Educating Callie

by Emma Jayne Mills

  “I’m not your girlfriend anymore Jase,” I snapped. Jase was practically swaying as he stared Nate down, he was hammered. “Nate and I are friends. Friends have dinner together.”

  “And are you having dinner with Luke the following night? Vinnie the next? Oh and let’s not forget your new bodyguard. Are you having dinner with him as well CeeCee?” Jase turned his anger on me, causing Nate to drop his arm from my shoulders and move to stand slightly in front of me.

  “No, but if they asked I would!” I stood my ground. “Jase, if you want to stay you need to calm down or I’ll have security escort you out.”

  I moved to walk away and he grabbed my arm, “When will you learn CeeCee, we are not finished. I am not going away. I really thought we were getting somewhere when you let me in the other day. I thought we’d turned a corner when I had you in my arms again, comforting you. But now you’re back to being a cold hearted bitch!”

  “Let go of her Jase.” Nate warned, moving to fully put himself between Jase and me.

  “Take your hand off her arm. Now.” Adam’s low calm voice resonated from behind me and it made me glad I wasn’t on the receiving end of it.

  “Make me pretty boy!” Jase instigated.

  Adam took a step towards Jase and Cam and Vinnie appeared around us. Jase’s grip on my arm tightened. Adam saw me flinch in pain and snapped a hand out, digging his long fingers into Jase’s arm, mimicking what Jase was doing to me. I didn’t think he was squeezing, but the threat was there, you could see it in his eyes. Jase’s eyes flashed with realisation, he hadn’t meant to hurt me but it was too late. He roughly let go of my arm and pushed me back into my brother’s chest. Cam spun me around and encased me in his arms, shielding me from whatever was taking place between Adam and Jase.

  “Are you alright Callie? Did he hurt you? Let me see?” Luke fussed, going into full on doctor mode and trying to pry me away from Cam so he could look at my arm.

  “I’m ok Luca.” I reassured him, shakily. My head was spinning, unable to make sense of what had just happened.

  “Let him look.” Cam told me. He bent to talk into my ear but his eyes were looking over my head and across the crowded pub at whatever was happening behind me.

  Both Adam and Vinnie had disappeared, presumably escorting Jase off the premises. I let Cam and Luke steer me towards the bar, Nate following closely behind.

  “Take her upstairs.” Mick said as he pulled a pint behind the bar, obviously aware of what had happened, “First aid kit in the hallway.”

  In the lounge upstairs I removed my long sleeved shirt, revealing a white tank top underneath with the slogan, “Bollocks” across the chest to raised eyebrows and smirks from Cam, Nate and Luke. Their amused looks turned to anger as we saw the large, red fingerprint marks that had formed along my upper arm. Luke examined it quickly and gently as it was tender to touch, before confirming it was only bruising.

  I smiled and leant over to kiss Luke on the cheek, “Thank you Luca.”

  Sally poked her head around the door frame, “Put this on it Luke. It’ll take the bruising straight out.” She threw a tube of arnica cream to Luke who caught it and applied a thin layer to my arm. Sally was a nanny to three small children and carried all kinds of weird and wonderful potions and lotions in her bag. Apparently small children fall down a lot.

  “Come on, let’s get you a drink. Doctor’s orders.” Luke said with a smile and I let him take my hand and lead me back out to the bar and Adam’s waiting arms. His eyes darkened at the marks on my arm but immediately softened as he met my gaze and fastened his arms around my waist.

  “What did you do to him?” I asked quietly.

  “Don’t defend him Angel.” He warned.

  “I won’t.” I said. Once again, just as I went back to thinking I knew and could trust Jase he was proving me wrong at every turn. I was done.

  “Vinnie and I just sent him on his way, that’s all. Are you alright?” He asked, lifting my chin so I met his gaze.

  “Luke fixed me up.” I nodded and rested my head on his chest.

  “Thank you.” Adam looked at Luke, who nodded and handed me the bottle of beer that Mick had ready for me, I twisted in Adam’s arms to take it.

  “That’s him finished in here love.” Mick said, “He got a second chance because you vouched for him. He fucked that up and he won’t be coming through that door again.”

  “I know Mick, you won’t hear me argue.” I agreed with him, sadly.

  “Fucking psycho!” Liv joined us and then pointed at my shirt with a grin.

  “You ok sweetheart?” Sally asked as she moved in to stand next to Luke, hooking her arm through his.

  “I’m fine, really.” I told them. I leaned into Adam’s side and wrapped my arm around his waist, sticking my hand in his back pocket. He slipped his thumb under the hem of my shirt and rubbed the bare skin on my hip, making my skin tingle in response.

  “She’s made of tough stuff.” Nick reached over the bar, where he and Jared had stepped in to help Mick out in my absence, and pulled my hair gently, making me laugh.

  “I’m just sorry I didn’t get to look totally hot jumping over the bar again.” Mick winked at me cheekily.

  “The act Mick. The act.” I said.

  *****

  Adam: Breakfast in bed?

  Me: You mean the sofa? Since we don’t sleep in beds?

  Adam: Breakfast on the sofa/bed?

  Me: Crumbs and sofa/bed are never a good mix.

  *****

  “Where are we going?” I asked Adam the next morning. He’d been reluctant to leave me the night before but I had reassured him that I was fine and that I needed a good night’s sleep, in a bed, in order to prepare for our day together. He’d cheered up at that thought and left me in my brother’s capable hands with instructions to be ready bright and early. I’d complained at that obviously, but he’d just grinned at me and I knew he was thinking about our previous conversation about waking me up in ways that would make me happy. I was sure there was a bad boy lurking in there somewhere but Adam kept him well hidden.

  “Somewhere you love but rarely visit.” he told me cryptically and I screwed my nose up and stuck my tongue out at him. He laughed.

  “What will we be doing?” I tried, as he ushered me towards his car.

  “Well, the place we’re going has a very specific set of rules that must be followed in order to enjoy it to its fullest.” He opened the passenger door and stopped me before I got in the car to drop the lightest of kisses on my lips, leaving behind a tingling feeling that made me smile happily. He closed the door when I got in and walked around to the driver’s side.

  “Not sure how I feel about rules.” I grumbled, fiddling with the radio tuner.

  “Don’t worry, they’re good rules. But the main one being, no darkness. Not today. Today we play in the light.” he gently pulled my fingers away from the radio and lifted them to his mouth, kissing them lightly and then plugged a memory stick into a port in the car. Guns n’ Roses Paradise City filled the car’s speakers. I looked at him and grinned, he had remembered a story I had told him one night about how it was my Dad’s favourite song and he would always play it repeatedly on long car journeys.

  It wasn’t until we had been driving for almost two hours and we had sung along to Paradise City countless times that I began to pay attention to the direction we were heading.

  “We’re going towards the coast.” I observed, turning to him, a slow smile tilting my mouth.

  “We are.” he smiled, glancing at me sideways

  “Are we going to the seaside?” I demanded excitedly, jumping up and down in my seat.

  He laughed, shaking his head at my antics, “That we are Angel.”

  I clapped my hands together, grinning a grin that could rival that of any Cheshire cat. I absolutely loved days at the seaside. Our parents often used to surprise us with days out on Saturday mornings if Dad wasn’t at work. Another detail of my life I had shared with Ad
am during one of our late night conversations. We had made a list of seaside rules, things you absolutely had to do when you went there. And he had remembered. He’d listened to me. He’d been listening to me right from the beginning. Adam, I realised, knew me. And through those same conversations, I knew him.

  In true British tradition the sky was dull and grey when we arrived, but it wouldn’t be a day at the seaside if it didn’t rain a bit. None of that could wipe the smile from my face though. And I may have been jumping up and down like an excited child when we got out of the car.

  “Can we ride the pier rides? Can we get candy floss? Can we buy tacky souvenirs? I can’t leave without a sugar dummy for Cam, he loves those things. You need a kiss me quick hat. You’d suit one of those; it’s in the seaside rules...” I rambled excitedly.

  “Well if it’s in the rules. But first...” Adam laced his fingers though mine and led me to a stall at the edge of the beach, where he bought a bucket and spade before walking us down the steps onto the sand.

  We wandered out across the sand dunes towards the wetter sand where we knelt and built a huge sandcastle with turrets and seashell decorations and a moat that led all the way to sea. Adam stopped an elderly couple walking on the beach and asked them to take a photo of us with our creation.

  “You’re such a pretty couple. I can see that you’re very much in love.” The lady said with a smile when her husband handed back Adam’s phone. We smiled politely, the complications of our lives not worth going into with strangers

  “Fifty four years ago I married this woman. Let me tell you young man, if your girl makes you as happy as mine makes me, you make sure you never let her go.” The man told Adam.

  “I don’t intend to.” Adam smiled at them and put his arm around me as we watched them walk away hand in hand.

  I couldn’t help but smile at them wistfully, “How beautiful to still be that much in love after all those years together.” I mused as I watched them.

  “Yeah.” Was all Adam said as he watched me watching them with a smile on his face.

  Adam grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the sea where he sat on the sand, pulled me down next to him and took off his shoes and socks, “You too!”

  “Are you nuts? It’s freezing!” I said, shaking my head at him.

  “You can’t come to the seaside and not paddle, it’s in the rules!” He said, rolling his jeans up.

  I laughed and joined him. I was right, it was freezing and I screeched when the water hit my skin, but soon we were splashing around at the water’s edge. Running away from the waves, kicking water at each other, chasing each other up and down the beach until eventually we collapsed on the sand, laughing happily. I couldn’t remember a time that I had felt so relaxed and carefree.

  “You know what else is in the seaside rules don’t you?” he said looking up and down the length of the beach.

  “Donkey rides?” I asked. Although I thought we were a bit too heavy to be doing that. Donkeys should be ridden by children only.

  “Fish and chips!” he announced, collecting our shoes and pulling me to my feet.

  “Oooh yes!” I agreed, suddenly famished. We walked barefoot off the beach and Adam stopped to give our bucket and spade to a little boy and girl who were coming onto the sand with their parents. They ran off shrieking gleefully to build a sand castle of their own. After brushing the sand off our feet and my mini rant about sand between my toes, we found a chip shop and sat on a bench overlooking the sea, eating fish and chips with lots of vinegar and mushy peas.

  Adam stood to put our empty wrappers in the bin, then turned and held his hand out to me. I took it and stood. “What do you want to do next?” he asked.

  “Shouldn’t we head back?” I said, thinking of the drive and that I had to work that night.

  “You’re not working tonight.” Adam said with a grin, as if reading my mind.

  “Yes, I am.” I said, confused.

  “I spoke to Mick. He agreed you deserved a day off, Jared is covering your shift.” He explained.

  “We don’t have to leave yet?” I asked, my eyes lighting up.

  “Nope.” He confirmed.

  “Adam. You. Are.The. Best.” I told him as I threw my arms around him and laughed when he agreed with me.

  We continued to walk along the promenade towards the pier, stopping to look in every tacky souvenir shop along the way. They had everything from painted rocks to snow globes and those little plastic windmills that fall apart before you get them home.

  “Oh, oh, oh!” I spied a pair of Supergirl socks hanging on a rail.

  “Did you just have a nerdgasm?” Adam laughed and I vowed payback on my brother for sharing that little piece of information with him.

  “They’ve got capes on them. Actual capes.” I told him, seriously.

  “Then you must have the Superman socks.” He said, picking them up.

  “Supergirl Adam. They’re Supergirl socks. Seriously, if we are going to have any kind of future together you’re going to have to get in the know about your super heroes!” I put my hands on my hips and faced him.

  A smile brightened his face and he reached out and pulled me towards him by my t shirt. “You’re talking about our future together Angel. You know how that makes me feel?”

  “Erm, super?” I smiled up at him and he laughed, squeezing me tighter.

  “How can you tell anyway, they both wear the same colour?” he indicated the socks.

  “Because I’m a girl. If I were a boy they would be Superman socks. But I’m a girl so they are Supergirl socks.” I explained.

  “You’re a geek!” he said about my logic and went inside to pay for them.

  “Thank yooouuuu!” I sang before looking at him when he handed me a small bag containing the socks. I looked up to see he was wearing a black cowboy hat with a ribbon around it that read “Kiss me quick.”

  “Well?” he said.

  “What?” I grinned. He pointed a finger at the hat. I rose up on my tip toes and planted a quick kiss on his lips.

  “Shame they don’t make one that says kiss me slow.” he said as we began walking again.

  “What makes you think I would have obliged?” I flirted.

  “Well, I could always have gone and found that lovely old lady...” he said.

  “Nooo, she was too smitten with her husband to notice you.” I told him as I reached for his hand.

  “She was giving me the eye and you know it.” he said.

  “She was not!” I argued.

  “Jealous Angel?” he teased.

  “Jealousy is wanting something you don’t have.” I quoted Mick with a grin.

  “Ah, so you have this do you? Now who’s sure of themselves?” he waved his hand up and down his body.

  “Just pointing out that I don’t want something that I don’t have, therefore not jealous.” I smirked at him cheekily.

  “Of course Angel. That’s exactly what you were doing.” he pulled me closer by my hand and kissed the top of my head.

  I swung our hands in between us as we made our way to the pier where we spent ages dropping 2 pence coins into the slots trying to get the piles of copper coins to topple. We placed bets on the horse racing game and shot hoops through the basket ball ring. Of course, Adam was better at that, being tall. Cam would have had a field day with the short jokes, but I did manage to sink a few baskets of my own. To which I cheered loudly and Adam picked me up and swung me around cheering with me. We got some funny looks but it didn’t matter and of course, I made him promise not to tell anyone at home that he’d had to lift me up so I could get the ball through the hoop in the first place.

  Outside we stopped to take pictures in the face in hole boards. Then at the end of the pier we climbed the twisted stairs of the helter skelter and at the top Adam abandoned his own mat, pulling me down to sit between his legs on my mat.

  “Ready?” he asked when he wrapped his arms around my waist.

  “Yep!” I nodded and he pus
hed us off. We whizzed down the spiralling slide and landed in a tangled heap of arms and legs at the bottom. I got up first and yanked Adam to his feet, both of us laughing hysterically. The man with the tokens shook his head at us, but cracked a smile all the same.

  We bought ice creams with chocolate flakes and strawberry syrup and leaned at the end of the pier shivering and looking out at the sea as we ate them.

  “What’s next?” he asked as we watched the waves batter the pier legs beneath us.

  “Hmmm...oh, the grabber machines, the ones with the teddy bears.” I said, making the grabber motion with my hands

  “Of course.” he agreed and we went off in search of the machines

  Several attempts later I had won a little brown dog with huge eyes and a wonky mouth and Adam had a small white teddy bear holding a red heart with “Be Mine” written on it. We swapped prizes and Adam made me promise to sleep with the bear every night that he wasn’t with me.

  On the way back to the car park we bought sticks of rock in every colour and I got a huge red sugar dummy for Cam and a painted beach rock for Mick with the slogan “You’re my rock” on it, I couldn’t resist. At the car, Adam opened the passenger door for me and I reached up to kiss his cheek.

  “Thank you.” I whispered.

  “Thank you.” he turned my words around.

  “What did I do? This was all you.” I frowned.

  “You stopped running Angel.” he said and lowered his forehead to rest it against mine, “Although, for the record, I would have kept chasing.”

  “Good to know.” I grinned and we got into the car just as the rain started. It might have been a dull, grey typically British day, but we had spent it playing in the light.

  *****

  Dana: Relationship update after yesterday?

  Me: Lots of hand holding. A souvenir teddy bear. Supergirl socks and two very quick lip kisses.

  Dana: Oh my, he’s courting you like an old fashioned gentleman. It’s so romantic. He’s your Mr Darcy.

  Me: Have you even read Pride and Prejudice Dana?