Big Bad Twins

by Tia Siren

  Well, marathon sex with two hunky studs, I should have said…

  “So, you gonna tell us how your date went or what?” Randy asked when I came over to take his dirty plates. My dad was propped up in the pass-through with the spatula in his hand and a cigarette dangling from his teeth, also interested in the answer.

  “It wasn’t a date,” I said, giving him a look. “And even if it was, it’s none of your business.”

  “I was just asking,” Randy said, winking at my dad. “You gonna see Mr. Big Shot again, or was it a one-night stand?”

  “Fuck you, Randy,” I snapped. Every head in the diner turned toward me. Randy’s mouth dropped and my dad tugged the cigarette from his teeth.

  “Danny, he’s just kidding,” Dad said. “What’s the matter with you?”

  “There’s nothing the matter with me, Dad,” I said, gritting my teeth. “My life is just fucking amazing!”

  “Danny, watch that kind of talk,” Dad said. “You know your mother wouldn’t like you using that word.”

  “My mother ran off with another man!” I screamed, throwing my hands in the air. “Don’t you remember, Dad? She ran off and left us alone!”

  “Your life ain’t so bad,” Randy growled. “Could be a helluva lot worse.”

  “You’re right, Randy. My life is amazing! I own a shitty little diner that barely makes enough money to pay my bills. My dipshit ex-husband comes in every night to eat and drink for free. And my own father won’t back me up when I try to throw you out! Not to mention the fact that I’ll die old and alone someday in this shitty little town! You’re right! My fucking life is amazing!”

  The moment I finished my rant, I looked around to find everyone in the place gawking at me with their mouths hanging open.

  Shit, I didn’t blame them.

  I would have been gawking at me, too.

  I had apparently lost my ever-loving mind.

  I took a deep breath held out my hands. I tugged the order pad from my back pocket and tossed it onto the counter. I took off the apron I had tied around my waist and tossed it in Randy’s face.

  “I need a break,” I said, glancing at my dad. “I’m sure you can handle closing up. If you can’t, ask Randy to help you.”

  “Danny,” Dad said quietly. There was a look of concern on his face I’d never seen before. “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing, Dad,” I said with a long sigh. “I just have to go.”

  * * *

  I was soaking in the tub when I heard the knock at my front door. I lived in a dinky trailer and a hard knock on the metal door rattled the walls and made the dishes in the cupboard shake.

  I was on my third glass of cheap wine and feeling pretty mellow, but I still didn’t feel like talking to anyone.

  I doubted it was Randy or my dad.

  They both know better than to come knocking after I lost my shit on them.

  I’d apologize to Dad tomorrow.

  Randy could eat shit and die.

  They knocked again. My cell phone was on the side of the tub. I glanced at it, thinking maybe Terry and Tony were back for more. Then I realized they were in New Orleans, watching the Saints take on the Bears in the September post-season game. Those boys loved to fuck, but not enough to miss a Bears game, according to Terry.

  They knocked a third time. A little harder.

  “Fuck,” I said. I pushed myself out of the tub and pulled on my old white terrycloth robe as I went to the door, leaving a trail of wet footprints on the cracking linoleum floor.

  They knocked again.

  “All right, give me a minute,” I yelled, tying the sash to keep the robe in place. I clicked on the porch light and jerked the door open, ready for a bear.

  Standing at the bottom of the steps was a man I didn’t recognize.

  He had a bushy beard and was wearing a black cap with some kind of eagle emblem on the front. The cap was pulled low over his eyes.

  He was muscled up. His chest and shoulders pushed against the black T-shirt he wore. The shirt had the same emblem on the right of the chest. I could make out what looked like the image of a gold eagle, a ship’s anchor, and an old pistol of some kind.

  I remembered seeing the emblem in a movie.

  It was the emblem of the Navy SEALS.

  “Hi, Danny,” he said.

  His voice was ghostly familiar, like a voice from a distant memory, or a voice from a dream. He pushed back his cap and smiled at me.

  Davy Boone was home.

  CHAPTER 14: Danielle

  Davy put a finger under the bill and pushed the cap back on his head so I could see his face in the dim porch light. I recognized the blue eyes that I once thought could stare into my soul. Under the scraggly mustache, I recognized the boyish smile. It was Davy, back from the dead. I leaned against the doorframe to keep my knees from buckling.

  I whispered to him, afraid to call his name out loud.

  “Davy? Is it really you?”

  “It’s really me,” he said quietly. He put one foot on the first step and gazed up at me with a hesitant look on his face. “Sorry to get here so late. Can I come in?”

  I stared down at him for a moment. My brain needed a minute to process the fact that he was standing before me after all these years. I blinked at him to clear away the fog clouding my mind. I closed my eyes and counted to three, then opened them. He was still there.

  “Come in,” I said, moving behind the door to let him pass. Davy Boone stepped into my living room and plucked the cap off his head as if he’d entered church. He gave me a nervous smile. For a moment, I thought he was going to hug me, but he kept his feet planted with the cap clutched between his hands.

  “How have you been?” he asked.

  I gathered the front of the robe tight and clutched it to my chest. I wrapped my arms around myself to keep them from reaching out to him.

  I said, “I’ve been fine. You?”

  He sighed. “I’ve been okay. It’s good to see you.”

  “It’s good to see you, too.” I said the words without emotion or looking him in the eye. My voice was flat, like a person in shock trying to speak.

  Despite my tone, I had to resist the urge to throw my arms around his neck and tell him how much I’d missed him. The urge was overcome by the anger coursing through my veins. You completely disappear from my life six years ago and show up expecting a hug and a welcome home?

  Buddy, you knocked on the wrong door.

  My eyes went around the face I remembered as a teenager. Davy had aged considerably in six years. His complexion was dark and ruddy. The beard was scraggly and hid most of his face beneath his cheekbones. There were tiny scars around his right temple and across the bridge of his nose. His eyes were still the same blue, but they didn’t sparkle anymore. He was just twenty-four, but he looked old and tired.

  “You look pissed,” he said with a frown.

  “Where have you been?” I asked flatly.

  “All over the place, really,” he said. His tone was one of sadness and regret. The smiled faded from his lips. He brushed a knuckle under his nose and stared at the floor between us.

  He said, “Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya…a few other places I can’t tell you about.”

  I set my jaw and forced myself to hold my ground. “Why didn’t you call? Why didn’t you write? Do you know how worried I was? Jesus, Davy, everybody thinks you’re dead. I thought you were dead.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry,” he said with a sigh that seemed to take all the air out of him. He glanced back at the couch. “Could I sit down? Maybe get something to drink? I’ve been travelling for three days without sleep. I’m a little worn out.”

  I almost told him to get the hell out of my trailer, but the look on his face was that of a hurt little boy who had just found his way home.

  Deny it though I might, he still held a tender place in my heart no other man would ever touch, not even men like the Wolf brothers.

  Maybe that was the reason there were
so few good men in Bellegrade.

  Maybe God was making me wait for Davy to come home.

  Maybe he was teaching me patience.

  Maybe hooking me up with Randy had been meant to make me appreciate the love I had lost.

  And maybe, just maybe, letting the Wolf brothers pass through my life was His way of rewarding me for my patience.

  Nah, that was total bullshit, but it sure sounded good going through my addled brain.

  I held out a hand toward the couch and told him to have a seat while I got him a drink.

  I stepped around the little bar that separated the kitchen from the living area and pulled a glass from the cabinet. I filled it with water from the tap.

  When I went back into the living room, Davy was lying on the couch with an arm over his eyes.

  His muscular chest rose and fell slowly.

  He was snoring softly.

  I set the glass of water on the coffee table and stood staring down at him for a moment, listening to him breath.

  I resisted the urge to lie down next to him.

  I turned out the lights and dragged myself to bed.

  I wondered if he’d still be there in the morning.

  CHAPTER 15: Terry

  I drove the Range Rover north on the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway from New Orleans toward Bellegrade while Tony sat in the passenger seat talking to Bob over a Bluetooth earbud.

  I wasn’t listening. This was Tony’s deal. I was just along for the ride. Besides, I was thinking about Danny. We were on our way to say goodbye before flying back to New York.

  I wished I’d had more time alone with her; not just to screw, but to talk and get better acquainted.

  I was not the settling down type, but Danny was someone I thought would be as good a friend as she was a lover.

  Women like that were rare in my world.

  Most want my cock and my money.

  I didn’t get that feeling with Danny.

  She was just looking to experience something she’d never experienced before and probably would never experience again.

  I was happy to give her what she wanted.

  And I was thrilled that she wanted it from me.

  It was a bright, clear morning without a cloud in the sky. When we got to the midpoint of the bridge, I still couldn’t see land ahead. I glanced into the rearview mirror and couldn’t see land behind us either. Danny had been right. It was like being on a bridge in the middle of the ocean—if the ocean had been full of gators.

  “Okay, Bob. I’ll fax the papers to you as soon as we’re back in New York.”

  Tony tapped the earbud to end the call and slapped a hand on the console. “Done deal, baby! Soon as the papers are signed I’ll transfer one million dollars to Bob’s bank account and the patent for his new invention will be ours.”

  “Congrats, bro,” I said, holding out my hand for a high five.

  “This has been an awesome trip,” Tony said, giving the dash a little drum beat with his fingers. “We acquired patents that could be worth billions, we watched the Bears kick the shit out of the Saints, and we banged a hot Cajun redhead. How fucking blessed are we?”

  “Amen, my brother,” I said, grinning at his enthusiasm. “Although, personally, I would put banging the hot Cajun redhead at the top of the list.”

  He gave a little whistle. “She really is something else, isn’t she?” He glanced out the window for a moment. “Maybe we should stay one more night to party with her.”

  “I think we might have worn her out the other night,” I said, glancing sideways at him. “She looked pretty tired when we dropped her off yesterday morning. Not everyone can keep up with us, you know.”

  “I know,” he said, shaking his head. “Guess we can ask when we get to the diner. Maybe we can all go down to the lake you were talking about. Maybe a little three-way in Lake Pontchartrain to say farewell?”

  “Did I mention that there are alligators in that lake?”

  His grin melted into a look of horror. “Alligators? Really? You fucked in a lake full of alligators?”

  I blew out a long breath and shrugged my eyebrows. “What can I say, bro? The woman wanted me in the water. How could I say no?”

  “You’re my hero, man,” he said with a smirk. “Fuck that. I’m not gonna get my junk bitten off by an alligator. Maybe we can make that little trailer of hers rock and roll all night.”

  “If the trailer is a rockin’, then don’t come a knockin’!” I said.

  “Hell, yes!”

  He slapped the dash and made a little song out of it.

  I pressed down on the gas pedal.

  I couldn’t wait to see Danny again.

  CHAPTER 16: Danielle

  I wiped the counter clean and stacked the dirty breakfast dishes in the pass-through for dad to load into the dishwasher. It was just after ten and the lunch crowd had filtered down to two old men in a corner booth nursing their tenth cups of coffee.

  I folded the damp rag between my hands as I went to look out the front door. I could see my trailer across the road, the first one on the left as you entered the trailer park. I kept waiting for Davy to come out the door and come across the road for something to eat.

  When I’d woken up at 5 a.m. and tiptoed into the living room, he hadn’t moved a muscle. He had still been on the couch with one arm over his eyes, snoring softly.

  I’d watched him for a moment, as if I weren’t firmly convinced he was actually there.

  I’d cleared my throat quietly, but he hadn’t moved.

  Maybe it was all a dream, I’d thought.

  Maybe Davy wasn’t really on my couch.

  Maybe the Wolf brothers were a dream, too.

  Maybe I was going to wake up at any moment and realize that none of it was real.

  I’d wake up and go back to my shitty little life in this shitty little town with all these shitty little people…

  At that thought, I had wiped my eyes and left him asleep on the couch.

  I’d listened for him as I got dressed and ready to leave.

  He didn’t make a sound.

  When I left just before 6 a.m., he was still sleeping like a baby.

  * * *

  “How’s the gumbo today?” I heard a familiar voice ask.

  I looked up to see the Wolf brothers coming through the door with broad grins on their handsome faces. I was refilling sugar dispensers when they came in. I set the bag of sugar on the counter and dusted off my hands. They slid onto stools at the counter and leaned across for a kiss.

  “The gumbo is hot as fire going in and coming out,” I said, standing on my tiptoes to give them kisses on both cheeks. I could feel my dad’s eyes watching me from behind. I glanced over my shoulder and gave him a look that told him to mind his own business.

  “What are you boys up to?” I asked with a devilish gleam in my eyes.

  “Well, we are on our way home,” Tony said happily. “I closed the deal with Bob, so—”

  My dad’s deep voice chimed in. “You really paying that sumbitch a million dollars for his invention?”

  I rolled my eyes. Tony winked at me and then leaned around to look past me at Dad. “It looks like we are, sir,” he said. “Is Bob a friend of yours?”

  “Probably not for long,” Dad said. “He’s moving to some island somewhere after you cut him a check.”

  “Well, good for him,” Tony said.

  “What are you doing today?” Terry asked. He blinked slowly at me. He licked his lips. I felt myself melting again.

  “I am working all day,” I said with a regretful sigh. “I won’t get off until eight.”

  “What are you doing after eight?” Tony asked. “We thought we might have a little going away party. Preferably not in a lake full of alligators.”

  I took a deep breath and let my eyes bounce between them for a moment. I was so tempted to jump over the counter and run away with them. So tempted to toss Dad the keys and never look back.

  Then I glanced out
the door and remembered that Davy was home.

  “Danny? What’s wrong?” Terry asked, noticing the tears welling in my eyes. “Are you upset with us?”

  I shook my head.

  Tony let the smile fade from his lips. He asked, “Did we do something wrong?”

  I blew out a long breath and shook my head. I said, “No. You guys have done everything right. Our time together…was amazing…but now…Christ, I don’t know what to do.” I reached across the counter and they each took a hand. I gazed into Terry’s eyes. “Davy’s home.”

  “No way,” he said.

  “Who’s Davy?” Tony asked.

  “Her first love,” Terry said, squeezing my hand. “The only man she’s ever loved.”

  “How did you know that?” I asked.

  “Our time at the lake,” he said. “Your eyes lit up when you talked about him. Even after all this time, you love him, Danny. And I think that’s fucking awesome.”

  “It is?”

  Tony squeezed my hand. “Yes, it is.” He looked around the diner. “Where is he?”

  I nodded toward the door. “Asleep on my couch.”

  “So, I just have one question,” Terry said, bringing my hand to his lips.

  “What’s that?”

  “If he’s asleep on your couch, what the fuck are you doing here?”

  CHAPTER 17: Danielle

  I walked Terry and Tony to their car and gave them both a big hug and a kiss. I thanked them for the greatest night of my life.

  Tony grinned and said, “Our pleasure.” He climbed in behind the wheel and started the engine to get the air conditioner going.

  “I had a great time,” Terry said, taking me into his arms and pulling me close. “You’re an amazing woman, Danny Robicheaux. I hope you get everything you deserve.”

  “I hope so, too,” I said, resting my head on his chest.

  He kissed the top of my head and patted my back.

  “We have to go. Tony won’t rest until he has Bob’s signature on a contract.”

  “I know.”

  I reluctantly let him pull away. He nodded at my trailer. “Now get your hot ass over there and wake him up. If he’s been through what I think he’s been through, well, just cut him a little slack.”