by Nella Tyler
I headed to the kitchen and poured myself a glass of wine while I waited for Link to come and pick me up. I wasn't entirely sure where we were going that evening but I liked surprises so it didn't matter. I sipped on my wine enjoying the flavour. It just set the mood and tone for my evening, stress-free and relaxing. Everything was running smoothly. Well except for the fact that my brother seemed to be trying to throw a monkey wrench in Link's life.
Speak of the devil, there was a knock on my door and Jared peeked inside. My mouth dropped open. It wasn't like him to come over unannounced and I knew that Link would be arriving there any moment. I had to find out what he wanted and get him out, quick. Things were about to go downhill really fast. God, why hadn't I just told him about Link? Then I wouldn't be in this mess.
“Hey sis, how are you doing?”
“I'm great Jared, how are things with you?” I sipped nervously at my wine as he came into my apartment and headed towards the kitchen.
“Wine! That sounds great. Why don't you pour me one?”
“I would Jared, but I'm actually heading out in a bit.”
“Really, where to?” He suddenly noticed my dress and looked me over, “Why are you all dressed up?”
I smiled, “Well if you must know nosey brother, I have a date.”
He grinned mischievously, “Wow Gemma, that's great. I'm happy for you. You haven't really been dating much lately. So who is the lucky guy?”
“Oh, I don't want to jinx it, plus it's really none of your business,” I said with a smile. I really didn't need to be having that conversation with Jared. My heart was thundering in my chest and I wanted to tell him to go but I didn't know how to do it without raising suspicions. God, I really needed to get rid of him, I wasn't sure what would happen if Link showed up at that moment. It was sure to get ugly. Why did Jared have to pick this night of all times to come and visit to me? Why hadn't he called first? I could have set up a time to go visit him tomorrow, but no he had to just show up and there he was standing in my living room moments before my date was set to arrive.
“Well, like I said he's a lucky guy and he better treat you like a princess. My sister deserves the best.”
I laughed nervously and downed the rest of my wine in a couple gulps. He arched an eyebrow as he watched me. “Thanks Jared, that's sweet. But I really should get going. Was there a reason you stopped in? Maybe we can catch up tomorrow and you can fill me in.”
“Well, actually--”
Just then the doorbell rang and we both turned to look at it. My stomach dropped and I thought there was a good chance that I would vomit right there, in the middle of my kitchen floor. Before I could stop him, Jared went to answer the door. I froze, unable to stop this train wreck from happening. I should have stopped him, begged him not to answer the door, but really it was hopeless. One way or another he was going to find out about Link, I just wished that he didn't have to find out about him like this.
“I guess I will get to meet him after all,” Jared said as he swung open the door. The look on his face when he saw Link on the other side of the door was priceless…and by priceless I mean the worst possible look you could ever imagine.
“What the hell are you doing here? Man, you have some nerve,” he barked at Link.
Jared backed up as Link entered the apartment. I closed my eyes in defeat, as I knew none of this was going to end very well. Link stared Jared directly in the face and said, “I'm here to see your sister. I'm picking her up for a date. This has nothing to do with you.”
Jared spun his head around at me, so fast that it seemed like it was a scene from The Exorcist. “This is the guy that you are going out on a date with? Have you lost your mind Gemma?”
“Jared, I can explain...”
“Oh can you really? How the hell are you going to do that?”
“Look, go easy on Gemma, our war is between you me, it has nothing to do with her.”
Jared got in Link's face and I had to pray that he wasn't going to try to hit him. “Why don't you mind your own business? This is between my sister and me. How the hell did you sneak your way into her life anyways? Did you lie to her too?”
“Jared, that's enough. I understand you're angry but there is no reason to behave this way,” I said.
“No of course not Gemma, you're just in bed with the enemy and you don't think that might bother me. The guy is a crook Gemma, didn't you hear a word I said or do you just not care about anyone but yourself?”
His words stung and tears welled up in my eyes. I was shocked that he was talking to me that way. I should have told him by now about Link; I just hadn't wanted to hurt him. The conversation had just been too difficult for me to have. Or maybe it was simply that I didn't want to have the conversation. I knew that he wouldn't understand.
“I'm not a crook Jared; you are the one that is trying to take something that doesn't belong to you. This smear campaign of yours is going to blow up in your face, you just wait and see.”
Just then, Jared threw a punch at Link.
Moving easily, like it was no problem, Link ducked. He wasn't about to let Jared try to get another one in however, and he tackled him to the ground. I stood there watching in horror as the two men wrestled it out, throwing punches right there in my living room. Jared had managed to get on top and was swinging at Link. I grabbed his shoulder and pulled. I didn't have nearly the strength that the men had but it was enough to get Jared's attention. He looked back at me and I screamed, “What the hell are you doing? Stop this right now.”
Jared got up from Link angrily. Still keeping an eye on my brother, Link got up as well, trying to straighten out his shirt.
“You guys need to stop fighting right now, this is ridiculous.”
“No, I'm out of here,” Jared stormed away from me and headed for the door.
“Jared, wait! We need to talk about this.”
He waved me off, “Forget it. I will never forgive you for this.” He slammed the door behind him.
Steamed #3
Chapter One
I stared at the closed door, shock making me immobile. Stunned was a better word and I didn't know what to do about it. Tears sprang to my eyes. “Oh my god, what did I do?” I couldn't believe what was happening; it was almost too much for me to bear. I thought for a moment that I was going to throw up. Yes, I could definitely throw up at any moment.
Link was by my side instantly, putting his arms around me. “I'm so sorry Gemma; I know how you must be feeling.”
Tears were rolling down my cheeks now and I turned into his embrace and cried on his shoulder. I had hurt my brother and there was a chance he would never forgive me. I didn't know what to do, or how to fix the situation. I should have told him. I should have been honest and straightforward. Instead I hid the fact that Link and I were dating and he saw it as a betrayal. I wasn't betraying my brother. I was just trying to be happy with a man that made me feel complete in every possible way. I didn't know how to let go of Link and I knew for a fact that I didn't want to. Link had become such a huge part of my life in such a short period of time that I couldn't imagine being apart from him. So I had dated him, knowing that it could hurt Jared, hoping that it would all work out in the end. But how could I have possibly done anything else? He was everything to me; I couldn't possibly let him go. Not now and possibly not ever.
But it hadn't worked out. Jared had found out and I hadn't meant to hurt him but I did anyways. I wasn't sure how I could possibly hope to get him back. How could I explain that I was falling in love with his mortal enemy? He would never forgive me and I didn't think I could bear the thought of losing my brother forever. I had no idea what I was going to do to fix things. I wasn't even sure if it was going to be possible to fix things. It was a terrifying thought.
“Gemma? Gemma baby are you okay?”
I looked up at him, tears staining my cheeks. “I can't believe he's gone. I really messed this up.”
“It's going to be okay Gemma, I promise.”
“No, he's never going to forgive me Link.”
He brushed the hair out of my face and wiped the tears gently off my cheeks. “Gemma, I'm falling madly in love with you.”
My breath caught and I just stared into his eyes in disbelief. “What?”
“It's true. I love you and I want...no I need you to know that you can trust me. My whole life I have wanted to make something of myself you know? I wanted to be something more than just being a chef. Don't get me wrong, I love cooking but I always believed in being something bigger than that.”
I nodded.
“I know you must be so confused right now, unsure of what to believe, especially since your brother keeps calling me a crook. I need you to trust me baby. That sauce recipe was the key to my fortune and it has been with me all along.”
“Link, where did the recipe come from in the first place?”
“It's been in my family for generations. It was my great-great-grandmother’s recipe and she passed it down amongst the generations until it came to me. It's mine Gemma, I promise you that.”
I looked deep into his eyes and whispered, “I believe you.”
He kissed me firmly on the lips and I got lost in him for a moment. I always felt so safe and comforted being with Link. He was my calm when my life got stormy. I never felt anxiety around him; he was like a human Valium. He was the one person that could help me, and be there for me if I needed him.
“It's all going to work out Gemma, please don't worry about it.”
Chapter Two
The next afternoon I headed over to Jared's restaurant to talk to him. I was sure that if he just heard me out that he would forgive me. I had no intention of ending things with Link, but there was a possibility that if he heard how innocently things had started between Link and I that he could see that I wasn't out to hurt him. Fate had brought Link and I together, I couldn't help but to have fallen in love with him. I needed Jared to forgive me but I was afraid he never would. What if he didn't forgive me?
I walked into the restaurant and headed to the back. Marcus was prepping for the dinner crowd. A couple of the servers were there taking a break as well. I waved to them and looked at Marcus.
“Hey Marcus, where is Jared?”
“No idea. He didn't come in today.”
“What? Are you serious? You haven't seen him all day? I don't think he's ever missed a day of working at his restaurant since it opened.”
“Nope, and he's been acting really strange lately; I think something is wrong with him.”
Dread filled my heart as I looked over at the servers. They both nodded their heads in agreement.
“You guys have seen the same thing?” I asked.
A blonde girl whom I didn't recognize answered, “Yeah, he's been pretty weird lately.”
“How has he been acting?”
“Well paranoid.”
“Yup, that's the word for it,” Marcus added, “Paranoid and quick-tempered, it doesn't take much for him to go off the handle. It's not like him at all. He acts like he should be suspicious of all of us. Like we're all going to start taking his stuff and moving on. The servers have taken the brunt of it, because I don't take any of that shit from him.”
“My god, what is going on around here?” I couldn't have been more alarmed by the news and to hear that he has been abusing his staff was so unlike him that I worried that he was unraveling at the seams. But why? What was going on with Jared? I needed to find him immediately.
“I'm going to go to his house and see if I can find him. Call me if he shows up here.”
“Will do.”
I drove to my brother’s place as quickly as I could. I was worried sick about him. The behavior that his staff suggested was so unlike Jared that it scared me. What was going on with him these days that he was starting to fall apart in all aspects of his life? It couldn't possibly be about that stupid recipe? Would he really let it get to him this badly? It just didn't make any sense. It seemed that my brother was unraveling at the seams and I didn't know why. Even if he believed that Link had stolen from him, why not just let it go? Instead he was letting it destroy him. He was an incredible chef and he had created many recipes on his own, he didn't need to worry about one recipe. He had a successful restaurant and he was throwing it away over a recipe that Link claimed was his from the beginning.
When I arrived at Jared's place I saw his car parked out in front of his house. I still couldn't believe he hadn't shown up for work that day. He was always working hard for his business because he loved being there.
I got out of my car and ran to the door. I banged on it while I called out his name. I waited but I didn't hear a sound in the house. Was he actually just in there ignoring me? What, were we five all over again? It annoyed me that he was acting this way instead of just hearing me out. I continued to bang on the door. When it became obvious that he wasn't going to answer I decided to take matters into my own hands. I knew where he hid the key for his back door so I headed to the back yard. Underneath a turtle statue was his spare key. I went up onto the porch and used it to let myself into his back door. Once inside I went in search of him.
I went into the living room where I found him passed out on the couch. Okay, maybe he wasn't ignoring me but what was he doing sleeping in the middle of the afternoon?
I looked around the room where I saw a bottle of whiskey and to my utter disbelief, something that resembled cocaine was scattered on his coffee table.
“Holy shit.”
I went to Jared on the couch and shook him until he woke up.
“What the hell?” He muttered.
“Get up. Get up right now Jared and explain to me what the hell is going on here? Did you lose all your brain cells recently or what?”
He sat up on the couch and looked at me bleary-eyed. When he realized I was standing there in his house he asked, “What are you doing here Gemma, get out!”
“I'm not going anywhere.”
“This is my house,” he shouted.
“I don’t care whose house it is,” I yelled back at him, “You need to get your life under control because what I see here is someone whose going to throw everything good in his life away.” I motioned to the cocaine.
“You are one to talk. You're a traitor to your own family. Now get the hell out of my life.”
I stood there stunned by his words. I didn't even know the person that was standing before me. He was a stranger. Drunk and drugged up, ready to throw his life and family away over nothing. This recipe situation, Link, it was all a ridiculous reason to ruin your life and disown your family.
“You make me sick,” I said as I turned and left him sitting on the couch.
I headed out to my car with tears in my eyes. Just a few weeks ago my brother was a healthy and happy man. I didn't know who that other person was in that house but he wasn't Jared. I couldn't believe what kind of person he was becoming and why? Over a recipe? It just didn't make any sense to me.
As I drove away from his house I felt totally lost. I felt like I had lost my brother forever.
Chapter Three
I drove straight to Link's restaurant practically in hysterics. I knew that I should just let my brother live his own life but I couldn't do it. There must be a way to pull him back from the abyss. I was sure that I could do it if I just found a way to get through to him. There had to be a way.
As soon as I parked I ran into the restaurant; it was starting to get busy for dinner. I walked right past the hostess without saying a word, noting her alarmed expression. I headed straight for Link's office, hoping that he would be there. I stormed right in and caught him by surprise sitting behind his desk.
He looked up startled. Seeing the look on my face he said, “Gemma, are you okay?”
I shook my head as tears streamed down my cheeks. Link got up quickly from his chair and circled the desk coming to me. He wrapped me up in his arms and held me tight. He didn't ask what was wrong right away, he just held me like
that for a few moments. It allowed me to calm down and get a hold of myself. When we parted I looked up into his eyes.
“What's wrong sweetheart? Please tell me.”
“It's Jared, he's completely fallen apart.”
“What do you mean?”
“I went to his work this afternoon and no one had heard from him.”
His eyebrows shot up, “Wow really? That's not like him at all.”
“No. And it gets worse. I went to his house after that and he was passed out drunk on the couch. There was a whiskey bottle and...oh god...cocaine.”
“What??”
“I'm serious Link.”
Link was silent for a moment taking it all in. I knew exactly how he felt. I still hadn't processed everything that had happened that day.
“Link, I don't know what's happening to him. I wasn't even aware that he ever did drugs. I don't know if this is a new thing or if cocaine's been around this whole time.”
“I doubt it Gemma, a cocaine addiction is kind of a hard thing to hide. You would have seen signs of it by now. I think that's why he's falling apart right now. He's not used to stuff like that.”
“I don't know what to do anymore. I feel like I'm losing him. I can't lose him Link, I just can't.”
He kissed me on the forehead, “You won't Gemma. I'm so sorry that this is happening to you because you don't deserve it at all. You are a sweet girl. I feel terrible that you have to go through this but you're not alone. I'm here with you. I will help you through anything.”