Pretty Hate (New Adult Novel)

by Ayers, Ava

  I told everyone to sing along to the song as they looked at the lyrics on the website. Ivory-Lou pressed play and we belted that song out as loud as we could. We were off tempo and out of key. We swayed to the music and messed up the words. It was the most horrible rendition of any song in the history of renditions. But you know what? At the end of it, India laughed like I never heard her laugh.

  When I hung up, I turned off the video camera and sat on the floor with everyone and we stared at each other.

  “That was intense,” Rebel Love said as she walked to the kitchen. “Do any of you Golden Girls want to commiserate over beer?”

  We all raised our hands and Rebel Love brought nine beers into the living room and put them on the coffee table.

  Yolanda looked at me and pointed.

  “I’m gonna let your hooker remark slide, Beth. That was a nice thing you did for your friend. Sounds like she’s gonna be fine.”

  Gemini looked around the room and shook her head.

  “I wonder if anyone would believe how crazy white people get with their karaoke and shit.”

  My passport came three weeks later and after that, another messenger delivered another first class ticket. This time to Barcelona.

  I called Declan to thank him and asked if India could join me because she was still depressed over Devon and I was still concerned about her.

  “Of course, India is always welcome out here,” he said when we spoke on the phone. “Wait until you see this place. You’ll never want to leave. I can’t wait to see you, Beth.”

  “I can’t wait to see you either. I’ve missed you so much, Declan. Hey, your video is up to like a million hits!”

  “It’s charting too, Beth. We have you to thank for it. And it’s catching up to your sex tape, baby.”

  “Declan! You do not still watch it!” I said and laughed.

  “Of course I do. It’s the only thing I have of yours. I use it to get my fix. I will see you soon, love.”

  India booked the same flight in the seat next to mine from JFK to Barcelona.

  “Beth, we’re finally going to listen to Tuesday’s Gone at the same time. This is going to be the best trip ever!”

  I had everything I wanted at that moment, but I had a strong feeling all the shoes were going to drop at once.

  India and I met in the Sky Club at JFK and we caused a hell of a commotion when we saw each other.

  “Can you believe it, Beth?” India said as we walked arm and arm on the plane. “First class all the way to Barcelona!”

  “Oh my God! They have the plane seat beds!” I said as the flight attendant showed us how to maneuver our seats into beds.

  “It’s a dream, Beth. Here, take this,” India said as the doors to the plane closed.

  “What is it?” I said as I looked at the blue pill. “I don’t take pills well.”

  “It’s a seven hour flight, Beth. You need to sleep or you’ll look a mess when you see Declan.”

  I washed the pill down with a glass of champagne as India and I pulled our iPods out. The flight attendant walked toward us and India looked at me and smiled.

  “You tell her, Beth. It’s your first international,” she said.

  “Excuse me,” I said as the flight attendant approached.

  “Yes?”

  “My friend and I are listening to Tuesday’s Gone by Lynryd Skynyrd.”

  “That’s nice. Do you need any pillows, blankets, eye masks or something to drink?”

  “Yes,” I said as India and I pressed play on our iPods, “we will need everything.”

  As the plane began its ascent, India and I looked at each other and smiled as we snuggled down in our seats and sang Tuesday’s Gone at the top of our lungs.

  “You’re my best friend, Beth,” India said as she rested her head on my shoulder. “My very best friend.”

  I looked out the window as we flew among the stars and knew in my soul that this trip, this most incredible dream, would either ingrain the birth curse I was afflicted with deeper or lift it completely.

  And as India and I walked down the narrow corridor toward the arrival area in Barcelona Airport, I saw great flashes of light at the end of the tunnel and my heart raced as we walked faster toward the end.

  “He came, Beth!” India said as we stepped out of the corridor.

  Declan walked toward me and I dropped my bags as I watched him. This beautiful man was all I needed to leave everything behind.

  “Give your man a kiss, Beth. He’s missed you,” he said and he put his arms around me.

  The music blasted through the limo as we drove down the coast of Barcelona toward Declan’s house. The narrow, two-lane road cut through the huge, chalky rock formations of the mountains to the right and the beautiful blue-green waters of the Mediterranean on the left.

  “I can’t believe I’m here,” I said as I leaned against Declan and stared out the window. “Thank you so much.”

  “I’m glad you’re here. We’re going to have a lot of fun,” he said and kissed the top of my head. “How was the flight?”

  “We slept through the majority of it,” I said and kissed his neck.

  “Good because you’re not going to be sleeping much while your here,” he said and bit the back of my neck. “India, Tricia, Chickie and Sara are here. They’re excited to see you.”

  India opened her eyes and stared at Declan.

  “I cannot believe you invited those three freaks. Wait until you meet them, Beth. Talk about dysfunction,” she said and shook her head.

  “Now, calm down, love,” Declan said. “I didn’t invite them. You know people just turn up here. Can’t be helped.”

  “Who are they?” I said.

  “Oh, I’m going to let you meet them first. They’re from Santa Barbara,” India said. “High energy. I called Nando to see if he’s in town. He’s going to come up to the house. God, I can’t wait to see him. Wait until you see this guy, Beth. Soccer player...incredible. He has the most amazing friends and they’re all hot. I do love the men of Spain.”

  “Well you have been through most of the men of Spain, darling. You’ll see, Beth,” Declan said and ran his hands up and down my stomach, “it’s very different in Barcelona. People just sort of float in and out. There is no social decorum. It’s very much hedonistic. You’ll love it.”

  “No rules?” I said and smiled.

  “None,” he said.

  Patrick turned down a narrow road made of shell that wound through dark green trees. As I looked through the windshield at the house looming in front of us, I covered my mouth and shook my head.

  “This is your...”

  “Yep, my humble abode,” Declan said and massaged my shoulders.

  “Humble?” I said and shook my head and stared at the mansion.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  It was covered in red stone with gold veining that caught the sun and it seemed to sparkle. As you walked through the winding paths of the front garden toward the house, you approached two stone staircases facing each other capped in cobalt tiles. A koi pond lined in black granite joined the two staircases. I looked up at the five-story monstrosity and all the shutters to the tall, arched windows were open and billowy sheer curtains of gold drifted in and out of the windows with the breeze. We approached the ancient, arched wooden door to the house at the landing and I stared at Declan.

  “Do you have any idea how lucky you are?” I said.

  “Just enjoy yourself, Beth,” he said and smiled as he opened the door. “My home is yours.”

  “Assunta!” Declan said as we walked into the huge, round foyer. “My guests are here.”

  An older woman walked into the main area of the house wearing a conservative dress. She looked at India and smiled as she clapped her hands and ran toward her.

  “Beth, Assunta runs the house,” India said as she hugged her. “She’s been here forever. Assunta, this is Beth.”

  She walked up to me and kissed me on both cheeks and smiled.
r />   “Anything you need,” she said, “you tell me and I will see to it immediately, okay?”

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “Assunta, have Henry get all of the bags up to the house. Bring Beth’s to my room and India’s to whatever room she wants,” Declan said and walked to a long, mahogany bar. “Drinks?”

  “Yes!” India said and ran across the stone tile toward the bar. “I want the room nearest the hot tub on the second floor.”

  “Fine. Beth?” Declan said. “Are you okay?”

  I looked out the floor to ceiling windows toward the back of the living room, past the cobalt infinity pool on the terracotta terrace and stared at the Mediterranean.

  “Beth?” India said.

  “I-I’m fine,” I said as I looked at them. “I just can’t believe...”

  “I’m texting Nando,” India said. “What are we doing tonight?”

  “Well, let’s go to the club after dinner,” Declan said. “Sound good, Beth?”

  “Um, yeah, whatever you want.”

  A man with platinum blond hair with a towel wrapped around his waist walked in from the terrace and kissed India on the back of her head.

  “Hey, Chickie,” India said and took a sip of her drink. “You bleached your hair.”

  “Yes, last week. Tricia and Sara are sunning in the garden,” he said and stared at me. “Oh, hello. Who are you?”

  “Chickie, this is Beth,” Declan said. “Beth, this is the infamous architect Chickie Forrester. Chickie and his wife Tricia and their friend Sara are here from California.”

  Chickie walked up to me and kissed me on both cheeks and held my hands.

  “Very, very, very pleased to meet you, Tess,” he said.

  “Beth,” I said and smiled. “My name is Beth.”

  He looked at me and then back at Declan.

  “Oh! You’re the Kiss song girl, right? The one with the crazy family. Wonderful! I must hear all about it,” he said as he walked out of the room.

  I looked up at Declan and shook my head.

  “You told him my family was crazy?” I said.

  “You told me your family was crazy, didn’t you? Anyway, whose family isn’t crazy, right, India?” Declan said.

  “I’ll drink to that!” she said and finished her cocktail and slammed the glass on the bar. “Another, please. Beth, come here, you didn’t get your drink. Mojito, delicious.”

  “Beth, grab your drink,” Declan said. “I want to show you my room.”

  I looked up at the high, white ceiling with the dark, wooden beams and told myself to push the feeling aside as I took Declan’s hand and we went up the black stone stairs toward his bedroom.

  We walked down a long hall, paneled in dark wood and Declan told me about the paintings on the walls as we walked toward a heavy, arched wooden door with metal strapping running across the wood at the end of the hall. Declan pulled on the brass ring bolted into the door and the door’s hinges popped and creaked as he opened it.

  His bedroom was the size of a small house and cool and dark.

  “It’s kind of like a cave, isn’t it?” he said as he opened the French doors that led out to the private terrace and overlooked the sea.

  “Your bed is, huge!” I said and walked over to the four-post, canopied bed.

  “It’s custom from Italy. It has two king-size mattresses built into the frame. Very comfortable. Here, feel for yourself,” he said and picked me up and dropped me on the bed.

  He crawled on top of my body and unbuttoned my sweater.

  “Hey,” I said as I held his hair back from his face, “I really missed you.”

  “I missed you too, Beth. I really did. I need to feel you.”

  We undressed each other as the sheer curtains floated in and out of the room. As he entered me, I pulled him in as deep as he would go and wrapped my legs around his back. He stared into my eyes as his long hair brushed against my face.

  As he went deeper, his thrusts came faster and he grabbed my arms and pinned them to the bed. He lifted himself and looked into my eyes.

  “God, I love fucking you!” he said as he slammed into me and moaned as he came.

  “I love you!” I said as I felt myself falling.

  He looked down at me and breathed slowly as my words hung in the air like mustard gas.

  He kissed my neck and rolled off of me and sat up at the side of the bed.

  “You know, you didn’t even get a tour of the place. I’m sorry,” he said and walked across the room and stood at the terrace door. “It’s going to be a beautiful sunset tonight. I’ll tell Assunta we’ll eat outside, sound good?”

  “Uh, sure,” I said and closed my eyes, “sounds great.”

  “Are you tired? Maybe you should take a nap. I’m going to make sure they’ve turned the hot tub on so the water is warm.”

  He grabbed a towel off the back of a leather chair and wrapped it around his waist.

  “I-I’m not tired,” I said and sat up. “Unless you want to come and nap with me?”

  “Oh, I can’t. I have a bit of work to do. You rest, I’ll see you in a bit,” he said and walked out of the bedroom.

  “Stupid!” I said as I fell back on the pillow. “Why did you say that?”

  I grabbed my phone and tried to call India, but it wasn’t working. I threw a casual knit dress on and went outside on Declan’s bedroom terrace. There was a beautiful view of the sea and the flower gardens below. I looked over the railing and Chickie was on a blanket naked with two naked women on either side of him.

  “Hedonism,” I said as I watched them kissing each other. “Lovely.”

  I saw Declan by the pool talking to a worker and he looked up at me and waved.

  “Rapunzel, let down your hair,” he said and laughed.

  I grabbed my camera and wandered downstairs to look for India and found her in the study talking to two handsome guys.

  “Beth!” she said when she saw me in the doorway. “This is Nando and his cousin Anthony. Guys this is Declan’s girlfriend, Beth.”

  “Hello, nice to meet you,” I said.

  They both walked up to me and kissed me on both cheeks while I gave India a thumbs up.

  “So,” India said as Nando and Anthony walked away, “aren’t they hot?”

  “Totally hot,” I said.

  “Where’s Declan?”

  “In the garden.”

  “What’s wrong?” she said and brushed my hair off my shoulder.

  “It’s nothing. You have your friends here. I’ll tell you later.”

  “No, tell me now.”

  “I blurted out you-know-what while we were having sex.”

  She looked at me and shook her head.

  “I love you? No!” she said.

  “Yes.”

  “No!”

  “Yeah, I did, India. I wished I could take it back as soon as I said it. And I felt it between he and I after I said it, you know, that shift.”

  “Okay, you need to be really cool while you’re here, Beth. This is critical. People in Spain, women, especially, are really friendly. You cannot act jealous. You can’t even act like a girlfriend.”

  “But I am his girlfriend.”

  “Beth, I know, but he is going to think you’re possessive, especially since you said it. There is no bigger turn-off.”

  “Hey, there you are,” Declan said as he came into the study. “I was looking for you. Change of plans, Chickie wants to take us all to this really cool restaurant that just opened down the way. We can get there through the beach so we’ll walk.”

  “When?” India said. “Nando and Anthony just got here.”

  “Bring them. We’re leaving in a bit.”

  Chickie came into the study with a beer and the two women from the blanket and smiled at me.

  “Tess! I want you to meet my lovely wife Tricia and our third, Sara,” Chickie said.

  “Her name is Beth, Chickie,” India said.

  Chickie stood behind me and massaged m
y shoulders as his wife Tricia, a tall, beautiful blond walked up to me and smiled.

  “It’s really nice to meet you, Beth. Declan’s told us a lot about you,” she said and kissed me on both cheeks. “He did not do you justice, however, in his description of you. Men always leave out the details.”

  “Oh, thank you,” I said.

  “This is our third, Sara,” she said.

  Sara, an equally tall, equally beautiful brunette smiled and waved.

  “Hi, Beth, great to meet you.”

  “Oh, Tess,” Chickie said as he massaged my shoulders, “you’re so tense.”

  I looked at Declan and he winked.

  “Now,” Chickie said as he leaned down and rested his head on my shoulder, “you may have noticed that we refer to Sara as our third. Did you notice that, Tess?”

  “Chickie,” India said, “her name--”

  “It’s okay, India. Yes, Chickie,” I said as I tried to turn my head to face him, “I did notice.”

  “We, that is, me and Tricia, are poly,” he said.

  “Poly?” I said and shook my head.

  “Yes,” Tricia said and took a deep breath, “polyamorous. Just recently, really. We’re trying. Well, I’m trying. Chickie is...”

  “I enjoy it, Tess,” Sara said and stood on the other side of Chickie. “I’ve never known such freedom. I love Chickie and I love Tricia and they love me.”

  “Learning to love,” Tricia said.

  “So, are you guys Mormons?” I said.

  Declan choked on his beer and Chickie, Sara and India laughed.

  “What?” I said and looked at India. “I was serious.”

  “No, Tess, we’re not Polygamists,” Sara said. “It’s very different from being poly.”

  “Oh, I see. Um, cool,” I said.

  “Yes, the difference is there’s no God in their fucking,” Declan said and laughed. “Alright, let’s go to dinner. I’m starving.”

  Declan and I held hands as we walked down the beach with India, Nando, Anthony, Chickie, Sara and Tricia.

  “The sunset is so beautiful,” I said as I stopped to take a picture. “Hey, look at me.”

  Declan turned around and I snapped a picture of him just as the sun touched the water.