Oh Tequila Series, page 36
“Why don’t you let me hold him so that you can have a break?”
“No,” I said, smoothing back his wild blond locks that were plastered to his forehead. “I’m okay.”
“You look like shit.” Palmer smiled, and I knew it was just her way of attempting to make me do the same.
“So do you, but I’ve been up all night with a sick toddler. What’s your excuse?” Did I mention how much I loved this girl? She kept me sane on most days. She was loyal and accepting.
“When should the antibiotics start kicking in?”
“Any time,” I whispered. A double ear infection is torture but in a toddler who was also suffering from a runny nose and horrible cough, it was nothing short of hell. “We’re going on day two of the meds and day four of the sickness, something has to give soon, right?”
Just then Ethan began to stir and lifted his head, looking up at me with his big sleepy eyes. I was just about to say good morning when I was showered in vomit from my neck down, leaving me no choice other than to close my eyes and mouth and accept it.
When I felt like I was finally safe, I peeked to find Ethan looking at me, with his lip puckered sadly. “It’s okay, buddy.” I tried not to gag, but with each second that passed the reaction grew harder to avoid. “Palmer…” I didn’t have to say anything more. She moved in and snatched Ethan, not caring that his little legs bore the evidence of his sickness.
“Let’s go get you cleaned up, little man,” she told Ethan with a bright smile. “Mommy’s okay but she sure does stink.” I heard my son giggle as they exited my bedroom towards the kitchen sink. As I looked down at myself, I was suddenly overwhelmed. I took in a deep breath, forgetting to breathe only through my mouth, and immediately regretted it. I covered my nose and carefully began removing my tank top and shorts. Once I was somewhat puke free, I gathered my sheets and carried them to the clothes basket in the corner. Thank goodness all he’d had was liquids over the last forty-eight hours.
I made my way to the bathroom, turned on the hot water, and crawled beneath the sprayer. The water felt amazing, making me believe I was somewhat human again. I tried to fight the urge to cry, because being a whiney ass wasn’t gonna fix anything. This was my life, and I wouldn’t change the fact that I had Ethan—absolutely not. He was my light, my reason to smile, and work hard every single day. However, maybe I would have chosen to wait until after I was settled and older.
Climbing out of the shower, I wrapped myself in a towel. I exited the bathroom and heard Ethan’s giggle, which instantly brought a much-needed smile to my face.
Once dressed and my hair wadded up in a wild bun, I grabbed the basket in the corner and walked out to the living room. “Do you mind keeping an eye on him for a couple hours? I need to get his sheets, also my own wash, and the numerous outfits he’s violated over the last couple days.” I wrinkled my nose, remembering the continuous need to hand rinse multiple pairs of pajamas.
“Yes, please.” Palmer looked at the basket repulsively. “We need more Pedialite and Popsicles too.”
“Are the Popsicles for him or you?” My best friend was a big kid herself.
“Ethan, of course.” She tucked him in closer to her chest as he stared ahead at the cartoons playing on the television. “But he says to get the rocket red, white, and blue ones this time. Those are his favorite.”
I exited the apartment, shaking my head. When I reached my car, I realized I was wearing my old grungy high school shirt I’d worn when I played soccer. It was so worn that the lettering was faded. Paired with my black yoga pants and flip flops, I looked like a runway model for sure.
Flipping down the visor, I attempted to clean away the smeared mascara beneath my eyes and, after a few attempts, only managed to irritate myself. I drove the four blocks to the laundromat, gathered my things, and entered the already full building.
Saturdays and Sundays were like a madhouse there, but I had no other choice. I refused to sleep on a bare mattress or let Ethan do the same.
I’d separated my items into three washers, reached inside my bag, and realized I’d forgotten my wallet at home. “Damn it,” I said in an irritated whisper. Spinning around, fully intending to go search beneath all the seats in my car, I plowed into the hard chest of a man.
I didn’t have to look up to know what man, either. I would recognize that cologne anywhere.
“No Ethan today?”
I stepped back, and when I bumped into the washer I knew I was cornered. Exhaling slowly, I looked up and that feeling I always got whenever he looked at me returned. That racing heart, the shaking hands, it was all there.
“He’s at home,” I stated, and I could see the questions in his eyes. “With my best friend and roommate.”
“That’s too bad,” he added, still keeping his body close to mine. “I loaded some new songs on my iPod.”
“Oh yeah?” I smiled up at him.
“Yep, some that will for sure corrupt his little mind.”
“Nice.” I knew he was playing.
“I had no idea there were so many nursery rhymes available on iTunes.” He shrugged. “But then I’ve never actually had a need for them before.”
“And you have a need for them now?”
“Uh, yeah.” He wrinkled up his forehead. “My buddy likes to jam out. What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t have the right kind of tunes for him? Friendship is all about compromise, you know, and I’m willing to rock out with Elmo if it pleases my boy.”
I stared up at him, unable to speak. Who the hell was this guy? How could I have been so unbelievably wrong? There had to be a catch, didn’t there?
“By the way,” he leaned in closer and whispered near my ear, “I’m loving the look.”
“Are you seriously dissing my gear?” I faked offense.
“Nope,” he stated without pause. “I gotta admit, Emelie, you look good in just about anything.”
“Cheesy,” I said, though I couldn’t stop myself from smiling.
“Maybe.” He shrugged, finally stepping back and giving me some space. “I brought you coffee on Friday, but you weren’t in class. I gave it to the chick that sits next to you and now I regret it.”
“Why?”
“Because she spent the entire class smiling over her shoulder at me, and when I left the building I had four texts messages from my brothers asking me since when did I have a girlfriend.”
“You poor thing.” I laughed.
“She changed her status to ‘in a relationship with Clayton Powell’ and tweeted that we were in love.”
“Seriously?” I tried to picture what girl he was referring to.
“No.” He chuckled and stepped back to stand clear of my hand as it swooped out to push him away. “But it sure was fun getting a rise out of you.”
“Why would I care if some girl was stalking you?” I backpedaled as I looked away from him. Watching him look at me with that sultry look of his was too much.
“Because you like me,” he said confidently, “even though you try so damned hard to act like you don’t.”
“You’re all right.” I shrugged as I turned back around to face the washers and reached into my pocket again like by some miracle the quarters I needed would appear.
“Forget something?” Clayton asked, stepping up closer behind me.
“I forgot my wallet at home.” I hung my head. The combination of my sleepless night, being puked on, and now this, I just wanted to crawl back into bed and forget the last twenty-four hours.
The sound of change being jingled around made me look back just as Clayton reached past me and started placing quarters into the slots of the washers.
“What are you doing?”
“Helping a friend out,” he insisted.
“But—”
“It’s just quarters, Emelie.” His body was pressed in firmly behind mine and instead of arguing with him, I concentrated on my breathing. One by one he moved along and once the quarters were all in place, he started the machines. “There, now you can sit down and relax, with a friend.”
I finally turned back around and crossed my arms over my chest. “What are you doing here so early on a Saturday morning anyway? Don’t you frat boys usually sleep all day after recovering from partying all night?”
“I’ll have you know I was in bed just after midnight, and up at seven a.m.”
“Wow, I’m impressed.” I moved toward the chairs and sat in the first one, looking up at him and found him smiling back at me playfully. “So, coming to the laundromat was your first thought?"
“No.” He shook his head and laughed. “That was unplanned.”
“Dare I ask?”
“Ever had shaving cream put in your hand and then have someone tickle your nose?” The way he pursed his lips while awaiting my response was distracting. Realizing that I had yet to respond, I finally shook my head and he continued. “I woke up with Corbin, my brother, on one side of my bed and Jay, one of my frat brothers, on the other. They were each holding a can of shaving cream. Let’s just say that I got hosed.”
“They just sprayed you with shaving cream for no reason?”
“I never said they didn’t have a reason.” He chuckled as he hung his head for a minute before looking back up at me. “I may have waited for them to pass out last night and moved them both to the couch, side by side, well, actually face to face.” He again pursed his lips almost as if he was extremely pleased with himself. “And then I Saran wrapped them in place, just before I set up a camera to live feed the whole thing. Oh, and they were both stripped down to their boxers.”
“That’s awful,” I said, even though I was smiling as I pictured the very thing he was explaining.
“Most of it was Blake’s idea,” he defended himself. “My boy’s girlfriend, the one that told me what coffee to bring you. That girl is a rebel and it’s sometimes scary. You either need to be on her side, or never fall asleep in the same house as her. It will not end well. Believe me I know. You’ll wake up glued to something, which leads you on a trip to the ER.”
“If I woke up Saran wrapped to a couch, you better bet I’d pay you back.” I shook my head as I laughed at him. “And it would definitely be something a hell of a lot worse than shaving cream. I’d shave your head instead.”
“Now you sound like Blake for sure.”
“And I’ll say it again, I like that woman and I don’t even know who she is.”
Chapter Eight
Clayton
“Thank you,” Emelie said as I placed her basket into her backseat and shut the door. “I’ll pay you back Tuesday in class.”
When I turned to face her, I leaned back against her driver’s door instead of stepping out of her way. “I don’t want you to pay me back, Em. But I do wanna take you out sometime.”
“I don’t go out.” She looked away from me and toward the ground. A sense of fear that I was losing the relaxed atmosphere we’d been in for the last couple of hours hit me.
“Then we’ll stay in.”
“I don’t stay in either,” she replied quickly, and I just gave her a questioning stare. “You know what I mean. I just don’t date.”
“So we won’t date, we’ll just hang out.” I was grabbing for any angle I could find at this point.
“Clayton, fine. I’ll admit it, you seem like the opposite of who I thought you were, but I have Ethan to think about.”
“I’m not just asking you to spend time with me.” I reached out and took her hand in mine. “I wanna spend time with him too.”
“Until what?” She pulled away from me and threw her hands out to her sides. “Until you get bored? Until you realize that I can’t just pick up and take off whenever I want to go to some party? Until you see that my life is nothing glamorous and that the only thing I do is work, go to school, and play trucks in my apartment with my two-year-old?”
“I like trucks.” Instead of my comment making her laugh, she tilted her head back, looked up at the sky, and let out a frustrated growl.
“You don’t get it, Clayton.” Her perplexed look wiped the grin from my face the second I saw it.
“What don’t I get? Tell me.” Somebody needed to because I wasn’t sure what was so wrong about me wanting to spend time with her and Ethan.
Emelie stared at me, opening her mouth only to close it quickly after. She did this a few times before she finally gave in and let everything she had built up fly out in a rush. “I can’t fall for some guy who wants to play house for a few months, because then Ethan falls for him too. In the end, I’m the asshole when you decide it’s too much and I’m left with a toddler that is attached. It’s wrong, and I can’t do that to him. There’s been too many people that have already turned him away and I’m done watching it. It hurts too damn much. He deserves more.”
“Em—”
“No.” She held up her hand to stop me. “You’re a sweet guy, and I take it all back, all the things I thought you were. But I can’t expect you to give up your life, Clayton, it’s not fair."
“I’m not giving up anything.” I had never been more lost in one conversation than I was then.
“But you are, you just don’t realize it yet. Being with me means a life of compromise and I can’t ask you to do that.”
“You aren’t asking me to give up anything,”
“And I never will.” It was one line, but it had a strong impact. “We’ll never be more than friends, Clayton. I can’t offer you what you’re looking for.”
I wanted to argue with her and give her all the reasons why she was wrong, but I knew it would get me nowhere. She was set on keeping me at a distance. The harder I pushed the more she would scramble.
So instead of arguing, I stepped to the side and allowed her to get in her car. I watched as she backed out of the parking space and just before she drove off, she gave me a sad smile that told me everything she said wasn’t what she really wanted. Keeping her son safe outweighed any wants she had.
***
I walked up the front steps of our house and didn’t even pause when I practically tripped over two of my brothers having some type of wrestling match in the entryway. Or when Eli grabbed for me and caught the edge of my shirt, just before releasing his hold when I shot him an unimpressed look.
Someone called out my name as I reached the top landing of the stairs, but I didn’t stop there either. I was irritated and confused, two feelings I didn’t deal with often. I was a laid-back guy; Corbin was the one who was high-strung. It took a lot to bother me, but I’ll admit this shit with Emelie was fucking with my head. Some of the things she said pissed me off. I just wasn’t sure I even had the right to be pissed.
Chapter Nine
Emelie
“And you’re sure you got him?” I grabbed my bag and hopped around on one foot trying to get my shoe on without falling flat on my face.
“Yes, Mommy.” Palmer used Ethan’s hand to wave goodbye, which only made him giggle. “Now will you leave so Aunty Palm can corrupt my tiny little mind and teach me bad words?”
“Real funny.” I narrowed my eyes at her. “I’ll be back right after class.”
“Or you could, I don’t know, maybe go for a coffee and take a little time for yourself for once.”
“I’ll be back right after class,” I repeated.
“Your mommy is such a party pooper,” she whispered near Ethan’s ear and he reached over his shoulder to pinch her nose. “Stop worrying, he’s better and we are fine.” She waved this time, motioning me toward the door.
I hurried to class, making it with only a few seconds to spare. I rushed in and when my seat came into view I froze, feeling someone bump into the back of me. There at my table sat a small gift bag and a coffee. Scanning the room, I noticed Clayton tucked back in his usual corner, but he wasn’t looking at me, he was talking to the girl at his side. A ping of jealousy I had no right to feel struck me. Instead of focusing on it, I continued to walk toward my desk, trying not to focus on what was taking place behind me.
My hands shook as I grabbed the bag and peeked inside. A small MP3 player, nothing fancy but nice enough. There were also a pair of tiny earphones, not earbuds, that had Elmo on each side. I could feel my emotions getting the best of me as I pulled out the small piece of paper inside and unfolded it.
My heart ached with excruciating pain when I read the words.
I thought Ethan would love this. I loaded about thirty songs on it already and nothing that you wouldn’t approve of. I only spent a short time with him, but I can’t for the life of me see how anyone could ever turn their backs on him…or you.
I closed my eyes tightly, fighting off the tears but it was impossible. As one rolled over my cheek, I hurried to wipe it away. I sat through the entire class, holding the small bag with the gift for my son securely in my hands. Almost as if I was trying to protect it, but I was just so overcome by it I was unable to let go.
I didn’t even drink my coffee and I couldn’t tell you a word the professor spoke. My entire focus was spent on analyzing every reason why I should give in to Clayton. But even with every single item I’d listed in my mind, it all fell down to one thing. He didn’t just want me, he wanted Ethan too.
When I was able to pull myself free from my internal battle, I realized I was no longer in a classroom full of students but in a room alone with only a professor looking at me like I’d lost my mind.
“I’m sorry,” I hurried to gather my items and rushed outside, my eyes searching him out. I could feel myself panicking as I continued to scan the open court of students moving through. Then I spotted him. I’d recognize that confident strut anywhere. He was walking side by side with the same girl I’d seen in class. Part of me tried to convince myself that I should just let him go and let him be happy. But then an even bigger part told me that if let him get away, I’d be taking away the chance of Ethan having someone special in his life.
