Chapter Eleven
Aila
I stand soaking my skin in the shower for a long time.
Amazingly enough, showering was not at the top of my list when I came back to the inn. Heading straight to the kitchen, I found all the breakfast stuff—croissants, muffins, yogurt, and fruit—and ate as much of it as I could stomach.
After washing everything down with some orange juice, I started feeling human again.
Trying to piece together fragments of memory is perplexing. Something is missing from my idyllic interlude in the shady grotto with my Midnight Rider.
One thing sticks in my mind. Theron told me he loves me. Hesitantly, I touch myself between my thighs as the shower water beats down on my head. I am still engorged; my pussy is swollen and thirsty for more.
He said it. That much is true.
Oh, Aila. I love this. I love you.
Should I take those words at face value? Something said in the spur of the moment as the blood made his thick cock heavy, causing the veins to strain against the thin sheath as the muscles flexed all those inches?
No, that’s not what my memory is cloudy about.
And instead of being embarrassed about his amorous declaration, Theron doubled down! Asking me if I felt the same way, followed by a disapproving furrow deepening his brow.
It feels like some kind of relentless pursuit. I can’t remember getting dressed afterwards, and when I stripped off my clothes for this shower, I’d found my panties gone and my body stripped of spunk and sex juices.
Shutting off the faucet with a snap, I go back to the room. It’s clear that my mom left early this morning and hasn’t come back. Her beach bag full of sunscreen and lip balm is gone.
Everything seems to be happening so fast. It feels as though I am being corralled into making a very important decision before the rest of the holidaymakers arrive.
Mom meets a nice, eligible man. Check.
We get jobs and a roof over our heads. Check.
Theron and I hook up and pair off. Check. Check.
I feel pressured to tell him I love him back. But I can’t. That part of me is sealed off.
Ugh. I hate feeling like this. I’m no angel, but Theron seems intent on putting me up on a pedestal. I despise putting people into categories. Bad girl. Cool girl. Manic pixie dream girl.
Anyone who accepts a label will spend the rest of their life trying to stay in character. Just like my mom.
I bet some early version of a long-term boyfriend told Amelia O’Hara that she was born to be a stay-at-home mom and housewife with a man who brought home the bacon. Because she damn well sure spent the rest of her life trying to be that.
Sitting in front of the dresser mirror, I run my fingers through my wet hair and stare at my face. Just my bad luck to attract a man who looks friendly on the outside while the inside hides his hunter instincts.
The reflection in the mirror shows me that the doorknob is turning. Gasping, I swivel around as the door opens.
“Mom! Jesus. You scared the crap out of me. Did Ben turn in early?”
I don’t need a crystal ball to tell me that Mom is pissed. Straddling the chair so I can face her, I wait for my mother’s anger to fall on me like molten lava.
“What happened up at La Pas? Did you meet that biker there? Is he the reason why you wanted Si to hire a doorman?”
“Take a chill pill, Mom. It’s like I told you. Some barfly got handsy with me in the parking lot. If it hadn’t been for—”
I was going to say “my ability to show a man when no means no,” but something stops me. Sure, I fought as hard as I could to free my wrists from Belt Buckle’s vice-like grip, but I wasn’t getting anywhere. Then the man vanished as if he had stepped into a vortex.
Did Theron have anything to do with that? There was no way Belt Buckle would have apologized by leaving two grand blowing in the parking lot wind. That part of events never made sense to me.
Mom snaps her fingers in my face. “I’m talking to you, Missy! I want answers.”
“S-sorry. What were you saying?”
“I asked if you were having an affair with one of those bikers? For God’s sake, Aila. You could have any man you want. You’re gorgeous, just like me when I was your age. You do not have to settle for someone like Theron or Hunter or whatever the fuck his name is.”
That makes me spitting mad. All of a sudden, my lowdown dirty biker’s better personality traits pop into my mind.
“Theron asks my permission before he even thinks about making a move, Mom! Not once has he overstepped the mark verbally or physically. How many men can you say that about nowadays?”
My mom’s eyes narrow. “Sounds like the two of you got real cozy while I was visiting with Ben.”
“Why would you have a problem with that? I’m not eighteen anymore, Mom!”
“We both know what you were busy doing at the age of eighteen, Aila, so don’t get sassy with me.
Why am I always having to pull you out of the shit storm you create for yourself?
Shit storm isn’t the word for it. How about shit skyquake?
Yes. Everywhere we go, your shitty skyquake problems always manage to catch up to us. ”
Tears of rage are trickling down my face.
“At least I’m not a faded grifter like you, Mom! Where has all your domesticated mantrap bullshit gotten you anyway?” I gesture around the cozy little bedroom. “Working on a fucking mudslide in the middle of bumfuck and nowhere.”
We are both shaking with emotions, ready to slap one another into tomorrow. Shoving my feet through a pair of yoga pants and shrugging into a t-shirt, I slip on a pair of flip-flops.
“I’m out of here.”
Before I can slam the door, my mom yells, “You stay out of the bar, you tramp! I don’t want your bad rep fucking up my chances with Ben!”
That’s all I’ve ever been to you, Mom. A fly in the ointment. A stain on your nice lady reputation. A thorn in your side.
Damn this fucking economy! It forces us to live together and pool our resources in between Mom’s boyfriend gigs. If only I could get a job that paid enough for me to live on my own. Somewhere safe and secure, where I don’t have to worry about opening the door or leaving the window open.
This place is a dump! No streetlamps and no lights shining out of friendly backyards. Spending so much time with Theron instead of finding my bearings has left me lost.
Hello, Moon. You’re quite the bright spark tonight. Too bad you can’t give me directions about how to get out of here.
If I can find the marina, there might be someone who can give me a lift back to the mainland tomorrow. I have enough money on my bank card to get back to Winnipeg. I can stay at Laura’s until I find another job.
This dysfunctional little Lilo and Stitch act I have going with my mom has got to end. Looks like she’s getting ready to bring down her next target. I have no plans on being the third wheel in whatever relationship Mom decides to create with Ben.
She will have fucked off back to the bar to continue her flirtation with him. I can go back and pack.
Luna is standing outside our bedroom door. The woman is fantastically beautiful. Red hair falling in waves down her back, and one of those faces that designers use to sell their brand.
“Can I come in?”
“Sure. If Amelia hasn’t locked the damn door behind her.” I’m in a foul mood and I don’t care who knows.
The doorknob turns. Begrudgingly, I invite Luna to enter before me.
“About that job, Luna.” Pulling my case out from under the bed, I haul it onto the mattress and flip the lid open. “Thank you for the offer, but I’m not going to take it. I need to go back to Winnipeg and do something else.”
I begin throwing my stuff into the case just like I have done a thousand times before.
Luna gets up. “Okay. Thanks for the heads up. It’s going to get real busy here next week when the high season starts. This gives me time to find a replacement.”
Huffing, I grumble and vent. “Better make that job posting for two helpers, Luna. Because I guarantee that my mom will duck out of her responsibilities the second Ben asks her to move in with him. And if you think that no one can make an important, life-altering decision that fast, then you don’t know my mom! ”
Pausing at the door, Luna seems unfazed by my bitter assessment. “That’s okay. Ben can pay your mom’s bill. Will he also be paying yours?”
Whirling around, I forget about packing. “Bill?”
Leaning against the door frame, Luna half-closes her eyes as she begins to calculate a list of figures in her head.
“Five hundred dollars for two nights. That’s your share of the bill. I mean, you’re obviously not going to be able to leave tonight, so that’s two nights all told. You had the breakfast, right?”
In a daze, I automatically nod, so Luna continues adding and subtracting.
“That’s forty. And then there’s the tax.” Looking up at the ceiling, she counts. “I make that six hundred dollars and seventy cents, all told. We only take cash. Do you know where you’ll be staying while you wait for the ferry to return?”
“I was thinking about asking someone at the marina to take me back to the mainland…”
Luna frowns. “That’s not very neighborly of you, Aila, asking for a free ride. Gas is not cheap.”
I’m beginning to understand why my mom was so happy to meet Ben Magoo at such short notice. There is no way she would have been able to pay for this “holiday” up front.
Amelia O’Hara, on the con again.
Slamming the suitcase lid down, I slump on the bed hunching my shoulders. I feel defeated.
“If you can wait for morning, I will get the money for you.”
Luna is suddenly all smiles again. “Sounds good, but if you’re thinking about saying goodbye to Theron, I have some bad news.”
Oh, please don’t let her be telling me that Theron’s broke ass won’t be able to help me pay my bill. But that’s not it.
“He’s working night shift security now, so he’ll be catching up on his sleep during the day. If you want to let him know about your change of plans, you better catch him before he rides out.”
“Is it that obvious?”
Luna lifts an eyebrow. “Can you be more specific?”
I feel the blush rise to my cheeks. “Is it that obvious to everyone that I like Theron?”
“You like Theron? What a coincidence. He likes you, too. But don’t worry. It’s not that obvious. You and a million others, you know what I mean? A man like that has to fight off the women with a stick.”
My heart sinks. I have to restrain myself from kicking something. Of course Theron would have a million women lusting after him. He probably tells all of them that he loves them, too.
Misery burns in my throat. My mom and I had a huge row and I want to leave. Only I can’t, because this holiday is just another boyfriend-grab for her. And if I pay my bill here, I won’t have enough money to get back to Winnipeg.
I’m stuck between the devil and a hard place.
Hopefully, Theron likes me enough to lend me some cash. I’ll pay him back once I get a job.
Clapping my hands together, I stand up. I have to swallow a few times, but my emotions are behind me.
“If I’m to catch Theron before he starts the night shift, where should I be looking?”
Moving to the door, Luna glances over her shoulder. “He’ll be at the Midnight Riders clubhouse. Better knock before you go in. Not every Rider hangs out at the bar.”
Giving the thumbs up, I watch Luna leave. As the door shuts behind her, my sorrow and anger fade away. I feel drained of all my negative emotions. Light and free.
Was I overreacting?
Staring at the half-packed suitcase, I wonder. Five years ago, I would have packed and ducked out, no problem. But a lot has happened since then. Mom never abandoned me when I needed her. She supported me and lifted me up. She tried so hard not to judge me.
But I can’t stand the thought of sleeping in one of those single beds as if I were nine years old all over again.
Perhaps Theron can offer me a sexy alternative. So he said he loves me. And that scared me. But maybe it’s time for him to put his money where his mouth is.