The Odd Ballerz (37 page)

“Sorry, cooking’s not my thing. I told you.”

“No, really,” he said, chuckling and taking what he found useful from her hands.

She stood beside him, leaning with her back against the counter, watching him. “It was nice of you to stop in and check on Alex.”

“She’s a good friend. I hate that she has to go through this. I know what it feels like to be stalked,” he said, cracking eggs and dang, with one hand.

“Show off,” she said, chuckling. He laughed.

“The one you thought you loved, is that what you meant by the stalker comment?”

“Yep.”

“Is she alive?” she asked, moving the discarded eggshells to the trash while he started to beat them.

“Yes.”

“And so are you. So that’s good.”

“It is,” he said, and smiled, pouring the eggs into the skillet.

“I didn’t know all of what she’s gone through. We didn’t talk about it. She didn’t want to and I didn’t pressure her. So stubborn that one; has always been,” Memphis said, lost in thought, in some memory of Alex growing up. “I’m so happy we didn’t lose her, you know. A lot of women in this country die at the hands of men who won’t let them leave,” she said, looking at him.

“I know. How’s the nurse?” he asked, adding the rest of the ingredients to the skillet.

“The nurse appears to be a great guy. He stops by every day, sometimes twice a day. Smitten with our Alex. I think she likes him more than she wants us to know. He’s a father, divorced. Alex is helping him coach his son’s Pop Warner team. Did I say that correctly?” she asked, leaning on the counter watching him still.

“Yep,” he said, and smiled.

“Look at me, football knowledge, growing by leaps and bounds,” she said.

“I wouldn’t say that,” he said, chuckling. “Serious?”

“Could be.”

“Plates,” he asked, turning off the fire under her skillet.

She opened a cabinet, pulled out two, and placed them on the counter beside the skillet. “What do you want to drink? Carrot juice and water are all I have to offer.” He made a face at her drink offerings.

“Coffee?” he asked.

“Instant,” she said, pulling a cup from another counter. He made another face.

“You’re a food snob, you know that, right?” she said and he laughed. She led them to a square-shaped table with four chairs, one on each side. He took the one at the end, and she sat beside him.

“So enough about me. How was the install? All done?” she asked, starting to eat.

“It is. Yesterday, and Meredith stayed to help. She left this morning, by the way, back to Colorado. Told me to wish you well,” he said.

“That’s great news. Congratulations,” she said, smiling up at him. “A long way from the boy that struggled with dyslexia. It’s nice, the part about Meredith leaving,” she said, chuckling.

He smiled. “So, Yancy told me about his interview. How was yours?”

Her gaze darted over to him. She was surprised again.

“Yancy,” he said, by way of explanation.

“Right,” she said, and smiled. “I didn’t go. I withdrew actually. I’m not interested in moving to another city, which would be expected of me if I were selected. No way, especially given all that’s happened to Alex, not that I was sold on the idea to begin with. I want to be here, living around the people I love.”

“It never became too much… taking care of them?”

“Nope, you do what you have to, right?”

He smiled. “So where are we on the planning for the opening?” he asked, changing the subject again.

“We’re so good, dude. Caterer, check. Invitations, check. Quiet little country-playing quartet, check. Ordered tablecloths and whatever stuff to turn Sloan Glassworks into an elegant event for its fans and customers, check. Thank you, Jones,” she said.

He laughed. “Thank you, Jones,” he said.

“Alex is out tomorrow. I’m going to stick around here, spend Tuesday with Charlotte to make sure she’s not overwhelmed, you know?”

“Always a mom,” he said.

“I guess.”

“There are worse things.”

“So, Wednesday evening? I’ll be back,” she said, turning the subject to another important topic for her, or it was getting to be.

“That seems long,” he said, smiling.

“It does, doesn’t it? I don’t think I could get there any earlier. Tuesday night, maybe… if I abandoned my sisters.”

“Now is good,” he said, chuckling, his eyes twinkling, filled with merriment, staring at her.

“Now is perfect,” she said, smiling and reached for his hand. He smiled, and followed her down the hall and into her lovely bedroom, where he stayed for a while.

# # #

Later that evening Z was stretched in his favorite chair, a beer in his hand, a little bit of breeze blowing in his face, dozing off and on, enjoying the evening, quiet from having nothing major on his agenda for the next few days. Going to see Jones this morning had been perfect. He thought of his first time spent in her home, in her bed, in her. Funny, eager, and open was Jones. He heard a car and looked up. It was one that he recognized this time. Aubrey. A lot had changed since he’d seen her last.

He watched her slide out of her car. An attractive woman she was, and one he had absolutely no interest in. He continued to sit, waiting for her to reach him. It didn’t take long.

“Hi again,” she said all smiles, standing by his feet.

“Hi,” he said.

“How are you? Did you get my texts?”

“I did. I’ve been busy.”

“With work, training?” she asked.

“Yes, that, and I’m seeing someone,” he said, might as well get to the point.

“Oh, that’s good,” she said, surprised, but gamely playing it off. “How’s Memphis? You still training her?”

“Yes, I am, and she’s fine.”

“She didn’t show up for her interviews. I guess she can’t leave her sisters behind after all. I should be happy, it increases my chances of getting the position,” she said.

“True,” he said.

“I haven’t seen her since camp. Things haven’t been the same between us since my talk to you. I miss her. Believe it or not, I
was
only trying to help.”

He was quiet, didn’t have anything really to say to that. He took a pull from his beer instead.

“So the new person you’re seeing, is it serious?”

“I think so,” he said.

“She’s lucky then,” she said, looking around. She clearly hadn’t expected this outcome. “Tell Memphis I said hello. Anyway, I’d better let you enjoy the rest of your evening. See you at tryouts.”

He smiled, and just like that she was gone.

# # #

Monday evening

If you’ve seen one hospital waiting room, chances are you’ve seen them all, Memphis thought of the square room she was currently sitting in, alone, waiting patiently, she might add, to take her sister home. She’d left Alex in the room with Aarik over an hour ago. Checking out was taking a lot more time than she’d imagined it would. Good thing she had lot of things to do with her idle time like dream of Z. He figured prominently in her thoughts these days, and today was more of the same: thinking of him, lost in yesterday and all those images of him, at home, in her bed, really in her was the best image of them all.

She liked him, and she thought it was mutual. He’d said as much, really and why ask her to get to know him if all he wanted was sex. The doubting part of her brain would push that around to scare her, she guessed. She wasn’t sure what to make of his request, to wait and see, to get to know him, as if there was something he hadn’t shown her that could make him a no-go for her. It would have to be something major, to push her away. Of course, he didn’t know that, and she wouldn’t tell him. She would just play the wait and see game.

“Memphis,” Alex said, interrupting her Z-musings. She was seated in the standard hospital-issued wheelchair with Aarik standing solidly behind her, hands on the handles, prepared to wheel her sister out to the car.

“Finally?” Memphis said, standing up.

“Finally,” Alex said. Aarik smiled.

“Would you like to carry the bag or to push?” Aarik asked, smiling at her. A good guy, Memphis thought again, another finally to add to their collection.

“You can push. I’ll take the bag,” she said, and they were off, taking her sister home, black eyes and all, but alive; a blessing beyond measure.

# # #

Z was headed to the area behind the utility building, where a little house, that once was a very large shed, was located. He’d converted it to accommodate his family and friends that dropped in occasionally and wanted to stay a while.

An airing-out along with a check for critters was his mission today. Sometimes the occasional raccoon or squirrel thought to make their home inside, and neither of them should be encountered unexpectedly.

He found the key underneath the mat and inserted it into the door. Two large rooms was this space. The front room was part kitchen and dining area, to the right, and part living room, to the left. The back door was a straight-shot ahead, and the bedroom and one small bathroom were through the door left of the living room. He walked over to open the two windows on the same side as the kitchen, unlocked and lifted them both, allowing the small breeze to pass through. Air conditioning was available here too. This was Texas, after all.

He went over to the refrigerator next for a quick look-see. It should be empty and it was. He’d stock it after his parents arrived, and they would be here soon. How soon, he didn’t know.

Originally they were scheduled to arrive a week before the opening, which was at end of the month, three weeks from now. Of course they would attend; they had always been present at just about anything he did. He’d called his father yesterday and asked him to come earlier. He wanted them to meet Memphis and he wanted it sooner rather than later.

He was growing more and more sure that she was the one for him, and he suspected she felt the same, although neither of them had mentioned it. He had his reasons and he guessed she had hers. His reasons, his reluctance, all had to do with his family and her response to meeting them. Leftover angst from last year was mainly responsible for this course of action, this drive to show her just what being with him meant.

He scanned the bedroom and then the adjacent bath. All good in here, he thought. He walked back to the main room for one final check. All good, he thought. He locked the door, replaced the key under the mat, and headed back to his home.

Wednesday

J
ones had arrived. He smiled at her driving toward the parking lot now, ten minutes to six. Like clockwork was Jones now that her life had resumed its normalcy. Alex was convalescing under Charlotte’s watchful eyes for a week, to be safe, then she would be moving in with Jones.

“How’s the training? Is she getting any better?” Carl asked, interrupting his thoughts.

“Yes, she is.”

“Still seems like a waste of time to me to put her on a football field. Not when there are so many other much more pleasant things one could do with her,” he said.

They stood watching as Memphis parked and stepped out of her car. And Z smiled when she stood, dressed in her usual, which today was the gold dress of hers, the one he’d so admired the first week of camp, but hadn’t seen since.

“Yep, a waste,” Carl said, shaking his head. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He was leaving for the day.

“Yep,” Z said, his gaze fixed on Memphis, who was walking towards him now. No way were they training today.

“Jones,” he said, smiling. She stood in front of him, smiling too.

“Coach,” she said, reading need on his face, a feeling she certainly understood, since she’d been feeling an equal measure of it too.

“Another day off is what we need. Was that what you were thinking?” she asked.

“I was,” he said, not even going to pretend this wasn’t what he wanted, pulling her into his arms. His mouth was on hers not a second later. Tongues finding their way into each other’s mouths, his hands on her ass, moving, caressing, whatever; mostly it was pulling her hips into his.

They both moaned, and forgot about everything except feasting at each other’s mouths for a while.

He laughed after he pulled away. “I love this dress,” he said, pushing her away so he could get a better look.

“I love that you love this dress,” she said, smiling.

He laughed. “Inside?”

“And now is good,” she said, chuckling.

He clasped her hand in his, looked around the shop, scanning it for things that couldn’t keep. Nope, he was at a stopping point. They were halfway to his house when they heard noises, automotive noises, coming from two vans snaking around the drive and coming towards them. Two Volkswagen vans, they determined after closer inspection, one spit-shined and polished new, and the other one not so much, and straight out of a seventies movie.

Z groaned.

“Not good. More friends?” Memphis asked.

“My parents,” he said, and even he hadn’t expected them this soon.

“Oh,” she said, surprised. “So, is that a happy-to-see-them groan? Or a what-the-hell-are-they-doing-here groan? Do you want me to leave?”

“It’s more the first, although I wished they’d come after we’d had some time alone,” he said, her hand in his as the first VW passed. A man was driving, or she thought it was a man, with lots of long flowing hair, so maybe not. The second, older van passed and it was another long-haired person, and Memphis was pretty sure that the second driver was a woman.

“My mother,” he said after the second car.

“Oh,” she said.

They walked the remaining distance to the house, following the direction of the vans, which were parking now. With friends and parents showing up all the time, she was beginning to understand his need for so much space.

“Hey,” he said to his parents, who were getting out of their vans now. He continued to hold her hand in his, pulling her along beside him. Two smiling people were walking toward them, arms outstretched in welcome.

“Z, my man,” his father said. Long hair, lots of gray in the long strands dancing around his shoulders, casual in pants and a t-shirt with the words DEAD HEAD written across the front of it. He and the woman could have been twins in the hair category, as far as Memphis was concerned.