Neon Burn

by Kasia Fox

  Nodding, Nisai scrawled all of this information in his notebook.

  Cal cringed as he said the next part. “And Ms. Paul isn’t to know any of this is going on.”

  Nisai’s writing paused briefly. His face showed no judgment. Cal still felt like he needed to explain about the man in the apartment, how he wasn’t being a jealous guy or anything. The more he said, the deeper the shame hole he dug for himself. “And of course I can count on your discretion with this issue,” he finished lamely.

  “Of course,” Nisai said.

  Cal backed out of his garage and waited for the door to descend. This was for Tessa’s protection. Just because she wanted to pretend it was no big deal didn’t mean he should. But if she found out Cal had put a security detail on her apartment after not knowing her three full days, she’d think he was the person she needed protection from.

  When he passed her dad’s house he gave it as long a look as he could afford without running the risk of driving his car into a row of barrel cacti. He felt like a high school chick. What a shitty feeling.

  When he finally got to the American Prizefighter offices, Cal was three hours late. His email was flooded with new messages. His frantic assistant had been texting him all morning, wondering about canceling meetings going forward. His PR lady was waiting in the conference room for an appointment that was supposed to start forty minutes ago. He went to the conference room.

  Sasha was sitting on the table, legs crossed, phone pressed to her ear. She had unruly strawberry blond curls that she tried to pin up around her face so that her hair would make sense with the severe black and navy pantsuits she favored. Even though she was eight months pregnant, she seemed to have found the exact same wardrobe to accommodate her giant round belly. When he came in, Sasha hung up on whomever she was talking to without saying goodbye.

  “Sorry I’m late.” Cal never made excuses and he didn’t offer one today. He looked at the top of her head as she bent scrolling through her phone. Finding what she was looking for, she held her phone up so he could see the picture on the screen. It was him, kissing Tessa.

  “Who is the mystery lady you were making out with at a charity event, right in front of the girl you brought as your date to the event?”

  “There are many things wrong with that statement and so I’m going to go with: none of your business.”

  Sasha’s eyes went wide with the same shock Cal’s mom would display when one of her kids back-talked her. Like he did as a boy, Cal waited and wondered, idly, what her level of anger would hit. He guessed an eight?

  “One hundred percent it’s my business!” she exploded. “And do you know what’s especially my business? When my main client is consorting with a woman who hangs out with Berkley Sutherland – the webcam queen of Vegas! Yes, that’s right, she’s buddies with a pornographer. And now your ex Morgan is trying to sell a story—”

  “Consorting, huh,” Cal interrupted, laughing.

  Sasha didn’t like it that he wasn’t taking this seriously. “Would you rather I say fucking?”

  “Hey,” he said sharply. “Watch it.”

  Hearing his tone, Sasha was taken aback. She studied his face for a moment before sighing.

  “Oh, I see. Interesting. Do you really like this girl?”

  “Yes, so watch your tone.”

  “Well, for godsakes tell me that. That’s a whole different narrative. I don’t give a shit who you...” Sasha cleared her throat “…woo? Court? Whatever. but you have to give me a heads up so I can prepare damage control, especially if I don’t kill this Morgan story.”

  “There’s no story. I was very clear with Morgan that I wasn’t in it for anything serious –”

  “Cal, please.” Sasha’s mouth was a thin line. She dipped her chin to level him with a withering look. “Take it from a woman, when a guy says that we all think, “Yeah but wait until he gets to know me.”

  “Right. Okay. Well, I broke up with her before the event and she asked me to come. I’d made a commitment for charity and so I went. And yeah, I left with a girl and I’d do it again. Her name is Tessa by the way.”

  “Peachy,” Sasha said drily. “What do I need to know to do my job?”

  “Nothing. Your job is publicity for the company, not me.”

  Sasha crossed her arms over her chest. “We’ve been over this before. You are the company.”

  Cal thought about what Tessa had said yesterday – about her going back to North Dakota and him forgetting her. Right now, that seemed impossible. There was no denying she’d planted the smallest seed of doubt. The truth was, long distance didn’t work for Cal and he wasn’t about to demand she uproot her life and move to Vegas after four days together. He sighed. Maybe it wasn’t worth alarming Sasha with the news that Tessa was Ron Doucette’s daughter until he figured out if they were a real thing or not. It wouldn’t go over well.

  “She’s a sweet girl,” he shrugged.

  “Great,” Sasha said, clearly being sarcastic. “Nothing gets people to look away faster than saying nothing to see here.” She slid off the table and grabbed her phone and handbag. Sasha wasn’t buying it, but they’d worked together long enough for her to know where Cal’s line was. Passing through the door, she paused, one hand on her belly. “Since you’re paying me for what I really think though, I’ll say this: Right now it probably feels like you could never forget her. But it will be easier than you think.”

  28.

  In the shower at Ron’s house, Tessa worked the shampoo to a lather. Fireworks in the desert burst in her memories. No man had ever had the power to draw an involuntary smile to her lips at the mere thought of him. Tessa imagined what Cal’s work office looked like, wondered if he was thinking about her, maybe searching her name online at his work computer. Suds slipped down her wet body and circled the drain. When she finally turned off the faucet and stepped out of the shower, the bathroom was foggy and humid. In the mirror steam she drew a heart.

  Yet Tessa couldn’t lose herself forever even in her post-coital haze. Stirrings of unease about the man Dev thought he saw leaving her apartment brought her back to reality. If the man Dev saw was Bert, what could he possibly want? Right away he’d struck her as a shady character. If so, it wasn’t unreasonable to think that if he were desperate enough – seeing as he knew her address and that she was out of town – he might try to break in. Drug addicts did desperate things all the time. She resolved to have a conversation about Bert with Ron later, however awkward it might be to tell him that his friend could be a thief.

  Around 11 a.m., Tessa heard the first rumblings of Ron and Berkley. She was in the kitchen and so she put on the coffee, scooping twice as many grounds as she normally would. When Ron emerged, his rough pug-like face was shaved and he filled the kitchen with the sharp scent of his aftershave. Tessa poured a coffee and held out the mug to him.

  “Well, I could get used to this,” Ron said. Tessa pointed out the second loaf of banana bread that sat untouched on the counter. Berkley, apparently, had not been tempted.

  “Not much of a breakfast guy but I promise I will try some later,” he said. “Tacking on a quick, “I’m proud of you for making it though.”

  This made her laugh. “It’s just banana bread.”

  “You’re good at things, Tessa. Let me be proud of you.” He winked. “My daughter comes to Vegas for two days lands the most eligible guy in town? Berkley would leave me in the dust in a second if Callum Quinn showed any interest.”

  “Don’t say that. Berkley loves you.”

  “Ha. Well.” Ronnie sipped his coffee and stared out wide windows. The backyard was lush and green and bright with sun. Beyond the golf course, the dove-colored mountains rose up. “Love changes hourly, like the weather.”

  “Are you a secret poet?” Tessa teased.

  “Don’t tell nobody.”

  She toyed with her coffee spoon before speaking. “I’m surprised to hear you say anything flattering about Callum Quinn.”

 
; Ron cleared his throat. “Listen, I don’t like the guy. But he’s legit. And, hey, it wouldn’t hurt to have him in the family, you know?”

  “We’ve gone on one date.” Tessa took a tiny sip of her creamy coffee. She’d had to dump in a half-cup of milk otherwise the amount of caffeine in it would leave her feeling like she was having an anxiety attack all afternoon. Already she felt jittery. She cleared her throat.

  “So,” she said brightly, “your friend who found me in North Dakota. He seemed to think the world of you.”

  “Oh. Bert. Ha. Well, the guy’s a bit – what’s a nice word for it? – limited. That’s putting it nicely.” Ron got up and went to the sink.

  “He told me that he’d met mom years ago. Before I was born.”

  “Did he? Now, see, I don’t even remember that. I think old Bert mighta had a few wires misfiring these days. Don’t do drugs, kids.” Ron held his mug aloft as if he were about to cheers her. “I think I finally found something you’re not good at, Tessa. I like my coffee so strong it’ll burn my insides.” He dumped the dregs of his mug in the sink, rinsing it down the drain. “Well, I suppose,” he said, and patted his chest looking for something. Cigarettes maybe. A smooth exit from a conversation he didn’t want to have.

  “He has a pretty bad stutter, doesn’t he?” she said.

  “That’s right.” He nodded, remembering. “Some of the guys on the rig used to rag on him real hard about it.” Ron opened a kitchen cupboard and removed a fresh package of cigarettes from a carton. “The guy’s more of an acquaintance of mine than anything. Always felt bad for him.”

  “Oh,” she said. “Is that why you sent him to look for me? To help him out because he needed money?”

  “Yeah. That’s it.” Ron stopped peeling the cellophane from the cigarette package and narrowed his eyes at her. “Why all the questions about Bert? Did he do something inappropriate when he spoke to you?” Abruptly, he face turned red.

  “No, but –”

  “Because if he did –”

  “He didn’t! I was only asking because I could help him with his stutter. I would be glad to help a friend of yours when I go back. That’s all.”

  “No, no. You’re too nice for your own good, Tessa.” Though he smiled, his eyes remained steely and cold. “I don’t have any real friends in North Dakota anymore.”

  “Except for me.”

  “You’re my daughter.” He shook a cigarette from the pack and tucked it between his thin lips. “That’s different.” He opened the patio door, but before he stepped outside he told her to go get a swimsuit on. They were going to lay by the pool that day. The voice of Tessa’s horrified mother warned her of the dangers of skin cancer that came from tanning. When she told him she didn’t have a swimsuit, he said he’d find her one when he finished his smoke.

  Tessa rinsed and washed her own coffee mug. Instead of calming her, the conversation about Bert left her rattled. Unless Bert was an out-and-out liar, why would he tell her about Ron paying for his daughter’s surgery? That was hardly something you’d do for an acquaintance, as Ron had made them out to be. Ron didn’t strike her as the type of guy too humble to bring up a good deed. The vagueness, the quick shift of his mood to irritability reminded Tessa of the conversation they’d had about the protester outside Peaches. The answers he’d given her yesterday hadn’t completely put her mind at rest. Ask around. See what you turn up, Cal had said yesterday morning, when she’d asked him to elaborate on her father’s reputation. Tessa stood at the sink, reassembling pieces of the evening they’d gone to Peaches. They were in the town car and she’d started reading the sign out loud and then what? Berkley had distracted her with the American Fighters billboard. The sign the protester had been holding had Ron’s name on it. If she was a religious person, protesting strip clubs in general, why would she single him out? The patio door opened and Ron came in. “Heater’s on,” he said. “Let’s see if I can find your something from Berkley’s arsenal.”

  The bikini Ron sheepishly handed over was teal green and, of course, scandalously skimpy. The triangle top barely covered Tessa’s chest, and Berkley’s breasts were easily three cup sizes bigger. Tessa couldn’t imagine a world in which it fit her. Maybe that’s why Berkley was always topless.

  Tessa set her poetry book and her phone on a chaise next to the pool. Normally when she was outside, she liked to forget about her phone. But if she left it in the house, she’d only drive herself crazy wondering if Cal had texted her. Like a fat cat lolling in the sun, Ron stretched out in the chaise next to her, dressed in a pair if too-short swim shorts. He had a big, round belly covered with a grey fuzz that seemed to blanket ninety percent of his exposed skin.

  “I never do this,” he said. “It’s great having you here, you know? Take a break from the usual.”

  “The sun feels good,” Tessa said. “Right before I left Minot they were predicting a spring snow.”

  “Just think, Tessa. You could do this all the time. Sunny skies all the time, that’s Vegas. If you wanted to live here.”

  “Oh, wow. Thank you. But Granddad is back in North Dakota. So.”

  “So what? Plenty of nursing homes here. Old people thrive in the desert.”

  “I have friends too.” This was almost a lie. Dev was currently packing up his apartment, envisioning weekend trips to Palm Springs and pools surrounded by gay men. Once he left, Tessa doubted he’d ever come back to North Dakota.

  “I have a few connections for jobs there,” she added lamely.

  “Vegas needs smart girls like you. If you got a job you could live with me, rent free.” Ron winked at her. “No boys over, though.”

  The back door to the house swung open and Berkley strutted out in her full glory – radiant red hair flowing, dressed in a black crocheted beach cover-up thrown over an acid green bikini. At least she’d put on a top for family swim time. It was the first time Tessa had seen Berkley since watching her in that room. Her cheeks burned at seeing Berkley in the light of day. Tessa turned away. Sunlight passing through the leaves of a nearby Japanese blueberry tree dappled the pool water. Tessa opened her book and pretended to read.

  “Morning perverts.”

  Tessa looked up. Berkley stared at her as she threw a towel on the chaise.

  “Morning.” Tessa’s voice sounded feeble even to her own ears.

  “Enjoy the show last night?” Berkley said this to Tessa, and then to Ron she added, “I was visited by a little peeping tom last night.”

  To Ron, Tessa explained “I heard noises down the hall and I wanted to give Berkley that champagne I got her –”

  “Jesus Murphy,” Ron interrupted, raising his voice. “Berk, I told you not to be working while Tessa is here.”

  “No, no, it’s fine. Really. It’s her home,” Tessa said quickly. “I shouldn’t have –”

  “A big fish swam my way, baby. I can’t turn that kind of money down.” Berkley purred to Ron. “Did you like what you saw, Tessa?”

  “So you’re… a webcam girl?” Tessa said, ignoring the question.

  “A webcam queen.” Berkley pulled off her crocheted cover-up and tossed it on the ground.

  “Berk’s a grade-A hustler,” Ron said. “Went from being a waitress at one of my lesser clubs to being the top-earning dancer at Peaches. I made her quit after she moved in with me, but she’s not one to sit around. She got in on the web-cam game. Even though she’s getting long in the tooth, and she stays on top.” Ron looked at his girlfriend, nodding with a quiet pride and wonder. “Bet on her. She never loses.”

  “Only someone who is around twenty-year-olds every day would say she’s long in the tooth,” Tessa said. Berkley and Ron weren’t listening. They stared at each other, communicating some message that Tessa wasn’t party to. Romantic couples were the world’s greatest mystery.

  Tessa went to the pool and dipped a toe in. Even though she’d never buy the bikini she was wearing, she had to admit that she liked how she looked in it. She wished Cal could
see her in it, wished to be at his pool rather than with these two and their weird vibes. Tonight when they saw each other, maybe she’d suggest that they go for a swim. Skinny dipping. Sex in a swimming pool.

  The pool water was still cool but she stepped in anyway, slowly at first and then in one great plunge. The temperature shocked her, but she stayed below the surface, swimming low enough to run her hands along the bottom of the pool. Able to hold her breath no longer, she burst from the water. Blinking the water droplets from her eyes, she found herself face to face with Berkley. The darkened ends of her red hair fanned out in the water around her shoulders. Her artificially tanned skin was covered in goosebumps. Behind her, Ron had got out of his chair and walked away lighting a cigarette.

  Berkley reached out and touched Tessa’s shoulder with one of her elegant oval nails. “You look like you got a little too much sun already.”

  “My bare skin hasn’t seen the light of day for months.” She dipped her shoulders under the water in an attempt to shake off Berkley’s fingers. “I’m sorry if I creeped you out last night,” Tessa added. She had to apologize, even if she got the feeling that Berkley enjoyed her being there. In some ways the whole performance was for Tessa, not the man on the screen. “I got you a bottle of champagne. To apologize for ditching you and Skinner at the club.”

  Berkley stoked backward in the water, still facing Tessa. “I’m never one to get in the way of fun.” Tessa’s cheeks grew warm; Berkley reached out and touched each cheek with a wet finger. “Looks like your cheeks got a little too much sun too,” she added.

  “I had fun,” Tessa said.

  “Nothing to be ashamed of. In this town, if someone offers you free prime rib, you taste it.”

  “He’s very nice.”

  “That’s not his reputation. But I have no doubt he’s nice at first. Otherwise how would he get so many women? Google some of the ladies he’s been with. My god. Models. Actresses. Better keep him interested while you can.”