Bad Girlfriend

by Kirsten DeMuzio

  Adam chuckled. “All right. I won’t argue with that logic.”

  We had just turned to walk away when the door to the conference room opened and Louise walked out.

  “Mr. Branigan.” Her sharp voice echoed down the hall and stopped all conversation.

  Adam grimaced as he turned around. I really hoped she wasn’t going to pour salt in his wounds with what she was going to say.

  “The Board would like to you see you and Miss Mills before you go. Your attorney may accompany you.”

  Good God, what now?

  Graham immediately shifted back into attorney mode and ushered us back into the conference room. There was a noticeable difference in the room and not just because it was nearly empty now. Thomas wore a satisfied smile on his face, and the rest of the Board was looking everywhere but at us.

  “Please have a seat,” Thomas said.

  Adam shifted on his feet. “With all due respect, we’ll stand.”

  “Very well. I realize you have already tendered your resignation, but the Board has reconsidered their original position and would very much like you to stay on as principal of the elementary school…with a 10% increase in salary. And we would like to formally apologize to Miss Mills for any distress she has experienced during this unfortunate situation.”

  Thomas smiled at Adam while the rest of the Board looked anything but happy.

  “Uh…I don’t get it. What changed?” Adam asked, tightening his hold around my waist.

  Thomas glanced at Louise who stood behind us, and said, “We had some rather…compelling testimony from Louise on your behalf.”

  I turned to look at Louise with a stunned smile, which she returned. Adam looked completely dumbfounded as he turned to face her as well.

  “Louise?”

  As quick as it came, the smile disappeared and she was back to her normal cool aloofness. “Mr. Branigan, it’s a good offer. I suggest you take it.”

  The neurons seemed to have stopped firing, so I pulled Adam to the side and took his face in my hands.

  “Adam?”

  “What…what should I do?”

  “You should take your job back. What better way to piss off Mrs. Larkin?”

  A smile slowly spread across his face. “I like how you think.”

  Turning back to Thomas, Adam grinned as he said, “You’ve got yourself a deal, Thomas.” Then he picked me up around the waist and spun us in a circle. I giggled when he set me down.

  Then he strode over and did the same thing to Louise. The look of shock on her face was priceless.

  “I could kiss you right now, Louise.”

  Louise smoothed down her dress. “Please don’t. The twirling was quite enough.”

  “What did you say to them?” I asked her, dying to know what could have changed their minds so completely.

  Louise snapped her chin up. “I simply reminded them that having worked for the school district for fifty years, I know them all very well. The walls are thin and people talk. Everyone’s got dirt, and I know all of theirs.”

  “See you tomorrow morning, Mr. Branigan,” she said as she turned on her heel and walked out the door.

  “I think I’m in love,” Graham muttered.

  “Wow. I so did not see that coming,” Adam mused as we left the conference room.

  Our friends were waiting anxiously outside the door, and we filled them in on what happened.

  “Drinks are back on you,” Graham said, slapping Adam hard on the back.

  As we passed Mrs. Larkin in the hall, Adam said, “I’ll see you at the next PTO meeting, Mrs. Larkin.”

  Now that was priceless.

  The pub was packed when we arrived. Monday Night Football was a big draw. Ford wasn’t working, but he went behind the bar to fix our drinks himself. Poppy and I stalked the people in the large corner booth, and the second they got up to leave we slid in. Ford dropped off the first round of drinks and then went to deliver our food orders to the kitchen.

  Adam picked up his beer and held it high. “A toast. To the woman I love. To the woman who showed me what’s really important in life. To Louise.”

  I raised my eyebrows at him.

  “Just kidding. To Brooke. May this be the first of many toasts I give in your honor.”

  We all clinked our glasses together and drank.

  “The next toast should be at your wedding,” Leah said, looking pointedly at Adam.

  I rolled my eyes, sure that was an attempt by Leah to make Adam uncomfortable. He just smiled and leaned back against the booth, draping his arms around my shoulder and winking at me. Huh. He didn’t look uncomfortable at all.

  The next two hours passed in a blur of food, drinks and good company. I was content to settle into the crook of Adam’s arm and enjoy the time with our friends. For the first time in forever, I felt like I was truly happy.

  “Brooke?”

  Naomi’s voice pierced my happiness bubble, and I reluctantly turned around.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  Adam put his hand on my knee. “Hi Naomi, we didn’t know you were back in town.”

  My mom tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear. “I said I would be back soon to settle down.” She looked at me as she spoke. “I’m going to try something new and actually do what I say I will.”

  Adam’s gentle squeeze on my knee was the only thing that kept me from rolling my eyes.

  “That’s great. Would you like to join us?” Adam asked, gesturing to the empty spot next to him.

  Naomi glanced at me before responding. “Oh, no. I need to be getting home. I have a job interview in the morning, and then I’ll be looking for an apartment close by.” She hesitated before continuing. “Brooke, I just wanted to let you know I was back and tell Adam congratulations. Mom told me what happened at the hearing.”

  With an awkward wave, Naomi turned and walked toward the door. I blew out a breath and slumped back against Adam.

  “Who was that?” Graham asked as he slid into the booth across from us. I didn’t like the already familiar gleam in his eyes.

  “Don’t even think about it, Graham. That’s my mom.”

  He let out a low whistle. “No, shit? Adam, you are one lucky asshole. They always say you should check out the mother so you know what you’re in for.”

  I snorted. “That won’t work too well in this situation, considering she’s only thirty-nine.”

  “Seriously? That’s definitely within my age limits,” Graham said.

  As Graham scooted back out of the booth, I grabbed onto Adam’s arm. “Do not let him go after my mom,” I ordered.

  “Don’t worry. He’s got an early flight back to the city tomorrow morning.”

  That’s good, because I don’t think I could handle my mom being that close to my personal life. I preferred to keep things on surface level with her. Unfortunately, if she actually did settle down here, that might have to change.

  Adam massaged the back of my neck and leaned close. “Hey, no frowning allowed. Tonight we’re celebrating.”

  Giving him a smile that I didn’t have to fake, I said, “You’re right. I’ll worry about her tomorrow. Tonight is about you.”

  “And you,” he murmured, placing a chaste kiss on my lips. “What do you say we get out of here?”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  Adam stood up and offered his hand as I slid out of the booth behind him. Wrapping my arms around his neck, I stood up on tiptoe to kiss him. When we pulled apart, he was grinning down at me.

  “What?”

  He leaned back in to nuzzle his nose against mine. “Nothing. I’m just ready to get you home and under me.”

  “Oh, you say the sweetest things,” I teased.

  “Okay, how about this? I can’t wait to start the rest of my life with the most beautiful woman in the world.”

  “Hmmm, that’s a little better.”

  “You guys aren’t leaving already, are you?” Graham asked with a fresh drink in his
hand.

  Adam slung his arm around my shoulder. “Yup.”

  “Well, I’m going to hang here for a while. Grady said I could crash at their place and he’d give me a ride to the airport in the morning. Since you have a job to go to,” Graham said. “And you two don’t need me bunking with you tonight.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Unless you’re into that sort of thing?”

  “No,” Adam said decisively.

  Graham laughed. “Just kidding, man. I have no desire to see you naked.”

  “Good to know. Thanks for all your help,” Adam said as they did the guy hug thing.

  Graham slapped him on the back and winked at me. “I’ll send you a bill.”

  After saying goodbye and thank you to everyone else, Adam took my hand and brought it to his lips.

  “Come on, Brooke, let’s go home.”

  Epilogue

  Adam

  Eight Months Later

  “Are you sure this isn’t too much pink?” I asked from my perch on a stepstool. I was holding up a curtain rod with pink and white patterned drapes that fell to the floor.

  “That’s a silly question, Adam. There is no such thing as too much pink,” Lindsay replied. She was across the room, directing Grady on where to hang the artwork on the opposite wall.

  “Yeah. Duh, Adam,” Grady joked.

  Lindsay shot him a glare that turned his laugh into a cough.

  “This is so romantic,” Leah sighed. “Why don’t you ever do anything like this for me?” she asked Josh, who was lying on his back underneath the sink, tightening the pipes. When Josh didn’t reply, Leah kicked his thigh and stormed off.

  “What the fuck, Leah?” Josh grumbled, rubbing his leg.

  Leah turned with her hands planted firmly on her hips. “Adam’s doing this for Brooke. Grady planned a surprise wedding for Lindsay. Ford gave up his dream job to follow Poppy to medical school. What have you ever done for me?” she demanded.

  “Uh…I knocked you up?”

  All the guys in the room winced at Josh’s answer. Not smart, dude.

  Leah fisted her hands at her side and yelled, “Asshole!” before stomping outside and slamming the door behind her.

  Josh dropped the wrench on the floor and went after her, grumbling the whole way. “Fucking woman.”

  Lindsay and Grady went back to work like nothing had happened.

  “Uh…are they okay? Leah seems a little tense lately.”

  Lindsay flicked her wrist. “Oh, yeah. They fight like that all the time…lately.”

  Just then the door opened, and I braced myself for another round of Leah’s antics. Instead it was Ford and Poppy with four pizza boxes and three two liters of soda.

  “Food’s here.”

  “Let’s eat in the house,” I suggested, steering them right back out the door. “I don’t want to spill anything.”

  “It’s a tile floor. What would it hurt to spill?” Ford asked.

  “Oh, that’s so sweet,” Poppy said. “He just wants everything to be perfect for Brooke,” she explained to Ford.

  As soon as I sat down in the kitchen with a slice of pepperoni, my phone rang. It was Brooke, so I ran upstairs to answer it. I was supposed to be on my way home from a weeklong conference, so having her hear the voices of her friends in the background would blow my surprise.

  “Hey, baby.”

  “Hi! Guess what?”

  “What?”

  “I got an early flight, so I’ll be home tonight. Isn’t that great? I miss you so much,” she squealed.

  Oh, shit.

  “That’s great,” I said, feigning excitement while I mentally ran through everything I had to get done by tonight. “What time exactly will you be home?”

  “My flight is boarding now, so I should be pulling into the driveway by six o’clock.”

  Six hours?

  “That’s great,” I said again. “I can’t wait to see you.”

  “I have to go, but I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  She wasn’t supposed to be home until tomorrow afternoon, so now I needed to fast forward my schedule by almost twenty-four hours.

  Racing back downstairs, I pulled the pizza boxes out from in front of everyone.

  “No time for eating! Brooke will be home in six hours. Get back to work!”

  Six Hours Later

  “No peeking,” I said, adjusting the scarf tied over Brooke’s eyes to make sure she couldn’t see anything.

  Setting my hands on her shoulders, I guided her across the driveway and up the stairs to what used to be my apartment. After Eleanor had moved to Florida last fall, I had moved into the house with Brooke. She was working on updating it to fit her taste room by room. The garage apartment had sat empty ever since.

  Brooke was reluctant to rent it out again, because she wanted to turn it into a salon someday. She had told me one night about her dream to go out on her own and have her own salon. So when she planned a weeklong visit to Eleanor’s condo in Florida, I saw my opportunity to make at least one of her dreams come true.

  “Why are we going to the apartment?”

  “Patience is a virtue,” I reminded her…and myself. After not seeing her for a week, she was like an oasis when she came home wearing a short blue sundress.

  I stopped her outside the door and reached around her to push it open. Leading her just inside the door, I untied the scarf and let it fall away.

  “Oh my God!” Brooke gasped, covering her mouth with both hands. Her eyes were darting back and forth around the room, taking in everything.

  “Did you do this?”

  “Yeah. Well, Lindsay did most of the design. She assured me this wasn’t too much pink…” I trailed off, taking in the pale pink walls, pink and white curtains, pink and gray artwork on the walls.

  “I love pink,” Brooke gushed, tentatively walking around. She trailed her fingertips along the stainless steel counter and over the bottles of shampoo and hair products lined up on the glass shelves.

  “Josh did all the plumbing, and Grady helped me with the flooring. Everybody pitched in.”

  Brooke was still walking around in a daze, touching everything lightly with one hand while the other was pressed against her throat.

  “Do you like it?”

  She spun around and flashed the most amazing smile at me. “Yes! I absolutely love it. Every single thing is just…perfect.” She tilted her head as she looked at me. “But when did you have time to do all this?”

  I stuck my hands in my pockets. “Well…that conference I was supposed to be at all week? Yeah, that didn’t really exist.”

  My fears that she would be pissed that I lied to her were immediately eased when she skipped over and threw her arms around my neck.

  “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you,” she murmured against my mouth, in between kisses.

  So glad to be able to hold her again after a week apart, I wrapped my arms around her waist and tangled my tongue with hers. She smelled so good, and I kissed across her cheek to bury my nose in her hair.

  I was hoping to christen the new salon right then and there, but Brooke pulled away so she could inspect every inch of the room. I followed her around, her enthusiasm infectious.

  “I can’t believe I get to have my own salon!” Brooke squealed, clapping her hands together. “I have to tell Loraine, of course, and give her a months’ notice. But then I can start seeing my own clients here. I have so many ideas; I don’t even know where to start!”

  I held my arms out. “You can put me to work. I don’t have anything to do for the next two months.” That wasn’t exactly true. I did have a lot of work to do this summer getting ready for the new curriculum and standards I wanted to introduce into the school next year. But if Brooke needed my help, I would make time.

  “This is the best day ever. I don’t know how it could possibly get any more perfect,” Brooke said as she once again launched herself into my arms.

  With one arm I held her close while my o
ther hand slipped into my pocket for the one thing I hoped could do the impossible and make this day even better. Easing back slightly, I looked into the wide green eyes that had captivated me from the first moment they met mine.

  “There is one more thing…” I said as I stepped back and dropped down on one knee.

  Brooke’s eyes almost popped out of her head and both hands flew up to cover her mouth.

  “Brooke,” I said, pulling a diamond engagement ring out of my pocket, “I know we haven’t even been together for a year yet, but for me it seems like I’ve known you forever. You have made me happier than I ever thought possible and I can’t imagine living the rest of my life without you. You’re starting a new life here in your own salon, and I hope that you will consider starting a life with me too.”

  She was still staring at me, her eyes flitting between my face and the ring I held out to her.

  “Brooke?”

  “Oh! Yes!” She stuck out her left hand, and it trembled as I slid the ring onto her finger. Before I could stand up, she sunk to her knees in front of me and grabbed my face with both hands. That kiss is one I will never forget, given without hesitation and full of unspoken emotion. There were tears in her eyes when we finally parted.

  “Are those happy tears?” I asked, framing her face with my hands and brushing my thumbs over her cheekbones.

  “Oh, yes. I’m so happy with you. I love you, Adam.”

  “I love you, too, baby.”

  Two Hours Later

  Later that night, after christening the new salon, we strolled hand in hand down the sidewalk, headed to the pub to meet up with everyone. They already knew about my plan to propose, so this was an engagement party of sorts.

  Brooke held up her left hand, so the diamond caught what was left of the setting sun. “This ring is beautiful. Did you pick it out?”

  “Yup. That one was my favorite, but I took Poppy with me for final approval. It reminded me of you. It sparkles from every angle. Just like you.”

  Brooke sighed as she admired the ring. “I guess this solves the question of whether we should move or not.”

  Ever since Eleanor had moved to Florida, Brooke had been debating whether to sell the house or stay in it. I tried not to influence her, but as time went on I could tell she was reluctant to leave.