“How can you not love Candice?” I asked.
“So what’s the point here?” Candice asked.
“We feel confident in everything,” Barry said.
“Just one suggestion,” Toby said.
I felt the tension.
“Fuck,” I whispered.
“It’s not bad,” Franklin said. “But we need to think strategy.”
“Best case, things work out,” Barry said. “You and Candice end your engagement and life goes on.”
“Worst case?” I asked. “Am I marrying her?”
“What?” Candice asked.
“No,” Franklin said. “Worst case is if we feel like we’re going to lose this, then we need a bad breakup. Public. Messy. And it can’t be Dex’s wrongdoing.”
I looked at Candice.
Her face turned slightly red. “So I have to hurt the rock star?”
“Yes,” Barry said. “Something as simple as dumping him. And then giving your story. How hard it’s been…”
“How the life caught up to you,” Franklin said. “The arrest. The charges. You just need to leave.”
“The ultimate sympathy card,” Toby said.
Candice stood up and walked toward the door.
I stood up and looked down at Toby.
“She okay?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “Just a lot at once with this.”
“And you’re sure she wants nothing out of it?” Franklin asked.
“Careful with that,” Barry said.
I ditched the table to check on my pretend fiancée.
Candice was outside in the late morning sun, hugging herself.
“You okay, sweetie?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“You’re lying to me.”
“It doesn’t matter, Dex.”
“It does to me. Your phone’s been buzzing and you’re in a mood.”
She looked at me with an evil look. “You care now?”
“I’ve always cared.”
“I’m trying to understand what’s happening,” she said. “Last night… I got so caught up in it all. And then this morning there was a small sense of normalcy. But that was taken when a topless woman made me eggs for breakfast…”
“Who doesn’t like that?” I asked.
“And now this?” she asked, nodding toward the cafe. “I have to dump you and do an interview?”
“That’s the worst case. That won’t happen.”
“Yeah… but…”
But what, sweetie? What are you thinking and feeling right now? What’s really happening here?
The door to the cafe opened and out strutted an old man carrying a toolbox.
“Otto,” Candice said.
“Hey, there you are,” Otto said. “Missed you. Never thought I’d see the day where Gregor works.”
“That’s because of this guy,” Candice said to me.
I stuck my hand out. “Nice to meet you.”
“Ah, my hands are filthy,” Otto said.
“I’m filthy,” I said with a wink.
Otto laughed and shook my hand.
“So you’re the one who stole my girl, huh?” Otto asked.
“Guilty as charged,” I said. “Couldn’t help myself.”
“Too bad,” Otto said. He looked at Candice. “We could have been happy together.”
Now normally I would have knocked someone out talking that way to Candice, but this guy was amazing.
“Forgive me,” Candice said.
“How can I stay mad at that face?” Otto asked. “Well, I’ll leave you two at it. Remember something… time isn’t real. It does not exist. It never has and never will. It’s just about now. And now will be gone. And gone will be for good. And for good will hurt. And the hurt will be your new now. And that cycle just keeps going. So take the now and… and fucking enjoy it.”
Otto laughed as he waved his hand and walked away.
I looked at Candice again.
The moment between us passed.
I reached for her face and stroked her cheeks. “Don’t worry about anything.”
“Because it’s all made up,” she said. “Even right now. You’re touching my face because people inside the cafe are taking pictures.”
Truthfully, sweetie, I didn’t even consider that. I just wanted to touch you.
“I don’t really give a-”
“My sister texted me,” Candice said. “Dr. Keith had an emergency to tend to. And she has some plans for some legal conference. She likes to pretend she’s a lawyer and important. Meaning she asked me to watch Carter. And since she doesn’t charge me rent…”
“Sweetie, go be with your nephew,” I said. “You can bring him by the rehearsal place or the studio… but I can’t guarantee everyone will be fully clothed…”
Her nostrils flared. “I hate the way that makes me feel.”
“I know,” I said. “But go. The SUV will take you home. I’ll see you later though.”
“Okay,” she said. “And… Dex… I’m sorry…”
“What the hell are you sorry about?”
“Walking out like I did,” she said. “I just keep getting caught up in this.”
“Me too, sweetie.”
I put my mouth to hers and we kissed.
She tasted like something I had wanted for a long time.
My thumbs stroked her cheeks.
She grabbed my shirt.
The kiss lasted way longer than a simple goodbye kiss should have.
Candice broke the kiss, bit her bottom lip, touched my chest, and walked to the SUV.
I watched her get into the backseat and watched the vehicle drive her away.
Someone walked up to me and asked for an autograph and a picture.
I signed a piece of notebook paper and grinned for the selfie.
My eyes looked to the road again and Candice was long gone.
I looked at my hand to where my ring was missing from.
I shut my eyes and demanded my mind replay an old night that involved both Bethany and Ana bouncing their beautiful tits in my face.
But all I saw was Candice.
I couldn’t stop seeing her.
Even with my eyes open… I was thinking about her…
Fuck, Dex, are you falling in love with her?
* * *
I sat on the edge of a leather chair and strummed an acoustic guitar.
Across from me, Jay and Reed had acoustic guitars too.
We were just fucking around. Killing time. Trying to come up with something to play.
“Hey, get Nash and Sab in here,” Reed said. “I have an idea.”
We had the studio to ourselves.
Which is how I liked it.
Depending on who we worked with in the studio, things could be fun and smooth or it could turn into a fight. I wasn’t above throwing someone out of the studio. And I meant that literally. Even some of the highest paid guys in the studio were tossed on their ass for suggesting something that went against what Filthy Line believed in.
Nash and Sab came into the dark and crammed room.
“What are we doing?” Sab asked. “Let’s hit The Down and get fucked up.”
“That’s a good idea,” Reed said. “Before that… acoustics. Let’s do something crazy.”
“You want five guitars on one song?” I asked.
“That’s right,” Reed said. “We just harmonize the shit out of it. Nash takes lead vocals and we write a chorus so fucking catchy, everyone will be singing it in their sleep. And the five of us sing it too.”
“A softy song, huh?” Jay asked.
“How about this?” I asked. I cleared my throat and strummed a few chords.
A minor to F to C to G…
Basic.
But… the lyrics and message are what count.
I cleared my throat and strummed the chords.
And I sang…
“There she was, spinning on a dime. I chased my own soul, for a second of her time.
My hands touch, the taste is so sweet. I don’t stand a chance, bringing me to my knees. I take the knife, to find my soul. I need her now, I cut the hole…”
I stopped playing and looked around.
I strummed one last chord and yelled, “I fucked a pineapple!”
Everyone but Jay started to laugh.
“Fuck you, man,” Jay said.
“I fucked a pineapple and it felt so good!” I yelled. “And then I ate the fucking thing for vitamins!”
I stopped playing, stood up, and took a bow.
Jay started to strum his guitar. “Okay, let’s do it…”
“Do what?” I asked.
Jay cleared his throat. “I’m pretending to find love, without throwing down bills. I have to work to get her naked, which gives me the chills. I think I’m just faking it, but I feel more than I let on. I’ll be arrested and in jail for good, before the next dawn. And if I think for a second this chick actually digs me…”
Jay stopped playing and cupped his hands to his mouth.
And he yelled, “She doesn’t fucking love you, Dex! And she never fucking will!”
I threw my guitar down and jumped at Jay.
I tackled him over his chair and we went down to the floor. My elbow broke through the body of his guitar as we tried to get enough room to punch each other.
“Don’t ever talk about Candice again, asshole,” I growled.
“What’s wrong, Dex? You don’t think we see it?” Jay asked.
Nash grabbed my shoulder and pulled me from Jay.
Reed then got in my path, allowing Jay to get to his feet.
“Man, look at my fucking guitar,” Jay said. “Fuck.”
“I’ll buy you a new one,” I said. I stuck my hand into my pocket and threw money on the floor. “There.”
“You know what you can’t buy?” Jay asked. “Candice’s ass.”
I jumped for Jay and Nash pushed me back.
“Jay, shut the fuck up,” Sab said. “Shit. It’s a joke.”
“Yeah, I’m just joking too,” Jay said.
He looked at me.
He was pissed.
I nodded.
Okay. No more pineapple jokes. I get it.
“Well there’s the start to a good song,” Reed said.
“Come on, let’s get this going,” Nash said.
“I need a drink,” I said. “The whole bottle.”
“I second that,” Jay said.
“I’m not sharing a bottle with you,” I said. “I don’t like the taste of pineapple.”
“Yeah? I’d love to share a bottle with you and see if I can get a taste of Candice’s sweet pussy.”
“Have at it,” I said. “The only taste you’ll ever get.”
“Shit, Dex,” Nash said. “Are you serious with that?”
“With what?” I asked.
“You got her for real?”
“Like you’re one to talk,” I said.
“I’ll fucking fight you next,” Nash said.
“Ring the bell,” Reed said.
“Fuck this,” Sab said. “I’m going to The Down.”
“Hold up,” Jay said. “Not to add to the bullshit here but we should talk about Mitchy.”
My stomach burned with rage.
The last thing I wanted to talk about was fucking Mitchy.
“We’re good then,” I said. “This was a waste of my time.”
“We got shit done, Dex,” Nash said. “Relax. It’s almost midnight.”
“That’s when we’re supposed to come alive,” Reed said.
“That’s why we need to go to The Down,” Sab said.
“We need to figure out Mitchy,” Jay said. “The easiest thing is to just throw him a little cash and walk away.”
“A little?” Nash asked. “Come on, Jay…”
“It won’t be a little,” Reed said.
“Then fine,” Jay said. “Make it a lot. Who the fuck cares anymore? We’re good for it.”
“Good for what?” I asked. “For that guy to just demand money from us? Why? Did he write anything we’ve been working on?”
“Dex…,” Sab said.
Jay stared me down. “No. Keep going, Dex.”
“There’s nothing to talk about here,” I said.
“Do you have any sense of logic?” Jay asked. “The amount of time and money we’re going to spend on this…”
“Fuck,” Nash said.
“That’s a valid point,” Reed threw in. “What do you think? A quick mil and he goes away?”
“He’d have to sign something,” Sab said.
“No,” I said.
They all looked at me.
Nash moved toward me.
“I said no,” I said. “What are you going to do? Give him a million dollars? For what? He’d be dead in a week.”
“Fuck you, Dex,” Jay said.
“You don’t like the truth,” I said.
“You’re one to talk,” Jay said. “Because the stories won’t stop. But you’ve got your own story to manage, don’t you?”
“Take it easy, Jay,” Sab said.
“Okay, everyone get a ride home,” Nash said. “The broken acoustic session is over.”
Reed snapped his fingers. “That’s a good album title.”
“Yeah, it is,” Sab said. “Shit… SLECK wants tunes, right? We hit them with a double. Loud and crazy. Then acoustic and slow.”
“Yeah, let’s get right on that,” Jay said. “Right now. What do you say, Dex?”
I had nothing else to say.
I wasn’t paying Mitchy off.
As I walked out of the studio, I looked around the parking lot.
It was empty except for the rides that were there for the band. It wasn’t all that long ago when it was our own rides. And we’d just do whatever we wanted. But SLECK insisted on us having constant ride availability. So we didn’t do something stupid like cruise the streets while lit up.
Which made sense.
But that still didn’t mean I wasn’t going to make stupid decisions.
I got into the back of my SUV.
The driver asked the cliché question of where I was going.
I was in the mood for trouble.
18
Candice
It wasn’t all that bad sitting on the couch watching Carter slowly fall asleep. I told him we were breaking all the rules for the night and he loved it. There was no time limit on junk food and no time limit on TV watching.
I was far from anything that looked like a mother, but when Carter passed out before nine, it made me wonder if all the rules Cali had really mattered or not.
I carried Carter to his sports themed bed and shook my head.
He was cute as anything.
The sports stuff I didn’t get.
The kid hated sports.
But Dr. Keith insisted on Carter following everything sports related.
All I could do was silently promise to be the cool aunt.
Let him push the limits but never let him get hurt.
I managed to get out of his room without waking him.
Then I spent the next hour pacing the house, wanting to talk to Dex. Wanting to hear his voice. Wanting him to touch me.
Something was happening and we needed to talk about it.
Because if I was making this stuff up in my mind then it was time to end it. Time for me to walk away, break his heart, tell one last fake story, and then be done with it all.
In the end, what I wanted to have happen really didn’t.
Trent still wanted to know how I was. He insisted that I was just acting out. And in a way it was like he and Cali were on the same page. Maybe they were right, but I didn’t want their version of right.
I wasn’t even sure what version of right was… right.
Cali came home just before ten.
She was a little tipsy from too much wine and waved her hand at me saying Dr. Keith would figure it all out. Because he always figured everything out.
It was actually kind of fun to put my sister to bed.
To convince her to go upstairs and get tucked into bed.
Like she was an overtired toddler but it was damn funny to watch.
I tucked her in like I did Carter and kissed her forehead as I laughed.
She grabbed my hand and whispered, “Do you love him?”
“Cali… what are you talking about?”
“I mean, if you really love him…”
Her eyes shut and it was goodnight for her.
That’s when I went down into my little corner of the house in the basement.
I got as comfortable as I could in my bed but all I could do was think.
I did sleep a little, right up until my phone woke me up.
With text after text after text… after text…
It was one in the morning when I looked at the screen.
I saw Dex’s name.
And he was waiting outside Cali’s house for me.
* * *
I snuck Dex down into the basement with my face red hot.
Last thing I needed was Cali to catch him sneaking over.
Like I was a teenager or something, right? Because I had no home. Because I was just crashing in my sister’s big house because I lost everything when I lost my business.
But it didn’t matter.
I had to get Dex into the basement.
Thankfully the wine kept Cali sleeping peacefully.
“Down into the dungeon, sweetie,” Dex said.
I heard the way his voice extended words.
Drunk. Sort of drunk. Definitely drinking.
“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked him as I kept my hand locked to his and kept moving toward my part of the basement.
“I’m spending the night, Candice.”
I froze and turned. “What?”
“I sent my ride away,” he said. “It’s just you and me.”
“This isn’t my house,” I said. “You can’t…” Something caught my attention. “Come here right now.”
I pulled Dex again.
Toward my bed, yes, but also toward the light.
“Fuck yeah, sweetie,” he said. “Throw me to your bed. Have your way with me.”
I looked at his face. I touched his cheek and wiped my fingers across it.
Glitter.
A FILTHY Engagement: a filthy line novel Page 16