Heteroflexibility: A Romantic Comedy by Mary Beth Daniels

Author:Mary Beth Daniels [Daniels, Mary Beth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, General, gay marriage, weddings, election, Prop 8
ISBN: 9781470187729
Google: GfewuAAACAAJ
Amazon: B007SNMGLS
Publisher: CreateSpace
Published: 2012-03-20T18:48:41+00:00

Chapter 19: The Ghost of Bitches Past

Bradford let me out in front of Dad’s house. Aud crawled out of the back to take my place.

The last few bugs to survive autumn circled the porch light as he led me to the door.

I wanted to make everything right somehow. “I’m really sorry this night turned out so rough. It was great of you to come all this way just to make me feel better.”

He ran his fingers through his hair, inadvertently spiking a section out of place. “The girls are nothing if not loyal. You’re a part of us now.”

I shook my head. “I don’t know how that happened.”

“It’s a good thing.”

The lamp lit him from the side, a gentle glow that accentuated the hard edge of his jaw, the perfectly shaped sideburns. “It is, it is.”

He touched two fingers to his lips as though he knew I couldn’t stop starting at them. Then he brushed their tips against my mouth. As close to a kiss as I’d probably get. “Good night, Zest. Get rest. We’ll see you in the morning.”

“Okay.”

His retreating figure was lean and elegant. I saw a flash of the girls’ faces in the light when he opened his door. They all waved.

Back inside, I tiptoed through the house to my old room. Dad had left a note on my bed. “I’ll be gone by the time you get up. Have a great time in Cali. Bradford seems like a good kid.”

I laid back on the bed and touched my lips. Every image in my head was Bradford. Smiling. Frowning. Looking at my wedding picture. Drying my hands with a towel. Just when I didn’t think life could get any more ridiculous, I might have started falling in love with a gay man in a way I’d never felt about my husband.

My phone buzzed on the bedside table. I hadn’t taken it with me all day.

I flipped it open. I had twelve text messages and two voice mails. Good grief.

Both the voice mails were Fern. I told the girls where you were. I got the idea something went wrong last night. Let me know how you are.

Just hearing her voice made my anger rise up. Why had she gone after Cade? She always thought he was nothing, ugly, pointless, beneath her. When the second message began, I’m getting a little worried…I cut it off and deleted it.

That left the text messages. All were from Cade.

What the hell? I flung myself back against the pillows to read them.

They started out friendly.

You doing okay?

Have friends with you?

Are you getting taken care of?

The first thing to hit me is that he’d spelled everything out. He always used proper text protocol—as few letters as possible. It bespoke of premeditation. And desperate measures. He didn’t want to write me, and yet he’d slowly, painfully, typed each word anyway. I didn’t truly believe he cared that much. But maybe Fern had ditched him. Maybe he was really upset.

I read through the others.

It’s weird to not know where you are.

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