Test Drive: Road Tripping Series

by Samantha Chase

  “I can make sure that doesn’t happen…”

  “Levi, I can’t avoid them all night. Trust me, I’ve tried that tons of times before and it never works.”

  “You never had me with you.” He winked at her, and for some silly reason, it made her feel better.

  “Maybe we need a codeword.”

  “For what?”

  “For when I’m feeling stressed. I’ll say the codeword and you’ll know I need to either distract them or get away.”

  “Willow, I hate to break it to you, but no codeword is necessary. Case in point–we’re in the car, aren’t we?”

  “No, I mean…” And then it hit her. “Why you devious little genius! I didn’t even think of it like that!”

  “Yeah, you’ve told me enough about your relationship with your parents, and I’ve gotten to know you well enough that I can tell when enough is enough.”

  “I don’t know if I’m thankful or embarrassed.”

  “You don’t have anything to be embarrassed for. They’re the ones who should be.”

  “But if we needed a codeword, what would it be? It couldn’t be anything too obvious – like saying something like pineapple or meatloaf would be way too obvious.”

  He laughed softly. “Why does it have to be food?”

  “It doesn’t! I was just throwing words out there. Why, what would you use?”

  “If you said pineapple, I’d think you were ordering your favorite drink.”

  “Oooh…good call.”

  “Food would be good though, the more I think about it. It would be easy to direct the conversation toward that if we needed to.”

  “Exactly.”

  “How about…mango?”

  “Mango?”

  He nodded. “Yeah. It’s not a food that comes up often, and I think it would be obvious only to us that it was code for ‘get me the hell out of here’.” So what do you think? Will that work?”

  “Definitely.” She paused. “But hopefully we won’t have to use it.”

  They pulled into Gammy’s driveway and as much as she would have loved to take advantage of their alone time and have him help her with her zipper–or something remotely sexy–now wasn’t the time.

  She reached for the door handle and turned to look at him. “Levi…”

  “Go.” His voice was gruff and his expression was beyond sexy. “I think we both know if I go inside with you, we won't get back to the party until the cake was being served.”

  “It’s a little scary how easily you can read my mind,” she said softly, her gaze lingering on his handsome face.

  “You’re very expressive, Willow. Your face gives you away every time.”

  “Oh. Um, I should…” Just as she was turning to get out of the car, he reached out and stopped her.

  “It’s one of the things that makes you most attractive,” he said with a lopsided grin. “I’ve enjoyed learning all kinds of things about you based on your expression.”

  Her cheeks heated because her thoughts were suddenly going in the direction of all the things she’d rather be doing with him rather than going back to the party.

  Leaning forward, he rested his forehead against hers. “And we can discuss all these wicked thoughts later. While we’re in bed.” Placing a soft kiss on the tip of her nose, he whispered, “Go. I’ll wait here.”

  And this time, she listened and quickly ran into the house.

  The sooner they got back to the party, hopefully the sooner it would all be over and they could crawl into bed together.

  Stripping as soon as she closed the front door, Willow ran and changed into party dress number two. She looked longingly at the bed once she was fully dressed and ran her hand over it. “I never thought I’d be so anxious to go to bed. My punishment as a child has now become my reward for putting up with my parents.” Checking her reflection one last time, she murmured, “Oh, how times have changed.”

  “Levi, there you are.”

  Great. Here comes Mr. Personality…

  With a smile plastered on his face, Levi shook Paul Andrews’ hand. Again. Glancing around the room, he made sure Willow was nowhere nearby and, hopefully, enjoying herself. He spotted her dancing with Barry and figured they had at least three to five minutes before she’d be done. Longer if any of the other Romeos cut in.

  “We didn’t get a chance to really talk earlier,” Paul said, his expression bland.

  “With dinner for twenty, it’s a little difficult to focus on any one conversation.” Truth was, Levi had managed to put a little distance between the Andrews’ and Willow.

  With a little help from Gammy and Donald.

  “It was a little rude of my mother’s friend to force people to change seats.”

  Levi shrugged and casually slid his hands into his pockets. “Your mother didn’t seem to mind, and since it’s her big day, who are we to argue, right?”

  The pinched look on Paul’s face told him the guy was on to him. “I would never make a scene at a family event,” he said evenly. After taking a sip of his wine–and seriously, did he ever put the glass down?–he continued. “So tell me about yourself. Willow mentioned you work in a bar.”

  “A pub, actually.”

  “There’s a difference?”

  Nodding, Levi explained, “Bars tend to be a bit loud and boisterous with dance floors, pool tables, dartboards, and dance floors. Pubs, on the other hand, are a little more casual with a somewhat quieter atmosphere and serve a full menu of food.”

  “And you’re a bartender?”

  He nodded.

  “And…?”

  “And…what?”

  “So that’s all you do? Make drinks?”

  It would be so easy to put this guy in his place, but just like he thought earlier, Levi knew he needed to be honest with Willow about his position first before he blurted it out to prove a point to her father.

  “There’s more to it than that. But more importantly, I love what I do and I’m good at it. And that’s the important thing, isn’t it? Having a job that brings you joy?”

  “Having one that supports you and allows you to have money in savings for retirement and other incidentals is also important.” Another sip of wine. “And one you can take pride in–and one your significant other wouldn’t be ashamed of.”

  Levi nodded. “I agree whole-heartedly, Paul.”

  And yeah, he enjoyed how much more Paul’s face pinched up.

  “I make a great living, drive a brand-new car, and have money in savings.” He shrugged. “My folks come in often and are very supportive of me.”

  Every word was the truth.

  “Of your being a bartender? Really?”

  “Well, it’s not like I’m dancing on the bar shirtless,” he joked.

  “I don’t think you’re a very good influence on my daughter.”

  “And why is that?” His fists were clenched in his pockets, and it took every ounce of control to not use them to pound on this guy.

  “Willow’s…struggling right now and…confused. She had the opportunity to join a very successful psychology practice, and she’s refusing. I realize now that her hanging out with someone who doesn’t have a…real job is adding to her confusion. She sees you being okay with being laid back and thinks that will work for her.” He let out a snort of derision. “Babysitting and walking dogs. She has a college degree! She needs to be using it!”

  “Why? It’s not something she wanted,” Levi stated. “Seems to me that makes it nothing more than an expensive piece of paper.”

  “Willow’s always needed prodding. She never would have made up her mind. If left to her own devices, she would have skipped college and ended up…waitressing or something. Probably at your pub!” Then he shook his head before taking another sip of wine. “No, she’s too clumsy to that.”

  It would be wrong to punch him…

  “If that’s what she wanted to do, I’m sure she’d make it work. And there shouldn’t be anything wrong with that. It’s
not a Fortune 500 company or a snooty psych practice, but when I go home at the end of the day, I feel good about the work I’ve done and the people I’ve met.”

  “By helping them feed their alcohol addiction?”

  Okay, now the gloves were going to have to come off.

  “Are you addicted to alcohol?” Levi challenged.

  “Excuse me?”

  He nodded toward the glass of wine in Paul’s hand. “That’s your third, right? Now, according to your logic, the bartender here is doing nothing more than holding a lowly position and assisting you in your over-indulgence of alcohol.” Crossing his arms over his chest, he added, “Maybe it’s time to put you under the microscope, Paul. Or maybe there’s someone in your practice you can talk to.”

  With narrowed eyes, Paul sneered, “I do not have a drinking problem.”

  “And bartenders aren’t responsible for people’s addiction.” He paused. “Granted, I’m sure there’s a small percentage of patrons who come in to drink that shouldn’t, but I keep an eye on all of them while I’m behind the bar and if I think they’ve had enough, I cut them off. I wonder if the guy serving drinks tonight will offer the same service to you?”

  Walk away! Walk away before things get even more heated!

  “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d love to see about dancing with my girl. It was nice talking with you.” There was no way he was going to shake this guy’s hand again, but he couldn’t resist one last zinger. “Oh, and maybe switch over to water for a bit. You know, to stay hydrated.” And with a small wave, he walked away.

  Willow was dancing with Donald, and Levi had absolutely zero qualms about cutting in. “May I?” he asked, knowing his smile was a wee-bit forced.

  “Absolutely,” Donald said, taking a step back. “See you two at dessert.”

  The band was playing a slow ballad and as soon as Levi had Willow in his arms, he rested his cheek against hers. “Mango.”

  “Hmm?”

  “Mango.”

  She pulled back slightly and looked at him like he was crazy. And then…the lightbulb when on. “Oh, no. What happened?”

  Levi repeated the conversation he just had with her father. “I’m really sorry, Willow. I know I should have held my cool a little longer, but…”

  “Dad knows how to push people’s buttons. Trust me, it’s like his gift.”

  “I should probably go and apologize.”

  Shaking her head, she pressed in closer. “Nope. No way. He’ll be expecting that. I say we enjoy the rest of the party–the Romeos have our backs and will keep us away from my parents when we sit down for cake–and then we just have to get through breakfast.”

  “Yeah…about that…” He explained the advice he had gotten earlier. “I’d totally understand if you don’t want to–you know, if you want more time with Gammy before we get on the road.”

  “Levi?”

  “Hmm?”

  “We’re not leaving until Monday, so…”

  Oh, shit. He had completely forgotten about that!

  His nervous laugh was out before he could stop it. “Well, then I’ve really gone and made things awkward, huh?”

  Luckily, she laughed with him. “Are you kidding? If anything, you made it more interesting.”

  “Somehow, I doubt that.”

  “And Levi?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Thank you.”

  Now it was his turn to look at her like she was crazy. “For what?”

  “For sticking up for me. Gammy tries, and I know all her friends are always praising me when my folks are around, but…this was the first time someone really stood up for me, so…thank you.” She placed a soft kiss on his cheek and he wished like hell that he had punched the old guy in the face. It just about gutted him that he had done so little and yet it meant so much to Willow.

  “I’ll always stick up for you. And trust me, after that conversation, I won’t let you be alone with them. Not while I’m here.”

  The music died down and it was announced that it was time to sing Happy Birthday to Gammy. Willow took him by the hand and led him across the floor and over to where the massive cake had been wheeled out. The closer they got, Levi realized it wasn’t a cake at all. It was a tower of cupcakes.

  “Oooh…cupcakes,” Willow said with awe. “How fun and totally Gammy.”

  “She…likes cupcakes?”

  “Loves them! Goes back to her days of teaching. Whenever there was a birthday for one of her students, there were always cupcakes. She hates a regular cake.”

  “What? How is that possible? They’re essentially the same thing.”

  Looking at him sympathetically, she said, “Are they? Because a cake is usually one flavor, a filling, and the icing. But a cupcake tower like this offers a bunch of possibilities.” They stepped closer. “See? There’s yellow cake with chocolate icing, yellow cake with vanilla icing–which, to me, is a little boring, but…whatever–chocolate cake with vanilla icing, chocolate cake with chocolate icing…”

  “You’re beginning to go a little Forrest Gump on me, Willow. I can see the different varieties.”

  “There are literally a dozen different varieties on here and way more than twenty people can eat–unless we each have two or three. And I am totally on board with that.”

  Before he could respond, Gammy stepped up beside them as the bandleader cued the guests to start singing. A small portion of the cupcake tower had candles, and once the song was over, she blew them out and grabbed the microphone to make a speech.

  “I cannot thank all of you enough for coming to celebrate with me today. It means the world to me.” She smiled out at her guests. “Some of you traveled a long way to get here, and I just want you to know that it made my day that much more special. We all live so far apart now but I love that you took the time from your busy schedules to get here.” She turned her attention toward him and Willow. “And I don’t know if you’ve all had the chance to chat with my beautiful granddaughter Willow and her handsome, handsome, handsome boyfriend, Levi!”

  He groaned as he closed his eyes and shook his head.

  “I didn’t even think she’d have a microphone,” Willow murmured.

  “I am thrilled the two of you drove all the way here and chose my birthday party to make your debut as a couple at a family event!”

  “Oh, Lord,” Willow sighed.

  “Now, I want everyone to eat a couple of cupcakes, have a few more drinks, and remember to call an Uber if you drank too much!”

  Maybe it was Levi’s imagination, but it seemed like Gammy looked directly at her son, and he had to fight a smirk because…how awesome would that be?

  “Enjoy!”

  All around, guests lined up to help themselves to cupcakes while coffee was being poured at around the massive table. Levi and Willow followed the group, and when she handed him a plate, he wondered if cupcakes would be a good option to have at the pub–like an addition to the dessert menu. It was something to think about.

  Back at the table, he was relieved when they kept their same seats and were still separated from Willow’s parents. He helped her by adding cream to her coffee and she helped him find his wayward cloth napkin. They were already like one of those couples who had been together for years rather than weeks, and it made him feel pretty damn good.

  He examined the cupcake he’d picked–it was red velvet cake with cream cheese icing. Picking it up, he peeled the paper off of it and noticed Willow picking up her fork. “You’re going to eat your cupcake with a fork?”

  “Um…I was. Why? Do you think that’s weird?”

  “Well…I wouldn’t say weird, but…why not just pick it up and eat it…you know…normally?”

  “So it is weird.”

  “Willow…”

  “Okay, fine,” she said, picking up her chocolate cupcake with vanilla icing. “Here goes…” Taking a bite, she hummed with appreciation, and when she looked at him, he couldn’t help but smirk. Her eyes crossed, and she cursed
.

  There was a dollop of icing on the tip of her nose.

  “Uh…Willow…” He handed her his napkin, and she yanked it from his hand even as the cupcake fell from the other and landed in her lap.

  Now he felt bad.

  She wiped furiously at her face while he reached for her fallen cupcake, and he thought that was that.

  Then her hand reached under the deep-vee neckline of her dress and she looked like she was cupping her breast.

  “Uh…”

  “Cake. In. My. Bra,” she huffed. “I mean…how? How do these things only happen to me?”

  “I’m sure you’re not the only one…”

  “Do you see anyone else here feeling themselves up, Levi?” she hissed and tossed the wayward piece of cake on the table. “Oh, God…people are looking.”

  “They’re not.”

  But…they were.

  Taking the napkin from her, he gently wiped the last tiny trace of icing from her nose before placing a soft kiss on her lips. He felt her relax as she kissed him back.

  “Thank you.”

  “My pleasure,” he murmured, giving her one more quick kiss before straightening. “And FYI, next time there’s rogue cake to be fished out of your cleavage, let me know. I’ll gladly handle it.”

  Luckily that did the trick, and she was back to enjoying herself.

  And eating the remainder of her cupcake with a fork.

  Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mr. Andrews grab another glass of wine while rejecting the coffee. It was clear Levi wasn’t all-that off-base with his accusations. Guys like that never think they’re the one with the problem, and he had to wonder if it was part of the reason the old guy was so hard on Willow.

  It wasn’t something he was going to bring up to Willow tonight, or possibly ever. It wasn’t his place, and for the rest of the night, he wanted them to enjoy themselves.

  Once dessert was finished, they danced a little more and joked around with some of Gammy’s friends when he noticed Willow yawning.

  “Tired?”

  “It’s been a long day. More mentally exhausting than physically, you know?”