Read Selling the Drama Online

Authors: Theresa Smith

Tags: #romance, #love, #drama, #mystery, #family, #law, #orphan, #domestic violence, #amputation, #tension

Selling the Drama (5 page)

BOOK: Selling the Drama
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Charlotte opened the letter first, more
eager for news than what was contained within the parcel. The
letters were sporadic, at best, near non-existent, at worst, but
always deeply treasured, for she was the only one who got them, the
only one who mattered enough, and that had always been significant
to her. Running her eyes across the page, she read it through once,
rapidly, and then again at a slower pace:

Dear Charlotte,

How is my sweetie going? You must slip me a photo of
this incredibly hot guy who is living with you into your next
letter. I must be the judge of who is hot. I have far more
experience than you, ha ha! How is your mum? She sent me an
incredibly boring letter a week ago outlining her expectations of
my behaviour while I was over here, blah blah, more blah and then a
bit more blah to finish up on. But at least she wrapped the letter
around a hundred, so there was a reward for endurance at the end!
Seriously, when did she stop being fun? I know she's much older
than me, but she's such a grown up. It's as though she thinks she
has to parent me now that Ma and Pa are both gone, but I'm twenty
three years old, well and truly an adult and more than capable of
taking care of myself now. Although, if she intends on giving me a
hundred dollars every time she annoys me, then I'm probably willing
to put up with it! Ha, ha!

Now, enough of all that, I have news. I am in love!
Completely, head over heels, this is the one, in love. All the men
over here in Ireland are just beautiful, they all seem to sing and
be able to sprout poetry like nobody's business, but I have met the
most adorable, gorgeous, one of a kind man, and I love him so much
you may never see me leave Ireland! His name is Dermott and we are
going to spend Christmas with his family in Dublin. It's all very
exciting. He wants us to get married next Easter. I know! Me,
married, can you imagine? Iris won't feel the need to baby me so
much then, when I am a married woman just like she is!

Now, I have enclosed a few Irish treats for you. DO
NOT OPEN THIS PARCEL IN FRONT OF YOUR MUM!!! You'll thank me for
warning you.

I miss you heaps and heaps.

Love and big sloppy kisses,

Jenna xoxox.

She had wrapped the presents individually,
and then again all together. Charlotte tackled the biggest one
first, which turned out to be books, written by Irish authors. The
next one was an EP, by a band called 'The Cranberries', and there
was a note attached where Jenna announced she had seen them perform
live at a pub, and that they were fantastic. The last gift was
double wrapped, and Charlotte expected this was the one that her
mother was not allowed to see. On the second layer of paper, Jenna
had scrawled:
Maybe you can try these out on tall dark and
handsome in the next bedroom over!!
Tearing off the remaining
layer of paper, Charlotte stared at the two boxes contained within,
laughter bursting right out of her.

Two boxes of condoms, flavoured with
Bailey's Irish Cream.

Now that was how you became somebody's
favourite aunt. It was just too bad that Toby didn't seem the
slightest bit interested in her. Maybe they had a long expiration
date.

 

Charlotte invited Toby to a party toward the
end of the holidays and he happily accepted, eager to meet people
in advance of starting at school. He was keen to get into some
sports here, make some friends and gather some interests that might
divert his attention away from Charlotte. They existed in a bubble
together at the moment, and Toby was becoming more and more aware
of how limiting this was.

They walked to the party together, Charlotte
giving him a bit of run down along the way on the various people he
was about to meet. He doubted he would remember a thing she was
saying, much less have the ability to put her tales to the faces of
the names she was dropping. She was giving him way too much credit
in the memory department, but he let her talk uninterrupted because
he liked the sound of her voice and the many expressions that lit
up her face as she spoke.

Once at the party, Toby found himself
falling into company fairly rapidly. He had always had an easy
ability to make friends, his interest in sport an icebreaker that
never failed to deliver for him. Charlotte wandered off to her own
crowd, which in all truth suited Toby well. He did not necessarily
want to become a part of her crowd. Living with her was enough,
attending classes with her more so; hanging about socially would
eventually prove too much.

"So, you live with Charlotte?"

He looked over at the guy who had just asked
him the question; Jake, that was his name, Toby thought, nodding to
him. "Yeah. Her mum is my godmother."

"Dude, what happened to your parents?" He
did not sound as though he was digging for gossip, merely
curious.

Toby was prepared for this question. If he
answered it right, with just the perfect amount of sobriety, he
wouldn't have to answer it again. "They died in a car accident. It
was a real mess. I don't like to talk about it. It still…" he
paused for effect, swallowing deeply and blinking a few times with
a sincerity he did not feel.

Jake put up his hand and rested it on Toby's
shoulder, giving him a comforting pat. "Geez man, say no more.
That's horrible. Lucky you had Charlotte's family to fall back on
then. So, you ever played touch football? That's our summer
football up here. We play rugby league in the winter. None of that
aerial ping pong they pass off as football down south." Jake
laughed, moving along with the conversation, seamlessly leaving the
awkward behind, much to Toby's relief.

Toby shook his head at Jake's question about
touch football. "No, but I'd be keen to try." They talked about the
game for some time, Jake attempting to explain the rules. It
sounded like a game Toby would pick up without any trouble. They
were gradually joined by more guys Jake knew, and before too long,
Toby felt completely at ease and already a part of the group.

"Check it out." One of the guys nodded his
head to something over Toby's shoulder and a few of them snickered
knowingly. "She's at it again." Toby cast a look over his shoulder
but saw nothing they might be referring to. Jake leaned forward to
fill him in.

"How well do you know Charlotte?"

Toby shrugged. "I've only known her for
about a month."

"Has she tried to suck you off yet?"

Toby felt himself grow cold, and then hot
immediately after, but he refused to let his demeanour reflect his
unease at this turn in the conversation. He simply laughed and
shook his head, as though Jake's question was one of the most
typical he had ever been asked. "No. Get out. As if."

Another of the guys laughed along with him.
"Man, that chick is the hottest piece of arse around. She gave me
the worst case of blue balls last term in science and then made me
wait two weeks before I could get it into her. But it was worth it,
shit, you have no idea, absolutely worth it."

Jake shook his head in wonder. "That mouth
of hers, it's all you can do not to pass out."

The comments flared then, the talk
deteriorating as they each compared the many skills and charms that
Charlotte had to offer. And on and on it went, Toby standing
amongst them, a look of amusement on his face he did not feel,
trying not to judge these guys, these new friends of his, too
harshly for their conversation. It was what guys did, they talked
trash and compared notes, there was no harm in it and it was not
unique to this group. They were not running Charlotte down in the
process either, in fact, they seemed all quite enamoured of her
talents, her beauty, her sense of humour, and her out of this world
cock sucking mouth. Toby excused himself and headed out of the
yard, intent on leaving the party. He wanted to be friends with
these guys, but there was no way he could stand and listen to
another minute of them talking about Charlotte like that.

He meandered about the strip for a while,
walking along aimlessly before heading into a fish and chip shop to
get himself a serve of hot chips. The server looked at him
strangely when he asked for vinegar. She indicated a bottle of
tomato sauce on the counter and then turned her back to him. There
were times when he felt so far from home. It would grab him at the
oddest moments, like right now, in a greasy fish and chip shop. The
melancholy would descend and he would feel it, like a weight
settling over him, seeping into his pores, choking him.
Overwhelming him. He took his chips, without sauce, and ate them
down on the beach, sitting in the sand watching the moon rise in
the night sky, his dark mood slowly lifting. Should he be watching
out for crocodiles? Did they come up onto the beach? Lurk in the
bushes and dart out to grab you? He had no idea, had only seen the
signs warning about swimming. Realistically though, if they were in
the water, then they could be just as likely on the sand. Looking
around, he took note of the fact that there were actually not too
many people down where he was and decided to move himself up to the
park area, just to be on the safe side. Imagine surviving his
father for sixteen years only to be eaten by a crocodile a month
later.

Eventually he made his way back past the
party, checking in and spending another hour with the same group of
guys, deciding that as long as they weren't talking about
Charlotte, then they were an alright group to hang with. He
intercepted her at one point as she was making her way up to the
house, and she greeted him with a wide smile.

"I was just looking for you." She brushed
her hair off of her face as she looked at him.

Toby couldn't help but notice how messy it
looked in comparison to when they had arrived at the party earlier
in the evening. She also had a small twig caught up in it. He
resisted the urge to pluck it out of her hair and decided he
wouldn't mention it. "Why?"

"I want to go home. I was seeing if you were
ready? Mum would freak if I walked home alone." She fiddled with
her hair, finding the twig and discarding it with a blush that did
nothing to make her appear less enticing. Anyone running into
Charlotte on a dark path probably had more to fear than her.

He nodded at her, dropping his gaze. "Yeah,
okay. Come on, let's go."

They set off in silence, Toby unsure about
his ability to speak to her normally in light of all he had learned
about her tonight. Charlotte was quiet, walking slowly, her gaze
fixed to the path.

"Did you have a good time?" Lengthy silences
seemed to bother her, she was always the first to break in with
idle chatter.

"It was alright. I met some guys who were
okay. I'm going to join up for touch football." He deliberately
kept his response brief, wishing they were already home so that he
could just leave her and wallow in his own disappointment.

She nodded, casting him a sideways glance.
"That's good. You'll have friends when you start next week
then."

"Yeah, I will." He left it at that.
Charlotte touched his hand lightly, sliding her fingers over his
palm as though to hold his hand as they walked along. The feeling
of it was so beautiful it brought tears to his eyes and he jerked
away from her touch, stung by her presumptuousness. Her hand in
his, it was all he wanted, yet it was spoiled now. The dream, the
secret hope, all of it. She had been with someone else tonight, of
that much he was sure. The jealousy within him was not something he
felt able to contemplate at present, but it motivated him towards
anger. He whirled on her, pointing a finger in her direction.
"You're a slut."

She stopped in the middle of the path, her
face falling, her shoulders slumping. She visibly shrank before
him, and shaking her head, she merely whispered, "No, I'm not," but
with little conviction.

Toby stared at her, willing her to deny it
further, hoping for a spark of anger that might prove all he had
heard as wrong, yet she did nothing more than stand before him with
a stricken expression. "Tonight I learned that you've had sex with
four of the guys I'm about to be friends with, sucked all of them
dry, and let all of them stick their fingers into you on multiple
occasions. You are a full on slut."

She advanced on him then, reaching out to
grab a hold of his sleeve, but he ducked away from her, not wanting
her to touch him at all. "That doesn't make me a slut!" she cried
out to him. "Just because I like having sex does not make me a
slut!" Her face still wore that stricken expression though, and
Toby wondered who she was trying to convince.

"Having sex with so many different guys,
does! They talk about you, compare experiences! If you like having
sex so much get a boyfriend and stick to one person!" His anger was
mounting. She had been so perfect. This was not what she was
supposed to be like.

"That's boring!" she burst out. "Did you see
who was there tonight? Why would I ever want to have sex with any
of them more than once? They're ridiculous! They know nothing, and
it's all over before it's even started." She crossed her arms and
shook her head, as if that explanation was perfectly reasonable and
the problem lay with him for not accepting it.

"Stop it. I don't want to hear it." Toby
turned to walk away, disgusted with the conversation and disgusted
with himself, because he still wanted her, despite all he had heard
and all she had just said. She was tainted, but he still wanted
her, so badly it actually frightened him and confused the hell out
of him as well.

She grabbed the back of his shirt then,
pulling on it but he kept on walking, so she hurried along after
him, speaking to his back, clinging to him weakly. "Then you become
my boyfriend. Then I'll only ever have sex with you and I won't
have to be a slut."

BOOK: Selling the Drama
13.95Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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