By the time he was seventeen, he’d practically been a dad for five years. He knew how hard it was, plus always wondering when his dad would get drunk again and he didn’t want Brandon to have that burden.
“What did you tell your aunt?” I ask although I want to ask much more.
“The truth,” he says, shrugging. “I told her how everything had been since mom died, my dad was only providing for the family. The only thing he cared about was that we were all getting good grades, and staying out of trouble.”
So Adrian did homework with the boys? He would’ve had to for all of them to keep good grades. I close my eyes, trying to fully grasp all he’d been through.
He goes on. “My dad only cared about those things because it would reflect badly on him if his boys were hoodlums.” He pauses for emphasis. “Because he was the town mayor.”
My eyes fly open and I try again to turn to face, but he squeezes his arm tighter around my waist. Apparently he wants me where I am.
“Your dad was the mayor?” I repeat because it just doesn’t seem right. He was responsible for an entire city, but couldn’t take care of his boys.
"Yep, every time I would see him on TV or we would have to go to some public event with him, I wanted to scream out and tell everyone what a fake he was.” I feel his body getting more rigid the more he recalls. “Anyway, after I told my aunt she started getting things in place. By the beginning of my senior year, she came out to Texas to see us. She met with me first and told me she was going to work with my dad to get custody of the boys, but I had to agree to go to college and work hard to get my degree. Of course I agreed because the idea of getting my boys out of that house was all that mattered to me."
I love how he calls them “my boys.” I guess when you raise kids from the ages of two and five, they do become like your own.
"When did you all move out?"
He lets out a long breath as if just the memory gives him relief. “Right after I graduated. My dad gave guardianship to my aunt, not custody. He didn’t want to look like a bad father giving up full custody of his children. He told everyone that my brothers wanted to be close to me, where I was going to school, which is why they were going to live with Diane. To this day he still has custody and could take back the boys at any time, but my aunt threatened to fight him, at which time all the details of what happened after my mom died would come out."
"I like your aunt,” I say sincerely.
"She is an amazing lady,” he agrees. “My only regret is that I didn't call her sooner. I wish the boys could of had her as a parent instead of their teenage brother who had no clue what he was doing."
Adrian transitioned from an eighteen-year-old parent of four to a college freshman with no responsibility. I definitely understand him better. Unfortunately, that merely makes it harder for me to pretend I feel nothing for him. I feel so much for him right now, at this moment, I’m in danger of saying incredibly stupid shit.
Chapter 29
Doctors Without Kids
I want to ask him much more about what happened when his dad was drunk, and I want to know more about his brothers, but I decide to take what he has given me for now. Plus, my show’s about to start.
"Okay, enough crying and trying to get a sympathy screw from me,” I tease, lifting the mood. “The Walking Dead is about to start.”
I hear him chuckle softly behind me. "Of course you wouldn't miss the fact that I was trying to get some sympathy sex."
I smile and pick up the remote, but Adrian knocks it out of my hand. “I’ve told you about me, now it’s your turn.”
I shake my head. “No, I’m good.”
This night has gotten too cozy and intimate. I don’t need to see more sweet and caring Adrian. It’s bad for my heart. Well, it’s good for it, which is why it’s bad.
He narrows his eyes. “I’ll disconnect your TV, and I’d place money you have no clue how to hook it back up.”
Damn him. Using my love of zombie shows and lack of technology skills against me. I decide to give him the cliff notes version.
“Fine. My dad left when I was twelve, and I haven’t seen or heard from him in years. My older brother died of a drug overdose when I was fifteen. I have a younger brother Christopher, but I’m not close to him. The end.” I finish my extravagant story with a huge, fake smile.
He watches me, searching my face for something. Finally, he asks his next question.
“What kind of doctor do you want to be?”
He must’ve seen something in my expression that let him know I’m not ready to share with him yet. I kinda love that he didn’t push it either. I kinda hate that he keeps doing things that I love.
“The traveling kind,” I say, answering his question.
He furrows his brow. “I have no idea what that means.”
“I want to join Doctors Without Borders, hopefully right out of med school,” I explain.
Adrian pulls his face back, searching mine again. I guess he thinks I’m joking. “Why?”
I begin my list of reasons. “I don’t like to clean. I’m a danger to myself and others when I try to cook. And, I don’t want kids.” I shrug. “I know I don’t want the typical American family life. I don’t want the house, the picket fence, the kids, or a dog. I would be bored out of my mind if I had a routine, and all that responsibility. That’s why I think the program is perfect for me.”
I’ve known for years that I want to become a doctor, but it wasn’t until a couple years ago, that I discovered this program. The idea of helping the less fortunate, and traveling to new countries, gives me warm, happy feelings.
Adrian blinks a couple times. “Wow, you make me feel like a major slacker. I have no idea what I’m gonna do. Hell, my only goal for the past couple years, has been to piss off my dad.”
“Well dude, you are a slacker,” I tease.
He purses his lips, thinking, then starts with his delusional thinking again. “I’ve never thought about whether I want to have kids, but if you don’t, I’m good with that.”
I sit up. “Don’t do that,” I snap.
“Do what?” he asks, furrowing his brow.
“Talk about us like you’re planning our future.”
At that moment, it was if I’d fallen into a black hole and landed three years ago. Jack had said almost the exact same words to me when I’d told him I didn’t want kids. I think Adrian is joking, hell, I can never tell with him, but regardless, it all felt too real.
He reaches for me, trying to pull me back down to him. “Fine. I’ll wait a couple more weeks before I start discussing those plans with you, but you can’t make me stop planning in my head.”
I don’t say any more. I’m beginning to learn that if I tell Adrian not to do something, he’ll push the topic until I snap. I draw in a long breath, letting it go and allow him to hold me for a bit longer.
***
Adrian
I lie in Keegan’s bed, with her wrapped tight against me, wondering how I’m going to survive this. She’s believed from the beginning that I’m just another guy who sleeps around. I’ve never corrected her because she’s never asked.
The truth is, Katie is only the third girl I’ve ever been with. I had a serious girlfriend in high school, when I had time for her, and a girl I saw on and off, freshman and sophomore year of college. I started hooking up with Katie last year, which is when the rumors began.
Katie lives with four other girls. Someone started the rumor that I was screwing all five of the girls. A couple of the girls tried to deny it, but as rumors go, the story was too juicy to not believe.
I was friends with Katie before we started screwing around, and we both agreed it would just be sex. There has never been more than a physical attraction, but I’ve always respected her.
Now, I’ve found this girl who makes me think of futures, but I can’t tell her how I feel, and I can’t push for more. It’s obvious, Keegan does not trust men, and I understand why. All the previous men i
n her life have loved her, but they never put her first. I know I love being around her, and I want to take this further, but I’m not sure that it’s love. Even if it is, telling her that would get me nowhere.
For now, I’ll take what I can steal from her, and hope she eventually opens up and considers the option of a relationship.
When I feel Keegan’s breathing even out, I know she’s fallen asleep. There’s a good chance I’ll earn a broken nose for sleeping in her bed all night, but it’ll be worth it. I pull her tighter against me, kissing the top of her head and settle in to steal my first overnight with her.
Chapter 30
The Congressman
“There’s an ice cream social at the school to raise money for new playground equipment. I need you to come with me,” Adrian informs me, as I’m climbing out of my car Saturday. I barely survived three hours of studying with four of the most annoying people to enter my life. Computer geeks got nothing on biology junkies. I swear on my favorite jean shorts, two of the guys get hard-ons when they talk about this shit.
On a side note, the size of one guy’s biology woody has me extremely intrigued.
I’ve not even pulled my ass out of the driver’s seat of my car, and Adrian is right here, looking way too happy for my day. He wants me to go to school carnival? It’s cute how he tries to get me to do things he knows there is no way in hell I’d ever do.
I shake my head. “Nope. I don’t like kids and I don’t like socials. A bunch of kids being social is out of the question.”
He scoffs. “Do you realize the amount of trouble I could get myself into at an event like this? There’s going to be a bounce house for God’s sake.”
Wow, I have a twenty-one-year-old man on my hands, who is concerned about being alone with a bounce house. Do I know what kind of trouble he could get into? No, no I don’t because I don’t have an imagination wild enough to conjure up any scenario in which a grown man could get into trouble in a giant inflatable.
I walk past him, leaving him to close my door and head into the apartment, straight to my room. I need a nap to recover from the last three wasted hours of my life.
Adrian stalks behind me and is still ranting about all his possible adventures at the carnival, as I sit on my bed to remove my shoes.
When I ignore his dramatics, he throws a pillow at my head, hitting me hard enough I think I may have a bloody nose.
“What the hell? You broke my nose,” I yell, cupping my nose with both hands. So what if I’m being dramatic, I’m playing this card to ensure I’m not forced to attend this gathering in hell.
He drops to his knees in front of me. “Ah, baby, you know I would never do anything to mar that beautiful face of yours, just like I know you’d totally fake an injury to get out of this trip.”
I drop my hands—no need to waste my drama if he’s already figured me out. “I’m. Not. Going.” I emphasize each word.
"Come on, Keegan, I really want you to go. I want you to meet my kids."
His kids?
“I volunteered for the dunk tank,” he sing songs, sweetening the pot.
I do like the idea of watching a bunch of small children dump his ass in freezing water. It’s the catty women, who I’d be forced to talk to, that help me stand my ground. I shake my head again.
He tilts his head to the side and speaks in a honey sweet voice. “What if I promise to buy you that new Sig Sauer tactical pistol?”
I sit up straight. Now he has my attention. “How do you know about that?”
He sits next to me on the bed. “Well, you have it circled in all of your military supply magazines, and last week, you whimpered when you saw it was on sale.”
It was a great sale too. I’ve been wanting that little beauty for more than a year now, but it’s hard to justify spending hundreds of dollars on a gun, when you’re in med school, working as a part-time tutor. How much money does Adrian have that he’s gonna buy me an expensive weapon just so I’ll go watch him play in a bounce house?
“Your conscious is okay with you manipulating me into a situation I despise, by bribing me?” I ask, working hard to look sad. It’s not a look I can pull off easy.
He cringes. “That does sound kinda bad.” I nod and he rolls his eyes. “Nice try. You wouldn’t hesitate to bribe me to get something you want.”
“True,” I concede, and then I blow out a breath, envisioning snotty kids and their backstabbing mothers. “One more question. Where the hell do you get all your money?”
He shrugs nonchalantly. “My dad’s a congressman now.”
He keeps surprising me. The congressman who abused his children then continues to blackmail them for his own benefit. I’m sure I’ve seen this movie on Lifetime.
Adrian goes on. “He sends my aunt and me a lot of money for the boys, and to keep our mouths shut.”
He says all this as if they’re meaningless words, but I see the residual pain every time he mentions his dad. I want to kiss away that pain.
Feeling like a big fat sucker, I agree to go. “Fine, when’s the carnival?”
He stands, reaching for my hand to pull me up. “In twenty minutes.”
“What?” I screech. “Why’d you just now mention it?”
He gives me an annoyed look. “That would’ve given you time to manipulate your way out.”
Again, he’s right. I grab my shoes and let him drag me through the apartment and out to his car.
Chapter 31
Mouth-Breathing, Small Peckered Octopus
When we pull into the parking lot of the school Adrian's face lights up. It's obvious that teaching has become something he enjoys. I like happy, playful Adrian.
When I open the door the second thing I notice, after the screams of children, is the smell of fair food. It reminds me of when I was younger. Every fall my parents would take us to the local county fair. I would eat fried food until I couldn’t breathe then I’d climb onto the rusted out, pieces of crap they called rides and try not to vomit. Holding down a couple pounds of fried food, while violently spinning in circles, is a feat that should merit an award.
Walking up beside me, Adrian inhales deeply. “Ahh, nothing like the smell of a heart attack,” he says, then grins down at me.
I decide to warn him of my impending pig-out. “Just a heads up, I will be eating at least two corn dogs and a huge bucket of fries. If you have a problem introducing me as your girlfriend after that, then you should take me home now."
With a proud smile, Adrian wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me close. “More proof that you and I were meant to be together. I’d only be embarrassed if you tried to order a salad or some shit like that. And, you’re my fiancé, not girlfriend.”
I look away, not needing him to see the effect of his words. I keep pushing, each time thinking this will be the shove that sends him away, but instead it’s as if I’m pulling him closer.
He releases my shoulder and grabs my hand. "Come on, I wanna play in the jump house before my shift at the dunk tank.”
Adrian buys me my fries and one corn dog, telling me that if I still want another one, he’ll get it for me before we go. He must not think I can eat that much crap without being sick. See, if I had gotten an award from the fair, I could prove it.
He introduces me to a couple of the kindergarten teachers, as a bucket of vinegar and ketchup saturated fries hang from my fingers. They both look from the fries to my legs then up to my face. That’s right girls; I eat like this all the time and I refuse to exercise. Go ahead and tell each other how much you hate me when I walk away, I get it.
All the teachers are nice enough, but I don’t miss the subtle language of jealousy. They don't seem too pleased to see me here with Adrian, and it’s not because of my legs. No, it appears as if Adrian has a following here at Jackson Elementary, and they’re all too old to be checking out his ass the way they do.
As we walk away, they band together and sigh, almost staring a hole through his jeans. So, when Adrian rea
ches down to entwine my fingers with his, I allow it. I am supposed to be his girlfriend after all, so we need to put on a good show.
A couple little girls come running over, and one reaches up to Adrian for a hug. He squats down and wraps his arms around her tiny frame.
“Who’s your pretty friend,” the other little girl asks, with a mischievous smile.
He gestures to me. “This is my girlfriend, Keegan.” He points to one then the other. “This is Macy and Lily. They are both in my class.”
Both girls’ eyes go wide and Macy’s mouth forms an “O.” The girls look at each other, then take a step back.
“She’s the evil witch?” Lily asks, looking terrified.
Um, what?
Adrian waves both his hands in front of him, trying to stop the girls from talking. “No, no, Macy. I told you that’s not what I meant.”
I clear my throat. “What didn’t you mean, Adrian?” I ask through clenched teeth.
“They, uh, were… uh,” he stutters, looking concerned for his safety.
I turn to the girls and squat down in front of them. With my biggest smile and sweetest voice, I ask, “What did Mr. Elliott tell you about me, Lily?”
Her frightened expression relaxes, but she doesn’t get any closer. “He was reading us a story about a princess and Melanie, that’s another girl in our class,” she says, pointing at the school, “she asked Mr. Elliott if he found his princess yet.”
Macy, who still looks scared, is now standing behind Lilly. She reaches around Lily and points at me. “He said you’re more like the wicked—”
“Okay, okay,” Adrian says, clapping once. “I think they’re gonna close the bounce house soon so we should go get in line.”
Lily looks confused. “It just opened a few minutes—”
“You two never talk this much in class,” he says as he grabs the girl’s hands and starts dragging them toward the inflatable. “Be back soon. Love you,” he says over his shoulder.
Our Kinda Love Page 11
