A New Beginning (#4 of California Dreaming) a Los Angeles Series

by Andrew J. Smith

  The door of his study opened.

  It was Amanda, the new one on the floor below. She stood there, wide-eyed in the doorway, holding a stack of documents in her hand. He tried to compose himself right away and pulled up his pants, looking embarrassed, Amanda stared at him in shock, without being able to say a word.

  «What kind of education is this!?» He did, even more embarrassed by the fool. «Didn’t anyone teach you to knock?»

  Amanda took a couple of seconds to answer, but in the end, she said, «y-yes.» A short pause. «I’m sorry, Mr. Jackson.»

  The woman didn’t add anything else, so he turned impetuously to the young woman.

  «So, what do you want?»

  She seemed to suddenly recover, and remembered why she had come there.

  «Forgive me, sir. I had these sheets to deliver.»

  He left the pile of documents on Andy's desk and set out to get out of the office, without looking him in the eye once or twice.

  He headed for the ground floor of the building, finished with the documentation, he set out to go through the glass doors of the Cross n 'Sweeny. Just then, he met Amanda, along with a colleague of her, and in the act of passing next to both, once overcome, he heard some muffled laughter coming from the two women. Now he had made the call, and after the video that had made the rounds of the web, that kind of mockery were trifles compared. In addition, he had other things to think about and the appointment with the real estate agent was more important than simple office gossip.

  Once in the car, he switched on the engine and headed home, where the realtor was waiting for him along with Michela.

  The fact of selling the property was another proof of the fact that the marriage between him and Michela had come to an end, and despite having made this kind of conjecture many times in his mind: to leave Michela and start from the beginning, when this eventuality became concrete was different, and he could then feel a sense of melancholy inside that he could not drive away all the way home.

  That evening, as James was getting ready to leave his apartment, he could not get rid of the bad news Karen had given him that afternoon.

  He was in grade longer to write anything.

  He and Stacy had a dinner at his ex-husband's house, apparently for news that he wanted to announce.

  Probably, it was because of the years they were paxed, but both he and Glenn seemed to have a very friendly relationship now. Maybe, that was how it would be his relationship with Karen in a couple of years. It was not necessarily a bad expectation, but he still felt he was in love with Karen. Not that love that he had felt as a boy, or even what in those years had kept them so united, like a real family; but, a sort of affection that perhaps would never have disappeared.

  He drove to the bookstore to pick up Stacy, and when she got in the car, she immediately realized something was wrong. After a little insistence, he managed to make him talk, so he told her the news.

  «Oh my God, I'm very sorry.» She said, upset.

  He nodded, but tried to make her understand that Jonathan was very old with age, even though it was sad news anyway.

  The two spoke little, and he had not wanted to communicate that news just to not ruin what could be a pleasant evening. In any case, when they arrived at Glenn's house, he tried to calm down and calm down even Stacy, who had remained silent for the duration of the trip.

  They got out and walked toward the door main.

  He rang the bell, and after a few moments the door opened.

  It was Glenn, with a huge smile with which he welcomed them and made them sit inside. They found Allison and Glenn's girlfriend, Penelope, in the living room, sitting on the couch .

  While they waited for dinner to be ready, he sat down on the leather couch and Stacy did the same, sitting next to him.

  At that point, Penelope, Glenn's girlfriend, turned to him.

  «So, if I have not misunderstood you, you're a writer.» The woman asked, seriously.

  She was of a very particular beauty, she had long black hair and a very tanned skin. He probably had Spanish origins, or South American, he reflected, while Penelope looked at him with deep, dark eyes.

  «More or less.» He replied, vaguely.

  «What does it mean?» The woman asked, with a smile.

  Stacy answered in his place.

  «It means that his creativity is hard to come out lately, but once back, for sure his next book will be a success.»

  Penelope listened to Stacy's explanation, but said nothing.

  «I met a writer once, and I certainly will not try the experience again.» She said, Penelope.

  «Why?» He asked, barely annoyed by the woman's tone.

  «You know, these authors... so many words and no facts. Besides, it was not much in bed either.» She made the woman, hairless on her tongue, laughing to herself .

  He didn’t say anything, not picking up the provocation from the woman's side, but Stacy, instead, answered back in his place.

  «I'd like to say this.»

  Penelope seemed to be slightly upset, but fortunately Glenn made an appearance from behind the sliding door of the kitchen, cheering as soon as the tension created in the air.

  Suddenly, some memories of Penelope came to him. He had something familiar in his face, but he wasn’t sure he'd ever met her. Nevertheless, that feeling didn’t go away until dinner was ready.

  He and Stacy sat next to the table and Glenn and Penelope did the same, standing right in front of them. Allison seemed focused on massaging with her cell phone and was not paying close attention to any of them. They started eating and James talked to Glenn about his entrepreneurial work while he didn’t have much to say when he touched him talking about his job. Stacy and Penelope exchanged a few words and didn’t seem to get along very well. Maybe Stacy didn’t like the way Penelope had addressed him, just before starting dinner, or maybe it was just a question of feeling. In any case, dinner proceeded quietly, until Glenn, once finished eating, stood up to announce the news.

  «If I invited you to dinner tonight, there's a special reason.» The man began to say, unable to hold back a smile. He and Stacy looked at each other for a moment, unable to understand. Even Allison took his eyes off the display of her cell phone, more attentive now, while looking at her father. Then Glenn went on. «In fact, if I have invited you here, it is to announce that last night I officially asked Penelope to marry me and she accepted.» He concluded, looking proud.

  All those present remained rather stunned, except for Penelope who had her eyes on Glenn and looked at him rather embarrassed with a half smile. It was good news, of course, and even Stacy seemed to recover from the shock almost immediately start making wishes both Glenn is Penelope, totally forgetting the half-verbal dispute that there had been among them about one hour before.

  Still that feeling, and without even knowing why it was rising right now, continued to persist in his head. It was very strange, but he was almost certain that he had already met Penelope, though now he did not remember where or when.

  They arrived in the city center within a half-hour. After the dinner spent at Glenn's house, in fact, Stacy had opted to spend an evening with him and Allison.

  They got out of the car and headed toward the pier all three: him, Stacy and Allison.

  They walked along the pier and look Allison more than excited, almost as if she had never done anything like this before, looking around and continuing to talk incessantly.

  «Let's get an ice cream!» She announced, then.

  Then, they headed for an ice cream parlor and after taking three ice cream cones, they walked back to the lighthouse at the end of the dock.

  The breeze blew lightly and the three spoiled that ice cream, until Allison rang the phone.

  «Hello?» The girl said, throwing the ice-cream cone paper into a garbage basket a couple of yards away from them. «Yes. I'm coming, then.»

  She turned to them, and explained that a
couple of his friends had invited her to a party.

  «All right, but don’t come back late.» She said, Stacy.

  He could not help wondering what kind of party the girl had been invited to, but he preferred not to say anything. After all, he, at her age, had always had to go it alone, despite having never had the ease that Allison had for only sixteen years.

  At that moment, the girl smiled, but said nothing. She turned and headed for the beginning of the dock.

  Now, he and Stacy finds them alone, along the pier lit by lamplight. The people passed and enjoyed the warm evening.

  «Lately, behaves strange.» She said Stacy, suddenly, speaking almost absentmindedly.

  You have no idea, he thought. He continued to say nothing.

  Stacy remained silent and he then started to speak.

  «Don’t worry, it's just her young age. You know, boys tend to always be very reserved , especially when it comes to feelings.»

  Stacy looked thoughtful about it, but almost immediately found her smile.

  «So, James Alliston. How do you feel Los Angeles's life so far?»

  He thought about it, then spoke.

  «Let's say I still have to get used to it. Maybe, in a couple of months, I'll wake up one morning and my old life in New York will only seem like a distant dream... to tell the truth, it's already that way.» He said, looking towards the sea.

  She nodded and leaned her head on his shoulder.

  He spent about an hour when they decided that was staring to get cold, so they headed to the car and for Stacy's house.

  Along the way they spoke little, but it was not a bad thing, and he was beginning to get used to at Stacy company, almost as if they had never left. When he was with her, it was as if Karen had never existed. Not in an evil sense, but as if they had never left each other since college. Perhaps, that was just his fantasy.

  They arrived in front of Stacy's house and she started down, but then she thought better of it.

  «Would you like to come in for a drink?» She asked, suddenly.

  He accepted, and the two entered the house.

  He had never seen her house before, and to tell the truth, he found it to be very comfortable, not like his flat, an empty apartment, with just a couple of photographs of Elizabeth with him at the park, or at his parties of birthday. Who knows how Allison had done growing up like that, with such a loving mother; after all, the affection certainly did not miss her. Maybe, was really just a passenger ritual which all teenagers had to cross, he thought to himself. And he did not believe that Allison was a young arrogant, full of herself. He was sure that deep ‒ perhaps very deep ‒ a sweet girl was hiding.

  Somehow, she could not help seeing her again, even if one side of him, the most arrogant and self-centered, would never admit it openly. Still, the other part of him kept thinking that basically she was just a girl, a little confused and disoriented by the decisions made by her parents.

  Stacy came back from the kitchen with two glasses of wine in her hand, and holding one of them, sat down next to him.

  «So,» she began to say, «what do you want to do now?»

  He thought about it for a second.

  «How about watching a movie?» Then, he proposed.

  «Sure.» He did.

  So the two lost into the sweet notes of a musical from another era that told a sweet love story.

  When the film was over, they found themselves looking at each other again, but it was not long before Stacy's sweet gaze immediately showed his intentions.

  The two approached slowly and lost in a long kiss. Then, passion still growing up. He began to caress her right thigh and slowly climbed up to the waist and breast. She stopped him.

  «Not here... » she said, with a certain breathless, eager more than ever. «I have an idea.»

  He told him to follow her.

  So both got up and headed for the bathroom, a little small, but nice. She opened the shower water and began to undress slowly, while he did the same. He took off his shirt and untied his belt. He took off his watch and then grabbed her by the hips, holding her to him. They kissed again and after having removed all the clothes, they slipped in the shower. Hot water fell on their naked bodies: from the head, to the neck, up to the thighs and even further down. She turned and turned her head towards him, as far as that position allowed him. He looked at him with an innocent and eager look same time. He caught the moment and took it, there in the shower as the hot water slid over their naked bodies as they made love with such savage passion. He stroked her face and neck, then fell down on her breasts with rough hands while she was panting softly and resting her hand on her left side to make it push even harder. Then, she turned and kissed him. He took it and lifted it up, leaning it against the wall while their lips seemed to never want to split, and they continued to make love until she arched her back, gripped by irregular spasms, her eyes narrowed and pulled back, leaving herself alone. go to the full and sweet pleasure of orgasm.

  Once out of the shower, they dried and kissed and caressed, they started towards the bed, still wet. She dropped the towel on the ground, which she had put around her breasts. He did the same with his.

  Once lying on the bed, they perpetuated the madness of love that began in Stacy's bathroom for most of the night.

  ***

  It was two o'clock in the morning and James still could not get to sleep. Stacy was drowsy next to him, lost in some dream that did not concern him, probably. He sat down at the edge of the bed and reached out to get the packet of cigarettes, then lay down again.

  «Why are you awake?» Stacy asked, still half asleep.

  «I could not sleep.» He simply said.

  She pulled herself up and leaned back against the bed, continuing to look at him.

  «Surely, it would do you good to talk about it.» She said.

  Probably yes, if he understood what worried him so much, but almost certainly it was all and nothing at the same time. He wanted to move on, but something took him from his past and Karen.

  There was also her baby, but Elizabeth had never been a problem, and on the contrary it had always been her greatest joy.

  «I have nothing.» He finally said.

  She didn’t believe him, but eventually let it be. He approached her mouth and gave him a kiss, then went back to sleep.

  The minutes passed and became an hour. Finally he gave up, got out of bed and lit another cigarette. He went out into the small terrace of the room, making quiet, not to wake Stacy. He came back after he had finished his cigarette. The small bajour on the bedside table was lit from its side of the bed. He watched the laptop on the desk of the room for a moment, and approached it. He was on, and though he didn’t have to, he sat down at Stacy's laptop and started writing about everything and nothing. Regarding his life so far and his most profound and hidden thoughts. He gave free rein to his mind without any braking, until, tired and with his eyes burning, he turned off the laptop and went back to bed.

  Next morning he felt an annoying burning cheeks, as if someone was pinching them. He moaned again in the half-sleep and tried to move between the sheets, but at that moment he felt a weight right on top of his stomach. Slowly, he opened his eyes and found himself in front of of with a smiling face, and clearly amused by Allison. He snatched up, leaning on his elbows.

  «You're a nightmare, aren’t you?»

  He said so, letting his head fall back on his pillow.

  The girl stood up and he could watch her slim, shapely figure move into the bedroom. He had short shorts in jeans and a tight-fitting white shirt, while black hair reflected under the reflection of the sunlight.

  «Let's go.» The girl said. «Wake up lazy, it's time to get up.»

  He grunted, and put the pillow on his face.

  «Breakfast is almost ready. You don’t want to make your beloved wait.» She then pricked him, Allison.

  At that moment, he pulled back on suddenly and sat up
on the bed. He remembered that he was at Stacy's house, and wondered where he was at that moment, since he should have been next to him in bed. At least so they left the previous evening. A strong smell of pancakes aroused him completely and the image of Stacy, in the kitchen, to prepare breakfast, he manifested in his mind. It was however marred by the presence of Allison who was standing there looking at him with interest, while he was in his underwear.