by Box Set
I shook my head and mouthed the word, “No.” Mom left me at the register to help Greg while she stepped into the back room.
Greg flagged me over to where he stood and something odd happened in that moment. My penis-loving pal gave hetero a try. He reached across the counter, grabbed me by the shirt, and pulled me to him. When he covered my mouth with his lips, I was too stunned to react. The kiss was over as quickly as it began, and for the second time today, the Sweet Shop was silenced.
“I missed you, baby,” Greg announced loud enough for the world to hear. Then, he nuzzled my neck and whispered, “Just play along.”
I jumped back a step and whispered. “What? No, it’s not like that.”
He looked toward the table where Beau and Tommy sat. Tommy was committed to his coloring book while Beau threw virtual daggers in my direction. Was that jealousy I saw simmering below the surface? Could it be?
“Oh honey, open your eyes.” Greg’s voice stepped down to a whisper, but his intention was loud and clear. “Let the games begin.”
Chapter 4
Beau
I’d watched as a man entered the shop and pulled Mandy in for a kiss. It wasn’t the kind of kiss a friend gave to a friend. It was a kiss that had purpose. He was claiming territory, and I didn’t like it. Those should have been my lips pressed against hers, not his. After all these years, I still wanted her.
“Who’s that with your mom?”
Tommy looked up from his red crayon and glanced toward the counter where Mandy and the man were whispering.
“That’s Greg.”
I sized up Greg. He was tall, clean-shaven, and a nice dresser. Definitely hipster. Not someone I would have pegged for Mandy at all. Ten years had obviously changed her taste in men. As I studied Mandy, I realized the years had been good to her. More than good. She was gorgeous. Her body had always been amazing, but it had matured. Everything was curved in the right places. Her breasts, hips and ass belonged in the Sweet Shop. They were delectable and would tempt any man.
“Is he your mom’s boyfriend?” The guy looked familiar, but I couldn’t place him.
Tommy giggled. “He’s a boy, and a friend, so yes, he’s a boyfriend.”
I ruffled his hair. “You’re a silly boy.” I turned and watched the couple’s body language. Greg leaned in each time he spoke to her. The only people who did that were girlfriends and lovers, and he was no girl.
Watching them gutted me. I couldn’t take it any more. Expecting a call from my agent at five, I had a good excuse to leave.
“Tommy, I’ve got to go, but I live across the street from your Grandma Annie’s. Come on over anytime, and we’ll fly these airplanes.” I picked up the last paper plane I’d folded, jotted my cell number on the wing, and flew it straight at Mandy. What could one more try hurt? It would be great to have some closure before I left town. The plane flew through the air, bounced off her left breast, and landed on the counter in front of her. Not since I’d pegged her forehead with a spitball in English class had my aim been so perfect.
She looked at the paper, then glared at me, and crumpled the plane into a ball. Yep, crash and burn. But I wasn’t one to give up. When I’d left Colorado, I had every intention of coming back to claim her, but everything changed. Brent Waterhouse signed me, and within three months, I had a record contract and a tour. I also had a life no one would envy if they truly knew how it was. They say hindsight is twenty/twenty. I’d been blinded by good intentions, and if I had it to do all over again, I’d do it differently. I looked back at Mandy before I exited and wished I could turn back the clock. I’d really fucked everything up.
The chill of the air and the shriek of a high-pitched voice hit me the minute I walked out the door. “Oh, my God, it’s Beau Tinsel!” Theresa Platt ran at me like her break lines had been cut. I’d recognize her anywhere—her breasts, anyway. She was top heavy, and I never understood how she didn’t topple over. She had defied gravity for years.
Oomph, she plowed into me, knocking me back against the glass. The window shuddered, making everyone inside the Sweet Shop jump from their seats. At the counter, Mandy watched me, Greg’s mouth was moving, but she was all eyes on me, and I liked that. I saw that look before; it was an ounce of jealousy mixed with a pound of curiosity. I could make that work.
Theresa’s hands slid down my chest, gripping at the felt of my pea coat. “When did you get back?” she cooed.
“Last night. Listen, I’ve got a call I have to take. Can we catch up later?” I didn’t want to catch up with her, but I wasn’t one for being rude.
“Sure thing, sweets. I hear Mandy is back too, with a kid.” The way she said “kid” like it was sour candy irritated me. I’d spent a bit of time with Tommy today while his mother ignored me. He was an awesome kid.
“His name is Tommy and he’s amazing.” The urge to defend the kid surprised me. I had never given kids much thought, but Tommy was Mandy’s, and that made him special.
“I’m not much for little boys, but I like the big ones.” She reached up and touched my hair. “I own the shop across the street. I could give you a trim.”
I combed my hand through my hair. I bet she was willing to offer her services, but I was pretty certain it had nothing to do with her beauty shop or scissors.
“Sounds great, I’ll catch you later.” A quick glance over my shoulders showed Mandy was still looking. I hadn’t liked that man’s lips on her, but two could play that game. I pressed my lips to Theresa’s cheek, and when I turned to wave goodbye to Mandy, her look had changed to a pound of jealousy and a ton of pissed off. I really liked that.
I just made it home when my cell phone rang. “Hey, Brent, what do you have for me?” I was in negotiations for a three-record contract. The advance would set me up for life.
“Can you be back the twenty-third to meet with Rocco?”
Any other day, I would have made the meeting happen, but the look I’d seen in Mandy’s eyes told me she was angry enough to still care, which meant there was hope, and right now, I was here in Bell Mountain, and hope was all I could bank on.
“No can do. I’ve got some personal stuff to take care of. See if you can postpone it.” I never shied away from making my demands. I’d been making decisions for myself since the day I left town. Some were good, and some were complete failures, but there was one decision I had made that needed clearing up, and now that I was here, I couldn’t leave Bell Mountain until that was done.
“You don’t keep a producer like Rocco Piat waiting. Everyone is clamoring to work with him.” Brent didn’t like pushing a bigwig like Rocco to the side, but he worked for me, and he’d have to fight for what I wanted. He could slay all the work dragons while I slayed the ones at home.
“Figure it out.” I cut the call before he could argue.
“Beau, is that you?” Mom called from the living room, as if anyone else would be walking in the front door unannounced.
“Yep, it’s me.” Once in the living room, I tossed my coat on the corner chair and took a seat beside her. She was watching some true crime show. “Getting ideas on how to off your next husband?” It was an awful thing to say, but we both laughed. Sometimes, all you could do was laugh in the face of misfortune. “What’s for dinner?”
“Oh, I’m taking Tommy for pizza with Annie. Mandy had some errands to run, and since I’m not getting any grandchildren from you, I have to steal Annie’s.”
“I take it I’m not invited?” I leaned into my mom and let her wrap her arm around my shoulder. It had been a long time since she had mothered me, and it felt good.
“You can come if you like awful pizza and animated stuffed animals.” She pulled her fingers through my hair. I’d always loved when she did that. “Did you see Mandy today?”
“You know I did, because you must have talked to Annie. I met Tommy. He’s a great kid. Scared me for a moment. He looks just like me.”
“Yes, he does. If I didn’t know better, I’d have said he was yo
urs as well, but of course, he isn’t. His dad is some famous French chocolatier, and he wasn’t interested in being a dad. It’s too bad because Mandy would make an amazing wife.”
Thinking about Mandy as someone else’s wife stabbed at my heart. It was funny how I hadn’t thought of her with anyone else until I saw her kissing Greg. Even when I thought she was married, her husband was faceless and nameless, but now Greg’s lips on hers would be all I would see when I closed my eyes tonight.
“You know what Mom, I’m going to check on the cabin.” It was my favorite thinking place, and I needed a plan. When I left Colorado, I wanted different terms with Mandy. I wasn’t sure what those terms would be, but I didn’t want my life to be void of her presence. I’d settle for whatever she’d offer at this point.
Mom’s flat expression turned into a smile. “You always did your best thinking out there. Stay off the ice.” I snuggled into her side for a minute longer before I left.
The drive to the cabin was short and scenic. I often saw a deer or two on the way, but today, the roads were empty. There wasn’t a person or animal in sight, and the lack of everything was comforting. Sometimes, the answers to life’s most pressing problems were found in the stillness.
Once inside the garage, I killed the SUV’s engine and sat for a time. The minute I walked into the cabin, I’d be inundated with memories from my past. The weekends Dad and I spent alone fishing. The nights Mandy and I spent naked in front of the fire. Those were some of the best times of my life. This was my happy place. It was a two-bedroom shack that sported the barest of essentials, and yet, it was the place where I’d felt the richest.
Climbing the two steps, the door creaked open and I flipped on the lights. Mom had kept the place clean. She’d threatened to update the cabin, to bring it into the twenty-first century, but I always fought her. To change it, would change what it meant to me.
Mandy loved this place, too. She always gave her mom a hard time for hanging on to things like her record player, and the television set with the rabbit ears, but Mandy wasn’t much different. Mandy didn’t let go of people, or things that easily, and that gave me a glimmer of hope.
When Mom said, “so what if you find yourself in love with her again,” I thought, little do you know, but I’ve never fallen out of love with her. The question was…could she ever love me again? In my gut, I yearned for that possibility. When I gave her up, I gave up any chance of ever being happy.
I turned out the lights. In the dark, I sat in front of the window and watched the sun set and the moon cast a glow over the lake. In the distance, the outline of a dark fishing hut sat in the center of the lake, abandoned for the night. Headlights came and went as cars passed along the highway, but the tranquility of the lake hypnotized me.
Out of the shadows stepped a silhouette. Mandy’s blonde hair soaked in the moon’s rays. Step by cautious step, she walked to the end of the dock and sat with her legs dangling over the edge. I wanted to get her alone and the universe gifted me this opportunity. I wasn’t going to blow it. With a handful of chocolate kisses and a blanket wrapped over my arm, I approached.
“You’re trespassing, you know.”
Chapter 5
Mandy
Peaceful serenity had settled over me until his voice broke the silence, scaring me near to death. I almost fell off the dock and onto the icy crust of the lake—the same lake where our fathers had died.
“Shit, Beau. What are you doing here?” My heart beat like a mixer on high.
“I should ask you the same. I’m here because I own the property. You?” He unfolded the blanket and wrapped it around my shoulders. Beau had always been sweet like that.
It would have been wise to stand and leave, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it, so I wrapped the blanket around me like armor. Beau and I had some unfinished business, and maybe attacking it head-on would be the best way to bury it and move forward. When I left for New York, I wanted to be able to say Beau and I had come to terms with our past.
“I came here to think. To feel closer to my dad.” My voice softened to a murmur. “To figure out how to deal with you.”
Beau sat beside me and pulled half the blanket over his shoulder. Sitting next to him took me back years to when we sat on this same dock that final summer night. He was leaving the next day to go to Los Angeles and we took advantage of every minute we had together.
“Have you figured it out yet?”
“No, because I just got here, and then you interrupted my train of thought.”
“Would you like me to leave?”
My brain yelled “yes,” but my heart screamed “no.” Just being near him like this made me want him. I never got over him, but I needed to.
“No, we need to talk, but I’m not sure if I’m ready for it.” Get it out and over with. Treat it like a Band-Aid; rip it off fast so it’s less painful.
“Let’s catch up first, and then we can talk about other things.” He pulled a handful of chocolate kisses from his pocket and offered me one. Where was my peppermint when I needed it? Hadn’t it always been the perfect mix for us. Weren’t we once the perfect combination? Time changed everything.
Taking a silver-wrapped candy from his palm, I peeled back the foil. “Congratulations on your success.” I tried to imbibe excitement into the words, but they fell flat. It was his success that had derailed our future.
“Thanks, it’s been a journey, for sure.” He lined the wrapped candies in a row. We hunched together under the blanket. When my knee touched his, we froze in place. For two people who used to know each other from the inside out, we were acting like strangers. But, that’s exactly what we were—intimate strangers.
“I went to one of your concerts.” Telling him was like divulging a dirty little secret.
“You did?” He shifted and our knees rubbed together. That little bit of contact sent my nerves skittering. “Which one? You should have contacted me, and I could have met you for coffee or something.”
“I saw you in New York, but we weren’t talking anymore.”
The elephant in the room stomped across the dock and sat with us—its presence heavy enough to collapse the world around us. Yes, we had stopped talking. Well, Beau had stopped talking, and I had stopped trying to get him to change his mind.
“Do you like New York?” He moved the candy around, first making a line, then a triangle, and then a square.
“Not really, I have an ass for a boss, and it’s hard to find good help to take care of Tommy.” At the mention of Tommy, Beau smiled.
“Tommy’s a great kid.” Those damn sapphire eyes glinted under the moon at me. Their cool color always had the opposite effect on me. My body burned under his gaze. “Where’s his dad?”
“In Paris.” He didn’t need the details. What was the point? Beau would be gone soon. We weren’t best buddies anymore, but it would be nice to not feel so conflicted when it came to him.
“Explain?”
“There’s nothing to explain, he was just another guy who didn’t see the value of staying with me.” The hurt in my voice couldn’t be masked. It shattered me to think of the people who’d tossed me aside.
Beau bit his lip. “It wasn’t like that with us.” He shifted again so he was facing me. The blanket had fallen from his shoulders and pooled on the dock. When I wrapped it around me, I clenched the soft fabric to my chest.
“It doesn’t matter.” I buried my face in the material, but Beau pulled it away.
“It matters to me. I created this gaping hole in our friendship, and it’s up to me to fill it with something.”
“How about the truth?” Damn stupid tears ran down my cheeks. “I think I deserve the truth, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Was it someone else? I’ve seen you with everyone from starlets to models. I get it.”
“No, it wasn’t someone else. It was always you. It’s still you.” His fingers walked up the plaid blanket and settled on my knees.
Talk about head-spinning. Mine was about to take off from my shoulders. “That doesn’t make sense.”
“It’s the truth.”
“Tell your truth to Theresa Platt, but be careful. As the town hairdresser, she’s known for her blow jobs and bangs.”
“I love that you’re jealous.”
“I’m not jealous. You’ve been gone for years. I’ve moved on.” The lie frayed my tattered heart.
“Yes, I saw that when you kissed that man today. How’d you find a new beau so soon? Didn’t you get here the day I did?”
I hated his use of the word beau. There was, and would only be, one Beau in my life, and he’d turned out to be a complete jerk. I threw the blanket off my shoulders and hopped to my feet. Anger was heating me from the inside out. “That was Greg Anderson, you idiot.” My voice pitched and pulled as I towered over him.
Beau’s face twisted in confusion. “Isn’t he gay? I swear, I heard he was gay, but I saw him kiss you, and that was a bit too friendly for my taste.”
“He’s not into me or any other girl, but he had it in his head that you’d get jealous if he kissed me, so he did.” Beau’s emotions were always easy to read. Right then, he was awash in relief, and that made one little butterfly flutter in my stomach. Beau still cared, at least a smidge. “Greg’s a friend.”
“Tommy explained that to me. He said Greg was a boy, and a friend, and so he was your boyfriend.” He reached up and touched my hand. His energy surged through me like it always had. Beau Tinsel was a drug I hadn’t kicked. “Sit down, please.” He tugged at my fingers until I folded and sat cross-legged in front of him.
