Learning to Love

Chapter Three

JULIAN

"Why?" Linda asked frowning. We were facing each other on the bed in the darkness of our room. The wind chilled the room through the opened Gothic-style windows.

"Why? Why can't you stay home?" Linda demanded, her frown growing thicker. Why is she being like this? It's not as if she was staying home with me.

"Linda, please listen to me. I need friends. Male friends. I can't sit around the house while you work. I'm lonely," I admitted.

"Am I not good enough for you? It's selfish of you to say you're lonely," Linda screamed, shaking. No, no you're not. I thought to myself. I made my mouth a straight line to keep it in.

"It's not like that..." I trailed, rubbing my brows with the back of my hand. If I don't want to get Linda mad I need to watch my words.

"You have friends, don't you? Why can't I have friends too?" I asked her as calmly as I could. Her face soon turned into a pool of confusion. I know that face. She doesn't know what to say.

"Fine," she agreed, cuddling up to me. I sighed more out of annoyance than relief. Why does she always have to be so clingy? I wondered, frowning a bit.

At the sound of silent snoring, I gently undid Linda's hands from my waist then rolled on my stomach. I lay there motionless, my mind contemplating a lot of things... okay most of them about Zeus.

"Zeus," I whispered, smiling as I nestled my face into the pillow. Why couldn't I say his name without, you know... I thought as warmth ran up my face again. What is he doing to me? This man, this strange mysterious man.

Zeus. I liked that name. It suited him he seemed confident and strong just like the Greek god. Oh, what am I thinking? I thought, burying my head into the pillow. I didn't take care I was going to leave a hole in it.

Lying on my stomach, I started thinking again, and my face flushed at the image of a particular thought. Okay, I'm not a pervert, it's just... I don't know. What if he... Oh, God. This was such a great position to be under Zeus. I think am turning into a tomato now.

"Zeus," I muttered again, as I sighed into the pillow. My eyes grew wide, and I sat up when Linda shifted beside me.

"Who's Zeus?" She asked, her one question making my blood run cold.

ZEUS

"That's all for today," I yawned, stretching on my chair. Staying overtime was hectic. But I had to stay over to conduct money transfers, plus I had to purchase the car for Louis. I smiled at the thought of him. He was so cranky. He was cute when he was cranky. I thought as my smile turned into a full-blown grin. I was scheduled to fly to France on Monday for a conference. I could finally meet him.

"Mr. Darcanius," Amanda called walking into my office her platforms were silent against the fur carpet. I really liked the white fur carpet I recently installed. I know, I know it's not 'office-like' but I owned this place so suck my... No! You can't have that you can bite me instead.

 "Yes," I answered tiredly. My speech was stressed and worked up.

"Um, you have a phone call," she said. her voice was a bit shaky.

"Who's it from?" I asked using my hand to straighten out my lose strands my hair was getting annoyingly long but I was too lazy to get it cut.

"From a Julian," she murmured fumbling with the collar of her red blouse, her red waving hair falling over her face nervously. I smiled Amanda acted like this when I got a call from my guy friends, but Julian wasn't a guy friend now, was he?

"Oh cutie," I intentionally cooed and got the pleasure to see Amanda's face turn a bright red. I enjoyed teasing Amanda. She had been my secretary for three years and her shyness still surprised me.

"I guess. Um, here..." she trailed stretching out my iPhone. Taking it from her I whispered a quick 'thank you' before looking at the screen it was an unknown number. Probably his cell phone O thought, smiling as I brought the phone to my ear.

"Hello?" I asked into the silence of the phone.

"Hello," I heard a woman's voice say from the other end. What the hell? Who the heck was this? Was the phone even Julian's? Shaking my head to clear my thoughts I finally asked.

"Who's this?"I frowned. My question came out a bit annoyed.

"Julian's wife," the woman at the other end said. Her voice was cold and unnerving. I rolled my eyes. I didn't quite like her even though I didn't know her. The scene at the bar didn't count.

"It's a pleasure," I said with equal scorn. There was a bit of silence then some mumbling. Mumbling? Was Julian with her? The thought alone was pissing me off.

"Stay away from Julian!" She suddenly screamed into the phone. I rolled my eyes. She was doing the threat thing. What was she five?

"Why?" I casually asked walking getting off my seat and walking towards the glass walls at the side of the office. The night looked beautiful. I liked how they fluctuated; or how they hurried pass since they belonged to vehicles. I wonder what Julian would think of it? Where was he now? Oh yeah, he was with his five-year-old wife. I frowned trying to process the 'wife' part.

"Just stay away from him!" she screamed and I frowned. I almost forgot we were having a conversation. Or an argument. Or a threat call. Hell, whatever she wanted to call it.

"Why? So he can't have friends, around him? What's your goal?" I asked. Silence followed and I rolled my eyes.

"Grow up," I said about to drop the phone

"Don't yo..." I didn't hear the rest of it because I cut the call. I was getting the wrong vibes from this woman. Okay not just because she was Julian's wif... okay I still couldn't process that word. Okay not just because she's with Julian meant she owned him.

I rested my body on the glass wall and stared out at the view. Louis would love this. I thought, smiling. I should really get him a ticket to fly over. I closed my eyes. My feeling for Louis had always been foggy. We weren't dating just f*****g. Maybe it's so foggy because he was my longest f**k buddy. I may not be a Parthoropeons anymore but I still had standards. No whores no kids and I valued my relationship with my 'friends'.

"Mr. Darcanius," I heard Amanda call from the door.

"Yes," I answered still leaning on the glass, still gazing out at the night, still thinking about him.

"Office hours are long over. S-should I send for your car?" she stammered. I closed my eyes and smiled I liked Amanda's voice when it was shy and bothered. It was unnaturally soothing. But I didn't think of it the way I thought of Louis' — Let me not get started on Julian's. It was good Louis and I were the same kind of Perv. I smiled at the thoughts floating in my head as I shut down the desktop.

"Please do," I said, and I could almost see her nodding and gently shutting the door behind her.

God, I need to get laid.

JULIAN

Linda was still looking at the phone as if it were an ordained bastard. I had a bad feeling Zeus shut her up bad. It sort of brought a smile to my face

"Fine you can see him," Linda said, looking at me with dark hazel eyes. She seemed bipolar at times like this. It was quite unnerving

I creased my brows and stretched out my hand for the phone she dug out of my knapsack. I sighed in frustration. I knew I shouldn't have saved his number on my actual phone afterward.

"You can't have it," Linda said casually.

"What do you mean I can't have it?" I demanded. Linda looked straight into my eyes and sighed as if I was an ignorant child.

"You can't have it, or the car and you'll have to be back by eight always," Linda casually set the rules as she removed the battery from the phone. I watched as she got off the bed and headed for the trashcan by the door. She let the battery drop into the bin with a thug, and then gently placed the phone on the nearby dresser. She gave a quick look through her hair and smiled. Her hazel eyes twinkling mischievously in the dark.

"You know how much I love you, Julian. You know that don't you?" Linda asked, moving something between her fingers.

Shit!

She still had my sim card! My eyes widened in realization. I sat up the bed ready to plead, to beg. What did she think she was doing?

"And I'm going to make sure you'll love me as you should," Linda said smiling. Is she mad?

"I'm doing this for your own good — our good. I don't just want to get hurt — I don't want you to get hurt..." Linda trailed then suddenly frowned. I heard the sudden shredding of the sim card. She did it, she actually did it.

What the hell? Why's she doing this?

"Julian," she called in a soft chilling tone as she walked up to the bed. She stood in front of me as she swayed from side to side, pulling one of those her 'you're in trouble' smiles.

"Pull off your shorts and make love to me sweetie," she ordered, still pulling that unnerving smile of hers.