Beauty from Pain (22 page)

“
No. I’m afraid you
can’t.”

She drops to her knees in front of me and
reaches for my belt buckle. “You know what I can do for you and you
love it. I know you remember how much you love being in my
mouth.”

I try to push her hand away, but her grip is
like steel. “No, Audrey. There’s someone else.”

She immediately stops, but her grip doesn’t
loosen. She’s angry. I see it in her eyes. “There will never be
anyone else for you but me. I’m the only one who knows you, Jack.”
She puts emphasis on my name as she says it.

“
You might know who I am, but
you’ll never be the one for me.”

“
This new woman doesn’t know your
name. She’s just another no one to you. You don’t owe her
monogamy.” Again, she’s fumbling with my belt. “I’m right, aren’t
I? She’s no one special. Just another one of your fake
relationships.”

I’ve had more than enough of this
and there’s only one way to make her stop this nonsense. “Quit,
Audrey.” I lean forward until we’re eye to eye. She thinks I’m
going to kiss her, but she’s dead wrong. “I know you started the
fire at
C
halice.
I also know you poisoned
Margu
erite and I’m here to give you
the courtesy of a warning. Don’t fuck with me, Audrey.”

She sits back on her heels. “Jack
…”

“
I don’t want to hear it. I came
here to let you know I’m on to you. Now I’ve done that, so put your
coat back on and get the fuck out of my sight. I never want to see
you again.”

She grabs her coat from the floor and cinches
the belt. “You’re going to regret what you’ve done to
me.”

“
I already do.”

–––––

After I leave the hotel and I’m closed up in my
car with her scent, the only thing I can smell is that damn sweet,
floral fragrance. It’s on my skin and clothes and I despise it. I
can’t believe I ever thought it was pleasant, let alone appealing.
It’s nauseating and I want it gone. Now.

As soon as I’m back at the vineyard, I forgo
calling Laurelyn and head straight to the shower. I have to wash
away the last bit of physical contact I hope to ever have with that
crazy bitch.

I hear Laurelyn’s ringtone, “Crash Into Me”,
as I stand in the shower scrubbing my skin, but she’ll have to wait
until I erase the last evidence of Audrey’s touch from my
body.

I listen to Laurelyn’s voicemail as soon as
I’m out, not even waiting until I’m dressed. “Hey, caveman. I just
wanted to tell you something before I went to bed. Call me back
when you get a chance.”

I walk toward the bedroom wearing only a towel
and call her immediately. I don’t want to wait another minute to
hear her voice. “Hello.”

“
Hey, baby.”

The tone in her voice elevates. “Hey, you. I’m
glad you called. Normally, I’m not all that excited about this and
needing to share it with anyone, but you wanted to know, so I’m
calling to tell you I got my period.”

Hmm. I’d forgotten about it, so I guess I
wasn’t as worried as I thought. “That’s good to know.”

“
I thought you’d like that. Have
you been very busy today?”

What’s kept me busy while I’ve been here
disgusts me. “I’ve been busier than I wanted to be, but I’ve still
thought of you.”

“
That’s a sweet thing to say.
Everything okay at the vineyard?”

I fully expect it to be now that
I’ve told Audrey I’m onto her little game. “There are some definite
issues at
Margu
erite, but I think I’ll have them under control
soon.”

“
So, they just needed the big man
to come along and take care of things. Show them how it’s done,
right?”

Yes, the big man is on campus. She has no idea
how big the big man really is. “You’ve got it, babe.”

“
Will you still be staying until
New Year’s Day?”

I don’t want to, but it’s necessary. I wish I
could be back to celebrate with Laurelyn. “I’m afraid I have to.
Will you be making plans with Addison for New Year’s
Eve?”

“
She’s going to The Blues Club
with Zac and they’ve invited me to go. It’s open mic night
again.”

I’m certain that means Ben Donavon is going
too and will probably consider Laurelyn his date, but I don’t ask
because I don’t want the confirmation.

“
You’ll have a great time. I wish
I could be there to hear you sing.”

“
I’ll dedicate one to
you.”

“
Well, that’s hardly fair. I won’t
be there to hear it.”

“
Yes, that’s very
unfortunate.”

I miss her. “What are you wearing?”

“
Do you want the truth, or shall I
describe some terribly sexy lingerie so you can
fantasize?”

I can’t help it. I want to know what she’s
wearing while Ben Donavon is sleeping only a few feet from her. I
need to know what he’ll see if they run into each other on the way
to the bathroom. “The truth.”

“
I’m wearing an incredibly unsexy
T-shirt and boxer shorts.”

I’ve seen her definition of unsexy and I
couldn’t agree less. One of her sexiest moments was when she was
wearing jogging pants and had her hair piled in a messy bun on top
of her head. “Baby, you couldn’t be unsexy if you
tried.”

“
Lachlan. You’re wrong, but I
thank you anyway.”

“
You’ve felt all right today? No
more headaches or vomiting?”

“
I’ve felt really good
today.”

She scared the shit out of me. “I was worried
yesterday.”

“
I’m sorry I worried you, but
really … I’m fine.”

Is she really okay? “You’d tell me if you
weren’t?”

“
Yes.”

“
It’s late and I should probably
let you get to sleep. It’s not a bad idea for me to catch up on my
slumber since someone has been keeping me up late at
night.”

“
Well, you might find it easier to
get a little sleep if you weren’t instigating late-night
activities.”

“
You don’t like my
instigating?”

“
I didn’t say that.”

“
So, you like it?”

“
Very much, Mr. Henry. I like your
late-night instigations. And your morning ones. And your midday
ones. Hell, I like all of your instigating.”

“
I’ll remember that next time I
see you.”

“
Yes, be sure you do. Now, get
some sleep, Mr. Henry. You have a lot of instigating to do when you
return.”

“
Yes, ma’am, I do.”

25

Laurelyn Prescott

I’m applying my makeup to go out for New Year’s
Eve and I’m totally bummed. I thought bringing in the new year in
Australia would be some kind of spectacular experience, but it
won’t be because Lachlan isn’t here to celebrate with me. And he
won’t be here to kiss me at midnight.

I’m smoking up my eyes with black liner while
Addison is in the shower talking nonstop about Zac. I really want
to tell her to shut up. I know I’m being completely selfish, but if
I can’t be with Lachlan, I don’t want to hear about all the things
she’s going to do to rock Zac’s world tonight.

Enough is enough. “I’m going to the bedroom to
get dressed.”

“
Okay. I’ll be out in a
minute.”

“
Take your time.” I’m wrapped in a
towel as I peek out the door to be sure Ben isn’t around before I
streak to the bedroom. After I see that the coast is clear, I make
a break for it. I’m not four steps down the hall when I run right
smack into him. Literally.

I look up as I grasp my towel tightly. Being
so close to him while wearing so little feels wrong. Really wrong.
“Excuse me.”

He doesn’t make a move or say a
word as his eyes roam my body. I dart around him and run for the
bedroom door, slamming it behind me. Shit. That was more than just
a little
unpleasant
.

I stand in front of the closet searching
through what has now become community property. There’s no mine or
yours. I pull out a black strapless with a wide red waist sash and
hold it up to myself as I look in the mirror. It’s Addison’s so of
course it’s going to be short on me, but I like it. It’s sexy as
hell. I don’t know why I care. I have no one to impress.

I’m standing in front of the mirror with the
dress when Addison comes into the bedroom. “Nice
choice.”

“
You weren’t going to wear it,
were you?”

“
No, I’m wearing the electric blue
one.”

I put on the dress and Addison zips it for me.
It’s tight but it squeezes me in all the right places. It’s a sexy
dress and I’m hot in it, but instead of being proud of the way I
look, I’m disappointed Lachlan isn’t here to see me. Maybe I’ll
text pictures of myself to show him what he’s missing.

When we’re finished getting ready,
we go into the living room where Zac and Ben are ready and waiting.
Zac is up and at Addison’s side immediately, telling her how
beautiful she is. Ben is staring at me and I begin to feel
really
uncomfortable
. Even more so than I did when we met in the hallway. Somehow
I feel more naked than I did when I was wearing only a
towel.

I wish things weren’t like this
between Ben and me. I wish we could talk and laugh like friends
instead of constantly being swallowed up by all of this
uneasiness
.

The four of us leave the apartment building
and catch a cab to the club so everyone can drink. I’m sure to take
the seat in the front so I’m not stuck sitting with Ben in the
back. Maybe it’s childish, but I don’t care. He doesn’t need the
least bit of encouragement.

Ben holds the door for me as we walk into the
club. As I walk past him, he leans close to me. “You’re
exceptionally beautiful tonight, Laurelyn.”

It’s sweet the way he says it. I don’t know.
Maybe I would’ve been interested in him if there had been no
Lachlan. But there is a Lachlan. And he’s the only one I want.
“Thank you, Ben. You’re very handsome tonight. Every girl in the
place is going to swoon over you.”

“
Except the one I
want.”

Shit. Why’d he have to call out the pink
elephant in the room?

I say nothing and walk to the table Zac and
Addison have chosen close to the stage. Of course, they’re sitting
together so that means Ben and I must sit together.

Since it’s New Year’s Eve, I’m guessing
there’s going to be some real entertainment. Open mic has already
started and there’s a woman doing an Adele song on the karaoke
machine. She’s mimicking every note like Adele—I imagine she’s been
singing in the mirror all week to get ready for her big
performance.

“
There’s a sign-up sheet if you
want to sing. You might want to go ahead and put your name down.
I’m sure the list is long since it’s a big night.”

I grab Addison by the hand and pull her from
her chair. “Come on. You didn’t sing last time and you were the one
chanting the loudest for me to get up on stage.”

Ben is right—the list is very long. Addison
and I sign up, but I’ll be surprised if we’re called before
midnight. I’ll probably be too drunk to remember how to
sing.

Our waitress places a Sauvignon Blanc in front
of me. I ordered it because it’s one of the wines I’ve come to
enjoy since meeting Lachlan. I take a drink and I’m surprised how a
glass of wine can make me feel closer to him, even when he’s seven
hours away.

One after another, people take the stage. Some
are decent while many are a disaster, but it’s all for fun and I
think everyone in the club claps louder for the ones who suck. It’s
called a pity clap.

About fifteen minutes before midnight, Addison
is called to the stage, which means I’m next. She’s pretty drunk
and I’m just hoping for her sake that she doesn’t screw this
up.

She takes the guitar from its stand and sits
on the stool before she puts the strap over her neck. She strums
several times and I get a glimpse of how I must’ve looked on stage,
minus the drunk part.

She begins to sing “You Were Meant for Me” by
Jewel, and I’m not sure if it’s because she’s trying to send a
not-so-subtle message to Zac or because it’s a song she felt
certain she could pull off drunk. Regardless, Zac doesn’t take his
eyes off her and I’m envious.

She finishes and the crowd claps wildly. As
they should. She gave a great performance.

I’m called to the stage next and I take my
place at the piano this time. There’s no damn way I’d sing this
song if Lachlan were here, but he’s not and it’s my own little
private joke with myself.

I lean into the mic and address the crowd
because I can’t help it. I’m an entertainer. It’s in my blood. It’s
what I do.

“
Everybody ready to bring in the
New Year?” The crowd responds loudly, letting me know they’re
having a right nice time. “I toyed with this song on a piano the
other day and decided I’d do my own rendition. I sort of liked the
way it sounded.” I play a few notes as I speak to the crowd. “Hell,
I loved the way it sounded, but I’m going to let you guys tell me
what you think. This is ‘Private Dancer’ by the lovely Tina
Turner.”