Page 57 of Champagne Nights

“What happened when you saw her again? I would assume she wanted some explanation as to why you never called her after that night.”

“I told her I was busy, but she wasn’t buying it. She told me that she didn’t expect me to call.”

“And how did that make you feel when she said that?”

“A little shocked, to be honest. Anyway, we ended up going out that night, and while we were taking a walk in SoHo, she got a call that there was a fire in her apartment building, and they weren’t allowing any of the tenants to stay there that night.”

“What happened then?”

“She tried to call a couple of her friends, but they didn’t answer, so I invited her to stay at my place for the night.”

“Really?” she spoke as she arched her brow. “And how did that go?”

“Fine. Except I was lying with her and fell asleep and had another nightmare. I left the room and didn’t speak of it. The next day, I invited her to my parents’ house, and we had a good time. My sister told her about Sophia, which pissed me off.”

“Why did that piss you off?”

“Because she had no right. What happened in my past is nobody’s business. When we got back to my place, we had sex again. She asked me to stay with her and I couldn’t. So we got into an argument, she brought up Sophia, I said some things, and she left.”

“How did her leaving make you feel?”

“Angry. Very angry. I told her she was no different from any other woman I had slept with and that I was sorry if she got the wrong impression.”

“But she is different from the other women, and you know that. Your fear, Ethan, is what stirred up the nightmares again. You’re afraid because you could control your feelings and emotions for so long. Now Aubrey walked into your life, and you feel that control slipping away and don’t know how to handle it.”

I sat there with my fist to my chin, listening to what Dr. Perry said.

“Time’s up, Ethan.” She got up from her chair. “I want to see you again in a couple of days.”

“I have back-to-back meetings for the next week. Is there any way you can come to my house for a private session? I will pay you triple your normal fee.”

“I suppose I could.” She walked over to her desk and looked at her calendar. “How about Thursday at eight o’clock? My last appointment is at six.”

“That’s fine. I’ll make sure I’m home.”

“In the meantime, you need to do some self-reflection. Maybe give Aubrey a friendly call and see where she stands. I can tell you’re not at peace with what happened, and I think calling her is a step in the right direction.”

“We’ll see. I’m sure she hates me.”

“She may or may not. There’s only one way to find out.”

I left the building and hailed a cab back to the office.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Aubrey

After getting home from another day of school, I set my things down, changed my clothes, and sat at my computer to begin listening to the essays I had my students email me. After listening to about ten of them, I was getting hungry, so I took a break and walked to my favorite Thai restaurant a few blocks away.

“Hello, Miss Aubrey. How are you this evening?”

“I’m good, Kai.” I gently smiled.

He took hold of my arm. “Come on, I’ll take you to your table, and Gwen will be right over. Can I get you something to drink?”

“Just water will be fine. Thank you.”

“Hey, Aubrey. It’s good to see you. Are you ready to order?” Gwen asked in a cheerful voice.

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