Jaded (14 page)

As deemed by—

Isabella checked the information sheet Kitty had given her.

As deemed by Rev. John Walker, in the beautiful Santa Clara Church of Christ at 1:00 P.M.

There is nothing more beautiful than—

She paused, contemplating her words.

There is nothing more beautiful than a half-naked sex god named Luke going down on you and bringing you to the highest peaks of orgasm with a firm, smart tongue and a body that could make angels weep—

Someone cleared his throat. Her head shot up—Luke was standing in the doorway.

“Oh, God. Hi.” She smiled, holding down the delete button. “Hi. You surprised me.”

“How are you?” he asked.

“I’m good.” She paused, heart throbbing in her chest. “Things good for you too?”

“Yeah.” He smiled, a hint of laughter in his eyes. “We’re about ready to start building the new addition to your kitchen...”

“Already?”

“Yeah. If you want to finalize the plans, we can do that real quick. Then we’ll get to work on it.”

“Oh.” She realized he was here for business matters. “Um...I trust you. You can go ahead with it.”

“All right, cool.” He paused, turning to leave. “Oh...hey.” He looked over his shoulder. “You owe me.” He sauntered away.

Her cheeks burst into flame and she buried her head in her hands.
She
was always the one who blew people’s minds and left them helpless and tired, not the other way around! She had to make up for it. She was sure he would have no qualms about that, either.

She pushed the laptop aside, deciding to postpone the “Kitty and Kevin—Their Life Together” segment until later. All this lovey-dovey mushiness was making her stomach turn.

She went into the kitchen and zigzagged between men to get to the refrigerator. Most of the workers were gathered in front of the windows, discussing measurements and prepping the walls. She pulled out ingredients for a cold sub and spread them out on the counter.

Luke dismissed the workers to start laying the foundation and they all filed outside. Except Luke.

“Wanna make me one?” he asked, leaning against the counter.

“Nope.” She licked the extra mayonnaise off her knife.

“Come on. You owe me.”

“I owe you something else, not a sandwich.”

“Well, you can always substitute one thing for another...”

“Wow, this could be the first time I ever hear a man take food over oral sex.” She sprinkled some lettuce over the cold cut meats and mayonnaise and slapped the two pieces of bread together.

Luke sidled up behind her and pressed his mouth against her ear. “Come on, baby...”

Her eyes fluttered shut and a lazy smile drifted across her face. His warmth felt so good, so soothing...for a moment she was lost in a fantasy world, until Luke suddenly pulled away from her.

“Thanks!” He held up her sandwich and took a big bite out of it. She looked down to her hands—yep, he’d stolen it.

“Hey, you jerk!” she said, unable to hide her smile. “That’s mine—”

But he was already outside by the time she’d protested, munching happily on her sandwich.

***

It was 4:45 when Kitty came bursting through the door of her office, Prada bags dangling from her arm and sunglasses pushed back on her head.

“You’re early,” Isabella remarked without looking at her, eyes still focused on the computer and her final edits.

“Well, I couldn’t wait any longer; I had to see what you came up with. And besides, I think Kevin would kill me if I spent any more money today.”

Isabella smiled. “You’re lucky he loves you, then.” She swiveled in her chair and faced her sister. “Okay, I think you’ll really like what I have here.”

The look of excitement on Kitty’s face was contagious; her raw enthusiasm so innocent that Isabella wondered when the last time such childish glee had come from her sister, who had a silent pride in the unaffected demeanor she usually portrayed to the outside world.

“Well, show me, Issy! I need to see it!”

Isabella slowly handed the laptop to her sister, enjoying watching her fingers move restlessly as she waited for the computer, like a child reaching for candy. She laughed. “You’re gonna love it.”

Kitty leaned forward and snatched the laptop from her and put it in her lap, eyes wide as she gobbled up the words.

“There is never a time or place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment.” - Sarah Dessen

And so goes the story of the fated couple, Kitty and Kevin, who found each other in a single, flashing moment when they were least expecting it.

They met in a college economics course, two normal college students pressured by school and life, on the day that Kevin had decided to drop the course. One look into Kitty’s eyes convinced him to stay in the class (which he eventually passed, but barely) just for the chance to be near her. It wasn’t long before each day began and ended with one another—her plans became his, his friends became hers, and the beginning of the Pontiero couple was born.

Kitty sighed as she read further, tilting her head back and forth, occasionally wiping at her eyes as she reached sentimental parts. When she was done, she looked up at Isabella with a smile.

“Big Sister, I love it,” she whispered. “Thank you.”

Isabella smiled back at her, touched but also relieved. “You’re welcome. You know I love you, and this is one way for me to show it.”

“These are going to the printer instantly,” she said, sighing again as she looked back over the words. “I can’t wait to see how this looks on the parchment paper we picked out.”

“Well, I’ll leave paper and ink choices to you; you know I just deal with the words,” Isabella said. “But I’m very happy you like it.”

Kitty handed her the laptop and stood up, smoothing down her skirt. “You write such beautiful words. Don’t they ever make you think that you might want to get married someday?”

Isabella immediately felt a knot form in her stomach. Hearing it from her mother was one thing, but getting it from her little sister was an entirely different matter. “Kitty, you know what my experiences have been with my ex-boyfriends. It’s just not something I need in my life right now. I don’t care about marriage anymore.”

Kitty tilted her head as she thought about her words and pouted a little. “But don’t you wish you could find Mr. Right?”

Isabella sighed. “No. I don’t. Maybe there isn’t one for every woman.”

Kitty shrugged. “Okay, well I should get going. Kevie wants to take me out to dinner tonight and I need to get ready.”

“You mean you aren’t ready now?” Isabella raised a brow as she looked over her sister, who was always dressed to kill.

“Well, I’m ready, sure, but more like shopping ready. I need to get dinner ready.” She lowered her sunglasses to cover her eyes. “You know what I mean?”

Isabella rolled her eyes. “Sure. Well you guys have fun; I’ll send this document to you right now so you have it for the printer’s tomorrow.”

“Great. Oh, and don’t forget about our bridesmaid fitting this week. Ciao, Bella!” Kitty blew a kiss and floated out of the room, leaving a pleasant cloud of her flowery fragrance behind.

Her sister was beautiful, sweet, successful, and about to marry the man of her dreams. Isabella was proud of her little sister, and couldn’t be happier to participate in her upcoming nuptials, but the preoccupation with marriage in her family was wearing her thin. Isabella was beginning to think that she needed to stay single for the rest of her life just to make a point, to prove to the rest that it was possible and that it didn’t mean anything about who she really was as a person.

“Issy, don’t forget about your bridesmaid dress fitting later this week,” a falsetto voice repeated. She looked up—it was Luke, peeking around the corner and smiling.

“Oh,
God
.” She covered her face with her hands and groaned. “That is the last thing I need.”

“Oh, it sounds fun.” Luke sauntered into the room, holding a hammer.

“Yeah, right. The whole time I’ll just be scolded for not getting married first and—”

“Having a construction worker as a boyfriend,” he added.

She stopped dead in her tracks.
Boyfriend?
“Well, no. You’re not my boyfriend. But that might come up.”

A peculiar emotion flashed across his face, but Isabella couldn’t read it. “Anyway, my mother will just run around the whole time, screeching about Kitty’s perfect marriage and my horrible, ruined life.”

“I wish I could do something for you.”

“You could marry me,” she offered.

He stared at her, a strange smile on his face. “Okay.”

“I was kidding. I’m starting to think I need to stay the single woman of my family, just so there’s an example for future generations.”

“Well, maybe you could just tell your mom you’re engaged.”

“But I’m not.”

“Well let’s just go elope.”

“Shut up. You’ve never been in love, you said so yourself. So that would just be a mockery.”

“Oh, you think so?”

“Yeah. If someone feels compelled to go that far, it needs to be for the right reason. At least have some ethics behind the insanity.”

Luke was quiet as he contemplated the hammer in his hands. “Just because I’ve never been in love doesn’t make me less of a person.”

Isabella bit the inside of her cheek, unsure of what to say. She hadn’t meant to imply that and felt suddenly like a hypocrite. What right did she have to criticize her family for judging her decision to remain single when she was judging someone for opting out of love?

“I’m sure that if I ever fall in love, I will want to marry that woman and spend the rest of my life with her.” He paused. “It’s just unlikely that will ever happen.”

“Because you can’t give up your hot romps on the weekends?” she asked.

“If you must know, I’ve just never met someone I can get close to.”

Isabella was silent, wondering if she could be that elusive girl he spoke of, the one to turn him on to love. He’d told her she was the only girl he’d ever opened up to...but maybe it wasn’t enough for him to feel anything more. Their chemistry didn’t work out, or fate wasn’t satisfied.
Something
.

“Don’t say that,” she blurted. “You said you felt close to me.” Her cheeks burned and she wasn’t sure why.

“Well, you don’t even like me.” He raised his eyebrows and smiled, waiting for her reaction.

“Hey,” she said, “We came to the consensus the other night that I do like you, remember? But maybe I just can’t do anything about it because I...I don’t want to.”

He shrugged. “All right. I need to go back to work.” He paused in the doorway, looking back at her. She detected a twinge of sadness in his eyes. “I guess it’s back to bar-hopping for me tonight.”

The vision of him being with random, meaningless girls flashed through her mind and her insides froze up. No, he was
hers
.

“Well, wait! Why don’t you just come over tonight? I-I-I’m not doing anything, and I’m sure you don’t like the bars all that much, I mean, you can stay home for one night, right?”

He grinned. “Sure.” He sauntered out of the room, whistling a tune. The scent of Kitty in the room had been replaced with Luke’s manliness—the delicate mixture of soap and outside, and the lingering buzz of confidence.

***

At 7:00 that night, Luke pulled up to Isabella’s house in his convertible.

He hopped out, ran a hand through his hair, and double-checked his appearance. Blue and white gym shorts and a tight white t-shirt. Sporty. Comfortable. He walked up to her house, contemplating giving her a greeting like the one from two nights ago.

He smiled, ringing the doorbell. He always had that effect on women. He thought Isabella would have been able to hold her own, but maybe she was just so sex-starved, she hadn’t paced herself. That was probably it. At any rate, he was counting on some more action tonight—she’d left him high and dry, and he’d been a raging ball of hormones since. And considering his recent infatuation with a certain Woman of the House, he had found that visiting his usual haunts in search of one-night stands wasn’t cutting it for him. He could get his jollies anywhere, but Isabella was a challenge. And that was infinitely more rewarding in the end.

“Hey.” She pulled open the door and leaned against it, showcasing her graceful curves. She was wearing a tank top and bright blue cotton shorts. His eyes lingered on an oversized pair of bunny slippers and he fought to bite back a smile.

“Hey.” He leaned toward her and brushed his lips against hers. There was another distinctly romantic feel to the moment, something he hadn’t experienced in a long, long time. His belly tingled with happiness.

“Come on in.” She swooped her arm back.

“I feel like I’m here all the time,” he said, kissing her again.

“I hope that’s not a bad thing,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around him.

“Not when I get to see you.”

They shared a long, tender kiss. When they broke apart, his horniness was the last thing on his mind. He was surprised. He’d come over here with the intention of
getting some
, yet he could still think clearly. His heart wrenched in his chest, but he swallowed the feelings before he had a chance to think about them too much.

“I was watching some TV,” she said, taking his hand and leading him to the family room. “You can join me.”

“Goody goody gum drops.”

She snickered. Luke watched her as she walked, feeling the strange emotions rising from the pit of his stomach despite the fact that he’d rather ignore them. Suddenly, he felt overwhelmed—somehow, he craved to hear more of her voice. He didn’t just want to tear her shirt off and taste her skin; he also wanted to talk to her. To hold her, laugh with her. To ask her questions, hear her thoughts on things he never spoke about. He averted his eyes, swallowing a giant lump in his throat.
Calm the hell down, Luke.
But the more he thought about it, the more he was convinced that Isabella was perfect.