Crazy Dreams

by Dawn Pendleton

  He laughed a little. “I guess you’re right. And Stone isn’t exactly the type to make a move. I think he told me he didn’t sleep with his last girlfriend until almost a whole year into their relationship. I guess I shouldn’t worry.”

  “Exactly,” I agreed.

  Three

  Stone

  Dallas spent the morning texting me, reminding me that he was sending his not-sister over to the apartment. He got called to a job in the jungle or some shit, which was awesome. What wasn’t awesome was the fact that I was going to have to take care of the girl on her way in a taxi. He made me promise to show her around town this week even as he threatened my life if I made a pass at her.

  I cleaned up the kitchen and then checked my watch. I probably had another half hour or so before she got to the apartment. I decided to take a shower real quick, since I’d been playing video games for the last eighteen hours or so. I didn’t reek, but it was a near thing.

  I was in and out of the shower in minutes. I wrapped a towel around my hips, tucking the edge into itself. Just as I was about to wipe off the foggy mirror clear, I remembered I had a pot of water on the stove.

  I all but ran to the kitchen, hanging onto my towel with a single hand while I shut off the boiling water.

  “What a greeting,” a voice quipped behind me.

  Shit. I turned around, keeping a tight grip on my loosened towel. “You must be Ember.” She was gorgeous, with wavy blonde hair and bright green eyes. She wasn’t as skinny as I figured she would be, though her curves were in all the right places. Even in that old t-shirt and holey jeans, she looked like she could walk the runway.

  “And you must be Stone, Dallas’s roommate,” she said with a grin.

  As she gave me a n once-over, I was painfully aware of my nakedness. I cleared my throat. “Yeah, that’s me. I wasn’t expecting you so soon. Make yourself at home.” I turned away, not even glancing back at her as I walked down the hall to get dressed. If she told Dallas about that little incident, I was dead.

  Ten minutes later, I went back out into the open living area and found Ember standing in front of the open fridge. Her bags were left in the middle of the living room.

  “Can I help you find something?” I asked, rounding the corner of the island and then leaning against it.

  She turned to me with a sigh. “Don’t you guys keep anything healthy in here? All your food is filled with sugar and preservatives.”

  “What’s your point?”

  She laughed. “I’ll have to go shopping. I can’t eat any of this crap.” She closed the fridge and went to pick up her bags. “Where’s my room?”

  “Here, let me help you with those.” I took the biggest bag and then led her down the hall. Hers was the bedroom next to mine. I pushed opened the door and let her enter first. It was simply decorated and I could tell she hated it. With a dark blue comforter on the queen bed and pale blue carpet, even I had to admit it clashed a bit. At least it didn’t smell bad. I set her bag on the large chest at the foot of the bed. “There you go. Let me know if you need anything.”

  She dropped her shoulder bag on the bed and glanced at me. I tried to ignore the pounding of my heart when she gave me a genuine smile. Her eyes lit up when she smiled, making her even more beautiful than before. I’d heard of a smile making a difference in a person’s appearance, but I’d never witnessed it so clearly before. Her whole demeanor changed, her natural beauty shining through so thoroughly.

  It took every ounce of strength I could muster to turn away from her, to act as if her smile didn’t kick me in the gut. I closed her door behind me and couldn’t draw a full breath until I went into my room and closed the door. What is it about her? I wondered to myself. I wasn’t one to let a pretty face cause my stomach to do somersaults… It was more than attraction, though. Maybe I didn’t know what it was, but it was something.

  I grabbed my guitar and sat on the old bar stool I kept in the corner of my room. I played a few chords and then strummed a new rhythm. The notes swirled around in my head and I hummed along until the words began to form, creating a new song. I hadn’t written new music for months. I wasn’t inspired, but now, I couldn’t keep the words inside, singing them softly as the song continued to form and take shape.

  Before I knew it, I had two verses and a chorus, everything meshing perfectly together. I smiled as I kept singing the lines, over and over again until the entire song was engraved on my brain. I finally stopped long enough to set the guitar down and grab my song book. I jotted down the lyrics and then wrote the chords to go with it. Maybe, just maybe, this song would be the one to change everything.

  Four

  Ember

  I unpacked everything while Stone strummed his guitar in the room next to mine. It was a sad song, it seemed, but the chorus picked up and gave it just the right amount of twang to sound good. I listened to the lyrics, curious as to when he wrote it or who he wrote it about. It was a beautiful song, something I could tell he wrote himself.

  Dallas told me at the airport that Stone wanted to be a country music star. He was having a hard time of it, though, which made sense. Why else would he be renting a room from Dallas? Either way, the guy had talent. I could tell he was trying to be quiet, but the music wafted in through the walls, the sound so harmonious and touching, I had to wipe a tear or two away from my eye as he sang. I was impressed.

  I never expected him to actually have the skill, the talent it took to get into Nashville, but if what I was hearing was any indication, he had a lot more than just a chance at getting in. The question was why hasn’t he been picked up? As much as I wanted to call Erik, my gay best friend who was currently living in Nashville and seemed to know everyone, I figured Stone wouldn’t approve.

  If he left his old life to come to Nashville, he wanted to make it on his own, not because some random girl helped him. He didn’t seem like the sort to appreciate a helping hand. Perhaps, if I got to know him better over the summer, I could introduce him to Erik and then let things run their course. Stone might resist, but Erik had a way of convincing people to agree with him and his ideas.

  Once the drawers and closet were full of my clothes, I pulled out a notebook to make a list. First on it: new décor. If I was going to spend the next three months in that room, I wanted to add a few homey touches. Next on the list were clothes. If I ever thought Maine was warm during the summer, I was completely wrong. The heat was severe and the humidity even worse. It was hellish, and Dallas warned me it would only get worse. Great. But that meant I got to get some shopping in, and I couldn’t wait to own my very first pair of cowgirl boots.

  It was a weird obsession, mine with cowgirl boots, but I wanted a pair for years and my mother absolutely forbade it. Of course, that only made me want them more. But in all my traveling the past few years, I never visited a real southern state. And I did the research – Nashville had a ton of places where I could buy the boots. Sure, it wasn’t Texas, but as long as they were close, they’d be good enough for me. I even wanted to do a photo shoot with boots. I’d have to buy a pair soon and see if Erik wanted to take some pictures of me.

  My list got longer and longer as I thought of more items to pick up while I was here. Sure, I wasn’t going to be here for a long time, but I had my comforts. That refrigerator was a mess, too. Everything was fatty or full of salt or sugar. I hadn’t eaten anything but the natural sugar in fruit for two whole years. I didn’t cheat one time. Once I made it past the first two weeks, eating sugar-free was a cinch. I never wanted the artificial sweeteners, either.

  When I filled the page of things I wanted, I tore it out of the notebook and tucked it in my purse. I went back out into the living room, trying to ignore the sweet notes of Stone’s song. I wondered why he hadn’t hit on me at first, but then remembered Dallas’s words before he set off for the jungle.

  “Stone’s been warned to leave you the hell alone. If he makes a move on you, let me know. I’ll kick his ass.”

  I la
ughed at the time, but apparently , Stone took Dallas’s admonition to heart. It was fine with me, though I wasn’t used to not being hit on. It was actually a breath of fresh air to know I wouldn’t have to fend him off over the summer. Maybe I could actually be friends with him.

  He appeared behind me in the living room, as if my thoughts conjured him. “Hey.”

  I jumped a foot as I whirled on him. “You scared me!”

  He shrugged, completely uncaring. “I didn’t mean to. But I do live here.”

  His sarcastic attitude bugged me even as it tugged on the corners of my mouth.

  “I’m just getting some Coke,” he explained, passing by me and into the kitchen.

  I watched him as he bent over and grabbed a can out of the refrigerator, the muscles in his arm bulging slightly. He was far too fit to be a soda drinker. “How do you drink that stuff?” I asked as he popped the tab.

  He took a long swig before answering me. “Easy. I tip it up and swallow.” To demonstrate, he took another pull.

  “Are you always sarcastic?” I asked.

  “Depends on your definition of sarcastic. Most people just say I’m an ass.”

  I laughed. “I can see why.”

  “I do what I can.” His grin was wide, his teeth straight. He was attractive, even without all that muscle.

  “So, Dallas said you might let me borrow your car? I need to go to the store,” I said, changing the subject.

  “I’m done working for the day. I can take you,” he offered.

  “Oh, you don’t have to do that. I’m capable of going by myself.”

  “I’ll take you. I might even show you around,” he said.

  “Okay.” It was easier to agree than argue. I learned that from years arguing with my mother over my career choice. Not that it was a choice. It was what she wanted and I just went along.

  “Let me grab my keys and my wallet.” He set the can down and went to his room. A few minutes later, he returned, keys in hand. “Ready to go?”

  “Yeah.” He led me out into the parking lot to an oversized truck with mud tires and a lift. “This is yours?”

  He nodded. It was a redneck truck, one that oddly reminded me of home. In high school, all the guys had a lifted truck on their daddy’s dime. It was the way our small town worked. He opened the passenger door for me, giving me his hand to help me up into the seat. I thanked him and he slammed the door closed. I looked around the interior, surprised it wasn’t messier. It didn’t smell, either, which was nice.

  He hopped in and fired it up. I wasn’t surprised by the roar of the engine. He obviously had work done to make it sound louder. I kind of liked it. “Buckle up,” he said, sliding the gear shift into reverse.

  I did as he requested and then we were off. He drove a little fast for my taste, but I managed not to say anything negative about his driving, so I considered it a success on my part. I didn’t think he even noticed my nervousness, either.

  When he whipped it into a tight parking space at the outlet mall, I let out a sigh of relief. The trip was short but I thought I might die the whole way. I jumped down from the truck before he could open my door and gave him a little smile as he came around the truck to walk with me.

  “My driving scare ya?” he asked.

  “Not at all. Why do you ask?”

  “Don’t lie. Your white-knuckled grip on the door handle was a dead giveaway, not to mention you were gasping for air at every turn.”

  Five

  Stone

  “I was not!” she protested. It was cute, the way her cheeks got all red and she couldn’t look me in the eye. I bit my tongue to keep from laughing.

  “Right,” I said. “I’ll slow down for you on the ride back.” My promise seemed to relax her. She even released the death grip she had on her purse as we walked into the mall. “What are you getting here?”

  “A bunch of things. You don’t have to babysit me if you have something to get,” she said.

  “Good. I’ve got a thing or two to grab. I’ll meet you in the food court in an hour?”

  “Sounds good,” she agreed and I watched her walk into some clothing store.

  I turned and headed toward the far end of the outdoor mall, making my way through the crowd of people to the camping and fishing store. I needed some new lures and I was planning a trip out to the river in less than two weeks. It probably wouldn’t hurt to grab a few more camp supplies, too.

  The store was huge and I spent a good portion of the hour in it, meandering through the aisles, wishing I had a bit more cash to buy some of the higher end stuff. The gadgets they had out for camping were amazing and high-tech, but equally high-priced. Someday, I wouldn’t have to worry about money. Maybe. My self-doubt was ever present, always dragging me down.

  I barely made it to food court on time. I glanced around and found Ember at a table tucked in the corner, playing on her phone. She had at least six bags piled in the seat next to her.

  “You sure know how to shop,” I said as I approached the table.

  She glanced up at me with a frown. “I did have a list, you know.”

  “I was kidding, Ember. Can’t you take a joke?”

  Her face fell and I knew I said the wrong thing. Such was my curse. Instead of commenting or apologizing, I changed the subject.

  “I’m going to grab a burger. What do you want?”

  “I’ll just get a salad,” she said and started to get up.

  “I can grab it for you,” I told her, motioning her to stay seated. “Tell me how you like it and what dressing.”

  She gave me a long list of vegetables and crap to put on the salad and then asked for oil and vinegar in lieu of dressing. The girl needed to eat a burger and fries, but I kept my opinion to myself. I went and ordered my burger and her salad, trying not to judge all the healthy food she seemed keen on eating. If she thought I was going to stop buying cheese doodles because she lived with us, she was dead wrong.

  I brought our tray back to the table, complete with my extra-large Coke and her bottle of water. She thanked me and opened her salad, digging in like it was a feast. I sat down across from her and unwrapped my burger. It was greasy and delicious and I dug in with gusto. I shoveled a few fries in my mouth and then looked up to find her staring at me.

  “What?” I asked with a mouthful of food.

  “That is so bad for you,” she admonished me.

  “Eh. You only live once.”

  “Did you seriously just yolo?” she asked, dropping her fork into the plastic bowl of lettuce.

  “So what if I did? I’m a man, not a rabbit. I like meat.”

  “I eat meat, too,” she argued.

  “Prove it.” I handed my burger over to her, holding it out like a dare. She glared at me and then the burger and then at me again.

  Finally, she swallowed and grabbed it out of my hand. “Fine. But only if you eat the rabbit food.”

  I was so surprised by her, I didn’t even argue. I grabbed her bowl of salad and started in on it. I didn’t only eat shitty food, but it was so much fun to watch her examine the burger like it was a foreign food to her that I ate the salad without complaint.

  “If I put on weight this summer, I’m blaming you,” she threatened.

  “Good. You need to gain at least twenty pounds,” I told her.

  She glared at me but took a bite of the burger. When she moaned at its delicious greasiness, I winced. She wasn’t trying to be sexual, but that didn’t stop my dick from coming to attention. At least the table hid my hard-on.

  “I do not need to gain any weight,” she stated after swallowing the bite.

  “Sure you do. What are you, five foot four? I bet you only weigh about one-ten. If that,” I challenged.

  She narrowed her eyes at me. “One-oh-eight.”

  “Exactly. You should be at least one-twenty, one-thirty.”

  “I’m not gaining weight,” she promised, even as she took another bite of the burger.

  “Of course no
t. Don’t forget the fries,” I added, just to irritate her.

  She rolled her eyes but grabbed for the fries when I moved to take them away. I laughed at her and her cheeks pinkened again. She was too damn cute. And easy to embarrass. I’d have to remember that in the future.

  Once we both finished our lunch, I cleared away all the trash while she gathered her bags. When I came back to the table, I thought she might fall over. I tucked my bag under my arm and then took most of hers.

  “What the hell did you buy?’ I asked when the full weight of her items hit me. I almost toppled over.

  “Some clothes and a pair of boots.”

  “Boots? You know it’s summer in Nashville, right?”

  “They’re cowgirl boots,” she replied.

  “Oh. Model them for me later?” I asked, only half serious. In my mind, I imagined her wearing only the boots.

  “Yeah, right,” she said, rolling her eyes again.

  “You better be careful or your eyes will roll right into the back of your head.”

  “Is everything a joke to you?” she asked.

  “Some days. I guess you bring it out of me.”

  “Oh, so you just like picking on me?” She pouted, her bottom lip thrusting out.

  “You make it so easy,” I said with a smirk.

  “How so?”

  “You’re so responsive, it’s like taking candy from a baby,” I replied.

  She raised a brow at me. “What babies do you know that have candy? And if they did have candy, they would scream if you took it from them.”

  “Touché.” I had to give her credit: the girl was smart. “Teasing you is like breathing, then – it just comes naturally.”

  “Oh, nice. Is this what I have to look forward to all summer?”

  “Pretty much. Unless I hit it big,” I explained.

  “Is that what you’re hoping for?” she asked as we headed back to the truck.