My Kind Of Bad

“That’s my ex, Jason.” Neera felt the panic rising. “What’s he doing here?”

She had had no idea Jason had known any bikers. If she had she would’ve stayed clear of this social. Taylor sat up and looked towards the group. She frowned.

“It looks like he’s my daughter’s date.” She glanced at Neera, looking worried. “Do you want me to get Kurt?”

“Please.”

Neera didn’t want to feel like she was reliant on anyone, not after everything that had happened to her. But she would feel better knowing Kurt was close by.

Taylor slid off her lounger and hurried down the steps. Neera put her burger and plate on the floor, the food feeling like lead in her stomach. Now she wished she wasn’t here. She needed to get out of there. Jason made her confidence plummet and Neera didn’t want to be anywhere near him.

Taylor reached Kurt and spoke in his ear. Kurt glanced towards the terrace and nodded. Then he was jogging over, leaping over the rail and crouching beside her.

“Neera?” He touched her thigh. “What’s wrong?”

“My ex is here. Things didn’t end well and I’ve told him to leave me alone.” Neera bit her lip and looked at Jason desperately. “Don’t let him anywhere near me, please.”

“Do you want to go home?”

Neera nodded. There was no question about that. For her, the party was over. Kurt nodded and urged her to stand, slipping an arm around her.

“We’ll go through the house.”

Neera leaned into him, burying her face into his chest as she allowed him to walk her out.

*****

Kurt could sense Neera’s discomfort as he drove her home. He had chosen to bring the car instead of his bike, knowing that Neera was both uncomfortable to with riding a motorcycle and not used to it. He wanted to make her relaxed around him.

The barbecue had been going great. Neera had been a big hit with everyone. She had been all smiles and good manners with everyone at Billy’s house and Taylor had gushed about how lovely she was. Kurt had simply watched from a distance as she graced the back yard, unable to stop himself from admiring the way she walked, the way she looked and the way she seemed to put other people under her spell.

He should know; Neera had tugged him under her spell as well.

It was a pity it had all been spoiled when Neo had arrived, fashionably late as usual, pulling her latest date in tow. Kurt hadn’t seen him before but Neera had. He had been shocked that Neo’s most recent was Neera’s current ex-boyfriend and she was clearly shaken by seeing him. It was all she could do not to run out of there screaming.

Kurt felt embarrassed for Billy and Taylor. He also felt embarrassed for Neera, having to see her ex with a young eighteen-year-old girl. He hoped Neo wouldn’t do something stupid or Jason was going to have Billy and his people on his back.

The ride back to Neera’s place was silent. Kurt glanced over at Neera, who was slumped in her chair staring out the window. He felt like he had to break the silence.

“I’m so sorry about what happened, Neera. I didn’t know he was going to be there.”

Neera turned and looked at him with a broken expression. Evidently her ex-boyfriend was still affecting her and not in a good way. Kurt felt a stab of jealousy in his belly, which he batted away. They had only gone on one date. What claim did he have over her?

“It’s not your fault, Kurt.” Neera laid a hand over Kurt’s thigh. “I don’t blame you. No one knew that was going to happen.”

“I still feel embarrassed for you.”

“Don’t be.” Neera sighed. “We live in the same area. I’m going to be running into him sooner or later. Might as well be sooner.”

But, even then, Kurt still felt bad. Neera was a lovely woman, he knew that for a fact, and he didn’t like that Neera was uncomfortable because of one men.

“Meeting an ex isn’t fantastic, is it?”

“Not usually.”

They were silent for a little while until they pulled up outside Neera’s apartment building. Kurt turned off the engine and turned to Neera, who was still sitting in the passenger seat staring out the front windshield. She had a slightly faraway look on her face.

Kurt reached out and touched her arm.

“What happened with him?”

He shouldn’t ask – they had only gone on one date, for crying out loud – but Kurt found himself wanting to know. A selfish part of him wanted to know Neera was not going to be that man’s again.

Neera sighed and looked down at her hands in her lap, her fingers twisting together.

“I met Jason about ten months ago when he came into my company’s place of business. He seemed very charming, handsome and kind. He pretty much had me before he said good morning.” Neera looked embarrassed. “A few weeks later he came in again and asked me to dinner. Shortly after that we became an item.

“But then it all went downhill from there. It was small things at first. He changed the way I wore my hair or how I dressed. Then he asked me to have nights in with him. I thought it was his way of saying let’s have some time alone, away from prying eyes.” Neera’s mouth twisted sardonically. “Soon he was going out with his friends nearly every night and whenever I went out he started calling me every five minutes, calling me a wh*re and saying I was cheating on him. Eventually he cut me off from my friends completely.”

Kurt listened to it in growing horror. What he was hearing was classic domestic abuse. A lot of it escalated pretty quickly and someone ended up dead, usually the female partner. It made him feel sick that any man would cheat on a woman like this. He did his best to keep his expression calm as the anger bubbled underneath.

“How did you manage to end it?” He asked finally.

“It took a couple of months.” Neera looked up, her eyes clear. “I moved things out of the apartment a bit at a time to Elizabeth’s. Then I started doing it during work. Eventually all my stuff was out of there and Jason hadn’t even noticed. Then I went to work one day and I didn’t go back. He kept calling me, demanding to know where I was.” She visibly swallowed. “I stayed with Elizabeth until the landlord evicted him.”

“Was the landlord in on this as well?”

“Actually, he was.” Neera managed a small smile. “I told him of my situation. He said I needed to get out so he could evict Jason without any major issues and then he’d allow me to come back in.”

Kurt grunted.

“Nice guy.”

“Everyone knew something was happening except me.” Neera said bitterly. “It didn’t take me until I caught him in bed with two women and expecting me to join them that I realized our relationship was a lie.”

Kurt blinked. He wasn’t sure he had heard correctly.

“He wanted to have s*x with three women? Someone would have to be bored in that.”