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Part II Chapter 53

Soon enough Latecia was tired and fell asleep on the floor with the dogs. AJ her carried to her house in the back and Edith said goodnight and thank you to Win and AJ for watching Latecia. Denise said good night and excused herself to bed.
“Soooooo, what do you want to do?” AJ asked with a grin on his face. It was later in the evening now. They were sitting in the cavernous living room. Win on the couch, AJ was still on the floor, the dogs crowding around him.
“Honestly, I’d like to go to bed. I am exhausted.” Win replied standing up. AJ got up too. He still hadn’t taken the dogs out.
“I’ll help you upstairs, then I’m going to take the dogs out for a run around the block. Then, maybe, we can try again?” he asked.
“Maybe,” Win replied smiling.
“Maybe I’ll skip the walk with the dogs and just take you upstairs.” AJ moving closer to her.
“Oh, you naughty boy you!” Win said playfully smacking him.
“Come here.” He said grabbing a hold of a belt loop on her hip and pulling her close. He took her in his arms, kissing her deeply. Without breaking the kiss he swept her legs up in his arm and started up the stairs.
He broke away long enough to get up the stairs and then push the door closed to their room with his foot. He put Win down on the bed and crawled next to her as her fingers fumbled on the zipper of his shirt. It finally opened and he threw it off as he crawled back on the bed, pulling Win into his lap. She straddled his hips, feeling his excitement, drawing her even closer to him as she ran her hands over his chest, feeling the hardness of his muscles.
His hands were touching every piece of her exposed flesh that he could find. He lay his head back against the headboard as Win kissed and nibbled down his neck. The wait was driving him crazy, but he didn’t want this feeling to end.
Sliding his hands up her sides he pulled her shirt over her head. He arched his pelvis as Win hit a particular sensitive spot on his neck and she gasped as he growled. Her nails pressed into lower back and they both slunk lower on the bed, sliding under the comforter. Win pulled at the button on his pants and together they removed first his jeans then hers, their passion taking over the night.

1:00 AM the clock glared into Win’s eyes when she opened them later that night. The bed was empty when she sat up. Rubbing her eyes to clear them up, she saw a familiar form silouetted against the blue sky, leaning over the railing, a trail of smoke extending from the lips.
Win got up and went to the closet, getting out a sweatshirt and slipping it on. She padded to the door and opened it, walking out on the patio.
“Hey baby, what are you doing up?” AJ asked a little worried.
“I couldn’t sleep.” She replied stopping within a foot of him, watching him smoking his cigarette. He looked at her with his head cocked to one side, a slight smile on his face.
“What’s the matter?” he asked.
“AJ, this is going to sound stupid, but I want to know. It’s been bothering me for a while.” Win said with her arms crossed. AJ held his head up.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Now it’s okay if its true, and if it is, I’ll stand back no problems and just let you two be together.” Win said quickly.
“What are talking about Win?”
“You and Edith. Were you in love with her, are you in love with her now?” Win asked. AJ relaxed and leaned back against the railing again. He laughed slightly.
“No Win, I was never in love with her, and I’m not in love with her.” AJ replied.
“It’s not funny AJ. You’re down there, playing like daddy as if you’ve been married to her or something.” Win said, surprising even herself. She’d never been jealous like this before, and she didn’t like the taste it left in her mouth.
“Win, I am not in love with her, in fact, she’s inviting her fiance over tomorrow for dinner.” AJ replied.
“That does not account for anything.” Win replied, she didn’t believe the words coming out of her mouth.
“Yes it does, considering he’s a member of my family, and I would not do that to him. Secondly, you should know me enough by now. I would not do that to you. And since when have you been so jealous? I mean, I have girls throwing themselves at me, stuffing phone numbers in my pockets, and you never give it a second thought.” AJ replied a little annoyed.
“Yeah, because you weren’t throwing yourself back.”
“Edith and I are just friends. Yeah, so we’re close, that’s because we’re friends. Nothing has happened between us. We could never be more than friends. Trust me Win, we’re around each other longer than a few weeks, we start fighting like cats and dogs.”
“It’s just kind of funny how you avoid telling me things like this. I’ve been with you almost six months, and not once did you tell me about Edith, or Latecia, or your house, your dogs. Why do you not tell me anything about your life, you sit back and make me guess! You think that by talking about me all the time, and just asking me about my life that you’ll just glaze over the things you are uncomfortable with!”
“I am not avoiding telling you anything, it just never came up!” AJ said indignantly.
“What about rehab? What about your grandmother? What about mistakes you’ve made, the bad things that have happened? You have not told me anything! I know more about Kevin, and Nick or Howie, Daemon, or Gina, than I know about you!” Win didn’t bother keeping her voice down.
“Because I don’t want to talk about those things! I mean do you just enjoy talking about the shit that happened to you! Do you like telling all those horror stories you had to go through! No, and I don’t either!” AJ shouted back.
“Considering the fact, that you have a lot more good than bad, you’ve never told me the good part! I have had a hard life, yes, and no, it’s not easy talking about, but it gets easier, and it’s better to talk about it. And when you talk about things you hurt about, you tell that person you trust them. I trust you AJ, no it was not easy talking about the things I’ve told you, but I trust you!”
“It doesn’t seem like it to me! I told you Edith and I are nothing but friends and you don’t believe me! So why should I trust you!”
“You don’t trust me? After all the shit we’ve been through, and you can’t trust me, to tell me why you can’t talk about your grandmother, or even that you have three dogs? I don’t know what I did wrong, but if you can’t trust me, fine. You don’t have to tell me anything anymore.” Win stormed back into the room and grabbed the rest of her clothes. She threw them on, grabbed her back pack and Jack’s cage and walked out of the room.
“Dammit!” AJ yelled hitting the railing. This hurt and he cursed again, turning around and rubbing his hand. He took a slow shaking drag on his cigarette and blew the smoke out. He shook his head, looking out over the yard. A light turned on in Edith’s kitchen. He heard the door open and saw her step out in her robe.
She looked around for a moment and then looked up.
“Seinor? Todo esta bien?”
“Huh, oh yeah, everything is fine Edith, go back to sleep.” AJ replied waving her away.
“Are you okay?” Edith asked.
“No, but don’t worry about it.” AJ said, again waving at her to go back in her house. But she didn’t. She walked across the yard and dissappeared under the balcony. He heard the kitchen door opening and closing behind her. A few minutes later Edith emerged on the patio beside him.
“Que pasa?” she asked.
“Nada.” AJ replied.
“AJ, you can talk to me, esta bien. I saw Winifred in kitchen, on el telephono. What happened?” Edith said putting a hand on his back.
“We had a fight. I told her I didn’t trust her, she ran out of here.” AJ said as Edith rubbed his back.
“What you do to your hand?” she asked picking up his slowly bruising fingers.
“I punched the railing.” AJ replied.
“Oh, you poor baby.” Edith said and kissed the fingers. He wished it were Win up here with him instead. He loved Edith, as a friend, but he loved Win so much more than that, why couldn’t she see that?
“I’ll go get you some ice.” Edith said patting his back.
“Thanks.” AJ replied. Edith left the room and quickly returned to the kitchen. Win was just getting off the phone. She picked up her bag and rat cage and clamored out of the kitchen when she saw Edith.
“Where are you going?” Edith asked.
“No where.” Edith went towards her and Win just turned and went to the door. Edith watched her walk out. Win waited on the stoop for a minute before a cab pulled up and she climbed in and sped away into the dark.
Edith went back to the kitchen, got the ice and returned to AJ’s room. He stood still as she held the ice in place, instantly soothing his sore fingers.
“Do you like her?” Edith asked.
“Very much Edith, I love her.” AJ replied. He motioned to the table and they sat down, Edith scooting her chair closer to his, to hold the ice on his hand.
“Then how come you don’t trust her?” Edith asked gently.
“I don’t know. I don’t trust many people anymore.” AJ replied. His cigarette went out and he threw it in the ash tray. He pulled another one out of the pack and lit it.
“What does she want from you that you can’t tell her about?” Edith asked, taking off the ice pack and looking at his fingers. It was a bright night with a full moon and abundunt stars. It was as if they were sitting in the sunlight.
“She wants me to tell her anything. I honestly have not told her that much about me or my life. The first time she ever heard about you, or Latecia, was when she met you.” AJ replied, slightly wincing as she reapplied the ice to his hand.
“Oh AJ, she’s your girlfriend, you have to tell her things! You can’t just say nada! She trusts you, right?” Edith asked.
“Yes she does, well she did, till tonight.” AJ replied shaking his head.
“Why, what happened?”
“She thinks that I’m in love with you.” AJ replied looking down at Edith’s face.
“In love with me? AJ, you’re kidding right?” Edith asked.
“No. She thinks that we’re too close.” AJ replied.
“AJ, isn’t this what happened with your last novia?” Edith asked.
“Partly. Damn, how did I let this happen?” AJ asked sitting back.
“It happens, boys cannot have girls as friends, and girlfriends get jealous.”
“I should go talk to her.” AJ replied thoughtfully.
“You can’t, she’s not here.”
“What?” AJ asked pulling his hand back abruptly.
“She left, in a cab.” Edith replied.
“Where did she go?”
“She didn’t say.” Edith replied.
“Aw man, what the hell am I going to do?” Edith put a hand on his leg and patted it gently. He put his head in his hands and rested his elbows on his knees. Edith stroked his hair.
“It will be all right.” She cooed.
“I really messed this up.” He said shaking his head.
“If she really loves you, she’ll understand.” Edith replied.
“No one understands me like you, Edith.” AJ said sitting up, her hand still resting on his shoulder.
“Why is that?” she asked.
“It’s just so easy to talk to you, you know so much about me. I don’t have to say anything, cause you already know.”
“Why can’t you do that with Win? She loves you, and you love her. I can see that, why can’t you.” Edith asking holding his face.
He stared at her, looking into her eyes, wondering what was beyond them, but without a word she replied to his unspoken question and her lips pressed against his. He closed his eyes, reaching out to her face, touching it, kissing it. He breathed deeply, pulling in her scent, spices, jasmine, and salt. The kiss lasted until AJ felt a trickle of water running over his hand from the ice pack Edith was still holding to his hand.
Edith pulled herself away first. AJ looked into her eyes, stroked the side of her head and sighed. He kissed her again, one last time and then sat back.
“I’m sorry AJ. I am.”
“I am too. I’ve got to go find her.” AJ said standing up. Edith stood as well and walked with him downstairs to the kitchen.
“Good night, AJ.” Edith said lingering in the door to the back yard.
“Good night Edith.” AJ replied, watching her close the door and walk back to her lit house. AJ turned and grabbed the phone, and saw his mother standing in the door.