Light in the Shadows

by A. Meredith Walters

  “Yeah, we got pretty tight. She and Tyler were my closest friends there. I was surprised when she called me a few weeks ago and told me she had been discharged. But I guess she was ready. Anyway, she’ll only be here for the day. She asked to stay over and I hope that’s cool with you,” Clay said and I knew that if I had told him it wasn’t he would have called his friend, Maria and told her she would have to make other arrangements.

  And that reassurance went a long way in squelching the beginning smolders of jealousy in my gut. “Yeah, that’s fine. I look forward to meeting her.” Okay, so I was lying my ass off. But I didn’t want to admit that this faceless Maria freaked me out a bit. Mostly because she was close to my boyfriend during a time I had been completely shut out and I wasn’t sure how to process that. If it had been a guy I wouldn’t have batted an eyelash. But a girl…well let’s just say I knew how potent the Clay Reed effect was, having been a victim myself on a regular basis.

  Clay’s eyebrows rose and it was obvious he saw straight through my fakeness. “Sure you are,” he deadpanned and I smirked.

  “In the spirit of total honesty, I should probably tell you that Maria had a bit of…crush on me while we were in treatment.” Of course she did. She had been in treatment, not a coma.

  “But she never acted on it and I made it very clear that I loved you and wasn’t interested. So there has never been anything but friendship between us,” he went on in a rush. I reached out and pulled his hand from his jeans pocket, lacing our fingers together.

  “Chill out, Clay. I believe you. And while I had a momentary brush with the green eyed monster, I assure you I’m over it. Don’t stress yourself about it,” I assured him. Clay’s lopsided grin was breathtaking.

  “Have I told you recently how much I love you?” he asked, pulling our joined hands to his lips and kissing the back of my hand.

  “Not in at least five minutes. You’re slacking, Mr. Reed,” I joked. He kissed my hand again.

  “I. Love. You,” he said, punctuating each word with a sloppy kiss to my skin. I giggled like a school girl and blushed. Yep, I was a pink, sparkly girl, alright. I just hoped I didn’t have to morph into a fist throwing, claw your eyes out girl around this Maria. Because I wouldn’t think twice about unleashing my inner She-Ra if she pissed me off.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  -Clay-

  Maria had been here for all of ten minutes and I was already regretting my decision to let her stay at Ruby’s for the night. I sensed the change in her the moment she showed up at my house Friday evening. It could have been the inch thick layer of make up on her face or the fact that her skirt barely covered her ass. I felt like I was staring at a stranger. This was not the Maria Cruz from Grayson’s.

  “Clay!” she squealed after I had opened the door. Yeah, I noticed that she rubbed her tits against my chest as she squeezed me. And I wasn’t blind to the fact that she stared a little too long at my mouth as I greeted her. I didn’t know who the fuck this girl was, but she was not my friend. She looked and sounded a lot like the girl Maria had been trying to get rid of. The one that fucked any guy that would give her an ounce of attention. The girl who used sex the same way I had used drugs and cutting.

  “Hey, Maria,” I said less enthusiastically, letting her into the house. Ruby wasn’t home, she was at the store, having thrown herself back into keeping the shop in order. I was glad she was getting herself out of the house, but right now I would have given anything for the Ruby buffer.

  Maria tugged in an overnight bag that looked as though she had packed for a damn week. “Here let me get that,” I offered, picking it up. Jesus Christ, did she think she was moving in?

  “What the hell do you have in here? Bowling balls?” I grunted, bringing it into the living room. Maria giggled, making my skin crawl a bit.

  “No, silly. A girl just needs plenty of clothing options. And shoes aren’t light,” she teased. I rolled my eyes.

  “Shoes. Sure,” I said, trying not to be annoyed by the already shitty beginning to this visit. I was instantly on guard around Maria and I had never felt that way. Not even when it was apparent she had feelings for me. She had always been unassuming, shy even. Nothing like the Maria who stood in the middle of my living room, with her cleavage on full display and a hand on her hip giving fuck me eyes.

  “How was the drive?” I asked, trying to find a way into comfortable territory. Asinine small talk seemed the way to go. Maria pulled a tube of lip gloss from her purse and started to liberally apply it, rubbing it in with her finger.

  “Fine. Hit some traffic on the beltway, but that was to be expected on a Friday,” she said, shrugging, the action causing her shirt to fall dangerously low on her shoulder. Crap, I could see the top of her boobs. This was not cool. Maggie was going to be pissed when she got a load of Maria. I knew she was feeling insecure about my friendship with Maria. She had never come right out and admitted it, but I knew my girlfriend well enough to recognize the signs of her self-esteem taking a nose dive. I hadn’t been sure how to handle that, because Maggie’s feelings were completely unfounded.

  So seeing Maria dressed like this, making it obvious that this visit was more about seeing the inside of my bedroom than hanging out, would not go over well. And Maggie was supposed to be here at any minute.

  I looked away and gestured with my head toward the kitchen. “Want something to drink?” I asked. Maria grinned and nodded.

  “Sure, I am pretty thirsty,” she purred, the innuendo obvious. Just get through the next twenty four hours without having to break up a chick fight, I thought to myself. Because if Maggie didn’t go ballistic on this overly sexualized Maria, then Rachel would definitely have something to say.

  I needed a serious reminder as to why I thought hanging out with Maria, Maggie, Rachel and Daniel would be a good idea. Oh that’s right, because I wasn’t expecting Maria “sex fiend” Cruz to arrive on my doorstep like she was deep throating my cock in her head.

  “Water okay?” I asked, flipping on the light as we entered the kitchen.

  “Sounds perfect,” Maria answered, making herself at home at the kitchen table. “So, things seem good for you since you’ve gotten out,” she said, taking the glass I handed her.

  “You make it sound like I busted out of prison,” I commented, sitting down across from her at the table, though making sure to keep a healthy distance. One that would make any sort of touching impossible. I knew Maria to be touchy feely anyway, and I didn’t know what to expect with her acting like this.

  Maria laughed. “Well, it kind of was like prison, don’t you think?” she said, taking a sip of water.

  “Not really. There are days I wish I could go back, actually,” I found myself admitting. Despite how weird Maria was being, there was something reassuring about talking to someone who had been in the trenches with me. That maybe she, of all people, would understand how hard it is to be out of treatment.

  Or maybe not.

  “That’s just crazy, Clay! I would never go back there. Not in a million years!” she said emphatically and I looked at her in surprise. I had no idea she had hated it there so badly. I had always gotten the impression that she felt the same way I did about treatment. That it was a necessary evil. Not one that we would have originally chosen for ourselves, but an essential one.

  “Really? You don’t find it hard being on the outside? Trying to get through the day?” I asked.

  Maria looked at me levelly. “No, Clay. I much prefer the person I am off the medication.”

  Well, shit. She wasn’t medicated anymore. That explained a lot. Maria had been on heavy duty anti-depressants. I was more than a little shocked that she had stopped taking them. But then didn’t I have moments myself where I thought about chucking mine into the toilet? Maria reminded me of how easy it was to forget why you took them in the first place.

  But one thing was for sure, Maria was officially a ticking time bomb and not one that I particularly wanted around Maggie and her frie
nds. But I was stuck now. I just had to temper the situation as much as possible.

  “How long have you been off your meds, Maria?” I asked softly. She tapped her hand on the table in agitation, clearly not liking my question.

  “I don’t know, a while. Why does it matter anyway? You aren’t still taking that crap are you?” she scoffed. Wow, okay.

  “Yeah, I am. I don’t particularly feel like having a visit with a straight jacket, alright,” I said testily. Maria rolled her eyes.

  “Don’t be such a drama queen, Clay. Look at me, I’m fine,” she held her arms out as if that proved her point.

  “You don’t seem fine, Maria. In fact, you seem about the farthest from fine I’ve ever seen,” I told her firmly. Her eyes widened and her mouth gaped in shock at my blunt assessment. Before she could respond, I heard the doorbell ring and I groaned inwardly.

  Here we go, I thought.

  “Hang on a sec. That’s Maggie,” I told Maria, whose mouth tightened at the mention of my girlfriend.

  “Well, come on, let me meet this famous Maggie,” Maria said overly brightly, following me into the foyer. I had hoped to have a moment alone with Maggie to prepare her for my good ol’ friend from treatment. So much for that. Time to witness the train wreck about to happen and just hope like hell I could fix it all later.

  Maggie stood on my stoop looking the complete opposite of Maria in every way that counted. She wore jeans that fit her perfectly and a long sleeved cotton top that didn’t show an excess amount of skin but made my mouth water all the same. Her shoulder length brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail and she wore next to no makeup. She was gorgeous.

  “Hi, baby,” I said in genuine happiness to see her. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her on the mouth, loving the taste of her cherry lip gloss. The sound of Maria clearing her throat made Maggie pull back, looking slightly mortified by our overt public display of affection.

  The moment she saw Maria and her street walker get up, I knew I’d hear about it later. Her eyes widened slightly and she gave Maria the quick girl once over. Not something I had ever seen Maggie do before, but I could see how insecure she was about Maria’s presence in my house.

  “Hi, I’m Maggie,” she said politely, holding out her hand for Maria to take. Maria laughed.

  “What are we, fifty? Who shakes hands anymore?” Maria said snidely. Maggie stiffened and dropped her hand.

  “People who have enough sense not to be rude to someone they just met?” Maggie stated, cocking her head to the side and giving Maria a smile that was both sickeningly sweet and full of bitch slapping condescension.

  Maria snorted and turned on her heel and walked back into the living room. Maggie narrowed her eyes at me. “What the hell is that?” she whispered angrily.

  “I have no freaking clue! She was nothing like that while we were at Grayson’s. But she has a history of…sexual issues. So, I don’t know,” I answered weakly. Maggie stood there fuming.

  “And Miss Fuck Me Please is staying overnight under the same roof as you? Yeah, I feel really great about that, Clay!” Maggie hissed, trying to keep her voice low.

  I ushered her into the house and closed the door behind her. “You have nothing to worry about,” I told her, grabbing her hand.

  Maggie sighed. “It’s not you I worry about. That bitch has her claws out and she’s ready to sink them into your flesh. So you’d better watch out,” she warned, stomping off into the living room, where Maria was flipping through channels on the television.

  We had around twenty minutes before we had to meet Rachel and Daniel for dinner. And they proved to be the longest twenty minutes in the history of awkwardness.

  Maggie tried to talk to Maria but the other girl was having none of it. Maria directed all of her attention my way and I felt like a bone being fought over by two dogs. I know this is probably every other guys’ dream come true, to have good looking chicks fighting over him. But I didn’t feel lucky. I just wished I could kick Maria’s ass out of my house and pretend this crappy night had never happened.

  But I couldn’t. Even if I wanted to, I wasn’t that much of a dick.

  When Maggie excused herself to go to the bathroom I turned on Maria. “What the fuck is your problem?” I asked her angrily.

  Maria could tell I was pissed and she made an attempt to dial down the witchiness. “Sorry, I don’t mean to be a brat. I guess I was just so used to having your attention all to myself when we were at Grayson’s, I just don’t like to share.” Her response threw me off balance. And if I hadn’t been sure before, I sure as well knew now, that Maria had developed an unhealthy attachment to me.

  “Look, Maria, I’ll remind you of what I said to you at Grayson’s, we are friends. Only friends. Maggie is who I love. If you can’t be in my house and be respectful to my girlfriend, then I’m sorry, I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” I told her firmly.

  And just like that, the vampy sex kitten cracked and I could start to see Maria, my friend, underneath. “I’m sorry, Clay. I’ll stop it. You’re right, I’m being rude,” she said.

  When Maggie returned from the bathroom, Maria made an effort to talk to her. Maggie looked surprised, but she went with it and I felt I could let out a sigh of relief that maybe it was a crisis averted. Let’s just put a tick by delusions on my list of crazy.

  ***

  “How much time do we have until it’s time to leave?” Maria asked. I looked at the time on my phone.

  “Ten minutes or so,” I said.

  “I’m going to go change,” Maria said, looking suddenly self-conscious.

  “The guest room is upstairs, the first door on the right. The bathroom is at the end of the hall,” I told her. Maria picked up her bag and gave Maggie and me a small smile before heading up the stairs.

  “She’s…something,” Maggie said in feigned politeness. I sighed deeply and sat down on the couch.

  “Sorry about earlier. I don’t know what her deal is,” I replied tiredly, already wishing the night was over.

  Maggie snorted and sat down beside me, laying her head against my shoulder. “She likes you, Clay. It’s not that hard to figure out. Between the outfit from Tramps‘R’Us and the I-hate-you glare I’ve been getting since I showed up, I’d think that was pretty obvious,” Maggie said. I didn’t say anything. No point really. I didn’t want to try to explain Maria’s brand of fucked uptness just now.

  Maria reappeared a few minutes later, this time dressed in a simple pair of jeans and red blouse. She had scrubbed off most of the makeup and I was relieved to see her looking more like herself.

  “Okay, ladies. Let’s get this show on the road,” I said, grabbing my keys. Maria and Maggie followed me out to my car.

  “You can take the front, Maria,” Maggie offered magnanimously. Maria thanked her and climbed up front with me. I gave Maggie an appreciative kiss on the lips and got into the driver’s seat.

  “Do you mind?” Maria asked, messing with the radio. I shrugged and almost took back my agreement when Maria picked a rap station and turned it up. I caught Maggie’s eye in the rearview mirror and she stuck her tongue out at me.

  I grinned and turned onto Davidson’s main street. “Wow, it’s so small,” Maria commented, looking out her window as we drove past the string of shops that lined the center of town. “How do you guys not lose your mind?” she joked.

  “Cow tipping and making moon shinefills the free time,” Maggie replied blandly and Maria blinked in confusion, as though she were trying to figure out whether Maggie was being serious or not. Maggie’s sarcasm took some getting used to, that’s for sure.

  We pulled into the local diner and I noticed Daniel’s truck was already parked. “Places like this make me gain ten pounds. Just super,” Maria complained and I tried not get irritated by her whining. How had I never noticed this less than appealing side of my friend during all the months we had spent together?

  “That’s okay; the average American is ten to fifteen poun
ds overweight anyway. You’ll just be fitting in with the general population,” Maggie quipped sliding out of the car after I opened the door for her. I shot her a look and she returned my stare with wide-eyed innocence. Maggie clearly hadn’t forgotten Maria’s earlier bitchiness. This night had awesome written all over it. Obviously I was sporting my own level of sarcasm this evening.

  We found Rachel and Daniel at a corner booth and headed toward them. “Yummy,” Maria purred, catching sight of Daniel. Maggie stiffened beside her.

  “Yeah and he’s very taken,” she warned, cutting Maria off so she could slide into the booth beside Daniel. Maria grinned like a cat on the prowl and I groaned inwardly for the hundredth time since she had shown up.

  “Hi guys! Took you long enough,” Rachel teased, giving me a smile. Rachel and I had definitely become something close to friends. She was a cool girl and I knew it made Maggie happy to have us getting along.

  “Hey, this is Maria Cruz, my friend from Florida. Maria this is Rachel Bradfield and Daniel Lowe,” I waved my hand between them in introduction. Rachel gave Maria a wide smile.

  “Hi, Maria! Nice to meet you,” she said, leaning around me as she spoke. Maria smiled tightly.

  “You guys up for a dude movie tonight? I’ve had my fill of chick flicks lately,” Daniel said, grabbing some menus and passing them around to everyone.

  “I’m up for anything,” Maria said, batting her eyelashes. Daniel looked at her as though she had three heads and Rachel tried to cover up her laughter. Maggie grit her teeth and I just wanted to cover my head with my arms and pretend this night wasn’t happening.