Hearts In Rhythm (7 page)

“Whoa there, first day with new feet?” he asked.

Allie looked down to hide the redness appearing in her face. If only she was clever, she could joke back. Maureen always said you should be able to laugh at yourself. But her mind was blank. She never was quick on her feet, or off her feet for that matter. She bit her lower lip and looked at him.

“No, just first day with new shoes.” She smiled pointing at her feet. This was not going as she had expected. She had forgotten to play through the scenario of falling into his arms.

Brandon looked at her. His brow was furrowed. He peered closer and squinted. “Have you been in a fight? It looks like you have two black eyes.”

She cringed inside.

“It’s just a new make-up technique I tried.” She wanted to curl into a ball and cry. She hoped he couldn’t see her heart beating through her top.

Brandon’s house was the typical bachelor pad, sparsely furnished. A futon sat against the wall with a blanket and pillow laying on it. There were two old Styrofoam soda cups sitting on a make shift end table next to the futon. A huge flat screen TV took up most of one wall, a stereo system and his guitar took up the other, along with recording equipment and a keyboard. A quick look at the furniture and Allie knew that dusting was not something Brandon felt passionate about.

Cody and Matt came walking into the room. Cody was carrying a bag of Doritos, popping one in his mouth and Matt was licking the orange from his fingers.

Cody stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Allie. She followed his eyes as they moved from the top of her all the way to the bottom and back up.

“Dang girl. Can I just tell you that you are fine? It’s a good thing you’re at the back of the stage because if I had to look at you all night, I couldn’t play the right chords.”

“Leave her alone, let’s get to work. Time’s wasting,” Matt said.

Matt grabbed the bag of chips from Cody’s hand and walked off. This caused Cody to break his focus on Allie and go after Matt and his chips. Wow, she should call the Guinness Book. In just under thirty seconds she had managed to make a complete fool of herself. She probably broke a record. She couldn’t remember ever feeling this humiliated before. She was sure Brandon would be sure and keep his distance from her now. She carefully watched her steps as she walked to the drums and sat down. Allie glanced up and looked at Brandon who was preparing to set up. He caught her eye and gave her a smile.

* * * *

Brandon listened intently to the music filling his house. Except for a couple of spots that needed revamping, the music flowed smooth and sounded clear. He was pleased with Allie’s ability and felt better than he had since Stephen walked out on them. He felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

Practice continued uneventfully. Everyone played well and the band sounded good together. Despite the commotion Allie had caused, the band had been able to pull it together. Brandon felt bad that he had been partly to blame for her embarrassment. He thought she looked amazing. He was surprised to see her that way. She usually looked very casual. Even casually dressed he thought she looked amazing.

After the last song was played, Cody and Matt said their good-byes and headed out to catch a late movie. Brandon was left with only Allie.

He watched her rise and walk to the door. In her hand she carried her shoes.

“I think I’ll donate these to Goodwill,” she said with a smile.

He stood and opened the door for her. But instead of leaving, she lingered. Tension filled the air between them. He could feel the energy and it made him want to run away. She bit her lower lip and he found that utterly appealing.

“Can we talk for a minute before I leave?”

His thoughts ran wild. What could she want to talk about?

“You know, I’ll talk to Cody about what he said to you. He’s a big flirt. He’s like that all the time, but really he’s harmless. If it makes you feel uncomfortable, I’ll be sure he stops.”

“No, it’s not Cody. I can handle him. Mind if we sit down?”

She headed toward the futon and sat on the edge. She placed her shoes on the floor and held her hands between her knees. He heard her let out a deep breath. Brandon couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt nervous. What was it with this chick that brought it out in him? He rubbed his hands on his jeans in a vain attempt to remove the clamminess he suddenly felt. He sat beside her.

“I don’t know how to say this, and so it’s best that I just say it.” Her eyes met his and she held his gaze for much too long. She cleared her throat. “Brandon, I….how can I say this…..I think…….Brandon, you...” Suddenly she was on her feet. “Never mind. This was a stupid idea. Listen, I’ll see you later.”

Before he could even stand, she was gone leaving nothing but a trace of perfume in the air. His mind was spinning. Women were such strange creatures. Man had been trying to figure them out for thousands of years and there was no doing it. For all he knew, she could have wanted to tell him she didn’t like the third song in the set. The more he thought about it, it had to be something bigger and deeper than that. She was too abrupt and outspoken to hesitate the way she did. Perhaps it had something to do with Samuel.

He jumped in the shower but his mind wouldn’t rest. If it was Samuel, maybe he could help. He had her number and would call her to check on him. He kicked himself for being so stupid and not asking about him when she was here.

He let the warm water run over his hair and down his back. Stepping out of the shower, he toweled off then wrapped the towel around his waist. There, sitting on the bathroom counter was his phone with a red blinking light indicating a missed call. He had been too preoccupied with thoughts of Allie to notice the four missed calls from Simone. He would have to call her back, but first he needed to call Allie.

He walked out of the bathroom looking up her number in his list of contacts. Turning the corner from the hallway to the living room he looked up and gasped. There on his sofa sat Allie, her shoes resting in her lap.

Her face wore a startled look

“My car won’t start.”

Chapter Seven

Brandon stood before her in nothing but a navy blue towel. Allie felt a surge of heat rush in her belly. Pure desire filled her. Brandon looked good with clothes on, but she had to admit, with clothes off, he looked like something out of a magazine.

It was a sign. All of this. Superstition ran deep in Allie. She couldn’t help it; her grandmother had passed it down. She never opened an umbrella in the house or walked under a ladder. She threw spilled salt over her left shoulder and always caught a cricket and let him go instead of killing it inside. So as fate would have it, when she got to her car and it only made a click at the turn of the ignition, Allie knew that was a sign. A sign that meant she was to tell Brandon her feelings exactly. The powers that be were giving her another chance.

“I’ll be right back,” Brandon said darting out of sight.

Time seemed to stand still while he was out of the room. Allie stood and began to pace the floor, rehearsing the words, hoping she would choose all the right ones. She didn’t want to scare him off, but at the same time, she didn’t want to dawdle.

He returned dressed in a Pink Floyd t-shirt and a wrinkled pair of jeans, much to Allie’s dismay. She tried her best flirtation tactics.

“I liked the other outfit better,” she said.

“Whoa, have you been taking lessons from Cody?”

She shook her head.

“Actually, I’m glad you came back,” Brandon said. “I meant to ask about Samuel. How is he?”

“He’s better. Thank you so much for asking.” Just when she thought he couldn’t get any better, there he goes asking about her son and making her insides crumple. “Dr. Windsor thinks he can go home tomorrow.”

“I’ll have to get up there and see him one last time. Tomorrow’s my day off, but I’ll see what I can do.”

“He’d really like that. He loves the Superman cape you made him. He won’t even take it off. I have to bribe him.”

“Would you like a drink or something?” Brandon asked motioning to the couch. “Why don’t you have a seat and I’ll get us something. What would you like?”

Allie wanted to sit down, but if she didn’t act quickly, she would lose her nerve. Mustering the courage of a lion, she walked close to him and placed both of her hands on his chest.

“What I’d like from you Brandon, is a kiss,” she studied his face, waiting for him to lean into her. But instead the door flew open. Allie turned her head just in time to see a beautiful red head standing there. Her face was one of both shock and disbelief.

“Brandon?”

Brandon pushed away from Allie and quickly approached the redhead.

“Simone.” He stood between the two females. “This is Allie, the band’s new drummer. Allie, this is Simone.” He paused. “My fiancée.”

Allie couldn’t look at them. She quickly glanced at the floor. A fiancée? How could she not have known this? Another complete act of foolishness all in one night. Of course he had a girlfriend. A man like him could not be available and single.

“What is going on here?” Simone asked sharply looking at Brandon to Allie and back again.

“Actually, I was just leaving,” Allie said walking towards the door. Simone quickly closed it behind her and stood in front of it blocking Allie’s exit. She crossed her arms and looked Allie square in the face. Her eyes were a fierce green and there was a determination in them that intimidated Allie.

“Nobody is leaving until I know what is going on here.”

Allie looked at Brandon for assistance. Surely he would say something, do something. After all, this was his girlfriend. She was shocked when he stood there with his hands in his pockets, doing and saying absolutely nothing. It was up to her to get out of this house. She hated to cause a confrontation, but if that’s what it took, she wasn’t one to back down. On the other hand, she wanted Brandon to like her and fighting his girlfriend was not going to be the way to win him over.

Allie looked at Simone’s crossed arms and there on her left hand was a gleaming diamond, reminding her of what she did not have. What she could never have. She walked over to Simone and stood mere inches from her face.

“You want to know what was going on? I was coming on to your boyfriend.”

Allie felt the slap of Simone’s hand across her cheek before she saw it coming. Simone had backhanded her across her right cheek causing her head to jerk.

Now Brandon was there, talking softly to Simone. He put his hands on her arms, but she shoved them away. Allie’s face stung. She could have retaliated easily. She looked at Brandon, his pale brown eyes pleading with her.

If it makes any difference, I didn’t know he was your boyfriend. I thought he was available.”

She looked at Simone. The beauty in her was gone, replaced with anger. Her eyes were squinted, her lips were clenched, and her chest heaved with angry breaths.

“I probably deserved that. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go.”

Allie pushed past her and walked out. As the cool night air hit her face, tears stung her eyes. She was relieved she hadn’t started crying in there. She opened her car door, wiped her face with her sleeve, and sat down. She turned the ignition and then realized the reason she had gone back in Brandon’s house in the first place. The engine didn’t turn over. There was nothing more than a click. She pounded the steering wheel with her fists and looked toward his house almost expecting to see Brandon and Simone watching her from the window.

The house was silent and dark, save one golden square of light from the living room window. She didn’t know what was going on in there. Were they fighting or were they making up? She blinked the image from her mind and grabbed her purse from the passenger seat. She got out of her car, and began walking home.

* * * *

Simone came at Brandon pounding her fists into his chest.

“You jerk,” she screamed. “So this is what you’ve been doing. Chasing around a little two bit tramp?”

Her red hair was flying about her face. She didn’t give him any time to answer before she was screaming more.

“You ignore my calls and texts all weekend, and then you think three dozen roses will pacify me? You think you can buy my forgiveness?”

“No. I’m sorry. I was wrong, Simone.”

She stood before him, arms crossed. Her lips were drawn into a thin line.

“That’s not good enough.”

“Well then, neither am I. Go home, Simone.” He walked to the door and opened it for her. “Go home, cool off, and we can talk when everyone is being rational. But I’m tired and frankly, I can’t deal with this right now.”

“So that’s it? You’re going to bury your head? Hide in your little turtle shell? You know what Brandon. You’re a coward.”

She stopped at the door.

“I wouldn’t marry a coward if someone paid me.”

She pulled off her engagement ring and threw it, hitting him in the chest. Brandon heard it clink as it hit the tile floor. He stared at her, biting his tongue. Words are something you can never take back. His mother taught him that lesson well, her harsh words still stung after all these years. After a few seconds of staring at one another, Simone turned and stepped off the porch.

“What a waste of my time,” were the last words Brandon heard her say.

He calmly closed the door and bent over to pick up the ring.

Wow. So it was over. Just like that.

He heard Simone’s tires squealing out of his driveway.

He walked to his bedroom. Opening his dresser drawer, he found the red velvet box. He carefully placed the ring back in the box and stared at it for a long time. He couldn’t wrap his head around what was happening. His feelings were all over the place and he couldn’t rely on them. Simone, the woman he loved, had just ended their engagement. She thought he was having an affair because, why? She walked in on Allie with her hands on his chest. Immediately, he thought of lies and excuses that he could give Simone to convince her she was wrong. But why? She didn’t want him. She had made that clear.

He returned the box to his dresser drawer and closed it. He was feeling something for Allie that he just couldn’t explain. She had come on to him. Yes, that was absolutely true, she even admitted it to Simone.

He needed some air; this was all too much for him right now. He stepped outside. The night was fast approaching. Snow still lay in patches of white in the shadows of trees and walls. He looked into the street where the piles of dirty snow rested in the gutters. And that’s when he saw it. Allie’s car parked across the street.

He stepped back in, grabbed a sweatshirt and his shoes and headed out into the night.

* * * *

It was at least two miles back to Allie’s mom’s house, but the night was cold, and her feet hurt. Why had she chosen to wear these stupid heels? She had kicked them off about two blocks from Brandon’s house after feeling a blister coming on the back of each heel. The sidewalk was cold, and occasionally she would step on a sharp rock and shriek out in pain. Besides the cold getting to her and her feet hurting, her pride was also feeling a sharp pain. If only she could go back in time and erase her actions. She should have just asked Brandon for a ride home and kept everything professional between them. She wasn’t sure how she was going to handle the situation when she saw him again.
If
she saw him again. It would be no surprise to her if he found another drummer. It would certainly save a lot of awkwardness.

Of all the nights to have left her cell phone at home, this would have to be one of them. She was walking through Brandon’s neighborhood making her way toward the town. She would have to cross a main street to find her way back to her house. But first lay a city park with a nice trail. When she managed to get to the main street, she would go into the nearest convenience store and ask to use a phone. Her mom was helping with Samuel. She would have to call Maureen and she’d come get her. She knew that.

Allie heard footsteps coming up behind her on the sidewalk. Dark had settled on the town and although she normally wasn’t afraid, thoughts of every serial killer she’d ever watched a documentary on popped into her head. The footsteps were coming closer and at a much greater speed. She realized that they were running. She took a deep breath and began her self-talk.
Relax
, she told herself.
It’s just a late night runner. And maybe it’s not even a guy. There’s a fifty-fifty chance it’s a girl who isn’t going to bother you at all.

The footsteps began to come at her louder and faster. Her mind began to imagine knives and a sweaty palm clamped over her mouth as she is pulled into an alley. Her mom always told her if anyone were to ever attack her, to scream as loud as she could, because once they got her in a car, all the screaming in the world wouldn’t help if nobody could hear her.

She began to walk faster hearing the footsteps drawing nearer. She looked back and she saw a figure coming toward her. It was a male figure and he wore a hooded jacket. Fear gripped her.

She turned and began to run, her bare feet slapping the pavement. The pain and cold of the cement piercing her feet. She ignored it and ran as fast as she could. Her purse strap dropped to her elbow and bumped against her thigh. Her breath was coming hard now. She pumped her arms and pushed herself, but she wasn’t fast enough. She heard heavy breaths directly behind her. She felt a hand tighten around her arm and she screamed. The man yanked on her, slowing her down. She screamed louder and clenched her eyes shut.

She braced herself for the assault from her attacker, she knew she would soon be pummeled with punches, kicks, and pain until he was finished taking what she wasn’t willing to offer. She tried to reach her purse and throw it at him, hoping that’s what he wanted.