Chapter 33:
Aftermath
Giving her hair a quick
brush, Claire watched in some amusement as Brian slipped his shirt back on.
"Brian, it’s inside out," she informed him.
Balancing on one leg as he
was pulling on his pants, he glanced at her, confused. "Huh?"
Claire laughed, pointing
with her brush. "Your shirt. You put it on inside out."
He gave her a charming
grin. "Oops." He corrected his mistake, yanking the shirt back on but
not before Claire got a better look at his bruises. She bit her her lower lip in distress, reminding herself to talk to AJ
about it.
Brian sat down on a chair,
lacing up his shoes. He watched as Claire straightened her skirt then glance
for her purse. Brian got up and picked up her purse, handing it to her.
He gave her a small kiss,
his eyes reflecting the warmth she felt in his kiss. "How much do I owe
you?" he said softly.
Claire shook her head.
"Nothing."
Brian raised his eyebrows
in surprise, not believing her. "Come on. Are you telling me this was a
pity fuck?"
Claire laughed and came
close, tracing her finger across his mouth. "My, my," she said,
sounding shocked. "Such a nasty word coming from a such a beautiful
mouth."
Brian kissed her finger,
giving her a wicked smile. "I can say more, if you want."
Claire laughed again, a
smirk spreading across her face. "I think you said plenty of them a short
time ago." She turned and snatched up her shoes, tucking one under her arm
as she slipped the other one on. Hopping on one foot, she attempted to place
her other shoe on, trying not to lose her balance. Brian caught her before she
fell and she giggled as she watched Brian lightly kiss the top of her foot
before sliding her shoe on.
"Ah, a Southern
gentleman. Is Kevin as chivalrous as you?"
As he stood up, Brian
winked at her and shrugged comically. "Don’t know. I’ve never had him kiss
my foot." Claire laughed and pushed him playfully. He caught her hand,
pulling her closer, his eyes more solemn.
"Seriously, Claire.
How much?"
"It’s already been
taken care of, Brian."
For a moment Brian
panicked, his heart racing. He tightened his grip on her hand. "From
Xavier?"
"Whose Xavier?"
Claire answered, troubled by the tension she felt in his voice and grip.
"It was AJ."
"AJ!" The
astonishment in his voice was obvious. Brian rubbed the brow of his forehead
with his hand and turned away from her, struggling to comprehend this. He paced
a moment before turning back towards her. Brian gave a small sound of
disbelief, then began to laugh. "You know, I am so going to kill
him," he vowed, shaking his head at Claire.
"I ran into AJ today,
shopping," explained Claire. "He figured you could use a little R
& R." She smiled as she touched his face, relieved that he wasn’t
angry.
"And this is AJ’s
idea of R & R?"
"Well," said
Claire, "it always worked for AJ!" She laughed when she saw Brian’s
face. "And from judging, it worked for you, right?"
Brian rolled his eyes
upward. "Yeah," he finally admitted. He looked at her. "Mind if
I ask you a personal question?"
She heard the hesitancy in
his voice and looked at him curiously. "Sure."
"Well, don’t take
this wrong, but I always thought you girls faked it."
Claire knew where this was
going and for the first time in a long time she found herself embarrassed.
"We do," she said softly.
"And?" he pressured
gently.
She cursed him silently
for being so perceptive, angry at herself for allowing her emotions to overrule
a business transaction. She sighed, afraid to admit the truth to herself,
knowing damn well he already knew the answer. She met his stare. "Yes, we
always fake it. But I didn’t with you. It was real." Her voice dropped
even lower. "I enjoyed it. And I haven’t enjoyed sex for a long
time." She gave Brian a shaky laugh. "I guess I should be thanking
you."
Brian gazed at her for a
moment then reached out to pull her into his embrace. He kissed her, holding
her until she stopped trembling. Claire rested her head onto his shoulder for a
moment, then pulled back, giving Brian a small smile. Neither said a word as he
opened the door for her, her hand enclosed in his. She squeezed it once and he
returned the squeeze quickly, feeling her hand slip from his. She never turned
back to look as she hurried down the hallway.
***
