Rainier

by Moxie North

  Tomorrow was going to be tougher. A day without her, a day not knowing what she was doing or who she was with. On Friday he’d see her again. Then the dreaded weekend. He had planned to go home to see his family, but there was no way he would be able to go without her. That meant he’d have to come up with an excuse his family would buy.

  Chapter 14

  Quinn made it back to her room on autopilot. That kiss was supposed to be a sweet thank you for a nice evening. Instead, it was way more than Quinn had expected. It was hot, it was gentle. It was brimming with desire on both sides. She wasn’t one to tell herself that her feelings were inappropriate. Her pleasure was her own and she didn’t frequently seek it out, but she didn’t turn away opportunities that intrigued her either.

  Rain Rochon was not supposed to be one of those opportunities. She was his TA, surely there was some kind of rule that they were breaking. Not that she was always going to be the one to grade the class papers, but it could be considered a bias. Still, there was something there that she couldn’t ignore.

  Opening the door, she found Harmony still up her eyes trained on the door.

  “Hmm, late night, huh? I thought you’d be back hours ago. Did you get lost?”

  “Har-har, you knew good and well where I was.”

  “Hmm, not an overnighter, but still late. You don’t smell like booze, so I know you’re not drunk. But you smell like garlic. That furthers the mystery.”

  “We hung out at the party, and then went to get something to eat. No big deal. He drove me home afterwards.”

  Quinn started removing her outfit and grabbed her worn out Seahawks shirt and a pair of cotton shorts out of her dresser.

  “I hope you both had garlic if there was a goodnight kiss.”

  Shit! Quinn hadn’t even thought about that. They both did have garlic and she hadn’t really thought about it when she reached up to kiss him. Worse still, they had topped off the garlic with coffee. But he didn’t taste like it, his kiss was sweet. She really hoped her breath wasn’t on the offensive level.

  “You didn’t answer, interesting. I’m thinking there was some snogging in the hallway. Am I wrong?”

  “You need to stop watching British movies on Netflix.”

  Harmony made a tsking noise. “Again, not denying it. So, yes to the kissing. Any other physical activities I should know about?”

  Quinn didn’t think telling her she cried and fell asleep on a man she had just met was important. She was trying to forget that part of the evening.

  “He’s nice. Like really nice. He has money, it’s so weird. He bought us a really expensive dinner. At least I thought it was, but he acted like it was no big deal. He drives a nice car. I’ve never hung out with someone that had a nice car. Isn’t that strange? It was clean and it even smelled new.”

  Harmony scoffed, “I don’t know anyone that didn’t buy a car from a “your job is your credit” lot. I don’t know people with money. I’m a buy used kinda person. Fancy dinners to me is anywhere the drinks are served in actual glasses not plastic.”

  “He seems to like me. But he’s way out of my league. He’s pre-law, already accepted for next year. His family has money, and he acts like I’m someone he’s been searching for. I’m a little freaked out.”

  “You should be. Don’t go falling head over heels just because this guy is a little flashy. He’s dangling shiny things in front of you for a reason. Maybe he’s a player that has a routine for luring young impressionable college girls into despicable acts of depravity.”

  “Ugh, I hate thinking that way, and I’m not impressionable. You know, I work so hard to educate women about protecting themselves that I start looking at everyone like they might attack me. I know that’s not fair, or right. You can’t judge everyone by the same standards. I just get into that mindset and it’s hard to break out. Can I take his word for it that he’s a nice guy?”

  “Well, I say you have instincts for a reason. You don’t ignore them when you sense danger. What are they telling you?” Harmony asked this question gently. She wasn’t trying to be aggressive; she was really asking Quinn to think logically.

  “My instincts tell me he’s something different, someone different. I think I like him. It terrifies me that if I don’t pursue this, I’m going to miss out on something amazing. But I’m such a pessimist. I can’t throw away my future by letting some guy screw up my plans.”

  Harmony nodded her head. “I’m here as a sounding board. He sounds nice; he treated you nice and didn’t expect anything.”

  “He walked me to the door. Hell, he opened doors all night. Did you know guys still did that? Opened car doors, brought you drinks, paid for meals? I feel like I’m in the nineteen fifties sharing a soda at a malt shop.”

  “Ohh, do you think he’ll invite you to the sock hop?”

  “Smartass.”

  “I’m serious. Take him for what he is, or at least how he’s presented himself. Keep your guard up, be smart, and trust your instincts. There is no reason to not have a little fun. You’ll keep your studies up. It sounds like he’s very driven too.”

  “Smart, funny, and sweet. It’s a lethal combination.”

  Quinn threw herself down on her bed and sighed. Rain Rochon was throwing a huge wrench into her life.

  Rain tried to fall asleep once he got back to his room, but sleep was not coming. His bear was too amped up and he couldn’t do anything to relieve it for him.

  He kept replaying the kiss over and over in his mind. He wanted to text Cash and tell him that he’d kissed her, but it was late and the babies would be asleep. Cassie would flay him alive if he woke up the twinadoes.

  He was still awake when Fin came in. He expected his brother to be stumbling. Shifters had a harder time getting drunk than humans, but it was still possible. With as much booze as Rain had seen him consume, he seemed shockingly sober.

  “You’re here? I thought you would be out with your date,” Fin said, making air quotes.

  “I was. We had dinner, and then I took her home. Nothing out of the ordinary.”

  “Really, you going to stick with that? Nothing out of the ordinary? Besides the fact that you’ve never shown a girl enough attention to even bother asking her out, you went on a full date with this one. Picked her up, left the party early. I feel like you’re keeping something from me.”

  “Why do you think that? Since when do we tell each other everything?”

  “Since we could talk, that’s when. What the hell, man?”

  Rain was in a great mood. He didn’t want to ruin it by having a conversation with his brother that he’d been avoiding for months.

  “You know I’m really tired. Can’t we talk about this later?”

  “So you can avoid me again?”

  “Fuck, Fin. In case you haven’t noticed, you haven’t exactly been yourself these last few years.”

  “Shit, man, years? You’ve been holding shit back for years?”

  He wasn’t surprised that Fin was acting like his feelings were hurt. Rain wasn’t about to tell him anything that he would have done when they were in high school. His brother had changed and not in a good way.

  “Fin, I’m glad you’ve found yourself or whatever, but I’m dealing with things that don’t involve partying or avoiding responsibility.”

  “Wow, harsh. I’m sorry that I’m not Mr. Study. I wasn’t the one that dressed up in a little suit in kindergarten. I don’t know what I want to do, Rain. We didn’t all pick out our life before we could drink out of regular cups. I have no fucking clue what my future is supposed to be.”

  Rain didn’t know that his brother was that worried about the future. He had assumed that Fin’s change of attitude was because he didn’t care. Now he was feeling guilty that he hadn’t seen the true reason his brother was acting like the world was not his oyster and he didn’t have all the opportunity in the world to choose a life. Maybe he had too many choices. That could be scary as shit too.

  “I didn’t kn
ow, man. You’ve changed so much; I thought you were having the time of your life.”

  “Fuck, Rain. I’m not blaming you. I’m just saying my future is not as planned out as yours is. I feel like every time I try to find something that fits me, I fail. I don’t want to try anymore. I don’t want to keep attempting to start something and not make it. I know what mom and dad must think, that I’m wasting my time and my education. Worse, I know your schedule next year is going to mean you won’t be around as much. Then I have to figure out what the hell I’m going to do when I graduate. You’re still going to be here.”

  Rain was quickly realizing that once Fin graduated, it will be the first time outside of his senior year of high school that they wouldn’t be living together. For the old Fin, that was a scary reality.

  “I’m sorry, man. I’ve been so wrapped up in my own stuff that I didn’t even think about what happens after you graduate. I’ve got three more years, less if I push it. I know my goals haven’t changed in a long time. I really thought you were just living it up being away from the clan.”

  “I was at first. When I couldn’t find my path, I think I got a little lost.”

  “I’m here for you, whatever you need. Just talk to me, tell me how you’re feeling and I’ll see if I can help you out.”

  Fin gave a sigh, “I know I’ve been a selfish shit, but I’m still your brother. Best buds?”

  “You know you’re more than just my brother. We’ve been best friends all our lives. I want the best for you. I want you to have a happy future. I’m facing something new and completely unknown myself. I’m sure you can understand that I need some time.”

  “I’ll give you anything you need. I really am not that selfish. I may be a little scattered, but I’m still a Rochon. Rochons have each other’s backs. No matter what.”

  Rain walked over to Fin and gave him a one arm hug. “I know that. I do. And I have your back too.”

  Chapter 15

  Thursday turned out to be longer than Rain could have ever imagined. He had class and didn’t pay attention at all. His mind and his bear were only thinking about one thing. Was Quinn okay? Did she need someone to take her to work? He would have happily helped her do laundry this morning. The idea of folding socks with her sounded infinitely more appealing than attending class.

  It was taking all of his strength to resist the urge to stalk her. He was thinking that a nice juice might be a refreshing snack after class. Quinn had mentioned that she worked at the Emerald Squeeze juice bar. It wasn’t far from campus and Rain had driven by it many times. The idea that his mate had been in there, unknown to him, was surprising and frustrating.

  This was probably not a good idea to just show up at her workplace. She’d probably find it uncomfortable and possibly intrusive. Neither reaction would put him in a very good light.

  No, he needed to play it cool, give her time to think of their time last night as a positive experience and not a scary one. If she had any idea of the intensity of his feelings, she wouldn’t be thinking positively at all, she’d probably be buying a taser.

  He needed to find a way to keep himself occupied for the rest of the day. He pulled out his phone as soon as the lecture was over and texted Fin to see if he wanted to go rock climbing. It wasn’t real rock climbing of course, it was inside and there were safety harnesses and mats in case you fell. But it was still fun and worked all of your muscles.

  Fin texted back that he was ready whenever. It gave Rain something to plan for. He couldn’t shift and let his bear out, but he could use his muscles.

  Leaving class, he ran back to his dorm to burn off some more energy. Fin was waiting and the pair walked together to Rain’s car without talking, Rain had forgotten how much his brother’s silent support meant to him.

  They got to their favorite climbing club. The large sign on the front with the mountain backdrop said: It’s not that high.

  It might not have been high, but it was challenging, and it was just what he needed to keep his mind from straying to his mate.

  They climbed and traded off spotting each other for almost two hours. They barely talked and just focused on accomplishing their climbs.

  They grabbed a bite to eat after, and talked about family and whether they were going up for the weekend.

  “I was going to, but I don’t think I will now,” Rain said, running his finger down the condensation on his glass of iced tea.

  “You staying here with your girl?”

  Fin was watching him, his expression neutral. His eyes said something else. They said that he understood.

  “Yeah, man. I need to stay here. I can’t go out there. Can you make some excuse for me?”

  “Just to mom and dad or to everyone?”

  “Everyone but Cash.”

  Fin nodded. “I should have guessed.”

  “Not Cass though. Dear lord, could you imagine,” Rain chuckled. He appreciated not having to tell his brother all the gory details. He understood without Rain having to lay it out for him. That’s the kind of relationship they had always had.

  “No, she’s worse than mom. In a good way, of course.”

  “Yeah. I need time, Fin. As much as I can get.”

  “I’ll do what I can. I’ll tell them you’re volunteering at a cat shelter or something.”

  “Oh yeah, that won’t be suspicious. ‘Cause I’m such a great cat lover.”

  “If I tell them you’re studying they will just get pissed that you’re putting school before them. They might just show up to ‘surprise’ you.”

  “Do your best. I won’t blame you for whatever happens. Again, any time I can get.”

  “Will do.”

  A few miles away, Quinn was setting up her station at work. She’d done her laundry and thought about Rain. She made herself lunch of a veggie wrap along with fiery hot Cheetos and thought about Rain, her eyes stealing over to her shrine that now had the receipt from Dick’s that she’d snagged from the bag before Rain threw it away, and a business card from 13 Coins.

  She would have thought it was silly to put what was basically trash on her shrine, but it wasn’t. It meant something, it felt like something she needed to commemorate and she wasn’t sure why. Now she was at work and her mind wasn’t on fruit or protein boosters. She was wondering what Rain was doing.

  She didn’t like that he was taking up all the room in her head. It was one thing on her day off, but completely another thing when she had class the next day. He said he didn’t want to disturb her plans. But he already was. She wasn’t thinking about if he was going to ask her out again. Would she see him today? She knew he said he wouldn’t see her today, but would he stick to that?

  Quinn hoped he would, and she hoped he wouldn’t.

  “Quinnabago!”

  Her least favorite coworker, Louis, came up behind her and poked her sides. She hated when he did that.

  “Louis, how did you get on shift today?” What she really wanted to know was whose ass did she need to kick for giving up a shift and putting her with her least favorite person.

  “Mandy called in and said she was sick. Probably recovering from a hangover. Still, you get to hang with the Lou-man, aren’t you lucky?”

  “Oh, yeah, I should go out and buy a lottery ticket right now.”

  “You betcha. Lucky Lou, I’m changing my name for the day.”

  Quinn wanted a distraction, but she didn’t want one like this. “I’m going to go wash the pitchers.” She turned her back to Louis, leaving him up front to deal with customers. Nobody wanted to wash pitchers, but it sounded blissfully quiet right now.

  Finding a pile of used containers from the last shift, she happily started washing up. She took her time, extending as long as she could. That was until she heard Lou shouting for help. She came out and saw a line reaching the door. She dove in and helped him clear out the waiting customers.

  “Whew, you are the fastest gun with a blender, girl.”

  She hated when he called her ‘girl.
’ In Louis’s case he wasn’t being sexist, he just talked like an idiot.

  “Well, look at that. We made another mess. I’ll get on it.” If she could finish out her shift by hiding in the back, she was going to do it.

  After work she needed to meet with the group to finalize their posters. Their white posters. It was something else that she knew she had to do. The chances of her seeing Rain today were getting slimmer, and for some reason that made her feel sick.

  “Stop thinking about him,” she whispered to herself.

  “Thinking about who?”

  Quinn turned to see Louis standing at the doorway.

  “None of your business. Why don’t you go mop a floor or something?”

  “I’m leaving that for the night shift. I need to meditate on centering my chakras or something.”

  “I think you’ve been smoking too much pot.”

  “True, dude, so true. I’m half baked right now.”

  “Shocking. I’m going to go prep some fruit.”

  She managed to avoid Louis until the next shift came on. She waved as she left and walked back to campus. She didn’t even go back to her room to change out of her tacky yellow uniform. It was a yellow t-shirt that was a size too small with a plastic looking orange slice on the front.

  At least she didn’t work somewhere that made her smell like grease. The worst thing she left smelling like at the end of the day was citrus. It wasn’t a bad smell, but it reminded her of being sticky and the scorching pain of fresh juice in the tiny cuts she always had on her fingers from grading papers.

  She walked into the student union building and found a group of women on the floor paint in hand, writing on large white poster boards.

  The signs said things like “We listen” and “Your not alone.”

  Quinn winced at the typo. But the message was clear, the signs were supportive, but at the same time it was sad that they even had to be written.

  “Quinn!”

  It was Krissy who was misspelling you’re.