The Twin

by Smokey Moment

  Nicole wiped her face. She was working overtime, hoping he would make a mistake. Austin was resourceful. And when Nicole pushed too hard, he played victim and blamed her for not trusting him. “How? He can sense I’m looking for evidence. He’s covering his tracks well.” Ingrid walked to the pot. “No one’s that good. There will always be slip ups. Your father has a business trip in a week. Tell him you plan to go. That your father needs your help to land the account. But stay here. Drive a different car. Follow him. Stay far back. Put a tracker on his car. There are ways. He’ll get comfortable with you gone. He’ll let his hair down.”

  Nicole was surprised. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “How you know all this mom? What is going on,” she said. Ingrid smiled. “Your father was no angel. He was something else when we were younger. Oh yes. And I had to become a private eye. That’s why you see a certain level of respect now. I turned the tables. Ask him. He’ll tell you all about it. But I don’t do any of that now. He does what he is supposed to do. I have no issues with him. My marriage is strong. But yes, he almost got caught up.”

  The women ate and talked for several hours. Nicole planned to take her mother’s advice. She wanted to see what her husband was up to. She wanted proof so they could either work it out or part ways. Either way, she couldn’t force his hand until she could prove what he was doing.

  Chapter seven

  A Familiar Feeling

  T

  he door chimed as Niles entered. Bella immediately went into defense mode. She was sure he’d received the divorce papers. She had him served and she had confirmation he had them. “Noah why are you here. I’m still mad. I don’t want to talk right now. I don’t even know if I want to see you,” she said, in a soft voice. She was tired of arguing. Tired of crying. Tired of trying to piece a puzzle together when there shouldn’t have been a puzzle in the first place. “Hi,” he said nervously, trying to get a feel for Bella. “Why are you here? Didn’t you get the letter?” she asked. Niles furrowed his brow. “Letter?” he asked, as he continued walking towards her.

  “Don’t do this. Don’t play dumb. This is hard enough. The divorce. That letter,” she replied. She paused then continued as Niles slowly walked through her racks, taking his time and giving her time to speak. “Not that I need one. I annulled it today. Now you’re free. I hated to annul the marriage. It seemed like I was saying the marriage never existed. I can’t pretend we didn’t exist. We did,” she said, her voice cracking as she looked down. Niles didn’t care if she wasn’t married to Noah any longer. If she annulled their marriage, then it was over. There should have never been a marriage. She belonged to him first. And he had told her she would be his wife long before Noah made it his reality.

  But there was a profound sadness in her. Niles saw her pain. Her confusion. He knew why. One person can’t really replace another. Love was profound. And it’s specific. She loved him. Not his brother. And it was what ailed her. Niles was there to fix all that. And he would rather she be emotionally stable and happy. He would worry about himself later. If he didn’t see her after this day, he would deal with his pain the best way he could. Bella looked at him. Seriously and unequivocally. Something in his demeanor was different. His walk. His confidence. The look in his eyes. The way he stared at her. She thought she was losing it. Maybe imagining him differently because she no longer was married to him and she regretted it. Deep down it was the last thing she wanted to do. But she felt they were wrong for each other and she wanted to cut her ties with him and suffer in silence. “Why are you here?” she asked.

  Niles walked to her. She took several steps back until she was stopped by the wall. He got close. He remembered every inch of her beautiful face. Her innocent yet exotic features with perfect large almond shaped eyes and beautiful full lips, had him in a trance. Bella glanced up at him. She was five foot seven. He stood over her at six foot two. His demeanor was confident for a man who was on the verge of losing his wife. Bella wasn’t sure what to make of him.

  “Noah please go. I have a lot to do. I can’t…” she said before bursting into tears. She covered her face but Niles moved her hands. He held her face and stared in her eyes. There was something penetrating about his gaze. Something familiar. Something he had not done to her in months. He touched her face. Bella felt comforted. She was confused. She was originally mad at him. She wanted to keep her distance. But he was different. She assumed he thought of the consequences and decided to fight for her. Bella allowed him to caress her face. He played with her hair. He looked down at her lips. He was being the expressive and deeply feeling man she fell in love with. Bella instantly felt the way she did when she first met him.

  “I got that letter. I tore it up. I’m here because I am surrendering to you. You can’t leave Bella,” he said, as he came within an inch of her mouth. He stared at her lips. He wanted to kiss her. He promised Noah he would get her back. But everything rested on Bella’s response. She held the cards. It was chess, and it was her move. Bella took a deep breath. She thought she was hearing things. Noah hadn’t been this charming.

  As stubborn as he was, now he was the complete opposite. He was magnetic. She felt herself falling for him all over again. Like the first day they met. “But we don’t want the same things. You said…?” she spoke. But was interrupted. Niles already knew what she was about to say. He was there to ease her worries. He and Noah were switching roles. He was there to give her the baby she always wanted. And make her happy in the process. “We do want the same things. I was afraid. But I can’t lose you. Do you remember how we met? How I found you. The weeks we spent falling in love. You don’t remember that Bella? That didn’t happen?” Bella looked off. Was he drunk? Was he having an identity crisis? She paused as her mind raced.

  “I remember,” she replied. “Good because you are not divorcing me.,” Niles said, as he put his hands on her face and pulled her lips to his. Bella pushed away then quickly gave in. She moaned as he kissed her with a passion she hadn’t felt in a long time. She could feel his erect penis. He wanted her. “Alright. And stop giving me a hard time about having a baby. I’m scared too. But we can do this. We got this,” she said, as she allowed him to kiss all over her face and neck. Bella pulled away and looked him in his eyes. She wanted to see his gaze once again. He was back himself. She smiled and laid her head on his chest. Her touched her hair then kissed the top of her head.

  “I want whatever you want,” he said. Bella froze. She wasn’t sure what he meant. She became emotional. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? “You want whatever I want?” she asked. “Yes,” he said, looking intensely in her eyes. He wiped her tears then kissed the ones that followed. “I want a baby,” she said, hoping that they were now on the same page. Niles smiled and kissed her passionately. “Then we have a lot of love making to do.”

  “Oh Noah,” she said, as she hugged him. He was finally coming around. Bella regretted annulling their marriage. She hoped she could somehow void the document. She wondered if it had been entered in the states system. As long as it wasn’t filed, she was still married. She made a mistake. Out of anger she moved forward on something she didn’t really want to do. “I love you,” she said, as she hugged and kissed him. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. I didn’t really want a divorce. I love you,” she said, as tears flowed.

  Bella looked deeply in his eyes then kissed him sensually. Niles held her close, kissing her fiercely as their passion for one another took hold. Bella was in shock. He felt like she remembered. The passion and intensity was back. Bella slowly moved her hand towards his manhood. Her kisses were steamy. She was sensual. She was aggressive. And she wanted him in her mouth.

  She pushed him against the wall and dropped to her knees out of sight from onlookers. Niles looked towards the door. He hoped no one entered. “Damn baby,” he said. Niles was elated. He missed her immensely. And he missed their lovemaking even more. But Bella never put him in her mouth before. He was doomed. He knew he w
ould never be the same. Not now.

  Bella held him firm between her fingers. She gave him a look. He smirked and touched her cheek. She slid her hand up and down his shaft then took him in. His knees buckled as her warm wet mouth took him in deep. Niles looked down at her. She looked up at him. Her eyes captivated him. Bella moaned. Her moans intensified. As if she was on the receiving end. It was obvious she loved fellatio. Her use of saliva and tongue went beyond the standards set forth by other women. Niles moaned. He moved her hair from her face. Bella smiled. She moaned louder then used her saliva to tease him, stringing it out and away from his penis head. Niles was in shock. “Babe. Where you get that from?” Bella chuckled. “You!”

  Bella stopped teasing and put her hand on his shaft and maneuvered between strokes and mouth pressure with increasing momentum until Niles was ready to explode. He moaned and grabbed her head then began pumping slowly in and out of her mouth. He yelled out as he came in her mouth. Bella tried to hold him inside her mouth but he pulled himself back and she released him. “I’m ready to go home. I missed you. I need you,” she said, as she laid her head against his chest. Niles held her as he leaned against the wall. He didn’t see how he would be able to let her go a second time. “Let’s go home,” he said, his eyes fixated on hers. His stare intense. His loving gaze striking at her heart. Bella was moved by him. She didn’t understand his level of intensity at that moment. But she recognized it. “Ok.”

  “Boarding flight 310 to Los Angeles.” George picked up his bag and headed toward the plane. His wife had told him that if Austin called his phone looking for Nicole, to call her. George was upset but tried not to let it get to him. He had a meeting and he would be back in three days. He planned on confronting his son-in-law at that time. He didn’t believe Austin was having an affair. He was putting in long hours at the office and according to Ingrid, Nicole said he was always home.

  George believed Nicole was just being paranoid. Her last husband was still married and still involved with his wife. George thought that maybe the trauma from that situation was spilling over into her new marriage. He boarded the plane headed to Los Angeles. His mind filled with the problems of his children, his business and all that came with it. George sighed.

  He sat in first class. He ordered vodka on the rocks and pulled several magazines from the seat pouch. It was a copy of the prior month’s Forbes. He scanned the pages until he came across the article about a deal he’d made. His picture above it. He smiled. It was a picture of him in a navy suit, shirt and tie. George was proud. It was the second article that covered his story. The other story had him on the cover.

  “Here you are sir,” the flight attendant said. She glanced at the page. “Is that you?” she asked. “Yes,” he replied then closed the magazine. The flight attendant smiled. “Wow. I read that piece. Your accomplishments are impressive,” she stated. “Thank you. Hard work. Success follows hard work,” he said. She nodded then placed a napkin next to his drink. “Can I get you anything else?” she asked. “No. I think that’s it for now.”

  George looked out the window as the plane taxied. He worked hard to be the sort of man magazines wrote about. And his mission when he returned home was to fix the problems of his family. Whatever that took. There was a side to him that stayed hidden. But for his daughter, it would come out. If Austin pushed. If he hurt her even a little, George would be hard to stop.

  T

  he night was cool. Calm. There wasn’t much traffic to interfere with Nicole’s drive on the interstate towards her home. She had just hung up with Austin. She boasted about how beautiful the city of Los Angeles was. They spoke for an hour. He claimed to be watching television. That he missed her and couldn’t wait for her to return home. Nicole knew better. He sounded jovial. Happy to have the time to himself. A stark contrast for a man who was jealous and controlling the other 99% of the time.

  Nicole pulled up just a block over. He had been home all day. She had planned to follow him to see where he went but he stayed home. Never leaving. He hadn’t been to work and he hadn’t left out to get something to eat. Austin didn’t cook. And usually, if he didn’t eat whatever Nicole made, he left to get something from one of his favorite restaurants. Another strange occurrence given that there was no left overs. Nicole had her housekeeper and cook claim to be out of town. She left no stone unturned. She wanted him to rely on his own defenses.

  Nicole had a sinking feeling a woman was in her own home. It was a painful realization. The pieces didn’t quite add up. She hoped she was wrong. She would love to walk in, see he’s alone and explain how she had been thinking the worse. She hoped he would prove her wrong in the worse way.

  The long walk around the corner, in the dark, gave her time to reflect. Time to think. Was she being paranoid. Was it fair to him, to mistrust him in such a way as to create such an elaborate scheme. He was her husband. The man she loved unquestionably. The man she married against her mother and father’s advice. The man she promised to have and to hold. Those powerful words said at every wedding. What did they mean? Surely it didn’t mean through an affair. But the ending, til death do us part, meant nothing would separate the union, not even an affair. Nicole thought of that day. She promised all that and more. But to share him meant the words we no longer sacred. And she couldn’t deal with such a betrayal. Ever!

  “What are you doing Nicole,” she said, as she walked up to her home. She scanned the windows. She was surprised no lights were on. It was nine o’clock in the evening. Austin hardly went to bed that early. It was possible, if he was dead tired, but not likely. Better not be. I swear. This better not be what I’m thinking,” she mumbled, as she walked up the side of the house and around to the back. Her large, custom ranch home with tons of windows didn’t make her surprise so concealed. She hoped not to be given away before she had a chance to see what she wanted.

  As she neared the window of her bedroom she heard faint noises. Sounds she recognized. Grunts and moans answering her questions immediately. “What the fuck,” she said as she walked back around and up to the side door. She used her key and gained entry. She went into the kitchen and paused. Tears flowed. She placed her hand on her hip and pinched the bridge of her nose. She closed her eyes. It was a heart wrenching and gut tearing reality. She wanted control. There was a gun in the house. She had access to it. But there would be no gun. Nicole knew if she went to retrieve it, she may end up using it. She refused to let his affair send her to jail. “Calm down Nic,” she whispered, as the grunts became louder. The sounds of slapping faintly heard in the background. He was enjoying her. His moans were intense. The sounds were that of someone fervently consuming the body of another. A lust driven frantic pounding that signaled he was uncontrolled.

  Nicole opened her eyes and stormed to her bedroom. She bent the corner and opened the door. Austin was so distracted by his body’s desires that he didn’t hear her enter. Nicole walked up to the bed. She had to see her. Was it an acquaintance? A friend? One of Langston’s employees? Nicole got closer. The room was dark but illuminated enough to see. Lights from the garden, the moon and the night lights placed throughout gave off enough for one to see quite clearly.

  “What the fuck?” she said as Austin jumped and grabbed sheets to cover himself. His partner turned around quickly, no longer bent over with her head immersed in pillows. Nicole stood paralyzed. Austin’s lover laid motionless. Nicole didn’t recognize her. She took a step back, shaking her head. “Baby, let me explain,” Austin said. Nicole looked at him. His lover got up slowly and walked past Nicole and went into the master bathroom. She could hear water running. Nicole scoffed at the audacity of the woman. It wasn’t the time to wash away her sins. This was her husband of two years. A man she expected to be loyal. A man she thought was a loving and devoted partner.

  “She’s taking a shower. As if she is totally unaware that this is my house. If you don’t get her out of here right now Austin. I swear,” Nicole warned. “I can explain,” he pleaded. “Ex
plain what Austin. Please. Enlighten me,” she coldly said. Austin stared at her. His face blank and void of emotion. There was nothing to explain. But he tried anyway. “Nic please! I swear. It’s nothing. I was lonely. I have issues. This is not what you think,” he pleaded. Nicole couldn’t move. Shock had her in a choke hold. “Nic please,” he said, as he stood up. He held the sheet on him to hide his nakedness. He looked like a man with a thousand shames. Nicole shook her head slowly at him. “Get out. When that bitch comes out of my bathroom, you two put your fucking clothes on and hold hands leaving my fucking house. Are we clear Austin,” she said. Austin was shocked. Nicole didn’t usually use such language. But this was the type of situation that made the strangest of reactions possible.

  “I’m not leaving,” he replied. Nicole wiped her tears and abruptly left the room. Austin instantly feared the move. He grabbed his underwear and then ran to the dresser to get his jogging pants. Before he could select a pair to wear, she had returned with something shiny in her hand.

  “What did you say? Say it again. Please tell me how you just fucked someone in my bed and now refuse to leave my house. Are my tears not enough. Is my pain meaningless to you. This is my house. It is not up for negotiation. I shared it with you. I shared my life with you. What was mine was yours. I loved you in this home. Sacrificed my own wants, in this very home. The home you just violated me in. Disrespected me in. Did the unthinkable in. Please say it one more time. Say how you refuse to leave.” Austin stood shell shocked. He held his hands up. He was relenting. She held the cards. She held the gun. This was her rodeo.