31. Abigail – “Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlinesdates by which bills must be paid.” — Frank Zappa
31
Abigail
“Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid.” — Frank Zappa
We come to new terms. I’m a tenant now, essentially. While the end goal is to stay here to save money for my place eventually, I can’t live off of him like I was. Maybe I could make excuses when the idea was up in the air, but now that there is a set plan, this needs to be fair, no matter how much he refuses.
“I don’t need your $80 for the water bill, Abigail.”
It’s been seven days since he forced me to leave my parents' house, and we’ve done this song and dance twice this week.
“I know you don’t, but I want to. Let me pay the electric bill,” I plead for what felt like the tenth time.
“No,” he barks.
“I got it.” I pick up the bill on the island counter in the kitchen, but he snaps it out of my hand with his ninja reflexes.
“Why would I tell you to stay here to save money and then tell you to spend more money by staying here?” He raises an eyebrow at me.
“I am saving money. And I can keep saving money by at least paying one bill, Colt. You already changed my car battery and had your friend come out and do the job. That was at least $500 worth of work, and he settled for a signed jersey and a good bottle of liquor.”
“He is a big Cardinals fan, sue me.”
I roll my eyes. “That’s not the point. I want to help pay some bills.”
“Or you could not pay any bills. Save more money and be out of here faster,” he says.
And that pissed me off. Maybe he didn’t want me here after all.
“No, wait.” he flinches. “I didn’t mean it like that. I don’t need your money. Okay? Let’s stop talking now. Please?” He holds up his hands to his sides.
But we didn’t. We kept bickering until he finally relented and let me have the gas bill and help with groceries. However, he made me promise not to replace his snacks or Bodie’s with anything organic or fat-free, to which I agreed. But that didn't mean I couldn’t buy other snacks. If he catches me sneaking in fair trade coffee and almond milk, I’ll tell him I forgot and grabbed the first thing I saw.
Today was my third night at Shifters, and the only attire they told me to wear was short and sexy. I know it’s a bar right by a strip club, but I hope I’ll make enough money this summer to save up more than my goal to relax during the school year. And so far, the tips and money are decent, so it’s easier for me to justify working at this sausage joint.
I heard Colt talking on the phone the other day about how some of the people the insurance companies hired were crap. One guy had been sick for two weeks with the flu, and another ordered the wrong color of wood for the floors in the kitchen but realized their mistake after they were nearly done. So he said he’ll be here for another two weeks for sure. Maybe longer. Which will equal a month. Once he’s gone, I’ll only have to worry about two months of living in this apartment while he rents out the rest of the house.
My phone rings as I’m applying mascara. I look down and smile as I answer the phone.
“There’s my girl,” Mel says. “Have you fucked him yet? Please tell me you have. I had a naughty dream last night, so I must fulfill my fantasy with a real one.”
“No,” I say through a laugh. “I haven’t fucked him.” I set the phone down and put it on speaker as I continued to apply my mascara.
She lets out a guttural groan. “Girl. What are you doing over there? And please don’t tell me you’re wearing your frumpy clothes around this hot NFL player. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. You better be flaunting that booty every chance you get in some sexy lingerie .”
“Excuse me.” I pull the mascara away as I look down at my phone.
“I love you, Ash, but you take the comfort thing a little too far sometimes.”
She was right. I loved wearing my comfy clothes and just being comfortable in general. I never dressed to impress like her, and stuff like that never crossed my mind.
I take a step back and look at myself in the mirror. I’m wearing a low-cut red T-shirt, a tight black mini-skirt, and comfy black tennis shoes since I’ll be on my feet all night. I trained after class on Tuesday, but this is my first real night working alone, which means it’s my first night making real money.
“Well, I’m not looking frumpy tonight, that's for sure,” I tell her as I glance at my ass, admiring how it looked in this skirt.
“Oh, girl. Are you wearing that black skirt? The one that makes your ass look amazing?”
Mel knew me all too well. “Yes, I am.” I grinned to myself.
“Paired with your signature scorpio color, red?”
“Yup.” I pop my lips together, blending in the red lipstick I applied to them.
“So, are you guys going somewhere fun tonight? Is he taking you to an alley somewhere where you guys can bang and feel naughty, and you're just not telling me? Please tell me that’s the case.”
“No,” I scoffed. “I’m going to work, it’s my first real night on the job .”
“Oh, that's right. You passed up working for an easy job where you could potentially meet a rich guy to be surrounded by sleaze balls all day. I’m still trying to wrap my head around that one.”
“I told you, I’ll make more money here,” I add a sheen top coat to my lips so my lipstick doesn’t smear.
“You could have landed a sucker that would have paid all your bills if you worked at the matchmaking company. Duh.”
I put all my makeup back in my bag. “You know darn well that's not why I would be working there, and that’s not my style.”
“Why the hell not? You know women's equality is overrated. We weren’t meant to stress. It causes wrinkles.”
She lets out a dramatic sigh when I silently respond to her comment.
“Since you are going to be dressing sexy to work instead of working from the comfort of your own home in sweats, I better hear a hot, sexy story soon. That's an order, too.”
The thought of Colt up against me when he claimed my lips the other night sends heat running through my whole body, making me dizzy all over again. I could almost feel his firm grip squeezing my ass. His touch was electrifying.
“Speaking of bills, how are you paying your rent there if you claim you are saving money? Hmmm?” She hummed, taunting me more with her questions.
“Will you let that fantasy go?” I tell her.
“Sorry, I can’t do that.”
I groan as I grab the phone off the counter, taking it off speaker. “I do chores around here, so I earn my stay.”
“I bet you do,” she says in a seductive tone. “Stop, I do. I offered to clean the place and do the grocery shopping, and I also do most of the cooking since he doesn’t cook. So, I’m teaching Bodie how to eat healthy home-cooked meals. It’s funny. I thought all NFL players ate healthy, but not during the season. As ripped as Colt is,you wouldn’t think he eats anything he wants.”
“I bet he does.” She taunts. But I hear the glimmer behind her tone.
“Oh my God,” despite her annoyance, I laughed at her ridiculousness. “Mel, I’m about to hang up. Do you need to get laid or something? You’re worse than a guy.”
“Okay, okay, I’ll stop.”
“There is a God.” I close my eyes, as I tilt my head back.
“But you guys are basically a domestic couple now. You know that, right? If you know his eating habits, you might as well say you're his live-in girlfriend.”
“I am not,” I say, holding my phone to my ear as I check my emails, ensuring I don’t have any new homework to do tomorrow.
“Well, without the sex.”
She can’t see my scowl, but I’m unamused by her assumption. “Please go get laid so you can get sex off of your mind,” I tell her.
“Already ahead of you. I’m going out with a wanna-be model slash actor I met on one of my dad’s sets. I don’t even care if he rocks my world. I think I’ll cum from looking at him being on top of me. This guy is crazy gorgeous, but dumb as shit. He wants me to teach him how to make a girl cum, he’s thinking of becoming a porn actor, so I am all about that project.”
I shake my head, letting a rumble of a laugh pour out. “That’s great, Mel.” I put my phone back on speaker as I slip on my tennis shoes.
“All I know is you haven’t brought up douchebag, and whatever you two got going on over there makes me like Colt even more. There was a time when you would be so insecure about Jared taking you back that it almost made me concerned. I was waiting for you to bring him up and ask what he’s been up to or, more like, who he’s been up to.”
I rub my temples. Even though I don’t want to admit it, she’s right. There was a time when I would do anything for Jared to keep him and call him mine. That’s why the car I’m driving has his name on it and mine. But luckily, I’m the one with the better credit and was making the payments, so he can’t do much about it as a co-signer.
I lay back on the bed, unable to fathom why I went through something so significant like buying a car. Knowing damn well, he would leave all the responsibility to me. And even though I was the one who ended up leaving him, it still hurt because there was a time we were best friends. We both shared everything. I opened up to him about my fears and deepest dark secrets, including my eating disorder. He made me feel safe, so I let him see my vulnerable side. But towards the end, when he began to change, I knew my esteem couldn’t afford to have him hurt me anymore by cheating or leaving, so I left before he could. But what made it hard was not only did I lose a boyfriend, I lost a friend too.
And now that I was here with Colt, I wondered if what was shifting between him and me was something more or if it was just happening because I was convenient. I raised a hand to my collarbone where he bit me the other night.
“Uh- why are you quiet?” Mel says, snapping me out of my thoughts.
“No reason. I was just fixing my hair.” I say, jolting up in the upright position.
“Oh no, you don't. What is it? What are you hiding?”
I try not to spill the beans because I want to so badly. But at the same time, it was also annoying how intuitive she was with me sometimes. It’s what I loved and hated about having a Virgo as one of my best friends.
“Abigail Asher, what happened?” She says through the phone as she waits for my response.
“Nothing,” I let out a groan. “It’s nothing.”
“You’re such a liar. I know you’re not telling me something juicy, and unless there is another guy you aren’t telling me about, it has to do with Colt. So spill.”
“Nothing, we just kind of , sort of, kissed.” I can feel my cheeks flush and my ears burn from embarrassment.
She screeches into the phone so loud I have to pull the phone away from my ear.
“That’s what I'm talking about! How was it? Was it one of those passionate movie kisses or aggressive caveman kisses? Please tell me it didn’t suck. Don’t ruin this fantasy I have going for Colt Killian.”
“No, it was-”
The best kiss I’ve ever had. “Hot,” I say, unable to contain my dizziness from the thought alone.
“Yas, girl, yass! Oh, it's so going to happen.”
“Stop it, it is not.”
“Yes, it is. And besides, you need it to happen.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Not like that, but Abigail, you overthink everything. Just have fun. Fuck an NFL player. Let him use you. I swear to you, it will not make you feel bad. I mean, if anything, it will boost your confidence. Let the man worship you. He is a little older, too, so I’m sure he learned a thing or two fucking hundreds of women.”
A burning sensation rises in my throat down to my core. That shouldn’t make me feel jealous, but it does.
“He’ll return to Arizona soon, and you’ll be getting your own place. You’re always talking about signs. Well, I’m pretty sure this is a sign from God telling you to fuck-Colt-Killian out of your system. Ain't no way you aren’t attracted to the guy. We all have eyes here. And it’s what you need, girl. Soak it up. Let a man like that make you feel good.”
“Pretty sure that’s not the message God would send. Besides, what about Naomi? And he has a son. What if they find out?.”
“First of all, do not care about your cousin's feelings. After you heard what that bitch said at the wedding. No ma’am. And second of all, that’s what will make it hot! You can sneak around and fuck in all the naughty places while Bodie is watching a movie or something.”
I can practically see the twinkle in her eyes from miles away. “Girl, I’m even getting turned on thinking about it.”
Another laugh slips from my lips. “You are sick.”
“Maybe, but I do know what I’m talking about. I promise you, Asher, once he’s done with you, ain’t no girl or mirror going to make you feel like shit ever again. You have a banging body that you work so hard for. So, put that body to good use. Don't forget, you only live once.” I hear her snap her fingers in the background.
“Oh my God, I don’t know if I should thank you for being the best friend ever or hang up for giving the worst advice on the planet.”
“You can thank me later once Colt’s big cock makes you cum, as you’re screaming his name.”
Heat pulsates in my clit from her words. Making me remember what a hard erection felt like between my thighs.
“And I know he’s got a big one. I’ve seen the man in those cleats, so don’t even try to act like it’s not.”
I slap a hand to my forehead, shaking my head in disbelief.
“Let me know how your first night on the job alone goes. And you better strut your stuff in that bar. Be good practice when you do it at home or around Colt. A man loves a challenge, but you know what men love more?”
“Oh no, tell me ol wise one.”
“Confidence.”