Unbind (11 page)

I muddled through the rest of the day, feeling entirely certain I’d never get a grip on all the stuff Trev was cursing me for. Well, he wasn’t cursing me. I was cursing me.

I walked the route home in a daze, wondering why I felt so exhausted on only my third day in the job! I got back to the flat and pressed my key in the lock, not hoping for any welcome.

I was right.

I found Kayla and her beau, The Derelict Soul, stood by the kitchenette with their arms around one another, gazing into each other’s eyes. Each to their own and all, but I’d not hang around to watch her ruin her life. I shut the door behind me and they simultaneously turned to catch sight of me.

“Here she is,” Kay said under her breath.

Wait for it
…

“Eh, Chloe, where do you get off telling my woman lies about me?”

Prick.

I controlled myself to reply calmly, “Not lies. All true… and you know it.”

I stared at him hard enough so that he’d realise I wasn’t going to back down. I knew this was all a bad idea—staying with my bestie when she lived in a shoebox.

“You’re not gonna take it back, are ya girl?” Kayla chipped in.

“No.” I started wandering around, picking up things of mine. I went into the closet by the door and grabbed my suitcase. I should’ve realised the claustrophobia would make me lose my mind and sell out The Despicable. All those years they’d been happily unhappy and I’d come along and spoiled all that.

They both watched me and Kay murmured, “What the fuck’s she doing?”

“I’m going, if you must know.”

“Why?” she shouted. I knew she was gunning for me to tell her I’d made a mistake, that her fella was alright, really. When no, he wasn’t alright. Not even a little bit alright. The goon.

“Your knob of a boyfriend has you under his thumb and you’re blind. Coming here was a big mistake. I’ve wanted to tell you for years about him… but even now, you’re not listening. I knew you never would.”

“Why are you being a bitch?” she bit out.

“Come ’ere babe,” he tried to hold her, but she was seething, I could see that out of my peripheral vision.

I traipsed into the bathroom and slid all my stuff into a carrier bag. My suitcase with my best clothes in it was still in the hallway cupboard, completely untouched. I’d not yet taken anything out of that one because there just wasn’t room and nowhere clean to place anything. The other suitcase I was living out of—was the one I was dumping everything in. I was just so mad with her.

“If these are the last words spoken between us, Kay,” I began as I re-entered the room, “then I want you to remember that when your job’s swept from under you and when you find yourself saddled with bills when you move into his place, remember I told you so.”

She marched across the room and slapped me, landing one hell of a belter across my cheek. My friend, an ex karate instructor, didn’t have a scrap of fat on her body. You can imagine how hard it was receiving that, especially when she knew I hated violence.

Tears streamed down her face, suddenly realising her error.

“You’ve temporarily lost your mind.” I wasn’t afraid to stand by my conviction and reiterated, “Deep down you know he’ll break your heart and you’re in denial. I love you.”

I struggled when faced with dragging two suitcases alone, but managed to throw my key on the counter as I left, shutting the door behind me. I stopped briefly in the hall outside her place and heard them already carrying on, arguing no doubt. Severing the ties wasn’t going to be easy but I had to leave her then so she could figure it out on her own. I’d been sheltering her too long, that was clear. Coming to London had proven that.

I walked off in a daze and found a bench in Ladbroke Square where I pulled out my phone. I fiddled with it in my hand and contemplated what I might do. Leave London? Give up? I wondered why I’d made all these sacrifices, only to finally make it and discover it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.

Shit, I felt grim. I called the only person who’d not question me.

“Chloe, my flower. How are you?” His friendly voice corralled me.

“Not good. Listen,” I stumbled, looking for words. “Klaus, I need a place to stay for a couple of days. Things didn’t work out with Kayla—”

“Oh, of course,” he began, and I heard him rustling some papers, “put your pretty bottom down in my Belgravia pad. It’s fine. I know you’ll get yourself right soon.”

It felt bizarre to have a friend like Klaus who wasn’t exactly generous with his affections, but was with his wealth and time.

“Thanks, Klaus.”

“She still fucking the bum?” He guessed succinctly.

“Worse. She’s moving in with him. She slapped me… now I’m sat in the middle of Notting Hill with two suitcases, a shitty Dunlop holdall and a blazing cheek. How great this is turning out to be, eh?”

“Uh-oh, Chloe. What have I told you?”

“I know, I know,” I said without repeating the things he taught me.

Remain true to yourself, it’s who you are
.

“You’ll be fine, flower. You’ll bounce back. Work okay, is it?”

“Don’t know yet, still waiting to see how things pan out.”

“You’ll be fine. Now, after we hang up I shall send you my Chelsea address and the code for the front door. My maid Helga doesn’t work when I’m not there—”

“Klaus, oh god, seriously? I don’t want a fucking maid. Really, I’d prefer not to.”

“Chloe—”

“I’ll get a hotel.”

“You will not get a hotel. I’ll tell Helga to leave it, for now. Until you need some cleaning doing and then you’ll let me know?”

“I will.” And to sound not so ungrateful, I added, “I owe you.”

“Tssk,” he said, and hung up.

I hailed a cab once Klaus sent me the address and I got in, hoping the cabbie wouldn’t ask questions about the tears falling down my face nor the mark on one cheek.

As the lights of the city passed by outside the vehicle, I shuddered with an overwhelming sense of loss. Kayla was the only real friend I’d ever had. Counting her as my best friend (despite the distance and the dumb-ass boyfriend coming between us at every opportunity) meant there was something strong between us, right? We’d been there for one another during the toughest times.

Why she of all people couldn’t understand why I wouldn’t stand by and watch a friend’s trust and loyalty be abused—I didn’t know. Especially when she knew my past. However, she was blind when it came to that man she called lover.

The ever-eternal human search: love, and the meaning of life through love. Only a rude awakening would break the spell she was under.

I got to Belgravia and let myself into a white, stucco building. I was just entering Klaus’s plush pad on the fourth floor when my phone rang.

“Hello,” I answered in a harsh tone, the phone to my ear and some over-enthusiastic guy from downstairs still helping me with my cases. I mouthed a
thank you
and he strode away disappointed. The door closing, I looked at the screen when I didn’t hear anyone on the other end. It was Cai.

“Are you there, Cai?”

“Yeah… I… what was that?”

I plonked myself on the most luxurious couch I’d ever sat on. “To cut a long story short, I didn’t back down and neither did The Destroyer of all Hope. I’m sitting here with a huge slap mark on my face and some guy was just helping me get my cases into my new digs.”

“Fuck,” he said.

“Listen, I am really fucking pissed off right now. I just… I can’t breathe.”

“Just take a breath, Chloe, okay? Take a breath.”

“Okay, I’m putting my head between my legs. Do with that image what you will.”

He laughed down the phone line. “I was a jerk this morning. I just have a lot on my mind and I’m sorry. I just called to tell you that.”

I sighed inside.
He’s sorry
.

“I’m not sorry I stood my ground with her. I’m just sorry it took me this long. He’s such a creep, Cai… he stood there and denied everything.”

“Let me take you to dinner. Nothing major. Just throw something on.”

“Hmm.” I mumbled incoherencies until saying, “I’m situated closer to you, now. Could you pick me up?”

“Sure… send me the address.”

“Give me 30 minutes. I’ll try to, I don’t know, transplant my foul mood between now and then.”

“Listen, you don’t need to impress me, okay? I’ll feed and water you… bring you home safe. We’re friends, after all?”

“Okay, see you soon. I’ll text you my address.”

I sent Cai the Eaton Place address and a warning to give me half an hour before even setting off.

While I acquainted myself with Klaus’s pad, the reasoning side of my brain told me that my life was getting more and more bizarre by the minute. Did Klaus have an agenda? Was I on some list of his?
Ladies for Fun.
This was a world I did not belong in. I felt like a kept woman already and that was not something I was comfortable with.

His two-bedroom apartment was pretty impressive and I had to admire it. The furnishings and the decoration were all neutral; ivory surfaces, crystal glass light fittings, slate accents, oak furniture, oatmeal cushions, chocolate-brown rugs, gleaming white walls. It all dazzled. Its personality mirrored Klaus to a T—minimal, yet extravagant, practical yet super functional. Light was a big thing for Klaus. He’d told me numerous times, “Always best to have our eyes open to the world.” The ratio of ceiling lights and lamps to rooms was exceptional.

I discovered the master bedroom led to a terrace/conservatory and actually laughed out loud. It was gorgeous, furnished with heavy wicker furniture and potted conifers. The kitchen displayed a range that was as big as Kay’s entire kitchenette!

I made for the bathroom and thought I was seeing things as I passed a built-in Finnish sauna on the way. It occurred to me that the amount I intended to consume in alcohol that night meant it would be a bad idea to try that out at any point beforehand. 

So I sauntered to the white porcelain bathroom with chrome accents and realised I had been wasting precious time exploring. I quickly undressed and grabbed a flannel that rested on the heated towel rail, then got to work washing my face first, refreshing the towel as I wiped my chest and underarms. I really needed a full shower but I didn’t get the feeling it was going to be a night of romance, if my mission to get drunk and offload a lot of crap was at all fulfilled.

I reapplied make-up and spritzed myself into a total fog, then put some random curls in my hair with some tongs. I wasn’t exactly feeling my best but then, I hadn’t just thrown myself together either, like he suggested.

I managed to have myself dressed and holding a G&T from the wet bar when Cai buzzed the apartment and I pressed the button for him to come up.

“It’s open!” I shouted from the bedroom when I heard a tentative knock.

“Hey, it’s just me.” He gently shut the door.

When I appeared from the bedroom, I saw he was gorgeous. A black blazer over a crisp, white shirt and a pair of dark jeans. From the look on his face, he thought I was too. I didn’t even have my shoes on yet! This was not how I imagined our first date. I expected numerous outfit choices, maybe a three-hour window in which to primp and preen. Even so, he seemed deliriously happy to see me in a black and white form-fitting number that showed off my curves.

“You look—” He couldn’t say whatever else he wanted to.

“So do you,” I breathed in a rush.

I walked forward and his hands fell naturally on my waist. I didn’t even care this was a relative stranger! …touching me how and where he liked.

His chest heaved up and down, his eyes caught mine and danced. He dipped his mouth down and I lifted mine so our lips brushed. I adored the way his stubble caressed my sensitive skin, how gentle his kiss was. I pressed forward a little harder and our kiss made a pleasing
SMACK
.

“Hi,” I said, gingerly pulling away.

He looked around and fixed his eyes on our surroundings.

“This place is a little more than a bedsit.”

“I know!” …but how did I explain it…? “A friend said I could stay here ’til I get sorted.”

“It doesn’t seem,
you
. I kinda like that you’re down to earth.” His voice betrayed jealousy. “If you know what I mean?”

My benefactor (of sorts) could have been a woman for all he knew but, he wasn’t far from the truth.

“Klaus Häuser is a friend and set me up with the job, helped me with a few other things too.”

From the icy glare coming from Kincaid then, I realised he knew of Klaus. Perhaps even, Klaus’s likes.

“Just a friend?” His brow knitted and his voice deepened. His body was rigid and he didn’t seem to be letting himself breathe.

“Just a friend, really,” I assured him, shuffling on my heels so I was eye level with him. Kincaid fidgeted and probably didn’t believe a word of what I was saying.

“Okay,” he accepted, though his eyes said otherwise.