Teacher: Act Two (A Hollywood Rock n' Romance Trilogy Book 2)

by Merrill, R. L.

  "I'm telling you, puppies are just as much damn work as babies," Danny grumbled. I sat next to him on the couch and observed his progress. "Jane looked this shit up on the Internet and it said we should crate train her for sleeping, and then we should make one area of the house accessible to her. I got these gates so she can have the run of the kitchen, a fucking doggie door piece for the slider, a shitload of chew toys, a fake grass mat for her to do her business on... We've been at this for hours!"

  I ran my hand over his shoulders and glanced at the clock. "Nine o'clock! I thought you were going to wake me for dinner!"

  He rubbed at his hair. "We didn't really stop for dinner. Nora and Jane ate, but I wasn't hungry. I wanted to get this all done so little girl can feel comfortable."

  He was unbelievably adorable. He was just as intense about preparing for this puppy as he was about school. Danny didn't do anything less than full bore. It made his approach to our relationship make even more sense. Once he decided he wanted to do something that was it for him. He poured all of his energy into seeing it through to fruition.

  "I have something I want to give you," I said quietly. He looked up, intrigued. "It's not official, but I wanted to commemorate this day." I pulled out the certificate I'd made for him earlier.

  He looked confused at first and then his lips split into a Cheshire grin. "You made this for me," he exclaimed.

  I nodded. "Read it out loud!"

  Jane and Nora came over to see what he was so excited about. In his hands he held the cheesiest, most gaudy certificate possible. I'd added gold stars, glitter, puffy paint... It was even done in rainbow colors. He cleared his throat and started to read.

  "Commemorating the achievements of Daniel Adam Black. On this day, July 27, 2013, he has completed the requirements necessary to earn his high school diploma, which will be presented upon receipt of passing marks on the California High School Exit Exams. He met this challenge with utmost sincerity and integrity, and is hereby awarded the Jesse Martin Kick-Ass Student Award!"

  He blushed and smiled so broadly. I’d seen that look before with my students, but it never affected me as much as it did on his face.. Nora and Jane rushed to give him kisses and hugs. Then he turned on me.

  "I know it's not the real thing, but I wanted you to know how proud I am of you," I said in a low voice, unable to keep the stupid smile from taking over.

  He drew me into his arms and hugged me tight. "I have something for you, too," he whispered and stood up from the couch. I frowned at him and he held up a finger for me to wait for him.

  Jane and Nora both looked at me excitedly as he came jogging back in, grinning from ear to ear. He knelt down on the floor next to me and handed me a black box from Tiffany's.

  "Danny," I whispered. "What did you do?"

  "It's a thank you, honey. Open it."

  My hands were shaking. I didn't know how to accept this from him. I exhaled and opened the box. Inside on a bed of black velvet was a thick-linked silver chain with a heart-shaped pendant. The heart had a black diamond set in the center and under it was engraved "teacher." It was so beautiful! It was so Danny! Tears spilled down my cheeks as I looked up at him.

  "It's beautiful, Danny. It's too much."

  He shook his head. "It's not too much. It's perfect. Turn it over," he murmured.

  The back was engraved "IFLY, Danny." I frowned until he chuckled and I realized exactly what it meant.

  "I fucking love you, too, Danny," I whispered to him and he pulled me into an embrace.

  "Put it on her, Daddy!" Jane was bouncing on her toes and Nora was smiling approvingly.

  "You guys knew about this?" They nodded. I shook my head as Danny took the box out of my trembling hands and stepped around behind me to fasten it around my neck. The chain was choker length and felt comforting against my skin. Danny kissed my shoulder before lowering his hands.

  "I hope you like it, honey."

  I smiled sheepishly at him. "It's perfect. I feel like I'm wearing a piece of you," I murmured and he smirked.

  "That was the point. Until I put a ring on your finger, it will have to fucking do."

  I shook my head and wiped the last of my tears away. "Danny," was all I could say.

  "I know," he said, kissing my forehead. "I'm just so glad you are here, honey. I love you so fucking much."

  I squeezed his hand and touched my pendant. "I know."

  Chapter Seven

  Thursday was the big day. Danny couldn't sleep the night before, so he sat in the spare room with me. We talked for a long time and then he must have played guitar and read while I slept. I woke at 7:00 and he was still sitting in the chair.

  "Didn't you sleep at all, baby?"

  He smiled nervously. "Nah. If this appointment goes well, I will sleep like a baby tonight. I'm so glad you're here, Jesse. Thanks for going with me."

  I smiled. "It's my turn to take care of you. Let me get ready and let's get this over with, ok?" He didn't move to get up. "Danny, what is it?"

  He put his head in his hands so I hurried to his side "What if I can't do it, Jesse? What if I can't sing," he choked out.

  I knelt in front of him and put my hands on his face. "Baby, you feel good, right?" He nodded. "Your doctor said he thought you would recover well, didn't he?" He nodded and finally looked at me. "And we talked about what ifs, so that's already been covered. No matter what happens, you’re going to be fine, right? You're a fighter and you’ll be ok no matter what. And I’ll be right by your side, cheering you on, even if the only thing you can sing is Happy Fucking Birthday at Chuck E. Cheese!"

  He burst out laughing and pulled me into his arms tightly. "You are so fucking beautiful! Alright. If Girlfriend says it is so, it must be. Let's get our asses moving and get this shit over with!" We showered in separate bathrooms and met up in the kitchen where Nora had breakfast ready.

  "You are my hero, Nora. Thank you for feeding me so well these past few months!"

  She smiled and said, "It's completely my pleasure! You’re already looking a little healthier. I'll let you in on a secret... I get paid a ridiculous amount of money to do what I love. I live in a ridiculously perfect cottage and work with a ridiculously perfect family. I'd do this shit for free! Just don't tell Danny that."

  He rolled his eyes. "There's nothing I wouldn't do for you, Nora."

  She winked at him and hurried us along.

  Danny pulled on his lip the whole drive to the doctor's office. I prayed that he would get good news. I only worried because he did, though. I had to at least try to make him smile.

  "You know, when we talked about what a boring couple like us would do for dates, we didn't foresee how many dates would consist of medical visits! We're not even old people! Imagine when we're, like, fifty! Sooner for you, of course..."

  He was trying unsuccessfully to keep a straight face. "You're right. Next will be hernias, fucking Viagra, broken hips." I reached over and squeezed his thigh, causing him to jump a little. "Hey now, my reflexes aren't what they used to be! You better watch out!"

  We laughed the rest of the drive and he seemed much less doom and gloom when we got there. We were shown right into an exam room and given some water. Danny paced nervously, but seemed much better than he had been. A few moments later a tall, very fit man, with silver hair in his late 50's entered the room in khakis and a pastel button-down.

  "Danny! How are you, my friend?"

  Danny shook hands with the doctor and gestured to me. "Dr. Spiegel, this is my girlfriend, Jesse Martin."

  He shook my hand with a knowing smile. "Ah, so you are the teacher. Very beautiful indeed! Danny's told me so much about you! I have you to thank in part for his successful recovery."

  I knew I was blushing like mad. Danny just smiled at me and said, "Between her and Nora, I had no choice but to be good."

  Dr. Spiegel took out his scopes and said, "Let's get a look at that throat of yours."

  Danny opened up and said "ahh."

  T
he doctor made positive sounds and said, "Looks great, Danny. Now, why don't you run through some vocal warm ups and let's hear how you sound."

  Danny cleared his throat and exhaled harshly. Then the sweetest sound on the face of the earth emanated from his now-healed vocal chords. His voice sounded like utter perfection. Like waves crashing on a shore, the call of a hawk, the roar of a hurricane... Danny's instrument was a force of nature and there was no weakness to be heard. After running through a few scales and pushing himself to hit some freakishly high notes, he stopped, panting.

  "Whew," he shouted. "It feels great! Does it sound ok, honey?"

  There was no way I could adequately describe to him what I'd just experienced. I just nodded enthusiastically.

  "Danny, my boy," Dr. Spiegel said, "I hereby pronounce you ready to rock!”

  Danny turned to me and yanked me out of the chair, spinning me around in his arms in the tiny room while I squealed helplessly.

  "Now you absolutely must take care of yourself! Remember your warm ups. Stop if you get hoarse, even a tiny bit. Tea with lemon and honey after a workout. And pace yourself, son. As much as I've enjoyed working with you, I don't want you back in here other than for checkups, you understand?"

  "Yes, Sir. I will be a good little patient! I cannot thank you enough, Dr. Spiegel. You have truly saved my career. I am in your debt."

  The doctor laughed as they bro-hugged. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just send me your referrals and some free concert tickets whenever you play in town and we'll call it even."

  Danny practically dragged me through the door and out into the Hollywood sunshine. "I feel so fucking amazing right now," he shouted and swept me up in his arms again.

  "I'm so happy for you, baby!"

  He was all smiles when he put me down, but then he grew serious. "He may have saved my career, Jesse, but you saved my life." Again, for the I-don't-know-how-manyth time, the tears were falling.

  "We saved each other," was all I could get out.

  His eyes lingered on mine for a moment. Neither of us had to use words to express what we were feeling.

  "Now it's really time to celebrate! Will you help me?"

  We sped back to the house, plotting the whole way. Once we got there, Danny started a flurry of phone calls in his office. I headed off Nora and Jane by saying the appointment went well, that he is healed, but has to really ease into things. They were cautiously optimistic and agreed not to bother him about it. As rehearsed, I told them he was a little preoccupied and disappointed, that he wanted to be left alone for a while.

  "What do you say we take Legs to the vet and get her checked out?"

  Jane was all over that idea. We attached her leash to her new black collar with skulls on it and, continuing the ruse, asked Nora to tell Danny where we'd gone if he came out of his office.

  I remembered the name of the vet that my colleague said worked with her rescue so we drove into Beverly Hills to check it out. They took us without an appointment. We were seen by a young woman who was likely fresh out of vet school.

  "I'm Dr. Santillan," she introduced herself. “Tell me about your new puppy.” Jane and I shared a smile and I told her the story of Legs. Dr. Santillan looked her over while I was talking, giving her a full examination. Legs handled it like a champ.

  "She looks to be about eight weeks old and in pretty darn good shape. We'll take some blood and urine, and we'll give her a deworming, just to be safe." She asked if Jane would like to come back and watch and Jane was delighted. She told the vet how she wanted to be a large animal vet and told her about Misty. It turned out that the vet was also a horse girl and the two of them became fast friends, a common occurrence with Jane. She had such an effect on everyone she met, very similar to her daddy.

  I waited for them to come back and my thoughts drifted to Danny. I was so grateful he'd been granted this miracle. Maybe now his roller coaster would truly slow down. A brief text from him letting me know that everything was in place for tonight had me smiling broadly. Jane returned then, so I quickly hid my excitement.

  "She weighs 30 lbs already, Jesse! The vet said she could be a really big girl!"

  My eyes bugged out. "Good thing your daddy's already in love with her!" We giggled as Legs whined and wiggled, trying to get the heck out of here.

  "Not so fast, little girl. You need a bath and some flea medicine!" We took care of things at the front and left her with the groomers to get all cleaned up while we ran and got lunch.

  It was excruciating to have to keep the details from Jane about her dad's visit, so I went for a distraction, trying to get her talking about anything but him. We talked about her friends, who she hadn't seen all summer, and she was really missing them. I suggested we talk to Danny about having them over this weekend. She was very enthusiastic about the idea of a pizza and swim party. I told her about my shopping date and she empathized with me.

  "I haaaate shopping. I'll just wear one of the dresses my mom made me get in New York to Grandma Black's party. I hope we get to see Great Grandma and Great Grandpa, too! I love listening to them talk. They always send me cards and notes and things. Do you still have grandparents," she asked me.

  I shook my head. "No. Sadly they passed away before I was old enough to know them." We talked about our impending trip a bit and then it was time to pick up Legs.

  She was very happy to see us when we returned. I was thrilled after such an amazing day with Jane. The vet said she'd likely sleep off and on the rest of the day since they’d given her the first round of vaccinations. She grumbled a little on the way home and Jane was nervous. I tried to reassure her that if anything went wrong, we'd take her right back in.

  We were both beat when we returned to Danny's, but I perked up the instant I saw all the cars parked in front of his house.

  Jane frowned and said, "I guess Uncle Julian and Uncle Bronson came to try to cheer up Dad. I hope he's ok."

  I left it at, "Me, too," and we went inside.

  The living room was packed with people, some of whom I'd met, like the band members and Patricia and Connie. The dozen or so people smiled when we came in and Danny approached us.

  "Daddy," Jane whispered to him. "I know you don't feel good. Want me to get rid of everyone for you?"

  He smiled at her and said, "Thanks, baby. But I'll be ok. Come sit with me over here for a bit." He walked her over to the piano and they sat together. The room got quiet as he started to play. Jane leaned her head against his shoulder. I vaguely recognized the tune. It sounded like Katy Perry. It was a song about how love is not like the movies sometimes, but that’s what it should be like. That when you meet someone who is right for you, it’s going to give you all those crazy feelings and you shouldn’t settle for less. I gathered it was Danny’s way of trying to bridge the gap between her pop music knowledge and his way of sharing some advice. His voice was so tender and sweet. He could easily sing this genre of music. No way would I want him to change, though. I loved his music.

  The whole room was teary when Danny finished. He told me he was going to learn the song today, that it was one of Jane's favorites. He was so freakin’ talented it was unbelievable! Nora had helped him get food ready, and his close circle of supporters was here to witness his recovery.

  "But Daddy! You need to be careful," Jane was saying to him so he hugged her and kissed her on the top of the head.

  "I had to get you out of here so I could learn the damn song, baby!" She narrowed her eyes at him and gave him a playful slug to the gut. Everyone laughed and clapped for him.

  "Thank you all for being here so I could surprise my daughter and have her beat the shit out of me." Everyone laughed, including Jane. Danny turned from the piano and faced the group. "I never would have made it through the past few months if it weren't for all of you, but I owe a huge debt of gratitude to a very special lady. For those of you who haven't met her, this is Jesse Martin, my amazingly beautiful, patient and loving girlfriend."

  To my horror, I receiv
ed applause at that moment. I waved like the dork I was, and turned five shades of crimson.

  "Most of you know that I decided to spend my convalescence working on my high school diploma. Way fucking long overdue, I know. Jesse started out as my teacher, but it was soon apparent to both of us that there was no way we could keep our hands off each other."

  I groaned and Jane said, "TMI, Dad!"

  He winked at her and continued. "With her support, and that of her principal, who ultimately signed off on my grades to avoid any impropriety, I finished my credits last week and took the exit exams this week! We'll find out in two months whether I passed. I hope I did, but even if I didn't, having Jesse in my life has been a gift that I will be eternally grateful for. I love you, honey."

  More cheers. I was mortified. I made my way across the room to beg him to stop before I burst a blood vessel. But the monster that is Danny on a roll just barreled on.

  "The other amazing gift I received this summer is that my gorgeous daughter is now mine 100% of the time!" The cheers grew louder yet, and it was Jane's turn for the blushing.

  "Brooke moved to New York to work on a show and we thought it would be best for Jane to live with me. Translate: also long fucking overdue!" Laughter sounded and Jane looked up at Danny with adoration in her eyes. This was the true miracle in Danny's life.

  "So drink up, eat up, and let's celebrate! Tomorrow Blackened heads into the studio to record our eighth album, likely our strongest yet, and then we conquer the world!"

  The guys all shouted and the room erupted in hugs. I followed Nora into the kitchen to see if I could help, suddenly feeling a bit out of place. She was in there with Connie and they already had the platters of sandwiches set out.

  “Hey girl,” Connie called, hurrying over to give me a big hug. “What a great lot to celebrate!” I smiled and agreed with her.

  Nora must have sensed that I was feeling a little overwhelmed. “He wasn’t exaggerating, Jesse. You really pulled him through a dark time. I know this is a lot to take in, but that’s how being with Danny is going to be. He doesn’t do anything halfway.”