Brown Eyed Girl

by Lori Leger

  Drake made his way into the kitchen and saw what seemed to be professional cookware hanging on a rack above the flat surfaced island range. Large glass canisters containing sugar, flour, and pasta lined the counter top, while smaller ones contained coffee and various types of teabags. The kitchen looked as homey and cozy as the living room. More importantly, it looked as if it was used on a regular basis, unlike his. He lifted his nose, trying to identify a delicious smell that wafted to his nose. After making a round, he found the source of it, a plate of homemade chocolate chip cookies, covered in plastic wrap. He lifted the edge and took one, rolling his eyes in pleasure as he bit into the crunchy goodness of the cookie. God, I hope she baked these.

  Drake walked back into the living room and sat on the large comfortable sofa. He popped the rest of the cookie into his mouth and leaned forward to browse through a stack of magazines on the coffee table…Good Housekeeping, a fitness magazine, one about tropical birds, and a professional magazine for physical therapists. He thumbed through the latter one, trying to glean a little information about her career. After several minutes of reading, his eyes grew heavy and he stretched out on the sofa. She’d probably wake up soon, feeling better, and he just wanted to make sure she was alright before he left to go back to the club. He checked his watch, not even ten o’clock yet. Still plenty of time to get back to Red’s before midnight…

  <><><>

  In his sub-consciousness, he became aware of another presence—and sounds, foreign to him—a light fluttering, and tapping against metal. He breathed deeply, inhaling the aroma of something sinfully luscious and tantalizing. The hint of brewed coffee, rich and robust, tickled and teased his senses, daring him to wake and open his eyes. He didn’t remember setting the timer on his coffee maker, but he must have. Trying to rouse himself from the half asleep, half awake state he was lingering in, Drake heard a low snap at his mid-section, and before he could open his eyes to investigate, something solid and heavy landed on his chest.

  “Hu…humph!” The breath left him in a rush as he jerked upright, cursing, and swatting the muscular pile of fluff from his body until it hit the floor with a thump. Only then did he hear the distinctive feline hiss, nearly covered up by a feminine giggle. Drake’s eyes flew open, staring into the highly amused face of Annie McAllister.

  “That damned cat of yours is a menace, Annie.” He dropped back onto the sofa, trying to regain his composure, and slow the pounding of his heart. He blew out noisily, puffing his cheeks. “What time is it?”

  “Four a.m.”

  He jerked his upper body up off of the sofa again. “What? Oh hell, no. Your family must be worried sick about you.”

  Annie waved a hand. “I already called Red. He’d left a message on my phone asking where we were. Apparently, the fact that we disappeared at the same time was food for gossip and speculation all night long. I had to explain to him about the migraine. I hope he believed me.”

  Drake cocked an eyebrow. “Do you normally give your brother reason to doubt you?”

  “Only when you’re around, it seems,” she snapped.

  He gave her a wink. “There’s a reason for that.”

  “Not a good enough reason to give up everything I’ve worked for.”

  He unfolded his long body to stand next to her. “Yeah, yeah…I know. Your freedom, to do what you want, with whomever you want, at any time it’s convenient for you.”

  “You don’t have to make fun of it, Drake. My independence means a lot to me.”

  Drake pulled in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’ve heard it, Annie. You are woman, hear you roar,” he drawled, grinning out of one side of his mouth.

  She rolled her eyes at him. “Is that supposed to be funny?”

  “About as funny as you making your cat scare the crap out of me a few minutes ago.”

  “Martin has a mind of his own,” she replied.

  “Bullshit! You made that mangy animal jump on me.”

  Annie bent down to pick up the cat and brought its face up to hers. “Martin is not mangy, are you fat boy? You’re a handsome devil, aren’t you? Yes, you are.”

  Drake watched, in disbelief, as the cat reached his paws up to touch both sides of her face softly, then rubbed his head affectionately under her chin. Whatever else he was, he was clearly fond of his mistress. “Honestly, that’s the biggest cat I’ve ever seen. What do you feed him, small children?”

  She grinned up at Drake before leaning over to place Martin gently on the floor. “Nope...I used to feed him attorneys, but there wasn’t enough nutritional value. Turns out they’re all just a bunch of hot air. Now I just feed him the cat food his vet recommends.”

  Drake shook his head and laughed. “I take it you’re feeling better?”

  “Yes, I am. Want some coffee, or is it too early for you?” she said, heading for the kitchen.

  Drake watched her retreat, marveling again at her perfectly proportioned body, clad in a long sleeved, fitted tee-shirt she’d tucked in to her belted jeans. Her light auburn hair was pulled back in a damp ponytail. “Coffee would be good, thanks. I’m always up at this time, anyway. Did you shower already?”

  Annie pulled two cups from the cabinet. “Yeah,” she murmured.

  Something in her voice made him think about the situation he’d found her in last night. After an attack, a woman’s first instinct was to scrub all traces from her body. “Annie, are you all right? I mean, that guy...he didn’t...did he...I got there before he had a chance to...hurt you, right?”

  “I’m okay,” she said quietly. “Just mad at myself.”

  “Why?”

  “Because as soon as I saw him I should have turned to go back into the club, that’s why. That migraine came on so suddenly. Usually I have time to get home.”

  “Can you talk about it, Annie?”

  She nodded slowly and began to tell him what had happened. “After he threw me in that truck bed, I made myself take a good look at him so I’d be able to identify him in a line up if I got the chance. When I looked up, I saw you next to him. That’s when you—”

  “Proceeded to beat the crap out of that son of a bitch,” Drake seethed. “God, I can’t believe I didn’t, at the very least, go back and get some ID out of his wallet. But, you were in so much pain, and I just wanted to help you.”

  Annie turned slowly toward him. “And I thank you for that, but I’m asking you again not to breathe a word of this to Red.”

  Drake took her gently by the arms and turned her to face him. “Why, Annie? Somebody needs to do something about that guy. What if he tries with someone else and succeeds?”

  Annie pulled away from him then froze, as though remembering something. “Or what if he already has? Oh, God, what have I done?”

  Drake frowned at the despair in her voice. “What’s wrong?”

  Annie looked up at him. “I think he’s done it before and got caught. Something he said...something about them not finding any evidence on his truck this time...in Arkansas...he’s from Arkansas. Oh God, he’ll keep on doing that. We might have been able to put him away.” She looked up at Drake, her eyes brimming with tears. “If he does it again, it’ll be my fault.”

  Drake pulled her close and held her. “If he does it again, it’ll be his fault, not yours. You were in too much pain to think.”

  “No, I was being selfish. I didn’t want Red to know because he would have told dad, and they never would have left me alone about it. They’re always so over protective because I was the baby of the family, and because of what hap...well, just because I’m the youngest,” she said, uneasily.

  Drake’s people reading skills were too sharp to miss her confession’s obvious change in direction. “What happened to make them over-protective of you?”

  She frowned up at him and turned to walk away. “I need to go pick up my truck. Can you drop me off at the club on your way home?”

  Drake frowned at her dismissal of his question. He followed her steps into the kitc
hen. “I’ll just ask Red—he’ll tell me, you know.”

  Annie swung around to face him. “If you’re trying to score points with me that sure as hell won’t do it.”

  The acid tone of her threat left no doubt that she meant every word of what she said. His dad always told him he had the patience and diplomacy of a jack ass caught in a hail storm. It looked like he’d have to work on that. He sighed, temporarily accepting defeat before he approached her. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. I know it’s none of my business, but maybe it’ll help to talk about it and get it off your chest.”

  “Trust me when I tell you it won’t,” she said flatly.

  “How can I trust you, when you won’t trust me?” he asked.

  Annie’s blue eyes pinned him in place. “Are you going to take me to pick up my truck, or not?”

  He nodded slowly. “Could I have that cup of coffee first? I’m seriously addicted to caffeine.”

  She turned back toward the coffee maker. Drake could tell as soon as the tension eased from her shoulders.

  “I was about to cook myself some breakfast. How do bacon and eggs sound?”

  “You really do cook in your kitchen?” he asked.

  “What’s the matter, Drake? Don’t people in Houston cook?”

  “I used my kitchen occasionally.”

  “How about the women you dated? Didn’t any of them ever cook for you?” she asked, placing several thin slices of bacon in a preheated pan.

  Drake snorted before bursting out into laughter. “Honey, the women I dated survived on green salads, fat free yogurt, and Evian. They probably use their ovens for storage.”

  Annie shook her head. “That is so sad.”

  He grinned. “I can’t argue with you, there. It is sad, I don’t know how they survive.”

  She frowned at him. “I mean, it’s sad that you’re actually attracted to those women. It doesn’t say much for your tastes.”

  He shrugged. “Tastes change. Even before I met you, I’d gotten bored with that type. I don’t know why.”

  “You know it won’t happen with me, don’t you? How do you like your eggs?”

  “Scrambled is fine—and I don’t know about that. I’m determined.”

  “So am I.” Annie cracked five eggs into a bowl and whisked them with a fork. He watched her flip the bacon with a pair of tongs. When it was cooked she emptied the pan, and poured the eggs in, scrambling them up like a head chef.

  Minutes later, they sat eating their morning meal. He glanced up at the fresh faced beauty seated across from him. “Happy New Year, Annie.”

  She met his gaze. “You too.”

  “You know,” he drawled. “It’s customary to kiss whe...”

  “Forget it.” She bit into a slice of bacon.

  He sighed. “You can’t blame a guy for trying.”

  “I can do anything I want to. I am woman, hear me roar, remember? I am strong...I am invincible.” She put her fork down and flexed both her arms.

  He reached out and squeezed her significantly defined biceps. “That’s impressive. You’ve got serious muscle definition for as tiny as you are. Do you lift weights?”

  “Some, but my work is my real strength training.”

  “Speaking of strength training, I find myself without a gym membership. Do you have any suggestions?”

  She pointed her fork at him. “You’ll need a hair stylist. I’ve noticed your hair’s longer than you used to wear it.”

  He laughed at her attempt to change the subject. “Haven’t had time for a haircut, besides, I’m not at the firm anymore. I can be a little less strict about it. My main concern is a gym…any suggestions?”

  <>

  Annie stared at the sexy dimple in his chin, letting her gaze fall to his full lips. When she saw one side of his mouth curve up seductively, she forced herself to look into his eyes. “Did you say something?”

  “Suggestions...on a gym I could join?”

  “Um...Guys on Enterprise is supposed to be pretty good.”

  “Is that where you work out?” he asked.

  She cleared her throat, got up quickly from the table, and placed her dishes in the dishwasher. “You finished?” she asked.

  “I’ll load them myself,” he said, meeting her at the appliance.

  “No, let me.” She nervously jerked the plate out of his hand and dropped it noisily into the dishwasher before closing the door. “Are you done, or do you need more coffee?”

  “I could use another cup.”

  “No problem. I have a travel mug you can use. Are you ready to go now?” she asked, anxious to get him out of her home.

  “I’ll be ready to go in a few minutes,” he said.

  She watched him walk into the guest bath and headed to her own to brush her teeth. When she came out, Drake was standing in front of the birdcage trying to converse with Lewis, without success.

  “He doesn’t like strangers, do you Lewis?” she commented.

  “Stranger Danger! Aaa-nnie!”

  “Yes, Lewis?” she asked.

  “I lo-ove Annie!”

  “I love you too, Lewis.” She stuck her face to the bars and Lewis gave her smooches on her lips.

  “Ugh! That’s disgusting,” Drake said, his face twisted with disapproval. “You don’t know where that beak has been! He could give you some kind of bird disease.”

  “Sshh, he’s sensitive. You’ll hurt his feelings,” she whispered.

  Drake rolled his eyes. “Oh, please!”

  “Aaa-nnie!” cried the bird.

  “Yes, Lewis?” she asked.

  “Who’s the prick?” Lewis asked, with a flutter of wings.

  “Oh, oh…too late,” Annie said.

  “Oh, now that’s just wrong! Why would you teach him something like that?”

  Annie laughed. “I didn’t. He heard Red ask that about one of my dates when he came to pick me up. He’s a very intelligent bird, aren’t you Lewis?”

  “Lew-is...Sharp as a tack!” the bird replied.

  Drake put his head back and laughed. “That’s amazing! How old is he?”

  “Chad gave him to me for my fourteenth birthday, and he was about a year old when I got him, so around seventeen years old. African Grey Parrots live to be around fifty and are very intelligent.”

  “Aaa-nnie!”

  “What Lewis?”

  “Lewis wants a coookk-ie!”

  “Okay, baby.” Annie went to get a cookie from the plate covered with plastic wrap.

  “Those are good,” Drake told her. “I had one last night—hope you don’t mind.”

  She looked at him in surprise. “You ate one of these?”

  “Yeah, I’m sorry, were you saving them for something else?”

  She smiled and shook her head. “I make these for Lewis. I put bird seed in them and...other things.”

  Drake’s eye narrowed suspiciously. “What other things?”

  She put her head back and laughed. “Okay, Drake. This is one of those times when you really need to trust me. You don’t want to know.”

  Drake placed a hand on his stomach and shook his head slowly. “One question...were those really chocolate chips?”

  “No.” She laughed at the look on his face and took pity on him. “They were carob chips, which is completely fine.”

  He breathed a sigh of relief then narrowed his eyes again as he seemed to remember something else. “Okay, bird seed I can handle, but, those weren’t pecans, were they?”

  She bit her lip and tried to keep a straight face, as she shook her head no.

  He closed his eyes and shook his head again. “Oh, crap.”

  Cajun French

  Words and Phrases used in “Brown Eyed Girl”

  Beau – Handsome

  cher ami – dear friend

  Comment ca va? – How goes it?

  se beausir – to become more handsome

  mon vieux monde – my old folks

  mon pere – my father

>   ma mere – my mother

  allons danser! – let’s dance!

  Non, non, non – No, no, no

  Allons piquer, oui? – Let’s make love, yes?

  Arret ca – Stop that

  Cher – dear