I shrugged and leaned into his touch, and then he bent down to kiss me, which felt much more natural coming from him than the fake happiness.
Ari didn’t complain that I’d brought him to work, simply pulled his hair back into a short ponytail that showed off his sharp jawline, then picked up a roller from the paint pan. After I stood and got my own roller, I pulled him in for a short kiss, and some of the tension that had tightened his features bled away.
“I’m doing this for you because you asked me to help,” he said bluntly.
“You’re perfect, Ari.”
With a smile I thought he wasn’t faking, he turned away and ran the roller through the primer. “If there’s anything left over, we should take it to your house and redo the walls in our playroom.” He glanced over his shoulder at me, and I darted my attention from his round, perky ass to his eyes.
“That’s a good idea.”
He nodded and went over to the wall, tilting his head to the side as he ran the roller over it, making a white streak on the deep red. He gave me another small smile. “You never mentioned your mother before today. I don’t like her.” He went back to spreading around the primer, and I stood next to him to show him how to roll it in one direction. After watching me for a moment, he copied my movements.
“I don’t, either.” I chuckled. “I take care of the house so I can sell it when the time comes. I think she knows, but she’s a lot like me in certain ways. She understands that she’s getting what she wants, and mostly that’s enough for her.”
“I’ve never painted anything. I like the smell,” he said, wrinkling his nose. “It’s nice.”
“Me too.” I nudged him with my elbow.
We worked quietly after that, moving from one room to the next. Around noon we were in the biggest bedroom, which was my mother’s, when she came in with yet another Bloody Mary in hand. She stumbled a little and plopped down on the sheet-covered bed.
“This is awful.” She waved her glass around. “The strokes are uneven. It’s also the wrong color!”
Ari turned to glare at her, but I didn’t. I just kept working.
“It’s going to take a bunch of coats, Mom. The color we’re covering is dark. We’re using this primer, then we’ll do the color you actually want, probably twice. You might have to wait until next weekend to get it finished if you don’t want to do any of the work yourself. We’ll have to let it dry.”
“No, what you’re doing is wrong,” she said, getting louder, though she didn’t climb off the bed. Her dress had puffed out around her like a deflated party balloon. “It won’t look right, and I will not have people seeing this!”
Sighing, I turned away from the wall. “When’s the last time anyone came out to visit you?”
She harrumphed and sipped her drink, but I could see with the way her eyebrows were scrunched she was thinking up something nasty to say.
“When I’m done, the color will be right.” My face heated, and I would love to strangle her. I didn’t want Ari to see what I put up with for the sake of my job and life, but I hadn’t wanted to leave him at home, either. I’d hoped she wouldn’t do this with someone else around to witness it, but maybe telling her Ari was my boyfriend was enough for her to decide to include him in the people it was acceptable to dump her bad moods on.
“You’re being rude,” Ari said, and his cold tone sent a delicious shiver down my spine. He tipped his chin back and looked every inch like a tiger getting ready to pounce. I could practically see his tail flicking in irritation.
Mom gasped and pointed at him with her glass. “Who the hell are you anyway? Get the hell out of my house!”
“Don’t talk to my... my Jules that way!” He tossed down his roller on the sheet-covered floor, and she pointed at it until I picked it up.
“Out!” Mom shrieked.
Pure rage passed across Ari’s face and he started in her direction. I dropped both rollers and went over to wrap my arms around his solid middle, and he slammed his fists against my forearms as I dragged him toward the doorway. He struck me again and it hurt, but I had the feeling that if I dropped him, he would kill her before I got the chance to stop him—he was quick, and she was frail. I didn’t release him until we were in the hallway, and then I only let go because he slammed his fist hard enough into my bicep that the muscle spasmed and I had no choice.
“Ari!”
He shoved away from me and stormed toward the stairs, which was at least away from my mother. His feet were loud on each step, and the front door slammed behind him like a gunshot. Mom continued to yell, but I tuned out the words as I went back into the room and closed the lid on the primer, then went downstairs to the basement to clean the rollers in a utility sink. When I made it upstairs again, Mom was in the kitchen shakily pouring another glass halfway full of tomato juice.
“Don’t you ever bring that man with you again!” she spat in my direction, then hurled the can she’d been holding at me. The hollowthudas it bounced at my feet and skittered away had my nerves twisted tighter than a spring.
I shrugged. “Fine, then you won’t see me again.”
“Jules!” she shouted, but I left her standing there and didn’t apologize. I was serious. If I couldn’t bring him, I probably wouldn’t be out here again, even if she needed me. This had been a long time coming, but I wouldn’t have her saying anything nasty to Ari, especially when he was far more likely than me to snap on her.
Once I was outside, I expected to find him waiting in or near the truck, but he wasn’t there. I walked the property and couldn’t find him. I wasn’t concerned until I tried calling him and he didn’t pick up. After I called the third time with no answerandhe ignored a text I sent telling him to call me back, I started to worry. The out-of-control sensation in my chest infuriated me. I didn’t like to feel this way. I wasn’t mad at Ari, so much as my mother. Fuck this. In the future I would hire someone to come out and check on her because I was too upset to deal with her anytime soon. I wasn’t certain what I might do to her.
It wouldn’t be good.
