Page 47 of Through You
Her question doesn’t surprise me. I don’t need to lie. Cristina is quite perceptive and good at reading people.
“Yes.”
Cristina laughs a little.
“You have a thing for redheads, huh?”
I remain quiet. She lies down on the couch.
“She’s very pretty.”
Claudia is more than pretty.
“Are you jealous and making a scene?” I observe her inquisitively.
“Jealousy isn’t something that factors into the type of relationship you and I have.”
“Oh, I see. And what type of relationship do you and I have?”
Cristina gives me shrug. “A relationship of sex and convenience.”
“And since when are you this cold and calculating?”
“Since the moment you acted in the same manner. It’s the only way we can survive in our world, Artemis.”
“And here I was thinking that you were madly in love with me.”
She snorts. “You wish.”
We stay silent for a few minutes, and I continue to fight the urge to go find Claudia and explain that I wasn’t using her, that I was done with Cristina when I kissed her, and I’m not the kind of jerk who resorts to deception to get what I want. Unfortunately, I can’t do that. I have a role to play in this company and for my family.
And there is no place for Claudia in this world.
Fourteen
They are older now, and are going to be fine.
CLAUDIA
My life is back to its old routine.
Yes, indeed. The monotonous day-to-day that I was more than accustomed to and did not mind at all until Artemis came back home and right into my life, turning it upside down only to make his way out again in the worst possible way. And now it seems this routine is not enough, and I feel unsatisfied.
At least I can blame him for ruining it all. I can’t help but feel a painful squeeze in my heart when I think of him. He hurt me. I’ve come to terms with this truth. I let him in, made myself vulnerable, and he hurt me. Maybe in his twisted mind, this was getting back at me for rejecting him that Fourth of July, and now we’re even. Still, this doesn’t seem fair to me. I never played with his feelings: I was straightforward and let him down on his first attempt. I didn’t lead him on or rub someone else in his face.
He now seems to be avoiding me, and I’m thankful even though I know it will be nearly impossible to keep up, since we both live in the same house.
So it’s only a bit of a surprise when I’m coming out of the laundry room just as Artemis enters the house through the main doors. His perfectly tailored suit molds against his nicely toned body well. The memory of my fingers tracing his chest and abdomen comes to mind, and I curse the vivid reminder. Our eyes meet, and I might have noticed a trace of sadness, but I’m too upset with him to care. Part of me wants to kick up a fuss but I’m not going to further degrade myself. I’m not giving him the opportunity to claim that he never said he was looking for something serious, or go about laying on the bullshit as I’ve witnessed Ares do on multiple occasions. I walk past him in silence, and go about picking up the plates and glasses Mrs. Hidalgo left in the living room after having friends over.
Artemis walks to the foot of the stairs and stops. He seems unsure whether to go up.
My hands are full and I take the first batch of items away.
When I come back from the kitchen I want to slap myself for feeling disappointed when I notice he’s gone.
Not even an apology, Artemis?
And what did you expect, Claudia?
