Anne Ha - Husband Next Door

“I’ve lost interest In this ridiculous exercise.”

Shelly expelled her breath impatiently. “You are so aggravating!” She retreated farther and sat down on his bed. “If you’re not going to cooperate, I might as well not help you.”

Aaron turned around to look at her. Flecks of lather dotted his smooth-shaven cheeks. “Are you giving up so soon, Shel?” He sounded genuinely curious.

“Of course not. I’ve still got a few things to say, but they can wait until you’re finished. I want your full attention.”

Shelly lay back on the bed and stared at the ceiling. She heard a rustle as he turned around and the splash of water in the sink.

Aaron came out of the bathroom a few minutes later. He’d slipped into his dark blue bathrobe and was toweling his hair. Shelly sat up, but turned her face away.

He tossed the towel onto the bed beside her. “So, shall we continue?”

She stood up. “Yes. Um, I want to compliment you on how clean your bedroom is. You must have made a special effort for…”

“Amanda,” he said.

“Right. Amanda. You’ve cleared away the evidence of previous female visitors. That’s good. But I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve simply hidden the stuff. In the closet, perhaps?” She threw open the closet doors and peered inside. Sure enough, a tube of lipstick sat on the shelf at the top. She turned to Aaron with a victorious look.

He ignored it. “Could you hand me the brown trousers hanging in the middle?”

Sighing, she reached into the closet. “These?”

“No, two over. Yes, those.”

Shelly slipped the trousers off the hanger and held them out.

He laid them on the bed. “Thanks. You were saying?”

“Oh, nothing.” She stepped away as he moved to the closet and selected a linen shirt to wear. “I don’t know why I even bother.”

Aaron crossed to his bureau. He picked out boxers and a pair of socks, tossing them on the bed with the other clothes.

The room was starting to feel quite warm, Shelly thought. And Aaron was entirely too casual about his state of undress. “Uh, I’ll leave you alone for a minute.”

He winked at her. “That’s probably a good idea.”

Shelly breathed a sigh of relief as she escaped from the room. It shouldn’t be like this between two friends, she thought, more disturbed than she cared to admit. It especially shouldn’t be like this right now, when she was thinking of marrying Eric. Why did Aaron’s attractiveness suddenly seem inescapable, when she’d always managed to ignore it in the past?

Well, she told herself, she would just have to be stronger. She would have to get her nervous system under control and keep things on the right level.

Aaron joined her in the kitchen a few minutes later, fully clothed but with his hair still slightly damp, and set to work on dinner. “So. What else do I need to learn?”

“Too much,” she said.

“It can’t be that bad.”

“It is. Despite your claim that you want to reform, you’ve shown no interest in what I have to say.” She waved at the notes she’d written earlier. “I had a bunch of good ideas, but I think I’ll keep them to myself until you’re ready to learn something.”

“Give me the short version for now, at least”

She brushed a tendril of long blond hair from her eyes and met his gaze squarely. “Take life more seriously and stop flirting with everyone.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes. When you meet the woman you want to spend your life with, you’re going to have to do both of those things. There are other things, too, but they’re incidental.”

His brow wrinkled. “Are you sure these are universal rules? You’re not just telling me what you want in a man, are you?”

“Listen, Aaron, you asked for my opinion. Maybe you’ll be lucky and fall in love with an irresponsible clown who wants an open relationship. But you probably won’t”

His shoulders slumped. “You’re right.”

“Of course I’m right. And now I’m going to leave before your lady friend arrives.”

“Don’t you want to meet Amanda?”

“No.”

“It’s your last chance. I’m going to follow your advice and tell her I don’t love her anymore.”

She rolled her eyes. “Thanks, but I’ll skip the sideshow.”

Back in her own apartment, Shelly heated a can of soup and ate it in front of the television. Then she listened to a new CD, reorganized her kitchen cabinets and thought about the pros and cons of marrying Eric.

It didn’t help. She couldn’t keep her mind off Aaron and his guest next door.

Shelly knew he didn’t really intend to break up with Amanda. Not tonight, at least. He couldn’t reform himself that fast, and he wouldn’t be Aaron if he didn’t string her along for a few more weeks. But when he lost interest, Shelly hoped he’d keep her advice in mind, and end it responsibly.

She remembered his breakup with Marcia last fall. Aaron certainly hadn’t handled that very well. Sure, Marcia had jumped the gun a bit—expecting him to abandon the Discovery Center, take a job in her father’s advertising agency and make her his wife—but that still didn’t justify Aaron’s behavior.

First he’d tried to slip quietly out of Marcia’s life. But when she proved to be too tenacious, he’d acted out of male desperation, telling her he loved someone else.

“Not a smart move, Carpenter,” Shelly muttered. She put on another CD and paced up and down the living room.

Aaron’s little deception had backfired. Shelly would never forget the day she’d come home to the sight of Marcia camped out on the front steps, her Donna Karan blouse all rumpled, her carefully applied mascara running down her cheeks. During the scene that followed, Shelly gradually realized Marcia thought she was Aaron’s mystery lover.

It would have been funny if it hadn’t been so embarrassing. Shelly had pointedly mentioned her new relationship with Eric West, but Marcia refused to believe she wasn’t carrying on with Aaron. Marcia wouldn’t even believe Aaron’s denial when he got home an hour later, but finally she’d departed.

Shelly hoped never to have to live through such an encounter again. Ever since that day she’d distanced herself from Aaron’s love life, going out of her way not to meet any of his girlfriends.

She stopped pacing as she heard the muffled click of Aaron’s front door. Surprised, she glanced down at her watch. Only an hour and a half had gone by since Amanda had arrived. Strange, Shelly thought. In the past Aaron’s dates had usually lasted quite a bit longer.

Well, maybe he’d broken up with Amanda after all. Shelly grimaced, anticipating a tearful farewell on the porch, but moments later she heard laughter, both male and female. Clearly the romance was still going strong.

Shelly knew she shouldn’t be so nosy, but she couldn’t help listening to the shuffle of footsteps as the couple descended the stairs. As they reached the sidewalk below, she gravitated to the large bay window of her apartment. Surreptitiously she nudged the lacy curtain aside and peered down at the lamp-lit street.

She stared for several seconds before her brain comprehended what she saw. Aaron was there, all right, and so was a gorgeous brunette who must be Amanda. But they were several feet apart. And a second man stood with his arm draped possessively around Amanda’s shoulders, shielding her from the cool night air.

Shelly shook her head, bewildered. Was that even Amanda? Who was this other man, and why was he so friendly with her?

As she looked on, Aaron shook hands with both of the strangers. He stood watching as they got into a car and drove away. Only when their taillights disappeared around the corner did he turn back toward the stairs.

Shelly heard Aaron whistling as he ascended the steps. Making a split-second decision, she grabbed her keys and dashed outside.

She nearly ran into Aaron on the porch.

“Oh, hi,” Shelly said, coming to what she hoped was a surprised halt.

Aaron looked at her quizzically, and she was suddenly aware of the cool touch of moisture-laden air on her bare arms. She shivered. “I need to run to the corner store,” she lied.

He nodded understandingly, flashing her a glimpse of his even white teeth. A small gust of wind ruffled his thick black hair.

Shelly studied him in the glow of the porch light. Aaron certainly didn’t look as if he’d spent a romantic evening with an adoring female, she observed. His skin wasn’t flushed, nor were there any lipstick smudges on his collar.

She jangled her keys meaningfully. “Do you need anything?”

He cocked his head. “I don’t think so.”

Shelly took one step down the stairs and then paused, as if remembering an inconsequential fact. “How did your date go?”

“Fine.”

“How is Amanda?”

“Fine….”

Shelly sighed. The subtle approach was not going to work if Aaron insisted on speaking in monosyllables. She’d just have to ask her question outright. “Who was that man?”

A pleased smile broke across Aaron’s features. “Were you spying, Shelly?”

“Who was he?”

The smile turned indulgent. “Amanda’s boyfriend. She brought him along with her.”

Shelly stepped back up onto the porch. “I thought you were her boyfriend,” she accused.

Aaron shrugged. “Apparently not.”

She made a face at him. “Apparently not? I can’t believe you’re so offhand about it. Don’t you even care that she’s found someone else?” She paused to give him a chance to explain, but he didn’t say anything. “You know, this just proves how detached you are. When it comes to your sex life, you’re so unemotional you might as well be a chunk of granite!”

Aaron’s eyebrow went up. “Who said anything about sex?”

Shelly hesitated. “Well, I just assumed…” She swallowed. The idea of Aaron being celibate was ludicrous, but she didn’t feel like debating the issue. “Anyway, you should be upset about this! You’ve got to learn to take your relationships seriously.”

His eyes gleamed. “We’ll just have to have more lessons then, won’t we?”

She sighed. He did need more lessons. She wasn’t sure if they’d help, but after tonight, she was even more convinced of their importance. Reaching for her doorknob, she muttered, “Good night, Aaron.”

“Shel?” His voice was patient, amused.

Shelly turned. Aaron shrugged out of his jacket and held it out for her. She looked at it in confusion.

He draped it around her shoulders. “So you don’t get cold on the way to the corner store.” The warm male scent of Aaron drifted up to envelop her, and the damp chill air seemed to retreat.

And then she realized what he was saying.

Shelly felt the heat of embarrassment come rushing to her face. She’d forgotten all about her imaginary errand. “Right.” Ducking her head, she darted down the steps, chased by the gentle sound of Aaron’s laughter.

The weekend passed slowly—mostly because Aaron was much too interested in whether she was going to marry Eric. Like a tabloid journalist eager to extract every juicy detail, he demanded regular updates on her decision.

Shelly tried to divert his attention with two more lessons. First they worked on Aaron’s seriousness and substance. She made him go several hours without saying anything witty, charming or entertaining. Then Shelly devised a role-playing exercise to develop his self-restraint. She made Aaron pretend he was in a committed relationship, and she was a stranger trying to proposition him. To her satisfaction Aaron truly put himself into the scenario. He had a difficult time turning her down, but succeeded after careful coaching. Shelly decided he might not be hopeless after all.