Chris grinned and tossed the ball back at his sister. “Man, the last time you were this worked up was when you found out I slept with Brandy.” He ducked when the ball came hurling back at his head.
“She was my girlfriend, you jackass!”
Chris dribbled past his sister and shot a layup into the basket. He caught the ball under the net and tossed it at his sister, before following to guard her. “You only went out with her four times!” The air whooshed from his lungs when Courtney elbowed him hard in the ribcage, dribbled around him and shot a basket. She grabbed the rebound and tossed it back, hitting him in the chest hard enough to knock the wind out of him a second time. “That’s four more dates with her than you had when I found you in the back seat of the car with her.”
Chris was catching his breath when she tried to smack the ball out of his hands. He grinned and dribbled around her, but she grabbed the ball and shot, swirling the rim. He grinned again. “I let you have that one, to make up for Brandy and all.” This time, when the ball came flying back at him he was ready. “Is this about the blonde?” The look on Courtney’s face told him he had struck a nerve, and he thought it best to move his feet.
“Shut up and shoot, Chris.”
Chris dribbled a circle around his sister and shot, swooshing the ball again. He tossed the rebound back at her and grinned again. “It’s been what, a couple months now. Doesn’t she put out?” He caught the basketball just as it nearly bounced off his teeth and decided he would try again after playing a few games to wear her out. “Oh, this is how we’re going to play it, huh?” He barely finished his sentence when Courtney shot him another elbow and swiped the ball for another shot.
“Yeah, this is how we’re going to play it.”
Four games later, they both collapsed on the grass next to the driveway, sweat dripping, chests heaving, they tried to catch their breath. Both had blood dripping from an elbow and more sore muscles than either could count. Chris lay on his back in the grass, crossed his hands behind his head, and spit out between heaving breaths, “God you’re mean for someone so little.”
Courtney rubbed her hands on her face and took a few deep breaths before replying, “You’re just mad you got beat by a girl.” She leaned back on her elbows, relishing the feel of her muscles burning.
Chris sat up, “Hey, I beat you twice.”
Courtney rolled her eyes and shot her brother a sideways glance. “Yeah, as soon as I catch my breath, we need a tiebreaker.”
Chris groaned dramatically and lay back on the grass again. “No way, I need energy for tonight, and you’re killing me out here.” He turned his head in his sister’s direction. “By the way, I saw Amber and some of the girls the other night, they said none of them have seen you in a while, couldn’t remember the last time you had been out with them.” When he got no response from his sister, he sighed. “The sister I know sleeps with more women than I do, goes out with her friends on a weekly basis, never blows anyone off, and doesn’t get hung up on a girl.”
Courtney snickered sardonically, “No one sleeps with more women than you do, Chris.”
Chris grinned and looked at the sky thoughtfully. “Remember that girl I was seeing your first year in college?”
Courtney rolled her eyes, knowing where Chris was taking this conversation and not interested in the outcome. “You almost sound like you are implying you were in a… relationship.” Courtney stressed the last word sarcastically as if it were a disease.
“Ah, there is the sister I know and love.” Chris sat up again, draping an arm across his knees. “I slept with her twice, and she stalked me for two weeks, showed up at my school, followed me to work.” He looked at Courtney to make sure she was following. “You finally had to talk to her to get her off my back, and then you gave me a two-hour lecture about the type of people one could have one-night stands with and the type of people one could not.”
Courtney rolled her eyes and stood, scooping up the basketball. “Drop it, Chris.” She shot the ball, missed, and chased it down the driveway before shooting and missing again. “Ugh,” she groaned loudly and chucked the ball into the garage. “I’m over it.”
“Come out with us tonight. Be human again,” Chris called after his sister when she stormed in the house.
Inside, Courtney kicked of her shoes and grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge. When Chris came in the house a few minutes later, she was glaring at her cell phone.
“What’s that, the fourteenth time you’ve checked your cell phone?” He grabbed his own bottle from the refrigerator and turned his attention back to his sister. “Who are you, and what have you done with my cell-phone-hating sister? I mean, is she really that good?”
“I said shut up, Chris.”
Chris held his hands up in defeat. “Man. Just come out with us tonight. I will be a good little brother and not mention the blonde again, but only if you come out with your friends and try to have a good time.”
Courtney took a long drink of water and gave in. She needed something to get Tess off her mind, and it had been a long time since she had gone out with her friends. Maybe some music and mindless chatter was exactly what she needed. “Fine, but only because you promised to shut up.”
“Thank you.” Chris said loudly, sure that a night out with him and their friends would pull his sister out of the weird, angry slump that she’d been in. “I can’t stand another minute of Godzilla sister.” He didn’t move quickly enough to stop the water bottle from bouncing off his shoulder, and winced when his sister disappeared down the hall.
~~
Tess was an emotional wreck. She was on her third twelve-hour shift this week, and she had been switched to days, which had thrown off her sleep. She had another two hours to go before she was off, and she had already seen so many sick people and bloody injuries, she was sure she wasn’t going to sleep for a week. While she appreciated a good blood spatter as much as the next nurse, she was beginning to feel like the day was never going to end.
She hadn’t spoken to Courtney in days, and was sure the woman had written her off. Hillary had taken up sending flowers to her at work every shift, which had drawn her some much unwanted attention from her coworkers, and Logan was mercilessly flirting with her to the point that she had just started avoiding anyplace he might be, which was difficult when she worked with him nearly every shift. Ali had gone to stay with her grandparents for the weekend, and Tess never did well for more than a night away from her, even at age six. So aside from feeling like she was in a constant state of turmoil, missing her daughter, going home to an empty house every night, and the lack of sleep, she felt like she was ready to unravel.
When John requested her in his office an hour before shift was over, Tess welcomed the ten-minute distraction. That is, until she got in his office and realized why he had requested to see her.
“You need to sign on the first line and the third, put the date next to it, and a three-day suspension will follow.” John handed her a document and a pen before sitting back down behind his desk.
Tess look at him astonished. “Are you kidding me?” She had worked at the hospital for four years, and not once had she ever been written up for anything. “A medication error?” She read down the paper. “For what patient?”
The bald man frowned beneath his glasses. “It doesn’t matter what patient, the information is on the sheet. He had a medication allergy, you overlooked what the doctor had written in the chart and wrote the wrong medication on the prescription. It’s an automatic three-day suspension.” The man took his glasses off and cleaned them, irritated with the delay. “Just sign the papers, they will go in your file, and you can return to work on your scheduled shift next week.”
Tess was livid. “It does matter what patient! I want to see the chart. I triple check my medication and prescription signatures. I would not make this kind of mistake, and I am not going to just sign it and let it go in my permanent record without seeing for myself where the mistake was made
!” She put the paper on his desk and set the pen on top of it for emphasis.
The bald man leaned forward, bored, but his own irritation budded. “It’s uncontested. You can sign the papers and leave shift immediately, or you will be suspended from work indefinitely until they are signed and filed.”
Tess was so angry when she walked out of the hospital that she was shaking. She sat in the car in the parking lot of the hospital for almost an hour before she had calmed her anger enough to drive. She dialed a familiar number on her cell phone and started yelling as soon as her sister picked up. She was still yelling through her Bluetooth when she pulled into her driveway. When she finally stopped to take a breath, she had tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Okay, honey. Calm down. You need some down time. When was the last time you did something besides go to work and sit at home?”
An image of Courtney at the zoo flashed in Tess’s mind. “I don’t know,” she ground out between sobs.
“Well, go in the house, take a long hot shower, and get dressed. You have some times off, let’s go out and get all of this off your mind, I’ll get ready and meet you in town later alright?” Breanne used the most soothing tone she could muster, hoping to calm her hysterical sister, thinking that she rarely heard her like this.
Tess started to say “Okay,” when she heard Jimmy yelling in the background. “No way Bre, you went last time. You’re on kid duty tonight. Boy’s night out! It’s my turn.” Tess could tell her sister was holding the hand over the receiver so she couldn’t hear what she was saying to Jimmy. No doubt telling him I’m a basket case and I need her tonight. I don’t need anyone, she thought angrily, I’m not a child. “Awesome, I’ll call Brad,” she heard herself say into the ear bud.
“Are you sure, Tess?” Bre talked with her sympathetic voice again, “I can come…”
“No, its okay, it’s been awhile since I got to go out with the boys.” Disgusted by the sympathetic tone her sister was taking, Tess thought maybe an emotion-free night out with men might be exactly what she needed. It also meant she wouldn’t need to worry about how much she drank, she would be home safe. “Tell him I’ll see him at nine. Love you.” Tess clicked the end button on her cell phone and leaned her head back on the seat. Tonight, I am not thinking about anyone but me.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Courtney had been out for a few hours and had only had one drink. She had caught up with friends, danced, chatted, played pool, and hopped from one bar to the next. She had to admit that she was having a good time, but it hadn’t taken Tess off her mind. She had been hit on at every bar they had entered, and halfheartedly flirted back before turning each person down. By the last bar they hit, her friends were starting to pick up the change. Her best friend Amber was the first to mention it.
The last bar they came into was packed. It was huge, and a band was playing on the other end. When they had settled around the table and ordered their first round of drinks, Amber pounced. “So who is she?”
Courtney realized she had been concentrating on her drink a little too hard when Amber snapped her fingers in front of Courtney’s face. “Sorry, who?” Courtney shook her head, confused.
Amber smirked and knocked her shot back before answering. “The girl that has you tamed.”
“Excuse me?” Courtney choked on a sip of her drink. “Tamed?”
Chelle piped up from the other side of Amber. “Come on, Court, you didn’t think we would notice? You’ve hardly drank a drop all night, you keep spacing out, and you have brushed off every girl that has hit on you in ever bar we’ve walked into. So who is the special lady?”
Courtney groaned and reached for a shot. She downed it, and shot a disgusted look at Amber. “Did Chris put you up to this?”
Amber shared glances with the other woman at the table that told Courtney she had just put her foot in her mouth. Her brother would not have said anything to their friends. She rolled her eyes and groaned again. “Maybe I’m just not feeling it tonight.”
Chelle snickered “I don’t recall a night out we’ve had that you weren’t feeling something.”
“Someone,” Amber corrected, and the women at the table whooped in agreement before all taking another shot. They had been out for hours, and Courtney seemed to be the only one that wasn’t three sheets to the wind.
Courtney knew the conversation was only going to get raunchier and decided if she wanted the questioning to stop, she was going to have to be more drastic. “Alright, pick.” She looked around the bar. “I’m getting bored with you drunken fools, anyways,” she bantered playfully and pretended to look around the bar for someone more interesting.
Amber laughed loudly. “Look at you trying to get out of the conversation. Since when do we get to pick your next conquest?”
Courtney smirked at Amber. “Remember that conversation we had once about how everyone’s a little gay?”
Amber rolled her eyes. “Yeah, words of wisdom from my favorite homo.”
Courtney nodded. “Well think of this as a personal challenge. Pick the straightest girl in here, and I’ll take her home.”
Chelle whooped, “And she’s back. Look around ladies, things just got interesting.”
Courtney chuckled to herself. Though she was absolutely certain she could complete the task, she had no intention to. They would pick out the girl, she would initiate a conversation, and the girls would just assume she had won and be too drunk to notice when she snuck out of the bar and went home. She wasn’t above picking up girls in bars, and in the right mood, she had done it more times than she could count, but tonight she just wasn’t interested. When Chris appeared out of the crowd and tapped on her shoulder, she assumed he had found her victim. He leaned down to talk in her ear quietly over the band and the yelling.
“Did you know she was here?”
Courtney looked up at her brother, who pointed behind her at the corner of the bar. She turned and her jaw dropped. There, sitting on the corner of the bar, was Tess. Wow, was the only think Courtney could manage to utter. The woman looked beyond sexy. Her blond hair was pulled up in the back and fell down in bouncing curls. She was wearing something black that hugged every curve of her body and black boots that made their way almost over here knee. She had a crowd surrounding her, drink in hand, and appeared to be telling quite the story.
“Close your mouth, sis, you’re about to start drooling.” Chris grinned from ear to ear and punched his sister playfully in the shoulder. “One down,” he said loudly to the table of women before they started cheering and ordered another round.
Courtney knew she was staring, but she couldn’t pull her gaze from the woman on the bar. That is so not Tess. The Tess that Courtney knew would not be sitting on the bar, would not be addressing a crowd, and would not be… She heard Tess yell the word “ladies” and felt herself moving across the bar. When she got close enough to hear what Tess was saying, she realized she was addressing two particular men, and not the entire crowd. The crowd had just formed to listen to the hot girl on the bar, challenging the men to outdrink her.
Courtney watched her down two shots and giggle when one of the men waved his hand at her. “Come on, you big pansy, you’re going to let a little blonde girl outdrink you?” The man shot Tess a challenging look and downed two more shots before cockily taking a third out of her hand and downing that one too, thought it was obvious to Courtney he barely kept the third one down. Tess whooped loudly. “Give the boy a round of applause!” Several people surrounding them clapped loudly and chanted “drink, drink, drink,” causing Tess to turn and order another round.
Courtney stared at the woman in awe before approaching her. She tapped Tess on the knee, and when the woman turned and looked at her, she blinked a few times as if she wasn’t sure she was really seeing Courtney.
“Well, hey there, gorgeous.”
“What are you doing, Tess?” Courtney questioned the woman and waved the bartender back when she noticed him coming with another round.
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br /> “What’s it look like I’m doing, gorgeous?” She pointed at the two men. “I’m having a night with the guys.”
One of the men took that as an invitation to move a little closer to Courtney. “Hey, doll, can I help you out? How about a drink?”
With that, Tess threw her head back and laughed so loudly she grabbed the attention of several people in the crowd. “Back off, Brad, she doesn’t want your penis either.” She then half covered her face, and though Courtney was sure Tess thought she was whispering, she all but shouted, “She’s gay, Brad.” She then laughed loudly again before pretending to whisper again, “But so am I!”
Courtney looked around the crowd, thinking for sure if Tess was sober she would be mortified. “Alright Tess, come on.” She held her hand out for Tess, and when Tess took it, she helped her down from the bar. She handed the bartender a hundred and told her to keep the change. “Come on, sweetie, let’s get you out of here.”
Tess turned to Courtney. “I’m not done yet, and you don’t have to be nice to me because you think I’m drunk.” Though Tess tried valiantly to sound sober, her voice still held a lilt of drunken drawl. “Where are the drinks I ordered?”
“Come on Tess, trust me, you are going to thank me tomorrow.” When Courtney put her hand on the small of Tess’s back to lead her towards the door, the two men that Tess had previously been addressing stood in their way.
“Sorry, honey,” the tall one drawled, “She’s going to be going home with us tonight.”
Courtney rolled her eyes. It wasn’t the first time she had to put a man in his place in the bar, and the two didn’t look like they would be that difficult to get past, but they were an annoyance nonetheless. “Awww, sorry h-o-n-e-y, she mocked, but she’s not your type, and she isn’t going anywhere with the two of you.”
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