The Madonna, The Virgin, and The Whore

Chapter Twenty-Four

LEXI

The bar was crowded, but that wasn't surprising. It was newer than the other places in town and pretty modern for what folks around here were used to. It drew the younger, hipper crowd and with spring break right around the corner, the place was packed. A big guy double fisting two beers bumped into me and I shot him a glare, stopping him from apologizing before he even opened his mouth. My job back at the bar in Maine had hardened me when it came to drunken assholes; I didn't have much patience for them. Mary and I continued to the bar, finding one empty stool in the corner. 

"You sit," I told her, spinning her around into the seat.

"No, no, no, you're the one confessing here." She raised her voice so I could hear her over the crowd around us. "Besides, you already know all of my issues! My fiancé cheated on me and Ian Malcolm apparently wants to take me out to dinner."

I shook my head and sank her down onto the bar stool. "What do you mean "apparently"? He asked you, right? And he's been calling nonstop since. You're the one giving him the cold shoulder."

"I'm not giving him the cold shoulder--"

I fixed Mary with a look. "You've been ignoring him, that's basically the same thing." I leaned around her and got the bartender's attention, ordering two gin and tonics for us. As I looked back at Mary I could see the conflict written all over her. "Do you not like Ian or something?" 

She shrugged but the question only seemed to upset her even more. "It doesn't matter Lexi. Things with Matt aren't resolved yet; I can't go out to dinner with someone else."

"Why? Going out to dinner with an old friend from high school is nothing compared to what he did!" 

Mary's head dropped and then she shook it. "Ian and I weren't friends in high school. I hardly knew him." 

"And you don't want to get to know him?" I prodded. She lifted her eyes towards me and they were full of guilt. 

"I do." 

Her skin colored and I could tell that this was hard for her to admit but I couldn't quite understand why. Just then the bartender appeared, sliding our drinks towards us and pausing our conversation. As soon as I paid him I picked up my drink and turned back to Mary.

"Why is that such a bad thing?"

She pushed her hands back through her hair and groaned. "Ian, he makes me feel things I haven't felt before."

"Again, that's a bad thing because..."

"Because I'm still in love with Matt!" 

I must've made a face and not known it because Mary started to defend herself. "I know what he did was unforgivable, but it's Matt Lexi. He's more than this one mistake."

"So you're staying with him." 

It was an assumption on my part and even though I tried, I couldn't keep the disappointment out of my voice. It's not that I didn't like Matt; he'd always been good to me. It's just after all these years taking care of us, Mary deserved her own life, but instead she was stuck with Matt's and I kind of resented him for not noticing that.  

"I didn't say that," Mary said, taking a sip of her drink.

"So you're leaving him then?"

She shook her head and then looked at me again with frustration clouding her pretty face. "Honestly, I'm not sure what I'm going to do." She took a breath. "I was kind of hoping it'd be okay with you if I stayed at the house for a while."