The Other Side

Chapter 3

Mark had just stepped out the shower and was rubbing himself down when the doorbell rang. Cursing, he struggled into a pair of jeans, snatching up his sweater and tugging it on as he hurried through his apartment. He opened the door on the third ring and blinked in surprise when he saw Charli standing in the hall.

His co*k, which had been semi-hard since driving her home earlier in the week, pressed at the zipper of his jeans. She was still beautiful even in a pair of old jeans and a faded gray sweater, which hung off one shoulder, revealing a smooth shoulder and the black strap of her bra. Her hair had been cut since had last since her, just brushing at her shoulders. She looked good. Very good.

Then Mark saw the red eyes and the tear-streaked cheeks. She had been crying. His heart clenched.

“Charli? What’s wrong?”

Charli looked up at him, her eyes shining. Then she burst into tears. She moved towards him and hugged him, burying her face against his chest, her arms wrapped around his waist. Getting over his amazement, Mark shut the door and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close as she sobbed and stroking her hair.

“Hey, don’t cry. It’s okay.”

“I’m sorry.” Charli sniffed. “I didn’t mean to break down like this.”

“You don’t need to be sorry.” Mark drew back, one arm still around her shoulders. “Let’s sit down and you can tell me what’s wrong.”

Charli wiped her nose on her sleeve and nodded. Mark wanted to wipe the fresh tears away but stopped himself. That was a little too intimate right now. And intimacy wasn’t something that would go down well at the moment.

Then he realized something.

“How did you know where I lived?”

“I called Stephen and asked.”

“And how did you get Stephen’s number?”

“His website is on the internet.” Charli sat on the couch, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs. She gave him a wan smile. “He warned me not to do anything stupid but I just needed somebody to talk to.”

“Okay.” Mark sat beside her but not too close. After the way his skin had tingled when she touched him, he didn’t trust himself to stop at just touching. “What’s happened? Why have you been crying?”

Charli sniffed and swiped at her eyes.

“I ended things with Andy for good. I went to his place to drop my keys off and leave a note. Cowardly, I know, but I couldn’t face him. Then I found him in bed with Kim, his agent.” She shuddered. “Andy was fu*king her in the ass. The ass, Mark. Why would anyone want to do that?” She gulped. “Now I know why he never wanted us to live together. So he could bang whoever he wanted without me finding out.”

She began to cry again. Mark was shocked at the admission. He hadn’t realized that Henson was a cheater although he should have guessed after seeing him with girls that flocked around him at parties. But he couldn’t understand why the bas*ard would cheat on Charli. If he was in a relationship with Charli she would be treated like a queen.

Where had that come from?

“I don’t get how anyone would want to fu*k someone in the ass.” Charli shuddered. “That’s just nasty.”

“Some people like it. There are a lot of sensitive nerves there. Apparently it gives better org*sms.”

“You ever done it?”

Mark went red. This talking about s*x, even if it was about anal s*x, was making him uncomfortable. His co*k was enjoying discussing it, however, but he wasn’t.

“That’s a bit personal, Charli.”

“Just answer the question.”

“Just the once when I was in high school. Never found it appealing.”

Mark hadn’t seen the fascination. His girlfriend at the time had enjoyed it and kept begging for more instead of regular s*x but Mark had refused. She had eventually ended it with him because he wouldn’t do as she said.

“I didn’t even know Andy liked it.” Charli rested her chin on her knees. She looked miserable. “He asked me once and I said no, I’m never doing that. And all the while he’s been doing it with someone else.”

“Sounds like you need to keep away from him if he can cheat on you like that and not even care.”

“I plan to.” Charli’s jaw tightened. “Every time I tried to end it when I discovered his affairs he came back with a sob story and, like a fool, I believed him. But not this time. I’m not playing the fool.”

Mark was about to applaud her for being brave and standing up for herself. Then he realized what she had said.

“Whoa, back up there. He’s cheated on you before?”

Charli nodded.

“Fourteen times since Kimberly came into his life. Since he changed.”

“Fourteen times?” Mark was glad he was sitting down or he would have fallen over. “And you stayed with him?” He shook his head in amazement. “I don’t know how could do it.”

Mark was flummoxed. He had never cheated on any of his girlfriends. If they cheated on him they were out the door quicker than they realized. His relationships may not have lasted but he was always monogamous. He couldn’t understand why anyone would stay with someone when they had clearly been unfaithful.

“I thought I loved him.” Charli closed her eyes. She looked exhausted. “But my patience has been wearing thin lately. I don’t like what he’s doing with a sport he claims to love and I don’t like what he’s doing to the other players. He was never like that before.”

“Sounds like his ego is getting far too big for him.”

“Ever since Kim came on the scene he changed.” Charli snorted rudely. “Kim doesn’t like me and I don’t know why. It hurts like hell that she’s come between us. I think she wanted us to split all along.”

Mark knew the reason why. He was amazed that Charli didn’t know. He sat back with a sigh.