Jealousy (20 page)

“
Yes, I did,” Tyler said.  “You certainly have an eye for the cute ones.”  He motioned his head to the side indicating the need for privacy.  “Can we talk for a minute?”

Kenny watched Tyler lead Justin about 20 feet away, well out of earshot.  Kenny couldn
’t hear a word they were saying, but he didn’t take his eyes off of them.  His heart raced with jealousy as he watched Tyler continually touch Justin’s chest as they spoke.

Heather put her hand on Kenny
’s arm.  “Are you OK?”

“
No.”  He entwined his fingers in hers for security and shot her a series of questions.  “How long were they together?”

“
I’m not sure.  Probably about a year.”

“
Is Justin the one who broke it off?”

She hesitated. 
“Actually, no.  Tyler ended it.”

His stomach tightened while he dissected her answer.
“How long were they broken up before I met Justin?”

She hesitated again. 
“I don’t know.  Two weeks . . . maybe.”

He snapped his head in her direction. 
“Two weeks? That’s it?”

She
bit her bottom lip and nodded.

Great.  He was Justin
’s rebound guy.
 
He began to wonder if the reason Justin broke up with him when they first started dating was because he wanted to see Tyler again.  Kenny quickly dismissed the thought.  It didn’t matter.  That was behind them.  He didn’t believe in dwelling on the past.  That was months ago, and their relationship was strong.  He looked at Heather again.  She was obviously crazy about Tyler, and it made him possessive of her friendship.  He scowled at her.  “You two looked awfully close.”

“
We were.  I love Tyler,” she squeezed his hand, “but I love you more.  I mean it.  You’re perfect for Justin.  Tyler wasn’t.”

Kenny
felt only slightly better.  He continued to watch Tyler gaze at Justin with adoration.  It made his heart race and his jealousy accelerate.  “Look at him.  He’s obviously still in love with Justin, and Justin looks pretty happy to see him.”

“
Justin’s in love with you, Kenny.  He was never in love with Tyler.  That’s why they broke up.”

Peter finally returned from outside and took a seat at the table. 
He turned to see what Kenny and Heather were staring at.  As soon as Peter saw Tyler, he turned away with disgust.  “Not that fuckin’ homo again.”

Heather clucked her tongue loudly against the roof of her mouth and narrowed her eyes at P
eter.  He got up from his chair without saying anything, and walked back outside.

The slur would have offended Kenny, too, if he didn
’t instantly dislike Tyler so much, or if it was directed at anyone else.  He turned his attention back to Justin, still engaged in private conversation.  “What the hell are they still talking about?  If Justin thinks I’m gonna sit here and watch that queen hang all over him, he’s out of his fucking mind!”

Kenny took a step toward them, but Heather stopped him.

“No, please.  I don’t want you to start a cat fight.”

“
What would you do?  Sit here and let an ex-lover try to steal your man?”  He waved his arm in Tyler’s direction.  “
Look
at him!”

Tyler was inches away from Justin
’s body.  He had one arm draped over Justin’s shoulder while he fingered Justin’s chest with the other hand.  The two of them were engrossed in conversation and smiled at each other nonstop.

Kenny wasn
’t usually the jealous type, but there was an obvious attraction between Justin and Tyler – an allure, a rapport, an interest . . . and there was history.  It made him suspicious of Tyler’s intentions, and there was no way he was gonna let that bitch come between them.  He wasn’t about to let anyone take
his
Justin without a fight.  He started toward them again, but stopped when he saw them hug, indicating the end of their conversation, and head back toward the table.

Tyler waved his finger at Kenny. 
“You better take good care of my sweetheart.”

“
He’s my sweetheart now, bitch!”

Tyler threw his head back and la
ughed, and it infuriated Kenny.

Tyler kissed Heather on both cheeks. 
“Love you, Gorgeous.”

“
Love you, too,” she replied.

Kenny quickly reclaimed her hand a
nd pulled her back to his side.

Tyler hugged Justin again. 
“Think about what I said, Delicious. I hope you change your mind.”

Finally, Tyler left – hopefully for good.
Kenny never wanted him near Justin again.

“
So what are you supposed to think about,
Delicious?”
The last part of Kenny’s sentence
dripped with exaggerated sarcasm.

“
Why are you so mad?”  Justin shifted his gaze to Kenny’s hand, still firmly holding onto Heather’s.  “What are you two doing?  Ganging up on me?”

“
No,” Heather replied.  “You didn’t do anything wrong.”  She tried to step closer to Justin, but Kenny didn’t let go of her hand, and he pulled her back toward him.

“
Kenny . . .” she said.

He flung her hand away. 
“Fine!  Go take his side!  I don’t need you to stick up for me!  I can stick up for myself!”

“
Kenny’s just very upset,” she told Justin.  “That was hard for him to watch.  Tyler isn’t exactly subtle.”

Kenny was still waiting for an answer.
He wanted to know what Tyler had to say to Justin that was so private that no one else could hear.  “What was he asking you?” Kenny repeated.

“
He wants me to go to L.A. with him to do hair and makeup for a red-carpet event.  He’s a stylist, too.”

“
Oh, that’s great!  That’s just fuckin’ great!”

“
I told him I couldn’t do it, out of respect for you.  He said it was only business, but I told him it wouldn’t be right.”  Justin put his hands on Kenny’s shoulders.  “I’m with you now, Kenny.  I love you.  You never have to question my loyalty.”

Kenny
stared into Justin’s dark brown eyes.  They were filled with love and sincerity.  It made Kenny’s anger dissipate.  “I wasn’t questioning your loyalty.  I just didn’t like the way that bitch was drooling all over you, and that you didn’t do anything about it.”

Justin chuckled. 
“I love it when you’re jealous.”

Justin tried to put his arms around Kenny, but Kenny pushed Justin away. 
“Stop it.  I’m not kidding around.  If you ever let an ex-lover flaunt all over you like that again, I’ll wring that bitch’s fuckin’ neck – and yours too.”

“
OK.  I’m sorry.  I didn’t know you were gonna get so mad.”

Kenny stared at Justin for several seconds.  Kenny
’s eyes softened, and he looked at the floor.  He was embarrassed that he overreacted.  He tugged at Justin’s shirt and pulled him closer.

Justin hugged him and emitted a soft laugh. 
“You’re so cute when you’re mad.  I love you.”

Kenny
nuzzled his face in the crook of Justin’s neck.  Kenny’s cheeks flushed and he felt foolish, but he didn’t care.  He waited too long to find someone like Justin, and he wasn’t about to risk losing him.

Chapter Forty-One:

Peter was late again.  Very
late.  And he didn’t return any of Heather’s calls.  She wondered if he was cheating on her, or if maybe something happened to him.  She shook her head.  He was probably just out having drinks after work again.  It’s a new habit that he acquired in the last few weeks.  She hated it, because she didn’t like Peter when he was drunk.  She gave up trying to call him and waited for him at the front window with the lights off.  The second his car pulled into the driveway, she ran into the living room and sat in front of the TV.  She swore she wasn’t going to bombard him with questions, but as soon as he staggered through the front door, she jumped off of the couch.  “Why are you home so late?  Where were you?”

“
I went out for a few drinks after work.”  Peter’s speech was slurred from too much alcohol.

“
Why didn’t you answer your phone or call me?  I’ve been calling you all night.”

“
It’s too loud in the bar to hear the phone.” He swayed back and forth as he stared at her for a few seconds.  “What’s the matter?  I can’t go out?  You don’t have to know where I am every fuckin’ minute.”

“
It’s just common courtesy to call when you’re going to be this late, Peter.  It’s after midnight.”

He sneered his lip at her. 
“I’m a grown man.  I can come and go as I please.”

He was being argumentative.  She knew it was from the alcohol, but she wasn
’t about to let him bully her.  She had a temper too, and she lashed back at him.  “I’m your wife.  If you’re gonna be five hours late, you call me to let me know you’re OK.”

“
Leave me the fuck alone.”

Peter turned his back to her and started up the stairs.  She was tired of being dismissed.  She wanted to finish a fight, for once.
She wanted to talk things out like normal adults.  She grabbed him by the arm so he wouldn’t leave the room.

“
Get the fuck off of me!”  He overreacted to her touch and pushed her away.

“
Don’t fuckin’ push me!”

“
Then get the fuck away from me.”

His words were hurtful and disrespectful.  She stomped her foot and slapped her thigh. 
“Why are you acting like this?”

“
Just stay away from me.  I’m not in the mood for your bullshit.”

He made another attempt to go upstairs
and again she grabbed his arm.  He turned abruptly, and slapped her across the face with an open hand.  She stumbled, but remained on her feet. She was shocked.  Stunned.  He never hit her before.  But her shock quickly turned to anger, and she slapped him back.  He hit her again, this time with the back of his hand and much harder.  She fell to the floor and put her hand to her stinging cheek.  She never saw this side of Peter before.  He scared her.  The alcohol must have impaired his judgment, because instead of showing remorse, he simply looked down at her with contempt, and for a minute she thought he was going to kick her.  She scrambled for her handbag and her keys and bolted out the front door.

“
Go ahead,” Peter called after her, “run to your gay boyfriend.”

#

By the time she got to Justin’s apartment, she was in near hysterics.

“
What’s wrong?” Justin asked.  “What happened?”

She was too upset to move and too upset to look at him.  She stood in the doorway and sobbed into her hands.

Justin gently led her into the apartment and closed the door behind her.  He put his arms around her, and she cried into the center of his chest.

“
Is she OK?” Kenny asked.

“
No, she’s not. Heather, what happened?”

“
Me and Peter had a big fight.”  She spoke softly into his shirt.

Kenny offered her a tissue, and she stepped back to wipe her eyes.

It was the first time Justin saw the red welt on her slightly swollen cheek, and he gasped a giant gulp of air.  “Oh my God!  He hit you?  That fucking bastard!”

Kenny reached out and touched her shoulder. 
“Are you hurt, honey?  Did he hit you anywhere else?”

She shook her head.  Embarrassed, she covered her cheek with her hand and looked away.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” Justin asked.  He inspected her neck and arms for any hidden bruising.  He even lifted the back of her shirt.

“
I’m just really shaken up, but I’m OK.”  She wished they weren’t fussing over her and making a big deal out of it.

Justin looked into her eyes, and she could see a glint of a tear.  He slowly shook his head, and then he hugged her.
  “Please take care of her until I get back,” he told Kenny.

“
No!”  She grabbed his arm to prevent him from leaving.  “Please don’t do anything.  It was all my fault.  He was drunk, and he told me to leave him alone.  I kept nagging him for not calling.  You know what a pain I can be sometimes.”

“
How the hell is this your fault?” Justin asked.  “I don’t care what the fuck you did.  He has no right to put his hands on you.”

Kenny opened his mouth to e
ither warn Justin to be careful or stop him from leaving, but it didn’t matter because Justin was already out the door.

Chapter Forty-Two:

Justin pounded on
the front door with his fist.

“
I knew you’d fucking come here,” were the first words out of Peter’s mouth.  Not ‘Is Heather OK?’ or ‘I didn’t mean it’ or ‘I’m sorry’.

The sight of Peter repulsed Justin.  He was outraged and horrified at Peter
’s brutality.  Justin felt his blood pressure rise and his body tremble.  He pushed his way into the house.  “You think you’re a big man hitting a woman half your size, don’t you?”

“
Mind your fuckin’ business, Justin.  She’s my wife.  And this is my house.  You always seem to forget that.”

“
Heather
IS
my business! If you ever fucking . . .”

Peter swung at him, but missed.

“C’mon.”  He taunted Peter.  “You wanna hit someone, mother fucker.  Hit me.”

Peter threw another clumsy punch, but
Justin dodged out of its way.  Justin landed a blow that hit Peter squarely across his left cheekbone, and Peter fell to the floor.  Justin stared down at him.  “What the fuck is wrong with you? How could you do that to her?  How the fuck could you hurt Heather?”

Peter scrambled to get to his feet, but fell against the wall.  He sat on the floor and hugged his knees to his chest.  A trickle of blood dripped from a small gash under his eye.  He blotted it with the back of his hand and looked at
the blood.  The fight seemed to have sobered him a little. “I don’t know how it happened,” he said. “It was the alcohol.”

That was his lame excuse?
Justin narrowed his eyes.  “Fuck you, Peter!  FUCK YOU!”

#

Kenny rushed to the door as soon as he heard Justin’s key turn in the lock. “What happened?” he asked.

“
You know what happened,” Justin answered in a low voice.

Heather put her arms around Justin
’s waist and rested her head on his chest.  She was grateful for his chivalry, but she hated violence.  She closed her eyes and questioned her future.  Could she and Peter salvage their marriage?  Did she want to?  Could Justin and Peter get past this?  She had no answers for any of the questions that ran through her head.  As she clutched onto Justin and the uncertainty of her marriage clouded her mind, Kenny tried to look at Justin’s bruised knuckles.

“
Justin, honey, let me see your hand,” he said.

“
It’s fine,” Justin answered.

“
No, it’s not.”  Kenny picked up Justin’s hand and examined it.

“
I’m sorry,” Heather said.  “I didn’t come here because I wanted you to confront Peter.  I didn’t know where else to go.”

Justin lifted her chin with the knuckle of his index finger and looked directly in
to her eyes.  “If you need something,
anything,
you come to me first.  No one else.”

His loyalty made her want to cry. 
“But . . . your hand . . .”

Kenny resumed his examination.
“Flex your fingers for me, honey.”

“
It’s fine.”

“
You need an x-ray.”

“
Forget it.”  Justin pulled his hand away.

Heather was silent while her thoughts lingered over her ordeal with Peter. 
“Did he say anything?” she finally asked.

It took Justin a few seconds to answer. 
“He said it was the alcohol.”

She didn
’t know what she expected Peter to say, but she thought he would do more than make excuses for his behavior.

“
I don’t want you going back there,” Justin said.

“
I’m staying here tonight.”  She had no intention of going home while Peter was still drunk.

“
No.  I mean I don’t want you going back to him – period.  I want you to leave him.”

“
You can’t tell her what to do,” Kenny said, with his hand on his hip.  “It’s
her
marriage.”

“
Stay out of this, Kenny,” Justin replied.

“
No.  I’m not staying out of anything.  Don’t try to shut me out.  I’m involved in Heather’s life and I care about her, too.  I can offer her advice just as much . . .”

“
Please don’t fight,” she said.  “I don’t know what I’m gonna do yet.  He never acted like this before.  You know him, Justin.  Deep down, he’s a good guy.”

“
A good guy?  He fucking hit you!  What makes you think that’s OK?”

“
It’s not OK.”

“
What makes you think it’s not gonna happen again?  What makes you think it’s not gonna be worse next time?  He could really hurt you.”  Justin shook his head.  “I’m not gonna let you take that chance.”

“
I don’t know. I don’t know.”  She put her hands through her long hair, pulled it to the front and wrapped it around her fist.  Her mind was reeling with questions and doubt.  “Please, let me make this decision on my own.  I need time to think about it.  Right now I can’t think clearly.”

“
It’s late,” Kenny said.  He put his arm around her shoulder.  “Let’s get some sleep, and we can talk more about this in the morning.”

Chapter Forty-Three:

The ring of her cell phone woke Heather early the next morning.  For a brief second, she didn
’t remember why she was sleeping on Justin’s couch, but the sharp pain in her knee reminded her.  She must have injured it last night when Peter knocked her down.  She didn’t need to look at the caller i.d. on the phone.  She knew it was Peter.  She listened to it ring until it quieted down, and then picked it up and stared at it.  The phone rang again in her hand and she jumped.  It rang three more times in succession, but she still wouldn’t take the call.

Justin found her staring down at the phone
.

“
He keeps calling me,” she said.

“
Did you talk to him?”

“
No.  I don’t know what to say to him yet.”

Kenny came into the living room, tying his robe around his waist. 
“What’s going on? Why are you two up so early?”

“
Peter keeps calling her,” Justin replied.

Her cell phone signaled.  It was a text message from Peter:  I
’m so sorry.  It won’t happen again.  Please talk to me.

She dropped the phone in her lap and rubbed her forehead. 
“Now he’s texting me.”

“
Tell him you want a divorce,” Justin said.

Kenny shot him a disapproving look
.

“
Please, Kenny,” Justin said, “back me up on this.”

Heather
’s phone signaled another text message: I luv you.

And another:  I
’ll make it up to you.  I promise. Things will be different.  Better.

Her heart softened with each message, and her quivering lips revealed her emotions.

Justin snatched the phone from her hand and took it with him into the kitchen.

Kenny sat down next to her on the couch. 
“Justin would kill me if he heard me say this,” he whispered, “but whatever you do, make sure it’s your decision, honey.  Don’t let him pressure you into leaving Peter, if that’s not what you want.  I know Justin loves you and he’s trying to protect you, but this is your decision, and he’ll stand behind you no matter what you decide.”  Kenny put his arm around her. “And you know I will, too.”