Rebound

by Rosemary Rey

  “Brigit, and ladies. I’m sorry I didn’t take time to speak to you earlier. I’m happy that we didn’t because I don’t waste time with bitches. You and I will have nothing to do with each other.” Brigit went to speak, but I silenced her with my finishing statement. “Having just fucked Matt in the upstairs office, we have more than enough in common. I intend to stick around for as long as I want him, and not the other way around. Have a good night.” I dismissed them with a wave of my middle finger. Those jealous bitches experienced the wrath, of my life-long anger towards everyone who ever treated me like shit.

  I walked out of the bathroom and walked toward the private room. I took many deep breathes before entering the door. I recounted Brigit’s conversation and kept thinking replaying the statement that Matt was ‘using’ me. What was he using me for? Sex? Was I his rebound? I admitted to myself that he was my rebound. He’s the first man to come along soon after my divorce. In my heart I knew it was more than a fling, but with those statements floating in my head, it dared to poison my connection to Matt. With a deep breath, I entered the room. I looked around and spotted Matt seated on the arm chair with Lark and Kent surrounding him. Brady, Zipper and Jenna were speaking in the corner by the small bar.

  From across the room, I tried to give him my best smile, but he stood up and caught up to me before I made it to the arm chairs and asked, “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” I smiled. He didn’t seem convinced, so I decided against going with the ‘I’m not feeling well’, which is tricky with a doctor. “I just suddenly felt a bit overwhelmed tonight, and I’m trying to keep it together for you. Let’s get back to your friends.”

  “Are you sure?” He hugged me. I nodded, inhaling his scent for comfort. I rose up and gave him a little peck on the lips.

  “Of course, I want you to know that I’m here for you and your friends.” He put his arm around my shoulders and I held him softly by the waist. He walked us toward the seating area to mingle with his friends, whom I hadn’t talked to much tonight.

  As we walked, Zipper yelled out, “Are you okay, Perla?” I looked over. And nodded, ‘yes.’ I noted how intensely Brady looked at me. The smug look on his face was a definite mixture of lust and disgust. I wondered if Brady had discussed me and Matt’s relationship with Brigit, a conversation between lovers about his friend and his lover.

  Matt sat down on the chair and pulled me to sit on his lap. “Matt, I’m too heavy.” I whispered in his ear. He looked back at me, silencing me with his stern gaze. “Excuse me gentlemen. It seems Matt can’t bear for us to be more than eight inches apart.” They all laughed and ribbed Matt for my not-so-little joke.

  “So Perla. How has our boy been treating you?” Asked Lark.

  “Oh, I heard you were the ‘boy’ in this group.” The men laughed and taunted Lark. I answered, “He’s a great man, but I’m sure you know that.” Matt wrapped his arms around my waist and I placed my hands over his hands, keeping him there for security.

  “Yeah, but it’s only been a couple of weeks for you. Try nineteen years of his crap.” He grinned.

  “Hey, I’ve gotten you out of a lot of trouble. You better say good things about me to my girl.” His use of ‘my girl’ again didn’t bring the same excitement as it did earlier today. I felt a little nauseas and feigned a smile at the two friends whose eyes were squarely on me.

  “So Lark, you must hold a lot of Matt’s secrets. Anything I should know?” I asked with humor in my voice. Matt cleared his throat. Because he was behind me, I didn’t see his facial expression, but I’m sure he gave him a stern warning.

  “Matt’s an open book. What you see is what you get, so no secrets. If I were to expose any of his, then I’m revealing mine . . . and everyone else’s.” They all chuckled, and I pretended to as well, but there was an ominous feeling that coursed through my body and I tried not to shudder from the chill.

  “Kent, I learned from Matt that you travel quite a bit. How long will you be in town?”

  “I actually fly out to Miami in the morning. I’ve been spending most of my time there because I’m working on a few projects.” I smiled and listened intently.

  “Is that where you met your date?” I asked.

  “Yeah. How did you know?” He asked with surprise. I smiled.

  “She doesn’t look like a typical Boston girl to me, more of a South Beach model. I didn’t get to talk to her tonight, but she seems like a nice young lady.” I lied.

  “Don’t be surprised if you don’t see her again . . .” Matt started to say, at which time the door to the private room opened, and the three missing supermodels entered. “after tonight, that is.” I lightly slapped has hand. The women glanced around the room to find their dates. Brigit looked at me and gave me the most intense glare. I held her glare with an indifferent face plastered on for greater effect.

  “Hey! Lay off. Not everyone can be the committed type like you.” Kent said as he winked at me. The women went to their respective partners. Brigit walked toward Brady and put her arms all over him. I found it interesting that he didn’t seem to reciprocate affection towards her. When she went to give him a kiss on the lips, he moved his head so that she caught him at the side of his mouth. I sensed that there was friction between the two. It’s plausible that he didn’t like to display affection publicly, or he was annoyed because she was soused.

  The men talked about their projects and future plans. Lark and Kent traveled often and vacationed just as much. The resentment swelled inside of me as I listened to these very wealthy and accomplished men talk about travels and future plans to travel to islands and countries that I would never get the chance to experience. The women sat with bright eyes, eager to have a taste for some of the high life that these men experience. From what Matt said, I doubted these girls would get the chance to travel to more than a couple of places before they’re dumped for another sexy woman.

  At some point the other couples joined, pulling chairs from the dining table to enclose the gap. I refused to look at Brady and Brigit. Zipper was the funniest of the bunch telling a lot of stories about their youth and the mischief that each got into. The funniest stories were pranks that they played on each other, but all agreed that Matt was the best prankster of all. I was surprised by that admission. In my opinion, Matt seemed the most serious. When I first met him in his examination room, he didn’t seem to have a jovial bone in his body. With time I experienced his great sense of humor, but had no idea he was such a prankster.

  At some point Matt, whispered in my ear, “Are you ready to head home?” I nodded, a ‘yes’. I was tired. I was emotionally and physically spent. I just wanted to get into bed and entwine myself with his body. He pushed my hips up to standing, and he stood up right behind me.

  “Okay, men. I’m off. Some of us have real jobs to go to in the morning. Thanks for the great meal and the subpar company.” I splashed a brilliant smile, and went to shake hands with everyone around the circle, extending my farewells and ‘great meeting you’ to each of his friends. Lark gave me a sly smile and looked me up from top to bottom and shook my hand in goodbye. I waved to his date. I hugged Jenna and thanked her for her graciousness. Zipper grabbed my hand and requested me to “take care of him,” to which I agreed.

  When I came to Brady, he stood up and opened his arms into a hug. Despite my reservations, I obliged and entered the void to hug him. He held me tight, my breasts crushed by his muscular chest. I heard and felt him inhale my scent, “it was nice seeing you, Perla.” I felt all the muscles on his chest, arms flex, hands clutching as he held onto me, and I was repulsed. I’m sure my full body was a cushier departure from his melons on a stick girlfriend. I patted him hard like the boys do, eliminating any signal of mutual sexual interest. I threw in a ‘me too’ to keep it even more indifferent. I pulled away and extended a stiff hand to Brigit whom remained seated, which she took limply. Kent stood up as well and gave me a hug and said it was ‘nice to meet’ me. His date sat on the arm
of the chair and bid me a ‘goodbye’ wave with a sheepish smile.

  Matt took my hand and we walked out of the room and into the main part of the restaurant. He said his goodbyes to the staff. We retrieved our coats from the hostess. Matt shook the manager’s hand and said his farewell. I smiled and thanked him for a lovely meal. We walked, holding hands to the parking ramp to retrieve his SUV. It was a brisk night. We’d spent almost four hours indoors and it was nice to get some fresh air.

  “Did you have a good time?” He asked, hugging me close to him, kissing my forehead.

  “I did. Your friends are really nice and funny. I could see what you mean about Zipper. He’s a very nice guy. No wonder you’re close to him. I liked Jenna too; very friendly. She made me feel at ease.” I smiled up at him. We arrived at his car and he opened for me before getting in on his side. We made idle chit chat. I didn’t want to go into any major discussions. It was too late to get in deep about where this relationship was going brought about by Brigit’s words and accusations, which swirled around in my head. “Are you okay to drive?”

  “Yeah. I only do a two drink maximum when I’m out with these guys. We’ve partied hard in the past, and I didn’t like the aftereffects. Also you’re in the car and I’ll do anything in my power to keep you safe.” He leaned over and kissed me. My heartbeat quickened.

  “Well, you’re also tired, so I can drive whenever you need me to. Or don’t you trust me?” I gave him a sly smile.

  “I have no point of reference for your driving skills, but I do trust you.” He squeezed my knee. He pulled out of the parking space and drove toward his apartment. When he was on the road to his place, he continued the conversation, “I was wondering if you’re free on Saturday.” He inquired.

  “Yeah. I have no plans. Do you have something in mind?” I waited anxiously for his response.

  “I thought I could take you to meet my sister and her family. Stella invited me to dinner at her place on Saturday. It’s your only day off and I’d like to spend it with you too. I’m just concerned that it will be too much too soon. I feel like I’d scare you off meeting some of my family so soon after meeting my friends. You already seem a bit skittish that I’m pushing too far too fast.”

  I looked at him. “Matt, I told you. My basis for relationships are books, magazines, and my friends talking about their relationships. I enjoy what we have. However, you must admit we’ve become inseparable and we know little of each other. I didn’t even know that your sister’s name is Stella until you just invited me.”

  He thought about it before speaking. “I’m sorry. I just feel like everything we do is so rushed. I didn’t even know that I didn’t tell you about Stella. Her husband is Craig. They’re both architects and work for the same company. They have a little girl, Leona. She’s named after my mother, who is also Leona. My father is Matthew, so I’m technically a junior. Mathias is a family name on my mother’s side. My great grandfather was named Mathias, but everyone has called me Matt, after my dad, since I was born. My parents live in Florida for the winter. They come back north in May before the Memorial Day weekend. We all go up to our house in Maine where they stay for the Summer. You won’t get to meet them until they come up and we’ll go to Maine and stay at my cottage.” I was touched that he planned on my meeting his parents and vacationing with him in Maine. “Is there anything else you want to know.”

  “There’s a lot I’d like to know, but time will allow for that.” I hope I emphasized “time” enough for him to understand that I needed it and hoped we would have it together. “My mother’s name was Marcella. My father’s name is Patricio, but he likes being called Peto. My older sister is Esmeralda, then there’s Rubi, and my brother Tomas. He died a couple years after my mother.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss.” He squeezed my hand.

  “Thank you.” I rubbed his thumb gently. “My sisters aren’t married. They have boyfriends. When I got divorced they started calling us the “Hermanas Malditas”; the cursed sisters because we can’t make lasting love happen. They thought it would make for a great telenovela. I haven’t really stayed in touch recently. Each have children, whom I adore. I think I told you that my sisters are older and left home when I was a preteen, so we never had much of a sibling connection. I pretty much felt like an only child.” He listened intently, and it felt so comfortable to open up to him.

  “My brother Tomas, we called him Tommy. Even though he ran the streets, was always there for me. He was the best big brother any girl could have. He had addiction issues, just like his biological mother. Our papa couldn’t control him and he died from an overdose about nine years ago when I was in college. He was the only sibling that attended all my recitals and showcases until I quit dancing.” I took a breath. “I’m rambling. I’m sorry. My ex-husband hated when I talked so much in the car. He used to say that I’d make him more tired than the drive. I talk too much when I’m tired.” I cleared my throat and looked away.

  “I love listening to you, and I appreciate your stories.” He looked over and squeezed my hand. We spent the rest of the time in idle chit chat. When we arrived at the building, we parked in the underground lot. Despite being exhausted, we kissed while waiting for the elevator.

  At his apartment, we went through the motions to get ready for bed. I put on my nightgown and slipped into bed beside Matt. He was struggling to keep awake. He pulled me close to his body and hugged me. “Can you spoon me?” He asked.

  “Turn over.” He turned to sleep on his right side. I wriggled beside him and snuggled in, holding him close.

  “I love this nightgown, but tomorrow you come to bed naked.” He said drowsily.

  “Goodnight, babe.” I gently caressed his arm until I heard his heavy, sleeping breath. I fell asleep soon after.

  ***

  We spent Monday on the same high as we have since getting together. We made love, went to work, ate a late dinner, made love. I was apprehensive about telling him that I was planning to go home on Tuesday. I woke up early and packed my bag, placing it at the door. I hoped he would learn that this is my signal that it’s time for me to go home. I made pancakes, eggs and bacon. I brewed his favorite coffee blend, which woke him out of his slumber. He walked to the counter rubbing his eye and scratching his beard and neck.

  “Where’s my coffee, woman?” I laughed as stood behind the counter.

  “Good morning, babe. I made you some breakfast. Here’s your coffee, as you like it.”

  “Is this consolation for you leaving?” He took a sip from the mug that I set before him.

  “Maybe?” I responded meekly.

  “Why are you leaving?” A tinge of disappointment was in his voice.

  “Because I have my own place, and I haven’t been there since Saturday morning.”

  “That’s not much of a reason.” He sipped. I cocked my eyebrow.

  “It’s a pretty big reason to me, Matt.” I replied evenly.

  “Don’t you like being with me?” He said with a tone that elicited immense guilt.

  “Of course I do, but I don’t need to spend every moment in your home to prove that to you, do I?” He put his mug down and walked over to me.

  “Consider this your home. I’ve tried to make it as comfortable as possible so that you want to make it yours. Stay here until . . .” He started calculating, rubbing my shoulders.

  “When? A month from now? Six months? When . . . when you get tired of me?” His eyes widened at my clipped tone.

  “I’m not going to get tired of you.” He looked shocked and hurt.

  “You won’t because I’m going home. A little separation is good for relationships, or whatever it is we have together.” My voice went to a whisper as my head lowered.

  “Who said? I say, I want you here with me, which is good for our relationship.” He lifted my head by my chin. “I like having you here. It’s not logical for us to spend time at your place because there’s no parking. Your place is too small for two people. Also, w
e’re closer to our jobs here. Please don’t go.” He whimpered.

  “I think I made a mistake . . .” His hands gripped my arms. I saw the look of shock and concern. “I should’ve told you on Sunday my plans to leave today. You would’ve been more prepared and not reacted like this.” He sighed.

  “Did something happen on Sunday to make you want to leave?” He asked concerned.

  “No. No. I decided when you took me home. I looked around my place and I realized how much I miss it. I plan to come back on Saturday before we go to your sisters. I’ll spend the night, if you want. Then I’ll go to work as usual on Sunday. Come back here if you’ll have me. Then I’ll go home. We can see each other at the gym. Maybe dinners? And I can spend weekends here if you’re not traveling.”

  “It feels like you’re trying to pull away from me.”

  “Matt, no, I’m not. We’re two independent people. I think we can continue seeing each other and live our independent lives during the week too.”

  “What about us? Are you planning to be so independent that you see other people?”

  I sighed. “Matt, I never, ever, said that I wanted or would start seeing other people.” I cupped his face. “What’s this really about?” I searched his eyes as if the answers would appear like the responses of an eight ball.

  He pulled away and walked off to the master bedroom. I heard the door of the master bathroom close. I found his reaction abnormal. I knew he wouldn’t like my leaving, but I had no idea he would excuse my need for normal ‘single person’s space’ for wanting to see other people. I’ve not had to deal with a man’s temperamental personality for a couple of years, so I wanted to just run and never turn back. However, Matt was worth it. I walked out of the kitchen and went to his room and waited for him to come out of the bathroom. I heard the shower running. I stood there waiting for him to be finished. The anticipation was killing me.