“I’m going to the restroom.”
“Okay,” I nodded. “Do you want me to come with you?”
“No,” she grinned. “I think I can manage.”
I watched her walk down the aisle and snapped my fingers, wondering how the hell I was going to make it through another hour of this crap.
“Hey, are you listening to the game?” a man hissed.
I turned and saw a guy, a little older than me, leaning over the back of the seat. He pointed to the wireless earbud.
“The game?”
“Oh, shit.” I pulled it out quickly. I couldn’t have Charlie seeing it. “Yeah, Blackhawks.”
He shook his head and sighed. “That would have been one hell of a game to see. What’s the score?”
“Tied at one.”
He nodded. “How did you get roped into this?”
“A bet.”
He nodded again. “Anniversary. I wanted to grab a beer and watch the game and she wanted to go to the theater. So, here I am, missing the game for this shit.”
I pulled out my other earbud and wiped it off as best I could. “I know it’s kind of gross, but it’s either this or listen to another act of this shit.”
I handed it over and he took it gratefully. “I don’t give a shit at this point. I’d do just about anything to not have to listen to this anymore.”
“Are you a Blackhawks fan or Maple Leafs?”
“Blackhawks, are you kidding? That’s not even a choice.”
“Hey, you never know.”
I saw Charlie walking back in and leaned in quick to whisper to the guy. “My girl’s back. I’ll get it back at the end of the night.”
“Thanks,” he whispered before taking his seat.
I smiled as Charlie walked back down the aisle. She looked beautiful, but what I wouldn’t give for nachos and beer right now. I helped her into her seat and half listened to her gush about the play for the next five minutes, all while trying to listen to the game. The third period was just about to start and I didn’t want to miss a thing.
The lights lowered and the play started up again. I got lost in the game, my hands tightening on the arm rests as the game got more intense. Then Charlie wrapped her hand in mine and I gave her a tight smile.
She leaned over and whispered. “You’re so amazing for doing this for me. You’re getting the best head of your life for this.”
Great, now I was hard and I was dying to hear the end of the game. It was down to the last minute of the game. Things were intense. The game was still tied and it was down to the wire. The hawks had the puck and if they pulled this off, it would be a miracle. I heard Charlie’s sharp intake of breath when I squeezed her hand too tightly.
“Sorry,” I murmured. “It’s just so good.”
Twenty seconds left. They had the puck in their possession. My heart was pounding. I was shaking out of control. Shoot, dammit, just shoot. He took the shot and…goal!
“Yes!” I shouted, standing and hooting just like the guy behind me. “That’s what I’m talking about!”
I started clapping, only to realize that the whole theater had stopped and was now staring at me. I glanced at the guy behind me, who was also standing. I cleared my throat as Charlie stood and whispered, “The song isn’t over yet.”
“Sorry,” I raised my hand. “It was just so damn good. Excellent performance. Really, just…very moving.”
“Sit down,” Charlie said, tugging on my sleeve. I apologized again and took my seat, glancing back at the guy behind me, gripping my fist tightly in a secret hoorah gesture.
The play continued, and luckily, it was almost over. Fifteen minutes later, the curtain closed and I was free to get the hell out of there. The guy behind me discreetly handed back my earbud and I slipped them in my pocket before Charlie could see.
As we walked out of the theater, Charlie slipped her arm through mine and smiled up at me. “Thank you for doing that for me.”
“Well, I just wanted to make you happy.”
“You definitely did that.”
“And…sorry about the whole shouting out in the middle of the show. I was just really excited.”
She smiled up at me. “You really liked it?”
“Loved it,” I lied through my teeth. “I’m glad we went.”
“Good, because there are a few other shows I’d love to see.”
I grinned down at her, knowing I had walked into that one. “Perfect.”
* * *
“I can’t believe you ditched us last week for the theater. What kind of pussy are you?” Joe grumbled, tossing down his cards.
“The kind of pussy that got amazing head for being smart enough to remember what my woman wants.”
“So, how was it?” Eric asked, a big grin on his face. The shit head, he knew exactly how it was.
“It was hell. God, that voice. I don’t think I’ll ever get it out of my head. And when she was…taking care of me at the end of the night, I had that fucking song running through my head.”
“What song?” Josh asked, his brows furrowed. Apparently, I was the only one that had ever heard the music before. I pulled out my phone and found it on YouTube, then played it for the guys. I watched as their faces morphed from mild disgust to WTF. Yeah, it was that bad.
“You had to sit through that?” Robert asked. “Why? Why would you do that?”
“Yeah, and you missed the game,” Andrew pointed out.
“Hey, my woman wanted to see the show and that was all that mattered. I’d do it again for her in a heartbeat.” When the guys just stared at me, I leaned back in my seat and peeked in the other room at the ladies. When it was clear that none of them were paying attention, I leaned in close for only the guys to hear. “Alright, I may have had my earbuds with me so I could listen to the game.”
“Are you serious?” Joe snorted. “If she caught you, you would have been in so much trouble.”
I scoffed. “Do you think I’m an amateur? I had that covered. Nobody suspected a thing.”
“That’s right,” Charlie said, slipping her arms around my neck and kissing my cheek. My eyes widened in surprise and all the guys did their best to muffle their laughter. “Until he stood up and shouted out in the middle of a song because the hawks won the game.”
I jerked in her arms, turning to face her. “You knew?”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, when you stood up in the middle of the theater and started shouting in the middle of a song for no reason, it wasn’t hard to figure out that you weren’t actually paying attention.”
I pushed back my chair and stood facing her. “You mean, when we were walking out and you said that you wanted to go see more shows, you were just saying that to…to trap me?”
“You trapped yourself. You pretended like you loved the show. I just went along for the ride,” she grinned.
“Man, you got played,” Andrew snorted.
“So, now that you know, that means we don’t actually have to go to the theater again, right?”
She smiled and patted my cheek. “You’re so cute.”
She turned and walked away. When I plopped down in my seat, my brothers all started laughing at me.
“So, was the head still worth it?” Andrew asked.
“You know what? You can all fuck off. I made a sacrifice for the woman I love. That’s something you two knuckleheads know nothing about,” I said, nodding at Joe and Andrew.
“You mean that’s something we don’t have to deal with yet,” Joe corrected. “While the rest of you are pandering to your women, Andrew and I are free to do whatever we want, whenever we want.”
“Yeah, I’m even thinking about getting a motorcycle,” Andrew grinned.
“Now, just hold on a minute. I’m the biker in this family,” Joe spat.
“You know, Carly was just telling me that she thinks I should get a bike too,” Josh grinned. “It’s not a bad idea. We had one for a while when we were on the run. It was pretty sweet.”
Joe stood suddenly, his chair flying backwards. “No, you just started the shop. You don’t have the money for it. This is my thing. You can’t take my thing!”
“Actually, someone brought in a bike and sold it to me. All I have to do is fix it up. I was planning on selling it, but now…”
“You know, that’s not a bad idea,” Robert grinned. “Now that I’m living in the country again, it might be nice to drive something other than a truck in the summer months.”
“Then get a fucking convertible,” Joe spat. “Let the wind blow through your hair that way.”
“Nah, that’s not really my thing anymore. Besides, Kat challenged Eric to learn how to ride a motorcycle.”
“Damn death trap,” Eric muttered. “It’s a terrible idea.”
“But if you’re riding in a pack with the rest of us, it’d be pretty awesome.”
Joe was practically fuming at this point, pulling at his hair. “It’s not a pack! We’re not fucking wolves!”
I just had to join in. If all my brothers were going to gang up on him, so was I. After all, he had outed me as gay to the town. “You know, we could get those cool jackets and put that label on the back. We could call ourselves The Cortell Seven.”
“Except Derek is hardly ever with us,” Eric pointed out.
“Still, there are seven of us. It wouldn’t sound right to say six.”
“That’s true. It doesn’t sound as deadly.”
“We’re not deadly,” Joe fumed. “And it’s not a jacket, it’s a motorcycle vest, and the label is a patch!”
“I can see it now,” I said, staring off across the kitchen. “The seven of us riding through town on our bikes, revving our engines and attracting all the pretty ladies.”
“Hey, we could always get Corduroy to fill in for Derek when he’s not in town,” Andrew suggested.
“Sure, let’s bring in the guy that wants to steal my woman,” Robert sneered.
“We are not forming a motorcycle club,” Joe said firmly. “I already have one and you’re not stealing that from me.”
We all stared at him in silence. Then I leaned forward, staring him down. “Do you think our colors should be blue and black or silver and black?”
“I don’t fucking believe this,” he shouted, stalking away from all of us. “It’s my club,” he shouted as he stormed out of the house.
We all chuckled, hearing him fire up his truck and peel out of the driveway.
“Well, shit,” Andrew sighed. “We’re not going to have seven for our little gang if we can’t count on Derek or Joe. The Cortell Five is just pathetic sounding.”
“Look on the bright side, we can be like Steve McQueen when he rounds up the other five for The Magnificent Seven, except we’ll be on Harleys instead of horses.”
Eric shook his head at Robert. “I still think it’s dangerous.”
I shot him a disbelieving look. “You bungee jumped off a bridge, but riding on a motorcycle is dangerous?”
“Yeah,” Robert grinned. “Don’t worry, Princess. We’ll make sure you have the best instructors first.”
“Laugh it up, jackass, but when your hair is all messed up from that helmet, you’re not gonna like riding that bike so much.”
I busted out laughing at Eric’s retort. “It’s true. I can’t really picture Robert on a motorcycle, wind in hair and bugs in his teeth.”
“You guys have to look at the bright side to all this,” Josh lowered his voice. “This means freedom. One day a week where we can leave our women behind and get away from all the nagging and bullshit. I can guarantee that Robert’s not gonna care about his hair or the bugs in his teeth when he feels that freedom every week.”
We all grinned at each other. This was going to be great. Eric looked a little sick over the whole thing, but I could tell the idea of having the escape was something to look forward to. Carly walked into the room and sat down right on Josh’s lap, giving him a big kiss.
“What are you guys talking about?”
“I was just telling the guys about your suggestion that I fix up that motorcycle in the shop and keep it for myself.”
“God, I remember those days, the wind in my hair and not a care in the world. It’ll be nice to have that again.”
She stood and Josh frowned, stuttering as he stood. “W-what do you mean?”
She spun and smiled at him. “Well, if you’re getting a bike, then so am I. We can ride together. It’ll be fun. Oh, and I’m sure the girls would love it too. Just think, all of us going out together.”
She finger waved at us and walked off to the other room. Robert turned to us all and muttered. “It’ll be fun.”
Will
Two months had gone by and I was no closer to getting Charlie to move in with me than when we first agreed she would. Shit just kept happening and there was never a chance to pack her up and move her in. She was really busy at work and Eric and Kat were planning their wedding. And above all that, Ma had suddenly decided that she needed to be here for the last few weeks before the wedding to help out, which meant that all her boys had to be there too, except Derek. The lucky bastard got out of everything. But tomorrow was their wedding day and then Ma and Dad would go home, and Charlie and I could move on with life.
“Is it weird that I’m going to be there?” Charlie asked as she snuggled up next to me on the couch.
“Why would it be weird?”
“I don’t know. I’m not family and I haven’t known your family that long. And everyone thinks I’m a man and that you’re gay…”
“Christ, am I ever going to live that down?”
She chuckled and gave me a kiss. “Sorry, I really don’t think so.”
“It’s bullshit. Like I could ever be gay. I’m a ladies man, the man about town.”
“Sure you are.”
She popped some popcorn in her mouth and chuckled to herself.
“What’s that?”
“Huh?” She glanced up at me with a grin on her face.
“You don’t think I’m manly enough?”
“Oh, I know you’re manly enough. I just happen to think it’s more funny that the whole town could believe that you’re gay. Out of anyone, I guess I could see Robert being gay.”
“Really? Why?”
She shrugged. “All those fancy shoes. No man wears shoes that are that expensive.”
“In his defense, I think he just doesn’t want to get rid of them just to say he wears cheap shoes again.”
“Do you think he misses it?”
“What? Working in the city?” She nodded. “No, I think he was miserable. I think sometimes he misses what he earned. He had this fancy apartment with a great view and a really nice car, but we gave him shit about that stuff. And he was so wrapped up in his cell phone. There was hardly a moment when he wasn’t on it.”
She frowned. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him with a phone.”
“Yeah, he tossed it and got a new one, but he rarely uses it.”
“Huh, that must be nice. I have to keep my phone and my pager on me at all times.”
“You’re not going to answer it tomorrow, are you?”
“No. I have taken the day off and I’m not on call. I’ve made sure that I can be yours all day long.”
“You know Ma is going to be there, and now that things are moving forward with us, she’s gonna have a lot of questions.”
“Tell her to bring it on.”
“Really?” I looked at her questioningly. Even though we were together, that didn’t mean that Charlie was okay with everything. Despite her saying that we were going to move in together, I couldn’t help but feel that she still had reservations.
“I’ll introduce her to Oliver. That should give her something to gush over for a while.”
“You would use your kid to ward off my ma?” I asked. “You are a very evil woman.”
She grinned and leaned forward to kiss me. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”
* * *<
br />
“Why are they getting married out here?” Charlie asked as we pulled up to the same place that Eric originally proposed to Kat.
“Well, the reasoning was three fold. One, it was far enough away from town that not that many people would show up. Two, this was where Eric originally proposed to Kat. And three, they get to escape everyone once it’s over.”
“How are they escaping?”
“Well, they’ll be jumping off a bridge, and unless you plan on following them, you won’t be seeing them after the wedding.”
“Isn’t that kind of redundant? I mean, to do the same thing you did for the proposal?”
“Well, they were going to go skydiving, but the maid of honor is very pregnant and she can’t go up in the plane.”
“So, instead they’re going to have her hike to the bridge,” Charlie said slowly.
“Hey, don’t talk to me about it. Kat worked this out with Chrissy. Besides, she’s only eight months along.”
“Yeah, that doesn’t mean that this is a good idea.”
“It’ll be fine. What could possibly go wrong with all of us there?”
She snorted, shaking her head. “You’ll regret saying that.”
I shut off the car after pulling into my parking spot. “Trust me, nothing is going to happen.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
We got out and walked up to the entrance of the welcome center. Everyone was waiting outside already. Ma dressed up like she was going to a wedding in a church, but the rest of us were just wearing nice shirts. Eric was wearing a tux and Kat had on white dress pants and a white top. Not your typical wedding attire, but then again, they were jumping off a bridge.
“So, are you guys jumping together again this time?”
“Nope,” Kat grinned. “I talked him into jumping separately.”
“Why? Wouldn’t you want to jump together?” Charlie asked.
“It’s my challenge to him. See, it’s not something new if we do the same thing we did last time,” Kat informed us. “We needed to mix it up this time.”
Textbook Approach: A Small Town Romance Page 29