Total Control (8 page)

“No
,” he said.
Fuck!

I backed off. “So, then what?”

He straightened up his shirt. “Well, then Jo came out of the back room, so I left.”

“Okay, Vince. Here’s the deal. I don’t care what you do on your own time, but on my time
, the womanizing stops here. I expect professionalism from you when you are representing The Lock. Are we clear?”

“Yeah, man. What the hell is going on
, anyway? Is Miss Perfect not so perfect after all?” He really shouldn’t have said that.

I grabbed him again but Trey stepped in between us just in time. “Vince, back the fuck off.”

Vince puffed up his chest like he would’ve had a shot in hell at me. “I’m sorry, man,” Vince said. “I don’t know why, but I always seem to get your sloppy seconds and it’s never seemed to bother you before. I can tell you really like Gia, though, so I’ll respect that and ignore any future advances from her.”

“Go back to your trailer, Vince. If I have to listen to or look at you any longer we might have a major problem.” I’d had it. I didn’t know what to believe
, but hearing him talk about Gia lifting her skirt and making moves on him had gotten me fired up. I wanted to beat the shit out of him but he hadn’t said anything that wasn’t his normal, chauvinistic pig self.

“What now?” Trey asked,
knowing that didn’t go too well on Gia’s part.

“I don’
t know. I have to get Gia’s side of the story. I can’t imagine her doing that to Vince. When I dropped her off that morning, we’d just spent the night together and had a date set up for later that day.”

“I
know how you feel about her and from what I’ve seen and heard, she’s pretty into you, too. Would it make a big difference if she
had
flirted with Vince that morning?”

“Hell
, yes, Trey! Shit, if I wanted a woman who lifted her skirt to every guy she was alone with for more than two seconds I would’ve settled for someone before now. If Gia’s been honest with me about the other stuff she’s told me, then I know it didn’t happen. Since I haven’t known her long enough to be absolutely sure, then I have to consider what Vince said, as much as I hate to. Maybe I overlooked Gia’s behavior because of the way I’ve felt about her for so long.” I thought back over the weekend. I’d watched as Gia danced with guys at the concert while her and her friends were having fun. How she’d danced with Rick in the VIP bar. How she’d been in front of Trey in her towel that didn’t quite cover herself. I was confused; I didn’t think Gia was like any of the other women I’d been with, but maybe I was blinded by the way I’d already felt about her when we’d met. I’d fantasized about who I
wanted
her to be, was I ignoring whatever didn’t make her be that person?

“Just talk to her, man. Sounds like she’s had enough bullshit in her
life, so give her the benefit of the doubt and a chance to explain it before you think it to death and drive yourself crazy.”

“You’re right. I’ve got something I
have to get done at home and then I’m heading to the city to spend some time with her before she leaves tomorrow. We’ll get it all talked through and it’ll be behind us.” I hoped I was right.

“Goo
d luck,” Trey told me, and I took off walking. “Do you want a ride?” he called after me. I’d forgotten we’d taken the truck to Vince’s.

“No. I need the quiet time,
” I called back as I kept a steady pace.

I tried to get Vince out of my head. I wanted to do something for Gia and I needed a clear head to get it done. As I turned the corner from the arena to my place I saw Shelley’s car come across the parking lot. I wondered what she was
doing, leaving from that direction, and then it hit me. She was Vince’s company and he didn’t want me to know!
Like I give a shit!
They deserve each other.

I went right to my computer when I got home and started making Gia a playlist. I tried to remember every song that reminded me of her. Some of them we’d heard this past week and some were favorites of mine that had always made me think of her. I wanted to be with her through the treatment pr
ocess and since I couldn’t, that would have to represent me. I knew she loved music and I hoped she’d remember the things we’d done together as she listened. I wrote it all down for her.

I finished up, wrote a
cheesy love note, and put it all in the little box I’d gotten earlier. I grabbed my phone and when I turned it on I noticed I had two messages from Hotness. I looked at the time, it was 1:12.
Shit! It’s later than I thought.
I listened to them, she was worried. I called her immediately.

“Ethan?”

“Hey. Sorry. My phone was dead when I got home so I left it plugged in at the house while I went and got my stuff done.”

“Is
everything okay? You sound down,” she asked me.

“Everything’s fine. I’m gonna head your way now. I’ll see you in a couple of hours, okay?”

“All right. See you then. Drive careful.” She knew something was up.

***

I pulled up in front of Gia’s at the same time she did. She hopped out of her car and gave me a beaming smile as she walked back to her trunk and grabbed a couple of grocery bags. I ran over and took them from her and she gave me a sweet little kiss.

“I missed you,” s
he said. It made me feel warm and hopeful.

“I missed you
, too,” I told her as I set the bags down on the sidewalk and took her face in my hands and kissed her like I should’ve when I got there.

“I decided to cook for you tonight!”
Her excitement was contagious and it made me reconsider having a chat about Vince right away. I was admiring her smiling face as she glanced over my shoulder. Her smile slowly shrunk as I heard an unwelcome voice.

“Ethan, the girls and I have decided
when we’d like those VIP passes,” Bridget said as she walked up behind me. Gia looked down and fumbled with her keys like she couldn’t wait to unlock her door and disappear from the intrusion.

I turned around and fac
ed Bridget. “I’m sorry, Bridget,” I told her. “I’m in the middle of a no-business, all-pleasure day. Just call The Lock and talk to Rose. Tell her when you’re coming and how many and I’ll okay it when she asks.” Then I turned back around and picked up the bags. Gia was trying to hide her smile, but her beautiful eyes gave her away. I winked at her and up the stairs we went.

I helped her unload the groceries and then she asked me to open a bottle of wine she’d picked up.

“Did you get your errands done today?” I asked.

“Yes. You?”

“I did,” I told her as I handed her a glass of wine.

“It seems like maybe something is on your mind?” She was good at reading me. “It’s okay, Ethan
. Why don’t you just tell me?” She looked concerned.

“You’re right
.” I gathered my nerves. “Gia, you called out Vince’s name last night when you had your nightmare. I couldn’t get back to sleep. Vince had mentioned before that you’d come on to him and I didn’t believe him. I talked to him today and he stands by that story.”

Her face turned red.
She wasn’t happy anymore. “So, now what do you believe?”

“I don’t know what to believe,
” I told her honestly. “He seemed to know more about you that morning than he should’ve.” I hinted at the fact that he knew she didn’t have any panties on.

“Wow!” She set her glass down, crossed her arms
, and paced back and forth, shaking her head. “I don’t know what you’re asking, exactly. Are you just asking me if I made a pass at him? Is that it? Or is there something else? Because I don’t know what you mean by, ‘he seemed to know more about you than he should’ve.’”

“Gia, please don’t get upset. I know how Vince is with women and it makes me sick. I just need to know what happened between you two. His job is at stake, so what I’m asking is
what happened exactly?”
I hate this.
Why do I feel like a controlling, obsessive, asshole?

She shook her head again. “
I had a feeling this was going to come back to bite me in the ass!”
Oh, no! Please don’t tell me it’s true!

She took her wine and walked over to the couch and sat down. She took a big gulp and set it down on the coffee table. Then she looked up at me
—I was anxiously awaiting an answer. I was nervous and wondered if this was going to break my heart.

“I understand why you need to know. I had no idea I’d said Vince’s name last night, but yes, I had a nightmare and he was in it. When you dropped me off at the motorhome that morning after I’d spent the night with you, Vince was there
; he’d spent the night with Jo.” She was looking right into my eyes. I sat down in the chair across from her.

“He said, ‘Hellooo
, Gia,’ as soon as he saw me and I was immediately uncomfortable.”
That sounds just like something Vince would say.
“I asked him where Jo was and he told me she was still sleeping. Then he asked me if I was afraid to be alone with him. I told him no and asked him if I should be.” She looked down at her hands and I fought back the urge to go to her. I had to hear the rest of the story.

“He said something about being a gentle giant and I told him I thought it was time for him to go. As I reached for the door he grabbed my arm.” She looked back up at me and her eyes filled. “He’d also said something about how you and he share women and how he didn’t mind your sloppy seconds.”
Fuck! That’s exactly what he said to me this morning. Gia’s telling me the truth!

“He grabbed my
ass and when he noticed I wasn’t wearing any panties, he got a wild look in his eyes. It really scared me for a moment. I didn’t want him to know I was scared and I told him if he ever touched me again, he’d be sorry.”
That fucker is so fired!
I went to Gia and tried to hold her but she wouldn’t let me. She was upset.

“He told me girls who acted and dressed like me were usually up for a good time and that I shouldn’t have been giving him signals if I didn’t want to play. I actually felt guilty and told him I was sorry. I couldn’t remember giving him any signals
. I was going to tell you all about it when you came back to get me for our picnic. I decided against it after I read an article that quoted you saying how good he was at his job and how you wouldn’t have gotten the great line-up this year without him. I didn’t know that you and I would go beyond the weekend, so it seemed ridiculous to tell you your friend had made a pass at me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.” She took a deep breath.
Good girl, Hotness. I knew you weren’t like that.

“Gia, thank
you for telling me the truth. I’m sorry for asking, but like I said, Vince’s job was on the line. I had to know what really happened. I told him if I found out he was lying, he’d be fired.”

“What did he say happened?” Gia asked me.

I looked at her and hesitated. I knew it would piss her off royally. She had a right to know though, so I told her. “He said you lifted your skirt and showed him you didn’t have any panties on. He said you were flirting with him but then Jo came out of her room so he left.”

“Did you believe that? Even after everything we’ve talked about? Ethan?” She was really hurt and I felt horrible.

“No, I didn’t believe it. But I couldn’t fire Vince just because I didn’t believe him. I had to have proof that he was lying and you were the only one who could give that to me.” She had to understand that.

“Why does it feel like we’ve had to deal with way more shit than we should have after only knowing each other for a week? What are we doing? Who are we kidding?”
Shit! No, don’t go there!
“We don’t trust each other. We don’t even know each other!” She said, her eyes wide.

“Gia, that’s not true! Please don’t think that. I
do
trust you and I
do
know you. We’re new, so of course we’re going to run into some issues. Every relationship runs into issues, especially in the beginning. We’re going to work it all out early so we can live happily ever after,” I told her.

She laughed
. “Happily ever after? Seriously, Ethan?” She relaxed a little. “Well, now we’re going to spend a month apart, so I guess it’ll be a telling start to our ‘ever after.’ It’s definitely worth a try.
You’re
definitely worth a try. I’m just scared, I guess.”

“You have nothing to be scared about
,” I said, relieved by what she’d just revealed. “I’ve got you.”

She smiled
. “I know you do.” She finally let me hold her. She put her head on my chest like she’d done several times before. I think she listened to my heartbeat. I liked that and it seemed to relax her.

“I’m scared about California
too, Ethan,” she said. “I don’t know what’s gonna happen there.”

“They’
re going to help you.” I squeezed her. “Don’t be scared.” I wished I could go with her. I wished I never had to be separated from her again.