Tainted Love (10 page)

Abbi decided to close up at lunch time. No one had come in since she opened up, and she wanted Buddy at home where he would be more comfortable. More than this she wanted to get her head around what Taylor had proposed. Could she really just up and leave with him and run away to Cumbria? The more she thought about it the less resistance she felt. What did she have left here? A fledging relationship, a job that was neither here nor there. Apart from her family she couldn’t see any reason to stay at all.

Arriving home she settled Buddy on the sofa in the living room and joined him with a bottle of wine. She put on her favourite DVD to try and keep herself occupied. The thought of never seeing Taylor again tore at her heart. He hadn’t given her a timeframe for when he was going so she had at least a few more days to think about it.  

About 7pm she heard footsteps outside the hallway, and the key at the front door. She hit the mute button on the remote control.

‘Hi, babe,’ Ben said, as he came in to the living room. Abbi looked up at him. He threw his keys on the table, and dropped his bag. ‘How was your day?’

‘Did you forget your phone this morning?’

‘No, why?’

‘Why? I texted you that I was taking Buddy to the vet.’

‘Oh yeah, I got that.’

‘And?’ she just looked at him exasperated.

‘And what?’

He seriously looked like he didn’t have a clue. How could someone so smart be so stupid?

She pushed herself to her feet. ‘And! You didn’t have the decency to reply or ask what was up with him? Doesn’t that seem like something you should have done?’

‘Abbi. I was busy. I figured if something was really wrong, you’d let me know what the vet said. So what’s up with him?’

Ben walked over and petted Buddy. Buddy looked up at him and thumped his tail.

‘He has a bug. He was acting really sick this morning, and I was scared to death.’

‘Oh, well see? He’s fine.’ Ben started to loosen his tie, and take his shoes off.

‘Is that it?’

‘Is what it, Abbi?’ He sighed and looked at her.

‘What’s wrong with you? You act like you don’t even care.’

‘Where the hell is that coming from? I didn’t text you because Buddy went to the vet? What was I supposed to do? I’m not a vet. If he’s sick, that’s who needs to see him.’

‘I can’t believe this. You are not getting this at all?’

‘Oh I see. I was supposed to drop everything at the hospital, and leave patients to help with Buddy’s stomach ache.’

‘The point is I’m not a vet either. I didn’t know what it was. All I knew was that he was sick – he wouldn’t move. And I texted you and you were too busy. Is that how it’s going to be?’ She hadn’t wanted to have the conversation with Ben like this, but she was so angry and hurt, she couldn’t stop herself.

‘Is what going to be like this?’

‘Married life with you. Me always playing second fiddle to your work?’

‘Abbi, you’re being a little over dramatic don’t you think. You’re a grown up. I trust you to be handle things when I’m not here.’

‘That’s not the point, Ben. I was scared and worried, and you couldn’t take a minute to check on me.’

Ben shook his head. ‘Okay, so I was wrong. I should have stopped and called or something. So tell me what happened.’

‘I took a cab and then Taylor…’

Ben held his hand up to silence her. ‘Taylor? Taylor the accountant? How does he fit into this story?’

‘Well I was supposed to meet him to go over the books this morning before mum called today and...’

‘Really? I thought that was yesterday’s lunch date.’ The coolness had entered Ben’s voice again and Abbi couldn’t care less.

‘Well, no. Yesterday was the preliminary. He was working on the rest of the invoices last night. He wanted to show me what he’d found this morning. You would have known all this if you hadn’t given me the silent treatment yesterday.’

‘I am so not doing this with you right now, Abbi. I’m really not. I’m tired, and I have to study.’ He turned and walked down the hallway stopping abruptly half way and storming back to her.

His face was flushed. ‘Finish the story.’

‘The story?’

‘Yes the fucking story. With this accountant.’

‘Is that an order, Doctor?’ Abbi sneered back at him.

‘Yes it’s a goddam order! What exactly did Taylor tell you?’

Abbi leapt to her feet. ‘What he told me is not important right now. The fact is that he gave me the support that you should have been there to give me!’

‘Over a fucking dog’s bug?’

‘I didn’t know that arseholes,’ Abbi shrieked. ‘I’m not the brilliant doctor that you are. I’m just a dumb university dropout, with no aspirations for the future and a partner who couldn’t give a fuck about me or our dog.’

‘I have an idea why don’t you crawl off and go be with your fancy accountant. What do you need me for? Sounds like he’s hitting all the right notes with you.’

‘I’ve got a better one. How about you just go and study or sleep or whatever, and don’t talk to me for a while. I think silence is golden.’

‘Agreed,’ muttered Ben as he went back down the hallway and slammed the bedroom door.

Buddy jumped and let out a little growl. ‘It’s okay, Buddy. Daddy’s being an arsehole.’ She got up and went into the kitchen to refill her glass.

Her phone pinged and she went over to the worktop and picked it up.

Have you thought about what I said today?

She glanced down the hallway. Ben was nowhere to be seen. Her temples throbbed.

I’ve thought of nothing else!

She took a gulp of wine whilst she waited for Taylor to reply.

And?

This was the moment of truth. She had to put her cards on the table or risk losing Taylor forever.

I have to talk to Ben. I need to straightened things out with him. And then yes. I’ll come with you
.

She pressed send. There she had done it. She only hoped she hadn’t made the biggest mistake of her life.
What like the one you made with Ben? I don’t think so.

If things didn’t pan out with Taylor she could always come home and crash at her parents’ house. Cumbria was only a few hours away by train.

She was smiling as she turned around. She dropped her phone when she saw Ben standing in the door way. She hadn’t even heard him come down the hall.

She eyed him guiltily. ‘What are you sneaking around for?’

Ben jerked his head towards the phone. ‘Is that lover boy?’

‘What the hell are you talking about, Ben?’

‘Oh, so if nothing’s going on you won’t mind me reading your messages will you?’

In a flash he rushed across the room and scooped the phone up off the floor before she got a chance to beat him to it.

‘Ben, you are crossing one serious line now. You have no right to read my personal messages. Give it back!’

Ben flicked through the phone. ‘Oh sweetheart, I thought we shared everything,’ he said sarcastically.

Abbi watched as his eyes narrowed as he read her messages from Taylor. ‘Do you care to explain what the fuck these messages mean?’ He threw the phone at her narrowly missing her head as she ducked.

‘Ben, we need to talk.’

‘And when were you planning on talking to me if I hadn’t found those messages after you were shacked up with the slimy bastard?’

‘Ben, this has got nothing to do with Taylor. This is about us.’

‘Us?’ he said incredulously. ‘Is there still even an “us” after whatever it is that you’ve got planned with your accountant boyfriend?’

‘He isn’t my boyfriend, Ben.’

‘No, so what is he? And don’t tell me he’s a shoulder to cry on because I’m not buying it.’

‘I don’t want to lie to you anymore. I’m tired of living a lie. Things aren’t working between us. You must know that. We just aren’t what I thought we were.’

‘And Mr. Muscles is? Don’t make me laugh. You really think you have a future with him? You’re just one of the many. I know men like him. They have a revolving bedroom door. Every stupid bitch that walks through it thinks she’s special. But dream on Abbi, you’re all the same.’

‘Ben I…’

He held up his hand and his eyes softened. ‘Please listen to me. This man is trouble. He will only hurt you. Please keep away from him. If you don’t you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.’

Before she had a chance to respond her mobile rang. Reaching back behind her she picked it out of the sink. Thankfully it wasn’t broken.

Ben’s mood switched to anger in an instant. ‘Is that him?’ he growled.

Abbi flashed him the phone so he could see the caller’s name. ‘It’s my mum.’

‘Think about what I said. Before you throw everything down the drain.’ Ben turned and left the kitchen without saying another word.

If Ben’s intention had been to plant a seed of doubt in her mind – he had succeeded. Maybe, Taylor was too good to be true.

Abbi took a deep breath and pushed all thoughts of their argument out of her mind. She pressed the accept button on her phone. ‘Hi, Mum.’

‘Is everything okay?’ There was concern in Celia’s voice. ‘I’ve been trying to get you all day.’

‘Everything’s fine. Buddy wasn’t well this morning. He has a bug. He’s on the mend now.’             

‘Awww well you take care of that, baby. How is the shop? Have you heard from Taylor?’

Abbi felt her own stomach tie up into knots at the mention of his name. ‘Um, yes. The shop is fine. A couple of people want dad to look at some pieces next week. The usual really.’

‘Oh, good. Well the opening here went really well. Your dad and I are tired and ready to come home.’

Oh no, you’re not
.
Not yet!

Celia continued. ‘What about Taylor? Have you heard from him?’

Sigh! ‘Yes.’

‘Oh good! Did he manage to figure out what’s going on?’

‘Maybe we should just talk to him when you get back, Mum. You know it’s kind of complicated.’

‘I will, honey. But just tell me the jist of it?’

‘It’s something with the St Albans branch, Mum.’

‘St Albans? Are you sure?’

‘Mum, that’s what Taylor seems to think. What do I know?’

‘Did he say how much is missing?’

‘Yes…Mum really, let’s just talk about this when you get home.’

‘How much, Abbi?’

Sigh! This was definitely going down as one of the worst days in Abbi’s life. ‘A little over half a million, Mum.’

‘What?’ Abbi had to move the phone away from her ear. She knew that shriek was coming. She could hear her dad in the background asking what was going on.

‘Mum, look, you need to calm down. When you get back, you can sit down with Taylor and figure this out. I mean, come on. There has to be a logical explanation right?’

Silence.

‘Mum?’

‘Yes, I’m here, I’m just…I don’t know…’

‘I know, Mum. But look. When you and dad get back, we will all sit down with Taylor and sort it out, okay?’

‘Yes, okay. I just…okay. Well, I can’t do anything about it here, and I need to talk to your father. I’ll let you know what time we’ll be back tomorrow.’

‘Okay, Mum. Seriously, we’ll figure this out. It will be all right.’

‘I love you. Say hi to Ben for us.’

‘I love you too. Bye.’ Abbi hung up and dropped her head into the back of the recliner.

Yeah, that went better than expected
.

Ben resurfaced from the bedroom a couple of times later that night, but only to use the bathroom or get himself a glass of water from the kitchen. He ignored Abbi, and didn’t even walk over to check on Buddy. Around nine, after the first double feature of the Lifetime movie night for women ended, Abbi’s phone pinged.

I can’t stop thinking about you! I’ve had three cold showers already.

If he had sent that message hours ago it would have sent her into a tizzy, but remembering Ben’s words about Tylor having a revolving door had led her to think that maybe it was all about sex – for both of them. What if Taylor’s promise of a life together was a line he used on all the women he wanted to get into bed? He wouldn’t be the first man to lie to a woman to get what he wanted. Maybe she had been a little too hasty and let herself get carried away. She picked up her phone and texted back.

I spoke to Ben. Things didn’t go down to well.

In a split second the phone pinged with a reply.

I hope you haven’t changed your mind?

Abbi didn’t hesitate with her reply.

Yes I have. I owe it to Ben to try and work things out!

His response was curt and to the point.

Good luck!

Abbi didn’t have a reply for that. Not that it mattered. She had told him her decision and that was the end of it. She glanced over at Buddy who had started snoring. She lay down at his side and curled up with him. In a few minutes, she was fast asleep, and dreamt of Taylor and herself running hand in hand along the beach with little Buddy barking and chasing them, ears flopping in the wind.

She was torn out of her dream when she felt her ribs being poked. She instinctively shoved the hand away.

‘Hey, Abbi. Come to bed. There’s no reason for you to be out here.’

Half asleep still, she picked up Buddy and moved into the bedroom. She was too tired to resist. She let Buddy wiggle his way under the covers, and then she crawled in around him, and placed her head on the pillow. She felt Ben get in beside her. He leant over, and whispered, ‘I love you,’ in her ear.

She mumbled. ‘Okay.’ Within seconds she had fallen asleep again. 

At 5:00 she shot straight up in the air as Ben’s phone alarm went off. He had it set on emergency siren for the tone, and it nearly gave her a heart attack every time. She groaned when she saw the time.

‘Sorry. Got early rounds.’ Ben rolled off the bed and padded off to the bathroom. She leant over and set her alarm for 7:30. Normal people time. The shower turned on, and the faint smell of coffee wafting from the kitchen began to hit her nostrils. She didn’t care. She laid her head back on the pillow and was just dozing off when her phone pinged with a message. Thanking it was Taylor she jumped up and grabbed it from the bedside cabinet.

Abbi. We’re going to be back around 10. We would want to have a sit down with Taylor. Love Mum.

Her mum always did that. Signed her text messages like Abbi wouldn’t know who it was from if she didn’t. Abbi had tried to show her mum once how her name shows up at the top of the text, but that didn’t seem to communicate. Abbi knew that was going to be a tense, frustrating, and confusing meeting. She didn’t know how she was going to feel facing Taylor again. He most probably hated her for changing her mind. Maybe there was a downside to being so good looking after all. No woman in their right mind would trust such a person.

Ben had already left for work and neither of them had exchanged more than a couple of words to each other. Washed and dressed, Abbi left for work an hour early. She couldn’t wait for her parents to come back and resume control. If anything, she could go back to sleeping in at least once a week…okay, maybe twice. After climbing up the steps from the station and walking the short distance, she was pleasantly surprised to see Taylor standing outside the door. He had two cups of coffee in his hand, one that he was sipping from.

‘Good morning,’ he said warmly as she got within distance. ‘I thought you might have had a long night. Mocha, extra shot?’

Is this guy for real? He doesn’t hate me?
‘Oh my God, you are a life saver!’ she exclaimed. ‘What are you doing here I thought after yesterday….’

‘That I’d be angry with you.’ He smiled. ‘No, I like a challenge. I’m not going to give up on you…yet. But today I’m not here to try and convince you to change your mind, I came because you’re mum asked me to meet her here this morning.’

‘Oh I see.’ Abbi opened the door, and switched on the lights. She flipped the open sign, and took Buddy’s lead off and he immediately took off to the back.

‘Well, he seems like he’s feeling a whole lot better,’ Taylor said watching him go.

‘If only Calpol could cure all problems.’ She turned to face Taylor. ‘This situation is complicated isn’t it?’

‘It doesn’t have to be, Abbi. It’s you that’s creating the problems.’

Abbi felt her stomach flutter. ‘Can I ask you to be honest with me?’

‘Have I been anything but?’

‘No, no you haven’t,’ she answered truthfully. ‘But what do you see in me? Is it just sex?’

Taylor threw back his head and laughed. ‘Oh Abbi, is that what you think?’  He shook his head. ‘You couldn’t be further than the truth. In you I see everything I’ve ever wanted in a woman. Apart from being beautiful and sexy, you’re kind, smart and funny and have tons of qualities my own mother had.’

‘So what you’re saying is that I remind you of your mother?’

‘In some ways but not all. Is that a bad thing?’

‘No I suppose not – it all depends what your mum’s like.’

‘She passed away when I was ten. But I tell you she was an amazing woman. Just like you.’

Abbi reached out and squeezed his forearm. ‘I’m sorry to hear about your mum and thank you for the compliment.’

‘Speaking of mums.’ Taylor nodded to something behind her. ‘Here comes yours.’