Having Difficulty Erasing Her!

Looking up at the ceiling, Ezra was catching a basketball that he had thrown into the air. The strange girl he met the day before yesterday was all he could think about. As he continued to consider Scott's words, he sighed several times. The ball was dropped on his bed as he sat up.

Last night, Ezra barely slept at all. Before going to sleep, he had thoughts of Emma, and when he woke up, he had similar thoughts. Just as Scott had advised, he could not involve the police. He tried to do it, but he just couldn't. His thoughts kept returning to her smile—her damn smile.

When someone knocked on his door, Ezra responded, "You can come in now." His mother was standing there when the door opened, holding a plate in her hand. She entered and walked over to his bed.

"Today is Sunday, but you don't even bother getting ready for church." Josie Queen was a devout woman who wished her husband and children would respect God as much as she does. She placed the plate on the table and gave Ezra a quick look. "Since returning yesterday morning, you haven't even left this room to spend some time with your family. Is everything alright?”

He looked at Josie. “I’m fine, Mom. You should go to church unless you will be late and God will be angry.” He teased, and that made his mother laugh. He glanced at the table and then looked up at Josie. “What is that?”

"A leftover cake from the celebration for your grandmother that I baked yesterday."

“And why are you giving it to me? Feed it to Dad or Cody.”

“I can’t give it to Cody. He is a dog, and he might get sick. I would have given them to Winter, but she refused to come home. I'm not sure if she just likes to rebel against your father. Maybe I shouldn't have agreed to enroll her in that boarding school in England. It’s all my fault.” While glancing at Ezra, she sighed.

“Don’t look at me. I warned you that she would be furious if you sent her to England, but no one in this house seems to be listening. Now, deal with it.” He rested his head on the pillow. “You should go now. You don't want to arrive at church late. I don’t want you to blame me if you end up missing the second service. I will eat the cake.”

Turning to walk away, Josie took one last look behind her. “You must eat it, okay?” Ezra remained silent, and his mother left his room. He closed his eyes and let out a frustrated groan. Even falling asleep was difficult. As soon as he reached for the cake, the discovery that it was vanilla-flavored ruined his expression. Back on the table, he dropped the plate.

Immediately after standing up, he left his room. Cody dashed to him as he entered the living room. Ezra gave his dog a pat on the head before going to the refrigerator. He had also become weak from not eating yesterday. He didn't realize that, in the name of having her close to him once more, he would even starve himself. He fantasized about getting her back in his arms. There was more to it than just the smell of her hair or perfume. He was furious with himself for not being even more furious with her for stealing from him. Because of her, his car is gone, as is the money he intended to give his sister.

Oh, boy! He suddenly thought of Winter. Since he hasn't even called her or texted her about anything involving money, she will be furious with him. As he opened the refrigerator, his stomach rumbled, but there was nothing inside. It seemed like his mother had served everything for breakfast that morning.

After locking the refrigerator, Ezra turned to face Cody. “That’s what I get for not spending time with my family. Come on, boy, let's go get some food somewhere. What do you think?” His dog wagged his tail as he spoke. With his big pink tongue, Cody bathed Ezra’s pants. He was content as long as he had access to food, shelter, and lots of head pats.

As he was leaving, Ezra took his phone out of his pocket and made a call to Scott. He was in need of transportation but had kept his parents in the dark about the gorgeous girl who had stolen his car since he returned home. He would never say it that way, of course. He would say that it was taken on the day of the party and that he searched for it but was unable to locate it. Without a doubt, his parents would believe his lies.

“Yo! Bro.” Over the phone, Scott said. “It is weird for you to call, so that tells me that you are in need of something. What can I help you with?”

“I need a ride out. Are you available?” Ezra asked. He hated the fact that he had to call Scott and ask for help. Both of them had known each other since birth and had grown up together. Went to the same high school and graduated from the same college. “Please say yes.”

"You finally made the decision to get out of bed, huh?" Scott laughed.

"Scott, I'm hungry and I need some food."

“You don’t need to drive out to get that. I'll deliver it to you. Don’t worry. Just wait for me. I'll be there shortly.”

After hanging up the phone, Ezra returned inside. He fixed his gaze on the empty space. It doesn't seem like his father was home because he would have heard his voice by this point. After a short while of waiting for Scott, Ezra heard a car pull up to the building.

In front of the house, Scott parked the car and unlocked it. “That was quick, huh?” he said with a grin on his face.

Ezra gave a nod. “I'm just relieved that you were not issued a speeding ticket by the police.”

After getting in the vehicle, Scott brought the food out. “My father is rich. They will definitely let me be if they see my face. I’m Scott Jones.” He handed Ezra the food while casting a downward glance at Cody. “Of course, I wouldn't forget about you. I brought you a treat.” As Ezra entered the house, Cody yapped and played with Scott.

Ezra placed the food and opened it once he was inside the kitchen. His mouth released a sigh of relief. "I had anticipated that you would bring something I wouldn't enjoy. I am glad you know me well. Since yesterday, I have been craving this. Chicken.” He pulled out the extra plate and set it on the table.

"How can you possibly be hungry when there is a girl out there who is taking advantage of your money?"

"So you want me to die of starvation because a girl ran away with my car and money?”

“A car worth millions of dollars. I'm still curious as to why you haven't called the police.”

Ezra gave him a glance. "Scott, we discussed this yesterday morning. I can’t involve the police.”

“Don’t tell me you are already in love with her.” When Ezra didn’t say anything, Scott yelled, “Gosh! What is wrong with you? You just met her. That is not how you do things.”

“I am not in love with her.” He’d been thinking about her all night, so that only says one thing. He is in love with her. "I just assumed she'd call me and..."

“And what? Once they steal something this large, those kinds of girls never return, Ezra. When will you learn? Be more like me.”

Ezra furrowed his brow. “That is what you don’t understand, Scott. I'm not the same as you. I'm not a playboy, and I don't sleep with my best friend's girlfriend!”

After hearing what Ezra said, Scott immediately remained silent. When he opened his mouth to speak, nothing came out. He took a moment to look away before turning to face Ezra. “I... I thought we put this behind us.”

Ezra groaned. How could he? When he learned about Heather and his best friend, Scott, it haunted him the entire time he was in college. Scott had a thing for always taking girls who bragged about being fine and hot, and he had done that to Heather.

“I already apologized several times. I am sorry I fucked your girlfriend.”

“Ex girlfriend.” Ezra clarified. "There are times when I question why I continued to be friends with you. You hurt me, man. I get it. You thought she was attractive and you liked her, but you ought to have considered me. And don’t you dare say that you did.”

"Well, I did think of you, but Heather wasn't deserving of you. I've always known she's a..." Upon observing Ezra's expression, he stopped. “I’m sorry.”

Ezra sighed. “I saw the way she looked at you. Scott, I believe she liked you. More than she did to me. I loved her, but I had to let her go for that reason. I gave her up so you could have her, but you ended up hurting her.”

Scott tinkered around with his car keys. “You should know me. Relationships are not my thing. I wasn't the right person for that, but Heather wanted it.” He glanced at Cody, who was chewing on his dog biscuit, and smiled. "When he is this gentle, I like it."

After finishing his meal, Ezra put the empty plate away. He isn't even prepared to discuss Heather Walls. And he was happy that Scott changed the subject. “Yeah. That is Cody for you.”

Scott swung around to face him. “I know how I can help you. Perhaps we should go to a party tonight. You can meet another girl. She will help you forget about Emma.”

“No. I don’t think I am interested.” He passed Scott as he headed up the stairs and, just then, he spotted his father leaving his room. Ezra halted in his tracks. "You remained indoors the entire time?"

Ben chuckled. "If I weren't inside, where would I be? I was on my way to even come to you.”

“What is this about, dad?”

“I have been thinking. Since you have graduated and you take the business really seriously, how about I get you a promotion? What are your thoughts on taking over as CEO?”

Ezra stood, speechless. Although he had not anticipated his father bringing up the subject so quickly, he was glad that he had. He'd always wanted to be in charge, and now his father has finally realized he could lead. On Ezra's face, a smirk appeared. “I will like that very much.”