by M. S. Willis
My apartment smelled like pine and lemons and sandalwood and orange. There wasn’t an inch of wood or glass where you couldn’t see your reflection. I was pretty damn proud.
I looked around at my handy work when I heard a motorcycle pulling into the parking lot below our apartment. I didn’t think it could be Paige, considering Chris had destroyed her bike the day before, but I looked out the window anyway. There, straddling a white motorcycle was my favorite blonde. I didn’t know where she got the bike and I didn’t care. The girl had been out with Mr. ManGod himself and she was going to spill.
Throwing open the front door, I screamed, “Details!”
Paige looked at me like she was a burglar caught in a spotlight and I knew something had happened.
(David Note: Now, here you will remember that Paige had neglected to mention that she’d agreed to going out with Daemon – aka Mr. ManGod himself. And that’s just wrong. Seriously. Your friends are there to live vicariously through you, so if you ever find yourself in a situation like my friend, Paige, you need to talk to your friends about that shit. They LIVE for it. This advice has absolutely NOTHING to do with how I’m a hero, but you can consider this a public service announcement – back to the story)
After looking over and, I think, appreciating, my apron and feather duster, Paige stepped towards the door. She felt the need to point out my domesticated image. “What’s with the housewife getup?”
Oh, HEEEEEELLLLL no, she was not going to be allowed to deflect this conversation.
“Oh no. You are not shifting the focus on me. You did not return home last night, you were with ManGod, and I will live vicariously through you this morning.”
Not able to wait a minute longer, I grabbed her by her skinny little arm and dragged her freakishly tall ass into the apartment.
I tossed her in a chair and rushed into the kitchen to make the popcorn I’d also picked up that morning and I poured myself a soda. Launching myself back into the living room, I sat down like a Kindergartner waiting for story time.
“Proceed.”
Paige went into a long drawn out diatribe, which mostly was elicited by my endless nudging and coaxing. Eventually, we figured out that Daemon had a little kinky side to him and Paige was all for it. I was proud. Never one to give up control, my little Paige had learned to, at least, let a man take the lead in the bedroom. It wasn’t a huge accomplishment, but I’ve always been one to cheer over baby steps.
“So what? You’re going to let this guy use you and degrade you? Are you fucking kidding me, Paige?”
My eyes shot to Alex who was standing in Paige’s doorway. Normally, I didn’t mind seeing his gorgeous body hanging around the apartment (preferably without his shirt), but his presence surprised me.
He was arguing with Paige when I mentally tracked my activities for that morning. None of them contained a greeting made to Alex. When the hell had he arrived?
“Alex, when did you get here? I don’t remember seeing you coming…”
“Give it up, David! You’re not helping her by encouraging her to let this guy fuck with her head!”
My mouth dropped. I’d seen Alex mad before, but nothing like this. The arteries in his neck pulsed and his eyes looked bloodshot. Had he been crying?
“Paige, Can we please go talk in private?”
Paige and Alex ventured into her bedroom and I’ll admit it – I stood as close to the door as I could get. I had to hear what was going on. It was heartbreaking to say the least. The dejection in Alex’s voice when Paige broke it off with him left me a little teary eyed. I jumped out of the way when Alex left suddenly and I was torn between talking to Paige or talking to him. Paige was a nightmare when she was upset, so I took my chances with Alex.
He stormed through the living room barely giving me enough time to follow behind him as he exited the apartment. I chased him down the stairs and noticed how his eyes rolled at me when he approached his car.
“I don’t want to hear it, David. Okay? Paige and I are done. I get that. I’m not good enough for her…or maybe I’m just not enough of an asshole. After what I heard her telling you in that living room, who the fuck knows? Maybe she wanted me to hit her or some shit. I mean, she did grow up around all that jacked up abuse crap, maybe it somehow snuck into her head and she thinks that’s how guys are supposed to act.”
He was rambling and his voice was cracking. The guy was breaking down in front of me and I didn’t know what to do. Alex had become one of my best friends as much as Paige and he was a fixture around the apartment. I never considered Daemon would be the reason Alex had to go and I felt awful.
Not knowing what else to do, I stepped forward and took Alex into a big bear hug. His body instantly tensed and he grew really quiet at first. I stood there hugging him thinking, maybe, it would just take him a minute to warm up to it.
“David. Man, you’re my friend and all, but this bro-love isn’t going to be happening. Friend or no friend, I don’t hug dudes.”
No such luck.
I stepped back. “Fist bump?” I held my fist out to him and he raised an eyebrow at me. After a few tense moments, he relented.
“Yeah. I can do a fist bump.”
It grew silent again and I tried to appreciate the weight of the situation. There was no way Paige could have Alex hanging around while she developed her relationship with Daemon; but at the same time, she didn’t need to lose Alex either. She loved him. It might not have been a romantic love, but it was love nonetheless.
“Alex, I knew this day was going to come between you two and you can’t say you didn’t know either. What I’m saying won’t make it any easier, but maybe it’s time for you two to take a small break. Just because you two aren’t doing it anymore doesn’t mean you can’t be friends. Give her time to move on and give yourself some time to move on and then, eventually, you two can come back together as the friends that you’ve always been.”
When he sniffled, looked away while wiping his face and then looked back with that tough look that only he could give, my heart broke for him.
“I’m not worried about it, David. She’s Paige, you know? She’ll drive any man crazy and instead of feeling sorry for myself, I should be feeling sorry for the poor bastard she’s getting involved with.”
I nodded. It was part sympathy and part agreement. Paige was hell on wheels when she wanted to be and I couldn’t blame Alex for pointing that out.
“Keep in touch, Alex. Paige still needs you and so do the rest of us. I understand if you need distance initially, but don’t use this as an excuse to desert us.”
He smiled slightly. I considered it a win.
“Because, if you tried that, I’d hunt you down. I know where you work and live. I can get really annoying when I want to and I’d hate to have to funnel all that energy your direction. I’ll admit, you’re kind of scary when you’re mad, but I’d do it anyway.”
We fist bumped again and then Alex excused himself into his car after I made him promise three times that he’d get over this and come back. He made the promises but I didn’t believe he meant them.
Looking up at the apartments, I sighed heavily. This was going to be hard for both Paige and Alex. Hopefully, with my help, those two would figure out how to move on without losing sight of each other in the process.
(David Note: I want to remind you how important Alex was in the rescue of Paige from the fire at Tomb. So, basically, had the above NOT occurred, the conclusion to her story might not have been possible. Annnnnnnnnd that brings me to hero factor number three: I kept Alex in her life. Moving on…)
Chapter Five
“I look like a five cent hooker!”
I woke up Paige from the nap she took following Alex’ departure, and, to be honest, I was worried. I’d never seen the girl so torn up over anything in her life and the sight was pathetic and heartbreaking. I wish I could tell you that I was in there to make sure that she was as well adjusted and put together as she could be after such an a
wful incident, but I’d be lying if I did. I was really in there partly because I wanted to talk to her before Matt came over and also because there was a funny smell emanating from the room and it needed a good cleaning. You would think living with two girls would mean you never had to clean – trust me, you’d be wrong to think that.
“Yes. Matt will be here at five and I want everything to be perfect. First impressions are important and I won’t let anything screw this up.”
My words were a warning and I meant it. I’d given Paige and Annie many nights of my undivided love and attention during the times they were in crisis, and I wasn’t going to let their drama throw a wrench in the plans I had with Matt. Between the craptastic men Annie brought home, and the constant wars going on between Paige and somebody she pissed off, I could barely get an ounce of peace around the place. Seriously, I should have been sainted for what I’d put up with living with these two.
While I was busy cleaning up the kitchen for the fifth time, I could hear the girls silently talking in the living room after Paige had finally emerged. Annie’s voice had a special ring to it and I was happy to know that Logan, a decent guy, had put it there. Things were looking up for Annie now that Paige had made that love connection. The girl really was a genius for that idea.
However, when I heard Annie attempting to talk Paige away from Daemon, I stopped what I was doing and marched into the living room. There was no way in hell that I was going to allow Annie to put doubt in Paige’s head about ManGod. She was lucky as shit to have a chance with him. Sure, the girl was beautiful, but her gruff personality tends to rub people the wrong way. By my calculations, she had one shot with Daemon and Annie was fucking it up.
“Why the long face?”
Annie answered before Paige even had the chance. “Logan told me that Daemon had a reputation for being a player and I just told Paige to be careful.” Paige looked dejectedly at me and I frowned just as Annie suggested, “I know! I’m going there tonight to see Logan. I can watch Daemon and report back to you if I see him with another woman.”
But then, an idea popped in my head. It was brilliant, it was genius…and from a prophetic standpoint, it was probably the only thing that saved Paige’s romance.
“I have a better idea. Paige, you’re an investigator, right?”
Within minutes I had Paige in the room, prepping her for the night out with Daemon. I’d texted Matt and told him to bring every cosmetic tool he had because we were transforming a woman into a whore, dammit!
Matt arrived at the house, punctually, I might add – and we got to work on Paige. I’d chosen a short skirt and tight halter top from Annie’s trunk o’ tricks and Matt went to work applying makeup in the proper places and selecting a wig to top it off. By the time Paige was done, I whistled in appreciation.
“I look like a five cent hooker!”
Paige apparently did not have the same appreciation of the artistry that went into the transformation we’d just accomplished.
“Oh shut up, Paige. You look great. Daemon will never know it’s you.”
I told her that, but I totally knew Daemon would recognize her. I mean, how could any person miss her? Even five cent hookers dressed more classy than she was dressed at the moment, but I had a date to get to and I’d run out of time dealing with Paige’s annoying problems. After I shoved her out the door with a friendly “good luck’ wave, I watched as she stumbled on the four inch heels strapped to her feet. Even if Daemon recognized her, that was fine. The point was to get her to feel like she could trust him and to ensure that she didn’t give up on the relationship before it ever the chance to blossom. My little Paigey was growing up and I was like the proud papa watching her come into her element. Once she’d disappeared in my car, I shut the door and turned to Matt.
“Please tell me we can use your car because I just sent mine off with Supertramp.”
Matt snickered. “You are so cruel. That girl will get picked out by whomever she is tryin’ to fool in no time. She looked ridiculous!”
Annie and I cracked up. “Yeah, well, the point is to get Paige over there in the first place. If she feels better going in costume, then we’ll send her in costume. You have NO idea how stubborn that woman can be. Seriously, she’s created an art out of thickheadedness. Are we ready for our date? I’m thinking a long walk on the beach sounds good, if you’re up for it.”
Matt nodded and I was beside myself with happiness. I looked over towards Annie. “Are we leaving you all by your lonesome tonight?”
“No, David. Don’t worry about me. I’m supposed to meet Logan close to when he gets off of work, so I’m just going to hang back, watch some T.V. and get ready in a couple of hours.”
“Sounds good, Annie girl.” I opened the front door and allowed Matt to walk out in front of me. I was nothing if not a gentleman. “Be sure to lock up behind us!” Annie laughed, flipped me the middle finger and settled herself onto the overstuffed sofa in the living room.
“Have fun, David! Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
I turned to her before shutting the door. “I’m not sure that there is anything you wouldn’t do.”
“You got that right!”
. . .
“Come on! It’s Video Killed the Radio Star, how can you not love this song?!” Waving my hands above my head, I enjoyed riding in Matt’s truck as we hightailed it to the pier for our romantic interlude under the stars. Matt wasn’t into the 80s music as much as me and he kept trying to convince me to turn the radio back to the country station where he’d had it previously set.
“Seriously, Matt. If this is going to work, you are going to have to learn more about the 80s. They were my favorite decade!”
“You were barely a baby in that decade…unless you’re older than you’re lettin’ on.” He grinned – I gasped.
“You did not just go there. You know how sensitive I am about my age, or, if you don’t know, I’ll tell you now. I’m sensitive about my age. Seriously. If it wasn’t for balloons and cake and presents, I would go into an utter depression every year on my birthday. But, who can be depressed with cake?!”
He laughed that deep baritone laugh to which I was quickly becoming addicted and pulled into the parking lot at the pier. “Well, we’re here my little electronica lovin’ tart.”
His accent washed over me every time he spoke. Seriously, if they outlawed Gs at the end of every word known to man, I wouldn’t be upset. And no. It didn’t escape me that he’d just called me his. I mean, sure, that was followed by little electronica lovin’ tart, but still, there was a ‘my’ at the beginning of that sentence. I loved that ‘my’. I wished I had a recorder to record that ‘my’. And then it hit me…
“Oh!” Pulling my phone from my pocket I shoved it in his face. “Could you say that again? I’d like to record it for posterity.”
Pushing the phone out of his face, he smiled a bright, dimpled grin and I melted all over the wooden boards of the pier. Was it too soon to tell Matt I loved him? Because, I think I did. Okay, maybe it was simple infatuation, but he was the perfect package. Good looking, sweet, rugged, and his accent was enough to send me to sleep each night with happy thoughts of sweaty men, doing manly things in extreme heat. Seriously, every drip of sweat running down their bodies was in high definition in the dreams this man was giving me. There wasn’t enough money in the world to buy something as perfect as the specimen walking beside me.
“So, tell me about yourself, David. At dinner last night, I felt a little self-conscious talkin’ about myself the entire time. I’ll give it to you, though, you run a good interview.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, well, I work in law as a paralegal. I’m on the trial team so I have years of experience investigating cases and interviewing witnesses. I’ve become adept at pulling information out of people quickly and efficiently.”
“You can say that again. Drivin’ home, all I could think about was how the only thing you didn’t learn about me was my pant size and social
security number.”
“I’m guessing you’re a 32-36, right?”
His head swiveled to look at me. “You been goin’ through my clothes drawers? Damn, David, you have an eye when it comes to clothin’ don’t ya?”
I did. But I only knew his size because he was basically the same size as me so it was easy to guess. “There’s not much to me. What you see is what you get. I’m originally from Chicago, but I left the windy city to relocate to the land of sunshine when I was fifteen. My dad – well, that’s a sad story so I won’t get into it, but…”
Matt turned and grabbed my hand. “Does it have to do with you being gay?”
A sigh escaped me. Might as well get past the sad back story so we can move on to better conversations, such as when he’ll allow me to get him naked. “That would be the reason. Mom was okay with it, but my father just about had a conniption fit when I told him. He was a high-powered executive attorney and he’d hoped I go off to college and take over his firm when I graduated. To be honest with you, I’m glad I came out of the closet when I did. If he hadn’t rejected me, then I would have been lost in a college of torts and legal theory and I would have withered. Being the support is decent, you still get the sexy part of the case, but you don’t carry the weight of its outcome on your back. So, I’m fortunate that my mom hightailed me out of there and divorced my father when he basically turned his back on me. She’s happier as well being down here. She met a nice guy who’s actually home to spend time with her, rather than constantly being at work diddling his secretary. Plus, she got one hell of a fat bank account after leaving dad, so she was able to retire early and enjoy the rest of her life. She deserves it.”
Matt squeezed my hand. “I’m glad you’re takin’ it as well as you are. A lot of people can’t handle being rejected by a parent. I don’t know how I would have dealt with my dad if he’d stuck around long enough to reject me for being gay. But, I guess, lucky for me, he rejected me for being born and I didn’t have to go through the later in life rejection from somebody that I cared about.”
