We’re done and I’m not playing around anymore. I refuse to forgive you this time. Call one of your whores when you need pussy. I’d tell you to lose my number, but I’ve already taken care of that problem, when you crushed my heart the first time.”
    I climbed out of the car and got into mine as fast as I could. Shayne laid his head on his steering wheel as I pulled away. He had me so worked up that I didn’t even realize I’d driven back to Joey’s, until I pulled in the driveway. I’d cried away all my makeup and looked like Hell, so I figured I go talk to Sky. She always knew how to make me feel better.
    Unfortunately, they’d gone out with her parents and weren’t home. I sat in my car crying for the longest time, until a motorcycle pulled in, catching my attention. Joey knocked on my window and I wouldn’t look up. He opened my car door and crouched down in front of me. “I’m not goin’ to ask you what happened, but my doors open if it’s where you want to go.”
    He walked away, never forcing me to reply. I didn’t understand why he was so nice to me, but I didn’t want to be alone. Once I wiped my eyes and grabbed my bag of clothes from the backseat, I headed into Joey’s. He was in the kitchen and I could smell garlic. I leaned on the wall in between the rooms. “Do you care if I get a shower?”
    “My shampoo smells like a man.”
    I smiled. “I don’t even care.”
    As I entered his bathroom, I could already smell the scent of his shampoo. It reminded me of the way his skin smelled when we kissed. I stripped out of my clothes and let them lay on the bathroom floor. It was pathetic, but I didn’t even have the energy to pick them up. The hot water fell over my head and I wrapped my arms around my body, unable to control my emotions any longer. I began to sob in the shower, thinking about Shayne and everything we’d never have. I don’t know why it hurt more than the first time. I guess I’d built up so much hope of us having a second chance. I wasn’t going to jump into bed with him, but I considered starting off slow. It was definitely over this time. I felt insignificant, like nothing I could do would ever be good