“No,” he repeated with a snort.
“Fine. Fuck you, Hush. I was trying to do something nice for you since everyone walks around here acting like you don’t fucking exist but I’ll go back to being one of those people since you like it that way. Asshole.” I snatched my bag down, clocked out and headed to my car.
**
CHAPTER NINE
I watched Lucy storm out and sighed heavily. I didn’t want to go out with her. She was obnoxious and crass and she lacked finesse. Besides all that, she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever fucking seen. How the hell was I supposed to sit near her and share a meal without staring at her?
Still…
I didn’t like her being mad at me. She was the only one who ever talked to me at that hellhole of a job anyway. If she stopped then I’d have no one.
I rolled my eyes and chased after her. I caught her before she hopped in the car. She looked terrified when I walked up to her.
“What, asshole?” She spat angrily.
“Let’s go,” I said, letting my head droop a bit.
“You…want to hang out now? After I cursed you out?” She laughed out the words and folded her arms. She was defensive. I scathed her ego.
“Yeah,” I shrugged and leaned against her little yellow Bug. It almost tipped over, so I stood up.
“Don’t break my car, you big motherfucker.” She pushed her next breath out like I was stressing her. “I don’t think you’ll fit in my car, Hush. Let’s take yours.” She headed toward my truck and left me standing in her absence. She was all over the damn place.
Still…
I couldn’t stop staring at her whenever we were at work.
Lucy was like something wild and untamed. Something I couldn’t turn my eyes away from.
A storm.
A tornado.
She was like me. Only I was heat and she was air. She blew through and fucked shit up. She didn’t care whose feathers she ruffled. I didn’t care whose skin I burned.
I opened the door for her and she grinned at me, a sparkle danced in her eye. “You have manners. Wow.”
“In,” I frowned. She sucked her teeth and climbed in.
“Why don’t you talk?” She asked as she clicked her seatbelt in place. I gripped the steering wheel and looked straight ahead. Lucy was too much to look at sometimes.
“I talk.” I gritted the words out and started the truck. I could talk just fine. I hated doing it though. It seemed like whenever I spoke it got me in trouble. I intimidated people.
“Okay, so tell me what your real name is. I know it’s not Hush.” She studied my face and it left a trail of warmth where ever she looked.
“No.” I pulled off and Lucy muttered something under her breath before flipping through iTunes and playing music.
“You have great taste in music.”
“Thanks,” I chuckled.
“You can smile…handsome,” she said nibbling on her bottom lip. “Tell me your name please.”
“Where are we going?” I asked her. She blinked in disbelief. “I’m not mute,” I sighed.
“I mean…clearly not but I’ve never heard you say more than one or two words.”
“Where are we going?” I asked her again.
“Let’s go to the Blue Bayou.” She stared at me and I wished she would stop. Her eyes bored into me and made my skin prickle. It was like sitting next to your crush in class.
I turned down streets while music played and Lucy sat beside me, fidgeting like being quiet was killing her. “If I talk to you while we eat will you promise not to tell everyone at work that I can talk like a normal person?” I asked her as I threw the truck in park. Her eyes lit up and I realized Lucy would be a problem.
I liked that light in her eyes way too much for it to be healthy. She was like a drug and I hadn’t even taken a hit.
“Yes, Hush. Of course. Plus, I like knowing I’m the only one you’ll talk to.”
“Who said I’m talking to you after tonight?” I laughed and got out. When I opened her door she hopped down and ran her fingers through her thick brown hair.
“Oh, you will. I’m addictive like that.” She already knew she was trouble. I didn’t have to say a thing.
When we walked in, everything was silent. We must have been the last customers but they treated us like we were the first. We got extra fried fish and hush puppies and the guy waiting on our table told Lucy he’d bring her however many whiskeys she wanted.
“Since you won’t tell me your real name can you at least tell me why they call you Hush?” She popped a piece of fried fish in her mouth and I watched her lips. They were so full. They were even fuller up close. I usually looked at Lucy from afar.
I wasn’t a stalker or anything but she was the only girl that caught my eye. She moved to her own tune. I liked her tune even though I didn’t understand it most of the time.
“I’m quiet,” I shrugged and drank the water placed in front of me.
“Obviously. Is that it?” She asked.
“Not exactly,” I exhaled and paused a few beats. “I used to have a reputation for knocking motherfuckers out on the first hit.” She finished her second glass of whiskey and her eyes got wide.
“Like the creep at work the other night? You hit him once and he was out.”
“Yeah. Like that,” I nodded. “I don’t do stuff like that anymore.”
“Well yeah, I understand why. Thank you for that, Hush.”
“Like I was going to watch that happen and not do anything? You don’t have to thank me, okay?” She looked at me and smirked.
“Okay…” She grew quiet for a few seconds. “You know I don’t follow directions, right? I mean we’ve worked together for a year so I’m gonna assume you know something about me.” She was right. I knew something about her. I knew more than something. I knew she was like the wind and that was enough.
“Heard-headed.”
“Don’t go back to that one-word shit.”
“Hard-headed is a hyphenated compound word,” I pointed out. Lucy rolled her eyes and groaned.
“God, you’re smart too. It’s still one word though. Notice how you said word and not words? See? Proved my point.” She swirled the brown liquor around the ice cubes then knocked the rest of it back.
“Yeah, okay. You have a drinking problem,” I blurted. Lucy paused and stared at me.
“Bite me, Hush.”
“Call it like I see it. Stop that shit. You’re hiding from something.”
“I think I liked you better when you didn’t talk.”
That’s why I didn’t talk. I didn’t have much of a filter, so it was either fuck up friendships and have everyone think I was an asshole or say nothing and have people think I was mute. I liked the second option better.
“Okay, I can shut up,” I shrugged.
“Stop being so sensitive. I was playing. You’re just…”
“Honest?” I asked, lifting my brow.
“You’re something, Hush.”
“And you’re an alcoholic.”
“I’m fun too,” she smiled mischievously. She was drunk. I shook my head and stood up. “You’re ready to go?” She whined.
“Yes.”
“Hush, please stay a little longer. I don’t want to go home yet.” She grabbed my hand and laced her fingers between mine.
“Why? The guy who came to see you at the bar waiting for you?”
“Oh God, you saw that?”
“Yeah, I did. He your man?” I felt stupid asking that but I was insanely curious.
“No. My sister’s man.”
“Seems like he wants to have his cake and eat it too.”
“He does. If I could let my sister see that shit for herself then…” Her words trailed off and she looked at me, hopping up.
“What?” I laughed when she swayed to one side. I put my hands on her waist to steady her.
“Thanks, Hush. Oh…yeah. I think I found a way to show her that Eric is an asshole.” Sh
e snapped her fingers then dug in her bra and tossed money on the table. Whatever was going through her wild mind didn’t seem smart.
“What the hell are you going to do?” I asked, chasing behind her. She was moving at a rapid pace toward the doors and I didn’t want her to fall. She was fucked up after five glasses of whiskey. She had to weigh one hundred thirty pounds soaking wet, so how she could put away liquor like she did was beyond me.
“I’m going to fuck him,” she grinned.
“Your sister’s boyfriend?” I scoffed. “Don’t.”
“How else will she know he’s trash? I can’t tell her because she’ll brush me off but I can show her.” I grumbled a bit then opened the truck door for her.
“You can let her find out on her own too.” I started the engine and Lucy shook her head, thick locks of brown hair fell in her face.
“I need to prove it.”
“You’re drunk.”
“And you’re a good friend. Thank you.” She said as her eyes slid shut. Just like that, I was friend-zoned. I let out a sigh and drove back to work.
I parked beside Lucy’s car for a while, thinking. Maybe it was better to be her friend. A girl like her would probably ruin me. I was trying to be better. I was trying to get off of probation.
Lucy spun around and around, wildly and I was in awe of her but I knew if anyone tried to hurt her I’d go back to jail. I had to stay away. Well, we could be friends. That was it. “Hey, wake up.” I shook her shoulder and she whined, slapping my hand away. “Wake up,” I said, shoving her shoulder. She finally opened her eyes and looked at me with a mean glare. “We’re here. I let you sleep it off some. Are you okay to drive home?”
I didn’t want to take her home with me. I couldn’t be that close to her as a friend yet. We had to have more platonic dates first. There’d definitely be more. Even though she was drunk as hell, hanging out with Lucy was the most fun I had in a long time.
“Shit…I didn’t even know I fell asleep.”
“More like passed out, but yeah. Let’s go with fell asleep.” I used air quotes and she glared at me. “Let me get your door.” I got out and opened it for her and let her use my hand for leverage as she hopped out.
She stretched and I watched her, unashamed. She was gorgeous. Long lithe lines and tight curves were hard to turn away from.
Before I could slip away to the driver’s side, she wrapped her arms around me in a hug. “I had fun tonight,” she told me.
“So did I.”
“Will we do it again?” She grinned, still holding on to me.
“Yeah,” I nodded.
“Back to the one-word answers?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, Hush,” she let go and rolled her pretty eyes again. She did that a lot but it let me have sneak peeks at her when she wasn’t looking, so I wasn’t mad.
“Night, Lucy.” She paused and spun around to face me with that damn sparkle in her eye.
“You said my name. You’ve never said my name.” I loved how something so small lit her entire face up. “Goodnight…”
“Chase,” I told her before getting in the car. Color rose to the apples of her cheeks and she nodded.
“Goodnight, Chase.” I waved at her then started to pull off. I’d never leave without making sure she got in her car safely though. I just didn’t want her to see that I was still there. I watched her from a distance and she seemed to sit there for a few minutes, smiling.
I was smiling too.
I pulled off after she did and went home.
I actually had a friend.
**
CHAPTER TEN
Lucy was like a ghost in the house. She came in late, woke up late and I didn’t see her for the first three days she was there. The only reason I knew she was still around was because she left a trail of mess behind everywhere she went. My poor cleaning lady cursed in Spanish and complained about it and all I could offer her in return was a shrug.
I caught my sister coming in one Friday night. I was still up and Eric was sleeping. She crept in so quietly I would have missed her again if it weren’t for the fact that I was sitting up in the den.
“Oh, hey stranger,” I smirked. I let a full glass of wine hang on my fingertips while my eyes tracked her.
“Hey, Nora. She tossed her bag in a chair then flopped down beside me, plucking the glass from my hand. “How the fuck do you drink this?”
“You’re asking me that as you drink my wine though?”
“I’m out of Jack,” she reasoned, handing back an empty glass.
“You need a twelve-step program.”
“You needed to mind your business twelve minutes ago.”
“Whatever, Lucy.” I fluttered my lashes and went back to looking through my phone.
“Where’s your not-husband?” She asked.
“Eric is upstairs. You should learn how to address people by their names. I heard how you treated Lauren,” I told her. Lauren was livid when she called and told me about Lucy’s blow up. I didn’t know how to tell her that if she wanted to be anywhere near Abel that she needed to get used to Lucy’s blowups. It was par for the course.
“Fuck Lauren. She’s a bitch,” Lucy sneered. She poured me another glass of wine and I thought it was considerate of her until she drank the rest of the bottle in one gulp.
“Why have you not sought help for the amount of alcohol you can drink in one sitting?”
“I don’t need help. Besides, wine isn’t real alcohol anyway. It’s liquor lite. Wine is like the Great Value version of actual liquor. You can’t get fucked up on it.” I watched her pink tongue circle the rim of the bottle and I shut my eyes. She was giving me a headache.
“Not everyone wants to get fucked up though. Sometimes people want a nice little buzz and that’s it,” I explained.
“And that’s stupid.”
“You’re stupid,” I countered. It felt like we were kids again. Lucy walked over to me and I peered up at her. She was the extroverted version of me. Her hair was wild and wavy. Mine was pulled back in a low ponytail. Her eyes were blazing. Mine were subdued. She was ready to pounce but I was still surveying.
Lucy pounced.
She straddled me. Her lips were so close to mine I could almost taste the wine on them. I reached up and nipped her lip, making her laugh. “You still haven’t told Eric, have you, Nora?”
“No, he doesn’t need to know.” Nobody needed to know. Lucy and I left that lifestyle behind us.
“Don’t you miss how we used to fool around in school though, Nora?” She tugged on my ponytail and my head snapped back, exposing my throat. Lucy licked my neck and I sighed.
Maybe a part of me did miss it.
“It was fun. I’m grown now with a fiancé and a house and I want to start a family. We can’t do things like we used to.” I was a hypocrite. I was squeezing Lucy’s ass.
“You’re a stick in the goddamn mud just like Abel’s hawk-nosed girlfriend.” A cackle escaped my mouth before I could control myself.
“Luce…”
“What? We used to have fun, Nora. I can understand outgrowing it, I guess…but you’re a totally different person. You’re not my twin.” Her words were a blow to my chest.
“Is that how you really feel? Like we’re not twins anymore?” She stared down at me and gave a sad nod. I knew she thought I was prissy and acted like I was better than her but to hear her say I wasn’t her twin…that cut deep.
“Lucy, I love you more than anything. You drive me insane but there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. You’re here in my house, aren’t you?” She tried to climb off of me but I wouldn’t let her. Having her on top of me reminded me of high school and college.
“You took pity on me. Thanks, Nora.”
“It’s not that. I could feel you were in need. How else would I be able to do that without being your twin?” Emotions danced in my eyes. Lucy needled under my skin but it was only because I wanted better for her. I wanted her to be as great a
s I knew she could be.
“You hate me because I’m not like you.” Warm, salty tears dripped from her lashes on to my cheeks.
“No, I don’t. You don’t have to be like me,” I sniffled.
“Nora, you want me to be exactly like you. We didn’t speak for a week after I picked an art major and you picked business.” She was right. I was so mad at her. It meant we would have different classes. It hurt me more than it should have.
“It wasn’t because I wanted you to be like me, Lucy,” I laughed through the tears. “It was because we wouldn’t have the same classes. It was because I realized we wouldn’t have the same careers or anything else anymore. I realized in college that we were going in different directions.
You wanted to be free and I wanted a safety net. You wanted to do things that scared me. I had to protect myself from the reality that you wouldn’t always be by my side.”
Truth spewed out of me uncontrollably. A part of me wanted to suck it all back in but what good would that do? I’d been at odds with my sister for a long time and we hadn’t spoken in a year. It was time to crush the misconceptions we had about each other.
“Are you serious, Nora? I just wanted an A. I didn’t give a fuck about art and you should have known that. I didn’t want to take business and be bored out of my skull. You were thinking about the future. I was thinking about Mom and Dad yelling at me every time I brought home an F.”
Leave it up to Lucy to simplify something that plagued me for years. I laughed a little and shook my head. “You can’t say you didn’t realize we were growing apart then. It was in the air, Luce. It was all around us. We grasped at straws trying to keep it together but it fell apart once we graduated.” I pushed my fingers through her soft hair and kissed her cheek. “I’ve missed you ever since. I hate that you’re such a fuck up because it means you’ll never have time for me. For us.” My words trembled with tears.
“How? How is my being a fuck up contingent on how much time I have for you, Nora?”
“Because if you’re busy putting your life back together, where do I fit in? The only way for me to fit in is if I help you.”
“That’s why you want to fix me so bad? You think it’s the only way for us to be close?” We hit an epiphany. It stunned us both silent. Finally, Luce broke the hush that fell over us and shook her head at my logic.
LUCY Page 7
