Release (20 page)

Saffron has arranged a party in the VIP section of a
bar to celebrate the final night of
Release
. All of the dancers are
here, as well as their friends and family. I’m with the guys, and Brooklyn’s
introducing her mom to everybody she knows.

Gerard, sitting beside me,
leans forward like he literally wants to climb across the table.

“Holy shit, is
that
Brooklyn’s mom?”

“Fuck you – don’t even say it,”
I warn.

“What? She’s more like an
older sister. I want an introduction.”

“It’s bad enough that Kayla
looks like she wants to kill you every time she glances your way. Don’t start
more shit.”

“You’re no fun these days,”
he says.

He’s serious – he’s actually
taking an interest in my girl’s mom. Admittedly, Evelyn Scott is an attractive
woman, but damn this guy.

He chuckles in a way I’m too
familiar with and gazes at me. “Do you remember those two MILFs that time we
went to Miami? Do you remember that, Joe?” He snickers, relishing the memory.
“I love me some older chicks, they always know what they want. Brooklyn’s mom
looks like a woman who knows
exactly
what she wants. Dayum!”

“Keep your voice down, man,”
Joe says.

I’m glad someone else at
this table has some sense. I feel like we’re surrounded by ears. A friend of
Kayla’s is about four-feet away from us, she probably wants to kill Gerard too.
Worse still, Brooklyn’s brother and his girl are close by.

I recognized the moment I
met Tommy that he’s cautious about me being with Brooklyn. That isn’t something
I have a problem with, I understand it. I’ve been there with Saffron before she
got with Adam, and I probably wouldn’t be much different now if she wasn’t with
him. If Tommy hears Gerard, it won’t help. I want him to know his sister’s all
good with me.

“You two, out in the hallway
now,” Saff’s voice says.

When I look at her, standing
by our table, her hard focus is directed at Gerard and
me
.

Shaking my head, I stare at
him. “Thanks, man.”

Now he’s acting all innocent
like he hasn’t done shit.  

“I’m still waiting,” she
says.

I get up and do as
requested, feeling like a boy who’s been caught misbehaving.

Out in the hall, the three
of us stand a few feet away from the restrooms, out of sight to all in the VIP
section.

Saffron looks up at me. “I
know how much Brooklyn means to you, but the people who don’t know you won’t.
If
I
heard him, anybody else could have.” She switches her gaze to
Gerard. “Watch your mouth, don’t create problems for Dane. This isn’t the time
or the place for your shit.” Damn, she’s fierce.

“Okay,” Gerard says, palms
raised in defeat. “I’ll be on my best behavior for tonight.”

“You make sure of that.”
Saffron turns and heads to the ladies.

“Seriously, though, dude,”
Gerard whispers, “her mom’s smokin.’ If you and Brooklyn last, at least you
don’t need to worry. You know what they say about looking at the mom to know
what your woman will look like as she ages. Brooklyn will always be hot. Shit,”
he says, grinning.

“You’re still gonna say
somethin’ like that after what Saff just said? She
heard
you. I don’t
want Brooklyn’s family thinking I disrespect her like that, and I don’t want
them hearing you lusting over her mom. There’s something kinda gross about it.
It’s a little too close to home, you feel me?”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry. I
was just surprised, that’s all. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

After a while, I head out to
the patio for a smoke with Gerard, Joe and Adam. We stand off to the side,
separate from the other groups. I light up, and as I inhale, I glance to my
left. Oh no. Brooklyn’s mom is approaching, and I know she’s going to join us.
She smokes.

“Hi boys, room for another?”
she asks as she hunts for her cigarettes in her black purse.

I don’t even have any of my
own to offer her one. But guess who does? Before she locates hers, Gerard is
extending his box. I’m tempted to snatch it from him. I know he won’t be able
to help himself standing this close to her.

“Mrs. Scott.” He smiles, all
teeth and eyes.

“God, that makes me sound
old. Call me Evelyn.” Her lips curve wide as she takes a cigarette.

Now he lights the thing for
her. “No, no, no, Evelyn, that’s not possible. Beauty such as yours will always
remain timeless.”

Fuck no! That has got to be
the cheesiest thing I’ve ever heard that motherfucker drop on a woman.

Evelyn laughs and playfully
slaps his shoulder. “You charmer you.”

“I’m just stating a fact,
Evelyn.”

Where are my manners? I look
at Evelyn. “This is Gerard and, of course, you met Joe and Adam when they
arrived.”

“Nice to meet you, Gerard.”
She extends her hand out to shake his, looking genuinely pleased to meet him.
Brooklyn obviously hasn’t expressed her disliking for my buddy to her mom.

“The pleasures all mine,
Evelyn.” Now he kisses the back of her fucking hand.

So Gerard does a lot of
bullshit, but – thankfully – he does have a couple boundaries in place. As much
as he might
desire
to, he’d never actually do anything with Evelyn
Scott. Married women and virgins are no-go areas for him. But this still
doesn’t feel right; she’s Brooklyn’s mom and he’s stripping her naked this very
second. I know it for sure; I can see it in the way his gaze is roaming. The
black dress she’s wearing from her clothing line is fitted, showing the well
kept shape of her body. Brooklyn wasn’t exaggerating when she told me her mom
looks great, and she definitely looks younger than her forty-eight years.

“It’s nice to meet your
friends, Dane,” she says to me with a smile that’s just like her daughter’s.

She is so friendly, so
sweet. And so oblivious to the pervert standing in front of her.

This has got to be karma.

As I go to respond, in my
peripheral, I catch a white sparkle moving toward us.

Evelyn and I both look at
Brooklyn approaching in her sequin mini tube dress, another creation from her
mother’s business. It’ll take a lot to stop her smiling tonight, even Gerard,
as long as she doesn’t know the way his mind is working. The discreet elbow to
the ribs Joe just gave him will help with that.

Brooklyn stops at my side, I
slip my arm around her waist, and she cuddles into me.

“So what do you do, Gerard?”
Evelyn asks, turning to face him again.

In this moment, I realize
something – by the look in her eyes, the change to her body language, and the
simple fact that she didn’t speak to Joe or Adam in that seductive tone when
she asked them the same question – Evelyn is a flirt! Mother fuck.

I watch as the words pass
back and forth between the two of them; it’s like watching a tennis match. I’m
somewhere between amused and appalled; they’re equally flirting and equally
lapping it up. I’ll never allow myself to think this again, because it feels
wrong, but if Evelyn ever got her hands on Gerard, she’d eat him alive. And he
would love it. Wrong, wrong, wrong!

Adam snickers and turns
away, sucking on the tip of his cigarette. Joe standing straight in front of me
mouths, silently, “What the fuck?” I shake my head and look at Brooklyn, and
the only thing she is, is amused. This is unbelievable.

After a while, the others go
back inside. “What’s the deal with your mom?” I ask Brooklyn.

She giggles. “She’s a proper
flirt, especially when she’s had a drink. She picked up on Gerard’s attention
and played along. It’s harmless on her part, but she gets a lot of male
interest. Sometimes she amuses herself with it, if it’s someone younger.”

“Shit, I wasn’t expecting
that.”

She laughs again and cuddles
into me. I tuck her into my jacket with me, to keep her warm. “I find it funny,
but Tommy hates it, he gets embarrassed. Dad finds it funny, too. He’s proud of
his hot wife.”

“You’re like your mom in
more ways than one.”

“How so?”

“You’re a flirt also.” Under
my hold, I feel her go tense.

“No, I’m not.”

“Oh, you are.”

She loosens her arms around
my waist slightly and, somehow, this conversation
has
wiped that smile
off of her face. “I’m not a flirt. When do I flirt?” she questions, some might
say demands.

I should leave it, given her
reaction, but it’s unnecessary for her to get defensive over something like
this. “Tuesday, in Whole Foods, with that guy. When you were debating salmon
and tuna steak and their omega three content, is one example.”

“No, I wasn’t. I was
correcting his incorrect information. That’s not flirting.”

Now this is fucking weird.
It’s not even a big deal, my tone alone suggests this, but she’s acting like
I’m accusing her of a crime she hasn’t committed. She’s not on her period – I
know that for certain – so I don’t really get what her problem is.

“Brooklyn,” I say, with a
little extra firmness in my voice, “don’t get upset, it’s not a big deal.”

Her brows draw tight. “It’s
not?”

“No. Not to me it isn’t,
anyway. You don’t even realize you do it.”

“I don’t?” Her brows shoot
up along with her pitch. I was actually aiming to put her at ease saying that.
Instead she looks more confused and worried.

“No. Like I said, it’s not a
big deal.”

She nods slowly. “Okay.”

“Don’t agree and then stay
upset.”

“I just ...” she shrugs her
shoulders, “I don’t know.”

“Do you think I was
bothered?”

“Some men don’t like that,”
she mumbles.

“Like what?”

“Their girlfriend flirting
with other men – not that I do, but you obviously think so.”

“It’s not the same as coming
onto someone. You don’t do that, and no, I wouldn’t like it if you did. Your
mom is married. It was entertaining watching her with Gerard, but I could see
she wasn’t coming onto him. He’d have known that, too.

“You had a debate about
salmon versus tuna steak and, yeah, you did flirt a little, but I also found
that entertaining. In fact, it was quite impressive that flirting could form
part of a discussion about omega three. It’s really not a problem. I’m proud of
my hot girl, too.”

Finally, she relaxes and the
tension in her body goes. “Okay. Sorry,” she says, as she tightens her hold
again and buries her face against the side of my neck.

My mouth to her ear, I speak
gently. “We should go inside, it’s cold.” I reposition her at my side.

“Okay,” she says, combing
her fingers through her hair, which has a center part and is laced with curls
tonight.

We head back inside.

I approach and stand beside Tommy, who’s leaning
forward with his forearms braced on the bar, waiting to be served. I position
myself the same way, so I won’t have to compete too much with the music and
voices filling the place. From here I can see Brooklyn over the other side,
talking to Ella, Saffron, Su and Owen. At a table, close but far enough, Evelyn
and Katie are sitting with Leona and Kayla.

 Tommy looks at me,
frowning in question.

“You’ve met my sister,
right?”

He glances over at Saffron.
“Yeah.”

“She annoys me sometimes,” I
say, smiling because she does, “getting all up in my business, trying to take
care of me and shit. Is Brooklyn like that with you?”

Tommy appears confused, but
that’s okay. His mouth starts to turn up at the corners. “She used to be. Still
is sometimes. She liked to play the matchmaker, always wanting to pick my
girlfriends.” He laughs to himself, bowing his head and burying his fingers in
his hair in a way I imagine is probably subconscious, a little like the way Joe
is always finger combing his hair back from his eyes. “I forgot about that,” he
says, thoughtfully. “She likes Katie, so now she bugs me to make sure I’m
treating her right.”

The bartender approaches and
Tommy makes his order, offering me a drink at the same time. I accept, and
while we’re being served, I look across and catch Brooklyn gazing over at us.
Unlike the first night I saw her watching me from across a bar, she doesn’t
look away. Instead, she smiles. I do, too, and I’m aware of Evelyn watching
Tommy and me also.

The bartender turns away, I
bring my focus back to the guy standing beside me.

“I know you feel protective
of Brooklyn, I can see that. I was an asshole with Saffron when we were
younger, before she got with Adam. I was way over protective. She totally
fucking hated me at one point.” She really did, I barely let the girl breathe.

“Bit extreme,” Tommy says.

“I was extreme.” I felt
justified, but it wasn’t right. “It’s all good now, but I’d still do anything
to protect her. I don’t expect you to believe me, you don’t know me, but I feel
that way about Brooklyn – I’d do anything to protect her. Figured I’d tell you
that, even though it probably won’t give you peace of mind. You’ve only got my
word for it.”