The Last Thing

by Gaitan, Briana

  Chapter Seven

  Chase

  The drink had calmed my nerves. My hands were no longer shaking and my stomach wasn’t in knots. This was not the night I expected. I came here ready and willing to forgive Quinn for blowing me off and maybe get some. Then out of nowhere, she had sprung this on me. I didn’t handle it too well at first. I knew this. With each gulp from the glass, I became more and more ashamed of my behavior. Having unprotected sex wasn't like me, but I’d been caught up in the moment. The lust and alcohol had clouded my mind. I hadn’t even worried about it afterwards because I figured the pill was fool proof. I wasn’t about to tell her why I didn’t have a condom either. I’d forgotten to restock my wallet after a hook up the night before. Careless and stupid.

  She seemed innocent enough. Now I had this gorgeous brunette in front of me who said she was carrying my baby. Damn, she’d give me some beautiful babies. It could have been worse. When she mentioned leaving town, I could feel my body start to panic. I’d never had a kid before, but I was certain that if she moved thousands of miles away, I would never get to see this child. I didn’t even have time to visit my own mom as it was.

  “I don’t want you to move,” I told her

  A smile dangled on the corner of her lips before speaking. “Good. I really don’t want to go.”

  “You swear the baby is mine?”

  “I haven’t been with anyone else in over a year.”

  Ginger may of loved dramatics, but I didn’t believe she’d purposely allow Quinn to lie to me. Ginger may be a bit stuck up, but she wasn’t a bad person. If she really was pregnant , I needed to be a part of their lives. Having a non-existent father had made a huge impact on my life. My mom had struggled to raise me alone, and I didn’t want Quinn to have to do the same. Unlike my father, I could never walk out on my child. Didn’t matter what the circumstances were. I was a better man than he’d ever be.

  “I still want a test done.”

  “Fine.” She seemed irritated that I’d mentioned it again.

  We sat in silence for a few more minutes as I finished my second glass of brandy. Suddenly, I had an idea. It wasn’t perfect but it was a chance for both of us to get what we wanted.

  I put a hand out and stroked the side of her cheek. She closed her eyes at my touch. Her skin was smooth beneath my fingers. That night at the party, it was rushed, unromantic and eager. If we made love again, what would that be like?

  “We can’t take back the past, but the truth is, we are going to be a family. Why can’t we give it one hundred percent?”

  I didn’t know where these words were coming from. I didn’t do relationships, but on the other hand, I would do anything to keep Quinn from leaving town.

  “Are you saying you want to date me?” she asked. Dating would mean I would have to be monogamous, and all of the other things I didn’t like. Why not? I’d never tried it; maybe I would change my mind.

  “Quinn…uh what is your last name?”

  “Bardot,” she told me.

  “Quinn Bardot, I know we are doing this all ass backwards, but will you date me?”

  “What about your girlfriend?” she put her hands up to make air quotes when she said the word girlfriend.

  “What girlfriend?”

  “Ginger said you were dating a girl on the show?”

  I wracked my brain for a moment. I’d never had a girlfriend, but had hooked up with plenty of girls on set. Ginger knew that.

  “I’ve already told you. I don’t have a girlfriend. I swear, you’re searching for excuses to say no.”

  She stared at my empty glass for a long time; so long that I was terrified she’d say no. Then she slowly lifted her hazel eyes up to meet mine.

  “I can’t ,” she whispered.

  My mouth literally fell open. She actually turned me down. I couldn’t believe it. A grin lit up my face, only because she had to be joking.

  “Gimme a chance. I won’t give up until you say yes.”

  “Are you kidding me? I just said no.”

  “You’re really serious?”

  “Seriously serious.”

  I was terrified. Terrified I would screw everything up. Hurt her like my father had hurt my mother. Fall short of any expectation. She made me want to try though. It was time I started thinking about someone other than myself.

  “How about dinner tomorrow night?” I asked her. She laid her head down on the kitchen countertop and groaned.

  “I didn’t prepare for this at all.”

  Her words piqued my interest. Had she thought so little of me that she didn’t believe I would stand by her side. I wasn’t that much of a jerk. Sure, at times, I could be arrogant, but I called her for weeks after that night. I wanted to be with her. Granted, it started out only wanting to get in her pants. Each time we met, the feelings developed into something more. She was the one who never gave us a chance. Did I love her? No. But there was potential for…something more.

  “How can I convince you that I want this?”

  “You can’t.”

  “I will.”

  “You won’t,” she groaned and slammed her head against the counter once more. I pulled her up hastily and examined the red knot forming on her forehead.

  “Don’t hurt yourself. What is wrong with you?”

  “This is never going to work, Chase. Just look at us. Even if we wanted to make it work, we couldn’t. I don’t want your lifestyle. I want my privacy. I want to fuckin’ live! I don’t want people to look at me. I don’t want our child’s pictures plastered on the front of some magazine!”

  I gripped her shoulders tightly as she screamed at me. She was killing me with this obsession to push me away.

  “What do you need from me?”

  “I need my privacy.”

  “I can give that to you.” My words seemed to make her calm down.

  “What about the reporters and the photographers? I don’t think I can handle that type of publicity right now,”

  Her privacy was important to me as well, but there was something in the tone of her voice. It led me to believe that she was hiding something deeper.

  “There are plenty of celebrities that lead a quiet personal life.”

  She snorted loudly. “You aren’t one of those celebrities.”

  “I thought you didn’t care about all of that stuff?”

  “I may have snuck a peek at a magazine.” She shrugged carelessly.

  “Okay, I’ll tone down my lifestyle, what else do you need?” I was eager to prove to her that my jackass attitude from earlier was over.

  “No. We won’t work out. I don’t want to be pulled into your spotlight.”

  I made a face. Eventually someone would find out. What about doctor’s appointments and family outings. Did she really expect us to hide this forever?

  “Why do you want to keep this a secret? Is there someone else?”

  She sat there for a few moments, her head down. When she finally opened her mouth, her voice was soft spoken. It almost scared me.

  “I’m just not good enough for you. I ruin everything I touch.”

  I reached out to graze the side of her face with my fingertips. What did she mean she wasn’t good enough for me? I wasn’t good enough for her! She was beautiful and a hard worker. She was honest and kind. I was a chauvinistic womanizer who only cared about himself. I hesitated slightly before leaning in to kiss her on the cheek. I had to admit, I was slightly disappointed that I’d chicken-shitted out and gone for the cheek. Before I leaned back, I whispered into her ear. I could feel her shiver slightly as I spoke.

  “Somehow, I seriously doubt that.”

  Quinn

  The wind outside blew hard, knocking over random pieces of trash, and tossing it through the parking lot. It was late, and I was the last person to leave work after we had closed for the night.

  “Shit!” I yelled as I dropped my keys onto the hard pavement. I cursed as I bent down to pick them up.

  My manager walked
a few yards behind me loudly chattering on his phone, he raised a hand to wave good-bye. I stood up and reciprocated. All night, thoughts plagued my mind of going home and soaking in a hot bath. As I made my way closer to my car, I frowned when I noticed an unfamiliar black sports car parked right next to mine. The tinted windows were so dark I couldn’t see if anyone was inside. There was no one else parked around me so I instinctively reached into my bag for my Taser. I’d never had an issue with crime, and we were in a safer part of the city, but just in case, I prepared for an attack. As I carefully neared my car, someone stepped out of the driver’s side of the other vehicle. My heartbeat began to slow down when I recognized the dark hair and smirky grin.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, letting my Taser drop back into my bag. We hadn’t spoken since he’d left my house the other night.

  Chase walked around to lean against my car door. He stuck his hands in his baggy tracksuit and tried to catch my eye. He was so sexy, and I was all hormonally unstable.

  This isn’t a good idea. Make him leave, Quinn.

  “Hey. I’m here to check on you. Ginger told me you wouldn’t be home till late, and I needed to make sure you made it home safely.”

  “I’ve been getting home safely without you for a few months now.” It came out sounding shorter than I intended.

  “Humor me, okay?” He took the keys from my hand and straightened up so he could open the door for me.

  “Thanks.” I threw my bag into the car. “I have a feeling you’re here for more than just to inquire about my safety.”

  “I need a date, just give me one real date. If you still want nothing to do with me. That’s fine. Granted, that is not what I want, but I’ll respect your decision. I want to be a part of this baby’s life. My father was never there, and I swore I would never be like him.”

  “You need to stop pursuing something that will never happen. I don’t want a relationship, but you’re welcome to be a part of this baby’s life.” I tried to make my voice as convincing as possible. It would be impossible to convince him when I wasn’t one hundred percent convinced myself.

  “I disagree. I’m not gonna give up until you say yes. I’ll just keep coming around and around. I believe that if you just gave it a chance, you would very much in fact want a relationship with me.” He stroked the bottom of his chin as he studied me.

  I boldly glanced up at him. A sparkle danced in his eyes. And I couldn’t stop myself from saying the next words that came from my mouth.

  “Prove it.”

  “I will.”

  “Do it.”

  “I’m trying.”

  Annoyed with his persistence, I crossed my arms in front of my body and tapped my foot against the pavement. “You really think you’re like God’s gift to women or something don’t you?”

  With a playful look on his face, his head bobbed up and down. “Yup.”

  “And you don’t care about rejection?”

  “Does it look like I would be this successful in my professional life if I gave up every time someone said no? No, you gotta push past all the negativity and find your own way.”

  “You make it seem so easy,” I mumbled. I leaned against the car beside him and stared out into the empty parking lot. He grabbed my chin and tilted my head back, forcing me to look up at him. I’d never really taken a moment to study him. I mean really study him. His skin was a perfect shade of golden brown. He was perfect and completely out of my reach.

  “Life isn’t easy. Nobody is perfect. You’ve just gotta accept whatever it throws at you.”

  “That’s it? You just accept it. Accept the good and the bad?”

  “Why not? Fate has a funny way of making things right. Look at me. I didn’t want to do Timelines when they presented it to me. If it weren’t for that show, I wouldn’t have gotten my big break. This thing between us…it’s pushing us together for a reason. We’re gonna have a kid soon and I think we owe it to ourselves to figure it out.”

  I bet nothing bad had ever happened to him. Nothing worse than having a hangover or losing a few hours of sleep. Why should I take advice from him? That little voice inside of my head still nagged at me. It told me that if I wanted a fresh start, I needed to take chances. What’s the worst that could happen? We figure out that we have nothing in common and both go our separate ways.

  “Fine. One date,” I told him. He clapped his hands together loudly in front of him and rubbed them back and forth as if he were trying to warm them up.

  “Awesome. You won’t regret this. How about this weekend?”

  I already regretted it, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. “Sounds perfect.”

  The Date

  Quinn

  I pulled into the parking lot and stopped my little car in the spot closest to the door. It was dark outside, and I still wasn’t use to LA crime. Back home, I could walk anywhere at any time of the night and not be afraid.

  Chase had insisted we enter from the back so the photographers wouldn’t see us enter or leave together. It was thoughtful; the fact that he took my privacy very seriously. Though we hadn’t talked since he left last night, we had been sending text messages all day. He kept asking how I was doing, and sent funny tidbits of his day at the studio. He was being unexpectedly sweet.

  When he had asked me out, I initially wanted to say no, but I kept thinking about what Ginger had told me. That Bash’s death wasn’t my fault. I wasn’t supposed to feel guilty for wanting to be happy, but that didn’t change the fact that feeling nothing was better than feeling the inevitable pain of love. Nothing was my coping mechanism.

  Even though it was dark outside, I placed a pair of dark glasses on my nose and completed the look with a Tennessee ball cap. It was enough to hide my identity. I straightened out my nerdy Star Wars t-shirt with my hands. Even though this was our first date, I hadn’t cared enough to dress up.

  I walked up to the large metal backdoor and knocked on it loudly. After a moment, I stepped back as a tall muscular man with light hair and a beard opened the door. He was twice my size, about a foot taller than me, and scary as hell. He was one of those guys with no neck who couldn’t quite lay his arms down at his side. He scowled down at me.

  “Miss. Bardot?” he asked in a scruffy deep voice. I removed my glasses and studied him closely, was this Chase’s bodyguard?

  “Yes…I’m Quinn.”

  The man’s face softened and a large smile grew upon it. He stepped back to allow me to move inside past him.

  “Nice to meet you. I’m Randall.” He held out a large hand. I hesitated but shook it. He wasn’t scary at all. He was like a huge, loveable teddy bear.

  “Chase has told me all about your predicament. I just want you to know that I’ll make sure no one takes your picture. No one will come near you,” he said. I was a little bit surprised Chase had told anyone about me at all, but was glad to know that I was safe.

  We walked through the back hall and through the kitchen. People were running around, yelling orders, cooking food, and grabbing plates. Randall tried to direct me through the traffic but people kept bumping into us. I yelped as a younger man in a white chef’s suit carrying a huge, flaming pan ran into me.

  “Watch out!” he yelled.

  Randall grabbed me by the shoulders as a wave of hot oil soared into the air. It fell on the floor, barely missing me by inches.

  “What the fuck is she doing back here?” the cook roared at Randall.

  I cowered back against Randall, who then stepped in front of me. Why was he yelling? He was the one who’d run into me. I was literally seconds away from getting my whole face burned off by hot flames.

  “I suggest you clean up your mess and continue on. She is a VIP guest,” Randall said in his most demeaning voice.

  The cook glared at me but kept his mouth closed. He bent down to clean up the food as Randall grabbed me by the arm and swiftly pulled me from the kitchen.

  There was a private room to the side of the kitchen, clo
sed off by huge double doors. Inside sat Chase in front of an elaborate round table. Hundreds of lit candles and white tulips surrounded the room. When the doors shut behind us, the racket from the kitchen became muted. Chase stood up with a concerned look on his face.

  “Everything okay, Randall?”

  The big man glared in the direction of the kitchen and placed his hands behind his body. “One of the staff workers almost knocked into Miss. Bardot. I was able to move her in time and contain the situation.”

  “Take care of him,” Chase said angrily. Randall nodded in agreement and left the room. I cocked my head to the side because I wasn’t sure if Chase had just asked Randall to get the cook fired or kill him. Neither, I hoped.

  Chase stood up and walked over to me. He gave me a devious smile before looking me up and down.

  “Love the shirt,” he told me. I laughed as I stared down at the old shirt.

  “Thanks, it was…” I let my voice trail off. This shirt had belonged to Bash, but I didn’t want to talk about him right now. I don’t know why I wore something like this on a date. It wasn’t tasteful. Maybe wearing something that belonged to Bash reminded me that I wasn’t emotionally available for a relationship. Whatever the reason, I now regretted putting it on. I noted Chase’s attire. He was dressed in a pair of slacks with a dark sports coat. The dress was obviously more upscale than I’d realized. Why hadn’t I asked about the dress code for the restaurant? Oh that’s right because I’d been too busy puking my guts out all day. Lucky for him, I left out that tidbit of information.

  “You look nice. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize this was a formal dinner,” I told him. I pulled the ball cap from my head and shook my brown hair out along my shoulders.

  “It’s okay. This is a private room for VIP guests. We can get in and out without anyone seeing us.” He walked over to the second chair and pulled it out for me.

  “I believe dating etiquette requires that I pull out your chair and compliment you,” he said with a wink. I sat down in the chair and pushed it closer against the table. He took the seat right next to me. Our elbows were almost touching and it caused chills to run up and down my spine.