Love Thy Neighbor (7 page)

“
Today,
Janna?” Laura barked at her.

Baron jogged down his porch steps and went to his sister's car. His
hand reached for the handle, but his eyes remained glued to his
neighbor. Then, as if the words were being put into him by some other
force
(I hope I know what I'm doing
), he spoke: “Hey.
Would you like to come over later, Janna? Maybe have a drink with me?
Around eight?”

Laura turned from him and back to Janna. Amy watched Baron's next
door neighbor close, not liking the way she was looking at her
brother.
He's got enough problems! Lying, cheating, floozy girls
being one of them!

She knew how bad it had been for him when Rachel had left him. She
didn't want to see him go through that again, especially here and now
with some total stranger.

Janna responded: “Sure, I'd like that.”

“
Baron,
who's this girl?” Amy said, trying to hide her words like a
ventriloquist. He didn't answer her, he just got into the car. “Well?
Who's she?”

“
Just
a friend.”

“
A
friend?”

“
Look,
it's not what you think.”

“
I
sure as hell hope not. I don't think you should see her—“
She pulled out, and he and his sister continued their conversation as
she drove.

Janna went to the Audi parked by the large oak in front of her house.

“
So,
that's your new neighbor, huh?” Laura joked.

“
Yeah.”
Janna opened the trunk, took out a few bags of grocery's.

“
Well?
Did you do it with him?” She lit up a cigarette. Janna ignored
the question, thought better of it—
if
I don't answer now, I'll never hear the end of it
—
and
replied: “No, we're just getting to know each other.”

Laura raised and lowered her eyebrows twice. “He's a hottie.
Well, chat with ya later, babe. They didn't have your tea today, so I
got you tea bags instead.”

Yuck,
Janna thought.
I'd rather drink warm piss than that.
“Okay, thanks.”

“
See
ya. Love ya!”

“
Love
you too. Bye, Laura.”

The woman flicked an ash out the window, put her car in drive, and
drove away. With bags full of food in her hands, she reentered her
humble home.

***

Eight.

Eight o' clock she would see him, drink with him, talk to him. She
just hoped this wasn't some kind of guilt thing he had to do in order
to make himself feel better. Either way, it was a chance to learn
more about him, get to know him better. That was what she wanted.

Janna didn't know if she could wait four and a half hours. What was
there to do until then? Watch TV? Read? Sleep? Eat? All the usuals.
If she didn't keep her mind busy, she was sure she'd lose it along
the way. It'd probably shrivel up in anticipation before then. Eating
took only minutes, so that wouldn't occupy her time. If she slept,
she'd wake up exhausted and a bore. Reading would only increase the
anticipation, as the only literature she had in her house was romance
novels.
TV it is!

Her thumb hit power, and the Insignia clicked on. 47 was the station
it was already turned to, and on it was one of her all-time favorite
movies—Sleepless in Seattle. Janna had drained tissues from
boxes while watching this flick many times. It never failed to make
her cry.

Time did pass, slowly but surely. The movie stirred a hundred
different bottled-up feelings inside her as she watched it for the
millionth time. Tears came, went, came, went. At 6:56, it was over.

An hour to make myself up before I head over...

She decided to put the essentials on and leave the rest alone.

Janna put on a red dress, which accentuated her curvy figure. The
dress made her breasts look much bigger than they really were, made
her ass look a little less sloppy (more firm), and hugged the rest of
her like a glove. On to the bathroom now...

She brushed her thick brown hair—her favorite feature. Of
course, hair wasn't pale, didn't gain weight, and wasn't
unsymmetrical—unless that's what you asked from your stylist.
Next, she applied lipstick, brushed on a dab of rouge, darkened her
eyes just a tad. In ten minutes she was pleased with the job she'd
done. This make-up job was more subtle than the last. Now she looked
elegant and pretty, not cheap and easy. Couldn't remember the last
time she looked so good.

***

Eight o' clock came. Janna Dellwood went. She left the comfort and
safety of her house and walked over to Baron's in stiletto heels, her
heart a bass drum hammering in her ears.
Oh my oh my oh my
.
Without knocking, she watched the door open. Baron first glanced at
her chest, then her legs, then her face, in one awkward high-to-low
low-to-high glance.

“
I
hope I'm not overdressed.”

“
No,
not at all.”

“
I
saw you leave all dressed up, so I decided I should come over not
looking like a bum.” She chuckled. He laughed. There was a
Rolling Rock in his right hand and a bowl of popcorn in his left. The
same clothes he was wearing earlier still clothed him, but two of the
top buttons on his shirt were now open.

“
Come
in, come in.”

She stepped into his house.

It smelled of popcorn and cologne. Most of the lights were off, but
much of the luminosity of the outside streetlamps found their way in
through various windows, illuminating an elliptical staircase, a
small kitchen toward the right, around a bend in the narrow hall, and
the living room on the left.

“
I
just made some popcorn and started watching a movie.”

“
Which
one?”

“
Argo.”

She nodded, smiled. “Cool.”

He shut the door. “Want a drink? I have cola, diet cola, tea,
coffee, and:” He held up his Rolling Rock.

“
No
thanks. Not thirsty right now.”

“
Okay.
Just let me know if you change your mind.”

He led her into the living room. It was rectangular—it made her
think of the inside of a trailer—with cream-colored walls, old
hardwood floors like her own, and normal ceilings—not the
crappy hanging tile-types in hers. Moving boxes filled with stuff
were cluttered everywhere.

“
Didn't
quite unpack yet. I don't know what's in which box.”

They went over to his sofa and sat down, Janna on the end and Baron
two cushions away.

“
Popcorn?”

“
No
thanks.” She watched TV, afraid to look into his eyes.

“
Well,
I don't think I got the job.”

“
Job?”

“
Yeah.
My sister set it up. I tell ya, she babies me worse than my mother
used to. I don't think I even wanted the job.”

“
What
was it?”

“
Decent
co-manager position at Falton Marketing. Pays well, and I went to
school for it, but learned to hate it after a while.”

“
Really?”
She turned away from the TV and looked at him. The heartpound in her
ears sounded like a drum machine for a metal band.

Don't make any moves
, she told herself.

Her attention turned back to the TV.

“
Yeah,
I just figured I couldn't live as a marketer, behind a desk for the
rest of my life. Why I was interested in the first place is beyond
me. My family didn't force me into it, but I think they wanted me to
be in business/marketing.”

“
What
do you want to do for a living?”

He shrugged, threw a piece of popcorn into his mouth, and chased it
down with beer. “Who knows? Does anybody
know
what they
want?”

There was eerie silent as he let this question linger in the room. It
made Janna slightly uncomfortable.
What's that supposed to mean?

“
Have
you seen this before?” he wondered.

“
No,
looked good though. It's based on a true story, isn't it?” She
continued to avoid eye-contact with him. He glanced down at her
bountiful chest and suddenly thought of his ex-fiance and her
breasts.

Then he looked at Janna's face, and the thought of Rachel went away.
A minute later, that old ghost went where it belonged: in the past.
The present was all that mattered now, the future an uncertain brink.

Another sip of Rolling Rock found its way down his throat. This was
his fourth beer of the night.

“
You
like romantic movies?” he guessed.

She smiled. Her pouty lips reminded him of Scarlett Johanson's, the
most attractive woman in Hollywood, according to him.

But Janna's looked even better. Because he was buzzed? Because she
was made-up? That lipstick looked enticing enough to devour.

“
I
actually watched my favorite romantic movie today. Sleepless in
Seattle?”

“
Yeah!
With Tom Hanks and... and...”

“
M—“

“
Ah!
Don't tell me. Meg Ryan!”

She laughed. There was exuberance and sexiness in that laugh.

Baron glanced down at where her crotch would be had her dress not
covered it, but quickly looked away, shaking the thought away. Those
weren't the thoughts or urges nice guys supposed to have. Janna
deserved better than that. She needed love. Compassion. Someone to
understand her thoughts and feelings. Someone to treat her like a
lady.

He couldn't seem to take his eyes off her; she couldn't seem to keep
her eyes off the TV. She wasn't watching the movie though—he
could tell. Every once in a while her eyes flicked sideways. The
tension basically fumed from her. Her body heat warmed him.

“
Do
you like romantic movies?” she asked, her face cemented
forward.

“
Some,
yeah. Ever see The Notebook?”

“
Definitely!
I have that on DVD. You a Titanic fan?”

“
That's
a great flick, too. So sad when Leo drowned.”

“
Oh
my God, tell me about it! I cried so much I thought I was going to
die of dehydration!”

He burst out laughing, the bowl of popcorn on his lap almost falling
over. A little beer sloshed its way out of the bottle neck. A large
drop landed on Janna's left thigh.

“
Oops.
I'm sorry,” he said. “That was just funny.”

She wiped away the drop of booze. Then her eyes connected with his,
and the heart hammering in her ears seemed to silence. The noise
coming from the TV speakers died out. Her lips changed from smile to
serious, from play to wow. He forgot about the beer in his hand, the
bowl on his lap. Both items fell to the floor. He couldn't control it
anymore. He went in for the attack.
Is this right? Is this okay to
do? Am I—

Baron lurched forward, grabbed her face with his hands, and pulled
her head toward his. Their lips touched, mashed together for what
could have been a second or an eon. Janna felt herself melt away,
felt tears sting her eyes. This was her first kiss all over again.
She didn't want it to end. Baron felt a bulge against the inside of
his zipper. Rachel ceased to exist. He realized he didn't need her
anymore. One door closed; another was starting to open.

Their kiss went on, each pair of lips nibbling at each other. Tears
streamed down her face and dripped off her jawline. She'd been
missing this—missing out—all along. But maybe this was
why she'd been waiting so long. Perhaps this was the guy she had been
holding out for.

She began to moan softly, unable to keep quiet any longer. It felt
soooo good. It felt even better when he slipped his tongue between
her lips and into her mouth. She did the same with her tongue. Just
when he went to pull away, she grabbed his shoulders and held on. His
penis, he was sure, would pop the button off his pants the way a
thumb popped the cork from a bottle. That's when he went further.

Baron leaned on her, his weight pushing her down on her back. His
hand grabbed and squeezed her left thigh. Her moans became louder,
and she, for a moment, directed his hand further upward, just under
her dress toward her panties. With his other hand, he squeezed her
right breast. Nipple felt like a pinpoint. They both wanted this...
wanted this more than words could express.

They continued to make out, grabbing different parts of the other's
anatomy. Janna pulled away from the long, incessant kiss, lost in
this escapade of passion. She felt past the normal boundary of
'close' to him. She loved him right now. And that scared her—beyond
the boundary of normal fear. What if he didn't feel the same? What if
he was just taking advantage of her? What if this, to him, was just a
one-night stand? What if she would get hurt again? What if he broke
her heart worse than Ben had?

All the stored-up sexual energy flowed out of her instantly. For as
much as she wanted to take him, she now wanted to get away before
anything really happened... and his hand was dangerously close to her
love spot.