I took a hot shower, more to relax than to cleanse myself. (Trey and I had shared a shower—and more—once we’d finally crawled out of bed.) Toweling myself off, I glanced at the mist-covered mirror, half expecting some word to be written there, like Bryan or Coleman or even REDRUM, like in the Stephen King story. There was nothing. I got dressed and read a chapter or two until I got drowsy. A nap seemed in order, so I lay down and, thankfully, got some uninterrupted and dream-free rest.
Later, I went to a furniture store in Sterling and picked out a bed and a nice little armchair and a couch. My checkbook balance at the end of this spree made me want to cry, but at the same time I felt liberated. By making purchases for my new place, I was proving to myself that I wasn’t going to be running back to Kevin, begging forgiveness. I was really doing it. I was leaving him. And I was happy, mainly because each purchase made me envision Trey. Trey and me in the new bed. Trey and me snuggling on the couch, watching TV… once I bought one. Maybe I could find a used one cheap somewhere.
It was seven o’clock when I showed up at the Coffee Cafe. I knew Trey would still be working, but I wanted to take advantage of a free meal. My second day there, Trey’s mother had said to me, “I can’t pay you a fortune, but I can give you all the free food you want. Take advantage of it. God knows Trey does.” And I’d accepted her hospitality almost every evening since, basically living off soup and sandwiches.
Of course, Trey waited on me, and he acted like I was a complete stranger, hardly looking at me as he asked for my order. “What would you like, sir?”
“How about the waiter?”
He swiveled his hips and slapped his thigh. “These goods don’t come cheap, sir.”
“That’s not what I heard.”
“Bitch.”
“Slut. I’ll have a ham sandwich and some chips.” The menu wasn’t extensive, as the place was mainly a coffeehouse, but the food wasn’t really that bad. Trey snapped the menu out of my hands (I hadn’t needed it anyway) and went off. Moments later, Gloria Ramsey came out from behind the counter and approached my little table by the window.
“Can I have a word?” she asked.
“Anytime.”
She sat down and rested her chin on her fists. “So how did the shopping go?”
“How did you—”
Her smile was so similar to Trey’s. “He talks about you. A lot.” She sat back, reached into the pocket of her smock, and brought out an envelope. She slid it across the table toward me. “This is for you.”
Frowning, I looked inside. There was money inside, at least ten bills. I didn’t check, but a couple of them were fifties and at least one was a hundred. “What’s this?”
“A bonus. Now, don’t look like that. You deserve a bonus.”
“Mrs. Ramsey—”
“Gloria.”
“Gloria, then. No one gets a bonus in their first week of working somewhere. I can’t accept this.”
She sighed. “Trey’s told me a little about your situation. I haven’t been in exactly the same situation, but I know how hard it can be to start over. Take the money, kid. View it as a loan if you want. A loan that you can take years to repay, if ever. But take the goddamn money.”
“I….” I almost returned the envelope to her, but I knew she’d insist I take it and that, in the end, she’d win. So I pocketed the cash without actually counting it. I’d do that later, and make sure every penny got back to her. “Thank you.”
Gloria reached out and actually pinched my cheek. “You’re part of the family now. Do you know Trey actually showed up on time today? And his clothes were clean? And his hair washed? Of course, he also had a Mona Lisa smile on his face, like a cat that finally snagged the canary. Not that I’m calling you a canary….”
I blushed. “I like Trey a lot. It’s great that you’re so supportive of him.”
“What are you talking about? Of course I am. He’s my son.”
I thought of Darryl Hollis. “Not everyone is that accepting of their offspring’s choices.”
She looked like I was speaking nonsense. “How could anyone object to their kid dating you? Or not like a kid like Trey? Oh sure, he’s a wastrel, and he likes to put on his surly tough-guy act, and he thinks he shocks people, but everyone sees through him. We just don’t let him know that we all know he’s a sweetheart.” Gloria pursed her lips. “Did that sentence make sense?”
“Perfectly.”
“Now, I’d best be getting back to work.” She patted my hand. “You take care of yourself, honey. And don’t forget, you’ve got an early shift tomorrow.”
“Five in the morning. How could I forget?”
“So don’t you and Trey stay up all night. Chatting, I mean.” She flashed me a knowing look. There were two people waiting at the counter to pay their bill, so she rose from her chair. “I’m coming! I’m coming!” she exclaimed as she bustled across the dining room to take care of them.
Things were certainly different in a small town.
WE HAD the house to ourselves, as Trey’s aunts and cousins were all out, and his mother was still at the cafe. So we took advantage of the situation.
Trey’s room was a converted attic room and a little chilly, so after we made love we huddled under the covers, enjoying our shared body heat. And kissing. A hell of a lot of kissing.
“Okay,” he said at one point, gazing into my eyes, “I’m thinking we’re doing pretty good, right?”
“I’d say so. Good so far.” Great, fantastic, superb. But I didn’t want him to get a big head.
“So we should tell each other the worst things about ourselves. You know, the thing that sometimes puts people off. The deal breaker. If mine doesn’t bother you and yours doesn’t bother me, then we know we’re made for each other.”
“Okay.” I grinned. “You go first.”
“Why me?”
“You brought it up.”
He conceded the point. “Right. But you can’t laugh. And try not to go ‘ewww.’”
“I’ll try.”
Trey sighed. “I’ve got a bit of an armpit fetish. Just a little one. And fuck, you’ve got bushy ones. And sometimes—you’re laughing!—I just want to stick my face in them and… inhale. I know. Fuck, it’s sick. I shouldn’t have told you.”
“No, it’s good. And I wasn’t laughing at you. Just… it’s so you. I mean, it’s pretty tame in the scheme of things. You’re not into fisting or—”
“Fuck no!”
“Water sports or—”
“Ewww. Please tell me that’s not yours. You wanna pee on me, I’m going to have to draw a line there. Now, what’s yours?”
I thought a moment, leaning back into my pillow. “I think mine is that I lose myself in the other person. I cease to exist on my own. I become what the other person wants me to be, what he sees in me. I lose myself in their perceived perception of me. I think that’s why I stayed with Kevin so long. I couldn’t find myself. I was who he said I was, and without him I was afraid I wouldn’t exist.”
“Fuck,” Trey said. “That’s… fuck. That’s… I almost wish it was water sports now. That I could deal with. Wait, don’t look like that. I can deal with it, but you have to know that I’d never let you do that to yourself. I like you for you. Be you. You are a pretty good guy. Just believe in yourself.”
“I know. Or I’m starting to. I just thought you ought to know.” I looked at the clock on his bedside table and groaned. “Your family will be getting home soon. I’d better get dressed and get to the inn. I have to work early.”
Trey held me tight, not letting me move. “Stay here tonight.”
“I can’t. You know I wouldn’t get any sleep.”
“Oh, yeah. Like you’re going to get any sleep at Ghost Central.”
I kissed him long and hard, then put a hand on his chest and pushed him gently away. “I’ve got to go,” I said.
He pulled at my arm. “No! Stay!”
Laughing, I allowed him to yank me back into his
arms. We wrestled around a little until he was on top of me. The covers were all tangled now, and we both were slightly aroused by the naked tussle. “A few more minutes,” I said.
“Fuck that. An hour at least. Oh, don’t think you’re getting away. I’m smaller than you are, but stronger.”
“Oh, you think so?”
More wrestling ensued, and he proved his point. Maybe he wasn’t stronger, but he was more determined.
WE MET his mother on the stairs as Trey was showing me out. “I guess I don’t have to ask what you boys have been up to,” she said, her eyes twinkling.
“We were watching Netflix,” Trey protested.
“Then why is your T-shirt on backward?” she asked.
He looked down and plucked at his shirt. “Oh. Shit.”
Gloria playfully smacked his cheek. The unscratched one. “You’ll always be my baby boy, even if you are a lazy asshole.”
Trey smirked. “It’s my thing.”
We continued down the stairs, and Gloria yelled to me that she’d see me in the morning. I wondered if she ever got much sleep. She always seemed to be at the cafe.
The foyer was dark, but Trey didn’t turn on any lights so that we could continue saying good-bye with a bit of privacy. When I finally realized we could stand there kissing until the end of time, I broke away and put my hand on the doorknob. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“You’d better. And no playing with the ghosts tonight. Get some sleep.”
I put on my jacket and opened the door. One last kiss and I reluctantly turned away from Trey. As soon as I was outside, I missed him already. It was good to feel that way about a person again. I was grinning as I made my way down the steps.
I didn’t even see the person standing on the sidewalk until I was only a few feet away from him. For one thing, he was standing in the shadows of the oak tree, out of the light from the streetlamp. But as I approached, he moved and spoke.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding yourself.”
It was Kevin.
Chapter TWELVE
I FROZE, not believing my eyes.
“Kevin?”
“Come on. It’s time to go home.”
I couldn’t seem to catch my breath. “What are you doing here?”
Kevin was wearing an old khaki jacket, torn jeans, and had a beanie clamped down over his short blond hair. He wasn’t threatening me in any way, not physically, anyway. It was all in the attitude, in the way he carried himself and spoke. Kevin Anderson spoke, and Michael Cook obeyed. That was the way it always was. And dammit, part of me wanted to slip into that mode once again.
“I tracked you down,” he said.
“How?”
He looked at me like I was stupid. I was used to that look. “Your cell phone. You can track someone by the GPS on their phone. It’s really not even hard to do. Now come on. We’re going to the Raven’s Rest to collect your stuff.”
I almost moved. Almost. I sucked in air instead and squared my shoulders. “How did you know I was staying at the Raven’s Rest? How long have you been—” Realization dawned. “It was you following me the other night.”
He nodded.
“My God,” I muttered, anger rising within me. “How long have you been in Banning?”
“Just two days.”
“And you’ve been stalking me.”
A sneer found its way onto his lips, making his handsome face ugly. “I wanted to know just what you were up to. But now you’ve had your little fling. It’s over. Time to come home.”
“I don’t think so,” I said.
Kevin snorted. “Excuse me?”
“I can’t go home. I’m already there. Banning is my home now.”
Kevin grabbed me roughly by the arm. He wasn’t big, but he was athletic. I tried to pull away, but he held me tight. “I’ve seen you,” he said, “with that little scruffy guy. The long-haired fuckup from the cafe. Tell me, has he fucked you yet?”
“Leave Trey out of this,” I said through gritted teeth as I attempted to break free of him. Kevin yanked at my arm, nearly throwing me off balance.
And then he hit me.
I didn’t even see the punch coming. I wasn’t expecting it, as he’d never done anything like that before. But my head flew back as his fist made contact with my chin and the pain jolted through me. I somehow managed to stay on my feet, and I quickly brought my hand up to my mouth to examine the damage. My fingers were smeared with red. He’d split my lip.
For just a second there was a look of fear in Kevin’s eyes as he realized what he’d done. Then the steel returned. “You deserved that, you fucker. Now, unless you want me to beat the shit out of you, you’ll get your ass in gear and collect your stuff from the inn. We’re going home.”
“What the hell is going on?” Trey’s voice came from behind me. Apparently he’d looked out his window and seen an altercation was taking place. I turned to see him rushing down the steps, worry written on his face.
Kevin tried to grab hold of me again, but I jerked my arm out of his reach. To Trey he growled, “You keep out of this, you fucking hippie. This is between me and Michael.”
Trey was at my side. He took one look at my bleeding face and then glared at Kevin. “You got a problem with Michael, you got a problem with me, asshole.”
Shaking his head in mock wonder, Kevin said with a chuckle, “And that’s supposed to scare me?”
“Just leave,” Trey said. “We don’t want any trouble.”
He put his arm around me protectively. I’d have been proud of him if I wasn’t so damned scared. I touched my bleeding lip and knew it was swelling. I stared at the back of my hand, now smeared with blood. In the feeble light it looked black, unreal. I had that coppery taste in my mouth and swallowed. That didn’t help.
Kevin took a step toward Trey. “Out of the way, hippie.” To me, he jerked his thumb vaguely in the direction of the Raven’s Rest. “Come on. This is over. Get your ass back home.”
“No,” I said, surprising myself. Trey held me tighter, which gave me even more strength. “I’m through with you, Kevin. I’m sorry, but we just aren’t a good fit. I’m staying here.”
“You don’t know what you’re saying.” It was typical Kevin logic. I was stupid; therefore, only he could know what was best for me. “You’re letting this pretty little jerk turn your head, but what you’re really doing is trying to punish me for some reason. Come back home. We’ll discuss it.”
“Good God, you don’t listen, do you?” Trey exclaimed.
“Fuck off, you little bitch,” Kevin said as he tried to push Trey aside so he could grab me.
Things moved rapidly after that, but to me it was as if they happened in slow motion. Trey rebounded from the shove and lurched forward to block Kevin from getting to me. Kevin’s fist came up and slammed into Trey’s nose. I screeched out Trey’s name as he fell back. Kevin kept swinging, even as Trey tumbled to the ground. He crouched over Trey, pummeling him with lefts and rights. I tried to pin Kevin’s arms to his sides, but he was too strong and too incensed. So I jumped up onto Kevin’s back, which threw him off balance. He stumbled, and we went over.
And then I heard the whoop of a siren and saw the flashing blue lights of a squad car.
The cavalry had arrived.
WE WERE up in Trey’s room. He was in his bed, looking miserable. We’d spent the last few hours at the hospital in Dixon as they saw to his nose, which the doctor informed us didn’t need to be reset and would heal in time. Trey now had, however, a swollen nose, a cut on his chin, and two black eyes to accompany the scratches on his face.
They’d given him some pills for the pain, and he looked like he was barely awake as he forced a smile my way. “I almost had him, you know. Another couple of seconds, and he’d have been toast.”
“Yeah,” I said, grinning. “You’re my knight in bruised and bleeding armor.”
“What did Erin say? I missed all the fun of her hauling your jerk of an ex away, you
know, with me lying there bleeding and everything.”
“Deputy Hughes said he’ll spend the night in jail at least. They’re charging him with aggravated assault and several other things, I think even resisting arrest. She told me to get a restraining order as soon as possible.”
“Can’t they just shoot him and be done with it?”
“She thought that might be going too far.” I was sitting on the edge of his bed, watching as his eyelids struggled to stay open. Even with bandages all over his face, I thought he was gorgeous. I stroked his forehead, as that was about the only unscathed spot. “You poor thing.”
“Hey,” he said groggily, “I’m a badass. Badasses don’t require sympathy. We revel in our badassery.”
“Well, now you’ve met Kevin.”
“Yeah. And why were you with him for so long? Explain that to me. Because from where I’m sitting, he’s not worth spitting at.” Trey frowned. “Maybe that’s what I should have done. Spit on him. Much better than fisticuffs.”
“I wish I knew,” I said, and then I kissed Trey’s forehead. “I’d better go. You need to sleep.”
“No, I’m good,” he said, the words barely audible. “I….”
“You’re almost asleep already.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Call me when you get up, okay?”
“You bet.” I kissed him on the lips this time, although gently due to my own damaged face. I felt a little guilty. I came away with a cut lip, while Trey—basically an innocent bystander—had the crap beat out of him.
I crept downstairs to find several people in the foyer. Aunt Janet and Gloria Ramsey were there, with worried looks on their faces, listening to Deputy Erin Hughes, who was filling them in on the details. They all turned to me as I approached.
“How is he?” Gloria asked, a hand on her heart.
“Sleeping,” I replied. “He insists he was just about to open up a can of whoop-ass on Kevin, and that if Deputy Hughes hadn’t arrived when she did, Kevin would be in pieces by now.”
“That’s my son, the little asshole.” She shook her head angrily. “If I get my hands on that guy, he’ll wish he’d never stepped foot in this town.” Flashing a guilty look at Erin Hughes, she added, “I’m just venting. Don’t mind me.”
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