“Thanks, Dad.” I was hoping he would just congratulate me and then hang up. I really needed to talk to my mother, and he was only delaying that.
“Well, I'm so proud of my little girl. You worked very hard for years to save money to go to that snobby school and now there you are,” he said in a tone that I didn’t like. “You're one of them.”
My father's word stung like a thousand bees at once. What did he mean, I was one of them?
“Oh, Ollie, stop teasing her,” Mum said before I could react.
“Come on, Mother, she knows I'm horsing around,” he said. “Don't you, pumpkin?”
There was a thread of truth in his statement, but to keep down an argument I decided to agree with him. “Of course, Dad.” I had known for years that my father resented my decision to attend Whitby. He had tried to get me and my sister to follow him into the business of “journalism.”
“Well, I'll get off here and let you talk to your mum. Goodbye, dear.” With that, he hung up before I could say another word.
“I hope you know he's only joking with you,” Mum said, probably trying her best to keep me from exploding.
“I guess.”
“What else is going on?” she asked.
“Not much.” I wanted to confide in her so badly, but I dared not. I was too afraid that she might let something slip to my dad.
“Eliza, I have always known when something was troubling you. Please, dear, let me know what is going on.”
Her tender voice with its sincere concern was more than I could handle, and I broke under what little pressure she exerted. I let all common sense go straight out the window, and I unloaded all of my heartbreak on the one person who I knew cared more than anyone else.
“Oh, Mum,” I said as I broke down. “I'm so sad.”
“Honey, what has happened?”
I was sobbing by the time I spoke again. Reaching for a tissue, I began to tell mum how I had met Drew, how we had become partners, and then how we had fallen in love. It was so much of a burden I had been carrying and keeping to myself, that I felt relieved by the time I had spilled it all.
“Wow,” was all she said.
“Mum?”
“Yes?”
“Please don't tell Daddy about this.” I sniffed and wiped my nose with the tissue. “You know he might use it in a story, and I wouldn’t want to hurt Drew that way. I couldn't live with myself if Dad did that to him.”
“I won't say anything to your father. I wish that you would have told me sooner. I would like to meet this young man.”
“You can't, Mum. I have decided to break it off with him for good.”
“Honey, you can't let what his friends say about you determine your happiness. People are always going to talk and say things, but if you're happy with him and he's happy with you, then you shouldn't allow others to dictate your life.”
She made sense.
“Mum, there's more.”
She remained silent as I told her about seeing him with Poppy this morning and how it hurt to see him laughing and smiling as she touched him.
“I think I've already lost him. He looked so at home with her. She's more of his type. You know, the royal type.”
“Well, darling, I will say this,” she said as she inhaled and exhaled. “You need to think about what it is that you really want in life and then determine whether or not it's worth going after. If it is, then you must pursue it with everything in you. If not, then let it go and find your happiness elsewhere.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I love you, Mum, and I knew you would give me good advice. You always have.”
“Well, honey, I try. I like to think I've learned a thing or two after raising your sister. I'm wiser now, and I have much better advice to give to you. Parents are always better with the second child than with the first.”
I laughed because it was true. My mum had been a bit more lenient and loving with me than with my sister.
“Honey, I'll let you go because you have some decisions to make. I love you, and please call anytime you need to talk.”
“Thank you, Mum. I love you, and I'll call soon.”
When we hung up, I felt better than I had in the past two days. My mother had made perfect sense. If Drew and I loved each other, then it was no concern for anyone else.
15
Drew
Seeing Eliza's face as I talked to Poppy was all I needed to know that she was hurt and that I had caused it. She already felt inferior to the girls that we attended university with us, but there was nothing I could do about it. That was a personal issue that she had to work on.
Besides, she was the one who had ignored me all day yesterday and last night. What was I supposed to think when she refused to answer her phone or text me back? Not to mention the fact that she didn't even care enough about me to let me in when I stood there buzzing her door for almost fifteen minutes.
No, Eliza had done this to herself. She disappeared on me without an explanation, and I had tried to find her and talk without success. She was the one who wrote me off, and I wasn’t going to allow her to cause me to feel bad for talking to a friend at school. I had put my effort into finding out what was going on, and she ran away from me. That wasn't fair.
I felt embarrassed for her when she tripped over the desk, but it was kind of funny. She was a tad clumsy, but the sound it made and how it echoed across the room did cause me to laugh.
“Hey, would you like to get something to eat?” I asked Poppy after we had stopped giggling about the desk fiasco.
“Yes, I would,” she replied as she took my hand in hers.
It felt weird. I didn't want her to hold my hand. I wanted Eliza's hand in mine, but that wasn't going to happen. She had made it clear to me when she ignored me. Eliza didn't want me, and I had to accept that fact and move on.
“Well, since we have class in a few minutes, how about we meet in the cafeteria after physics?” I asked her.
“That sounds wonderful.”
She was pretty and sweet and she had always liked me, and I had liked her too, but not in the way a young man should like a woman like her. She was a bit too stuffy for me. She was proud and snobby, and I wasn't looking for that in a girlfriend.
I was looking for someone down to earth, someone who wasn't afraid to do crazy things like ride in my convertible and get her hair messed up. I was looking for someone who would sit on the couch with me and eat pizza from the box while drinking beer from the bottle. Poppy wouldn't dream of doing those things.
No, those were things that Eliza would do. I wanted Eliza. She made my heart skip a beat. She made my head spin and my body ache for hers. She made me happy and angry at the same time. I wanted her, but it was evident that she didn’t want me. So what was I to do? I was going to move on and try to forget about her. Maybe Clayton had been right all along. Maybe we were just no good together. Maybe two different worlds couldn’t exist together cohesively.
“Hey, there you are,” Poppy said from the other side of the cafeteria after our classes were over for the day.
“Over here,” I said as I stood up and waved.
“What a day I've had already,” she exclaimed as she put down her books and took a seat next to me.
She smelled good, like roses. Not like the peaches that Eliza smelled of, but still good, nonetheless. She was pretty. Tall, long, lean legs, with long hair that looked like spun silk. She had the best that money could buy, and you could tell that she was very well taken care of by her parents. She would never have to scrape and save for anything in life like Eliza had done.
No, Poppy had been handed everything. It was through no fault of her own and there was nothing wrong with it, because she truly was a good person, but she wasn't Eliza.
“What shall we have?”
“I don't know,” I returned as I looked at her. “You want to get out of here and go somewhere else?”
Her smile told me that she was on board. “Yes, I do.”
We stood, and I took her books in my arms. “Right this way.” I allowed her to go in front of me. As we exited, I saw Clayton and Riley staring at me. Just before I cleared the door, he shot me a wink and a thumbs up. He approved of my choice. It wasn't because of him that I was with Poppy; it was because Eliza no longer wanted me. She was done with me, and I had no say in the matter. I was pissed that she shut me out, that she didn’t respect me enough to even explain, but I was determined to make it as fast of a recovery as I could.
“So, where to?” I asked once we were seated in my car.
She looked at me with sultry eyes and caught me off guard with her reply. “How about your place?”
My place? Did she just say she wanted to go to my condo?
“Uh, okay. I guess I could have the chef whip up something if he's there,” I said, and she sensed my nerves because she laughed.
“No, silly. Not to eat.” She lightly stroked the back of my hand that was holding the gear shift.
I was speechless. What should I do? Go for it? After all, I was a free man, right? I had no ties to anyone. I wasn't anyone's boyfriend, Eliza had made that much clear with her sudden silence. I was free alright, except my heart was still bound to Eliza.
“Poppy, look,” I said.
Before I knew what was happening, she leaned over and stuck her tongue down my throat. She kissed me hard, and she tasted so sweet—like honey. My body responded naturally, but my brain couldn’t keep up. My only thought was with Eliza. I pushed Poppy away and sat up a little straighter.
“What’s your problem, Andrew?”
“Get out.”
“You can’t be serious?” she pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Oh, but I am, Poppy. Get out of my vehicle. Now.” I pressed the unlock button and waited impatiently.
“You’re pathetic, Andrew.” She slung the door open and stepped out on the sidewalk.
My cock ached for relief, and Poppy would have happily fucked me ten ways from Sunday. She wasn’t who I envisioned when she kissed me.
She wasn’t Eliza.
16
Eliza
Morning sneaked up on me and left me feeling as if I hadn't slept much at all. Looking at the clock, I saw that I had, in fact, been asleep for twelve hours. It was almost noon, and I was surprised. “Wow, I must have been super tired to have slept that long and still feel worn out,” I said as I stumbled to the bathroom to pee and brush my teeth.
Sitting on my bed, I yawned, stretched, and grabbed my phone. There were no messages from Drew, so I decided to swallow my pride and call him.
It rang four times before voicemail picked up. “Drew, hey, this is Eliza. Um, I'm not sure where to start, but I just want you to know that I am so very sorry for not answering your calls and texts the other night. I have my reasons, and they are valid, but I don't want to leave them here on your voicemail. So, if you would please give me a call as soon as you listen to this, I would appreciate it. Drew...” I stumbled over the words, unsure of whether or not to say them. “I love you, and I miss you terribly. If you will allow me to explain it all to you, I think you'll understand why I ran away from you.”
There it was, my heart in a voicemail. Now, I would wait for him to call me back and hope for the best.
I was bored with school being out for the next few days, so I decided to grab some coffee and then hit the gym. It was the best way to work off my anxiety. Running five miles on a treadmill would take away a massive amount of stress, then swimming for an hour would pretty much wipe out any energy I would have left, whether it would be positive or negative.
I didn't care; I needed an outlet for my pain. I desperately needed somewhere to put all of my pent-up anger at Clayton, Poppy, and all of Drew's friends. I needed to sweat and work out to get rid of all my frustrations. If I knew Drew, he was probably doing the same thing at his condo. He loved working out, and I imagined that he had been pumping iron for the last two days to get rid of his pain as well.
The day wore on without a word from Drew, and I was beginning to worry a bit. He had rugby practice for four hours each day this week because of the game coming up on Sunday, but where he was all the rest of the time was beyond my ability to even guess. Maybe he was with his family. He liked to visit his mother as much as he could, so I tried not to worry. If we were going to work things out, we needed to communicate as soon as possible.
After a quick trip to the grocery store, I whipped up a salad and diet soft drink. It wasn't my first choice, that would have been pizza, but I had always been an emotional eater, and I didn't want to give in to my nerves just because they were frazzled.
I read over a couple of chapters in psychology as I slowly ate dinner. I was trying my best to keep my mind off of Drew, but it was getting harder with each hour that passed. I was missing him something awful and praying that he would call. I didn't even know if he had gotten my message. Maybe he had and he ignored me because of how I had left things between us. I’d admit I hadn't handled things very well, but I was hoping that he would at least give me a chance to explain myself so that we could move on. It wasn't looking good, though, and I was becoming more sullen as the evening wore on.
Picking up my phone without thinking, I dialed his number again and was surprised to hear him answer.
“Hello,” he sounded as if he was asleep.
“Drew?” I asked, unsure of whether or not it was him.
“Uh, yeah,” he said in a very groggy tone.
“Hey, what are you doing?”
There was silence on the line.
“Are you there?” I asked, wondering if he'd hung up on me.
“Yeah, I'm here.”
“What's wrong? Are you in bed?”
I heard rustling like a comforter moving and then footsteps.
“Yeah, I laid down to take a nap. I've been so tired the last couple of days.”
“Well, I texted you and left a couple of voicemail messages. I wasn't sure if you'd gotten them or not.”
“Uh, no. I haven't checked my messages.”
His answers were short, and it was obvious that he had no interest in talking to me.
“Is there any way that we can talk? I want to explain what happened the other day and why I disappeared on you the way I did. Drew, I'm so sorry.”
I heard the commode flush then he cleared his throat. “Uh yeah, can we do it tomorrow? I'm kind of still tired, and I want to go back to bed.”
“Yes, of course we can,” I said, relieved that he was at least willing to sit down and talk to me. “Drew?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.” I had to add that if it was the last thing I said to him. I did love him, and I wanted him to know it.
“Listen, I have to go, but I'll get up with you,” he said right before he hung up.
No 'I love you' in return, no 'where did you go?', no 'I miss you'. Nothing but, “I'll get up with you.” It wasn’t what I wanted to hear, but it was something, at least.
I went to bed early and wondered what on earth had he been doing that had him so tired. Then it dawned on me—
rugby practice. He had to have been worn out and needed as much sleep as he could get, poor thing.
“We will get this entire mess straightened out tomorrow,” I said to myself.
I fell asleep happy that I had gotten to talk to him. Just hearing his voice brought a relief to me that I hadn't felt in several days.
I woke up early the next morning with an expectancy that I couldn’t contain. I was cheerful, for the first time in the past week, and I was actually looking forward to getting up and getting dressed. I wouldn’t have to drag myself up and make myself get ready; no, I was almost springing up out of bed that morning.
The sun was shining, spring flowers blooming all around us. I was happy because I wanted the weather to match my mood, or vice versa. I hated cold, drab days that seemed to linger on endlessly. You couldn't get out without nearly freezing to death, the roads were slippery
and snowy, and life was all around sucky in the winter. But when the sun was out, everything was better.
I spent the day at the salon getting my hair washed and curled, getting my nails done, and splurging for a pedicure. I had never had one before, so I thought it was about time that I treated myself. It was just as divine as everyone said it would be, and I would definitely get another pedicure whenever I could afford it.
I was getting more and more anxious with each hour that passed and no word from Drew. It was now almost three in the afternoon, and he hadn't called or texted. I was beginning to panic when I walked out of the nail salon and right into Clayton.
Oh God, just when I thought things couldn't get worse.
I tried my best to just drop my head and go on, but I could tell by the way he walked toward me, he wasn’t going to let that happen.
“Pauper!” he said loudly.
“What do you want, asshole?” I asked with a bite.
“Well, look at you,” he said as he looked me up and down. “Getting all dolled up? Who's the lucky fella?” he asked mockingly.
“Clayton, I'd love to stay here and trade insults with you, but I have somewhere to be, so if you'll excuse me,” I said before trying to step around him.
He wasn't moving. “Surely you don't expect Andrew to take you out, now do you?”
He laughed like the devil as he spoke, and his utter contempt for me scared me.
“Not that it's any of your business, but yes, I do have a date with Drew. He's coming over to talk to me and get some things straightened out.”
I tried once again to step around him, but he put his arm out and blocked me.
Royally Loved: The Royal Romances Books 1-5 Page 28