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Stuck by a Drummer- The Adventure Continues
"KC!!" Paul set the colossal boquet on my bedside table. Its fragrance, combined with his cologne, nearly put me under. I braced myself against my elbows and shook my head vigorously to clear it. "I heard about your accident at the magazine this morning and came as quickly as I could."
"My accident happened four days ago, but that's okay." I gazed at the blood-red blooms, impressed against my better judgement. "They're beautiful, Paul, thanks."
"They must have cost a fortune," Kerri marveled.
"Fortunes are made to be spent," Paul said languidly. He was, as usual, a GQ vision with his Hugo Boss three-piecer and immaculately styled hair. He'd be almost perfect, I reflected, if it weren't for the arrogant air of entitlement and superiority that oozed out of every pore.
"I'll go give Mom and Dad a call now," Kerri told me. "They'll kill me- I called your friend Steve before I called them."
"I won't tell if you don't."
After the door closed behind her, Paul cleared his throat. "Steve- that was the unruly character who made me feel so unwelcome at your place, am I right?"
"He's not an unruly character, as you put it. Steve is a good friend of mine. I care a lot about him."
He shook his head. "KC, what happened to you? You used to have standards."
"I still have, only they've changed in my old age. I no longer let the sight of money blind me to things like my boyfriend cheating on me with every thong-wearing bimbo from CHEZ PAULINE."
"Your friend Steve looks like the sort that would cheat on you with the ones from CHEZ PAUL too."
"You are just too funny."
He brushed the seat of the bedside chair before settling down carefully. I had to smile at how uncomfortable he looked planting his rich behind on anything except stuffed leather or velvet. He pressed his palms together and gazed intently at me over his manicured fingertips.
"I admit," he said in slow, measured tones, "that I can be an....unobservant person from time to time. I was not always fair to you during our time together."
"You have your good points." I decided to cut him some slack. "But the point is, you clearly weren't ready for commitment when we were a couple. You also weren't ready for a girlfriend who wanted to WORK to earn her way in the world."
"No, I admit I grew up in a household where it was the man's duty to provide, lest he be less of a man. And I admit, it was hard to lose an engaging, worthy girlfriend like you over my rather RIGID views on what a relationship should be. But I'm going to come clean, KC. I never completely got over you. Your strength and spunk appealed to me almost as much as it scared me. Before and after we were together I thought I could get what I needed from the cocktail waitresses and country club belles. But I have to face up to the fact that I can't."
"Paul," I said in gentle tones, "I know where you're going with this and the answer is no. I wish you well, but I don't want to date you again."
"Please think about it for the next few days," he said- as if my last line had never been spoken. "We'll be seeing each other every day once you get back to work."
"What are you talking about? You're DISK DRIVE's newest cub reporter?"
"Not quite," he said regally as he stood. "My father's publishing company took over the magazine as of today. I will be the associate publisher there. I picked out my office furniture at the Bombay Import Company before coming here."
My jaw dropped. "Are you bullshitting me??"
"Not in the least, my dear."
He reached to touch my shoulder, but I drew back and his fingers carressed empty air. His lips tightened at the rebuff, but he managed to keep his voice as suave as ever.
"By the way, KC, don't expect to see your friend Steve or his band on US soil any time soon. I did some investigating first on him after he so rudely ejected me from your place, then on his promoter. It seems-" he began to smile like a cat with a mouthful of cream "-that his US promoter's entertainment management license was expired at the time Steve and his cohorts were here, making it technically illegal for them to have been working in this country when they were. And like the good patriot I am, I made a complaint to INS at once. Too many illegals are destroying the system as it is. And you know what the court system is like, KC. It could take YEARS" he pronounced the word with relish "for this to get settled so they can come back."
My heartbeat shot to at least a thousand beats a second. "HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?"
He walked to the door, paused, and turned to face me one last time. "Some things are worth pulling some strings for- even if those strings hang another party."
Then he was gone. More soon, folks!!
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