A Summer to Remember(21)



I threw my napkin on the remainder of my gyro before I swallowed what was left of my wine. “I don’t care because what he did to me was far worse. Perhaps he needs to spend some time in prison reflecting upon all the wrongs he’s done against other people. However, I know Kevin, and as far as he’s concerned, what he has been doing is a victimless crime.”

“Ha! Tell that to all the people holding worthless stock he sold them after his friends dumped their shares. The man is a bottom feeder and a first class cretin. Personally, I think there is a special Hell reserved for *s like him but I’m not one to judge so…oh well.”

I stood and looked down at my watch. I had approximately five minutes to get back to the gallery to meet Dr. Winters. “It’s been great. Why don’t you stop by this evening with Jude and we can talk more about this then? I really need to get back to the gallery to meet that arrogant bastard or there will be hell to pay.”

Paul smiled before he kissed my cheek chastely. “We’ll see each other again real soon. Take care of yourself.”

“I will,” I called off before I began to walk towards my gallery and prayed I would be on time for this meeting with Dr. Winters.



Much to my amazement, not only was I on time but the cheap ass neurosurgeon ended up buying two very expensive paintings which would be very nice for my bank balance indeed and the gallery as a whole too.

I arrived home to find Talia on the sofa scribbling furiously in a notebook. Jude had arranged for her transfer but since she was still paying rent on an expensive apartment in West Los Angeles, we agreed she should take the spare guest room.

“Hey, how was your day at work?” she greeted with a smile on her face.

“Great. I actually did really well and Paul came by to see me and took me for lunch,” I responded I sat beside her. All in all, it was a very good day.”

Talia’s smile faltered a bit before she plastered it back on. “I wish I could say the same. Why didn’t your brother tell me when I was transferred here I would have to work with Scarlet Fever? I don’t mind writing rock anthems but changing every poetic word into something dirty just doesn’t feel right.”

“Example?”

“Well, I wrote this great hook for a love song. Slow tempo so the lyrics were perfect. ‘Tonight is our night…when tomorrow comes nothing will be right…so give me a hint or a clue…I want to know if I’m gonna be loving you.’ Beautiful, right? They made me change ‘loving’ to ‘f*cking’. I swear to God these hard rocking musicians have no freakin’ taste!” she exclaimed before she set her notebook aside and weaved her hands through her hair.

I curled up beside her and whispered, “Well at least you get to work with all types and Scarlet Fever is certainly no band to sneeze at. They have been around for a while and have four albums under their belt with you helping them polish the fifth which is due out in a couple weeks. Hell, I already pre-ordered the mp3 from iTunes. I’m sure they are honored to work with someone as talented as you.”

She shook her head in exasperation. “Listen, I had to Skype with Kaz and Jaden since they aren’t here in New York—the whole time we’re chatting, Jaden’s society girlfriend, Faith, shot daggers at me as if I were trying to ‘steal’ her man! Let’s not forget these guys weren’t interested in me like that but apparently my panties are supposed to get soaked or something because I am in the presence of these great, sexy rockers with too many tats, sculpted abs and killer bodies. I swear, women can be so dumb sometimes.”

I yawned out loud before I stretched out and let my head fall in Talia’s lap. There was nothing sexual about my actions what so ever and it was as natural as if we were sisters for her to massage my scalp as we talked.

“Most women fall for those type of bad boys. Give me a guy with an Ivy League degree, a respectful job and who can f*ck me sideways, and I am a happy woman. But not everyone thinks the way I do and how boring the world would be if they did.”

My best friend was silent for a moment and I knew why but I wasn’t sure whether I should broach the subject or not.

“Are you still having wet dreams about Seth Delvecchio? Believe me, if you said yes, I wouldn’t hold it against you.”

“I don’t want to talk about Seth any more than you want to discuss Kevin.” She sighed and began to finger comb my hair. “Besides, he is everything I detest: a tattooed rocker on the verge of super stardom with his stupid band, Winter’s Regret.”

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