The Goldsworth Series Box Set

by Davie J Toothill

  “What’s so bad about that?” Troy asked, lying back down, comfortable, “You won’t have to see her, so what’s the big deal?”

  Brandy swivelled around to look at him, eyes wide, incredulous at his stupidity.

  “Are you serious?” Brandy said, voice cold. “Are you fucking serious?”

  “For God’s sake, just get on with it,” Troy retorted.

  “Aurora and Clint alone, together, baby-sitting. What do you think’s going to happen? You think they’re just going to sit up all night playing monopoly? Or do you think they’ll be banging each other’s brains out on the sofa? Which, huh, which do you think’s more likely?”

  Troy considered it for a moment, “I thought you said they weren’t into all that.”

  “What, sex? Yeah, right. That bitch might’ve been a virgin up until now, but after that babysitting session she won’t be.”

  “So what?” Troy sighed, trying to hide his rising temper. “Come on, have a drink and chill out. You’re just stressing yourself out.”

  “Of course I’m stressed out you moron,” Brandy shouted, “After they’ve been all lovey-dovey, going at it, what if Clint decides to tell the truth?”

  “He wouldn’t,” Troy said, shrugging her off, “He’s not that stupid, I’ve already told you that.”

  “God, it’s like talking to a brick wall with you,” Brandy said, pulling on her shoes.

  “Where are you going now?” Troy asked, watching her intently.

  “To the kitchen,” she replied, “I need some vodka after this.”

  “Get me a can whilst you’re there,” Troy told her.

  Brandy stuck her middle finger up at him and left, closing the door loudly behind her. Troy knew she’d bring him a beer, but that wasn’t what was bothering him. Brandy’s reaction was playing on his mind. Was the reason she was so worked up because she was jealous that Aurora was getting to shag Clint whilst she was stuck with him? Was that why she was so angry? So annoyed with him, when it was hardly his fault Clint and Aurora were babysitting together?

  And then Troy began to wonder about his own feelings about it. Aurora would lose her virginity to Clint. Clint would take her and spoil her. Troy felt his temper rising again, his fists clenched involuntarily. Clint, it seemed, was taking everything from him and Troy didn’t like it. Although he knew that Clint would never do anything to hurt him, Troy’s anger and his thoughts about Aurora and Brandy, rendered him unable to see sense, unreasonable in his mind. Something had broken now between himself and Clint, and Troy felt his heart ache.

  * * *

  Clint was lying on his bed, music blaring, when his phone began to ring. He picked it up and saw the call was coming from Aurora, and smiled to himself.

  “Hi babe, you okay?” he answered.

  “I’m okay, you?” Aurora replied.

  “Yeah, I’m good,” Clint responded, “Do you want to meet up?”

  “Yeah,” Aurora said, then hesitated. “Clint, I was just wondering, you know, you can say no if you don’t want to, but Zoe asked me to baby-sit Sienna tomorrow night, and I was just wondering, you know, if you wanted to -”

  “Come with you?” Clint interrupted, unable to hide the excitement in his voice.

  He could feel Aurora smiling down the phone as he waited with baited breath, hardly daring to breathe in case she changed her mind.

  “Well, yeah, but only if you want to.”

  “Yeah,” Clint said, trying to keep his voice level, “That would be cool, I didn’t have any plans or anything.”

  “Okay, well, great. Zoe said about half seven.”

  “Great.”

  A few minutes later, when Clint hung up the phone, he couldn’t help but smile. Tomorrow night they would be alone in the flat together and he could tell that Aurora was thinking the same thing as he was about what possibilities lay before them.

  In the past, Clint had slept with loads of girls who were supposed to be keeping an eye on the kids they were being paid to baby-sit, but this was different. He and Aurora were a couple, and she was the first girl he’d truly cared about. She was the first girl that he wanted to feel as good as he did when they had sex, he wanted her to like it as much as he knew he would. Tomorrow night was going to be special, and Clint knew that Aurora would be thinking the same things as he was in her own bedroom.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  With the evening darkness pressing against the window, Aurora looked around her bedroom, as if seeing it for the first time. It felt so safe. If she texted Zoe and told her she couldn’t baby-sit for her tonight, she could stay here and wrap herself in a duvet. The thought was tempting, but too safe. Aurora knew that she couldn’t bare it if she stayed, not now that she had invited Clint to join her at Zoe’s flat later.

  Clint was the reason that she felt so nervous. She loved Clint, or at least she was pretty sure she did, but that wasn’t what made her so nervous. The thought of being naked in front of him was frightening, but the thought of actually having sex with him was terrifying. She had done things with guys before, she’d seen guys naked and she’d had some fun, but she’d never gone all the way, never had sex before.

  Still, she reminded herself, it had to happen sometime and she couldn’t imagine losing her virginity to anybody besides Clint. This was what she wanted. Nerves were only to be expected, she told herself. And if she got too scared, she knew Clint wouldn’t force the issue. That was what made her so determined to go through with it. Clint wouldn’t press her, would be too worried to scare her off, so she would have to be the one to initiate it all.

  She looked at herself in the mirror and, satisfied that she looked good, picked up her handbag and went into the lounge.

  Marlena was sitting on the sofa, drinking a generous measure of wine. There’d been a discount on wine at a corner-shop down the road, and Marlena had returned home earlier with several bottles, two of which she’d already worked her way through. Aurora had managed to sneak one of the bottles, unnoticed, into her handbag, intending to share it with Clint later in the evening.

  Perhaps, she thought, some wine would help put her nerves to rest.

  “Are you going to be okay tonight, mum?” Aurora asked.

  She’d noticed that her mother had lost weight in the past few weeks, but she knew better than to ask her mother directly whether she needed any help.

  Marlena looked up, her eyes glazed, and shrugged.

  “You off out then?” she asked, her words slurred, “Off with that Jackson boy, no doubt. You’ll soon see, I promise you that.”

  “I’m babysitting for a friend,” Aurora said petulantly, frustrated that her mother had seen straight through her façade, “And Clint’s a good guy, I don’t see what you’ve got against him.”

  “I don’t,” Marlena said, waving her arm and spilling her drink on her top. “You know what his father’s like, and I’ll bet the apple don’t fall far from the tree with them.”

  “Are you serious?” Aurora asked, surprised by her mother’s insinuations.

  “I’m older than you,” Marlena pointed out, “And wiser too. I’ve seen boys like that before. Hell, Shaniqua had enough of them running after her, day and night. She wasn’t stupid though. No, my Shan wouldn’t have put up with them. Not like you.”

  Aurora felt the dig like a physical blow, but just sighed. She knew there was no point in starting a row with her mother. She wouldn’t remember it in a few minutes, let alone in the morning, and Aurora had grown accustomed to her mother’s fantasies about how Shaniqua had lived her life. Little did Marlena know, Aurora thought. She debated whether to tell Marlena that she’d had boyfriends Marlena had never known about, but pushed the thought quickly from her mind. Marlena was on a cocktail of antidepressants and cheap white wine, and anything she said would be taken the wrong way.

  “Forget it,” Aurora said, “Have a good evening.”

  “I will,” Marlena muttered, “Hope your babysitting goes okay.”

  Aurora ignored
the unnecessary emphasis on babysitting, and closed the door to the lounge. She made sure she had her flat keys and then left the flat. The cold air hit her when she was out the front door and she felt her mind sharpen.

  Tonight would be a night she would never forget, she knew that much.

  * * *

  Zoe flicked her cigarette and watched the ash drop into the already overflowing ashtray on the kitchen table. Sasha sat opposite her in Zoe’s kitchen, a glass of vodka and diet coke at her lips.

  “What do you think Brandy will do?” Sasha asked, taking another drink.

  Zoe shrugged, pouring herself a drink. “Go mental, probably.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Sasha sighed. “Still, it’s my decision at the end of the day.”

  “Tell her that then,” Zoe nodded.

  There was a knock on the door, and a few moments later Aurora joined them in the kitchen.

  “Alright girls?”

  “Just having a few drinks,” Sasha giggled, waving the half-finished bottle of vodka.

  “And a heart-to-heart,” Zoe said, looking at Sasha, “Maybe you could help.”

  “Sure,” Aurora said, sitting down at the kitchen table and pouring herself a vodka and coke.

  “Sasha’s meeting Wright again,” Zoe explained, “Tonight. And now Sasha’s worried about telling Brandy that she’s leaving early to go meet him.”

  “I’m not worried,” Sasha interrupted, “I just don’t want a row, and I know that’s what’ll happen when I tell her.”

  “Why do you have to tell her?” Aurora asked, taking a sip of vodka and wincing as it hit her throat.

  “She’ll find out sooner or later anyway,” Sasha sighed, “Maybe I could try and slip out when she’s not looking.”

  “No, you can’t do that,” Zoe gasped, looking worried, “Then she’ll ask me where you’ve gone and I’ll panic and tell her, you know I will.”

  “Fine, I’ll just tell her myself,” Sasha groaned, downing the rest of her drink and pouring another. “Another one, Zoe?”

  Zoe nodded and turned to Aurora.

  “By the way, Sienna’s been fed and she’s sleeping now. She might wake up in a bit, but she should be fine.”

  Aurora was about to reply when cries sounded from the main bedroom.

  “Shit, I spoke too soon,” Zoe laughed, and went out to calm Sienna.

  “You’ll never guess what,” Sasha blurted out, turning to Aurora.

  “What?”

  “Brandy had a go at Zoe earlier,” Sasha said, talking quietly as if Brandy might be hiding in one of the kitchen cupboards. “All just because she asked you to baby-sit.”

  “Really? What does it matter to her?”

  “God knows. It’s not even like she wanted to baby-sit, because she’s coming clubbing. She’s just moody, you know.”

  “I noticed,” Aurora said, and they both started laughing.

  “What’s so funny?” Zoe asked, walking back into the kitchen with Sienna in her arms.

  “Nothing,” Sasha replied, still smiling goofily.

  “So are you going to see Wright tonight then?” Aurora asked.

  “Of course,” Sasha said, serious. “Brandy can’t have everything her own way.”

  “Good for you,” Aurora smiled. “How are things going with him?”

  Sasha looked pensive for a moment, before she replied.

  “Good, thanks. It all started out just as a casual thing, you know, a random meet-up. But he is a nice guy, and I don’t know, maybe something more serious could happen.”

  “Wow,” Zoe said, looking surprised, “I never thought I’d hear you say that, Sasha.”

  “There’s a first time for everything,” Sasha laughed.

  A few minutes later, Sasha and Zoe were standing at the front door, handbags under their arms and heels on, hugging Aurora goodnight.

  “I’ll text you when I’m on my way back,” Zoe said, hugging her tight, “Ring me if there’s any emergencies, but Sienna should be fine.”

  “Good luck tonight,” Sasha smiled, kissing her on the cheek, “And I want all the details tomorrow.”

  “Have a good night,” Aurora laughed, waving as Zoe and Sasha clattered away in their heels.

  Closing the front door, Aurora felt the full force of what she was going to do tonight hit her. She found that her nerves were falling away now that she was here. Or it could just be the vodka, Aurora reminded herself.

  After checking on Sienna, who was quietly gurgling in her cot in the lounge, Aurora rummaged through her handbag and found her phone. She typed a quick message and sent it to Clint. The flat was theirs now and she knew he would be around in a matter of minutes.

  * * *

  Sitting in Troy’s living room, Clint watched Brandy parade around in her new black dress that she would be wearing out tonight. He could tell that Troy was in a bad mood, but he had no idea why. Troy had been shooting him glances all evening, and Clint didn’t know what to make of it. Perhaps he’d had another argument with Brandy, Clint thought to himself. They always seemed to be arguing these days.

  Brandy had finally disappeared into Troy’s bedroom when Jessie emerged from her bedroom, followed by her best friend, Jazz.

  Clint watched them cross the room, and wondered at how quickly they had grown-up. They were both wearing short mini-skirts and heels, with low-cut tops and their hair teased high above their head. Jazz smiled at Clint as she passed, but Clint averted his gaze. They were way too young for him.

  As Jessie and Jazz left the flat, Clint felt his phone vibrate in his trouser pocket. He pulled it out, knowing who it would be from and feeling his heart beat faster. He was right. It was from Aurora and the flat was now free. They could finally be alone together, and he knew that Aurora wanted the same thing as he did.

  “Right mate, I have to go now,” Clint said, nudging Troy.

  “Really?” Brandy asked, emerging from Troy’s bedroom with her handbag, “So, where you got to rush off to tonight then?”

  “I’m just going round to see Aurora,” Clint said, trying to sound casual. “You know, my girlfriend.”

  Brandy rankled, but she persisted, “So, you got anything special planned?”

  Clint looked between Troy and Brandy, and was sure that they both knew what he was planning. Still, he wasn’t about to give them that satisfaction.

  “Nothing special, just thought I’d go keep her company,” Clint said, forcing his voice not to betray his annoyance, “She’s agreed to baby-sit for Zoe, so you can go out.”

  Brandy seemed to notice the accusatory tone in his voice, and changed the subject.

  “What are you planning then, babe?” she asked, looking at Troy.

  Troy shrugged, “Porn and beer.”

  Brandy rolled her eyes, “Right, whatever. Why don’t you see where Tyrese and Trent are?”

  Clint felt himself grimace, the hint in Brandy’s question was so obvious.

  “They’re down the pub,” Troy replied coldly.

  “Why don’t you go see them then?”

  “I can’t be arsed,” Troy replied, clearly signalling the end of the conversation.

  Before Brandy could say anything else, her phone began to ring and she answered. Clint chanced a look at Troy and saw his face remained impassive as he watched the television, although Clint was sure Troy’s eyes had narrowed ever so slightly.

  “So, that was Zoe,” Brandy said, after hanging up, “They’re downstairs waiting. You might as well walk downstairs with me, Clint.”

  “What?” Clint asked, surprised, but Brandy was already motioning for him to get up. Clint reluctantly pulled his jacket on and stood up.

  “See you later, bro,” Clint said, but Troy simply nodded in response.

  “Bye babe,” Brandy cooed, kissing Troy on the forehead, but Troy didn’t move.

  Brandy sighed in annoyance and led the way out of the flat, Clint reluctantly following behind her. As the front door closed behind them, Clint forc
ed himself to nod as Brandy began telling him something, but his thoughts were on seeing Aurora and what the night would hold for them for both.

  In the lounge, Troy remained glued to the television. His eyes saw the picture moving, but he paid no attention. His mind was racing. Clint and Brandy had left together, and although Troy knew that there was nothing in it, he couldn’t help feeling annoyed with Brandy for asking Clint to walk her downstairs instead of him. Not that he would’ve walked her, but it was the principal. And now Clint and Aurora would be together, and Clint would spoil Aurora, take her virginity like he was taking everything else from him.

  Troy shook his head, trying to shake the thoughts from his mind. It was unfair to blame Clint for all this, he knew. Clint had been nothing but a good mate to him for years, but he still couldn’t shake his feelings.

  What annoyed him the most was that Troy knew what was causing this sudden dislike towards his best friend. He was jealous of Clint, and that thought made Troy angry.

  * * *

  Aurora leapt off the sofa when she heard the soft rap on the front door of Zoe’s flat. Every step she took felt as if she were wading through treacle. She wanted to open the door, but at the same time she was worried that once the door was open there would be no turning back. Her hand paused on the latch, but she pushed her uncertainties away and opened the door.

  Clint was standing there, in a tracksuit and a parka, smiling widely, and Aurora found all her doubts melting away now that he was here.

  “Sorry it took a few minutes,” Clint said, grinning, “I had to walk down with Brandy.”

  “Bet that was fun,” Aurora rolled her eyes, stepping aside for Clint to come in.

  Clint stepped inside and stopped, leaning in towards her, pressing her gently against the wall and kissing her softly on the lips. Aurora was worried her legs would give in, but Clint pulled away and retreated further into the flat. Aurora hastily closed the front door and put the latch on, before joining Clint in the kitchen.