by P. A. Jones
"Mom. What happened to your deal?" I wanted to change the subject to something else.
"It's going well, sweetheart. We are looking for an IT developer to build a website here. I interviewed many yesterday, but none were compatible for our requirements."
"You need realistic requirements," Nathan replied.
"It was quite the opposite, Mr. Brown. The candidates didn't have any sense. I don't find New York's people very professional."
"You don't know people here. They are warm and soft."
"You don't seem to be WARM and SOFT." She stressed his words.
I was feeling dizzy because of the ping-pong match going on between them. There was some serious tension going on between them and it was putting pressure on my chest. I wanted to scream, but I couldn't. "Nathan..." I tried to distract him."
"Yes, sweetheart?" He wrapped his hand around my shoulders, showing his affection. I was fine with that elsewhere, but he was doing it in front of my mom.
"I have some work to do. Can we get out of here?"
"Darling, no." My mom spoke with sharp voice. "I wanted to have a lunch with you."
"Sorry, Mom, I can't take it anymore." I wanted to run away from there."Nathan, are you coming with me?"
"Okay, let's go." He stood. I grabbed his hand and walked outside.
When we were on the porch, I asked him. "What was that?"
"Nothing. Just a discussion actually." he smiled.
"No, you don't normally take your sword out in discussions."
"If it's your mom, then it looks like I should always be ready."
"That's rude, Nathan."
"I am sorry, sweetie, if you felt like that. But she was going after me from the start. And Mason? What the hell was he doing there? He pissed me off, really. I promise I will be better next time." I looked in his eyes. He was telling me the truth. "I'm just plain confused here. What Mason was doing there?"
"I don't know. I haven't seen him for ages, and I didn't expect him to be here. And why did he leave early? That's another mystery," I commented.
"He better have some good reason behind this all." He clenched his hands into fists.
"I hope so, too." I didn't want them fighting together again. I saw the first glimpse of comfort in Nathan’s eyes when I told him how Mason changed my mind about meeting him. "I have to go back, Nathan. I will call you later." I waved goodbye and waited for him to leave before I headed back in.
I had to pass the lunch table to get to my room. "He is pathetic. No manners." My mother started firing as soon as I got in the restaurant.
"He is not like that, Mother. You threw him off from his usual cool. What happened to you back there? And why was Mason there?"
"That's none of your business, darling."
"Whatever, Mom. I'm going to my room. I need a good nap to calm down." I was irritated by all the drama. I walked straight to my room and fell on the bed, thinking about my life and my family.
Chapter 11
Trade Off
Nathan
I jumped out of my car. My head was spinning like a tornado. Mason and Eva's mother in a single afternoon was too much for me to take. I could have deflected Mrs. Clark's attacks easily while staying calm, but when Mason came into the picture, I lost my control. I forgot the diplomacy I planned out. I wanted to act decent. I knew she was not in favor of me and Eva being in a relationship, but still I had some hopes.
But everything went sideways. The moment I saw Mason with her, I knew something was happening between them. Damn, why the fuck was Mason there? What was he doing there? My head spun thinking about their meeting. I needed JD to think straight.
The door cracked open when I applied extra force on it. My feet automatically moved towards the refrigerator. JD was there. But when I reached the refrigerator, I couldn't find it. Eva must have put it somewhere else. I needed a kick to think straight, I was losing my patience. I had to fight with someone. That was the only thing that could have helped me to think. People need coffee or some stimuli to think straight. I just need a fight. When I fight, I get a better solution. And that is the best time for me to solve my issues. I need to fight with someone. I grabbed my gym bag and headed towards the club.
***
"Hey, buddy, how are you?" My coach shouted from one ring, when he saw me.
"Fine, Coach."
"Wanna trade blows with this guy?" he said. He was coaching an amateur-looking boxer. I watched him moving around Coach. He wasn't the person I wanted to fight with. First, he lacked a boxer's body and then he lacked the moves.
"Nope, go ahead." I replied and looked at the other ring. To my surprise, Mason was fighting with someone. I walked to the ring. Holding the ropes in my hands, I looked at Mason. Frustrated, I said, "Mason."
He looked back at me for an instant and he lost his concentration. His opponent’s punch hit his face hard. He stumbled back on the ropes. With a quick jump, I grabbed him before he fell on the ropes. "Thanks, buddy." He balanced himself on his feet.
"Buddy..." I repeated his words. I remembered my college days, when we used to be buddies, best friends."Up for a match?"
"Now?" he asked, looking at me.
"Yes, I’ll change and get back." I jumped down.
***
We shook hands. Many people had gathered around. Everybody knew in the club that I didn't like Mason and we had never had a match between us. This was the first time I would be trading blows with him. The first time in five years.
"I’m surprised." Mason punched my face, but I moved to my left and hit his chest with a quick cross. My punch forced him back, but he managed to stay calm.
"Why, Mason? Why surprised?" I threw a straight kick at him, and he defended himself with his left hand.
"You asked for a match after five years." He charged forward and threw a fast hook at me.
"Come on, Mason. I was surprised to see you there. What game are you planning with Martha?" I saved myself with my right hand and pushed an upper cut through his hands and hit him on his chest.
"I need to talk to you about Eva's mother."
"Answer my question first." I jumped in the air and hit him with a semi-circular kick.
He rolled on the ground to get away from me. He jumped back to his feet and charged towards me. He threw a two-hand punch on my chest, but I jumped to my right and saved myself.
The bell rang, the first round was finished. I walked towards him and held his shoulder tightly. "What is this new game, Mason?"
"No lie, Nathan, only truth."
"Tell me Mason, I'm all ears."
The referee rang the bell. We took our stance and started the next round. I could see people gossiping about our match. Surely, we didn't play up to the mark. I decided to go bully. I punched hard, targeting Mason’s face. He saved himself with one hand. I took the opportunity and fired an uppercut, targeted between his face and hand. But he anticipated it and saved it with other hand and pushed me back. "You are good, Mason. I hadn't seen you fighting in many years."
"But I watched you getting sloppy."
"What do you mean?" I asked with surprise.
He punched me instead of replying and I saved myself with one hand. He whipped an upper cut, the exact same move I had tried few a moments ago. I saved my face with my other hand and tried to force him back. He bluffed like he moved back, but instead of falling back he fell on ground with his hand pushed on the surface and dropped a circular kick parallel to ground. It hit me on my shin and I fell down in a second.
"I said that." He gave me a hand. I took his hand to stand up. Everybody around us was clapping. But I didn't feel ashamed, because I was going to train with that guy.
"Thanks, Mason. You haven't changed at all. But before I commit myself to your training, I want to know what you were doing there?"
"Long story short, your future mother-in-law is planning a strike against you."
"Oh, she isn't my mother-in-law."
"Don't kid me. You married a girl b
efore getting out of college and you want me to believe you?"
"And you slept with her in less than ten months after I married her." I laughed and hugged him, tightly. I missed his friendship, and for the first time in five years, I felt the ground between us was settling. "Whatever is in the past is over. Why, she called you?"
"She offered me a project over the phone. I went because of her offer, and it was damn lucrative. She called me for a business lunch and I accepted the offer. But when I got there, she had a different offer."
"I didn't get you, man." We walked outside of the ring. People were waiting for us to get back in again and fight, but we had different plans.
"She asked me to get you out of Eva's life, by any means."
"What?" I couldn't believe it.
"And the surprising thing was that she had every ounce of information about you and me. She offered me a good project and personal recommendations to get the job done."
"You should have taken that offer, man." I smiled.
"Don't be a jerk. I know your sarcasm. I said sorry a thousand times, already." He replied in an honest voice.
"Okay, apology accepted. Tell me, what did you say to her?"
"I said no. How could I say yes? I have already done the damage once, I didn't want to do it again with you. Purgatory wouldn't be enough for me."
"Thanks, buddy. Eva’s mother is becoming a pain in the ass," I said. She was truly trying everything in her arsenal to get me out of Eva's life. But I decided I would do anything to save our relationship.
"We're starting the training tomorrow." He patted me on my back and walked to the changing room. I turned back to face the amateur opponent my coach had offered a while back. I needed a moral win.
Chapter 12
Eva
I waved good bye to Chloe and entered my university canteen. Over the past month, the canteen had become my favorite place to meet Nathan. That way I got to spend time with him, and once we finished I could go right to class. I looked at my watch; he was already late. Why are these men always late? I took my cell out to call him.
"Yes, babe," he replied in husky voice.
"Where are you?" I asked in an irritated voice. He was already late, and that meant less time to spend with him.
"At your table," I heard him near me, like a surround sound system. I looked around and he thumped onto the chair next to me. His gym bag hung over his shoulder like a pendulum. His sleeveless gym t shirt showed his rock-solid biceps, arousing me in the bright sunlight. His perfect shoulder muscles screamed beneath his t-shirt for my bite. Instead, I bit my lower lip.
"With your gym bag?" I wanted to grab him there and kiss him hard.
"Just finished my training session with Mason. That's why I’m little late."
I wanted to scold him for coming late, but he dropped this bomb on me. Yesterday, he had talked about killing Mason and today he was training with him. Just yesterday, they traded with knifes and swords at the lunch. I thought I had heard something wrong. "Did you mention Mason?"
"Yes, Mason." His face remained emotionless, like they had no history at all and he came here after meeting a good friend.
"I thought you would fight with him." My voice went low in curiosity.
"I did. We had a practice match yesterday, after five years," he replied calmly.
"Okay! One second," I gasped. "You were trading blows yesterday. I thought you would kill him for being there."
"Yes, I wanted to kill him. But he clarified things. And he is an extraordinary fighter, so I accepted the offer."
"Are you guys back together? Everything’s okay?" I asked with happiness.
"The last time I checked, I was dating you. And not him." He made a serious face.
I punched him hard. A sharp pain gripped my hand. "I mean, are you friends again."
"No, I wouldn't say we are friends again, but he is not my enemy anymore. I forgive him for doing Samantha."
"That's good." I thanked God for changing Nathan. "In the last few months, you have changed a lot, Nathan."
"Only because of you, Eva." He grabbed my hand and started brushing it with his thumb. "You changed my life inside and out and I'm very thankful to you."
"Oh, don't, Nathan." I blushed at his praise. "So training then, huh?" I tried to change the subject.
"Yes. Anyway, I don't have any work waiting for me and I hope to use this opportunity to train and devise a plan to beat Peter."
"Why Peter again?"
"Because he said he will destroy my career and I don't like bullies anywhere. I don't do well with them." He sighed deeply. "I have a history with bullies, and they don't go along with my principles."
"That's something new for me." I felt like I didn't know much about his life. I didn't know about Samantha and his early life. It wasn't like I cared about his past, but I was curious. And I was more curious about his divorce with Samantha. But I didn't know how to ask him that.
"Someday, I'll tell you the story of my life. When we have Mason with us."
"Sure, babe, I can’t wait for that day." Samantha, Samantha, I muttered to myself.
"Did you say something?"
"No, nothing."
"I thought I heard Samantha's name."
"Not at all, sweetheart. Now, as you have brought her subject up, I wanted to ask..." I cleared my throat. "You know, what happened with her, after I left your home."
He laughed loud. "I knew you said her name. Okay...." He looked around and came closer to me. "I threw her out."
"What?" I shouted and then felt ashamed. Everybody around me was looking at me. "What?" I whispered in a very low voice.
"I said I threw her out. She broke us and she deserved nothing less."
"But how can you throw a girl out."
"I pushed her out of the house, before she had a chance to whine about you and ruin my home. And then I threw her bag out of window." He chuckled.
"Did you..." I cleared my throat again. I couldn't ask him directly about the divorce.
"You want to ask about the divorce?"
"No…I mean, yes." At last I came to the question burning a hole in my heart.
"After I lost you, I filed it."
"I'm sorry, Nathan, for the pain I put you through." My heart filled with sorrow about him. He didn't deserve it. He loved me more than I did.
"Don't worry. I deserve that. I should have told you about her, but I never thought that she would come back and ruin my life again. I don't understand what happened, but because of her I lost my best friend."
"You can work on that, sweetheart, you can get him back. But how was it? How was she as a person?" I asked and bit my tongue.
His face turned dark. Painfully, he turned his face to other side. "She was a nice girl, at first. We enjoyed our share. But then she turned demanding. She never liked living with me in a small apartment. She always wanted more, car, jewelry, anything she thought of. I had tried my best, but on my starting salary right out of school, I couldn't afford it. I started doing extra shifts, more extra shifts." His face twisted into a frown. He sighed heavily. "I think that was the time, when our ties started breaking off. My issue with her was the truth. If she had told me about her needs, I would have given her the divorce. But, things came out in a much worse manner."
I stroked his face. "It's okay, sweetheart. You have me now." I hugged him tightly. I wanted to hold him longer, but my class time starting soon and I had to leave. "Sorry, sweetie, I have to go now. I'll catch you later." I waved him goodbye. He sat there, maybe thinking about her. I felt sad, not jealous.
Chapter 13
Eva
With a heavy heart, I walked inside class. And concentrating on the class was out of question when you attend a class after listening to your boyfriend’s sad story. Soon, I realized that it was a bad choice after all and I decided to ditch the last class and meet Chloe. I wanted her happiness to radiate through my veins. Only she could have lifted my mood.
She was probably in the c
afeteria or library. I searched for her in both places, but she wasn’t there. I called her, I messaged her, but she didn't reply. I had no choice but to go home. My forehead was all creased by thoughts of spending my evening with my mom. I couldn't remember the last time we spoke like mother-daughter. I took a cab to the hotel.
I walked like a cat while passing her room. I didn't want her to see me. I was glad that she didn't notice me. Carefully, I opened the door of my room, trying not to make any noise.
"Sweetheart, you are back." My mother called me from behind.
Damn, she could be in the FBI. "Hello, Mother." I faced her. "I thought you would be busy in a meeting or something."
"Yes, I was some time ago. But I am here on a mission."
"What's that?" She sounded like 'James Bond'.
"To re-connect with you. I don't remember when the last time we talked," she said with quietly.
"My head, it’s bursting, Mother. Mind if we talk later, over dinner?" I tried to avoid her. I felt ashamed inside, but I had no choice.
"Let me help you." She held my shoulder and literary dragged me inside the room. "Now, go and lay down on the bed. I’ll get some pain-killers for you." She ordered me in a very sweet voice. I was surprised; my heart sunk with the memory of my childhood. Before building the business empire, she used to take care of me like this. She used to do anything and everything for me and my older brother. Those were the most awesome days in my life. "Those days," I sighed. I was surprised to find out how much I missed my childhood.
"What? Did you say anything?" she asked from the door.
"Nothing, Mom. I’ll change and come back."
She vanished outside the room. The wooden door closed heavily behind her. My mind flooded with the sad memories of when she used to leave us alone at home every day. 'Sometimes, I really miss you mother.'
I changed into my favorite pajama and a t-shirt from my high school days. Surprisingly, the t-shirt still fit me well.
When I came out, my mother was already sitting on my bed with some pills in her hand. She looked at me, "You still have that t-shirt?"
