The mind is an evil thing.
Especially when my over eager imagination is working hard at giving me an ulcer. Last night, I had a dream that I sent him off on the plane today with a scorching hot kiss. But when he landed in Frisco, some faceless hot woman with long legs, a curvy ass, and wavy black hair met him at the gate with a smooch that set off fire alarms. Just thinking of it again makes me want to punch Tyler even though I know he didn’t do anything. And even if he does have some hussy waiting for him at home, what does it matter? It’s not like we’ve made any commitments to each other. Not that walking down that road really makes a difference either. My lying-cheating-no-good-sappy-country-song of an ex-husband taught me that.
“What’s got your beautiful face all crumpled up?” Ty asks, brushing his index finger in the crease between my eyes.
There’s not a thing I can do to hide my emotions. Everyone knows I can never keep my lips zipped and I always say the first thing that comes to my mind. And even when I try hard to bite my tongue, my facial expressions give it away. Like now.
“Fine. Want to know?”
He nods.
“I’m gonna get all girlie on you and just say it.” I take a deep breath, trying to relax myself. By the look on Ty’s face, he probably knows what’s coming. “I’m wondering what happens next. Will I see you again?”
He places a soft kiss on my cheek. “Of course you will.”
“I’m not talking about ever. I’m not talking about at Christmas when you come home to visit your family. I’m talking about us. Are we making plans to stay in touch? Or is this it?”
Another kiss brushes my neck. God, if he’s trying to distract me, it’s working. “Mel?” My name rolls off his tongue with a warm breath of air fluttering across my skin.
“Mmm.”
“I want to see you again. Not with my family.” His lips meet mine. “Just you. Just us. It’s not over. Not for me, at least.”
I want to kiss him back. I want to deepen his kiss and feast on his tongue like there’s no tomorrow, but my damn thoughts keep getting in the way.
“What does that mean exactly?”
He presses gentle pecks on my mouth before backing away to look into my eyes. A smile creeps across his face, slowly tugging the sides of his mouth upward. “It means I better buy that Prius I’ve always wanted because something tells me I’m going to be racking up the driving miles. There’s no way I can wait until the holidays to see you.”
“Really?” I don’t want to sound so pathetic, but I can’t help it. I’m dying to make this work. I’ve wanted this to work between us since … forever. We’re much older now, and this is our last chance to make it work. We can’t keep wondering if our time will ever come. It has come and now we have to take it. If it doesn’t work, well, at least we tried and we can move on for good. Just the thought of that makes my heart sting. It has to work this time. It just has to.
“Let’s try the long distance thing. School will be out soon. Neither one of us is teaching summer school. So pack your bags and come and visit me this time. We’ll have fun acting like tourists in my city.” He takes my hand in his and brings it to his mouth, kissing my palm. “What do you say, Melly?”
“I’m gonna go home and start packing now. As soon as that bell rings, I’ll be on the road.”
Our laughter fills the car for a moment. Then Ty lifts his arm to check the time. “I’ve got five minutes.”
“Then kiss me silly and leave me with something to remember you by.”
He takes my hand, and tugs it over to the front of his pants. “Oh really. He wasn’t memorable enough?”
I squeeze my hand around the ridge of material. “Oh no, I’ll be thinking of him every minute from the time you leave till I see him again. As a matter of fact, I’ll be counting down the days till we’re reunited.”
My sentence barely finishes before Ty dips his head and catches my mouth with his. His strong lips cover mine, working their magic at melting my body with his sexy heat. My lips part, allowing our tongues to slide past each other, lapping up the passion with each stroke. He nibbles down on my lower lip, sucking on it and dragging his teeth across it till it pops free. Oh, sweet jeezus! I’m coming undone with just his kisses.
Breathless, I pull my mouth away from his. His lips slide down my neck while my fingers comb through his hair. “I’m gonna miss you,” I whisper.
Tyler sprinkles me with kisses, outlining my face, before he places one last peck on my lips. “I’m gonna miss you too. Thankfully, there are many devices nowadays that will allow us to stay in touch. Time will fly and we’ll be together again before we know it.”
“When did you get to be such a Positive Penny?”
“You make me see the glass half-full, Mel. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I know what I’d like to happen, but for now, let’s just take it from visit to visit and try not to let the miles between us be a factor. I’m yours and yours only for as long as you’ll have me. I don’t plan on seeing anyone else while I’m with you and I hope you feel the same way.”
“I sure as hell feel the same. I don’t want you seeing anyone else either.”
“And you don’t plan on seeing anyone else either, right?” His eyes widen at me.
I chuckle. “Oh, is that what you meant? Let me think about it.”
His hand slides down my side and he pokes me. There’s nothing worse than the feeling of being tickled, and he knows this. “What?” He pokes me again. “You need to think about it?” Another poke. “Let me help you.”
“All right, all right,” I say, pushing his hands away. “I won’t see anyone else.” Instead of tickling me, Ty’s hand rests firmly on my hip, and he leans over for another kiss. “I’ll just keep my eyes closed while my other gentlemen friends keep me busy.”
Ty holds up his index finger, like he’s threatening me. “What was that about other guys keeping you busy?”
I giggle. “I don’t know. I can’t remember.”
He pokes the air. “Are you sure?”
I reach across the console and hang my arm on his shoulder, my hand gripping the back of his neck. “Come here, you big lug. I’m yours and yours only.” I press a kiss to his lips. “For as long as you’ll have me.”
The last staff meeting of the year is always the best one. Breakfast is served while retirees bid their farewells, and let’s be honest … we’re all just happy as hell that we don’t have to sit through another one of these for a few months. They can get really depressing sometimes, when test scores aren’t high, or some new program is being introduced that makes promises to increase student achievement because, apparently, our own teaching abilities aren’t good enough.
Well, enough about that. Shel and I are chatting away, me with a bagel and cream cheese stuffing my face while she chows down on a sugar twist donut. Matt walks in and I’ve never been happier to see him. He’s holding a tray with three Starbucks cups wedged inside, and I know one of them is for me.
“Good morning, ladies,” he says, as he lowers himself into a chair across the table from us. “For you, my love.” He passes Shelly a cup of coffee, and she blows him a kiss which is about as affectionate as they get on campus, or at least where people can see. Who knows what they do behind the closed—locked—doors of their classrooms. “And for you, Mel. One venti vanilla latte with extra whip.”
“Oh, Mr. Fuller. You are just wonderful. If only I could clone you into a robot, you could be my very own Rosie.” I wink at him as I take my first sip, and he just shakes his head.
“I could totally see it,” Shel adds. “He looks great in an apron.”
This time Matt rolls his eyes. “I bring you two a coffee and this is the abuse I get in return. You want me to be your maid,” he points to me, “and you want me in an apron.” He raises a brow at his wife.
She leans forward across the table. “What if I wanted you naked under that apron? Would that be a problem? I can think of many ways that could be fun.”
I can’t help but laugh, and once I get started, I can’t stop. Snorting comes next, and my body starts shaking. My bestie isn’t any different. She’s laughing her ass off and Matt just sits here quietly, shaking his head at us.
“We should have known the loudness would’ve been you two,” Summer says, as she and Chase stop at our table. “Are these seats taken?”
Hell yes, I’d like to say. But Matt gestures to the empty chairs and says, “No, join us.” How he can be so nice to this pain in the ass of a couple is beyond me. Matt and Shelly really are perfect for each other. They have the kindest souls and would never hold a grudge. Me? Not so much. I can’t stand Chase. I’ve never liked him. I only tolerated his arrogant ass out of respect for my best friend. I knew if I’d been a bitch to him, he’d win and I’d lose her. So I kept my mouth closed tight and just rode the roller coaster that was their relationship. I knew he’d screw it up eventually. That’s where Summer comes in. While Chase says he didn’t cheat on Shel, we all pretty much think he’s a lying son of a bitch. The nerve of this woman to try to befriend Shel is nauseating.
You’d think with a name like Summer, she’d be all sweet and innocent, running through a meadow with daisies in her hair, bare feet, and toe nails painted in a pink pastel. Just the thought makes me laugh inside. Ms. Summer McGallian is anything but sunshine and roses. She’s more like the she-devil in a mini skirt and long ass fake nails in place of her horns. I’m not so sure she couldn’t stab us to death with those talons. Not that I’m afraid. I was ready to take her on at one of the football games last year. She had the nerve to call me ghetto. Me? Ghetto? There’s a lot of things she could call me, but ghetto is not one of them.
“Well, good morning,” Summer says, sitting down next to Matt with Chase on her other side. My brow instinctively rises.
“What the fuck’s so good about it?” I snarl through a mouthful of cream cheese. I realize I’m about to start some crap, but sometimes this girl just bugs the shit out of me.
She rolls her eyes at me. “Do you have to be so crass, Mrs. Cruz?”
Now, it’s my turn to roll my eyes. “Are you kidding me? For most of my day, I’m surrounded by impressionable teenagers, so when I get to be alone with adults, if I want to drop an f-bomb here and there, I feel like I’ve earned it.”
“Well, to some it’s offensive,” she continues.
“Well so are your tits popping out the front of your dress and your ass hanging out of the back, but do you hear anyone bitching about that?”
Her hand shoots to her chest. “My breasts are not popping out and neither is my behind. For such an educated woman, you sound like a truck driver.”
Shel laughs, knowing I’m not gonna stop until this girl shuts up.
“Just because I have my doctorate,” which I do, in Family Literacy, “doesn’t mean I have to act like a pretentious bitch who uses a plethora of superfluous words just to sound educated. And just because I teach literature doesn’t mean I have to quote Shakespeare and Chaucer while I chat with my friends. I turn it on in the classroom, and then turn it off and have fun when I’m with my friends. I speak my mind and if you don’t like it, find another place to sit.” I lean back in my chair and tear off another piece of my bagel.
“Sometimes it’s a little hard to be your friend, Mrs. Cruz.”
“Touché, Ms. McGallian.”
“What was up with that?” Matt asks on our way to class.
“Yeah, Mel. What crawled up your Spanx and died?” Shel jokes.
“Are you guys talking about Summer?” That was almost an hour ago. After all the farewell speeches, you’d think they would’ve forgotten about the little spat. I did.
“Yeah,” they both say.
“That was nothing. Just her being her and me being me. I’m over it. I’m sure she is too.”
Shelly doesn’t say anything right away. I know she’s trying to choose the right words in her head before she speaks them. She doesn’t need to filter herself for me. She knows this, but it’s fun to watch her try.
“Are you pissed at her or something? I thought we were cool with her and Chase?”
Matt laughs. “About as cool as we can be. It’s not like he’s ever going to be my best friend.” His confession surprises me. Shel’s shocked face says she’s surprised too. “What? Come on, Shel. He’s your ex-fiancé.” He leans in to whisper, “He’s seen my wife naked.” And then he speaks in a regular tone again, “And that makes things a little uncomfortable. I can tolerate him, but I don’t want to hang out with them all the time.”
“Amen to that Ed Earl,” I tell him, holding out my hand for a high-five.
“Ed Earl?” Matt questions.
“You haven’t made him watch the movie?” I ask my friend.
She laughs. “No, I guess I haven’t. Honey, saddle up, cowboy. Tonight we’re going to the chicken ranch.”
He gives her an exaggerated frown. “Should I be scared?”
I pat him on his arm. “No, but you better hydrate. You’re gonna need some energy after watching Dolly and Burt in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he tells me, and then turns toward my friend. He squeezes his wife’s shoulder, gives her a look, and says goodbye as he turns to walk toward his classroom.
“He just kissed you with his eyes, didn’t he?” I ask her.
“Yeah, that one was just a kiss. But on Monday, you should have seen the look in his eyes. He was totally jumping my bones with his stare. It was kinda hard to teach after that. I know I was blushing. My face was hot and my knees were wobbly. I had to send Meg to get me a Diet Coke from the vending machine in the teacher’s lounge so I could cool off.”
Her story makes me laugh to full blown snorting. She’s flushed right now just talking about it. I sure as hell know the feeling though. My student aide, Stephanie, caught me after a heated textathon with Tyler. He had me so hot, a bead of sweat was actually coming down the side of my face. These dang kids have the worst timing, coming in early to class and staying in during lunch. Who does that? When Shel and I went to school here, we were never on time.
“I’ll see you at lunch,” I tell her when we get to my room.
She stops in front of my door. “Don’t think you’re off the hook. I didn’t forget about this morning.”
Shel tosses her lunch on my desk shortly after the bell rings.
“What? We’re not going to the Carver Bistro today?” I ask, mocking our cafeteria.
She shakes her head. “After your mouth this morning, I thought we’d eat in here.”
I duck my head to see inside my mini-fridge and take out my Trader Joe’s shrimp surimi salad. My mouth waters just thinking about the cocktail dressing. When I’m done gathering my stash, I toss my salad next to Shel’s along with a yogurt, string cheese, and a bottle of water. Then, I dig in my desk and pull out a Snickers bar for me and some Dove chocolates for my BFF.
“So, spill. Don’t get me wrong. It was hilarious, but that kind of came out of nowhere. What’s happening, friend?” she asks, using the back of her hand to keep lettuce from falling out of her mouth. Shel’s mom always gets on her case about talking with her mouth full. I’m guilty. It’s an occupational hazard. Comes with the teacher territory. We are often trying to do so many things at once, that when it comes time to eat, it’s usually in a hurry and we’re trying to visit with our friends and colleagues at the same time.
“You know she irritates me sometimes. Did you see what she was wearing? And she had the nerve to tell me I’m crass. Give me a break.”
My friend doesn’t let me off the hook. “But you started it with the ‘what’s so fucking good about it’ comment? You seemed fine this morning before she got there. What gives?”
I let out a sigh, and a cold piece of shrimp flies on the floor. I bend over to pick it up, stalling for more time. I’ve never had a hard time talking to my best friend before. But it’s different now. I can’t just say everything
that’s whirling around in my head. Not when that everything is her big brother.
“So, maybe when I saw her and Chase come in, I got a little jealous or something.”
“Jealous of them?” she says with a cringe.
Yeah, I know. The idea makes me want to choke too. “Not them, exactly. You and Matt as well. Couples in general. You and Summer get to see your men every day. At home and at work. I’m lucky if your brother and I catch each other for a Skype call once a week. Text messaging, however hot that may be sometimes, just doesn’t cut it. I want to see him. I want his face right here.” I put my palm right up to my nose.
She tilts her head, pouty lips framing her mouth. “I’m sorry, Melly Belly. You’ll see him soon.”
Oh. That’s like a kick in the gut. “You make me miss him so much more.”
“Why? I don’t look like him.” She crumples her face at me.
“Yes, you do,” I tell her, because she does. “But that’s not it. It’s the Melly Belly thing. It’s really the dumbest nickname I could have ever been pinned with, but he gave it to me. He’s been calling me that since … I can’t remember a time he didn’t call me that.”
“Eww. My brother doesn’t call you Melly Belly during sex, does he?” She shudders.
“Eww is right. You just asked about your brother’s sex life. That’s just all sorts of wrong, Shel.”
“Okay,” she holds up a hand, “you’re right. I will try hard not to call you that anymore. But don’t be sad. And don’t go picking fights because you miss the big dork. Just think about your vacation. You get to spend a few weeks with him. That might be enough to change your mind. You remember what his room looked like at my parents’ house. I can’t imagine he’s turned into Mr. Clean overnight. I bet he has socks in his seat cushions and sticky counter tops. And good luck with food in that place. You better go grocery shopping on your way there or you’re gonna be eating Fruit Loops, PB & Js, and Top Ramen for all your meals. Scrambled eggs and bacon, or Belgian waffles are bound to get old.”
Between The Sheets Page 5