Then Kiss Me (12 page)

One day in early June, Wendy—the waitress
who
also liked Scott—spent the evening giving me dirty looks and muttering under her breath. 
What the fuck was her problem?
  Well, I had an inkling of an idea.  Scott probably
was
interested in me and she must have known it.

Later on that evening, I took a break outside.  I was having a cigarette and
Wendy
a
nd another waitress
were out there too. 
When
the other waitress
left, Wendy asked me, “So…you like Scott, huh?”

I looked at her.  I didn’t know that I could analyze her intent.  I finally just said, “He’s a nice guy.  What’s it to you?”  At least now I knew Wendy definitely had her hooks poised for him and she’d sensed my feelings for him too.

She feigned concern…which was weird.  “I just wanted to warn you, woman to woman, not to do it.”

Okay, that was
really
weird, especially if she’d thought I hadn’t noticed her fascination with the man
…and her subsequent dislike of me.
 
“Why?  It seems to me
you
think he’s pretty special.”

Her temper flared, but she didn’t raise her voice.  “Yeah, at one time I thought he was, so I guess I still care. 
But if you get involved with Scott, you get involved with Jim too.  And Jim and Scott like to swap and share, mix and match.  Believe me, honey, it’s not worth it.”

I managed to stop my jaw from literally dropping.
  I didn’t quite believe her, but if she’d been trying to shock me, it worked.  “You’re kidding, right?”

“If you don’t believe me, ask
Julie
, Jim’s wife.  Hell, ask Jim himself.  Ask
anybody
.”  She lowered her voice for emphasis.  “But don’t ask Scott.  He’ll say anything to get in your pants.”  And, with that, she stomped back inside.

Whether what she’d said was true or not, it made me feel ill.  And I would never ask Scott about that anyway.  What a horrible accusation.

But over the next week, I did catch myself watching the interaction between Scott and Jim.  I couldn’t help it.  I knew they were good friends, but Scott seemed to be better friends with David than Jim.  Of course, that was the
blood is thicker than water
connection.  I almost asked David once about what Wendy had said, but then I chickened out.  If it weren’t true (and I didn’t think it was), it could have pissed David off.  Hell, it could have ruined my chances.

So, even though I saw Jim and Scott sharing lewd jokes and slapping each other on the shoulders on occasion, I didn’t get the sense that they were best friends or even the type to
share
women.  Scott seemed too nice to do something like that.  Jim, though…well, I could believe almost anything about him.  He was a creep.  In the short time I’d known
him,
I’d already surmised that he was a drunk and, yes, a womanizer.  In short, the guy was a jerk.  Yeah, I could believe he’d be capable of that.

Ultimately, I decided I wouldn’t believe Wendy’s information about Scott unless Scott himself did something that changed my mind.

The only waitress I felt comfortable around, the short blonde-haired girl named Carla, started hanging out with me during breaks.  She was going to community college, wa
s in her third semester, and
was taking an art class.  I told her about my artwork, and she asked if she could see it sometime.  So one Sunday afternoon, she stopped by
.  I showed her a lot of the paintings I had in my studio.  “Oh, my goodness,” she said, stepping close to a large painting I’d done of the Denver skyline, complete with Wells Fargo Center (what most people like to call the “Mailbox Building”
) and blue snow-capped mountains in the background.  I’d painted a few of them, because I was fascinated by Denver’s skyline, and I had a great view from the apartment I shared with Barry.  It had been a constant source of inspiration.  Now I could see that the surrounding mountains would become a new inspiration.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s breathtaking, Casey.”

“Thanks.”  She stood there staring at it for minutes.  Finally, I asked, “Would you like it?”

She looked at me, her brown eyes earnest.  “Oh, no, I couldn’t.”

I picked up the unframed canvas.  “Oh, but I can.”  I handed it to her.  “It’s not framed, but…”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.
  Please…take it.”

“Oh,
my gosh
.  I’ll ask my dad to frame it for me.”

I nodded.  “Great!  Would you like some iced tea or lemonade?”

“I think I’d love some iced tea.”

We walked to my kitchen via the living room.  She set the canvas beside her purse on the couch.  “Hey…can I ask you a weird question?”

“Sure.”

This would be her payback of sorts.  “What do you think about Scott
Wardell
?”

I was pouring the tea out by pushing the li
ttle button on
the bottom of the sun tea pitcher, but I made sure to watch her face.  I wanted to be able to read her expression.  But she didn’t freak out or look weird.  She certainly didn’t communicate to me anything like Wendy had.  “Scott?  Well…I’d say he’s kind of hard to read.  He likes to joke a lot, and I don’t always know if he’s joking or totally serious.  But…he seems to be all right, you know?”

I nodded, handing her the glass of tea.  “Yeah, I thought so, but…”

Carla raised her eyebrows.  “Don’t tell me.  You have a crush on him and Wendy told you a bunch of stuff you didn’t want to hear.”

All right.
  I hadn’t expected that.  “Yeah…how’d you know?”

“Well, I might not know Scott, but I do know Wendy.  She’s like that.
”

But…
  “So how’d you
know…I have a crush on him?  Is it that obvious?”

Carla started laughing.  “No…I’ve just seen you two flirting with each other sometimes when I’ve been in the kitchen.  So then, when you asked…I just kind of put two and two together.”

I didn’t want to pry too much, so I left it at that.  The bottom line…I trusted Carla and believed she had no reason to lie to me.  Wendy, though, was invested and had plenty of reasons to shine me on.  So I let her words go and decided not to worry.

The next day, David came into work, obviously excited.  “Casey,” he said, “we are going to have the biggest party
ever
next Saturday night.  You
have
to be there.”

“Are you kidding me?  Remember how fucked up I was after your last party?”

“What if I promise to make sure you don’t do that again?”

I smiled.  “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, buddy.”

“Still…you
have
to be there.”

Honestly, there was no question that I
would
go…after all, David had said
we
when he talked about the party, and that told me it was Scott’s party too.  Besides, after the last one, I think he knew that even if I’d be late, I’d show up if I’d promised to.  I’d just have to be smart about drinking.
  “All right,” I said, making it sound as if it had been a difficult decision.  “What time?”

“Whenever you get off of work.
 
Around five or six…or eleven, whatever.
  I’m going to get a keg that morning, so I’ll just need to go home and open the doors.  But you
have
to be there.”

“Why?”

“
‘Cause
everybody will be there.  This is
the
party you don’t want to miss.”

So I checked the schedule for the week.  On Saturday, I was scheduled to get off at four.  Unfortunately, I worked the morning shift the next day, so I definitely should go easy on the alcohol.  But I could have fun anyway.

I didn’t see Scott until
Thursday, but when I did, he asked if David had invited me to the party.

“Yeah,” I said.  “Why?  Don’t you want me to be there?”

He laughed.  “You figured me out.”  Then he said, “Seriously, do you plan to be there?”

“Maybe.”
  I licked my bottom lip.  “What kind of music will you be playing?”

“Oh…very good stuff, even by
your
standards.”
  He smirked.

I grinned back.  “So…David said he was getting a keg, but then yesterday he said
BYOB
.  So which is it?”

“Both.  If you like beer, we’ve got you covered. 
Anything else, though, you’re on your own.”
  I nodded.  “But you can have whatever I’m having.”

“Thanks.”  I smiled.  That was pretty sweet…and pretty suggestive.  “But I think I’m turning out to be a lightweight.  I think I’d better stick with the beer.”

“Actually, I think you should stick with coffee.”

I stuck my tongue out at him while he laughed.  The dinner crowd picked up and we couldn’t talk much…and I didn’t
want
to when Jim joined us.  But I started thinking about the possibilities
two
night
s from now
.  Should I become more aggressive or just let our relationship take its leisure goddamn time like it had been?
  Part of me just wanted to jump him the first chance I got, but
the other part of me just want
ed
to let things flow naturally.  After much thought, I decided I wasn’t going to force or push anything.  I was just going to go to the party, have fun and let loose, and if nothing happened, that was okay.  But I felt comfortable enough at this point to decide that I
would
hang out around Scott so that if fate was on my side, I could push my luck to the limit.

Saturday, I went in to work at eight o’clock.  I hardly
ate
all day, I was so excited.  I felt like I was sweet sixteen getting ready for the prom.  What a silly girl I was acting like.

It had been a long day, but I had a party to go to. 
Later in the afternoon
, I felt like I was twenty again (instead of sixteen).  Ed let me go at four.  I rushed home and jumped in the shower.  I let the water roll down my back, warm and invigorating.  It was
blazing
hot outside when I’d come home from work, but I suspected the night would be chilly like the evenings had been, so I enjoyed the warm water while I could.
  I was
pruney
when I stepped out of the shower.

I spent extra time getting ready, extra time primping. 
If nothing happened tonight, fine, but if it did and I wasn’t prepared, I would
be angry that I hadn’t been ready
.
  I’d decided for certain that I wanted Scott.  I wanted him in the wors
t
way, no matter what Wendy had said.  I might not even have a chance, but if I
did
get the chance, I didn’t want to blow it.  A uniform, hat, and heat wreak havoc on any woman’s looks.  I wanted Scott to know I could look good.  And not like the morning I had a hangover in a clingy black dress.

I wore a pair of skintight jeans and a pink t-shirt and sneakers.  I didn’t want to seem like I was trying
too
hard.  I didn’t want to seem obvious.  But, finally, after painting my toenails and messing around with my hair, trying to make it look pretty without looking like I’d put forth a lot of effort, I hopped in my little
Versa and sped off to Scott and David’s place.

I got there around seven.  The place was already packed.  I knew a lot of people from work, but just like their last party, there were several people I didn’t know.  I recognized a few faces from the
last party they had
but
knew
no names.

I saw Carla and talked with her for a few minutes.  “I thought I might see you here,” she said.

“
Caught me red-handed.”

“Oh, my dad framed that painting for me.  My mom and dad liked it so much they asked if they could hang it in the living room.”

I smiled.  “I’m flattered.”

“It’s really good, Casey.  Good stuff.”

“I’ve got a couple of things showing at the art gallery right now.”

“I wish I’d known that yesterday.  Dad’s boss was over for dinner last night raving about your painting.  I bragged that
one of
my friend
s
painted it.  I’ll have dad tell him he can look for more of your stuff downtown.”

I considered warning her that some of it was unusual and decided against it.  After all, Isabel had taken a more traditional piece from me recently, so there was no need to cushion the blow.  “So…where’s this fantasy keg I heard about anyway?”

“Oh…it’s in the kitchen.”