Dray (10 page)

Chapter 18

Dray

I stared at the picture for the hundredth time since Cassie had sent it. It was such a stupid ass thing but knowing that she still wore my t-shirt to bed had made me ridiculously happy. I stuck the phone back into my locker and shut it.

It felt good to have my hand back, and even though I was once again jobless and loveless, things seemed to be slowly heading back in the right direction. Barrett was out on the floor practicing jabs and kicks on a heavy bag. He’d left some of Clutch’s weights out on the patio so he’d been banished from using them. He’d bought a temporary pass for Tank’s Gym, and I was glad to have someone to workout with.

Barrett stooped over and braced his hands on his thighs. His back lifted and fell with deep breaths. “Shit, I don’t think I’ve ever had a workout like this. Those step-ups almost killed me. Now fifteen minutes with this bag and I feel like a wet noodle. No wonder you’re so fucking tough.” He straightened and wiped the sweat off his forehead. “This place makes Clutch’s weight machine seem like a trip to Disneyland.”

I laughed. “I don’t know how the hell that guy stays so massive. He’s so busy working, does he even have time to work out anymore?”

“My brother was born looking like Hercules. I don’t think there was ever a time when he wasn’t huge. And, as far as
working out
goes, he’s getting plenty of exercise with his copper-haired personal trainer.”

“Lucky bastard,” I said. “Which reminds me, I have a check for him. My mom sold the house, and she actually felt guilty enough to send me some money.”

“Great, I’m meeting him at Freefall. Taylor and Scotlyn are both busy with homework, so Clutch, Nix and I are going out for steaks and you can come along. You’ve been like a goddamned recluse these past few weeks. We can talk about Mexico on the way to the shop.”

I picked up my towel and wiped my face. “I don’t know, Barrett. Sounds kind of sketchy.”

“Dude,” he held out his hands, “surfing, beer and hot local chicks, what part of that is sketchy? Look, we’re both between work, and we aren’t attached to any girls right now. It’s in the stars. One of my buddies has a grandfather who lives near Mazatlan. The old guy’s a fisherman, and he owns a few beach huts along the coast. I guess he moves around during the year to follow the fish. The hut is free, and the surfboards are already there so we don’t have to pay to take ours on the airplane. I’m telling you, it’s too good to pass up. I mean what could happen?”

The door to Tank’s office opened. I clenched my jaw assuming that Josh would walk out. It was Tank. He waved.

“Who’s that?” Barrett asked.

“That’s the owner.”

Tank made his way over to us.

“Surprised to see you here, Tank. Are your snappy golf shorts and argyle socks at the dry cleaners?”

“Always the funny man, Warner. Care to step into the ring with me?”

I laughed. “Hell no. In fact, you’re the one guy who I would be scared shitless to face down in the ring. Even if you have grown a soft golfer’s belly. Too many fruity drinks at the club, eh?”

“Just you wait until you pass fifty, Warner.” His mouth straightened in a grim line. “Hey, I was sorry to hear about your dad. I know he wasn’t much of a parent but still . . .”

“Yeah, thanks. Hey, Tank, this is my friend, Barrett. He’s trying out a membership.”

Tank nodded at Barrett. “Welcome.” He turned to me, his expression still serious. “Dray, I heard that Josh has been a real asshole to you when I’m not around.”

I shrugged. “No matter.”

“Yeah, it is. I’m pretty sure he rigged the competition so that his friends would walk off with the money. No doubt some of the coins passed his palm as well.” Tank shook his head. “That kid has been a piece of barbed wire in my ass since I married his mom. I gave him a chance, mostly at her insistence, but he’s done. I’ll have to look for someone else to manage the place. In the meantime, I’ll be around more again.”

I put my hand on his shoulder. There were many times when the guy had been more of a dad than my real dad. Although, in my case, my weekend soccer coach, the principal and even the guy at the corner liquor store where I used to ride my bike to for candy had been more parent-like than my dad. “Tank, I’m sorry that you can’t golf as much right now, but I’m damn glad you’re back.”

Barrett and I headed to the showers. “You know something, Rett? For the first time in months, I feel like things are getting better. I’ve got some money, and I could use some time to clear my head. Let’s go surfing. We’ll just go for a week and then when I get back I’ll get serious about finding a job. And, like you said, what’s the worst that could happen? A jellyfish sting?”

***

Tilly, Nix’s new counter person, the fourth in a string of failed attempts at replacing Cassie, looked up from her phone. She was one of those girls who seemed to make it her life’s goal to fade into the background. Underneath the plain exterior, she was actually pretty, but she looked like the type who didn’t care, which was fine except that she wasn’t terribly friendly either. She did manage a tiny smile for Barrett.

“Nix is just finishing up,” she muttered between text messages. Her constant texting had been something that was already bugging Nix, and I was pretty sure Tilly would be history soon. No one was Cassie. She was impossible to replace.

A beautiful girl with blue eyes and jet black hair walked out looking a little pale and teary eyed. She had a new butterfly tattoo on her neck. The girl stood unsteadily at the counter as she pulled out her wallet.

Nix came out of the back. “Rachel, are you sure you don’t want to lie down until Blake comes to pick you up?”

“No, I’m fine,” she answered with a wavering voice.

“That neck area can be really sensitive to pain,” Nix assured her.

“I’ll say,” she said weakly. She paid for her tattoo. Barrett swept right in to offer his arm to help her to the couch. Which, being a member of the female race, she took willingly. He escorted her to the couch with all the chivalry and manners of a guy who didn’t normally slip out of a girl’s house before dawn, leaving behind pretend promises of a phone call. The girl’s smooth cheeks turned instantly from sallow pink to cherry rose as she sat down and gazed up at Barrett.

I followed Nix into the back while he cleaned up his tools. “Hey, I’ve got money for that wolverine tattoo. My mom finally sent a check. I know I owe you some back rent too.” I sat down on Nix’s stool. “Hell, it seems I owe everyone money at the moment. I really fucked up by hitting that asshole down at the docks.”

Nix stacked up his plastic ink containers. “From what you told me, I think anyone would have lost it. The guy was asking for it.”

“Yeah, but that means I gave him what he wanted. He ended up with a broken nose, but I ended up out of work.” The bell on the door rang, and I glanced out toward the front room. Clutch walked inside.

Tilly poked her head into the back. “I’m leaving, Nix. I’ll be here at nine to open.”

“All right,” Nix answered without looking up from his work.

“How’s that new girl working out?” I asked.

Nix glanced toward the front room to make sure she was gone. “She’s not. Don’t think I’ll ever find anyone like Cassie. Hell, I might just tattoo Cassie’s name on my back to prove how much I need her. I haven’t talked to her lately. How’s she doing?”

I shrugged. “Don’t know. Sometimes it’s easier not to talk to her. Don’t think I could handle hearing that she met someone else.”

He looked over at me but didn’t say a word. He didn’t need to.

I stood and took my wallet out of my back pocket. “I’ve got a check to pay Clutch back for my operation.” I turned back to Nix. “The steaks are on me tonight.”

“Cool,” he said, “but not necessary. Of course, if you’re picking up the beer tab too—”

I snorted. “Not with the way those two guys out there can down beer.”

“Tell them I’ll be right there. And make sure Barrett isn’t making the moves on that girl. Her boyfriend is a regular client of mine.”

The girl with the new neck tattoo sat in stunned silence staring at the marvels that were the Mason brothers. They’d always had a knack for rendering a room silent with their presence.

“Hey, Dray.” Clutch looked up from the magazine he’d been flipping through on the counter. “I hear you’re going to grace us with your presence tonight?”

“More than that.” I slapped the check down on the counter in front of him. “The steaks are on me.”

He picked up the check and looked at it. “What the hell? Did you sell a kidney or something?”

“Nope. Didn’t have to sell any organs or stand on any street corner. My mom sent me some money from the sale of the house.”

A car horn blasted outside. The girl stood from the couch with some effort. She still hadn’t recuperated from her tattoo session. Clutch and I both caught the look on Barrett’s face at the same time.

He hurried to the door. Barrett looked back at the girl who was making her way across the room. “He should come in and walk you out.”

“I’m fine. My head stopped spinning a few minutes ago,” she said softly, but something about the way she looked at Barrett made it seem that she wouldn’t mind a dramatic collapse into his arms.

“Let me walk you out then.” Barrett took her arm.

“Rett,” Clutch said, “if her boyfriend is out there waiting for her then maybe you should just let her go out alone.”

Barrett ignored Clutch and walked the girl out to the waiting car. Clutch crossed his arms as we watched. “What do you think the odds are of that idiot keeping his mouth shut when he reaches the car?”

We continued to watch. Barrett opened the car door for the girl. He leaned down to the driver and said something.

“Hey, Nix,” I called to the back. “This client, the boyfriend of the butterfly chick, what’s he like?”

Nix came in and he looked out the window. “He’s kind of a worm, but he gets a new tattoo every month so he’s all right in my book. What the hell is Rett doing?”

I glanced over at Nix. “He walked the girl to the car because she was still feeling faint. Although I’m beginning to think it was all for Barrett’s attention.” The car drove off. Barrett combed back his long hair with his fingers as he returned to the shop. His eyes widened as he realized he had an audience.

“What are you all staring at? The guy was a douche.”

“You don’t see any irony here?” Clutch asked dryly.

“What do you mean? Or do I even want to know?”

“You bend over backwards when a girl is in trouble or needs your help, but you don’t give a shit about breaking a girl’s heart every time you take one home and then sneak out on her while she’s sleeping.”

Barrett actually seemed to be reflecting about Clutch’s statement. Then he waved it off. “Not the same. Horny is not the same as a damsel in distress. Besides, if you think about it, if they are horny then I’m doing them a favor as well.”

“Your chivalry knows no end.” Nix headed to the back again.

Barrett pointed his direction. “See, even the ‘heartbreak kid’ agrees.”

“That was hardly an agreement, Rett,” Nix called over the sound of water running and metal tools clanging.

Clutch pocketed the check. “I’m glad you’re coming tonight, Dray. You need to talk some sense into this fool. He’s still planning to go to Mexico for a surfing vacation.”

I looked over at Barrett and then back at Clutch. “But if I talk him out of it then I’d have to go alone.”

Clutch’s face dropped. “Don’t even fucking tell me you’re going too.”

“Yep. We bought plane tickets just before we got here.”

“Hey, Nix, Dray is going to Mexico too.”

Nix came back out. I put up a hand to stop him from commenting.

“It’s a week of surfing on a remote little beach near Mazatlan, which is a popular resort town. What’s the big deal? You two have to stop wearing your old lady faces and be happy for us. We’re going to have a great time.”

Nix shook his head. “I don’t know, man. It’s dangerous down there. Lots of corruption—”

“That’s only if you get into trouble. We’re not stupid. We’re not going to step off the plane with a brick of cocaine in our bags like in the movies. We’ll keep our noses clean and avoid looking anyone in the eye. How’s that?” I asked.

Clutch looked at both of us. “Sure, a playboy who can’t keep his hands off other guys’ girls and a hothead who throws his fist as easily as other people change their fucking underwear.” He looked over at Nix. “What could go wrong?”

Chapter 19

Cassie

It was hard to know if I’d ever get used to living in a city where personal space was at a minimum. Living in an apartment building with people making noise beneath, above and on both sides was especially hard after living in a quiet, little house with Dray outside of the city. Our house had had its own little yard where I’d started an herb garden. I’d had dreams of saving enough money to buy the place eventually. It made me sad to think of it. For a brief moment in time, it had all been happening the way I’d imagined it.

My neighbor’s television was just loud enough to produce an annoying vibration through the wall. The person above me had some strange ritual every evening that sounded liked someone poking at the floor with a pool cue. The sharp jarring sound would make its way across the ceiling of my apartment and back again six times and then stop. The ritual began just as my phone rang. It was Nix.

“Hey, Nix, you’ll have to speak up. There’s a peg-legged pirate living above me, and he’s pacing the floor.”

Nix paused, apparently trying to decide whether or not I was serious.

“I’m kidding . . . I think. A pirate with a wooden leg would not be farfetched in this building. What’s up?”

“Just checking in with you to see how you’re doing.”

“That’s sweet of you. The new girl sucks, huh?”

“Hell, Cassie, you don’t know the half of it. Am I doing something wrong in my hiring process or are you just one in a million?”

“Uh, both.” I smiled.

“Then I’m screwed. So, Cass, how are things going?”

The one legged buccaneer above stopped his pacing, but the television next door droned on. I sat at my tiny metal table and picked at the sandwich I’d made. “I’m not sure, Nix. One minute, I’m thinking, this is cool. I’m working for a magazine in a big high rise building with other young professionals. Then, the next minute, I’m asking myself what the hell I’m doing here. I think it will just take a lot longer to adjust than I expected. When I was traveling all over the world for the internship, I always knew none of it was permanent, so I never had to go through this mind debate. Even if we landed somewhere that I really hated, it didn’t matter because we were only there for a few days or weeks.”

“Like you said, it’ll just take getting used to,” Nix said quietly.

“Everything all right there? You sound like you’ve got something on your mind.” Loud voices and heavy feet rumbled down the narrow hallway past my apartment and then a door slammed. “Sorry, Nix did you say something? Apparently, I rented an apartment in the middle of Grand Central Station.”

“Sounds like it. I was wondering Cassie, did you go to Mexico when you were traveling?”

“Yeah, we followed some doctors and medics who were immunizing kids in really poor areas. Why do you ask?”

“How was it down there? Did it seem dangerous?”

I pushed the sandwich away. “Now you’ve got me very curious. I know there are some heavy duty pockets of crime and corruption down there, but the places we went to were pretty remote. And, frankly, the people were more interested in filling their stomachs than killing their neighbors. And you’re asking me this, why?”

“So, it’s not too bad if you’re a tourist?”

“Unless you are careless and don’t watch your stuff. But tourists are easy targets everywhere. And, of course, if you’re stupid enough to walk around with crack cocaine or guns in your suitcase then you might find yourself on the wrong side of some prison bars. Then you are at the mercy of the law down there which is never good. Now you need to tell me what the heck this is about because you are making me nervous.”

“Barrett and Dray are heading down there for a week of surfing. It’s some small town along the coast north of Mazatlan. Clutch and I were just wondering how much trouble they could get into.”

Just hearing his name made me lose my train of thought for a second.

“Cassie? You still there?”

“Yeah, I’m here. Well, it’s Dray and Barrett together. They don’t need to go all the way down to Mexico to find trouble. They could find it just going to the mall.”

Nix laughed. “Hell, if that isn’t the truth.” He paused.

“Your silence speaks a thousand words. What?”

He cleared his throat. “Feel free to say no, Cassie, but would you consider calling Dray and telling him that it’s a bad idea.”

“I don’t think I can. He’s not going to listen to me anyhow. And—” I got up and walked to the window. Many people were still trying to get home from work. “—it’s really hard on me to talk to him. A big part of my adjustment here is trying to keep him out of my head.”

“You’re right. Don’t know why I even asked that of you, Cass.”

“Because you’re a good friend, and you worry about Dray because trouble sticks to him like peanut butter sticks to bread.”

He laughed. “I’m sure they’ll be fine. Scotlyn just took dinner out of the oven, so I’ve got to go. It was good talking to you, Cass. And if you figure out a way to clone yourself please send your doppelganger over to Freefall.”

“I will. Take care, Nix.”

I flopped down on my couch and stared up at the ceiling. Several long cracks ran along the yellowed plaster, and I wondered if the pirate had caused the damage. A shroud of homesickness weighed down on me like a heavy lead blanket. Hearing Nix’s voice was always hard, but talking to Dray was a whole other layer of sadness. As much as I loved Barrett, I wished that Dray hadn’t been so close with him. Together they seemed to be completely out of control when it came to partying, girls and having a good time.

Footsteps pounded the hallway again. I listened for them to storm past but then a thunderous knock on the door nearly took it off its hinges. I jumped up and stared at the door. My heart pounded in my chest. I tiptoed toward the door to peek out through the hole. Halfway to the peephole, a fist hammered against the thin wood again. I was sure it would fly open. I halted my journey to the peephole.

“Penny, open up, it’s me,” a rage-filled voice echoed through the narrow hallway.

I had no intention of opening the door, and I was fairly sure Penny wouldn’t have done it either. I had no idea who had lived in the apartment before me, but something told me her name might have been Penny and she might just have left because of the monster out in the hallway. He pounded on the door again. The windows in my tiny apartment rattled with the force of it. I reached for my phone with trembling hands, but I had a sinking feeling that the police wouldn’t respond any time soon. It was a huge, crowded city.

“Penny, damn it, open up!”

I decided my best option was to call through the door and let him know that I wasn’t Penny. For some silly reason I tiptoed again. I got as close to the door as I dared and cupped my hands around my mouth. “I’m not Penny. She doesn’t live here.”

There was a long moment of silence and then a much more subdued, polite tone came through the door. “Do you know where she is?”

“Sorry, I don’t know anyone with that name.”

“Excuse me, then. Sorry to disturb you.” The footsteps retreated. Even though the entire incident had ended rather comically, I stood in the center of my dismal apartment completely shaken.

I sat back down at the table, but the sandwich looked dry and unappetizing. My stomach had twisted itself into a knot with the sudden rush of fear and adrenaline. The entire time that I’d stood there waiting for the madman to break my door down, all I could think was that I needed Dray.

I stared down at my phone. Months ago, when my happily ever after seemed within reach, I’d had a picture of Dray as the background. I’d changed it at least a dozen times since, but nothing had worked and I’d settled for a plain blue color. I picked the phone up and pushed one. I’d taken his picture off because it had been far too painful to look at, but I’d never taken him out of the number one spot on my speed dial list. As hard as it was to talk to him, I suddenly had a terrible urge to hear his voice. Besides, I could at least offer some words of advice about traveling through Mexico. There was no way I could tell him not to go. I no longer had that kind of significance in his life. Then the call struck me as a huge mistake, and I lost my nerve. My thumb slid back over the phone and I hung it up. A few seconds later it rang.

I heard a giggle before I heard Dray’s voice. “Hey, Cass, did you call me?” More giggles followed and Barrett’s deep voice boomed behind the feminine laughter. God, did I regret pressing that one on my phone. My intuition had warned me, but now it was too late.

“Uh— uh, no,” I stuttered. “I must have accidentally pressed one.” I wanted to suck the words back the second they’d left my mouth.

“I’m still number one?” I could practically smell the beer on his breath through the phone. “Dray, hurry, we’re going to play strip poker,” a girl’s voice came through the phone next, and my stomach tightened more.

“Cassie,” he seemed to be moving. I heard a door open and shut and then the familiar sounds of the marina followed. “Are you there?”

I swallowed the hard knot in my throat. “Yeah, I’m here. I’m just trying to figure out how I can time travel back about three minutes to the time before my thumb pressed one.”

“So, you were calling me?”

“Yeah, no, I mean, what the hell does it matter, Dray? I’m sorry to interrupt your night.”

“You’re not. What’s going on? Are you all right?” For a fleeting moment there was enough real concern in his voice to make up for the giggle filled invitation to strip poker.

“I’m fine,” the waver in my voice was hardly convincing. “It’s just that this big guy came pounding on my door looking for some girl named Penny, and it freaked me out a little.”

He didn’t respond.

“Dray? Are you still there?”

“Yeah,” he said quietly, “don’t do this to me, Cassie. I don’t want to think about you being there alone and so far away that there’s nothing I can do to protect you.”

The door incident coupled with his angry plea pushed tears from my eyes. I sniffled into the phone.

“Don’t cry, Cass. I’m not mad. It’s just too hard for me to know that no one is there to look after you, and it’s a big, crappy city with all kinds of crazies.”

“I’m sorry I told you,” I hiccoughed, “but I was kind of shaken, and I thought hearing your . . .” I swallowed back the rest of my words. I pushed out a short laugh and took a deep breath. “It ended with humor and I was just overreacting. Go back to your friends and forget I called. I won’t worry you again.”

“Damn it, Cass, I didn’t mean that. I just wish . . .” A fog horn sounded in the distance. “ . . . never mind. What else is new?”

A subject change was desperately needed. “You guys will have to behave like saints down in Mexico to make sure you don’t get into any trouble. Something tells me that you two acting like saints would take a miracle.”

“Shit, Nix called you?”

Laughter and feminine voices mingled with the clanging of ropes and pulleys along the dock. “You know what, Dray? I’m going to go. You’re busy, and what you do in your free time is none of my business.”

“Hey, go back inside,” he snapped. “I’m on the phone.”

“Just be super careful down there. Have a good time.”

“Cassie,” he said abruptly, “don’t hang up.”

I bit my lip and took a breath to keep my voice steady. “Really, Dray, go inside and join your guests.”

“They’re just some girls that Rett brought over. I don’t even know their names.” He grew silent. “How are things going there? Do you like it?”

“It’s all right. It’s crowded and noisy and someone is telling me which pictures to snap so I guess it’s not the dream job I’d hoped for.” Even as I was confessing the truth to him, my mind was telling me that I should just lie and tell him that I was having the time of my life. “Are you still working down at the harbor?”

He didn’t answer at first, and I knew what was coming next. “No, I got into a fight with someone. I’m back to looking for work.”

“Sorry to hear that.” Laughter came through his phone. “I’m going to let you go, Dray. Take care.”

“Hey, Cassie?”

“Yeah?” I had no idea what I was waiting for, but I held my breath nonetheless.

“It was good talking to you.”

I closed my eyes to relieve the aching sensation. I nodded as if he could see me through his phone. “Bye, Dray.”