East Rising (Naive Mistakes #2)

by Rachel Dunning

  The shower stopped. "Would you pass me a towel, hon?"

  I did, keeping my head out of the shower curtain. Alex wrapped herself up. "Oh, goodness, would you open up that door. I can hardly breathe in here!" she said.

  Finally!

  I opened the door. The steam billowed out.

  "Oh, thanks. Yes, well..." She stood over the sink, getting ready to brush her teeth. I moved to the toilet seat. "He had two girlfriends while he and I knew each other. He was crazy about those two. Damn it, they fucked like rabbits.."

  OK, too much information!

  "I've never been that much into him," she continued. Could've fooled me, babe. "I mean, I did like him, but that age difference between us..."

  Right. I remembered that. She was, what, five years older than him? Something like that. Oh the irony...

  "Or maybe it was something else. I was too fucked up to have taken advantage of something right in my lap." She paused, looked into the mirror, thinking. Then her lips pinched into a smile. She shook her head.

  Great, she was reminiscing about him... I looked away.

  "Anyway, I know what he was like with those girls. He saw them all the time — I mean, one and then the other. Not at the same time, you know what I mean, right?"

  "Sort of."

  "He had one girlfriend for a year. Then another for, I don't know, some lengthy time as well. He didn't cheat on any of them. Conall never cheats. Anyway, they fucked silly, fucked their brains out..."

  "Uh, yeah, I get that part."

  "So..." She started brushing her teeth. "At that stage I thought that was pretty serious. He'd tell me about them all the time, you know. He even told me what they did together... Well, some of it. He's too much of a gentleman to go into detail about it. He asked me for some advice..."

  Is she really going to tell me about Conall's work in the bedroom with all his girlfriends before me? Embarrassing!

  "The point I'm making, Leora." She rinsed her mouth. "Is that, when he's spoken about you, it's nowhere near what it's been like with his ex's. When he talks about you, his eyes go dark, he broods, he disappears into a world where it seems like he'd do anything to protect you."

  Anything. Right. And where is that Hungarian fuck-head who kidnapped you, Alex?

  "But he wouldn't tell me a thing about you. I mean, about what you two have done in the bedroom." She stopped abruptly, glared at me. I looked away, felt my cheeks go warm for reasons other than the heat in the bathroom.

  "Yip, that's what I thought. You guys have done stuff! At first I figured maybe you just hadn't done anything with him. But, from your expression, I can see you have." Damn, this was so introverting... "Anyway, he didn't say a word about it. He's crazy about you. He respects you too much. You're different from the others."

  Then she stopped, turned away from the mirror, and stared at me.

  "So, Leora, you'd better be good to him, because Mr. Macho has his weaknesses. And every man's weakness always boils down to a woman. Every man's. So take care of him."

  Whoa! Was that a threat?

  "Um..." I swallowed. "OK."

  She smiled, then went back to the mirror, the Godfather act now replaced by the joviality of Reese Witherspoon in Legally Blonde.

  Boy, was this a split personality if I'd ever seen one or what...

  "Um, I'm going to check on Conall. You gonna be OK?" I said.

  "Sure," she said, hunting her skin for blackheads.

  I walked out, and could finally breathe. It was the steam in the bathroom. That's what had choked me up.

  -2-

  The note I'd left on Alex's door fell to the ground as I opened it.

  Then, when I opened Conall's door with my keycard, I was hit with a gush of cold air. Had the AC been on all night? I looked at the table and saw that my other note was still there, the vase still covering the I love you with the hearts...

  "Conall?"

  The room almost echoed from the silence. I turned off the AC and rubbed my arms warm. "Conall? Sweetie?" Everything was pristine. Had he even come here after leaving?

  My heart thumped.

  "Conall, honey, where are you?"

  I rushed to the bedroom and saw the bed fully made. No one had slept in it.

  "Conall!"

  I texted him:

  Leora: Conall, you OK?

  The answer was instantaneous. Conall: Yes, I'm fine, sorry, something came up. Make yourself at home there.

  It felt like I'd been hit in the head with a sledgehammer.

  Something came up.

  I knew those words. I knew them well; knew them like an ax through the chest.

  Something came up.

  My mind flashed back, to me at the airport with him in the states, to his texts of "being busy," to him telling me that "something came up," to crying myself to sleep during finals, somehow making it through them with a mediocre average, to arguments with my mom, my desire to come to England...

  And to that cliff... The one in my mind which I fell down when Conall had just...disappeared.

  I staggered back, hit into a wall. I kept staring at my phone. "Not again," I mumbled to myself. I somehow found the couch, dropped onto it.

  "Not again."

  I quickly typed the next message. Leora: Conall. You promised. Don't do this.

  Nothing. No answer.

  I lost feeling in my lips.

  When Alex walked in, I must've looked like a ghost.

  "He's gone," I said to her. And now it was my turn to be held. Alex held me.

  -3-

  "Leora, he does that. He protects others and protects others and protects others... But when things get too much for him, he disappears and...well..."

  "What? Tell me, please. I need to know."

  "Well, usually he...fucks someone up!" She laughed. "Typical ape-monkey Alpha male bullshit, you know. Men!" She sighed, poured me some more tea as we sat in Conall's suite.

  I shook my head. "I don't know if I can go through this again. Not again. But he told me... He told me that... Well, that it was because of you he was out of touch the last six months — "

  "Oh, it was! Trust me, Leora, it was!" Her face went dark. She shook the thoughts away. "Anyway. But it was probably also convenient. I mean, he had all this pain. He blames himself, you know, for what happened with me. And then his brother. And, of course, his sister..."

  My teacup stopped midair. Alex noticed it and realized she'd said too much.

  "Shit. He hasn't told you about that, has he?"

  Fucking hell. About what!?

  "I guess not," I said. "I mean, if I count it up, we've only been together a few days in total. Christ, what happens if we stay together for a few years, or decades!?"

  "You're going to have a fucking interesting life, honey. That's all I can say! But that's love, isn't it? It's not love if it isn't over the top, if it isn't crazy. Then it's just, well, convenience."

  "Convenience?"

  "Yes, when two people realize they suit each other well, like a business deal. She blows him, he muffs her, they fuck every now and then. She cooks, maybe. Then he looks at porn and she turns a blind eye, looks at some herself. She dildos herself when he's too fat to perform. But they stand each other. It's convenient."

  "God, how awful."

  "It is. That's what my parents had together — "

  She stopped talking. Her eyes paused, looking at nothing. I knew what this was about. Her father, and what he'd done to her. Conall had told me in New York. Well, I'd figured it out. I hadn't asked much about it then. And I wouldn't now. What Alex needed was distraction, not focusing on the negatives in her life.

  "Anyway," she continued, "love which is really just a convenience is destined to fail. That's my theory on it. I think that's maybe the real reason why I never did anything with Conall back then. There'd never been any spark, at least from my side. And... I don't know. Now I think differently about it. But, anyway, that's another story..."

  Er, yeah, and his g
irlfriend is the one you're telling it to!

  "You mentioned his...sister?" I said. "And something about his brother? I know he's an addict."

  Alex lay back. "Oh, God. Leora, it's best I don't say anything more... I really shouldn't have mentioned it."

  I put my tea down, stared at my phone on the table. "Alex, I need to understand. If it's love or not doesn't matter. I can't go through this again. I can't go through this constantly — "

  She put her hand on my wrist. "Leora, it's his way of dealing with things. And it really is his place to tell you, when he's ready. But, if you want, I can take you to where he probably is now."

  My eyes shot to her. How is it that this woman knew more about my boyfriend — practically my lover — than I did? I intended to set it right. I loved Conall, loved him more than the universe. But we needed to be on equal footing. And I decided to set that straight. Right then and there I braced myself up for telling him how I felt. I figured I'd probably cry like a frickin baby while doing it, but I was gonna try my damnedest not to!

  "Yes, I'd like to know where he is. Please."

  -4-

  I texted Kayla and Dani to come over to London and spend the day with us. It was still early. Seven A.M. I'd gotten up at the crack of dawn. Kayla was ecstatic.

  Kayla: About fucking time! Was beginning 2 feel like ur BF was becoming more important than the only 1 who REALLY loves u!

  Then I told her about the clothes:

  Kayla: OM-F'ing-G!!!! I LOVE your man!!! All's forgiven!

  Dani couldn't make it because she was covering a shift for the girl who'd covered a shift for us earlier in the week. Damn it, I was gonna owe a mother lode of shifts soon.

  Worse. I began to worry that, if I kept up this way, I wouldn't have a job soon. But freckly Troy wouldn't do that to me, would he?

  I decided to play it safe and I called him. I did what any girl does when they're in a pickle and need to get something from a man. I flirted.

  "Troy, sweetie," I said as he picked up. I'd woken him up and he mumbled something. "Sweetie, it's Leora here." Yes, I called him sweetie. "Look, honey, I'm so sorry about lately. It's just that" — I gave a coy and loud sigh — "well, I had this friend come over. You've seen her haven't you?"

  "Umpf, yes, yes, I think..."

  "Oh, she thinks you're hot by the way."

  "Oh, she does?"

  Yip, he was awake now. "Oh, yeah! Wow, she wouldn't stop fucking talking about you ever since she saw you! I mean, you do have that whole dark and mysterious look going on for you, you know? I've also noticed..."

  "Oh, ha ha, um, I — I — Well — Um — "

  Yip, this was going great. "Anyway, Troy, honey, I'm so sorry about the days I haven't been — "

  "Oh, Leora, forget it. It's no problem! Take all the time you need! Jackie needs extra shifts anyway, let the girl work."

  Jackie, that was her name! The one who'd covered our shifts!

  "Oh, thank you so much, sweetie."

  "No," he cleared his throat, "no, no. It's no problem." I could almost see him hardening up in his shorts. It was pretty gross.

  I had to close this deal up. I really didn't want to lose this job! "Thanks, baby. Bye. Oh, wait, I just wanted to ask you one thing. I've been meaning to for days now, but, well, with all these friends and things..."

  "Yes?"

  "You've been going to the gym lately, haven't you? Or swimming?"

  "Oh, no, um, not recently. I did, um, lift some boxes, heavier than usual. Did that last week, I think. Or was it an extra crate of beer...?"

  "Oh, it must be that. It shows. OK, honey, have a great day. I'll let you know when my friend leaves. I'll be less all-over-the-place after that."

  "Oh, yes, um, that friend, so she really thought I was cute, did she?"

  Damn it. He was curious now. And I was gonna owe Kayla big-time. Time to end this call before I dug a hole I wouldn't be able to get out of! "Um, yes, um, look, I gotta go. I'll have her call you! Bye!" I hung up.

  Alex's mouth looked like an opening to a large cave. "What?" I said.

  She raised her eyebrows. "You're good."

  -5-

  Traveling from Seaford to London takes a good three hours if using public transportation. But Kayla wasn't in Seaford. She was still in London!

  "I didn't believe everything was OK with you and Romeo yesterday," she said, "so I booked a hotel nearby. Just in case."

  My, I loved this girl. "Why can't a guy be like you?"

  "Because guys are morons."

  I did the introductions but Alex took care of the awkward part on my behalf. Lying back on the settee in her suite, she said to Kayla, "I'm crazy, half suicidal, and a drunk. Leora here, kind-hearted as she is, decided to take on the gallant task of babysitting me for the day. Only, she didn't realize how really fucked up I am. She also didn't realize what a dark and troubled soul the love of her life is. Or, more simply, also how fucked up he is. So, now, she needs you to babysit me. Because, well, if you don't, I'll probably get drunk, fuck someone behind an alley, and then get arrested.

  "Is that about right, Leora?"

  I put my palm to my head, smiling. "Um, well, pretty much, I guess."

  "Damn!" Kayla said to Alex. "I fucking like you! Jeez, Leora, you only meet cool people here!"

  Kayla rushed over to Alex, looped her elbow around the other girl's, and practically yanked her off the couch. "Come on sister, screwed up people need lots of earrings, and eyebrow rings, and tattoos." Kayla charged Alex to the door.

  Tattoos? Eyebrow rings? "No, Kayla..."

  "Hey, you wanna go visit Romeo? Or do you want to babysit us?"

  Alex was a little shocked. But she also looked...something else. Something I hadn't seen her being since I'd met her. In between all the glowering and the tension and the stress, the one thing Alex never looked like, was relieved. And that's how she seemed now. Her skin even looked lighter, less pressured. She must be, what, twenty-nine? Thirty? Over ten years older than us. And she looked like a teenager now, propped up by the elbow by Kayla.

  "Go," I said, shooing them away with my palm. "Go before I change my mind!"

  They left.

  "Oh, wait! Alex, you need to show me where Conall is first!"

  -6-

  I thought Alex had made a mistake when she took me to where Conall had supposedly been all night. "A warehouse?" I said.

  She shook her head. "He's here. Go in. If he's not there, come back out. We'll be waiting."

  Kayla shrugged. She looked as confused as me.

  "Er, um, if I don't come out I might have been murdered. This place looks like where my dad grew up. You don't wanna know where he grew up!"

  Trash-bags lay piled up outside the brick walls and the windows were covered with grating. A guy in a beanie, goatee and bad-ass eyes, leaned back against a wall, looking at us askance while he smoked a cigarillo. The dude looked like a freaking drug dealer, or a murderer...or both!

  "Appearances can be deceiving," said Alex, calm as a summer's breeze. Whatever!

  "Christ," I said. Was I the only one who saw the neighborhood we were in? I walked to the main door, pulled it open. It squeaked and creaked and damn-near fell off its hinges. Definitely in need of some oil, or some screws, or just a whole new frickin door!

  Sunlight shafted through the windows up top when I got inside the dark warehouse corridor. It smelled familiar. Sweaty, a little stale. It smelled like...my dad's gym back home. That dingy one where he'd taught me how to box, and how to kill a guy with one whack to the nose (yeah, I have a cool dad!)

  When I went further inside, into the main hall, I understood the odor. It wasn't like a gym. It was a gym. A fighting gym.

  And there was Conall.

  -7-

  He sat on a low wall on the other side of the boxing ring, his head down, sweat glistening from his bare shoulders which peaked out through a sleeveless tank top, his hands wrapped in black hand-wraps — the kind that barely protect the knuckles fo
r as-good-as bare-fisted fighting. His eyes were glued to the floor. I moved forward, my feet echoing as I walked. Conall heard them. He looked up.

  The left side of his face was covered in rivulets of blood, a deep cut gaping just above his left eye.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  -1-

  Conall just looked at me, no expression, no reaction. I tried not to overreact. I walked slowly to him. He sat up straighter, took a deep breath, looked to his right.

  "So, mate, taught you a lesson there," someone said from where Conall was looking.

  "You were lucky," said Conall.

  "Want to go at it again?" The man speaking was a tall black guy, about as muscular as Conall, maybe a little more so. Definitely taller. He had a goatee, shaved-to-the-skin head, and calves about the size of my thigh. "Ooh, hello little missy? Get lost, did you?"

  "Hey," said Conall, slapping the man on the abs with a thud. "She's with me."

  The black man — at this stage I just called him Shaq, because he was huge — looked at Conall, confused, then at me, then back at Conall. He let out a laugh. "Hoo-hoo-hoo! Boy, you are in trouble." He turned to me. "Miss, I don't know who you are, but if I know my boy here, he's in trouble. Because that's the look of love on his face if I've ever seen it."

  "Hey!" Conall stood up, smacked the man again on the abs. "Stop it!"

  The man laughed, put his water bottle down. "Ooh-hoo, this is serious. Come on, boy. Wanna put this back in the ring? I can cut the other eye for you." He started dancing on his feet, swaying his fists up and around, swinging his head left and right like Muhammad Ali.

  Conall suddenly laughed. The man stopped dancing, put his left hand on Conall's trap and massaged it. Conall looked down, started unstrapping his hand-wraps.

  "Conall, I think the real solution to your anger lies in this ravishing young lady here, not in getting another cut eye." The man looked at me, then gave a caring smile. "You going to work today?" he asked Conall.