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When he took another line of the white stuff she knew that was her signal to run.She remembered how she jumped from the table and fled out the front door. But since it had been Allyn's car they'd come in she was left without any means of real escape. Fortunately, Allyn did come back outside, and after some long and serious pleading agreed to take her home.
He apologized profusely the next day over the phone, but she'd come to understand that even Allyn had a dark side, a side she had no interest in. They agreed to stay friends, and she agreed to think about going out with him some time in the future, but for the time being they'd cool their heels.
It had been that event that brought Martin back to her consciousness. In all the time she'd known him, even with the horrible bet, she'd never really seen a darker side. In fact, if he had an unpleasant side, it was his almost slavish loyalty, his dog like devotion, his unending professions of love. She remembered subliminally her belief that no one could love someone that much. That he had to be either lying or had some ulterior motive. She wondered had she misjudged him after all. Had she been only looking for a darker side, when with him it really was love?
The tragedy of it was that maybe she'd found out something too late. Turner was a phony and a beast, but Allyn in his own way wasn't much better. Everybody had learned he'd been fiddling with another one of the young teachers before he started dating her. Cheryl had just pretended it hadn't been true so she keep on feeling the way she wanted. Self deception, she'd been good at that once before.
Maybe for her love wasn't ever going to be all bells and whistles. Maybe love was something that didn't strike out at one like a bolt of lightening. Maybe love, real love, was something a lot softer and a lot quieter. She knew one thing. That after Allyn she really needed someone to talk to, someone she could rely on, and yes someone she could hold and be held by. She knew who she needed. She brushed the tears out of her eyes. She knew that was too late.
After her misguided cocaine date with Allyn she decided to go on the wagon. No more dates, no more men for six months. She had girlfriends. She'd stick with them. In fact they'd all agreed to go shopping downtown and stop in at the Galleria for lunch. She'd start her life anew. Fresh start, a clean break, no more men, and no more stupidity.
Martin had a tougher row to hoe, but the economy had started an upturn, and with it his business. It had been close sledding, but his colleagues had held their ends up well. Once he got back in gear his end of the business started to show results. There were no women in his life, for him that was over. Certainly there were women available, plenty of women, nice ones from good families, he just wasn't interested. By late October he had started to breathe a little easier, the business was back and the heartache didn't hurt so much as long as he kept busy.
It was near the end of October when he got a call from an associate. They were all meeting at the Galleria. A new business opportunity was opening up, and they wanted Martin in on it. What the hell? He agreed to go.
- COMMENTS
Anonymousover 13 years agoTurner beat her till she bled and tried to reduce her to a life of blackmailed sex slavery, but simply because Allyn offered her drugs and was a little pushy, he "wasn't much better in his own way?" If this is supposed to be the increasingly mature, empowered Cheryl, I'm afraid to this reader she still seems like a bit of a naive twit.
It's a shame this story has ended out this way. The intro was weak because it was highly repetitive, but it got much stronger as the plot progressed, due to the unusually believable behaviour from the central trio of characters. Unfortunately, it took an unrealistic turn when Martin failed to do something bolder to save the woman he loved when he realised the depth of his feelings.
Since then, it's got worse. The prose is rushed compared to the moderate tempo in the middle chapters and Martin and Cheryl have become characters that seem too stupid and pathetic to sympathise with completely.
MissElf1over 13 years agoHow depressing. Cheryl messed up and pushed away someone who really cared about her. Poor Martin. I hope he recovers.
GrumpyGambyover 13 years agoI'm glad Cheryl made some more blunders before the end of this chapter.
But you left some holes about Turner. Did they press charges for assault? Did she remember to get her stuff from him before the ambulance left? I was expecting Turner to try to press charges not to mention something more about the pictures because there's no way he doesn't have a copy on his hard drive.
It might be too late in the time line but I hope your next chapter addresses the unfinished Turner business.
