Common Areas, page 15
“We’ll help her hide the body.” I heard Tyler from behind me.
I glanced back to see him grinning. He was wearing a pair of faded jeans and a wrinkled button-down with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows. It almost looked like he was making an effort. My heart warmed. Here I thought it would be a chore to get him to wear pants.
“Without a doubt,” Chase said from beside him. He was wearing khakis and a flannel shirt, something he wore to work. “If you want him roughed up before she shoots him, I’m game for that, too.” He looked so relaxed compared to the brooding glare he’d had over the last day.
“Who is this?” Mom asked without letting me go, she only pulled away enough to take in two of the three men in my life.
I took a breath and let go of her so I could make introductions. “Mom, this is Tyler and Chase. They’re two of my roommates. They’ve also been helping me out with my little problem.” I cleared my throat, not wanting it to seem like I was downplaying Jeff without giving him too much emphasis. “Guys, this is my Mom, Barbara Farwell.”
“Tyler Gohl.” He took a step forward to offer my Mom his hand. She only gave me a brief look before she took his hand to shake it. “You can call me Ty if you like.” He gave her a half smile that I took to be barely restrained flirting. “I can definitely see where Em gets her looks from.”
Chase didn’t bother to not roll his eyes. When Tyler let her go, he stepped forward to offer a hand. “Chase Stewart.” He gave her a slight nod as he carefully shook her hand.
“My,” she sounded breathless for a beat, “how did you manage to find this place? At the rate of rent you’re paying? I expected to end up in a roach motel.”
“I just got lucky,” I didn’t restrain myself from showing my appreciation to the men in front of me.
“She’s got the smallest room,” Chase grimaced a little as he said it. “Didn’t seem right to charge some exorbitant amount for it.”
“Ah, well.” Mom gave me a nudge. “Show me around the place? You boys don’t need to wait on pins and needles, I won’t go through your stuff.”
Surprisingly, she kept her word as I guiding her through the common areas in the house. She only raised an eyebrow at me when I showed her the pool table.
“Well, a bunch of men do live here,” I said lamely at the look she gave me.
It seemed natural that we ended up around the kitchen island. Mom took a stool and Tyler commandeered the other. We were just missing one. I glanced at the clock on the stove, Patton should be home soon. Then, I was sure, the family would be complete.
Dinner went smoothly; Tyler played Mom like a harp. Well, not played. He just won her over as if it were nothing. I don’t know why I found that concerning, maybe it was because it took him little effort to win me over. Chase was more of an observer, only joining in the conversation when Mom tried to connect with him. It became clear to me that the standoffish demeanor he presented when I first moved in wasn’t something he did on purpose. He was just slow to warm up to new people.
That also explained why the loss of Adam hurt. And why Tyler and Patton were still here.
I drew closer to him, coming to where he leaned against the wall next to his bedroom door. He watched Mom with a curiosity that was evident, though I imagine it probably didn’t come off that way to an outside observer.
“You okay?” I asked after eyeing him hard.
He perked up a little bit as if he hadn’t expected me. “Yeah.” He gave me a slight smile. “I was just trying to place you with her. I see some similarities, but I’m guessing you got your coloring from your Dad.”
I nodded. “I’ve been told that I’m a mixture of the both of them.”
“Are we going to contend with him, too?” He raised an eyebrow at me. “I doubt that’ll go as well as this is. I can’t imagine any father being keen on the idea of their daughter living with us. Especially someone like Tyler.”
“Hey!” Tyler interrupted his conversation with Mom to shoot us a glare.
Mom laughed, “Oh, I’m sure her Dad would object heavily to her living here. He would have objected heavily to the situation that brought her here, too. I’m pretty sure Greg would’ve complained about you getting distanced from us.” She paused to sip at the tea I had made her. “I know things would’ve definitely gone a whole lot more different if he were still here.”
It was a sobering thought. I rubbed a hand at my chest, thinking about Dad wasn’t something I did often. Not that I didn’t love him, I just didn’t like to think of the day he left. Because like most things, death doesn’t really take consideration of what’s going on in life. I gave Mom a watery smile.
“Probably wouldn’t have gone on as long as it did if he were still here.”
A hand fell on my shoulder and squeezed. A glance at Tyler showed a sympathetic look. There was a lot that I hadn’t shared with them, personal things like my father’s death and how it affected me. There was so much going on that the thought never crossed my mind to. I looked over at Chase, his expression was a mirror of Tyler’s. He wouldn’t push for information, but it was a clear sign that he was there.
The front door open, a sign that Patton was finally home. It was a relief to have the focus off me. I stepped away from Chase and went into the direction of the hallway.
“Mom this is Patton.” I waved ahead without looking. “He’s a nurse like I told you before. Sometimes his hours are long,” I turned to see him only to find a despondent face looking back at me. It seemed a little out of place on him, he was usually a mirror of Tyler’s energy as if the two were a pair. “Patton?”
He dropped his book bag and sauntered the rest of the way to me. It was apparent that he hadn’t heard a word I said when he wrapped his arms around me. I tensed at first, shooting Mom a worried glance until I felt his head fall onto my shoulder. He had one arm around my shoulders and the other around my waist, I wouldn’t call it a platonic hug one would share with their roommate. It wasn’t a situation I could just stand there for, not feeling how tightly wound he was. I wrapped my arms around him in kind; a hand found his hair, and I tried to ease the tension in him by combing my fingers through it.
“You okay?” I asked it quietly, despite our audience. “Is there anything I can do?”
“I just need a minute,” he said, his voice hoarse with emotion.
“It happens sometimes,” Tyler said from behind me. “I mean working in a hospital has to be a shit job. Having to cater to sick people. Said sick people dying.” There the groan of a stool moving and I can hear his approach. “It must’ve been a rough day in the ER, huh?”
“There was a pile up on 95,” Patton supplied.
“That’s why you’re late?” Tyler came into view and began to rub a hand up and down the length of Patton’s back.
Patton nodded his head, and the tension began to melt in him; he didn’t let me go. The longer I held him the less I began to care about how it might look, Mom would have to understand.
“I put a plate in the fridge for you,” I whispered to him. “When you’re hungry I’ll heat it up for you, okay?” I got another nod and with a little help from Tyler, we had Patton in the living room. Mom joined us, and I couldn’t read her expression, but she offered me a beer. I, in turn, offered it to Patton.
Conversation was halted, sobered by Patton’s darkened mood. I didn’t know how to salvage it or how to alter the perception that his appearance had created. Mom saved it though, offering the three men in my life a hand.
“It was nice to meet you,” she paused at Patton and gave him a gentle smile. “Hopefully next time you and I will have more of an opportunity to properly get acquainted.”
He shot up off the couch and took her hand. “Mrs. Farwell. I’m so sorry, I completely forgot about what tonight was. Patton Mitchell. I didn’t mean to be rude.”
“Hunny,” she gave him a look that I could only describe as motherly, “everyone has a hard day at work. People that take the mantle of what you do face a lot more than some of us could. You recover from your trauma. I’ll leave you to your family to take care of.” She gave me a look. “Walk me to my car, Emily.”
I led her to the door, trying my best to not panic. She knew. She could see it. She was going to demand that I move out and cut off ties with them. I didn’t want to leave them, not after all that they had done for me.
As soon as the door closed, she started down the block, “Well. You certainly upgraded. Definitely outshine Jeff by a mile.”
“What?” I swallowed hard.
“I’m not going to question it.” She didn’t bother to answer my question, she just kept walking as she spoke. “You’re an adult and able to make decisions all on your own, that’s what you told me when you moved in with Jeff.” I struggled not to trip when she said that. “In this case, I can’t object.”
“Mom you lost me.” I spotted the ancient Honda she insisted on driving. It was deep brown and battered, but it still worked. “What are you trying to imply?”
“I’m not blind,” she turned to me, “and I’m not going to object if they’re fine with it and it doesn’t end up as that last one did. You have fun.” She gave me a smile. “Are you going to make me channel your aunt?”
“No.” I pulled back. That was a bluntness I couldn’t handle right now. “But I don’t think it's what you think it is. They’re just my roommates.”
“Right,” she snorted at me. “Look, you do whatever. I’m not going to judge you. You’re young and after that asshat you had before I would go as far as telling you to go through all three of them. Twice.” She started to unlock her car before pausing with the keys in the door. “Just be careful. I’m not opposed to being a grandmother, I just don’t know how that would work.” She looked puzzled. “Three son in laws? Can that happen?” She shrugged a little and opened the door. “Call me when you get that last part figured out.”
“Mom!” There was no way she read that much through the interaction I had with Patton.
“Hunny,” she stretched it out, “I can be reasonable. But I have to work in the morning. Call me tomorrow and try to convince me that there’s not something going on in the house. Maybe I’ll believe it.”
I tried not to whine at her, she saw through everything. I decided the best route to take was to just give in, so I hugged her. “So, no judgments?”
“More power to you, babe.” She hugged back hard. “I’m just so glad that you’re safe.”
When I finally got into the house, Chase and Tyler were in the doorway of the living room. Patton had elected to go to bed early, which concerned me.
“You still got four and a half months in your lease,” Chase said evenly. “Kind of shitty to go breaking it.” He had his hands in his pockets, his expression was schooled into something that was probably meant to come off as unaffected. But I could see worry there.
“Barb seemed cool.” Tyler leaned against the doorframe. “She wouldn’t make Em leave. Would she?” He looked at me like he thought I was about to kick a puppy.
“All she said was be careful.” I shrugged at the two of them then I went to the kitchen to start to clean up. “Maybe next time we’ll figure out a way to make things less obvious.”
“If Barb doesn’t care, then why worry about hiding it?” Tyler started upstairs. “I mean, it’d be a whole lot easier if we could just be like we are without worrying about what other people think.”
“Learning curve.” Chase followed me into the kitchen. “It’s an adjustment for people that are used to monogamy.” To my surprise, he helped me clean up. He scrubbed the pans and pots while I loaded the plates and silverware into the dishwasher. It was seamless work that I appreciated. I wiped down the counters when he spoke up, “Are you gonna go check on Patton?”
I was caught off guard by that, distracted by my thoughts of Mom and how she was able to see through everything. I looked at him curiously. “I… I guess I could.”
He nodded as he dried his hands on a dish towel. “Probably a good idea.”
I put the sponge into the sink and looked up, able to see his door from the kitchen. “You’re okay with that?”
“Man’s my friend. For this to work, I’m going to have to let go of jealousy. I know if I were him I would want to be checked on,” he said it gently, not looking at me as he spoke.
I wasn’t going to argue with him. I got ready for bed with Patton in mind, opting for a large shirt that came down mid-thigh over the panties I’d already been wearing. I quietly opened his door and slipped in. He was curled up on his bed, from the little light that flooded in from downstairs I could barely make out his form. I carefully made my way across the room, stepping on discarded clothes and trying my best to not fall. I found the bed, knowing that it wasn’t likely that he hadn't heard me.
“I’m not in the mood,” he growled. Had he been expecting me?
I crawled onto it, despite his words. “I thought I could at least hold you,” I whispered. “But if you don’t want me to, I’ll go back downstairs.”
“No.” I felt the bed shift, and I found him easily. “No, I thought you were Tyler.” He released a breath. “All I want to do is sleep.”
“That’s fine.” I laid beside him, and after some shifting I found him. I wrapped my arms around his middle and molded myself to his back. “We can just sleep.”
26
I found some normalcy. Within the month following filing a restraining order against Jeff my phone only rang if it was one of the boys or Mom. She had suggested that I reach out to the friends I had before Jeff, but I wasn’t quite ready for that. I had this fear if I brought a friend home that they might see one of the men I lived with and want him. It made me feel oddly possessive.
Tyler was naturally flirtatious, that’s probably why he lived with a schedule that garnered him a lot of time off. He also had a nice body on him; something that I enjoyed looking at and touching. I didn’t doubt anyone that saw him dance would probably agree with me. I could think of a few of my old friends that would find him appealing. We had been club crawlers after all.
That was how I met Jeff. While it may not have been to strip clubs, I didn’t doubt that would deter anyone of my old friends.
Where Tyler was sexy Patton was affectionate. Not that the redhead wasn’t sexy in his own way. Patton had a smile on him that I just couldn’t resist. The thing I adored about him though was that he thrived on touches that didn’t have a sexual purpose behind them. More often than not, when his fingers skimmed down my arm, I would look at him with a hunger. There was something about Patton that made me want him to the point where I didn’t want to deny it.
Chase had a darker demeanor than the other two men. He enjoyed pulling my hair, and when I was with him, he would push me to the point that it just hurt so good. He was also a wall at my back whenever I was feeling unsure or afraid.
The knowledge that I wasn’t alone in anything was just so addictive. I found myself wondering how I got this far in life without the three men I had with me. Each one had a piece that seemed to make me thrive. As the month went by, I found a rhythm and a balance with the three of them that seemed to work for all of us. There weren’t any hints of jealousy for any of the men in my life.
It made life easier when worries went to the wayside and everything fell into place. All my problems were taken care of. I went to work on my own, with Tyler only walking me when he happened to get up early enough on his own, and I came home by myself. I was independent in a way I hadn’t been four months ago. I no longer felt the need to be guarded, because I was a survivor.
I was comfortable with myself again.
***
I stopped at the front door to unlock it and paused. It was just slightly opened like someone had gone in without closing it all the way so the door didn't latch. For some reason, my heart dropped into my stomach and I couldn’t fathom why. This could have been done by Tyler, or by Patton. Sometimes both could be careless, leaving a cabinet door open or the fridge while they made a sandwich. This could be either one of their faults.
I pushed the door open and it creaked in an ominous way that made my heart filled stomach twist up in a knot. I had the door opened all the way before I worked up the nerve to look into the house. I didn’t call out, I didn’t turn away and call the police as I should have. Instead, I stared at the body on the floor. Tyler was in a heap, stretched out in the hallway that led into the kitchen.
I choked. Rational thought was gone, and I was in the house when I really should have been smarter about it. I dropped my purse, and I tried to assess why he collapsed. Fortunately, there wasn’t any blood. I knew I would probably be in hysterics if there had been. I touched him carefully. He was warm, and when I put a hand to his back, I could feel the rise and fall of his breath.
