I’m half-tempted to ask my dad for advice. At this point, I just need to get a hold of Curtis and tell him.
I turn toward him, and he laughs at my fingers in my mouth.
Pulling my hand away, he gives me his best sorrowful look. “I don’t envy you.” He pats my knee again and stands up. “Here you go, Curtis. Take my seat.” Then, he runs out to the driveway like an old man. “Come on, guys. I’ll be the Ashby.”
“Dad!” Brad yells. “We need Piper.”
My dad smacks his back. “I showed you how to play this damn game.”
Brad cowers down, laughing, and slaps my dad’s back. “Let’s go.”
My dad smiles.
I love seeing them together. Then, it dawns on me how close my dad and Brad are, and there’s a high probability that my dad knows what happened two years ago. All this time I thought he was ignorant when he wasn’t.
“So, did you just miss me?” Curtis grabs my hand, entwining our fingers.
Again, my eyes fly to Tanner, who’s enthralled in the game. Or acting as though he is.
“Piper?”
I shake my head and twist to face him. “I’m sorry. What?”
“You called me, like, five times. Did you need something?” His eyebrows rise.
My teeth nibble on my bottom lip. “Um . . .” I stall when I should ask him to go on a drive or go out back, somewhere other than right here, but I can’t seem to pull the trigger on breaking up with him. My stomach plummets with the thought of him trying to change my mind. Then again, maybe I’m assuming he’ll fight for me when, in reality, he might not care.
“Hi, Curtis.” My mom scoots her chair over. “Do you want something to drink?”
I crinkle my eyebrows at her, and she smiles wide at me.
“No, I’m good, Susan. Thank you.” He shoots her his win-the-parents smile that wraps her in his web every damn time.
My mom eats it up. “Well, you know where everything is. Help yourself to anything.” My mom turns back around to talk with Lana.
“Hey, guys. You started without me.” Patrick walks across his own driveway to ours before stealing the ball from Dylan. “Not so bad in my old age, eh?” he says, showing his Canadian accent. He never did lose that after moving down here back in college.
“I’d give you a round of applause if you were actually able to steal the ball when I knew you were here,” Dylan eggs his dad on.
Patrick turns on his heels, and his hands swipe at the ball while Dylan dribbles it to each side of him.
“You talking trash to the man who is responsible for you being on this earth?” Patrick continues to banter back and forth with Dylan.
“Come on, Dad. You and I both know that Mom did all the work on getting me here.” Dylan laughs.
Tanner joins in.
“She needed a key part from me. You should thank me for making you a boy!”
“I don’t know. I think I’d like to be a girl. It’s easier being a girl. Right, Piper?” Dylan yells over to me.
All the men laugh.
“Shit, if I were a girl, I’d have it made. I’d be sitting my ass on the couch all day, letting my husband make the money,” Brad chimes in.
I narrow my eyes at him. “You think it’s so easy being a girl?” I stand up, walking over to them. “You want to be hormonal every month? Do you want to carry one of these for nine months?” I take the ball and shove it under my shirt.
“Your back hurts. Your feet get swollen,” Lana adds in, joining me in the driveway.
“Then, you have to pop the thing out from the size of a pea opening.” My mom saunters over in the fight against the men. “How about doing it twice, one after the other?”
My dad puts his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his side. “Oh, honey, I’ve thanked you every day for my two miracles.” He kisses the top of her head and then glances over to Brad and me.
“You boys had better treat your girls like your dads do us.” Lana cuddles up to Patrick, and he hugs her tight.
Tanner’s eyes find mine, and they intently fixate on me. Then, his head turns into a slow nod, and my stomach flutters from his silent promise to me.
“We taught them well.” Patrick pats Dylan on the back, but none of them say anything. “Didn’t we, boys?” He slaps his son a little harder, and Dylan loses his footing.
They all simultaneously answer, “Yes,” nodding their heads.
With the basketball under my shirt, I begin to walk away when two arms wrap around me and spin me in a circle.
“Give us the ball, Piper.” Tanner says loud enough for everyone to believe his act is normal behavior.
I melt into his arms a little.
As I’m trying not to get nauseous from the spinning, he whispers in my ear, “I just had to touch you. God, Piper, I want you so damn bad.”
As if knowing what his words do to me, he stops me with my back to Curtis. His two hands reach up my shirt, his backside of his fingers grazing along my stomach, and then he grabs the ball. The motion is so quick that I’m positive no one saw it, but I felt the touch in every nerve ending.
Then, he dribbles the ball away and down the court as though he didn’t just make me a little wetter for him. When I turn around to Curtis, I find him on his phone, not even paying attention.
As if on cue, Bayli’s car pulls up along the curb, and her entourage emerges from her BMW. She saunters up the sidewalk, and Brad continues bouncing the ball, not even saying hello.
“Hi, Bayli . . . girls,” my mom greets them.
Bayli smiles. “Hi, Mrs. Ashby.”
Her friends stand by Curtis while Bayli tries to grab Brad’s attention. She winds her way through us with smiles and low hellos until she’s right in front of Brad.
“Hi, Brad.”
He takes his last shot, letting the ball bounce into the grass. I witness a change of personality with the snap of my fingers when Brad smiles, picks her up, and circles her around.
“Hey, baby! How was your day?” He stops the spinning and then bends down to kiss her.
I cock my head when his tongue thrusts into her mouth, and he pulls her against him. She squeals, taken by surprise, and then relaxes into his arms.
Tanner knocks his shoulder with mine, and we both shift our attention to them in awe.
“Huh,” he murmurs.
I nod in agreement.
“Hey, Piper. Where’s your friend?” Dylan comes alongside me.
Tanner laughs.
“Bea? She’s working.” I smirk, intrigued by his interest. “Why?”
“Yeah. Why, Dylan?” Tanner mocks my own curiousness about the situation and circles around to Dylan.
“No reason. She’s always around,” he remarks, busying himself with the basketball.
“And?” I ask.
“And nothing.” He ventures away from us.
“Is there something in the air tonight?” Tanner jokes. “Everyone’s acting odd.” He chuckles.
“I agree.”
He looks down to me, nodding his head a few times.
My eyes flick to Curtis, seeing him chatting with one of the bridesmaids. When I turn back to tell Tanner that I picked him, he’s gone. He’s by Dylan now, dribbling the ball at his side with his back to me. My stomach drops. He’s assuming I want to be with Curtis, and that isn’t the case.
Tentatively, I find my way back to my chair that’s now occupied by another bridesmaid. Curtis has quite a fan club tonight. My decision to pick Tanner is confirmed when I have no gut-wrenching jealousy symptoms from witnessing it.
“Hey, baby,” he calls out. “Do you mind grabbing me a beer?”
“Sure.”
The girl next to him shoots me a look of disgust.
Like I give a shit what she thinks of me.
Deciding I need more space than just the fridge in the garage, I enter my house to fetch his beer. I debate with myself when to take Curtis aside because I don’t want Tanner to be hurt from seeing us together. If
the situation were reversed, I’d be a basket case from witnessing him being with another girl.
After I have the beer, I walk around the back of the house for more time alone. I’m surprised by how many people are here since tonight was supposed to be low-key before tomorrow’s bachelor party. I roll my eyes at the tables quickly being occupied by Brad’s buddies. He never could do low-key. He’s always been into huge parties. The more, the merrier is Brad’s philosophy. It’s funny because Bayli seems to be the opposite. When there are so many people around, she withdraws and finds a quiet place while Brad’s overtakes being the loudest in the room.
Weaving past everyone, I’m near the driveway when I’m pushed into the side door to the garage.
Tanner shields my body, his arms above my head, as he peers down at me. “I can’t do this. This isn’t me.”
He’s so close that the smell of his cologne lingers around us.
“I tried to tell him, but he never answered his phone.” I panic, wanting him to be assured.
He quiets for a second, intently looking down at me “I know I told you to take your time, but it’s killing me, Piper.” He steps back, and his fingers entwine behind his head as he paces back and forth in front of me.
“We can’t talk about this here.” I glance back and forth to make sure no one’s coming.
I grip the doorknob of the door in my hands, but he lightly places his hand on my forearm.
“You have to put me out of my misery here.” He shakes his head. “Never mind. I don’t want to know.” His hand releases me.
I’m baffled with the bipolar Tanner McCain who is now front and center. I have to admit that it’s nice that he loves me this much that he’s becoming unglued and slightly psychotic. I’m absolutely certain that I’m making the right decision.
“Tan—” I begin.
He places his finger in front of my lips. “I’m sorry, Piper. Take more time. I’m sure there’s a reason you didn’t end it today. Just remember how good we were together,” he says, not giving me a chance to speak.
I’m thrown from the different thoughts rambling out of his mouth.
“Tan—” I try once more.
But he won’t stand still. “It’s just so hard to put up this shield of indifference when we’re around each other. I’m not sure what moment I’ll snap.”
I grab his arm, and he twists my way.
“I’m breaking up with Curtis.” I giggle.
His eyes shine, and he releases a deep breath, but he remains speechless.
“Tan?” I question.
Soon, he’s back to where he was a second ago. His body leans against mine with his hands resting above my head. “You won’t regret this. If you want to take more time before we date, I understand. I mean, I don’t want you to, but at least you won’t be with him.” He tosses his head in the direction of the garage.
“No!” I screech and then bite my lip. “I mean, I don’t want to wait.” I shake my head.
His whole body relaxes and leans in closer to me. “You just made me the happiest guy.”
“Good.” My own shoulders relax that it’s all out in the open, and I allow my fingers to graze down his chest.
“Don’t start something you can’t finish,” he remarks, his own fingers dipping down, rubbing along the base of my neck.
It’s amazing how one touch from him makes my body tingle.
“Oh, I’ll finish it all right.”
Then, he stands straighter, and I fear someone’s coming, but his hands land on my shoulders as a small smile begins to erupt from his mouth.
“End it with him tonight, and afterward, come find me.” Then, he leans forward, and his lips gently press to my forehead.
I close my eyes at the feeling of comfort. “Okay.”
He backs up and walks away, leaving me wanting more of him.
“What’s up?” He tosses his head at one of their friends. Slyly giving me a clue someone’s coming.
I sneak through the side door of the garage. Shutting the door behind me, I notice Curtis sitting there, talking to the girl from earlier, and I shake my head, questioning if he’ll even care that I’m breaking off our relationship.
Right after I hand the beer to Curtis, Brad screams across the cement driveway, “Three on three. Piper, it’s either you or Curtis.” He points his finger between the two of us.
This grabs Curtis’s attention. “What’s he talking about?” Curtis questions me.
I point to the court. “They want one of us to play basketball. Do you play?” I’m not even sure why I’m asking. I can probably predict the answer.
“Yeah, I’ve played a few times. Do you not want to play?” He stands up, looking down at his khaki pants and button-down shirt. Unbuttoning and rolling up his sleeves, he announces, “I’ll play.” He didn’t even wait for my answer.
Tanner and Dylan snicker to one another as Curtis walks toward them.
Meandering over to the fridge in the garage, I grab a beer and take a seat again. With three balls, they all take turns practicing shooting while razzing one another. Taking a sip of my beer, I wait for the drama that’s sure to unfold.
Tanner bounces the ball to Brad, and Brad does the same back to him from “the top” of the makeshift court. Tanner dribbles around, dodging Brad by spinning around. With his back pressing into Tanner’s chest, the two are fiercely competitive with one another.
His athleticism has always turned me on, and that hasn’t waned since his time away. Glancing to find out where his brother and dad are, Tanner bounces the ball to Dylan, and then Dylan shoots and scores. The McCain boys go wild, arms raised, screaming about how great they are.
Brad’s pissed off, but he calms fast and takes the ball himself. He bounces it back and forth with Tanner, and then Brad throws the ball to my dad. He shoots, but Patrick blocks it. Then, Curtis picks it up and shoots, and it sinks through the net. All of them look at each other, surprised that he made the shot. My dad raises his hand to give Curtis a high five. Curtis sneaks a look at me and gives me a thumbs-up. I smile, but I hate how empty it makes me feel, how guilty I feel that I haven’t told him yet.
Tanner grabs the ball and retreats back up to the top of the court. Tanner quickly passes it to Brad for a ball check, and after Brad tosses it to Tanner, he shoots from the designated three-point line. It sinks through the net.
“There’s the man!” Dylan yells.
Tanner high-fives his family.
“Take it up, Curtis,” Brad says, staying down by the net.
Dylan lazily has his arms out as though Curtis isn’t much of a threat.
He dribbles it down the court, and Dylan lets Curtis by him, jogging up to the net. Then, Tanner reaches up, and hits the ball so hard, it flies down the driveway.
“Oh my,” Lana says next to me while the ball bounces past us.
Tanner and Curtis are standing chest-to-chest.
“I’ve never seen that look on Tanner’s face before,” Lana says.
I glance over, and she has her hand over her heart.
“It’s so—” Lana begins.
“Predatory,” my mom finishes, her hand reaching for and squeezing my arm.
“They’re just being competitive.” I attempt to veer their course of thinking.
My mom shakes her head but doesn’t add anything.
The boys continue to play.
Dylan runs back up with the ball in his hands. “Out on us. Your ball.” He tosses it to my dad.
Dad takes it up.
I’m astonished—and I’m sure the guys are, too—at how well Curtis is holding his own with them. For a country-club, silver-spoon kid, he’s good. Tanner and Curtis become more aggressive with elbows jamming into one another’s chest. Mostly, they guard one another instead of their designated opponent.
My fingers are in my mouth as I bite my nails during most of the game.
Curtis plows toward the net, and Tanner loses his footing, ending up on his ass. It’s the first tim
e that Tanner never turns my way, and I almost wish he would, so I could silently tell him to lay off, to assure him that he won the girl, to let Curtis leave with a little dignity. But that never comes because the next time when Curtis shoots the ball, Tanner reaches up to grab it before it can go in the net, his elbow jabbing Curtis.
“Shit!” Curtis screams, his hand flies up to his nose.
nineteen
MY MOM INCHES TO THE edge of her chair, and Lana stands up.
“Oh my God,” my mom says, running to the freezer.
Curtis’s hands leave his face, and blood runs, puddling on the sidewalk. I jump from my seat and run over to him as all the guys circle around him—well, all the guys except for Tanner. He’s steadily walking in circles, his hands clasped behind his head.
By the time I reach Curtis, he’s stepping toward Tanner.
When Tanner looks up, Curtis throws a fist right across his eye. “You son of a bitch. You did that on purpose.”
“The hell I did!” Tanner yells back, wincing and squinting his eyes from the punch.
“You’re not the king everyone thinks you are. Oh, I give my time to this charity, and I really am honored to be considered for the Olympics,” Curtis imitates Tanner’s latest interview that just aired on ESPN the other night.
“At least I earn what I get. I’m not begging for my dad’s scraps!” Tanner hollers back.
Curtis’s arm rises again, and he flies toward Tanner. This time though, Tanner stops it and then slams his fist into Curtis’s stomach.
Curtis bends over, and I’m about to go out there when Dylan grabs my hand. When I look his way, he shakes his head.
“Let them handle this,” he murmurs.
“Work? You don’t know the meaning of it. You swim in a damn pool every day. How hard is that?”
Gasps fumble around and I notice everyone coming out from the backyard, circling around.
“You’re fucking kidding me, right? Do you want to see my schedule? ’Cause let me give you a hint.” Tanner leans in close to Curtis. “It doesn’t include lunch at Tru.”
He cocks his head, and his friends laugh. Tru is one of the top restaurants in the city, and Curtis has taken me there twice for lunch, so the irony must ring home.
Love Surfaced Page 20