Although I was unsure of where Clark may have gone, I was pretty certain he had just moved on to his next phase of Tina Break-Up. The thought of him grabbing any woman in the bar caused that stupid jealousy pit again. The one I couldn’t figure out why it kept creeping up and hitting me like a punch to my gut.
I walked around the apartment aimlessly, trying to gather my thoughts about what had just happened. While I was proud of myself for turning down another one-night-stand that would lead to nowhere, I really wanted another night in Clark’s arms.
I sat back down on the couch and flipped through the channels. Thoughts of Clark hitting on women kept flashing through my mind and I changed the channels faster, trying to erase the whirling images from my head. I picked up my phone and thought about texting Vanessa to see if they were down at Allure, but then knew she’d invite me down there. And she’d know that I was alone in the apartment. I wondered how long I was allowed to be alone before someone came up to keep me company.
I stood up and walked into my bedroom and opened up my journal.
Dear Clark,
I know you’re down at Allure right now getting a girl for the night. Even though I turned you down, I’m sitting here kicking myself and for some weird reason, I’m jealous. So very jealous. You’re wrong for me in every sense of the word, but for some reason I still want to be with you.
I…
I stopped knowing nothing I wrote would make any sense. It couldn’t. He’d only want me for sex and I’d have my heart broken. He’s not good for me and I know this.
End of story.
After pacing the apartment several times, I decided to watch TV instead of hitting the gym. If I went downstairs, I wasn’t sure that’s where my feet would take me, considering the bar was just down the hallway. As I placed my feet on the coffee table, I stared at my toes. I realized my pedicure hadn’t lasted as long as it should have. Giving my polish a touch up might lift my spirits too.
I plucked a matching nail polish from my basket and started to shake the bottle when a knock at the door stopped me mid-shake. I checked through the peephole, for some reason expecting Tina, and instead noticed a very young girl. I opened the door to a young brunette who looked extremely nervous. Her eyes were red and swollen and tears still glistened in them. I studied her face and I was pretty sure she had to be in her teens.
“Yes?” I asked, tilting my head to the side, still observing her. She was naturally beautiful and seemed to wear very little makeup, if any at all.
Peering into our apartment, she nervously asked, “Um, is Clark here?” My eyes dropped down to her hands, watching as she picked at her nail polish and shifted her weight in her Chucks from side to side. Her long-sleeve top was snug around her petite form, yet she was already more developed than some of the girls down at the club.
I wondered how Clark would know such a young girl in her teens. He wouldn’t dare have sex with someone so young, would he? I swallowed nervously as anger started to swell in me while my mind jumped to conclusions.
“And you are?” I asked, hoping for a reasonable explanation.
“You’re Aub. I mean…Aubrey, right?” She looked so sweet and innocent, but I couldn’t help but wonder how she knew my name. Had we met before and I didn’t remember?
“Yes, I’m Aubrey. And you are?” I asked again, trying not to sound so anxious to figure out this little mystery.
“Ohh! I’m so sorry,” she exclaimed. “I’m Ari. I mean Ariana. Clark’s niece.”
I’d like to say that relieved my anger and nervousness a little, but God, I hoped he wouldn’t be one to try to…I shook my head, erasing my thoughts, remembering how angry he was on the rooftop when I told him about my uncle. I knew he wouldn’t do something like that.
“He’s not here right now, but you can come in and hang out for a little while, if you’d like.”
“All right. Great. Thank you,” she told me as she stepped through the door, looking around as if she were in complete wonder of our apartment. I watched her take a strand of her hair and twirl it as she continued to look around. “Do you know when he’ll be back?” She asked.
“No, umm. I’m not sure where he went, but it might be a date.” I told her just in case he showed up with a woman on his arm. I wasn’t sure how much she knew of her uncle’s lifestyle, but I didn’t want her to be too surprised when he stumbled in with a woman attached to his lips. The thought crushed me as that green-eyed monster reared its ugly head again.
Ariana nodded at my answer. She started toward Clark’s room and pointed. “Is that Clark’s room?”
“Yes. You’ve never been here before?”
Her lips pressed together as she looked at the floor. “No, he usually comes to our house.”
“Do you want something to drink? I’m really not sure how long he’ll be.” I told her honestly.
She nodded. “Please. Soda if you have it.”
“I have diet, if that’s all right?” I asked as I headed to the kitchen and pulled the fridge open.
“Sure. That’s fine,” she called back.
“Is there something you have to talk to him about that’s really important?” I asked as I came out of the kitchen. She seemed so nervous and fidgety it was actually making me a little edgy. “I could text him and see how long he’ll be.”
“No. No, that’s all right. I wouldn’t mind surprising him.” She swallowed as she cast her eyes down to the carpet. “I...um. I ran away.” She blurted it out it as if she had to say it quick so she’d believe it. I was pretty sure she hadn’t really run away considering she didn’t have any bags with her. Unless something so terrible had happened that she left without any possessions.
“Oh,” I responded as I handed her the glass of soda. I motioned to the table and took a seat across from her. “Care to tell me why?”
“They don’t let me do what I want. I started dating this guy and…well, Dad caught us in the car together. We shouldn’t have parked in our driveway.” She laughed nervously and continued to twirl her hair. “He said I couldn’t see him anymore. I thought if I came to talk to Uncle Clark, he could talk to Dad for me. You know, let us start seeing each other again.”
I tried to suppress a smile as I thought about young love. It was something I’d missed out on. I guess coming to her carefree uncle might help her. I wasn’t sure what type of relationship they have, but I could see Clark possibly trying to help her out. “I guess you and Clark have a really good relationship?” I tried not to sound nervous, but just the possibility of him doing to her what mine did to me, caused my stomach to knot up. Deep down, I knew he wouldn’t hurt her, but what mine did to me was still ingrained in me as if every uncle does that to his niece.
Ariana’s face lit up. Her eyes were full of life as she nodded. “Oh God, yes. He’s always been there for me.” She chuckled and then leaned in, lowering her voice. “He used to have tea parties with me. He even put on a tiara and helped me put on a play with my stuffed animals.” She giggled, probably because my eyes had to be as wide as saucers. The images of Clark wearing a tiara for a little girl did nothing more than add to that secret identity he seems to hide. And to the feelings I was already having for him.
“Tell me more,” I pressed. I needed to gather as much information about this side of my roommate as I could before he came back home. It seems that Clark’s sweet side went a lot deeper than I knew about.
Unfortunately, each endearing story she told, it just made the feelings I kept trying to push away even stronger. Clark’s bravado armor was crumbling before me. And I could honestly say, I loved every moment finding out more about him.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Clark
“YOU SEEM out of it again,” Matt told me and then looked out toward the dance floor. I followed his gaze to see Maria’s brown curls bounce up and down with the same force as her boobs. Her bright green eyes caught my stare and she winked at me. I immediately swiveled back on my barstool and looked back down to my beer
.
Maria had approached me when I first walked into Allure, but I shrugged her off and told her I’d call her. I won’t. But it was the easiest way to get her off my back.
After leaving the apartment, I felt like shit. Everything Aub has been through and I tried to take advantage of her in order to make myself feel better. The last thing I wanted to do was use her the way all the other guys had. It wasn’t right and I was pissed at myself for trying that.
“Yeah,” I huffed out and took a sip from my beer. I glanced at the mirror to see everyone’s reflection as the mating rituals started. “Tina went back to him. Again.” I watched him nod his head from the corner of my eye. I looked down into my beer and realized I could admit this to him. He’d probably understand more than anyone else. “That’s not really what’s bothering me, though.”
“It’s not?” Surprised, he swiveled around on the barstool. His eyes were wide with anticipation, although I presumed he already knew what I was going to say. I watched as he leaned forward over his beer to hear me better.
“It’s Aub. I tried to kiss her again and then she shot me down. But it wasn’t her turning me down that makes me feel like shit. It’s the fact that she thinks I was doing it to get back at Tina.”
“You weren’t?” Matt asked me. His one brow shot up into his signature look. I knew he would assume that just like everyone else would. My hands shook slightly as I pushed my fake glasses up the bridge of my nose.
“Remember when I wanted to bust that guy’s face for touching Aub and you told me I might have feelings for her.” I swallowed as I finally admitted to someone, “I think you’re right. I think I really…”
“You want another beer, Clark?” Sandy startled me by asking as she leaned over the bar to grab my glass. Her blonde hair dangled into her cleavage and she was smiling huge. Had she heard what I just said? Nodding quickly, I paused a moment while I waited for Sandy to get my refill and debated going through telling Matt.
Considering I told him a little, he probably already knew. “There’s just something different about Aub than any of the other girls I’ve been with.” I managed to get it out. I still couldn’t figure out my feelings completely, but that was a start at least.
“What makes you say that? Was it because you helped her? Maybe you like feeling like her rescuer. Did you think about that?”
I pulled my brows in as I tried to wrap my mind around what he just said. Were my feelings toward Aub only because I want to protect her? “What do you mean?” Matt had to explain more to me, maybe then I could figure this out. If he was right, I could probably move on or something and shake off wanting her so bad.
“Well, do you enjoy the feeling you get every time you help her? Every time you pull her out of a situation, maybe you get some sort of satisfaction out of it.” I stared at Matt for a moment letting his words sink in.
Of course, Sandy returned with my beer right then. I thanked her quickly, but she still stood there. I wasn’t sure how much she heard of what Matt said, so I opted to stay quiet and take a drink from my beer, hoping she’d go tend bar away from us.
“I don’t think it’s that,” Sandy chimed in. My stomach dropped. She had heard my admission and was a pretty good friend of Aub’s.
“What do you think it is?” Matt asked, inviting her into the conversation. I slumped over my beer knowing the whole bar would probably find out now. I made a mental note to talk to Matt in private next time instead of at the bar.
Sandy leaned over and smiled, showing her perfect cleavage to both of us. “I see the way you watch Aubrey when you’re here. I see your eyes follow her if she gets up to talk to someone else. Even when you’re with Tina, your eyes glance to see where Aubrey is.” She stood back up and confidently crossed her arms over her chest, grinning happily with her summation.
I had no idea what to say, so I took a long drink from my beer. Was I really that obvious? If what she was saying was really true, it was no wonder why Tina had become increasingly jealous over time. Sandy slapped the counter in front of me, snapping my eyes up to hers.
“It’s okay to go with it, Clark. I’d love to see you finally stop being a whore. And I can think of no one better than Aubrey to tame you.” She chuckled and then walked off to tend to another customer.
I looked over at Matt, who shook his head, laughing. “That’s not funny, Matt. I don’t want to be tamed. What if all those looks Sandy referred to was from when I was so worried about Aub?”
“What’s your gut telling you?” Matt asked. The laughter that had outlined his face before was no longer there.
I struggled for a moment, wrestling with my thoughts. I stared into my beer, hoping for answers. “I really like being around her. I actually didn’t really want to leave the apartment tonight. I just wanted to hang out with her.”
Matt gave me his signature smirk, gloating enough for me to want to punch him. “Then that’s your answer.” He tilted his head toward the door. “Get back home, asshole.”
I smacked his arm before standing and then threw some money on the counter.
Would I talk to Aub about this? Maybe I’d just let things happen. After thinking about how I left the apartment earlier, I knew I’d have to admit some feelings to her. I just wasn’t sure how much I could tell her.
I SLIPPED my key into the lock and took a deep breath as I rested my head against the door. I wasn’t sure what I’d say or if I’d say anything at all. All these feelings were so weird to me. With Tina, I just let it happen. The back and forth was all on her terms, so I didn’t have to make any decisions, except to make sure not to profess my love to her. Which was easy since I didn’t really love her. But Aub, did I love her?
I heard giggling behind the door that pulled me out of my thoughts. I turned the knob and pushed the door open wondering who the hell was here considering I’d just seen Vanessa down at the bar talking to Iz.
“Then what? You have to tell me more! This stuff is way too good not to tease him about.” Just hearing Aub’s laughter made my heart beat faster. Looking at her smiling again was the best feeling in the world. Until I glanced to see who was making her laugh. When I saw Ari sitting next to her at the table, worry stole my excitement.
“Ari, what are you doing here?”
“Uncle Clark!” She stood up and ran to me, giving me a huge hug. I looked over to Aub, questioning her with my eyes. She threw me a faint smile. I could only take that to mean it wasn’t some sort of emergency.
I pulled back and examined Ari’s face, making sure she wasn’t hurt in any way. Her broad smile started to fade slightly. “Is everything okay?” I questioned her as I examined her face. Her eyes were red as if she were crying.
Nodding her head quickly, she reassured me. “I just…umm.” She glanced back at Aub who stood up and started to walk toward us.
“I’ll let you two have some privacy. It was nice chatting with you, Ariana,” Aub told her. Ari let go of me and hugged Aub tightly.
“Actually, you can stay, if you want. I mean…” She glanced at me with a worried expression. I couldn't take anymore of this crap.
“Can someone please tell me what’s going on?”
Ari swallowed as her eyes darted to Aub, who prompted her to explain. “I umm. I ran away.”
“What? Why?” I shouted, not even trying to contain my anger.
Aub touched my shoulder, attempting to calm me down. “It’s not really like that. Ariana just needs some advice from you,” Aub insisted.
I glanced back at Ari, her mouth pursed and her eyes held a pained gaze.
“Why don’t we all sit down and then maybe it’ll be a little easier to talk,” Aub suggested and began walking to the couch. Ari followed her immediately and sat down on the couch, settling herself closer to Aub.
I sat down, but leaned forward resting my elbows on my thighs. I was anxious to hear her reasoning and then get her back home where she belongs. “All right. Let’s hear it.” I signaled with my hand to give me the
information. “Out with it,” I demanded wondering how upset Corrina must be. I wanted to find this out quick, so I could call Benji. If she were my daughter, I’d be pissed as hell wanting to know where she was. How long ago had she left? I glanced at Aub, slightly pissed that she hadn’t texted me about this. They were here giggling and having fun, and her parents were at home worried as hell, I bet.
I watched Ari swing her long brown hair over her shoulder and then take in a deep nervous breath. She pressed her lips together. “Dad won’t let me see Neal anymore. He…” I watched her swallow and glance around the room before she blurted out, “He caught us making out the in the driveway and told me I wasn’t allowed to see him anymore.”
I stared at her, still wondering what she wanted me to do about it. Finally, Benji had put his fucking foot down. I clapped my hands together as I pressed my lips firm. “And…what do you want from me?” I asked as I stared at her pleading eyes. I’d met the kid. Of course, I was going to say she shouldn’t see him anymore. Why the hell would she think differently?
I sighed heavily as I watched her bottom lip quiver and her eyes fill with water. “But, but, you met him. He’s a great guy,” she blubbered as the tears began to flow. Aub leaned forward and wrapped her arm around Ari’s shoulder. She glared at me and made some motion with her eyes while pressing her lips together as if I was supposed to say something else.
“Ari, he might be a great guy, but…he’s a guy. Your dad and I both know what that kid is thinking.” I grimaced as I watched her eyes open as wide as saucers. They flicked down to the carpet and then she turned to Aub. It was like I was watching some secret being kept from me. “Ari?” I prompted her because there was obviously something more to this.
She took a huge breath in and then blurted out something that caused my stomach to revolt. “But I want to have sex with him!” She burst into tears right after she unloaded that bomb on me.
What the…? I looked to Aub, who shrugged her shoulders. “I want him to be my first!” She announced as she continued sobbing.
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