"I like you too, Natalie. I've liked you for a long time,
and I don't want to hurt you either."
"So what is this?" she asked.
"What do you want it to be?"
She didn't respond, and I didn't want to rush her, so I
simply waited.
"I'm going out of town for the weekend," she finally
said.
"What?"
"One of my best friends is getting married, and I'm in
the wedding party.
"Oh," I said. When she didn't volunteer any information,
I fished for more. "Did... you want me to come with
you?"
"No," she said. "I was just thinking maybe this would be
some good time apart to think about what we both
want. Can we pick up this conversation after I get
back?"
"Yeah. That's fine," I said as tried to hide the
disappointment in my voice. I already knew what i
wanted, and my mind had conjured Images of us on
the dance floor of a wedding reception.
However, if I were to be completely honest with
myself, there was no way I could go to a wedding. I
had too much going on here, and I still had some things
to work through - namely three other women to
consider. Truth be told, if Natalie had asked me to be
completely exclusive a week ago, I would have said
yes. Now I would have likely said yes, but there was a
growing part of me that wondered if exclusively dating
Natalie was the best idea.
I wanted my cake while still having the ability to eat it.
"So... friends until I get back?" she asked, giving me a
cautious smile. "Then we'll talk?"
"Absolutely," I said, meeting her smile with one of my
own. I was disappointed, but I also felt good that
Natalie was taking this so seriously. I was also feeling a
little guilty at the same time. Natalie wasn't fucking
three guys while we were in talks,
"Good," she said, closing the distance between us and
pressing herself against me. She laid her cheek on my
chest as we embraced.
"Thank you," she said.
You're welcome," I replied.
Wednesday, 9:45 pm
Ten minutes had passed and I hadn't moved as I
continued to stare at the phone-more specifically, at the
name on the phone.
Jessica.
I'd just finished a thirty-minute phone call with my
sister Emily She'd been very understanding about the
fact that I hadn't said anything to anyone yet, admitting
that she wouldn't have told anyone if she'd inherited
that kind of money. She had also commiserated with
me that I hadn't been allowed to keep my privacy
longer. I'd always along well with my sister-technically
my step-sister. We'd been inseparable when we were
young. My mom and dad had met when I was four and
she was six, netting me a sister and a best friend.
During the conversation, I'd gotten a call that I'd
ignored. After ending the call with Emily, I'd looked to
see who it was and had spent the last ten minutes
completely dumbfounded at seeing Jessica's name on
the screen.
She'd heard about the money. It had to be that.
I wasn't sure what to do. Part of me wanted to call her
and casually ask how she was doing; it had been
nearly a week since I'd seen her, and I was genuinely
curious how things were working out for her and her
new boyfriend. Part of me just wanted to gloat.
A tiny fraction of me wanted her back. She was a
security blanket. An old movie I'd seen five-hundred
times. She always smelled like peaches or flowers, and
curling up with her had always been a comforting
experience. I remembered those strawberry-red lips and
silky, soft, ivory skin. I recalled the way she tasted as
she would rest her tongue on mine. Her weight as she
straddled me and played with my hair. Those always-
mirthful eyes. And her tits.
God those massive pillows of warm flesh that I could
smother myself in while she slowly rode me.
The panel on my desk lit up and shattered the fantasy.
Bobbi was standing in the elevator with her thumb
pressed on the button. I glanced at the clock on the
wall to see it was nearly ten at night. What was she
doing here this late? There was only one way to find
out. I pressed the button to approve the floor request.
It would take her a few minutes to get to my office,
and by the time I heard her knock on my door, I found
myself scrolling through pictures of Jessica on my
phone.
"Come in," I said as I powered off my phone screen
and tossed it on the desk. In truth, I was grateful for a
distraction that prevented me from calling my ex back,
a decision I would have regretted as soon as I hit the
call button. Bobbi opened the door and entered. It was
the first time she hadn't barged into an office I was in
as if she belonged there.
"Are you busy?" She asked. Her tone still had a
sharpness to it, but there was an undercurrent of civility
that I had only heard from her a half dozen times.
"Not really," I said as I waved her in. "Just trying to do
damage control."
"Damage control?" Bobbi asked as she slipped in the
door and closed it behind her.
I gestured at my phone, "Literally everyone has called
me today asking me about the money. Everyone's
heard by now, I'd imagine."
"The money?" Bobbi asked, still standing near the door.
Something seemed a little off about her. It reminded
me of Natalie's demeanor when she first arrived earlier
in the day.
"Yeah," I said, "The money. I didn't want it to get out
like this. There are people I haven't heard from in over
a year who called today. I can't say I'm surprised, or
offended. More annoyed than anything. I wanted my
privacy."
"And you thought I told someone?"
"Yeah. You were one of three or four people who
couldn't be accounted for since you were at your
friend's house yesterday. You also hate me, so you had
a motive. We ruled out the others, so I was sure it was
you." Dont forget to leave a Comment
The Love Of Money - Episode 62 By shary 0 Thoughts on this episode.