Tangled Beauty (11 page)

Reed

After that scene with Sinclair, I knew there was no way
that I was ready for marriage. I decided that after the anniversary party, I would lock up all my breakables and talk to Sela. For now, however, I decided it would be best to stay away from Sinclair and be a little more attentive towards Sela.

I owed her that.

With a sense of relief, I went in search of Sela and found her in a miniscule, pink bikini, lounging next to the outdoor pool.

“Where have you been?” she asked
, frigidly.

“Can’t you tell?” I asked, spreading my arms apart and turning around.

She wrinkled her nose.
“Is that
her
idea of a haircut?”

“What’s wrong with it?” I asked, knowing perfectly well that the only thing wro
ng was the fact that Sinclair had given it to me.

“It’s fine,” she said. “If
you
like it, that’s all that matters.”

I frowned. “It’s a
good, solid trim and it looks the same as it usually does when I have it done. In fact,” I said, running a hand through my hair. “I think she did a better job than my last stylist.”

She stretched her arms, pushing out her breasts. “It’s fine,” she said. “I’ll still let you in my bed.”

I grinned. “You will, huh?”

“Oh, look,” she said, looking beyond me
. “Jack’s coming to join us.”

I turned to see him closing the patio do
or, wearing a white robe and holding, what appeared to be, a large Bloody Mary.

“Hey kids,” he said, smiling
, brightly as he moved towards us..

“Jack,” I said.

“Good morning,” said Sela. “Oh, that looks
so
refreshing,” she said, motioning towards his cocktail.

He stopped and stared down at
Sela. “You want it? I can have Gretchen whip up another one. I told her to keep them coming, anyway.”

Sela
removed her sunglasses and batted her lashes. “Oh, I couldn’t take
yours
.”

“
Of course you could, my dear,” he said, handing it to her. “I insist.”

“Oh, thank you Mr.
Eddington,” she gushed, acting like a flirty, little school girl.

Jack
smiled. “You’re practically my daughter, now,” he said. “
Our
house is your house.”

“Oh, thanks ‘dad
dy’,” she giggled.

“See, I like the sound of that, already,” he said, running a finger over his
mustache.

“
So,” I interrupted, feeling a little pissed off at the way the asshole was gawking at Sela’s body. “Get a good night’s sleep Jack?”

H
e removed his robe, revealing skinny limbs and a fleshy belly. “Marvelous,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “In fact, I’m so refreshed that I’ve decided to do some laps in the pool, this morning, before they start preparing the house for tonight’s party.”

“Good idea,” I said.

He swung his arms around, stretching them out, and then dove into the deep end of the water.

I turned to
Sela. “So, I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” I said. “I have some errands to run. Unless, you’d like to tag along?”

She took a sip of her drink and then set it down next to her
. “No, I think I’ll just hang out at the pool for a few hours,” she said, pulling at her bikini bottoms. “Work on this tan.”

“Okay, call me if you need anything,” I said,
bending down and kissing her on the cheek.

“Okay,” she sai
d, grabbing her tanning oil, “could you do me a favor and put some of this on my back, first?”

“Sure.”

She turned over onto her stomach and untied her bikini top.

I poured some oil into my palms and proceeded to rub it over her shoulders and down her back. As she sighed in approval, I
thought of Sinclair, wishing it was her skin that I was running my hands over.

“If you’d like to continue this inside
,” purred Sela. “I’ll let you oil my front, too.”

I stood up and chuckled. “W
ish I could, but I need to pickup Jack and Mimi’s gift.”

“Okay.
Maybe later?”

“If there’s time
,” I said, looking at my watch.

“If there’s time?” she repeated
, raising her eyebrows.

“Don’t wo
rry,” I said, sensing a tantrum brewing. “I’m sure there will be.”

“Hurry back, then,” she said, grabbing her
iPod.

I glanced towards Jack who was still engrossed in his laps, then walked
back towards the house, wondering which was more unsettling- leaving Sela alone with Jack or my new obsession with Sinclair. 

Sinclair

“That’s the one,” nodded Jesse, a look of approval on his face. “That
dress is sinful, it’s over the top, it fucking
rocks
. In fact, I think it could end some perfectly stable marriages.”

I turned to
wards him and pulled at the front. “You don’t think it’s too revealing?”

He glanced at my
very exposed cleavage. “Oh, no… you’ll be over-dressed to some people’s standards at tonight’s soiree. Remember, there will be musicians, actors, and more skanky, anorexic models.”

I stared at myself in the mirror at
this swanky, upscale, dress store called Dolce’s. The average outfit cost well over one thousand dollars and the red, chiffon gown I currently had on, was triple that price. I had to admit, however, I liked how it hugged my body and the way my leg peaked out from the slit on the side.

“You sure you want to pay this much?” I asked
, looking at the tag again.

He stood up
and put his arm around me. “Yes, sweetie,” he whispered in my ear. “I only ask that you let me borrow it from you, someday.”

My eyebrows shot up.

He put his hands on his hips. “Don’t look at me like that, Sin. You know I’d rock that dress.”

“I
’m sure but…I never knew you…” 

He smiled
, wickedly. “Oh there are many things you don’t know, sweetheart.”

I giggled.
“Oh, you are wild and dirty, aren’t you?”

He let out a playful growl
. “You have no freakin’ idea.”

***

We purchased the dress along with a pair of sexy black heels and then went out for lunch at a cozy restaurant along Huntington Beach.

“So, what do you think of my family, so far?” asked Jesse after finishing a
peanut-butter-and-banana-Panini sandwich.

“
Well, your mom is definitely old fashioned and set in her ways,” I said. “Which I can see why you wouldn’t want to tell her you’re gay.”

He laughed. “Could you imagine? She’d lock herself in her room with a bottle of valium and never come out.”

I chuckled. “Definitely. But, what about your dad? I mean, he must work with a lot of gay people. I’m sure he’d be much more understanding.”

Jesse sighed. “You’d think, huh? The fact is
that I’ve heard him bash gays, minorities, and women with small breasts. He’s a total dickhead and frankly, I’m ashamed he’s blood-related.”

“That’s too bad,” I said.

“Not only that, he’s cheated on my mother more times than I can count. She’s a prude and annoying as hell most of the time, but she doesn’t deserve to get shit on by him.”

“I heard about that,” I said, taking a last bite of my salad.
“It’s a shame.”

“Reed
, told you?”

I nodded and took a sip of my Chardonnay. “It’s too bad. Why doesn’t she just leave him?”

“That is the question, isn’t it?” interrupted a deep voice behind me.

“What
- did Sela let you out of your cage?” laughed Jesse.

He smirked.
“No, she forgot to lock it.”

“Sit down,” said Jesse. “Join us.”

Reed sat down next to me. When his leg brushed mine, my skin felt like it was on fire.

“Thanks, I saw your car outside as I was driving back to the house,” he said. “I hope I’
m not interrupting anything?”

“No, not at all,” said Jesse, pulling out his phone, which was ringing. He looked at it and then
at me. “It’s Alex. Please, excuse me for a minute. I’m going to take this outside.”

“Sure,” I said.

The waitress showed up just as Jesse walked away. Reed ordered a beer and a bacon cheeseburger with fries and then moved across from me.

“What, do I smell funny?” I joked.

He grinned. “Not at all. I just don’t trust myself sitting close to you.”

I blushed and took another sip of wine.

“Hey,” he said, reaching out to touch my hand. “I’m sorry about this morning. I mean, I am and I’m not.”

I pulled my hand away from his
. “You should be. What about Sela?”

He s
at back and rubbed his chin. “You’re right, it was shitty.”

“Yes.
Well, I’m really sorry too,” I said, looking out the window. “I should have pushed you away, sooner.”

“I’m hard to resist,” he chuckled.

I shook my head and laughed. “Right…”

“Seriously, though,
” he said, “lets’ just pretend that it never happened.”

I nodded
. “Sounds good to me.”

“Sinclair,
I just want you to know something, though,” he said, looking into my eyes. “I’m not normally
that
guy.”

“
That
guy?”

“
The kind who fucks around. What happened back in your room, it wasn’t right and it probably shouldn’t have happened but…”

I blinked, waiting for him to continue.
“What?”

With a seductive curve of his lips he said,
“It was pretty fucking amazing.”

Hell yeah,
and thinking about it made me squirmy. The way he was undressing me with his eyes didn’t help matters, either.

“It was,” I whispered.

We stared at each other in silence and then the waitress brought him his beer.

“So, excited about the party tonight?” I asked, trying to change the subject.

He smiled humorlessly. “Not really. I hate hobnobbing with the rich and famous. Most of them are so shallow and plastic.”

Which sounded
like his fiancé,

“Not your thing, huh?”
I asked.

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s interesting to sit along the sidelines and watch the game when you’re not a player.”

“You’re just a fan?”

“I’m more like the person dragged to the game and forced to watch. My parents know some pretty crazy people and I have a feeling tonight is going to be nuts.”

“Well, considering my life is pretty boring, I’m looking forward to a little craziness.”

“That’s a shame,” he said, his eyes darkening. “I would think that Jesse would make it his mission to keep you from being bored. I know I would.”

“He, um… he works a lot.”

He drummed his knuckles
on the table and sighed. “I’m also guilty as charged.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Jesse coming towards us and relaxed.
Reed made me nervous, tense, and incredibly horny. I still didn’t quite trust myself around him, either. “Speak of the devil,” I said.

“You okay?” asked Reed as Jesse sat down next to me.

“Just some problems at work,” he said, glancing my way. From the serious look on his face, it was clear that Alex was being difficult.

“You don’t have to
check in at work this weekend, do you?” I asked.

He smiled, bitterly. “No, in fact, I think I may have just lost my job.”

“Oh no,” I said, grabbing his hand. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah.”

His eyes filled with tears and my heart went out to him. I squeezed his hand. “It will be okay, Jesse. It will.”

He look
ed away. “Right.”

“Shit, you’ll find a new job in no-time,” said Reed. “I
have connections all over. I’m sure we can get you another position by the end of the week.”

Jesse turned to me,
his face distraught. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to get back to the house, to figure things out.”