Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
Kinsley
Rolling my eyes, I finished the amazing food that was on my plate and then mixed and mingled with people from the office.
Maybe I was a little harsh by calling him a walking STD.
I shouldn’t have said that, but he made me mad when he commented about my talking to Jarrod.
Who the hell did he think he was? I took in a deep, cleansing breath.
I wasn’t going to let the likes of Chase Calloway affect me anymore.
I was talking to Lexi and Ben when I looked over and saw Chase surrounded by a group of girls. He was laughing, smiling, and really enjoying himself. The one thing he said that caught my attention was how he could care less about wanting to get to know someone. I wondered why that was.
“Hey, Lexi. Can I ask you something about Chase?”
“Sure. What do you want to know?”
“He told me that I should be flattered that he wants to get to know me because he generally could care less about getting to know someone. Why?”
“Well.” Her brow arched. “He loves women for what they can give him, and what they can give him is sex. That’s all he cares about.
God, I feel awful for talking about him like that because he truly is an amazing guy and friend.
He’d give you the shirt off his back if you needed it.
He just doesn’t care to get to know the women he sleeps with. ”
“So, you’re saying that he pretty much just has meaningless sex with them, and that’s it?”
“Yes. To Chase, sex is just sex. It has no emotional meaning or attachment.”
“When was the last time he was in a relationship?” I asked out of curiosity.
“He’s never been in a relationship.”
“What?” I laughed. “That’s impossible.”
“Chase has a lot of issues stemming from his childhood. He doesn’t believe in relationships, and sometimes he makes it difficult for those in them because he loves to voice his opinion.”
“I see.” I glanced over at him on the sand, still surrounded by women. “I can kind of see his point.” I lightly smiled. “After what I witnessed with my ex, it’ll be a long time before I trust another man again.”
“You never did tell me what happened.” She took a sip of her wine.
“We dated for a little over a year. He was the reason why I didn’t move out here sooner. I walked in on him and my best friend in bed together.”
“Oh. I’m sorry.” She placed her hand on my arm.
“Don’t be. He told me it meant nothing, and now I realize it was the best thing to have happened.”
“I can totally understand why you’re staying away from guys, and I don’t blame you one bit. Trusting someone after that is hard.”
“Yeah, it is. And I’ll never make the mistake of putting my life on hold for someone else.”
The sun was starting to set and, it was such an amazing sight. I saw Chase standing by the water alone, gazing out at the sunset, so I decided to walk over to him.
“It’s beautiful,” I spoke.
“It sure is. This is something I will never get tired of seeing.”
I glanced over at him as he stood there with his hands tucked into the pockets of his shorts.
“Chase, I’m sorry for calling you a walking STD. I didn’t mean it.”
“Nah. It’s fine. You don’t have to apologize.”
“I do. And again, I’m sorry.”
“Apology accepted.” He smiled as he glanced at me. “Are you liking it in California so far?”
“Actually, I love it.” I grinned.
“Chase! We need one more person on our team for volleyball. Come play with us!” a girl in a teeny-weeny bikini shouted.
“I’ll be right there, darling,” he shouted back. “They need me.”
“Then you better not disappoint them.”
“Do you want to play? I’m sure we could squeeze you in.”
“Nah.” I waved my hand. “You go ahead.”
“Okay. We’ll talk later?”
“Yeah. Later.” I smiled.
He walked away, and I stared into the vast open water.
I couldn’t stop thinking about what Lexi said and how Chase had many issues stemming from his childhood.
Who didn’t? I remember her telling me when we first met that his mother was a whole other story, and she wasn’t around when he was a child.
If anyone could relate, it would be me. But somehow, I didn’t think I was as fucked up as he was.
All this thinking brought back the memories I had buried so long ago.
Memories I wanted to pretend never existed.
I needed a drink, so I walked to the bar and ordered a shot of tequila, downed it, and ordered another one.
“Look at you, Kinsley Davis.” Chase smiled as he walked over to the bar. “I didn’t think small-town girls did shots.”
“This one does.” I pointed to myself.
“Well, good for you, letting your wild side out. I’ll have what she’s having.” He grinned at the bartender.
Chase and I stood there, doing shot after shot. Soon others joined us. I was having the time of my life, laughing, dancing, and having ridiculous conversations. For the first time in my life, I let loose, lived in the present moment, and did what I wanted to do without worrying about anyone else.