Twisted Proposal (14 page)

“Don’t you think she should know what you signed her up for?” Mr. Van Buren said, tapping a cigar on the table.

I stared at Stuart.
I knew it! I just knew it!
This whole thing was a set-up! 

“Addison, do you mind?” Stuart reiterated.

“No, I don’t. Why don’t you tell me what this is about?” I fired back.

“Let’s get a drink, shall we? In my office?” Stuart rose from the table. Mr. Van Buren drained his glass and followed him inside, leaving me alone with the maids clearing the dishes. 

Now what?

***

“Leave me alone!” I screamed, yanking my arm away from mom and storming into the bathroom.

“Leave you alone?” she yelled. She grabbed me again and slammed me against the wall. “Like hell I will. I made a promise when you were born to keep you safe. Now you’re my only daughter, and you're inches away from ruining your life.”

I stared at her in disbelief. I didn’t think she cared.

“What? You didn’t think I would find out about your grades? You had better pull it together, Addison! And do you even know that boy?”

“He hangs out on the roof. I’ve seen him several times,” I said, trying to keep an innocent expression on my face.

              “Horse shit, Addison. He’s one of Marco’s punks! You stay the fuck away from him. Understand?” Her eyes were red, and the veins were popping out in her neck. She didn’t need this kind of stress. What if it pushed her over the edge? I took a deep breath.

              “You’re right. I’ve just been really stressed out lately with everything that’s going on,” I conceded. She touched my face and smoothed my hair, smiling as if trying to memorize my face.

“You’re my baby and always will be. I’m sorry I freaked out.” She pulled me into a hug.

“I know, mom, I’m sorry.” I hugged her back, and we stood there for about five minutes. She was so thin. Then she kissed my forehead and told me to get ready for school.

***

Except now I knew that she wasn’t my mom and I wasn’t her child. That was the last fight I had with Elizabeth. Everything changed after that. I should have never gone to school.
Maybe I could have saved her.
Now I was stuck with this mess. I stood and fled inside.

“Hey wait,” Zach said, and I stopped before heading up the stairs.

‘Do you wanna play video games?” he asked.

“Uh, sure.” At least my mind would be pre-occupied.

After settling into the couch bean bag chair, I watched him battle his way through three levels of Monkey Kingdom. The game reminded me of an old-fashioned Nintendo game I played when I was younger.

Jackson barged in. “Squirt, your dad’s looking for you.”

“Yeah?” Zach said but didn’t stop playing.

I’m sure Stuart didn’t want him for anything. Jackson crossed the room in two strides and pulled the control from Zach, killing the power to the game.

“Now,” he ordered Zach, who sighed, but left.

“Rude much?” I didn’t wait for a response and went to the study room, picking up the book I was reading, tucking my feet beneath me in one of the comfy leather armchairs.

              “You like to read?” Jackson asked from the doorway.

              “Doesn’t everyone?”

He licked his lips and strolled into the room.
Was I supposed to be impressed?
I put the book down on my lap. Sure, Jackson was attractive enough, but he was missing his father's calm demeanor. Not to mention Jackson's arrogance irritated me.

He sauntered over to the bookshelf and pulled out a book at random, keeping his eyes on me. A shirtless man with long flowing blonde hair graced the cover.

“I didn’t peg you for the romance type.” I pointed at the book, grinning.

He looked at the cover and chuckled. “I’m not.” He replaced it.

Maybe I could find something out from him.             

Facing me, he pulled out a slim cigarette and lit it. “Sorry about dinner.”

              “Which part?”

              “The whole no meat part.”

              “It’s fine. I get it all the time.” Which was true. In Illinois, all the regulars at the pizza place gave me grief about eating only veggies.

              “You’re different from most girls I’ve met.”

              “Okay. Whatever that means.” I wasn’t in the mood to have my faults pointed out so I returned my book.

              “Like, right now, most girls would be trying to get my attention. Here you have it all and want none of it. No you…you could care less if I was here or in Timbuktu.” He purposely leaned across me to flick the ash from his cigarette into a metal ashtray on the side table by my chair.

              I slid out from under him and rose, taking in his intoxicating cologne. I pushed it aside.
I still wasn’t interested.
“Jackson, let me make something clear to you.”

              “What?” He answered like an eager dog
.

              He was so obvious.
Lame.

“I know that I’m new here, and that might be exciting to you, but it’s not to me. I’m here under protest. I’m not looking for anything at this time, but if I change my mind you’ll be the first to know.” He looked confused. I lessened the space between us. Just because I didn’t want him didn’t mean I couldn’t toy with him.

I brushed up against him. “Let me put it in terms you may understand. I don’t like you. You’re not my type.” Not that I had a type, but if I did, he wouldn’t be it.

              “Okay, that’s the first time that’s ever happened,” he said, straightening up. I wandered into the other room. He trailed behind me. Slowly, I dragged my fingers along the side of the pool table, fully aware of him watching my every move.

“There’s a first time for everything.” I perched on the edge of the table. “Play me a game of pool, winner gets--”

              “To show the other person around town,” he interjected.

              “That doesn’t seem quite fair. How about, if I lose, I make you dinner?”

              “Deal, and if I lose, I’ll do the same.” He removed two cues from the rack. He meant business. 

              “Deal.” I set the balls and he broke them, shooting six in on the first shot.

Chapter Fourteen

After a few minutes, I noticed how meticulously Jackson played. Before taking a shot, he calculated the perfect angle to maximize his score. If the ball wasn’t where he wanted, he complained, blaming it on the unevenness of the table, not on his faulty aim.

Pool wasn’t one of my strong games, but I found that if I was tipsy drunk I performed better. It made no sense at all, but it was worth a shot. “I’ll be right back,” I said and slipped into the study room finding my stash of Wild Turkey, which I had hidden behind the books on the bottom shelf, a few days ago. I downed a few shots from the bottle and returned to the game.

The liquor helped me release the stress of dinner and when my turn came, I had a plan of attack. He left me with a mess of solids all over the green felt. I leaned over to the far side of the table and began to make my mark.

***

A half hour later, we were down to the eight-ball. Zach and Lexus had decided to cheer us on with Lexus, of course, rooting for Jackson while Zach supported me.

              “I’ll be here on Friday at 8:00 p.m. for my dinner,” Jackson said, taking his last shot, which was off by a hair, causing the ball to bounce off one end and stop right in front of a side pocket at the other end.
Perfect.

“I think you’ll be making me dinner on Friday,” I countered and made the final shot, landing the ball in the hole.

              “Yes,” Zach screamed, and we gave each other a high five.

Jackson remained unmoved, his gaze fixated on the pool table. “I want a rematch,” he demanded.

              “No. I won fair and square.” I put my cue away. I wasn’t in the mood for another game anyway. When I turned around, Jackson was in the same spot.

              Lexus sprang into action and put her hand on Jackson’s shoulder. “Hey, don’t worry about her, Jackson. She obviously doesn’t know how to be a good hostess. I’ll play you another game.”

              “I don’t want to play you. I want to play her,” he said, shrugging off her hand off.

“Come on, Addison, just play him another game,” Zach whined.

“Yeah, Addison, it’s not that big of deal. You're acting like a brat,” Lexus added.

“I’m not the one acting like a brat,” I said. “Besides, I don’t want to play another game.” The anxiety of the day mixed with the alcohol made my stomach upset.
              “This is useless, Jackson. Forget about her.” Lexus took Jackson's arm, but he jerked away.

“Okay,” I muttered and walked over to him, removed the cue in his hand, and placed it where it belonged.
Did I miss something?

“She’s right, you know. You don’t know how things work around here,” Jackson stated.

“Obviously not. So what now? You’re going to throw a fit because you lost?” I crossed my arms. The warm alcohol churned in my stomach.

He strode past me and plucked one of the shorter cues from the wall and snapped it in half over his knee. Wood chips flew everywhere and scattered to the floor, like splatters of paint.  Then he grabbed the cue ball and launched it into a glass vase, shattering it into a million pieces.
What was this dude’s problem?

Lexus just stood there next to her brother with a look of bewilderment on her face. I guess fear had them frozen to their places. I wasn’t afraid. I was used to drama. Elizabeth used to throw dishes or whatever she got her hands on when she was upset.

He picked up another cue, but I snatched it from him and replaced it before it wound up in splinters on the floor.

“Can I speak to you alone?” I didn’t give him an option. Gripping his wrist, I dragged him into the study and shut the doors. “How old are you?”

“Old enough,” he said.

“Okay, so you’re at least eighteen?”

“Nineteen,” His eyes were blank, his tone cold.

I’d never seen anyone lose it over a pool game. “Wow, that’s shocking. I can’t believe you flipped out over a stupid game. Is it that big of a deal to you if we go on a date?” I paused.

His face burned a light shade of pink, and he remained silent. I edged closer to him.

“Jackson, I don’t date, never have, and I don’t intend on starting. Nor am I interested in boys like you.”

“
Boys
like me? You don’t even know me.” The haughtiness in his voice made me roll my eyes.

“But I do. You’re immature and rude when you don’t get your way. Boys who think the world revolves around them. The rules don’t apply to them, sound familiar?”

“Who said I’m even interested in you?” he snarled, leaning toward me.

I kissed him, which caught him completely off guard. It didn’t bother me that he didn’t respond. His lips were soft and nice. “You don’t have to.” I pointed to the bulge in his pants, and he spun around.  “Clean up your mess, Jackson.”

Opening the doors, I ignored Zach's and Lexus‘s shocked expressions as I headed upstairs. I needed another drink after dealing with him. I had to be crazy to assume he would be compliant. Instead of going to my room, I went into the kitchen.
Maybe Jackson was bi-polar or something; he certainly had the mood swings.
That’s what they thought was wrong with Elizabeth before they realized she was a paranoid schizophrenic.

I spotted a bottle of wine on the counter and an empty glass. I filled it half way and downed it in seconds. Someone cleared his throat behind me. I lowered the glass and turned around. The Van Buren’s, Petra, and Stuart were all staring at me.

              “Uh…” Stuart took the glass from my hand. “You’re sixteen, not twenty-one, which means, no drinking.” 

“I didn’t know you were the kind of dad who followed the rules.” I meandered to the refrigerator and pulled out a cold bottle of water.

              “Addison, where’s my son?” Mr. Van Buren asked. A vacuum cleaner hummed downstairs, and no one said a word until it shut off. I smiled. Petra seemed to lose all the color in her face, and Mrs. Van Buren had a deer-in-the-headlights look in her gray eyes. Only Mr. Van Buren remained calm.

              “He’s cleaning up a mess he made.” I slouched against the sink. “I’m sure he’ll be up any minute.”

Jackson stormed into the room, then stopped when he realized we weren’t alone.

              “What’s going on?” Mr. Van Buren directed at him.

              “Nothing, Father. I was just clearing up a minor misunderstanding. Can you have two pool cues and a Japanese vase sent over? One that matches the vase in the game room?”

              “You never clean anything,” Mrs. Van Buren said in a hollow voice.             

“Whatever.” He dismissed her. “So what now?”

              “Whatever,” I taunted, walking into the other room.
Did he actually think I wanted to hang out with him?

              He caught up to me. “Do something like that again, and you’ll regret it.”

His bullying infuriated me. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.” I swung my hand back and punched him in the groin. He gasped and dropped to his knees. I walked past him without another glance. Clearly, Stuart had ulterior motives for bringing me to his house. I needed to find out what he had planned and what it had to do with the Van Buren’s.

In the informal living room, Lexus was sprawled out on one of the leather loveseats with Zach on the other, both of them watching a movie on the big screen TV. I slid close to Zach on his couch. Moments later, Jackson plopped down next to me. Sighing, I rose and moved to the other end of the couch, but Jackson moved over as well. After the third time of changing seats, I gave up.  Apparently, Jackson was determined to crowd me. I tried to focus on the movie, which was about some girl falling in love with her college professor, but I soon became bored.

Excusing myself, I ducked out into the hall. Running away was not an option, but being alone was. Jackson would probably come looking for me soon, so I kept moving, rushing through the dining room, past the adults, into a room I had never seen before. Once inside, I closed the door and collapsed against the wall, covering my face with my hands.
Why did Elizabeth have to die?
I needed her.

I couldn’t believe that I actually missed her or my old life. All I had ever done was wish I had more and now when I had it, I didn't want it. None of it. These rich people were unhappy and cruel to each other and to me. With the tears still streaming down my face, I fumbled blindly toward a bench.

Eventually, I calmed down enough to take in my surroundings. Potted plants lined the glass walls of the room, and the earthy smell was soothing. I must have been in some kind of atrium.

Closing my eyes, I imagined walking through the park at home on my way to school or work. Of course, most of those plants would be dead by now, the winter cold stripping them bare. A door opened and shut, bringing me back to the present.

I wiped my eyes with the palms of my hands and straightened, squaring my shoulders, ready to face Jackson's father.

“Are you okay?” asked Mr. Van Buren from the doorway. He didn’t want to be there. That was obvious by the way he frowned at me.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Honestly, my wife told me to come and check on you. She claims I’m good at talking to teenagers or something.”

“Isn’t this Stuart’s job?” I massaged my temples. He’d stepped further into the room not responding, so I turned to the setting sun, which had created beautiful streaks of purple and red across the dimming sky. It was so clear, as if I were sitting on the roof at home. “I’m sure you have more important things to worry about. Why don’t you just return to your entertainment and leave me alone?” I said.

Instead of leaving, he sat right next to me. A comfortable silence fell over the room as we continued to watch the sunset.

“Pretty amazing,” he said softly, after a few minutes.

I moved and caught a whiff of his designer musk, and all I could do was stare at his sculpted profile. Everything seemed frozen in time until he spoke.

“Is everything alright?” he whispered.

I forced myself to look away. I had to get it together. He was older than Stuart.
Change the subject.
“What’s Stuart planning to do with me? I mean all that talk at dinner.” He brushed against me as he moved, causing butterflies in my stomach. I stared up into his eyes and lost myself again.

“I understand you were really close with your aunt.”

“You could say that,” I replied, annoyed. He wasn’t answering my question.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “There are a lot of things that are going to change that you may not be used to.”

“Like what?”

“Nothing for you to worry about now.” His hand slid over mine, causing me to catch my breath.
Was he flirting with me?

I pulled my hand away and stood. “Don’t try to save me from the truth, Mr. Van Buren. I will find out what you’re hiding.” I had to get out of there, before something awkward happened...

“Don’t go snooping around where you don’t belong.”  His voice was as cold as his son's had been earlier, and his eyes glittered like a snake.

I was sick and tired of people telling me that, but knew I couldn’t show this man any fear. I shortened the distance between us in one step, forcing him to sit back. “Like I told your son, don’t make promises you can’t keep. Rest assured, I
will
find out what you’re hiding. And I promise you that if I find out I’m a part of some sick game between you and Stuart, Wilson winning his next case will be the least of your worries.” Dismissing him, I swept from the atrium and returned to the living room.

              “You’re back,” Jackson commented as I sat next to him.

“Unfortunately.” Avoiding Zach’s questioning look, I focused on the movie. “Let’s just watch the show, okay?” But as the minutes passed, my eyes became heavy. Yawning, I rested my head on the arm of the couch. Soon, I was fast asleep.

***

I woke to find Jackson staring down at me. His face was uncomfortably close.  “What do you want?” I asked.

“It was a pleasure meeting you, Addison.” He kissed me softly, and for a second I forgot where I was. Sitting up, I pushed him away reminding myself I didn’t like him.

“Don’t do that again,” I said, punching him in the shoulder. He laughed. I thought about saying something else, but Stuart, Petra, and the Van Burens walked in. I adjusted my dress and Jackson rose from the couch.

“Everything all right?” Stuart asked.

“We’re leaving. Are you staying?” Mr. Van Buren asked Jackson.

“He’s leaving,” I said as I stood and faced them. “Isn’t that right?” I turned toward Jackson, who looked confused.

“Yeah, of course.” He excused himself, which left all eyes on me.

“Maybe you should go check on him,” Stuart suggested. He pulled Petra close to him.
Was he serious?
He jerked his head toward the door when I didn’t move.

“I’m sure he’s fine,” I said, but they were still staring at me. “Seriously, he's fine.” I shrugged. “Okay. Whatever.”
This was ridiculous.