Almost Had You

by Rachel Robinson

  “Bad idea. Awful plan. Not the way it works.” I shake my head, offended by his typical male mentality. “Always call. Always come over. Never assume anything. I’m glad you spent time with your parents and Bent.” I push down the irritation when I put it in perspective. He has three weeks to spend time with everyone he cares about. I’m a new shiny toy he hasn’t decided is worth the effort. I think. “I’m meeting Tannie for lunch. I’m going to tell her I’m moving. I figure it will be out before midnight.”

  “You really need new friends,” Mercer says, laughing, reminding me how unconventional the friendship with Tannie is. “My mom is making one of my favorites for dinner, but maybe we can grab an ice cream after? Hit up Dixie Swirl then snag a drink at the Dizzy Rocket?”

  “Is that a normal date?” I bite back.

  He rubs my hand with his rough thumb. “An apology offering of frozen sugar. No wild adventures tonight. I can tell you about Cape Cod.” He nods at my laptop bag.

  I raise one brow. “You saw the map I was looking at? How long were you standing behind me?”

  He presses his lips together. “Long enough to know you already had lunch plans so I shouldn’t ask.”

  “Stalker.” I flip my hair.

  Backing away, he opens his big arms to the side. “Where are you going to eat? DR or Slippy Egg?” he asks. “If you tell me it’s not stalking when I casually stop in.”

  I shake my head. “I’m irritated. I’m not angry with you. No need to stalk,” I snap. Forgive easily. It’s something I strive to do and it’s probably the most difficult task to accomplish successfully. How is one supposed to determine who is most deserving of forgiveness? Does anyone know?

  “I’m a stupid man. I’m sorry I didn’t stop by. I’ll text you later.”

  I groan, hook my bag in my elbow and brush my dress down on the sides. “You better, Mercer Ballentine.”

  He points at me and winks. “You, me, and frozen sugar, sugar. I’m going to get a workout in. I left a bag of clothes in Bentley’s truck. Figured it would come in handy if I was making plans with you. We seem to ruin or lose clothing for sport.”

  I can’t help but laugh, even if I’m shaking my head at the same time. We part ways. The walk to the Slippy Egg, where I’m meeting Tannie for lunch only takes five minutes. It’s right next to Dixie Swirl and Dizzy Rocket is right across the street from that. Mercer was making a joke about asking where we’re eating, there’s only one spot. On a typical day, most of the people in this restaurant are travelers passing through. They need gas and food and we have it. I wave at the waitress and take a seat at a two-seater table in the corner against the window. I open my laptop and connect to the spotty Wi-Fi to open the maps back up.

  I spend fifteen minutes doing research on the area and mapping different locations until Tannie breezes in the door and takes a seat in front of me. Alabama heat still clings to her skin. She drinks down the water directly after she sits. “Spill it,” Tannie says, catching her breath. She waves our waitress over and orders the usual chicken sandwich, and I get the same. You have to eat it fried if you want to ensure you won’t get sick. All the locals know it. I can spot the travelers who don’t. Poor souls.

  “He didn’t call after he said he would,” I explain, keeping it loose. “Mercer was busy with his friends and family and he just didn’t have a chance. That’s all. We’re meeting tonight. He apologized.” Sort of.

  “Busy? Yeah, he was busy with someone else, Clover. Don’t be stupid. Think about the man. Where he’s been. How long he’s been without a woman’s touch. Mercer’s been busy alright, but don’t buy his brand of horse manure.” My throat clogs. She’s right. “He’d call an alligator a lizard to get laid, sweetie.”

  This is tricky area. Tannie dates more—has more experience, but she’s also been known for giving some pretty terrible advice. “Are you sure? Did you see him with someone? Together? I don’t think that’s what he’s after.” It’s not what he’s making me seem he’s after. It could be all for show.

  Tannie scoffs, points at her cup to signal she needs more water to the waitress and meets my eyes. “He’s after anything that says yes, he’s a military man without any responsibilities at the moment.” I can believe her and turn more tricks to find out if it’s truth, or I can deliver the message I need her to hear.

  I shrug, brushing it off. “I’ll talk to him. Hey, I have to tell you something else. Something really important that you can’t talk about. Okay?”

  Tannie’s blue eyes light up like a neon sign. “It may come as a shock, but I’m moving to Cape Cod to cut hair in my cousin Goldie’s salon. I haven’t told my parents, and I sort of hid beauty school from everyone. I’ve been sneaking around trying to make my dreams come true and this is what I want to do. What I’ve always wanted to do. To be a stylist in a fancy salon, making a life somewhere completely different.”

  She looks at me, unblinking, and I think she may cry or scream, or be irrational, but when she finally speaks, she says, “We all knew you were leaving someday, Clover. It’s not shocking. I’m surprised it’s taken you this long. Why now, though? Cape Cod is so far away.”

  Her response makes me feel a thousand times better. “I graduated and have experience under my belt. I’ve been doing hair in the city at the teaching school for a while now. Goldie’s salon is beautiful and I think it will be a perfect fit. It’s time. Election season is coming up and I can’t pretend anymore, Tan. I can’t be a perfect pawn in their perfect life any longer. All of these years, I’ve been everything they’ve wanted me to be, and I’m done faking it.”

  Tannie smiles. “I’ll miss you,” she says. “You’re strong. The strongest person I know. I’m not worried about you. I’m worried about everyone here. You’re a pillar in our community. You are in charge of so many things. Have you considered that? The shelter? What happens when you leave?”

  I’ve been working toward cutting these cords for a long time. If I told her how long, she’d be upset I was hiding it for so long. “It’s all handled. The shelter will continue to run, and I’ll be able to help remotely. You have all the town committee stuff. You have had it for a while now, or haven’t you realized?” I smile at my friend as the proverbial light bulb clicks on.

  “Your mama is going to pop her top. Let me know before you tell her so I can get outta town.” The waitress comes and sets down our plates and we begin to eat. She asks questions and I give her the best answers I can, not knowing a lot of the finer details myself. It’s strange saying things out loud that have been imprisoned in my mind for so many years. Tannie’s easy acceptance gives me hope my mama knows me the same way my best friend does. She’ll expect it in some form. She will let me go without ultimatums and bad blood.

  “Clover, are you even paying attention? Where are you right now?” My friend snaps her French manicured fingers in front of my face like she’s waking me from a trance.

  I heave a sigh. “Far away,” I say, laughing. “Why?”

  Tannie rolls her eyes as she finishes her water. “Mercer has run by about a half dozen times trying to get your attention. He’s the only man I know who would workout wearing shorts like that.”

  My gaze shoots to the window. To the hulking man wearing an ugly brown shirt and black workout shorts that even I’d deem scandalous, they’re so short. It must be a military issue. No one would choose it on their own unless they were crazy. “What in the world?” I mutter under my breath. I watch the muscles bunch under his shirt as he runs away from us. When he gets to the only stoplight on this side of town, he turns and runs back toward the restaurant. When he’s close enough, I see him grinning as sweat drips down his face and neck, staining his shirt dark.

  “He has your attention,” Tannie says. “Now what?”

  I fish my wallet out of my purse and put down a bill to pay for our lunches and tip, and rise from the booth. “I have no clue,” I tell Tannie, shaking my head. My friend follows me out the door, the bell jangling as we leave.
>
  “Mercer Ballentine, what in God’s name are you doing out here?” I call out, cupping a hand over my mouth.

  “Ain’t it obvious, ma’am? I’m working out.” He continues jogging in place, right in front of me. Tannie stays a few steps behind me, giggling.

  I sling one hand on my hip. “Here? Right now?”

  “I wanted to remind you of one important detail, as well.”

  I nod, waiting for him to go on.

  He grins. “I don’t have your phone number. This is me texting you, darlin’.”

  How is that possible? That so much has happened over the past five days and we didn’t exchange numbers? Keeping my back straight, I refuse to admit defeat over him. “You could have gotten my number from a dozen different people,” I say, jutting my chin. “Don’t think this is me forgiving you for not calling for days on end. That’s unacceptable.”

  He pauses his jogging in place and takes a deep breath, wincing. “I’d never dream of asking for forgiveness. That’s what frozen sugar is for.” He pants out a few more breaths. “It’s really hot. I’m knocking on the Devil’s den.” His exclamation makes both Tannie and I chuckle.

  “Out of Alabama shape. You should be ashamed of yourself, Mercer,” Tannie drawls.

  I adjust my laptop case on my other elbow and shake my head. “Seriously. It might be Greenton’s way of making sure you never come back.”

  He waggles his brows. “Couldn’t keep me away with a blow torch. Cape Cod tries to kill me with cold. It’s a balancing act.”

  I cross my arms, waiting for my friend to pick up on it. “Consider me called on. You can run somewhere else now,” I say.

  She’s quick on the uptake. “Cape Cod? I thought you were stationed in Florida?” Tannie hisses, her eyes on me the entire time. Every once in a while, our local paper does a story about our small-town hero. She must have missed an article here or there, just as I suspected. “This is why you’re moving to Cape Cod? Oh, dear baby Jesus on the cross, Clover Wellsley, I take it back. Your mama isn’t going to pop her top she’s going to kill you dead. Then your daddy is going to kill Mercer.”

  Mercer chuckles. “I had nothing to do with her plans. I know it seems like strange and ironic timing, but that’s sort of been our trend. Clover is doing her own thing. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad she’s heading my way.” He winks at me but turns his attention back to Tannie. “If you think someone’s daddy is gonna kill me, you don’t know me very well.”

  “It really is a coincidence, Tannie. I swear it. You know Goldie lives there.”

  She’s tapping her nails together, making an annoying clicking noise. “I guess so,” Tannie replies. “Listen, I have to get back to the office. Sheila is covering phones for me and she gets madder than a wet panther when I take too long. We have more to talk about later.” I swallow hard. “I don’t think you’re just strong anymore, though. You’re strong and sure-fire crazy, Clover. Good luck.”

  She clicks off down the street, and I turn to face my sweaty suitor. I eye him, feet up and back down, slowly. “Those shorts are atrocious. I can nearly see the promised land.”

  “Navy issued, darlin’. I think they do good things for my quads.” He points a leg out to flash bulging muscle on his thigh and calf. “What do you think?”

  I take a deep breath to clear my head, but it’s a mistake. Mercer Ballentine enters my oxygen. A sweaty, delicious mess of alpha male. “I think you are going to drive me to drink. That’s what I think.”

  “When are you going to tell your parents?” Mercer asks. “You want to beat Tannie to it, right? Or do you have some other devious thoughts on how it’s going down?”

  “You’re not afraid of being killed by my daddy. That’s what you said?”

  He starts jogging in place again. My gaze darts down to his shorts and the huge, bouncing shaft making the silky material jut up and down. Forgive me, Lord, but it is hypnotizing. I can see the curve of the tip—the width, basically the whole shebang. I try to avert my gaze, but I’m not quick enough and Mercer drawls, “Conversation is up here.” His eyes are narrowed, lips upturned in a sexy smirk.

  I lick my lips. “You didn’t answer my question,” I say, trying to get the X-rated image out of my head but failing. “You’re not afraid?”

  He cocks his head, studying me. “I’m not afraid of much, definitely not your father. What’s that have to do with you telling him?”

  I fix my shoulders and run a hand through my soft curls. “You owe me an apology. In the Wellsley family, actions speak louder than words, so you’ll be with me when I tell them.”

  His eyes widen. “What? You want a bodyguard?” A bout of laughter escapes him.

  I shake my head. “No. You’re going to be an arsenal. We’re together now. Two Greenton kids in Cape Cod. We’re a couple. You’ll take care of me while I’m far away from home.”

  Mercer opens his mouth to say something, then closes it again. “You’re serious. You want to use me so they are more open to you leaving?”

  “You say using, I say stretching the truth. I am capable of taking care of myself, you know that. Having you as my…partner is a safeguard. They’ll worry about me and if they know I have you, they’ll worry less. Just roll with it. This was your proposition.”

  He places his hands on his hips, standing still now. “How do you do that?

  “What?” I ask, breathing heavy.

  He raises both brows. “Make it seem like I’m responsible for your crazy ideas?”

  I lift and lower one shoulder. “You’re in or you’re in, Mercer Ballentine. What’s it gonna be? You scared? You want me? Us? Willing to fight for it?”

  “Yes. No. Double yes. Always,” Mercer deadpans.

  My heart races as five words sink into my awareness. “I’m parked over in town square. Want to take a ride to Daddy’s office?”

  Mercer looks down to his workout clothes and pinches his damp shirt. “Wearing this? This needs to be done right now?”

  I nod. “We’ll start with Daddy then ride over to my house to talk to Mama. You can run there if you want to finish your workout?” I let the sentence hang. “No time to change.”

  “You are a hurricane. Not a tornado.” He sucks in a deep breath. “Let’s go then. I’ll run over to DR so I can grab my bag. I want to change out of these clothes eventually.”

  I agree as we cross the road together and I can tell his mind is running away with him. “You’re forgetting something, though. Your daddy doesn’t want you with a man like me.”

  “Do you think I didn’t think that through? He doesn’t want me to leave Greenton. Do you honestly think he’d rather me be with some Yankee man who he doesn’t know at all? You are the best choice given the circumstances.” It’s a really long shot, but it’s my best shot.

  “A weaker man would be offended by that.” Mercer jogs over to the DR parking lot and grabs his bag. He’s panting when he rejoins me.

  We walk the five minutes back to my car in the town square quietly. I swallow hard as we get to my car. “I know that, by the way. That most people would be offended.” It’s part of the reason I haven’t found the right man yet. No one can handle me the way I want to be handled.

  I set off for the other section of town. The town hall is an old brick building. It was destroyed by a hurricane, but they were able to restore it back to its old glory. The office building adjacent to it houses all of Greenton’s public offices. This is the section of town that has my favorite clothing boutique. I park in a small lot and sit there, letting the cool air calm my nerves. Mercer is holding his palms over the vents on the passenger side.

  “Pardon me for saying so, but my balls are sweating all over Tannie’s seat right now. You ready to go on in?” Mercer drawls, humor in his voice. “Any tips? Bombs I can expect to catch when we go in there.”

  I laugh. “This is our joint task. I’m so glad you chose to accept it. I’m confident that you’ll be able to catch whatever bombs I throw to you during this ha
zardous mission. I hope you still have balls to sweat when we come back out.”

  He grabs my arm. I glance his way. “I’m not worried about that. I know you want my balls intact when we come out. You won’t let anything happen to ‘em.”

  “Confidence,” I say, nodding. “That’s attractive on a man.” Mercer gets out of the car and walks around to open my car door. He’s grinning when I step out, my hand in his. I love that he keeps the gentlemanly ways of the South. “That’s attractive too,” I exclaim, sighing. “Game face, Mercer. I’m not sure how far good manners are going to get you in there.” I hike my thumb over my shoulder and envision my daddy sitting behind his desk. Cold, stern face fixated on whatever he’s working on. He’s been a hard worker his entire life. Whenever we go on vacation, he gets antsy and is on edge. He obsesses over all the things he’s not getting done while he’s relaxing.

  “One thing before we go in,” he says, pulling on my hand. Mercer brushes a stray strand of hair off my face. “I wanna taste what I’m fighting for.” Tilting my chin with a single finger, he brings his head down and plants his lips against mine. A second of his intoxicating kiss is all it takes for my head to swim. I grab his sides, his shirt, and pull myself closer to deepen the sensation. Against his body, with my tongue sliding against his, I’m numb to everything around us. Drowning in Mercer Ballentine is a death I’d relive a million times. His warm hands are on my waist, and I’ve forgotten about the three days I’ve waited on him and am kicking myself for not being the aggressor and going after him. I’m lost in the sensations when Mercer pulls away.

  His eyes are sleepy, turned on. It matches the bulge throbbing against my stomach. I swallow hard, gazing into his wild eyes. “Just as I thought,” Mercer says, country accent thick. “Worth dyin’ in battle for.” He grabs my shoulders. “If we’re going in there to talk to your father, I need to calm down for a second.”

  I clear my throat and sneak a peek at what needs calming. “Those shorts really don’t hide a thing.”