There are a lot of ways to wake up in the morning; having someone bring you breakfast in bed, your partner kissing you, a blaring alarm, even falling off the bed. All of these would have been preferable to Peter texting me at nine-thirty to ask for the ring back. And no, he would not be getting the ring back. You don’t take Christmas presents back or anything else that you gifted people, and that ugly fucking ring would not be going back to the man who gave it to me.
I was fuming about it in the shower, I had basically rubbed my scalp raw as I scrubbed angrily at it, but that was nothing compared to my skin after going crazy with the loofah.
“It’s the ugliest fucking ring in the world,” I yelled to Alex, who was standing at dual vanity as I rinsed my hair. “What could he possibly want it for? You can’t tell me he needs money so he’s going to sell it, because I’m just not buying that.” I hit the taps and slicked my hair back before grabbing the fluffy towel and stepping out onto the warmed tile floor.
“I feel like this is the best time to point out that I chose the ring,” Alex replied.
“It’s still ugly,” I told him without missing a beat. “I’m sorry, but it is.”
He laughed and dropped his razor to the counter, I smiled and wrapped my arms around his waist. He turned in my embrace and tilted my chin up, a muscle twitched in his jaw as he pulled away and couldn’t hide his smirk anymore.
“I thought it was ugly too, I wanted to see if you would say anything to him.”
You’re so petty. I groaned and smacked his chest. “You’re such a prick,” I told him with an eyeroll. Without another word I turned on my heel and made my way back to the bedroom, Alex grabbed the edge of my towel and I squealed as he pulled it away from me. “Jerk!”
I had to get dressed at some point, which wasn’t the easiest since my clothes were a half mile away at the guest house. For the time being, I grabbed a button up from Alex’s closet and stretched out upside down on the bed, my damp hair hanging over the edge while I played on my phone.
10:37AM Pete
Hello?
I groaned and set the phone back down. He wasn’t going to let up anytime soon, and he knew I was up since I hadn’t turned off my read receipts. With a heavy sigh I picked the device back up and hit speaker phone.
“I want the ring,” Peter said in lieu of a greeting.
“Oh, is that what you want, Peter? The ring? I couldn’t guess based on the four texts telling me that already.”
“Look, we can meet somewhere private or—”
“No,” I interrupted. “It was given to me, it’s my ring, and I’m keeping it.”
“That’s not how engagement rings work!” he screamed at me.
“It is when you fuck my cousin!”
Alex cringed, coming into the room at the exact wrong time. I beckoned him over and he cocked an eyebrow but came to stand in front of me anyway.
“Beyond that, Chloe, it’s rightfully mine and I want it back. I never should have given it to you in the first place.”
Ouch. “You really aren’t making much of a case for yourself.” I reached for Alex’s zipper as I spoke, loudly pulling it down and taking his cock out. He gazed down at me blankly, just watching as I stroked his length until he was hard.
“We can meet in public or I can come back to the guest house,” Peter replied exasperatedly. “This is non-negotiable.”
Alex grabbed my jaw with one hand and my phone with the other, my mouth was frozen less than an inch from his cock, he hit the end call and I idly listened to the sound of him typing before tossing the phone down the length of the bed. “You’re meeting him at the pier.”
I rolled my eyes and he released me, I let my tongue swirl around the head of his cock instead of arguing with him.
“Now suck it properly,” he ordered, stepping closer and forcing himself into my waiting mouth. He always knew exactly what I wanted to hear, even if he was just as annoyed with me as his son was.
Two hours later I was wandering across the island in Alex’s shirt, my thighs were sticky, and I had a wide, obnoxious smile on my face. I knew I wasn’t ready to see Peter but being with his father gave me a sick thrill that almost made me eager to see him because now I was the one with a secret.
I had to wear something sexy, something that would make Peter jealous and disappointed that he lost me. I had a closet full of skirts and dresses, but all I pulled out were my tiny, bleached and distressed shorts. They really shouldn’t have been more than a swimsuit coverup since they showed a lot of leg and just the tiniest hint of ass cheek. I loosened Alex’s pale blue button-up until it showed the contours of my breasts, once I was satisfied, I undid the bottom and tied it into a sloppy knot. Peter wouldn’t know it was his father’s shirt, but I certainly did.
Another forty-five minutes later, both my hair and makeup were done to the nines and I was on the boat to the pier. Alex had sent me a slew of reassuring texts that I had to stop looking at otherwise I’d breakdown again, and right now I was on a roll. The ring was in my pocket and I had a plan Alex and I were both happy with.
“You’re late,” Peter bitched as I got off the ferry. “We agreed on noon.”
“And I expected loyalty, but here we are.” I spread my hands in a what-can-you-do gesture and he groaned.
“Do you have it or not, because I’m really not in the mood to play games.”
“I do, actually.” I pulled the ring out of my back pocket, he reached for it and I pulled back, holding it just out of his grasp precariously over the water. “You deserve absolute garbage, Peter. I put up with your mood swings, I coddled you when your parents cut you off, I put off my entire life to stay here with you because that’s what you wanted.”
He stared impassively at me, a far off look in his eyes. “What do you want, Chloe? Do you want me to tell you how long it went on, or if there were others, or why I did it?”
I snorted. “No, it’s my time to talk, all you have to do is listen.” I paused long enough to sweep my hair back over my shoulder and push my sunglasses up, refusing to let him look away from my gaze. “You didn’t pick this ring for me, from what I heard you weren’t even there when it was purchased, you spent the past year belittling my choice to pursue fashion and talked me out of going back to school, you refused to even acknowledge that we were getting married without a fight, and you spent two years telling me that you never thought I was your type but you apparently loved me anyway. So, tell me why you want this ring back, and what the fuck it means to you.”
Two people were gawking at us as they walked past, and honestly? I wished that Alex had told Peter that I would meet him in central market just to make a bigger scene. As it was, Peter didn’t seem to know what to say; his eyes were wide, his hands deep the pockets of his jeans and his mouth opening and closing like a fish.
I could twist the knife if I wanted to, I could easily bring up exactly what I did with his father and describe every gory detail. But that would hurt Alex, and myself if I was honest, and I couldn’t give Peter that satisfaction. With one last longing glance at the ring, I held it out to him. I had wanted everything it promised, but now it was just a hunk of metal that weighed my hand down.
“You want it?” I asked sweetly, cocking my head to side. “Go get it.” I threw the ring as hard as I could and watched it go until it disappeared into the horizon.
“What the fuck is wrong with you!” Peter screamed, turning and watching in horror as the ring slipped into the water. “I want the fucking money for that ring, Chloe, this isn’t a goddamn joke.”
“Your father paid less than a thousand for it, you make more than that in a week,” I said, crossing my arms. “Now, I’ve gotta go get my shit and Alex told me to let you know that you need to come get your shit from the guest house by Friday.”
“That’s my house,” he said through a tightly clenched jaw. “Where exactly does he think I’m going to go?”
I shrugged and pulled my glasses back down. “Considering you’re an adult with a savings account, I don’t think he’s that worried about it.” With a sugary sweet smile I adjusted the strap of my purse and strode past him. “Bye, Peter.”
He said something to me but I just blocked it out and kept going. I only had a few things to grab from the store – my computer and any clothing that had been left behind. With my phone on silent and Peter left behind I practically skipped all the way down into the city, the annoying start to my day completely forgotten. Maybe I should’ve been concerned about how happy being petty made me, but hey, I deserved something nice out of this whole thing.
I was surprised to find the shop closed, considering we only ever shut on Sundays or holidays. However, I came prepared with my keys and unlocked the door. If I can get out of here without running into Iva or Lena then I’ll be golden.
The racks of sparkling fabrics and accent pieces made the room feel cluttered but homey, especially combined with the back wall covered in family photos behind the counter. My grandmother had opened the store fifty years ago, Lena and I were the third generation of girls to work here. Once upon a time, it had been a dream for me to come here and work it with her, it had also solidified my passion for sewing and wanting to pursue fashion as a career. Now my rose-tinted glasses were gone and all I could see was a store front that was falling apart and just as hostile to me as some of my family.
I was gazing at the photos lining the wall; pictures of my aunts and mom as teens standing in the same place I was, Lena and I as children, my ya-ya when she first opened the store, and so many more when I heard the stairs creak in the backroom.
“Hello?” I called.
“Clo? Is that you?”
Iva? I threw the back door open and she jumped back in surprise. “Aunt Iva, hey, I didn’t know you were here.” It was on the tip of my tongue to ask where Lena was, but I really didn’t want to know.
The older woman waved off my greeting and adjusted her skirt. “I wasn’t supposed to be, but Lena wasn’t feeling so good and I thought I’d stop in and work on anything urgent.” She smiled and her green eyes sparkled the same way her daughter’s did. “Lena said you weren’t feeling well either, is something going around?”
Yeah, my ex-fiancé. “Probably, but I just came to get my laptop and stuff to bring home – you know, just to keep me occupied for a bit while I’m out of commission.” God I was a bad liar, I hoped she didn’t notice.
If she thought I was lying, she didn’t let on. Instead, she just walked with me to the upper apartment. No one actually lived here – mainly because the plumbing was practically non-existent – but it was a nice little escape loft. The massive picture windows over looked the cliff side and gave a great view of the ocean and the city, while across from it sat old bohemian furniture that helped create a more welcoming vibe.
I found my laptop and its case on the couch, after a bit more searching I also found a few articles of clothing I left for emergency changing. I was tucking it all into my oversized beach tote doubling as a purse when Iva cornered me.
“Why are you taking all that?” she asked while gesturing to my bag.
“I need it for home,” I replied, but unable to meet her gaze. “I like this stuff and I want it back in my closet.”
“Are you and Lena fighting?”
I froze for a half a second and that was just long enough for Iva to notice. She sat down beside me with her hands in her lap looking grave as she regarded me closely. “Chloe, you can talk to me… We’re family, you lived at the house with us for several months, we should be able to talk.”
“There’s nothing to talk about. Lena and I will deal with it when we’re ready.” And I’m not ready yet.
“Are you leaving the store?”
“I don’t know.”
“How long has this been going on?”
“It’s recent, alright?” Please, just lay off with the questions.
“Are you sure? Because I noticed the other day when you were wearing that little shirt that it was very tight, and it showed maybe more than you wanted it to—”
“Hey, Iva?” I asked sweetly.
“Yes?”
“If you have something to say just fucking say it, you don’t need to sugar coat it. I’m not going to cry if you call me fat.” I refused to break the eye contact as I said it. I wasn’t letting her weasel out of this one.
Iva sucked in a sharp breath and stood up looking shaken. “I never said that—”
“It’s implied.”
“We’re worried about you!” she screamed, suddenly losing her cool. “Even your mother thinks there’s something wrong, we asked her to come here and she said you were cold and short with her, you haven’t even spent any time together since she landed!”
“I didn’t know that she was coming!” I snapped, getting right back in the older woman’s face. “I have a life, a job, I’m trying to go back to school—”
“That’s not an excuse, the other day you just couldn’t wait to ditch her at the house. How do you think that makes her feel?”
“How do you think it makes me feel when at every turn you’re making comments about what I eat, how I dress, how I’m never as good and wonderful as precious Lena?” My voice came out so shrill and high pitched it was almost hard for me to understand myself. “I don’t want to be here, I certainly don’t feel welcome here no matter how hard I’ve tried to make this work!”
“You and Lena—”
“Are not friends!” I interrupted. “We’re vaguely related and right now I don’t consider her anything but lying little bitch who treated me like shit for god knows how long, and I was just to blind to see it!”
“You can not speak about my daughter that way! After everything that Lena did for you; introducing you to Peter, letting you stay in her room when you got here—”
“Yes, I’ll be sure to thank Lena for fucking Peter too, she really saved me on that one.”
I wanted to take it back the second the words left my mouth, but I couldn’t. I wanted to apologize for getting into this argument, for not being more grateful for the genuinely nice things my family had done for me. But I didn’t. Iva gaped at me in pure horror before turning quickly on her heel to hide the sudden watery eyes. I didn’t know what to do, so I just stood there, watching.
She left quickly after that, and I was thankful because my sudden angry bout had ripped open my too-fresh wounds. Iva was right; Lena had done a lot of good things for me, she had always been my partner in crime. And there was no way to bring that back, no matter how rocky my relationship with Peter had been that didn’t give her the right to do what she did. My own tears followed pretty quickly after I realized that Lena and I might never patch things up, even minorly, everything we had was destroyed over one shitty guy.
I stayed in the loft a long time, just sitting on the floor with my back to the couch and sobbing for what seemed like only a few minutes. By the time I pulled myself together enough to stand up the sun was going down. I pulled out my phone and checked for messages, the only missed one I had was from Alex.
7:09 PM A.
It’s been a few hours and I wanted to make sure you didn’t throw yourself off the pier. Call me when you can. XX.
I laughed at his horribly timed joke, but admittedly his dark humour had always been a draw. I didn’t bother calling him, instead I just sent a quick text and set off for the ferry. One way too long boat ride later I was docked again and he was waiting for me at the shore line.
“You seemed like you might want someone to talk to,” he said, answering my unasked question.
“It’s that obvious?”
“Very.” He offered me a lopsided smile, showing off the dimples on his cheek and holding out his hand. “Let’s go, I’ve got dinner inside getting cold.”
I took his hand eagerly and my heart fluttered at the brush of his thumb across my knuckles. “You’re going to have to walk me back to the guest house later, I don’t like doing it alone when it’s this dark.”
“Not happening, you’re staying with me at the main house.”
“Is that a request or an order?”
“It’s a statement,” he countered. “I have the place to myself right now and I want you to stay with me.”
Any other time before this weekend I would have argued with him, hell, if it was two years ago I would have picked a fight just to get under his skin so we could have angry sex followed by make-up sex. I didn’t do that tonight, I knew I wanted to stay too and I didn’t need to put up a fake fight about it. Without a second thought I leaned up on my tiptoes and gave him a kiss on the cheek, suddenly his arm wrapped around my waist and he pulled me tight to his side as we walked along.