by L. T. Varner
He lay on top of me for a moment while we both tried to catch our breath. I started running my fingers through his hair when he suddenly sat up and, once again, practically jumped out of bed. He started getting dressed, again saying nothing. Instantly I was mad at myself for letting this happen, again.
He left without saying anything, and I didn’t stop him. I had no idea what to say to him either. I rolled over and pulled the sheet up and just started crying. After a couple of moments, there was a knock at the door, and I jumped up thinking maybe he had come back. I looked out and saw Daniel and opened the door to let him in. I knew he knew exactly what had just happened as more tears streamed down my face. He hugged me, and neither one of us said a word.
I hated myself more that I hated Collin at that moment.
Chapter 25
Hide and Seek
I woke up and realized Daniel was no longer next to me. I heard someone whispering when I looked around and saw Daniel talking to Mike very quietly. I wondered what they were whispering about when they saw I was awake.
Mike came over and sat beside me on the bed and said, “Good morning.”
I yawned and asked, “What time is it? We need to be at the airport soon.”
“Relax, Danni,” Mike said, grinning at me. “Against my better judgment I gave Daniel permission to keep you for a few more days.”
I looked at Mike and then pulled the cover over my head and said, “I think I need to get as far from here as possible.”
They both started laughing at me. Daniel said, “Dirty girl, I will take great care of you and keep the evil man with the candy you want away from you.”
I couldn’t help but laugh and said, “That is what you said the other night and look how well that turned out.”
Pulling my covers away, Daniel said, “Yeah, sorry about that, but I promise I will this time.”
Mike looked at him, and in a stern voice said, “You better or I will kick your ass.”
Mike mentioned they needed to get to the airport and kissed me on the forehead.
I asked, “Mike, is it a good idea to leave us alone?”
“When it comes to the two of you, nothing is a good idea. Stay out of trouble, but you both have Nick’s number if you need to be bailed out of jail,” Mike said as we all started laughing.
After Mike and Mark had left and I took a shower and got ready, Daniel sat on my bed, deep in thought.
“We have to come up with a new game to piss off my brother, and I know the perfect thing,” Daniel said, smiling devilishly.
“What’s that?” I asked, nervous what he was up to.
“We are playing ‘keep away from Collin.’” I had to laugh when he went on saying, “This is as much for his sake as it is yours. Besides, I love to piss him off. His face gets all red and shit.”
I thought it would be fun to push Collin’s buttons, but this time, we would be doing it from a distance.
After I had got everything packed up, I asked, “Where are we going to stay?”
“My house, of course.”
I laughed at his answer and said, “That is the first place he will look, you idiot.”
Daniel raised his finger and said, “No, he will think that is the last place you will go. Want to test that theory right now?”
My mind was screaming at me about how bad of an idea this was as Daniel sent Collin a text telling him he would be unavailable because I needed particular attention after a horrifying event. I had to laugh at that one. Daniel could be so vague about things, but at the same time, he made you want to know more.
He grabbed one of my bags and said, “Let’s go. We have an appointment.”
“I’m scared, Daniel. What are you up to?” I asked, following him with my other bag. He just smiled and kept walking.
We got in Daniel’s car, and he pulled out his phone after it dinged. “We just got our first text.” He read it and started laughing.
“What does it say?” I asked as he handed me the phone.
Collin: Where you at? Can I help out little brother?
“That is Collin’s way of trying to get to you,” Daniel said as he drove out of the parking lot. “Let the games begin.”
We had been driving for about twenty minutes when he reached in the console and pulled out the red envelope that I had given him for his birthday.
“You got it,” I said, laughing.
“I found it yesterday. It’s my favorite present,” he said, holding it out to me.
I responded and said, “You’re a chicken. You will never do it.”
He turned and grinned at me, “Well then why did I call and make the appointments?”
“Appointments?” I questioned. He pulled off his sunglasses and said, “You didn’t think I would do it without you, did you?”
We both started laughing and arguing over who wouldn’t do it.
We sat in the tattoo shop filling out our forms giving permission for the tattoos, and I started second guessing this decision. Daniel saw the look on my face and began making chicken sounds, and that is when I knew I could do this. They had closed the shop for us because apparently Daniel was a big deal in Seattle. I had to give him crap for that as well, and he shot back that I was just jealous.
We made it more interesting by letting the other one pick out the tattoo that we would be getting. I decided on the bar logo, and after the artist had told me the ribs were pretty painful, I indicated that that was perfect. Neither one of us could see what the other had chosen until it was over. I wasn’t too scared. Daniel would never hurt me by putting Collin’s name or something like that on me.
I walked into the room, and Daniel was sending another text. He hit send and then handed me his phone. His fan site was pulled up, and he was posting messages on it. I rolled my eyes and gave his phone back as he blew me a kiss. Idiot!
DanielDrums: I am taking a huge leap of faith with my best friend. Wish us luck.
The two artists asked if we were ready and I suddenly had butterflies in my stomach.
“Daniel, are you sure you won’t pass out?” I asked, teasing him in front of the tattoo artists.
“Shut up and take off your shirt!” he responded, acting all big and tough. I knew better.
“Where exactly is this going?” I asked, pulling my shirt off. Very thankful I wore a bra today.
“Same place mine is going, dirty girl,” Daniel said, mocking me.
I wondered if I was tough enough for this. After being stabbed and punched by a guy, this couldn’t be that bad, right?
Daniel started laughing hysterically and handed me his phone to see the comments fans were posting. A few said “congratulations” and a few asked for “details.” I started laughing too. That was sure to get Collin all worked up.
We both hopped on our respective tables after they had said they were ready to start.
Daniel said, “Well, hopefully, she won’t start crying again.”
A few others laughed at us when I threw a magazine at him, calling him an ass.
I was so wrong. It was the worst hour of my life as the tattoo gun was dragged over my ribs countless times. I had to have him stop once so that I could relax my stomach muscles. They were starting to hurt from tensing up so much. Daniel was in no better shape as he had to get up and walk around once after complaining he felt lightheaded. That made it even better.
Two hours later Daniel was done before I was as he sat up looking dizzy. I looked over the artist’s shoulder and said, “It looks pretty awesome, Daniel. It would be hot if it were on someone more attractive.” Everyone started laughing as Daniel gave me a devilish grin.
He got out his phone and said, “We have four more congratulations and Collin has left three messages wanting to know where we are. Okay, let’s give him a hint and see if we can’t get him in the maze.”
Daniel took a picture of my tattoo when I was finished. Posting to his fan site again, he wrote: Better than any ring.
I wanted to see the picture
so that I could see the tattoo as he pulled the phone away from me.
“Don’t worry, Danni, I left your face out, but I did keep your mini boobs in the picture.”
The tattoo artist had to stop applying the temporary bandage to my ribs because he was laughing, along with everyone else, as I caught one of them trying to see my chest.
Finally, I was done and could get up. After waiting to see his tattoo finished, we both walked over to the mirror. I hoped for the best. After counting to three, we both looked.
I was thrilled at what he had picked for me, seeing the bar logo I had designed just recently. I loved old-fashioned pin-up girls and used one with the bar logo wrapped around her. It turned out very bright and colorful, I thought, hearing Daniel say “awesome.” It was funny how we both picked the same tattoo for the other one.
Daniel finally pointed at me and said, “Just so we are clear, you don’t own me.”
I laughed and looked at his tattoo. It was as colorful as mine and fit Daniel’s ribs perfectly.
“Come on, we have a picture to take,” Daniel said, handing his phone to one of the artists.
Daniel told me to turn around so my back was to him and I stopped him and said, “You know what would be better?”
He laughed and said, “Now you get the game we are playing.”
I took off my bra and pushed my back up against his chest. I put my arms up around his neck, and he put his arm around my chest to hide my boobs. The guy taking the picture asked if they could take some pictures for their shop as well and Daniel made sure I didn’t mind, then said it was all right.
After hunting down my bra he thought would be fun to hide, I got dressed, and we thanked them and went back to the car. Daniel pulled out his phone and listened to the voicemail Collin had left.
Daniel laughed loudly before saying, “He’s demanding to know where we are. He sounds pissed, and that just made it so much better.”
After eating at a greasy burger joint, Daniel showed me around Seattle. We went so many places. He showed me where he had gone to school, the house he grew up in, where they got to play live for the first time, and of course, where he had lost his virginity. It was an old roller skating rink. We both laughed when I told him mine was in college in a bar bathroom. We spent the afternoon laughing about all the stupid little things in our lives as he showed me famous sites around town. It was a beautiful place, but it had rained two out of the three days I had been there so far, and I wasn’t sure I liked that.
After he had called his mom to make sure Collin wasn’t there, we went to his house to clean up. When we got there, his mom asked what we were up to, and Daniel pulled up his shirt. Paige said she liked it and requested to see mine. I showed her, and she joked that she liked mine better to tease Daniel.
She went on to say, “Collin has been calling all day and stopped by twice, wanting to know what you two are doing.”
Daniel explained our game to her and how it was revenge for Collin being an ass to me. She laughed and decided not to tell him either because he deserved it.
We grabbed my bags and headed to Daniel’s side of the house to get ready to go out. When we walked into his room, I just put my hand over my mouth, and he looked at me, slightly irritated.
“Oh, hell no. Please tell me this isn’t where you two did the deed,” Daniel said, dropping my bag.
I nodded at him, and he pointed at me and said, “You owe me a new bed.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at him. My phone rang at that point, and it was Mike. He told me that they were home and asked what we were up to because Collin had been texting him nonstop, asking if he knew what Daniel and I were doing.
Daniel soon pried the phone out of my hand and said, “Mike, here is what I want you to do.”
I went to the bathroom to clean up. I knew Daniel would come up with something clever with Mike. I changed my clothes and decided to wear a black tank top that I had brought to sleep in and white jeans. I left my hair down with its natural curl, so I wouldn’t have to fight with Daniel over my hat. He changed into dark jeans and a V-neck T-shirt that showed off his arms. I had to admit it, he was definitely sexy.
There was a car out front, and the driver opened the door for me as we climbed in. Daniel pulled out his phone and mentioned that Collin was fuming at this point, wanting to know where we were. Why does he care anyway? He’s getting married in two months.
Daniel looked at me and asked, “Should we give him a hint?”
“No, Daniel. I want to have a fun night, not a drama-filled evening,” I groaned in frustration. Daniel could outlast anyone in a game, I thought. He went on and posted anyway.
DanielDrums: I am thrilled about my new adventure in life.
Now it is time to sign on the dotted line.
I laughed at how he could say something, and it could be taken a million different ways.
After spending a chunk of money at the bar, many lap dances, and many more drinks, we decided to call it a night. On the way back to his house, we looked through his phone and Collin hadn’t texted or called anymore. I thought maybe he finally had given up, or Steph was with him. Daniel assured me that he didn’t give up that easily and grumbled that he was up to something, he just needed to figure out what it was. He tapped his phone against his chin, deep in thought.
“I got it,” he said while dialing Steph. I rolled my eyes not wanting to hear anything she had to say. Holding the phone out after putting it on speaker, Daniel asked, “Steph, where is Collin? I’m having trouble getting a hold of him.”
“I don’t know. Do you know why he is in such a bad mood?” Steph asked in a not-so-nice tone. I knew that she and Daniel weren’t exactly fans of each other, but she was a downright bitch.
Daniel couldn’t help it and started laughing, “No, you stupid slut.” Then he hung up on her.
“Why did you call her?” I said, frustrated.
“Because she will call him and make him go home,” Daniel said, putting his phone back in his pocket.
“He jumps and runs for her, doesn’t he?” I asked more to myself than to Daniel.
Daniel nodded and mumbled, “He sure does.”
A couple of minutes later Daniel called his mom and asked if Collin was there. Paige told him that he had just left because Steph had called him telling him to come home.
Daniel got serious and asked, “Do you want to see where he lives?”
I wanted to as much as I didn’t want to. Why did I keep doing this to myself? Oh, yeah, because I was stupidly in love with him. Bright, Danni, real bright. After Daniel had decided for me, the driver took us to Collin’s house, parking about half a block away with the headlights off.
His house was twice the size of Daniel’s, and I asked, “Who needs a house that big?”
“Steph does,” Daniel mumbled.
I watched Collin pull into the garage and walk to the house. Steph opened the door in a short robe displaying her near-nakedness to the neighbors. She quickly put her arms around him and started kissing him. I instantly looked down, trying to fight back tears. I felt my heart breaking further.
Daniel asked the driver to take us home.
Chapter 26
Knock Yourself Out
It was a month later, after a grueling three hours playing in the house band and bartending, I was finally done. I couldn’t quit yawning and just wanted to sleep. I had been spending most of my time at the schoolhouse finishing little projects and working in the studio. I was always running on fumes, but thankfully Mike and Mark were doing all they could to help.
A week later I got the best news of my life, the schoolhouse was finished. The moving truck would be at my house in two days. I didn’t have much, as most of the furniture, I let Mike and Mark keep. Mark had already moved in, and I was more than happy to go.
Mike was smart and hired an interior designer to manage the inside of the schoolhouse. I wasn’t a horrible decorator; I just hated doing it. It was such a great feeling to have
my own home, and yet I felt sad leaving Mike. This would be the first time since we were six years old that we wouldn’t be living together. We had both cried over it. He assured me it wouldn’t change anything. I was nervous because I had never lived alone, but then I remembered Dad had already moved into his house on the property two weeks earlier.
I was going through my stuff, trying to decide what to keep and what to get rid of when Mike walked in. He was holding my dress for his wedding that was now only two weeks away. I also knew that meant Collin’s was just next month, and I couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for myself.
“It’s a beautiful dress,” I said, trying to sound excited.
“You okay?” he asked with a sad look on his face. I had given him all the details of what had happened in Seattle and neither he nor Mark were surprised.
“I am perfect,” I responded so I didn’t take the focus off his wedding.
“Liar!” he said as he hung the dress in my closet.
After he had left to go to work, I knew I needed to get going on the packing. I was dragging it out, so I decided to get my headphones to make myself work faster. After a twenty-minute search through the whole house, I couldn’t find them. I wondered what I could have done with them. Dialing my phone, I wondered if I had left them at Daniel’s?
“Oh, baby, I was just thinking how badly I wanted to ram it in your hot . . .” Daniel stated before I abruptly cut him off.
“Stop it, you dirty little pervert. Gross! Hey, I can’t find my headphones. Did I leave them at your place?”
He laughed for a moment and mumbled something about me being no fun before he finally responded to me.
“I don’t know. We’re on the road. Remember, dirty girl? You can join me and let me finish my dirty talk.”
