Deadly Dosage (35 page)

     “No more than
you,” he said with a wink. “Fred, did you eat yet?” he hollered. 

Fred
returned to the kitchen while I was adding olive oil to the pan. “You got her
cooking for you too?” Fred said. “Damn. No I haven’t. Got enough?”

     “Yeah, sure,”
I said. “Oh. Lloyd, where do you keep your spices?”

     “I only use
salt. If you need something else, check the spice rack on the wall. My mom hung
it up there when I moved in but I never use it.”

Since
I never heard of anyone getting sick from using old spices, I helped myself to
the garlic powder from the multi-leveled, country-styled spice rack. It smelled
okay, so I shook some over the salmon in the pan.

     Lloyd followed
his friend out of the room with the two beers he retrieved from the
refrigerator. They were out of my hair, so I had the kitchen to myself, with
the exception of Rufus, who was underfoot.

     “Why don’t you
hang out with the men?” I asked him.

     He blinked and
jumped up on a kitchen chair and stared at me.

     “Okay, you can
stay here. But no samples.”

     I started the
water boiling for the rice and emptied a can of green beans into a pot, adding
a little butter and salt.

     Rufus started
meowing. The smell of the salmon had him winding himself around my legs. I
chopped off a little hunk that was devoid of garlic powder and put it on a
piece of paper towel to cool off.

     I added the
rice to the water, stirred, covered the pot and turned off the heat. In a new
pot, I emptied the contents of one can of pineapple chunks, sprinkled in some
brown sugar, covered it, and let it simmer.

     The salmon
cooled down, so I placed it before Rufus who finished it in two swallows and
looked up, begging for more.

     “You can have
some of mine later,” I promised.

     He meowed and
walked over to his dish for a drink of water.

     I opened the
refrigerator, took a can of diet cola, and popped the tab open. The heat from
the stove was intense, so the ice-cold soda cooled me down considerably.

     Done at last.
I pulled three plates out of the cabinet, and found the necessary utensils.
Each plate I decorated the same, with a fresh sprig of parsley and sliced
almonds over the green beans. I arranged them neatly on the table and added
folded paper towels as napkins. I gave Rufus another chuck of the salmon from
my plate and left to find Lloyd and Fred.

     They were both
sitting in front of his opened laptop laughing when I found them. Must have
been good, because Fred had tears in his eyes.

     “Everything is
ready. Time to eat,” I said.

     “In a minute,”
Lloyd said.

     “No now,” I
insisted. “It’ll get cold.”

     “Better not
piss off the squeeze,” Fred said elbowing Lloyd. “Her green eyes are flashing
red.”

     “Yeah, okay.” He
got up and they followed me into the kitchen.

     Lloyd pulled a
couple more beers out of the refrigerator and offered one to me. I declined and
he handed it over to Fred.

     “Looks good,”
Lloyd said. “Doesn’t it?” he said to Fred.

     “Great,
Sunny,” he replied.

     They seemed
happy with the salmon and beans, but when they tried the rice, I saw them
exchange a glance.

     “What’s
wrong?” I asked looking from one to the other. I wanted the meal to be perfect.

     “How did you
make this rice?” Lloyd asked.

“Just boiled water, poured the rice in, and turned off the
heat. Why?”

“That’s what I thought.” He got up and looked at the package
of rice still sitting on the counter. “Hon,” he said, “this isn’t Minute Rice.
It says to cook for twenty minutes.”

I pulled the package away from him and read the instructions.
Twenty minutes. I bit my lower lip. “Sorry. Want me to try again?”

     “That’s
okay.” He kissed my head.

     Fred
ate a forkful of the rice. “Kind of crunchy. Not too bad if you mix it with the
beans.”

     I
laughed. “Don’t feel obligated to eat it, Fred. I don’t want you cracking a
tooth.”

     I
turned to Lloyd and pouted. “Guess I didn’t earn my guitar lesson.”

     “Guitar
lesson?” Fred asked Lloyd. “Didn’t you learn from me?”

     “What’s
he talking about?” I asked Lloyd.

     “Fred’s
our drummer. His girlfriend wanted to learn how to play the drums so he tried
for two weeks to teach her the basic rudiments.”

     Fred
continued. “Finally I blew up. Told her my bowel movements had more rhythm than
she did.”

This made Lloyd crack up.

“She responded by knocking over half my kit, throwing my
drumsticks at the wall and breaking up with me.”

     “Jeez,”
I said.

     “Before
you give up, Sunny, Fred married that same woman a month later.”

     “Really?”
I said to Fred.

     “Made
it a year so far and it’s still going strong. She agreed to stay away from my
kit and I admitted she has rhythm where it counts the most.” Fred smiled.
“Don’t worry, Sunny, Lloyd doesn’t have my temperament.”

     “Yeah,
but I do.” I started clearing off the table. “I bought a cake if anyone wants
some. Doesn’t exactly go with beer.”

     “Beer
goes with everything,” Fred said.

     “Bring
on the cake,” agreed Lloyd. “When we belch it will smell like chocolate.”

     “Swell,”
I said cutting a few slices.

     We
ate our cake in silence, shoving the yummy goodness down our throats.
Occasionally Lloyd would catch Fred’s eye and they would both burst into
laughter. Obviously, I was the butt of some private joke.

Lloyd
decided it was time for my first lesson after the cake. Fred assured me he
would keep his comments to himself. He played the bass as well as the drums, so
he played Lloyd’s bass, while I sat on one of the little stools—referred to as
thrones.

     He
plugged in his guitar and sat down next to me.

“I’ll
start off very basic, okay? This is the neck of the guitar. It has six strings,
in order from bottom to top, E, B, G, D, A and E. Some people remember them by
saying the “Easter bunny gets drunk at Easter.” Top string is the thickest;
bottom is the thinnest. The spaces between these metal bars are frets. You
always position your fingers between the bars. Got all that?”

     “Yeah,
I know that stuff.”

     “Do
you think it’s easier if I teach her lead or rhythm?” he asked Fred.

     “Go
with rhythm, and then you can play lead and help her along later.”

     “Yeah,
all right.”

     He
continued, showing me how to position my hands to play major chords, and
explained about picking and strumming before passing the guitar off to me. He
came behind me and helped me position it correctly. I placed my fingers on some
of the strings as instructed and Lloyd took my right hand to show me how to
strum correctly. It all seemed extremely difficult but I let him continue. By
the time he finished, I forgot most of what he said, and looked at him
dumbfounded when he suggested I play a few chords.

     I
looked over at Fred, who had stopped playing and was watching our lesson with
subtle amusement. “Shut up, Fred,” I said angrily.

     “Hey,
I didn’t say anything,” he said putting his hands in the air.

     “Ever
hear a picture is worth a thousand words?”

     He
laughed.

     “Fred,”
Lloyd admonished. “Try it again. Here.” He repositioned my fingers and I
strummed with the help of his hand over mine. “See, easy.”

     I
kept shooting glances at Fred. He pantomimed zipping his mouth closed and
throwing away the key.

     After
twenty minutes, I was thoroughly frustrated. “Why can’t I just learn a song?” I
complained to Lloyd.

     “Sunny,
I can’t teach you a song if you don’t know how to play any chords,” he said as
patiently as humanly possible.

     “Fine!
And why do these strings hurt so much?”

     Lloyd
looked to Fred for help. “Hey, you’re on your own buddy.”

     “Well,
let’s call it a day. That’s enough for one lesson anyway.” He took the guitar
from me and carefully put it away. “I’ll find an easy song for you to practice
next time, okay?”

     “I’m
sorry, Lloyd. You did a great job teaching. I’m just a rotten student.”

     “At
least she’s honest,” quipped Fred.

     “You
did fine. That’s a lot to learn.”

     The
phone rang and he left to answer it.

     “He’s
got a lot of patience, doesn’t he Fred?” I asked him.

     “Guy
is one of a kind. Love him like a brother.”

     “Yeah,
I can see that.”

     “He
really likes you, Sunny. Be nice to him.”

     I
tilted my head. “Why wouldn’t I be nice to him?”

     “Listen,
maybe it’s none of my business, but he mentioned that you’re still seeing some
other guy on the side.”

     “Actually
I was seeing the other guy a long time first before I met Lloyd.”

     “Whatever.
Point is, I don’t want him hurt if you decide you like this other guy better.”

     “I
appreciate your concern.”

     “Do
you?”

     “Yes.
It’s good to know he has a friend that cares about him. Is looking out for him.
And for the record, I care a great deal for him too.”

     “Good
to know.”

     “Fred,
is Lloyd seeing anyone else?”

     He
seemed surprised by the question. “That’s not his style.”

     Lloyd
walked back into the room. “You guys look serious, what’s up?”

     “Sunny
asked me to shove off so you two can get it on.”

     “Well,
in that case, thanks for stopping by,” Lloyd laughed. “Don’t let me keep you.”

     “Seriously
though man, I’ve got to go. It’s been a blast. Sunny, thanks for the eats.”

     “You’re
welcome, Fred. Want the recipe for the crunchy rice?”

     “I
think my wife knows that one,” he chuckled.

     “Give
Tina my best.” Lloyd patted him on the back and walked him to the door.

     I
heard them laugh—making fun of me no doubt— and Lloyd came back into the living
room.

     “I
like him,” I said.

     “Good.
He likes you too.” He kissed me softly. “Don’t suppose you want to dance again?
Get your mind off guitars.”

     “Try
me,” I said by way of invitation.

     This
time he selected a CD, popped it into his stereo and turned down the lights.

     With
a slow song playing in the background, Lloyd took my hand in his and we began
to sway to the music. The heat from his body made me forget everything else
around us and I dropped my head so it rested on his shoulder. Tonight there was
only he and I. No Sam Sheridan. No marriage proposal.

A tear slide down my cheek and I held him closer to me,
afraid to offer him my heart, but wanting so desperately to do so. 

     Rufus
stood in silence watching us, he tail moving back and forth like a metronome.

“So you
can make it on Sunday?” I asked getting out of Lloyd’s car. “I’d really like
you to meet everyone. Especially Autumn.”

     “Yeah,
I’d like that,” he said closing the door behind me.

     The
night turned cold and the wind was brisk. My hair kept flying into my eyes so I
held up a gloved hand to hold the wayward pieces back. “Do you realize we’ve
been together over twenty-four hours?”

     “And
it went too quickly,” he said. “Can I walk you up?”

     “Better
not. I would be inclined to invite you in and next thing you know we’d be
playing mattress rodeo.”

     “And?”
he smiled wickedly.

     “Oh
boy. I better just kiss you and skedaddle before I change my mind. I really had
a wonderful time. Thanks again for the clothes and lesson.”

     He
kissed me so completely I forgot I was standing in the freezing cold in my
parking lot. “I enjoyed myself too. Do me one favor?”

     “Sure,”
I said unquestionably.

     “Those
sexy clothes? I prefer they not be worn for Sam’s enjoyment.”

     “I
wouldn’t think of it, Lloyd.”

     “Thank
you.” He kissed me once more. “Sweet dreams.”

Brandi
was sitting in the recliner, remote in hand, skipping through channels with the
speed of a jackrabbit. She wore her granny nightshirt and had half a gallon of
chocolate ice cream in her lap.

     “Nice
dinner,” I said taking off my coat. “If you want, I’ll make a pizza. I’m a
little hungry myself.”

     “Okay.
Sun, what’s wrong with me?”

     I
could go on for days, but this required one of those little white lies.
“Nothing, Brandi. Why? What’s up?”

     “Sam
broke up with me.”

     At a
loss for words, I simply asked why.

     “You
know, I was in a really good mood today, you know with you and Lloyd stopping
in and buying all that stuff. My first commission check! I wanted to celebrate
you know, so I called up Sam and asked him to dinner. He gave me some line
about being in love with someone else, so he couldn’t see me anymore because it
wasn’t right. Do you believe that?”

     Wow.
Sam the unpredictable struck again. What happened to the man who said I’d have
to agree to marry him before he gave up seeing Brandi? Maybe he truly was
trying to change.

     “I’m
sorry, Brandi. Listen, I’m sure there’s someone terrific out there that’s meant
for you. I’ve never known you to have any trouble getting dates. Men adore
you.”

     “Yeah,
they do, don’t they.” She got up and put the ice cream back in the freezer.
“He’s not worth getting fat over. As a matter of fact, I’m going out with you
and Autumn tomorrow night to meet a new guy!”