HOUSE OF THORNS : EPISODE 21 – 30
HOUSE OF THORNS
Episode 21
Vince and Leonard were sitting in a bar talking that night. They laughed over this and that, talked about this and that, then Vince asked the question he’d been burning to ask.
That night when he had asked Leonard to accompany Valerie, he truly needed to have time with his woman, but one of the major reasons he pulled the strings was to enable Leonard spend some time with Valerie.
He had been concerned about Valerie being chronically single for so long, when he knew time was tickling for her as a woman, but he was more concerned about Leonard’s supposed inability to get his stuff up.
The doctor had told him back then that it was likely the trauma of seeing his wife with another man, so ordinarily, with his wife gone, Leonard should be okay
But Vince wanted him to try it out. He wanted his guy to be free around a woman he likes and see what happens!
Yes, Vince knew that Leonard liked Valerie, a whole lot. And he could tell she liked him more. It was easy to tell while looking at the way they looked at each other.
Vince had actually been concerned after Tricia told him of her worries with the two. According to Tricia, she was sure her sister liked Leonard, but was worried about the heartbreak she was headed to, because the dude was married.
Vince had taken his time to observe the two and had told his woman his findings. “The two people liked each other so much that they’re willing to restrain themselves for the safety of the other” Vince had told Tricia.
“I know Valerie has been restraining herself from agreeing that she likes him, I know she’s doing all she can to tell herself that she feels nothing more than the ordinary for him, but my darling, I know my sister and I know when she wants something. The problem now is, with Leonard, who’s out of her reach, in her heart, how will she be able to go for the right man?” Tricia had complained.
“I get your point my dear, but as it stands now, we can only wait and see what she intends to do. I’m sure that it would only be a matter of time before she learns to differentiate between fantasies and possibilities” Vince told his woman.
So after Vivian walked out on Leonard so call0usly, he knew it was better to strike while the iron was still very hot. Vince knew it was a perfect time to ship them together.
From the little he knew about Leonard, it would only be a matter of time before he overcame the first hit the heartbreak dealt him, and he’d be acting all cool again, even when he wasn’t.
So he had pitched the two perfectly single people together that night. Hoping that they’d get along and come up with something useful by dawn. But something about how Valerie had been avoiding Leonard since that night told him something was wrong.
Vince was sure Leonard had made a wrong move, but why he wasn’t ready to talk about it with him, but kept pretending to be all good is what he didn’t know.
“Leo my man, there’s something I really want you to know tonight. If we’re going to remain friends, you’re going to always remember the bro code that says ‘Bros share their pains and gains’. Why do you always recline to your shell when you have worries, instead of letting it out?” Vince told his friend all of a sudden.
“What’s there to let out Vince? You already know my wife left me and I’m as single as I can be. What are you talking about?” he asked his friend, not quite knowing what he was talking about.
“I’m not talking about the milk that’s already spilled. I’m talking about the milk laying so filled in your glass. I’m talking about you and Valerie” Vince said and observed how Leonard tensed at the mention of Valerie’s name.
He cleared his throat and began “You know Vince, that night you asked me to help you…” but Vince cut him short, “No buddy, that night I asked you to help yourself. That night I asked you to set things straight for yourself when you had urgent need of it! That night, I asked you to make your move” he corrected him, his eyes twinkling.
Leonard was shocked at what he was hearing. He had noticed the wink Vince gave him before he carried Tricia away that night, but he really didn’t read the meaning he was spelling out now to it. He had thought Vince was super glad to have been a legal to create time to be with his woman.
“Why are you looking so shocked Leo? Was I supposed to allow you wallow in self pity forever? Was I supposed to help you go running after a woman who treated you so poorly I doubt the reason she married you in the first place is love? No.my friend, I wanted you to move on, and since I knew Valerie liked you as much as you liked her, I did what I had to do” Vince told his friend eloquently.
Leonard was laughing abashedly as he shook his head, not believing what he was hearing. He had been walking with so much guilt since he woke up the next morning. He had been particularly afraid of what would happen if Vince found out that he couldn’t control himself around the girl he had asked him to accompany, someone he had entrusted in his care
For Leonard, the last thing he wanted was to make Vince disappointed in him. He really didn’t want Vince looking at him as an irresponsible man. So early the next morning, against his wish, against his yearnings and desires, he walked back to Valerie’s room to have a talk with her.
He had apologized to her for allowing himself get out of control. He had told her he really hadn’t acted that way with anything in mind, he was just doing what he could to get over the pains of his wife’s sudden departure.
“So Valerie, I’m hoping we can remain how we used to be. I’m hoping you don’t see me any less from the big brother you’ve come to see me as. I hope I haven’t disappointed you so badly that you’d have to complain to your sister and her man. It’d be a shame if I lost my wife and my friends, all from one vacation” he had told her.
Valerie was shocked at the proposition he was making. She had woken up and found out he had somehow run away, and was planning on how best to make him pay for reneging on their agreement to stay till the next morning.
She was still blushing from the thoughts of how he’d been too excited the previous night that he’d been poking her with his fully charged phallus. She laughed at the fact that a man whose wife had run away because of his inability to get his game on, was all over her with his manness, just because they danced.
Valerie was still in this state, visualizing the time he danced for her and the time he held her tiny waist, when he got into the room again. She was hoping he’d come to apologize to her for running away, and she was smiling in wait, when he started another kind of apology.
Valerie was heartbroken to say the least. She couldn’t believe after the way he acted with her that night, he was back to talks about his wife.
From her ends, it was clear that Leonard was truly still in love with his wife. And if she wasn’t sure of anything else, she was sure he had just tried to see if he could get it on around her, as a proof for his wife when he goes running after her.
So even though she liked him so much, she wasn’t going to stand in the way of a married couple. She had only let her guards down the last night because she thought he was done with Vivian, but from what she could see, he wanted her as a small sister.
She had told him he had nothing to worry about losing his friends, Tricia and Vince, because there wasn’t anything that can ruffle their feathers about that night. “It was only a dance Leonard, and there was no strings attached to it, at least from my own end!” she told him.
Leonard wasn’t sure if it was hurt he saw in her eyes as she spoke, but he was shocked at how hurt he was to hear that she only dances with him with no strings attached. She had been smiling sweetly.when he got into her room, but the smile had so quickly been replaced with a frown.
“Are out okay Valerie?” he had asked and she had told him about how she needed to be alone because she needed to catch some sleep. “I really didn’t get enough sleep you know!” she told him, forcing a smile, and Leonard thanked her for being so understanding, and walked out of the room.
Since then, Valerie had been so withdrawn that even a stranger would know she was doing her best to stay away from Leonard. She almost didn’t want to see his face.
HOUSE OF THORNS : EPISODE 21 – 30
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