Incandescere
Latin. Etymology of Incandescent
After breakfast, Adrienne remembered that no matter how hard she tried to avoid Troy and Kim, she has nothing to wear for the rest of the weekend. And she couldn’t go buying stuff from the hotel shop. Yes, Justin could afford it, but she wouldn’t allow him to keep buying her clothes.
“I’ll pay up for your room till noon,” Justin offered. “I don’t want Troy to think you owe him anything when you leave. You will be staying with me now.”
“I’ll pay you back.”
“Useless. Come on, it’s a small price to pay for spending the rest of the weekend with you.” He kissed her.
Justin went to the reception and she went up to her room to get her stuff and say a few things to Kim, if necessary.
When she got to the room, Kim wasn’t there. She started gathering her things. But after a minute, Kim entered, with Troy.
She swallowed.
Awkward!
“You’re leaving?” Kim asked in a bored tone.
She shook her head. “No. Justin checked out this room already. It’s paid up until twelve. You guys can just rebook it if you want.” She tried her best to be casual.
“Who is he, Adrienne?” Troy asked quietly.
“None of your business now, Troy,” she said angrily. “Sue him if you want, I could always go on the witness stand and say that he just came before you beat the life out of me.”
“I’m not stupid, Adrienne,” Troy responded. “I know what I did. And even if you don’t believe me, I am sorry. I didn’t mean for things to get out of hand. I didn’t mean to get too drunk.”
“So you mean to tell me, you can beat a helpless girl and the fact that you are drunk gives you the right to do so?”
She stared at him. His nose looked broken, and he had a shiner on both eyes. He did look pretty beaten up. And she didn’t feel the least bit sorry for him. In fact, she suppressed the urge to laugh.
“So all along there was another guy lurking in the shadows?” Kim asked.
Oh, really? She’s going to pin this on me?
She couldn’t even begin to decipher what a sorry piece of trash her sister really was. How did I end up with this family? She felt fury coming back to her.
She took a deep breath and stopped herself before she could cross the room and haul Kimberly by her pretty blond hair.
“Just like there was another girl lurking in the shadows all along, right, Troy?”
Troy closed his eyes. He fell quiet.
Guilt! Guilt! Guilt!
“Never mind. We didn’t need to cheat on each other to realize that this was going nowhere. We were nothing for a very long time. But you know what? Yesterday, before I broke up with you, I still hoped we could at least be friends. But I guess that’s out the window now!”
“Fine!” Troy threw his hands in the air. “Who is he anyway? What kind of guy did you replace me with? Can he even give you the life your mother wants for you?”
She wanted to laugh. Clearly, Troy thought his profession and wealth was a trump card. “This is not about money, or profession, Troy. This is about dignity and fidelity. Don’t you get that? But I guess you wouldn’t. For you it’s all about prestige and fame and success. Regardless if there’s misery underneath! You two really deserve each other.”
Troy stared at her. She couldn’t make out the expression on his pretty banged up face. And she didn’t care.
“It was over even before I found you humping my big sister. I had decided to end us. It was over a long time ago. And not just because of him.”
Adrienne turned to Kim. “You know I only made Mom proud just once. And that was when I dated Troy. And you weren’t happy about it. You always made sure you made better choices than me. Now, go ahead. You can have Troy. You didn’t have to steal him so deceitfully, you know! You could have just asked! I would have given him to you on a silver platter!”
“And what will you tell Mommy? I took the surgeon away from you, that’s why you ended up with that guy… who looked like a brainless model? Come on, Adrienne. I will not let you make me look bad. If you were ending things with Troy, I won’t let you tell our parents that it was because I slept with him!”
She laughed sarcastically. “No. Don’t worry. I won’t do that. Nothing I say can taint your spotless reputation in Mom’s eyes, anyway. But you’re filthy, Kimberly. And someday, all of this hypocrisy is going to bite you in the ass!”
Adrienne finished packing her bags.
“You know what? I can forgive Troy for cheating on me. Hell! I was cheating on him, too! At least I was brave enough to admit that. We never slept together, anyway. We pretended to be in a relationship. And it wasn’t going anywhere. But you? I could accept it if he slept with any other girl. But my own sister? While we haven’t broken up yet? That’s too damn low, Kim. Even for you!”
She grabbed her stuff. “And since I have always been the villain in mother’s eyes, I would just tell her that I didn’t really want the surgeon. She wanted him for one of her daughters. She wanted him for you, I remember. But I ended up with the trophy, didn’t I? And I bet that was killing you, huh, Kim!”
For once, Kim didn’t have anything to say to her. Adrienne saw guilt cross her face, confirming what she already knew. Kim had always been out to get Troy…because she couldn’t admit that she lost him to her.
“Don’t worry. I will tell Mom I am so sick of everybody around me being a doctor! And I found a man who is a hundred times better than what she could have imagined for me.” She turned to Troy. “I hope you manage to hold on to Kim after I’m gone. I think... and this is just a hunch…that she was only interested in you because you were mine! But how will you manage to keep it together this time?” The concern on her face was fake, and she was taunting him with something that he might have already known.
Both Kim and Troy looked away from her. They also refused to look at each other and Adrienne knew she hit them spot on!
She took her bags and started for the door. But before she went out, she turned back to them.
“And oh, by the way…his name is Justin Adams. He does look like a model. But he’s not brainless. He’s a straight A Harvard graduate, a Wall Street genius, and soon he’s going to be the CEO of Adams Industries.” She couldn’t disguise the pride in her voice. “And Kim…if you ever, ever seduce my boyfriend like you did with Troy, I swear to God, I will make sure you won’t be able to attract another male in your entire life again! And too bad for you neither of our parents are plastic surgeons!” And then she closed the door behind her with a bang.
She took deep breaths. She was reeling with anger. She didn’t know where she got the courage to say all the things she said. But she was glad she said them. For once in her life, she stood up for herself in front of Kim and Troy.
When she looked up, she found herself staring at Justin. Suddenly, she felt nervous. She told them who he was. It sounded like she was bragging about who he was. She didn’t know he was listening outside the door, which was left ajar by Kim and Troy when they entered.
He stared at her seriously, and Adrienne feared he would get mad at her for involving him in the conversation. Then he said in a sober voice, “Number one, I don’t find your sister half as attractive as you are. Number two, I’m not as dumb as Troy. Number Three, I may have the reputation of a player, but I never cheat.”
She stared back at him. “Justin, I’m sorry…”
He smiled at her. Then he pulled her into his arms. “Sorry for what?”
“For involving you in the conversation…for telling them who you were…”
He shook his head. “It sounded to me like they were pinning the cheating thing on you, and overlooking the fact that you caught them in bed together.”
She nodded. “Oh God Justin, how could I feel this much hatred for two people who I thought were very important to me?”
“Sshh…sometimes, you have to see that you matter more than anyone else,” he began softly. “Especially, when you weren’t treated with the love and respect you deserve. And I’m proud of you, honey. For standing up for yourself. For fighting back. And it’s good to hear you stake your claim on me for a change. And God, your feisty self is so damn sexy!”
They went to their room holding hands.
Justin kissed her thoroughly as soon as he closed the door behind him. And true to his word, he made love to her again.
When they went down, Adrienne met Mike and James at the lobby.
“Guys, this is Adrienne,” Justin said softly.
“Finally! I have been wanting to meet the woman who achieved something we thought was impossible.” Mike smirked, teasing his friend
“Which is?” Adrienne asked curiously.
“Giving in to the pull of attraction. Defying the rules of gravity.” James had joined in on the teasing.
“Ha-ha! You’re very funny,” Justin said sarcastically. He gave James a murderous look and before Adrienne could react or ask further, her friends made an appearance.
She introduced Yuan and Jill to Justin’s friends.
They spent the whole day with Mike, James, Yuan and Jill. They swam on the beach, played volleyball and pool. That night, they partied in the bar.
She had the time of her life. She felt freer than before. She loved being able to hug Justin anytime she wanted. And it looked like he felt the same. He seemed keen on showing the world what they have. That they belong together. When she went to the ladies’ room, he walked with her and waited for her at the door. Then they walked back hand in hand towards their table.
“Do you always do that?” she asked him.
“Do what?”
“Wait for a girl outside the ladies’ room.”
He shrugged. “Probably. But you never gave me plenty of chances before.”
She smiled and pinched him on his side jokingly.
“Owww!” He laughed.
That night, they made love slowly, passionately. Like they were savoring each second that they had together.
She went through the whole week with a smile on her face. She asked Jill and Yuan not to say anything about Justin to their other friends. She wanted to keep it low-profile. He was still somewhat a celebrity. And the last thing she wanted was for rumors to ruin what they had.
She’d been sleeping over Justin’s apartment since the night they returned from the resort. They were spending each and every night together.
He took her to the office and picked her up every day. He would take her out to dinners, sometimes fancy, sometimes fast food. He took her to the movies one time, and that Friday, they returned to Gypsys.
“Now, we arrive together. I hope you don’t mind if I buy you a drink, flirt with you on the dancefloor, kiss you and take you home with me again.” His eyes twinkled mischievously, reminiscing the first night they met.
She laughed. “I would love that.”
She had seven shots of tequila. He took her home on his Ducati motorcycle, just like the first night they met.
“This is very familiar,” she teased.
He laughed. In the elevator, he took her in a passionate kiss. They half-ran to his apartment, and as soon as he shut the door behind him, he grabbed her by the waist and kissed her again.
After a few minutes, they were in bed, naked.
She smiled at him. “This time, you can’t hurt me.”
He nodded. “You’re not a virgin anymore, honey. And I intend to give you only pleasure.”
And he kept his promise. When they were done, she felt completely satisfied. She felt beautiful. She felt like a woman.
It felt like reliving the memories of that night. But this time, she knew the man. She trusted him. She was completely in love with him.
She also felt glad that she wore Jacob’s outfit that very first night she went to Gypsys. That she had decided not to be prim and proper for once.
She may have done all the things she did that night for all the wrong reasons, but at that moment…she knew that she’s in Justin’s arms for all the right ones.