Love on Leave

by Leah McDonnell

  “Lana! Oh my God! For the hundredth time. It’s not that bad!”

  “It IS that bad, Kate! Earlier, I couldn’t find an ice machine for the beer, so I went to the lobby to ask where one was. The guy at the front desk was watching porn! Then he proceeded to hand me an ice tray with twelve measly cubes. And then…” she shutters. “If it couldn’t have gotten worse, he had the audacity to ask me what I was doing later!”

  I laugh. “Well, don’t be too jealous. There are seven of them all piled in one little room, all splitting the cost. James is stuck sleeping in the bathtub. So you may not have the nicest hotel on the beach. But at least you have a bed.”

  “Yeah, that’s probably crawling with bed bugs!”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Although it’s been an hour, we’ve only made it a mile in the bumper to bumper traffic.

  “Geez! I’m glad we didn’t make plans with anyone tonight,” Lana huffs, craning her neck to look down the long line of cars.

  “Enjoy it! Two best friends on vacation, in a hot ride. The music cranked up without a care in the world. It doesn’t get much better than this!”

  “But I need to pee!”

  I roll my eyes. “You always need to pee!”

  I scan each side of the road for a place for her to use the restroom and notice a group of guys on my side of the road. They’re tailgating in front of their hotel, drinking beer, and clearly having fun people watching as the traffic passes.

  “Lana, look over here,” I say, hitting her with my elbow.

  She spots them instantly. “Whoa, Kate! Look at all of them.”

  We're stopped a few hundred feet from their hotel and as the traffic slowly inches closer, one of them begins to walk towards the road. Crossing the oncoming traffic, stopping dead in his tracks in front of the car. He lifts his arm to his forehead as the beam of the headlights blind him. His shirtless body illuminated as he walks closer and runs his hand across the hood.

  “Damn!” He nods his head playfully as he rounds the corner of the car. He bends down, propping an elbow on the driver’s door. The top open allows him to be especially close.

  “How’s it goin’?” he asks, flashing a pearly white smile. His eyes scan the interior. “Nice car.”

  He’s gorgeous, and he knows it. Guys who know they’re hot, irritate me. His buzzed, blond hair, gives no protection to his shiny, sunburned forehead. His sharp, emerald green, eyes and a boyish smirk cause both us to shift nervously in our seats. A set of dog tags falls right above his smooth, chiseled chest.

  “What are you beautiful ladies up to tonight?”

  Before we have time to respond, he jumps in the backseat of the car in one quick swoop.

  “I’m Drew, by the way.”

  Lana and I blink at each other in disbelief. “Um, I’m Kate, and the speechless one here is Lana.”

  “Well, hello Lana. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he gazes.

  Ut-oh! This has trouble written all over it.

  “You girls not drinking?”

  Booming bass from a passing truck rattles Lana back to reality.

  She bats her lashes. “Well, I have. But my uptight friend here hasn’t had a drop because of the car.” Finally finding her voice.

  “Can’t say I blame her,” he chuckles. “This is a badass ride!”

  “My dad let me borrow it for the weekend, so I’m a tad paranoid,” I say, chiming in as we inch closer to Drew’s hotel.

  “A couple of beers aren’t going to render you inebriated. Why don’t y’all stop at our place and drink a few?”

  “We’d love to!” Lana says, immediately taking him up on the offer.

  Leery, my nose scrunches. “Ehhh, I don’t know. We’re actually headed to hang out with some friends,” I lie.

  “Oh, come on. Please? I have lots of friends…” Hoping that’ll entice me.

  “I doooo need to pee,” Lana says, looking at me with puppy dog eyes.

  I cave a little too easily. “Fine, you win.”

  Once we finally make it to the front of Drew’s hotel, I whip into a parking space in front of the yellow, glowing, Parker Motel sign. His friends surround the car, admiring it as Lana and Drew quickly pop out and bolt towards the rooms.

  I take my time getting out. I close the top and grab our purses, choking down the awkwardness of being left alone. I’m startled as I climb from the car. The keys fall to the ground as he steps from the darkness, beautiful and stoic.

  He bends down. The packed parkway goes silent as he stands. Butterflies dance as he places the keys in my hand. Trembling as his fingertips gently sweep across mine.

  “Hi,” is the only word I’m able to form.

  He gestures with his chin. “They headed that way.” His piercing blue eyes sparkle against the glow of the hotel sign.

  My voice cracks. “Oh. Right. Thanks.”

  “Come on, I’ll show you,” he says politely, but with little emotion.

  A few of his friends join in on the walk through the unkempt courtyard. They ask about the car and make jokes among themselves. No other words are spoken from the mystery guy as we arrive at their first-floor room.

  “Thereeeee you are!” Lana shouts, beer already in hand. “What took you so long?”

  She runs over and whispers in my ear. “If you tell them how old I am, I will kill you!”

  “The guys were checking out her car,” the mystery man answers.

  “Oh! I see you met Max,” Drew says, digging through a cheap, Styrofoam cooler.

  “Sorda,” I say a little embarrassed as I turn to glance back at him.

  Drew points and introduces a few more of the guys. “This is Santos, Jackson, and Palmer.”

  They all wave and welcome us with open arms. “Y’all must be pretty bored to want to come hang with this putz!” Santos teases, slinging an arm around Drew’s neck.

  Lana’s eyes widen. “Oh my God! I’m in love with your accent!”

  Santos chuckles. “Yeah, if the dark skin and hair didn’t give away I’m Puerto Rican, the accent typically does.”

  “Cool! What part of Mexico is that?”

  I close my eyes and cringe as the guys are unable to contain their laughter.

  “What?” she asks. Completely clueless.

  “Please forgive my geographically challenged, best friend. She’s clearly having a blond moment.”

  He laughs. “No worries! Where are you ladies from?”

  “We’re from Atlanta,” Lana pipes.

  “A suburb of Atlanta actually,” I correct. “About thirty miles north, in Alpharetta.”

  “Yep! And we’re both twenty and students at The University of Georgia,” Lana adds. Emphasizing the “both.”

  “Funny. There’s a guy in our company from Alpharetta. He’s a bit older than y’all, but you might know him? Last name Griggs.” Santos says. His brow furrows as he tries to recall his first name.

  “Hey, Max! What’s Griggs’ first name?”

  “Kevin,” he answers.

  He snaps his fingers. “Yep! Kevin Griggs!”

  Lana is intently focused on Drew and no longer paying attention to the conversation.

  “The names not ringing a bell, but it’s a pretty big town.”

  Santos hands me a Coor’s Lite out of the cooler as the remainder of his friends settle into the room. There is a lot of different conversations and commotion going on, so I take the opportunity to survey the room. It’s worse than ours if it’s possible. At least ours is beachside.

  It’s a typical motel room with two double beds, vanity, and bathroom in the back. Cases of beer are stacked high in the corner and empty cans are littered across the dresser and table. Olive green rucksacks line the walls. Each one with a different last name on the outside. Between Drew’s dog tags, their haircuts, and the bags, I quickly realize they’re all soldiers. And it makes me even more intrigued than I already am.

  The only light in the room is coming from the small lamp on the bedside table. Max f
lops on the bed near it, and I’m finally able to get a good look at how incredible he is. Short brown hair, square, clean-shaven, jawline and beautiful blue eyes. A striped navy and white shirt covers his broad shoulders and tan arms. He has a beer in his hand, but he’s quieter than the rest. He’s enjoying watching his friends be the life of the party. Only glancing over at me on occasion. I try not to stare as he rubs Carmex across his sunburned lips.

  I clear out an empty spot on the dresser, near the small box TV and get the biggest kick out of watching the guys interact with each other. Their comradery is different from the guys back home. The partying is all the same, but with an unspoken respect level in the way they talk to each other. It’s a true brotherhood and I’m blown away as I sit, taking it all in.

  “Oh my God, Kate! Can you believe how hot these guys are?” Lana whispers in my ear as she slides in beside me, knocking over empty cans in her wake.

  “I’m not sure I’ve ever seen so many gorgeous guys in one room in all my life,” I admit.

  “Especially Max!” she whispers a little too loudly. “He’s a total babe. You should go talk to him.”

  I clench my jaw. “No, hush!” Cowering my head a little, in fear he might know we’re talking about him.

  “Yes!” she shouts.

  “I appreciate your confidence in me, but there’s absolutely no way a guy that hot would ever want to talk to me. Besides, what the hell would I say? I’d probably come across as a blubbering idiot. I’d like to keep my dignity intact tonight.”

  “Don’t be such a chicken shit! Besides, you're being too hard on yourself.” She tucks a stray curl behind my ear. “You’re beautiful!”

  I glance at Max and lock eyes with him before nerves cause me to look away.

  “Drew is being so sweet,” she gushes. “He said they’re all in the Army at Fort Benning, Georgia and off for the long holiday weekend.”

  “I kind of pieced it together. The matching haircuts kind of gave it away," I tease.

  I finish the last swig of my beer and although cans are everywhere, I look around for a trash can to throw it in.

  As I turn back, Max asks, “You want another?”

  “Oh, um, yeah. Thank, thanks!” I stammer.

  Dear God! Pull it together, Kate! I know he’s out of my league, but there is no reason to act like a total fucking spaz! I smile but curse in my head as he hands me the beer.

  I take a deep breath to settle my nerves. “So I hear you guys are in the Army.”

  “Yep. The beach is only a few hours for us, so figured we’d take advantage of the break.”

  “How long have you been in the Army?”

  “Say again?” he asks, furrowing his brow. “Sorry. Can’t hear shit over all the yelling.”

  I look over and spot Lana standing on top of the bed with a beer funnel in her mouth. The guys chanting, “Drink! Drink! Drink!”

  I laugh and repeat the question louder. “How long have you been in the Army?”

  Still struggling, Max points towards the door. “Hey, can we go outside so I can actually hear myself think?”

  Butterflies rise in my stomach again. “Sure.”

  We walk outside and sit on the nearby stairwell. Music is coming from the cars on the Strip, but it’s much quieter than the motel room.

  “It was like being in the middle of Grand Central in there,” he jokes as he sits.

  “Why don’t we start over?” he says. “Hello, I’m Chase Maxwell, known by most as Max.” He stretches out his hand.

  I grab it and laugh. “Hi, Max. I’m Katherine Carpenter. Known by most as Kate. It’s very nice to meet you.”

  “Now! What were you saying?" he asks, popping the top of a fresh beer.

  “Oh, I was only asking how long you’ve been in the Army.”

  “Third year of my four-year enlistment,” he answers quickly. “The time has flown by!”

  “So that would make you how old?”

  “Twenty-two.”

  “And your friend. The one with Lana?” I ask.

  “Oh, Drew? He just turned twenty-one.”

  “Interesting,” I say. Trying to do the age difference math in my head.

  “And you guys all work together?”

  “Yep! We’re in the same company, but we all have different jobs. Andrews and I are combat medics. The others are artillery, and Jackson, the stocky black guy, is a gunner. We have three more here, but they went to that Vela place.”

  “Well, it all sounds amazing. But I won’t lie, I know absolutely nothing about the Army. It’s like you’re talking in a foreign language,” I admit.

  He laughs. “It can get confusing for sure. Don’t get me started on ranks. You’ll be utterly lost.”

  “I’ll take your word for it,” I say, joining in on the laughter. “Did y’all get down here today?”

  “Yep. A few hours ago actually. Drew, Davis, and I rode all the way here in the back of Jackson's pickup truck. Packed the cooler and drank beer the whole way!”

  “Which one’s Davis?”

  “Oh, he’s not here right now. He ran off with a girl when we first got here and haven’t seen him since. He’s a nut! He and Andrews are crazy tight. He’s like six-four and a total ladies’ man. Lays more pipe than the water company!”

  His joke catches me off guard, but I like hearing him cut up. “He sounds like a handful.”

  “That’s putting it nicely,” he says, chuckling to himself.

  “Andrews?” I quiz.

  “Drew, sorry. The joys of being in the military. You’re forever known by your last name. His actual name is Joshua Andrews. I tried to come up with a cool, manly, nickname, but it didn’t stick. So it’s plain ole boring Max. The same name as forty-percent of the dog population.”

  Shouting from the Strip snags our attention. A girl in the back of a hatchback shows her boobs to the guys in the car behind her. We laugh as they and the next three cars, beg her to do it again.

  “So Kate. Besides having an awesome Southern accent, what’s your story?”

  “There’s not too much to tell if I’m being honest. I actually lead a pretty boring life, even though you wouldn’t know it at the present moment.” Pointing back to the room where Lana is.

  “Oh, I don’t believe that,” he says.

  “Thankfully, I’ve got the summer off. It’s the first time since I graduated high school, I didn’t stay on campus and take summer classes. Lana and I have a few trips planned and we’ll both be working part-time until fall. Then life goes back to revolving around school.”

  “I heard you say you go to Georgia, right?”

  I nod my head. “I’m starting my junior year there, studying Hotel Management. I hope to one day run some highfalutin Miami hotel or maybe a resort in Vegas. I went out there a couple of years ago and fell in love with it.”

  “Whoa! It sounds like a pretty cool plan,” he says, clearly impressed. “And family?”

  “Yep! Two brothers. One younger, one older. Both of them are a big giant pain in my ass!”

  “So you’re the only girl, huh? No wonder you were able to talk your dad into borrowing the car,” he teases.

  I laugh. “Damn straight! I’ve got him wrapped around my little finger.” I joke, throwing my pinky in the air. “Actually, my little brother’s down here somewhere. They came last night, started celebrating early.”

  “Is it his birthday?” he asks, as his hand accidentally grazes my arm and sends a shot of nerves rushing through my body.

  Distracted from his touch, I say before thinking, “Oh no. He and Lana graduated high school last night.”

  “Ahhhh! Awesome! Congrats to him!” He lifts his beer in the air to signal cheers.

  Oh shit! I scream in my head. He pauses and I can tell he’s piecing it together. I try to change the subject. “So where is…”

  “I thought she said y’all were both in college?” he interrupts.

  I look at him and grimace, knowing the jig is up. “I didn’t li
e. I swear!”

  “But your friend… she graduated high school last night?” he clarifies.

  I grimace again. “Yeah…”

  “Making her how old?”

  “Uhhhh… seventeen,” I confess with a guilty smile. “But she’ll be eighteen next month.” Hoping it will help ease the sting a little.

  “Hooooo - leeee shit!” He rubs his hands down each cheek. “Drew is going to freak when he finds out.”

  “Well, Lana is going to freak when she finds out I spilled the beans.”

  “I say we have a little fun with it,” he says, looking at me devilishly. “You in?”

  Intrigued, I give a sly grin. “What did you have in mind?”

  Lana is way further along on her drunk quest than I am, as we join back up with the group. I shake my head when I see her on the end of the bed making out with Drew. Well, that didn’t take long!

  She yells as she spots me. “Katieeee! My dear…sweet…bestie. Where the hell have you been?” She grabs my hand to pull me on the bed. “Someone get this girl a beer!”

  “I can’t, Lana. I still have to get us home.”

  “Ugh! You and that damn car!”

  “Home?” Max chimes in. “You girls can’t head home yet. It’s only ten. We should go out.”

  “Where were you thinking?” Understanding where he’s going with this.

  “Why don’t we all head to Sharks? Y’all can ride in the truck with us so you won’t have to worry about your car.”

  Sharks is a local dive bar with a large patio facing the beach. It’s pretty run-down but is always packed with tourists, eager to consume their famous Bushwhackers.

  They have pool tables and a live band, but most importantly, it has a strict nineteen and over rule.

  “Sounds good to me!” Drew says, jumping up from the end of the bed

  “Ummm,” Lana says, looking concerned. “That place sucks!”

  “Oh really? I heard they had some awesome drink there.” Max replies, watching her face as he speaks.

  “Oh, those nasty things? Waste of money! And not to mention, it’s a total shit hole. Y’all can go to La Vela with us tomorrow. You should come back to our hotel instead. We can chill on the beach, maybe go for a swim," she says quickly, hoping the change of venue will pique their interest.