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There
was a massive cypress tree that grew along the shoreline.  It had to be
thirty feet tall and its branches hung out over the water.  The bark was
covered with a thin layer of moss and its roots pushed up from the ground into
spikes.  I often challenged Buddy to climb that tree but he would never
agree to it because it was dangerous.  When wet, the moss on the branches
became slick and it was too easy to lose your grip and fall on the spiked roots
below.  I would tease Buddy and call him chicken for not accepting my
challenge, but he was always firm in his refusal.

My
consciousness shifted to a time after Buddy left.  I would often sit
outside and stare at the Cypress tree and I decided to climb it one day when I
was playing by myself.  It had rained earlier and I decided to ignore
Buddy’s warning about the slick branches.  My climb up was uneventful and
I was proud of myself for having made it.  I spent a little bit of time
sitting in the branches above the water and I slowly started making my way back
down.  When I was ten feet from the ground, my foot hit a slick patch of
moss and went out from underneath me.  I tried to grasp the branches with
my hand to keep from falling but my hand slipped as well.  I didn’t hit
any branches with my body on the way down but I landed on one of the smaller
roots sticking up from the ground.  Upon impact, my body curled in on
itself from the pain and I laid in a fetal position in the shallow water, not
able to move or cry out.  The pain in my back was the worst I had ever
experienced.  I don’t know how long I had been laying there when thunder
started to rumble through the sky.  Small raindrops started falling onto
my face and when the dark clouds shaded the sunlight, the cicadas started
belting out their song.  The wetlands came alive in rainstorms and I
became nervous as I knew the rain would draw out the water moccasins and
alligators.

I
heard the back door of the building crash open and Daddy started calling out my
name.  I was still in so much pain, I couldn’t call out to him and I lay
there praying that he would find me.  My father ran around the yard when
he finally spotted me lying in the water.

“Oh
my god, Paige?!”  He ran over to me and knelt down.  “Paige baby, are
you all right, what happened baby? Talk to me.”  His voice was panicked
and I tried to move to look at him.  His hands brushed over me looking for
broken bones or other signs of injury.  I started to turn over and he
picked me up after seeing that I was moving.

He
hurried me inside to the building and called out for Momma. “Maia! 
Maia!  Come quick.  Paige is hurt!”

Momma
came running out of the kitchen and Daddy laid me on a couch in the back
parlor.  I stretched out my body and the pain that shot through my back
caused me to wince.  Momma gently rolled me over and lifted the back of my
shirt to inspect me.  She stifled a small cry when she saw my back and she
shot up and hurried into one of the bathrooms.  Daddy stayed with me and
continued to pet my head and console me.  Within seconds, Momma was back
at my side and was wiping my back down with a warm cloth.  She dried the
area and then spread a small amount of ointment on my skin.  She bandaged
the area and turned me back to face her.  She didn’t ask me what happened
but I knew she would save those questions for later, now that she knew I was
alright.

I
was lucky I didn’t land on my spine.  The root had bruised my back
something awful, but I didn’t break any bones or cause other permanent
injuries.  After that fall, I started to fear heights and I never climbed
another tree.

From
that day forward, I kept my feet on the ground.

I shot
up from my bed and I reached over to find Alex, but his side was empty. The bed
was still rumpled from where he had laid, but the sheets and pillow were cool
to the touch.  He must have gone in to work early.

I laid
back down and turned my head to stare at the light peeking in from the edges of
the curtains.  My mind was still in a state of shock from last night’s
dream.  I haven’t dreamt of Buddy in many years, even though he was still
barricaded behind those walls around my heart.  I stayed there for another
couple minutes while the emotions consumed me. 

I
eventually shook off the thoughts and pushed myself out of the bed.  
Padding over to the bathroom I grabbed some clothes from my closet on my
way.  I relieved myself and then quickly dressed and brushed my
teeth.  My hair was thrown up into a messy bun and I turned around to walk
out my bedroom door.  The tattoo on my shoulder caught my attention as I
turned and I reached over to gently touch it with my fingertips.

I left
my room and hurried into the kitchen to brew some coffee.  I measured the
coffee grinds and water and poured them into the machine.  After hitting
the start button I immediately began tapping my fingers impatiently on the
counter while it sputtered and steamed.  I opened the cabinet, pulled out
a cup and placed it on the counter.  The pot was only a quarter of the way
full by the time I turned to check it and I inwardly groaned at its slow
pace.  I worked on my mixture of sugar and creamer and then placed the
half-filled cup next to the machine.

David
walked in behind me and let out a loud yawn as he stretched out his slim
frame.  He padded over to where I was standing and eyed the machine with
me.

“How
long have you been waiting so far?”

I
turned my glare to him and then huffed out a breath.  “Three minutes.”

“Too
long,” David commented.

“Agreed.”

He
started tapping his fingers beside mine.  “We need a faster machine.”

After
five more agonizing minutes, the machine graciously beeped indicating the coffee
was ready.  I filled my cup to the rim and then handed the pot to
David.  While he poured the contents into his cup, I stirred together my
drink.  We silently walked into the living room together, set our cups on
the table and plopped down in unison on the couch.  The couch slightly
tipped backwards from catching our combined weight.

We
drank our coffee in silence for a few minutes and then David spoke.

“Sooooo…how
was last night?  Did you have a good time?”

I
groaned and rested my head in my hands.  I looked back up at David and
gave him a small smile.

“Last
night was not so good.  I think I might have to avoid Tomb for a while,
which sucks, because they always have the best music.”

David
gave me a questioning look and then his eyes brightened and he smiled.

“Did
you have a drunken liaison by any chance?”  He paused then nudged my
shoulder with his. “Because, if so, you are going to have to give me all the
naughty details so I can live vicariously through you.”  He shook his
eyebrows up and down.

I chuckled
and shook my head.  “I wish man.  But unfortunately it was nothing as
fun as that.” 

David
raised one eyebrow in question and I spilled.

“Ok,
the band was heavy last night and the pit got a little rough.  I was
standing in my normal spot by the speakers, but I got crushed in by the amount
of people who were there last night.”

David
put up his hand to stop my story.  “So wait, before you go any further,
are you about to tell me that the great and powerful Paige got trampled in the
pit?  If that is, in fact, the case, I will need a moment to openly
gloat.”

I
glared at him and he laughed.

“I
didn’t break any bones or fall on my head, if that’s what you’re
thinking.”  He responded to my statement by turning up his nose in fake
disdain.

“So
anyways, when the crowd started to get too rough and I was having to push back
to keep from being trampled, this guy grabbed me and pulled me up on top of the
speaker.”

David’s
head quickly turned in my direction.  “Was he hot?”

I
sighed.  “Yes.  He was gorgeous.  An Adonis actually, and it was
really fucking annoying.”

David’s
expression remained blank but then he narrowed his eyes at me.  “Explain,”
he commanded.

“After
pulling me up on the speaker, he called me a ‘damsel in distress’.”

David’s
mouth formed a silent ‘O’ in understanding.  “Knowing you, Paige, I don’t
see this going well at all.”

I shook
my head and sighed. “It didn’t.  I asked him not to call me that and
explained my issue with demeaning stereotypes, but he kept calling me that anyway
and then claimed to have
rescued
me three times last night.”

“Three
times?”

“Well,
yeah.  I’m not done.”  I lowered my head and then looked back up at
him. “So after the band stopped playing and the people in the pit were
dispersing, he jumped down and I realized how high off the ground I was...”

“Oh
dear,” David interrupted.

“…So
the asswipe tried to help me down but was being all smug because I needed
help.  I refused his help to be spiteful and I eventually had to shimmy my
way down the side, giving him an up close and personal view of my ass.”

David
nodded in understanding.

“We got
in an argument about him calling me Damsel and he told me he would leave me
alone for the rest of the night if I would tell him my name; so I did.  I
talked to Logan later and he told me to stay away from the guy because
apparently he’s got a reputation for being a man whore.  Later that night,
another drunk guy trapped me near one of the bars and grabbed my ass.”

David’s
eyes widened.  “Did you kick his ass?”

“No, but
I did break his finger...”

“Good
girl.”

“… but
the guy was twice my size and Daemon had to pull him off of me.”

David
looked confused.  “Who’s Daemon?”

“Daemon
is the asswipe from the speaker.”

David
nodded his head. “I see.  Continue.”

“Well
that’s pretty much it except for Daemon tried to walk me to my bike when I left
and I told him that he and his white horse could fuck off.”

David
chuckled then took a moment to absorb the details of my story. He took my hands
into his and his warm brown eyes stared into mine.

“You
know, Paige, I love that you are all ‘I am woman and I’ll kick your ass’, but
it doesn’t make you a weaker person to accept assistance from other
people.  You are one of the strongest people I know and you’ve seen and
experienced more than most people, but one of these days you are going to have
to let someone in.  I’d hate to see you wasting your life pushing people
away and then ending up alone when you are older. It would suck if you ended up
the friendly neighborhood cat lady”

I shook
my head and quickly responded.  “There’s nothing wrong with being alone,
David.  And if my heart can open to someone in the future, I wouldn’t
object to the experience.  But I haven’t come across anybody who’s been
able to break through my walls.  Regardless, Daemon was a complete prick
and, even if I need to learn to accept help, I don’t have to accept it from
someone like him.”

David
gave me a knowing look and dropped the subject.  “What are your plans for
this beautiful day?”

It was
Sunday and my normal routine involved running into town to grab breakfast and
then taking a long ride to visit my parents at The Center.  They started
spending more time there after I left for college and eventually sold their
house to build an extra wing for them to live on the property.  Their
space was the size of a normal home and it had all the rooms and amenities a
home could offer.

“I’m
heading out to see my folks.”

David
thought it over for a moment and then asked if he could join me for the
day.  David’s personality was always welcomed by the women and children at
The Center.  His enthusiasm for life was infectious and it inspired the
women who lived there.  The children loved him because he was a giant
jungle gym and he had two or three kids hanging on him at all times.

“Sure
thing.  But can you follow behind me in your car?  I’m kind of
looking forward to biking down the roads through the state parks.”

 
David agreed and he retreated to his
room to get dressed for our journey.  I waited on the couch in silence
when Annie emerged from her room.  Annie isn’t a morning person and she
grunted in my direction as she went in the kitchen to grab a cup of
coffee.  She made her way back into the living room and sat down in the
winged back chair.  She took a couple of sips of her coffee and I swear I
saw when the caffeine took effect.  Her eyes brightened and she smiled at
me.

“Mornin’
Paige.  Heading out to see your folks today?”

I
nodded and then added, “Yeah, David is following me in his car if you want to
come along.”

Annie
shook her head. “I’d love to babe, but I’ve got to run into work for a few
hours to help prepare some trial exhibits for next week.  Maybe next
weekend I can join you?”  It was quiet for a moment before she continued.
“So, did you get any numbers for me last night?”

I
laughed.  “No I did not and you know good and well that I will not be
contributing to your tragic love life.  If things go south between you and
any guy, I want none of the blame.”  I gave her a pointed look and then
reconsidered my statement.  “Well, let me rephrase that.  There
is
a guy I’d love for you to meet, but I haven’t gotten his number for you because
I have a feeling you won’t go for him.”

Annie
looked at me in question.  “The bartender again?”

“Yes.”

Annie
laughed. “Well Paige, I guess one day I’m going to have to join you and I’ll
give him a look over to see if I could, possibly, bend my rules.”

I
looked down and started playing with a frayed string on the couch. “Well, it’s
going to be a while because I have no plans on returning there any time soon.”

“Bad
night?”

I
looked back at Annie and nodded my head.  “You can say that.  Long
story short, there was a gorgeous man, he was a prick, and I told him to take a
hike.”

Annie
smirked.  “Sounds like my kind of man.  Did you get his number, by
chance?”

I
started to respond when David burst back into the living room and announced,
“Ready!”

David
was dressed in a dark grey fitted t-shirt and dark jeans.  His hair was
stylishly messy and the dark shade of his shirt brought out the bright gold in
his eyes.

“I
guess it’s time.  Let me go get my stuff.”  I left Annie and David in
the living room and I went in to my room to grab my bag and my helmet.  I
swiped my keys off the night stand and checked my phone real quick.  There
was a text message from Alex.

Alex:    Morning
beautiful.  Sorry to leave you alone this morning, but I had an early
client at the shop.  I know you are off to see the folks today so I’ll
catch up with you when you get back in town.  BTW, I cleaned up the broken
lamp.

I shot
Alex a quick response.

Me:      Hope
you didn’t get a screamer or a crier this time.  Go easy on him. 
Catch you later.

I threw
my phone into my bag and headed out to the front door.  David jumped up
and was behind me as we waved goodbye to Annie and made our way to the parking
lot.  I climbed on my bike and pulled out.  I waited until David was
behind me and we drove into town.

I was
stopped at a red light on the edge of town when I looked up at the luxury loft
apartments to my right.  The building only had three stories but those
apartments cost a small fortune due to their size and proximity to
downtown.  Movement caught my eye on one of the third floor balconies and
I caught sight of a half dressed man looking out over the town.  He
stretched his arms above his head and then brought them back down to rest on
the railing in front of him.  His body was insane and I could see the
definition in his shoulders, chest and arms from where I was sitting.  His
dark brown hair was messy and I suddenly realized who I was looking at.

Daemon.

I
started to look away but then noticed a familiar redhead come up behind him
wearing nothing but a robe.  She wrapped her arms around him from behind
and started rubbing her hands down his washboard abs.  She was on her
tiptoes as she whispered something in his ear and he smiled.  He looked
down in my direction and I turned my head back to the road to keep him from
seeing me.  I laughed when I realized I had my helmet on and there was no
way he would recognize me behind the dark plastic.  I looked back up and
jumped. 

He was
looking right at me. 

A blank
expression was written across his face and David’s car horn blared behind
me.  I jumped again and then looked up to find that the light had turned
green.  I kicked the bike into gear and then sped down the road away from
Daemon’s view.