Infiltrating Your Heart (24 page)

One thing that riles me is how much
alike Mom and I are. Look at me. I have a high-paying job because I want the
same stuff she wanted. I want a big house, an expensive car, and expensive
clothes. I want to have a good life.

What sets me apart is that I would
never
abandon my kid. Not for all the money in the world.

“Forgive me. We can change the
subject if this one makes you uncomfortable,” Gabriel says. I sigh.

“It’s okay. It doesn’t hurt much
anymore.”

Gabriel and I continue eating. We
talk about other stuff, mainly his job. He asks me what I plan to do after
graduation. I tell him that I will start looking for a new job.

After we finish, I offer to wash the
dishes. Gabriel tries to refuse, but I persuade him to let me. Then we walk to
the living room.

“I might have some time free today,”
Gabriel says. “If you like, we can head out.”

“That would be great,” I reply. “We
could always go to the beach.”

Gabriel smiles as if he were a kid
and I had promised him a trip to Disneyland.

“As long as I get to rub sunscreen on
you.”

I click my tongue.

“You’d never miss a chance to touch
me, would you?”

“Nope. Your skin is irresistible.”

“Well, you can touch me whenever you
like, Mr. O’Hara,” I say, walking up to him. He looks down at me, his gaze
fixed on my lips. “And
anywhere
you like.”

Gabriel reaches up and touches my
lips with his index finger. I close my eyes.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

I laugh, and Gabriel kisses me. Then
he steps back.

“I have to go now. Need to take care
of some matters at the gym. I’ll call you later.”

“Okay. I’ll be waiting.”

I follow Gabriel to the front door.
He turns back to me, and groans. His lips meet mine again.

“Gosh, you’re so irresistible.”

“You’re not bad yourself,” I say.
Gabriel laughs. I can tell he’s also remembering the day we met.

“Last night was…incomparable.”

“It was for me, too,” I say. Sex with
him was mind-blowing, much better than I’ve ever had. Is that because we have a
stronger connection than just mere lust?

“I’ll see you soon, angel.”

“Can’t wait.”

Gabriel caresses the side of my face.
He then turns and exits my apartment.

Jeez, what are these butterflies
doing in my stomach?

I shake my head and walk to my sofa,
sitting down. I grab my phone and call Nadine. There’s a lot that we have to
talk about.

Around an hour later, I’m sitting at
a bench near the entrance to the mall. While I’m there, I think about how many
moments Nadine and I have shared, and how much we’ve spoken about. It’s
amazing—in a way—that this might be the last time Nadine and I meet for a
girls’ day out while I’m still a student. I’m five days away from graduation.
Nadine is a year below me.

While I’m lost in thought, I hear
steps approaching. I look up and see Nadine grinning at me.

“Hi, girl!” she greets. I stand up
and embrace her. “You seem pretty giddy today.”

“You think?”

“Come on. You don’t usually dress up
this much.”

I look down at myself, and nod. I
even went ahead and applied more makeup than usual.

“Are you trying to blur the
distinction between Mercedes and Scarlet?” Nadine asks.

“Ha! Right now, I’m wishing I could
do away with the Scarlet identity.”

Nadine gapes at me.

“You’re serious?”

I look at her curiously.

“Yeah. Why is that so surprising?”

“I don’t know. You love what you do.”

“These days, I’m not sure anymore.”

Nadine smiles as dawning
comprehension flashes across her face. We start walking through the mall.
There’s stuff I’ve wanted to buy for some time.

“It’s about Gabriel, right?”

I take a deep sigh. Nadine considers
that a yes.

“Oh, dear. I’ve waited so long for
this day, Merci. And it’s finally come.”

“What has come?”

“You’ve fallen in love, girl! And
right about time, I must say. You’ve barely got a week left of school.”

I scoff, shaking my head.

“I’m not sure what I am, but I
strongly doubt that I’m in love, Nadine.”

“Well, Gabriel’s the first guy who
has you like this. Your eyes shine brighter. You have a happier demeanor.
You’re even willing to give up Scarlet for him!”

I don’t know what to say to that.

“There were moments when I thought
you’d fallen in love with being Scarlet.”

“I enjoy being her. When I’m Scarlet,
men make me feel desired, beautiful, powerful. Gabriel does all that and more,
and he does it for Mercedes. I’ve only once dressed up like her in front of
him.”

Nadine regards me with wonder.

“Girl, you’ve got it bad.”

I keep from groaning.

“Slow down your train, girl,” I say
as we walk into a store. Nadine says no more about the topic. We switch
right into shopping mode. I go to the shoes section first. There is a pair I’ve
been itching to buy.

When I walk over to the aisle, I feel
relief. There they still are, waiting for me. Those shoes were meant to be
mine. I pick one up, running a finger along the exquisite burgundy straps.

I’ve never bought any shoes for
myself worth over a hundred and fifty bucks. Scarlet has, but not me. It’s time
Mercedes learned to indulge herself a bit more into Scarlet’s world.

I carry the shoes in their box and
then check other parts of the store. When I go to the purse section, I look at
the ones I like. Purses are among those things women can’t have too many of. I
have a small collection for different occasions. As I look at the ones here, a
small black one with silver accents catches my eye.

“Mercedes, that one’s gorgeous,”
Nadine says behind me. I turn.

“I know,” I say, admiring the purse
from all angles. It’s good for everyday use. I decide to buy it.

“That’s it?” Nadine asks me.

“What do you mean, that’s it?”

“Only one pair of shoes and a purse?”

I scoff.

“Please, girl. I’m only getting
started.”

Nadine laughs. She looks through the
purses and grabs a chic dark purple one. It’s a little bigger than the one I’m
buying.

After we buy our stuff, Nadine and I
walk to other stores in the mall. I’m getting a little hungry, so I stop to
grab some brownies. I ask Nadine if she wants some, and she nods.

“Are you pregnant, friend?”

I give her an odd look.

“Why would you think that?”

“You’re craving brownies.”

I bump her in the shoulder.

“I love
brownies,” I protest. Nadine laughs.

~*~
Gabriel

Monday afternoon finally arrives. I
didn’t have time to take Mercedes out, as I had too much guilt. I was feeling
bad about Evelyn.

As I’m feeling restless, I decide to
have lunch at my favorite restaurant. I’d intended to take Mercedes there, but
I’m feeling guilty. I’ve cheated on Evelyn, and she’s going to be supremely
pissed off.

What does Mercedes have that she
makes me lose my mind and forget all my worries? Is it just that soft, creamy
white skin? Those pouty red lips? Or her awesome tits? Maybe it’s a combination
of all those.

I need to make a decision, and soon.
Mercedes and Evelyn won’t like me to stay torn for both of them.

As I’m sitting at a table with a
glass of wine in my hand, I notice Patrick walking in my direction. He stops
next to my table.

“Hey, brother. I got your call.”

“Thanks for coming, bro.”

Patrick sits down opposite me.

“What’s going on? You look let down.”

I can only shrug.

“I’m at a crossroads, brother. And I
have no idea which way I should go.”

Patrick nods, understanding.

“Ah. This is about Mercedes and
Evelyn, right?”

“Yes.”

The waiter arrives to take our
orders. I ask for a refill of my wine and place my order. Patrick asks for his usual,
plus wine.

“Have you taken Mercedes on a date
yet?”

“No. I haven’t thought about it.”

“Why? If you’re keeping him at arm’s
length, she’s going to get tired and leave you. Do you want to lose her?”

That’s the key question. Would I want
Mercedes to go away? Would I wish we’d never met?

I never dreamed a woman could spark
such a desire in me. And I thought I knew what desire is. Evelyn is more
attractive than I could have hoped my future wife would be. She’s beautiful
enough to make you go “Wow, that’s my wife?” every time you see her.

Mercedes is the same way. I don’t see
her or Evelyn as more beautiful than the other. I’m not that shallow. Only,
with Mercedes the chemistry burns hotter. Whereas kissing Evelyn’s skin feels
irresistible, kissing Mercedes’s feels downright addictive.

“I don’t know. When I’m with
Mercedes, I’m about ready to pack everything and follow her to the end of the
universe. It’s when I’m away from her that reality kicks in and I start feeling
guilty.”

“Have you told Evelyn about her?”

“Worse. They’ve met each other.”

“What?”

I nod, drinking more of my wine.

“On Saturday, I meant to take Evelyn
on a date,” I start, giving Patrick a summary of what happened.

“Damn. And you went after Mercedes.”

“Yeah.”

“Dude, you’re hanging from a cliff.
Do you know what that little action will say to Evelyn? She probably believes
you picked Mercedes over her.”

“I know! That’s why I haven’t been
able to face Evelyn yet. I want to talk to her when she has a cool head.”

“Assuming she lets you.”

“She must. I don’t want to dump
Evelyn. Not like this, Patrick. What will the Carrolls think?”

“Don’t worry about anyone’s opinion.
Just worry about yourself. Who would you less want to be without?”

“That’s not the point. There can be
nothing between Mercedes and myself. I can’t do this to Evelyn.”

Patrick sighs, and leans closer.

“Evelyn wouldn’t want you to pick her
if you don’t truly love her.”

Do I
truly
love Evelyn? I like
to think that I do. Why else have I spent all this time with her? It’s not hard
to see myself in ten years with her, having children and living happy together.
That image is what I’ve dreamed about for the years I’ve been with Evelyn.

“I’m still going ahead with the
proposal, if I can,” I tell Patrick. “I hope Evelyn will understand that I want
her.”

“You’re
about to make the biggest decision of your life,” Patrick says. “Want my
advice? Make the decision you won’t regret later.”

Later, I return to the gym. Today is
my first day as Luke’s business partner. As part of my expanded role, I’ve got
bigger responsibilities. I'm still teaching my fitness class, which is good. I like
doing that. However, I'll have to hire a new swimming instructor.

When I get to my office, I see that
someone has already replaced the nameplate on my door. It now says GABRIEL
O’HARA—MANAGING DIRECTOR. That is the highest position in this gym—there
are no CEOs, Directors, or Presidents here.

There was a congratulation party for
me yesterday. Luke brought booze and pizza, and even a cake. We had to hold the
party somewhere else because we don’t want our customers seeing us eating pizza
at the gym. I had such a fun time that I forgot about my troubles with Evelyn.

The first thing I do inside my “new”
office is open a file cabinet. Inside the second drawer is the box holding the
ring I’m going to give to Evelyn. I open the box and look at the ring. It sure
is beautiful. She will love it. I hope Evelyn will let me talk to her. I’ve
already taken care of the reservation at the restaurant where I’m proposing.

Knocking on my door startles me.
Putting the ring and box back in their place, I look up.

“Enter.”

I’m standing behind my desk by the
time the door opens. Ciara smiles at me.

“Good afternoon, Gabriel. I head that
you got a promotion. Congratulations!”

“Thanks,” I say, walking to Ciara and
hugging her.

“You deserved it.”

“I’m just doing what needs to be
done. Luke needs help now that the gym is expanding.”

Ciara and I sit down.

“How’s Evelyn?”