Laid Out

by Sidney Halston

  “We’ll see about that, sunshine.” He guided her to his bike, his hand on her lower back. “Let’s go get you packed up.”

  “What?”

  “Packed up. So you can come home with me.”

  “Oh. Uh…what? You want me to stay with you?”

  “I thought I’d made it clear.”

  “I’m glad I made that condition about talking or this week would be one big weird misunderstanding about everything and anything. Sometimes I think you have conversations in your brain and expect me to know how they turned out.”

  “I didn’t make it clear?”

  She shook her head. “Why don’t you tell me what it is you have in mind?”

  “I have that big house. It’s empty. Why would you stay at a hotel while we’re in town? Just stay with me. There’s two extra rooms.”

  She looked at him for a moment as she weighed her decision. At last she said, “Okay. Makes sense.”

  “And since you want all those, ah, lessons, we need alone time together.”

  “Okay.”

  “Naked,” he added, lifting an eyebrow. He was throwing the challenge right back at her. She’d proposed this little game, and he was trying to see how far she was willing to take it.

  “Can’t wait,” she added, nervously biting her lip.

  —

  After she packed and checked out of the hotel, Cain drove her to his house. He showed her to the spare bedroom, which seemed to be Cain’s old room. “So bare,” she said as she ran her hand over the armoire. “No photos, no trophies. Nothing.”

  “My parents weren’t the sentimental kind.”

  “I’d at least expect a poster of a half-naked woman on the wall in your room.”

  He laughed. “Sergeant Sorenson would’ve had a coronary,” he replied.

  She sat on the twin bed covered with a basic blue plaid bedspread; the window had a matching plaid valance. The walls were white and there was a shelf in the corner with books on it.

  “Go ahead and settle in. I’ll be down the hall in my folks’ old room if you need me.”

  “I’m sorry if I’m putting you out. That has to be uncomfortable.”

  “Nah. It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” He placed her bag at the foot of the bed. “I’m going for a run. I’ll be back in a few hours. You need anything before I leave?”

  “You’re leaving?” It came out surprisingly high-pitched.

  He chuckled. “Yes. If I’m going to be out of the Academy, I at least need to do cardio. Why?”

  “I just…well, I thought that…”

  He reached for her lip and removed her bottom lip from her mouth before crossing his arms over his chest. “You thought I’d bring you here, bend you over, and fuck you?”

  “Oh my God, you don’t have to be so vulgar.”

  “I’m vulgar, Violet. I’m dirty and rough. I know what I like and how I like it, and I have a cock that’s dying to get inside your tight little pussy. You wanted to know what it’s like? Well, little girl, that’s what I’m like. I know you’ve never seen me in this context, but you signed up for this. We can stop whenever you want if I’m offending you, but you wanted me to talk, and this is how I talk.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Careful what you wish for, huh?”

  She straightened her back. “I’m not offended. I just…it’s new to me. I’ll get used to it.” After a pause she added, “I am not sorry I asked you to talk.”

  His expression softened. “Even with all that said, I’m not an asshole. I’m not just going to fuck you. I’m going to go to work out then I’ll probably take you to dinner. Then…I don’t know. Maybe I’ll kiss you again. Maybe you’ll kiss me? Maybe we end the night in separate rooms. The point of this little experiment of yours was so you could learn, right? I’m not forcing it. What happens, happens.”

  “We don’t have that many days, Cain.”

  “Stop worrying so much. I promised to help you, and I’ll help you. But I’ll do it on my terms.” He walked out, leaving her standing there flustered. Over his shoulder he called out, “Delayed gratification. That’s lesson one.”

  She fell back onto the bed. Delayed gratification? What the hell was that supposed to mean?

  —

  As soon as he was out of the house, Violet went exploring. After Cain’s father had retired, he and Cain’s mother had moved off the base, and she’d never seen the inside of the house they moved to. What she discovered was a very neat and tidy house, very similar to the one they’d lived in at the base. It didn’t feel quite like a home. It wasn’t warm, but it wasn’t exactly cold either. It wasn’t inviting. It was just practical, simple, and humble.

  There was a photo of Cain’s mother and father on their wedding day that hung on the hallway. It was in a plain black frame, very unassuming. The only other thing that made Cain’s house not seem like a temporary living arrangement was a wall in the living room with school photos of Cain from kindergarten until graduation lined up in carefully spaced rows. There were no knickknacks anywhere. There was an unsophisticated television and DVD player on a simple stand in front of a blue and green couch.

  Violet had fond memories of Cain’s mother. She’d been quiet and reserved, but sweet as pie, and had always been very warm and kind to Violet. His father had been much like her own father—matter-of-fact, strict, and unemotional. He was set in his ways, and liked things to be done his way and on his own terms. Remembering how Cain’s father had been, it wasn’t surprising that Cain had turned out the way he had. It was probably more surprising that she had turned out so different from her father.

  A wave of melancholy hit her fast and hard when she thought about her father. He’d been a cold man, but he’d done the best he could with what he had. It was a strange feeling to be in her late twenties and have no family left. Sadly, Cain was in the same boat. And if they messed up their friendship, what exactly would they have left?

  —

  Cain wiped the sweat that dripped from his head as he walked inside. He hated being in this house. It brought back too many memories. He half expected his mother to hug him tightly when he walked in. It was too eerie being in the house, but at the same time, he couldn’t part with it. He heard a loud clanging as he turned the corner in his living room. “Violet?”

  “In here,” she yelled from the kitchen. When he walked in, he saw Violet sitting on the floor, pots and pans strewn all over the place. Her hair in a messy bun on her head. “I was bored. Thought I’d clean up a little. Start helping you pack. I hope that’s okay. That’s what you were going to do, right?”

  He couldn’t help but smile. “Yes. You didn’t have to do this, though.”

  She shoved some of the items around her out of the way and held her arms up. He pushed off the wall he’d been leaning against, reached for her hands, and pulled her up. “ ’S’okay. I don’t mind.” She pointed to a stack of stuff. “So I’m thinking that these are things you may want to donate and those, over there, are ones you may want to keep.”

  He glanced briefly at his mother’s dishes and pots.

  “Going to shower,” he answered instead.

  “Uh…okay. Did I do something wrong?”

  “No. I just need to think about what I want to do with the stuff. But I can’t do it dripping in sweat.” He turned and went to the shower.

  “Oh, okay. I’ll just keep at it then,” she said as she reached for another drawer.

  After he had finished showering, he was getting dressed when his phone chimed. He looked at the screen. There was a text from Yuri about a fight Monday night and another one from his boss at IMC asking him to call him back. Cain wasn’t sure yet if he was going to renew his contract with IMC. And the fights? They had just been a distraction. It wasn’t something he particularly wanted to do. But as always, Cain avoided making difficult decisions for as long as possible. He ignored both texts and finished dressing.

  “I was thinking about going down to Mad Dog’s for an early dinner,” he said as he walk
ed into the kitchen.

  “What about all this?” She looked around the mess she’d created.

  “Just leave it. I’ll deal with it later. Let’s go eat.” She looked around at the mess, then got to her feet and hustled to her room to get dressed.

  As soon as she disappeared from the kitchen, he dropped to the floor to look at the items she’d put in the giveaway pile. He grabbed a big cast iron skillet that was well used. He could practically smell his mother frying bacon on it. He put it down and picked up a big enameled yellow pot his mom had often used to make soup. It was well worn and the yellow enamel was chipping away. He probably should give that away. Hell, he should probably just toss everything. He had expensive high-end pots at home; he didn’t need his mother’s old worn out things. But he didn’t want to think about it just now. Quickly he put everything back into the cabinets. By the time Violet came back down everything was back in its original place.

  Looking confused, Violet glanced around the empty kitchen. “Where’s everything?”

  “I hate messes.”

  “Okay. Did you put everything in a bag and toss it? That was fast.”

  “No. Just moved it out of the way,” It wasn’t a complete lie. “Let’s go. I’m hungry.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the door. “You look nice, by the way.”

  “Thanks. I’m not a maxidress kind of girl, but JL told me to give her all my sweats to take home—they take up a lot of room. At least that’s what she said. I think it was just to get me to dress up.”

  “You look pretty in blue. But the dress might make it hard for you on the bike.”

  She looked at her long dress and then the bike.

  Her frown made him laugh. “How about we walk? It’s not too far and it’s a nice day.”

  “Good idea.”

  She hadn’t taken two steps when Cain grabbed her hand and laced his fingers through hers. She looked down at his hand and then up at him. He wasn’t looking at her, though. She decided not to question it. She’d made a decision to try to talk less in hopes he’d talk more. Surprisingly, walking hand in hand silently with Cain didn’t feel strange, nor did she feel the need to make conversation.

  Minutes passed before he finally spoke. “Do you miss Texas?”

  She had to think about that. After a few moments she said, “I’m happy in Tarpon Springs.”

  “Didn’t answer the question.”

  “Now that Daddy’s gone, no, I don’t really miss it. Everyone that’s important to me is in Tarpon.”

  “Why Tarpon? You didn’t even know I was there, did you?”

  “No, I didn’t know you were there when I decided to move. I knew you were in Florida, but I thought you were in the Tampa area. I picked Tarpon because I missed JL. She’s like family to me. So is Travis, really. I wanted to start fresh. I needed a change.”

  “Why?”

  She stopped and looked up at him. “Why did I need a change?” He nodded, and she resumed walking. “Jer didn’t want me to be a nurse, so I didn’t start nursing school until a few years after he died, which made me a lot older than the rest of my class. Then when I graduated I felt lost and alone here. I didn’t connect much with my classmates, Daddy was always away, and everyone else I cared about had moved away. JL asked me to move in with her. She may have been joking, but I just did it. I packed up and left. I think I even surprised her when I arrived that evening, suitcase in tow. And then I walk into the Pier that first day and bam! There you were.”

  “You surprised the shit outta me too.”

  “You carried me into the car, remember? It was the same day I arrived. About a year ago. You said I was drunk, I said I wasn’t. You didn’t let me say anything else before you lifted me over your shoulder and took me home.”

  “It must have made you regret the move.”

  “Are you kidding? I’d been living this plain vanilla existence for the past six years. I was in a fog. Seeing you…” She shook her head as if remembering. “You brought life back into me. You and JL and really, the entire little town. For the first time I have friends, I have a career, and I’m having fun. I feel like I’m finally moving on, living my life,” she finished as they arrived at the restaurant.

  “I’m glad you have JL,” Cain said as they were seated. “I’m also glad you’re living your life, Vi.”

  “Yeah. So am I.”

  When the waitress came by to take their orders, Cain asked for water, then said, “Violet, do you want some sweet tea?”

  She smiled. “I’d love some. That’s what I always used to order when we came here—I’m impressed you remembered.”

  “I remember everything, Vi. I’ve told you that before.” He didn’t even open his menu. “I bet you’re going to have the blue cheese burger and sweet potato fries. No ketchup, lots of mustard.”

  “And you’re going to have the double bacon burger with extra cheese, no mayo, and lots of ketchup with your french fries.”

  He ran his hand over his face. “God, I wish! My mouth just watered.”

  She giggled. “You cutting weight, huh?”

  “Yeah.” The waitress came to drop off their drinks and take their order. Cain repeated Violet’s order and ordered a grilled chicken breast and a salad for himself.

  “How do you do it? I don’t think I could. I love food too much,” she said.

  “I love winning more. If I don’t cut weight, I won’t be able to fight, and I really want my belt back.”

  “You’re a strong man, Cain Sorenson. I couldn’t do it.”

  “You could. If you wanted it enough, you’d be able to do it.”

  “I guess,” she said, unconvinced. “So, can we talk about my weirdness? How am I going to fix my awkwardness?”

  He rolled his eyes dismissively.

  “You know it’s true.”

  “I think it’s cute.”

  “That’s ’cause you know me. You’re my friend. Now, picture you on a first date with me. You don’t know me and you’re meeting me for the first time. I start yapping away about nonsense. I probably say something stupid and then you leave and never call me again. It’s like the connection between my mouth and brain short-circuits or something.”

  “I—”

  She leaned forward and interrupted, “While wearing the completely wrong clothes. Sorry, I wanted to add that.” She sat back again. “Okay, you were going to say…?”

  He laughed. “I was going to say that any guy would see that it’s just because you’re nervous. I don’t think a man would run. I think he’d find it endearing.”

  “Oh, really? You’d be cool going on a date with that Paige girl from the Pier the other night while she wore a WtF Academy T-shirt, some khaki shorts, and Chucks?”

  “Vi, I don’t give a fuck what a woman wears on a date. If I’m into her, it doesn’t matter.”

  “You comment on what I wear all the time.”

  “You’re different. And when you dress up it’s always kind of a surprise, I can’t help but notice. But it’s not because you don’t look good the rest of the time.” The waitress came at that moment to drop off their food. “Fuck. That smells good,” he said, eyeing Violet’s food. “You better eat that burger fast. My self-control is slipping.”

  She giggled and took a big bite of her burger. Her eyes remained closed as she savored her food. “I forgot how delicious the burgers here were. Mmm, so good,” she moaned.

  “You need to stop that.”

  She opened her eyes abruptly. “Sorry. That’s not very nice. I know how it feels to be on a diet.”

  His eyes were locked on hers. “It’s not the burger that I want.”

  She licked some mustard off her bottom lip and awkwardly fumbled with her fries. After a moment she broke the eye contact and sighed. “See? That right there. You said that super-hot thing and I got nervous and didn’t say something sexy back. I need to work on being sassy or something. What should I have said?”

  “Sometimes it’s not what you say but w
hat you do. That thing you did with your tongue…that is pretty fucking hot, Violet. You don’t really have to say much else.”

  “I didn’t do anything with my tongue.”

  “You did. You had mustard…” He reached forward and ran the pad of his thumb along the bottom of her lip. “Right there. You licked it off. Then you looked at me through those eyelashes.”

  Her eyes were wide and she licked her lip again, involuntarily this time. “Wow, I have no clue what’s sexy or not. Licking mustard—check. Blinking—check.” She smiled. “Okay, got it.”

  “You are such a nut sometimes.” He chuckled. “I hope you know that it’s not the mustard that’s sexy. Please God, tell me you understand that.”

  “I’m not that dense. I get it. Tongue. Tongue makes guys hot. I got it.” She pointed a finger to her head. “I’m taking notes. Tongue is on the top of the list.”

  “As it should be,” he said with a wink, causing her to giggle. “Okay, so what else? You get nervous in general. That’ll get better once you’re comfortable with the guy. Anything else?”

  “Oh, this is so humiliating.” She pushed her plate aside and placed her napkin on it.

  “You’re finished?”

  “Yeah, I’m stuffed.”

  “You didn’t even eat half of it.” He shook his head and contemplated digging into the juicy burger. “So tell me exactly what’s so humiliating.”

  “Okay, here’s a scenario. I go on a date, right? It goes well, he’s not a weirdo. I like the guy. He invites me back to his place. Do I go? And if I do, what then? Do I sleep with him? Am I just expected to take off my clothes? I mean, how does it work, exactly—logistically speaking?”

  “You are seriously nuts.” He laughed and signaled for the bill. “You just go with the flow. You wait and let him take the lead, at least in the beginning, until you’re more comfortable. Maybe there’ll come a time when you’re feeling sure enough that you can take the lead.”

  “Is that something men like? Won’t they feel emasculated? Jeremy didn’t like that. I mean, I don’t think he did. I never really…well, you know. He kind of just took charge, is what I mean.”

  Cain glanced at the check and threw some money on top before extending his hand to her. She took out her wallet, but he shook his head. Talking about Jeremy put him in a strange mood. He felt uncomfortable all of a sudden. But the truth was, Jeremy had always asked Cain to take care of Violet if something happened to him. I’m sure that didn’t mean give her advice on sex. Hell, it definitely didn’t mean stick your tongue down her throat. But helping her move on—well, that was part of taking care of her. She needed to date and have fun, so he had to suck it up and help.