Chapter 10
Tyler
I hung my jacket in the back seat of my SUV and started the drive upstate. Becky was from Connecticut, and her parents had a little money, though not serious money by Connecticut standards. The wedding was taking place at a fancy hotel in the Hudson River Valley. Shane had generously taken care of my hotel room as a best man gift. With the added expense of my new place, and the death knell ringing on my modeling career, he knew I was trying to be cautious with my money.
On the long drive up to Greenwich, I tried my best to put her out of my mind, but she just wouldn’t go. Grayce. My Lavender Girl. Of all the apartments in New York, I couldn’t believe it was hers that I had answered the ad for.
My mind kept going back to the sight of her last night when I came in. The thin, racerback t-shirt nightie she wore was short enough to give me a nice view of her legs. I could see her nipples poking through the thin, pink fabric. I felt her body react when I put my hand on her shoulder.
That morning, after my run, had been even worse. She was stretching when I walked in, and she didn’t hear me. She was wearing the same nightie as before, and it was riding up higher on her thigh as she stretched her arms above her head. With her arms up, her breasts lifted, exposing the delicate curve of pale flesh at the side of the nightgown.
I could’ve bent her over the kitchen counter right then and there. All I could think about was what her skin would taste like, or what it would feel like to sink my cock into her wet, waiting flesh.
To top it all off, when I came out of my room before I left, she was doing yoga in those damn lavender and black yoga pants that had first caught my attention. Her fine ass was up in the air, practically beckoning me. Is she messing with me? I couldn’t help but wonder.
This woman wasn’t like other women, though. She didn’t do any of the teasing or flirting that was so common at the gym and the club.
In any case, I had to be careful. I hadn’t been with a woman in weeks. My last attempt had been thwarted when Shane caught me coming into the apartment with that woman from the club. I wanted to fuck Grayce, definitely. It was weirdly just about all I could think of since I’d first seen her. Still, I couldn’t afford to be out on the street, and if I didn’t time it right, I could find myself looking for another place to stay.
Unless I could convince her that we should enter a roommates-with-benefits kind of situation, I wasn’t sure how I could make it work. I shifted in my seat and made an adjustment to my pants as my cock reacted to the thought of her. Maybe I could get some action at the wedding. Becky’s friends at the bachelorette party had been a bust, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be new options at the wedding itself.
The wedding venue was an old mansion called Hudson at Round Hill. The small boutique hotel was just across the grounds from the venue itself. I went into the hotel and checked in, texted Shane for his room number, and went up to start my best man duties.
I knocked on the door and Shane answered it. He, too, was already suited up. He was pacing back and forth, though. His cousin Jeremy was there, and his brother-in-law Todd. “Dude, talk your boy down,” Jeremy said. “He’s freakin’ out.”
“What’s up, Shane? You okay, buddy?” I asked, patting him on the shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m just…fuck, I’m nervous,” he replied.
“Dude, do you need to bail? I can pull up the Escape and have you out of here in like fifteen minutes. Hey – it’s an Escape, get it? It’s the perfect vehicle for the job.” I chuckled.
“No, definitely not. It’s not that,” he replied.
“Then…what’s going on exactly?”
“I just—I love her so much. And she’s about to marry me.”
“That tends to happen when you ask a girl to marry you and she says yes. A wedding usually follows those events.”
“I know, but, I mean, I’m going to be responsible for her. Her life will literally be in my hands. What if I’m a crappy husband? What if I can’t take care of her? What if I fail?” His eyes were wide as he shook his head back and forth.
I looked at Jeremy and Todd. “Guys?”
“We’ve been having this conversation all day, man. He won’t listen to us,” Todd said.
“Shane, buddy.” I put my hands on his shoulders and leaned toward him. “Dude, you got this. You’ve never failed at anything in your life. Besides, for some reason, Becky seems to be in love with your lame ass, and if she really loves you, you’ll never disappoint her.” I gave his arm a firm pat.
He looked up at me and shook his head in agreement, seeming to calm down.
“Except in bed,” I added. “You’ll definitely disappoint her in the sack.”
We all laughed, and the tension was broken.
An hour later, the vows had been exchanged, and I had given my best man speech. We were finishing up a dinner that was nicer than I expected when the bride and groom took the dance floor for their first dance as man and wife. They didn’t do any of that club dance bullshit, for which I was grateful. Instead, they did a slow dance to “Heaven’s Gate.” After that, all the groomsmen, Shane, some of our buddies from the old neighborhood, and me got out on the dance floor and tore it up to the Beastie Boys song “Sabotage.”
As I walked back to my seat at the wedding party table, I could feel someone watching me. One of Becky’s cousins came up to me.
“Hi, I’m Emily,” she said. “Nice moves out there.”
She was a tall, slim, leggy blonde. I could see a little resemblance to Becky in her figure, but her face was cuter, her features less chiseled.
“Thanks,” I responded. “I learned from the best. Patrick Swayze in Dirty Dancing.”
“We can hardly deprive the wedding party of such talent! Care to dance?” She scanned me up and down as she asked the question.
“Why not,” I replied.
We stepped onto the floor and danced to a couple of upbeat songs by Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran. She had some pretty good moves herself. She wasn’t exactly grinding on me, but she definitely put enough hips into her movements to give me an idea what was on her mind.
A slow song came on and she moved in close, putting one hand on my chest and wrapping the other around my neck. I slid my hands around her small waist, my palms on her back. After a few seconds, she laid her head against my chest. It felt nice to have a woman in my arms after the frustration of the previous few days.
I slid my hands up her back, holding her close as we swayed to the music. As she pressed into me, my body was starting to react to her. Just then, I looked across the room and saw a woman from behind that looked familiar. She was small but had some curves, and a nice ass. Long dark curls fell down between her shoulder blades. No, it can’t be, I thought. She looked a lot like Lavender Girl from behind.
Emily was saying something, and I didn’t catch what it was. “Sorry,” I asked. What did you say?”
“I was asking,” she said quietly, “if you might want to get out of here.”
The dark-haired woman turned around. It was an older woman – definitely not Grayce. Shit! What was wrong with me? I had a pretty, willing, and I suspected limber woman in my arms, and all I could think about was my new roommate back in the city.
I looked down at Emily. Her eyes were soft, and I knew she was definitely up for it.
“Sorry, I’m not feeling so hot,” I said. “I think I better call it an early night.”
Her brow furrowed. “Fine, whatever,” she said, letting go of me and walking back to her table.
I sat back down with Jeremy. Todd had already gone back to his room with his wife, Susan, who was Shane’s sister. She was heavily pregnant with their first child, and undoubtedly needed some rest.
“Dude, what did you do to piss off the hot blonde?” Jeremy asked.
“Oh, her? She’s not my type, so I cut bait,” I said nonchalantly.
“I’d love to see who you’re screwing if you think that isn’t worth your time,” he chuckled. “Must be nice.”
“I just wasn’t into her.” I couldn’t exactly tell him that the hot chick I lived with was somehow cock-blocking me via remote control when she wasn’t even here.
“Hey guys!” Shane walked up and put an arm around Jeremy and me. “You guys are the best, you know that?” He had clearly been enjoying the reception. “Tyler, dude, that speech, was just…man, it was great,” he said, hugging me.
“You’re welcome, man. We’ve been friends a long time. I’m glad to see you so happy.”
“You deserve to be happy too, Tyler. It’s gonna happen. I know it’s gonna happen,” he half-slurred into my ear.
“I’m sure it will, buddy,” I replied.
If this happily-ever-after thing was going to be part of his regular life outlook, I was glad I had moved out. I knew he wanted me to be happy, but Jesus! Six months before, he thought seeing to my happiness was being a good wingman by helping me spot the hottest piece of ass in the bar. Now, all of a sudden, he was all about relationships and marriage. How did that even happen?
I decided to find a more low-key conversation, so I went over and sat with Shane’s mom for a little while.
“Hi, Mrs. Sutton,” I said, giving her a kiss on the cheek as I sat in the empty chair next to her. “It’s been too long. How have you been?”
“Oh, Tyler! It’s so good to see you,” she said. “I’m doing well, how about you?”
“Pretty good,” I replied.
“Shane tells me you moved out of the apartment this week. Did you find a nice place?”
“Yeah, I did, actually. A great place in Astoria. It’s next to a park, and right by the river. It’s kind of a nice change from the hustle and bustle of the city.” I smiled. I had always loved Mrs. Sutton, and after my parents died, she had been especially good to me.
“That’s good to hear. So, my boy is a married man now. That’s both of them.” She wiped her palms together as if she was wiping the dust from them. “My work here is done until Susan’s baby arrives and I can start being a horrible influence on my grandchildren.” We both laughed. “I wish Frank were here, though.” She smiled bittersweetly. Shane’s dad had died of a heart attack about three years before.
“I’m sure he is, in a way,” I said, putting an arm around her.
She smiled up at me, her eyes full of kindness. “So, now, I’ve got Susan married off, and now Shane. You were in my house so much growing up, you’re practically one of my kids too. What do I have to do to get you paired up, hmm?” she asked. “Are you seeing anyone regular?”
I chuckled. “No, Mrs. Sutton, I’m not. Most of the women I’ve gone out with are just…well, it can be hard, sometimes, to find someone that’s really special.” I lied, hoping to appease her, at least for the moment.
“You’ve met someone, Tyler Becker. I can see it all over your face, and don’t you lie to me. You know perfectly well I can tell when you’re lying.” She gave me the most motherly look I had ever seen.
“No, it’s not…I mean we’re not dating or anything,” I said. “I ran into her a couple of times, then it turned out she was the one renting out the apartment, and now we’re rooming together.” Shit! Why was I telling her this? “I mean, there’s nothing going on. I’m not even sure she’s interested.”
I took a deep breath, forcing myself to stop talking. I was babbling like an idiot about a woman I knew almost nothing about, but who had kept me from scoring at a wedding.
“Mm-hmm,” she replied. “I see.” She had a look of smug satisfaction on her face.
“No, seriously, it’s just…could you please stop mom-ing me for one minute and promise you won’t say anything to Shane? Or anyone else? I really don’t know if there is anything even there.”
She patted me on the knee. “I promise, dear, I won’t. But, you know, you really are a great guy. Any girl would be lucky to have you, and I’m not just talking about your looks. You deserve real love, you know. I’m sure you’ll find it.” She smoothed a strand of hair that had fallen onto my face, and I nodded.
It was just this type of thing that I missed so much from my own mom. Mrs. Sutton had done her best to take me under her wing. She’d been so kind after my parents had died. I wasn’t sure she knew, but sometimes I would stop by in the afternoons after classes to see her, even when I knew Shane wouldn’t be home. She would fix me something to eat and ask me about my week. It was stupid, I knew, but it was something my uncles just couldn’t do for me. I missed both my parents terribly, but a woman who loved you unconditionally, and just wanted to care for you, and for you to be happy – that was a special kind of gift that only moms seemed to have.
“It’s getting pretty late. I think I’m going to turn in. Goodnight, Mrs. Sutton,” I said, kissing her on the cheek and giving her shoulders a squeeze.
“Goodnight, dear,” she said. “Oh, and by the way, I’m glad you didn’t hook up with Becky’s cousin Emily. I hear she can be mean the next day.” She winked and I laughed, rolling my eyes.
I headed over to the hotel building and went up to my room. At the reception, in the hotel bar, hell, even in the hallways there were people hooking up left and right. Tyler, you’re an idiot, I thought. It could’ve been me. I could’ve been walking back to my bed with a willing, and very able-bodied blonde on my arm, but I wasn’t.
I felt somehow relaxed and agitated all at once. I stripped down to my boxers and did some sit-ups and pushups to try to clear my head. Afterward, I grabbed a bottle of water from the mini-fridge and sat down in a chair beside the window. There was a stack of magazines on a little table and I started thumbing through them.
I looked at all the advertising. The guy in the outlet mall spread had a full beard and a build similar to mine. It was an early-career-arc spread. He was probably about twenty. A few pages later I saw a cologne ad. The guy in the ad had a look similar to mine. He was wearing a suit, tie undone, and shirt unbuttoned. He was probably twenty-eight or twenty-nine. Next, I saw an ad for a luxury sedan. Holy shit, that was Sebastian.
Sebastian and I had been represented by the same agency since I first got into the business. He was a good guy and a real professional, and he stayed away from the bad stuff. We had done some sportswear spreads together early in my career. Here he was in an ad for a fucking luxury sedan. He was thirty-one. Four years older than me. I threw the magazine across the room and decided to take a shower.
As I let the hot water wash over me, I slowed my breathing to try to get some of my stress in check. I looked down and noticed the oversized shower in the hotel room had a bench in the back, just like my shower at home. My mind immediately went back to Grayce and the thought of her body went straight to my cock. I remembered her showing me the apartment, and thinking how I’d like to fuck her in my shower.
I pictured her perfect little hands with those neat little red nails, wrapped around my cock. I grabbed the little bottle of conditioner that was in the shower and put some in my palm before grabbing my already throbbing cock. Closing my eyes, I imagined her here with me, those toned legs wrapped around my body. I imagined her screaming my name as I pounded into her. It didn’t take long for me to groan with relief.
As I lay in bed, I thought about how little I knew about this buttoned-up lawyer I lived with. For all I knew, she had a boyfriend. Hell, or a girlfriend for that matter. I knew this much, though. Unless she flat-out rejected me, I had to try to get in there. I had never met a woman who could make me give up a sure thing when I didn’t even know if sex with her was on the table or not.
My best friend was married, my modeling career was circling the toilet, and I was making compromises to be with one woman over another. Fuck, maybe I was growing up. It sucked.