Beauty from Pain (15 page)

“
I can’t be called the sleepyhead
if I’m the one who catches you sleeping.”

“
I’ve been waiting an hour for you
to wake up, lazy bones.”

“
And what kept you in bed instead
of getting up to have your morning coffee?”

“
You.”

I’m inside her twice before we leave the
vineyard, once in the bed and again in the shower. As I drive her
to the apartment, I chastise myself for not being more adventurous
and having her throughout the house since all of the staff was
gone. It would’ve been the perfect time. It will be difficult to
pull that off once they are back.

I pull up in front of the apartment but keep
the Sunset’s engine running. I have to get on the road if I’m going
to be on time. Mum hates it when anyone is late, and I’m already
going to have hell to pay for not bringing my “girlfriend” with
me.

I get out of the car and walk her to the
apartment entrance. I reach for her hands and give them a gentle
squeeze. “I’ll call you later tonight. When you hear Bret sing,
you’ll know it’s me.”

“
That reminds me. You need a
personalized ringtone—so you know it’s me.”

I can’t believe she doesn’t know she has one.
“You have one. You just don’t know what it is.”

She reaches for her phone to call me, but I
stop her. “Oh, no you don’t.”

“
But I want to know what mine
is.”

“
Later.”
I
frame her face with my
hands and kiss her hard so she’ll be “love drunk” with me on her
mind while
I’m a
way.

“
Drive carefully.”

“
I will.”

Just like the first time he interrupted us,
Ben Donavon appears out of thin air. He clears his throat,
interrupting our parting kiss.

He smiles as a look exchanges between us, one
that says, “Hey. I’m gonna have this girl.”

I give him a smug smile in return that
responds, “Hey, guess what. I’ve already had this girl. And she is
incredible.”

The little bastard picks up Paige’s duffle and
stands waiting with it thrown over his shoulder. He knows he’s
interrupting our last moments together. And he’s loving
it.

Fuck it. If he thinks he’s just ruined this
for me, he’s wrong. I’m going to kiss the hell out of her
regardless. “Excuse us. We were in the middle of
something.”

I grasp her face and brush my lips across
hers, but then I coax her mouth open and she allows me to kiss her
like I did when we were alone, as if she has forgotten Ben is there
with us.

I trail my mouth over to her ear and my eyes
meet Ben’s as I whisper, “Remember. I won’t share you.”

She whispers back, “How could I
forget?”

We say a final goodbye and Ben is
waiting to take her from me. When she enters the apartment,
he
turns back
to
give me a shit-eating grin as he places his hand on her lower
back.

Dammit! Not her lower back. That’s my spot to
touch.

My only choice is to watch. I feel helpless,
like a shepherd seeing his favorite lamb disappear into the forest
with a dangerous wolf. She thinks he’s harmless, but he’s not. I
know better.

It’s juvenile, but I text her before I drive
away in an effort to steal her attention away from him.

*Miss me while I’m gone*

A heartbeat later, I hear the sound of her
return text.

*Can’t miss U till UR gone ;)*

I pull away from the curb and wait until I’m
out of sight to hit send on the next message.

*Gone. Now U can miss me.*

*I will but no TWD!*

She’s concerned for my safety. This makes me
smile.

*K*

I use the drive to think about a
lot of things, but my thoughts mostly revolve around the beautiful
new brunette in my life who doesn’t seem to care about the things I
can do for her. Knowing how little she cares about the money I
could spend, makes me want to buy her
the
world
.

–––––

My mom greets me at the door, which she never does,
and peeks toward my car. She’s searching for my “girlfriend.”

She sees I’m alone and is pissed off. “You
didn’t bring her?”

Why does she do this to herself? “No, Mum. I
told you I wasn’t.”

“
I hoped you’d change your mind. I
want to meet the woman who has caught my son’s eye. Is that too
much to ask?”

“
No, Mum, it’s not.” I shouldn’t,
but I give her false hope because it would be the right thing to
say if Paige were my real girlfriend. “Maybe I’ll bring her next
time.”

Her eyes sparkle with my proposal. “We have
your birthday dinner next month. You can bring her
then.”

“
I’ll discuss it with her and
we’ll see,” I lie.

She’s satisfied with that answer and finally
lets me in the house.

We’re sitting at the dining room table when
she brings it up again. “I want to hear about your
girlfriend.”

Everyone around the table stares while they
wait on me to answer. I see I’m going to be forced into lying. I’ll
try to be as vague as possible. “She’s American.”

I see my mum’s face fall. “She doesn’t live in
Australia?”

“
No. She’s here on an extended
visit with a friend.”

“
So she won’t be returning to the
States soon?”

“
Not for a while.”

That makes my mum smile again. “That’s good.
What does she do?”

“
She’s a musician—a very good one.
That’s how we met … I heard her sing at a club in Wagga
Wagga.”

I avoid telling them Paige’s name, but the
illusion feels real for a moment, and I like it. I take pleasure in
the happiness I see on their faces, but then the guilt sets in.
Everything I tell them about her is the truth wrapped in a blanket
of lies.

17

Laurelyn Prescott

Addison is out with Zac, and I’m uncomfortable
because I see a change in Ben as soon as we get inside the
apartment. He’s next to me every time I turn around, brushing
against me any chance he gets, sitting next to me on the couch.
He’s pursuing me in a much more aggressive manner, and I don’t like
it.

I lie and say I need to go to the store for
tampons to get away from him. He insists on driving me, but I
decline by telling him the walk will help with cramps. How asinine.
I’m a terrible liar, but I think the talk of tampons and menstrual
cramps keeps him from insisting.

I’m walking around in the drugstore a few
blocks from the apartment when Bret begins to sing in my purse. I’m
standing in front of a mirror in the makeup aisle when I look up
and see the goofy grin on my face as I answer. I didn’t even
realize I was smiling. “Hello, caveman.”

“
Hey, American girl. How’s it
going back in Wagga Wagga?”

He may ask how
it’s
going, but what he really means
is how is it going with Ben, and there’s no way I’m going there.
“Everything’s good. Are you having fun with the fam?”

“
Not really. I’d
be having a lot more fun if I were with you.”
No argument here.

“
We’ll have plenty of fun when you
get back.” And what was the plan after the holidays? Would he keep
making the drive into town to get me?

“
What are you doing to pass the
time without me?”

I laugh because it’s so ridiculous. “I’m
strolling around a drugstore.”

“
And you’d be doing that because?”
He doesn’t give me time to answer. “Did that little bastard do
something to you?”

I know the worst thing I can do is tell him
about Ben’s behavior, so I lie. “I was bored and wanted to get out
for a while, but it’s a bad night to get bored. There’s not much
open on Christmas Eve.”

“
It’s not safe for you to be out
walking the streets alone after dark.”

Shit. He sounds mad. “I’m only a few blocks
from the apartment.”

“
I don’t care if you’re across the
street. I want you to take a cab back.”

“
Really, I’m fine.”

“
Says the girl right before she
gets nabbed by some crazy-ass psycho. I’ll be quite upset with you
if you are kidnapped and murdered, so please take a cab back. Got
it?”

I smile at his concern for my safety, even if
he is a little overbearing. “I will if it’ll make you feel
better.”

“
Yes, it will make me feel much
better. Have you changed your mind about going to your friend’s
house for Christmas?”

“
No, but that doesn’t mean I’m
without plans. I’m going to watch a marathon of Christmas movies
and drink lots of eggnog. I’m an only child so I’m used to
entertaining me, myself, and I. It’s really not a big
deal.”

He’s quiet and I’m not sure he’s buying my
story. I hope it’s not the pity thing again. I can’t stand that.
“Not a big deal, huh?”

“
No, it’s not,” I lie. It is a big
deal. Who wants to be alone on Christmas?

“
If you say so.”

“
I believe I just did.”

“
I just wanted to check in for a
minute before I got tied up. My brother has solicited my help in
putting toys together. Yay.”

He sounds annoyed, but I think it would be
fun. “Okay. Well, have fun building dollhouses. Merry Christmas,
caveman.”

“
Merry Christmas, American
girl.”

–––––

Addison and Ben have been gone to Zac’s for hours, so
it’s just me, Jimmy Stewart, and a half-emptied carton of eggnog.
It’s possible I mixed it with some mighty fine bourbon and
garnished with a dash of cinnamon. Christmas is on now.

I hear Bret singing and I’m surprised because
Lachlan didn’t mention calling me today. I expected him to be way
too busy with his family. “Hey, caveman. This is a pleasant
surprise.”

“
Well, I hope you still think that
a couple of minutes from now.”

Oh, shit. “Is something wrong?” The words
aren’t out of my mouth when the door buzzes. “Hang on a second.
Someone’s buzzing the door.”

Weird. Who’s here on Christmas Day? I push the
intercom button. “Yes?”

“
It’s me.”

It’s a man’s voice, but this is Ben’s
apartment. How am I supposed to know who he is? “I’m sorry. Ben
isn’t home.”

“
It’s me, Lachlan.”

Well, shit. Do I talk to the phone or the
intercom? “Lachlan! What are you doing here?”

“
Do you really want to have this
conversation with me standing downstairs?”

“
Of course not. Sorry. I’m in
apartment 311.” I press the button to allow him into the building
and stand at the door waiting.

Shit, I look a mess. I’m wearing jogging pants
with something stupid written across the ass and an equally stupid
T-shirt. I’m not even positive my clothes don’t have stains or
holes. My hair is piled into a messy bun on top of my head and I’m
wearing my glasses. They’re trendy, but I’d still rather be wearing
my contacts for Lachlan. Too late now.

He comes around the corner from the elevator
dressed in dark stonewashed jeans and a white button-up. He’s as
handsome as I’ve ever seen him and I want to crawl into a deep,
deep hole so he can’t see me like this.

I smile because I can’t see him and not beam.
“What are you doing here?”

“
It’s Christmas. I didn’t want you
to be alone. And I wanted to see you.”

“
What about your
family?”

“
My mother was rather annoyed with
me when I told her you were alone today. She insisted I come and
spend the evening with you.”

Oh.
I
feel deflated when I realize this is his mother’s
insistence.

I shrug and stare at my bare feet. “I’m sorry.
I wasn’t expecting you so I look like hell.”

He reaches out and grabs the hem of my shirt,
giving it a little tug. “You’re always beautiful. And I love the
glasses.”

I’m dazed by his simple touch. He has that
kind of power over me.

It takes a moment, but I finally come to my
senses and invite him in. “I’m sorry. Come in.”

He prowls through the door and I
feel him on my heels as I shut it. He grabs me from behind. I’ve
come to accept this as
his thing,
but I like it.

He uses his hips to pin me against the door.
His hands are pressed on each side of my head, locking me inside
his cage of muscular arms. Because my hair is piled in a messy bun,
he has easy access to my whole neck, but I realize I miss the glide
of his hand pushing my hair over my shoulder. He leans forward and
begins kissing the back of my neck, and I evanesce.

I know what he’s doing. He wants the thrill of
screwing me in the rival’s territory. It means he’s won and I’m
fine with him taking me as his prize.