Page 21 of Chase

“Let me go or I will cause a scene,” I whisper through my teeth. He doesn’t relinquish his grip, not even a little. My heart ratepicks up over the possibilities, the memories, the destruction. With panic building up inside of me, I go for my usual distraction tactics. With a theatrically loud voice, I begin, “Perhaps I’ll let everyone here know we’re having some sort of incestuous relationship, Ethan, I’m a pretty good actress you know.Oh, oh, Ethan, take me here, right now and I’ll let you add in some of that strangulation I know you so enjoy…” His hands instantly release their grip and he steps back, looking as if he wants to murder me. It terrifies me, but I laugh, knowing that for now, I’m safe. “Ethan, you’re so seriously creepy it wouldn’t take a lot to convince people you’re into that kind of fucked up shit.”

“You disgusting little whore!” he snaps.

“Exactly, but makes it all the more believable, right? After all, that is the message you’ve all taken great delight in conveying about me, isn’t it?”

He grabs hold of my arms as I turn to walk away, so I lift my stiletto and thrust it hard into his shin. It’s enough for him to lose his balance and slump back from me. I want to turn and see his pain, especially when I hear the sharp intake of breath, but I know when to take an opportunity when I see one. So, instead, I continue walking away as quickly as possible. I can face the music for this interaction another day.

When I reach the outside pool, I check no one is around before taking up a relaxed position on top of a sunbed. I then look at my watch, which only has me screwing up my face with disappointment. It’s half seven, which means I can’t leave for at least another two hours; it’s like being back at school again, believing hours have passed by when in fact, it’s only been a matter of minutes.

“Two hours and counting,” I mumble to myself as I openup the bottle of wine and take a healthy swig. I’m not one to usually drink, not after it got me burned in the past, but this wedding, together with my rather unpleasant run-in with Ethan, has earned me the right to a little numbing juice.

“Aunty Iz!” an excited voice squeals.

I smile to myself, knowing exactly who it belongs to. Tilly’s new husband is twenty years her senior, and seriously wealthy. We all knew she was going to end up marrying for even more money, but it turns out he’s actually a sweet guy. Too sweet for her. She never made it to being an accountant, so she’s now an overpaid secretary at my dad’s firm and a bad one at that. Penny is Gary’s twenty-year-old daughter, and she also doesn’t like Tilly; the feeling is mutual, so they try to avoid each other at all cost. It goes without saying that I instantly formed a connection with her.

“Hey, niece,” I smile as she comes into view, “come sit with me. Oh, wait, you have a whole gaggle of people with you.”

“Come on everyone, put some decent music on,” she yells at her friends who all gather around with their own source of music to break the peace. “Christ,” she says as she claps a hand over my shoulder, “you areofficiallymy aunt now. Everyone, this is Aunty Izzy, she’s totally cool and is so the opposite of my evil step-witch!”

I laugh at her new name for Tilly because it sums up my sister perfectly. It’s hardly surprising that she has very few genuine friends; she has very poor social skills and is rarely discreet when it comes to showing people exactly what she wants from them. I wonder why Gary fell for her at all.

Three other girls come to join us and although they look every bit as made up as Tilly is, they seem to be much more accepting of the fact that I am now Penny’s new ‘cool’ Aunt Izzy.They even look at me like I’m a font of knowledge, which makes me inwardly laugh because I am pretty far from that.

“So, this is Leah, Paige, and Brooke,” Penny introduces them to me. “Oh, and this is my boyfriend, and these are his mates, Will and Carl.”

Three eighteen-year-old men come sauntering up to join us and I suddenly feel very outnumbered and old. Carl, and Penny’s boyfriend, Jamie, are your stereotypical boy racer types with the latest fashions and trendy haircuts, whereas Will reminds me of…well, me. He’s wearing a suit but with the top button undone and a pair of Converse trainers under his formal trousers. I’d also question whether he put a comb through his hair today. However, his smile is the most genuine out of all of them, including Penny’s girlfriends.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Jamie flings his arm around Penny, and she literally gushes over him. From his reaction, I can tell he loves himself, but also her too. I’m not sure if I like him yet, or his friend, Carl, but then again, I don’t have to. He uncovers a bottle of vodka and produces a bag of weed at the same time as Paige turns up the music.

“Well, Aunty Iz, ladies first,” Jamie says with a charming smile before pointing the bottle in my direction. The smell of vodka will always make me feel sick, so I throw up my hand and shake my head. “Fair enough, more for us, hey babe?”

“So, have you got a man yet, Aunty Izzy?” Penny asks while Jamie passes her a glass of neat vodka. She’s already hammered, as are her girlfriends. I want to warn them to take it easy, but I already know, from experience, they won’t listen so choose to stick around and keep an eye on them instead. At least until I know they’ll be safe with these guys.

“I’ll volunteer if you haven’t,” Carl pipes up and begins to walk toward me with a lascivious smile on his smug features.

“Me too!” Jamie adds, and I narrow my eyes at him.

Penny elbows him in the chest so he kisses her on the cheek. She takes it in good humor, but so far, I’m not too enamored by Jamie. As Carl continues to approach me, I raise my hand to stop him. He eyes it as though he’s considering ignoring my rebuttal, so I wag my finger from side to side just to drive the point home.

“I don’t date boys,” I warn him before sipping on my wine. “In fact, I don’t date anyone.”

“Seriously?” Paige practically screams in shock, most likely fuelled by alcohol. “But look at you, you’re gorgeous! You must have men fawning all over you.”

“Doesn’t mean I have to engage with them.” I drink back more of the numbing alcohol until I feel that heavenly buzz. “None of you girls or boys do. Fuck what society or anyone else deems to be the norm.”

“There’s a story there, I can tell,” Will speaks for the first time, and with a smile as he takes the seat next to my sunbed. He lights a blunt and takes a long drag, his eyes rolling back as the relaxing effects take over. I drink very little these days, I smoke even less. But to be friendly, I take his offer and inhale before blowing out one or two smoke rings. A little trick my barman friend taught me.

“Fuck, that’s sexy,” Carl says as he watches me in awe.

“You gotta teach me that, Aunt Iz,” Penny says with a serious expression.

“I don’t condone smoking,” I reply, “it’s a vile habit and incredibly bad for you.”

“Much like dating?” Will teases and I smile with him.

“Speaking of which, there’re a few good-looking men here tonight,” Paige pipes up again, “surely someone must take your fancy?”

“Good looking and tedious,” I answer truthfully. “Trust me, I know the types here. You’re more likely to orgasm with Mr Rabbit at home than get anywhere near a high with the likes of those who are roaming this wedding. You’ve seen my brother, right?”

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