Where Forever Lies (18 page)

“Um,
probably going home and crashing, why?”

“Well,
there’s an awesome blues band playing at Moirai, we should go.
You know, get out of the house a little?” Kyleigh said
jokingly.

Paige
thought about it for a second. It had been a couple of weeks since
she’d done anything and she was trying to make a point to have
some adult time so she wouldn’t go stir crazy, but it was such
short notice and she’d have to scramble to get a babysitter.
She knew her mom would probably be able to. “Sure, I’d
love to. I just have to make sure my mom is able to watch Kyra. I’ll
let you know later.”

Kyleigh
squealed with excitement, “Yay, it’ll be so much fun!
I’ll find out what time the first band starts playing.”

♥♥♥

After
spending some time with Kyra by taking her out to eat and getting ice
cream, Paige had finally dropped her off at her mom’s house at
eight o’ clock, giving her just enough time to meet Kyleigh at
her house by eight thirty. She was excited, knowing it would be a
blast and she felt good about getting out and doing something with
her friends every couple of weeks. It was good for her and even
though sometimes guilt wanted to make its way into her thoughts, she
did her best to keep them at bay.

She pulled
into her apartment parking spot and saw Kyleigh waiting for her. As
she opened the door Kyleigh was grinning from ear to ear, looking as
if she was about to burst with excitement.

“Are
you ready to party?” she asked enthusiastically.

Paige
shook her head, laughing. “Kyleigh, I don’t really party.
I’ll probably only have a drink or two. For me, it’s all
about getting out and having ‘me’ time.”

“Yeah,
anyway,” Kyleigh said laughing. “Let’s go, I’m
ready to start shaking my ass and getting my drink on.”

Paige
smacked her on the arm, “Calm down, you wild girl.”

They
parked against the curb along one of the main streets not far from
the club, happy to get this close to Moirai.

“Oh,
my God, I should have never worn such high heels, my feet are already
killing me,” Paige groaned as she leaned against Kyleigh for
support.

“Well,
you look hot, if that counts,” Kyleigh teased.

“No,
not really. I’d rather be comfortable. I don’t know what
I was thinking.” The wind began to pick up and Paige held her
hair to keep it from blowing around too much, hoping to keep some of
her curls intact before she got to the door.

After
waiting in line for ten minutes, they were finally able to get
through and luckily find a small table inside, even though the place
was packed. Paige looked up at the stage, taking in the members of
the first band to play as they got things set up. She did love blues
music, it had a way of mellowing a person out and she really needed
to unwind.

Kyleigh
came back with two beers and Paige took a sip as she scanned the
crowd. The band was almost ready and Paige wished they’d hurry
up. The music they were playing in the background was terrible and it
was starting to give her a headache.

“Finally,”
Paige said as the lead singer came up to the mic.

After a
quick introduction of their band members and the name of their
opening song, the music started. The lady singing looked to be in her
forties, a mess of long black hair cascaded around her, and her
clothes were leaning on the tattered side, but her voice was
beautiful and invigorating. It sent a wave of chills through her,
making all her worries numb for the moment, and Paige felt herself
getting lost in the music. She couldn’t have asked for a better
singer right now. This woman, who didn’t even know her, was
helping her forget everything that troubled her. Paige felt herself
gently swaying and she closed her eyes, letting herself feel
something other than stress, anxiety and worry. She didn’t want
the song to end but after a few minutes, the next song came on
sounding even better than the first.

Paige
sipped her beer as she listened to the band and felt a tap on her
shoulder, breaking her out of the trance the woman seemed to have put
her in.

“Hi,
miss? Sorry to bother you, but I have a drink for you.”

Paige
looked up at the young waitress who was staring at her with big blue
eyes and long blonde hair that fell down her back in waves. She was
holding a pink, fruity drink with whipped cream and a cherry on top.
Paige stared at the drink, words slipping away from her as the
woman’s voice singing in the background turned into a mellow,
sensual tone.

Was
Tyler here?
She frantically thought to herself.

She
suddenly felt all the tension seep back into her. Did she want him to
be here? She didn’t know. She had so much conflicting emotion
around that thought. She did want him to be here but why hadn’t
he called her? Why had he been ignoring her? She didn’t want to
play games and she was too tired to deal with a bunch of drama.

“Thank
you,” she told the waitress after she sat the fruity drink down
in front of her.

She
whirled around, scanning the crowd as she looked for him. What was
she going to say when she saw him? She examined each person she could
see, trying to find him out there, but there were so many people
here. She wondered how he had spotted her in the first place. Her
eyes finally landed on a small table directly behind her but all the
way in the back of the club. From where she sat, she had an open view
of his table and of him.

Their eyes
met and they stared at each other for a moment, the music and noise
in the background faded, everything was non-existent as she looked at
him. As he looked at her. Her thoughts and body remembered the
passionate kiss they’d shared at her doorstep and she was
suddenly scared of the feelings he seemed to spur in her with just
one look. She couldn’t handle it. She abruptly turned away from
him, not sure what to think. They’d had a great date and he’d
just vanished for weeks. No return phone call or text or anything.
What did that say about him? She wondered if that was part of his
character. To just disappear like that. She knew he didn’t owe
her anything from that one date, but still, things didn’t seem
right. She felt there was something more to it all.

She turned
back towards the stage and let the music fill her mind and soul,
hoping it would drown out her emotions again. But, after several
minutes of it not working, she grabbed her beer and chugged the
bottle down, hoping that would work. She felt Kyleigh’s eyes on
her and turned to look at her.

“Are
you okay?” Kyleigh leaned in and asked, knowing exactly who had
bought her the drink.

Paige took
another long drink and then set the empty bottle down on the table.
“Yeah. I’m just not sure I want to mess with dating, but
I really like Tyler. I’m confused and unsure and he just had to
show up here and screw with my emotions some more,” Paige said
as she looked at Kyleigh.

Kyleigh
shrugged her shoulders and said, “Well, maybe it’s a good
sign that he’s here. Maybe you should just go with it and see
where it takes you. He’s obviously still interested in you or
he wouldn’t have bought you a drink, he’d just ignore you
and pretend he didn’t see you. Maybe you should talk to him and
see what happened. Maybe he had a good reason.”

Paige
picked at the label on the beer, thinking about Kyleigh’s
words. She did like Tyler, but was he worth it?

“Paige,
whatever you’re thinking, you’d better think fast because
he’s headed this way.” Kyleigh said giggling.

“Great,”
Paige mumbled under her breath. She didn’t have a clue what
she’d say to him.

She
suddenly felt hot breath hit her ear and froze, fighting between the
urge to melt into the arousing feeling of his lips that close to her,
or pushing it, and him, away.

“I
want you to take a walk with me. Please,” he whispered
breathlessly. His voice was seductive and soft but with a hint of
authority that she couldn’t miss. It intrigued her and she
found herself unable to say no.

She shook
her head yes and told Kyleigh she’d be back in a few. Kyleigh
gave her a hopeful smile, trying to hide her excitement.

Paige got
up and followed Tyler to the door, feeling a little nervous about
what was to come. She wanted to be carefree about dating, the type of
girl who could take them or leave them, and she normally could, but
not when she knew she had feelings for a guy. And she couldn’t
hide the feelings she had for Tyler, not after that kiss they’d
shared.

Once they
got outside the club, he turned to her, giving her a chagrined smile
as he started walking down the street. She followed; waiting for him
to say something and when he finally did his voice was low, soft,
apologetic. “Um, I’m sorry I haven’t called you and
never responded to your texts. I’ve just been dealing with a
lot of stuff and I needed some time to think things through.”
He paused for a minute, his eyes scanning the scenery. She noticed
his dark hair was a little shorter now, his facial hair was trimmed a
little tighter, but everything else about him remained the same.

“Tyler,
it’s okay. I understand. We only went on one date, you don’t
need to explain anything,” Paige said as she slowly walked
beside him.

Tyler
sighed as if he was going to say something that he didn’t
really want to say, or something that was difficult. “But I do,
because, Paige, I really do have feelings for you and I don’t
want you to think I was brushing you off and I wasn’t
interested. I purposely ignored your texts, and that wasn’t
right of me. But I am interested and that’s why I needed some
time to think. I just... locked up, I guess. I panicked about it
because I was feeling things for you after one date and it scared the
shit out of me. And then I started wondering what I’d be
feeling after the second date and so on and so on. It was just too
much. After being married and divorced once already, I’m still
pretty gun shy about getting too involved again, but with you it was
like I didn’t really have a choice in how I felt.” He
paused for a second as they came up to a courtyard with a huge
garden. Paige loved this area. She’d been here numerous times,
usually on her lunch break or after a day of shopping. It was
peaceful and calming. After several minutes he finally continued, “I
know it’s just excuses, but I want you to know I’m sorry,
and I want to see you again, if you’re interested. We can take
things slowly.” He stopped alongside a brick wall full of
flowers and looked at her. His look was full of promise and hope.

Paige bit
her lip and looked away, contemplating her answer. She knew she’d
love to go out with him again and she could understand where he was
coming from. She was uneasy herself about getting involved with a guy
again and she had never been through the turmoil of getting married
and divorced. She couldn’t imagine dealing with all that and
then trying to get back out into the dating world, and on top of
that, having to worry about putting your child in the middle of it
all. She looked back at him and noticed he was staring intently at
her, waiting with bated breath for her answer. “Tyler, I
completely understand what it’s like to be scared and unsure
and I’d love to go out on a date with you again.”

She gasped
as he rushed towards her, pulling her into his arms as his mouth
frantically found hers. She didn’t have time to think or react,
and for her, being caught off guard was the best feeling in the
world.

He kissed
her with such intensity that she was fighting with trying to breathe
and trying to feel everything about him. Like the feel of his hands
as they ran up her back, the way he gently tugged on her hair as he
began to kiss her even more deeply, or the way his tongue intertwined
with hers in a frenzied way that left her wanting more.

She didn’t
know how long they had stood there and kissed, but he finally pulled
away, just enough to where he was now teasing her with the idea of
another kiss. In a low, soft whisper he said, “Are you ready to
go back and listen to more music?”

Paige
frowned, not really wanting to but knowing they couldn’t stay
out here making out all night. “Sure, let’s go,”
she said as she pulled him in for another kiss, feeling as if one
small piece of the wall they’d both had up had crumbled. She
knew the rest could come down in time, but for now, it was a start.

Paige slid
into her seat next to Kyleigh, who now had David sitting to her left.
Paige wasn’t too surprised to see David; she knew they had a
thing for each other, and had probably been seeing each other lately,
so she figured Kyleigh must have called him after she’d left
with Tyler. Tyler pulled up a chair next to her and draped his arm
around her, pulling her close to him. Kyleigh’s eyes widened in
excitement and David did a double take at her and Tyler together, a
concerned look flaring in his eyes.

“Hey,
David, what’s up?” Paige asked as she leaned over to give
him a quick hug.

“Hey,
Paige, it’s good to see ya. Kyleigh texted me and told me about
how good this band was, so I thought I’d stop by for a minute.”

“Yeah,
they are really good. David, this is Tyler Evans.” Paige
watched the band continue to play as David and Tyler chatted briefly.
Paige could tell that David was definitely feeling him out as he
asked several questions. She figured he felt like he needed to take
on the protective guy role for Kyra’s sake since Randy was now
gone. It made her feel good to have him care so much.

They all
sat around listening to the band play awhile longer as they drank a
little more. Paige was on her third beer and knew it would be her
last as she felt the alcohol beginning to hit her. She was lost in
the music when Tyler leaned in and said, “I’d love to get
you into those cowboy boots again. I don’t think I’ve
ever seen a sexier sight in my life.”