42

AIDEN

 

That morning, bright and early at the office, I phoned Bella.

“Hello?” she sounded like she was still in bed. She also sounded hopeful.

My guess is that she saw my name on the display and that was what made her answer.

“Bella, as of now, you’re officially no longer employed by my mother. You’re fired.”

“Aiden…”

“Don’t fuckin’ play me, bitch. I know you used that fuckhead security guard to get into my apartment and you lucked out and got my phone. Did you also know he then came back and helped himself to Carly’s laundry? Took all her used underwear and a family heirloom out of my condo.”

“Aiden, your mother promised me another $10K. She pays me, and I’ll be happy. I’ll consider my contract with her complete.”

“She’s not paying you. I told her to stop. She’s got no choice but to listen to me. You have no choice but to listen me.”

“Meet up with me. Let’s talk about this.”

“No. You see me on the street, you cross to the other side. You run into me face-to-face, you turn around and walk away. We’re done.”

“In that case, $25K. $25K or I expose everything.”

“Expose? What the fuck are you talking about?” I’m standing up at this stage. Is she fucking kidding me? I see a few people are in the office, so I close all my blinds and shut the door.

“Your mother’s DUI? Her assault charge? I’ll go to the press. Have the money to me by Tuesday or that’s what happens.”

I laugh. “You’re trying to fuck us? Don’t know how you even know about that shit, but you fuck with my family, you’ll fuck up, bitch. And whatever problems you have now that has you scampering around like a cockroach will seem like nothing.”

“I was protecting my own interests, so I had her watched while I was waiting to get paid.”

The fuck?

“You can afford to pay someone, you aren’t that hard up for cash.”

“No, Aiden, listen to me…” she sounds panicked now. “I’m in trouble.”

“I’m done listening to your shit!” I bark. “Go fuck yourself.”

This chick is fucked in the head.

“Aiden, please.” Now her voice is shaky. She obviously knows her jacked-up play failed.

“I… I am in financial trouble with a loan shark. I told them my payday was coming and they wanted proof. I told them about my arrangement with your mother so one of them followed her that say day. The loan shark’s henchman saw her get arrested and wants me to blackmail you guys. Just ten k will get them off my back. Twenty five k and I can get out of town and I will no longer be your problem. I don’t want to do this, but if you don’t help me, my hands are tied.”

Is she whacked or something?

“Why is your loan shark problem suddenly my problem?”

“He’s your problem, because I have a problem and I need to solve it, so I’ll solve it however I can. If that means I have to shake you down to make that other problem go away, I will. It’d be much easier on all of us if you’d just help me out. It’s a drop in the bucket to a rich prick like you!”

“Go to your parents for help.”

“They won’t. They… cut me off.”

“You know what, Bella? Do what you want. Just remember, you fuck me over, certain videos get posted to YouTube and the link shared by email to your parents and their closest friends. If that doesn’t stop you, you don’t wanna see the lengths I’ll go to, to shut you down.”

“That’s another reason I messed with your phone. You no longer have that leverage, Aiden. I had it deleted from your iCloud. So, really, you have no leverage over me.”

“That’s too bad, Bella. Shit. Oh well. Still not payin’ you,” I bite off and slam the phone.

“Ai---”

I hang up before she can say anything else. The thumb drive with her videos are in my safety deposit box. Along with a few other thumb drives of various bitches who I figured may try to fuck me over.

My blood is on the verge of boiling. I got loud there. I don’t give a fuck, though. It’s early and my door is shut.

My phone dings. It’s Carly telling me she has a coffee for me.

Carly. I feel my anger melt at the mere idea of Carly.

I pick up the phone and call my sister.

“Hello?” she answers groggily.

“Shit, did I wake you?”

“S’okay…” she yawns. “Lilly was up half the night. She’s finally asleep but I’m up getting breakfast for Braed.”

“Where’s your nanny?”

“She’s got a sniffle. I don’t want her near the baby.”

“How is Lilly?”

“She’s perfect,” my sister says dreamily.

I smile.

“You want me to take Braed tomorrow for the afternoon? Carly wants to go to the zoo and asked if we can bring him.”

“I’ve heard all about the magical Carly from my son…”

“Yeah.” I smile, thinking about the magical Carly. “How ‘bout Sunday dinner at your house. Me, you, Dirk, Auz, Carly, Dad…”

“Really?” she asks.

“Really.”

“Aiden…you like this girl that much?”

“Yeah. I do.”

“Awe…” She sounds like she’s gonna cry. She sniffles.

“Adele? You crying?”

“Sorry… postpartum shit. I’m like a walking, breathing, emoji. You never know which one you’ll get with me right now. I love that idea. I’m not sure if I can swing cleaning the house, cooking dinner, and making myself look presentable without help, so you might have to settle for me attempting to look presentable.”

“I’ll bring steaks. I’ll grill ‘em and we’ll eat outside so if your pad is trashed, no biggie. Wait… let’s do it at Auz’s house.”

“Even better. What time you want Braeden tomorrow?”

“Eleven?”

“Perfect.”

“I had a talk with Audra,” I say.

“Oh… I know… She told me all about it. It was like a confessional in my house yesterday as she tried to repair the damage of missing the birth of my daughter because she was passed out drunk.”

“Yeah?”

“She showed up here yesterday. Heady stuff. She says she’s divorcing Dad. Wants to make amends with all of us. Offered to babysit for me one afternoon next week so I can go get my hair done. It was a dig about my roots, as you can guess, but still. I should take her up on it.”

“Holy shit. Wonders never cease. You talk to Dad?”

“Yep,” Adele says. “Saw them last night. I stopped by on my way home from the market to drop off a blazer she left at my place, and thought I was in the twilight zone. She and I are there talking in the foyer and Dad comes in with … are you ready for this? Are you sitting down?

“Ready. Sitting down. Hit me…”

“A bouquet of flowers for her! Flowers, Aid!”

“What the fuck?” I’m in shock.

“I know! Shit, Lilly’s crying. I gotta dash.”

“Talk to you tomorrow. It’ll be interesting to see how this goes.”

“No doubt,” Adele says, with humor. “Later.”

“Later.”

I end the call and text my brother.

“Lunch today?”

Austin: “Sure.”

And then I text my new girlfriend.

“Come to my office. Now.

After fucking Carly in my office, I get washed up and head to my father’s office. I poke my head in and he smiles.

“Morning,” he says.

“Well, hello...” I greet. “How’d last night go? Adele told me you showed up with flowers. Did you sweep her off her feet?”

“Not great,” he says. “But, we’ve got a dinner date tomorrow night.” He laughs with vigor, slapping his leg and I laugh, too, sort of. Fuckin’ weird. Weird talking to him like this and even weirder is the shit coming out of his mouth.

“Alright. Well, just stoppin’ in to say dinner plans this Sunday, alright? At either Austin’s or Adele’s. One of us’ll let you know.”

“Can I bring a date?”

“If you mean my mother, I don’t know. I… guess…” I’m trying to keep straight-faced, but I just can’t. This is whacked.

“We’ll see how Saturday night goes,” he says, smiling.

“Alright.” I’m about to mouth off with safe sex advice, but it’s probably not a good thing to joke about with him for  multiple reasons.

I stop at Carly’s desk on my way back. She’s eating a bagel with her left hand, her fingers flying across the keyboard with her right. She looks focused on her task. And fuckable. Did I really just fuck her twenty minutes ago? Feels longer than that.

“Hey.”

She looks at me and puts the bagel down and wipes her mouth with a napkin.

“I got lunch with my brother, but let’s take off around quarter to five. I got the bike today.”

She smiles. “I don’t get off until five.”

“You get off when I say so.” I wink.

She smirks.

“What’s the plan?”

“Tonight? Dinner at Buchanan’s, just you ‘n me. Tomorrow, zoo with Braed. Sunday, dinner with my brother, sister, brother-in-law, and my niece and nephew. All that good?”

“Yep,” she smiles. “Sounds great.”

I lean in and sneak a quick peck on her mouth and then I head into my office and open all the blinds, so I can have my view of my girl until lunchtime.

***

We’re at Buchanan’s. We walked from the apartment as she insisted that she would need to walk off the food she’d be eating.

Yet, she wore heels so high that I didn’t know how she walked in them sober, let alone how she’d manage to get home in them now. Because she’s had a lot of wine and she’s giggly. All I know is that they make her legs and her ass look delicious.

She’s just polished off an entire steak dinner with appetizers. She’s being a cute little tease. A cute little tease who has been flirting with me all night. I can’t wait to get her back home, so I can take over with the teasing.

“Dessert?” I ask.

“To go,” she tells me. “I need more of that chocolate cream raspberry meringue in my life but if I eat it now, my seams are gonna pop. I have to go powder my nose.”

“Got it. I’ll order it and get the check.”

“Thanks, Hot Sauce. Dinner was awesome.” She stands then leans over and kisses me on the mouth, squeezing my thigh. I watch her walk away in an orange wrap dress that has back cleavage. Her hair is loose, but it’s swept over one shoulder right now, giving me that cleavage as she walks away.

It’s as if she knew me when she picked out all her clothes or something because she never fails to make me hard with what she’s got on.

I do a double-take, though, as I’m fairly sure I’ve just spotted Sienna slipping into the ladies’ room stealthily behind Carly. Has she been here all evening, waiting for a chance to pounce?

Aw, for fuck sakes.  

The waiter comes. I ask for two of the chocolate cream raspberry meringue pie to-go, and the bill. I drop my napkin and make my way to the restrooms.