by Mindy Carter
“That’s thoughtful, and I would have loved to see you. Gretchen ordered takeout, though, so you don’t have to worry.”
There’s that jealousy rearing its ugly head. I push it away immediately for my own good.
“So are you headed home?”
“Yes, I’m beat. I’m going to crash. I just wanted to tell you good night.”
“Get some sleep. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“One more thing, Aimee.”
“What?”
“I love you.”
Oh, my beating heart.
“To the stars?” I ask.
“Absolutely. Wednesday night, can you meet me at my place? I have a business dinner, but I’d like to spend the night with you.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yes, I’d love to.”
“See you then.” He ends the call.
Wednesday can’t get here soon enough.
Realizing the best sleep I’ve ever had was when I was being held in Keegan’s arms, my thoughts take me back to the past.
“Aimee,” I hear whispered, startling me from my sleep.
“What time is it?” I ask, finding Keegan sitting on my bed.
“It’s a little after eleven.”
I sit up in my bed. “Why are you here, Keegan?”
He moves to the top of my twin bed and puts his arm around me, pulling me to him. “I just didn’t want you to be alone tonight. I know what today is for you, and I want you to know I’ll never leave you.”
I cry into his shoulder, letting my grief go. He understands that I need him on today of all days, the one-year anniversary of my mother’s death.
“You will get in trouble if your parents find you gone.”
“I don’t care if I get in trouble. You’re worth it.”
“I miss her so much, Keegan,” I cry.
“I know you do, Aimee. I’m sure she’s looking down on you every day.”
I have asked myself constantly, why her? Why me? No answers have been given, but I always like to think somehow she had a part in sending Keegan to me. If she couldn’t be here with me, at least he is.
We fall asleep and are awakened by my very angry father with his arms crossed. I’m sure, if it was possible, his head would blow off. Keegan and I are in big trouble, but I wouldn’t have been able to stop him even if I tried.
That was the thing with us: we just were. We always put the other first, with no doubts. Yes, we were kids, but it was so much more than a childhood friendship.
Chapter Seventeen
It’s finally Wednesday evening, and after having dinner with Reese, I am on my way over to my boyfriend’s. I’m using that word now, and I love it!
Taking a taxi to Park in the Sky, I arrive around eight p.m. Keegan texted me earlier, letting me know he was done with his business meeting. I came prepared with a change of clothes this time since I have work tomorrow.
The doorman remembers me and waves. The ride up to the 96th floor is a smooth one now that I have a key from Keegan to reach the penthouse. I step off the elevator and see light is illuminated throughout the space. With no Keegan in sight, I make my way to his bedroom, and what I see has my heart dropping to the floor.
Standing in nothing other than a towel, going through his drawers is Gretchen. She hears me gasp and turns around with a smile, and not an apologetic one, but one that says I am winning.
“I thought you were Keegan,” she says, not even trying to hide her lack of clothes, but the towel she has around her covers way more than she usually wears.
“No, just me,” I reply.
She gestures for me to leave. “If you’ll excuse me, I need to get changed.”
Without another word, I walk out of his room with my tail between the legs. I’m not sure what the hell is going on, but I need to get out of here.
I walk toward the elevator so I can leave, but I’m caught by an arm. As I whirl around, standing there with concern is Keegan, shirtless and in a pair of sweats. I stare at his chest before I pull my arm out of his grasp.
“Aimee, what’s wrong?”
I’m so upset with him I feel like slapping him. “I’m leaving. You obviously have other company.”
“What are you talking about?”
Gretchen picks the perfect moment to join us, wearing one of his New York Giants T-shirts and nothing else. Keegan also looks like he’s freshly showered, and I start to feel sick.
“Keegan, I couldn’t find my favorite T-shirt, your Syracuse one.” She sidles up to him like she owns him.
“What the fucking hell?” leaves my mouth, and they both look at me like I’m crazy.
Gretchen opens her mouth. “You know I love that shirt. Where is it?” she asks him like I’m not even standing there.
“Gretchen, can you excuse us?”
When she doesn’t move, he stares at her with fierceness until she retreats.
I need to leave before I break into tears.
“I’m leaving. Have fun.” I retreat, relieved when the elevator opens immediately.
The doors start to close when suddenly a strong arm stops them.
“Shit.”
“It’s not what you think.” He looks into my eyes with remorse.
I glare back at him, not backing down. There is no way I’m going back in there. “She’s waiting for you, and I respect myself way more than to have the two of you treat me like this. Have fun and don’t forget to wrap it up.”
I clench my fists in anger. How could I be so blind? I look at him with determination in my eyes, pleading with him to just let me go.
I don’t know what he expected with me seeing her, but this doesn’t feel good, and every instinct I have says run.
After a few minutes, he lets out a loud sigh and backs away, letting the doors close. I stare down at my feet and exit his building as quickly as possible. Then I manage to keep the tears in for the entire cab ride home.
Once inside my apartment, I see Reese and Kaleb huddled up together. Therefore, I sneak past them to my bedroom, let my body fall onto my bed, and then finally let go, sobbing into my pillow.
I’m not sure how long I’m crying, but I finally hear a faint knock on my door. I stand up and wipe my face before opening the door to find Reese standing with concern on her face.
“What did the asshole do?” she demands.
I turn around, ignoring her question and making my way back to the solace of my bed.
“Aimee, you can’t hide from me. You know that, right?”
“I’m not hiding,” I reply.
Reese moves into my room and sits on the bed next to me. Looking at her, I let out a long breath. I’m not even sure where to start. All I wanted was an evening with Keegan, and I entered the freaking twilight zone. He said it’s not what it looks like, but seriously, there is no reason for that woman to be naked anywhere near him. They were both standing next to one another like this was a regular occurrence, and I’m not comfortable with that at all.
“I’m such a fool. I knew things were too good to be true,” I finally let out.
“You mean with Keegan, right?”
I continue on a shaky breath, “I went to his place after he texted that he was done with his business meeting, expecting to find him alone.”
“I’m going to cut off that man’s balls!” Keegan should fear Reese because she’s not one to cross, and she doesn’t give out empty threats. I actually am scared of her right now. She may be even more upset than I am.
“I found Gretchen in his bedroom in only a towel, and let me tell you, she enjoyed my reaction.”
“I’m going to kick that woman’s skinny, bony ass!”
I decide to calm Reese down before she gets arrested for assault. “Reese, I love you, but she’s not worth jail time.”
“What about Keegan? Can I still cut off his balls?”
I ignore her question, continuing, “I decided to leave after my run-in with her, but Keegan caught me and
wanted to know what was wrong. Then Gretchen walks out and rubs up against him. I thought I was going to be sick. She was wearing his shirt and complaining about her favorite shirt of his missing.”
“What the fuck?” escapes Reese’s mouth.
“I’m not sure how he expected me to react or even why he had me come over when he was busy with her. He said it wasn’t what it looked like, but I’m not stupid.”
Reese eyes me with concern. “I know I just threatened to cut off his balls, but don’t you think it’s odd that he would have you come over if he was going to be caught with that bitch? Now don’t take this the wrong way, Aimee, but sometimes, you are overly sensitive.”
“Thanks. I feel so much better. Awesome talk,” I tell her, frustrated at her sudden one-eighty.
“That didn’t come out right. That man is smitten with you. He has been sweet and attentive. I’ve seen you with him. It actually makes me jealous.”
“You have a very attentive boyfriend of your own. You two can’t keep your hands off each other.”
“Maybe it’s one of those things you should let him explain.” Now I hate what she’s telling me because she may be right.
At that moment, Kaleb stops at my door with his phone in his hand and a sad expression on his face.
“Aimee?” He holds up his phone. “Keegan wants to talk to you.”
When I give him a blank look, Reese stands up and grabs the phone out of his hand before walking out of my room.
Kaleb cautiously enters. “Just so you know, Keegan doesn’t have anything going on with Gretchen. He would never do that to you, Aimee.”
“What would you do if Reese invited you over and you found a man in just a towel in her bedroom?”
“I’d probably kick his ass.”
“Exactly.”
He sits down next to me and looks at me with remorse. “Keegan wouldn’t go out of his way to find and woo you just to deliberately hurt you.”
I can hear Reese on the phone, arguing with Keegan while we both are silent for a moment.
“Don’t forget that I’ve known you for next to forever. I’ve watched you two together for years. I’ve seen both of you play this back and forth game for too long.
“Keegan was miserable after he left for college. He would rather cut off his own arm than to upset you. He’s been beating himself up for years over leaving you. It wasn’t easy on any of us, you know. I lost you, too. “
“I’m sorry I never tried to contact you. I missed you, Kaleb.”
He grabs me and rubs my head. If I ever had a brother, I would want him to be just like Kaleb.
“Gretchen, she’s different but harmless. Keegan has been friends with her a long time, so sometimes, his judgment gets clouded with her,” he tells me.
I think Kaleb is trying to tell me something without actually telling me. I know what kind of woman Gretchen is, and from my few encounters with her, she isn’t hard to figure out.
“Since college? They both went to Syracuse?” I ask.
“Yes, they met freshman year, lived in the same dorm.”
“Is there anything else I should know?” I have the feeling there is more to this whole story, and for whatever reason, I’m being kept in the dark on purpose. I can only guess it’s something I won’t like.
“No, just that Keegan loves you and your crazy ass.” He tugs on a piece of my hair.
“Did he tell you that he loved me?”
Kaleb looks at me with a grin. “I’ve known since you moved in across the street from us. He’s always loved you, Aimee, even when you weren’t together. That will never change.”
He’s wrong; a lot can change in the blink of an eye. Nothing is guaranteed forever. People walk into your life and easily walk out of it. Keegan proved that to me a very long time ago. We go about our lives in the end, though, and deal with what fate allows.
Reese walks back into my room and hands Kaleb his phone then asks him to give us a minute. He obliges, but not before giving her a swift spank on her behind, which makes her smile.
“I talked to Keegan and told him not to give me any bullshit, or I would cut off his balls. He tried calling your cell phone and figured you were ignoring him.”
My phone is in my purse, which I haven’t even bothered to look at, not that I would have taken his calls, anyway. All I can think about is that he’s alone with Gretchen and not me.
“He says it was a misunderstanding and not at all what you thought.”
“What else did he say?”
Reese moves closer to me. “Okay, here is what he says went down. The meeting they were at went better than expected. It was really big, like ‘let’s toast to a glass afterward’ big. Apparently, they were celebrating with a glass of champagne when there was some type of mishap, and the bottle exploded. It was all over the both of them, so they took separate showers and cleaned up. He swears nothing happened between them.” Reese releases a long, exasperated breath.
“You believe him?” I ask.
This all sounds so strange. A bottle of champagne just happened to explode on the both of them? It could happen, or someone could have orchestrated the situation just to lose her clothes.
“He sounded upset and wanted to come over to explain himself, but I told him that, if you wanted to talk, you would call him tomorrow. It’s late, and I, for one, have had enough excitement.” I notice she avoids my question.
“But do you believe him?” Out of everyone I know, Reese is the best judge of character. If she believes him, then maybe I will, too. I want to believe this is all just a silly misunderstanding.
She nods her head. “Yes, I think I do, but you need to decide for yourself. I would have thought the same thing if I walked in on a half-naked woman. There is no doubt Gretchen is a conniving bitch. She could have explained what happened when you saw her, but she didn’t. I’d bet she loved it, too. Women like her think they are entitled. She believes she has control over your boyfriend because they are close.”
“Kaleb says she’s harmless,” I reply.
“That woman is far from harmless. Look at what she’s put into motion. You’re upset, questioning yourself. I am going to kick her bony ass into next week!”
Reese really is getting violent, planning on cutting off balls and kicking asses. I’m glad I’m on her good side. I hope Kaleb never pisses her off, or he should invest in some type of cup to protect his package.
“Please don’t. You might break a nail,” I joke.
Reese rolls her eyes at me before saying, “He wanted to come over, and I told him it was best to rest on it. Everything will feel different in the morning. “
“He agreed?” I ask.
“I think you’re safe for now, but he’s only giving you the night. Be prepared tomorrow; he’s desperate to work this out.”
I’m not sure how much sleep I am going to get, but she’s right; everything will be different in the morning.
When Reese takes over and tells me to get my pajamas on, I do as I’m told as I’m a little afraid of her at the moment.
She tucks me into bed
“Thanks, Mom,” I tell her.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, and I promise this will be a lot better.” She turns out my light and slowly shuts the door.
I hear her whispers to Kaleb, no doubt telling him exactly what she told me.
I toss and turn most of the night, giving up sleep around three a.m. and pulling out my Kindle to read. I foresee a very long day tomorrow.
I debate calling in sick, but there is no way Reese will allow me to sit at home alone all day.
The next day, I am beyond exhausted as Reese places a cup of very strong coffee in my hands when I emerge from my room. Kaleb isn’t anywhere to be seen, and when I ask about him, she tells me he left last night to go over to Keegan’s.
I get myself ready for the workday and paste on a smile. Last night was a nightmare, yes, but today is a new day, and I am prepared to grab it by the horns and make the very best of
it.
Chapter Eighteen
Surprisingly, my day wasn’t bad. I was able to focus on my deadlines for my upcoming articles. Ever since Keegan’s interview was published, our readership has increased dramatically. I couldn’t be happier for Olivia. This magazine is her baby, and I’m proud to be a part of it.
Reese checked in on me throughout the day to make sure I was all right before she had to head to Central Park to take pictures. Things did look better today, and maybe I over-reacted and should have let Keegan explain. I guess I’m just waiting for things to fall apart. When it comes to us, nothing can be guaranteed. I’m afraid of being with him, but also of not being with him. After all, what’s next when you have everything you have ever wanted? I wish I had a crystal ball that could give me all the answers I’m looking for.
Walking out of work, I get ready to hail a cab when I hear my name. Turning around, I catch sight of Keegan leaning against a building, and he looks beautiful in his navy blue suit.
He walks over to me, everything happening in slow motion in my mind and my heart beating out of my chest. My instincts say run to him, but I don’t. I only stand still, staring at him.
When he reaches me, everything around us fades away. Sounds of the passing traffic disappear. It’s only us.
“Hi,” I say in a whisper.
“Hi,” he whispers back in his husky voice, his eyes looking tired and sad.
I’m done for. I can’t deny him or what he’s asking me with those beautiful blue eyes.
“Can I take you home?”
I nod, and he lets out a long breath. Then he grabs my hand and leads me away to the side of the building where his Range Rover is waiting with Andrew in the driver’s seat.
As soon as we are seated, he grabs a hold of my hand again and whispers in my ear, “Thank you.” His warm breath on my ear gives me a flutter in my stomach.
We are silent the entire way back to my apartment. I keep my eyes focused out the window, too afraid to look at him.
The car slows to a stop in front of my building, and Keegan steps out and runs around the car to open my door, grabbing my hand to help me out. I look into his eyes and give him a curt smile to thank him.