Oliver

I don't know why I feel the need to flirt with Ashton. It's just flirting. I've always been a flirt. I've had a ton of short term girlfriends since high school, but I do get bored easily. I shouldn't have drunk texted Ashton. It will be easy to ignore, after the fact, though. She told me to stop texting her. I stopped. I won't talk about it again. I have a girlfriend, and Sable is great. She's sweet and she likes me a lot. She's good at keeping me satisfied, too. I know that sex isn't the most important thing about a relationship, but I am a guy. Sable is good to me.

  But it isn't serious, with her.

  And it isn't going anywhere. I rarely date anyone longer than two months. I'll let her down easy. It'll be hard this time, because she's already suspicious of Ashton, with no good reason. At least I don't think there's any reason for her to be suspicious. Yes, I've been spending a lot of time with Ashton, but it's a job. Sable says she trusts me and I have promised her that Ashton has zero interest in me. It might even be less than zero interest. I haven't bothered to tell Sable about my history with Ashton. There's no point. I'm well aware that drunk texting her was a bad idea.

  I do feel this weird connection to Ashton. That's no surprise. She dated Tyson for a long time and we were close for almost two years. I saw her a couple times a week. I knew her favourite meal - buffalo chicken wings, from the pub near the college. I knew her favourite song -Taylor Swift's Love Story. My parents loved her. She was Tyson's first serious girlfriend. Before he met her, he was like me. She changed him.

   And then, suddenly, she was gone from his life. And from mine. Ty told me she broke up with him. I didn't ask why because I know he would have lied. Tyson went back to being destructive after the break up. I tried to find out what happened myself, but I couldn't get a hold of Ashton. After a few weeks, I begged Ty to tell me what happened between them. For some reason, it was important for me to know. Tyson said that he was heartbroken and depressed and that he had to get away for awhile. He never gave me an answer as to why Ashton disappeared from his life.

  Tyson left town for six months.

  It was August when Ashton broke up with him, and he left for Maine in September. He said he was staying with a friend and trying to figure his life out. I was worried about him, but I let him be. Our mom wanted him to come home, and begged him often, so after six months, he finally came back to Virginia Beach. He didn't seem like himself. Two weeks after he came back, in March. he was in a fatal motorcycle accident.

  That was only six months ago. I don't think I've fully accepted my only brother is really gone. My parents are still struggling with it, daily. Tyson was outgoing and made everyone laugh. I miss the hell out of him. And it still kills me that he took secrets to the grave.

  Now that Ashton has reappeared in my life, I feel like I have to find out what happened between her and my brother. I just don't know how to do that.

  It's Saturday afternoon - after 1P.M. - before I get out of of bed. I was out late partying with my buddies - Jonah and Trent - which resulted in the random texts to Ashton throughout the evening. I didn't text Sable, not even once.

  I'm making some bacon and toast to try to cure my hang over and then I'm planning to watch shit T.V. and be alone for the rest of the day. Tomorrow, I'll have to go out for some groceries and stop by to visit my parents. Today - I just want to sit in my house by myself.

  My phone rings as I'm plating my late lunch. My stomach growls and I really want to ignore the call - but I hear that it's Sable's ring tone. She insisted I set it so I will know it's her calling. Crossing the room to grab my phone from the counter, I confirm it's her and pick it up.

  "Hey."

  "Hey! I'll be there in a few minutes. I didn't hear from you last night. How was it?" Her voice is too loud in my ear.

  Wait, did she say she's on her way over? She took it upon herself to come all the way across town to my house without even asking if was home? Geez. I almost want to tell her I'm busy, or that I'm not home - but I'm not a complete asshole. Either way, she would see my car in the driveway.

  "It was... drinks with the guys at the bar. I only just got up and made some food," I tell her, hoping she'll get what I'm trying to say.

  "Okay. I picked up some donuts. Be there soon!" She ends the call before I can even say anything else.

  Great.

  Sable is tall and blond and thin and exactly my type. We met at the bar that I was at last night, actually, in July. I was out drinking away my pain and she came over and asked if she could buy me a drink. She's outgoing and straight forward. She says what she thinks and what she wants. I like that about her. But because we met when I was still in a rough place over my brother's death, I can't trust my feelings towards her.

  I generally take her out on the weekend for dinner or a date of some sort, and she comes to see me at least once during the week, at work. Since I've been working at Ashton's building in the spare office, Sable insisted I tell her the address so she can bring me lunch.

  She doesn't knock on my door when she arrives, she just comes right in. That irritates me for some reason. This is my house. I live alone in a house I bought with my own money. Tyson lived here for about a year, after college. He was living here when Ashton broke up with him and when he left for Maine. My house felt so empty after that.

  "Oli," Sable says sweetly as she walks into the living room, where I'm sitting.

  On the coffee table, my plate with two pieces of toast and a pile of bacon, and my full black coffee sit next to each other.

  I hate when Sable calls me Oli.

  "Hey," I say to her, looking over. "What's up?"

  She comes all the way over to me and puts her hand on my shoulder. After a moment, she drops the box of donuts she's holding onto the coffee table next to my plate.

  "Just came over to hang out. You've been so busy with the new job and then you went out last night..." She's disappointed, I can hear it in her voice.

  "The guys practically dragged me out of this house to go drinking with them last night," I say, which is true.

  Sable smiles at me and joins me on the couch, then leans in to kiss me. She tastes like vanilla and her hair smells like her peachy shampoo. Yes, she smells good. She's a gorgeous woman - though she's only twenty-two to my twenty-six, and she's really into me. I should be thankful for that. But today I'm just not into it. I'm assuming it's because I really wanted to be alone today.

  "I have Monday off. Maybe we could go to the beach or something?" she suggests, and then gives me her best puppy dog eyes.

  There are moments that it's so obvious she's as young as she is, and now is one of them. Sable works at her dad's accounting firm. She's a receptionist, and she goes to college part time. I don't even know what classes she's taking, I don't ask. I work full time Monday to Friday and even on the weekends, sometimes. The last few weeks have been different for me, since I've been working closely with advertising company. With Ashton. But usually I'm in the middle of a project - a reno, a demo or something. I'm the head contractor of our company, but since I was put on this job, my cousin Kenny has been doing the dirty work. I miss it.

  "I have to work Monday, all day," I tell Sable. I'll be at Ashton's office for the morning and then I'm going to check up on a house-"

  "You work too much," Sable whines, and then leans in close.

  Her hand is on my leg and it's sliding up as the seconds go by. I feel like moving away from her so I can finish my damn lunch and drink my coffee, but of course her touch turns me on. I mean, again, I'm a guy.

  "I know. But we're hanging out today, right?" I tell her, and force a smile.

  I like her, and I like her happy. I don't want her mad at me. I do have to figure out how I'm going to end this, but not yet. I'd be dumb to do it now. I have to wait until the work with Ashton is done and I'm moved on. Only three weeks left to go.

  I only have three weeks to figure out how to talk to Ashton about Tyson.

  "Well, yeah, we are together today," she repeats and her hand is moving again. "But only because I showed up."

  "I'm glad you're here," I tell her, knowing it will make her smile.

  "Yeah?" she asks, then giggles and slides into my lap.

  So much for my lunch. I barely ate anything before she showed up.

  "Of course," I say, then pull her face closer to mine and kiss her.

  She grinds her lower half against mine and opens her mouth so I can kiss her deeper. I grunt into her mouth and pull her against me even more. She's not any different the last few girls I've dated. She's good at distracting me and she makes me feel really good when she's rubbing her body against mine. But something is missing and I'm highly aware of that at this moment.

  That doesn't stop me from getting her out of her clothes and taking her right there on my couch. I let her change the movie to some chick flick afterwards and I sit there next to her, her head on my shoulder while she watches it. I finally finish my food an hour later, and my coffee after that.

  I'm such an asshole, and I know it.