Aspen
THE NEXT MONDAY afternoon, I clocked out after finishing a short shift at Common Grounds, untying and hanging up my apron. I’d already taken my only class of the day in the morning, so I was free for now.
The fall air was cool and brisk, but the sun was still nice and warm.
It was a perfect day to walk around by myself, maybe on the boardwalk or the beach.
I was afraid if I went back home to my dorm, Ren or Che or someone else would want to talk or hang out.
Even though I’d spent all of Sunday holed up in my room writing a paper for my business ethics class, I needed more alone time.
I wasn’t an introvert by nature, but… I had a lot on my mind.
Saturday night, the night of the GSA club’s banger rave, had really thrown my brain for a loop; a loop I couldn’t seem to crawl my way out of.
It wasn’t just the fact that I’d ended up letting Caelyx fucking Vane reach into my pants and jerk me off while he’d humped me like a horny golden retriever, it was also the fact that he’d made me come twice.
Twice, in like five fucking minutes. He didn’t seem to know or understand what my other hookups had been like, which was definitely a good thing, or I knew he’d be a complete egomaniac about it.
I was sort of shocked he hadn’t announced it to the whole party the second we’d sauntered back into the crowd.
If anything, just because he’d find it funny to embarrass me.
But he hadn’t, and no one had brought it up, so I was pretty sure that for now, he was being mature about it.
I wasn’t sure how long I could expect that.
Maturity and grace weren’t exactly the traits Caelyx was most renowned for.
But if he found out that he was the only one that I’d…
No, I wasn’t ready to unpack that yet, even in the privacy of my own head.
I could blame it all on a bout of temporary insanity if I really wanted to be a coward, but the saddest lies were the ones we tell ourselves.
I knew why I’d let it happen. I just didn’t want to think about it yet.
And the last thing I wanted was for him to figure it out. Better to just avoid it altogether.
I dug into my pocket to extract my wireless earbuds, ready to drown everyone else out and soak my brain in way-too-loud music, until I felt the presence of someone behind me.
Whirling around, I found myself facing a tall man with a powerful build, an expensive-looking suit tailored perfectly over his broad shoulders.
He looked middle-aged, but his thick waves of blond hair weren’t showing any signs of graying yet.
“Hello,” he greeted me with a smooth voice and a polite grin.
“Uh, hi,” I responded, twisting one earbud in my fingers. “Can I help you?”
“You can, actually,” he said, before adjusting the edge of his sleeve.
His cufflink glimmered in the sun like it was made of real gold as it flickered quickly in and out of my vision.
“There’s a lovely little restaurant just up the block here, if you wouldn’t mind a walk. I’d love to sit and chat with you.”
It was an insane request, but voiced in such a pleasant and calm tone, that I could only stare at him and blink.
“Um… No?” I finally managed to force out some kind of answer, but when I made a move to walk past him, he sidestepped to block my path.
“I’m afraid I must insist, Mr. Davis.”
Anxiety crept up my spine, spreading a chill over my skin. We were on a public street with plenty of other people milling around so I didn’t think he could throw me into the back of a van or anything, but still.
“Do I know you?” I asked, narrowing my eyes as I took a step back and away from him.
I wasn’t above busting into a run to get away, and I’d been putting in plenty of time on the treadmill at the campus gym.
This guy was in pretty good shape, but I didn’t think he could outrun me in his suit and fancy dress shoes.
“Not yet,” he said. “I’ve been waiting for the right time.”
“The right time for what?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“For us to sit and chat,” he repeated his request from before. That gentle and pleasant expression on his handsome face hadn’t remotely faded, and it was clear in his voice and body language that he wasn’t budging on what he wanted, no matter how many times I said no.
“And how do you know my name?”
“You asked if you know me. You didn’t ask if I know you,” he reminded me lightly.
“Now, if you’ll just follow me this way to that restaurant I mentioned.
” He gestured up the block. “It’s a crowded street, Mr. Davis,” he said when I still didn’t move, reminding me that he somehow knew my freaking name.
“And there’ll be plenty of people in the restaurant. There’s no need to be so cautious.”
“And if I say no?” I asked.
An amused grin carved itself across his face as he raised an eyebrow, exposing a set of perfect, pearly teeth. It reminded me of someone, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.
“As I said, I’m afraid I must insist. I’m prepared to follow you for as long as it takes, but I’d prefer if we didn’t waste each other’s time.”
So even though it seemed like the worst idea in the world, I let out a deep sigh and hesitantly allowed him to lead us up the street to a pricey little bistro I’d never even thought about eating at. It looked like it was full of tourists on vacation.
We were seated at a booth in the corner, where the strange man invited me to order whatever I’d like, and asked me to be comfortable and enjoy myself. Did he… Think we were on some kind of twisted date?
“Uh, look,” I couldn’t stop myself from saying, squirming in discomfort even though the booth was padded with a thick cushion. “I don’t know what kind of weird pornos you’ve been watching, but I’m not for sale, okay?”
Obviously amused again, he leaned back a bit, lacing his fingers together on the gleaming table. “I have a wife,” he informed me.
“Yeah, well, my mom has a stove, but she can’t boil water without burning it.”
He chuckled, shaking his head a bit, but didn’t look offended by my assertion. “You’ve got quite a mouth,” he noted. I couldn’t tell if he was put off or endeared by that fact. “I suppose I can see why my son is so smitten with you.”
My stomach sank at his words, my brain immediately solving the mystery of his identity and why he’d been so insistent on talking to me. Shit. He had to be Caelyx’s dad, the billionaire business magnate. And I’d accused him of trying to pay me for sex.
“Awareness dawns,” he observed, but didn’t look any less charmed or amused by my presence than before. “My name is Faulkner Vane.”
He held out a hand across the table, his eyes urging me to shake it, so I did.
His nails were smoothly even and manicured, and a simple gold band shimmered on his ring finger.
The black polish on my nails and rainbow fruit bat I had tattooed on the inside of my wrist looked wild in comparison, but he didn’t seem to notice or care.
“Aspen,” I responded weakly, but he already knew that.
“Wonderful to finally meet you, Aspen,” he said. “We have a lot to discuss.”
Did we? I was pretty sure I already knew what he was going to say to me. I wasn’t a moron. I couldn’t exactly blame him, but he hadn’t needed to drag me into a restaurant to tell me to stay away from his kid. I’d have gotten the message just fine out on the sidewalk.
When the waiter came up and asked for our drink orders, Faulkner ordered a Sauvignon Blanc and I got a Coke, which was swiftly delivered to us.
I didn’t think I could stomach any food, so I didn’t order anything else.
When we were finally alone again, Faulkner tapped a finger against his lips, like he was considering.
“Look, I already know what you’re going to say,” I said, only because the stress of waiting for him to start was making my stomach churn.
“You want me to stay away from Caelyx, right? But the thing is,” I rushed on, hoping I could get enough out that he wouldn’t interrupt me.
“We’re not… I mean, we just work together. And-”
“Stay away from Caelyx?” He cut me off, tilting his head as he assessed me. “I think you should let me explain before we go any further.”
I didn’t think there was any need to explain further, but I zipped my lips and gestured for him to go on. As polite as he seemed, I wasn’t unaware of the fact that this guy could probably call out a hit on me or my whole family without blinking an eye if I didn’t do what he asked.
“See, I’ve been monitoring my son’s behavior since he left,” he started, before going on to explain that Caelyx’s actions during most of the previous year were exactly what he’d expected; self-destructive and lazy.
But then at some point during the previous year, something had changed.
Caelyx had stopped sleeping all day and drinking all night, stopped fucking everything that moves, and actually started applying himself in his classes.
I didn’t know much about any of that, but Faulkner seemed relieved that he’d ended up managing to pass most of his classes and scrape together enough credits that the year hadn’t been a complete waste.
But as far as I knew from what Caelyx had told me about his dad, they hadn’t been in contact since he’d gotten kicked out. So how Faulkner had acquired all this knowledge about Caelyx’s sleep schedule and sex life and GPA… I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.
“And as I’m sure you’re aware, this year has practically been a miracle so far,” he went on.
“He’s doing fine in his classes, and he’s actually working, which is something I thought I’d never see.
Now, I’m sure this goes without saying, Aspen, but you know what the differentiating factor that caused these changes in my son’s priorities is, right? ”