Dylan broke the kiss. “Let’s save some of this for later, after I see you jiggle and wiggle.”
“Are you implying anything?” Would he really take her to bed? But as what, a friend with benefits? Relax. Breathe. Starting over, remember?
His eyebrows waggled. “I liked the jiggling I saw last night. Think you can do a live show for me tonight?”
Heat flushed her cheeks and her heartbeat accelerated, but she’d show him she wasn’t a blushing virgin. Prying herself from his arms, she bumped his hip. “Maybe you’re the one doing the show tonight.”
“Sure will.” He flexed his muscles and strutted to the kitchen. “Make you a cup of coffee?”
Fifteen minutes later and freshly caffeinated, Dylan and Carina jogged their way down Center Street toward the UC Berkeley campus. They crossed a four lane street and passed a green wrought iron gate with University of California imprinted in gold, shaded by a stand of majestic cedars.
“First time on campus?” Dylan led Carina to a large bronze ball with a circular hole through the middle and jagged fissures dividing the ball. It was taller than Dylan.
“What is this?” Carina traced a finger in the zigzagging cracks on the brown metallic orb.
“Outdoor art. They moved it from the University Art Museum and placed it here to greet pedestrians. Like it?” Dylan peered through the hole at Carina from the other side and blew her a kiss. “It’s said that if you catch a kiss through this hole, it’ll go straight to your heart, and you’ll be chained to that person forever.”
Carina wasn’t sure she wanted to be chained to anyone, but she quickly blew a kiss back at him.
Dylan puckered his lips exaggeratedly. “Caught it. You shouldn’t have done that because you’ll never be rid of me now.”
Warm shivers tingled up her arm and down her spine. This guy was so romantic. Okay, romantic and silly at the same time.
“Actually I’m only in it for the coffee.” She stuck her tongue at him through the hole.
Dylan came around the orb and grabbed her around the waist. “Oh, I don’t think coffee’s the only hot fluid you want from me.”
“Is that a barista pickup line?” Carina mock-slapped him. At least he didn’t say down her throat. Gag!
Dylan pinched her waist. “Is it working?”
Carina giggled and batted his hands from tormenting her. Of course it was working, but she wasn’t going to let him in on it. “Let’s keep running. You said I jiggled too much.”
His mouth spread in a shit-eating grin. “In all the right places.”
“Flatterer.” She smiled in spite of her attempt to shoot him a dirty look. He made her feel wanted, desirable, and sexy, but in a nice way.
They jogged along a woodland path. Birds chirped and flittered through the trees above them. Carina’s gaze floated high to the tree tops. “This is beautiful. A forest right through the middle of campus. What are the trees?”
“There’s redwood, Monterey pine, and coast live oak. Across the way is a grove of blue gum trees.”
The aromatic fragrance of pine mixed with the spicy scented eucalyptus invigorated Carina’s caffeine filled veins. She could really fall in love with Berkeley, as long as she had Dylan as her own personal tour guide.
She lengthened her stride and followed him through the central campus. Large signposts featuring individual students’ faces and mottos dotted the walkway.
“Out of hibernation and ready to explore.”
“Berkeley, NOT Rome, is where all roads meet.”
“Passion, Art, Me.”
“That last one is you, isn’t it?” Carina pointed to a boyish looking Dylan, his face thinner, but with the same mischievous smirk.
“Ah … now I’m embarrassed.” He grabbed her hand.
“Wait, I want to take a picture. Do you have your phone?” She’d left hers since she didn’t have any pockets on her skintight Spandex shorts.
“Sorry, don’t have it.” He lengthened his stride and headed toward a large bell tower. Carina had no choice but to follow him past a fountain and under the arches of a green wrought iron gate. It spanned four columns, each topped by glass globes.
“Stand still. Everyone takes a picture under Sather Gate.” Dylan slipped his phone from his shorts and snapped a picture of her.
“You had it all along.” Carina made a swipe for it. “Lemme get a picture of that banner. Was it taken freshman year?”
“Not telling.” Dylan held his phone above his head. “Come on, let’s cross the street. That was Cal, and this is Berkeley.”
Dylan beckoned Carina across Bancroft. Traffic was light on this lazy Saturday afternoon. They ran down Telegraph Avenue. A sharp pain prodded her side, and she slowed to walking pace. As they moved further from the campus, the stores became older and more run down. A few homeless men lay in bedrolls along the doorways of abandoned storefronts. Should she be worried?
As if reading her mind, Dylan took her hand and they crossed a street in front of a vacant lot. She loved how he made her feel safe and cared for. If only he were more ambitious, he’d be perfect boyfriend material. Why was he so against working for his dad? She and any one of her classmates would kill for an opportunity with Jewell Capital.
“Look at that.” Dylan pointed to the brightly painted murals covering an entire wall.
“What is it?” Carina gazed at the multiple images depicting struggles, protests, and people working together, digging, building, and planting.
“People’s Park Mural. This is the real Berkeley, the struggle starting with the Free Speech movement in 1964. People died to protest against the machine. See those box-headed businessmen?”
He tickled her side to make a point.
“Oh, stop it,” she said. “We’re not all bad.”
“Sure, but do you ask questions? Or do you follow orders?”
Gulp. Rebecca had Carina jumping. Guilt flashed hot onto her face. Manipulating Dylan for her own personal gain was wrong. Using sex, and withholding it. What was she thinking?
She couldn’t meet his gaze, so she studied the wall. Every inch was chock full of stories. A homeless woman and her puppy sat above the commemorative plaque. But what caught her eye as she strolled down the sidewalk was a white rabbit with the butt of a rifle on its back.
Dylan tugged her hand. “Want to visit People’s Park? It’s right down the street.”
“What are you trying to show me?” She scanned the vicinity as they approached the park. The sight of graffiti raised her hackles, but she didn’t want to seem chicken.
Gray-green agaves edged the corner of the park. People sat or lay in clumps underneath the mature trees, while others squatted under tarps strung across the branches. A colorful sign proclaimed, “People’s Park, Power To the People, Everyone Gets a Blister.”
“Is this a homeless camp?” Carina drew closer to Dylan.
“Unofficially. The police come around and clear people away during the day, but yeah, people sleep here overnight.”
“Is this where you were arrested?” Carina glanced around nervously.
“Yep, I serve the food we cook at the community center here.” Dylan greeted a group of men sitting near a bulletin board.
The men were bearded and wild-eyed, possibly on drugs. Carina’s senses were on high alert. She moved closer to Dylan.
“That your girl, Dylan?” one of them drawled. “She sure is pretty.”
Dylan put a protective arm around her and smiled. “You’ll have to ask her.”
Carina waved to greet the men, but looked away from their intense stares.
If only she could be his girl. What was stopping her? Could she let go of her need for security and for once in her life, take a chance for love?
Dylan bent and whispered, “Don’t think too hard. That wasn’t a trick question.”
His warm breath tickled her ear and she giggled. “Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?”
He cleared his throat and backed away from
the men.
“What? Did I make you nervous?” Carina poked his hard abdomen. “You know I play for keeps.”
She wasn’t sure if he was sweating from the physical exertion or emotional distress, but a powerful negotiator took whatever chits she could get. His fear of commitment would keep him off balance. Maybe she could still win him over and set him on the correct career path.
A gray-haired woman held up her arms and walked toward them. “Dylan, thanks for picking up my medicine.”
Dylan hugged her a little too exuberantly. “Glad you’re feeling better. This is my friend, Carina. Carina, this is Betsy. She was a mortgage broker.”
Carina shook hands with Betsy.
“Yep,” Betsy said. “During the bubble. I was selling them like hotcakes. Those were the good old days. Everyone was flipping houses and getting rich.”
“Have you found somewhere to stay?” Dylan glanced at a couple of people lying on bedrolls.
“Your boss, Joanne, let me into the women and children’s shelter.” Betsy pointed at a group of people sitting under a tree playing cards.
“That’s great.” Dylan led Carina toward the circle.
“She’s also having me tutor math to the homeless teens,” Betsy said, puffing her chest out. “Some of them are really bright.”
The women in the circle scrutinized Carina, their eyes wary.
Carina tugged her tank top and adjusted her shorts, wishing she’d put on sweatpants and a hoodie.
Dylan greeted them. “Hey, girls, this is my friend, Carina.”
“Hi,” Carina said to the group.
“Tammy and Gina,” Dylan said, “are the ones I mentor at the community garden.”
The two teenaged girls smiled and said ‘hi’ to Carina. Tammy was African-American and Gina was thin, but pregnant.
An older woman extended her hand. “I’m Joanne, Dylan’s boss at The Brewed Force.”
“Nice to meet you,” Carina said, shaking the woman’s hand. Joanne wore a brightly colored tied-dyed shirt with baggy jeans and sandals, and Carina remembered being surprised that she was the owner of the colorful coffee shop with stained glass mosaics scattering light on the walls. Behind her, Sallie, the chocolate lab from the community garden wagged her tail and lunged for them.
Dylan squatted and rubbed Sallie behind the ears. “Hey, girl. Did you miss us?”
Sallie sniffed Carina and pounced on her, landing a paw on her chest, again.
“She likes you.” Dylan pulled Sallie. “Down girl. You’re too big to act like a puppy.”
How could Carina resist such cuteness? She petted Sallie and let her lick her hands.
“Have a seat,” Joanne said, gesturing to a wooden bench. She shuffled a deck of cards. “We’re playing Hand and Foot.”
“I don’t know how to play,” Carina said. All she could think of was hand, foot, and mouth disease, or something like that.
“It’s easy,” Gina said. “Let me explain the rules.”
Dylan patted a spot next to him. “Come on, Carina. It’ll be fun.”
He grinned at her and she relaxed. They were in a sunny park, out in the open, and he would protect her if anything happened.
“Okay, I’ll try.” She took a spot between Dylan and Tammy.
The group formed two teams of three. Carina, Dylan, and Tammy were on one team, and Joanne, Betsy, and Gina on the other.
Carina’s mind swam with the rules. Hand, foot, meld, clean, dirty, red pile, black, wild.
The play was too fast for her to catch on, but her teammates were quick to help. When it was time to tally up the score, Gina sorted the cards and added up the points in her head, while Tammy scribbled on a piece of paper.
Dylan’s team did not go out, so they had to deduct the value of cards left over.
“Losers buys hot dogs,” Joanne said, gathering up the cards.
“I have it covered,” Dylan said. “What does everyone want?”
After taking orders, he asked Tammy to go with him to help carry the food bags.
Carina didn’t want to seem clingy so she stayed with Joanne, Betsy, and Gina. A week ago, she would never have dreamed of sitting in a park playing cards with street people. She stared at the teen, wondering how she had become homeless.
“Have you been by to see the shelter?” Joanne asked Carina.
“No, not yet.” She helped Joanne sort the cards and pack them into their boxes.
“I’m lucky to get a room,” Betsy said. “After Dylan rescued me from the police, he introduced me to Joanne.”
“You are lucky.” Gina smacked her bubblegum. “I can’t stay more than a few nights.”
“Why’s that?” Carina asked. It didn’t seem fair that the teen would be put on the street, especially a pregnant one. What would happen to her when her baby was born?
Joanne sighed and shook her head. “We’re legally obligated to contact a teen’s case worker before seventy-two hours, so they come in and leave. While they’re with us, we provide food, counseling, clothing and basic health related care.”
“There’s no way I want to go back to a foster home,” Gina snorted. “They’re all pigs. All of them. Lying to the social worker, acting all nice. Then they’re pulling your pants down or peeking at you in the shower. Pigs.”
Carina cringed. These teens had no one to take care of them. Carina had always been able to count on her parents. No matter how bad things got, she could stay with them. What would happen to her brother if her parents died? Of course she’d offer him a home if she made enough money. But what if she couldn’t find a steady job? A chill seized her shoulders. Anyone with a streak of bad luck could end up homeless too.
“The shelter’s doing good work,” Carina said to Joanne. “Can I make a donation?”
“Sure.” Joanne pulled a card from her pocket and handed it to Carina. “Even more importantly, we need clothing, food, and help with cooking, counseling, and tutoring.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Carina mumbled, stuffing the card into her key pocket. She didn’t have a lot of free time, but she did have clothing, expensive brand name, high fashion clothing and shoes. A pair of pumps could probably feed a family of four for a month.
~ ~ ~
Dylan passed out the soft drinks while Tammy dug in the bag for the hot dogs. He was pleased to see Carina getting on well with the women, laughing at their jokes and talking about how Berkeley contrasted with her home back East.
He handed Carina a bottle of mineral water, gratified at the sweet smile she graced him with whenever she spied him checking her out.
Gina tugged at his arm. “I have something to show you.”
Meanwhile, Tammy opened a small paper bag and whispered something to Carina.
Dylan finished his hot dog and followed Gina to the freestanding restroom building. “What you got there?”
Gina pulled a psychedelic heart pendant from her pocket. “I made this in the art studio. Wanna buy it?”
Swirls of blue, green, and silver looped inside the plastic heart. “Nice. How much?”
“Twenty, but for you, ten.” She cocked her head toward Carina. “You like her, don’t you? I saw you two at the garden.”
Dylan reached into his wallet and gave her a twenty. “You were there? Why didn’t you come out and say ‘hi?’”
“She was kind of uppity, but now she’s really nice. Tammy’s roped her into doing her hair.”
He glanced in the direction of the women. Carina was weaving beads into Tammy’s hair and fastening rubber bands on her braids.
A warm, mushy feeling stole into Dylan’s heart. Carina saw his friends as real, living people. Her social consciousness was coming alive, and she seemed compassionate. Maybe she’d quit that grind of a job and use her talents to help people.
The sun highlighted Carina’s gleaming black hair, giving it a reddish glow. A lump rose in Dylan’s throat. How he wished his mother could have met her. He had a feeling she’d like Carina.
; “Look at you,” Gina said. “Your eyes are about to fall out. Go on, give her the heart.”
“Sure. I will.” Dylan’s voice faltered and he tucked the heart into his pocket.
What could he offer her besides a warm body, hot coffee, and frothy fun? He didn’t even have a steady job, and the tour was not guaranteed. Besides, a woman like Carina would wear real gems, not a plastic hippie heart.
He wandered back to Carina’s side and patted Sallie who dropped a dirty tennis ball at his feet. He threw the ball across the lawn and Sallie raced off after it.
“Ready to go?” he said when Carina looked up.
“Okay. I’ll see all of you around,” Carina said to the women.
“Drop by the shelter sometime,” Joanne said.
“I will.” Carina patted Sallie who’d returned with the tennis ball.
“Come visit us at the garden,” Tammy said. “Thanks for the braids.”
“Looking forward to it. You said you’d show me how to mulch.” Carina gave Tammy a fist bump.
Dylan couldn’t believe his ears. Had Carina, the bug-a-phobic princess just asked to mulch? He took her hand and waved goodbye to his friends. The heart pendant rattled in the pocket of his sweat shorts. Was he ready to take the next step? To let Carina know how important she was to him?
He looped the hippie heart around her neck. “Gotcha.”
“What’s this for?”
“An original piece of Berkeley artwork.”
Carina studied it and giggled. “I bet it’s made in China.”
“Gina said she made it herself.”
“Oh, then it’s an original.” She dangled it in front of him. “I like Tammy and Gina. What’s going to happen to them? Especially Gina when her baby’s born?”
“The baby will probably go to foster care. We’re trying to help the girls pass the GED, it’s a high school equivalency exam.”
“You think they’ll find jobs?” Carina picked up a penny and tossed it into the fountain on campus. “If you owned a business, you could hire them.”
“Sure, I could, but it’s not so simple. They’re chronic runaways and don’t deal well with authority. We actually let them keep some of the money from the produce they sell.”
Whole Latte Love (The Jewells) Page 20