by Vivian Payne
“Natalie, you can’t just rush into moving in with this guy. You don’t know him that well.” I raised an eyebrow at the idiot, about to open my mouth to defend Natalie, but she proved me she didn’t need any help.
“Jasper, I thought I knew you, but after seven years, I realized that I don’t really know you at all. I like Isaac a lot, and if we’re going to last or not, that’s our business, not yours. So get it through your head. We’re done. We. Are. Over. I’ll look for another place to live in as soon as you buy my half of the apartment. I’ll come back for the rest of my stuff later. And hey, at least I’m telling you this personally, not over the phone,” Natalie drawled. Jasper looked angry, and judging by the look in his eyes, it seemed like he was not giving up yet.
Well, Jasper, bring it on.
I just hoped I was making the right choice. This was the first time I opened up my heart to someone since that bitch broke my heart.
Chapter 8
Natalie
Tonight was Isaac’s reunion, and I was so nervous. I wanted to make a good impression, so of course, this meant shopping for a dress and accessories. Isaac and I weren’t able to go shopping the other day because we got busy with packing and moving some of my stuff into his apartment. So, I asked Melly to come with me instead. She was excited for me, but I was not the kind of girl that likes that sort of thing. I was never a party girl. Give me a book to read, and I will be happy.
I often wondered how Melly and I became friends because we were so different—night and day different. Despite that, we had been friends since forever.
Even if I was not the type of girl that likes shopping and getting my hair and nails done, I was still going to do it because, for some reason, going to a party with Isaac was exciting. Learning more about him was something I was looking forward to.
Isaac was going to pick me up at 7:00 pm, so I still had the time to do all of the girly things I mentioned.
“Natty, this is exciting,’’ Melly said as we walked into a clothing boutique.
“Yeah,’’ I mumbled. Everything in the store looked so fancy, and I wasn’t sure what I needed. Bring me to Forever 21, and I would be good with some undergarments and a simple dress, but not this time. No. This time, I want to look gorgeous beside Isaac D’Angelo as we arrive at the venue. I want all of his friends to look and say “what a great couple you two make’’ and that was a little disconcerning because I was never like that. I was a simple person, and I was afraid of what I was turning into by being with Isaac. We had jumped right into a relationship that had started as a blackmail. And now, I was staying at his place. We did things together such as cooking and working, and I had never been so happy. Was this the honeymoon stage? Was this how I had felt at the beginning with Jasper? My thoughts were scary sometimes. Maybe I was just afraid that all of this giddy feeling was just in the start, and I’d be left alone and confused again.
“Stop it,’’ Melly whispered in my ear. I blinked a few times and stared at her, wondering if I had said all of my thoughts aloud.
“No, you didn’t say anything, but I know you well enough to know what you’re thinking, sweetheart.’’ Melly shook her head as she stared at a mini black dress and held it up to my body. “What you had with Jasper was comfortable and easy because you two were high school sweethearts. But you guys didn’t know how to keep the romance going, and you let it die.’’
I opened my mouth to object because I was sure it was all of Jasper’s fault, but Melly gave me a stern look. “Don’t say it was all his fault. As much as I hate Jasper and would like nothing but put all the blame on him, you were part of it too. You let it happen. Everytime Jasper canceled on you because of his attachment to his family, you just let it happen. You never argued or made him make you a priotity. So he kept on doing it because you made it easy for him.’’
I want to argue, but she was only telling me what I already knew in my heart. I never wanted a confrontation that’s why had I let Jasper walk all over me. I bit my lip as I thought of a way to ask what I was thinking. “How…” I started but didn’t say anything else. I shook my head no as my eyes landed on a beautiful, strapless, and silk purple mini dress that I instantly fell in love with.
I walked towards it and took it off the hanger. “I’m going to go try this one,’’ I told Melly as I scurried away to the dressing room. I could feel her eyes on me. I knew she wouldn’t let me off the hook. She would ask me to spill the beans, and I didn’t know what I could say when I wasn’t even sure what was going on in my mind.
I tried the dress on, forgetting everything that was running in my head. Then I stepped outside the dressing room to look at myself in the full-body mirror.
“Oh my god! You look so beautiful!’’ Melly squealed. “All we need is the shoes and the purse. Then we can go do your hair and nails.’’ Melly pointed out, and I smiled at her because my enthusiasm was back. Tonight was for fun, and there was no room for the doom and gloom mood.
***
Reunion time
I was giddy and ready for Isaac to pick me up. Melly told me that she and Ian also had plans tonight. I couldn’t help but wonder if the break was over for them. I swear, I felt like a child of divorced parents. I kept on asking them why they had to take a break from their relationship if they made each other happy? But they would just laugh it off and say that people sometimes needed a break to introspect. They claimed that they had to make sure that what they had was what they truly wanted. To me, if a special someone made me laugh and can make me happy, then there was no need for breaks.
“Sometimes, a person wants to make sure that you are living your life for you and not for others. It doesn’t matter if that person makes you happy. You want to make sure that you are still your own person and not the person the other wants you to be.” I only smiled at that, because I didn’t get it.
“You look beautiful.” Isaac’s manly voice resonated in the living room. I hadn’t noticed him come in, so it made me shriek when I heard his voice. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you.” He chortled, and I glared at him.
I took my time checking him out from head to toe. The man looked gorgeous in his black Armani suit and had his hair in a crew cut style. “You don’t look so bad yourself.” I complimented as I grabbed my handbag and joined him by the door.
***
The car ride was quiet but comfortable. Isaac was holding my hand as he drove. I couldn’t help but feel like I had been missing out all this time. Why did I let Jasper take me for granted without even realizing it? How come I never knew something was missing until Isaac came into my life?
Isaac stopped the car by the entrance, got out, and went around to open my door like a gentleman.“You’re quiet. Are you nervous?” he questioned as he handed his keys to the valet.
“I’m OK.” I chuckled as I wrapped my arm around his. “That’s a lie. Yes, I’m nervous. I’m pretty sure that you had a fan club in school.” I confessed and added a little humor into my statement to hide how terrified I was of walking into a room full of strangers.
“I admit there were rumors of a fan club, but don’t worry, I never paid them any attention, and I’m not about to tonight,” he murmured in my ear, and I couldn’t stop the shiver that went through my body. This man was making me feel new sensations.
“Isaac D’Angelo, how the hell have you been?” a guy said as he appeared and slapped Isaac’s shoulder.
“Been good, thank you. How about you?” Isaac returned the question as he stopped linking arms with me, and instead, wrapped his arm around my waist.
“Great. Already on our third kid, man,” the guy said proudly, raising his drink to a brunnette who was talking to some other girls.
“And who is this beautiful girl?” The guy asked as he roamed his eyes all over me. I felt uncomfortable under his gaze. I knew Isaac noticed this because he tightened his hold around me.
“This is Natalie, my girlfriend. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we’ll go get something to dr
ink.” He reasoned as he led me away from the guy.
“Sorry, that man is a pig,” Isaac said quietly, and I nodded in response. We walked to the bar, and he ordered red wine for the both of us.
Suddenly, a loud squeal resonated in the area and a tall, slender redhead woman ran towards us, wrapping her arms around Isaac’s neck and planting a sloppy kiss on his lips. “I knew you would come! I was so excited to see you!” She squealed and tried to kiss him again, but Isaac quickly backed his face away and removed the woman’s arms from his neck. At that point, I was already seeing red, which was yet another emotion I didn’t know I possessed. I was not the jealous type, but right now, I was ready to beat this woman up for touching my man like that. Isaac’s eyes met mine, and he gave me an intense look as he gently wiped his lips.
“Linda, I want you to meet Natalie, my girlfriend.” Isaac made the introductions, and the woman looked like she was sucking on a lemon as her eyes landed on me.
“Oh, I thought you were single.” She sounded dissapointed, and I smirked as Isaac closed the distance between us, pushing the woman aside.
“No, not single at all. He’s very much taken,” I said with a gentle smile as I stared into Isaac’s eyes. We continued to look at each other like lovesick teenagers and didn’t pay any more attention to the the woman named Linda, who soon had given up and left us alone.
“I’m happy that you’re here with me,” Isaac said softly. I smiled sweetly at him. “Me too,” I whispered.
The song All of Me by John Legend played on the speakers, and Isaac offered me a hand. “Dance with me, princess.” I nodded and took his hand. We walked to the dance floor, and everything around us was blur.
I wasn’t sure when my feelings had started to change or why I didn’t complained about everything that was happening ever since I blackmailed him, but what I was starting to realize was that this thing right now, slow dancing and him making me smile, was a first for me. I don’t think I could go back to the way I was living life before Isaac D’Angelo.
Chapter 9
Natalie
Three months later, I couldn’t be any happier.
Living with Isaac these three months were the best. I smiled when I reminisced his high school reunion. His friends were shocked to see Isaac in a relationship. And it wasn’t really surprising to know that Isaac had been the high school quarterback, homecoming prom king, and captain of the basketball team. He was very popular. I had also seen the homecoming queen who gave me dirty looks throughout the whole event. One guy mentioned Isaac’s last girlfriend. It was serious enough that he took her with them to their country club. Apparently, Isaac had been engaged once. When I asked about it, he just said it wasn’t important. She wasn’t important. I took that as his way of telling me that the topic was off the table.
We didn’t have sex yet, and I was thankful he was patient and understanding.
I didn’t care that Isaac was still dancing at Studio 69. Hell, I still went to see him dance sometimes. He offered to quit, but I told him no. I was proud of my hot and sexy man. It didn’t bother me because, at the end of the night, he would come home to me.
We did almost everything together.
We would go to work together, come home, make dinner, and eat. Then we would individually go into the shower and meet each other in the living room, drinking red wine and working on whatever work we bring home with us on our laptops. Afterwards, we would watch a movie and make out in the middle of watching.
Overall, I was very happy. I felt like, for once, I wasn’t just settling like I did with Jasper.
I realized that I was falling in love with Isaac D’Angelo, and I hoped he was falling for me too.
In just three months, I knew a lot about Isaac. I found out we had more in common than I ever did with Jasper.
Spending all this time with Isaac made me realize how much time I had wasted in the past. I was wondering why I stayed so long with Jasper.
It felt like I had lost seven years of my life, and I couldn’t help but think what would’ve happened if Isaac D’Angelo showed up in my life back then? I probably would’ve dumped Jasper and begged Isaac to be with me.
Those thoughts really scared me.
***
Isaac
I never thought my dad’s words would come back and bite me in the ass, but here we were. Natalie was funny and smart, and if I were lucky, she would be mine for the rest of our lives. I knew it was too soon to think that way, but it felt real. It felt like she was the one, and I was not going to let her slip away from me.
I was working in my office, and I couldn’t stop smiling nor did I want to. The best time of the day was at home, making and eating dinner, and working. It was also nice to know that my girlfriend was as alcoholic as I was.
I loved that girl; no doubt about it. She was getting there, and I was patient because my parents always told me that good things happen to those who wait. It didn’t bother me that we hadn’t had sex; I respected her decision to wait.
I’d wait for her as long as she wanted to.
Hell, I would probably propose to her on one knee and all before I would even think about taking her to bed. I smiled at the thought because I never did that to my ex-girlfriend. Well, it kind of happened when my ex and I were both drunk and having a good time. Our relationship was toxic, and once I grew out of that and started to seriously think about my future, she continued to be the party girl. I wondered why I never realized sooner how wrong we were for each other.
I smiled because now that I think about it, it was my ego that my ex had hurt, not my heart. I was sure of that because whenever I saw Natalie, I knew that our relationship was the real deal. I snorted because she was only twenty-two years old, but she was more mature than my ex. If she were ever to leave me, it would kill me.
I had suggested that I quit my stripping gig, but she told me not to. She said it didn’t bother her, and she loved it. The thing was, I started dancing to fill in the void in my life after my ex broke my heart.
Now, I was happy that the void was gone, and I didn’t feel the need to dance anymore. In fact, after this weekend, I was going to quit and surprise Natalie by driving her to my parents’ beach house so that I could tell her that I love her. I thought it was also time for her to meet my family.
I smiled at the thought. My whole family noticed the huge change in my mood. My parents knew about Natalie, and they were very happy for me. I thought my dad was going to be mad, but contrary to that, he hugged me and congratulated me. My family, aside from my father and my brother, hadn’t met Natalie, but I was sure they’d like her.
Chapter 10
I came home in a good mood.
I found myself smiling more and whistling random tunes for no reason at all. Everyone had noticed the change in my work and personal life. I was leaving work on normal time just so that I could come home to Natalie. We would usually just stay in, cook, and work together. But not tonight. No. Tonight, I had a surprise for her. I was going to take her out to dinner and a movie. It would be an official date for us since the times we had dressed up and gone somewhere was only for a show. But tonight I wanted to show her off. I wanted people to see us together and know that she belong to me. It didn’t matter that we haven’t had sex yet. A relationship was more than sex, and I was absolutely sure that Natalie was the one for me. All those heartbreaks before she came into my life were nothing compared to what I would feel if she were to leave me. “Princess, are you home?” I called loudly as I entered our apartment.
Natalie came out from her room and raised an eyebrow at me. I grinned at her and closed the distance between us to give her a soft kiss on her cheek.
“Go get ready. We’re going out,’’ I said.
“Where are we going?” she asked, smiling as she moseyed back towards her bedroom.
“Does dinner and a movie sounds good?”
“That sounds great, actually.” She agreed and turned to look at me with her eyebrow raised. I did the
same, matching her look, and then she smirked at me. “Do you mind?”
I shook my head and grinned. “Not at all. Please go on,” I said as I gestured my hand for her to proceed, and she started laughing. Her melodic laugh made me feel butterflies in my stomach and heat traveled throughout my body, settling on my lower regions.
“You are crazy if you think I’m going to change with you in my room.” My eyes widened, and I placed my palm over my heart, feigning shock and hurt as I slowly made my way out of her bedroom.
“It wounds me that you think I would perv on you,” I said, and she laughed again.
I chortled to myself as I went to my room and looked around. Everytime I said goodnight to Natalie, I wished she would share my bedroom. When she first moved in, I thought it was a good idea to offer her the guest room; that way, she could have her safe space. But lately, I have been wanting her here, right next to me. I wanted to sleep and wake up with her by my side every morning.
It seemed that all my feelings were rushed, especially with how we met each other for the first time, but I knew it wasn’t.
And with our pasts relationships, maybe we should be wary, but everything about and with her felt right. Nothing in my gut was telling me that everything that I was doing with Natalie was wrong or a mistake. My dad always said that when you meet the right person, you would instantly know. Your heart will know. And I strongly believed that Natalie was truly the one for me.
My cellphone vibrated, and I sighed as I saw Ian’s name on the screen. I declined the call because I wasn’t in the mood to hear my brother bitch about how unfair dad was being to him. Ian was still treating life like a big party, but he knew that someday it would have to stop because, eventually, he would have to grow up and be a responsible adult. And for some reason, Ian thought I would take his side now that I was with Natalie. In his mind, he was the reason why I got into a relationship with his bestfriend; because of him, I was now happy. I refused to believe that.
