by Denise Wells
“I’m kind of surprised I’ve never been in this position before,” I say.
“What position?”
“Where I’ve said something and felt a dick go down,” I say.
“You, Icy? I’m surprised, I’d think that would be old hat for you by now. I mean, didn’t it just happen when you tapped out on Alex?” He sucks a breath in between his teeth, his mouth moves to a grimace. He mumbles something close to, I can’t believe I just said that.
That would make two of us.
“He told you that?” I ask, my cheeks reddening.
“Guys talk,” he says with a shrug.
I push him away and turn to walk back to the table. He grabs my arm and pulls me toward him.
“I’m sorry,” he says. “That was a shitty thing to say.”
I just pull my arm from his grasp and keep walking. He’s right, it was an incredibly shitty thing to say. I walk away, leaving him along on the dance floor.
“Hey Alex,” I say when I get to the table. “Do you think you could take Harley home? I’m not feeling well, and I don’t want to cut your evening short.”
“No, I’ll go with you,” Harley says. “Especially if you aren’t feeling well. We came together, we leave together.”
“I’m going now,” I say. “Sorry.”
Harley stands and grabs her wrap and clutch.
“Uh, I’ll call you,” Alex says to Harley. She gives him a hug, he glares at me over her shoulder. I don’t care. I just want out of here.
I head for the door with Harley close behind me, happy to leave here and get home. Where I can put on my pajamas, eat some ice cream, and watch reruns of Project Runway.
Chapter 15
Chance
I head to the restroom after Remi leaves me on the dance floor, mentally kicking myself the entire time. Fucking idiot. Why did I say that? It was stupid. I wanted to get a rise out of her. It was going too good, we were getting along, so I wanted to get more sass out of her.
I splash water on my face, give myself a little pep talk in the mirror, and head back to the table. Alex is there signing the bill.
“You owe me $170.”
“Where are the girls?” I ask.
“They left, so thanks.”
“Thanks?”
“You pissed Remi off, she took Harley and left.”
“How long ago?” I ask, thinking maybe I can catch her.
“They’re gone, dude. What the fuck did you do?”
“I said something stupid to Remi,” I say.
“What?” he asks.
“You don’t want to know.”
“Well, now I do.”
“It was something stupid, and it didn’t make her feel very good about herself. And I regret it.” We start walking toward the front door of the restaurant.
He puts his arm around my shoulders “Well, as long as you regret it, buddy. That’s all that counts, right? Makes ruining both our nights a-okay,” he says dryly, patting one shoulder, hard.
“I apologized, she just didn’t want to hear it.”
“I didn’t call her an ice queen for nothing,” he says.
If only he knew the half of it.
“Well, on a positive note,” he says. “I’m that much closer to twenty-five hundred buckaroos. So, thank you for that.”
Fuck.
I’d actually lost sight of the bet at some point toward the end of the night. What the hell was wrong with me? I cannot afford to lose focus. Literally. Because I don’t have an extra two thousand five hundred dollars. If I did, I wouldn’t have needed to get into this bet in the first place.
We say goodbye, and I order an Uber to get home. I didn’t ride my bike because, if I’m honest, I wasn’t quite sure how the night was going to play out. I had no idea who I’d be meeting or if I’d feel the need to drink excessively to get through the evening. I like to leave my options open.
I go to text Remi from the car on the way home and realize I don’t have her number. I go to text Kat and realize it’s too late to text her. Then remember that of course Alex has Remi’s number. But I’m not sure he’s going to be willing to help me out like that. Especially since he now thinks he’s that much closer to winning.
I make a mental note to text Kat in the morning for it. Then sit back and close my eyes for the remainder of my trip home.
I go for a run in the morning with Hudson. He loves it when we run on the beach, biting at the waves as they come in. Not quite understanding the ebb and flow of the water, thinking it’s chasing and then running from him somehow.
We run extra-long today, punishing myself for being an ass to Remi. When we get back to the apartment, it’s all I can do to collapse on my couch with a beer. I turn on football and settle in, but get called in to the precinct a few minutes later. I jump in the shower and am out the door, having forgotten my mental note to get Remi’s number.
It takes me longer at the crime scene I’m called into than it should have, so I barely have time to grab Hudson and get to my parents’ house in time for Sunday dinner. We do this every other Sunday, get together as a family for dinner. Two of my sisters, Audrey and Eliza, are married, Audrey is pregnant, and Eliza has a kid. My other sister, Charlotte (Charlie for short) is single, like me, and seemingly happy about it, also like me. But when everyone is in attendance, dinner can get pretty crazy. Especially when I drive the work sedan and bring Hudson with me.
This week Mom made pasta, a favorite of Audrey’s. Last time it was roast, my favorite. She switches off making the favorites of her kids and my pops, Brian. Soon, she’ll have to add grandkids to that schedule, and pretty soon my favorite will only be in rotation a few times a year. That thought makes me sad.
My pops, a detective like me until he retired last year, loves hearing about whatever case I’m working on. So, we sit on the back porch and discuss today’s crime scene as we wait for dinner. My sisters are in the kitchen helping my mom, and she sent Audrey’s husband, Mike, to the store for cream. Eliza’s husband, Nate, has the baby in the living room, so it’s just the two of us. I like both my brothers-in-law. I never would have let my sisters marry them if I hadn’t. But I like the time alone with my pops more.
I’m just finishing telling my dad what happened when Mom calls us in to dinner. We sit at the table and dish up. I’ve hardly taken a bite when Audrey starts in on me.
“So, Chancey,” she says with a grin, knowing I hate it when she calls me that. Only my ma can call me that. “One of my girlfriends saw you at The Chesterfield last night. She said you were pretty cozy with a gorgeous brunette. Do you have a girlfriend you haven’t told us about?”
“You have a girlfriend?” my mom asks, clapping her hands, her smile wide.
“Gafend, gafend!” my niece, Hailey, chants. Hudson barks his appreciation for Hailey’s chant.
“Busted,” Charlotte says, drawing out the word.
“That’s right,” Eliza coos to the baby. “Girlfriend. Good girl.”
“Well, that’s good news, son,” Dad says. “It’s about time you start thinking about settling down.”
“I don’t have a girlfriend.”
“Oh,” Mom says, her tone forlorn.
“I had a date.”
“A date is a good start,” Mom says. “What’s her name?”
“It was just one date, Ma,” I say.
“Hey, Audrey and I started with one date,” Mike says. “And now look at us.”
“Not helping, dude,” I say to Mike, and then to my mom, “Her name is Remi.”
“Remi,” my mom says. “That’s a pretty name. Is she ethnic?”
I look at my mom. “What do you mean, is she ethnic?”
“I’m just trying to guess at what my grandkids are going to look like,” she says.
“Ma!” I say.
“She has dark hair,” Audrey says. I glare at her. Which eggs her on. “And she’s really pretty. Kinda pin-up-ey.”
“What’s pin-up-ey?” Dad asks.
> “You know,” Audrey says. “Like a pin-up girl. Those calendar girls from the fifties that guys would hang up in mechanic shops.”
“Nice,” Nate says, elongating the word. Eliza backhands him in the stomach.
“Ice, ice, da da,” Hailey chants.
“No, Hailey-girl,” Charlotte says. “It’s ice ice, baby.”
“Ice, ice, baby, ice, ice, baby,” Hailey yells. And Hudson joins in once again, running in circles behind her highchair. He’s a smart dog, learning early on that anything that drops to the floor is fair game. And that the majority of the food that drops will come from Hailey. So you can usually find him camped out under her highchair.
“Dun dun dun du du du dun dun dun dun dun du du du dun. Stop, collaborate and listen,” Mike starts.
“Word to your mutha,” Charlotte joins in, with arms crossed over her chest and a chin nod, rapper style.
And on goes family dinner. It’s always total and complete chaos. And I love every minute of it.
The boys clean up after dinner. We always do, if Mom and the girls cook, we clean, and vice versa. My dad has always done it that way, so the rest of us do too.
My sisters all leave soon after, but I stick around with my parents. It’s my favorite time of Sunday dinner. Dad and I have a bourbon, Mom has a glass of wine, and we sit on the back porch. After the chaos of dinner, it’s the perfect counterpoint.
Until Mom starts talking that is. “So, Chancey, tell me about Remi.”
“There’s nothing to tell, Mom,” I say.
“But you brought her to The Chesterfield,” she says.
“That’s a nice place, son,” Dad says.
“A friend of mine set me up on a blind date, he picked the place. Sorry to disappoint.”
“But, Audrey said you were cozy,” Mom says.
“We were dancin’, Ma.”
“You always were such a good dancer, Chancey,” Mom says, patting me on the shoulder. “Did you have fun?”
I think about it for a minute. Contemplating what to tell her. I could never tell her the truth about the bet, she’d be disappointed in me. Which begs the question, why am I doing this? Should I be disappointed in me? It’s certainly not right to be doing this to Remi, she doesn’t really deserve the deception, even if she does freeze me out most of the time.
But the other part of me thinks, it’s for the twenty-five hundred, man. So you can reward these two amazing people right here. And it’s only a month. It’s not like you’re marrying the girl. Four dates, give or take a few, some quality time between the sheets, everyone has a good time, no muss, no fuss.
“I did have fun,” I say. “She’s a great girl. Smart and really pretty. And she challenges me, you know?”
“It’s good to be challenged, son,” Dad says. “Keeps you sharp.”
My phone buzzes with a new text. I pull it from my pocket. It’s not a number I recognize so I silence it and make a mental note to read it later.
“I’d love to meet her,” Mom says.
“Mom, it was one date, don’t get ahead of yourself.”
“Well, you know, Chancey, usually you just, what? Hook up with these girls? You don’t date them. And I certainly never meet them.”
I choke on my bourbon. She pats me on the back.
“What makes you say that, Mom?” I ask, my voice suddenly raspy.
“Well, I know things Chancey, word gets around, you know. And your sisters tell me things,” she says.
“I’m never telling any of them anything again,” I mutter.
“I love how close you are to your sisters. It makes me more proud than you’ll know. Knowing that I raised children who love and care for one another.” She starts sniffling a little bit.
“Oh, Ma, don’t cry.”
“Are you alright, baby?” my dad asks. “Annalise?”
“I’m fine, Brian.” She pats him on the knee. “I just get a little emotional over my kids.”
Dad hugs her around the shoulders and gives her a long kiss on the temple. After all these years, they still have so much love for one another. I like knowing that it’s possible for some people.
Shit, maybe relationships aren’t such a bad thing after all.
Chapter 16
Remi
I spend the day at work running trials and don’t get home until dusk. I open the door to an empty house. I should really get a dog or a cat or something. But I can’t handle having something rely on me so completely for something as simple as nourishment and life. I wash my face, change into yoga pants and a cami, and head to the kitchen. Trying to decide between a frozen meal or ice cream for dinner. Pretty much everything I eat comes from the Crazy Burro, a take-out menu, or the freezer.
Which is part of why last night’s dinner was so freaking good. I haven’t had food like that in a really long time. Probably not since Kat, Lexie, and I spent Kat’s first honeymoon in Europe. I gained eight pounds on that trip, it was totally worth it. I decide on ice cream, vanilla bean, then I pour some Bailey’s Irish Cream over it. It’s like dessert and a cocktail at the same time.
I sit on the couch and channel surf the TV trying to find something to sink myself into. I hear my phone chirp signaling a text message. I grab it, seeing the message is from Kat.
Kat: I’ve been patient all day waiting for you to reach out to me. You disappoint me, woman. How was the date? Did you like the guy?
I so don’t want to get into this. Kat is going to laugh her ass off when she finds out my date was Chance Bauer. I’ve hated him forever. And I gave her a really hard time when she thought she had a crush on him for a short time before she and Brad got back together.
Me: The date was… nice.
Kat: Nice? Like in the guy was nice? The restaurant was nice? What???
Me: It was all nice.
Kat: What was he like? Did you like him? What does he look like? Is he hot?
Me: He is good-looking, yes.
Kat: Sigh.
Kat: What else?
Kat: Wait - before you get into details, let’s switch to the group text. Lexie will be devastated if she misses out on this first-hand.
We add Lexie into the text and continue.
Kat: Okay, Rem, now tell us.
Lexie: I’m so excited to hear about it!
Me: It was good.
Lexie: Good?
Me: Yeah.
Lexie: Good, like, good? Or good, like, bad?
Me: Good, like, good.
Kat: Was there chemistry? Did he kiss you? How was the food? Isn’t The Chesterfield great?
Me: Maybe. No. Great. Yes.
Lexie: Kat, do you get the impression that maybe Rem doesn’t want to talk about it?
Kat: I do Lex. But too fucking bad for her. SPILL IT REMI!
Me: Don’t laugh.
Kat: LOL!
Me: I mean it.
Lexie: Okay.
Kat: OK
Me: Alex set me up with Chance Bauer.
And both girls go radio silent. I can see the three dots, but no text appears.
Me: Hello?
Kat: Uh, Chance Bauer, like the guy I work with? That Chance Bauer?
Me: Yes.
Lexie: Oh that’s so sweet. You were college sweethearts and now you can be grown up sweethearts.
Me: We were NOT college sweethearts.
Lexie: Well, you know what I mean.
Kat: So, how’d it go? Did you enjoy it? Can you see yourself dating him for a month? Or are we taking a trip downtown to donate some shoes?
Me: I can handle it for a month. No problem.
Kat: Yeah, but can he handle you?
Me: Funny…
Kat: Well, alright then. When’s the next date?
Me: We don’t have one yet.
Lexie: That’s gonna make it hard to get to a month. :-)
Me: He pissed me off last night, so I left.
Kat: You okay? What happened?
Me: I am now. But he brought up the whole tap out with Alex
and it made me mad.
Lexie: Alex told him about the tap out?
Me: Apparently.
Kat: You didn’t do anything wrong, Rem. In fact, you are an inspiration for women everywhere who don’t stick up for themselves and their needs during sex.
Me: Thanks, Kat.
Lexie: I’m gonna tap out.
Kat: You have to have sex with something that isn’t battery operated to do that.
Lexie: Rude!
Me: LOL
Lexie: Just wait, Kat. I’m going to tap out on my raunchy rabbit vibrator.
Kat: And that would serve your needs how?
Lexie: Okay, I see your point and I concede.
Lexie using the word concede reminds me of Chance. And I realize there is a teeny tiny part of me that might miss him just a little bit. Possibly.
Kat: Well, you’d better get back on that horse, lady. Why don’t you text him and apologize for walking out.
Me: I don’t have his number.
Kat’s next text is her sending me his contact e-card.
Kat: Text him now, let us know what happens.
Louboutins. Louboutins. Louboutins.
I save his contact info in my phone and then pull up his info to text him. Eight o’clock on a Sunday night. What if he’s not alone? What if he’s on a date? What if he’s chasing bad guys and I blow his cover?
None of that matters Remi. This isn’t real. It’s a bet. Suck it up.
Me: Hey. It’s Remi. I just wanted to apologize for leaving last night without saying goodbye. That was rude of me to do.
I wait to see if the three dots pop up, but they don’t. Then I wait for another five minutes and get nothing.
So, I binge watch The Big Bang Theory and eat another bowl of ice cream with Baileys. I’m already in bed when my phone chirps with a text at nine-thirty pm. I look down and see Chance’s name on the screen. Do I ignore it? Pretend I’m already asleep? I open the message instead.
Chance: Are you still awake? If not, and this wakes you up, I’m really sorry, go back to sleep.
Me: I’m awake.
Chance: Hey.
Me: Hey back.
Chance: Sorry for the delay in responding, I was at my parents’ house for dinner. I like to stay after to hang with them once my sisters leave.
