by Blake Haugen
This was the first Vanya had heard of any such outing, but he knew Persephone was dying to get out of the house. She'd said yesterday's movie hadn't been enough.
They ended up going to the Fork, a trendy bar downtown with the right amount of hot pop music and lounging areas. No sooner than they arrived did Vanya realize why Ariana was hell-bent on being a professional dancer. The girl grabbed John Mark and immediately hit the floor. It turned out ballerinas could get down with mere mortals as well. Her skills drew the eyes of more than a few in the crowd. John Mark was going to have his hands full keeping the wolves at bay.
"Do you want to dance?" Vanya spoke loudly over the music. He'd be lying if said he didn't want to see Persephone on the dance floor. If she could dance anything like that, he'd risk embarrassment. Grinding had never seemed so appetizing. He grabbed her hand and made for the floor.
Persephone had to dig in her kitten heels before he noticed she was pulling backwards. "Not just yet," she yelled up to him, "I want to drink something first."
Careful not to drag her behind him – he knew she hated that – he made his way to the bar and ordered her favorite, a Brandy Alexander. He was surprised the bartender knew what the cocktail was. Like the rest of the people in the bar, she seemed a little honky tonk. The crowd was about fifty-fifty between whites and latinos aged twenty-one to thirty-five with a sprinkling of blacks. There were a few punks, a lot of students, and even some members of the LGBT community, but all were definitely honky tonk.
He didn't dare tell Persephone, but he hadn't exactly warmed up to Texas. On the flight down, she had warned him that her own town was not fun like Austin, Houston, or San Antonio. It was home to a large university, but most of the citizens were conservative and had a hard time acknowledging the world beyond the Bible Belt and who was playing their football team. Albeit these shortcomings, she insisted the people were kind, living was cheap, and it was a great place to raise one's children.
At the time, he'd immediately thought that she must be insane if she believed he'd allow them to raise their children here. Then he'd caught himself. The implications of the thought, as alluring as such a future was, had caught him off guard. Vanya reminded himself that such a thing was probably impossible.
"I know you're not just fucking her…"
Mikhail's words had rang through his head as his heartbeat sped up. His heartbeat – Ivan Kirillovich Pravdin's heartbeat – had sped up at the thought of a woman? His cousin had been right. Vanya was beginning to see that his feelings for Persephone could not be contained or hidden for much longer. Hell, he had traveled to Texas for her!
When they began their journey he'd grabbed her hand on the plane much in the same way he did now. He wanted his sweetpea near him this evening. The crowd was a little rowdy and he didn't trust Emma not to go off the deep end. He thought it was irresponsible to bring someone with her background out to the bar, but apparently the family figured it was she could handle it.
The group found a cozy lounge. Vanya and Persephone were quickly appointed keepers of the purses for their willingness to stay seated and sip their drinks while everyone went out to dance. Vanya took a gulp of his jack and coke and pulled Persephone onto his lap. She immediately yelped and tried to jump off. He wouldn't allow it, only pulling her closer and pushing his erection against her.
"Hey, no you don't! Come here and kiss me. I haven't kissed you properly in two and a half days. I'm dying!"
He pulled her face to his for a deep, penetrating kiss. Not satisfied, he went back in for a harder, more possessive one. Vanya didn't stop until she was responsive and weak, leaning into him for more.
"Okay," she breathed, her eyes still closed, "I'm getting off your lap now. I look like a hussy."
"Mmm, my hussy."
"Not as cute or as funny as you thing you are. Let me down. We really do look sleazy. It's different here."
Vanya sat her close to his side, sensing her embarrassment. Sometimes playing with Persephone was like playing with a baby. You could tickle and poke for a while and they enjoyed it, but if you went on too long they got agitated and started crying. He knew he was being pesky, but damn if his cock wasn't turning to stone.
Though she didn't believe it, Vanya knew Peter Benson regarded Persephone as his own daughter. If Vanya so much as looked at her with longing, Peter was on him in an instant. Vanya wasn't intimidated, but he wasn't sure who would win in a physical altercation. Peter was his senior by twenty-five years, but the man had been a Navy SEAL and looked like he was still working out three hours a day.
Apparently, his military experience was how he'd won over Zenovia's approval to marry Margie and how he knew Persephone's father. Peter and James had formed a bond during their service. They were godparents to each other's children in addition to moving to the same city when they left the SEALs. Peter was determined to protect the virtue of the adult, grown-ass women in his household and John Mark and Vanya's dicks were paying the forfeit. Vanya had half a mind to throw Persephone over his shoulder and find the nearest hotel.
"No, you could ever look sleazy, Percy. You're too sweet; I'm the sleazy one. I've had nothing but sleazy thoughts about you since we got here. Mostly about you tied up, on top of me, under me…"
"The list goes on and on I'm sure, " she rolled her eyes.
"Something like that," he muttered, nuzzling her neck. "This separate rooms shit is killing me. If I don't get you into bed soon, my penis is going to fall off."
"Oh, my god!" Persephone exclaimed, slapping his bicep through his crisp navy dress shirt. "Shut up, whiner! We'll be back home in forty hours. You can go crazy then."
"Mmm, yeah, going crazy. I like the sound of that. I'm definitely going to hold you to it and I'm getting up and going to the bathroom before you can change your mind." With that, he rose before she could respond and made long strides toward the bathroom. He looked back to give her a smug grin and was elated to see her return it.
Elated. When in his adult life had he ever been elated? He'd always wondered how people enjoyed clubs as much as they did. Even though his family owned some, he had always viewed them strictly as places of business where fucking occasionally took place. Depending on the business at hand, fucking was sometimes part of the package.
Tonight was completely different. He was with an assortment of good people who cared about one another. Nothing was going to stop them from having a good time. John Mark was a cool guy that was obsessed with Ariana. An intelligent man bound for the oil business, it was clear that he would give up that future to be with the young dancer. He loved his sister Emma, despite her erratic behavior and poor decision-making.
Emma, faults and all, seemed loyal to her family and even Persephone. He'd thought the two would have problems since Emma requested that Persephone not come to see Zenovia months before. However, Emma had been nothing but welcoming since their arrival. She had fallen into a friendly routine with Persephone and had even carved out time for this outing, allowing all the couples some free time together.
At the center of it all was Persephone. He was glad he had convinced her to come down. She was slowly reconciling whatever awkwardness she had with the Bensons. She was so happy and he was proud that he'd had a part in helping her.
This club outing seemed like a manifestation of all that. Vanya made his way from the bathroom ready to share these musings with Persephone. However, all those musings flew out the window when he caught sight of his lounge sectional. He tensed immediately at the sight of a man sitting on the table across from Persephone. He could tell she didn't like the asshole in her personal space, but she was tolerating him and being polite; exactly what she shouldn't do.
Vanya strode to the table ready to tell the bastard to hit on someone else.
□
A tall man asked to sit by Persephone after inquiring if it was indeed Ivan Pravdin she had been sitting with just now. Persephone was surprised that anyone in her hometown might recognize the blond giant, much le
ss know him personally. The stranger’s smile was good-natured and conspiratorial, but she sensed he was after something and she remained on her guard.
"We're gonna play a trick on my old friend, okay?"
"What trick?"
"Just sitting here and making polite conversation; I'm sure that'll be enough to make ol' V8 Flash get jealous. He's headed back this way as we speak."
Persephone crossed her arms, skeptical of the humor to be found in this situation. The man wasn't the ordinary type of tall; he was 'Vanya basketball player' tall. That could be the only explanation.
"And you are?"
"Andrew."
"Andrew… ?"
"Andrew McPherson. Vanya and I played–"
"Basketball together. I gathered as much."
"Beautiful and observant. That boy's lucky findin' a gem like you."
"That he is," Persephone finally broke a smile at his flagrant flirtation. "Speak of the devil."
"Who are you?" Vanya's voice boomed behind Andrew.
"The handsomest sumbitch this side of the Mississippi," Andrew replied, smiling broadly at Persephone all the while.
Vanya's eyes narrowed. For a moment Persephone thought he might lose his cool, something she'd never seen him do in public. Even when he had beat the hell out of her mugger, an eerie calm had surrounded him. He turned Andrew around and the look of shock on his face made her bowl over in laughter. Taken aback, Vanya reared his head backward before grabbing Andrew by the lapels of his jacket.
"Bastard!" he exclaimed, and then pulled Andrew into an embrace. "What the fuck?!"
"I got you good, you asshole! You were about to come over here and tell me to stay the hell away from your girl!"
Vanya's eyes lit up with remembrance. It seemed that he had finally gotten over his shock and realized Persephone was still there. He pulled her up from the trendy couch and tugged her to his side. "Well, of course, I'm the protective type. I take it you were flirting with said girl. "
"Yeah," Andrew raised an eyebrow, "aren't you going to introduce us at least?"
Vanya feigned thinking it over and Persephone elbowed his side. As she expected, his only response was an indifferent shrug. She took the liberty of giving her own name.
"Persephone Peterson," Andrew repeated, more to himself. "That's a powerful name, sassy-like."
"Sassy-like?" Persephone laughed in disbelief. "Whoa, I'm Texan, like, born and raised Texan, and that was couuunnntry! Where're you from?"
"Tennessee, I met this boy up North when we started playin' ball as freshmen."
"Yeah, that's when things started going down for me," Vanya laughed, motioning for them all to take a seat.
"Don't listen to him," Andrew addressed Persephone. "I'm the best thing that could have happened to Vanya during school. Dude was wearing' tighty whities and readin' comic books. It's a wonder he wasn't still a virgin."
Persephone grinned up at Vanya who was rolling his eyes and trying to suppress a blush. "So, Andrew taught you how to be a playa?"
"Everything he knows, sweetheart. How to love 'em, how to let them down gently after they had twelve dozen roses delivered to you during practice and serenaded you outside the dorm at two in the mornin’."
"What?!" Persephone nearly did a spit take.
"Oh, my god," Vanya smacked his forehead in exasperation, "don't bring that up!"
"Ignore him. Tell me everything," Persephone leaned urgently toward Andrew, giving him all of her attention.
"He had the girl spur-ung. She was this nerdy heiress to some granola bar brand or somethin'. Anyway, Vanya thinks it's okay to drunkenly make out with Daddy's Little Geek Princess and then say sayonara. She doesn't have the same idea. Girl proceeds to shower him with gifts and song, even invites him to the frickin' family vacation to New Zealand. Still won't take a polite 'no' for an answer. So, I did what any good friend would do."
"Oh? What's that exactly?"
Vanya answered for him. "At a party he yelled at me for taking advantage of such a sweet and gorgeous girl. As I remember it, they went home together that evening."
Persephone gave Andrew a grossed out look and he raised his arms in protest, "Hey, nothing like a little nerd sex to spice things up. Hell, it's better if you ask me... I let her use me to her liking until she got bored with me and my country ways. "
"Yeah, but not before she gave you a laptop."
"It was her old one! In my defense, I tried to give it back. As I recall, you loved the smell of all those flowers in our room before they started rotting. 'Really freshens things up' is what I think you said."
"They did!"
The two went on chiding each other like they'd never been apart. Apparently, Vanya had lost touch with the team when he graduated and began to work for his father. He'd heard that Andrew was coaching basketball at a university in Texas, but he didn't know where. Persephone had never seen Vanya so casual with someone and was genuinely pleased. She liked this brash guy from Tennessee. He brought out a lightness in Vanya that was impossible to miss and easy to enjoy.
Andrew's military haircut, harshly sharp nose, light green eyes, strong jaw, and small, pouty lips made him look stern at first glance. The features made his goofy facial expressions all the more amusing. He looked more like a stereotypical New York stock broker than a Texas college basketball coach. Persephone wondered if Andrew was this way when he hadn't had any drinks. Something about the tales they relayed told her that he was just as unruly, if not more so, when sober.
He was a perfect complement to Vanya's shrewd nature. Best of all, Andrew seemed to genuinely care about Vanya and what he had been doing since they finished school. "You have to come up to the city for a visit," she exclaimed, "during the holiday or something. You guys could make a weekend of it!"
"Well, I love the city, ma'am, and if it means getting to see you again, I'm all for it."
"Pshh, watch it bro, you might just find yourself on the next plane back down here," Vanya said teasingly.
"Just go get us another round of drinks, man!"
"Why do I have to order!"
"'Cause you're the rich boy! Technically, I work for the state! Our salaries are still recovering from the recession! Furlough days and shit."
Vanya laughed, rising, "You're never gonna get laid if you don't buy a lady some drinks."
□
Vanya left Persephone and Andrew chuckling at his zinger. Persephone watched him go to the bar. She was so happy that he was happy.
"Wow," Andrew stated, interrupting her thoughts, "you seem pretty sprung on him, too. Are you gonna give him a laptop?"
"Shut up," she laughed, punching his arm.
"Naw, for real, on a serious note though; I can tell he's happy with you and I'm glad you two are able to be together."
Persephone furrowed her eyebrow, "What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean. His daddy, his daddy's business. Vanya's given up a lot of things to keep that man's dreams alive."
"You've met his father?" Persephone asked. She couldn't help but be intrigued.
"A few times, actually, each visit more pleasant than the last."
"Somehow, I don't think that's enthusiasm I hear in your voice."
"Yeah, the man's a total bastard in my opinion. Just don't tell Vanya you heard it from me."
"Vanya's a grown man. What did his father do that could be so bad?" she prompted him.
"We both know you're not naïve, darlin'. If you want to know what Daddy's done, you can just ask me."
Persephone bristled at his pet name. "Okay, darlin'. Humor me."
Andrew chuckled and sat back in his cushioned seat, apparently glad to have a captive audience. "The first time Kirill came out to school we had a real big game and Vanya scored twenty-seven points. It was ridiculous. A lot of us from the team and a bunch of friends all went out to eat later that night. We were all high on the win and excited for Vanya and what it could mean for him.
"Coach Nash was all excited about i
t, talkin’ about the draft and everything and how talented Vanya was. Then, there in front of every one, Papa Bear interrupts him, saying how nice that would be if Vanya wasn't going to be done with basketball after school was over. Then he went on like nothing had happened, like he hadn't just embarrassed the hell out of his son and destroyed his future in one fell swoop. I'll never forget the look on Vanya's face. It was awful.
"Then later, Vanya went on as if nothing had happened. Me and another guy confronted him that night askin' if we could back him up in any way and he just shrugged it off like it was nothin'. Now, you gotta understand; he was doing so well that year and up until that night all he could talk about was the pros. After that dinner it was like it didn't even matter. It started affecting his play near the end of the season and our last year he was gonna try to go at it like that again until our coach ripped him a new one.
"He got it together. There was lots of talk on sports networks and stuff like that, but he couldn't be swayed. Or rather, his father couldn't be swayed. I mean, there were coaches comin’ from all over the country, thinkin’ his dad didn’t understand how big a deal Vanya was, and thinkin’ they could talk some sense into him. Shit, he understood. Perfectly well, too. Sometimes, I’d thought his dad might have been jealous of the spotlight, but then I realized he just didn't want the spotlight to take away Vanya."
"That sucks," Persephone said, trying to control her voice. Her jaw clenched. She was beginning to understand the constant phone calls and the complete compliance with which Vanya obeyed his father. It seemed like it had been that way forever.
"No shit. I don't know if I could have gotten as far as I did playin' ball without my Daddy behind me. That made Vanya all the more amazing."
"He's still amazing, in his own sweet way."
"Aww, young people in love. Now, that's what I like to see."
Persephone gave no comment, refusing to be baited. If Andrew wanted to tell all, that was his prerogative. She wasn't laying her heart out on the table. Even if she did, Vanya would be the first one to know.