Here With Me (Paloma's Edge) (6 page)

Chapter 9

Hunter

DAD STORMED INTO MY
room with long sheets of paper I’d rolled up and hid in my trunk at my tree house. Glaring at me with those intimidating hazel eyes that had likely convinced jurors of his arguments, he tore one sheet of paper in two. I felt like he punched me in the gut real hard. I’d worked my ass off trying to draw the lines accurately of the neighbors German shepherd, but he kept on growing and he seemed to have muscle on top of muscle whenever I saw him. The dog’s name was Jerry and he always ran toward me when Dad wasn’t anywhere to be seen.

“Hunter, how’d you get the pencils and drawing papers? I didn’t give you enough money to buy these things?”

“Dad, I’ve been saving up my money,” I lied, because I wasn’t going to get Mother in trouble. She’d never made me feel like I wasn’t a good son, or a punk because I liked to draw. The only thing Chase and I both did together was swim, and those days were few and far between, now that he’d attended football camp for the past two summers and was on the youth football league. Chase wasn’t around, like he used to be. He’d watch me draw, or I’d practice catching a football with him on occasion. “I stopped for days and I couldn’t focus. I do the chores I am told to do. I do my homework.”

Dad ripped the rest of my drawings to little pieces on my floor. He bristled. “I’ve specifically told you to quit with that pansy shit. You’re not a kid anymore. If you spent more time reviewing how the different branches of government exerts their power, you wouldn’t have gotten a seventy on your exam at your Law Youth program.”

“I don’t wanna be a lawyer,” I told him in a low tone, when I really wanted to say that I hadn’t ever wanted to be one; I’d wanted to stay in his office with him while he went through tons of papers at his desk, because he’d looked so cool and important. Aside from those times I’d been with him in his office, I’d rarely seen him. Mom was either in her room or gardening.

“You think you’re going to make a living by sketching chicken scratch? Well, I’ve got news for you—in ten years, you’ll be flipping burgers if you don’t get out of that dreamer mentality,” he yelled, his voice echoing down the hallway.

A second later, Mother was by the other side of the door in her silk nightgown. Loose auburn waves were like curtains on either side of her symmetrical pale face. Her golden brown eyes grew larger as she gazed at little pieces of paper on the floor. She hadn’t purchased cheap sketch paper either. It took a lot to easily tear it into little pieces like that.

“Gerald,” Mom addressed him with a crack in her voice, “Hunter spent weeks doing those sketches. You’re such a bully!” She bent down and slowly began gathering the pieces of paper in her hands, her eyes filled with tears.

“So, you’re the one who bought all this junk.”

“I am the one who bought the easel in his tree house, the charcoal, and the pencils for his sketching,” Nana said as Mom dropped the papers into my trashcan and then stood up. “So, you owe me money back, because that’s my money in the garbage. You know I’ve got a fixed income at my age. Charlotte told me what my grandbaby likes when we were at the art supply store and I saw to it that I got it for him. Must you spoil everything?” She turned her back to him and by the time she was by my side, she was rubbing my back in soothing circles. My breathing was erratic and I tried to calm down.

“Mom, you’re spoiling his future by encouraging these fantasies of his. The only artists who earn anything substantial are the dead ones—”

Nana made a dismissive gesture at Dad and said,
“He’s having a tantrum just like his father had.”

Dad told Mother.
“If you told my Mom my stance—”

“You barked orders at me to not get him anything for his drawing or to speak about it, but he’ll go on doing it. I couldn’t get a word in edgewise.” Swallowing hard, Mother’s gaze darted over to me and she moved her head a fraction of an inch. “Get some sleep, Hunter.” Her tone was soft, yet sad. Dad strode behind her out of my room.

***

SOMETIME AFTER NANA HAD
tucked me into bed, I went downstairs to the kitchen and had some cold milk with chocolate cookies. I’d checked to see if Chase had been awake, but he’d been sleeping. Chase and I had had our own rooms since pre-school. Dad had told us when we started school this year that we had come into this world together, but we had to strike out on our own. Chase was great in every position he’d tried on the football team.

“Can’t sleep?” Nana snuck up behind me, laughing. I blinked twice at the white face mask she had on her face and I wiped the milk from my mouth and nodded. I knew that she did a lot to maintain her fit skin, but she scared me. She hadn’t stepped out of her room before without her hair curled and her face made.

I shook my head as she leaned over the counter. I pushed the plate of cookies toward her, but she declined. “You won’t stop drawing because your Dad is pigheaded about it, right?”

“No, Nana,” I answered and she flashed me a grin. “I don’t hear him telling Chase to stop with football.”

She cleared her throat. “Now, I know you might not know what I mean at nine years old, but my Paps had told me when I was a little younger than you that a man who stands for nothing, will fall for anything. You’ve got to believe in yourself, even when everyone wants to steer you in all these directions. Because if you don’t, you may wake up one morning and realize that it is too late to do some things. You might have too much going on and you can’t draw when inspiration strikes, or when you really need to so you can unload from your workday.” Nana cupped my chin and a low chuckle vibrated from her chest. “You’ll be my age faster than you think and there’s so much beauty out there to be captured. Don’t let your Dad knock you down. Go put them cookies away and come sleep with me.”

“I’m nine,” I said. “I am not a little boy.”

“I am seventy-two years young and I want one more memory to take with me when I go to my house tomorrow.”

***

THE NEXT MORNING, I reached my hand out for Nana’s rollers, like I used to do on purpose to see if she’d swat my hand or make Freddie Krueger noises. I moved on my side and she was sleeping. Past ten in the morning. I knew it was Saturday and we’d talked a little before we fell asleep. I touched her face and it was ice cold. Since she had on thick wool pajamas and was under the covers, my heart began to race.

“Nana!” I screamed, putting my hand underneath her nostrils and I felt nothing. Then I put my hand to her breastbone and her body was frozen. Mother and Dad were in the room by the time I shouted her name for the hundredth or so time. Vision blurred, tears flowed down my face and trickled onto her neck. I didn’t want to let her go. I wanted her to be normal again. I needed her to wake up and have breakfast with us before she went home.

“Nana’s in heaven right now,” Mother said, with panic in her voice as she tugged on my arm. “The ambulance will be here any minute.”

“Does Chase know?”
I asked her when we were in the hallway sometime afterward.

“He’s in the room with Nana now, telling her goodbye,” she replied.

When we reached the stairs, Dad was coming up with the paramedics, his expression impassive. He didn’t cast a glance at Mother or I.

***

DAD AND MOTHER SENT Chase and I to school, even though we’d wanted to stay home with them while they made arrangements for Nana. It still wasn’t real to me that Nana wouldn’t visit us again.

After the night of Nana’s cremation, Mother rocked herself on the rocking chair at the front of our house and had a wide glass in her hand. I stood next to her, and studied the half-moon in the dark blue sky. Something ice cold touched my hand, reminding me of how cold Nana had been days ago.

“Here you go,” Mother said and I lowered my eyes to the cold glass she was giving me. I accepted it and gulped the strong bitter taste down my throat. My stomach was burning up and my skin was damp with my perspiration. As I coughed a little, she took the glass from me and poured more of the liquid into it.

“Mother, what’s that?”

“The best whiskey you’ll ever have,” she answered with a reminiscent expression as she handed it back to me. “This was a gift from your Nana on my birthday. We we’re going to have it together, but your Dad called me last minute to go to a company function with him.” I sipped some of the drink steadily so my tongue could adjust to the overwhelming flavor. “Besides you and Chase, she was the greatest gift I received from being with your Dad.”

The discomfort in my stomach eased up and I gulped the rest of the whiskey. Mother padded my behind as my gaze returned to the now elusive moon.

***

I
WOKE UP WITH a start. I swore I could taste the whiskey on my lips the minute my eyes opened. If the memories of staying at the library and taking my mid-terms hadn’t swamped me back to the present day, I would’ve been so sure that I’d fallen off the wagon and had done some coke. When I’d gotten older, I’d forgotten what I’d done when I’d gotten wasted.

Riley jumped on my lap and laid down. I rubbed her stomach and she watched me. I stopped dreaming about the day Nana had died next to me, years ago. Riley sensed that I needed to feel useful to someone right now. I rubbed her stomach some more and she barked at me to get myself together, so I could walk and feed her before I left for work.

***

MANNY AND VINCE CAME
inside the little room we all ate lunch in. I raised my head to them as they joined me at the table. Hector wasn’t a talker. He did his work and ate lunch sometimes.

“How’s Ari holding up?” Manny asked me.

“Holding up from what?” I asked him, because I hadn’t told anyone that he’d relapsed. So many people thrived on hearing when others fell, particularly celebrities like Ari.

Vince nudged Manny’s shoulders. “Told you he didn’t know. He don’t go to them gossip sites, or watch morning TV.”

“I am right here, ya know? And what are they saying about him now?”

“That he’s at Serenity Village.”

I groaned and put the rest of my sandwich in the saran wrap. “Damn. Not even Sage, Austin, and Renner knew he was there.”

“Hunter, the press gets wind of this kind of shit the minute a celebrity is admitted. Did you take him to Serenity Village yourself?” Vince asked.

“Yeah,” I answered with a heavy sigh, “and I see why he came to me. Anyone else would’ve exploited the situation.”

Manny shook his head. “Was he tweaked when you did his cover-up?”

“He was feigning after a few hours, but no.”

“What’s his poison?” Vince asked.

I held my hands up. “I am going to give Ari that shred of privacy.”

“They’re saying that he uses Meth,” Vince said, “but whatever it is, I really hope he kicks it, because my daughter might play the sick ca
rd if Tainted Virtue breaks up.”

***

AS MANNY CLOSED DOWN Lasting Impressions, Jill stood across the street in her tight tee-shirt and jeans that had to press against her crotch when she wasn’t standing. I tried not to smile, but I couldn’t resist. She was playing up all of her assets.

“Hunter, you going home with that girl?” Manny asked in
a knowing tone. I made an indifferent face. I pulled my keys from my back pocket and got into my car. Jill was on the passenger seat by the time I buckled my seatbelt.

“You haven’t been at La Caridad in a week. Blanca thinks you’re hitting up another place.” She slid her eyes over me and saddled closer to me.

“Nah, I’d brought food from home.”

“How long is that going to last?”

“Well,” I said casually, “I am booked all next week.”

Jill sent me an inquiring look and made a tsking sound. “All work and no play.” She threw me that lame old line like I was the only guy she’d ever said it to.
  

“Who says I haven’t been playing?” I asked and Annette’s reminder flashed through my mind. “Follow my car. I’ve got to make a stop at the neare
st bodega to get some rubbers.”

Chapter 10

Mariska

I WAS PUTTING CRACKERS and slices of cheese on the tray for Pete and two of his play dates when Mom said, “I saw Tom and his new girlfriend at Luigi’s before you arrived yesterday.”

With the full tray in my hand, I pulled in a steady breath and forced myself to smile.

“I saw them at Gregory and Maxine’s party. They look great together,” I acknowledged. It really warmed my heart that Tom had found someone else who looked at him with the same affection and genuine respect that he’d held for her. Tom had been very kind during our date and after I’d told him that we weren’t going to go on another one.

“That could’ve been you,” Mom said coolly, as if the comment would irritate me less because it didn’t have her customary patronizing ring to it. After finishing my midterms and papers earlier this week, I couldn’t wait to see her, Dad, and Pete. She’d been agreeable during dinner. Dad could’ve talked to her, but he didn’t like to get in between our disagreements unless he thought that I was out of bounds. He didn’t take into account that sometimes Mom didn’t give me room to move without one of her critiques. It really bothered her that Scott and I were not dating exclusively after only two dates. She’d acted like she’d approved of my decision to date him and wait until he and I were prepared to make a decision about commitment.

“Yeah and I would’ve been a terrible girlfriend, because I don’t feel anything for him. Rachel likes him and I am guessing she finds every word that comes out of his mouth fascinating.” I lifted a shoulder. “I couldn’t. No matter how much we both tried to make something click.”

“Oh, dear,” Mom said with a grimace. “I know you see these TV shows, magazines, and read those trashy romance novels and think dating someone requires you to feel like you’ve got to feel wild with a guy. Those aren’t the values your Dad and I taught you. People have a hard enough time separating you from Beth as it is.”

I stared at my mom, trying to decide whether or not to ask a question that’s been on my mind for a while, and then it just came out. “Do you feel any passion for Dad?” My voice quivered and the tray in my hands shook, so I placed it back on the counter.

Wrinkling her brow, she said, “Do you think that’s a question you should be asking your Mom?” I didn’t want to know about their sex lives. I wanted to know if she loved my Dad like I knew he loved her. He wasn’t a man of many words, but he cherished her and, for once, I wanted to see or hear that from her.

“The boys must be wondering where their snacks are,” I said and picked up the tray from the counter.

***

I STAYED UP WITH Mom and Dad in the living room until Pete’s friends’ parents picked them up. I was dying to get out of the house. I’d asked my parents if I could leave the house for a bit and they’d told me to return home in two hours. It didn’t matter that I was eighteen years old and that I was supporting myself through college. I was in their house for two more days and then I’d resume my work and school life all over again. And despite my exhaustion, it was totally worth it.

Jake’s Explorer pulled up in front of my house. Mom and Dad stood a few inches from the door and waved to Jake, who flashed a smile, and were gone by the time I was in the passenger seat of his car. They knew his reputation as a Franklin Park’s Casanova and, yet, they hadn’t ever f
orbade me to hang out with him.

“Luigi’s?” Jake asked in greeting and I gave him an eager nod. Laughing, he drove to the place that I’d worked at all year round during my four years of high school.

I’d used to think that it sucked to have to work and squeeze in personal time, but mom and dad did me a favor by making me earn my own money. I saved up a decent amount of money, which covered my room and board, meal plan, and my books. I didn’t have a scholarship like Beth did, but my grandparents had left money for Pete and I that had to be strictly used for college expenses when they’d passed away six years ago. I’d also spent that money to cover the balance for my tuition.

***

“HEY JAKE.” STEVE CLAPPED hands with Jake and titled his chin to me and told me, “Francine and I were talking about when you were going to come to your old stomping ground.”

“I wouldn’t come back home without seeing you guys,” I replied and glanced around the packed Pizzeria.

Francine came through the double doors, with a delighted expression. “I thought I heard your voice,” she said as she threw her plastic gloves in the trash. “Is college kicking your butt?” Her eyes veered from me to Jake, who released a deep breath. Steve and Francine chuckled at his reaction.

“It’s nothing like high school,” I said. Francine propped her hands on our shoulders and we sat down on the stools.

“That’s what Tom says,” Steve remarked, a corner of his mouth curled up. “He can’t be with Rachel like he thought he’d be.”

Jake’s gaze drifted to me when Francine added, “He assumed that Westmoreland Community College would be easy.”

“It has to be a lot when he works here and—”

Francine shook her hand. “His grades have been too hot so his Momma said that he can work here in the summer and during his school breaks. Rachel’s a senior in high school. She has to get everything finalized for her enrollment this fall at Westmoreland too.”

Steve’s smile widened. “He’s just scared that Rachel will flee from him like you did,” he teased me.

I rolled my eyes. “From what I’d heard, he and Rachel were dating a week after we had that date.”

Francine pursed her lips as Steve placed the menus in front of us. “They sure have been. At least you hadn’t strung our nephew along like some of these hussies would.” Her voice hadn’t carried over the music and various conversations the rest of the customers were having. She eyed Steve. “They’ve been in here since they were in diapers. They know the menu inside out. What’s it going to be?”

“I’ll have a Razz-Apple slushie and a large slice of pizza with chicken, broccoli, and pineapple,” Jake replied.

“Very good,” Francine remarked and gave me an expectant look.

“A papaya slushie and a slice of Buffalo chicken pizza,” I said.

***

“
IT LOOKS LIKE LUIGI’S is doing well,” Jake commented after Steve served us our slushies and pizzas.

“Yeah, they’re people here I don’t recognize.”

Jake started cutting his pizza into small pieces like he always did. “And it may explain how Francine and Steve seem to be getting along more.” We watched as Steve put his hand around her waist for a second, and then she went through the double doors again.

“It’s not even two full days since we came back from Miami and you’re working your Mom’s last nerve as much as she’s working yours,” Jake said as he licked some of the oil from his perfect lips.

I sipped some of my Papaya slushie. “I think she’s getting on my nerves more.”

His mouth titled into a small grin as he bumped my shoulder. “She’s hard on you, because she really does love you. Would you rather have Cindy
as your mom, or Janet Landry?”

I took a bite of my pizza and a knowing expression grew over his handsome features. The answer to that question was a no-brainer. “I know your Mom doesn’t want you to leave.”

“I’ve been cooking since I got home and I like everything about it, except the cleaning up part. Mom’s taking it easy while I am here. Dad, Cori, and David don’t do anything in that house unless it’s to turn on the remote control.”

Since we were little kids, Jake hadn’t been afraid to get his hands dirty on the playground or in the kitchen. I knew that his Dad and brothers had joked about it, because of the comments I’d overheard when Beth and I had been at his house in the past. It’d stopped, or at least Beth and I hadn’t heard his Dad or brothers give him a hard time in recent years. Jake never complained about it, or about much of anything. I hadn’t brought it up to him, because I didn’t want him to ever feel abnormal about how domesticated he could be. Some viewed his occasional role in the kitchen as a weakness, but I believed it was a major strength. Underneath his womanizing exterior was a man ready to make a home with a woman who’d value the real him. The only things he wouldn’t ignore were when someone had hurt Beth and I. Because of that, I couldn’t tell him that Hunter had treated me like crap when he’d realized I was a virgin after he went down on me in my dorm room. Jake would confront Hunter, even if I asked him not to. He couldn’t help it.

“It’s because of you that I kept my job here in high school,” I remembered as I took another bite of my pizza. “Your lessons helped me do work quicker in here and not mess up anymore. I never did say thanks for that.” I swung my gaze and met Jake’s warm brown eyes. 

“You thanked me a long time away when you learned how to make a decent pie of pizza,” he said, the side of his mouth tipped up. “Did you hear about Tainted Virtue?”

“I watched it on TV with Mom and Dad this morning. They cancelled the rest of their tours in Georgia, Alabama, and North Carolina. Ari’s in drug rehab. I would’ve thought Renner had a drug problem, not him.”

“Tainted Virtue wasn’t the same without Ari. Fans were asking why he only performed at one show in Georgia. He’ll be stronger than he was before he went into rehab. They’re close-knit and I believe that they’re not going to bail on him. To have whatever you want at your disposal is too great of a temptation.”

“It has to be. For anyone. They’re sensationalizing his drug use and making Ari look like this completely self-centered person.” I slid my eyes to my watch. “I know he’s a celebrity and I only know Ari the entertainer, but I don’t believe what they’re saying about him.”

“You and me both. You think Chase and Hunter did all the drugs people are saying Ari does?”

I immediately shut my eyes after I felt them grow wide. A painful knot formed in my stomach when I thought about the possibility that Chase and Hunter could fall back to their old ways. Despite Hunter being a jerk, I didn’t want him to struggle with his recovery anymore than he did every minute of his life. “Yeah, I do,” I said. “And they’ve come so far.”

Jake seemed to be lost in thought as he downed his Razz-Apple apple slushie. After a while, he said, “You gotta be home by ten?”

I gave him a regretful look. “Yeah. I am sorry.”

“I remember their rules. I’ll take you for a quick ride, since we’ve got an hour left.”