City of Sin - Chapter 51
Mason
I pulled my phone out and looked at it under the table.
I had gotten into a routine the past two weeks.
In the morning, I woke up and fucked Bee.
I went to work all day and tried not to think about her.
And then I came home at night and fucked her again.
It had been the best two weeks of my life.
She had somehow transported me back to high school where I had no control over my erections.
And my dick knew it was time. But instead of being with her, I was at a bar with James and his little brother.
That would normally be fun, but tonight I just wanted to fuck Bee and then curl up on the couch with her and watch whatever was on T.V.
My cell phone screen was blank. She still hadn't texted me. Who worked this late on a Friday night? I slid my phone back into my pocket.
"Dude, you've got it bad." James' little brother, Rob, was visiting from out of town. And he had a tendency to tell it like it was. He had liked pushing my buttons ever since we were kids. But now that we were adults, I couldn't just beat him up whenever he pissed me off.
I laughed. "Yeah, right." I took a sip of my beer and looked away from him.
"Please don't tell me you're going to turn into my brother," Rob said.
"Penny's hot, but she's a little young for me."
James cleared his throat. "Have either of you been following the government shutdown? It really seems like it's going to happen. Without the FCC..."
"No one wants to talk about that," Rob said. "Stop being boring. Back to you." He pointed at me. "This girl has got a hold on you."
"No she doesn't. Give me a break."
"You haven't stopped looking at your phone since you've gotten here."
"Hey!" Matt said and clapped Rob on the back. "It's been forever, man." He sat down next to me and pulled off his jacket. "What did I miss?"
"We were just talking about how Mason is whipped," Rob said.
Matt laughed.
"You're just jealous that I'm getting laid every night," I said.
"I'm fucking rich and I live in a college town," Rob said. "Plus, have you seen me? I get laid all the time." He took a sip of his beer.
I laughed. "Living there was a brilliant idea. I can't even argue with your logic. Do you ever miss it, James?"
"No. I was a professor. I wasn't going out partying, screwing students."
"Just the one student?"
"Yup, just Penny. How many times are you guys going to ask me that?"
"I just don't get it," Matt said. "If you didn't care about keeping your job, you should have nailed as many girls as you could. College girls? Fuck. You really let the ball drop."
"You guys have seen Penny," Rob said. "I get it. I mean...damn."
James laughed. "Yeah, I got the best girl there. Rob can have all my leftovers. Penny is all I need."
Rob frowned. "They're not leftover if you never tapped them."
James shrugged. "I'm going to go get another drink. Anyone else want another beer?"
"No, I'm good," I said. "I can't stay that much longer anyway."
James laughed. "It's too late, Rob. He's already like me."
"Mason, I just got here," Matt said. "Come on, you have to be my wingman. There is a blonde at 9 o'clock that I have to nail."
"I told Bee I'd pick her up once she's done with work."
"Wow, you really are whipped." Matt made the sound of a whip cracking to emphasize his point.
"See!" Rob said. "And he keeps checking his phone. He's like a teenage girl in love."
"I'm just checking the score of the Knicks game," I said. But I wasn't. I wanted Bee to text me. I had been thinking about her all day.
"Every screen in this bar has the Knicks game on," Rob said. "Seriously, what is wrong with you?"
"He's in love," James said and sat down.
"I'm not in love. And what do you even know about it? You're divorced and dating a girl that's barely legal."
"Just because you're in denial doesn't mean you have to be a dick."
"Fine. You're in love. Great. I'm not."
"Yeah you are," Matt said. "You haven't stopped talking about Bee ever since you met her. You're completely infatuated. Rob's right. You're acting like a high school girl with a crush."
"Jesus, why not a high school boy with a crush? You're all crazy." I took a sip of my beer. I wasn't going to turn into some whipped dick. I just needed to stop thinking about Bee for two seconds.
"Oh," James said. "Speaking of Bee, I need her number."
"I thought you already got the girl you wanted from the University of New Castle?"
"Yeah, I did. It's not for me. Penny wants it."
"I don't think them hanging out is a good idea."
"Why?"
I shrugged. "Why does Penny even want to?"
"Because her only other friend from Delaware that's here is a guy. And I'd rather her hang out with your new girlfriend."
"She's not my girlfriend. And it's going to be weird if they're friends if we stop seeing each other."
" If? There you go. Point made," James said.
"That doesn't mean anything."
"You said if, not when. I think it's great, Mason. You don't have to act so defensive."
"I don't," Rob said. "I think it's terrible."
Matt laughed. "I'm just happy she's a poor secretary. Because Mom and Dad are going to be pissed. Not that they aren't already pissed at you."
"She's not going to meet them," I said. "We're just fucking."
"Whatever you say," James said. "I still need her number."
"Yeah, I'm not giving you her number. Tell Penny I'm sorry."
"What is she doing tonight anyway?" Matt asked.
"Studying," James said.
"Has she gotten close to any of her new professors?"
James frowned. "No."
Rob laughed. "I don't know why, but Penny is completely obsessed with this guy." He put his hand on James' shoulder. "Trust me, I've made tons of passes at her, and she always says no."
James pushed Rob's hand off his shoulder.
Matt laughed. "Maybe I should come visit you," he said to Rob. "I feel like I'm the only one who hasn't been with a marketing major from a party school. I must be missing out on something."
"Yes! You should wait till the spring, though. When the skirts come back out. Right now it's all North Face jackets and Uggs."
"Sold."
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I quickly pulled it out and slid my finger across the screen. Bee had finally texted me: "Are you sure you don't want to just meet up tomorrow? I'm so sorry this is taking so long."
I didn't want to wait to see her until tomorrow. I wanted her now. And I refused to let her go back to that dingy little apartment. She didn't belong there. She belonged with me.
"Did she finally text you?" Rob asked.
"I told you, I was just checking the score."
Matt whistled. "Whipped."
I grabbed my coat and stood up. "Whatever. Fuck you guys. I'm gonna go get laid."
James laughed. "Yeah, I'm gonna get going too. The joys of not being single."
Rob groaned. "Lame. I'll be your wingman, Matt. Come on."
"Sounds good to me," Matt said. "Have fun with your girlfriends."
I didn't bother protesting. It didn't matter what they said. I knew it wasn't true. The wind hit me hard on the way out the bar. I was slightly buzzed and overheated inside, but there had to be a wind chill of below zero out here. "Shit it's cold," I said and buttoned up my jacket.
"Let me give you a ride," James said. His car was already waiting for him outside and the driver had just opened his door.
"No, it's fine. I'm just going to take a taxi."
"Her office is on my way. Come on."
"I thought you were going home?" I asked.
"I need to make a stop first."
I shrugged. There weren't any taxis driving by at the moment and it was too cold to stand on the curb waiting. "Yeah, that'll be great." I walked around the side of the car and got in. I used to have a driver. I used to have a lot of things. "So, where are you going?"
"I'm going to go see my parents."
"Are they still refusing to meet Penny?"
James sighed. "I don't even know why she wants to meet them. But I want to give her what she wants. And the fact that I can't is driving me crazy."
"They'll come around."
"Like your parents?"
"My dad will get over it," I said.
"How is the new venture going?"
"Okay. Slower than I wanted."
"I know you always say no, but if you just need some seed money..."
"Thanks, but no thanks." I didn't want his handouts.
He had more money than he knew what to do with.
And I was going to get there too. Without anyone's help.
"I'm more just waiting for the right account.
It needs to be something big if I'm going to quit my job.
" But it wasn't just the account. I was used to living a certain way.
And the money I had from my parents was running out.
Just thinking about it made me feel like I was drowning.
I didn't want to have to crawl back to my parents.
Time was running out and all I was doing recently was hanging out with Bee. What is wrong with me?
"Remember that time you convinced that kid at camp that chocolate was poisonous and he threw it all out?"
I laughed. "Yeah. We got to have s'mores every night for the rest of camp."
"You can convince anyone to do anything. You've got this."
"Yeah." But my mind wasn't on my business. It was on Bee. I was starting to think I wanted her more than I wanted to start my own company.
James pulled an envelope out of his coat pocket. "Here."
"I don't want your money."
"It's not a check."
I took the envelope and opened it up. It was a list of companies with contact info for their C.E.O.'s or lead marketing executives. I looked up at him.
"Some companies I work with that could use fresh ad ideas," James said.
"I can't..."
"Honestly, it would help me too. I own stake in some of them. Use me as a reference when you call them."
For some reason this handout didn't make me feel like shit. He was doing it because he knew I could help. And we had been friends our whole lives. This was better than a check. With one big client, I wouldn't need my side business anymore. I already felt less stressed.
"Thanks, man."
"You're doing me the favor." He smiled and looked out the window of the car.
I wasn't really. But I was glad he was making me feel that way. "I'm glad you're back."
James laughed. "Don't get all sentimental on me."
"Seriously. The city wasn't the same without you.
" James and I had lost touch after college.
He had gotten married to that bitchy ex-wife of his and completely cut me out.
Or maybe I just hadn't tried hard enough to stay friends.
James had been different when he was with Isabella.
Like he was in some weird trance. Maybe he had just been depressed.
If I had known more maybe I would have tried to help him.
I had heard rumors about him falling off the wagon.
But those were just rumors. Besides, now that he had found Penny, it was like we were kids again.
He was back to his old self. And I liked Penny.
She could hang out with all of us and hold her own.
And she was the best at bringing out James' fun side.
Mr. and Mrs. Hunter were the ones missing out, not Penny.
James shrugged. "I was always going to come back. I just needed a break."
"Yeah. Look, I don't actually want Penny to be mad at me. I'll text her Bee's number."
"I was hoping you'd say that. So, if you want to do a double date..."
"Don't push it."
James laughed. "I told her I'd try."
"How did you know with Penny?"
"How did I know what?"
"That it was more than just sex? That you wanted more?"
"I couldn't stop thinking about her. Even before we had sex. She suddenly became all that mattered. It wasn't that I wanted more. I needed more."
I looked out the window. Bee was sweet and innocent and beautiful.
And I was me. I wasn't the type of guy that a girl like Bee would date.
No one would ever get serious with me. But I could feel myself being consumed by her.
Wanting and needing seemed like a fine line.
I couldn't cross that. I wasn't even sure I knew how.
"I think Bee's great," James said.
"I know." I leaned my head back against the seat. "She deserves someone a hell of a lot better than me. I don't even know what the fuck I'm doing. I like my life. I like being single. Maybe Rob is right. I'm losing my mind."
James laughed. "Trust me, Rob is rarely ever right."
The car pulled to a stop outside of Bee's office building.
"Thanks for the ride. Tell Mr. and Mrs. Hunter I said hi."
James laughed. "I will."
"And if they still don't want to meet Penny, tell them to go fuck themselves."
"I might do that too."
I laughed and stepped out of the car.
"Mason?" said James.
I leaned down before closing the door. "Yeah?"
"I think until life gives you something right, it's hard to realize how wrong you've been."
"I'm not you. And Bee isn't Penny."
"I know. You've got it easier than we did. You're not going through a divorce and she's not your student. Just think about it."
"Yeah." I tapped the top of the car. "Have fun at your parents'.
" I closed the door and walked up to Bee's office building.
Until life gives you something right, it's hard to realize how wrong you've been.
There was nothing wrong with my life. But Bee did make it better.
It had been a long time since I had something to look forward to.