Loving Her (5 page)

Jack lifted his head and said,
“Beautiful.”  I just smiled.  “Damn, girl.  You just about wrecked me.”

Jack kissed my forehead, slid out
of me and stood to go throw the condom in my bathroom trash.  He came back to
the bedroom and bent down to pick up his clothes.  “Are you leaving?”

“Do you want me to stay?”  Well,
what the hell was I supposed to say to that?  YES, I’m needy and don’t want to
feel cheap or NO, I’m a fucking hooker so be sure to leave your cash on the bar
and lock up as you leave!

“You don’t have to, Jack.”  I got
up and threw on the robe hanging at the end of the bed and started walking
toward the bedroom door.  “I had fun tonight.” 

I really didn’t know how to deal
with the situation so I decided to give him an out….and he took it.

We walked to my front door and
Jack leaned to kiss my cheek, “Me too!  Call you later?”

“Sure.”  I smiled and closed the
door behind him. 

It wasn’t that I was upset.  It
was just sort of weird.  I
really
enjoyed the sex and it would have been
nice for him to stay the night, but then what?!?  

I had a feeling I’d be hearing
from Jack Woods again sometime soon….

Monday mornings were a total
bitch for most people, but for me they were a welcome sight after long, lonely
weekends.  I really did enjoy being busy.  I needed to be busy.

I watched the front of the office
intently for Jack.  I wasn’t sure why, but I just wanted to look at his face. 
Maybe I was looking for devastation, loneliness, sadness…something to tell me
how his night ended on Saturday.  I wasn’t about to ask him, especially since
he had no clue I had been at the club and had seen Jen bail on him. 

At 8:30, he strolled into the
office looking rather pleased with himself and not at all upset or devastated. 
I couldn’t figure out if it was genuine or some sort of a game. 

I made myself busy with several
files on my desk, but when ten o’clock rolled around, I was in need of some
caffeine so I headed to the breakroom.

As I was rounding the corner, I
heard Jack talking to someone in a smug arrogant tone.  I wouldn’t have stopped
to listen had I not heard her name. 

“No, man.  The night went just
like I thought it would.  She was so easy to figure out.  I mean, I feel a
little bad about what happened, but not enough to regret it.”  He was bragging.

“So you fucked her, dude?”  Whose
voice was that talking to Jack?

“Hell yeah, man!  And, it was
better than I ever thought it would be.”   Jack laughed and said, “Shit…it was
easy.  As soon as I figured out her game, I had her in bed, naked under me and
screaming my fucking name!”  Oh, dear God. 

“I mean, I thought when she took
off on me at the club, that she was too smart for me.  She’s got good instincts,
dude, ‘cause she tried to keep her distance, but I just kept playing along
until I had her so wet for me, she couldn’t help but to give in.  I mean,
shit…..she was so fuckin’ horny, you could smell her wet, sweet pussy.”  He
laughed again and I wanted to rip his fucking face off.

“I pretty sure she wanted me to
stay the night and snuggled right up next to that fine ass, but as soon as she
gave me a tiny little out…dude, I bailed.  She seemed totally cool with it,
though.”  Jack needed a good ass whipping.  He didn’t know fuck about women. 

Mystery man asked, “So are you
going over there tonight?”

“Hell, I don’t know.   I’ve
already won so why put in the effort?  I’ll see how the day goes and decide
later.”  I needed to warn Jen, but I didn’t know how.  I couldn’t tell her what
I was hearing.  It would crush her…it would crush anyone.  Why the hell did she
let Jack fucking Woods into her bed? 

I’d had enough of his bullshit. 
I stepped into the breakroom and scowled at both men.  They looked at each
other and then at me.  I could see the wheels turning in their heads wondering
what I’d heard.  I had to say something, but I wasn’t sure what.

Instead, I decided to just stare at
each of them for several long seconds and let them wonder what I was thinking. 
I now knew the other voice was some prick from accounting.  I wanted to handle
this the best I could, so I thought about it and made the decision to call each
of them into my office later and tell them their bullshit wasn’t going to fly
around my office.  I was their boss, after all, and even though I’d never felt
the need to throw my weight around, this was unprofessional and completely
unacceptable.

I walked back to my office and
tried to come up with a plan for talking to Jen.  I knew I could find her
easily enough since I knew where she worked.  But, what on earth would I say to
her?  She might not believe me, but I had to try.  The thought of Jack fucking
her not only pissed me off, but made me feel sick.

I couldn’t concentrate all afternoon
thinking of her.  At four o’clock, I manned up, grabbed my balls and called
Sullivan & Jackson.

I asked for Jen and was patched
through to her phone.

“This is Jen.  How can I help
you?”  She asked.

“Um, hi Jen.  This is Rylan
Daniels.  We met at the dinner on Friday?  Not sure if you remember me, but….” 
She interrupted.

“Yes, Rylan.  I remember you. 
What can I do for you?”  She was short with me.

“Well, I was wondering….or needed
to talk to….about something……it’s important….” Shit!  I couldn’t get my words
out.

“What is it Rylan?  I don’t have
a lot of time right now.  Spit it out, please.”  Maybe I should just let her
figure it out.  She seemed to handle herself just fine. 

Crap…I have to tell her.  “Look,
Jen.  I was wondering if you would like to have a drink with me sometime.” 

There was a long pause.  “Wow.  I
wasn’t expecting that.  Um, well, okay….I guess.”  Huh?

“Oh, okay.  Well how about
tonight?”  I should get this over with.

“Rylan, I’m not sure if I’m
available tonight.”  Yeah, cause you are going to let that bastard Jack back in
your bed if he calls.

“I’d really like it to be
tonight, if you can make it.” 

“I’m just not sure.”  She sat
silent for a moment.  “Why do you want to have a drink with me?  We don’t
really know each other.”  Knowing what I knew, that didn’t seem to be an issue
for her.  Yeah, shit thing to think.

“Yeah, well I just thought you
were interesting and maybe I could pick your brain a little about some projects
I’m working on.”  That sounded feasible, right?

“Rylan, can I call you back in
just a few minutes?  I have another call holding that requires my attention.” 
It had better not be Jack, the bastard.

“Sure.  Do you need my number?”

“No.  I know where you work and I
can look up the main number, Rylan.”  I swear there was a grin on her face when
she said that.

“Okay….sure.  Talk to you soon.” 
I hung up wondering what the hell I was doing.  I tried to tell myself that I
was doing what was right by another human being.  But, let’s face it….Jen
Bailey wasn’t just another human being and I wasn’t doing this to be
altruistic.  I was doing it because I cared about Jen Bailey and it not only
made me feel guilty….it scared the hell out of me.

I sat at my desk for several long
minutes and thought about my next move.  I needed to distract Jack from going
to her after work, so I buzzed his office and asked him to come to mine. 

As soon as he walked in, I
couldn’t help but to feel rage build in my gut.  “Hi, Jack.  Thanks for
coming.”  Well, now what?

“Yeah, no problem.  What can I do
for you Rylan?”  I had thought about this the whole day.  I needed him
distracted from Jen and a little issue in our Sacramento office might need
Jack’s expertise.

“Well, I need you to fly out to
Sacramento tonight and sit in on a meeting with a new client that has been
rather difficult to deal with.  I’ve been getting calls all week about Jon
Everly and his demands from the people in that office and I need someone to
just go mediate what is happening.”  All true….I had planned to go myself, but
Jack would do just fine.

“Oh, um….okay.  I had some plans
tonight, but if you really need me to do this, I can.”  That a’boy, Jack!  Be a
team player.  I hated to admit it in lieu of recent events, but Jack really was
good at his job.

“Thank you, Jack.  I know you are
the man for the job.”  Yep, and I would be letting Jen know what a job you did
on her!

When he left my office, I sat
back in my chair and smiled.  I felt proud of myself….stupid, really…..but
proud just the same.

I waited an hour before I called
Jen again.  She hadn’t called me to say she was free, so I took it upon myself
to call and ask again.

She answered on the first ring
and sounded irritated.  “This is Jen.”

“Hi, Jen.  Rylan again.  I wanted
to check back with you to see if you were…..”

She interrupted.  “Yes, Rylan.  I
can meet you.  What time and where?”  She was pissed.  I guess Jack had blown
her off.  She probably didn’t believe he had business to tend to.

“Um, how about The Posiedon? 
Drinks out on the patio at seven?”  I swear I heard her gasp or something when
I mentioned the restaurant.

“Yeah, okay.  I’ll see you at
seven.”  She hung up before I could say anything else.  I had exactly four
hours to get my thoughts together before I met Jen.

Men sucked!  I wanted to see Jack
again, but he was supposedly flying out of town for business.  That didn’t
sound right, even though he said it was a last minute thing.  I had a great
night with him, but there was still this little small niggling thing in my
head.  I couldn’t wrap my mind around it.

I really didn’t want to meet
Rylan for drinks, but for some reason, I couldn’t resist.  He was such a
recluse that if he took the time to seek me out and ask my opinion, there was
no way I could refuse.

I was sort of glad plans fell
through with Jack, because I would have felt bad telling Rylan Daniels ‘no.’

I wrapped up my work and set off
toward the restaurant.  It made me think of Jack and I worked to push him from
my memory.

I walked in fifteen minutes early
and found Rylan on the patio waiting for me.  Eager much, dude?

He stood as I approached and gave
a half smile.  “Hi, Jen.  It’s good to see you again.”  He was extending his
hand, not trying to hug me like most men do.  Hmm….curious.

“Hello, Rylan.  I’m good.”  We
sat and stared at each other for a few seconds before the waiter approached. 

“What can I get for you guys?” 
Sweet
thing
was about twenty two and way too happy.

“I’ll take a Merlot, please.”  I
had to stick with my usual to keep my head.  I looked to Rylan, who was
intently watching me.

“I’ll take a beer….a Heineken,
please.”  Beer guy, hmm….he struck me as a hard liquor dude.

When the waiter walked off, I
looked at Rylan and said, “So, what’s this project you
need
my opinion
on?”  I exaggerated the word ‘need’ because I was confident he did not need my
help.

“Can we get our drinks first? 
Then, I’ll answer you.”  Ryland was being all cryptic.

“Okay, but I’m curious to know
what would make you seek out my opinion.  You’re a smart guy and certainly
don’t need me.  So what’s this really about?”

“Jen….I’m not sure how to say
this, but I need to tell you a few things about Jack Woods.”

What the hell?!?!  I couldn’t
help my gasp.  “What the fuck do you know about me and Jack Woods, Rylan?  What
business is it of yours anyway?”  I felt my face turn red hot.

“Please, hear me out.  I’m not….I
don’t get involved in other people’s business, but he….I heard him…”  He was
stumbling with his words and I felt really uncomfortable.

“Spit it the hell out, Rylan!” 
My patience was gone.

“I heard him!”  He yelled at me,
but I didn’t understand.

“You heard him what, Rylan?” 
Good God, I was afraid of his answer.

“I heard him talking about
you….today…..in our break room.”  My jaw was wide open.  Oh, shit!  Did Rylan
think I was easy and he might get to hook up with me?

He continued as I sat there,
mouth opened and shock on my face.  “He was bragging to another guy…about you
and…..and I heard him.”  His words were soft and quiet.  I didn’t know what to
say or what he wanted and I was certainly not staying to find out.  I felt like
a prostitute. 

I forced the pain and tears to
stay deeply buried as I stood from the table.  “I have to go.  Good night.”  I
bolted from the patio and ran for the door.  I could hear Rylan calling my
name.

I made my way outside and flagged
down the valet for my car.  I just needed to get away from here and get home to
my only security.

I felt his presence before he
even said anything.  “Jen…please wait.  This is not coming out right.  Please. 
I need to tell you something about Jack.”

I spun around to see his face and
couldn’t help but to stare.  His eyes were so filled with worry and hurt. 
“What is it, Rylan.  For God’s sake, spill it!”

He took a deep breath and said,
“He was playing you.  I heard him….bragging about you.  H…he said it was a game
to him.  He was playing you.”  Oh my God, he needed to stop repeating that.

His face turned downward and he
stared at his own shoes like he was embarrassed.  “I’m sorry,” he murmured.

I couldn’t think.  I couldn’t say
anything.  I just needed to leave.  I was utterly humiliated.  Rylan knew….he
knew I’d had sex with Jack and knew it was all a big fat joke.

My car arrived at that second and
I looked once more at Rylan and said, “Good night. Thank you.”  Yeah, thank you
for inviting me here on a lie, thank you for telling me my night with Jack was
a lie, thank you for making me feel cheap and used and thank you for
embarrassing me more than I could have ever imagined.

Rylan just watched as I climbed
into my car and drove away.  There was nothing else to say so I let the tears
fall and cried all the way to my condo.  I never wanted to see Jack Woods or
Rylan Daniels ever again.

I reached my condo and made my way
inside, feeling like such a fool!  Men don’t change and they certainly don’t
give a shit about anyone but themselves and what they can get out of life. 
Lesson learned AGAIN!  Time to shut down and find those walls that protect me
so well.  Thanks, Em for introducing me to Jack. Another tally mark for me. 

Oh and thanks Rylan for making me
feel cheap and used.  Two for two….sweet! 

I ran a hot bath and soaked for a
really long time.  I heard my phone ring three or four times and a few buzzing
sounds indicating that I had some texts waiting for me. It had better not be
Jack or Rylan.  I’d had enough of both of them.

Having Rylan the Fucking Prude
tell me that Jack was bragging about banging me just made me feel sick.  All I
could picture was his face from Friday night and how he had his head up his own
ass most of the time, snarling down at the peons! UGG!

I rested my head on the back of
the tub and tried to let it all go.

After an hour in the tub, I made
my way to bed, but not before I glanced at my phone. 

Just as I’d suspected, I had two
missed calls and a text from Jack.  I didn’t listen to any of the voicemails or
read his text.  I deleted them all. Between Jackass Jack and Tattletail Rylan,
I was exhausted.  They could both go screw themselves….or each other, for that
matter.