The Man I Thought I Trusted - E. L. Todd Page 0,23
Carson pointed at me. “He thought she was a bitch, too.”
“Whoa, I did not say that.” I wasn’t walking around calling women bitches. My balls would be sliced off. “Just thought it was hot that you got jealous and did something about it.”
Carson gave me a wink. “Good answer, babe.”
“What if she tried to fight you?” Matt asked, his mouth full of food.
“I would beat her ass,” Carson said. “She’s one of those girls that spends a ton of money on her workout clothes but doesn’t actually work out. It wouldn’t even be a fair fight.”
Charlie wiped his mouth with a napkin before he took a drink of his beer. “My money’s on Carson. Always.”
Carson blew him a kiss and whispered, “Love you.”
He waved away her kiss like he was disgusted and didn’t say it back.
I chuckled at their interaction, liking the way Charlie loved her like a sister, putting her down most of the time without wearing his heart on his sleeve. I wasn’t the least bit worried that there was more to the relationship than met the eye.
“So…” Charlie wiped his fingers with a napkin, getting the hot sauce off his skin. “You’re going to a fancy party on Saturday. Maybe you should take an etiquette course.”
“Oh, shut up.” She was hunched over her food as she bit into a greasy slice of pizza, the cheese stretching between her lips and the food, making a mess all over her hands and face. She finished the bite and said, “I’m fine.”
Charlie gave her a blank stare as if he couldn’t disagree more. “You should look in the mirror, kid. You look like a bear that found the honey stash.”
“Well, I don’t eat like this at nice places. And how are you supposed to eat pizza and hot wings without putting your elbows on the table and getting shit all over your face?” Carson asked defensively. “I’ll be fine.”
I hated the stuffy universe that contained my existence. Carson’s realism was a breath of fresh air. Even if she did act like this on Saturday, I wouldn’t care. “I don’t care how she eats.”
Carson turned to me and blew me a kiss before whispering, “Love you, babe.”
I smiled. “Love you too.”
She went back to eating.
Everyone stilled when they heard us exchange such heartfelt words, even if we were just making a joke.
“Besides,” I said. “If she eats dirty, she does other things dirty too.”
Denise cringed. “Ew.”
Charlie immediately shifted his position in the chair like he was uncomfortable. “Okay now…”
Matt loved it. “Hell yeah.” Then he proceeded to stare at me as if he was picturing me being the one to do the dirty things.
Carson wiped her face with her napkin before she leaned in to kiss me. “Aren’t we just perfect together?”
I smiled as I slowly leaned in and gave her a kiss, my heart filling with so much love for this woman. It felt right; it felt true. We were like two magnets that came together and never broke apart. “Yeah.” I rubbed my nose against hers before I pulled away. “We are.”
She straightened in her chair and dunked her hot wing in a pool of ranch.
I continued to stare at her, no longer interested in my food.
“Do you have something to wear?” Denise asked.
“I have a couple black dresses that will do just fine,” Carson said. “And I have Mom’s earrings. Everyone else might be wearing designer gowns and stuff, but whatever.” She turned back to me. “Is that okay?”
I would offer to buy her something nice, but it would turn into a fight I didn’t want to have. So I just accepted whatever she had on hand. “As long as it’s short and slutty, yes.”
“It’s backless.” Carson smiled at me as she waited for my reaction.
My eyes stayed on her. “Even better.”
9
Carson
I looked in the mirror on the wall to make sure my earrings were correctly inserted into my lobes, and then I turned around to look at Charlie as he sat on the couch. “So, what do you think?” I struck a few poses, acting like Madonna from “Vogue.”
His eyes barely glanced at me before they were back on the TV. “You look fine.”
“Fine?” I asked incredulously. “That’s all you’re giving me? Like, fine, as in just alright? Or more like, damn, that bitch looks fiiiiiine.”
He considered it with a shrug. “The first one.”
I rolled my eyes and left the living room, my heels starting to tap on the hardwood floor after I stepped off the rug.