Page 89 of Ravaged By Lust

I’m not complaining, though. This is all so very interesting.

“Winston West was a roadie for bands back then, long before he moved into marketing,” Mom continues. “He did everything for a band. Helped them carry their stuff. Worked on the lights. Even did security some nights. We moved in the same crowds and let’s just say, long story short, that something led to another and something blossomed between us for a few months. It got to the point where I started to delude myself and thought it had the potential to be something serious. The be-all and end-all. But then he went on tour. He asked me to wait for him when he returned. I waited for six months but nada. Nothing. He didn’t come back. Remember, these were the days before the internet. It was just like he vanished into thin air. Poof.”

“And he never came back?” Maddie asks.

“Nope.”

“Crazy,” I remark. “I really didn’t know any of this about you, Mom.”

“So, heart broken, I moved back to my hometown of Crystal River. I met your dad, Chloe. I had my kids and family. And then your dad passed away.”

“You never saw Winston again until you were last here?” Maddie asks.

“Never. Not until that restaurant here where we happened to bump into each other. That was one big hell of a shock, let me tell you.”

“Wow,” I say. “Some story. Did he apologize for disappearing on you?”

Mom sighs again. “No.”

“And if he did apologize, would you take him back?” I ask.

My mother pauses for a long time before she answers.

“He’ll never apologize. Men like him don’t like to realize their mistakes.”

40

BISHOP

A little bit drunk, and definitely a little bit horny, Chloe persistently knocks on my door. Loudly. She doesn’t stop until I answer it.

She scoffs dismissively and mockingly at my serious expression when I finally open up.

“Oh, hello, mister Hayes. Fancy meeting you around these parts.”

“Yeah, my house is a strange place to find me.”

“Such a joker,” she giggles. “I always liked that about you.”

“I know you’ve been out all day at Maddie’s,” I tell her. “Had a good time?”

“Oh, for sure, yes.”

“I can tell.”

Yeah, she’s definitely a little bit drunk. Maybe a decent amount. She’s swaying on her feet and giggling playfully to herself. She seems to be having lots of fun.

I let her inside. She’s unsteady as she enters, looking around.

“Your place certainly needs a woman’s touch, Bishop.”

“And you think you’re the woman to make that happen?”

She dramatically places a hand over her heart and launches into a very poor rendition of a posh English accent. “Me? Why, thank you, kind sir. I will gladly take you up on your offer, you gentleman.”

“Just get inside, woman.”

I take her by the waist and guide her into the kitchen. Chloe loves that I’m touching her like this. She bites her lips and stares at my muscular arm.