A Woman Scorned

Part 18

You were sitting up in bed, trying to concentrate on finishing up some work on your laptop. Unfortunately it was difficult to focus since Billy was doing his best to distract you. Lying perpendicular to your feet, he was balanced on his elbow while he applied nail polish on your toes. After applying a layer, he blew air on your toes. The gesture made you squirm which earned a disapproving glance from him.

"Stop moving so much," he grumbled.

"It tickles," you whined, trying to move your leg away from him but he gripped you by the ankle and held you firm.

"You're gonna ruin my masterpiece."

"Oh, my sincerest apologies, Picasso. I wouldn't want to let my work get in the way of your art."

"It's either this or I start focusing on other parts of your body. What do you want?"

You smiled at him, pantomiming zipping your mouth shut.

He went back to applying a second coat of the teal blue polish on your nails.

"What time are we supposed to meet up with your buddies?" you asked after a while.

"Around 7."

You watched him through hooded eyes, trying to gauge his reaction. "Excited about it?"

"Not really. Frank's new girl's gonna be there."

"Karen, right? You don't like her?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "She's not Maria."

"Didn't you say they've been divorced for almost a year?"

"Big fucking mistake in my opinion." He sat up, putting the closed bottle of nail polish aside.

"Maybe ending their relationship was the best thing for them."

Billy sneered, his face covered with disdain. "For as long as I've known him, it's always been him and Maria. He used to babble nonstop about being madly in love with her and drive me fucking nuts until I actually saw them together and realized they really were that crazy about each other. Then he comes back for good and all of a sudden things are shitty and it's just over?" He snapped his fingers to illustrate his point. "This is why I don't believe in that love fuckery."

"So I shouldn't hold out for any epic declarations of love from you?" you teased.

He cocked his eyebrow. "What we have is real. It's not based on bullshit."

You bit the inside of your cheek. With the way his jaw was clenched, you realized this was obviously a sore topic for him. Putting your laptop aside, you crawled towards him until you were balanced on your knees, directly in front of him. "People grow apart, Billy, It's no one's fault." You ran your fingers through his hair before cradling his face. "And if two people don't grow together, it's probably best they put the relationship behind them."

His dark eyes narrowed onto your face, gazing up at you suspiciously. "Laying the groundwork for our breakup?"

You rolled your eyes. "Stop being such a drama queen. I'm not talking about us."

He gripped your waist and pulled you close, grinning up at you. "Better not be."

"Look, if she makes Frank happy and she's good for him, then you should at least give her a chance. You don't have to be her best friend, just be nice. For your buddy's sake."

You sensed that he was slowly digesting your words, which you appreciated. His friendship with Frank was obviously important to him and you didn't want him to jeopardize it.