by E. L. Todd
She grabbed my arms and pushed me off. “Flirting with a girl you used to hump is never okay.”
“I wasn’t flirting with her!” I climbed back on top of her and held her down. “You can hug other guys and that’s okay?”
“I don’t hug anyone!” She tried to push me off, but I wouldn’t let her.
“So, if I ever see you with anyone, I have the right to get upset?” I demanded. “If that’s true, I’ll apologize.”
“If it was Reid you’d be pissed.”
“No, I wouldn’t.”
“What if I flirted with Reid?” she snapped.
“I really don’t want to talk about some guy you used to date while I’m trying to make love to you.”
“Make love?” she snapped. “That’s what you call this?”
“I’m certainly not fucking you. Now, hold still.”
“How romantic,” she hissed.
“You’re the one who came here in the middle of the night to fuck. I tried to make it meaningful and romantic so we can just get back together already.”
“I thought we weren’t broken up?” she hissed.
“I thought the same until you kept telling everyone otherwise.”
“Well, you gave me an ultimatum.” She swatted me away. “Did you sleep with anyone this week?”
I suddenly went limp. And my anger increased tenfold. I was so furious I couldn’t speak. I got out of bed and pulled my clothes on. “Get out of my apartment!”
She sat up and pulled the sheets over her chest. “What?”
“How dare you ask me that!” My eyes were wide and about to pop. “You really think I would sleep with some girl the second we broke up, even though we didn’t break up? I always thought I would be the one to struggle in this relationship and burn it to the ground, but you’re the one sabotaging it every chance you get. Grow the fuck up, Trinity.” I walked out and slammed my door. Then I headed to Cayson’s.
He answered the door, half asleep with messy hair. “Hmm?”
“Can I sleep on your couch?”
“Cool.”
He was clearly still asleep.
He walked away and headed to his bedroom, where Skye was sleeping alongside him.
I lay on the couch and stared at the ceiling. My phone started to vibrate, and when I looked at the screen, I saw Trinity’s name. I ignored her call and turned off my phone, knowing nothing good would come from answering it.
The next morning, I had breakfast with Cayson and Skye. Skye made breakfast and put it on the table. The smell of the food immediately reminded me of Trinity. She used to cook every morning.
Cayson sipped his coffee. “What happened now?”
“We hooked up, but it turned into a fight.”
“What more could you fight about?” Cayson asked.
“She asked if I slept with anyone while we’ve been apart.” I shook my head. “She should have just slapped me across the face. It would have saved us both some time.”
Skye sat across from me. “She just said that out of anger. Give her a break.”
“No,” I snarled.
“Weren’t you the one who said you were going to hook up with some girl?” Skye pressed.
“Well, yeah…but I didn’t mean it,” I said.
“And I’m sure she didn’t mean what she said,” Skye said softly. “Just make up already. This fight has gone on long enough.”
“I’m not going to apologize unless she apologizes first and meets me halfway. If we’re going to be together for a long time, she needs to understand I’m not going to sweep everything under the rug. I’m not you, Cayson.”
He bit into his toast. “Maybe you should be.”
“Come again?” I said.
“Skye has…done a few things. It’s not worth staying mad over. I’m far happier with her than without her, so is it really worth it?”
“I’m standing my ground,” I said firmly.
Cayson sighed. “You’re just going to drag this out…”
“Then she’ll learn her lesson.”
Skye studied my face. “I think they are both so hotheaded that their fights are different. They’ll figure it out on their own—in their own way.”
“You better not be on her side,” I said. “I know she’s your best friend and all, but she’s being a brat.”
“Actually, I’m not. I think she’s being immature.”
Did Skye just say that? “Really?”
She nodded. “But I understand her fear. She knows what kind of guy you used to be. But she should trust you since you’re together. Being paranoid and threatened is no way to have a relationship.”
“She knows from personal experience,” Cayson said with a smirk.
“Don’t gloat,” Skye said. “It’s not a good color on you.”
He rubbed her back. “Baby, I’m kidding.”
She buttered her toast and didn’t say anything.
“Well, she’ll come to me when she’s ready.” I downed my orange juice.
“Or you could just take the hit…” Cayson gave me a knowing look.
“No.”
I was depressed all over again, just wanting this fight to be over with. I missed reading in bed with her, listening to her quiet breaths while she slept, and I missed our relationship.
Being without her was torture.
I went to the bar alone because I had nothing else to do. Alcohol was my friend now. It attempted to replace everything Trinity gave me but did a lousy job. I sipped my brandy while I stared at the TV screen.
“The blonde is really hot.” The guy next to me was talking to his friend.
“Yeah.” The friend nodded. “She’s got a nice ass.”
I kept watching the TV.
“I’m going for it. Wish me luck.” He stood up and walked away.
Curious, I turned and looked. Across the room, he headed to the blonde at the table. On closer examination, I recognized her.
That was my blonde.
Trinity was with a friend she had a class with. It was Cindy or Carrie…something like that.
The guy reached the table and struck up a conversation with her. When Trinity laughed, I was pissed. I didn’t like seeing her respond to him warmly. I wanted her to tell him to fuck off and throw her drink in his face.
Not thinking, I marched over there, my arms swinging by my sides.
“Fuck. Off.” I stared down the guy, threatening to break his nose and every other bone in his body.
He immediately stepped back. “Sorry, I thought she was alone.”
“Well, she’s not,” I snapped. “Now go.”
He held up his hands and walked away.
Then I turned my fury onto her. “Who the hell was that?”
“I don’t know,” she snapped. “He just came over here. He barely introduced himself before you came over and acted like a total jerk.”
Cindy grabbed her drink and drifted away. “I’ll see you later, Trin…”
Trinity ignored her. “You didn’t need to act like that.”
“Well, you’re mine. I don’t want guys hitting on you.”
“Too bad,” she hissed. “It’s going to happen no matter what.”
“You could have told him to—” I stopped when I realized my mistake.
Trinity smiled in victory. “Sorry, I didn’t catch that last part?” She cupped her ear and leaned forward, waiting to listen to my upcoming words.
I shut my mouth and brooded in silence.
Trinity didn’t let up. “Were you going to say something, Slade? Come on, spit it out. Why didn’t I tell him what?”
I looked across the room, staring at nothing in particular.
“Why didn’t I—”
“Shut up.”
She closed her mouth and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Okay, I see your point…”
“You got jealous for no reason.”
Yeah, I did.
“You should trust me.” She was feeding the same
lines back to me. “And grow up.”
I scratched the back of my neck. “I think we’re both wrong, and both right.”
She didn’t argue with me.
“I’m sorry I got so upset and told him off…I guess I shouldn’t have done that.”
“No, probably not.”
“You’re mine and I…I want everyone to know that.”
She nodded slightly.
I stared at her, waiting for her to reciprocate.
“I’m sorry too,” she whispered. “I did overreact.”
“That’s an understatement,” I mumbled.
She glared at me. “I’m apologizing over here!”
“Sorry.”
“I should trust you and I know that… I shouldn’t let who you used to be affect what we are now.”
“That means a lot to me,” I whispered.
“So…are we okay?”
“Yeah.” The weight was lifted from my chest and I finally felt better. The past few weeks had been agonizing. I was glad we’d finally resolved our problem. Trinity and I were going to be okay. “Want to go home?”
She smiled. “I like it when you call my house your home.”
“Because it is. You are my home.”
She moved into my side, her hand moving around my waist.
“Can I pay for your drink?” I whispered.
“Actually, they were paid for by some other guy.”
I growled. “Let’s go home so I don’t kill anyone.”
“Okay.” A smile was in her voice.
When we came back to the house, I felt a million times better. Everything was back to normal. We had our first fight and we survived it. It took a long time to get back to normal, but we managed it.
She rubbed her hands up and down my chest. “Bath time?”
“That sounds nice.” I missed doing those things with her.
“Okay.”
“But I want sex afterward—a lot of it.”
“Demanding, aren’t we?” She had a twinkle in her eye.
“When it comes to you, I know what I want.”
73
Roland
My mom hadn’t mentioned my stories, and I was too nervous to ask what she thought. What if she hated them? Thought they were poorly written and horrible and she didn’t have the heart to tell me the truth? Perhaps she was brainstorming how to break it to me.
Or maybe she forgot altogether.
No, my mom wouldn’t forget.
Right?
Weeks passed and she never said anything. I knew Trinity’s accident had ripped a hole in everyone’s lives. Everything was put on hold until she could walk again. Everyone held their breath, waiting for her to walk on her own. Once she did, normalcy returned.
Now I was just waiting for a response.
Then she texted me. I’m going shopping with Skye on Saturday. Want to get breakfast on Sunday? She didn’t mention my stories.
Of course.
You’re welcome to come with us. I just assumed you wouldn’t want to.
You would be right.
I’ll see you then, dear.
K.
I guess I would ask for her thoughts when I saw her. My mom was good at breaking bad news, better than most. I knew she would put me down easily, not ruin all my motivation and self-esteem. My dad was more blunt, especially with me. With Skye, he was always sensitive and babied her. With me, he told me exactly how it was. It was a good thing but also a bad thing.
“I got tickets to the Red Sox,” Conrad said. “You want to go?” He waved the tickets in my face.
“Hell yeah. When’s the game?”
“Sunday.”
Damn, I was seeing my mom. “I already have plans.”
“With whom?” He was the main person I hung out with.
“My mom.”
“You can see her whenever. This is important. Nothing is more important than sports.”
I tried not to laugh. “As true as that is…I can’t blow her off.”
He rolled his eyes. “You’re such a momma’s boy.”
I shrugged. “She’s pretty cool.”
“There’s no such thing as a cool mom.”
“Well, when she caught me sneaking in to the house with a girl when I was sixteen, she didn’t tattle on me to my dad. That was pretty cool.”
He nodded. “I guess that is cool. But baseball is cooler.”
“We can go another time.”
“I guess I’ll ask someone else.”
“Slade would go.”
“Yeah…”
I caught the tone. “Still feel weird around him?”
He shrugged. “No, it’s hard to explain. Even though I hate my sister, I don’t want him to hurt her, you know?”
“It seems like he really cares about her. I wouldn’t worry about it.”
“My dad sure had a change of heart,” Conrad said.
“If he accepts Slade, then I’m sure you have nothing to worry about.”
“Probably.”
“Invite him. You should probably spend more time with him anyway,” I said. “He might be your brother-in-law someday.”
He laughed. “Good one.”
“You don’t think they’ll last?”
“No. I know they won’t.”
I hadn’t put much thought into it. But I knew Slade wasn’t the type that committed. “I think you should ask him anyway.”
“I’d ask Cayson but he’s probably too busy with Skye.”
“I’m not sure why…she’s so annoying.”
“Word.” He put the tickets back in his pocket. “I guess I’ll ask him.”
“Bring me a box of Cracker Jacks.”
“For twenty bucks.”
I laughed. “You’re such an ass.”
“So, what’s so important with your mom anyway?” he asked.
I’d rather not say. “Some personal stuff…”
He didn’t press me on it.
My mom and I got breakfast at a café. She ordered biscuits and gravy with a side of pancakes and eggs and scarfed it down like she didn’t just eat enough calories to last her all day.
I sipped my coffee, waiting for her to bring up my stories. “How was shopping?”
“Good. I got your father a new tie. I think he’ll like it.”
“What does it look like?”
“It’s blue. Pretty typical.”
I rolled my eyes. “Dad wears the same thing every day.”
She shrugged. “He buys the same suits so he doesn’t have to waste time deciding what to wear in the morning.”
“I’m surprised you don’t lay out his clothes for him.”
She chuckled. “Your father wouldn’t like that one bit.”
“He doesn’t like a lot of things.”
She reached into her purse and pulled out a stack of papers. “I know you’re anxious…”
Moment of truth.
She handed the papers to me.
When I looked down, I saw all the red lines and markings. Notes were scribbled on the sides in my mother’s small handwriting. That didn’t look good.
“Roland.”
I looked up at her, waiting for the blow.
“They are…” She shook her head, unable to find the right words. “Absolutely wonderful.”
What? Seriously? “Are you sure?”
She chuckled. “They are so rich in detail, and the stories are so original. They are phenomenal, Roland. I wish you had shown them to me sooner.”
“Really?” Was this really happening?
“You don’t belong in business, Ro. You’re a writer.”
“Mom…are you just pulling my leg right now?”
She patted my hand. “I would never tell you I hate your work or put you down, but I would never tell you I loved it if I didn’t. I wouldn't put false compliments in your head and let you walk into a trap. My words are true. The fact that you’re my son only makes it that much more impressive. I’m so proud of you, dear.”
She laughed. “I didn’t say it was perfect. It’s a mess and needs a lot of cleaning up and changes. That’s true of every story. But it has so much potential. If you make those changes, you’ve got yourself an extraordinary piece of work.”
I held the papers in my hands and skimmed through the notes. My mom had a lot of sentences that were crossed out altogether. Every time I flipped the page, I saw more changes than before.
My mom smiled at me. “I didn’t realize you loved reading and writing so much.”
I shrugged. “Well, you know where I get it from.”
“And that makes me feel higher than a kite. I’ve tried writing but I’m horrible at it. I’m a great editor and know how to make a book really soar, but I can’t make my own ideas and put them on paper. So, in a way, you’re living out my dream.”
“I don’t know about that…”
“I think you should make these changes then send it back to me. I really want your father to read them.”
I put the stack of papers down. “You think he’d like them? Does he even know how to read?”
She let the joke slide. “Yes, he would be over the moon if he read those.”
Listening to my mom praise me made me feel better. I’d been feeling low ever since I crossed Cayson by sleeping with Jasmine. Even though everything was in the past, I still felt tainted with a horrible label. First, that married chick and then Jasmine…my score sheet didn’t look good. “Thanks for reading them.”
“It was a delight, Ro. Truly.”
I moved the file off to the side.
“So?”
“Huh?” What was I missing?
“Now what?” she asked.
“Uh…you want to catch a movie?”
She laughed. “No, about your stories.”
“Um…I guess I’ll make the changes like you asked.”
“Are you going to submit them to a publishing house?” she asked.
Whoa…we’re getting ahead of ourselves. “I don’t know…”
“What do you have to lose?” she asked. “You never know until you try.”