The snow had finally thawed and Cameron had decided to celebrate the occasion with a game night at our place. This basically consisted of the boys gathered around the TV screen drinking beer and shooting each other up on Call of Duty and the girls gossiping and drinking copious amounts of wine in the kitchen. It was time for me to play in the light.
Nights like this were about as close to the girl’s night in classification as I got. Not that I was a tomboy in the true sense of the word, I just wasn’t a high heels and frilly dresses kind of girl. I was more of a rock chick (my music tastes and vintage band shirts inherited form my Dad), whereas Dana was your stereotypical girly girl. Paired with Liv’s librarian chic, the three of us couldn’t look any more mismatched when we were together, but somehow we just worked, we always had. My inner girl never came out to play for very long and I’d always got on better with the boys. Maybe it was Cam and Nick’s influence since we had been inseparable for so long before the girls came along. Maybe it was just that boys didn’t ask as many questions. Still, I loved Liv and Dana with my entire being and I appreciated that no matter the fact I had always gelled easier with the boys, sometimes only your girls could make things better. Aside from Amy they were the only real female friends I’d ever had.
Cam, Greg, Adam and Nick were all gathered around the TV screen discussing teams and weapons and tactics like they actually had a clue. Nick and Adam had finally been introduced and Nick had given me a sly smile and a wink when he looked at me afterwards. Not that I had any idea what he meant by it. Mick and Vinnie were coming over as soon as the Irish Rover closed for the night.
I poured Dana a glass of fizzy stuff and topped up Liv’s and my own as Adam wandered over to us. He picked up my glass and took a sip. I couldn’t stop my eyes from wandering all over him, he was wearing black jeans and a fine knit dark grey jumper. Black combat style boots and a chain draped around his hip from the front of the right side of his jeans to the back, gave the outfit an edge. It seemed he could pull off bad boy as well as hot cop really well and I’m pretty sure I had drool running down my chin. Damn female hormones again. Maybe I should add a drool proof cover to my no swoon zone?
“Bleugh! We are not sharing tonight Angel.” He said with a wince, and took a beer from the fridge instead.
“All the more for me!” I smiled and raised my glass towards him. He tapped the neck of his bottle on it and placed a kiss on the top of my hair before he returned to the living room. I did not in any way have my eyes on his backside as he walked away. Like I said to Greg, heartbroken, not blind. I turned, doing a very poor job of hiding a smile, to find Liv and Dana staring at me with gaping mouths and wide eyes.
“What?” I matched their wide eyed stares, confused.
“What?” Liv gasped, looking at Dana. “Is she serious? What?”
I looked between the two of them, furrowing my brow. “What?” I asked again.
Dana shook her head, her white blonde locks bouncing around her face making her look like a shampoo commercial, “I mean Greg mentioned something, but I didn’t take him seriously. But now I think about it, Adam has been asking questions.”
“What?!” I screeched frustratedly, drawing attention from the toy soldiers in the living room. They all looked over at us with curious eyes. They reminded me of a group of meercats, the way their heads all turned in unison.
“Nothing to see here! Back to your posts soldiers!” Dana shouted and waved their gazes back to the TV screen. They did as they were told, turning together. Good little meercats.
“Angel? Sharing? Winking? Kisses? And you were all over his body with your eyes when he came over here.” Liv turned to me and listed the words on her fingers.
“Again, what?” Yes, her observations were correct, but I still had no idea what her point was.
“You and Adam!” Dana whispered dramatically, leaning towards me.
“What about us?” I stage whispered back, mimicking her leaning move.
“You can’t see it.” Liv accused and turned to Dana, lifting her glasses to look underneath them at her, “She can’t see it.”
“For fuck sake Liv, see what?” I demanded, loudly enough to draw the men’s attention again.
“You alright sis?” Cameron frowned at me. Since Amy’s murder and all the memories it had stirred up he had, understandably, slipped back into hyper protective mode. He was holding back, barely, on the house arrest thing, but I knew he would attempt to enforce it at any sign of stress from me.
“Just fine twin, I think Olive might be losing her marbles, but I’m fine.” I told him, not taking my eyes off Olivia; she glared at me for using the nickname she hated.
“I can’t believe you don’t see it.” Dana said shaking her head and making her hair bounce again.
I shrugged my shoulders, giving up on them both. “Look can you please stop talking in riddles, because I know I haven’t had enough wine to be this confused yet. Or you could just stop talking entirely, that would work too.”
“You and Adam.” Liv said and then Dana began to make kissing noises and Liv made circles from her thumb and forefinger on each hand and started mashing them together like two mouths. Kissing.
I took a step back and crossed my arms and eyed them both, “Are you two on drugs?”
“Oh my God Callie! Wake up!” Dana screeched, and then turned to Greg sheepishly, “I’m fine sweetie.”
“Alright. You and Adam...” Liv began in a hushed voice.
“You keep saying that!” I helpfully pointed out.
“You’re flirting.” She said and put her hands on her hips as if that backed up her argument.
“Well, yeah. Have you seen him? I mean actually looked at him? Of course I’m going to flirt with him. I’ve gone from Jase and his mind blowing orgasms to zero action overnight and I’m feeling a tad frustrated. So yes, I am absolutely guilty of flirting with the fit new man in uniform! Pretty sure half the female population of the town is guilty of flirting with him.” I said, becoming exasperated. I was actually more than a little bit sexually frustrated since breaking up with Jase, for all the other faults in our relationship, sex had not been one of them. He was fantastic in bed and extremely attentive, so yeah, I was feeling that loss.
“No, it’s more than that. If that’s all it was you’d have rebounded and done the horizontal tango by now. He can’t take his eyes off you Callie.” Liv said. Olivia read a lot of contemporary romance novels and it became obvious in the language she sometimes used.
“We’re friends.” I said with a shrug, trying with all my might not to look in his direction.
“Men don’t give women nick names unless they really care.” Dana said. “You are totally pushing the friend zone boundaries.”
“No we’re not.” I argued. Yes, I was willing to admit I thought Adam was gorgeous and I had definitely flirted shamelessly with him. But to suggest there was anything more than friendship between us was ridiculous. We were friends. We had bonded quickly, but only because of the darkness we shared. He understood me in a way nobody else could. I wasn’t about to go into that with them though, it would only hurt them to know I kept so much from them. And besides, I was still stupidly in love with Jase.
“I have a nickname for Nick. Ha! Nickname for Nick! See what I did there?” They looked at me blankly. “And he has one for me. I have always called Luke, Luca. But I have nothing other than friendship love for them both. And then there’s Mick. Mick only ever calls me love or Callie love, has done ever since we met and that doesn’t mean anything. Well, it does but I can’t tell you what, only that it’s not the obvious. I call Liv Olive but we’re not getting naked and bumping uglies on a nightly basis. And what about Nate, he calls everyone babe, even some men, usually Cameron! A nickname means nothing.”
“Rambling Callie!” Liv pointed out.
“Me thinks the lady doth protest too much.” Dana sang.
“I don’t protest at all. We’re friends. I‘ll admit we became close very quickly
, but that’s because of the way we met. It was an intense night.” I gulped at my wine, not at all desperate to change the subject, much.
“You share all your drinks, that’s practically kissing!” Liv said, as if that settled it, case closed.
“Not tonight!” I held up my glass triumphantly.
“He. Calls. You. Angel!” Dana stressed each word, pointing her glass at me for extra emphasis.
“Snow Angel.” I corrected and cringed as I immediately regretted sharing. Nice one Callie, there’s no way they’re going to drop it now.
“What?” They asked in unison, both leaning towards me, their ears standing to attention. I sighed.
“When he first saw me I was so covered in snow that he thought I looked as though I’d been lying in it making snow angels. So he calls me Snow Angel.” I explained in the most matter of fact manner I could. Liv and Dana looked at each other, eyebrows raised. I thanked my lucky stars that the volume on the TV was turned up high, so we couldn’t be heard over the gunfire and grenades going off in the living room.
“She can’t see it!” They said together and clinked their glasses.
“You’re going to marry Adam.” Dana declared, pointing a perfectly French manicured finger at me.
“I am not marrying anyone. Nope!” I told her. Marriage was not on my list.
“You are, you have to be next. It’s the order, the way we decided. Me, then you then Liv. All of us bridesmaids for each other. You can’t go back on it now!” Dana continued.
“Dana, we were twelve! And we were assuming I would marry Jase.” I shook my head at her. I neglected to mention that Liv was meant to marry Cameron in this make believe scenario we had dreamt up as children. My eyes wandered over to the living room, “Screw it, I’ll just marry my bestie. Hey Nick, will you marry me?”
“Thought you’d never ask Moonbeam.” He said with a grin, not looking up from the screen.
“See? All sorted. I’ll marry Nick.” I grinned at Dana as I began to empty a large packet of salt and vinegar crisps into a bowl.
“Incoming!” A deep voice boomed as Mick and Vinnie wandered in, heavily laden with cases of beer and bottles of wine.
“Mickaaaaa!” I called in greeting, waving my glass around in his direction, grateful for the reprieve in my interrogation. I loved that man and his perfect timing!
“Ladies.” He said kissing my cheek and setting three bottles of wine and a bottle of Baileys on the kitchen counter. “For you and your kitchen coven, love.” He told me as he picked up a beer, nodded to Liv and Dana and went off the join the toy soldiers.
“Witches!” Vinnie greeted us all with kisses before spotting Nick sprawled across the sofa. “Ooh, Nicky boy, long time no see. How’s it going gorgeous?”
“’Alright Vinnie!” Nick raised his beer in Vinnie’s direction. His eyes only briefly leaving the TV screen.
“Such a waste.” Vinnie shook his head and leant a hip against the island. He was head to toe in black- black cargo trousers, black t shirt and black boots, as he always was for work and he looked like a man you really did not want to mess with.
“You could always try and turn him.” Liv giggled, sipping her wine. She was such a happy drunk.
“Been there, done that. All over the t-shirt!” Vinnie smirked.
“What?” I screeched, for the second time that night and immediately shook my head and smiled sheepishly in Cam’s direction.
“Straight as they come that one, mores the pity.” Vinnie laughed.
“Oh my!” Dana sighed, fanning herself. “You two together would be so hot. If you ever change his mind you should sell tickets.”
“I’ll drink to that!” I laughed and clinked glasses with Dana.
“Couldn’t talk Nate and Luke in to tonight then?” Vinnie asked looking towards the meercats in the living room. I shrugged in response. Nate and Luke hadn’t been around much since the whole Jase and Callie fiasco and then Amy had been killed. Luke was Amy’s cousin so, as he had said, he would be tied up with family and mourning. Nate and Jase had always been close, so he was more than likely with him.
“Anyway Vin, Adam and Callie?” Liv asked him.
“She can’t see it.” Vinnie said pointing his beer bottle at me. “You’ve been out of the game too long sweetheart.”
I shook my head and picked up the cork screw to open another bottle of wine, while Vinnie moved over to join the men. I looked towards Adam only to find him already looking at me. We did the mouthing okay thing and then he winked at me. I smiled and busied myself filling the wine glasses.
“Hey future Mrs Warren, how about a beer over here?” Nick grinned at me cheekily.
“Erm, I don’t believe I’m at work right now Mr Warren.” I replied haughtily, hands on hips.
“Please Moonbeam?” He gave me puppy dog eyes.
“Ugh! How many?” I gave in easily, he was just too cute.
“Better bring six.” He grinned again.
“All of you? Really?” I huffed. Grabbing the bottled beers, I shoved one in each of the front pockets of my faded grey jeans and carried two in each hand.
Liv hollered “Catwalk baby!”
Feeling the effects of the wine, I played along and sashayed my hips, over exaggerating each swing as I walked over to where the men were crowded on the sofa. Thankfully I was barefoot or I might have fallen off my shoes through alcohol consumption.
“Work it, work it!” Dana called and I cackled hysterically.
“Go girl!” Never one to miss a trick, Vinnie joined in. Mick and Vinnie were playing against each other and I set a beer down next to each of them. Vinnie blew me a kiss, Mick mumbled a “thanks love” and I handed two off to Greg and Cam before sticking my hip out in Adam’s direction for him to take one from my pocket.
“Thanks Angel.” He looked at me and smirked. “Nice walking skills. Putting one foot in front of the other and all that.”
“That’s talent right there baby, I’m not just a pretty face.” I preened jokily and wiggled my hips at him. He laughed and shook his head at my antics.
Nick reached for the last bottle with one hand and hooked a finger trough my belt loop with his other hand, pulling me roughly into his lap.
“Sit with me. I haven’t seen you properly in forever and I’m feeling needy.” He said, wrapping his free arm around my waist.
“Five minutes Sunshine. I’m in the middle of a very important coven meeting.” I joked, gesturing to the kitchen. “How are the boys?”
“Mostly good. Heath had some trouble with a kid at school but I think it’s all done with now. Ethan is doing great at the garage, he really loves it. Danny is his usual quiet self, still has no clue what he wants to do with his life. He did ask about you the other day though. Says he misses you.”
“Tell him to come and see me, we can be clueless together. In fact all of you come for dinner. It’s been too long. I’ll make brownies for him.” I said, poking the dimple in Nick’s cheek when he smiled.
“Thank you Cal, don’t know what I’d do without you sometimes. You keep me sane.” He pulled my hair gently in response to my dimple poke and kissed my temple.
“Back at ya!” I smiled and leaned my head against his shoulder.
“What was all that screeching about earlier?” Cam asked, leaning towards me from his spot in my favourite armchair. He set his beer bottle down on a pile of my books that were on the floor next to the chair and ignored the dirty look I sent him. I absently noticed the pile had gotten smaller but filed it away to deal with later.
“Oh, apparently, I’m blind.” I grinned at him.
“What?” He frowned, shaking his head.
“That’s what I said!” I pointed at him and then called to Liv and Dana. “Hey witches, Cam can’t see it either!”
Dana gasped and came teetering over as fast as her stupidly high heels would allow. While Liv bent double, choking on her wine with laughter in the kitchen, almost losing her glasses, which she’d propped on to
p of her head, in the process.
“You! Shush! You can’t talk about coven shizzle over here.” She waved her hand around in a circle, gesturing towards the men in the room.
“Shizzle?” Greg looked at his wife adoringly and I sighed at how cute they were. They were perfect together, crazy, stupid in love. I’d thought Jase and I could give them a run for their money at one time, now I knew we had just been playing at it. The real thing had fizzled out for us long ago.
“You heard me.” She crossed her arms and gave him a “don’t mess with me” kind of look. Her white blonde hair, ridiculously long eye lashes and baby pink wool sweater dress ensemble were more of a hindrance than a help with her attempt at badassery. Greg just looked at her like she was a cute little kitten.
“Come on missy.” She grabbed my arm and attempted to yank me to my feet, but Nick held on.
“No, no. It’s my turn with her. We’ve got Callie and Nick shizzle to talk about and a wedding to plan.” He protested.
“So much shizzle.” I mumbled looking at Dana who tapped her foot at me impatiently.
“Ok, I won’t talk about the fact that I’m blind. Not even with my brother. Should I be calling him bruh now that we’re actively using the word shizzle?” I asked seriously. Nick buried his face in my neck and his shoulders shook with silent laughter. Cam choked on his beer and Adam patted him on the back roughly, while trying to contain his own laughter.
“Did we go gangsta?” Vinnie asked, sounding genuinely curious.
“I’ve always been gangsta!” Mick announced.
“Mickaaaa the badass!” I laughed.
“Totally hot badass.” He winked at me over his shoulder.
“It was the act Mick, not the man.” I informed him, laughing.
“You keep telling yourself that love.” He laughed with me.
“Ask the witches.” I said as Dana made her way back to the kitchen.
“Oh no! I can’t take any more witch shizzle tonight.” He said, turning his attention back to the game.
“Too late Mickey baby, you’re dead!” Vinnie declared. “Adam, get your sweet behind over here, you’re up gorgeous!”
Educating Callie Page 10