The Blue Iris, page 9
Tessa froze. Did her presence back here violate an unwritten rule? Would it set off another fit of rage, ruining the festivities for everyone?
Darryl held up a bottle. “Want a beer?”
Tessa hesitated, the same question having punted her from many a low-lit circle before.
As far back as grade-school birthday parties, she was the child helping moms plate cupcakes in the kitchen, avoiding the gory video games and intense blockbuster films that gave her nightmares. When spinning bottles began sending her peers into closets together for seven airless minutes, she stopped going altogether.
Then, her mother died. Eventually, Tessa tried being social again, to appease Nano and Pop. But the loud music commandeered her pulse, her thoughts thrashing along with the bass. The smell of weed made her gag. Alcohol afforded zero lubricant value; a few sips and she was being dragged through Willy Wonka’s tunnel of hell. Which meant that, although fairly well-liked by every social subset at school, Tessa came off as too goody-goody to be fully embraced by any of them.
These days, she only drank while at dinner with the Westlakes, who automatically filled her glass with the most expensive red on the menu, or at firm events, where sipping said wine was easier than being constantly asked why she wasn’t drinking it. Having Will beside her, knowing he understood, proved enough to temper the adverse effects. One after the other, Will turned once-harrowing experiences into euphoria. His mouth on hers in a small, dark space was fire. Concerts through the buffer of a private box, twenty-thousand strong holding the same note, were out of body. Tessa realized she could have fun anywhere; she just needed to feel safe first.
She glanced around the circle. The only available seat was on the other side of the fridge, opposite Darryl—a peeling Adirondack that matched his own. Sam’s, obviously. Tessa declined the beer, turning to head home.
Darryl called after her. “Somebody might as well sit in it.”
Tessa looked to Charlie, whose expression was a wrenching mix of pain and affection.
“Go ahead, girlie. Your feet are killing you.”
Tessa sat, relief flooding her soles. She took a long sip of water, thighs growing heavy against the wooden slats.
Everyone raised their drinks. “Let the games begin,” Rowan said.
“Begin?” Tessa said.
Luke chuckled. “That was just the kickoff.”
“Landscapers will be lined up again by seven tomorrow,” Darryl said.
“How do you do it?” Tessa said.
“We drink,” Tony said.
Luke sent a chain of smoke rings into the breeze. “And smoke.”
Surprisingly, Tessa didn’t mind cigarettes, but it had been years since she’d tried one. Will abhorred them. Tonight, her system struggling to gear down, the urge was undeniable. “Can I bum one?”
Luke tossed the pack her way. “Sorry, didn’t realize you smoked.”
“I don’t.”
“Ah.” He smiled. “Retail.”
A few drags in, Tessa’s shoulders unrolled. She leaned back in Sam’s chair. Overhead, the rugged tree line curved, the sky a deep orange porthole.
“Sam and I used to play back here,” Darryl said, pointing. “There was a treehouse up there.”
“Now, it’s the one place Tony’s hookups can’t find him,” Rowan said. Laughter tumbled into the breeze.
“Speaking of,” Tony said with a sly grin. “Flashy landed his first housewife today.”
Tessa’s eyes grew wide. “No!”
He nodded. “Slipped her number right down his pants.”
“Was he . . . okay?”
“Couldn’t stop grinning. Said she hired him to walk her dog.”
Darryl snorted. “More like pound the pooch.”
“Definitely,” Charlie said.
“You guys are messing with me.” Tessa looked around. “He’s barely out of high school!”
“And come September,” Tony said, “he’ll be the most educated frosh on campus.”
“Women around here love a guy in work boots,” Luke explained. “They know we don’t run in any of their circles.”
Tony gazed into the sky. “I’ll never forget my first delivery. She asked me in to open the pickle jar, and I really thought she meant the one in the fridge.”
The others’ laughter egged Luke on. “Mine asked me to help her move a couch . . . in her bedroom. Next thing, her tennis skirt is on the floor. That one did not like hearing no.”
Tony feigned confusion. “We’re supposed to say no? I thought it was part of our benefits package!”
The two of them were in hysterics now. Luke tapped one finger to his temple. “Just once, I’d like to be noticed for what’s up here.”
Tessa turned, intent on swatting him with her water bottle, but stopped short. Two beers in, ball cap turned backwards and sunglasses hanging from the lip of his shirt, Luke was jarringly different. For the first time, she saw how the unreserved grin emanated from his eyes, like honey spilled over. She steered her thoughts back to the conversation. “I’ll be sure to remember how rough you two have it next time I’m walking through the terminal.”
All of Darryl jiggled all at once. “Princess here got eye-fucked so hard, my ass was sore.”
“You two made quite the team, though.” Charlie smirked. “Nothing like a woman’s touch, huh Brickie?”
“Bite me, Spider.”
“Told you, girlie.”
“Told her what?”
“You go out of your way to make people hate you, until they bite back.”
“I do not.”
“Uh, yeah you do.”
“Because I don’t sing Kumbaya and talk about my period and shit?”
“You were so awful to me that first spring, Sam came at you with a shovel.”
“You tried to run me over with the forklift,” Tony added.
“You threw pruning shears at my head,” Luke said.
“You shot gravel at me with your slingshot,” Rowan said.
Tessa lifted one eyebrow. Darryl twisted the cap off another beer with his palm, plugging his face with the bottle like a giant baby. Apology issued. She shifted gears. “What’s the deal with vinca?” The group looked at her. “I showed a landscaper where it was, but he shook his head. Came back with periwinkle, like, see, idiot? VINCA.”
Luke laughed, the smile taking over again. “I saw that. One of Marco’s guys,” he told Tony. Then, to Tessa, “it goes by both names.”
Tessa’s mouth twisted. “But then another landscaper asked me to add his vinca to the tab, and it wasn’t either one of those. It was a completely different plant.” She upturned her palms, questioning. Her academic brain couldn’t move past this; she needed a clear-cut answer.
Charlie began counting on her fingers, her eyes reflecting the colored lights like polished onyx. “There’s annual vinca, which we stock in white or hot pink. Upright, full sun, looks a bit like impatiens?”
Tessa nodded. “That’s the one I showed him. With the tag that says vinca.”
“Always a smartass, this one,” Darryl interjected.
Charlie moved to her second finger. “There’s also a trailing variety, without flowers.”
“Looks kind of like licorice vine?” Tessa asked.
Charlie nodded, onto finger three. “Then there’s perennial myrtle, which also goes by vinca. Dark green vine, purple or white flowers, likes shade.”
Luke pointed his bottle for emphasis. “Commonly known as periwinkle.”
Now Rowan looked confused. “Is that the same myrtle we use inside?”
Charlie shook her head. “Nope. That’s Holy myrtle.”
“So, to recap,” Tessa said, “annual vinca comes in upright and trailing varieties, no flowers on the trailing. Perennial vinca is periwinkle, aka myrtle, but not the same myrtle as in the cut arrangements?”
Charlie slapped her hands together. “Exactly!”
“And I’m supposed to figure all this out in one summer?”
Everyone laughed. “Plants go by tons of different names,” Luke said. “If you’re not sure, just help the customer search.”
“They’ll know what they want when they see it,” Charlie said.
“Fake it ‘til you make it,” Darryl said.
“I’ll drink to that,” Rowan said, tipping his bottle.
Tessa wasn’t sure how much time passed before empties were rounded up and cigarettes stubbed out. Everyone creaked to their feet, carried away on the bleary promise of doing it all again tomorrow.
Tethered to the wall by her phone charger, Tessa strained to coil her wet hair into a bun.
Will picked up on half a ring. “Sorry,” she said. “My phone died.”
Silence.
“Tessa, it’s nine-thirty.”
“Ugh, seriously? How am I still conscious?” The microwave beeped. Another pause as she shoveled food into her mouth.
“I texted. Finally called the house. Nano said your car wasn’t back. I thought something was wrong.”
“We closed two hours late. And like I said, my phone died.”
“We missed you at dinner.”
Tessa stopped chewing. Sunday dinner, moved to the holiday Monday this week, had slipped her mind. But hadn’t she told Will days ago she’d likely miss it? “I never would have made it. The lineup was never ending.”
“Two hours past closing puts you at eight o’clock.”
Tessa frowned into her bowl. It wasn’t a question, but he was clearly asking for an account of the missing ninety minutes. “Some of us hung out afterwards.”
“You see these people all day. What’s left to talk about?”
She bristled at his tone. “We needed to . . . regroup, I guess. Go over everything.”
Will scoffed. “Heavy agenda, I’ll bet. Did we water the pink tulips first, or the white?”
Tessa had never heard him speak this way. “What’s up with you tonight?”
“What’s up is I’ve been worried sick! We haven’t talked since Thursday, when you yelled at me not to come over because you were exhausted. Now, you’ve got all this time and energy for a bunch of strangers?”
Tessa sighed. “I’m sorry. I am exhausted. By closing today, I was practically cross-eyed. I figured it might be good to rest a bit before driving home.”
“I texted about dinner this morning. You went all day without checking your phone?”
Tessa forgot she owned a phone. She felt terrible, given how their last conversation about the terminal had ended. She’d meant to call him since, but then he was in meetings until late, then she didn’t want to wake him on her way to work, and then the shop got so busy she’d lost all sense of time. “It was in the cooler.”
“May I ask why your phone suddenly requires refrigeration?”
Tessa pinched her eyes shut. “Because, counselor, I’m climbing in and out of trucks all day. There’s dirt and water and mud everywhere. The cooler is dry, and customers aren’t allowed in. We all keep our stuff in there.”
“You don’t get a lunch break?”
“We end up working through. Rowan brings in tons of food, anyway.”
“So, you’re just unreachable?”
“It’s a job, Will! Do you monitor your phone when you’re in court?”
“That’s not the same.”
Tessa’s defenses reared like a rodeo horse. “Why? Because it doesn’t pay as much? Because I don’t have a corner office with my name on the door?”
“Because it’s a summer job that means nothing! Your hours keep getting longer, your responsibilities heavier. You’re running yourself ragged for a bunch of plants!”
“You and Hunter grab drinks after work all the time. What’s the big deal?”
“You were drinking?”
Tessa sighed. “Let the record show, I had water.” She held off mentioning the cigarette. “Now, if the Crown is through cross-examining, I really need to sleep.”
“By all means. It’s all about you.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means Hewson wrapped on Friday.”
Tessa’s mouth fell open. “Already?”
“I killed it. Open and shut. I was dying to take you out to celebrate with the team, or better yet, skip the whole thing and stay in to celebrate. But you’ve been completely off grid for four days!”
Tessa’s gut performed an odd twist. Not long ago, she’d have been more intimately involved with the Hewson trial than anyone knew. She could have claimed a private piece of that win for herself. Will’s first major corporate litigation, and she hadn’t played any part. She hadn’t even remembered it was happening.
In the beginning, Tessa was uncontrollably aroused by Will’s targeted ambition, the easy confidence that came from knowing his place in the world. Yet, over time, a shameful envy had also taken root. The closer Will’s professional plans came to fruition, the further behind she felt at having no plan at all, apart from being with him.
On one hand, she wanted to dance on the spot over Hewson. That trial was expected to take weeks, and Winning Westlake brought it home in two days! At the same time, everything she wanted to tell him about her own week—turning things around with Carlo, cracking the Clock, advancing to Trucks—shriveled like a dead leaf in comparison.
Will sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m being a brat. Who am I to lay a guilt trip, after all the times I’ve bailed on you for work? I just miss you, baby. The days feel empty without you.”
She flopped backwards onto the bed. “I’m sorry, too. I’ve logged eighty-two hours since Mother’s Day, and the days are bleeding together. But I miss you, too. Every second. Now, I want to hear everything about Hewson.”
“Later. Right now, we need to talk about you. Remember that time we had six parties in two weekends? It took you a month to recharge. There’s nothing wrong with needing down time. Tell them you need to scale back. They’ll figure it out. And if it’s about money, I can—”
“You can’t. But thank you.” Will spoiled her with lavish gifts and surprises, but Tessa paid her own bills and carried her own debt. She wanted, needed, to manage on her own, not to mention, Eagle-Eye Eleanor would be all over him if he lent her a dime. “It’s only a few weeks, then I’ll have enough banked to carry me through the job hunt. And, crazy as it sounds, I like it there. In between the chaos and the exhaustion, I can feel my mother right behind me. I have to figure out her connection to that place.”
Will’s voice was gentle. “Then that’s where you need to be. But can we at least make a point of talking before you go to bed, even if it’s only for a minute?”
Tessa smiled. “Deal. And tomorrow, we’ll figure out which nights you have the best shot at staying over and I have the best shot at staying awake.”
Will laughed. “Can’t wait. But just for Friday, I was hoping we could stay here? Nano and Pop could call for anything.”
Friday? Tessa did a quick memory scan. No milestones in June.
“Tell me you didn’t forget about the gala.”
Shit. The firm’s annual fundraiser was a big deal, but never more than this year, with the mayoral campaign approaching. She’d talk to Rowan first thing about leaving early. “Of course not. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
SAM
If he could have been your typical, run-of-the-mill brand of asshole,
fucked up, then fucked off,
he would have.
It wasn’t in the genes.
Was it flowers the people lined up for,
or a surging slice of the Iris and Henry Show to go?
We’re talking Lucy-Desi interplay, right there on the sidewalk.
Heat so high, everyone left a little hotter,
walked through their own door a little bit sad.
Love in their house was red space on the gage,
a quarter turn of the dial from rage.
A trembling pinky finger,
hooked on someone else’s trigger.
Then she came along, quiet as a spider.
He kept searching for the gas, a match,
the kill switch to flip.
But things with her were just too simple.
Too easy to qualify as real.
Milkvetch / Astralagus
“Your presence softens my pain.”
LUKE
The rain was back.
Rowan ducked inside the shop, doling out breakfast sandwiches with the gusto of a soup kitchen volunteer. Tessa inhaled hers, complaining about the lack of morning food at the terminal while viciously rubbing at her ear. “What’s up with your ear?” the boss asked.
“Bug bites, I think.”
Luke frowned. “Mosquitoes aren’t out yet.”
“There’s three little bumps. Super annoying.”
Luke bent her ear, examining the back. “I don’t see anything.”
“It’s really red,” Rowan offered.
“Because she keeps rubbing it,” Luke said.
She elbowed his hand away. “I keep rubbing it because it hurts, jackass!”
Luke’s eyebrow lifted. Game on, then. “What if—” He lowered his voice. “Oh, man, and they don’t have the right antivenoms up here yet, either.”
Tessa stopped chewing.
“Those tropicals coming into the terminal,” he continued. “Foreign spiders hide in them. If you were carrying trees around, would you even have noticed? It could’ve just felt like leaves.”
Her stuffed cheeks held perfectly still.
Luke choked back laughter; Sam the Prank King would’ve had a field day with this one. “Or, maybe, it’s a fungus. All those banned pesticides—” He feigned disgust and backed away.
Tessa, catching on, lunged at Luke in mock indignance, attempting to wipe invisible ear-cooties on his shoulder. He held her off, laughing.
From the doorway, Darryl called above the ruckus. “Let me see it.”
They stopped. Tessa looked over at him but didn’t move.
Darryl rolled his eyes. “For fuck’s sake, would you just show it to me?”
“Exactly what it says on his dating profile,” Charlie said. Beside her, Rowan snickered like a schoolboy.
