Beautiful Dreamer

by Melissa Brayden

  “Yes, ma’am. I do.”

  She turned to Jill. “Do you have your cell phone in your back pocket so you can call if you need us?”

  Jill patted her left cheek. “Right here.”

  Devyn hesitated and exhaled slowly, wondering if this was such a good idea. “When will I see you again?” But the two of them were already heading off in the direction of the festival.

  “Let’s play that by ear,” Jill called back.

  Damn it. She hoped Jill would be okay.

  Elizabeth patted her shoulder as they watched. “They grow up so fast.”

  “Don’t they, though?”

  “C’mon. There’s exploring to do.”

  Devyn smiled and vowed to keep an open mind. “You lead the way.”

  First stop was the face-painting booth, in which Elizabeth immediately zeroed in on a sunflower for her cheek. “What about you?” she asked Devyn.

  “I think I’m just going to watch.”

  “Suit yourself.”

  But after she’d said it, Devyn felt a little bad about not participating in something that Elizabeth seemed to think was a lot of fun, remarking to the people around them. helping them find exactly the right design from the book the artist laid out.

  “Jimbo, you need to get the peace sign,” she told the teenager in line behind them. He smiled noncommittally but seemed flattered to have been spoken to by Elizabeth, who was, after all, very pretty.

  “What about me?” the older woman flipping through the catalog asked. “I like rainbows.”

  “I was just about to suggest a rainbow for you, Midge. You look amazing in multicolor.”

  “Maybe a giant building for you,” she whispered to Devyn.

  She opened her mouth to answer but Elizabeth beat her to the punch.

  “Or a refrigerator. We could ask the artist if she can do one.”

  The words died right there on her lips. She pivoted. “You’re trouble.”

  “I could be a lot of trouble for you.”

  Devyn laughed off the sentence, refusing to take it too seriously. She could handle Elizabeth and what they had going. If she was capable of a multimillion-dollar sellout in one of the largest cities in the nation, Elizabeth Draper was a walk in the park. And not just literally. “Nothing I can’t handle.”

  “Can you handle a ladybug? ’Cuz it’s the smallest one they have and it would look very attractive right there,” she said, and touched a spot on Devyn’s cheekbone. That brief contact left her cheek warm and her stomach uncomfortable, making said ladybug hard to resist.

  “Fine.”

  Elizabeth beamed. “A small victory for the country mouse.”

  “Does that make me the city mouse?”

  She closed one eye. “A retired country mouse.”

  Devyn balked. “I sound geriatric. I’m in the prime of my damn life and showed you so just the other day.”

  “Shh,” Elizabeth said, leaning into her, but she was laughing, which only encouraged Devyn.

  “Do you need another demonstration?”

  Midge raised an amused eyebrow and made a point of looking away respectfully.

  Elizabeth’s eyes danced. “I wouldn’t rule it out,” she said quietly in Devyn’s ear.

  That did it. Her “friend” Elizabeth had her wet and turned on in a crowd of hundreds with the day stretched out in front of them. Perfect. The very least she could do was submit to a ladybug on her cheek.

  “I’m starving,” Elizabeth said thirty minutes later, showing off her newly sunflower-adorned cheek. Devyn snapped a photo.

  “Think they have any salads?” Devyn asked, and received a death stare.

  “Everything you’re eating today will be fried. Prepare for that.”

  “I’ll notify my arteries to prepare for battle.”

  As they waited in line for fried Twinkies, Devyn received a call from one of her brokers, who was having trouble getting a potential buyer to put in an offer because the only floor they could afford at Twenty-Four Walker didn’t come with a stellar view. “Well, what have you tried?” she asked her guy, Damon.

  He sighed. “Everything. I’ve pointed at the other perks the unit does have, the high ceilings and the chef’s kitchen, the one-of-a-kind designer fixtures—”

  “Yeah, but they’re hung up on the views, right? You want to emphasize the bright spots the outdoor area does offer. Have you shown them the outdoor living space?”

  “In the initial showing.”

  “Get them back into the unit, but not before you spend a little money to get the outdoor area staged. Pipe in some music on the sound system and have a sommelier there with a selection of wine. Tell Karen that I authorized the purchase. They’ll be putty in your hands.” She held up one finger to Elizabeth, who stood there holding two cardboard trays with fried Twinkies and strawberry sauce. “Damon, I gotta go. Let me know what happens with that offer. Don’t sleep until it’s done.”

  Elizabeth quirked an eyebrow. “Don’t sleep? That seems strict.”

  It was a phrase she’d said a number of times to her team, one that had always seemed within bounds and status quo. Away from it all now, though, in the midst of others enjoying themselves and their Saturday, it did seem a little extreme. She accepted her Twinkie from Elizabeth. “I suppose you don’t say that to any of your On the Spot employees?”

  “Can you imagine? Patch that tractor tire by midnight, KC, or never talk to me again.”

  “KC works for you? Best friends and coworkers?”

  “Just here and there.” Elizabeth nodded. “I trust her implicitly. In fact,” she scanned the rows of booths, “she should be getting off her shift about now. The daycare hosts a funnel cake booth as a fund-raiser and the parents all take turns manning it. Over there. By the polka band.”

  “A polka band? Well, hell, why didn’t you say so?” Devyn joked.

  Elizabeth slid her a sideways glance. “You like all of this more than you’re letting on.”

  “Maybe,” Devyn said, through a mouthful of an amazing hot, battered Twinkie.

  KC was off her shift, just as Elizabeth had predicted, and standing in front of the booth holding a toddler. Lots of curly blond hair and a couple of teeth.

  “Liz, why don’t you have a beer in your hand?”

  “I’ll get there,” she said.

  “You remember Devyn. High school dancer turned commercial real estate ninja.”

  “That’s what they call me,” Devyn said, nodding.

  KC smiled. “I can’t believe this is the first time we’re running into each other. So glad to hear Jill is on the mend. And that you two have been spending…quality time together.”

  “It’s good to see you again, KC. This little guy is adorable. Yours?” She decided not to finish the remainder of the Twinkie, knowing there would likely be more fried objects to come, and she wanted to save room. Apparently, she now cared about such things.

  “Yep, this is my little guy, Gray,” KC said. “You met my husband, Dan, at the hospital.”

  “Yes. He checked in on us multiple times, even once the orthopedic guy took over. He’s great.” Just as she discarded the last bit of her Twinkie, two tiny arms reached for her.

  “Whoa,” KC said, glancing from Devyn to the toddler. “Gray doesn’t usually go for strangers.”

  “It’s okay,” Devyn said, accepting the toddler into her arms and feeling crazy nervous about what to do with him now that she had him. Oh, and would you look at that? His hands were sticky. She decided, in fear of the answer, not to ask why. Gray studied her face with a deeply furrowed brow. She studied him right back. That mop of bright blond hair, large blue eyes, and a pouty bottom lip. Then something crazy occurred. He broke into a luminous grin, the kind that was unabashedly joyful, and she did, too. “Hi, there,” she said.

  “Hi,” he said back, simply.

  “Would you look at that?” Elizabeth said, enjoying this. “I think you have a new best friend.”

  She wouldn’
t have predicted this, but the next half hour only solidified her point. They walked with KC to the kiddie rides and watched as Gray circled around and around in the tiny little cockpit of an airplane. Each time he passed, it was Devyn he waved and yelled to. “Look. Look.”

  “I see you,” she yelled back. “You’re in an airplane.”

  He threw his head back and laughed as if it were the funniest thing. When they moved on to the next ride, he held her hand as he toddled back and forth, chattering nonsensically. All the while, she could feel Elizabeth watching her, and it made Devyn feel like she could take on a world full of toddlers. She liked that feeling very much.

  “You doin’ okay?” Elizabeth whispered as Gray worked on a cotton ball art project at the kids’ station.

  Devyn smiled. “More than okay. Thank you. It’s one of those days where the world just seems a little easier.” Hearing the words coming out of her mouth made her feel ridiculous. Her cheeks heated.

  “What?”

  Devyn turned to Elizabeth. “I’m starting to sound like you.”

  She shrugged. “I don’t see the problem.”

  KC tossed a gleeful Gray over her shoulders like a sack of potatoes. “I gotta get this kid home and in a bath before the sugar crash hits. Nap time looms. You two have all the fun.” She flipped her body around so they could see Gray’s face. “Tell your friends goodbye.”

  “Bye-bye.” he said with a huge grin spread wide across his face. He continued to wave as KC walked him out of the park, and they continued to wave back until he disappeared in the throngs of festival attendees.

  “Now what?” Elizabeth asked.

  “Three-legged race is starting.”

  Elizabeth’s eyes went wide. “We haven’t even talked strategy. I got caught up with a two-year-old and now we’re going in blind. There’s a grocery gift certificate on the line.” There was that competitive streak Devyn enjoyed so much, out in full force the second a race was mentioned.

  Devyn shrugged, attempting nonchalance to calm Elizabeth’s nerves. “What do you say we don’t necessarily try to win? Let’s just have fun with it.” She dropped her voice. “If I remember correctly, we work pretty good pressed up against each other.”

  Elizabeth blinked as if the thoughts had just been plucked from her head. Finally, she said, “Okay.”

  “Okay? Perfect.”

  “Five minutes until the three-legged race,” a man on a microphone proclaimed.

  “We should probably head over there,” Elizabeth said, but she now had a dreamy, faraway look in her eye, and Devyn knew she was thinking about sex, which had her keyed up all the more. This plan had backfired, but then again, maybe not. They were about to be tied up together.

  “C’mon, let’s go.”

  As they stood at the starting line minutes later, middle leg tied together and with an arm around each other, Devyn found herself acutely aware of Elizabeth’s body heat and the way she smelled heavenly of fresh cotton. “What lotion do you use? I need to buy it.”

  “I’m not wearing lotion,” Elizabeth said, turning her face toward Devyn’s neck. Her breath tickled the skin there and sent a chill straight from Devyn’s spine to her center.

  “Then why do you smell so good that I want to do things to you?”

  A pause. “What kind of things? Tell me.”

  “Go, Liz and Devyn,” a voice yelled from the group gathered in the grass to watch. She glanced over at Jill sitting next to Charlie with a stick of fluffy blue cotton candy in her hand. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one having a good time today. She offered a wave with her free hand and turned back to Elizabeth.

  “Really, really slow things. With my tongue. My lips.”

  “And go,” the race official yelled. Beside them, twenty other teams took off, bound and determined to make it to the finish line first and collect the hundred-dollar gift card to Festive Foods. Devyn and Elizabeth hadn’t moved.

  “We have to run,” Elizabeth said, as if on delay. But they were a disorganized mess now, and after only four steps, fell over in the grass. Elizabeth folded in, partially on top of Devyn. “Uh-oh,” she said. “That didn’t go well.”

  “Damn,” Devyn said, staring up at Elizabeth, who amusingly enough made no attempt to get up. The weight of her had Devyn’s body awake and craving.

  Elizabeth frowned. “We should probably concede defeat and congratulate the winners.”

  “Whatever you say.”

  They held eye contact for a heated moment, and Elizabeth’s hands moved to Devyn’s hips, where they squeezed lightly. Finally, as Elizabeth pushed up and off her, she made a point of grazing Devyn’s crotch very slowly with her knee and flashing a smile. Devyn’s eyes fluttered closed and she took a steadying breath as the pinpricks of pleasure hit and died. She shook her head at Elizabeth and assisted her with the untying process.

  “Three-legged races as foreplay never occurred to me.” Devyn freed the rope.

  “And now we’ll never look at them the same way again.” Elizabeth, the town goody-goody who had just brushed against her intimately in public, now offered her a smug smile as she sauntered over to Peggy and Lulu, who had taken down the rest of the competition with triumphant flair. As Elizabeth walked, Devyn stared at her ass, her legs, and the always perky energy she carried with her. God, she wanted to do things with her. To her. She also wanted to buy her a cupcake and watch her face light up. How was it that those two thoughts existed in the same space over the course of 2.3 seconds?

  What was she going to do with Elizabeth Draper? And why did such a question deliver her all sorts of exciting options? She laughed as she crossed the field to find her. Sex and cupcakes. Devyn’s new reality.

  * * *

  The Springaling Festival might just have been Elizabeth’s favorite to date. Everyone’s smiles seemed brighter, the food was more exciting, and the vibe was, at all times, cheerful. Did it also have something to do with the fact that she had Devyn with her, and seeing it all through her eyes added to the appeal? Maybe. She couldn’t discount the pull she felt whenever Devyn was in her vicinity, friend or no friend. She was on a high and loving every second of it.

  “Hi, Mr. Rotowski,” she said to her old algebra teacher, who really should just shave off that last tuft of hair that clung to his head for dear life.

  “Hi there, Ms. Draper.” He high-fived her as they passed, tuft a-blowing in the breeze.

  “Was that who I think it was?” Devyn stared off after him. “Roto-Rooter?”

  “In the flesh. I wholeheartedly enjoy that I’m still friends with my teachers.”

  “Only you, Draper. Only you.”

  They walked on, side by side, as the temperatures dipped a bit with the descent of the sun. “What was it like to be popular in high school?” Elizabeth asked. “To go to all the parties and have invites thrust your way everywhere you looked. People wanting to be you. Hang out with you.”

  Devyn shrugged. “Way less exciting than it sounds, if I’m being honest.”

  “Well, that’s a shame.”

  “I look back at that time and remember how unhappy I was underneath all the bravado. Not ready to tell the world who I was yet, and wasting all of my time with people who were uninterested in knowing the real me anyway. What I should have been doing was spending time with my mom, who wouldn’t be around forever, you know?” She glanced away. “She loved things like this. You know, when the whole town came together?” She touched her heart, where the pang of longing clearly hit.

  Elizabeth nodded. She hadn’t known too much about Devyn’s mother, who had been well liked in the community and was definitely gone too soon. “I’m sorry you lost her.”

  “Thank you. You lost yours, too, right?”

  She shifted uncomfortably and took a deep breath. “Nope.” She nodded to a spot about twenty-five yards away. “She’s right over there.”

  “What?” Devyn quirked her head. “I had no idea. I thought your dad raised you.”

  “He di
d, and he was wonderful. I miss him every day, much like you and your mom.” She decided she should maybe explain. “My mother left us when I was in the second grade. Rode out of town on the back of a motorcycle with some guy she deemed infinitely more exciting than we were. A tourist named Todd.”

  “God, I’ve always hated that name,” Devyn said, as if she had a bad taste in her mouth. “All the more reason.”

  “Right?” She sighed. “She showed back up fourteen years later with a husband, not Todd, and now lives with him, raising his two daughters. That’s them next to her at the jewelry booth. Twelve and fourteen now.”

  Elizabeth stopped short of explaining that though her mother claimed to have come back to town to be near her, they rarely spoke for longer than three minutes in any given stretch.

  “Hey, there, Lizzie-Loo.” It was almost as if they’d summoned her. Elizabeth cringed at the use of the childhood nickname, unique to her mother. Kristine Lockwood, her married name, raised an energetic hand from where she stood shopping. “Good to see you, sweetie,” she yelled in her sassy Southern accent. Elizabeth used to try to mimic it when she was little. Not so much now.

  They walked toward her, and a pit arrived in the center of Elizabeth’s stomach right on time. “Hi, Mom. Having fun?”

  Her mother, who wore her bright red hair up and tall today, brightened. Her makeup was flawless as always, if a little thick. “Looking for something special for these sweet girls. They’ve both gotten good grades this term, and I promised them we’d pick up a special treat.”

  “How great,” Elizabeth said, wondering what that must be like, to have a mother care about your grades, or even know what they were, for that matter. It wasn’t that she wasn’t happy for Mika and Milla—they seemed like nice enough girls—but somehow, they’d landed a stepmother who was fifty times the mother Elizabeth had had. She couldn’t help her envy.

  “Who’s your friend, sweetheart?” her mother asked, gesturing to Devyn with a smile.

  “Oh, right. Forgive me. This is Devyn Winters. She’s an old high school classmate in town from Philadelphia.”

  “Well, welcome back to the Bay,” Kristine said, with a hand on her hip. “I left and came back, too, ya know. Just couldn’t stay away from those gorgeous beach views. Our house has beach access.”