Bounty

by Aubrey St. Clair

  I just shrug. “We had some good times. Live and learn.”

  “I guess. But…” Evelyn pauses now as she looks at me with a raised eyebrow, as if unsure about her next words. “You know it’s not like that bet was binding, right? You didn’t actually have to go with Chase…”

  I swat her on the arm, hoping she doesn’t really think I’m that naive. “Yes, I’m quite aware.”

  “Okay, okay,” she says, raising her hands before grabbing the bottle and refilling both of our glasses. “Just making sure. So… then I guess you left with Chase because you’re just a dirty slut?”

  This time I hit her even harder and we both almost topple over with laughter.

  “I mean, I totally understand it if that’s the case. That man is so fucking hot.”

  “I honestly had no intention of sleeping with him. I just wanted to piss Harrison off, and I knew leaving with Chase would be the best way to do that. I had no idea who he was at the time.” I pause for a minute, reflecting as the smile fades from my lips. “I guess I still don’t.”

  Evelyn sighs as she brings her glass to her lips and takes a big swallow. She knows most of what happened between Chase and me, as much as she could gather from me between my initial sobs. At the very least, she knows he hurt me.

  “So Chase lied about owning a house because he wanted you to like him, is that right?”

  I shake my head. “It’s not that simple.”

  “What else did he lie about?”

  “Denise. He had an ex-girlfriend that he still talks to, a complete bitch.”

  “And he’s still sleeping with her?”

  “What? No!” I almost spit the word out, almost offended by the notion.

  “Okay…” She’s speaking slowly again, as if trying to work something out with a child. “So he has an ex-girlfriend. You have an ex-boyfriend who, newsflash, is also a big asshole.”

  “It’s not just that, he lied about her.”

  “Oh. What did he say?”

  I think back for a moment as I try to remember what exactly he had lied about in regards to Denise. “He told me he was asking her about some jewelry for me to cover up a secret meeting he was having with her.”

  “But not a secret meeting to have sex.”

  “No! She was his real estate agent and he was signing the papers for the house.”

  “So it’s still the same lie, really. It was still just to cover up the lie about the house.”

  I purse my lips, unhappy with the way she’s turning this around. “He never told me she was his real estate agent.”

  “What did he say she did?”

  I glare at Evelyn now. “He didn’t ever tell me what she did.”

  I can tell my best friend is keeping her face as innocent as possible as she looks at me. “So, then he didn’t really lie about that, either?”

  “It’s a lie of omission,” I protest with a pout as I throw back the last of the wine in my glass and grab one of the other bottles from the table next to us.

  Evelyn takes a deep breath next to me and then settles back against the couch. “Lila,” she says, resting her fingers lightly on my arm as if to comfort me, “you know I love you. But I honestly think you’re over reacting to this whole thing. I mean, unless you really just intend for Chase to be a rebound… but if that’s the case, I don’t know why he’s made you so upset.”

  “No one intends for someone to be their rebound,” I argue. My voice is hard, but quieter now. I turn to look at Evelyn and she’s staring back at me with her wide hazel eyes that seem more brown than green today. “He lied to me, Eve,” I say, hoping she’ll understand. “Harrison lied. I’m just tired of lies.”

  “I know, hon,” she nods. “I know.”

  I can feel the tears burning at the edges of my eyes again as I lean against my roommate and she gives me a hug.

  “I just worry that you’re letting your experience with Harrison influence what’s going on with Chase. I get that he lied to you. But is one lie always equal to another? Do the sins of Chase equal the sins of Harrison simply because they’re both lies?”

  “Shouldn’t they?” I’m being stubborn now, annoyed at how logical Evelyn is sounding even though she should be just as drunk as I am by now. But her glass is full and mine is empty. I’m still holding the full bottle in my hand as I stare down at it, unwilling to meet her gaze.

  “You tell me. Harrison lied about things he was doing that he wanted to keep hidden because they were broken promises, they were negative and they were things he knew you didn’t approve of and he wasn’t willing to fix. Chase lied about something that he was actively trying to fix because he was worried you’d judge him prematurely and he’d lose you.”

  Evelyn has no right to be this logical when I’m trying to be upset. I refill my glass and pick it up with a sigh.

  “Whatever happened to ‘What happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas?’” I ask, letting a little smile touch the edges of my lips in the hopes that she’ll take it as me admitting that maybe she’s got a bit of a point without me having to come right out and say it.

  “That’s one way to go, if that’s what you want,” she smiles back. She picks up her own glass and we both take a long drink. Tonight isn’t a sipping night.

  “I don’t know what I want,” I say softly, sinking into the couch and closing my eyes. “In some ways I just want to forget everything that happened in Vegas after Harrison and just move on with my life. But… Chase is a hard man to forget.”

  “I can only imagine,” Evelyn replies. “Which reminds me, you owe me some details on that. Help me imagine. I want to know everything about Chase.”

  “I’ve told you most of it,” I reply, cracking my eyes to see my roommate grinning wildly at me.

  “Not the good stuff,” she laughs.

  I laugh back. “I’ll need a few more drinks, but I’m sure you can convince me to spill the dirt. Anyway, there’s no rush. I’m back for good now. We have all the time in the world to talk about Chase and his talents. And make no mistake, he is talented. And I’m not talking about poker.”

  I laugh at my own joke but catch a look on Evelyn’s face that makes me pause. The smile has faded from her lips as if something I’ve said has confused or upset her. “What’s wrong?”

  Evelyn shakes her head. “Nothing. Nothing. We can talk about it tomorrow.”

  “Um, we can talk about it tomorrow means it’s not nothing. What?”

  “Seriously, Lila, tonight is about you and your news. We can talk about me tomorrow.”

  My mind races back to the message she left me days ago. The one I never returned. “The text you sent me. You said you have news about your job, is that it? I’m so sorry for not getting back to you sooner, I was a shitty friend.”

  “It’s fine, really. You had a lot going on. But let’s talk about it tomorrow, I don’t want to be a downer tonight.”

  “Oh my god, did you get fired Evelyn? Here I am going on about myself and-”

  “No,” she reaches out and grabs my arm, giving it a little squeeze. “I didn’t get fired Lila.”

  Evelyn takes a deep breath, staring at me until I bug my eyes out and raise my brows to urge her on. Finally she lets the breath out, followed quickly by one long run on sentence that takes me a moment to decipher before it all sinks in.

  “I got a promotion, I’m going to be working as assistant to the CEO but I have to move to Chicago and I wanted to tell you but it all happened so suddenly and I’m actually leaving on Friday.”

  26

  A single ray of sunshine slices through my blinds, hitting my eyelids with enough force to wake me with a headache. As I roll out of the way and pull a blanket over my head to cower in darkness, it takes me a moment to remember why I’m acting like a vampire. Three bottles of Chardonnay would bring even a seasoned drinker to her knees, and although I was splitting them with Evelyn, I know I drank more than she did. I was the one hurting from Chase, and then reeling from Eve’s news.


  Chicago. That was an eight hour drive. Almost two hours by plane. I’d probably hardly see her anymore. I have no money for plane tickets, and no car of my own.

  Her news is upsetting, but I can’t be angry with her. If anything, I feel guilty that I didn’t call her back days ago to hear her news, and when I finally did hear it my first thought was about how her move would negatively affect my life. It means finding a new roommate. One that likely won’t be so forgiving when I miss a rent payment.

  Still, it’s a selfish thought and I’m as quick to push it out of my mind as I was to let it in. But the news was yet another reason why I kept drinking long after I know I should have stopped, and now I’m paying the price.

  I drag myself into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. Evelyn is already at the table, doing something on her phone and she looks up at me. I can tell by her eyes she’s feeling almost as bad as I am.

  “Good afternoon. You look as shitty as I feel,” she says.

  “Afternoon? What time is it?”

  “Almost one. Good thing it’s Sunday. No way I could drag my ass into the office feeling like this.”

  I haven’t slept past noon since college. Then again, I haven’t had a night of drinking like that since then either. I pour myself a cup of coffee, thankful that Evelyn, at least, got up early enough to already make some.

  “So, you’re leaving for Chicago next week?” I sit down at the table next to her. My memory is mostly intact from last night but some of the details are a bit hazy.

  “I’m working here until Thursday but mostly I’m just packing things up and transitioning to the other EA they hired to take my place here in the Toronto office. My flight is on Saturday. That’ll give me some time to settle in and unpack. Friday I’ll be home as they have some movers coming to pick up my stuff and meet me here. So I have to be packed by then.” She looks around. Even in the kitchen, most of the stuff is hers. “I haven’t even started yet.”

  “I can help,” I say. “Not like I have anything else to do, aside from sending out resumes.”

  Evelyn puts her hand on mine and gives me a little squeeze. “The rent is paid up for this month, and we’ve already paid for our last month which would cover next month if you aren’t going to stay.”

  I smile at her, appreciating the gesture. There’s no point in arguing with her about it, I know she doesn’t want the money back. “I haven’t really decided what I’m going to do.”

  “I know, this comes out of left field, I’m sorry Lila.”

  “No, it’s a great opportunity for you. Executive Assistant to the CEO of a billion dollar company? Who the hell would turn that down?”

  “I know,” she nods. “I’ve met Mr. Stonewall a few times, he seems a bit harsh to some people but he’s always been very pleasant to me.”

  I watch my best friend’s face for a second. There’s a look there that I recognize. “He’s hot, isn’t he?”

  She giggles and turns a slight shade of pink as she stares down at her coffee. “He’s no Chase Anderson,” she admits with a shrug, “but he is tall, dark and pretty handsome, yes.”

  “Well, I’m really happy for you Eve, I mean it.” I do. It’s great for Evelyn. I’m just not sure what it means for me.

  “I got a call from Harrison today,” I say as I scoop a large ladle full of spaghetti onto Evelyn’s plate. I figure the least I can do for her is cook dinners while I’m home all day and she’s at work. Yesterday I made chicken parm and today is pasta. It’s only Tuesday but I’m already worried about running out of recipes before she leaves, which is why I made enough tonight to have leftovers for tomorrow.

  “I’m surprised it took him this long,” she says.

  “I think it took a couple days for the news of my return to filter out to him.”

  “Did he ask you to get together?”

  “Of course.”

  “You aren’t, are you?”

  “Of course not.”

  “Good. Does he know about Chase?”

  I pause and purse my lips. It’s a question I’ve been pondering myself lately, not that it matters. “I don’t think so. I mean, not specifically. I think he does suspect I met someone out there. He was asking me all sorts of questions about what I was doing in Vegas this long, he knows I don’t gamble or really have the money to pay for a week in a hotel. I just avoided most of the questions and told him I needed time out there to think. Not sure he bought it, but whatever. If he can lie, so can I.”

  “Well, like you said the other day, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. I think that’s one of those universal rules. People can’t ask you about it and expect the truth.”

  I agree with a laugh as I shovel more pasta into my mouth. It feels good to be home, with Evelyn. It’s comfortable. Unfortunately, that comfort has an expiration date and it’s coming up quickly.

  I wash down the pasta with some water. Both of us have sworn off wine for the time being. “So what’s the plan for tonight?”

  I’d promised to help her start packing tonight, anxious for anything I can use as a distraction. Any time I have a free moment, her words from the other night echo through my head. It’s true. Not all lies are equal, and I don’t have to judge them as such. Evelyn clearly thinks I was blowing things out of proportion, and I fear she might be right. What if she was? What if I made a huge mistake in leaving? It’s a thought I have no interest in dealing with right now, so much so that helping her pack seems like a fantastic alternative.

  “I think we have to tackle my closet first.”

  I make a sound with my throat and Evelyn counters with a glare that I know is just a tease. “It’s not that bad.”

  “Really? Did you have a team of organizers work on it while I was in Vegas?” Evelyn has the master suite of our apartment and her closet is a walk in. Last I saw it, it was a disaster. Packed so full of clothes and shoes and who knows what else that she could barely squeeze her thin frame through the door to get anything.

  “Shut up, you offered to help.” She sticks her tongue out at me right before finishing the last bit of pasta in her bowl.

  “I know I did, but I forgot what I was getting myself into.”

  “Too late,” she laughs. “You’re committed.”

  I open my mouth for another reply but I’m interrupted by a knock at the door. Evelyn leaves to answer it, turning the corner of the hallway as I finish the last of my supper. I hear voices and a weird sound from Evelyn before she comes back around the corner. The look on her face is wide eyed and she’s biting her lip.

  “What?” I ask. “Who was it?”

  “It looks like Vegas didn’t stay in Vegas,” she replies as Chase Anderson follows her into our dining room, a familiar half smile creeping onto his lips as soon as he sees me.

  27

  “How the hell did you find me?” My anger at Chase has dissipated a bit, but this is still a big surprise. I hadn’t expected to see him again so soon. Or ever, really.

  The smile fades from his lips and he lifts a rose he’s holding, tilting it toward me. I hadn’t even noticed it until now. He ignores my question and surprise. “I couldn’t let you go like that, Lila. I can’t stop thinking about you and I needed to see you again. Can we please talk?”

  I stare at the rose that he’s still holding. It’s red and perfect. I don’t know what to say, though. Evelyn finally breaks the silence by clearing her throat to remind me that she’s still standing there.

  “Oh, right, Chase, this is my roommate Evelyn Silver. Evelyn, meet Chase Anderson.”

  I’m pretty sure that Evelyn is actively trying to keep the drool in her mouth as she shakes Chase’s hand and acts like a total fan girl, letting him know how she’s seen him on television and how he’s such a fantastic player. Chase is very kind in return, but barely takes his eyes off of me as he speaks to her. I don’t think she notices though, as she turns to me with a huge grin.

  “So um, I guess I’ll let you two talk for a bit. I’ll go… uh, start on my close
t. In my room.” She gives one last fleeting glance at Chase and then leaves us alone.

  “Why are you here?” I ask. I’m ignoring the rose, although I do think the gesture is sweet, particularly since he only brought a single flower. I think a whole bouquet is cliché. A single rose is much classier and meaningful. It makes it harder to stay mad but, even still, a flower isn’t going to make up for lies and betrayal.

  “I’m serious, Lila. I haven’t stopped thinking about you since you left. I wanted to come sooner, but I thought I should give you some time. And I wanted to finish things with the house.”

  “The house that we were trespassing in, you mean? The house that you told me you owned so that I would be a party to your break and enter thrill ride?”

  “Lila, please. It wasn’t break and enter. Each time we went I had Denise clear the time with the owners for a walk through. The only part that was disingenuous was that she was supposed to be with us on all of them. Make sure we didn’t break or steal anything. Obviously that wasn’t my intention.”

  “Oh really? That’s the only part you were disingenuous about?”

  “To them. To you, you’re right, I shouldn’t have claimed I owned the house in the first place. I regret that. I just felt like your feelings about poker players being degenerate gamblers would have been justified if you thought I just lived in a hotel. I was trying to impress you. At first because I wanted to prove to you that I was more than that, that I was stable, but then when things got more serious I didn’t know how to come clean. I should have just told you the truth.”

  “You’re right, you should have,” I reply, but a lot of the fire has left my voice. “But that wasn’t even the biggest issue, Chase. You were sneaking around with Denise. I get that it’s because she is your agent now, but she’s also your ex-girlfriend and a complete bitch who still thinks you’re going to get back together with her one day. The fact that you were spending time with her… behind my back… that hurt more than the issue with the house.”