Page 31 of Carnal Desire

“Maybe the money is just an excuse,” Grace continued. “Maybe the real problem is that her ex held all the cards and she’s worried that with you having more money, you could easily block her out and make her be homeless again if you get tired of her, just like her ex did.”

That made a lot of sense.

“Maybe that’s part of it,” I conceded. “But it’s not like we can even talk about it. I just have to accept that it wasn’t meant to be. She doesn’t want me.”

“It isn’t like you to give up,” Grace reminded me.

“I don’t want to be the creep that doesn’t let a woman have her own agency,” I said. “As much as it kills me, I just need to let Sadie go.”

“Maybe she just needs some time,” Grace said.

I shrugged. “Or maybe I’m just destined to be alone. I should probably look into getting some cats.”

Sadie

I’d been home for a couple of hours when I heard a knock on my door. Assuming it was my landlady, I opened without looking to see who it was. To my shock, Theo was standing there, perfectly dressed as usual. He gave me a broad smile.

“What are you doing here, Theo?” I asked warily.

He rolled his eyes and pushed his way into my apartment. “Yes, I’d love to come in, thanks.”

“Did Ariel send you?” I asked as I followed him into the main room.

“God no, she’d cut off my balls and hang them from her rear view mirror if she knew.”

“Ariel doesn’t have a car,” I reminded him. “She uses a car service.”

“She’d buy herself a car just to make it happen,” he said, shivering dramatically.

“What do you want then?” I asked.

He reached into his leather messenger bag and handed me an envelope.

“What is this?” I asked nervously. “Are you serving me a subpoena?”

“Oh for the love of God, of course I’m not serving you a subpoena,” he said in exasperation. “Why am I surrounded by crazy females? Just open the damned thing.”

There was a folded piece of paper as well as a cashier’s check for ten thousand dollars. My eyes met Theo’s as I looked up from the check in confusion.

“Read it,” he prompted.

To my shock, it was a short letter from my ex-girlfriend Jane, apologizing for stealing my money and paying me back ‘with interest’.

“How did this happen?” I asked.

I’d never heard Jane apologize or take responsibility for anything the entire time I’d known her.

“Ariel can be very persuasive,” Theo said. “She bought the building your ex lives in and the company where she works, then made it very clear that the bitch was soon going to be homeless and unemployed if she didn’t make the right decision.”

I stared at the letter and the check, my eyes filling with tears. “This really is a grand gesture,” I whispered.

“I just wanted to get this to you,” Theo said. “I picked it up today. Ariel doesn’t even know it came yet.”

“Thanks Theo,” I said, stepping forward to give him a quick hug. “I really appreciate it.”

He gave me a long look.

“I’m not the one you should be appreciating,” he said meaningfully.

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