“He is over her.”
“I don’t think he is.” She said quietly. “He admitted that to me just a few minutes ago.”
“Then he is a fool!” James’ gray eyes glittered. “He is Chad Gilroy and can get any woman he wants. What the hell had he seen in that …. that girl? Do you think he is in touch with her?”
“I doubt it.” She said dryly. “All I know is that the apartment where he lives is a disaster. I was afraid to step foot in the place and there is almost no furniture there. If the press gets wind of where he is living now, it will be a disaster.”
“I am going to march there and insist that he finds another apartment. The one on Chelsea Street is available and it has a doorman and the works….”
“If we push him, we will lose him James.” His wife told him wearily. “If you go marching over there, he is going to move somewhere we cannot find him.” She shook her blonde head. “We should just let him be for the time being.”
“He is our son! The only child we have.”
“He is not a child anymore and we are going to have to step back.” She clasped her hands in front of her. “I miss him.”
“So do I.” he said gruffly. “Maybe we should not have stopped him from seeing that girl.”
“How could we stand back and let him make the biggest mistake of his life?”
*****
Elena stood back and stared at herself in the mirror, an uncertain expression on her beautiful face. The material was clingy and showed off her generous size sixteen curves. The shoes, a strappy sandal type added inches to her five-foot six frame and made her appeared taller. She had slapped on some eye shadow and a cranberry colored lipstick but refused to do the foundation crap. She did not need it after all. But she was not sure of the dress. It revealed a lot of her generous bosom and Joel was going to hear of it when he got there. “Speak of the devil,” she muttered as she heard the doorbell. Gathering up her jacket and scarf, she headed for the door, pulling it open to glare at the tall, darkly handsome man at the other side of it. He was wearing an elegant emerald green suit with a light green inside shirt and his dark brown eyes twinkled as he stared at her.
“I hardly recognized you.”
“I was about to change.”
“Darling you look exquisite. It’s a pity I am gay.”
“Even if you weren’t I would not be interested in you.” She pushed him out. “Let’s go and get this over and done with.”
“With an attitude like that, you are going to chase away any available men we encounter.”
He opened the passenger door of the sleek BMW and closed it when she took her seat before going to the driver’s side.
“I am not looking for a man.” She told him firmly as she buckled up. The brief sojourn from the apartment to his car had the cold December air seeping through her jacket and she was grateful for the immediate warmth of the interior.
“You need one!” He gunned the engine and made a smart U-turn to get out of the parking lot, relieved to be out of the shabby area. It never ceased to amaze him that his best friend chose to live like this instead of accepting what he was offering. He lived in a fancy apartment uptown with several rooms and had even offered her a place to stay and she had refused. “I need my own space and so do you.” She had told him. “And besides, you are a slut who has men coming and going at all hours of the night.”
“You could have your own suite and never have to see or hear anything.”
“I have sharp ears.” She had pointed out.
“Honey look at you,” He took a quick glance at her tumble of dark processed hair and her flawless face and shook his well-groomed dark wavy head. “You are beautiful and desirable. Even I myself, who is into men, find myself admiring your assets. You are wasting away from what that prick did to you and I….”
“That subject is off limits and we already agreed on that.” She told him firmly.
He pouted. “You agreed and as usual, I have to fall in line.”
“When have you ever done that?” She asked him mildly.
“With you that’s all I do.” He negotiated a sharp turn.
“Where is this party?”
“At a friend’s place!”
“A boyfriend….?”
“Ex-boyfriend - but you know how amiable my break ups are. I usually remain friends with them.” He darted a glance in her direction. “You should try it!”
“I am good. Thanks.” She opened her clutch and took out a tiny notepad and a pen attached and made some jottings, squeaking as he grabbed it and tossed it around the back seat.
“What the hell!”
“No work tonight. For heaven’s sake girl – just chill for once in your life.”
“Inspiration struck, and I had to write it down.”
“No work tonight. I am sure you will remember what it is you were thinking about.” He said carelessly. “I demand complete attention tonight.”
Chapter 2
Chad felt disgust churning through his stomach as he slid off the woman and reached for his pants. He had allowed the painful memories to get the better of him and had called her up. Blair Sullivan was someone he had been with in the past and it was an on again, off again thing that they had going on. But he had not been with her for the past almost seven months because each time he was with her, he had walked away feeling like shit. Meaningless sex had stopped having any sort of attraction for him several years ago and he had vowed not to go back to it. Besides, he realized that she was expecting more from him than he was prepared to give.
“It’s late.” She purred as she rolled to her side, her nude body flushed from the lovemaking. Blonde hair, an abundance of it spilled over one breast and her rosy nipples were wet from his lips. He had given her pleasure but had not received any. He buttoned his pants and dragged the sweater over his head, running restless fingers through the untidy dark strands.
“Not a good idea.” He muttered as he sat on the chair to pull on his boots.
“So talk to me Chad. We are more than just occasional lovers. We happen to be friends too.”
Chad pulled at the lace and tied it, his green eyes meeting hers. “You deserve more than that.”
“I am a big girl darling. I can take it. What’s going on?”
“I should not have come.”