cowboy like me [ls]

Ch1: Eyes full of stars

Another evening another soiree where Louis was dutifully playing the part of being the perfect arm candy to any rich folk who shall allow him to entertain them.

His current admirer, Mr. Ronald Turner- a divorcee in his early 50s was a rather grudging one. In lieu of his infidelity, his wife had left him- only to be later revealed that she had been cheating on him as well. When she turned herself into somewhat of a local celebrity in less than a year, he couldn't stomach the insult to injury. In every gathering they both were sure to run into, he'd parade around young women in skimpy clothes by his side to make his ex-wife jealous. She, in turn, did the same to him, showing off her male companions like they were trophies. She'd have their neck littered with her lipstick marks, running to their torso peeking from the unbuttoned shirts.

Five years of conning people, and this ex-couple was easily the one that had intrigued him long before he had even heard about their wealth. He even got the chance to weave his way into their petty competition. The opportunity fell in his lap when he had even started plotting.

He had just downed the fifth glass of the cheapest alcohol he could find at the fancy bar he visited to start with his skillset when a bartender tapped him on the shoulder. He stood with a cocktail in his hand and coughed politely, "The lady over there has sent 'Bliss on the Beach' for you." He turned his head to be faced with a brunette- a little older than him, seductively moving her fingers across her fur coat.

Isn't that a softer name for 'Sex on the Beach'?

He grinned at her and tilted his head, analyzing her and he slowly wrapped his hands around the glass.

Before he had the chance to inch closer to her, he was pulled aside by a strong hand enveloping his arm. That was when he first met Mr. Turner.

That very night, Mr. Turner had surely scored a three-pointer in their game by stealing away her possible 'conquest.'

He had told Louis that he wasn't into him and profusely apologized for cockblocking him. Louis chuckled and let him go on and about everything the lunching ladies had already told him about. At the end of the night, he agreed to accompany the man to a party the following week.

Little did the man know that he was about to be duped out of a hefty amount of money.

In his history of conning people, this was one of the rare cases when he didn't need to do much research, his target had told him everything. A little too much, he knew about all the lockers and pins in the old man's mansion from just two weeks of sitting beside him on the long nights where he rambled on about how much he hated still wanting his ex-wife.

Here, he didn't even need to wonder if the fellow whose fingers were secured on his shoulder, sported a wedding ring when they weren't with him. Stating the obvious, he wasn't under any delusion that what he did for a living was the least bit ethical. It just that knowing that he wasn't the 'whore' who people cheated with on their spouses, helped him sleep better at night, He knew that people who chose to cheat made a very conscious decision but he shuddered with guilt each time a client of his casually talked about their spouses and children while laying next to him in bed. It made him feel stained beyond the capacity of the ocean's water to clean off.

Regardless of whether infidelity was involved or not, some part of him was bound to feel guilty about deceiving people.

In some cases more than others....

"And this is Marcus. Though I think you know him," Mr. Turner smirked as he introduced Louis (with the fake name he gave to him) to his ex-wife. Martha clenched her teeth before grasping Louis' hand in a white-knuckling handshake, her fingernails lightly pressed into his palm as she greeted him. "You're here alone." The man pointed out unevenly like he wanted to convey how much he adored the idea of her being alone while he pranced around with Louis on his arm.

"No!" Martha squealed. Coughing she continued, "I'm here with Alex. He has gone to the restroom. Would be back in a minute." Cue, a man tapped on her shoulder with his lips pressed into a thin line. His plain black shirt was unbuttoned till the third button to reveal his chest littered with tattoos and rolled over the sleeves. He placed his hand on her back and Martha took this moment to turn around and brush her lips against his cheeks. He smiled at her and turned his head towards the men standing before her.

His expressions soured when he looked at Louis. He switched them out soon, politely greeting Mr. Turner who openly scoffed at him. With a clenched jaw, he met Louis' eyes and Louis had almost forgotten how he missed the emeralds that now pierced into his soul with a fixing stare. "I don't think I got your name," His gaze flickered to Louis' lips, causing him to be distracted.

"That's 'cause I never gave you one. I'm Marcus." He tilted his head and looked Louis up and down. Adorned in his fanciest layers, Louis had never felt so naked in front of anyone before. He watched Harry chuckle under his breath.

"Ah Marcus," he said the name so slowly like he was tasting each letter, a lie he looked ready to spit out on Louis' clothes. "Doesn't really suit you. Thought you'd have a fancy name. Like Louis....or Aaron or Felix or Ivan " Harry placed a hand on Louis' shoulder and he tried not to shudder under his touch, "But whatever. A change in name, voice, or looks doesn't really change the malice within, does it?"

Louis dumbly stood there as Harry let himself be kissed by Martha. He willed himself away from pulling Harry's body away and into himself. Back when he first discovered that they both fit like pieces, back when he still deserved him; Harry would let him be the one who kisses and claims Harry as his own.

But now, the amorous look Harry had in his eyes for Louis only, was long gone. The look he was throwing at him made Louis feel small.

It's not like he deserves to be adored like he painted the moon and the stars on the canvas of the sky, no, definitely not after what he did to Harry...