The flight home from California completely drained me. While I loved traveling, I hated the short trips that took me from coast to coast in less than forty-eight hours. I took a sniff of the bourbon before I gingerly took a sip, allowing the brown liquid to float over the ice, cooling it just a bit. The cool burn warmed my insides as I set the glass down, still listening to the conversation on the other end of the phone. “Great, I appreciate you looking into that J.T.. I’ll let the girls know.” I hung up the phone and continued to sauté the mushrooms on the stove. Sometimes, cooking provided an escape, and tonight, I wanted to escape with Summer.
I could hear the girls giggling as the came down the front staircase and entered the kitchen. Alyssa was rambling about her school workload and work in general. She had the potential to be a very successful business person, but she seemed to only apply herself when she needed to. Alyssa took a seat at the large island in the center of the kitchen and Summer joined her. I stared across at both of them as I remembered the fling Summer and I had the first time she visited my house.
“I just got off of the phone with J.T., my security guy. He’s spoken with your apartment manager. They changed the locks this afternoon, so you can pick up a key at their office.” I flipped the pan with a twist of my wrist sending the mushrooms and sauce into the air and caught them, sending a waft of the garlicky smell across the kitchen.
“That smells amazing.” Alyssa chimed in.
“You’re more than welcome to stay for dinner Alyssa.” I eyed Summer as the words politely fell from my mouth.
“No! I mean no… Alyssa actually is headed back to the apartment, right Lis? You have a lot of work to get done.” Summer beamed her eyes at Alyssa and I saw her lurch to the side, following by a thump as she likely kicked Alyssa in the foot. “Besides, I’ll see you in a few hours, I don’t want you staying there alone.”
“Oh yeah, right. Besides, I’m sure two would like some quiet time. Thank you so much for letting me crash here. I should get going.” Alyssa slid the stool out and kissed Summer on the cheek. “Thanks again Professor Kerns.”
“Chase, and you’re welcome Alyssa.”
“I’ll walk you out.” Summer squinted at Alyssa and I couldn’t help but chuckle to myself.
Women.
A few minutes later Summer returned and wrapped her arms around me from behind. “I missed you. I slept in your bed last night, it was…lonely, without you.”
I spun and wrapped my arms around Summer’s waist, pulling her close and kissing her on the mouth. My body pushed against hers and I could feel myself growing hard. She clearly noticed too as she looked up and smiled, grinding lightly against me. “Later.” She smiled.
“Have a seat, I’m just wrapping up dinner.” I pulled the two filets from the oven and set them on top of the stove, allowing them to rest. “Good thing Alyssa didn’t take me up on my offer.” I laughed.
Summer sat at the table as I delivered dinner and poured her a glass of red wine. Although I enjoyed dining out, I enjoyed a quiet evening at home even more.
“Thanks again for taking care of the apartment and sending your guy over.” Summer played with her wine glass as I pulled up to the table, joining her.
“I’m just glad you’re both alright. I wish I could have been here. I would have left sooner, but this meeting…it’s been something I’ve been working on for a while. I’m sorry.”
Summer took a small sip from her glass as she stared at me over the top of it. “Don’t be sorry. It’s not your fault…so tell me, how was the trip? Are you buying out another company? Taking over the world?” Summer giggled.
“The world? No. But after that meeting, it definitely seems that things are headed in the right direction. I just need to find the right person to really run this project. It seems like it’s going to need a lot more oversight than I had originally anticipated and until I find that person, it means I have to do it.” I played with my food a bit as I thought about what that really meant. Less time here and more time away.
“Well, I’m sure you’ll find the right person.” Summer smiled as she reached out and gently touched my hand.
“Me too. Mr. Hamasaki is looking for someone as well. Someone that can speak the language so there is nothing lost in translation.”
Summer leaned back in her chair, her face flushed a bit as she looked at me. “Mr. Hamasaki? Translator? I thought your project was in California?”
“The meeting was in California. I’m looking to purchase a manufacturing plant in Osaka. I’m banking on the inspections going well, I’ve already sunk a ton of money into this project.” I cringed at the thought of exactly how much money I could possibly lose if things didn’t work out.
“Japan? When were you going to tell me this? Are you going to have to be there a lot?” Summer stabbed at her food and took a sip from her wine glass. “What else don’t I know Chase? You know, Alyssa told me you were going to Japan and I didn’t believe her. I told her you would have shared that with me.”
I quickly grabbed Summer’s hand and held it, looking deep into her eyes. “Summer, it’s alright. As of now, I
may
have to travel, but I’m not moving there and I’m not hiding anything from you. There was no sense in telling you anything if I didn’t know exactly what I
should
tell you.” I took in a deep breath, hoping I had managed to deescalate the situation.
Summer rolled her eyes at me and then gave in. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want to go that long with out you being here. A few nights were already too much.”
I loved how Summer loved me and how she missed me. It was something I had missed in my life before. Our relationship had been growing stronger than I could have ever imagined. I thought about the night I considered proposing. I had thought that evening I had reached the highest point in my life. Now I knew there was so much more to look forward to.
The evening had flown by so quickly and I battled staying awake after the long trip back. As much as I wanted Summer to stay the night, I knew she needed to get back to the apartment. She had promised Alyssa she would stay there tonight so they weren’t alone. I knew they were both on edge after the break in, or whatever that was.
“Shit, I have to take the bus to campus tomorrow.” Summer snapped. “I still haven’t replaced the key to my piece of shit car.”
“Here.” I walked over to the dish in the center of the island and grabbed the key to the Mercedes. “Take this. It’s the red one.”
Summer laughed. “Seriously? That car costs more than everything I own, plus a hundred thousand dollars.”
“It’s only a car. Take it.” I smiled and handed her the keys as I gave her a gentle kiss on the mouth. “I’m sure you’ll make the car look good.”
I must have pressed every damn button in the car before I finally figured out how to put the top down on the convertible. I wasn’t sure just how long I was going to have access to this joy ride, but I was certainly going to have fun while I did. The black top folded into the trunk and the sun beat down on my face, warming me. I looked at myself in the mirror and took a quick look around the car. I felt so out of place driving a hundred thousand dollar car.
The seat and mirrors were adjusted perfectly and I shifted the car into drive and pulled out of the campus lot. I couldn’t help but notice the people staring. They all knew it wasn’t my car. I had it written all over my face as I stepped on the gas and accelerated to a whole twenty-five miles per hour. I was paranoid to even drive the speed limit. Even at that speed the engine roared as the wind whipped through my hair. I couldn’t help but smile at myself in the mirror, checking to see whether this was a dream or not.
This
was definitely not the life I had ever known.
* * * *
The red Mercedes was parked in the furthest spot from the apartments and away from every other car in the lot. I looked back over my shoulder, admiring what I had just driven. I couldn’t handle the stress of driving something that expensive. I would have been happy if he just let me drive the golf cart his maintenance crew used to drive around his property. I giggled to myself.
That
was more fitting.
I unlocked the door to the apartment, staring at the black fingerprinting dust that remained on the door and doorframe. I still had an uneasy feeling about everything. I tossed the makeshift key ring made up of Chase’s car key and my new apartment key, onto the table, shut the door and froze. My keys sat in the dish beside the lamp and I could feel sickness fill my stomach. The thud from the back room caught my attention as I backed into door, unsure of what to do. I opened my mouth as nothing came out.
Think Summer.
“Who’s there?” I foolishly yelled, waiting for an answer, as I heard the footsteps approach.
“Sums? Is that you?” Alyssa turned the corner, a duster in her hand.
“Jesus Alyssa, you scared the hell out of me.” I let out a relaxing breath as my shoulders dropped and I stared at her. “My keys…”
“Yeah, I found them under the corner of the couch when I was vacuuming.”
My mouth fell open as her words hit my ears. “What?” I cocked my head to the side. “You were vacuuming?” I giggled.
“Yeah, after the police were here and everything that had happened, I just wanted to clean away the bad mojo.” Alyssa waved the duster in my direction. “I guess you had just knocked your keys on the floor and they weren’t taken.”
I could have sworn my keys had been in my purse, but given that Alyssa had found them I knew I must have been wrong. I tossed my bag on the couch and smiled. “Well, I guess I have no excuse not to drive my turd of a car now. I’m sort of relieved, driving Chase’s car was stressful.”
“Hell, I’ll drive it then. I’d have no stress driving that at all.” Alyssa joked as the bang on the door startled us both. “That’s probably the maintenance guy. They said he was coming up to fix the deadbolt. It isn’t latching all the way.”
I swung open the door and felt the goose bumps instantly cover my body. That stressful, shocked feeling from before had returned as I stared at Brandon, my ex-boyfriend from a few years ago. We hadn’t spoken since the break-up and I had wished it had stayed that way. “Brandon? Why are you here?”
“Nice to see you too, Summer” Brandon smiled as he stood in the hallway. “I…I was just in town and thought maybe I’d stop by to see you.” Brandon stared over my shoulder at Alyssa and then back at me. “Can we talk?”
“Um, I guess. Come in.” I stepped backward as I invited Brandon in to the apartment. I didn’t have anything I wanted to talk about with him, especially with how things ended with us my senior year.”
Brandon stayed in the hallway as he stared at me and then back at Alyssa. “Maybe we can go someplace private to talk? Do you mind? Maybe just downstairs?”
“Alright, just for a minute.” I looked at back at Alyssa. “I’ll
only
be a few minutes.” I opened my eyes wide as I looked at Alyssa, sending her the unspoken message that she should come find me if I’m any longer.
Brandon and I walked down into the grassy area near the parking lot and stood in the shade of one of the surrounding trees. Brandon was never a person to just pay someone a visit, out of the blue, and for no reason. “Listen, Summer, I want to apologize for how things ended between us. It was terrible and…I really never had a chance to say goodbye.”
“Brandon, there was nothing to say. You chose to hack into the school our senior year. I never asked you to try and change my grades and I certainly didn’t encourage you to change yours. I don’t want anything or anyone like that in my life.” I could feel the anger welling up inside of me like I had that spring before graduation.
“I know, I know. It was my fault. I thought I was helping you. I thought I was helping us, so we could graduate and have a future.” Brandon shook his head as he played with a stick on the ground with his foot. “I’ve barely worked since then. It’s been two years and still no one will hire me. Other than a few freelance jobs here and there…my parents are still upset I didn’t graduate…My life is fucked Summer. Fucked.” Brandon bent down and picked up the stick he had been kicking. “Looks like you’ve been doing well for yourself.” Brandon pointed to the red Mercedes parked at the far end of the lot.
“No. That’s not mine. I’m just borrowing that.” I wondered how he knew I had been driving that car. I wondered whether he had been sitting in the parking lot, watching me.
“Oh yeah…I know all about it. Looks like you landed yourself a sugar daddy.” Brandon chuckled. “A step up from lame old me huh?” Brandon tossed the stick across the grass and wiped his hands together.
“My private life is none of your business Brandon. Is that why you’re here? Have you been following me?” I turned back to the apartment in an effort to end the conversation. “I don’t need this.”
“Summer, you may want to wait for a moment.”
I hesitated and spun around looking at Brandon. I knew whatever he was about to say wouldn’t be something I wanted to hear.
“I started this little company…and I can really use your help. You were always willing to help me back when we dated.”
“Brandon, what we
had
is long over. You almost got me kicked out of school. I’d have no career. I would have never gotten into grad school. I could have lost my internship. I could have lost everything.”
Brandon shook his head and laughed. “I know. I kept my mouth shut. I could have told everyone you knew exactly what was going on…and I didn’t.”
“But I didn’t. I didn’t know a thing.”
“Only you and I knew that…and I could easily do it again. Seems you only have a few months before you graduate. It would be a shame for something to change that.”
“You asshole!” I clenched my fists and held back my desire to swing at him but I knew it was pointless. Brandon was much bigger and strong than me. It was my fault for always chasing the tall, fit and good-looking guys. Too bad this guy ended up with a propensity to cheat in life and at times on me. “What do you want from me?” I barked at him.
Brandon nodded his head and smiled. “That’s better. I saw you on television the other day. You and your man, Chase. Seems he has a little bit of money that he likes to donate.” Brandon raised his eyes as he continued. “As I was saying, I started this little company and could use some
seed
money to get it going. I figured your boyfriend would like to give me a little to start out.”
“Why the hell would Chase want anything to do with you or your company?” I could feel my face growing redder as the anger spilled over.
“Because you’re going to suggest it…and I know just how persuasive you can be when you want something…can’t you Summer?”
I took a step forward as I clenched my jaw tight and squinted my eyes, looking directing into his. “There is no way in hell I would ever do that for you. Never!” I hissed at him.
“No Summer, you will…or you can forget about graduating, at least this semester. But, let’s say that my company somehow lands…let’s say twenty-five thousand in seed money…I’ll disappear without a trace.”
“Have you lost your fucking mind? Why would you ever… how could you…?”
“I’ll be in touch. One word of this
to anyone
and I promise you…you will regret it. Let’s just say I’ve perfected my computer skills a bit. It wouldn’t take much for me to hack into the school, or better yet, Velocity Capital, and release a few secrets.” Brandon smiled at me with a creepy, stalker-like grin and then turned towards the parking lot. “I’ll be in touch Summer.”
I stood speechless as I watched him walk between the cars in the parking lot and disappear. Thoughts raced through my head as I made my way back upstairs to the apartment and found Alyssa sitting on the couch waiting for me.
“Who was that? He was kind of cute. Are you cheating on Chase?”
“
That
was Brandon Porter, my ex.”
“You mean
the Brandon
? Like the one that almost got you kicked out of school Brandon. Why was he here?”
I bit my lip as I debated what exactly I should tell Alyssa. I knew what Brandon was capable of and now wasn’t the time to play games. I needed a plan first. “He was just in town visiting some friends. He wanted to say hi and he was wondering whether there was some slim chance I had something of his he had given me while we dated.” I quickly looked away from Alyssa so the lie may not seem as obvious.
“Really? And he’s asking for it what, two years later?”
“That’s exactly what I told him.” I looked at Alyssa and it was obvious she didn’t believe my story, but I was sticking to it. “I think I’m going to take a nap and then study.”
I headed to my room, shut the door and collapsed on the bed. My perfect life was about to fall apart.