by MJ Masucci
Ava went to bed shortly before 9:00 PM. She was exhausted, and she was sure that tomorrow she would be busy. Victoria would surely pile the work on her since more than likely there would be plenty.
The next morning she woke up feeling groggy. It was five, and she noticed she had forgotten to set her alarm. Luckily she had woken up, or she would have been late. Victoria would have had a fit.
The weather would cool while she was away and it seemed even more oppressive than when she had left. She dressed in a sleeveless silk blouse and an above the knee length skirt. She put her hair in a ponytail and caught a cab to the office. She was in no mood to deal with the subway especially if there was a chance that it was crowded.
Victoria arrived later than usual, and Ava sat at her desk typing a text to Tim. She let him know that she would be free for lunch sometime this week if he wanted to hang out. She couldn’t wait for a reply because Victoria buzzed her desk phone and it was off to the races.
Tim woke up late, more so than usual. It would be the last week for him to sleep late. Next week he had to start preparing his lesson plans and getting things ready for the new school year. He already had gotten most of it done but the administrator needed to approve the plans, or he would have to rework them. He was annoyed at Ava. She revealed very little of her weekend trip to him. He knew she was in Los Angeles because he tracked her phone.
She had texted him about having lunch sometime this week. That wasn’t going to work for him. He needed to be around her as much as possible this week so he could get his hands on her phone. He had scoured the internet for just the right applications to use for his plans. He had been negligent by not taking the opportunity while she was in the hospital to install them. Now he would have to scramble to find the opportunity to do it.
He texted her back about having lunch tomorrow and maybe going for a run today after work. Tim waited for a response, and when he received none, he went to take a shower. He had an appointment with his supplier. He needed to make sure that he would have a steady stream of product to keep him well stocked throughout to the school year. He wouldn’t just be selling around the area clubs anymore.
After he had arrived back from his meeting, he noticed a missed call from Ava. He had shut his phone off because the supplier was a squirrely bastard and insisted. She wanted to go for a run today, and he had just enough time to get changed and meet her in the park. Maybe he could talk her into going to dinner tonight or letting him use the bathroom at her apartment. He needed a few short minutes alone with her phone to do what he needed to do.
Ava waited in the park, stretching. She slipped her phone out of the Camelbak’s side pocket and noticed that it had condensation on it. She wiped it on her shirt. It was so hot that the chill of the water had caused the residue.
When Tim got to the park, she gave him the opportunity he wanted. She gave him the phone to put in his waist pack. She didn’t want to ruin her phone by it getting wet. They ran a little over a mile when Tim started complaining of stomach cramps. He needed to use the restroom, and they headed over to one of the park’s restroom pavilions.
Ava sat on a nearby bench and slipped the Camelback off her shoulders. She reached into the side pocket and panicked, then remembered she had given her phone to Tim to hold. She would have to wait for him to get out of the bathroom to check her messages.
Tim ran into one of the men’s room stalls for privacy and took out her phone. He downloaded the apps that he wanted to use and set them as hidden. He had found this trick on a website. She would never know the apps were installed and he could track everything she did with her phone. He also checked her text messages with Xander. The guy was pouring it on thick. He would soon put an end to that.
He ran out of the bathroom and found Ava sitting on a nearby bench. She asked him if he was feeling better, and he said he was, but he really should go home before another wave hit. In reality, he wanted to get his phone set up to track everything that she texted, emailed and the numbers she called. He fished out her phone, handing it to her as they walked out of the park together. They made a date for lunch the next day, and he waved goodbye as he dropped her off at her building.
At home, he set up the tracking on his phone by inputting her phone number. He just knew she would never find the apps since he had hidden them. She had told him she wasn’t very good at technology. The next thing he needed to do was compose two emails. One email spoofed to her from Xander, and one email spoofed to Xander from her. He had to make them both so devastating that they would never contact one another. If they did then, his plan would go awry.
Ava was sensitive to being used, and that was the tilt he was going to use for her email. She had told him that Xander carried around a lot of guilt from the accident and that was what Tim would use to hit him. If it worked the way he thought it would, neither would reach out to the other. Then he could step in and claim her for his own. He was good at writing letters. He wrote several to his former wife’s mother when she was sick. They were all bullshit, but it made the woman feel better to know he was taking care of her daughter when he wasn’t.
He lit a joint and puffed at it. Normally he didn’t smoke his product, but his nerves were on edge. It calmed him and right now he was overly excited that he was getting closer to her being his for good. He sat down at his desk and booted up his laptop. He wanted to get started right away on the emails. He had a few days before he would send them.
Ava sat on her couch before she showered so she could text Xander. Being away from him was torture especially after the weekend they had.
Are you up for something tonight?
I’m not sure what you mean by that?
Don't you? Are you sure you have no idea?
You’re going to have to clarify for me, please.
I want phone sex. If I can’t have you physically with me, then I will have to take the lesser. Do you want to play?
You don’t have to ask again. I’m already rising to the occasion just thinking about it. Do you want to do it now? I just got out of the shower.
It’s a little early; I said tonight. It helps put me to sleep when we do it at night.
You got me all riled up, and you are going to deny me?
A half hour later she was showering after she had Skyped him. He had very naughty requests today. He wanted her to sit on the vanity with her knees up on the counter, so she was spread wide for him. He teased and seduced her with his words making her hold off until she was in a frenzy. Her clit had been so sensitive that as she washed, it still hurt a little.
Tim watched the texts and felt jealousy take hold of him. At the mention of phone sex he felt himself growing and his restrictive shorts became uncomfortable. He wished he could have seen her as she touched herself. He knew eventually he would see her do those things, but it would be for him. His sexual tastes bordered on the kinky. He was adventurous and had a large drawer of sex toys. His former wife thought he was a pervert for buying those things. He had yet to find a woman who had the same sexual appetite as he did. His last girlfriend broke up with him because he had become too demanding. He knew that Ava was sweet and naïve. He hoped under that gentle, shy southern exterior was a tiger in the sack.
As soon as his erection subsided, he continued writing and rewriting the emails. He had to get them just right and then he would deliver the one-two punch.
Chapter 18
Ava was lucky that she was swamped with work the next week. Victoria had plenty of clients, and Ava was busy every day at the office. Each day after work, she spent time with Tim. He took her to lunch twice, the movies to see some romance and on Thursday, they went to dinner. Today, he had taken her for coffee because he was busy tonight and now she was bored. Next week he would be involved with school. She also realized that she missed spending time with Samantha and Rachel.
Samantha had been helping Robert scout new locations for another gym. She had already helped him open his second and third locations over the past co
uple of years. Each location was bigger than the one he first opened.
As for Rachel, she had been assigned light bed rest ever since she started spotting and Rigo rushed her to the hospital. The doctor told her she needed to take it easy and stop working so much. Rigo promptly put her in bed and hired two new assistants. She hadn’t spotted in the two weeks she was in bed and was itching to get out.
And of course, Xander was still in LA and wasn’t sure when he was returning to the city. He had been involved with doing research for the lawsuit. He had seen the referred attorney, Kaycee Colon, who had agreed that they had a strong case. He had delivered his research to her and told her he was working on more. Ava looked forward to the evenings when she had phone sex with him. His days were filled with doctor appointments for Lidia and Brett, research and keeping their house in order.
Brett had the cast removed from his arm, and an x-ray revealed it was healed. He was to start physical therapy the next week. Lidia was scheduled to have the wiring in her jaw removed mid-week of the week after that. She was dying to have some solid food and had lost several more pounds off of her already thin frame. Another couple of weeks and Xander might be able to move forward with his plans to come back to New York.
Ava anticipated hearing from Xander and prepared herself for their evening interlude. She heard her phone chirp indicating an email or text had arrived. She saw an email from Xander. She excitedly opened it hoping he had sent her a dirty picture. Instead, she was devastated by what she read.
Ava,
I know that you will be very unhappy to read this. After much soul searching these past few weeks, I have realized that you aren’t the person I want to have beside me for the rest of my life. I think we got caught up in this fairytale of how everything would be back to what it was before I left New York.The sex was great and intense. I would never deny that. But that is all it was for me, sex. You were wrong not to believe everyone; I was a player and still am. I lied to you about never sleeping with women while we were apart. I slept with quite a few, and there were several that gave me just as intense pleasure as I’ve had with you. I also cheated on you a few times when we were together. Abby was correct; I did cheat on her because I was always looking for “the one.” Like her, you are not that person.
You were a nice distraction for the three months we were together, then again in Saratoga and our short weekend here in California. I need someone who isn’t so attached to their family. I don’t want our families looking over our shoulders every time we do something, wondering if I am going to cheat on you.
I can never give you the life that you want. You need someone who is stable and won’t use you like I have. Don’t wait for me because I’m not coming back to you. Don’t contact me. I’ve blocked you from my phone. Please don’t enlist my family or friends to assist you in getting back with me. I know this is the best thing for both of us. Sorry.
Xander
Ava dropped her phone and ran to the bathroom to throw up. This can’t be true. How could he write such horrible things to her? They had just spent a wonderful weekend together. He proclaimed his love for her many times before and since they had gotten back together. She read his journals, saw his sketch pads, the pictures of her in his apartment. How had he come to this decision so easily when it was obvious that he loved her?
She checked the email address, and it was correct. It had come from his email. She wanted to call him, but he had said he blocked her from his phone. She wanted to call Lidia or Peter or even Suzanne and ask them to talk to him. The only one that knew they had been together was Lidia so it would be a surprise to the others. She curled up in a ball and cried herself to sleep.
Several hours later, Xander picked up his phone that he had left on his bed. He had just come home from the UCLA law library. He checked for messages and what he found in his email was shocking.
Xander,
I can’t begin to tell you how hard it is to write this email to you. I have been going back and forth with indecision since I met up with you in Saratoga. I think that it’s a mistake for us to get back together. My father will never let us be together, and my family hates you.
What happened in Georgia cannot be erased, and it will always be a sore spot between us. If you had come clean to me earlier, the accident never would have taken place. Because of your selfishness, I can never have children.
Maybe I should have realized that you were wrong for me before this. I spent the last four years chasing a false reality that was never going to live up to everyone’s standards. I need someone more stable. You were correct in believing you needed to stay away from me for my own good, for our own good. We are wrong for each other.
Please for my sake, don’t text, call or contact me in any way. I blocked you on my phone. I need to move on and start the next chapter in my life. Our union can never be.
Ava
He kept looking at the email in disbelief. How could he not feel her indecision when she was here? She gave no indication that this was what was on her mind in those last hours. He deserved it for what he had done to her. Her words clawed at his heart especially the line about her not being able to have children because of him. She was right; he ruined her. He sat on the bed and scrubbed at his face with his hands. Then he threw the phone across the room, and it smashed against the wall into pieces.
“Xander, are you alright?” Brett called from downstairs.
He leaned out the bedroom door and told him that he was fine. He went to the corner of the room and cleaned up the pieces of the phone. He would have to get another one, and he would change his number when he did.
“Fuck her. I don’t need this shit.”
Then he sat on the corner of the bed with his forehead in his hands as he cried. He needed to start a new life without her for his future. He made a snap decision to stay in California. At least he could try it out.
The weather was great, and he could stay with Lidia until he found a job and his own place to live. He was sure she wouldn’t mind though he would have to field questions as to why he wasn’t going back to New York to be with Ava. He could just say it didn’t work out, and they decided to part as friends.
Lidia might believe it but if it were Suzanne, she surely wouldn’t. It didn’t matter to him, his life on the East Coast was over. Time to enjoy the sunshine and warm weather three thousand miles away from his past. He made sure Lidia and Brett had dinner, and he went to bed early without eating.
Ava woke up late with a splitting headache and her pillow wet from tears. She had fallen asleep out of exhaustion and must have cried all night. They were done and over. Her sense of foreboding had come to fruition. She had clung to that tiny shred that they were going to get back together. Now she was fed up with him. She had done her crying. He had cheated and used her. She shouldn’t have been so naïve and trusting. He was so convincing all the time. Making promises to her that she thought were true. I guess family ties means nothing to him.
She was young, intelligent and pretty. There was so much she wanted to do and experience. This was her time to come out of her shell. She had turned down so many men that asked her on dates. She could have had sex with all of them, each one a new experience. Why had she lived this quiet, boring life? Her father was nine hundred miles away and couldn’t control her. It was Saturday, and she was going to enjoy life instead of crying over Xander. The hell with him, he could rot for all she cared.
She drew a bath for herself and spent over an hour in the tub. She refreshed the hot water several times until she was ready to get out. It was still early in the day, but she wanted to do something. She needed to keep her mind off the things that previously happened in her life. From today forward, Ava was going to be footloose and fancy-free. She dressed in casual clothing and caught a cab to Fifth Avenue to do some shopping. She had a large inheritance and barely spent any of it. She was going to enjoy her money.
Brooke had gallivanted around Europe for four years spending her money. Mi
chael bought a large house and had his contractor do a full renovation. What had she done with her money besides this apartment, some donations and a few pairs of shoes? She needed to stop being so frugal and enjoy herself. By the time early evening came, her feet were tired, and she had spent over fourteen thousand dollars on clothing and shoes.
She caught a cab home and laid the clothing she had purchased on her bed. She wanted to go out tonight, but she just wanted to go for a drink. She wasn’t in the mood to be around a bunch of boisterous idiots and loud music. She would save that for another night. She chose a cleavage revealing blouse, stylish capri pants and a pair of heels. There were plenty of places she could get a drink near her apartment, and she chose a place near NYU.
During her college days, she frequented this bar many times with Samantha. She might even see a few of her former fellow law students. Several of them had lived in the area. It was only a few blocks away from her apartment, but she decided to forgo the chance of blisters by taking a cab. It was still early for the Saturday crowd, and she took a seat at the bar. She sipped the Cosmo she ordered and played with her phone. She looked up when she heard her name being called.
Luca Gatto, one of her former classmates, took a seat next to her. He was one of the guys that asked her out several times, and she turned him down. He was cute with thick black hair and dark eyes the color of coal. His nickname was Cat because of his last name. They chatted for over two hours until well after dark.