It's Not Just Business

Chapter Six

I was still shocked with Aaron's behavior. First he touches and kisses me like there's no tomorrow, says he wants to give our relationship a try. Then he throws me in the lake and starts interacting with my friends. If that wasn't enough, he sat across from me with a smile on his handsome face while eating a burger.

This is not like him. At all.

Don't get me wrong. I don't mind it, in fact I'm happy he's more relaxed. But it scares me a bit. It's like he's suddenly going to snap and be his old distant self. That he's going to decide this marriage isn't worth his time and that we should go back to pretending we love each other. I have to admit we're damned good at it, but its not real.

I want to know the real Aaron. But doubts and fears keep eating me.

Why did he change his mind so suddenly?

There's something more to this and I'm afraid to know what it is.

"What's wrong baby?" Aaron looked at me with concern.

And I gracefully choked on my drink.

"Hey, hey, are you okay?" Elliot looked down at me as I fought to get my breathing under control.

"Yeah, just--never mind." I shook my head. "I'm fine."

I stared curiously at Aaron and continued to eat my hamburger. The place we were eating at was a cabin made especially for eating only, just like a cafeteria but with a whole lot more windows and the doors opened.

This place is breathtaking.

Everything seems so wild and free. It makes me want to be those things. But it'll never matter. I can't change who I am, who I was raised to be. Since I can remember, I've been thought how to walk straight. I've been thought how to eat, how to dress decently, how to talk, how to act, how to look. Heck, they only needed to show me how to have rightful sex and they would have covered everything.

It's needless to say that my life was very controlled. Still is. Sort of.

I still have to be the perfect person, act the perfect way, talk in a very soothing matter and eat like a princess. But being with Aaron has made me rebel to some things. Like the part where I'm not supposed to talk back, the part where I'm supposed to obey oh and the a very important one: complaining. I'm surprised Aaron hasn't taken any measures into punishing me for challenging and talking back and all those things I've done. If my parents knew, god they'll be ashamed of me.

So here I was, watching the man who had been raised as strictly, if not more, as me. The one who was used to fancy things, to people doing as he said, to being served, the unquestionable, the serious business man he is. But that seemed to be somewhere else, because right now he's joking around and acting like a teenager. I mean, he even threw a fry at Greg. The Aaron I know wouldn't even dream of doing something so childish and unnecessary. I wouldn't be thinking anything, or doubting anything, if it didn't look so forced. He was faking the smiles, faking the jokes, pretending to be happy. But I knew him, not as well as I'd like to but enough to know he was forcing himself to be something he's not.

The talk with me seemed genuine. But as I saw him interact with my friends, everything was forced.

It was the same sort of act he put up with when we went to business dinners and reunions as a couple.

But I didn't mention anything. Yet.

"Ugh. It feels like I gained ten pounds." Alice groaned as she slumped in her seat.

"It sure does look like it." Jared commented.

"Hey!" Alice smacked him and they got into a very heated and violent argument.