Sometimes he loves me

Chapter 13

EMMA

I wake up to a soft knock on the door. My eyes are burning, reminding me that I cried myself to sleep last night.

"Go away." I mumble into the pillow, followed by another knock.

"Fucking hell." I sigh as I get out of bed and walk to my door like a zombie. It's a good thing I fell asleep in my clothes, otherwise I would never have opened the door.

"Surprise." Vincent says as soon as I open the door. In one hand he is holding a large teddy bear and in the other a box of chocolates. His broad smile makes the corners of my lips tug in one too, instantly making me forget our conversation from yesterday.

"Vincent." I say enthusiastically as I wrap my arms around his neck. He lifts me off the floor and then walks into the room with me in his arms. "You're early." I say when he puts me down again.

"I'm sorry I couldn't come yesterday." He says as he closes the door behind him. He presses his lips to mine. "I got on the plane right after work."

My heart swells. "Did you sleep on the plane instead of at home? For me?" I smile at him "That's so sweet of you. I just woke up though, sorry."

"It's okay, it's early anyway. Take your time. Maybe after you showered we can go into town and grab some dinner somewhere tonight." He offers. "If you'd want to of course."

"I'd love to." I say cheerfully and I walk to my wardrobe. When I take a red dress out of the closet, I hear Vincent making a disapproving sound behind me.

"Are you going to wear that?" He asks. When I turn around he is sitting on my bed and his eyes are on the dress in my hand.

"I was planning to... I say, suddenly doubting my decision. "Is there something wrong with it?" I ask as I hold the dress.

Vincent gets up and walks over to me. He takes the piece of clothing from me and places it on the desk, after which he wraps his hands around my hips.
He brings his lips to my earlobe. "It's way too short and will look way too sexy on you." He kisses my neck and then moves his lips to mine. "Only I want to see you like that." He whispers.

I giggle at his flattering words, even though I really wanted to wear that dress, I still turn around and grab another one from the closet.

🖤

After spending most of the day walking through town, we went to a cute place to have dinner. It's already getting dark outside by the time Vincent and I are almost with our main course. Our plates are just being collected by the waitress and she offers us the menu card for desserts.

"You choose babe." Vincent says as he takes it from her and slides it towards me. He scoots his chair back and gets up. "I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" I ask.

"Bathroom." He replies shortly.

"Okay." I smile at him before he walks away.

When Vincent is out of sight, my gaze falls on his phone on the table. When he receives a message, I quickly look away. I try to distract myself with the menu but his screen lights up again. And again.
I know it's wrong but I can't contain my curiosity. Especially after what happened last Tuesday, I have a weird gut feeling. My gaze quickly moves from his phone to the restrooms, estimating how much time I have.

Fuck it. I grab his phone and slide the message centre down. Then I can see who messaged him without opening them.

3 New messages:
"Lucy: Thanks for last night."
"Lucy: I'm looking forward to next time."
"Lucy: ;)"

My heart starts beating painfully fast as I read the messages. Lucy? Who the fuck is Lucy? When I hear the toilet doors open, I quickly put his phone down and try to act normal.

"Made a choice yet?" Vincent asks as he sits down across from me again.

"Actually, I don't feel like dessert." My voice is shaky and I feel dizzy.

"What have I done now?" He asks with a sigh. I feel bad that I seem to nag so much, otherwise he wouldn't be saying this.

"No it's nothing." I lie, looking at the table. My body is shaking with nerves. When I look up I notice the irritated look on his face which makes me even more nervous.

"Emma, ​​tell me what's going on or we're leaving. I have better things to do than put up with your shit." He threatens. I hope no one can hear us.

"I just don't feel good." I try to smile, but I feel like puking.

"Fine." He says in a tone that sounds as irritated as his face. "I won't let you ruin my evening, just go to the car while I pay." He pushes his chair back hard enough to make some people look our way and stands up.

I hate that conversations between us can take such a turn so quickly. I just don't want to bring up Lucy while we're in a restaurant.

I slowly pack my things when he walks over to the bar to pay, not wanting to draw more attention from the people around us than we already have.

Then we walk out of the restaurant as if nothing happened and go home in silence.

I wouldn't even know how to ask about Lucy, but the longer we don't exchange a word the bigger the lump in my throat gets. He said he had to work overtime, so why would Lucy thank him for last night?

As soon as he parks in front of the building, I quickly get out of the car and slam the door shut harder than I intended. I'm so lost in thoughts that I don't even realise how fast I'm walking into the building, up the stairs, on my way to my room.

Fuck, why is my heart beating so fast? I don't know if this is from running or from an upcoming panic attack, but I can't stop running until I finally get to my door.

"Emma!" I hear Vincent bark behind me. I freeze at my door as I feel him walk towards me. I blink away my tears before turning to him.

"What is wrong with you?" He asks.

"I read your messages while you were in the bathroom at the restaurant." I suddenly say. Startled, I look up at him, shocked by my own honesty. "Sorry..." I whisper right after it, aware of his privacy that I've invaded.

My heart keeps racing and whispering takes a lot of effort but I don't want anyone to hear us.

"What were you doing on my phone?" He immediately spits at me. I cringe at how loud he talks. He suddenly starts laughing. "What? You're trying to catch me doing something?"

"No, I-" but I don't know what to say.

"You think you're smart taking my phone behind my back? You really are pathetic." He says in disgust and then turns to walk away.

"Where are you going? Your flight won't be until tomorrow evening." I panic and instantly follow him. I grab his wrist to stop him but he yanks himself free from my grasp. When he turns to me menacingly, I stop. I look at him obediently and remain silent as I await his answer. My chest fills with even more panic.

As soon as he starts talking and I hear his calm but menacing voice, my heart stops for a moment. "To a hotel, I don't feel like dealing with your bullshit." His words make me feel small and unimportant. But the look in his eyes... is much worse. He turns again and walks away, down the stairs.