by Cee, DW
That did it. Josh and Donovan stammered for words, while the members in this kitchen laughed. I heard Donovan’s sister, Becky, comment to Bee, “Wow! I’ve never seen any girl tell my brother off the way Laney just told him off.”
“Isn’t she great?” Bee responded to Becky while giving me two thumbs up. I had to leave quickly before I lost it and started laughing. Knowing the little I did of Bee, she’d probably take a crack at her nephew and make me laugh.
Why was I so childish where Donovan Taylor was concerned? Why couldn’t I have just ignored the three guys and walked away? Now, I felt so stupid for having lashed out at everyone. I changed out of Bee’s beautiful dress, which had soon become my favorite, and put on my rattiest sweats. I didn’t want to bother with anyone. I just wanted to be comfortable and finish my schoolwork.
“Delaney?” I heard that whisper. Only one person in the world called me by my given name. And this was the one person I didn’t want to see at this moment. So what did I do? I pretended not to hear him. That’s right. I acted like a ten-year-old, and ignored him.
Of course, he knew what I was up to and spun my wheeled-chair around till I was so dizzy, I had to beg him to stop. Then, the jerk stopped my chair abruptly and I practically fell out of it. I would’ve fallen out had it not been for Donovan grabbing on to both sides of the chair when he halted it.
“So, now you’ll notice me?” he said with an evil laugh.
“I may throw up on you first, if you don’t get out of my way.” That did the trick. He let me go and I contemplated leaving the room and locking myself in the bathroom. I didn’t want to deal with the conversation that would follow.
Donovan caught on to my plan. “Oh, no you don’t. We’re going to have a little chat.” He grabbed me by the waist and had me sit next to him. “First of all, why can’t you play this weekend?”
“Seriously? You came here to ask why I can’t play baseball with you?” Damn this man! I thought he might be here to apologize, but he was here to push his cause.
“I need you to play. It’ll be just like our league. I’ll catch, you pitch.”
“You know I’m a Reid and you’re The Other?”
“So? I’ll figure something out so you and I can play together. Why can’t you be there?”
“Maybe I don’t want to play with you?”
“Why the hell can’t you play this weekend?” He ground out every word. His abrasiveness was starting to bug…just a little. Truly, nothing about this man irked me, except for the fact that he didn’t love me. It wouldn’t surprise me if one morning I woke up to find a capital L stamped to my forehead—L for LOSER.
“I’m going to Scottsdale. Nolan got a room for me and a friend to play a round of golf and enjoy the spa facilities.” I almost stuck my tongue out at him.
Donovan gave me the scary big brother scowl. “Nolan going to be there?”
“Um, yeah. That’s his job.”
“You like this guy?”
“No. We’re just friends.”
“Does he know you’re just friends?”
“Yes. I made it clear to him I wasn’t interested in him in that way. He understands and...why the hell am I explaining all this to you? When did my father give up his paternal rights to you?”
“I see the Reid spirit is coming out. All right. You said he got a weekend for you and a friend?”
Where was he going with this? “Yeah...”
He stepped outside for a brief moment, and walked in with my dad. “Chief. Delaney says she’s going away for the weekend with that guy she met in Hawaii.” That rat made me sound like a slut!
“I did not!”
“You did!” He spoke over me. “But she also said she could take a friend with her, so if it’s all right with you, Chief, I’ll be that friend and go on this weekend golf ‘outing’ with the two lovebirds.”
I was so pissed he put me in this position. Now, I was determined to go. “Daddy! You cannot allow...”
My father cut me off, and spoke over me as well. “Thanks, Donovan. I’m happy to have you go with my daughter so you can watch over her. If she’d prefer to be with a boy, rather than her family this weekend, at least I’ll sleep easy knowing you’ll be there.”
I wanted to scream! “Why?” was all I could ask. “Why are you doing this?”
“We only want what’s best for you.” My father and Donovan were in collusion.
I knew why my father was going through the trouble of joining forces with this rat. He and Mom were having a tough time accepting that I’d be leaving in a couple of weeks. I understood, and I was actually going to see if my parents wanted to go with me this weekend. Obviously, my dad would prefer to stay here and play baseball with the family. I didn’t give either one of them an answer, though the decision was pretty much made for me at this point.
I texted Nolan while Dad and Donovan were having a meeting of the minds in the corner of my room, and I went back to ignoring Donovan Taylor.
“I’m going to spin your chair again if you don’t look at me,” he warned.
“I think I’ll go back downstairs and leave you two to work out the particulars,” Dad mumbled, not able to look at me.
“I just want it noted that I don’t like you undermining and underestimating me.”
“And how did I do either one?”
“That was a sneaky move bringing my dad into this argument. What I choose to do with my time is no concern of yours, Mr. Taylor.”
Donovan smiled brilliantly. “I know! Wasn’t that a great move on my part?” He now had the gall to laugh at me.
“Also,” I raised my voice to talk over the chuckle. “Don’t ever put into question my virtue. That pisses me off!”
Now I got his attention. Horrified, he stammered, “How the fuck did your virtue get into this conversation? When the hell did I ever question that?”
“You had the nerve to tell my dad I was going away with a guy for the weekend—my dad of all people!” I was so upset, now my hands were going in all directions with crazy gestures to get my point across. “And earlier, you told a room full of people that I dated all the time, and you had no idea why anyone would want to date me!” Shit! Now I felt the tears coming. I willed myself to cry on the inside, only. I didn’t need to have to explain to this man why his every word affected me so much. “Am I that much of a pariah to you, where you can’t understand why any guy would ask me out? I know I’m not glamorous like your girlfriend Kate, and my cousin Jane, but...” I had to stop. “Fine. You win. Let’s go back to Jake’s and let everyone know I’m playing.” Before he could defend himself or give me the customary, of course you’re not a pariah, answer, I headed for Jake’s.
“You’re back!” Josh was quick to come over with a hug to boot. I wasn’t in the mood for him or anyone else. I dodged his hug and went straight to Bee to thank her for the clothes.
“You’re a popular lady.” I joined Bee and Donovan’s sister, Becky, at the kitchen table.
“Not really, Bee. If I were popular, I’d have a nice man defending me from these men who only think about themselves. Speaking of nice guys, Nick?” I left that as an open-ended question.
“Don’t ask. That’s as open-ended as your question. I think all the nice guys are married.” Bee lamented. “Guys don’t get any better than Jake or Al, and they’re both married.”
Becky responded. “There are many more nice guys left in this world. You will both find your men. And speaking of nice guys, I like the way you handled my brother,” she congratulated me without having any idea how manhandled I was just a few minutes ago.
“Your brother is not a nice guy. He can be an ass,” I started saying when I heard my name called.
It was the ass himself making me a part of his team. If it wasn’t bad enough that I couldn’t go away this weekend with my parents, it only got worse as Donovan forced me to play with him. Though, we did make a good catcher / pitcher team.
Practice on Friday went long. Donovan made us play a scrimmage with five players each since Mr. Taylor and Mr. Davis decided to join our group. Mr. Taylor was a hoot. He was the funnier, more easy-going version of Donovan Taylor. And Mr. Davis, in his own quiet way, was quite funny as well.
“Laney Reid, you better not strike me out. I could be your future father-in-law and hold a grudge the rest of my life.” Mr. Taylor warned with an aw-shucks smile. I could only wish that he would be my future father-in-law. Just because, I struck him out, and in three pitches. Mr. Taylor walked up to the mound, gave me a surprising kiss on the forehead, and walked away with a smile.
Mr. Davis gave me a slightly different version of the same riot act. “Laney Reid, you better not strike me out. I could be your future father-in-law, but I won’t hold a grudge against you the rest of my life even if you do strike me out.” Once again, just because, I struck him out, and in three pitches. He too came on the mound but decided to kiss me on both cheeks, instead.
“Enough with the damn kisses, old men, let’s get some hits,” Donovan yelled from behind his catcher’s mask.
Josh was up next, and I struck him out as well, and he was about to walk up to the mound when Donovan stopped him. Finally, long after the sun went down, we all collapsed and told Donovan that we were exhausted. We needed sustenance.
“Your father’s hilarious,” I told Max, who sat next to me at dinner. “He’s not what I imagined him to be.”
“I don’t know who has taken over my parents’ bodies, but the both of them have changed lately. They have become the parents the three of us have always wanted in a mother and a father.”
“This is great isn’t it?”
Max scratched his head, and thought over his answer. “It is, if it’ll continue this way. I don’t want to get my hopes up, and I don’t want my brothers to get their hopes up if my parents are going to revert back to their old ways.”
“I hope everything works out well for your family. You and your brothers deserve it.”
“Thanks, Laney.” Max said with a kind smile. Jane was truly blessed to have such an amazing boyfriend. Max was such a sweet person, and madly in love with my cousin.
“Your arm sore?” Josh asked. “You pitched a lot today.”
“It’s a bit sore, but I’ll be OK.”
“You want another beer?” Max brought the pitcher our way.
Donovan stopped Max from pouring. “She needs to be alert tomorrow. No more drinking, Little Girl.” That damn little girl moniker would stay with me for life. Just to piss him off, I poured myself more beer, and drank it all in one gigantic gulp. If he weren’t staring at me, I would’ve run into the bathroom and thrown it all up. This wasn’t a smart move on my part. Donovan got pissed, and he poured me another glass with a challenging stare. I took that glass, gulped that one down as well, and stared back.
“Laney, why don’t you join us over here?” Bee said with a chuckle. “That was impressive,” she whispered. Becky and Al laughed at me.
“Stupid is more like it. Now I’ll be up all night going pee. And I don’t even like beer.”
Becky and Al laughed even harder. “I think your brother has finally met his match.” Al said.
“But I think he’s too stupid to understand this.” Becky added.
Whatever. They had no clue Donovan Taylor’s interest lay elsewhere.
“It was great hanging out with you today, but I think I’ll go home.” As soon as I said that, I realized I needed a ride home. “Shoot! Bee, can I ask you for a ride? My car is in the shop.”
“I’ll give you a ride,” Josh quickly jumped into the conversation. “How about if I ask my brother for his bike and we can take a long ride back home?” Was it mean of me not to want to be on a bike with a man I wasn’t in love with? Was it too much to ask that the man I loved would return this affection, rather than a man I didn’t have feelings for showering me with affection?
“I’ll take you if you’ll stop by my house and model a few new outfits for me?” Bee was giving me my out.
God bless Bee! “I’d love to try on more of your clothes.” Then I whispered, “Thanks, Bee. I owe you one.”
Bee’s loft was littered with clothes. She said she was in the middle of all new designs for next spring so there were not only patterns everywhere, but also beautiful fabrics thrown about all over the tables, chairs and floor. This time, there was an excess amount of lace everywhere. The fabrics were so exquisite; I went about touching all of them.
“What do you need me to try on? And by the way, I get loads of compliments on all your dresses. I never got to thank you for the dresses you sent me.”
“No need to thank me. Thank Mr. Taylor.”
“Why would I thank him?”
“Because he paid me retail for all those clothes.”
I must have had a super surprised look on my face. “What? Are you in shock that I charged him retail, rather than wholesale? I tried to give it to him at wholesale, but he insisted on paying what was on the price tag.”
“It’s just...never mind, Bee. I’ll thank Donovan next time I see him.”
Bee had a sly smile on her face as she said, “So you can say his first name.”
I laughed. “Yes, I know it and can pronounce it.”
“Then what’s the deal with you calling him Mr. Taylor?”
I had to think about that for a bit. “It’s along the same line as him calling me ‘little girl.’” She handed me a slip of an outfit she wanted me to try as I was trying to explain myself to her. “What’s this?”
“I’m trying my hand at lingerie. This is a first attempt, so I’d love to see how it would look on someone with an amazing body.”
“These are beautiful and so delicate.”
“I handmade each piece. These are a labor of love.”
“You want me to try on everything?”
“Would you mind? Can I take some photos of you wearing them? I won’t take any face shots. I just need to know what it looks like on a real body, so I can make the appropriate tweaks.”
I went behind her screen and first rolled up the ultra sheer thigh-high stockings. Then I realized that maybe the stockings were the last items I was supposed to put on. This whole outfit had a 60’s feel with soft pink silk and creamy yellow lace all around the edges. The underwear was all pink, with a cute yellow bow in the front, and French yellow lace all around the sides. The bra was made of the same concept with French lace on the top outer part of the bra. The belt or suspender looked like an upside down tank cami cut in half with sweet French lace all around the edge. I stepped out as soon as I snapped the suspenders onto the thigh-highs.
“Do women really wear these kinds of beautiful lingerie?”
“Damn! My creation looks beeaauutiifuulll! I need you to model my entire line. Do a 360.”
Bee was not wrong when she exaggerated the word, beautiful. That’s exactly how I felt wearing such upscale lingerie.
“What the fuck are you wearing?” An angry man’s voice boomed in the small loft.
“Ahhh!” I screamed and ran back into the screen wall.
“What are you doing wearing...that?”
“Chill out, Nephew. Your friend here is helping me.”
“When did you start making lingerie? And why Delaney? She’s too young to be modeling lingerie.”
Bee laughed in sincerity. I laughed in mockery. “You mean you’ve never seen a twenty-two-year-old in lingerie?” She had him there with that question.
I answered for him. “No, he hasn’t because when he was twenty-two, the woman in lingerie was thirty-two, and when the woman was twenty-two, he was twelve.” Bee and I both cracked-up at my stupid logic.
“Very funny. Take that off, now!”
“I need pictures. You,” I assumed she was pointing at Donovan, “go sit over there and watch TV while I finish here with my model.”
I could hear him grudgingly walk over. H
ow did I know he grudgingly walked over? I heard his boots stomp.
“Come on out.”
Carefully, I stepped out and peeked over at Donovan. He was trying hard to stare out at the city lights. “Let’s get this done, quickly. I feel self-conscious.”
Bee started clicking away.
“What the hell are you going to do with those pictures?” Donovan asked, still looking away. “You’re not going to use them in your ads, are you?” He sounded horrified.
“Relax, Mr. Taylor.” That was Bee talking, not me. “It’s for personal use only. My creation needs improvement and these pictures will help me figure out what I’ve done well, and what needs changing.”
“It looks pretty damn near perfect.” Donovan muttered the last few words, but I heard them and felt pretty damn near perfect, myself.
“Why are you here, Mr. Taylor?” This time, it was me asking.
“I’m here to take my star pitcher home. When are you going to be done?”
“I don’t know. Plus, Bee said she’d take me home. You can get going. I’m sure you’re tired after bossing us all around today.”
Bee and another woman started laughing. Then, I heard a man’s whistle, which made me run behind the screen again.
“Don’t look!” I heard Donovan yell.
“Damn, bro’. I get it. No worries. I have your sister keeping me warm at night; I’m not here to steal your lady.”
“What the hell are you two doing here?”
“Um...we’re staying with Bee for another couple of days till we go back home.” Becky reminded her brother. “Hey Bee. What’s up with you using Laney as a model? You could have asked me. I’m feeling offended you didn’t ask me.”
“I don’t want a prego body, and I need someone who can give me more than a B cup.”
Becky stammered. “I am NOT a B cup. Why I’ll be close to a DD in a few months when my milk comes in.” Becky put both her hands on her breasts and cupped them together to make them look fuller.
