“They might think it’s funny, but I don’t. Nobody is disrespectful to my girl. Nobody.” Choosing to temporarily ignore being labelled as his girl, I tried to calm him down by rubbing his hands in mine. After taking a few deep breaths, he stilled our hands and looked at me with an unnerving intensity.
“Thank you, Neve,” he started, placing his hands on the wall behind me, trapping me. “Thank you for being you.” He kissed my forehead. “Thank you for keeping me out of trouble.” He kissed my nose. “Thank you for being mine.” Mine? After a brief kiss, his mouth crashed into mine, taking me by surprise. His tongue snaked its way between my lips as he pressed me into the wall with the full weight of his body. When I felt his obvious arousal press into me, I knew I had to stop the situation getting any worse. I managed to twist out from under one of his arms.
“We need to talk,” I said, taking a couple of steps away from Garrett.
“What? You want to talk now?” he asked, disbelief colouring his heavy breathing.
“Yes. I need to… umm. I can’t do this, Garrett. I’m not ready for a relationship. It’s too soon. I’m still not over Jake.” So I was blaming this on Jake?
“What do you mean? Can’t you feel this? How can you say it’s too soon? You can’t decide when to fall in love.” Fuck.
“I know. But I’m not falling in love. I’m not feeling it. I’m sorry.” I know it was weak of me, apologising, but I didn’t have the heart to break his.
“Don’t lie. You are enjoying this as much as me. If you’re not ready, we can take it slower. It’s just that I can’t stop myself when I’m around you.” He had my hands in his and there was desperation in his eyes as well as his voice.
“I’m not, Garrett,” I admitted. “I really like you as a friend, but that’s as much as I want.”
“You can’t change your mind after leading me on like you have,” he shouted, his calm veneer disappearing with every word. “I’ve treated you well. I bought you that dress, took you to the god-damn Ritz, for fuck’s sake.” He held my hands so tightly I was starting to worry about how I would get away.
“I didn’t mean to lead you on. That was never my intention. Honestly. I think it’s best if I go home now.” Trying to pull my hands from his, I stepped back, but he was not willing to give up so easily. He tugged me to him and tried to kiss me again. “Garret, stop. Please.”
“You all right, love?” a deep voice asked. I looked up and saw a couple of middle-aged men a few feet away. Garrett pulled back enough to let me get my hands free and step away.
“Yes, thanks,” I said, determined to take advantage of my good Samaritans. “Goodnight, Garrett.” I walked away, in the same direction the couple were walking, knowing his upbringing meant he was unlikely to cause more of a scene. Thankful once more for my decision to wear flat shoes, I hurried along the path until I got to the nearest steps which would take me back up to the main road.
Hailing a passing cab, I didn’t allow myself to relax until we were halfway back to uni.
Turning onto my corridor, I heard voices coming from the kitchen; I was sure one of them was Kema’s. Pausing in the doorway, what I saw made me jealous. Ruby had her back to me, stirring something in a pan on the hob, whilst Kema played with her hair. It was a scene of loving intimacy and reminded me of the times Jake would play with my hair, winding it round and round his callused fingers. My heart threatened to burst from my chest as it filled with memories. With love. How could Garrett even come close to what Jake had meant to me? Still meant to me. The deep breath I took to stop myself crying caused Kema to turn round.
“Hi, Neve. You been out?” She continued to play with Ruby’s hair, as though she couldn’t stop herself from touching her.
“Yeah, just for a drink in town.” I didn’t want to tell Kema, of all people, that I had yet more boy troubles.
“How’s it going with the American?” Ruby asked, turning to pour what looked like soup into a couple of bowls.
“Umm, I wasn’t feeling it so it’s going no further.”
“Good. I had bad vibes about him. How’s life otherwise?” I followed as the two of them sat at the table.
“Okay, I suppose. I still don’t know that many people. And now that I don’t have Garrett—”
“Do you want us to get you some friends?” Kema interrupted in her usual no-nonsense tone.
“No, it’s just—”