Something To Dream On (32 page)

“Yeah, you what?” How can I take time to find a solution when I need to keep watch on Jensen every second? Then again, how could I have stopped him?

Also, prom pictures? Is she freaking kidding? Boy is she going to be sorry when all this gets fixed and Jensen hears the truth. Jensen is in for a rude awakening as well. Obviously they are friends, even though he is in denial of that fact. I’ve been pretty forgiving so far. Either I am going to come back to the land of the living and let him have it, or I am going to learn how to move stuff around so I can be one of those ghosts who complicates people’s lives. I may be an understanding person, but there are limits!

“No, I put it on hold. I’ll go back next semester when I can focus.” Laura mimics the look I give when I call her a liar. “No, really. I’m going back next semester, no matter what happens with Lizetta. She’d never forgive me if I didn’t.”

Laura returns her eyes to the photo and she nods. “I get it. If I were you, I wouldn't want to disappoint her either.”

There is no way she gets what I am up against. Those fuzzy slippers have yet to hit the ground and walk their way out, so I just keep staring while willing her to leave.

Finally, she clues in. “Sorry, I had a bad night and needed a diversion. I thought you might, too.” She’s slow in standing while hoping I get it. This could be Laura being the manipulative tramp she is, or it could be Laura needing not to escape her reality and leave the drugs at home. We are supposed to help each other.

“Sit. Let's see what you got.” I’m not sure I’m ready for this. I’d be fooling myself not to think that there are heavy decisions regarding Lizetta ahead. If we decide that all is said and done, I don't know if I’ll be able to allow myself to think of her again. After taking part in such a decision, I might pull my own plug.

I sit a good foot away, and Laura leans in like we’re buddies. Etta starts whipping her tail while giving me the look of a woman scorned—much like Lizetta would if she were here.

No worries, Etta. Laura is not my buddy, though in many ways she's the best friend I've got right now. Paul may get what I'm up against, but nobody gets my past like Laura.

Also, no one makes me as edgy as she does. I hate how I sound to myself when she is around yet …

Frankly, I want to wrap my arms around her, solely because I need someone to still love me despite my being a heartbeat away from blowing it. Fortunately, Etta jumps up between us. I owe her one.

Of course, the top picture is of Laura, looking all kinds of hot in a black dress that reveals just enough skin to be alluring. The Laura I’ve always known has been pretty, but here she was gorgeous. It’s hard not to be invasive and ask for details on what the hell happened, even though I kind of know.
“Dad finally made sure his little girl can’t be seen as innocent anymore. It’s okay. I’ve been waiting for it.”
As much as I deny what that must mean, it still makes me shiver. If the bastard wasn’t in jail for his third DUI, I may have killed him by now.

“Well, what do you think?” Her eager eyes remind me of a little girl who is seeking daddy’s approval. Considering all the ways I have shown her how I have approved in the past, and what her dad did, her turning to me as a father figure is creepy.

I play into her want for praise and tell her the truth. “You looked fantastic.”

Laura flips through a few pictures of her friends. All of them show staged goofiness. She giggles, and I fake amusement. I don't give a crap about these. I just want to see photos of the future mother of my children. Finally, she gets to one. Lizetta stands alone while looking out onto the dance floor. Her golden hair drapes over her shoulders and down to the top of her strapless dress. Her skin glimmers. God, how I miss everything about her. I'm speechless at her beauty, and because I want to be with her for a moment without interruptions.

“Check out that dress!”

Don’t you dare go there, little Miss Anorexia. You always have my compassion until you open your mouth.

“I always thought that dress was a little … Umm …”

“Perfect for her in every way.” It comes out like a sigh of longing. Man, the girl has me whipped.

“I was going to say, teal.”

Sure you were.

The dress is the perfect color for Lizetta. Still, the brightness of the satin makes it a bit to take in.

“I tried to talk her into a little black number, but for some crazy reason, she wanted that teal dress.”

Of course she wanted teal. She wouldn’t be Lizetta if she didn’t. “Well, she is a hard-core hockey fan.”

Laura's expression goes flat. Now that's interesting.

The picture surprises me. I expect to see rolls of fat. Instead I find a pretty, young woman with curves that glide like those of a model—which was how I felt when the night started. When it ended, I was a crying wreck of blubber, all because I let myself be influenced by Laura.

How dare she claim we had been friends enough to go shopping together! God! I didn’t even want to go to the prom. Thing was, if I didn’t, I would be branded a loser who couldn’t get a date—and I was until salvation came from my best friend. “Hey, you know how you keep bitching about your prom? Since Prince Charming has yet to show up on his white horse, how about you settle for a crappy date and let me take you in a rusty Nova?”

Seriously, how could a girl refuse such a charming offer? “Sure, but I’m not putting out, so don’t go getting any funny ideas.”

“No way. Even if you strapped something on, boobs scare the crap out of me.”

I tried not to think of all the bizarre connotations and see it as a man telling me I had awesome tits.

A couple of weeks later, a tuxedo-clad Griffin and I were inside the San Francisco Galleria, surrounded by three levels of balconies. I swore the world was staring down. I wondered if the attention was out of amazement that I had a date, caused by my gloriously low-cut neckline, or because Griffin looked delicious enough to be on the cover of an erotica book.

Griffin was the most amazing date. He even asked for a fabric swatch from my dress so he could match a corsage to it. He skillfully spun me during the fast dances, and then romanced me through the ballads. If I didn’t know he was gay beyond a doubt, which he proved by not being able to look me in the cleavage, I would have popped the question.

My perfect night may have stayed that way, if I hadn’t stopped on my way out of the rest room for a quick glance in the mirror. No wonder why Griffin kept his eyes on mine. My boobs were lethal!

A group of giggling girls staggered in with Laura at the helm. “Lizzie!” Laura smacked me on the back. “Nice dress! Your cousin’s kind of hot!”

The other girls giggled.

I didn’t expect kindness, but that cheap jab took her teasing to a whole new level of disrespect, and it pushed me too far. After years of sucking it up, I let her have it. “Aw. That’s cute of you to be jealous.” I smacked her on the back like she had done to me. “Don’t worry. Your date may not get the best date of the night award, but Brad’s good looking in his own special way.”

Her entourage sang a chorus of “Oohs.”

Laura’s eyes flared. I thought she was about to deck me. Instead, she did something far worse. She hit my gut with a glare. “Great come back,
Liz
. I always underestimate how witty your kind are in order to make up for their physical flaws.”

My brain froze, just like her eyes had on my midsection. It was far worse than a threat made to my face. This one was made into my soul. She looked up with the unfortunate timing of seeing the first tear fall. Then I was out the door. One of the girls called, “I thought you were a cow, not a chicken!”
 

I fled to the second balcony and grabbed a seat in a corner, literally biting my tongue so I could focus on the physical pain and fight the sobs that would ruin my makeup. When Griffin found me, he read the story in my eyes from across the room. Like a real life Prince Charming, he made a beeline for me. “Let me guess. You ran into Queen Bitch.”

Griffin practically dragged me into the center of the dance floor. He tucked his head down into my shoulder and pressed his fingers against my back. The embrace that showed the world I was worth holding brought back my pride as we swayed in half time to the driving beat. Once we had drawn enough attention, he raised my chin and whispered, “You owe me for this—
big time
.” His kiss was impassioned, but the butterflies in my stomach were brought on by the shock that someone cared so much that he would do something that went against the core of who he was to help me save face.

The crowd cheered, but his next kiss nearly brought the house to its knees. He tucked me in his arm and paraded me off of the dance floor. I caught a glimpse of Laura’s face as we strolled past. Her dropped jaw showed shock, but that didn’t stop her from getting in the last word. “Guess her cousin likes ‘em hefty.”

I barely managed to make it out with my head up. Now this witch is claiming to be my friend in order to steal my fiancé while I am helpless. For years she has been stealing my soul, now she’s going for my heart.

Laura flips to the next photo, and it's one of Lizetta dancing with Griffin. It figures that they would go together. If he were not so man-happy, I’d feel threatened by him.

“You know,” Laura says, “for the life of me, I can't remember the name of her date. Nice guy. I wish I hadn’t lost track of her once high school ended. Apparently they had an epic break-up.”

The hell? No friend of Lizetta would not know who Griffin is, let alone think they dated.

I’ve always known Laura was full of shit. Now this filthy, little liar is fibbing about how well she knows Lizetta. Griffin told me he knew about his sexuality in grade school and has been honest with everyone from the start. Laura is the one who lives lies. I can’t help her if she won’t face herself.

I nudge Etta aside and take Laura’s hands. I can’t shake the feeling that Lizetta knows and is pissed, but dammit, I’ve got to reconcile this crap. Like it or not, the universe keeps showing me that I am in this with her. “Laura,” I look deep into her eyes—deeper than I ever have before. She has really beautiful eyes. I’ve always known that, under the right circumstances, I could get lost in them. “I need you to be honest with me.”

She slides her hand behind my head. “About what?” she whispers, and something in her tone nearly steals my breath. I’m reminded of all the times we have been like this and why I always caved. I despise how this girl constantly conflicts me.

I snap back to reality—harshly. “You’ve lied about your relationship with Lizetta. These aren’t pictures of your friend; they are trophies. The more you hurt, the more you hurt others. It’s time you faced what caused you to hurt in the first place.”

Laura yanks her hands away and starts to make for the door. I nab them and pull her back down. “You need to talk about this.”

“No!” she snaps. “I don’t need to talk about anything.”

She has got to get out of fantasyland. This whole crock of crap about knowing Lizetta isn’t just her way of trying to gain approval. She may be so far gone that she is creating an alternate reality. Lord knows that if I were Laura, I would want to. Hell, in a way I did. “You need to let this out and be honest with yourself. I can’t help you until you take the biggest step of all.”