Eleven
Catalina
I couldn’t believe I broke down in tears in a public place.
Who was I?
I didn’t recognize myself.
Why did I let that man get under my skin like that? I should have just ignored him and kept up my defenses. Or I should have calmly walked out. But I let him conquer me, let him get a hold of my emotions.
And we hadn’t even been seeing each other for a week.
I washed all the makeup off my face, had a glass of wine, and then sat on the couch to watch TV. I was too worked up to go to sleep, and I turned off my phone so I wouldn’t have to worry about messages from Heath popping up.
Why did I think sleeping with him would be a good idea?
What was wrong with me?
Heavy footsteps approached my door, so I quickly grabbed the remote and hit the mute button so he wouldn’t know if I were home.
Then the lock started to turn as if he had a key.
What the hell?
He unlocked each lock then opened the door as if he fucking lived there.
“What the hell are you doing?” I threw the remote down onto the coffee table where it clanked loudly before rolling onto the floor. I was in a baggy shirt with my hair in a loose bun, not expecting company, not wanting company.
He shut the door behind him and locked it, so nonchalant.
“Are you gonna answer me?”
He walked to the couch, his gaze subdued like our last conversation was fresh in his mind. “I gave you a few hours to calm down. But now, I want to talk.”
“Cool off?” I scooted back into the couch, sitting up higher because I’d been slouching. “Women like me don’t cool off. We burn hotter and hotter until we fucking explode.”
“Then it’s a good thing I came over here.” He sat on the other couch, which was perpendicular to me. His arms rested on his knees as his hands came together, his sleeves and tattoos visible now that he’d ditched the sport coat.
“You can’t just walk into my apartment like that. How would you feel if I did that—”
“Wouldn’t mind at all.” He pulled his key ring out of his pocket, pulled one gold key loose, and then tossed it on my coffee table. He put the rest of the keys back in his pocket.
“Well, I do mind. Give me your key—my key.”
He didn’t take his key ring out again and stared ahead, not looking at me.
I grabbed the pillow beside me and threw it at his face.
He let it bounce off his cheek and fall to the floor. “You can do better than that.”
I snatched the wine bottle off the table and prepared to break it over his head.
“Okay, that’s too good.” He quickly disarmed me and snatched the bottle out of my hand as he held me back. Then he brought it to his lips before he took a drink and sat down again, placing the bottle on the other side of the table where I couldn’t reach it.
I fell into the couch.
“Can you let me talk now?”
I rested my neck against the back of the couch and sighed, knowing he wouldn’t disappear until he got what he wanted.
“Baby.”
I kept my eyes on the ceiling and flipped him the bird.
He grabbed my wrist and tugged me forward, forcing me to rise and look at him. “Look at me when I talk to you.”
I cocked an eyebrow. “Don’t boss me around.”
He held my gaze for a long time before he moved to kneel on the rug, placing himself between my knees and tugging me forward so we were close together. His hands gripped my hips and he kept us close, so his eyes could pierce into mine. “I’m sorry about what I said.” He spoke with sincerity, his pretty eyes locked on to mine so I could see how genuine he was, not just hear it. “I know I got carried away.”
“And why did you get carried away?”
That took him a long time to answer, his eyes shifting back and forth as he looked into mine, as if he didn’t even know the answer so he had to search for it. “I want more for you. You deserve more. And hearing you say things like that…I don’t like it.”
Now that he was close to me, his cologne in my nose, his large hands gripping into my hips, my anger was snuffed out like a blown-out birthday candle. “Why do you care, Heath?” We didn’t know each other that well, hadn’t really talked because our relationship was mostly physical. There was a connection here, but it was built on lust.
He was quiet again, like he had to think his answer through. “For the same reason I got you out of that cage. For the same reason it hurt too much to look at you. For the same reason I chased you and chased you.”