Her Billion Dollar Man

Chapter 6

He stood there looking at her and not responding. He was confused by how he felt about her and had never found himself in that position before. He needed to have control over his life and he had sworn from when he was a teen, that he would never let go of that control to anyone and then he had met her. “I will take you home,” he told her quietly.

“Don’t bother,” she said her lips curling in disgust. “I will take a cab home. Your brother was right all along.” With that she turned on her heels and left him standing there staring after her.

He wanted to run after her but he was rooted to the spot. What could he say to her? That he did not know how to love her and he was afraid of opening up to her? With a growl he crumpled up the paper he had been writing on and threw it on the floor, his body shaking.

*****

“So where is Debra? I thought she would be sitting at the dining table and headed to your bed later tonight.”

Tyler had finally come down from his room because Maude had threatened him and told him that she was going to let him starve to death because there was no way any of the staff would bring something up for him. “And take a shower while you are at it and clean your blasted room, it smells like garbage in here.” He had stared at her mutinously before getting up and doing as she said. They had learned from the beginning that it was easier to do what Maude said.

Derek looked at him coolly as he sipped the wine slowly. He had not eaten much and he had not worked at all. His agent had called him and asked him about Debra and wondered why she had never heard of her. Shaun had called him as well but he had been very reticent.

“I don’t want to talk bro, I am sorry.”

“Don’t tell me you drove her away Derek,” his friend had said impatiently.

“She is better off without me,” he had muttered.

“Keep telling yourself that.”

“You need to mind your own damned business,” he said to his brother now. He knew Maude was going to give him hell for not doing justice to the delicious lamb stew she had prepared.

“I thought it was my business. Did you dump her already? That’s fast even for you.” Tyler said sneeringly.

“What have I ever done to you except try and provide for you and be there for you the best way I know how?” Derek asked him softly leaning forward on the table. “Why do you resent me so much Tyler? When our parents died I suffered as much as you did, maybe even more and I was there for you so just tell me why?”

Tyler sat there staring at him not knowing what to say. He never got over his parents dying and the pain that lodged inside him had never been erased until he had met Debra. She had touched something inside him that had him behaving normal again and his brother had taken that away from him. The horrible part of it was he did not even want her but he had to have her because he could. “Leave me alone!” he pushed out of the chair and away from the table and left the room. Derek heard the front door slamming indicating that he had left. It was a school night and he knew the rules but right he did not give a damn. He was through trying.

*****

Debra gave in to tears the minute she closed the door of her small apartment. She had taken a while to get a cab in that exclusive neighborhood and she had hoped that he would have at least come back and persuaded her to stay and tell her that it had been a horrible mistake and he wanted them to work it out but she had stayed out there shivering in the cold until she had gotten a cab.

Now she just curled up on her bed, her pillow drenched with tears. Where had it all gone so horribly wrong? After that incident at the group home she had sworn that she was going to forget the negative side of life and make sure she was positive and she had been doing so well until she had allowed him to persuade her to drop her guard and now look what happened! He had dumped her but not before turning her life upside down in the process. How was she going to go back to work now after all this? Her picture was going to be in the papers and they were going to be discussing her and her past and the worst part of it was that he no longer wanted anything to do with her.

She buried her head in the pillow as a fresh onslaught of weeping started. She had no idea what she was going to do.

She heard the insistent ringing of the phone as she was woken from the fog inside her brain. She had no idea when she had fallen asleep and to her surprise she saw that she was still in the clothes she had worn to work that day. She glanced at the bedside clock and discovered that it was a little after ten p.m. Who on earth could be calling her now? She wondered as she reached for the phone.

“Hello?” she answered huskily, trying to clear the sleep from her brain.

“Debra, it’s Tyler I did not know who else to call,” his voice sounded subdued and there were noises in the background.

“What’s wrong Tyler?” she asked in concern forgetting the nasty things he had said to her earlier.

“I am in jail.” His voice sounded subdued.

“What happened?” she asked waking up fully at the mention of where he was.

“I have been charged with a DUI,” he told her. “Can you come and get me?”

She hesitated, tempted to tell him to call his brother but then she responded. “I will be there shortly.”

“Thank you,” he said humbly.

She took a quick shower and pulled on faded denim and a blue sweater, brushing out the kinks from her short hair and left to go to the precinct where he was.

The police woman on duty told her of the charges and said she was aware of who his brother was and was prepared to let him go with a warning. “He has to make sure it does not happen again. Where is his brother?” she asked casually and Debra realized that Derek had that effect on people, he was popular and well loved and his music touched so many. Too bad it did not make him more human, she thought bitterly.

“He is otherwise engaged.” She said smoothly, looking up as she saw Tyler coming towards them. He looked so miserable that Debra realized that there was no need to scold him any further. “We have impounded the car and his license is suspended for a month. You can send for the car in the morning.” The police woman told them.