Married This Year

by Tracey Pedersen

  They drove in companionable silence, him with a big smile on his face. No matter what happened tonight, she knew Charles was already enjoying himself. She twirled the ring around and around on her finger as she tried not to let him see that she was fidgeting.

  Just get through the play. Just get through the play.

  She glared out the window as she realised that, once again, she was giving herself a pep talk on a date. When would she meet someone nice, like Richard, so she could be herself around him?

  Like Richard? Or like Luke?

  She pushed that thought aside as they arrived at the theatre, and Charles let her out at the door. He went to park the car and returned a few minutes later. He took her hand, and they went inside to take their seats. A complete gentleman, he ordered her a glass of wine and asked if she’d like a snack. Their seats were fabulous, and she enjoyed every second of the show. She hid her hand under her leg when the lights went down, so he wouldn’t know she’d secretly removed the ring and slipped it into her evening bag.

  When Charles dropped her home, he reverently placed the ring back in the box and tucked it away in the glove box. She wished him a nice evening, and he promised he’d call her. She knew she’d have to let him down gently when that call came.

  ***

  “Is this seat taken?” Luke stood by her elbow, his eyes silently begging her not to send him away.

  “Nope.” He stood there looking at her, and she sighed and moved her handbag slightly. “Come on, sit down.”

  “Can I buy you a drink?”

  “No, thanks. I’m not having much.”

  “Tough night?”

  “Yep. Shocking.”

  “Want to tell me about it?”

  “I’m not talking to you, remember?”

  “How could I forget? Not to split hairs, but we’re talking right now, so you can probably tell me.”

  She took a sip of her wine and swivelled her chair to look at him. His hair was as perfect as ever, but he had stubble on his chin—not something he usually allowed. He was wearing those damn jeans, and she swivelled back to face the bar.

  “I’m sorry, Jordan, for the joke. We didn’t mean to scare you or upset Shelly.”

  “I know. If I’d been you, I might have thought it was funny, too. I’m sorry I’ve been so horrible.”

  He smiled, and she saw him visibly relax, now that he knew he was forgiven. “Is Rexy missing me?”

  “Yes, I think Rex does miss you. He keeps giving me the evil eye, like I’ve crossed him, somehow. It can only be because you haven’t been around.”

  “Oh, I’ve been around. You just haven’t noticed me while you’ve been busy tapping away on your keyboard in the corner. I stayed away, in case you shouted at me and made a scene in Cindy’s store.”

  “Still doing your coffee shop stalker routine, then?”

  He snorted. “Something like that.”

  Luke turned, as a woman Jordan hadn’t seen before place her hand on his shoulder. “Want to dance, big guy?”

  “Err… no, thanks. Sorry.” He smiled and turned back to Jordan, but the blonde wasn’t giving up.

  “Please? Just once? My name is Megan. Megan Varnell.” She smiled as though the mention of her name should have him rushing to sweep her onto the dance floor.

  Jordan watched him close his eyes for a second, as if he was resigned to his fate. He was an attractive guy, and she suddenly realised that he often had women showing him attention whenever they were out. She’d never noticed it before today, though.

  She slid off her stool and took his hand as she spoke over his shoulder to the woman, “Sorry, my fiancé and I were about to dance.”

  “Oh, okay, I didn’t realise,” she said as she tottered away on her six-inch heels. Jordan pulled Luke toward the dance floor, and he wasted no time in wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close.

  “Hey,” she tried to move away, but he held on tight.

  “You just told the daughter of mining magnate James Varnell that we’re engaged—at least look like you can stand me for a song or two,” he growled into her ear.

  She relaxed against his chest. At that exact moment, the heavy beat of the music switched to a soft love song, and Jordan almost pulled away again. She looked up at him and he smirked down at her, knowing she was caught when she’d been trying to help him out. Over her shoulder, she saw Fish looking down at her from the DJ booth. Why did everything have to become so complicated since she’d made that resolution right here in this club?

  Luke proved to be an expert dancer, and he spun her out and twirled her around as she ducked under his arm. They laughed as some of the other dancers moved to give them more room, and before Jordan knew it, they had danced to three or four songs. Fish cranked up the beat and the volume on the next song, and they returned to their spot at the bar. It was midweek, so there was no shortage of empty seats to choose from.

  Luke ordered them both a drink and coaxed the night’s dating story out of her. When she told him about the ring, he laughed so hard that he had to put his drink down twice.

  It was nice to be sharing her day with him again. He was always sympathetic and told her to keep searching. There was something else that she couldn’t put her finger on tonight. He seemed a little bit more attentive than usual, and it made her nervous. When they’d danced together, her pulse had quickened, and she’d found herself tongue-tied. It was probably that she hadn’t seen him for a couple of weeks, and her immunity to him had diminished.

  For the first time ever, she didn’t tell him about her upcoming date with Richard. They were due to meet on Saturday night, and Richard had told her it was time they had a serious talk. She was pretty sure she knew how that night would end, and she was more than a little excited at the prospect of moving forward with him.

  She wasn’t sure, now, if she’d end up telling Luke about it.

  ***

  The date with Richard was everything Jordan had expected and more. He arrived with flowers and complimented her on her outfit. He held her hand through dinner and listened to her stories of shopping with her friends for their bridesmaid dresses. The wedding was only six weeks away, and she wondered, as she enjoyed their dinner together, if she should ask Shelly if Richard could come as her date, after all.

  After dinner, he suggested a walk through the park, and she slipped off her shoes, which he carried for her, to pad along in the darkness beside him. When they reached a darkened section of the park bathed only in the soft glow of a dimmed streetlight, they finally shared their first proper kiss.

  A rush of lust overcame Jordan. She’d waited so long for him to kiss her—she’d dreamed about it and wondered when it would happen. She had worried that a lack of intimacy was a sign they weren’t meant to be, but when the moment finally came, she knew in her soul that it was right for them. He wrapped his arms around her and tentatively explored her mouth with his tongue while she pressed against him, leaving him in no doubt that she was ready.

  He pulled away, and their foreheads touched as he smiled at her in the darkness. “Can I take you home, Jordan—and can I stay?”

  “I’d like that a lot.” She giggled as he turned her around and took her hand to lead her to the car. He drove at record speed, and they laughed together at how eager they both were. When they fell through her doorway, they were already breathing heavily, and it wasn’t long before he was removing her shirt and dropping it on the floor.

  A growl from the corner reminded her of Rex, and she apologised to Richard while she quickly locked the dog in the laundry, where he continued to voice his disapproval.

  Quiet, Rex. This is how it was always meant to turn out.

  She led Richard to her bedroom, and he kicked the door shut with his foot as he kissed down her neck and across her shoulder. He slipped off his shoes, and she eagerly helped him out of his belt and pants. She gasped as his clothes fell to the floor and he pressed his arousal against her. Her mouth watered at the thought of what was
to come.

  They lay on the bed, and Richard made the wait so worthwhile. He worshipped every inch of her skin, and when he finally moved on top of her, she gasped his name. Her fingers wrapped in his hair, and her back arched as they made the music together that she’d known they would.

  Afterward, she lay there with his weight on top of her as she drew a lazy trail down his back with her finger. For the first time in months, she was truly happy and relaxed. Waiting to get serious with Richard had been worth all those nights of texting and continuing to date other men in the hopes that one of them would turn out to be her Prince Charming. How funny it was that he’d turned out to be someone she met on the first day she’d looked on Tinder.

  He kissed her on the neck and gently rolled off her and onto his back. He stretched his arms above his head, and she could tell he was as satisfied as she was.

  How long until we can do that again, I wonder.

  He rolled over onto his side to face her, and she smiled at him, loving the curve of his chin and the heat she saw in his eyes. He spoke in a husky voice, full of emotion. “Jordan, I’m so glad I found you. We are a perfect match.”

  The smile that stretched across her face could have lit up the park they’d walked through earlier. She ran her fingers through his chest hair and gazed up into his eyes, waiting for his next words. Nothing he could say could increase the joy in her chest right now.

  “I can’t stay tonight, but I’ll come back tomorrow afternoon and we can work out a plan.”

  “What kind of plan?” She wanted to hear him say the words to tell her for sure that they weren’t going to see other people, anymore. She felt such a relief at knowing she wouldn’t have to endure another crappy date and that she could throw away that list—that stupid, perfect list where this special man’s attributes were all listed when she’d wished for him eight months earlier.

  “Well, we’ll need some kind of roster, so you know which nights I’ll be here and when I’ll be at home.”

  She pushed his chest gently. “We don’t need a roster, silly. You can come over whenever you like. I’ll get you a key, and I can stay at your place sometimes, too, if you want.”

  He frowned and pulled away slightly. “No, that won’t work. I can’t mix my lives together.”

  “You don’t want me to come to your house? Work and pleasure have been known to go together, you know. I freelance, so I could even come with you on some of your trips.” Her eyes roved hungrily over his naked skin. “Wouldn’t that be fun after a hard day of work?”

  He grinned at her and squeezed her hand in his. “I would definitely like that, and it’s a great idea. I don’t want her to find out about you, though, so maybe you can meet me there for a day or two, sometimes.”

  “You don’t want who to find out? Your boss?”

  “Umm… no, not my boss.” He laughed as Jordan’s confusion increased. “I’m talking about my wife, of course.”

  “Your what?” She pulled back and stared into his eyes.

  “My wife. We have an open relationship, but even she doesn’t like to see any of my girls when they’re around.”

  Jordan sat up in bed, pulling the sheets around her as she stared at him. Her mouth opened, but all she could whisper was, “Your girls?”

  Richard frowned at her and sat up, too. “Why do you look so shocked? I thought you understood what this was?”

  “Oh my God.” Her face went white as the meaning of his words sunk in. Suddenly, it all made sense: the business trips every month, long periods spent interstate, in meetings, or unavailable for any number of reasons, and text messages received late at night, which she’d seen, at the time, as a romantic gesture to show he was thinking of her.

  Now she knew them to be the signs of a cheating man. Whether that cheating was with his wife’s knowledge, it made no difference to her. She slipped out of her side of the bed and pulled the sheet with her, leaving him sitting there, naked. “Get out,” she whispered.

  “Come on, Jordan. We had fun, didn’t we?” He stood on his side, not bothering to put his clothes on. “I want to see you again. I enjoy your company, and tonight was great.” He moved to the end of the bed and took a step toward her, but she wasn’t having any of it.

  “Get out of my house right now.” Her voice was steely, and her words came out through gritted teeth. “Get your clothes and go. I don’t want to hear from you again.”

  Instead of arguing his case, he sighed and started pulling on his pants. He threw on his shirt, leaving it untucked, and then sat on the bed to pull his shoes on.

  “Hurry up!” she snapped, fighting to keep from screaming at him.

  He shook his head and went to the door, and she followed him through it, clutching the sheet tightly around her. He looked around for his phone and his wallet, which he’d left on the table.

  “Hurry up, Richard! Get out of my house!” The floodgates had opened, and her voice was now raised to a shout.

  Still, he tried one more time. “Please, Jordan, can’t we talk about this? Don’t throw away all of these months of getting to know each other.”

  “GET OUT!” she shrieked. Her hand picked up the nearest item she could find and she threw it at him. The empty vase shattered against the wall beside his ear, and Rex started barking like a mad thing from the laundry. “GET OUT, RICHARD! Get out before I let the dog out and he makes you get out!”

  He didn’t wait to be told again, and he pulled the door open and rushed out onto the landing. It banged against the wall behind him, and she rushed to slam it shut, but not before running after him and screaming one last time down the stairs at his retreating figure. Her final shriek followed him as he scurried out to his car, keys jangling in the darkness.

  “You lying sack of shit! You better hope I don’t find her phone number, because she’ll bloody hear about your girls!” He had already gone through the door downstairs, though, and most likely didn’t hear her last threat. She sank down onto the ground and wept as her heart broke. Her tears pooled on the floor, and she considered staying right there forever.

  Bent over with her cheek against the floorboards, she nearly jumped out of her skin as a warm hand touched her shoulder. She raised her arms to fight him off, but a gentle voice shushed her. As her eyes travelled upward, she realised that it was Luke and not Richard who was picking her up.

  She howled her misery in racking sobs as he held her sheet around her and led her back into the apartment. Tears dripped down her front, turning the spots transparent where they fell. He locked the door behind them and made her sit on the couch, where she curled herself into a crying ball as he went to the laundry to let the dog out. Rex rushed out, snarling, but he quickly wagged his tail when he saw his favourite visitor had finally returned.

  Luke ventured into Jordan’s room and surveyed the mess of the bed. Shaking his head, he pulled the quilt off the floor and took it back to the lounge to wrap Jordan in it. She was crying silent tears by now, and he sat her up and wrapped her in his arms as she hiccupped and sobbed into his shoulder. They sat that way as the minutes ticked by, and Jordan moaned, her misery becoming a physical pain that would not subside.

  He rocked her against him and eventually she calmed down as he kissed her hair and ran his hand up and down her back, reassuring her that he was there for her. He didn’t know what had happened, but he feared the worst and soon he couldn’t stand it, anymore.

  “Jordan, do you need to see someone?” She shook her head against his shoulder, so he tried again. “Can I call one of the girls for you—or would you like me to take you to the hospital?” She hiccupped again, and he could have sworn he heard her laugh. He pulled away and tried to see her face, but she kept it hidden.

  Her words were muffled against his shirt, and he had to ask her to repeat them. “Nothing as bad as what you’re imagining happened tonight. I don’t need the hospital.”

  His enormous exhalation of air showed how relieved he was. “Oh, thank God. I feared the worst
when I saw him running to the car and heard you screaming. I didn’t know whether to beat him up or rush to check on you.”

  To his surprise, she laughed again and pulled her face away from his shirt. He loosened his grip and she sat up while remaining pressed against his side. “We had a nice night, Luke. I thought this was it, finally. Things were getting serious.” She sniffed and wiped more tears from her cheek. “Afterward,” she blushed as she looked up at him, “he told me that he’s married and that both he and his wife see other people.” Her voice shook and confusion filled her face. “Who the fuck does that?” she whispered.

  They sat silently on the couch with the dog on the floor between them. Luke glanced at the clock once Jordan seemed to be almost in control of herself again. It was after one.

  “Do you want to go to bed?”

  “No, I don’t want to go in there. I’ll sleep on the couch.”

  He patted her shoulder, understanding the problem. “How about I change the sheets for you, and then you can get a good night’s sleep? Sleeping on the couch isn’t the best place when you’ve had an upset. Trust me, I’ve spent enough time sleeping on your couches during the day to know.” He gently moved her aside and went to find clean sheets in the linen cupboard. In no time at all, he was carrying the old ones to the laundry and hiding them from her sight. “We can burn them tomorrow, if you’d like—have our own bonfire out on the pavement.” She laughed, and he was relieved that she seemed a tiny bit better.

  “I don’t know if I can—“

  “Come on,” he held out his hand. “I’ll stay with you for a bit. It will make your dog’s night.” She sniffed as she let him pull her toward the bedroom. She’d thought it might smell of Richard in here, but his smell, like him, hadn’t lingered long. The bed was clean and tidy, and she stood uncertainly in the doorway as she remembered that she was naked underneath the sheet.

  “Do you need pyjamas?”

  “Probably, but I can’t be bothered. I want to go to sleep and forget that this ever happened.