Fearless (4 page)

“Wish I could, hun, but my dad has demanded my presence at the house Saturday night. It’s—Cinnamon’s birthday.” I had to pause before my mouth would allow her name to come out.

When a person rolls their eyes at a disgusting remark, their speech pattern is interrupted. It’s a reflex, because when the brain is disgusted, the mouth cannot properly form words. I’m not making this up. I took a Linguistics class at UCLA. Okay, that’s a bunch of bullshit, but she has a stripper name, for God’s sake.

“No way. How old will she be, like 12?” Kat tipped her head away from her eyeliner pencil and spoke to my reflection in the mirror over her dressing table.

From my vantage point on Kat’s bed, I could not only see her sitting at the make-up table, but I also saw the vibrantly colored wall on which the mirror hung, a sore reminder that we probably wouldn’t be getting our damage deposit back when we moved out.

My dear friend was no stranger to my opinion of my dad’s, way too young, second wife. Second wife—geez. It’s sad to say, but I had really hoped by now Cinnamon would have smelled the old folks’ home on him and I would be referencing his third wife.

“Are you taking Jesse?”

“U-u-m, I haven’t exactly told my dad about Jesse, yet.” I winced at the thought. “I’m still waiting for the right moment.”

Who was I kidding? There’d never be a right moment to introduce Jesse to my dad. They were polar opposites. No way would my dad approve of him.

“Take him. Your dad needs to realize you don’t play with dolls anymore. You can make your own decisions about who you want to date.”

“I wish. And to make matters worse, I have a feeling Jason will be there.”

“Fuck, you’re kidding me.” She dropped her hand with the eye-liner, spun on her little pink stool and looked straight at me. “Oh, you
have
to take Jesse now, girl. I wish I could be there for that ‘cock’ fight,” she giggled.

“You’re a real comedian, Kat,” I said dryly. “I get it.”

Kat dabbed the corners of her eyes and said, “Who gives a shit what your dad thinks of him, anyway?”

I sighed. She was right. I needed to show Jason and my dad that I’ve moved on. Besides, I don’t think I could face the whole evening at my dad’s alone. I needed Jesse’s support. Jesse would kill me, though. He would have no clue what he’d be walking into.

I pounded the computer keyboard, entering ‘Google’ for an internet search and typed: Birthday gift ideas for a 28 year old skanky, bitch-whore stepmother.

Google responded, “
Did you mean – Birthday gift ideas for a 28 year old, Spanks, rich décor, stepmother?

 Hmm. Didn’t work.

“Jesse probably won’t go anyway, but I’ll ask.”

Kat ran a quick brush through her long blond hair, jumped up and wrapped her arms around me in a ‘best friend’ hug. She looked me straight in the eyes. “Niki, promise me, whatever happens, you’ll tell me
everything
.” She laughed and grabbed her black leather guitar case from beside the bed.

“Listen, hun. I gotta run. I have a rehearsal but I’ll see you at four-thirty, right?”

“What’s at four thirty?” I asked.

“Jesus, girl. Have you lost your brain this morning? Simone’s, for a mani-pedi, remember?”

“Oh, right.” I replied. Kat tucked her chin in and stared at me, one hand on her hip. “I’ll be there, already.”

“You better show up or I’ll spank your ass. I fucking mean it.”

“Yeah and I’d probably like it.”

She huffed. “Be there or be square.” She hoisted her guitar case by the handle and called out loudly, as she left the room, “Where’s my purse?” as if expecting the apartment itself to answer her.

“It’s in the living room, on the floor at the end of the couch, where you always drop it.” There should be an iPhone app for that. Find My Purse, instead of Find My Phone. It would make millions. And with that thought, I heard the click of the front door as it swung shut.

I picked up my iPhone, poked my finger at the letters on the screen, and wrote a short text message to Jesse, inviting him to the party.

Send.

That’s it.

The cat was out of the bag.

I glanced at the clock.
Shit
. I was late for class.

Chapter 5

Jesse

A shrill ringing pierced my ear drums, alerting me to the fact that, although the blinds were shut, the bedroom was still blazing with brightness. The damn vertical blinds on the window couldn’t compete with the intensity of the California sun and I wasn’t ready to wake up yet. I groaned. What the hell? The fucking alarm clock was raining audio torture down on me at 9:30 a.m. I jabbed at the pillow, rolling on my side and smashing it over my exposed ear. I wasn’t a morning person by any stretch of the imagination. Did I set the alarm last night? I gave up and punched the dismiss button. Silence. Fuck, I’d only slept for a few hours.

I’d been up most of the night, after the bar closed, strategizing how to get my racing career back on track. I had emailed my agent that my hand and leg were healing faster than expected, thanks to Chase’s magic workout plan. It was time to start talks with new team managers. If things worked out, I could be back on the circuit within a few months.

I flung the white pillow from my face and it bounced to the floor. Reaching for my cell phone I checked for messages. A shit-eating grin spread across my face. I leaned up on my elbows to read the text from Niki:

“Hey babe, ready to meet my crazy family Saturday evening? There’s a birthday party for my dad’s wife and I want you to come. Pleeease? I’d rather have a root canal than go to this party alone.”

I sprang up to a sitting position, wide awake. Fuck me. Meeting the parents was a big step, maybe too big. Not that I didn’t want my relationship with Niki to move forward, but from what I’d learned about Niki’s dad, it would be like meeting The Godfather. She had said he was Italian. I hoped he wasn’t ‘connected.’

Whatever my imagination drummed up, I was pretty sure I wouldn’t be welcomed with open arms. Fuck, I’m toast, bloody fucking toast. Who was I kidding? I’d do anything for Niki. The mere thought of her warmed me. Ah shit, I’m such a pussy. But if she needed my support, all the more reason to go. You’ll never get much out of life if you don’t go out on a limb and risk everything when the right moment arrives. This was one of those moments.

With my good hand I thumbed a reply on my phone:

“I was born ready, baby. Can’t wait!”

~*~*~*~

Fitness 87 on Fourth St. was practically empty when I arrived. Chase was already there, finishing up a training session with one of his clients, a sexy, redheaded chick wearing skin-tight workout gear. I particularly appreciated the fact that she wore very little of it. The short top showed plenty of skin and my eyes couldn’t help but admire those gym shorts that rode up her butt cheeks just enough for a mouthwatering peek. Each time she shifted her weight, more skin popped out.

I didn’t want to interrupt Chase while he worked. I jerked a hello nod in his direction, as he ‘spotted’ her form while she did reps of arm kickbacks, with a hand held weight. She stood in a wide stance, with her front leg bent and her back one straight, tipped slightly forward at the waist. Chase lightly placed his hands on her torso and instructed her to bend over a little more.

His correction elevated her butt in the air even more, providing an eye-poppingly good view for me.

She parted her lips and blew out a controlled breath as she continued her reps, kicking back her arm with the weight. Turning her head she threw a steamy glance my way and practically undressed me with her eyes. Damn. She was hot and she wanted me. I rubbed my sweaty palms on my gym shorts and darted my gaze around the room, searching for a machine to climb onto. In the past, I would’ve totally gone for her. Done something crazy, like fuck her brains out in the restroom. But since meeting Niki, I had practically become a saint. Just thinking about fucking this girl made me feel guilty. Or maybe my jaw felt tight because I truly cared for Niki. I needed her touch. She made everything feel so right. But I was afraid, if I told her, she’d run. I hadn’t had a good handle on my emotions before I met her. All I‘d felt for the last year was non-stop anger. Then I met Niki and things changed. Shit, best to keep my dick in my pants and keep a safe distance. I didn’t want to fuck up the best thing that’d ever happened to me.

“Hey, Jesse, I’ll be right with you. Last set here,” Chase yelled out.

I pawed my hand through my hair and located an available piece of equipment. “No sweat. Take your time, man.”

I jumped on a stationary bike for a quick warm-up. I hated getting up early, and late mornings at the gym were the best, not so crowded. Any other time of day, it felt like the entire goddamn population of Los Angeles was a member of
my
gym. Quite the contrast to back home, in Thunder Ridge, where nobody worked out, except for the usual beer lifting exercises, and where the words ‘kick-back’ meant taking a shot of tequila or some other cheap shit.

The hot redhead’s workout ended and she thanked Chase and said goodbye. She pierced me with a smoldering, green-eyed, stare as her peek-a-boo cheeks twitched past me, all the way to the women’s locker room. I swore I heard them calling my name, as she disappeared around the corner, but I must have been mistaken. I ignored it.

“How’s the hand?” Chase asked as he approached the stationary bike. He wiped his face with a small gym towel. “Good enough to jerk off with?”

“Dude. You’re sick. The hand’s great, thanks to you, buddy.” I took my hand from the grip and high-fived Chase. He retracted his hand with a jerk and examined his palm.

“Gross!”

“You’re a bloody magician. I can’t believe you managed to heal what three different physical therapists in New York couldn’t even make a dent in.”

“You did all the work, I was just the guide.” He grinned. “It does help when someone is as persistent as you.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you. Thanks, dude. I owe you big time. What’s up with that red-head? I can tell she wants you bad. Let me know if you need help closing.” I whistled through my teeth. “She’s hot.”

“Smoking… And I can handle myself with Savannah, thank you very much.”

“Ouww, baby! And a hot name to boot? She’s sizzlin.”

“Hey, just keep your dick in your pants. You’re taken now, remember?”

“Well, somebody’s got to be tapping that ass.” I laughed.

Chase twirled his little white exercise towel and snapped it at my bicep with a crack. I dodged his aim and the sharp flick missed.

“Peace, bro! I’m just yanking your chain. I’m a changed man, now.” I released both hand grips, sat up straight on the bike and stopped pumping the pedals. The whizz of the machine descended in pitch as its revolutions slowed.

“I was up all night, last night. I was so stoked about the progress I’ve made with my hand and leg. I think I’m ready to ride again, start training.” A huge grin spread across my face and I wiped my forearm across my wet brow. “I emailed my agent in New York, told him to start looking for a new team. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with.” I reached out and squeezed both handlebars at once. “I live to ride, man.”

“That’s awesome, Jesse. I hope it works out for you. So I guess you’ll be out of here before long and back into racing all over the world?”

“It’ll be a few more months, but yeah. Have to find a team first and a sponsor to finance everything. It’s an expensive sport, Motocross racing.”

“So…what about Niki? If you go back to racing, where does that leave the two of you? Remember what I told you; I don’t want to be the one picking up the pieces when you decide to go back to New York. Am I gonna have to kick your ass?” He joked and cocked an eyebrow.

“Easy, bro. Niki and I are doing great. We’ll work things out. There’ll be no pieces for you to pick up. Trust me.”

“I hope not. She’s one of a kind and I don’t want to see her hurt.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll be fine.”

At least I hoped so. Niki and I hadn’t talked about the future yet and how our careers could mesh. Or not mesh. Damn, I hadn’t really anticipated my hand healing this well. I pissed and moaned about my racing career being over, but soon I would have to face the facts. In my pea-sized brain, I envisioned the two of us together; Niki would join me on the road on my racing circuit. But she had art school to attend, her dream to play out. Damn, you know what they say: ‘Don’t wipe your ass before you...’ Shit, oh yeah, and then there’s her dad.

“By the way, looks like I’ll finally get to meet Niki’s family. She’s invited me to her stepmom’s birthday party on Saturday.”

“Fuck, good luck with that. The stepmom’s a whack-job biatch.” He tossed a pair of leather weight-lifting gloves at me. “Come to think of it, Niki’s ex might even be at the party.”

“That dude Jason? You mean the overzealous, pompous, vexatious asshole that Niki dated before me?” I had thought he was out of the picture a long time ago.

“My, my, what big words you have. Niki’s intelligence must be rubbing off on you. Why don’t you just say, ‘douchebag?’”

“Okay. Why would that
douchebag
be there? Her dad knows they broke up.”

“Trust me, Niki’s dad will use any means necessary to get those two back together. He’s a control freak about Niki’s life and his number one choice is Jason. Sorry, bro.”

“That old timer really needs to take himself the fuck down a notch.”

“Just be careful with him. He is a lawyer. And lawyers have no scruples.”

 “Let him bring it on.” The words shot out of my mouth from instinct. “I’ll go head to head with Jason
and
Niki’s mother fucking lawyer dad. I’m ready to take down the fort for her. I’ll show them that!”

“Easy, tiger.” Chase held up a gloved hand, palm out. “Just don’t whiz on the electric fence.” He wiggled his fingers into the other black weight-lifting glove.

My eyebrows furrowed. “What the hell does that mean?”

He chuckled. “Just don’t do anything stupid, man.”

I kicked a heavy gray dumbbell, resting on the floor. Niki was my everything and it didn’t take much for me to spring to her defense.