by Holly Renee
I stopped mid stride because I couldn’t help bending over in laughter.
“Beast?” I snorted.
“Did you just snort?” He looked offended.
“Did you just call yourself beast?” I was still laughing, and my words were muddled.
“Yes. I am a beast.” His arms were flexed in a super hero pose, and I almost fell to the ground in laughter.
“Is that funny?”
“Yes.” I wiped at my eyes.
“If you saw other parts of my body, you would call me beast too.”
“Only men with small penises brag about their penis being a beast.” I pointed down at his crotch.
The laughter was knocked out of me in the next moment when Tucker threw his shoulder into my stomach and lifted me from the ground.
“What the hell are you doing?” I squealed.
People who were walking by us were all staring. I was laughing like a maniac, and Tucker was strolling through the park like I wasn’t hanging over his shoulder like a rag doll.
He smacked my ass. “That’s what you get for offending my best friend.”
I snorted again. “I thought I was your bestie?” I teased.
“You are the newest addition. He is my oldest. Tried and true.”
A pang went through my chest thinking about how tried his penis was, but I pushed it away.
“I hope you’ve had your tried and true tested.”
He bounced me on his shoulder, and I screamed when I felt like I was going to fall head first onto the sidewalk.
“Don’t be mean. I’m not a whore.”
“No. I think the correct term is man whore.”
He swatted my ass again, and I giggled.
“The beast is just fine. Thank you very much.”
He pulled me off his shoulder and slid me down to the ground against his body. Goosebumps broke out on my skin, and I prayed that my sports bra was strong enough to hide my arousal. He pushed some stray hairs that were stuck to my sweat off my forehead. I was looking up at him, and he was looking down at me.
I wanted him to kiss me.
I needed him to kiss me.
“Waffle place or smoothies?” His voice broke through the trance I seemed to be in.
“That’s a dumb question.” I took off toward the waffle shop and tried to clear my head of the insane thoughts I was just having. “I’ll race you there,” I called behind me.
He caught up to me quickly and passed by me without any effort at all. He didn’t even look back.
…
I walked into my apartment and waved goodbye to Tucker. There was a giant smile on my face, but I dropped it as soon as I shut the door and saw Brooke staring at me curiously.
“What?”
“Nothing.” She still hadn’t stopped staring at me.
“Spit it out. I know you have something to say.” I grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge and plopped down on the couch.
“You and Tucker seem to be getting really chummy.”
“Yeah. We’re becoming good friends.”
“Uh huh.” She smiled. I didn’t like the smile she was giving me.
“Uh huh, what?”
“Are you sure that you are just becoming friends? Nothing else?”
“Yes, Brooke. I’m sure. Tucker isn’t interested in a girl like me.” I rolled my eyes at her.
“But you are interested in a guy like him.” I couldn’t tell if it was a statement or a question.
“It wouldn’t matter if I was. We would never be together.”
“Okay. If you’re not interested then you should let me set you up. I have the perfect guy in mind.”
“I’m going to do a hard pass on that one.” I chugged some water down.
“Why? If you aren’t interested in Tucker than you should be free to date whoever you want.” She thought she had me backed into a corner, but she was dead wrong.
“I am. That’s why I’m not going to date a guy that I don’t want to date.”
There was no way in hell I was going on a date that she set me up on. I had been down that road before, and it typically came to a screeching halt before our entrees made it to the table. Not going to happen. Nope.
“Please?”
“Seriously, Brooke. You are the world’s worst matchmaker.” It was harsh, but it was the truth.
“I am not. I just haven’t found the right man for you yet. This guy’s name is Jake, and I met him at work yesterday.”
“That’s just what I need,” I interrupted her. “A great guy you met at a salon.”
“He was there working, asshole. He’s an electrician, and he is hot as hell.”
“So why don’t you date him?”
“Can’t. I’m going to go out with his work buddy, Andrew.” She fanned herself.
“So, let me get this straight. You’re going to go out with his super-hot friend, and you are leaving me the leftovers?”
“No. They are both equally hot. I was just drawn to Andrew.” She sighed, and I rolled my eyes at her again.
“Please don’t go falling in love on me. You haven’t even gone out on a date with him yet.” She always did that. She would go on two dates with a guy, and all of a sudden, she was in love. Then I was the only one there a week later when she realized he was really a douche nozzle.
“I’m not in love. This is called swooning. I’m allowed to swoon over a man’s looks. Just because you’re being negative doesn’t mean I have to be.”
“I’m not negative,” I said, offended.
“Says the girl who won’t even take a chance on a guy.”
“I’ll think about it. Okay?” I wouldn’t really think about it, but she didn’t need to know that. I just needed her off my back.
“Fine. Do you want to get dinner tonight?”
“Tucker’s going to pick up Chinese food and come over to watch Game of Thrones later. You want me to tell him to pick you up something?”
She groaned and threw her hands in the air like I was supposed to know what that meant.
“You frustrate the hell out of me.”
“Is that a no?” I asked cautiously.
She rolled her eyes and I grinned. “I want chicken fried rice.”
“Holy shit! I told you this was going to happen.” I pointed to the screen where Game of Thrones had just ended.
Tucker pulled his wallet out of his pocket then slapped five dollars into my hand.
“This is shit. Complete shit.”
“You should just go ahead and learn now that you should never bet against me,” I bragged.
“She’s right,” Brooke said to the right of me, and I had almost forgotten she was there. “What I am more concerned with is Jon Snow’s body. Did you see how hot he looked?”
“Yes.” I fanned myself. “He is the ultimate.”
“The ultimate sissy. His muscles aren’t even that big.” Tucker started flexing his muscles, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Feel it.” He held his bicep out toward me, and I squeezed it.
“I don’t know. You’re feeling a little soft to me.”
His face was in pure shock, and I laughed even harder.
“There is nothing soft about me,” he pouted.
“Put the lip up buddy. Not everyone can be Jon Snow.”
“What time do you have to be at work tomorrow, Kennedy?” Brooke interrupted our banter.
“I told Chloe I would be there around ten.”
Tucker stood from the couch we were sharing and started picking up the mess from our Chinese food.
“I need to make sure all my camera equipment is ready before I go to bed.”
“I need to head out anyway.” Tucker smiled over at me. “Liam is going to get jealous if I don’t hang out with him at some point.”
“Tell him to back off my bestie.” I pointed at Tucker and made a serious face.
“Will do, Firecracker.” Tucker walked over to where I was still sitting and cupped my head in his hand.
His lips touched my forehead, and I closed my eyes and focused on not sighing out loud.
“Night, ladies.”
“Goodnight.” Brooke and I called out at the same time.
Tucker walked to the front door and smiled at me before the door shut behind him.
I turned my head toward my best friend, and she was staring at me with her finger pressed against her lip.
“What now?” I asked.
“You are so fucked.”
…
Butterflies took off in my stomach as I walked into the door of Rock Bottom. My camera was in my hand and my stomach was in my throat. I wasn’t sure why I was so nervous about this job, but I was. The excitement and inspiration that I usually felt when going to a shoot didn’t compare to how I was feeling at that moment.
My hands shook as I fiddled with the strap of my camera bag. I took in the space that laid before me just like I had the first time I stepped into it. It was just as impressive. The only difference was that everything seemed to be in perfect order. There were no workers walking around the space. It was empty, quiet, and intimidating.
Chloe walked out of the back of the restaurant as I walked into the space, and I let go of the breath I was holding when a large smile lit up her face.
“Hey, girl! You ready to get started?” She stood beside me, her head barely making it up to my chin.
“Yes. I’m excited.”
“Well, the place is yours. There is no staff here today except for me. I’m going to go back to my office and get out of your way. Let you do your thing.” She hiked her thumb over her shoulder and pointed to the door that she just walked through. “If you need anything, I’ll be in there.”
“Okay. Sounds good.” I pulled the strap of my bag off my shoulder and started setting out my equipment as she made her way back to her office.
Taking a deep breath and shaking out my hands, I tried to relax myself, and get my head in the zone.
I pulled my equipment from my bag. Deep breath.
My lens clicked into place against the camera. Deep breath.
The tripod legs separated, and I set it exactly where I wanted it. Deep breath.
With my camera in my hand, I began walking around the space and taking shots to test the lighting. Before I even had a chance to question it, I was in my zone.
I took picture after picture. Light gleamed off the chandelier made of agate slices, and I captured it in every angle I could manage. I walked toward the back office to talk to Chloe, but I found what I was looking for as soon as I walked through the door.
I set the ladder up in the middle of the room, I climbed to the very top and began shooting again. The angle was completely different and completely mesmerizing, and I became wholly lost in what I was doing.
The shades of magenta against the dark grey walls created an amazing contrast, and my finger clicked rapidly against my shutter until it was the only sound I could hear. I climbed on top of the large rock bar and lay on my back to capture angles that I hadn’t yet managed.
“This really isn’t that kind of bar.” Her voice came from somewhere behind me.
I pulled my camera away from my face and turned to look for Chloe. She was standing in the middle of the bar smiling at me, and she looked like she just belonged there. She had meshed her style into Rock Bottom so perfectly, and I couldn’t stop myself when I picked my camera back up and started snapping shots of her standing in her kingdom.
“What are you doing?” She laughed.
I caught the laughter on my screen.
“You do know it’s already three o’clock, right?” She tucked her hair behind her ear, and it was the first time since I met Chloe that she had ever looked the least bit insecure.
I set my camera on the bar and swung my legs around the bar until I was in a sitting position.
“I had no idea. I guess I was kind of lost in my work.” I stretched my arms above my head to loosen up my muscles that were sore from lying on the hard bar.
“I know. I came in here once to see if you wanted to go get lunch, but you were up on that damn ladder, and there was no way I was interrupting you. But now I am starving so I couldn’t help it.” She rubbed her stomach over her black T-shirt.
“Well, where are we eating?” I hopped down off the bar and starting packing up my equipment.
“Sushi?”
“I knew that I liked you, Chloe.”
She laughed as I carefully put my camera away.
“Do you think you got enough images?”
“I think so. I’ll start editing them tonight, but I took a ton. I just couldn’t stop myself.”
“This place is pretty great, huh?”
“It’s incredible. You should be proud.”
“I can’t take all the credit. The guys have worked damn hard to make this place what it is.”
“Why haven’t I seen them here before?” I was curious to see the men behind such a seductive, sexy place.
“They work a lot of nights and a lot from home. They’ll be here next week though. That’s why I wanted to wait to photograph all the staff. We’ll have everyone here, and you’ll get a chance to meet them.”
I nodded my head at her.
I slung my camera bag over my shoulder, and we made our way to the door just as it was opening.
I blinked, completely confused as Tucker walked through it.
“Tucker?” I looked over at Chloe, but she didn’t seem confused at all.
“Hey, Kennedy.” He pulled me into a small hug, but I stiffened.
“What are you doing here?” I looked around the restaurant.
“I work here.” Him and Chloe exchanged a look, but I was too busy trying to wrap my head around what he had just said to read into it.
“Why didn’t you tell me you worked here? Is this the place you’ve been helping open?”
“Yeah.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I didn’t realize this was the place you were shooting.’’
I watched Chloe as she watched him, but I didn’t know her well enough to know what she was thinking.
“Kennedy and I are going to lunch. Want to join?”
Tucker looked down at me with a smile. “I’ve got some work to do, but you two go and have fun.”
Chloe pulled the door open, and I turned to look at him.
“I’ll see you later,” he said softly, and I waved.
…
When I arrived home from lunch, there was a large package in my mailbox, and before I even looked at it, I knew what it was. I held it against my chest as I walked into my apartment. I held it against my chest as I set my bag down and sat down on my bed.
I took a deep breath then laid the package in front of me.
The school emblem practically jumped off the page as I stared down at it, and I stared at it for a long time.
It was my father’s alma mater and the exact school my brother had attended. Exactly like he was expected to. As I was expected to.
I ripped open the tab on the back and pulled out the stack full of papers that lay inside.
Information on the school, information on their programs, and information on the programs I specifically requested. Business and law.
Just the thought of both made my stomach roll.
But I had let Jessica get to me. I had let me mother get to me.
I would never be good at business or law, never love doing it, but just looking at it wouldn’t hurt me.
It would only help me with my family. With my parents.
I read over the papers carefully, page after page, but I couldn’t quit thinking about the photos I had taken of Rock Bottom.
I would have to cut down on the number of shoots I booked to go to school. I would be too busy. I would have to put all my focus into school.
Just the thought alone made my chest ache.
“Kennedy, you here?”
I scrambled off the bed at the sound of Brooke’s voice and tucked the packet in the drawer of my bedside table.
“What’s up?” Tucker busted through my door, and I paused with popcorn halfway to my mouth.
“You know…” I cleared my throat. “In some countries, they think knocking before walking into someone’s house is appropriate.”
He waved his hand in the air and dismissed everything I just said.
“I have good news.” He bounced down on the opposite side of the couch and planted his feet on my coffee table.
“And what would that be?”
He stuck his hand in my bowl of popcorn, and I attempted to smack it away, but he was too quick.
“Well.” He popped some popcorn in his mouth. “Liam and I are going to head down to Tennessee for a four-day weekend on the lake.”
“That sounds awesome.”
It did sound awesome, but a pang of anxiety filled my chest at the thought of him being gone. Being around him on a daily basis had become my new normal, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about him being gone.
“It would be even better if you would come with us.”
I choked on a piece of popcorn.
Not gracefully either.
I felt the kernel get stuck in my throat, and I bent over coughing which also led to me knocking over half the bowl of popcorn.
Tucker laughed before he scooted closer to me on the couch and started patting my back.
“Are you okay?”
He handed me my water when I finally was able to take a breath. I gripped the bottle in my hand and swallowed it down.
“What?” My voice sounded rough.
“Are you okay?” He repeated himself.
“No. Not that.” I waved my hand around like a maniac. “What you said before that.”
“You should go to Tennessee with us?” he said almost as if it was a question.
“Bingo.” I took another drink of water.
“It will be fun. You don’t have any shoots this weekend. You told me so yourself the other day.”
“I didn’t tell you that so you could use it against me.”
“I’m not using it against you. It will be fun. I swear.”
I eyed him skeptically. “I’ll have to talk to Brooke about it.”
“Good luck.” He smirked. “Brooke already said yes.”
…
