Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
Aubrey
The school day came to an end, and I was exhausted. Ian walked into the room just as I was packing my bag.
“Hello, princess. Are you ready to leave?”
“Yeah.” I sighed.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
He walked over and touched my chin, lifting my head slightly.
“Are you still thinking about him?”
“Maybe. I can’t help it, Ian. He swept me off my feet.”
“Listen, sweetheart. He’s no good for you. You don’t need a man like that, especially with so much baggage in his life. You’re too good for him. You’re a kind, sweet girl who deserves a man who will love you forever. Someone you can trust.”
“You sound like Penelope.”
He laughed. “It’s the truth. Any reasonable person can see that.”
“So you’re saying I’m not reasonable?”
He kissed my forehead and took my bag from me. “No. I’m saying you’re a woman with a broken heart right now, and when your heart heals, you’ll be more reasonable.”
I let out a sigh. “You know I hate you, right?”
“Of course you do. Now, let’s go home. I have a date tonight.”
“A date? With whom, may I ask?”
“His name is Rigby.”
“He sounds like a dog,” I smirked.
“Oh, my dear Aubrey. He’s far from a dog. He’s tall, tanned, dreamy chocolate eyes and the whitest teeth I’ve ever seen.”
“And when did you meet this Mr. Rigby?”
“Last night when I was at Starbucks getting an iced coffee. He was standing in front of me, and when he went to get his wallet, he realized he left it at home. So, being the kind gentleman I am, I paid for his drink.”
“Smooth.” I grinned.
“He only lived a block away, so I followed him home. He paid me back, and we exchanged phone numbers.”
“And why am I just hearing about this now? Why didn’t you tell me this morning?”
“Because I was waiting to see if he’d make the first move, and he did. He texted me this afternoon asking if I wanted to go to dinner.”
“That’s great, Ian. I want to hear all about it tomorrow morning.”
After climbing out of his car, I walked into my building and to my apartment. I was one of the lucky ones with no smoke damage. Walking into the kitchen, I opened the refrigerator and took out the container of last night’s leftovers of chicken and pasta from the Italian restaurant down the street. Just as I popped it into the microwave, my Aunt Charlotte knocked on the door.
“Honey, it’s me. I heard you come home.”
Walking over to the door, I opened it and let her in.
“Hi, Aunt Charlotte.”
“Hello, honey. Is this a bad time?”
“No. Come on in.”
I felt terrible because I never told her that Ethan was the one I stayed with. In fact, I didn’t tell her anything at all about him. As far as she knew, we had dinner that one night, and everything went well. I didn’t want her to tell me how she was right, and I should have listened to her.
“The fire started in Mr. Johnson’s apartment. Apparently, he was making something on the stove and forgot about it. Stupid man. He could have easily burned this place down.”
“But he didn’t, and everyone is okay. So, we need to thank God for that. Would you like some chicken and pasta?” I asked as I took the container out of the microwave.
“No, thank you. I’m having dinner with Mr. Morris tonight.”
“Mr. Morris down in 1C?”
“Yes. That Mr. Morris.”
“He’s been asking you out for a year. Why did you decide to go out with him now?”
“I think it’s time I start to explore what’s out there, and we always have nice conversations. He’s a good man. By the way, speaking of men, have you heard from Ethan?”
“Umm. Yeah. We went out, and there isn’t a connection there, so I probably won’t see him again.”
“Oh. Well, it’s for the best anyway. I already told you how I felt about him. You deserve much better. I need to get going, sweetheart. I have to get ready for my date,” she spoke excitedly.
“Have a good time.” I smiled.
After she left, I sat there and ate dinner while thinking about Ethan. I didn’t want to think about him, trust me. But, somehow and someway, he left his mark on me, and he wasn’t so easy to forget. But I had no choice; I needed to forget about him and our short time together. As much as I didn’t want to allow myself to fall for him, I did. I did everything wrong and everything that was out of character for me. I had sex way too fast, I fell too hard too quickly, and in the end, I let him break my heart. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid on my part.
Now Penelope was seeing Leo, Ian was going on a date, and my Aunt Charlotte was spending time with the guy down in 1C. I felt alone and sorry for myself, thinking that I might never find the right man to build a future with and have a family of my own.