A Reason To Be: Book 1

by Maria Xystra

  “What’s with the pizzas?” I brace myself for the answer I’m sure I won’t like.

  “We’re going to Cole’s place.” Eric smiles and turns to his best friend in a silent expression of ‘is everything OK?’, probably referring to his phone call. Cole nods in response.

  I catch Sam by the elbow and draw her close to me to whisper between my clenched teeth. “Cole’s place?” I can’t drop the threatening tone that laces my words.

  “Yeah!”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Would you have come if I had told you?”

  “No!”

  “That’s why!”

  “That’s called ‘treachery’!” I whisper emphatically.

  She shrugs, and I grunt at her. Cole, while still on the phone, lifts a hand to point upwards and Sam and Eric head towards the hall leading to Cole’s office and the toilets.

  “Come on,” Sam urges me and nods towards the direction they’re heading in. I quickly grab my purse and follow them.

  Eric lifts the gate of the elevator at the end of the hall, and steps inside. He punches a button – or rather a bunch of them on an elaborate keyboard – as Cole comes to join us with two six packs in his hand, and still on the phone.

  I retreat near the far corner, away from him and close to the second set of doors that probably lead to the side entrance of the building, in the adjacent alley. We make our way to the upper floor in silence.

  “OK, let me know how it goes. See you on Sunday,” Cole hurries to hang up. “What? Oh, yeah, she’ll be there,” he adds shooting me a glare.

  To avoid looking at him I pretend to be inspecting the elevator. As if an elevator could be that interesting. Unavoidably, a series of stupid comments comes into mind: Nice elevator, its corners are...so...four, did you decorate it yourself?, does it come in other colors?, how....well-numbered! I try to stifle a chuckle and feel the elevator come to a halt.

  As we reach the first floor, Cole lifts a second gate. He unlocks the only door on the floor right in front of us and urges us inside.

  He seems to have noticed the nervousness expressed by my slight fidgeting and grabs my arm and pulls me inside.

  “Come on in, Tipsy!” And with this he knocks out any feelings of discomfort.

  “Make yourself at home. You can leave your purse here and your clothes wherever you want to!”

  I punch his arm as I walk past him. Awe hits me straight away as I look at Cole’s place, blocking out his fake-pain act and Eric’s singing “You can leave your-clothes-wherever-you-want-to!” in the tune of ‘You can leave your hat on’.

  A huge open-plan apartment spreads out in front of me. On my right there’s the living room with an L-shaped, black, leather couch, a modern glass-and-granite coffee table on a lavish rug in the middle and a huge LED TV on the wall. On my left, the space is briefly narrowed by a wall and a door.

  “That’s the bathroom,” Cole informs me. Moving further into the apartment, past the living room, there’s a kitchen across the wall with an island in front of it. Black-and-white granite counters impose austerity and luxury. It’s hard to picture him cooking in this kitchen, but then again, it’s Cole so I’m pretty sure he finds a way to use it. Especially that island – if you know what I mean.

  This strict black and white color-play is contrasted by the green felt of the pool table on the left. Walking between that and the kitchen area, I step down a couple of steps to find a corner bar on the left, a big, round poker table in the middle and a modern staircase up against the wall on the right. I follow the staircase with my eyes and it apparently leads to the upper floor, which aligns perfectly with the steps I’ve just descended. Taking a couple of steps backwards I get a glimpse of the bedroom, which is only partly hidden by a wall on the right, leaving the rest of it exposed. To top it all, behind the bar and the poker table, there’s a floor-to-ceiling window, probably covering the upper floor as well, that leaves the night lights of the city to complete the whole ambience of the place. It’s magical! I simply love him! Err-it! Love it!

  I must have spent a while taking in the space, because Cole’s voice surprised me.

  “Tipsy, over here.”

  I snap back to my senses shaking off the astonishment I was struck by and turn to find the three of them behind the kitchen island.

  “Your place is amazing,” I comment.

  Eric picks up ketchup and mayo from the fridge heading towards the living room and Sam follows him with some plates.

  “Aww, that’s the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me,” he winks as he takes the beers out of their packs. I stick my tongue out and he chuckles, displaying his disarming dimples.

  “Let me show you the bedroom.” He walks down the steps and takes me by the hand and up the staircase. We reach the end and turn left onto a small corridor. A minimalistic bedroom comes in sight. A huge king size bed lies in the middle and against the far wall, a nightstand on each side. On the right, there’s a floor-to-ceiling window – as suspected. On the left, there is a door and the rest of the wall is covered by a huge bookcase hosting a TV set in the middle.

  Inside the door, there is a bathroom. Let me rephrase: a breathtaking, five-star-hotel bathroom! Opposite the door there’s a wall to wall, enormous shower. Most of it is framed with glass, leaving an opening on the left side to enter it. On the right, there’s a nickel shower head and from the ceiling hangs a big round disc that definitely makes it rain! The wall of the shower is covered with tiny mosaic pieces in black, white and shades of grey. Somewhere in the middle the pieces come together to form a life-size female figure in the arms of a spread-winged angel. The right wall consists of a huge mirror interrupted only by a backless, black toilet. And next to the door, a glass and granite sink completes the picture. Even though it’s a just a bathroom, I could easily spend the rest of my life in here.

  I turn to Cole to find him leaning on the doorframe with arms crossed over his chest, grinning at me.

  “What?” I try not to focus on his sexy expression, fearing what effect it might have on me.

  “Nothing. You just seem to like it.”

  “I do.”

  He walks past the bookcase and into a walk-in closet.

  “It’s been a while since you said something mean to me. Should I be worried?” he jokes.

  “I just really like your place.” I make the mistake of following him and that’s practically the only thing I can say right now, seeing him taking off his t-shirt to change into a clean one. The sight of his muscular, tattooed back catches me off-guard but unfortunately, the show is over a bit too soon.

  “You wanna try the bed to see if you like that as well?” he offers with a clearly insinuating tone.

  “You’re an ass,” I reply and make my way down the stairs.

  “And we’re back to normal.” I smile and I’m sure he does too behind me. “I just want you to be familiar with everything for Sunday.”

  I make my way to the downstairs bathroom and open the door to find a simple toilet and sink, nothing like the extravagant one upstairs, but still very modern and stylish.

  “You’re coming on Sunday?” Sam asks with excitement and surprise. I nod.

  “Of course she is,” Cole wastes no time to tease me. “She will be the hostess.” He pats the couch next to him for me to take a seat. Eric and Sam sit at the other angle of the couch leaving the only empty space for me, right next to him. I suddenly remember I want something from the kitchen.

  “Where are the napkins?” I ask trying to avoid the upcoming discussion of how I ended up coming to poker night.

  “On the island,” Cole answers.

  Not seeing what I’m looking for, I ask again: “Not ‘where do you like having sex’, where do you keep the napkins.”

  “Like I said, on the island.” He gets up and hands me the napkins – which of course, were right in front of me.

  “As weird as it might sound,” he leans closer to me, “I never had sex on this islan
d.”

  A powerful set of chills crawls all the way down my spine at his words, unavoidably bringing pictures of x-rated content to my mind.

  I hurry back to the living room to sit right next to Sam at the far end of the couch. I have to admit, it is kind of ridiculous, three of us sitting close to each other and only Cole sitting at the other end.

  Devious Sam gets up to get some water and when she comes back she sits next to me pushing me closer to Eric, making me feel uncomfortable sitting between the couple.

  Eric gets up to put half of the pizza on his plate and sits next to Sam, giving me a mischievous smile. I narrow my eyes at both of them.

  “Someone needs to press play. Not it!” Cole shouts playfully.

  “Not it!” Eric and Sam scream before I even realize what is going on.

  I grumpily get up to get the remote control and as if by plan, the happy couple spreads on the couch leaving no extra space for me to sit back.

  I ended up taking the seat between them and Cole. Right.

  “So, how come you’re coming on Sunday,” Sam asks again, “and what do you mean you’ll be the ‘hostess’?”

  Eric explains the situation using words like ‘stunt’, ‘girlfriend’ and ‘poker night’.

  “Can we start the movie now?” I try to practice my poker face and not let the turmoil of feelings inside me show in my expression.

  Cole takes the remote control from me and drapes an arm on the back of the couch. “You know, if you wanted so desperately to become my girlfriend, you could have just asked.”

  I clench my teeth and stare at the TV, choosing not to reply.

  He goes on. “And, who knows, I might have even said yes.”

  I click my tongue on my teeth. Tsk.

  “Just start the damn movie.”

  CHAPTER 7

  “Hey,” Cole’s voice comes through the intercom to put all my senses on alert with its huskiness. “I’ll buzz you in. You can park your car behind mine.”

  I remain staring at the speaker on my left, as if waiting for my drive-through order to be confirmed.

  The huge gate to the alley behind the bar opens with remarkable seriousness, and where I expected a loud screeching sound to be heard, I honestly hear nothing.

  I pass by the private entrance on my left and reach the only other car inside; a black 4-door Jeep Wrangler. I feel my eyebrows rise in appreciation and the corners of my lips tugging downwards. No surprise there of course.

  Getting out of my car, I notice a black mass beside the Wrangler. A magnificent, total-black-mat Buell poses like a model, turning her head towards me. I really find it difficult to resist climbing on it, since motorcycles never fail to excite me. Instead, I walk towards the entrance, turning my head all the way to savor the view as long as possible. Nearly tripping on the tiny step, I shift into focus and walk through the open door.

  I step into the small foyer and the door shuts immediately behind me with a thud. On the right there’s a spiral staircase and on the left, the elevator. I hesitantly take a step inside. I press the button to the first floor – took me a while to find it in that confusing keypad –and I hear the sounds of the bar on the other side gradually fading as I make my way upstairs. I half expected the elevator to stop and a green light to x-ray me from head to toe and back upwards.

  As it stops on the first floor, I realize that I’m facing the wrong direction when the other set of doors open behind me. I pivot in place and see Cole leaning against his door with arms and ankles crossed. Every hair from my nape down to the end of my spine stands on end. He surely rocks the jeans-and-T-shirt look; makes my jeans-and-T-shirt choice look like pajamas. I raise both hands in surrender.

  “Are you gonna search me before I get cleared to enter your fortress?”

  “Of course.” He dismisses my joke and comes close to me. I freeze, surprised by his response, and stay nailed in my tracks.

  He takes my hands and raises them to my sides, across the length of my shoulders. He traces every inch with expertise – not that I’ve ever been searched before, but so I assume. As he reaches my sternum, I feel my pulse quicken and when he puts his thumbs under the line of my bra and draws them across my ribcage, my breath catches. He must have noticed of course, because I can practically hear his grin widening on his face.

  When he’s done checking my legs for any hidden weapons, he lifts his eyes to me and smiles.

  “I was just kidding. This wasn’t necessary but since you offered, I couldn’t resist.”

  I take advantage of his crouching position down my side, and shove him hard, knocking him on his ass.

  “You’re a jerk!”

  He chuckles. I smile.

  One step into his apartment, and the same awe I was struck by last time hits me again. Only this time, it’s accompanied by the late afternoon sun coming through the windows to shed golden light in the room. I take the whole scenery in with a deep breath.

  Remember Lex: you have to pretend you don’t like this guy and you also have to pretend you don’t like pretending to be his girlfriend. I let my breath out and slip into my role. I grab the door and give it a forceful push behind me.

  Cole stops it from slamming on his face with his hand. He comes in and closes it behind him with a smug expression.

  “I saw that coming!” he exclaims triumphantly.

  I stomp on his foot.

  “Did you see that coming, too?”

  Unsurprisingly, I don’t see any signs of pain. Instead he giggles and shakes his head.

  “You’re driving me crazy” he whispers under his breath.

  “Oh, you ain’t seen nothing yet.” I turn to move away from where we stand. Cole’s hand reaches for mine and turns my body and attention back to him. His soft grip loosens, disconnecting our hands.

  “Listen, Lex.” Uh-oh. Serious mode: on. “I appreciate you agreeing to do this for me, even though it’s hard for you to pretend you like someone you don’t.” I avert my gaze from him so that he can’t see how wrong he is about that. “But now we are here, and even if this probably seems like a joke to you, the others have no clue and I’d like to keep it that way. In reality, there’s nothing you can do about it, so just put on your best behavior and act like you’re in love with me.”

  “I-”

  “I’m not done.” He shuts me down before I get the chance to say anything. His imposing I-own-everything attitude strikes me once again and renders me speechless. Just like the very first time at the bar when I couldn’t answer back.

  “Most importantly, whatever you hear tonight, pretend like you didn’t, and whatever answer you think of blurting out, just keep it to yourself.”

  “Fine. What if they ask me any personal questions?”

  “Well… Less is more. Just keep it brief and vague.” Oh, my God. Who are these people? The Mafia?

  I shrug in silent agreement.

  “And remember: I’ve got your back; as long as you have mine.” He rests a hand on my arm affectionately.

  “That sounds more like a threat,” I comment. He smiles and raises an eyebrow waiting for an answer. “Fine, I’ll try.”

  “I don’t want you to try. I want you to make this happen.”

  He pauses for a minute. He folds his arms over his chest and brings his index finger to his lips. It’s like I can see the wheels turning in his head and I’m pretty sure I’m not gonna like what he’s about to say.

  “I’ll make you a deal,” he lifts his finger from his lips to point at me.

  “Let’s hear it, Don Corleone,” I tease him.

  “I’ll make you an offer you can’t refuse,” he plays along stealing The Godfather’s line.

  I doubt there’s anything I can refuse him, especially when he’s being playful. I raise an eyebrow.

  “If you behave tonight and make yourself believable as a madly-in-love girlfriend, and if we pull this off successfully, I’ll sign on with AMC tomorrow.”

  “Excuse me?” I stare at him in disbe
lief. “I thought that was a closed deal!”

  “It’s not closed until I put my name on the dotted line.”

  “You….” I finish my cursing in a grunt, simply because all the words I can think of are inadequate to characterize him with.

  “That’s insane!” I burst. “You can’t bring AMC into this and jeopardize the contract to serve your own purpose! A lot of people have worked hard for it – for you!”

  “It looks like I just did,” he replies calmly. “You help me with my business, I help you with yours. It’s a win-win situation.”

  “What gives you the right to play me like this? And, what’s stopping me from leaving right this instant?” Furious at him for the fact that he practically imposed his control over me, I shoot daggers at him with a strong, hateful stare.

  “The fact that you agreed to this; besides, you’re already here! Just admit that you need me, as much as I need you.”

  Right now, I need to attack him. Violently.

  “So, do we have a deal Tipsy, or what?” he offers me a hand.

  I shake it in defeat. “It’s like making a deal with the devil.”

  He winks at me.

  Suddenly, I won’t have to pretend that I don’t like him.

  As I start making myself familiar with the kitchen cabinets and drawers, he leans on the island watching my every move.

  “You know, if we were a real couple, we would be popping each other’s eyes out with crazy, wild, make-up sex right now.”

  “Can I just stick to the ‘pop your eyes out’ part?” I deflect his comment waving a fork at him.

  He smiles, slowly stands up, dismisses my hand with a casual move and walks towards the bar on the far corner.

  “Do you want a drink?” he asks over his shoulder.

  “Oh, yeah! Lots of drinks! ’Cause I’ll need a gallon of alcohol in my system to pull off a believable version of your girlfriend.”

  He shakes his head.

  I lean against the counter, now fully accustomed to everything in his place. I hate to admit that I feel so comfortable here, and so comfortable with him. It’s ridiculous that he has gotten under my skin so fast and in such a successful way – even when he’s being an ass. It’s not like I let my guard down and allowed this to happen, but still, he always seems to find a way to affect me.