Trying to Survive (The Kiser #1) (9 page)

    
“Neither have I.
 
I wonder where
he works.”
 
I couldn’t think about it
anymore.
 
My head was throbbing and I
just wanted to sleep.
 
I must have nodded
off because the next time I opened my eyes it was dark outside.
 
Looking around, I was alone so I thought I’d
try to get up.
 
I really needed a
shower.
 

    
Throwing my legs over the side of the bed, I pushed my body up to a
sitting position.
 
The room spun around
so I sat still letting it right itself before trying to move again.
 
I slowly made my way to the bathroom, which
went much better than the last attempt.
 
Holding on to the sink, I peered at myself in the mirror.
 
Still slightly swollen, I touched my eye and
then winched at the tenderness of it.
 
Half of my face was dark purple from the bruising.
 
I also sported several cuts and one
laceration that five stitches held together.
 
Running my hand through my hair, it dawned on me that there was no blood…
anywhere, not even in my hair.
 
The
mystery woman must have bathe me.
 
Great, more pictures.

    
Turning on and stepping in the hot shower, I couldn’t help the moan that
escaped my lips.
 
The water felt good on
my sore body.
 
I just stood there and let
it run down me before finally washing.
 
Drying
off, I found my pajama bottoms and even though I felt exhausted again, I was
determined to sit up for a while.
 
I
found Matt on the couch watching TV.

    
“Well, you look better.
 
Still
look like shit, but better shit.”
 
He
laughed.
 
Asshole!

    
“Thank you.”
 
I said with a grimace.

    
“That chick has called you several times today.
 
Your mothers called twice.
 
The last time I told her you was hurt and had
been unconscious for the last three days.
 
She of course didn’t believe me, called me a liar and hung up.”
 
Matt sat there with his feet propped on the
coffee table eating popcorn.
 
He never
did care what mother thought of him.

    
“What did you tell Cruella?”
  
I slowly
lowered myself down in the recliner.
 
It
felt good to be up.

    
“That chick is mean.
 
You need to
watch out for her.
 
I answered your phone
and she threatened me if I didn’t put you on.
 
I told her you were sleeping but I figured it was none of her business.
 
Speaking of which, what the hell happened to
you?’

    
“The only thing I remember was coming out of the bar.
 
I had my cell and was about to call Seth when
someone grabbed me and dragged me down the alley.
 
I know there were at least three of them.
 
I vaguely remember the hospital or wherever
it was, but not much else.”

    
“You should have known better to go out by yourself.
 
You’re well known, especially being voted the
most eligible bachelor in New York and someone probably targeted you when they
noticed you were alone.
 
Probably thought
it would be easy money.
 
Hell, your watch
was worth a small fortune.”

    
He was right.
 
I have been living
so careless that I opened myself up to this kind of attack.
 
I was a millionaire and had everything I
could possibly need and want, and after the magazine that came out last year
proclaiming me the most eligible bachelor, my life had become more public.
 
Only my parents could destroy me with their
influence and connections. I was thirty-five years old, and it was time to
start acting like it.
 
I was fit, but I
wasn’t twenty-two anymore.
 
“You’re right
Matt.
 
This has certainly opened my eyes
and I think I need to hire a bodyguard.”

    
“Finally!
 
I’ve been telling you
that for years.”
 
And he had.
 
I only took dates to social events and went
to clubs with Matt and Dave.
  
I spent
the rest of my time working.
 
Matt had
talked to me repeatedly about the need for a bodyguard, stating that I was
worth too much to take a chance going off by myself.
 
I always felt I could defend myself but I
guess I was wrong.

    
“I’ll set up interviews as soon as I’m better.”
 
Leaning my head back, I closed my eyes.

Heading
Home!

    
As the plane took off, I looked out the window as I left New York
behind.
 
Leaning my head back, I closed
my eyes.
 
I felt so exhausted and my
coughing was now much worse. Not that my mystery man would have noticed,
thankfully. He had spent three days healing and sleeping which I was glad.
 
On normal days, I could clear my lungs out
and not really cough much during the day.
 
I was able to keep my disease hidden very well that way.
 
I really hated coughing all the time because
I usually got looks from people, the kind that said,
stay away from her or you might
catch
something
.
 
When I coughed like that,
people would never believe that they couldn’t ever catch anything from me, but
I could catch everything from them.
 
Their cold was my pneumonia.
 
However, here I sit coughing and getting the dreaded stares.
 
I just wanted to be home.

    
Walking off the plane, I heard the sweetest voice.
 
“Mom, over here.”
 
I looked up to see a smiling Austin.
 
Walking over to him, he immediately took my
bag and wrapped his other arm around me.
 
Looking down in to my face, his smile faded.
 
“You don’t look so good.”
 
I just smiled, I didn’t feel good.

    
“Well, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”
 
I leaned in to him as we walked out of the small airport.
 
He led me to his jeep, and after climbing in,
we headed home.

    
“How was your trip?”
 
He asked,
grabbing my hand as he drove us.

    
Thinking about his question, I burst out laughing.
 
He looked at me curiously when I said, “I
don’t know.”

    
“What do you mean you don’t know?”

    
I preceded to tell him everything that happened.
 
“Megan and I had a great time but half way into
our trip she had to leave.
 
Her mom had a
heart attack and she wouldn’t let come back with her.
 
So one night after seeing a comedy show, I
was walking to my hotel and heard a man call out.
 
He was badly hurt and I couldn’t just leave
him.
 
He looked like he might not
live.
 
I ended up taking him to the
clinic and taking care of him for three days.
 
He just woke up this morning and I called his friend for him.”

    
“You’re fucking kidding me right?”
 
I turned, surprised by the anger in his voice.

    
“Watch you language.”
 
I said with
my stern mother voice.

    
“You were on vacation.
 
Why didn’t
you just call an ambulance?
 
Grandma and
Grandpa paid for you to have a good time but instead you spent it taking care
of someone else and now you’re sick.”
 
Why didn’t I call an ambulance
?
 
I asked myself, but I already knew the
answer.
 
Calling an ambulance never even
entered my mind because I didn’t want him to be alone, and he would have been
because he wasn’t awake.

    
Sighing, I patted his hand, “I’m glad I’m back, I’ve missed you.”
 
We drove in silence for a while before I
asked, “How was New Year’s Eve?”
 
I saw
his mouth tip up in a half smile.

    
“It was good.”

    
“Just good?
 
Come on.
 
Tell me.”

    
“It’s nothing really, I just went to the party with Kaitlyn and we
brought the New Year in together.”

    
“Really? How?”
 
I said with a
mischievous smile.
 
I absolutely loved
embarrassing him, and he secretly loved it too.

    
“Mom!”
 
He turned a nice shade of
red and I laughed.

    
“Please tell me you used protection.”
 
I wasn’t stupid, he’s eighteen and I refuse to be one of those mother’s
that think their sons are saints.

    
“Mom, please.”
 
He begged with a
slight smile.

    
“Well, I’m waiting.”

    
“Yes.
 
Are you happy now?
 
I swear you’re so weird!”
 
He burst out laughing but retained his shade
of red.

    
“Huh, I guess you’re glad that I spent the holiday in New York.”

 
   
He slid his eyes sideways as he
said, “I’m glad you’re home.”

    
“Me to honey.”
 
A few minutes
passed, and my grin returned.
 
“
Sooo
,” I said slowly, “Did you enjoy it?”

    
“STOP!
 
I am so not talking about
my sex life with my mother!”
 
Laughing,
we continued the rest of the ride home in a comfortable silence.

    
Arriving home, I couldn’t wait to run a hot bath and have a glass of
wine while soaking and reading my kindle.
 
Just relaxing.
 
I felt terrible
but hopefully it wasn’t anything that a couple of days rest couldn’t fix.
 

    
Undressing, I climbed into the hot bath and let out a sigh of relief as
the past few days replayed in my head.
 
Not knowing anything about him, I would never know if he was okay or
not, however, he did seem much better before I left.

    
An hour later, I found myself dressed and heading to the living
room.
 
Austin was on the couch watching
reruns so I joined him.
 
He wrapped his
arm around me as we sat in a comfortable silence.

    
“You know I just like embarrassing you, but I’ll stop if you want me
to.
 
You’re eighteen and I’m proud of the
man you’ve become.”
 
I said without
looking at him.
 

    
Never taking his eyes from the TV, he said, “I know, and I don’t want
you to stop.
 
It’s one of the many things
I love about you.
 
My friends don’t have
this type of open relationship with their parents.”
 
Smiling, I snuggled into his side.
 
I knew that with him being older, we were
sliding in to the role of friends even though I would always be his mother.
 
Two or three years ago, I never would have
joked or embarrassed him about sex.
 
We
sat there together for another hour and then I had to take my medicine and go
to bed.

****

    
One week turned in to two and then three.
 
We were back to our normal routine.
 
I took walks every morning while he went to
school.
 
One day, I had just sat down to
eat an early lunch when I received an odd text.
 
Good morning
Carlana
.
  
Checking my phone, I didn’t recognize the
number, or even the area code.
 
My hand
hesitated before I typed
Good morning.
 
I waited for another text but when
one never came, I slipped my phone into my pocket.
 
No one ever called me by my full name.
 
How strange.

Who
was that Woman?

    
A week after New Year’s, I kept wondering when I would hear from the
woman who I knew would blackmail me.
 
I
felt better, actually having some strength back.
 
Matt stayed with me for a couple of days
making sure I could take care of myself.
 
Getting off the pain medicine had certainly helped.
 
Mother had called every day but I refused to
answer the phone.
 
Matt had told her what
had happened but she refused to believe him.
 
Maria had also called but I ignored her as well.

    
Making myself a cup of coffee, someone rang the doorbell.
 
Thinking it was Matt, I opened it only to
find my mother standing there with irritation on her face.
 
She took one look at me, her eyes grew wide,
and her mouth gaped open.
 
“What happened
to you?”

    
“I thought Matt told you and you called him a liar?”
 
She smashed her lips together and walked
in.
 
I turned so she didn’t plow me over.
 
Walking over to my recliner, I sat down and
put my feet up.

    
“What happened to you?”
 
She
actually sounded concerned. How strange.
 
My mother has never cared about anything or anyone but herself.

    
“I was mugged.”
 
I said
nonchalantly.

    
“And they did that?
 
Why didn’t
you just give them what they wanted and save yourself all of this pain?”
 
She said it more as a lecture, or maybe like
I was stupid.
 
Now this is the mother I
knew and hated.

    
Rolling my eyes, I said, “Because they didn’t give me a chance.
 
They beat the shit out of me and just took
everything.”
 
I took a sip of coffee
while realizing that I didn’t offer her any.
 
Oh well.

    
“Well, you should have called Maria.
 
Poor thing waited by herself for you to show up.
 
She was humiliated.”
 
Seriously,
she is more worried about poor Maria than me?
I clenched my teeth together
so I didn’t snap at her, she just continued on.
 
“I assured her that something must be wrong.
 
That you would never do something like this
on purpose and that you would take her out when you felt better.”

    
Closing my eyes, I finally said, “Leave mother.”

    
“I will not!
 
I’m your mother and
we need to settle this!”
 
She huffed.

    
“Fine.
 
If you like Maria so much,
you go out with her.”
 
After the last few
weeks, I had all that I could stand.
 
This had to stop.

    
“Don’t be ridiculous!”
 
She said
as she waved the thought away.
 
Mother
truly was clueless, thinking she would always get her way.

    
“I’m not.
 
I don’t know this girl,
but more importantly, I. don’t. Like. Her!”

    
“We need her in this family; her family has the right connections.
 
Don’t forget, we can break you.
 
All your father has to do is put the word out
that he will not do business with anyone who does business with you.”
 
She smiled triumphal and I thought I might be
sick.
 
I had seen him ruin many companies
with that simple statement.

    
“Whatever, you can go now.”
 
With
one last stern look, she let herself out the front door.
 

    
I went over to the bar and poured myself a stout whiskey, then downed it
in one drink.
 
The more I was around that
woman the more I think I actually did hate her.

    
Two weeks past and I had not heard anything from my mystery woman,
however I did answer when an unfamiliar number showed up, thinking it might be
her.
 
Shaking my head, I remembered the
awkward conversation two days ago.
 

  
  
“Speak.”
  
I answered after getting out of the shower.

    
“Colin, its Maria.
 
Your mother
told me you had been injured in a mugging.
 
Are you okay?”
 
She asked with her
irritating, whinny voice.

    
Gritting my teeth at the fake concern, “I’m fine.”
 
I said as I looked through the dresser drawers
for a pair of sleep pants.

    
“Well good then.
 
I called to ask
if you could accompany me to dinner this Saturday?”
 
She asked, sounding very normal now.

    
“Why?”
 

    
“What do you mean
Why
?”
 
She asked and I wanted to tell her to fuck
off!
 
Actually I wanted to tell her, my
mother and my father to just fuck the hell off!

    
“You don’t know me.
 
I stood you
up at the Gala, although unintentional, so yeah, why?”

   
 
“Well, my parents want me to have
dinner with them and I would like you to join me.”

    
Thinking of my mother, and needing to make amends, I ground my teeth and
said, “Fine.”

    
“Good, you can pick me up at six.”
 
 
She hung up on me and I cursed.
 
Shaking myself from the memory, I realized
the doorbell was ringing…again.
  
God, I hope it’s not my bitch of a mother.
 
Opening the door, I found Matt standing
there.
 
Thank God!

    
“What’s wrong with you?”
  
He
asked, walking past me as he came in.

    
“Nothing.
 
I’m just tired of
someone else pulling my strings.”

    
“Your mother.”
 
He said dryly and
I just nodded.
 
“She’s a bitch and the
best thing you can do is get away from her.
 
I’m telling you dude, she’ll eat your soul.”
 
Matt said with such concern I had to smile.

    
“I’m also going out with Maria tomorrow.”
 
Matt stared at me with disbelief.

    
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
 
He
asked, but I shook my head.
 
“Damn!
 
I know I gave you hell for your lifestyle, but
you need to get laid.
 
I think I prefer
you that way instead of whipped by your old lady.”

 
   
“I’m not whipped!
 
I just have to play along until I come up with
a solution.”

    
“Maybe after tomorrow Cruella will realize you’re not interested and
move on especially if you act like your asshole self.”
 
He laughed at his own joke and it did make me
smile.
 
“Another thing, have you heard
anything from the woman that took care of you?” I shook my head and Matt let
out a sigh.
 
“Do you think she’s still
going to blackmail you?”

    
“I don’t know.”
  
I thought about
her every day.
 
It was unusual for anyone
to show kindness and it was hard to believe that she spent three days of her
vacation taking care of a complete stranger without asking for something in
return.
 
“I’ve been thinking of visiting
the clinic to see if I can find out any information.
 
Someone had to pay the bill and buy my pain
meds so maybe I can find out something.”

    
“Good idea.”
 
He grabbed the
remote and turned on the ballgame.
 
That
was the thing about Matt, he said what he wanted to and then let it go.
 
Conversation forgotten, at least for now.

    
Dressed in my charcoal Armani suit, I showed up at Cruella’s at 6 pm
sharp in my Aston Martin.
 
I have got to stop calling her that or it
will slip past my tongue one day.
 
Shaking my head, I walked up to the door, but before I could knock, she
walked out wearing a red mini-length dress. It had a sharp crisscross detailing
the bodice, and long lace sleeves with a sweetheart neckline that made her body
look stunning, but her severe bun and sharp features killed any lust that arose
from looking at the rest of her.
 
“I’m
ready.”
 
She said as she walked past me.

    
“Good.
 
Where are we going?”
 
I asked, climbing into the driver’s seat.
 
She is sadly mistaken if she thinks I’m
opening her door for her.

    
“We’re meeting them at Davie’s.”
 
I put the car in reverse and headed in that direction.
 
“You really were mugged weren’t you?”
 
What is with everyone not believing
Matt?
 
I may be many things in this life,
but I am not a liar and neither is he.

    
“Yes.”
 
I kept my eyes on the
road, never once looking her direction.

    
“I’m sorry that happened to you and I’m glad you’re okay now.
 
It looks like the bruising is almost
gone.”
 
She sounded sincere, but I
wouldn’t be swayed so easily.

    
“Thank you.”
 
What else could I
say?

    
Arriving at Davie’s, the hostess greeted us but never once looked at
Maria.
 
“Good evening Mr. Withers.”
 
She smiled seductively and when Maria
stiffened her back, I couldn’t help my beaming smile.

    
“Good evening,” I looked at her nametag, “Mary” I said and then
winked.
 
She giggled.

    
Maria pushed me to the side and glared at the poor girl.
 
“We have reservations.
 
It’s under the name Silverman.”
 
The hostess pulled her eyes from mine, and
when they landed on Maria her smile quickly faded.

    
“Yes ma’am, right this way.”
  
She
turned, leading us to a table where Adele and Bod, Maria’s parents, waited for
us.
 

    
That night I lay in bed thinking about the evening.
 
Maria and her family may have social
standing, but they were a greedy bunch.
 
All evening they asked me questions about my home, where I lived, how
much money I made and what my plans were for the future.
 
I avoided most of them, thoroughly pissing
Maria off by the end of the so-called
date
,
but I didn’t care.
 
When I took her home
that night, I didn’t kiss her goodbye or walk her to the door.
 
I needed a solution out of this mess and
fast.

****

    
Sitting down as Betty brought me a coffee, Matt asked, “How did it go
last night?”
 
He took a sip of his own
coffee.

    
“It went.”
 
I replied, dryly.

    
“Are you going to see her again?”
 

    
“Not if I can help it.”
 
Betty set
the pancakes in front of me and I dug in, as did Matt.

    
“What’s your plan?”
 
He asked in
between bites.

   
 
Sighing, I swallowed my bite of
pancake and washed the rest of it down with a sip of coffee.
 
“I’m not sure.
 
I have to take a good look at my clients and
see which ones do business with my old man.
 
I’ve thought about talking to Ellis and seeing if he could help me
out.
 
I’ve also considered moving some
money around so it isn’t associated with the company.
 
I just can’t decide which way to go right
now.
 
I do know that I have to pretend to
date Maria so my mother won’t suspect anything.”

    
Matt stared at me and then did a low whistle.
 
“Would you really talk to Ellis?”