Still Breathing

by Rita Michaels

  “Thank you,” she said to the lawyer. “I am most grateful for your help,” she said.

  “You are welcome, and please, don’t forget to appear for your next hearing. I know we can pull something out and find whoever did this to you,” the lawyer said.

  “I didn’t do it,” Bri said, hoping to convince both men.

  “We know,” the lawyer said. “All we have to do is prove it to the judge.”

  “Thanks. I knew I could count on you,” Ethan said to his lawyer and extended his arm for a handshake.

  “You’re welcome,” he said, shaking his hand. “You’ll be hearing from me.”

  “Thanks, buddy,” Ethan said before wrapping his arm around Bri’s waist. Bri retracted.

  “I haven’t showered in two days.”

  “I know. That’s why am taking you home, to my house. Just the way we planned it yesterday.” Bri’s eyes lowered.

  “I’m sorry for everything.”

  “Shh,” he said. “You don’t have to apologize for anything.” He sighed. “Let’s not talk about it until it’s absolutely necessary.”

  “I would need a change of clothes,” Bri said.

  “You have enough at my house. Remember, we bought some clothes yesterday?”

  “I don’t want those on. I’d rather wear what I had before.”

  “Why? I paid for them.”

  “Memories. I don’t want replays of what happened yesterday in my head. I like the clothes, but I can’t put them on until I clear my name.”

  “Alright Ethan said, as they sped to his house. I’ll get you some decent clothes from a store while you showered.

  “Thanks,” Bri said leaning towards him. “What could I’ve done without you?”

  “Not much,” Ethan said, smiling. “That’s why you should live with me.” Bri raised her head to protest but then changed her mind as images played in her head.

  She could lose her job, and her apartment as soon as her agent knew what happened. Innocent or guilty, once arrested, she was done. She knew that. Ethan turned to her.

  “I have nothing to say,” she said and shut her eyes to think of her future. Then she thought, whoever did this to me must pay for it.

  ⸙

  Bri laid beside Ethan on the bed. She wanted him closer, closer than their bodies just warming each other up. She was tired of waiting for him to make the first move. She hadn’t thought he could resist her for so long. It frustrated her, making her wonder if she wasn’t appealing enough. She wanted him, and didn’t care if she broke her own rules to get him where she wanted.

  “Ethan,” she said in a sultry voice. I want you,” Bri said, biting her lips, and hoping he wouldn’t turn her down. That would be humiliating, she thought. He placed his arm on her body.

  “Not tonight. You’re traumatized by the events of yesterday. I don’t want to take advantage of you in my house.”

  “Please, am asking for it. I want it. I want you.”

  “Why now?” he asked.

  “I want to feel loved.”

  “You are loved. I love you.”

  “Then make love to me.”

  “I don’t have to prove my love for you through sex.”

  “I know,” Bri said. Tears ran down her cheeks. A long silence followed. The soft music playing in the background filling the room. Bri sniffled. Ethan propped himself on his elbow and looked at her face.

  “Why are you crying?”

  “Tomorrow is Sasha’s anniversary.”

  “Who is Sasha?”

  “My daughter. She left me a year ago.” Ethan sat up. His brow creased.

  “You had a daughter?”

  Bri nodded. “She was the product of my rape.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Ethan said, holding her as her body rocked from sobbing.

  “Why did you hide it from me all these while?”

  “Because, I didn’t want to lose you.”

  “Oh, Bri. Why would I leave you because of a child?”

  “I don’t know. I was scared,” she paused. “ I have her ashes in my apartment.”

  “You have her ashes? You cremate her?”

  “Yes. She’s in an urn in my bedroom. Had you taken a tour around my apartment, you would’ve found her urn on my dresser.”

  “I’m so sorry,” he said and gave her a kiss. “Was that why you….?”

  “Yes. To make a replacement memory,” she said. Ethan smiled.

  “Trust me. It’s not going to solve anything. At the end, you’d feel resentful for doing it rather than keep her memory alive.” Bri was silent.

  “It’s okay to grieve. Don’t suppress your emotion. I’d hate myself if I helped suppress your daughter’s memory.” He pulled closer to her and held her. “You came to my house and laid in my bed for the first time. That’s something to remember, isn’t it?” He asked and kissed her on the forehead.

  “Yes,” she said and then wiped the tears from her face. “Thank you.”

  “You are welcome.”

  “How can I ever repay you for your kindness?”

  “If you would marry me,” he said without pondering. Bri raised her head. “Marry me,” he repeated.

  34

  ⸙

  “Hey, Christine,” Brittany said in her French, accent voice. “I did it,” she said. Brittany was a twenty-year-old cousin of Christine. She was a dare-devil, and a hater. She hated anyone her family or friends disliked without setting her eyes on them.

  She’d been expelled from as many as five schools until her parents gave up sending her to school. Her crime: bullying, fighting, and making a public display of herself. Although disliked by almost everyone, she was Christine’s favorite cousin and her abettor.

  “Dis-Moi!” Christine said, ecstatic.

  “I spoke to Ethan and asked about his day. He was foolish enough to tell me his plans which included taking the nincompoop to a particular clothing store in the mall. I knew the store but pretended to have never heard of it.

  I told him I was at a friend’s place who invited me over for barbecue as summer was almost over.”

  “Tu es un génie !” Christine exclaimed.

  “Merci,” Brittany said. “Then I went to the mall and shopped in a store opposite the one he claimed he was coming to buy her some clothes.”

  “He must trust you to tell you all his business. That’s one of his weaknesses,” Christine said. “He’s too trusting.”

  “Then I waited until I spotted them enter the store. I prayed hard that she should want a pair of shoes. It took a while before she finally went to the area I planned on setting her up.”

  “Bon,” Christine said, listening.

  “When she sat down to try on a pair of boots, I squatted beside her purse as if picking a pair of boots off a lower shelf and then slipped in the most expensive gold watch in the store,” Brittany said, laughing out loud.

  “You are a good thief!”

  “A good actor you mean.”

  “Both,” Christine said, laughing. “I knew I could trust you to get the job done.”

  “You can count on me.”

  “Hope you didn’t leave any track behind. Anything that could implicate us? You know if they find you, they find me.”

  “No. Not at all. I was out of there like a breeze only….” Brittany paused.

  “Only what?” Christine asked.

  “Nothing. It’s just my nerves getting the best of me.”

  “Have you taken your medicine?”

  “No. Not yet,” Brittany said.

  “Then you should go take it. I just wondered how someone with a panic disorder could pull what you did.”

  “When we’re done talking,” Brittany said. “You should’ve seen the horror in Ethan’s eyes when the watch fell out of her bag. And you should’ve seen his tiny girlfriend balling her eyes out. I laughed.”

  “Was she arrested?”

  “Oui. It was a public disgrace. She left in handcuffs.”

  “Very good,”
Christine said. “I can have Ethan back now. He can’t possibly date a thief, a shoplifter. That would ruin his reputation.”

  “Umm… never mind,” Brittany said on a second thought.

  “What is it? Spill it out. What are hiding?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Why the mm, and sudden hesitation to brief me? Didn’t everything go as planned?” Christine asked, raising her voice.

  “It did.”

  “Then what is it?”

  “I just remembered that I forgot to get some groceries,” Brittany lied.

  “What has that got to do with our discussion?”

  “Nothing. Just remembered, that’s all.”

  “One more thing,” Christine said. “Did you check for cameras in the store?” Brittany gasped silently before answering the question as fast as she could.

  “I did,” she lied. “No cameras.”

  “Then we’re safe. I must call Ethan now. He needs my support.”

  “Good luck with that,” Brittany said and then hung up.

  ⸙

  “Please, tell me you did not refuse, or prolong your answer?” Flo asked

  “I said, yes,” Bri said, beaming with a smile on her face.

  “Thank God! For the first time, you actually took the rein and answered a very important question. Congrats, Bri.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Any wedding date, yet?”

  “No.”

  “Why not?” Flo asked

  “I told him to let’s take baby steps.”

  “And then what? What are you waiting for?”

  “I am going to spend the rest of my life with him, Flo. At least, I should know what am dealing with. Like babies, men don’t come with a manual these days. I intend to marry and stay married.”

  “Amen,” Flo said. “I hope I won’t have to help to conceal your gray hair before you fix a date. Why are your decision-making as slow as a snail?” Flo asked.

  “Because I have to think everything through before jumping into a boiling pot of trouble.”

  “Ethan seems like a nice guy from your praise of him.”

  That’s my fear, Flo. Nice guys often have something to hide. Speaking from experience here.”

  “You’re setting him up for failure,” Flo said. “You shouldn’t think of him in this manner if you want to marry him. You might end up distrusting him, and that’s bad for marriage.”

  “I do trust him. He hasn’t given me a reason to think otherwise.”

  “Then don’t create one. Hunter is history.”

  “Speaking of Hunter. Have you heard anything from him or his family?”

  “No. I mean, yes. He got released.”

  “He what?”

  “He’s out of jail. For good conduct.”

  “Good conduct my foot!” Bri said, visibly shaken.

  “His brother is still serving time, though. Heard he attempted suicide twice,” Flo said.

  “I wish you never told me this. On Sasha’s anniversary.”

  “I’m sorry,” Flo said. But you asked me and I had to answer.”

  “Let’s talk about something else,” Bri said.

  “I do hope I’d be your maid of honor. I should be. After all, am your best friend.”

  “You can have it,” Bri said, dejected.

  “You still haven’t gotten over it huh?” Flo asked.

  “It just makes me sad. Where’s the justice in everything he put me through?” Bri said

  “Watching you prosper and moving on without him is enough revenge. Wish you had your invites printed already so I could dangle it before him. Show him he couldn’t break your spirit.”

  “Yeah,” Bri said with a sigh.

  “But I don’t want him to crash your wedding and create a scene.”

  “God, no. Keep my invites away from him and his family when It’s eventually out,” Bri said, and then sighed. “Thanks for the call. You made my day.”

  “Am glad I did. Didn’t want you crying a river. At least, Ethan’s marriage proposal put a smile on your face. I love him for that.”

  “Do you think he proposed just because he felt pity for me?”

  “Here we go again,” Flo said, rolling her eyes. “You are not susceptible to misfortunes. Take the proposal and run with it.”

  “I will. Thanks. You are a true friend, and please, come visit unfailingly, Bri said before turning to Ethan who walked in with a broad smile on his face. He bent over her on the couch and kissed her.

  “I came with pizza, and love.”

  “I’ll take both,” Bri said, smiling. “Flo said hi.”

  “How is she?”

  “Good,” Bri said,” opening the box of pizza and inhaling its aroma.

  “You look hungry.”

  “I am hungry,” Bri said, then offered him her slice of pizza. He took a bite and eased into a couch close to her.

  “Guess who called me.”

  “Who?”

  “Christine,” he said, and picked up a slice of pizza. Bri stopped munching and watched.

  “What did she want?” Bri asked, taking a little bite of her pizza.

  Ethan sighed. “We had an interesting conversation,” he said.

  “Interesting conversation,” Bri said.

  “She wanted to know if she could come over for a visit.” Bri set her pizza aside and wiped her hand. “She thought I had broken up with you.”

  “Why would she think that?” Bri asked, and stopped. “Hold on a minute.”

  “What is it?”

  “She did it!”

  “Did what?” he asked.

  “Set me up. Otherwise, why would she think you broke up with me? Remember everything happened just yesterday.” She rose and paced their living room.”

  “I don’t think she’s capable of doing something like that. She lives in Newfoundland.”

  “An accomplice. She sent someone to set me up.”

  “Nah. That’s absurd.”

  “Now tell me. When was the last time you spoke with her before our trip to Fogo Island?”

  “Years, why?” Ethan asked, confused.

  “Why didn’t she call you all these while? Why today?”

  Ethan shrugged. “She also said she needed a place to stay as she was coming here for some sort of medical treatment.”

  “Hmm,” Bri said. “Then let her come.”

  “I told her no.”

  “Did she ask why?”

  “Yes. Told her you were living with me.”

  “Then what did she say?”

  “She hung up on me.”

  “That isn’t the last you’ll hear from her, me neither.”

  “Let it go,” Ethan said, rising. “Didn’t know this would upset you this much.”

  “I’m not upset,” Bri said, clenching her fist. “She tarnished my good girl record and image. I need her phone number. I need to speak to your lawyer, too.”

  “What would you tell him?”

  “That we have a suspect. It’s as clear as day and night, and my instinct says so. She is our culprit.”

  35

  ⸙

  Two Weeks Later

  “I got you something. Close your eyes,” Ethan said, blindfolding her with a piece of black cloth and kissing her on the lips. She kissed him back passionately. Her face flushed. They'd just returned from her lingerie runway show. She looked amazing in a pair of Victoria secret lingerie.

  “What is it?” Did your attorney find anything?”

  “We'll get to that,” he said.

  Bri had moved back to her apartment. She just couldn't do it. Live with him as if they were married when they weren't. She didn't want to start what she couldn’t finish… what he might not finish. Living with him was a recipe for disaster.

  She felt more at ease at home, independent. Though Ethan pleaded, she refused.

  She placed her hands over his before he took them off her eyes.

  “Can you see anything?” Ethan asked.

 
“You made sure I couldn't, so no.”

  “Good,” Ethan said, leading her. He took her to her bedroom and slowly let her ease into her bed.

  “What are you doing?” she asked, placing her hand on her chest.

  “Patience,” he said.

  Bri heard a slight ruffle and thought she heard a chuckle from him. She felt a little uncomfortable.

  “At least, give me a hint,” she pleaded.

  “No,” was all he said. And then Bri felt the bed depress. She stretched her hand to reach for him, but he withdrew, teasing her.

  “My patience is running thin,” Bri said, joking. He slowly eased her back on the bed, his hands warm and gentle. “Can I take it off now?”

  “No.”

  He took her left hand, kissed it and slide an engagement ring on it. Bri gasped and took off the blindfold without being asked.

  Ethan gazed at her, watching her every reaction.

  “I felt I had to do it the right way,” Bri blushed. She raised her hand up admiring the ring.

  “It's beautiful,” she said.

  “So, would you do me the honor and be my wife? The last time I asked you never responded.” Bri smiled, pondering, and then nodded.

  “Yes. I would want nothing more than to share my life with you.”

  “Yes,” he said and did the Tiger Wood signature victory arm movement. He held her face and kissed her. Her heart fluttered. She shut her eyes, waiting for him to take the rein of pulling her into the fantasy she'd been having of him making love to her.

  She held onto his shirt and pulled him closer to her chest. He kissed her harder. She was beneath him. As a novice in that field, it was exactly where she wanted to be.

  She wanted to experience love, sex, relationship, and everything that brings happiness. She raised her hand to her temple, surprised at the rush of heat flowing through her.

  Ethan, she thought, was a better kisser than Hunter. She hadn’t kissed anyone else other than those two.

  She reached for his shirt and began to pull it over his head when her phone rang. Ethan paused. Bri swore under her breath.