A Place Beyond The Horizon Ch. 14

[Aidan's marriage has been shattered by his wife's cheating. Unable to cope with the thing Rosa did, he boarded a plane and put as much distance between them as possible. From Australia, making new friends in Sydney, to meeting Kat and sharing her bed, he finds himself in Los Angeles as the personal trainer and lover to Mara Fey, Hollywood A-Lister and one of the most famous women on the planet. As he becomes more deeply entangled in Mara's life, Rosa becomes more distant, leaving Aidan more lonely than ever.

Mara takes him with her to Tokyo, where Aidan is embroiled in Andrew's plans and must finally face up to his past.

The background to Aidan's story can be found in Oxygen Games by oneagainst, continued here with permission.]

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LOOSE ENDS

At Mara's suggestion, Aidan has agreed to take Indi shopping in the Ginza district. Andrew is away with his business associates and Mara is busy with filming, pulling long days on set and coming home exhausted. Mara had offered a car to take them, but they take the subway instead, just two people in the crowd. Indi is in a tight t-shirt and she's wearing jeans, with minimal makeup. She looks like she dresses down when Andrew's not around.

"We get the day off," Aidan says to her, "What do you want to do first?"

They're standing outside a towering department store surrounded by people. It's mid-morning on a weekday, but the streets are still busy.

"I don't know," Indi replies, "What do you want to do?"

"Mara thought you might like to have a look at some of the boutiques."

"I guess."

They enter the department store, but Aidan feels like it's because he's suggested it, rather than from any desire on her part. He watches Indi as she moves through the clothes racks, the way her eyes shift from piece to piece, occasionally touching but never picking anything up. He's struggling to make conversation with her; the subway journey had been the same.

Aidan remembers how she looked on the coffee table, stretched out naked on the glass, waiting, the way she had closed her eyes as he drank sake from the cup. He doesn't know what to make of Andrew's peculiar offer: mi casa, su casa, that Indi wouldn't mind. Already, he has the impression that she doesn't care if he makes advances on her. It's not as if she has her defences up around him, it's more of a gap, a no-man's-land between them that he would struggle to cross.

"How long is Andrew away for?" Aidan asks, breaking the silence between them.

"He's back in a couple of days."

"Just the one night away?"

"Yes."

Silence again.

"Where's he gone?"

"Nara."

"Is that where his deal is?"

"No."

Indi picks up a dress and appraises it. Aidan is trying to work out what to say next.

"The deal's in Tokyo, but he's been invited to Nara as part of it."

It's the first time Indi has volunteered information.

"So, what's in Nara?"

Indi replaces the dress on the rack and moves on. Aidan follows behind.

"He's been invited to a traditional evening," Indi replies.

"Traditional?"

Indi nods. "They'll all get together in one of the entertainment houses for dinner and drinks. It's a chance for them to get to know him and vice versa. It's all about building the relationship."

"Entertainment houses? I never knew about that."

"They're wined and dined, attended by geisha. Andrew says it's an important part of the deal."

"What do you think about it?"

"About what?"

"Attended by geisha, you said."

Indi turns to him, her eyebrows raised. "What would I think about it? It's his business."

"Uh, sorry. I didn't mean to sound like I was criticising."

"Do you know what geisha do?"

Aidan shrugs, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. "No," he admits.

"It's not sex. It's about being the glue. Their job is to bring people together, smooth the friction. They're there to make sure everyone has a good time and enjoys themselves. They talk and entertain, they break the ice."

Her grey eyes are locked on his.

"In a world of men doing deals with each other, they're the ones who have to deal with the men."

Indi looks around the store and wrinkles her nose. They stand together in the middle of the floor while she looks around.

"Wanna see what else there is?" Aidan suggests, "Apparently you can find anything here."

"Okay."

Aidan leads her to the escalators and they ascend to the next floor. It's full of furniture and homewares.

"Anything here?" Aidan asks, as Indi wanders through the aisles.

"Not much point, really," Indi replies, "We're always on the move. It's hard to collect anything."

She's drifting towards the music section. Aidan has things he wants to know about Andrew and Mara and their history. He's not sure why he wants to know, but ever since the call with Rosa, the feeling has been growing: if Rosa wants to cut the cord and move on with Davey, where does that leave him? Mara is a possibility, but not if her life is tangled up with Andrew.

"How long have you known him?" Aidan asks, "Andrew."

"Years."

Again, Indi has fallen back to monosyllables. Aidan tries again.

"How did you meet?"

"You heard, remember?"

"Uh, he mentioned a property deal in New York. So that's how you met? Were you involved in the deal?"

Indi pauses, scrutinizing his face, frowning. "You could say that."

"So, are you in property too?"

"I came with the furniture, remember?"

It's not a question. Indi turns away and Aidan finds himself following behind again. They are heading towards a stand of violins and cellos, all gleaming brightly under the spotlights. They seem to have captured Indi's attention, and she reaches out to touch them before moving on. She stops again among the pianos, trailing her fingers along the dark, silky wood of a grand piano set on its own in the middle of the floor.

"Do you play?" Aidan asks.

"Used to. A long time ago. I had lessons when I was a girl."

Indi has come to a halt in front of the piano, standing by the stool.

"Why don't you try it?"

This seems to provoke a reaction in her. She looks up quickly at Aidan, then scans the showroom.

"There's no-one around," Aidan continues.

"You are," she replies, "You're around."

"I don't count."

Indi hesitates. "It's been years," she confesses in a small voice.

He can see the indecision in her face. Aidan gives her a smile and slowly, Indi lowers herself onto the stool. She kicks off her ballet flats, positioning her bare feet on the foot pedals, touching the keys lightly with outstretched fingers.

"It's going to be terrible."

"Maybe," Aidan says, "Maybe not."

Indi draws in a deep breath and begins to play. The tune is slow and melodious, set in a minor key and tinged with melancholy. Her fingers are sure, striking each note beautifully, fingers spreading to dance across the white keys. She misses a note and her face creases in irritation, but she continues, concentrating hard until he sees her begin to relax into it.

The music is beautiful, poignant, echoing through the deserted showroom. She builds up, the music swelling and rising, her fingers dancing over the keyboard. Aidan is captivated by her face, the way her expression shifts with each turn of the music, approaching the climax of the piece with her eyes closed now, biting her bottom lip as she feels her way through the music, playing it all by heart.

Finally, she's done, and the last notes fade away.

"That was beautiful," Aidan murmurs, "What was it?"

Indi opens her eyes and for a moment she doesn't speak. Her fingers are resting lightly on the keys, set in their finishing position.

"Beethoven," she replies, "It's his Moonlight Sonata. Just the first movement. I can't remember the rest."

"How did you learn to play like that?"

Indi withdraws her hands from the keyboard and slides her shoes back onto her feet.

"My mother sent me for lessons when I was a girl," Indi replied, "I always loved them."

She stands up, turning her face towards Aidan.

"Don't tell Andrew, okay?" she says.

"No, I won't. Not if you don't want me to."

"Thank you."

It's lunchtime, so Aidan finds them a café on one of the upper floors. They take a table next to the windows, looking out on the street. The moment with the piano has changed something between them, and Indi is opening up, little by little. He brings the food over to their table and sits down.

"So, how about you?" Indi asks.

It's the first time she's initiated conversation.

"In what way?" Aidan replies.

"How come you're with Mara in Tokyo? Andrew says you're married."

It sends a jolt through him, but Indi's expression is open, innocent. She isn't accusing him of anything. What's unsettling is that somehow Andrew knows, and that he's discussed it with her.

"Long story," he says.

"Huh."

Indi's waiting for him to continue. Aidan takes a bite of his pastry, but then relents.

"We split up."

"Why?"

Again, he has the impression that Indi isn't prying, trying to extract information. She's interested.

"Like I said, it's a long story."

Indi looks down at her salad and begins to eat, but he can sense she's waiting for him to continue.

"We were trying for a baby," Aidan begins, "But it wasn't working out. We'd been going for fertility treatments for a while, and nothing was happening. We had, uh, a stupid game that we were doing, a bunch of bets."

"Bets? Whose idea was that?"

"Mine. I thought we could, uh...."

Aidan stops. The memory of Rosa's face comes back to him, suggesting the last bet, telling him to make it a good one.

"I was trying to provide a distraction, to keep it going. But the last bet, she...."

Aidan can't bring himself to continue.

"She wanted babies," Indi says, filling the silence, "You too?"

"Yeah, more than anything. But, we just couldn't get there. Everything we tried, it wasn't enough. She just couldn't get an egg to stick."

Indi puts her fork down. "I'm sorry," she says.

"Me too. Fuck, she was sorry too. We were both so sorry."

"What happened?"

"She, uh, she went to another guy."

"Why?" Indi asked, "If the problem was on her side, that wouldn't make a difference."

Indi's expression is guileless, but her observation is cutting. She's right, Aidan thinks, it wouldn't have made a difference. Even now, with Davey instead of him, it would be the same. Rosa hadn't done it to get a baby, but then why?

"I'm sorry. That's upset you."

Indi is being sincere, but Aidan's not paying attention anymore. Rosa had done it, and she would have to have known it would have the effect that it did on their marriage. Did she do it for the hurt? Or did she do it to end their marriage, on purpose?

The thought never occurred to him, until now. If it was on purpose, then what purpose? The insight hits him all at once: was it to set him free?

Opposite a girl he barely knows, a world away from where he grew up, he's thinking about the woman he knows deep down that he still loves, and her motivations. He desperately wants to know what drove her to it but she's somewhere over the horizon, beyond his reach.

What if that was the reason why? Had Rosa seen what he couldn't, that they were flying on fumes, lost in the mountains, circling endlessly looking for a soft landing that they'd never find? Had she seized the controls in the end and flown them deliberately into the mountain, delivering a merciful coup de grace, a swift death instead of the slow agony of the endless cycles, the erosion of hope?

She'd finished them, a clean kill, by doing the one thing he wouldn't be able to forgive her for. What had Theo said? That Rosa had fallen to pieces, and Aidan was the only one who could fix it. If she didn't love him anymore, why was she still suffering? But, he thinks bitterly, if she did still love him, then why still push him away?

"Don't worry about it," Aidan rumbles, "It's not your problem. You can't help."

He takes a large mouthful of his pastry and chews in silence.

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[Next chapter: Mara takes Aidan to work. He takes her home afterwards and takes control. Is it possible to build a life with Mara Fey, international A-lister, after all?

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