“You’re just pretending not to like it.”
I roll my eyes and hand the phone back to its owner once I’m done typing in my number.
“And now you’re ignoring me,” he whines, leaning his chin on my shoulder. “You weren’t acting like this when we were ki- Ouch! Why’d you elbow me?”
“Have some manners,” I grit out then turn to Andrew apologetically. He stares at us with an incomprehensible mix of emotions plastered on his face, and I fear we may have offended him. “I’m sorry on his behalf. This was an inappropriate display.”
He glances at Aiden, barely concealing his displeasure, but once his gaze drifts back to me the honey of his irises melts, and I find myself entranced by an uncomfortable sense of déjà vu.
He shines as golden as sunflowers.
“There’s no need to apologize, Aoi,” he says softly, and my heart flutters. “I hope to hear from you soon.”
I part my lips to answer but Aiden groans frustratingly and grabs my hand, tugging me away from Andrew. Dazed by this odd interaction with such an unusually mesmerizing man, I let that idiot drag me out of the building.
Someone ought to slap some sense into this man.
“What the hell was that for? You can’t be so rude to people you don’t know.” I run my hand through my hair. “Andrew is not someone you should offend, Aiden.”
“Andrew, hmm?” He crosses his arms over his muscular chest, stretching the fabric of his shirt. “I know that man better than you think, baby. He’s not who you think he is. Don’t get involved with him.”
I shake my head. There’s no point in wasting time arguing. Yes, he helped me during the shoot but that doesn’t make us friends.
“Don’t call me that,” I shoot back. “This is so beyond me. Forget it.”
Aiden reaches for my arm, but I pull away before his hand can graze my sleeve. “Where are you going? We’re supposed to have coffee together.”
“I can’t today. I’m free tomorrow morning, so let’s meet then,” I say, turning my back to him.
I’m exhausted and arguing over something insignificant isn’t going to help. I don’t feel like seeing Jason tonight. Who knows what kind of argument we’ll get into this time. But knowing him, he won’t leave me alone even after I explicitly told him to get away from me.
Having to be cold to him and ignore his calls and messages is a hassle. No matter how many times he hurts me, I still want him to love me.
Truth is, I don’t want to be alone. I don’t want to be lonely. He’s the only one that has seen the worst parts of me and still chose to stay. I can’t discard him. I don’t have the strength to keep walking with my head up high if he’s not standing behind me, ready to catch me if I fall.
I want to be held in someone’s loving arms and be told that everything will be okay. But I know it’s a fickle wish because I’m doomed to live an empty life.
Do not forget Aoi.
13
Aoi
Jason is waiting for me when I step into my hotel room.
I don’t bother questioning how he got in because with him, everything is possible.
He always gets what he wants.
Jason stares through the window, his back turned to me. I don’t need to see his face to know that he’s pissed, his tone tells me enough. “You’ve been spending quite some time with strange men, Aoi.” He turns around to face me and reveals a cold smile. “Care to explain?”
A shudder runs down my spine as I hold his stare, remaining composed under his obvious attempt at intimidating me.
I throw my bag on a nearby chair, averting my gaze. “There’s nothing to explain and there’s nothing strange about them either. I’m a grown man for the record. I can do what I want. What’s your problem?”
Jason uncurls his crossed arms and walks up to me, his displeasure deepening with each step. “My problem? You want toknow what my problem is?” He scoffs as if I asked the most incredulous question ever uttered. “You ignore my texts and calls and refuse to come back home so you can whore around? Is that what you’re doing now? Is that what I mean to you?”
My head shoots up to meet his unwavering scrutiny. “This isn’t about you. I just acted stupidly. And it doesn’t matter anyway.”
