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"Good morning--- Ms. ---" He does not smile. Really? He wants to play games? Does he think I am stupid?
"I'd prefer it if we didn't pretend that you have no idea who I am and just cut straight to the point. Why are you here? What are you and Daniel up to?"
The confusion on his face causes confusion to taint mine but I quickly hide it. He is obviously faking not knowing me. We shared family Thanksgiving. He even made a comment about my job; now he's got amnesia. Bullshit.
"Daniel?" He stammers for a second then his face turns dark and angry.
"What about Daniel? You know Daniel?" His voice is harsh and deep. Maybe he had an accident and hit his head; that would explain his moving to suburbia.
"You know that I know your brother, Hudson. But the only important thing here is that whatever you two have planned I will not let it happen. I have a restraining order against him and if I have to get one against you as well, I will!" I am done running away from that asshole.
"Who the hell are you, woman?" Now he sounds genuinely confused, "I have no idea who you are and trust me when I say I have absolutely no care for anyone who knows my brother." So, we share a mutual disgust; his face is contorted with absolute distaste.
"My name is Gianna. I am his ex. Now drop the act. We had Thanksgiving together, remember? You and your family are a bunch of rich narcissists and I want you, your ridiculous car, and your noisy house to stay as far away from me as possible." I know I am yelling when a car slows down driving by.
"Look, lady --- Gianna. Whatever your name is. I don't give a shit what you want or what you think about me. I am not here to make friends, but I promise you, if you threaten me again, I will happily make an enemy." He is fuming. I can see the veins pressing against his temple as he tries to hold his anger back. I have overreacted and might have said too much too soon.
"I got your brother out of my life, and I will get you out of my life too." I just cannot stop myself.
"Are you crazy or just stupid? Threatening my home? My son and I live here. This is our home! I will not have some psycho bitch next door threatening where I live. Now as long as you stay on your side of the fence, and I stay on my side of the fence everything will be just fine. But if you cross me even once little girl, you will regret the day you were born." Oh, he's an angry asshole, just like his brother.
"Little girl?" who the hell does he think he is. I can feel my self-control slipping, and I don't want to say something I will regret but this family is impossible to deal with and from past experience, I know I have to let him know right from the start that I am not to be taken lightly or be seen as a push over. Boundaries, my therapist made me learn how to put them up and protect them.
"Do not speak to me like that, Hudson." My voice is low but clear.
"You sound just like my mother." He growls.
"Well, I am sure she is lovely, but I doubt she sounds like me. If she did, you'd not raise your voice at a lady. I've now had the pleasure of meeting two of her sons and neither of them has any respect for women."
"Just stay out of my way, Gianna! Stay away from my family and stay out of my way. The last thing I need is another stupid social media scandal caused by you throwing a tantrum. I came out here to get away from people exactly like you probably did." His voice suddenly calmed. His eyes pierce into me, dark silver grey. His jaw muscles tense. "Stay the fuck away from me and my son and we will have no problem." A bit hard since he lives right next to me.
Then he turns and walks away, and I have to stop myself from shouting after him like an idiot just so that I can have the last word.
What in the world just happened. I just completely lost my cool. My blood is boiling, and I can feel myself breathing heavily and fast. I haven't even had my workout yet and I am panting.
I am furious!
How dare he speak to me like that.
It's ok. I reassure myself. You stood your ground. You called him out on his pretenses, and you made it clear that you know exactly who he is. However, even after reassuring myself that I have just done the right thing I still feel horrible inside. Wow, he is a nasty piece of work. Little girl! He has absolutely no idea how to talk to a woman. He is exactly like Daniel. A player. Probably the most charming person in the world when he wants to get into your pants or seal some dodgy business deal but a total dickhead when he does not get his way.
Well, at least I have made myself clear. I turn back towards the house. I almost want to go right back inside and skip my walk but now I need it more than ever. I really need to clear this horrible, sick feeling away before I head to the office. My life has been going so well. I definitely do not need assholes like that to ruin my day. And I am not going to let him either.
Taking a deep breath of fresh morning air, I start out on my morning walk; making sure to focus on the beautiful things in life. Appreciate nature, the trees, and this gorgeous place I live in. Gratitude is an attitude, and I am not going to allow others to steal my joy.
CHAPTER4
HUDSON
At the mention of my brother's name, I had done what I hated the most. I had completely lost my composure. I'm better than that --- and I know it. My fuse is just shorter than normal right now.
Walking away from that woman now I feel absolute rage surging inside of me. I cannot believe she is my neighbor. I am doing everything in my power to avoid ending up back in the media and now I have just had a very public fight with my neighbor who just happens to be my brother's ex! What are the chances of this happening? Slim to none. So how did it happen?
She is exactly his type. That exotic beauty. The long dark hair and tight curvy figure. Even while I was arguing I'd had to stop myself from running my eyes up and down her body. She's fiery compared to the ones he usually chooses; it makes sense they ended up in a flaming disaster. He's used to a pushover who won't fight back – and that woman is all fight. Jesus.
The thought of being physically attracted to my brother's ex disturbs me. Thank goodness it is purely physical, and she has a terrible personality because I do not want to find myself attracted to anyone like her. Actually, I have not even looked at a woman in that way since my ex-wife. I'm still getting over that, in so many complicated ways.
I am just not interested in relationships and even casual flings come with drama and scandal that I do not have time for. It makes me angry at myself for being physically attracted to her. The way her plump lips move when she is shouting at me for no reason at all. The audacity! She is the purest example of how being beautiful is only skin deep.
