Gargoyle: A Reawakening (Briarcliff Series, #2) (28 page)

“
Simon,” she whined and
placed her hand back on his erection.

“
Lola,” he said. “I am
serious.” He laughed at the look on her face. “Don’t pout at me. I
want to talk to you.”

“
Talking is overrated,” she
complained, making a grab for him once more.

“
No, you don’t understand.
I want to be with you …” he rushed out.

“
I do too,” she said
smiling. “Just take your clothes off,” she said, reaching up to
unfasten his jeans.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed her hands
away once more. “Lola I am serious. This can wait,” he said,
motioning to the bed with his hand.

She sighed loudly. “Fine. Tell me and then
take your pants off,” she said, pulling her clingy shirt over her
head, exposing her leopard push-up bra, her full breasts
overflowing from the top.

“
I want to be with you all
the time,” he rushed out before he lost his nerve. “I have been
doing a lot of thinking, and we should be together… for real,” he
said, dragging his hand through his already messy hair. “I mean
like really together,” he trailed off again. This wasn’t turning
out to be as easy as he had thought it would be.

Lola lifted her hands,
shook out her hair, and then pulled it to the side. She walked over
to the mirror, leaned forward to look intently at her reflection.
Sighing she leaned back and lifted the glass of alcohol off the top
of the bureau and tossed the contents back, swallowing hard. She
braced her hands on top and looked at Simon through the reflection
in the mirror. “Okay. Sure.” She turned back toward him. “I can…
um,” she adjusted her bra strap. “Yeah…yeah… I can quit my job so I
can go on the road with you guys. My parents will freak, but who
gives a shit what they think,
right?
” she laughed, sounding
nervous.

“
No.” Simon shook his head.
“I don’t mean for you to quit your job. I mean…” he paused to take
a breath, “I am going to quit the band. So we can be together,” he
said, giving her a pointed look. “I am willing to do that for you,”
he said with emotion, wearing his heart on his sleeve.

Lola’s eyes widened.

Simon couldn’t get the image of a deer in
the headlights out of his mind. Why did she look so afraid?

“
Wait—
what
?”
she asked in shock. “No, no, no.” She shook her
head.

Simon smiled, nodding his head up and down,
telling her yes.

“
I never asked you to quit
the band Simon.”

“
I know
you didn’t, which is one of the reasons why I decided to do just
that,” he said happily, trying to make her see what he was giving
up ….
for her
.

“
I can’t believe this is
happening.” She grabbed her shirt off the bed and tossed it back
on, pulling the clingy fabric down over her breasts.

“
I know,
it is a big step, but one I am willing to take…
for you.”
He exhaled and
raked his hand through his hair. “Don’t you see
Lola—you mean that much to me...?” Smiling expectantly, he walked
towards her, knowing that any moment now, she would be overwhelmed
with joy.

Lifting her hands, she blocked him from
coming any closer, turned to walk across the room, and sat heavily
on the bed. Taking deep breaths, she braced herself on the bed,
fisting her hands in the dark blue comforter.

Simon walked over knelt down on the floor
and looked up into her eyes with all the love he felt. “This will
be incredible,” he assured her. “We can find a place in the area,
maybe near your mom and dad, and we won’t have to struggle at all.”
He put his hand on hers. “I have a nice chunk of change saved…we
can take our time finding the kind of jobs that we want—not the
kind we need,” he said, trying to read her expression. “Hell, you
don’t even have to work. You can stay at home with the kids. Do
whatever it is that mom’s do. Maybe you could do some crafts or
something.”

“
I don’t believe this,” she
whispered, staring blankly ahead.

“
I know it’s crazy, right?”
he added, feeling his chest starting to tighten.

“
Yeah crazy…” she trailed
off, still staring past him at some distant point across the
room.

“
So after our next gig,” he
said, squeezing her hand, trying to get her attention. “I will tell
the guys, and then we can take off and head back home, you know, so
you can be close to your family.” He took her silence as acceptance
so he continued making plans. “I know how chicks like to be around
their mom’s, especially when they are pregnant, so this way we will
be close.” He smiled and lifted his hand to push her long hair over
her shoulder toying with one of the long pieces.

Angrily, she batted his hand away. “Don’t,”
she warned.

Simon leaned back on his haunches, clearly
confused.

“
Shit
!” she railed. She pushed past
him to stand and began walking back and forth.

Simon stood and then sat on the edge of the
bed, watching her pace.

“
Un-fucking- believable
!” she laughed
this time, but it had a hard edge to it. She turned, her hair
whipping around her face. “You can’t quit the band!” she nearly
screamed. “What are you going to do? Sell cars? Schlep at home
depot…?” She didn’t let him answer. “I want more Simon.” She took a
breath. “I want a big ass house, nice clothes, and a fancy car. I
want to be something other than what I am now,” she argued, getting
more agitated by the moment.

“
I
thought you wanted
me
?” His chest tightened even more.

“
Oh, I
do,” she assured him. “But I also want so much more…I thought you
were the one…the one person I could count on, to give me
everything
I ever
wanted…” She paused and took an unsteady breath. “I’m not
that
girl, Simon.” She
glared at him in annoyance and threw her hands in the air. “Why are
you messing up the good thing we got going here?” she asked. Then
suddenly, she laughed, it was empty… hollow—bitter. “I don’t want
to be your
Suzy fucking
homemaker
, Simon!”

“
I don’t understand.” Simon
ran his already shaking hands over his face.

“
You
wouldn’t would you,” she sneered. “It’s typical. Men are
sooo
stupid. I bet
you’ve been patting yourself on the back for some time now for
thinking that
shit
up.”

Simon opened his mouth and
closed it. It was true he had been thinking it for some time. It
had been a really hard decision, but one he thought she wanted.
One
he
wanted. He
didn’t want to be on the road constantly. It was lonely. He wanted
more… a wife… kids… a family. Something he never had. He wanted
reality—not some misguided illusion.

The all too familiar
tightening in his chest grew. He couldn’t breathe. “Lola,” he said,
struggling to find words to make her want to
stay…
with him
. “I
don’t think you understand…we can go anywhere you like…maybe
somewhere warm?” he asked hopefully. “I just said that before…you
know, about going home, because I thought you would want to be near
your mom and dad….that’s all.”

“
That’s
the problem, Simon!
You
thought,” she scoffed. “You’re
always
thinking. This
time you thought wrong. There is no way in
hell
I am going to do that
shit.”

He bit back the words he
wanted to say. Ungrateful would have been the first one. Instead,
he held his tongue, feeling defeated, confused…
hurt.
He couldn’t believe what he
was hearing. “I have money saved—lots and lots of money. We can do
it Lola—the two of us. With you at my side anything is
possible.”

She laughed out a throaty
chuckle. “Right…you are
fucking
insane. I know
you
. You will want to drag me back
to our little deadbeat town, full of losers. Can’t you see…I
thought you were my ticket out of that place but
nooo
can’t do that can
you?” she mocked. “No, you want to go back, so you can be a loser
too, just like the rest of them.”

“
Lola, that place you hate
so much is where we are from,” he reasoned, trying to make her see
his side. “It’s the place we grew up… our roots. A place, that
maybe, we can raise our own kids someday. It’s our
home.”

“
Maybe to you…” she said,
and then barked out a laugh.

“
Just think about it Lola,”
he begged, feeling desperate.

“
I don’t need to think
about it. Where’s Vincent?” she asked looking around the
room.

“
What do you want with
Vincent…?” he struggled past the lump in his throat.

“
I
want
him
to get
me outta here.”

“
So that’s it?” he asked in
defeat.

“
Simon,”
she exhaled. “It’s better this way. I am not cut out to be a
housewife of a
normal schmuck.
I want to be
rich.
I want everyone to see I am
with a
rock star,
” she explained. “I
thought
you were that guy…I thought you were…” she
sighed. “ It doesn’t matter. Simon, it’s over. I can’t be with you
anymore.”

“
Can’t or
won’t?”

“
Does it matter?” she
asked.

“
Yes,” he said, but it came
out sounding more like a whisper of air.

“
Fine.
I
don’t
want to
be with you. Happy?” she asked meanly, delivering her final, fatal
blow.

He flinched. It felt like
someone suckered punched him in the gut. He couldn’t believe what
he was hearing. On some pathetic level, he tried to think it was
all some big misunderstanding. But it wasn’t. It was the truth. He
felt sick and pissed. He wanted to wring her neck. Anger filled his
entire body. He had been willing to give up so much just to be with
her and she threw it back in his face like it was nothing,
like
he
was
nothing.
He
was
a
fucking ROCK STAR
! He could fuck anyone, anytime he chose and he had chosen
her. Only she didn’t want him. Maybe she never did. She only wanted
what he could give her. Hot tears stung the backs of his eyes and
he quickly dashed them away with his hand before she
saw.

“
Lola…” he whispered so low
he wondered if he had even said her name out loud.

“
What?” she bit out angrily
and turned away from the door.

“
This is
it then…
for good
?”

“
Yeah. It is,” she said
quietly, almost sadly, opening the door to leave.

Simon’s heart lurched in
his chest. “Wait...” he called out, his voice desperate. “ Did
you
ever…
love
me?”

She paused with her hand on the doorknob
then finally turned. “Yeah. We could have been great, Simon,” she
said quietly, too quietly.

His heart lurched again, somehow still
hoping. “We still can.” He couldn’t believe what he was saying he
sounded pathetic. He, Simon was anything but…

“
You
ruined
everything,” she said, stressing the word like it left a vile
taste on her tongue.

All the hurt, anger,
betrayal reflected in his eyes as he watched Lola walk out of the
door, out of his life
forever
…
“Fucking Whore!”

***

WHAT
COMES A KNOCKING

SUNDAY * 12:13
AM

Hand in hand, they ran through the darkened
corridors of Briarcliff Manor at an impossible speed. The hideous
cries from the strange creatures grew fainter, the further they ran
away. Unfortunately, their flight for freedom ended much sooner
than expected in front of an imposing pair of black doors.