Ella nodded, too sleepy to notice Mary’s torn expression. Mary had always noticed the strange friendship between Ella and Lucas so this should not have come as a surprise to her. Ella and Lucas fell asleep in the same room often and claimed that they had only slept (Mary did not doubt it). They spent hours together. They fought as if they were a couple and they fought quite often.
Mary gently woke Lucas. When he inquired about Ella, Mary explained that she had just gone to bed.
“I’m sorry,” she said in a hushed tone as she pulled out sheets and blankets for him. “You came all the way here to drop me.”
“It’s alright, Mary,” Lucas replied sleepily. “Anytime.” He kicked off his shoes and pulled over the blanket that Mary handed him. She switched off the lights and walked back to his couch.
“You’ll be fine?” she asked.
“Will you?” he replied.
Mary smiled though she knew he could not see it. Bending down, Mary placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “Thank you, Lucas,” she whispered before straightening up and departing for her room. Lucas rolled over, not paying much attention to it.
Mary felt restless as she tried to focus on the lecture at hand. She even ignored the extremely handsome boy who was eyeing her throughout the class. As soon as the class ended, Mary exited the lecture hall and made up her mind to miss the rest of her classes. She was pacing around in front of the library when she saw Lucas’s friend Adam exiting it, with a cigarette in hand.
“Hey, Adam!” she called. Adam spotted her and walked towards her, one hand in his pocket. She walked the rest of the distance to meet him.
“How can I help you?” Adam asked.
“Is Lucas in the library?”
“Nope, he’s at the California Post.” That was the magazine Lucas worked for.
“Oh.”
“I can give him a message if you want.”
“Just… just tell him I was looking for him.”
“Right,” Adam said and started to walk again but Mary called out his name again. He turned, eye brows raised.
“I want to ask you something,” Mary said.
“Yes?”
“Is Lucas- I mean, is Lucas…” Mary trailed away, not sure how to start.
“Is Lucas what?” Adam asked.
Mary struggled to explain again. Adam watched her, amused as she failed. He took a puff of the cigarette before speaking.
“Mary, if you’re trying to ask me whether Lucas is still crazy after Ella, you need only ask, not stammer.”
Mary glared at him. Adam only smirked.
“Alright, that’s what I wanted to ask. How did you know, anyway?”
Adam shrugged. “I’m observant.”
“Observant?”
“You clearly like Lucas. He used to like Ella. Ella is your best friend. It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out.” He took another puff of the cigarette.
“Well, you didn’t answer me.”
“I don’t know, Mary,” Adam answered and Mary didn’t fail to notice the hint of annoyance in his voice now. “Why don’t you find out?” And then he walked away. Mary frowned.
The truth was that despite Lucas’ attempts at trying to get over Ella, despite his claims that he had succeeded, despite it all, Adam was Lucas’ best friend and he could see right through it. It was obvious to him that nothing had changed. Adam was still in love with Ella and every girl who had come into his life had been an attempt to forget Ella. Mary was a nice twist to the story, Adam thought. When Ella finally admits her feelings for Lucas, he wondered what would become of the new Mary character.
Chapter 5
“You sent my paintings to the California Post without my permission?!” Ella’s voice was dangerously high as she threw a copy of the magazine in front of Lucas.
“Well, they weren’t really doing much lying around in your bedroom.”
“How dare you send them in without my permission?”
“It’s because you can’t see how good you are. Someone had to do it.”
Ella took a deep calming breath. She had been an artist since she was a little girl, drawing everything that ever came to her mind, bothered her, touched her and made her smile or cry or laugh. At first, she had been afraid to show it to anyone for fear of not being appreciated. Lucas had stumbled upon them back when he was in high school and encouraged her to share them with other people. Ella had worked as a designer for a local T shirt company after she displayed her paintings at the school exhibition on Lucas’ insistence.
“I don’t need you to help me succeed in my career as an artist, Lucas,” Ella said angrily.
“Why are you lashing out like that? I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong?! Don’t you see it? This is a violation of my privacy rights. You can’t use my paintings without asking me.”
“I didn’t use them!”
“What do you call this then?” Picking up the newspaper, Ella stormed out of his apartment.
She knew she was being hard of Lucas but it had been a bad week and it was finally taking its toll on her. She was struggling to keep up with classes because of the extra credits she was taking this semester. Her boyfriend was making her increasingly unhappy despite not doing anything wrong which left her feeling extremely confused and guilty. Her father was insisting that she should visit home on the weekend and even though she wanted to, she thought it would be better to get work done. He was always away for work; he worked as a travel writer for a major travel magazine and loved his job more than he loved spending time with his family which consisted solely of Ella. Her step mother, Liana, had passed away nearly six months ago and with her half year death anniversary approaching, Ella had been extremely irritable. In the midst of all her thoughts, she did not realize that she ran into Donna.
“What are you so angry about?” Donna asked. Ella noticed that she was dressed up formally in a neat skirt and buttoned up blouse.
“Why are you so dressed up?” Ella asked. “And what are you doing here anyway?”
“I have a presentation for class. I saw your car parked outside and I needed a ride.”
As Ella drove, she ranted on about Lucas and how he violated her privacy rights. Donna did not have much patience for it and told Ella to shut up so she can concentrate on the notes she was reading. When they parted outside the university’s parking lot, Ella was looking forward to some time alone in her solar systems class where none of her friends could bother her. She was mistaken however. Stepping out of her car, she was met by Patrick. Donna rolled her eyes and walked away.
“Hello, beautiful,” Patrick said. Ella tried and failed to smile at him but Patrick did not seem to notice as he kissed her. She backed up against her car which made it more difficult to avoid it. She kissed him back before pulling away.
“Are you okay?” Patrick asked as Ella slid out from where she was trapped between his body and her car. Freeing herself, she tried to act more normal.
“Yes. I am,” she said unconvincingly.
“Did I do something wrong?” he asked, looking worried. That only annoyed Ella even more.
“No, you didn’t, Patrick. I just want to be alone.”
One thing Patrick had never understood about her was her introvert personality. Whenever she needed space, she could trust that Patrick would not understand and would jump to conclusions about what he may have done to annoy her. Lucas never does that, Ella found herself thinking. Lucas always understands when I go into my shell, Lucas knows when to leave me alone, Lucas knows when I’m actually upset and when I’m just quiet. She shook her head to clear it. Why was she comparing Lucas to Patrick? Patrick was her boyfriend. Lucas was only a friend…
Snapping out of the trace, Ella smiled at Patrick again who was still looking at her worriedly.
“I’ll see you later,” she said, turning to walk away.
“Wait, Ella. What did I do?”
“You didn’t do anything,” she said irritably. �
��It’s me. I need time alone. I’ll see you later.”
She walked away and suddenly felt guilty for being rude. He couldn’t see inside her the way Lucas could and understand every bit she was thinking or feeling. She stopped short when she realized she was comparing them again. Annoyed at herself, she entered her solar systems class and immersed herself in the world of planets and stars where no human being could bother her.
As Donna exited her presentation, she came across a frustrated looking Mary.
“I’m in a moral dilemma,” Mary announced as soon as she saw Donna.
“I don’t care,” Donna replied.
Mary rolled her eyes. “You have to care. You don’t have a choice.”
“Go talk to Ella.”
“I would if she wasn’t the cause of my dilemma.”
Donna frowned. “Are you sleeping with Patrick?”
Mary slapped her arm. “Of course not!”
“What is it then?”
“I want to date Lucas.”
Donna stared at her and then nodded slowly. “I see your dilemma.”
“So you also think Lucas and Ella are secretly in love, don’t you?” Mary concluded miserably.
“No,” Donna shook her head. “I only mean… things can get complicated.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, Mary,” Donna said patiently. “Lucas spent a good part of high school pursuing… pursuing another girl.”
“Ella.”
“Yes.”
“But that was before.”
Donna sighed. “I don’t know, Mary. Sometimes, I feel like nothing has changed. Lucas is in the team with me, I know him pretty well.”
“So you think he still has feelings for Ella?”
“No, I didn’t say that. I just meant… Lucas hasn’t really been in a serious relationship for… for ages. Which is curious.”
“That doesn’t mean anything.”
“You’re right. It doesn’t. Just make sure you’re careful. I think you should tell Ella… whatever you play on doing, just let Ella know.”
Mary made up her mind. After days of feeling restless and fighting with her better instincts, she figured that she need not fight herself so much. What will happen, will happen. She had never been one to deny herself the pleasure of what she desired. Lucas was a handsome, single man and she did not need to feel so terrible about liking him. She knew he practiced basketball every evening which was usually empty around that time. Approaching the court, Mary felt confident. However, Lucas was not playing basketball like she expected him to be. Instead, he was sitting in the middle of the court and scribbling on a notebook. Mary had seen him writing quite often but she had never appreciated the picture it painted. Somehow, his writing talent only added to the allure of his basketball skills. His hair fell into his eyes as he frowned in concentration. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Mary approached him silently.
“The Chevrolet?” Mary read over his shoulder. Lucas looked up and smiled, genuinely happy to see her. He shut the book and stood up to greet her.
“Just working on something new.”
“The Chevrolet?” Mary said again, thinking how that fit. Something was bothering her.
“Yes.”
“What’s the story about?”
“A man who has a ship called The Chevrolet. He loves it dearly but one day it sank.”
“Kind of like the Titanic?”
Lucas laughed. “Not even close.”
Mary moved closer to him. “Lucas…” she began.
She likes you, you know.
Ella’s voice rang in his head. Lucas had suspected it too. He liked Mary as far as liking went. She was fun, interesting and easy to get along with. She was a 21 year old guy’s dream. She wouldn’t be difficult like Ella was. Ella drove him crazy. Ella was out of his league. She would never like him.
He closed the distance between them as their lips pressed together. Mary placed her hand behind his neck, pulling him closer. Thoughts of Ella in his head died, guilt at the back of her mind faded and the kiss deepened.
Suddenly, they found themselves at the back of Mary’s car and their clothes were considerably lighter than before. The parking lot was empty so they were sure they won’t be seen but Mary covered the windows with her window blinds just in case. They exchanged urgent kisses. Lucas’s shirt lay discarded on the floor and Mary’s underwear seemed to be missing. She struggled to remove her dress in the small space of the backseat of her car. Once discarded, Lucas’ lips traces the tops of her breasts visible from her black lace bra. Mary pulled down his jeans enough to release his erection. She cried out his name as he entered her and the back of her mind registered that she was having the incredible sex she always dreamt off. Mary had had many men in her life but only one or two incredible experiences. Others left her feeling satisfied but not entirely mind blown. Lucas was doing exactly just that. Her hands reached out to grab the door handle behind her as he continued to thrust into her hips, while his mouth doing wonderful things to her breasts. He lifted her up by the thighs easily and suddenly, she was on top. He was sitting up on the seat and guiding her hips up. Mary found it incredibly sexy that a man initiated her being on top because frankly, she loved being on top. Regaining her balance, she grabbed his shoulders and begun to ride him, slowly at first. Lucas was tall enough and Mary was petite enough so that their current position brought her face to the same level as his. Mary kissed him briefly before attacking his neck with her mouth. She bit down on his neck as Lucas helped her increase her pace.
Minutes later, Mary still clung to him as they disconnected. She rested her head against his as they both struggled to regain their breaths.
“Wow,” she barely whispered. “That was… that was incredible.”
“Totally worth missing my classes for,” Lucas joked.
“Where have you been my whole life?” Mary asked. Been chasing my best friend, she thought to herself.
“Too invisible for you to notice.”
“I can say the same to you,” Mary said, rolling her eyes. “But I plan to keep you now.”
“Do you?” Lucas said playfully.
“Hmm.”
“Then will you take me out, Mary Shields?”
“I’ll think about it,” Mary mused. And then she pressed her lips to his again. “After that mind-blowing sex, any girl would agree.”
As they dressed, Mary remembered Ella again but pushed the thought out of her head. Besides her, Lucas did the same but for entirely different reasons.
Chapter 6
18th September.
It had been 6 months today. Lucas remembered 18th April as if it was yesterday. He had been with Ella in the hospital for days as they all waited for Liana to finally be at peace. Lucas, he paced around in his house, knowing that Ella must be feeling terrible. Liana had been the first mother figure in Ella’s life and they had hardly spent four years together before she was diagnosed with cancer.
Making up his mind, Lucas drove to Ella’s house. As suspected, he found her curled up in her bed with a hoodie pulled over her eyes. A huge canvas painting that she had been working on was lying forgotten on the floor. It was a picture of a middle aged woman looking outside a window.
“Who let you in?” Ella asked, her voice barely audible when Lucas entered her room.
“You gave me a key,” Lucas reminded her. He sat next to Ella and gently pulled her hood back to see her face. She looked pale and her eyes betrayed everything she was feeling. “I thought you might need a friend.”
“I’m sorry I screamed at you,” Ella whispered.
“It’s the 6th month. I understand.”
Ella closed her eyes as a tear escaped. Around Lucas was the only time she allowed herself to mourn Liana. Without him, she felt as though she would drive herself crazy with grief if she allowed herself to cry. So she put her pain into paintings. She sat up as Lucas took her into his arms and broke down for the first time in four months. He held he
r silently as she sobbed on his shoulders. After what seemed like hours, when she was out of tears, he still held her. He was leaning back on her pillow and she was leaning on him, her eyes closed as she calmed down.
“She was the only parent I had most of the time,” Ella said softly. “Dad was always away for work. When Liana moved in, it was such a nice change.”
Lucas didn’t say anything but listened quietly. He always knew when to listen and when to respond. Unlike Patrick. Patrick always felt the need to respond and console her. Since no words were enough, it only made Ella angry. She was vaguely aware as a part of her brain made this comparison.
“I used to go visit home every single weekend when Liana was here.”
Lucas tightened his grip on her arm.
“Hot chocolate?” he asked. Ella smiled at that. Ever since they were children, Lucas’s hot chocolate had always solved all of Ella’s moods; sad, angry, frustrated.
Minutes later, Lucas entered her room carrying two cups of hot chocolate. Ella watched as Lucas placed them on the table besides her. His phone beeped and he pulled it out to read the message, with a slight frown on his forehead. One hand idly rubbed his jaw line.
In that moment, Ella realized that she would very much like to kiss Lucas.
It was a moment of clarity that had all her doubts erased. Despite feeling completely broken and mournful, she registered that she liked Lucas. She really, really, liked Lucas.
Lucas had liked her before and may like her again with a little encouragement. She thought back to all the times that Lucas had asked her out when they were in high school. They had been children and he had been arrogant, self-centered, thinking that every girl would be lining up to date him- and they were, save for Ella.
Lucas dropped his phone in his pocket again and handed Ella one of the cups. Ella accepted it, still in a daze.
There was a knock on the door and a new figure entered: Mary. Lucas turned around to see her. Suddenly, nothing made sense. Mary wrapped her thin, sun-kissed arms around Lucas’s neck and kissed him on the lips.
Romance: The Bad Boy Affair: A Second Chance Romance Page 48