Authors: Cheryl Richards
“Not gonna kill a guy that way,” Sam said.
“No, but he’ll wish he were dead,” quipped Lloyd.
On that note, I patted Lloyd on the shoulder and
excused myself. He could take care of himself and nature was calling. As I was
leaving, my dad lured Lloyd away from Sam. I wasn’t sure if that was good or
bad.
I used the facilities and touched up my makeup in
the mirror, adding a new layer of shimmering lipstick to my lips and blotted
them on a paper towel. I opened the door, stepped out, and stopped. My sweater
was twisted. While I was adjusting it, Sam caught me by surprise. He pushed me
up against the wall by the water fountain and planted a big, wet
kiss on my lips.
I wiped off my mouth with the
back of my hand. “What was that?”
“Sweetheart. if you don't
know, I'll need to start seeing you more. Guess my stand-in doesn't
know much.”
“You’re a hoot, Sam.”
“I think so. What do you say we split this joint
out the back door? Leave pops with Loy. They can get better acquainted
while I learn ya some smooching tricks.”
“No thanks. You are a cruel man, Sam.”
He shrugged. “Remember when we did it to Alan? Autumn,
you, and I left and went to Leon's for ice cream? I think he was ready to shoot
your old man by the time we returned.”
I laughed. “Yeah. Alan still brings that up.”
“So, let's do it,” he coaxed.
“Little different this time, don't you think?”
“Doesn't he trust you with me?”
“Would you?” I asked out of curiosity.
“Hell no, but then I happen to know
I
can't be
trusted,” he grinned.
“I feel like I’m reining in a little boy. Back to the
range, Sam.”
“Not until you promise to see me Thursday.”
“I've got to check my bowling schedule.”
He smirked. “I'm not letting you go until you agree.”
“Fine. You win.”
“That was a given. Let's see if Lloyd shot himself in
the foot. I'll cross my fingers.”
“If he did, it's your responsibility and doesn't say
much for your skills as a trainer.”
“I can't fix stupid,” he said coolly.
“Learning too fast for you, Sam?” I ribbed.
“See for yourself,” he suggested smugly.
Lloyd looked thankful when we returned. He took me
aside. “Your dad is driving me nuts. Can you tell him I'm not five? And if
Sam gropes you again, I'm shooting his frickin’ hands off.”
“My, you're sexy when you get angry.”
He crossed his arms over his chest and stared at me
tight-lipped. Definitely not amused.
I really couldn’t blame him. “Want to leave?”
“Not until I shoot Sam,” he said sourly.
“I'm reasonably sure that's illegal.”
He stared at me blankly. “I mean the target.”
“Oh. In that case, I'll even watch you do it.”
Chapter
48
Lloyd opened the passenger side door and waited for me
to come around the door.
“Hey, Sunny!” Sam called from his truck.
“
Now
what does he want?” complained Lloyd.
“Hold on a sec.” I walked briskly over to his
truck. Music blasted from his open window.
“Well?” I asked. His behavior tonight had annoyed me.
His continuous attempts to upstage Lloyd at every opportunity were
immature. I can only imagine the irritation Lloyd experienced being paired up
with him the majority of the night.
“Just this.” He reached out with his left hand,
pulled me by the front of my jacket to the window opening, and kissed me. “Been
fun.” He chuckled at my shocked expression, put his truck in reverse, and
zoomed out of the lot.
I walked back with my hands in my pockets, hoping
Lloyd was too far away to have seen that little transaction. The guy was
as nice as they come but I doubted he was a saint.
“What was that all about?”
I think he saw. Oh, well. “Sometimes Sam thinks he's
funnier than he is.” I hopped in and Lloyd slammed the car door closed.
He got in the car and slammed his door as well. When
the ignition engaged, he turned and faced me. “Having fun?”
I leaned over and kissed him on his annoyed,
tight-lipped mouth. “Now I am.”
He softened a tad. “Lucky I blame him, or you'd be
outside thumbing for a ride home.”
Based on his tone of voice, he meant it. And it was
cold outside. And my dad already left. Good thing he blamed Sam.
“Sam has your dad in his pocket,” he stated
knowingly, pulling out of the lot.
“That's because Sam is a kiss-ass. My dad foolishly
laps up the attention. Sad really, because Sam hates my dad.”
Lloyd's expression turned to astonishment. “Well, that's
one thing I have in common with him, besides you.”
“Sam's a charmer. Excels at people pleasing even
when his stomach is turning. Make a great politician.”
“You admire him.” It was a statement, not a question.
“Maybe. Charm isn’t something I possess. I tend to be
honest in my opinions; most people don't appreciate that. They prefer the
Sams of the world. Enjoying the mystery.”
“That's his appeal then? You want to solve that
mystery? Maybe he's just shallow.”
“Could be. Had I known he'd be here, I would have
warned you. Must have found out from my dad.”
“I survived. Hate to admit it but Sam's one hell of a
shot.”
“He is. Holds the club title for marksmanship. But you
held your own.”
I caught a hint of a smile play at the corners of his
mouth. Perhaps I soothed his bruised ego.
“Yeah, not bad. I deer hunted a bit. Still, a rifle
handles differently.”
“I imagine so,” I agreed quickly.
“I'm kind of hungry. Want to swing by Taco Bell?”
“Sure. I'll even pay. An apology for my dad's
obnoxious behavior.”
“Yeah. You owe me.”
He pulled into the drive thru lane and placed our
order. I handed him my credit card and he pushed it back and paid for the meal.
Sam would have ordered extra. I took the sodas and bag from him and he pulled
into a parking space away from everyone in a dark corner of the lot, and
parked, leaving the motor running.
I divvied up the
food and passed him some napkins. His cell phone went off.
He looked at the
display. “Mind if I answer this?”
“No, go ahead.” He
answered before I could figure out the ringtone song. It sounded like something
from the early seventies.
“Hey, John, what's
up?” he said into his phone.
I tried to eavesdrop, but I couldn't hear anything,
so I continued to munch on my nachos.
“Yeah. I can get
there around one-thirty. Want me to pick something up for you?” He
took a sip of his soda. “Tomatoes? Got it. See you then.” He put his phone down
and turned to face me. “Can you leave work early tomorrow, say noon?”
“If you can think
up a good excuse for me. The Hawk doesn't appreciate short notice requests.”
“Saving a man's
life isn't good enough?”
“Ah, nope.”
“Tell her you have
a slow leak and need to get your tire repaired.”
“That was fast!
Simple and yet creative. I'll have to meet you somewhere then.”
“I'll follow you
to your apartment so you can drop off your car. We can leave from there.”
“Where are we
going?”
“That was John
Tarver. He's got the lab results back. Wants to discuss them in person. Thought
you might want to hear what he has to say first hand.”
“I do. He must
have found something, right?”
“That's what I'm
thinking.”
“Then it’s good we
involved Alan. We'll have to give him the report tomorrow night. Maybe
this wasn't a wild goose chase.”
“Won't know until
we get there.”
“Life’s strange
isn’t it? We never would have met if you had ignored your dad’s request to
inquire on his roommate’s health.”
“You're forgetting
about almost knocking me on my ass that Friday you left work in a hurry.”
“Oh yeah.” I took
a sip of soda. “Well, what if you had chosen to admit your dad to
another nursing home for therapy?”
“Then I might be
dating a different bookkeeper—one that knows how to eat a taco without getting
sour cream on my console.”
“Oops.” I wiped
off the mess with my paper napkin and nearly knocked over my soda.
“God, you're an
accident waiting to happen,” he said, catching the soda before it spilled.
“Sorry.” I
finished my nachos and put the empty container in the bag, along with my taco
wrapping. “Do you regret meeting me?”
“That’s a silly
question,” he said wiping off his hands.
“I've complicated
your life.”
He studied me for
a moment before responding. “My life was already complicated.”
“Maybe you're just
hanging around for a piece of ass,” I taunted, lightening the mood.
“If that's all I
wanted, it's easy enough to get elsewhere.”
“I suppose it is,
for you.”
He smiled easily.
“That a compliment?”
“You know it is,”
I flirted.
He chuckled.
“Girls dig these tight, low-rise jeans.”
“Got to admit your
ass looked pretty nice when you were shooting.”
“How did Sam’s ass
look?”
“Sam who?” I
answered back innocently.
“Just checking.”
He took the trash and threw it behind his seat. Then he pulled me into his lap
and we began necking like teenagers.
When he moved past
first base, I stopped him. “We better go home before a cop catches us,” I said
with labored breath.
“More like a Taco Bell employee
dumping the trash. But you’re right.” He kissed me once more and I climbed back
into my seat.
He shifted into reverse, backed out,
and away we went. Sixteen minutes later, we were in my apartment parking lot.
Lloyd held his hand on the small of
my back as we walked up the stairs. I heard music when we got to the door, so I
knew Brandi made it home.
“Do you want to
come in? Have some Sleepytime tea?”
“Rain check. I’m sleepy right now
without the tea. Remember to wear something dressy tomorrow. We have to go to
the corporate office and there’s a strict dress code. Plus I’ll have to pass
you off as a potential client for access into the lab.”
“Sounds fun. I’m sorry this evening
was…odd. You did great by the way. Maybe some private lessons from yours truly
and you can steal that club title away from Sam.”
“Hmmm…now those types of lessons I
could enjoy.” He kissed me. “’Night, hon. Sleep well.”
“’Night. Drive safely and hug Rufus
for me.”
I opened the door and waved goodbye.
Brandi glanced at me as I walked in the apartment. She was in the process of
giving a lap dance in her too-tight mini dress, to her newly acquired, cowboy
boyfriend on the couch.
I mouthed that I was sorry and walked
swiftly to my bedroom without giving them a second glance. Like Lloyd, I was
exhausted and only too happy to go straight to bed. Hopefully the cowboy wasn’t
a screamer and I could sleep all the way through to tomorrow morning.
Chapter 49
Tuesday, February 28th
Brandi’s cowboy woke me at three in the morning when
he slammed the door shut as he left the apartment. I rolled over and tried to
get back to sleep. No good, so I got up and checked in my closet for something
nice to wear to work. With a lame excuse and a striking outfit, rumors would be
flying that I left early for a job interview. Maybe I’d scare them into giving
me a raise. Doubtful. That only worked for other people.
After a few minutes of flipping through my
clothes, I settled on a burgundy silk suit I purchased the previous year for a
Christmas party. The jacket flared slightly at the waist, with a ruffled lapel.
The skirt, A-line and ending three inches above my knee. I pulled out a cream
silk camisole, followed by a pair of thigh high nylons without runs from my
drawer. I put them on top of the dresser. For jewelry, I added a pair of simple
two-tone, gold knot earrings. Shoes. I went with basic black leather pumps, and
then switched them out for taupe. I figured the color would make my legs look
longer. My hair I’d do in a messy bun at the base of my neck.