All She Wanted (2) (4 page)

Briggs

When Charlie
laughed, she glowed. Her eyes were intense—both deep and fiery at the same time.
And the
sound?
I wanted to bottle that sound.

Immediately after she climbed into my
truck and secured her seat belt, she reached for the radio, turning it on.

“Um…what do you think you’re doing?” I
asked.

“What does it look like?”

“It looks like you’re being a little
too
handsy
with my truck.” I patted the dashboard for
effect. “She’ll need to warm up to you a bit before you start putting moves on
her like that.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched
her decide whether or not to take me seriously. I smiled when she leaned back
and crossed her arms in front of her, a smirk twisting her lips as she spoke.

“And what kind of warm-up might she
need?”

Ah, now
I’m getting somewhere.

“The usual I suppose—small talk first.
She’s rather particular, not just anyone gets to ride in her cab,” I replied. I
leaned over as if to tell her a secret and whispered, “She’s the jealous type,
so you might want to put her at ease.”

“And fairly high maintenance it seems,”
she whispered back, “Is this where I declare my intentions?”

I laughed, “Nah, but conversing with
her driver seems to work well.”

“Well, let’s see,” Charlie started, “how
long have you worked at the station, Manny?”

“Six years.”

“How old are you?”

I smiled, “Not eight-five—shocking, I
know!”

She laughed, “Really…how old are you?”

“Twenty-six.”

“Why did you agree to be my manny for
the month?” Her tone had quickly gone from sweet and playful to sour and testy.

I glanced in her direction before
responding, “Because I like your dad. He’s a good man—even if his rules seem
extreme at times.”

“So you agree this whole shenanigan is
extreme, huh?” She asked, her voice noticeably warmer than five seconds prior.
“That’s five points to you, Manny.”

“I get five points for agreeing with you
on something? Wow, that’s…generous. How many do I get for driving you to the
booty-call bar?” I asked.

“Two.”

“Two?” I turned my head toward her,
laughing in surprise. “Please explain how the points went
down
for driving you across town in the middle of the night to help
your friend ward off a sexual assault.”

“Let’s see,” She held her little hand
out, ticking-off a finger for each point-deduction. “You busted my escape,
stole my car keys, and ruined my plans for a great evening.”

I laughed.
Feisty little thing she is.

A second later we pulled into the
parking lot for
The Dive
—which was
exactly how it looked, like a run-down hole of a business.

I put my arm out to stop her before she
could open her door, “Do not leave my side tonight, Charlie. Taking your keys away
is nothing compared to what I could do…if the need arose, got it?”

Charlie

I stared at him for a long second,
searching his face for any sign of humor. There was none to be found.

“Fine.” I rolled my eyes as we made our
way through the parking lot. “But I don’t need a bodyguard,” I mumbled, letting
the music drown-out my words.
 

After showing my ID to the bouncer and
paying the cover charge—which interestingly enough had been waived the night I
didn’t show up with the manny—we made our way through a sea of sweaty bodies.

“You’re really cramping my style,” I
said flatly.

Naturally, he found this funny and laughed
me off.

I checked my phone every couple of
minutes. Jackie had yet to respond. I stood on my tip-toes and searched for her
through the crowd.

“So, what does this girl look like?”
Manny asked as we slid behind a group of rowdy women.

“Like a celebrity. Tall, blonde,
thin…and gorgeous.”
 

For once he had no comeback.

I texted her again.

Me:
I’m here. Where are you?

After twenty minutes of walking around playing
detective, I told Manny I was going to check the restroom.

“Okay, but I’m going with you.”

“No way!” I balked, “You’re not coming
with me to the ladies room—that’s
weird
.”

“Do you know where the majority of assaults
happen in places like this, Shortcake? In. The. Restroom.” He leaned in close
so that I could hear him over the booming bass. His warm breath on my neck
caused goose bumps to work their magic down my arms. “So yes, I
am
coming with you. Two minutes should
be all you need to check the stalls.”

Swallowing hard, I could only nod in
response.

True to his word, he stood directly outside
the door to the ladies room while I went inside to look for Jackie.
He’s almost as bad as my father.

The narrow bathroom housed at least
twenty stalls and reeked of urine and body odor. I scrunched my nose up,
determined to breathe only when it was absolutely necessary. I always did my
best to avoid public bathrooms, so the two-minute time limit set by the manny
seemed far too generous.
 

“Jackie?” I called, my voice echoing
off the grimy tile walls and floors. “Jackie, are you in here?”

“Charlie—that you?” The last stall door
swung open to reveal all five-foot-nine-inches of her statuesque body at once. Jackie
tugged at her mini skirt as she stepped out, smiling down at me.

“I’ve been looking all over for you,” I
said, defensively.

“Well, I’ve been looking for you too!”
She huffed back at me. “My phone died on the way over and my stupid brother
took the charger out of my car—again! I just walked in here a second ago to use
the restroom…we must have ESP or something.” She shrugged, making her way over
to the trough-style sink, as if to dismiss the worry I’d felt over her for the
last twenty minutes.

That was irritating.
  

“Charlie? Is everything okay in there?”
A distinctly male voice called into the bathroom, straining to be heard over
some techno beat.

I rolled my eyes.
Great
.

“Yep. I found her, give us a sec alright?”

The music muffled again suddenly as I looked
at Jackie, who was smiling at me like I was about to hand her a new puppy. She
raised her eyebrows. “That your guardian man out there? He doesn’t sound so old
and creepy to me, Charlie.”

“Yes, well…I may have exaggerated a
tad,” I mumbled. “Come on, let’s get out of here…it smells.”

Manny stood post like a guard, waiting
attentively for us outside the restroom door.

Jackie pushed me aside to step in front
of him, reaching her hand out to make her introduction. A bitter taste filled
my mouth as I watched the interaction. I couldn’t hear what she said to him,
the music was too loud, but I could see his cheeks flush as she bent her head
back and smiled. The bitter taste grew more and more acidic with each passing
second.

He was
her
type—heck, he was any woman’s type.

His dirty blond hair was a messy kind
of gorgeous—longer on top and perfectly groomed on the back and sides. Some
sort of wax product must have held the look together somehow, but nothing about
it looked unnatural. His tall, lean body had to be a tad over six-foot as he
towered over the majority of people who passed by us. With eyes the color of
rich chocolate, it was no wonder why women stopped to ogle him when we had
entered the club. Whether he didn’t notice, or didn’t care, it was a constant occurrence
nonetheless.

“I’m gonna hit the floor,” I called out
over my shoulder as the two love birds continued their intimate conversation.

I made it about ten feet before I felt a
strong grip on my shoulder—a familiar voice accosting my ear, “I thought we had
a deal, Shortcake.”

I turned dramatically, staring straight
into his eyes as I nodded in the direction of Jackie. “Looked like you were
busy, and I want to dance.”

He narrowed his eyes at me, “You have
thirty minutes. Use them wisely.”

Briggs

Every one of my five senses was
screaming for relief.

Not only was the smell of this grand
establishment equivalent to a middle school locker room, the last fifteen
minutes alone had made me want to flush my eyes out with disinfectant.
 

I checked my phone again for the time
as I leaned against a metal railing.

Charlie and Jackie were dancing just a
few feet out from where I stood, yet my eyes continually scanned the crowd
around them. I had a knack for predicting the behavior of others—one that had
been carefully honed after nursing dozens of black eyes, broken ribs and bruised
organs. Fighting had created many opportunities for me to sharpen my
observational skills.

It wasn’t that I thought Charlie was
stupid—in fact, I believed the opposite to be true, but this evening had
seriously made me question her judgment. It bothered me more than I cared to
admit that she had been in places like this before with only the protection of
friends
like Jackie. I shook my head
remembering Jackie’s soft-spoken words that held the venom of a cobra. Her
not-so-subtle invitation had supplied me with all the information I needed.

Her face was equal parts surprised and
curious after I had turned her down.

I wasn’t into casual sex—at least not
anymore.
  

A particularly vulgar group of males was
on the move, stalking their prey like a pack of hungry wolves. I straightened;
my jaw clenching tight as I focused my attention on one in particular who had
made his way over to where a certain redhead was dancing. I was in motion a
good ten seconds before he even touched her shoulder.

As I pushed through the sweaty mass, I
saw her turn toward him, a look of evident disdain on her face. I saw her lips
move quickly as he began to close the gap between them, it was then her eyes
found me. But as I reached her, the creep had already backed-off. Whatever she
had said to him had apparently been received.

For being the size of a Keebler Elf,
the girl was no lightweight when it came to her tenacity.

The rigidity in my shoulders relaxed as
she smirked at me and shrugged.

“It’s time,” I said tapping my
invisible watch.

She rolled her eyes, but surprisingly,
she complied. I watched as she pulled Jackie away from some dude who had
practically tattooed himself onto her thigh. She was none-to-pleased, but she
followed after Charlie regardless.

As we parted ways with her in the
parking lot, Jackie blew me a very dramatic kiss. I ignored her, which
apparently did not dissuade her.

“Hope you don’t keep the hottie all to
yourself, Charlie!” Jackie bellowed through the parking lot.

Charlie waved without comment and then
looked at me incredulously.

“You gonna tell me what that was about—
hottie
?” She asked, sarcasm dripping
from her last word.

“Are you gonna tell me what you said to
that creeper in there?” I challenged back.

“Ladies never kiss and tell.”

I laughed. “Well, if that is your idea
of kissing, then your daddy has nothing to worry about.”

She smiled, looking out the window
without saying another word. Perhaps we both felt the events of the night had filled
our quota for social stimulation. I wondered how long my ears would keep
ringing from the hideous excuse for music I was forced to endure.

The silence was greatly appreciated.

I walked her to the front door after
parking my truck in the driveway. I pulled out her keys, which had been in my
pocket all night, and unlocked it for her.

“Thanks.”

I nodded, knowing it was meant to cover
much more than that simple gesture.

After I watched her enter the foyer I
called to her. She turned.

“Here,” I said, tossing the keys at
her. She raised her eyebrows in surprise as she caught them.

“Am I free from my house-arrest so soon,
Manny?”

“No,” I laughed, “but if you find
yourself itching to leave this house again, I want your word that you’ll tell
me first.”

She held my gaze as if analyzing each
word I had spoken before answering, “Okay.”

She closed the front door a second
later, re-locking it. I hopped off the porch and headed up to the garage
apartment. A curious satisfaction filled my chest.

What an interesting night it had been.

Charlie

Several candles and other miscellaneous
decor filled my arms as I made my way to daddy’s office. Trying to adjust the
largest candle under my chin so that I could maneuver my keys in the lock was
proving a difficult task. It was then that I was offered help from a paramedic
who looked like he’d just walked off an exotic island. He swung the door open
for me.

“Thanks,” I said, laying down my
treasures on the desk, “if only I had a few more arms.”

“Whoa…you’ve made quite a dent in
here.” He looked around the office in surprise, “I saw the work he left for
you—this is impressive.”

“Yeah, well, it’s not quite up to par
with extinguishing fires or saving lives…but someone has to fight the war
against clutter.”

He laughed, holding out his hand for me
to shake, “I’m Kai Alesana, I’m sure you don’t remember, but we met years ago
at a Christmas party.”

I shook my head, sheepishly. There was
hardly a fireman here I did remember—it had been too long.

“Well, I hope Briggs isn’t irritating
you too much.”

Briggs?

“Oh…you mean Manny, nah he’s alright,”
I replied as he released my hand.

“Manny?” Kai asked, confused.

“Yeah...that’s what I call him anyway.”
I shrugged, “He’s my man-nanny.”

Before I could even give my explanation
in full, Kai was bent over, cackling. Two other guys came into the office then,
asking what was so funny. Between broken breaths Kai repeated what I had just
said. I smiled as the men responded in much the same way.

Each time I walked through the station
to grab something I needed from the supply closet or kitchen, I heard the
phrase swirling about. I hadn’t seen him yet today—
Briggs, now that will take some getting used to
—but I was sure he
was around.

The alarm had sounded several times during
the morning, but I was never alone for long. Men popped in and out of the
office to see what the cleaning-fairy had been up to, each introducing
themselves as they entered. I understood now why my dad always spoke so highly
of them—they were a fun bunch.

With the surfaces streak-free, windows
open and candles lit, I started to sort through the piles. I reached into my
satchel and grabbed my reading glasses. My dad’s script was tiny. Each document
not only needed to be re-categorized, but also needed to be logged by date.

Oy
Vey.

I couldn’t help but wonder if all these
papers had been mixed up on purpose, but my father liked efficiency too much to
do something that extreme. With all the work ahead of me, I’d be lucky to have
it finished within the timeframe he allotted.

While bent over a file labeled “equipment
updating”, I felt something hit the top of my head, before falling onto the
desk. I glanced up.

A
french
fry.

“You missed lunch, Shortcake,” Briggs
said, putting a bag of fast food down in front of me.

I wanted to tell him I didn’t eat fast
food and that I found it quite repulsive that anyone did…but I didn’t.

“Oh…uh, thanks,” I said.

“Although,
I’m none-
to
-pleased that you out-
ed
me this morning.”
Briggs’ eyes were full of amusement as
it dawned on me what he was referring to.

“If only I’d known you wanted to keep
it as a pet-name between us,” I mocked in my best southern-belle accent, “I
never would have told them.”

He laughed, pulling a chair up to sit down
opposite me at the desk. Suddenly, I was nervous.

What is he doing?

He pushed the lunch sack closer to me
as if my lack of chowing-down was due to proximity of the bag, and not the
contents inside it. I opened it slowly, the overpowering aroma of greasy fries
filling the air. My stomach growled.

Oh shut up, stomach! Not all food is created equal…

I placed the fries and chemically
altered chicken sandwich on the desk and waited for him to say something more.

Nope. Nada.

Okay, this isn’t awkward…

I ate a couple of fries and my stomach
growled again in response.

“So, I was thinking...” Briggs began.

“Yes?” I reached for another couple of
fries.

“You like cards?”

“Uh…that’s not random or anything,” I
said.

“Random—maybe, but a very simple
question nonetheless. Do. You. Like. Playing. Cards?” He emphasized each word
like I was unfamiliar with the English language.

“Depends.”

“On?”

I leaned back, assessing him carefully,
“What’s at stake.”

His laugh was low and deep, “You’re a
girl after my own heart.”

I felt a jolt of electricity charge
through me at his words. Of course he was only joking, naturally, but the uncomfortable
tension seemed to hang in the air like salt at the beach.

“What do you think about having a
couple of my friends over tomorrow night—for poker?” He leaned in, putting his
elbows of the desk as he waited for my response.

“Is this a new tactic to get me to stay
away from the
booty-call clubs
?”

Smiling, he pushed his chair out slowly
and stood, “That’s ten points to you, Shortcake.”

And then he was out the door.

I shook my head, biting my bottom lip
as I tried to restrain my ridiculous grin.

**********

The cool feel of the ivory beneath my
fingers was
home
.

There was nothing I knew better than
the keys of a piano, nothing more natural for me to give my life to. With each
press of my fingertip I could orchestrate a piece of time and space. The melody
was mine alone, responding only to my creative impulse and desire.

And in this ever-shifting world, that type
of control was unmatched anywhere else in my life.

I grabbed the composition I had been
working on during the last two semesters and played it over and over, getting
stuck at the same bar each time through. I could hear the notes somewhere in
the far corner of my mind…yet it just wouldn’t transpire correctly when I tried
to mimic it.

I thought of my favorite music
professor—Mr. Wade—and smiled. He always had some crazy story about finding his
latest muse; I was suddenly very envious of him.

I missed school.

Despite how awful the last six months
had been, or how hard it was to show up for class and complete my assignments, I
fit
there. The students, the staff, and
even the classes had all felt tailored for someone just like me.

Yes, I had been angry when the Dean
suspended me for the term, but if I was honest with myself, the anger I felt
was not toward the scholarship committee. I had never been one to slack off in
school. I’d always had plenty of drive to push through the temptations of the
social world, but that was all before Alex.
 

Alexander Monroe had swooped into my
life almost as fast as he had swooped out of it.

He was a drug to an addiction never satisfied.

I could still feel the way his eyes had
watched me during my audition last summer. He had followed me into the parking
lot afterward, and I had known it was him before I ever turned around. His very
presence was intoxicating, and I was drunk on his charm after just one sip. With
him in focus, every line had been blurred. And within only a few days I had offered
him my very soul.

I was desperate to be loved by him; he
was all I wanted.

Yet no matter how he had spun it, no
matter what he promised, only one fact remained:

Alex Monroe didn’t want me.