“Morning.” Ali rubbed her fist into the corner of her eye. “Is my mom still sleeping?”
Courtney nodded. “Did you want me to go get her up?”
Ali shook her head. “No, she can sleep.”
Courtney finished dumping the water into the coffee maker and pushed the on button before turning back to Ali. “Are you hungry? What do you usually do in the mornings?” Courtney watched as the little girl opened the refrigerator and looked around.
“My mom usually eats breakfast with me.” She turned to Courtney. “Do you like yogurt?”
Courtney smiled and nodded. “Sure.” She watched as the little girl pulled two containers of yogurt out of the refrigerator, stopped to grab two spoons from a drawer, and set them on the table. When the she looked up at Courtney expectantly, Courtney quickly made her way to the table and sat across from her, taking the spoon she offered. “Thank you.”
Ali frowned. “Aren’t you going to have coffee?”
Courtney shook her head and opened her yogurt. “It’s not done yet, and I’m not a big coffee drinker anyways.” When she noticed Ali struggling with the yogurt lid, she reached for it and pulled the top off before handing both back to the little girl. She took a bite of her own yogurt, trying to remember the last time she had eaten breakfast. Not usually pleased with mornings, she generally settled for tea until lunch. Courtney thought the sun seemed especially bright this morning as it beamed through the window, warming their faces.
“Alright, alright, but only because Mom isn’t out here.”
Courtney watched in amusement as the little blonde bent sideways and offered her spoon of yogurt to the meowing bawl of fur she had in her arms minutes earlier. When the cat was satisfied, she stuck the spoon back in the container to take another bite herself.
“Mom says I can’t do that. She says it’s too much bacteria. Don’t tell her, okay?”
Courtney crossed her fingers over her heart. “Want to know a secret?” When Ali shook her head vigorously, Courtney continued. “I share my ice cream with Jasper all the time. He likes strawberry.”
Ali’s childish giggle filled the kitchen, and Courtney smiled again, enjoying the sound. “All done.” She threw her container in the garbage and made her way to the kitchen sink. She stepped up on the pink stool to rinse her spoon before putting it in the dishwasher. She turned her attention back to Courtney, “Want me to rinse yours?”
Courtney stood and brought Ali her spoon. “Sure. Thank you. You are so grown up. My brother doesn’t even clean up after himself,” she laughed.
Ali finished rinsing the spoon and placed it in the dishwasher next to hers. “It’s because he’s a boy. Mom says they’re messy.”
Courtney nodded in agreement. “What do you want to do now?”
Ali’s tiny brows furrowed for a moment while she thought. “I get to watch half an hour of cartoons, and you take a shower. Mom always lets me watch cartoons while she takes a shower.” She looked up at Courtney to make sure she understood the process, and to make sure she was going to follow her to the living room. Once there, she handed Courtney the remote, saying, “Channel 46, please.”
Courtney turned the television on to the channel as requested and replaced the remote back on the television stand. She stood next to Ali for a minute, watching the brightly colored characters run around the screen. She looked down when Ali nudged her.
“You’re supposed to take a shower.”
Courtney bit her tongue to stop from laughing at the matter-of-fact little girl, and thought a shower did sound appealing. “Yes ma’am.” She walked back into the kitchen first and located the coffee cups. When she was sure she had one to Tess’s liking, she carried the steaming cup back into the bedroom and placed it on the stand next to the bed, in case Tess woke while she was in the shower. She watched Tess for a moment as she slept, her blonde hair laying in wisps across her shoulders, and thought she could stare at the woman for hours. I could definitely get used to waking up to this. She shook the thoughts from her mind, thinking they were reaching dangerous territory and decided a shower was exactly what she needed.
Ten minutes later, Courtney was rinsing the shampoo from her hair when she heard the bathroom door click open. She smiled, thinking Tess must have found her coffee and opened her mouth to ask her how it was, when a deep voice nearly made her jump out of her exposed skin.
“So I know that you have the picnic today, but mom wants to take Ali to brunch, so I thought I’d just steal her for a few hours and bring her to Bre’s after.”
Courtney thought she heard him fiddling with something on the bathroom sink, which made her wonder if he planned on lingering long, and realized it must be Ali’s father. Tess had said they had a close relationship, but she hadn’t realized exactly how close. She opened her mouth to tell him she wasn’t Tess, but closed it again when he started talking again, and the topic of conversation interested her.
“So what happened with the hot computer chic the other night? She was looking out for you, and I think she could’ve taken us. She was feisty.” Assuming the silence was Tess’s way of telling him to shut up because she didn’t want to talk about it, he continued. “Oh, come on. You know you like her. Did you take my advice and bang yet?”
Courtney choked when the laugh escaped her throat, sending water gushing into her open mouth, and spent the next few seconds coughing it back up again.
“Jeez, are you okay in there? Do you need some assistance?”
Courtney could hear the grin on his face with the offer and rolled her eyes as another laugh escaped her lips. This time she was smart enough to turn her face away from the water. “I’d love some, but she’s still sleeping. Though I guess I have you to thank, since she took your worldly advice.” She waited for a response but was met with a bout of silence. “Hey, don’t stop now. I still have to condition, and I love compliments this early in the day.” She popped her head out of the side of the shower. “Nice to meet you. Brad is it?”
Brad had been taken completely off guard when he heard the woman’s voice from the shower. When he saw the car parked out front, he had assumed that one of the neighbors had someone park down the road, because Tess never had visitors. It had never occurred to him that someone else would be in her shower. He was even more surprised when, rather than being embarrassed and insisting he leave the bathroom, she popped her head out of the shower and invited him to stay. Never one to be outdone, he decided to make the best of a potentially embarrassing situation.
“Ah, my reputation precedes me. I know you’re vulnerable right now, being naked and wet and all, but try to hold yourself back. Tess is a good friend of mine, and I would never want to be the reason she lost the first decent chic she’s had in a while.” He turned his head slightly to study his own face in the mirror. “I know it’s difficult with these stone-like cheek bones, but it’s in everyone’s best interest really.”
Courtney nearly choked on the shower water again, trying to contain her humor at his statement. “Everyone’s best interest, huh? Why is that?”
“Well it could never work out between us. Both of us being so good looking and all. We would have a torrid affair that we would have to hide from Tess, to spare her feelings and all. Two people that look as good as we do would never work, though.” Still studying his reflection in the mirror, he sighed heavily. “Eventually you would get depressed because my hair looks so damn good and you would resort to the bottle, which of course would age you prematurely, and then we would have to end it. I can’t be seen with someone who looks old before their time. It’s just embarrassing.”
This time Courtney had to bite her lip. “That’s completely understandable. It’s so nice of you to spare me that pain.” She tipped her head back to rinse the conditioner from her dark tresses. “Of course, in all reality, you couldn’t handle me. I mean, waking up next to me in the morning would just be depressing. I would feel bad for you, having to look at yourself in the mirror after that. You’d probab
ly be so stressed that you would start prematurely balding, and gaining weight from all the emotional eating you would be doing wondering why you weren’t blessed with all of this. When you realize that every time we went out in public, no one noticed you because you were shielded by my radiance. Then we really would have to end it. I can’t be seen with a bald fat man.” She tipped her head to the side cockily, “It’s just so sad.”
This time it was Brad’s turn to be surprised, and his jaw dropped at the woman’s quick wit and boldness. “I think we’re going to get along just fine, you and me.” The bathroom doorway caught Brad’s attention, and he flinched when he heart Tess’s voice.
“What the hell?!” Tess stood in the doorway, mortified by what she saw. “Boundaries, Bradly! Get out!”
She heard Courtney chuckle from behind the shower curtain. “Good morning.”
Brad grinned from ear to ear as he lifted a hand to rub his jaw with his thumb and forefinger. “I feel like I’ve been here before, in a dream maybe. I think now you two are supposed to make out and—”
“Out!” Tess cut him off curtly and pointed him to the hall. She watched Brad wince before he attempted to get around her to exit the bathroom.
“Alright, alright.” He shrugged his shoulders sheepishly and shielded his head on the way past Tess. “I haven’t said good morning to my doll yet anyways.” Once he was a safe distance from Tess and the doorway, he turned back with a grin. “Are you two sure you don’t want some help in there? I mean, if anything,” he looked himself up and down, “I can be a visual aid.”
“Ugh!” Tess cried in frustration and stepped further into the bathroom to shut the door behind her. She leaned against it for a moment, terror welling up in the pit of her stomach at how Courtney was going to react to her uninvited shower guest. She thought of how Hillary reacted when she and Brad were just alone in the same room together and frowned, cursing Brad silently in her mind. She was still leaning against the door, trying to think of what to say when she heard the water turn off and Courtney appeared, wrapping a towel around her. “I’m so sorry. He just, I, ah, we just, it’s not like we do this often, he just, we…” Tess stopped rambling, closed her eyes, and shook her head, knowing there was no way to sanely explain, and waited for a reaction.
Courtney watched with mild amusement as Tess crossed her arms across her chest and rambled on. The woman had turned so white her complexion could have easily given the marble sink a run for its money. She smiled, knowing that Tess’s reaction meant she cared. She cared that the situation might have upset her. She walked over and tipped her head to kiss Tess lightly, letting her lips linger just long enough that she felt the rigidly leave Tess’s shoulders. When she pulled her face back, Tess still looked like she was expecting someone to pounce on her.
“Was your coffee alright?”
Tess nodded in appreciation, willing herself to smile through her nerves. She hadn’t tasted the coffee. She had woken to Brad’s voice and the sound of the shower and had bolted out of bed so fast that she had nearly forgotten to put clothes on before she ran out of the bedroom. At this point, she would’ve told Courtney it tasted like a cupcake if it meant making her happy. “I’m really sorry.”
Courtney smiled. “Relax, Tess. It’s not a big deal. Sometimes I get lonely in the shower. Everyone needs someone to talk to when their washing their hair, it keeps things interesting.” When Tess rolled her eyes, Courtney leaned in and kissed her on the forehead. “Relax.”
Tess willed the nervous ball in the pit of her stomach to go away, but she couldn’t help but have a feeling in the back of her mind that this was some trick she was going to have to pay for later. She studied the face of the woman in front of her for signs of anger, but found amused warmth instead. “It really doesn’t bother you? Thinking that he stands in the bathroom and talks to me while I’m naked and showering?”
“Mmmm.” Courtney gave Tess a mischievous look and let her eyes wander up and down Tess’s lean form. She shook her head lightly and feigned a confused look at Tess. “I’m sorry, you lost me when you said naked. What were you saying?” When Tess finally smiled, rolling her eyes again, Courtney returned the gesture. “You’re close. You have a kid together. I get it. It’s not a big deal.” She finished drying off and started getting dressed, sighing when Tess started rambling again.
“Really, Court, I understand if it bothers you. I mean it would bother anyone. I just… nothing happens between us. We have Ali, and we are close…” She rambled on and backtracked, rethinking her words. “Not that close. I mean… he’s like a brother… that I had a kid with… ugh,” she groaned, “now I sound like I’m condoning incest.”
Courtney pulled the last article of clothing over her head, enjoying Tess’s nervous rambling and loving the way the woman looked when she was wringing her hands in front of her. “You’re beautiful.”
“Huh? What?” Tess stopped rambling at the floor and looked up at Courtney, confusion written all over her face.
“You’re beautiful,” Courtney repeated, “and even if he had crawled in the shower with me, I still wouldn’t be mad, because I’m falling for you, and I can’t see anyone or anything past your beautiful face.” When Tess’s jaw dropped, Courtney’s gaze didn’t falter. “I know. I’m breaking the rules. Nothing serious. I just thought you should know. You’re beautiful.”
Tess’s heart had skipped so many beats in the past minute, she wasn’t sure if it was still beating at all. Something about Courtney’s words had made her entire body tingle, and she wasn’t sure how she was still standing when she couldn’t feel her feet. “I… I…” She swallowed hard, trying to calm her nerves through her nervous smile. What the hell is wrong with me? She thought about how confident she had been the night before, yet one compliment and she turned into a fumbling idiot. She’s falling for me. The thought made Tess smile.
“Are you busy today?”
~~
Courtney sipped at the beer that Jimmy had handed her and enjoyed the crisp coolness of the evening. They had spent the better part of the afternoon cooking and chasing children around. Courtney had met Tess’s sister, mother, a few cousins, niece, nephew, and a few friends throughout the day. She had learned very quickly that Tess’s family took their barbeques and picnics very seriously. When Courtney offered to help in the kitchen and was given the task of adding barbeque sauce to the chicken, she thought Tess’s mother’s head was going to explode when she had asked where the bottle was. Tess’s mother had looked at her with confusion at first, and then her confusion turned to accusation and she had glared at Courtney as if she were some sort of terrorist helping the enemy.
Tess had saved her, quickly reminding her mother that most people did not make everything from scratch, especially when you could get it on a shelf at the store for a dollar. She had rolled her eyes at her mother and voiced an apology to Courtney, but was unable to save her from the impromptu kitchen lesson that had followed when her mother insisted that she learn how to make the barbeque sauce. She was now the proud holder of a secret family recipe. If I can remember it…she thought and shook her head in amusement. When she had finished the barbeque sauce, and reluctantly asked if there was anything else she could help with, Tess had rescued her, sending her outside with beer and reassuring her she did not have to re-enter the kitchen under any circumstances.
She took another sip of her beer and watched as Jimmy fiddled with hoses and wires underneath the hood of Tess’s car. “So what’s wrong with it?” When the three men under the hood looked up simultaneously, she wondered if she was about to get a lesson on how to build a carburetor from scratch, and immediately regretted her question. To her relief, Tess’s cousin, Rich, grinned, saying, “Nothing, Jimmy just likes to make sure it’s safe, and it keeps us out of the kitchen.” Relief coursed through Courtney. “Thank God, what can I pretend to look at?” She took a step towards the car and looked under the hood thoughtfully.
The three men broke out in a fit of laughte
r in unison.
“They got to you, did they?”
Courtney looked at Jimmy reluctantly. “I asked for a bottle of barbeque sauce.”
Jimmy winced. “We’re good people. Really.” He reassured Courtney when she looked at him reluctantly. “Just an acquired taste. Very opinionated women, but they care. Though I’ll deny it if you tell my wife.” He looked at Courtney knowingly. “Just stay out of the kitchen.” When Courtney nodded, he pulled a spark plug out of the motor and started cleaning it. “Besides, the longer you are out of there, the more they can talk about you.”
Courtney rolled her eyes. She had liked Jimmy the first time she had met him, though wasn’t in a place to admit it, and the more she saw him interact with his family, she realized she liked them all. “Oh, quit, they aren’t talking about me.” When all three men had looked up again in silence, she realized he hadn’t been picking on her and for some reason she instantly felt nervous. “Why? Do they not like me?”
Courtney couldn’t remember the last time she had cared if someone had liked her. She never tried to make a good impression. She just was who she was. If people liked her, and they generally did, good for them, if they didn’t, oh well, but for some reason, the thought of Tess’s family not liking her gave her an eerie feeling.
“Ha! They don’t like anyone.”
Courtney watched Jimmy elbow the younger boy. “It’s just that Tess brought you, so there’s bound to be a big to do.” Jimmy gave Courtney an apologetic look. “Tess is the baby. They’re protective.” Courtney nodded and took a long drink from the beer in her hand, hoping she was passing the test.
“Hand it over.” Breanne held her hand out to her cousin Jesse and rubbed her fingers together. “Come on, before Tess gets back from the bathroom.”
Tess’s mother watched as Jesse grumbled and pulled a fifty out of her pocket and handed it to Breanne.
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