Read Online Worthy of Redemption by L. D. Davis - Free Book Online

would have done so already, rubbing my face in my shame with a jovial laugh.
    I was hoping that Emmy would enlighten me during her visit, but she was adamant that she didn't want to talk about it, but as she was leaving she had said that I put my hands on her and I broke her. It reminded me of her mother’s words from so long ago: “She’s broken and I think you broke her.” It killed me inside to know that I had done that to her, and I knew it wasn’t just about the physical abuse. I dragged Em through the mud for so long, taking advantage of her love for me. Whether she knew all of the reasons behind my behavior or not did not excuse my actions.
    I even felt some guilt towards Jess. In the beginning I believe she really did love me, and at one time I really loved her, too, but after a couple of years, I knew she wasn't for me. I would never be truly happy with her and I wasn't the man she wanted me to be. Pressure from my dad and her dad kept us together, and before I really could stop myself, I was obsessed with Emmy and making foolish mistakes. Even though Jess seems cold and heartless from the outside, I know fo r a fact that I broke her heart too.
    I’m an asshole of epic proportions, and a pussy. I devoured Emmy’s light with my darkness, made Jessyca into a bad person, failed to protect my mom, failed to save my brother, and folded under any pressure exerted by my dad. I d eserved nothing less than to run into traffic and get run over by a SEPTA bus, but I didn’t even have the guts to do that. Instead, I ran back home as dawn was breaking and got ready for work.
     

~Lily~
     
    The morning commute from South Jersey to Philadelphia is a nightmare. The roads are crowded, the buses are crowded, the trains are overstuffed tin cans and the sidewalks are ove rflowing with cranky commuters. Stopping in any kind of shop that sells coffee is dangerous, and you risk losing a limb for an overpriced cup of Joe.
    When I walked through the doors of Sterling Corp, I felt like I had slid into home base, but my reprieve was short, as the building also was starting to fill up. Coming from a night crawling lifestyle, adapting to this morning rush to work was going to take some patience, strong doses of caffeine, and possibly some chocolate. It was still early, and I had not even begun my work day yet, but I was already sa livating thinking of a chocolate milkshake topped with whipped cream and cherries at the end of my day.
    Focus on the milkshake, and everything will be okay. You can do this!
    I found Mayson waiting with a dozen other people at the three elevators in the lobby. She smiled and waved me over.
    “Good morning,” she said too brightly.
    “Hi,” I said, making myself smile.
    “I heard you had a run in with Kyle yesterday,” she said in an apologetic tone. “I’m so rry.”
    I shrugged. “No big deal. I can handle him.”
    “Are you sure? Because I can put you in another department.”
    “No way,” I said as we slowly moved forward towards an open cab. “That will only rei nforce his pretentious idea that I’m incapable of doing this job.”
    She nodded but looked doubtful.
    “You don’t think I can do it either,” I said in a matter of fact tone.
    “I think you can do it, but I also think you don’t know what you’re getting yourself into. Kyle is -” She didn’t finish her sentence, because the man in que stion stepped onto the crowded elevator.
    He glanced at me when he got on next to me, scowled at Mayson, and then turned his attention to his phone. On the way to the tenth floor, the elevator stopped at every floor, mostly to let people off, but sometimes someone would get on to head upstairs. When it stopped on our floor, I started to follow Mayson out of the cab when a strong hand wrapped around my for earm. I stood on the threshold, staring back at Kyle in shock. I had almost decked him (again), my natural defense after being around sleazy men in bars for my entire adult life.
    He