Steal Your Heart Away (3 page)

Chapter 8

When she didn’t text me the next day I was somewhat worried that I had said too much the night before, that I had somehow managed to scare her away. I went in to work determined to talk to Steve about everything that had been happening between me and Lexi. When we finally sat down for lunch I could tell he, too had something on his mind.

“How have you been, Amanda?” he asked, awkwardly formal.

“I’ve been good. How have you been?” I responded nervously.

“You know, I could be better.”

“What’s up?” I asked.

“I think you know what’s up.”

“Listen, Steve, I meant to tell you but I didn’t know how.”

“I drove by your house last night to drop off some food, thought you could use it since you had such a rough day. Didn’t look like a rough day to me.” He slammed his tray on the cafeteria table before storming off to dump his food.

“Steve, please.”

“The worst part is that she told you how much she liked me. And you tried anyways. Don’t you know that no means no? She told me how you came on to her.”

“What?!” I was so confused. I didn’t come on to her. It was Lexi who fell into my lap, who kissed me on my cheek. Not once did I suggest anything else. Did she tell him that?

“Oh, don’t play oblivious. She told me everything Amanda. We are done here.”

I sat, stunned with tears in my eyes. What had just happened? I wanted to tell Steve it was all a lie, that she was trying to come between us. I felt a pit in my stomach. Why would she say such terrible things? She seemed so comfortable last night, had I done something wrong?

I tried to brush it off, get my work done then go home and sort through my thoughts. I couldn’t help but feel hurt. I felt betrayed by both Lexi and Steve. Lexi for telling lies and Steve for believing them. Had I asked for it, though? Was this my payback for not backing out while I still had the chance?

Furious, I pulled out my phone and texted Lexi.

“You lying little bitch. I did not come on to you. You came on to me. You invited yourself over. Not me. Try to come between me and my best friend. I dare you.”

I hit send and turned it off so I could eliminate distractions and get back to work.

Steve and I worked side by side on two surgeries that day, but we remained silent only to talk when absolutely necessary. If I had known that this was what our relationship would come to, I would have never pursued Lexi. I kicked myself for being so stupid.

Chapter 9

Days passed and still no response from Lexi, nor any contact from Steve. The first couple days were hard but I soon got back into my daily routine. I didn’t need either one of them. It was Friday night and I was not about to stay in and feel sorry for myself. I decided to go out.

There was a cheap lesbian bar just down the street that I went to a lot when I was younger, but had since lost a lot of its credibility. It was having a grand reopening and I figured I could pick up a cute college girl and have a decent time not having to worry about anyone else. I got dressed up and hit the road.

I walked through familiar doors into a brand new night club. I instantly felt out of place as I was at least 10 years older than every girl there. I tried to play it off by taking a few reckless shots and getting on the dance floor.

A cute blonde in a mini skirt and bandeaux started grinding on me and I welcomed it. It wasn’t fifteen minutes before she was biting my neck and beckoning me to the dark corner of the club. She began tugging at my jeans, running her warm hand up the front of my shirt and grasping at my bra.

I knew people were watching but I didn’t care. Her tan thigh made its way up my hip and I groped her ass while she slid her tongue into my mouth.

“Come home with me,” I whispered in her ear. Before she could respond, my phone vibrated in my jeans. I fumbled it out of my pocket and read Lexi’s name on the screen. Everything was suddenly standing still. I could feel the blonde staring at me, wondering if I was going to answer it. I let it ring three times before finally picking it up. The girl looked at me in disbelief but I didn’t care.

“Hello?” I answered, trying to sound stern and sober.

“Amanda! Come to the club. Please. We need to talk.”

“What makes you think I want to talk to you?” I slurred.

“Are you drunk?”

“What do you want Lexi?”

“Meet me at the club in thirty minutes.”

The call ended and I stood there, drunk and confused. What was I supposed to do? Drop everything for some stupid girl? Nope, no thanks.

I grabbed the neck of the girl standing in front of me and pushed her mouth hard onto mine. She ran her hands through my hair and when I closed my eyes I jumped, having seen Lexi instead of this drunk college girl.

“You’re fucking weird!” she yelled before returning to the dance floor.

Chapter 10

I stood there for ten minutes trying to gather myself. I drank way too much. Making my way to the door, I was stopped by three girls trying to dance on me. I politely pushed them aside and finally made my way outside. I looked at my watch to see it was only 11:00.

I couldn’t decide whether to go to Lexi’s club or not. Before I could make the decision, my feet decided for me. I found myself walking downtown towards the same hole in the wall I swore I’d never go back to.

I walked through the door to see Steve and Lexi sitting at the bar.

“Fuck this,” I said out loud before turning around to head home. A strange hand grabbed my arm and I turned to recognize Lexi’s bartender brother Brandon.

“Give her a chance,” he said.

While the walk had sobered me up quite a bit, I was still drunk enough to be angry and I yanked my arm out of Brandon’s before Lexi caught my gaze. She ran over to where we stood and jumped into my arms. I shoved her off of me and turned to storm out the door before yet another pair of hands grabbed my arm. These hands were familiar, though. They were Steve’s.

“What, is this some sick joke?” I yelled, grabbing everyone’s attention.

“Calm down, Amanda. It’s okay, it was all a big misunderstanding. Please listen to what Lexi has to say.” Steve didn’t loosen his grasp on my arm and I twisted uncomfortably before agreeing to speak with her. “I’m going to leave you two to talk, I’ll see you in the morning. Take care of her Lexi,” he let me go and walked out the door.

“Come sit,” Lexi said, guiding me to the same table we had sat at just one week ago. She set a glass of water in front of me like I couldn’t take care of myself. “Where did you get yourself so drunk, honey?”

“I’m not drunk. I’m pissed off. You fucked up my friendship and interrupted a super hot makeout session at the club with a girl half my age.” I could see the hurt across her face. “Oh, does that hurt?” I mocked. “Don’t worry, I didn’t force myself on her. Or maybe I did. I can’t seem to tell the difference anymore.” I stabbed.

I saw tears well up in her eyes and I suddenly felt terrible.

“You don’t know half the things I’ve endured this week on your behalf Amanda.” The tears that were just shining on the surface were now full-fledged tears. I drank the water in front of me and tried to find my sober self.

“I’m sorry. Please don’t cry.” I moved chairs so I could sit next to her and I put my arm around her.

“No, don’t be sorry. It’s all my fault,” she sobbed.

“Just tell me why you did it Lexi.”

“It wasn’t me. It was Kyle.”

“Your ex-husband Kyle?” I asked, suddenly concerned.

“He’s a monster, Amanda. We met up a few days ago to settle some of the divorce paperwork and he said he had seen me with you. He said it was an embarrassment and that I had to end things with you or he would do it himself. It was him that sent all those nasty messages to Steve, not me. He knew what it would do to you. He had been following you and knew how close you and Steve were. He’s crazy and will do anything to hurt me. You have to be careful Amanda. He’s always lurking in every corner.” She looked around nervously, and I found myself glancing around too.

“He’s been following me?” I asked.

“Yes, he’s insane. That’s why you had to meet me here, in a public setting. I had to tell you goodbye in person.”

“Wait, goodbye?” I was confused.

“Yes, Amanda. It’s not safe for us to be together. Can’t you see? He will come after you. He will never allow me to be happy. That’s why it’s just best if I’m alone.”

“That’s ridiculous. Lexi I’m crazy about you. I’m not going to let you just live half of your life because you’re scared of your ex-husband.”

“What are we going to do, then?” she asked.

“Let’s just go back to my place for the night. He can’t hurt either of us there. I have a home security system and can have the cops patrol my neighborhood during the night. Does that sound like a good plan?” She nodded her head but I could tell she was scared. “Why don’t you get up on stage and sing me a song?” I smiled.

“I can’t sing right now,” she replied.

“Come on, Lexi. What do you think I came here for anyhow?” I teased. A small smile peeked behind her lips and I knew I was getting through to her. After thirty minutes of convincing, she finally got up to sing.

Her voice sent chills up my spine and she let out a genuine smile for the first time that night. The crowd was very pleased to have her on stage and she was asked to encore 3 times. I waited for her backstage and she ran right into my arms.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“Let’s get out of here,” I smiled.

Chapter 11

Outside the air was cold and we stopped just outside the club into a back alley so I could wrap my coat around Lexi’s shoulders. She nuzzled her cold nose into my neck and I held her for just a minute, embracing the moment.

She looked up at me and the glow in her eyes warmed my heart. I leaned down to kiss her but was interrupted by a sharp pain to the back of my legs. My knees buckled and a metal pipe dropped to the cement beside me.

“You little lesbian slut,” said an unfamiliar voice. I saw a shadow grab Lexi by the hair and throw her to the ground. I recognized Kyle as he sat on her chest and slammed his fist into her face. I tried to run over to save her but sharp pains shot through my knees. I screamed in pain.

“Hey!” I recognized Brandon’s voice at the end of the alleyway. Him and the bouncer from the club ran down the pavement and tore Kyle off of Lexi. Brandon picked up the pipe that Kyle had used on me and slammed Kyle in the face with it.

The bouncer called the police and Brandon ushered us to get home. Lexi had been hit but didn’t seem to have a concussion. My legs still hurt but I did my best to walk without limping. I helped her up and we headed towards my house. She kept crying and apologizing, more worried about my minor injury than her own.

“It’s okay, Lexi. I’d much rather have been there than have you be alone with him.” I hugged her close to me when we finally reached the front door. I guided her to the bathroom and sat her on the counter while I tried to locate a first aid kit.

Luckily, Kyle must have been drunk because the punch wasn’t packed with too much force. A few blood vessels in her eye had popped and there was some slight bruising, but no sign of skull fracture or internal hemorrhaging. I performed all the necessary tests as best I could without all my tools.

I relocated her to the couch and tucked her in tight with a blanket before turning on a movie for her. I was trying to be strong but my legs really did hurt. When I was alone in the bathroom I carefully slid off my jeans and glanced in the mirror to see deep bruising across the back of both my legs. I winced in pain as I rubbed some pain relief gel on my skin which seemed to help immensely.

When I returned to the living room Lexi was nowhere to be found. I saw a light glowing underneath my bedroom door and cracked it open to see her snuggled up in my bed sleeping quietly. I turned off all the lights and crawled in next to her, careful to be quiet as possible. She shifted over and curled up inside my arms.

“Don’t leave me, okay?” she whispered.

“I won’t,” I promised.

She grabbed my face and her eyes shone in the moonlight. She kissed me hard. It wasn’t like the sloppy kiss I had at the lesbian bar. It was so much more than that. I could feel the emotion behind it. She was kissing me from within. Her tongue found its way to mine and she climbed on top of me, careful not to hurt my legs.

She was like a goddess the way her hips moved, grinding on me. Her dress slowly slid up her thighs and my fingers danced on her delicate skin.

I gently lifted the dress up over her head and the fire raged between my thighs when I saw her wearing nothing but a pink lace bra and panties. She tore at my clothes and before I knew it we were both naked, intertwined in each other.

Every kiss was different, like a falling star or a snowflake. She would kiss me intensely, fire raging between us. Then she would stop and kiss me soft, like she was scared that she would hurt me.

When I finally entered her she let out a quiet cry of ecstasy. Her back curved and she wrapped her legs around my waist. When she started to climax I pulled my hand away from her and moved her legs from my waist to my shoulders. I could tell she had never been with a woman the way she yelled when I tasted her. It wasn’t five minutes before she was climaxing again and I finished her off easily.

We laid there in each other’s arms breathing heavily. Her heart raced against my chest and I couldn’t wipe the ridiculous smile from my face. She kissed my cheek before rolling over with my hand wrapped around her. Her soft breathing was like a lullaby luring me to sleep.

The past was a forgotten memory and forever was only a lingering dream. The only real thing I could think of was that in that moment, everything was perfect.