“I don’t text much. The barbeque is this Saturday?”
“Yes, at my friend’s, Madison.”
“Hmm.”
Oh, dang it! He doesn’t want to come.
“I have to work until two. Where does she live?”
“Right in town. Easy as pie to find.”
“Okay. I can be there around three?”
“Sure. Are you bringing April?”
“Actually, since I’m working, my sister is keeping her for the day and they are planning to go to the Woodland Park Zoo.”
“What fun! Maybe I should go with them.”
Bud laughed heartily. “Maybe we could do that sometime.”
Roxy beamed. He must like me a little.
* * * *
Saturday morning Madison stood at the kitchen sink washing vegetables. Her head ticked away at how many people had been invited and how much food was at hand. She cut the celery sticks and placed them onto a tray. Locking the lid in place, she set the Tupperware container in the refrigerator. Everything was nearly ready. She glanced at her watch. Time for her shower.
Half an hour later she walked out of the bathroom in her robe, a towel wrapped around her head. Justin sat at the kitchen table, reading the Saturday paper, munching on a celery stick. The container sat open beside him.
Madison threw up her arms. “What are you doing?”
Justin turned to her, a long celery thread hung out of his mouth. His eyes were wide with surprise.
“That’s for the barbeque! How many have you eaten?”
He held up his hand and ticked off three fingers.
“Oh!” Unable to stop herself, she grabbed up the container and recounted the number of sticks. She already knew how many she had, minus the three he ate from her total, but her OCD wouldn’t let her be. Her compulsiveness drove her anger toward Justin as much as toward herself.
“Honey. It’s just celery,” Justin stated flatly.
Madison continued counting.
“Madison! Stop it.”
She turned away from him, her counting continued. Not until she finished could she turn back to face him. Her eyes burned with hot tears. “I can’t stop it sometimes. That’s what you don’t get!” Quietly, she spoke again. “The number is uneven now.” She took a piece of celery and set it on the counter, not bothering to offer it to him.
Justin stood up. He closed his eyes and gave a slight shake to his head. “I’ll finish the yard.”
Madison walked to the refrigerator and placed the container back. She slammed the door, angry with herself. “It’s only fucking celery! For crying out loud, Madison! Get over it.”
* * * *
Cory and his band started warming up at noon. Roxy came early to help with any finishing touches. Elvira and Jacki popped in around the same time, hauling extra chairs and wood for the fire pit.
Justin found Madison in the kitchen, talking to Sunday. “Hey, we need some more propane for the barbeque. I just checked the tank and it’s empty. I’m going to run into Woolley. Did you need anything else?”
Madison put her finger to her lips. “Mmmm. I can’t think of anything.”
“Be back in a few. “ He leaned down and kissed Madison lightly on the lips. She tried to convey, “I love you,” with her eyes. He smiled in return.
Sunday watched him leave. “He seems quite smitten with you.”
Madison nodded. “He seems to put up with my OCD and stupid insecurities.”
“We’ve all got insecurities, Madison.”
Madison looked Sunday up and down. “It’s kinda difficult to picture you with insecurities. But...” she thought about Duffy’s abusiveness, “I know you’ve got different issues.”
Sunday placed her arm around Madison and walked her outside. “Now, what is this I hear about my young cousin having a new boyfriend?”
Madison laughed. “Roxy told you about Bud?”
“And he’s supposed to show up later today? I only hope he isn’t wearing a silver studded collar with a bunch of chains hanging around him.”
“We’ll see,” Madison responded.
* * * *
Justin set the refilled propane tank in his truck and he walked into the service station to pay. A man in front of him looked familiar. The man paid for his gas and began to walk out when Justin called out, “Hey, what have you been up to lately?”
The tall man turned. A wide smile broke out on his face. “Justin! Where have you been keeping yourself?”
“I’ve been working with a crew on a house, out towards Anacortes. And yourself?”
“Same thing, different day.” He paused. “What are you doing now? We could catch a cold one at the Old Timers.”
Justin shook his head. “I gotta head back home. We’re having a barbeque. Why don’t you follow me over there? Got a live band, oysters, hamburgers. Hell, I could even burn you a hotdog.”
His friend laughed. “Lead on.”
* * * *
Roxy chewed her nails to the quick, eyeing the traffic. What if he didn’t show? Just then, she saw Bud’s truck coming down the highway. She ran toward the road, waving. He slowed and Roxy pointed toward the empty lot he could pull his truck into. A minute later, he climbed out of his truck, carrying a bouquet of flowers. “I brought these for the hostess—Madison?”
Roxy nodded, grinning from ear to ear. “She’ll love those.”
Roxy found Madison and made polite introductions. Bud handed her the bouquet.
“Thank you! I don’t think anyone’s ever brought flowers to my barbeque. The guys usually just bring a six pack or a bag of chips.” She smelled the bouquet. “They’re lovely.”
Roxy took a hold of Bud’s hand. “That’s my brother, there.” She pointed to Cory playing the lead guitar.
Bud tapped his foot to the old rock and roll tune. “They’re not bad.”
“Next break, I’ll introduce you to him. I gotta take you to meet some friends.” Roxy pulled him toward the fire pit. Roxy pointed at each person through the introductions. “Sunday, Jacki, and Elvira, this is Bud.”
Jacki reached for his hand first. “Bud as in Bud Light Lime?” She held up her beer.
Bud shook her hand, nodding. A large grin broke out. “I don’t think my dad had that in mind when he gave me the nickname.” Roxy plopped down in a chair and patted the seat next to her. “Have a seat.” His butt had barely hit the chair when Roxy jumped up. “Can I get you a beer, soda, water?”
“Huh, a beer would be fine. Not the lime, though. Just a regular beer.”
Roxy was up and away. She grabbed up a beer out of the ice chest and promptly took it to him.
“Thank you.” Bud took a long pull on the bottle. Roxy took her chair and glanced at the women. All eyes seemed to be upon her.
“What?”
The sound of a loud diesel engine drew their attention. Justin got out of his truck and grabbed up the propane container.
“Ow, nice. Soup’s on,” Jacki noted.
Roxy frowned, wondering about the vehicle that pulled in behind Justin. She shrugged. A moment later a man Roxy didn’t recognize followed Justin as he connected the fuel to the barbeque.
Sunday stood up and threw a couple more chunks of wood on the fire. Sparks flew on Roxy’s leg. She quickly brushed them off. No burn.
A male voice, smooth and deep, broke through the quietness.
“Sunday! I didn’t know you had a life outside of working.”
Sunday turned quickly. Roxy noticed a bit of blush to her face. “Michael.” A pause. “How did you...”
Michael waved. “Justin used to work for me. I ran into him in town and he invited me.”
Roxy jumped up and took the chair on the other side of Bud. She pointed to the empty seat between Bud and Sunday. “Go ahead and sit there.”
Sunday’s eyes flashed quickly toward her cousin. She seemed to catch herself. “Yes, Michael. Go ahead and take a seat.”
Michael walked around the circle and sat down. �
��So, where’s Duffy?”
The women broke into laughter. Sunday responded, “Duffy isn’t... Duffy doesn’t come here very often. He and Roxy don’t get along.”
Roxy pointed at Michael. “You’re the guy that Sunday is doing the accounting job with.”
Michael nodded. “She’s certainly helped me out.”
“Sunday’s a drone.”
“Huh?” Michael’s eyebrows rose.
“A drone. A worker bee. Busy...busy...”
“Oh.”
Sunday piped up. “I’m not the only one here with two jobs.”
“Ya, ya.” Roxy waved.
Bud turned in his chair towards Roxy. “You have two jobs?”
Roxy quickly turned to her cousin and mouthed thanks.
“Where else do you work?” Bud inquired.
Roxy sighed. “I just have another cleaning job for some offices. Just a couple nights a week.”
“Energetic couple of women,” Bud commented. Michael nodded in agreement.
Desperate maybe, thought Roxy.
“Hey,” Madison yelled. “Come on and eat, Justin’s burning the burgers.”
* * * *
About an hour later, Sunday was getting ready to leave when she saw her husband walking around the corner of the house into the backyard. She waved. “Duffy!”
He lifted his head and nodded, walking towards her. “Lee and his wife invited us out to dinner tonight, about seven. I tried to call your cell to see if you wanted to go or not...” His voiced trailed off. His brows furrowed. “What’s Michael doing here?”
“Oh.” Sunday turned. The group was sitting about thirty feet away. Although Michael’s back was to her, he had turned sideways talking to Bud. He was easily recognizable. Anxiety bubbled up in her stomach. “He said he used to work with Justin and ran into him in town this morning. Justin invited him.”
“Really?” Duffy asked, in a tone that told Sunday he didn’t believe the coincidence.
“How long has he been here?”
The implication struck a cord of anger. Sunday shrugged. “Gee, Honey, I didn’t know I was supposed to time him. Next time I will.” She glanced away. “I’ll need to get my purse.”
She found Madison and hugged her.
“Leaving so soon?” Madison asked.
“Yes, Duffy’s here and we have a dinner date with another couple tonight.”
Suddenly, Princess ran outside, barking loudly. She ran in front of Duffy, nipping at his pant leg and around his ankles.
Duffy moved his foot, pushing the dog over. “Madison,” he yelled. “Come and get your damn dog before I step on her.”
“Princess!” Madison scolded. She scooped her up in her arms. “She just doesn’t like something about you, Duffy.”
“Why don’t you get a real dog. A pit bull or boxer.”
“Weren’t you leaving?” she asked, holding Princess protectively.
Sunday frowned at Duffy and walked into the house to grab her purse. As she stepped back outside she felt her heart jump. Duffy stood by her circle of friends, his hands shoved in his pockets, teetering back and forth on the heels of his work boots, talking to Michael. She hoped he didn’t say anything to offend him. Sunday walked quickly to her husband and patted him on the shoulder. “I’m here.”
Duffy turned toward her, grinning. Sunday couldn’t tell if it was a genuine smile, or if anger hid behind it, as it did often.
He placed his arm around Sunday, drawing her close to him.
“Ready, Honey?”
Sunday smiled and nodded, before she glanced toward the sitting group of friends. “’Bye now. Have a great weekend.” She tried not to look directly at Michael.
Duffy waved and made eye contact with Michael. “See you next week.”
Michael nodded in response.
“’Bye, Sunday,” Roxy called out. Sunday waved to her and turned to leave. She felt Duffy’s hand slide off her shoulder and down lower until it rested on her hip. Sunday knew Duffy wasn’t doing that today to be affectionate. No, today, he was letting anyone that could be watching them leave, knew where his territory lies.
Duffy opened up the car door for her. “See you at home?”
Sunday nodded. “You’re parked behind me; I can’t leave until you do.” She placed the key in the ignition. Duffy remained by her open door. “What?”
“Michael. He seems quite taken with you.”
Sunday took a hold of the door handle. “You’re being silly. Let’s go.”
“He told me what a big help you’ve been.”
Sunday sighed. “Did you want to go out for dinner or not?”
“How come you didn’t answer your cell earlier?”
“Because it was in my purse in Madison’s bedroom.”
She tugged on the door once more. This time he lifted his arms off of it and allowed it to shut.
“See you home, then.”
Sunday nodded in response and waited for him to get into his truck. Nervous energy waved through her system. A jealous streak seemed to be a part of Duffy’s make up, his DNA structure. She hoped dinner with their friends would bring laughter and good company. Dread shadowed her thoughts. Duffy could either “let it go,” forget about Michael, or make what could be an enjoyable evening turn into a night of accusations, possibly an argument or worse.
* * * *
Madison put the last of the dishes into the dishwasher. She glanced out the kitchen window. Justin and her father sat out by the fire. Everyone else had left. What are they talking about? Justin leaned forward. Picking up a stick, he pointed toward the house. A moment later he used it to poke at the dying fire. Sparks flitted upward and died in the summer air. Picking up a kitchen towel, she dried her hands and hung it back on the refrigerator. Walking to the back room, she opened the sliding glass door. “You guys going to sit out there all night?”
“Maybe,” Big John answered.
“Be in, in a minute,” Justin replied.
Her father chuckled. “I see who wears the pants in this household.”
“Ya. Gotta keep her happy.”
Madison smiled as she closed the door again.
* * * *
Later that night while they cuddled after making love, Justin whispered in her ear, “I think we should get married.”
Madison sat up. “We’ve been through this. I don’t want to get married.”
Justin propped his arm under his head. “It’s the commitment thing again, isn’t it?”
“We are happy now. Why do anything different? Why ruin it?”
“It all goes back to your folks. Their divorce.”
“Divorces. Plural. I think if you add all the ex-husbands of my mom and ex-wives of my dad, you’d have enough people for a friggin’ baseball team.”
“It doesn’t have to be us. I love you, Madison. I promise I’ll never leave you. Never.”
Madison cuddled back down in bed. “We’ll see about that.”
“Yes, we will.” He placed his arm around her and drew her tension-filled body close to him.
Chapter 27
Sunday felt apprehensive. Her drive home did not seem to calm her anxiety. She pulled in the driveway behind Duffy’s truck. He must be in the house, probably getting dressed for dinner. She hoped he would not give her a bad time about Michael being at Madison’s. Him showing up had been an odd fluke. “This is silly,” she mumbled, turning her ignition off and getting out of her car. She walked up the walkway and entered her house.
“Duffy?”
Although she heard no reply, she could hear the faint sound of a shower running. She walked into the bedroom and sat her purse down beside her side of the bed. Sunday opened the walk-in closet doors and turned on the light. Flipping through the hangers, she stopped at her black designer jeans. She laid the pants across her arm, and began looking for a blouse. She found a black and white vertical striped, long sleeved shirt. She grabbed the hanger and laid both items on her bed.
The shower had
stopped running. Sunday kicked off her sandals and knocked on the bathroom door.
“You can come in,” Duffy answered.
Sunday stepped into the large bathroom. She smiled a smile she did not mean. “Hi, Honey.”
Duffy stood naked, drying off with an extra large thick bath towel. “You taking a shower now?”
Sunday nodded and began to undress. Duffy walked to the large mirror, wiping the steamed up mirror with his towel. He ran his large hand across the angle of his jaw. “Think I should shave again?”
“Wouldn’t hurt,” Sunday noted, slipping off her black thong. She knew Duffy’s eyes were watching her reflection in the mirror. She reached up and turned on the shower, feeling the warm water beneath her touch. She stepped into the shower and closed the door. Sunday’s face tilted up towards the spray of warm water, enjoying the sensation of it flowing down her face and hair. The noise of the shower door opening didn’t surprise her. Neither did the hands that slid around her and cupped her firm breasts. She felt Duffy’s erection grow quickly when he pulled her towards him. He grabbed her thigh and lifted her leg onto the protruding shower edge. Her foot touched the shampoo bottle. His free hand slid to her front, traveling down her flat tight stomach. Despite herself, Sunday moaned with pleasure. Duffy leaned into her. His thrusts were quick and deep, pounding against her. His climax was swift. Sunday tilted her head towards the running water once again. Duffy would not notice her tears; mingling with the clear water and quickly flowing down the drain.
* * * *
During dinner, Duffy sat extra close to Sunday, laying his arm on the back of her chair.
“Lee, I hear congratulations are in order.”
“Oh,” Lee queried.
“Your son’s name was in the newspaper last month. He made the honor roll again, last semester. He just graduated, didn’t he?”
Lee nodded his head. “Yes. We’re pretty proud of him.” He glanced at his wife, smiling.
Carol smiled. “It was an exciting night for us.”
“He’s a good kid,” Duffy replied. “Does he know where he’ll be attending college?”
“He’s hoping for Western, but he’s looking into scholarships. Hopefully something will come through with his sports.”
“Does he need a summer job? I’m always looking for good help. Get a lot of kids that say they want to work. Usually, they only last a day or two before they quit. Some just aren’t motivated.”
(Don't Mess With) Clear Lake Women Page 16