Deceived - The Complete Series (8 page)

Dipping down to the floor she grabbed the skirt that she was wearing and threw it at the mirror and yelled. “Fuck!” Her hands came up and covered her face. She curled into a ball on her bed and she started to cry uncontrollably again.

Ten minutes or so passed before Angela sat up in her bed. She’d heard the door to the loft open. The last thing person she wanted to see right now was Thomas. She jumped off the bed and slammed her door shut.

“Angela?”

With a sigh of relief she hollered, “In my room!” She pushed back against her headboard with her knees curled into her chest, holding them tight. She looked at Joanne when she entered the room and burst into tears again not being able to hold the emotions back.

Joanne rushed to Angela and sat beside her on the bed. “Honey, what’s wrong?” She wrapped her arms around her friend and just let her sob into her shoulders. “It’s ok, Ang,” Joanne whispered rubbing her back.

“I want my old life back Jo!” She sobbed in her girlfriends arms.

“Oh honey.” She ran her hand along Angela’s hair smoothing it. “Tell me what happened.” Joanne let go and moved back a little to take a look at her.

Angela wiped her tears away and looked at her friend. She shrugged her shoulders, not knowing where to begin. She was thinking of Blake now and how easy life had been with him. No complications, no hidden secrets or people playing games.

“It’s Thomas...” She finally said, and then added, “And Steve.” She wiped her cheek and took in a deep breath. “You were right Jo, about Thomas. He took me to this wonderful restaurant last night. We had a great time. Then he kissed me... I mean really kissed me.” Her voice was shaky and hoarse.

She watched Joanne cover her mouth in shock. “What did you do?” She asked her with eyes wide.

“I was caught off guard. I pulled away of course.” She frowned. “I don’t have feelings for Thomas... at all.” She looked down at her hands. “Don’t get me wrong. I love him like my brother. He has done so much for me... for Blake. I owe him everything.” Angela whispered, almost choking on her words.

“Ang, you don’t owe him anything for god’s sake. Yes he helped you. That’s what friends do. But it’s not like a damn I.O.U.” Joanne sounded almost angered at Angela’s words.

Angela leaned over and grabbed a Kleenex from her nightstand and blew her nose. Looking up she said, “There’s more. When we got home I told Thomas I was going to start looking for my own place. He didn’t really take it well but I finally convinced him it was a good idea.”

“I knew he had a thing for you. The way he stares at you, sizing you up like you’re a piece of meat.” Joanne’s body shook like she was creeped out.

“Today when I was leaving work and I was in the elevator, Steve showed up.” Angela watched the smile appear on her friends face.

“What happened? Did you ask him about Kimberly?”

“Yes. He said there was nothing going on.”

“Do you believe him?”

“I hardly know the guy. I don’t know if he is telling the truth or not. But...” Angela paused fiddling with her Kleenex.

Joanne pushed on Angela’s arm knowing there was more. “Keep going.”

“We made out again.” Angela looked at her friend feeling so confused by her emotions.

“In the elevator! Shut up!” Joanne let out a laugh. “Jesus girl, you’re getting more action than I have in months!”

“He stopped the elevator. We must have been in there for a good fifteen minutes. When we finally finished I started the elevator again. We were kissing and the doors opened. Thomas was staring at us.”

“Holy Shit!” Joanne gasped.

“Joanne, the anger I saw on Thomas’s face scared the shit out of me. I have never seen that side of him before. He yelled at me. He asked me if I was fucking Steve and I slapped him in the face and left.”

“Jesus Ang. Shit! I don’t blame you. He has no right to act like a jealous boyfriend. You’re roommates!” Joanne grabbed her hand, “Did Steve do anything?”

“He was pretty aggressive with Thomas. But I screamed at both of them. I told Steve to leave me the hell alone and that I didn’t want to see him again.” Angela jumped off the bed becoming angry again just thinking about it. The guy confused her, made her life difficult. She wanted no part of it!

“Come on. Let’s grab a glass of wine. I think we both could use a glass. Or two...Or three!” Joanne told her, leading her towards the kitchen.

Chapter 11

It was nearly nine p.m. when Angela got up off the kitchen stool to grab another bottle of wine. She almost tripped, grabbing the counter to steady herself. She looked at Joanne and started to laugh.

“You’re wasted chick!” Joanne said slurring.

“Maybe a little.” Angela giggled opening the cupboard. She grabbed a bottle of tequila and a bottle of red wine. She held them up. “Which one?”

“Wine.” Joanne pointed to the bottle.

They had gone through three bottles of wine in the last few hours talking about Blake, Steve and Thomas. Joanne said she would help Angela find a new place. Something sooner than September regardless whether Thomas liked it or not. Angela walked back to the kitchen bar and sat on the black leather stool. Bottle in hand she pushed the corkscrew into the top and twisted. She pulled the cork out and poured herself a new glass and filled her friend’s glass.

Holding her glass up to Joanne she slurred a little. “Fuck men! Who needs them anyway!”

Joanne laughed and clinked her glass before taking a drink. “I meant to ask, how long has your house been listed?”

Angela thought for a moment. “About two months now. Why?” She frowned wondering why Joanne was asking.

“Thomas is taking care of the listing right?”

“Yes. His friend is the realtor. He said he would handle everything for me so I didn’t have to worry about it.”

“Do you think that is a good idea?” Joanne said in a serious tone.

“We’ll see. I don’t want to think about that right now.”

They discussed the weekend plans then. Joanne would pick her up at noon and they would drive to Long Beach to start their Fourth of July long weekend. Angela was looking forward to getting away and not being around any drama. She just wanted to be with her friend and relax which would give her the much needed time to collect her thoughts. Joanne was getting up off the stool when the front door opened.

Angela watched Thomas walk in and slam the door shut. He looked at both of them and walked to the fridge. “What?” He snarled at them grabbing a beer.

“Wow. Hello to you too,” Joanne snapped back with a disapproving look. She turned to Angela and whispered, “Do you want me to stay?”

Angela mouthed.
No, it’s ok.
Angela watched Thomas stumble to the couch. He was clearly drunk and must have been drinking after she yelled at him. She opened the door for Joanne. “Thanks for everything Jo. Love you!” She said giving her friend a kiss on the cheek.

“Have everything packed. I’ll pick you up at 10:00 am sharp. Be ready ok?”

“I will.” Angela shut the door and turned around and looked at Thomas who was now standing up.

“You’re leaving?” He shouted. A look of stress plastered on his face.

“No, I am not leaving. We are going away for the Fourth of July weekend. Remember? Long Beach?” She said, becoming angry with his attitude again. “What the hell is going on with you? Why are you acting like this?” She asked him in a firm clipped tone.

“I’m sorry Ang!” Thomas said, sincerely. “I just don’t want to lose you.”

“What are you talking about? You’re not going to lose me.” Thomas’ light brown hair was tousled and his bright green eyes looked like they were begging her for forgiveness.

“I’m sorry for what I said earlier. I had no right.” He told her, looking at his beer.

“Yes Thomas, you had no right! You really hurt me. You made me feel like I was screwing around behind your back or something.” She went into the kitchen and emptied her glass into the sink before turning around to face him. “Joanne is going to help me find a place. I will be moving out as soon as I find something that is available.”

“But we agreed you would stay until the end of August,” Thomas pleaded.

“That was before our run in today. Listen, you know I can’t thank you enough for everything you have done for me. But I need to move on with my life.” She said. “I’ve made my mind up Thomas and you’re not changing it.” She turned and headed for her bedroom.

*****

Thomas sat there and watched her walk away. He was angry...mostly at himself.  He knew he had fucked up and he had to figure out how to convince her stay. Taking a long swig of his beer he placed it on the table and walked into the kitchen and grabbed another one.

Walking back into the living room his eyes landed on Angela’s brown leather satchel still sitting next to the black leather chair. He paused and told himself what he was thinking was not okay. Then, he took a quick glance down the hall and walked back over to where it sat. Sitting down in the chair he slid his hand down into the bag. He pulled out a folded piece of paper. Opening it he looked at the ads that were circled in red. A slow grin turned up at the corners of his mouth. He folded the paper and shoved it in his pants pocket. He closed her satchel, drank the rest of his beer and went to bed.

Chapter 12

Thomas leaned against the bathroom door. The gentle scent of lavender wafted up from underneath it and the smell of Angela filled his nostrils. He shuddered at the thought of her in there, soaking in the tub. Her soft skin always looked so fresh and smelled so good. He had a perfect mental image of what she must look like right then with her long hair piled loosely on her head, a loose tendril escaping down the side of her face. He’d love to be there with her, to tuck it behind her ear...as he leaned in and kissed those lips...

Thomas knew how he felt about her since college. But, she was Blake’s girl and Blake was one of his best friends. A man had to have a code in life and his was that he didn’t screw with his best friend’s woman. He wouldn’t have wanted her so badly if he thought she was that easy anyways. Her dedication to Blake was part of her overall appeal...and it was what he wanted when he found the right woman for him. He used to tell Blake that if he ever did her wrong he would be waiting there in the rafters ready to sweep her off her feet, and he meant it. She deserved a man who would dedicate himself to her alone. She deserved Blake...and now that Blake is gone, she deserved him.

*****

Angela leaned her head back against the porcelain of the deep tub and closed her eyes. As soon as she did, there was Blake. His gorgeous, smiling face was with her wherever she was...but quiet times like this was when the memories of just how much she loved him surfaced. Those memories made her smile. He was everything any woman could ever want or need...and she knew how lucky she was that she got to have him if only for a short time.

Unfortunately, the good memories always came with the bad no matter how hard she tried to block them out. She remembered getting the diagnosis, holding his hand during his treatments that just made him weaker and sicker. She remembered the long nights when the pain medication wasn’t working and she’d listen to the man she adored begging God to take him. Those were the memories that felt like a knife was being shoved into the center of her chest and twisted. Those were the ones that she wished she could forget.

She hoped that Blake would understand how hard it would have been for her to stay in their home. It became just a shell when he was gone and all of the dreams they’d had together the day he picked her up and carried her in over the threshold had died with him. Her dreams had to be different now. She had to allow herself to have them, and that hadn’t been easy either. She thought about Steve then and she wondered if she would ever meet a man that made her feel the way he does...and not feel guilty about it. The thought of him did things to her body that she couldn’t control...and almost didn’t want to. But they also made her feel so unfaithful and disloyal to Blake. Maybe in time that would change. Widows go on with their lives, right?

For now, she was going to content herself with going on with her life through her job...and with her friends. It was less painful that way anyways. She thought about Joanne and smiled. She was really looking forward to this weekend. She hadn’t realized just how much she missed her friend until she saw her again here. She thought about Thomas too. He’d been so incredibly strong for her through all of this. She knew that he loved Blake and his death had rocked Thomas’ world as well as her own. Yet he’d offered his support and even opened up his home to her. Yes, he’d been acting strange lately, but maybe she was just being too hard on him. After all, he still probably had his own grief to sort through.

By the time Angela got out of the tub, Joanne was there. She brought her a triple Venti Caramel Macchiato from Starbucks, her favorite, and they talked and laughed about how much fun they would have at the party while Angela finished getting ready. When she was dressed and packed, they made their way out to the living room. Thomas was in the kitchen, standing up against the counter having his coffee.

“Good morning,” he said with a smile. Joanne looked at her and rolled her eyes. She wasn’t as quick to forgive him as Angela was for his behavior lately.

“Good morning,” Angela told him with a smile.

“You girls are off to Long Beach this morning?”

“Yes, do you have plans for the Fourth?” She asked him.

“A friend of mine is having a party in Manhattan. I’m going to that. The rest of the weekend I’ll probably just chill here.”

“That sounds like fun,” she said. She hated that she had to search for things to say to him. It was never like that before. Joanne was looking at her and she smiled and said, “We had better get going.”

“Okay, you ladies be safe and have fun. I’ll see you when you get back.” He said the words but something told her he didn’t mean them...at least the “have fun” part. She shook it off, once again convincing herself that it was her. She was being way too hard on him.

“We will,” she said, accepting a kiss on the cheek from him. Joanne still hadn’t said anything. Finally, probably to stave off some of the weirdness of the moment her girlfriend looked at Thomas and said,