Train Wreck

by T Gephart

  “Then we go and we’ll have a good time. And fuck everyone else, and their opinions of you.” I meant it too. I wasn’t going to let some asshole’s view dictate her good time. She was going to be with me, and she was going to smile all night.

  “Fuck everyone.” She agreed, laughing. “But you’re going to have to wear a suit.” Her previous happy face turning concerned, probably expecting me not to own one. “It’s formal.”

  “I can do a suit.” I laughed, reassuring her that while I didn’t wear a jacket and tie most days, I still had one or two hanging in my wardrobe. Might even be time for an upgrade, the idea of looking my best for her something I’d happily shell out money for. “It might not be designer, but it will do.”

  I wasn’t deluding myself. She probably paid more for one pair of shoes than I did my entire wardrobe, but I knew I could make it work.

  “I don’t care if it’s designer.” She waved me off. “But if you want to buy something, we could go shopping. My treat, I could even get a new dress.” Her eyes lit up at the prospect.

  “Yeah, that isn’t going to happen. You aren’t buying me clothes.”

  There were some things where I wasn’t willing to bend. Her spending money on me, buying me clothes was a hard limit for me. Maybe I was more old school than I thought, but there was more chance of her trading in that fancy car for a truck than her buying me a suit.

  “It’s just money, Josh. It’s no big deal.” She lowered her voice, not understanding why I would say no.

  “It’s a big deal to me.”

  “Okay.” She shook her head, a whole lot of I-don’t-get-your-issue-but-I’m-not-going-to-fight-you-either. “Whatever you want.”

  “Good, now let’s go get lunch while we still can.”

  For the rest of the day I was spared questions about what I was working on, and we didn’t talk about money either. It was something that no doubt would come up in the future, but we’d jump off that bridge if and when we came to it.

  Instead, I focused on my work, both human canvases, and the stuff on regular paper. My secret project was not so surprisingly a gift for Eve, something I hoped might make her smile. But I wanted to finish it before doing the unveiling, which was going to prove challenging given we spent so many hours together.

  “Hey, J.” Dallas walked in without knocking, the open door clearly an invitation. “You want to go get some dinner tonight?” The bastard looked unreasonably smug. “I’m buying.”

  “As much as I hate to turn you down.” And Dallas offering to pay was something that rarely happened, so the regret was real. “I have plans.” My plans of Eve and her body, something I had been thinking about all day.

  “She can come too.” He rolled his eyes, stupid grin on his face. “I assumed you were a two-for-one deal. Besides, she’s better looking than you, and it’s possible I might even like her more than you too. So this is a roundabout way of me getting to have dinner with her. Like dating by proxy.”

  “You realize how messed up that makes you sound, right?” I shook my head, his brutal honesty not at all surprising even if it was ridiculous. “And that you’re basically admitting you’re interested in the woman I’m seeing?”

  “Dude, how long have we known each other?” He had the nerve to look offended. “You know no matter how interested I am, I would never make a play for someone you were seeing. But, I’m still allowed to look.” Dallas cracked a grin.

  “Fine, as long as Eve is cool with it, we’ll go to dinner.” We still had to eat, right. And I’d waited this long, what was another hour or two. “But she gets to pick the place so be prepared to spend big.”

  “Oh, she already said yes, I asked her first.” And now the smug ass grin made perfect sense. “I figured she had your balls in her purse anyways, but if you did say no then the two of us would have an enjoyable dinner.”

  “You are such a shit.” I threw my head back and laughed. Had to hand it to him, he was fucking slick. No wonder women loved him.

  Dallas planted his butt on the chair opposite me, looking pretty freaking pleased. “Yeah, but your girlfriend thinks I’m sweet, so there’s that.”

  “I never said she was my girlfriend, by the way.” My head did a quick look around to see if she was in earshot. Not that I didn’t want to call her that, but I understood it was probably too soon. And I probably should discuss it with her before Dallas.

  “Oh, come on, dude.” He didn’t even try to be subtle. “Don’t insult my intelligence or hers. If she’s not your girlfriend then what the hell is she? Some girl? Your receptionist? Actually, let’s clear it up right now.” He turned toward the open door, giving his voice more volume. “Eve, sweetheart, can you come here a minute?”

  “You, my friend, are asking for trouble.” I wasn’t sure if I wanted to let this play out—part of me curious—or whether to just put him out of his misery.

  “Did you just call me sweetheart?” Eve looked at Dallas like he’d sprouted a second head as she entered the room.

  “Yes, but more importantly, I need you to do something for me.” He waved her in closer, not having the decency to let this stupid issue go. “Are you Josh’s girlfriend?”

  “Is this a trick question?” She looked at me and then back to Dallas confused. I didn’t blame her, it didn’t make a lot of sense out of context.

  “Dallas seems to be hung up on labels.” I decided to man up and just tell her the freaking truth. It’s not like he wouldn’t enjoy giving her his version of it. Something told me, mine would be better.

  “He called you my girlfriend. I pointed out that the term wasn’t something we’d discussed yet. He decided he needed to make an issue of it. Feel free to ignore him.”

  “Oh, well in that case.” The confusion eased out of her face, smiling as she turned toward Dallas. “Yes, I’m Josh’s girlfriend.”

  “See, I told you so.” He tipped his chin, satisfied. “Be ready to go in ten, kids. Josh, you’re driving,” he called over his shoulder as he walked out the door.

  “That doesn’t freak you out, does it?” Eve moved closer, her eyes catching mine. “You’re not one of those guys who panics about the C word are you?”

  “Nope, was just looking for the right time,” I admitted without hesitation. “I had unofficially claimed you the other day if you remember, I’m just giving you the illusion it wasn’t a done deal.” My hand ran down the side of her arm, the need to touch her too great.

  “Well good, because I didn’t want to be like all those people who have Facebook statuses of it’s complicated. I always called them douchey, my friends would never let me live it down if I became one of them.” She laughed. “Besides I like that I get to call you my boyfriend. It’s less wordy than the guy I have sexual fantasies about.”

  “They’re not fantasies if I make them happen.” I planted a kiss on her neck, a promise of what was going to happen later. I’d enjoy hearing all about those fantasies too, and check them off one by one.

  “I said ten minutes, people. What are you doing? I’m hungry,” Dallas called from the front of the store.

  “We’re coming,” I shouted back, wondering if it was too late to change our minds. Dinner with Dallas no longer seemed appealing.

  Eve giggled at my choice of words and tossed back at me, “Not yet,” before she went to my door, waiting for me to join her.

  “Let’s go.” I hit the light and slung my arm around my new girlfriend’s waist. “The sooner we get this over with, the sooner I can get you home.”

  Eve

  “SO, YOU WERE JUGGLING? IN A BAR?”

  I was hearing Dallas’s account of how he ended up in the emergency room and even though I had heard Josh’s version, it was no less ridiculous the second time around.

  “And I don’t know any woman who’d be turned on by juggling, Dallas, sorry. I think you need a new party trick, maybe something with less chance of injury.” I took a sip of my draft beer, something I didn’t usually drink but surprisingly it was
n’t so bad.

  Even though the venue for dinner had been my choice, I was conscious to keep it low key. I knew both of the guys would feel more comfortable at a local steakhouse in Queens than a fancy bistro someplace else. But even though it had seemed simple and understated, dinner had been amazing. The food was perfectly cooked, the service had been impeccable and the company—outstanding. Interestingly enough, I’d preferred the local steakhouse to the bistro as well. I was sensing a theme, and it had little do with dinner.

  “What? So you’re an authority on all women now?” Dallas argued, amusement peppering his voice. “I would say my track record speaks for itself.”

  “I think what Eve was trying to point out,” Josh played the diplomat. “Was the caliber of woman you would attract with the juggling wouldn’t be as high as something else. Anything else.” His throaty laugh made my skin tingle.

  He had a really awesome, manly laugh that conjured up visions of wood chopping and camping in a forest. I didn’t even like camping, let alone in a forest, but that laugh would probably be enough to convince me.

  “Well, not everyone wants fancy. I’m happy playing in my end of the pool. No offense, Eve.” He took a swig of his beer, hiding his smirk.

  “Okay,” I laughed, not offended even though usually I would be. It was obvious he was baiting me looking for a reaction. “And what end of the pool would that be, Dallas? The shallow end?”

  “You want some ice for that burn?” Josh smirked, draping an arm around the back of my chair and giving me a kiss. “Nicely handled.”

  While I knew he was joking, people threw out innuendo like that all the time. That because my family had money, that it somehow made me conceited. And it was just not true. We all had preconceived ideas to overcome; no one got a free ride despite outward appearances.

  “Well, anyway.” Dallas pretended to ignore me, making an exaggerated display at tipping his beer at Josh. “I wanted to thank you for saving my life last weekend. This could have ended with a much sadder ending, one where I didn’t make it.” He lifted his beer. “You’re a true friend.”

  “There was no danger of you dying, you moron. It was a cut.” Josh grinned, clinking his glass despite not agreeing with the toast. “But anytime, dude.” It was heartwarming to watch.

  “So have you done anything interesting for a girl?” My attention turned to Josh, my interest at an all-time high. “Made a fool of yourself to impress someone?”

  “Nope, not a thing.” He hid his grin behind his beer as he shot Dallas a funny look.

  “Oh, now I know there’s a story.” I shuffled in closer, curious to hear how Josh, who always seemed in control, had unraveled for a girl.

  “He has the worst tattoo I’ve ever seen on his left shoulder,” Dallas volunteered, moving in closer, grinning as he dished the dirt. “It’s supposed to be a crow, but it looks more like two storm clouds fucking, flanked by a pair of wings. It’s so saturated, there’s no chance of saving it either.”

  “It’s not that bad.” Josh rolled his eyes. “It was a first attempt, and it’s not even that big. I barely even know it’s there.”

  “I’m assuming you let someone else do this to you?” I couldn’t help but cast my mind back to when I had held a tattoo machine in my hand, my effort probably a thousand times worse than the one they were talking about.

  “Jade, my girlfriend at the time.” He rubbed the back of his neck, coy grin told me it probably was as bad as Dallas implied. “She wanted to learn, we went through the basics and then when it was time, I offered myself up as a canvas.”

  “He broke the golden rule, don’t ever mix ink and women,” Dallas weighed in, passionately trying to sell his point. “Ends up badly for everyone. Do you know how many dudes get some lame ass tattoo because of a girl and then end up breaking up? And women aren’t any better either, getting Billy Bob on their freaking arm and then end up shacking up with Brad Pitt.”

  “I’ll remember that next time Angelina Jolie walks in.” Josh laughed. “Oh, wait, she probably doesn’t give a shit what two no-names from Queens think.”

  “So, after you let her—Jade—do it, then what?” I was curious about the story of Josh, the crow tattoo and the girl. It sounded like a suspense movie, and one I was dying to hear the conclusion to.

  “So, I picked the design, thinking the crow would look badass. And she practiced on paper, sketched it out and everything.” He shook his head as if it was playing back in his mind. “But when she came to the actual piece she freaked. Then she got nervous and didn’t want to tell me she wasn’t feeling good about it, and figured it was better just to finish. End result wasn’t great. It scarred pretty badly and like Dallas said, it’s too saturated to even consider a cover up. I mean, it would have to be a really, really good artist. So I just left it there as a reminder that I don’t always make great decisions.”

  I hated Jade.

  Ridiculous, because it was before I knew him, and she was no longer in the picture. But I hated she had gotten a chance to draw on him when I hadn’t. Which was again ridiculous considering I didn’t know how to tattoo and my effort would’ve probably been worse. It was dumb, I was jealous. Dumb, dumb, dumb. And yet, there I was. Annoyed they’d shared something I knew was important to him and I never would.

  “Well I hate to agree with Dallas on this, but he has a point.” I tried—probably unsuccessfully—to keep my agitation out of my voice. “Not a smart move. Such a shame to ruin perfectly good skin.”

  “Yes, Eve sided with me.” Dallas raised his hand, waiting for me to high-five. “Someone write that on a calendar or something.”

  “No real harm was done.” Josh shook his head, shrugging. “It’s not like I put anyone else at risk.”

  Well, that was a matter of opinion. He’d put himself at risk, and that was enough as far as I was concerned.

  I wondered if there were other times he had sacrificed part of himself for someone else. It was evident he had a big heart, so many little things he did hinted to that. The way he’d allowed me to come work with him even though he probably had his doubts. That he allowed me to sit in with him while he worked, an extra set of eyes probably adding pressure he didn’t need. Taking Dallas to the hospital, and staying with him over the weekend, making sure he was okay. Driving Kitty home from the hospital after her date had gone south. Not telling me how he felt because he was trying to do the right thing. Agreeing to go to my gallery thing even though he probably didn’t want to. So many little things that I hadn’t really noticed, yet put together showed me what an amazing, considerate and caring man he was.

  Jade had taken advantage of that, and I’m sure other women had too.

  “Hey, you still with us?” Josh’s hand had dropped to my shoulder giving me a slight shake. “You zoned out on us.”

  “Yeah, I don’t know where I went,” I joked, tapping my head lightly with my fingers and forcing the smile. My thoughts, not something I wanted to share.

  “We can go, Eve.” Josh focused on me. “If you’re tired, or whatever, we can call it a night. Dallas is cool with that.” His head tipped to his friend sitting across from us who was nodding.

  “Totally, just let me grab the check and I’ll hitch a ride with you guys.” Dallas pushed away from the table and flagged a waiter.

  The waiter, Pete, ended up being someone Dallas and Josh knew, so after a quick introduction, Dallas walked off to the counter to chat and settle the bill. The two of them made plans to catch up on the weekend as they left Josh and I sitting at the table.

  “I was okay with staying, honestly.” I leaned my head against Josh’s broad shoulder, which was on my top ten places to rest it. “I’m not a party pooper.” Nor did I want to seem like the reason to end their night.

  “Did you think maybe I was using that as an excuse so I can get you home and alone?” Josh bit back his grin. “It’s a lot more polite than telling Dallas I need to get back to my place to have sex with my girlfriend.”

  �
��Well, in that case, I am tired.” I faked a yawn, wanting to be alone with him too.

  Dallas returned to the table so we said a quick goodbye to Pete and returned to Josh’s black Jeep. The conversation on the ride to Dallas’s house was easy. The guys talked about the shop, tattoos they had coming up and even asked me for input. I interjected enough conversation so I didn’t seem rude but my mind was on Josh. On how lucky I had been to find him. Not just because he was gorgeous and talented, but because he had an amazing heart and I was going to be a better person for knowing him. He was exactly the person I needed right now, and I thanked God, Kitty, my wayward boyfriend and even my shitty work for creating the storm so our worlds collided.

  “See you both tomorrow.”

  When we got to his apartment, Dallas hopped out of the Jeep and waved goodbye. Josh waited for him to disappear before turning to me. “My place okay with you?”

  “Yep, more than okay.” I smiled back, giving him a reassuring squeeze.

  I had briefly seen the outside of his apartment when we picked up his car yesterday but was excited to see his personal space.

  He lived close to the tattoo studio in a row of apartments in what was the artsy part of the city. Galleries, art institutions and studios—it seemed a melting pot for inspiration and I immediately understood why anyone would choose Long Island City as a place to live and work. It didn’t have the stiffness of the Upper East Side, the streets living and breathing as much as the people in them.

  “This is a really nice neighborhood,” I said as he pulled up to the curb, parking the Jeep in front of his apartment building.