Page 158 of Now and Forever

For the first time in a long time, I sported an easy smile, as if the sun were shining down on me, as if my soul were finally happy. Everything felt great, and I rode the high all day long … up until I realized I was home alone, went to bed alone, and woke up the next morning with no Drew in sight.

Jackson came in and out of the apartment, but nothing from Drew. Out of my mind with worry, I tried to call him, but it went directly to voicemail. I sent a message, asking him to contact me, but by Friday, the sound of crickets had grown louder.

It was in the wee hours of Sunday when I got a response from him, extinguishing our one-week affair in two sentences.

Thank you for granting me the most amazing time, even though it was short-lived. You’re the greatest anguish I’ll forever bear.

He had to end it sooner or later. I hadn’t been fooled into thinking that it could last forever. However, I had hoped he would change his mind.

You’re the greatest anguish I’ll forever bear.My heart constricted because he was mine.

“I know,” I whispered out loud, “that maybe someday … You’ll come to your senses.” But that wasn’t going to be anytime soon; that much was obvious.

Weightless, that was the word that fully described how I felt after learning he could easily dispense of me through a simple message. He could have at least done it through a civilized conversation! I wouldn’t have objected. We could have at least ended the affair with some form of respect.

I was more pissed than I cared to acknowledge. After seeking out Manolo and Chuey for some good company and drinks, though, I realized he was a coward. And no matter what excuse he could come up with, I wouldn’t ever forget how he had unfairly treated me.

Manolo, Chuey, and his lover Jordy were great distractions. They knew I was out of sorts. What I cherished about them was that they didn’t pressure me to divulge anything, which made it easier to drink and dance the night away. Besides, I had gone over it all once way back when I had first met them. There was no need for me to keep harping on the same old story.

This was aptly called growing pains. I kept telling myself that, a year from now, I would be dreaming and dealing with other things, and this painful memory would remain in the past. We all had one, after all. Each heartbreak, each relationship, shaped each and every person, molding us into a unique individual.

?

Four Jack and Cokes, two body shots, a dirty martini, and an Irish car bomb later, I had a perfectly massive, pounding headache the next morning. I had never drunk so much in my life, and the thought of seeing sunlight made me want to vomit.

And just as I was about to doze off, my phone rang, torturing me.

“What do you want?” I growled into the phone without checking the caller I.D.

“Who pissed you off, Red? Give me the name and address, and I’ll take care of it for you,” Cori’s teasing voice broke into my brain fog.

Even though half of my face was shoved into a pillow, a grin slowly made its way onto my lips. “Hey, you,” I managed to say. “No one pissed me off.” Not in that sense. “It’s just a hangover. Nothing life threatening.”

Our conversation flowed without any problems. If he was disappointed that I hadn’t joined him in California, he didn’t mention it. Consequently, when he offered to bring me food, reasoning that it was already past lunchtime, I gratefully obliged him.

It took Cori about an hour to get to the apartment, and since it was Monday, no one was home except me.

For a brief moment, I felt a twinge of guilt for inviting a male guest into our home, but after reminding myself how callously I had been dispensed by Drew, that feeling instantly went away.

Luckily, Cori didn’t mind seeing me in my boy shorts and the loose shirt I had slept in while my eyes still had last night’s hint of makeup because I was too plastered to properly wipe it all away.

“What’d ya got there?” My eyes were glued to the white paper bag in his hand, smelling of grease, melted cheese, and juicy meat.

“Mouthwatering goodness, it looks like,” he muttered with that cheeky look on his face. “Here, Red. Eat your heart out.” He handed me the bag, and I gratefully snatched it, running into my bedroom, sitting on my bed, and beginning to dig in.

“This is the sexiest thing I have ever seen,” I heard Cori somewhere while minding my own business, picking at the fries then placing them on top of the burger before biting into it like no one’s business.

A low, satisfying moan came up my throat as the flavor unfurled on my tongue, sending my senses into a whole different frenzy. This was my ambrosia, and I deserved every delicious bite of it.

Halfway through the burger, I managed to look up and found him leaning against the doorframe with a can of soda in his hand, studying me with curious wonderment.

“What?” My brows rose up in question before taking another mouthful of food.

“I love a woman who loves to eat meat.” He snickered, strolling over toward the bed and placing the can of soda on my bedside table. He then sat right across from me with that wicked gleam in his eyes as he watched me gobble on the small feast.

Cori and his sexual innuendoes aside, he wasn’t all that bad. It had taken some getting used to, but once I had, his words had become just that—mere words. He was attractive, but he didn’t affect me like Drew did, and in some ways, that was good. I could only handle dealing with that kind of upheaval from one man. Two would be suicidal.

After I finished the meal, Cori discussed the highs and lows of his weekend, detailing it in his own quirky way. We got comfortable, laughing one second then kissing the next. His kiss was punishing, and it took me a few seconds to finally realize what we were doing.

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