Into the Darkness

“Does that include blow jobs?”

“I’ve never been so technical. I guess so.”

“So what’s your magic number?” I asked.

“Let’s see. There was the guy I lost my virginity to, then I dated him for a year in high school. He cheated on me so I fucked his best friend. Crude, I know. Then a few guys before I met Rocky. I think six total.”

“And Rocky?”

“Man-whore Rocky? He can’t even remember, I think he stopped counting after 30.”

I laughed. “Well, he may have been like that before but damn, girl, you got your man whipped.”

“I do know how to keep him entertained,” she boasted.

The men returned with Rocky talking Bull’s head off about the sports crew he met and something about having lunch with them on Monday. I could see Will looked tired so they announced they were taking him home.

“You guys take the limo home. If Lex doesn’t mind I’d like to take him out.”

Lex looked at me, surprised but obviously happy. We said our goodbyes and I asked Lex if he wanted to take a walk through Rockefeller center. We took a cab there and started walking till Lex found a bench near where some performers were playing music. A small crowd gathered, families were happily strolling around and the tourists were snapping anything and everything in sight.

“I love it here,” I said. “When I first came to the city I would sit here for hours and just watch the people walk by. There was something calming about it.”

“I remember once, I think I was seven or something, Mom and Dad brought us here and we went ice skating. Adriana had the biggest fall, she needed stitches on her head—it was that bad. There was blood all over the ice. I can’t help but remember that every time I’m here.”

“How often do you come to New York?”

“At least once every three months. It depends on work of course. I’ve never actually been here for pleasure,” he said before laughing.

“I’d argue that,” I chuckled.

“Such a dirty mind, Miss Mason.”

“How are your mom and dad? Do they still live in Carmel?”

“They spend the summers there but most of the time they are on the road. Instead of settling down at the hospital, Dad travels all over the world, helping people who don’t have the means for medical treatment.”

“That could have been you, Lex. I don’t mean it harshly. I know you weren’t happy following his footsteps but what made you finally quit?”

He hesitated for a moment. Had I asked too many questions? But he wanted to talk and here I was attempting to get to know him again.

“It was after I found out about Samantha, the fact that she lied about the baby. I came back from looking for you. Everyone told me to leave you alone, let you live your life the way you deserved. I argued of course but in the end I listened, thinking they were right. I couldn’t help people, not in the frame of mind I was in. I confronted my grandfather first. Needless to say he was happy; finally he had someone to palm his company off to. I agreed to go back and study and initially I only took on a small part of his business. After I tripled our profits and the company grew, he was pleased and wanted to hand the rest over to me. I said no, I wanted to focus solely on the part that was mine. My father stopped talking to me then. It drove my mother to tears because we couldn’t be in the same room as each other. Eventually I was doing so well due to not having a life and working twenty-four seven. I grew accustomed to my wealth and it gave me a sense of power. I liked the control. My grandfather passed away a year later and it was then Dad and I buried the hatchet. The whole enterprise was left to me, and I was unstoppable. The money, the power, the control—I lived and breathed it. But there was no denying I was lonely.”

“But Lex, look at you. You could have any woman you want. Why didn’t you settle down and find someone?”

“That’s where you are wrong. I can’t have any woman I want. Otherwise we wouldn’t be sitting here as just friends.”

I remained silent. Pondering his last comment, trying to figure out a way to answer without pushing him away. “I just need time,” bowing my head as the words barely came out.

“I’m trying to understand, Charlotte. Believe me.”

“I know you are. And I thank you for giving me that.”

It was starting to get a little chilly; he put his arm around me to keep me warm but warned me in advance that a friend would do that and that he wasn’t making a move. I laughed at his pathetic excuse but allowed him to do it anyway. It felt nice.

“So, anything exciting this week?”

“Exciting, no. Busy, yes.” He hesitated with the next part, I wasn’t sure why. “I’m flying back to London on Monday. I’ll be there for two weeks then back here to officially open the new office.”