Gravity Happens (Forcing Gravity)

by Alexander, Monica

  He hesitated for a few seconds before dropping his arms and falling against the door frame, his gaze glued to the tiled floor. As soon as there was enough room, I shoved past him toward the door to the bedroom.

  “I love you,” he said one last time, but there was so much defeat in his words that I wasn’t sure why he was saying them. He knew I wasn’t sticking around.

  “Bye, Logan,” Chloe called from behind me. “It was great to see you again.”

  Fresh tears stung my eyes, and as much I wanted to turn around, walk over and punch her, I didn’t. I stared straight ahead, walked with purpose to the front door, grabbed my bags and let myself out of the suite, shutting them both out.

  I held the tears at bay as I rode the elevator down to the lobby and put my sunglasses on just in case any photographers were lurking. I didn’t need them to capture me crying and print it for the whole world to see. Keeping my head down, I walked briskly through the lobby toward the front entrance, asked one of the valets to hail me a cab, and only when I was settled into the back of the taxi and we were on our way back to the airport did I let the tears start to fall.

  As we streaked through New Orleans, I could see the sun peaking over the horizon, signifying the start of a new day, and all I felt was regret. I never should have dated Jason Brady. And I wished I’d never met him.

  Chapter Twenty

  Ethan

  “He cheated on me! With her!”

  Logan was calling me as I was waiting outside Boulevard3 for the valet to bring my car around, and I wasn’t sure I heard her right. Hunter and TJ were yelling something at a group of girls walking away from us, so I plugged my ear with my finger and asked Logan to repeat what she’d just said. She was supposed to be with Jase, and I really hoped he didn’t do what I think she said he did. If so, I was fully prepared to be on the next flight to New Orleans so I could promptly kick his ass.

  “What?” I asked her.

  “He cheated on me!” she shrieked again, and I could tell she’d been crying.

  “What do you mean he cheated?” I asked, then stepped away from my friends. They were drunk and acting obnoxious.

  Logan sniffled and drew in a ragged breath. “I went to his hotel suite, and I walked in expecting to surprise him, and he was in bed – with Chloe,” she growled.

  “Jesus,” I cursed, wishing I had something to punch. “Where are you?”

  I heard her swallow loudly. “I’m at the airport waiting for the first flight out. I just want to get back to L.A. I don’t want to be here anymore!”

  “Lo, calm down, okay,” I pleaded with her, wishing to God I was there with her, but I was two thousand miles away. I kicked the wall in front of me in frustration.

  “I can’t calm down,” she cried, gasping for air. “He cheated. With her. I hate her, and I hate him.”

  I hate him too.

  But I couldn’t say that to Logan. I knew she didn’t really hate Jase. She loved him. The bastard.

  “Are you sure he cheated?” I asked, just because she was hysterical, and if there was any chance she read into something that just looked like cheating, and Jase was really being the stand-up guy I thought he was, that he’d told me he was when we’d gotten a fucking drink together a week earlier, it would make her pain go away.

  I just want to make it go away.

  “Yes, Ethan,” she spat at me. “He was naked, she was naked, there was a used condom. And Jase didn’t remember shit. He was wasted out of his freaking mind, and he slept with Chloe. Ugh! I don’t want to talk about this anymore. I just wanted to call you and let you know that I’m coming home. Can you pick me up at the airport?”

  Her tone was murderous, and I knew she wasn’t alright, but I had to respect the fact that she wanted to let it go for now. I knew she’d want to talk later.

  “What time does your flight get in?”

  “I’m on the six o’clock flight out of here. It lands a little before noon, because I have to connect through Atlanta. I’ll text you when we get to L.A., okay?”

  I looked down at my watch to see that it was a little after five-thirty where she was. Her plane probably wasn’t boarding yet, and I didn’t want to let her off the phone.

  “E? Are you there?”

  “I’m here,” I said, my jaw hurting I was clenching it so badly.

  I wanted to kill Jase Brady, put my hands around his neck and squeeze. How dare he do that to Logan? She was one of the best girls out there, and he’d had her, and he threw her away. Fucking celebrity asshole. I knew he figured he could do better or maybe he just figured he could screw his ex-girlfriend and Logan would never know. Maybe he’d been leading Logan on for months.

  “You’re not okay,” she said. “What’s wrong?”

  I took a steadying breath. “I’m pissed,” I told her, and she knew me well enough to know why. Of course I was fucking pissed.

  I heard her let out a shaky breath. “Me too. And I’m hurt, and in shock a little bit, and,” her voice cracked, and it broke my heart.

  “Lo, baby, don’t cry. He’s not worth your time. He doesn’t deserve you.”

  Dammit. I just wanted to hold her, to be with her and make sure she knew that I would never hurt her. I would always be there for her. Even if I couldn’t keep assholes like Jase from hurting her, I would make sure she always had me.

  “I love him, Ethan!” she gritted out, and I knew she wasn’t as fine as she tried to lead me to believe.

  “I know you do.”

  “But I don’t ever want to see him again. I walked out of that hotel room before I could do something I regretted, but now I just regret not punching him in the jaw,” she spat, and she sounded sexy as hell.

  Dammit. I should not have been thinking that way. The alcohol was definitely clouding my brain.

  Attention, we are about to begin boarding flight 402 with non-stop service to Atlanta. All ticketed and confirmed passengers should be at the gate at this time.

  “That’s my flight,” Logan said before I could respond. “Thanks for picking me up.”

  “Anything for you, baby. I love you.”

  “Love you too,” she responded, and then she hung up.

  I stayed in the same spot, staring at the wall for a few more minutes as I tried to calm down. When Hunter finally shouted to me that the car was there, I took a deep breath, turned around and headed back to my friends. I had no idea when Jase was back in town, but he needed to know that I’d be waiting for him. No one treated Logan like trash and got away with it, and he’d done exactly that, making her disposable. He was a fucking dead man.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Logan

  I was exhausted by the time my flight landed in L.A., and I knew it showed. I’d barely slept on the way to New Orleans because I’d been so excited, and then on the way back, my anger had kept me awake. Now all I wanted to do was crash. And the last place I wanted to go was back to my dorm.

  Henley wouldn’t be there. She was in Cabo with her sorority sisters, but my room held too many memories of Jase, and I couldn’t take being alone with them. The first time we’d spent the night together had been in my bed, and I had pictures of him all over the place. I’d have to take them down eventually, but I wasn’t ready to do that just yet.

  But they couldn’t stay up.

  Because we were no longer together.

  We’d broken up.

  Because he’d cheated.

  I’d caught him.

  And he didn’t even try to deny it.

  And that was it.

  That was it.

  After seven months, we were done.

  And the worst part was, I still loved him. Because despite what I wished, I couldn’t just turn off my feelings. I wanted to hate him, and a part of me did, but it didn’t mean I’d stopped loving him. And that sucked.

  He was my first boyfriend, and I had fallen head over heels for him. I was probably stupid to do that. I should never have let myself get so caught up in the façade, b
ecause it was a lie. Everything Jase had ever told me, everything he said he felt about me had been shattered in one night of infidelity.

  But what if it hadn’t been one night? What if what I’d witnessed between Chloe and him had been going on longer? Had he been screwing her the whole time they were in New Orleans? I’d always wondered if he carried a torch for her because he hadn’t wanted to break up. She’d cheated on him and ended their relationship.

  Oh, God. Would that be me? Would I be so pathetic that a year from now if Jase hit on me I’d go willingly into his bed, even if he had a new girlfriend? I sincerely hoped I’d be stronger than that if presented with the opportunity.

  Dammit. I didn’t even want to think about that. Jase fucking knew what it felt like to be cheated on, and he’d turned around and done it to me, the selfish bastard. Fuck him.

  I sighed.

  As I walked through the airport, I kept my head down, pulled my brown Roxy trucker hat lower over my blond curls, shoved my hands into the pocket of my yellow hoodie and kept my aviators on the whole time. I was really trying to remain allusive and not draw attention, and I wasn’t sure if it was working or not. Ethan told me he’d meet me outside of baggage claim, so I had to make it there, wait for my bag, and then I could escape into his car.

  As I waited for my luggage, I pulled my phone back out. I’d seen when I’d texted Ethan from the runway that I had quite a few missed calls and voicemails, but I hadn’t taken the time to listen to any of them. I knew who they were from, and I just couldn’t hear his voice.

  “Lo,” I heard from behind me and turned around to see Ethan standing there, his hands shoved into the pockets of his shorts and an attempt at a smile on his tan face. He had on a black hoodie and a black Billabong trucker hat. We were practically dressed like twins.

  I gave him a pouty smile, so glad to see him, and so grateful that he’d picked up when I’d called. I hadn’t been sure if he’d answer since I knew he was going out with his friends, but he had, and I so owed him.

  I flew into his arms in about two seconds, my arms wrapping around his waist like a vice.

  “I’m so sorry,” I gushed.

  His strong arms held me tight as he buried his head in my shoulder. “For what?”

  “For calling you in the middle of the night. I probably ruined your fun with Hunter and TJ.”

  “No way,” he said, his breath moist on my neck. “You’re more important than them any day. You always come first, Lo.”

  He pulled back and appraised me, giving me a small smile. I looked up at him through my aviators. Then I let out a sigh, as if I’d been holding my breath until I saw him.

  “I’m so tired,” I said, letting my head fall against his chest. I felt like crying I was so exhausted and drained and emotionally tapped, but I’d cried for most of the flight, and I didn’t think I had any tears left.

  Ethan wrapped his arms around me again, and behind me I heard the sounds of the conveyer belt starting to move.

  “I know,” he said. “Are you hungry?”

  I shrugged. I hadn’t eaten breakfast, because food hadn’t sounded good to me, but now that I thought about it, I was starving. It had been a long time since the McDonald’s I’d scarfed down before my flight took off the night before.

  “Okay,” Ethan said, not waiting for my definitive reply. “I’ll call Garrett and have him order a pizza so it’ll be there when we get home. You’re staying with me this week, okay?”

  I nodded. That had been my plan all along. Ethan was my sanctuary. He was home, and when I was falling apart on the inside, I needed a safe space to do that.

  “Okay,” he said again before kissing me on the forehead and releasing me.

  He stepped forward to grab my suitcase, slung his arm around my shoulder, and we left the airport together, but unfortunately we didn’t get away unscathed. Flashbulbs went off as two photographers spotted us together. I could just see the headlines.

  Logan Kessler in tears. Jason Brady nowhere in sight.

  Trouble in paradise as Logan Kessler leaves LAX with another guy.

  Logan dumps Jason.

  At least Jase would come out looking like he was on the losing end. Of course that didn’t bring me much comfort, because even if it looked like he’d lost, I was really the one who’d been shit on.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Ethan

  I left Logan asleep in my bed, because I had to go take care of something. The whole way there I held my steering wheel in a death grip, imagining it was Jase’s neck. I wanted to kill him, hurt him, maim him. I was seeing red, so blind with rage that I wasn’t even sure what I was doing.

  I knocked on the door and Nora answered, the look of pleasant surprise on her face turning quickly to one of concern.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked, her gaze raking up and down my stiff as a board body as I clenched my fists at my sides and breathed in and out in short, quick bursts.

  “He slept with Chloe,” I spit out.

  She looked at me in confusion. “What? Who are you talking about?”

  I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and opened them. I hated saying his name.

  “Jase,” I growled through gritted teeth.

  She gasped in surprised, her jaw falling open, and her hand quickly moving to cover it. “Are you kidding me?”

  I shook my head, and she stepped back. “Holy shit. Come inside. Tell me what happened.”

  “I can’t,” I said, refusing to step foot into her apartment.

  “Why not?”

  “I have to get back to Logan. I can’t stay.”

  “Logan? Oh no, how is she?”

  I cocked my head to the side. That was dumb question.

  “Well, she walked in on her boyfriend with another woman. How do you think she feels, Nora?”

  Nora reeled back at my tone before she stepped outside and closed the door behind her. The concerned look on her face pissed me off, because I didn’t think it was for Logan. I knew then what a colossal mistake it had been to date her. She was too close to that asshole.

  “Ethan, are you mad at me?” she asked, worry lines etching her face.

  I shrugged, my answer clear in my non-verbal gesture.

  “Why?” she asked, obviously taken aback by my response.

  I shook my head. “You wouldn’t understand,” I muttered.

  She crossed her arms over her chest, so I looked down at my scruffy Converse sneakers.

  “Try me,” she said then, and my head snapped up, my eyes flashing.

  “You don’t know Logan like I know her. She’s fucking devastated, because your brother was an asshole who couldn’t keep his dick in his pants. She’s at my house right now, asleep in my bed where she was crying until she was so exhausted she couldn’t keep her eyes open.”

  “And that’s my fault,” she spat back.

  “No, it’s not your fault,” I said, the harshness in my tone surprising me. “But it’s your brother’s.”

  “Ethan, we’re not the same person. I didn’t cheat on you. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  I shook my head. “This was a mistake. I can’t do this anymore.”

  “You can’t do what?” she demanded.

  “This,” I said, gesturing back and forth between us.

  Her jaw dropped. “You’re breaking up with me?”

  I shrugged. “Yeah, I guess so. I don’t know. I just, I need to get back to Logan. I want to be there when she wakes up.”

  Nora’s eyes narrowed as she appraised me. “You are unbelievable.”

  “Me? Whatever.”

  “No, Ethan, it’s not whatever. Dammit!” She turned and ran her hand back through her hair. “I can’t believe I fell for your bullshit.”

  “What bullshit?” I asked, because now she was insulting me.

  “This whole time,” she said, shaking her head. “This whole, fucking time that we’ve been spending every waking hour together, you were still in love with her.”

 
“I’m not in love with her!” I roared, but even as I said it, the smallest twinge of hope lingered in the back of my mind.

  Logan wasn’t with Jase anymore. Did that mean she could be with me?

  And was that why I was standing outside Nora’s apartment ending things with her? No, it wasn’t. Logan wasn’t even in a position to think about dating someone else. This was all about Jase, and how I didn’t want to be associated with anyone who knew him.

  Nora rolled her eyes. “This is such bullshit.”

  I watched her eyes fill with tears and one slip down her cheek, making me feel like total dick, but I didn’t see another way out.

  I took a deep breath. “No, it’s not. Jase is an asshole, and since I would never ask you to cut him out of your life, because I can’t even think about him without imagining him with a bloody face, we obviously can’t be together. I won’t do that to Logan.”

  I swear, if I saw him, Superstar was going down – hard.

  “Ethan! That’s ludicrous! You’re actually breaking up with me because my brother cheated on Logan? Do you know how warped that sounds?”

  “No, I don’t,” I fired back. “She’s the most important person in my life, and she needs me right now. I can’t think about focusing on anything else but her.”

  “Ethan, that doesn’t make any sense,” she said, sniffing back her tears.

  I probably wasn’t making any sense. My head was spinning. I was exhausted, because I hadn’t slept in well over twenty-four hours, and I couldn’t think straight.

  Nora shook her head, as if in defeat. “She’s what you’ve wanted all along. Now you have your chance, I guess.”

  “That’s not it.”

  “No,” she said, putting her hand up to stop me from saying anything else. “You know what, it doesn’t matter. The bottom line is that I wanted to be the most important person in your life, but I realize now that the spot was already taken, and I just have to live with that. Unfortunately for me, I fell for you, Ethan. I fell hard, and gravity sucks. Good luck with Logan.”

  With that, she turned, opened the door, walked inside and slammed it closed in my face. And I wasn’t sure what to do with what she’d just said. She’d fallen for me? Seriously?