So, I'm trying to get this story moving along again. Aaron rears his head again in this chapter...
Monday morning, Sarah awoke to the alarm clock blaring at her. Reaching over to hit the snooze button, she remembered she was going to get up earlier than usual to work on her business ethics paper. So, at 6:30 a.m., she grudgingly threw her warm covers to the side, stood up and stretched, then padded barefoot into the bathroom.
She took a quick shower, put on jeans, a T-shirt and her favorite dark brown boots, and threw her long hair up in a bun. Looking in the mirror as she brushed her teeth, she noticed a glow about her face despite being tired as hell.
Yeah, it's called having great sex, Williams. Jasmine would be jealous, she thought to herself, smiling.
Rinsing her mouth out and putting her toothbrush away, Sarah turned off the bathroom light, gave herself a once-over in the full-length mirror in her bedroom, then headed out to the living room. While gathering her books together on the dining room table and putting them in her backpack, she thought she heard someone whistling; she quickly realized it was coming from her.
Wow, it must have been REALLY great sex, she chuckled to herself.
After putting on her jacket and flinging her backpack over one shoulder, she grabbed her keys from the bowl next to the door and headed out to face the day, unaware of the three small goblins trailing along behind her.
Even though it was only 7 o'clock, Sarah could tell it was going to be a beautiful day. So, she decided to walk to The Daily Grind where she could grab a coffee and work on her paper.
About 10 minutes later, the bell over the door rang as she entered the busy coffee shop and walked up to the counter to order her usual peppermint mocha. As she headed for a table, she heard a smooth British accent saying her name.
"Hello, Sarah, care to join me?" Sarah turned to her left to find Aaron seated at a table, a cup of black coffee sitting in front of him.
The instant Sarah saw him, the butterflies started making their rounds in her stomach. He looked inhumanly handsome with his slicked back chestnut hair and his chocolate-colored eyes. Like the last time she saw him, he was sharply dressed in a dark blue suit, white button-up shirt and a blue striped tie; leaning against one thigh was a walking stick and a pair of sunglasses was hooked onto the breast pocket of his suit jacket. Sarah could swear he just stepped out of the pages of a GQ magazine.
Still entranced by his dark eyes, Sarah forgot about her paper and found herself accepting his offer. Aaron smiled at her reaction to him.
Oh, the things I could do to you when you become mine, he thought dirtily.
"Sure, I have some time before my first class," she said once the words formed on her lips. All thoughts of her business ethics paper slipped from her mind.
Aaron smiled even more brightly, causing her breath to hitch in her throat. He folded up the newspaper he was holding and placed it on the table before standing up to pull her chair out for her as she approached.
"Thank you," she responded as she sat down and laid her backpack on the floor next to her.
"No, thank you. There's no better way to start off a Monday than in the company of a beautiful woman," he replied as he sat back down. Sarah blushed at the compliment and hurriedly grabbed her coffee to take a sip, hoping to hide her face.
"So, you were saying something about a class? What are you studying?" Aaron asked, feigning interest.
"Oh, yeah, I'm studying business administration although I'm not quite sure what field I want to get into yet," she replied.
"It's funny you should mention business. My sister, Abigail, and I happen to be here on behalf of my family's business interests. We deal in business marketing," he said and Sarah's ears perked up.
"Really? What a funny coincidence – that's the area I've been thinking about pursuing although I'm not completely sure as of yet," Sarah replied eagerly.
Ah, talk about a lucky guess. The fates must be stepping in on my behalf, he thought with a slight smirk.
"What a funny coincidence indeed," he said, taking a sip of his coffee. "Perhaps, we'll have to employ you once you're done with your schooling."
Sarah, thinking he wasn't being serious, gave out a small laugh.
"I'm just hoping to get through my first year for starters," she joked. After a brief pause, she asked, "So, what is the name of your family business? Maybe I've heard of it."
Because Talbot and Morgra ran through a background story for such an occasion, he smoothly replied.
"Oh, I doubt that. It's called Thomas Marketing Concepts. It was started by our father when he was just a young man. His first office opened in Reading before he opened a second branch in London. Abby and I take care of that branch," Aaron said and Sarah's ears perked up once again.
"Reading? Are you originally from there?" she asked eagerly.
"Yes, those are my old stomping grounds," he lied, hoping it would bring up some interesting information; he wasn't disappointed. He watched as a smile spread across Sarah's face.
"Did you know anyone by the name of David Prescott?" she asked, still smiling brightly. David's name always had that affect on her.
Aaron was confused at first, but then everything clicked.
Oh, thank you, the fates are with me again. Here's my perfect opportunity, he thought wickedly.
"Ah, is this the gentleman who is courting you?" he asked cautiously.
"Yes it is. He's originally from Reading and taught at Cambridge for awhile before coming to teach here at Stratford University," she said excitedly. "You look about the same age as him, so I thought maybe you might know him."
Sarah didn't know what kind of reaction she expected to get from Aaron, but it wasn't the one she got.
His lips turned down into a frown and his brow furrowed.
"How long have you known David?" he quietly asked, worry gracing his features.
Frowning herself, Sarah thought about his question for a second.
"About a couple of weeks. Why? What's wrong?"
"It may not be anything, but I've heard about someone named David Prescott back home and he may not be who you think he is. There was a scandal a few months ago about a man by that name who got into trouble for impersonating an instructor so he could bed the co-eds on campus, although I'm not sure at which university it happened. Last I heard around town was that he disappeared and it was suspected he came over here to the States," he said, turning his dark eyes to study Sarah.
She looked as though all the life drained out of her body; in that instant, she was thinking about yet another man possibly betraying her just like Kennedy. The former glow she saw in the mirror that morning was gone and now a look of shock took over her features.
"I'm sorry, dear, it may not even be the same man. I mean, if it were him, why would he bother using the same name instead of an alias, right?" Aaron said, pretending to be helpful.
"Right," Sarah whispered, fighting back tears as she stared at the tabletop.
False sadness crossed Aaron's face.
"Oh, bloody hell I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ruin your whole day. That's the last thing I meant to do; I just thought I'd speak up just as a precautionary measure. Like I said, it may not even be anything."
Sarah could only numbly nod her head until she realized she still had a class to attend, plus she didn't get any of her paper done, although that didn't matter to her anymore. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was already a quarter to 8. She reached over to pick up her backpack and began to stand up. Aaron reached over to gently place a hand on her arm.
"I really do hope I'm wrong about this, but if you need someone to talk to, you still have my number, right?" he asked, looking at her earnestly.
Sarah thought about the napkin that was still in her apron pocket and nodded.
"Thank you," she whispered before turning and leaving, followed by three little goblins that no one noticed, not even Talbot.
Smiling, Talbot reached for the newspaper laying on the table and shook it back out.
Things are looking up for me, dear brother. We'll see who wins this game, he thought with contentment.
As Sarah slowly walked to campus, conflicting emotions were raging within her. On the one hand, she had just met Aaron and, for all she knew, he could be lying to her; he had hit on her before after all. Maybe he was just trying to wipe out the competition. On the other hand, she hadn't really known David for very long either and, although he always seemed so sincere when he was with her, it could have been an act to get into her pants.
Which he succeeded at doing, she couldn't help but think begrudgingly.
Sarah knew she had no choice but to confront David and see what his reaction was, but ultimately, she would have to do a little detective work herself and get to the bottom of this mess. She just hoped she found the answers she really wanted to find.
While Sarah was lost in her own thoughts, Grog, Flurk and Korg quietly followed behind in the shadows, whispering.
"Was that the bad man?" asked Grog.
"Maybe," said Flurk.
"Should we tell Your Majesty?" asked Korg.
"Me thinks so," replied Grog.
As Grog and Flurk continued following Sarah, Korg disappeared with a pop to go and report to their King.