The Blueprint (11 page)

The more flustered she became the calmer he sounded, which Jimmy knew was just making things worse, but he wasn’t a guy who gave in.  He knew what he w
anted and he wasn’t leaving until he got it.  “Now Lily, you’ve got to eat and so do I.  It’s my treat.”

Rattled by his stubbornness, her fake smile slipped.
“You can
treat
me by moving your truck.”

“There’s no need to get
yourself worked up.  I talked to Kim today and there’s nothing to be concerned about.  So let’s get to it.”

“What?  You talked to Kim… about me?”
I can't think.
  She fumbled through her purse for her keys, unlocked her door, and got in.  She cracked the window open.  There was no point in starting the car; her air conditioning didn’t work. She just needed a minute away from Jimmy’s intoxicating cologne and sexy confidence. 
Damn him. 
She had no doubt that he knew the affect he had on women and used it to his advantage whenever possible.

Jimmy followed and
rested against the car door.  Lounging there like a man who knew his victory was imminent, he said, “Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way.  It’s your choice.”

“What’s the hard way?” she
asked, nibbling a nail.

“Well, I’ll let you sit in the car for
a while till you’re close to gettin' sick from the heat and you start beggin' me to take you to dinner.”

She dropped her hand from her mouth and pinched it between her thighs.
“Could I please have a minute to think? 
Alone.”

“It’s probably over 100 degrees in there.  I figure you have a good five
minutes before you start feelin' light headed.  Think away...while you can.”  Jimmy strutted back to his truck.

Lily could already feel sweat pooling on her upper lip
and running down her back.  She considered her options.  If she walked back to the library, he’d follow her and there’d be more of this verbal sparring which she knew she couldn’t win.  She could call Kim to come rescue her, but apparently Kim was Jimmy’s accomplice, and Lily could only fight with one person at a time. She could give in and do the opposite of what she thought was right to maintain her safe, uncomplicated existence, which would eventually leave them both miserable.  Or, she could die a slow death in sweltering car.  But then Jimmy would save her and he didn’t need any more fuel to inflate his ego.  She turned her head in the direction of her house and her freedom and sulked. 

Salvation came in the form of
a university security guard driving from that same direction in a golf cart.  She sprung from the car and waved her arms, yelling, “Excuse me.  Excuse me.  I could use some assistance, please.” 

The campus cop made a quick
u-turn and headed her direction.

Jimmy walked over to her, noticed who she’d flagged
down, and said, “It’s not gonna work.”

“Of course, it’s going to work.  It’s this man’s job to help.  Don’t worry; I won’t let him arrest you.  I’ll just have him make you move your truck.  No hard feelings, okay?”  Lily smiled
, now sure of her victory.

“
Darlin’, don’t you worry your pretty little self about my feelings.  You’re still going to dinner with me tonight.”

S
he left Jimmy with a huff and rushed to meet the officer. 

The campus security guard heaved
himself from the small cart, smoothed the wrinkles of his shirt, pulled up his pants, and straightened his cap, preparing himself for official business.  He was built like the Michelin Man with a crown of salt and pepper hair.  He greeted Lily with a generous grin that lacked all concern for the damsel in distress hurrying towards him or the beat up truck illegally parked behind her.  With a heavy drawl that rivaled her assailant's, he asked, “Howdy, miss, did you need some help?”

“Yes, I was hoping….”

He stepped around her. “Jimmy, is that you?  I thought I recognized your truck.  It’s good to see you, boy.”  They clasped hands and shared a half hug.  “What are you still doin’ on campus?  You should’ve clocked out a long time ago.  Hey, did you see that game last night?  That sure was a nail-biter right up to the end.  I think the Cards could go all the way this year.”

“Uncle George, it’s good to see you
, too.  I missed the game, but I heard it was a good one.  How’s Aunt Laura feelin’?”

“Ah well, she’s
doin’ better.  I think those new pills the doc gave her are workin’ some.”

“I’m glad to hear it.  Maybe she’ll feel well enough to come to the next family picnic.”

“I hope so.  She hates to miss it.  So what’s got you out here so late?”

“Well,
I’m just hangin' around waitin' to take this young lady to dinner.”

Remembering now what caused him to stop; George turned to
admire Lily but continued addressing his nephew. “She sure is pretty.  I’ve noticed her coming out of the library before.  You sure can pick ‘em.”  George laughed and gave Jimmy a friendly swat on the shoulder. “I’m guessing this one’s smart like the last one.  Anyone who spends time around books is usually smart.  Now me, I only read in the bathroom.  It helps pass the time while I’m…”

Jimmy interrupted,
“I’m certain my friend, Lily, here needs no further explanation, Uncle George.”  

George shrugged off the edit and
got back to official business. “So what’s the problem?  Did your car break down or somethin’?  Did you need me to call a tow truck?”

Lily saw her chance and jumped in.  “Sir, the problem is that I don’t want to go to dinner with your nephew.  I’d like you to make him move his truck so I can go home
.  Alone
.”

George
lifted his hat and scratched his head. “Well, sweetheart, why don’t you want to go to dinner with Jimmy?”  Lily started to answer but he steamrolled right over her.  “He’s a fine boy.  I can vouch for him.  In fact, he might even be the best of Gracey’s sons.  Ladies go wild over this guy.  You should’ve seen the way they lined up after he got back from chasing that last one all the way to New York City.  I guess that was a couple years back now.  Right, Jimmy?”  

Jimmy,
concerned with where this tangent was going, tried to interrupt and failed. 

George
continued, “Ah, she was a looker just like you, but she didn’t want to settle down like Jimmy did.  They’d both just graduated from college, you see, and Jimmy was looking to find a place, get settled, start a family, but she wasn’t interested.  She had her heart set on living in the big city for a while and seeing what that was all about.  He went after her, but I guess they couldn’t figure it out. It took Jimmy a while to bounce back after that, and there was a line of women ready to help him.” He chuckled.

"
Believe it or not, this isn’t helpin',” Jimmy complained.

George
surfaced from his flashback and noticed that his nephew’s lady friend looked ready to make a run for it with or without the car.  His wife was a big romantic and she'd want him to help Jimmy.  Nudging Lily back toward her car, he said, “You young people need to go along now and have some fun while you still can.  When you’re my age you can’t go out so much ‘cause everything gives you gas.  Go on now.  Jimmy you can’t leave your truck there.  You’ll get me in trouble.  Sweetheart, lock your car up.  Jimmy, you be a gentleman and get the door for her.”

Lily did as she was told, even waving good-bye to Uncle George
, promising to have a good time.  Suddenly, she found herself sitting in Jimmy’s pick-up headed to dinner.

Jimmy waited until they were well on their way before breaking the silence and saying the very thing he knew Lily was waiting to hear, and would get him in more trouble, but he said it anyway.  “I told you it wouldn’t work.”

He’d lit the fuse and she exploded.  “How in the world was I supposed to know that your uncle was a campus cop?  Surely there’s more than one, but I get the one who’s not only related to you but also thinks you’re wonderful.”

“Actually, I have two more relatives who do campus security and a couple of friends as well.  There was a pretty good chance it was somebody I knew.”

“Tell me, just in case I’m abducted again, do you have friends and relatives who work on the city police force?”

“A couple.”

“Any state troopers in your family?”

“Yup.”

“FBI?”

Jimmy laughed, “Pr
obably.  I’ve got a lot of family.”

The co
nversation ended.  Lily stared out the side window as Jimmy sang along with the country music playing on the radio.  She knew his carefree attitude was just another ploy to get her to erupt again.  She couldn’t figure out why, if he liked her, he was trying so hard to piss her off.   She’d been pursued in many ways, but abduction and aggravation were new to her. 

M
aybe that’s the best way to end this before it starts
. 

If he wanted her mad, she’d give him mad with a big shot of bitchy.  Typically, this wasn’t how she scared men off
; evasion usually worked, but Jimmy was different.   If he was going to enjoy annoying her, why shouldn’t she have some fun doing the same?

Even with her mind made up, she doubted her method and motivation. 
She squared her shoulders and asked, “Where are you taking me?”

“I thought we’d eat at Tulip’s Bar and Grill.  I’m hungry for a burger. 
How ‘bout you?”

She summoned the spirit of every hoity-toity character
from the hundreds of Regency romance novels she’d read and answered, “I’m not in the habit of eating at such a provincial establishment, but then I guess I should consider my company.”

Jimmy’s brows
rose.  He’d never heard an uppity word out of Lily’s mouth, not that she spoke much.  Hopefully, this was another game and not poor judgment on his part.  “I go to Tulip’s a lot.  They serve the best burgers in town.”

“Well, I’m sure for someone like you that would be true.  I prefer to eat at venues where televisions are not an integral part of the décor.  But I can’t imagine you’d understand.” 

In truth, she loved Tulip's with its relaxed atmosphere and no fuss bar food and hated the role she was playing.  She could tell Jimmy was affected by her snooty impersonation with the way his tone had lost its humor and his brow furrowed.  How long would she have to keep this up before he quit and took her home?  Was that really what she wanted?  He’d cleaned himself up for her.  His face looked freshly shaven and soft.  His jeans weren’t the raggedy ones he wore to work, but crisp and new.  And his red collared shirt fit snug, showing off his strong arms, muscled chest, and deep tan.   He looked good grungy, but was irresistible in his date clothes. 

They arrived at
the restaurant and found a parking spot along the street.  Lily waited for Jimmy to open her door.  After stepping out, she exaggerated the need to dust herself off and straighten her outfit. She said, “I’ll need to wash my hands before eating,” and approached the entrance with arms bent at the elbow and hands raised like a surgeon before an operation.  “I’ll just be a minute.  Could you ask for a seat in the back?  I wouldn’t want anyone to see me.”

Jimmy watched
her head for the bathroom, dodging people and chairs.  Friends saw him, called out, waved, but shot him a questioning look as Lily paraded by.  He shrugged and pretended to laugh it off.  He asked for a private table, and the hostess, who was also related, gave him a booth in the back.  If Lily insisted on keeping up this performance, perhaps it was best that there’d be limited witnesses.  He decided he’d play nice from now on and maybe she’d do the same.

After washing her hands and giving herself a pep talk in the mirror,
it's for the best, it's for the best
, she decided to see this performance through to the end.  She was doing both of them a favor by ending things now.  She spied him in the back corner in a spot that looked secluded and cozy, not the effect she was going for.  He smiled his big hunky smile and she felt her resolve slip a little more. 
Think bitchy.  Think bitchy.

“This chair is filthy.  I can’t sit here.”

Jimmy stood.  “Here, take mine.  I wouldn’t want you to get your work clothes messed up.”

L
ily sat, awkward and stiff like she was balancing on an egg, and waited for the arrival of their waitress.

“Hi
, folks.  I’m Tammy.  Welcome to Tulip’s.  Can I get you some drinks?”  All smiles and enthusiasm, their waitress handed them each a menu.

Jimmy answered, “Hi Tammy.
You must be the new waitress Tulip hired.”

“Well, yes sir.  This is my first week.”

“So, how do you like it so far?”

“I like it very much.  This is my first job.  I’m saving up money to go to college and everybody’s been real nice.”

“Glad to hear it.  I’m sure you’ll do just fine.  Why don’t you bring me a beer to get started?”

“Yes, sir, and for the lady?”

Tammy's perky pony tail and trusting eyes almost caused Lily to abort her entire mission.  Hesitating, Lily’s evil twin answered, “I’d like water in a clean glass.  Check it for spots.  I’ll send it back if it’s dirty.  And I’ll need a new menu; this one is disgusting.”