Free Ineffable by Sherrod Story Page B

possibly could.
    She felt warm and soft, yet energy crackled beneath her skin. There were never half measures with Margot. She made love to him with everything she had. Every time they touched, it felt like overload.
    Nori cried out her name when he came, aware in some distant part of his brain that she was gasping out her own release. But it was very distant. That night had been rough, and before he knew it, he was asleep in her arms.
    His father came to the gym the next morning. He’d been half expecting him to pop up somewhere. It was his MO after they fought.
    “Bonjour.”
    Nori said nothing, continued drying himself, tossing the towel into a nearby bin.
    “You will not speak to your father?” Aro continued in censorious French.
    Nori continued dressing.
    “Well, this is mature.”
    “About as mature as the show you put on last night at that make believe dinner party,” Nori answered in French.
    Aro sucked in a breath at the fiercely banked anger in those quiet words.
    “Things got out of hand,” he began, flicking a dismissive hand.
    “Bull shit,” Nori spat. “You deliberately made Margot feel uncomfortable, pulling out every elitist half-truth, innuendo and barb you could find to make her feel unwanted. You’ve pulled the same shit with every woman I’ve ever dated for more than five minutes. Done everything you could to sow seeds of mistrust, or cast dispersions on their character. But this time it won’t work, father.”
    “You know nothing about this woman,” Aro spat.
    “No, I just don’t know everything,” Nori corrected. “But I will find out in time. And what I do know is enough for me to make a choice. I know she has a temper, a reputation. But I don’t care because I know her heart. I will have Margot, and you will not stop me.”
    “This woman has a past,” Aro insisted. “You just said so yourself. She is not who you think she is, my son. You’re charmed by her beauty and her talent and –” he flicked a dismissive hand in the air. “But, she is not the right sort of woman for you, Nori. She will hurt you personally and professionally. She’s not –”
    “She’s not what?” Nori waited, but beyond an exasperated sigh, Aro said nothing. “Why so reticent? You’ve never hesitated to spill whatever little secrets and dirt you’d dug up before. Or, is it just that this time, my woman is exactly who she purports herself to be? Maybe there is no mud for you to sling on her name, no concrete way for you to blacken her character. Everything is already out, no? Laid bare thanks to the paparazzi and social media. Perhaps that is why you fell back on simple, but effective rudeness last night.”
    Nori slammed his locker shut with a decisive bang and spun its lock. “Father, at the end of the day, there is no perfect woman. Perfection does not exist. If you are lucky enough to find someone to love, who loves you, makes you feel good, and doesn’t hurt you? You keep her. I think you know this since you are alone yourself. Instead of trying to keep me single, maybe you should open that door in your own life and seek out permanent companionship of your own.”
    “Permanent,” Aro sputtered. “You are thinking of marrying this creature?”
    Nori stared cold eyed at his sire. “You’d better think about whether you want me to remain as CEO of Ineffable. Think long and hard, father. Our relationship is balanced on a very precarious line right now because there is no fucking way I will allow you to dictate with whom I keep company. And I sure as hell will not allow you to insult my lover again. So, should you decide that I and my lady are not suitable, I’m happy to step down,” he said, pleasantly, buttoning a crisply pressed white shirt his assistant had left ready in his locker. He shrugged on his jacket, straightened his cuffs and lasered his father with fierce blue eyes.
    “You have never said such a thing to me,” Aro said softly, his shock visible. “Never threatened to