Chapter 5
Tiguan
Saturday at oh-six-hundred, I rolled out of my hotel bed, stretched, then got ready to meet the guys at the diner again.
All night long, my sleep was plagued by dreams of Mayhem—time on missions, time at his home.
Everything centered around Lyrical, but it was as if he encouraged me to pursue her for myself instead of treating her like his wife.
When I arrived, Oz was already there, sitting at the same table, texting someone on his phone. I took my same seat as yesterday and perused the menu.
“Trouble at home?” I asked when he pocketed his phone.
“Nah, Valentina has a delivery coming on Monday that she needs help with. Most of the drivers will unload their product, but the shop doesn’t have a dock, and this driver is a douche, so he won’t help.
I’ll just have to leave right after the celebration tomorrow so I’m home in time to help her with it. ”
“How’s she doing?”
“She’s good. Having Brooklyn around helps, and the town really rallied around her after Honcho died. Small towns can be good that way.”
“Helps that she has you. And it helps you, too, I imagine.”
He stared out the window into the street. “Most days.” His tone was wistful. “Other days?” He looked down at his place mat, his fingers tapping against the table. “Not so much.”
By then, Chaos and Sapo showed up, and we got to ordering. When the server got to me, a voice inside my head pushed forward.
She forgets to eat. Don’t forget to feed her.
I ordered and then said, “You know Lyrical? From yesterday? Does she have a standard order?”
“Yup. Pancakes with bananas, no syrup, no butter, bacon, and white toast.”
“Add an order for that to go, please.”
The table was silent as she collected our menus, and when I looked at the guys, they were all staring. “What?”
Sapo whistled low. “He ordered her breakfast.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” I asked. Unfortunately, I knew exactly what they were talking about. I hadn’t heard the end of it all day and all evening. Now I was going to hear about it again all day today, despite having ignored it yesterday.
“Shut it,” I told them. “The poor woman is running herself ragged over this event. You should have seen the list of shit she’s trying to accomplish, without enough help, might I add. With all that’s going on, I’m willing to bet she didn’t stop for breakfast this morning.”
The server brought over our coffee, saving me from making an even bigger ass of myself. I’d fed right into their dumbassery.
After a few more remarks, the conversation drifted to Neriah’s moving in with Sapo, but when breakfast showed up, I changed the subject.
“So, you guys know about the trick-or-treating event tonight?”
Oz nodded. “Lyrical wasn’t sure it was going to happen. Not enough chaperones or something.”
“Well, I was thinking about that.” This would either go over like a lead balloon, or they’d be totally into it.
“Some kids were talking about a video they saw. Guys dressed up as superheroes who wash windows at a children’s hospital, particularly the cancer ward.
They thought it was super cool. I wondered if maybe we could help by chaperoning some groups.
Dress up as superheroes. Whatever we could find at the last minute. ”
Silence blanketed the table again until Chaos started laughing so hard I thought he’d fall out of his chair, and the other two chuckleheads joined in.
“Dude, you have got it so bad.”
“I’m just trying to be helpful,” I grumbled.
“More like you’re trying to score some major points. I dig it. It’s creative.”
“I’m in,” Sapo said. “Finding costumes today might be tough since today’s Halloween, but I’m sure we can figure it out.”
Oz chimed in. “Do we tell her ahead of time, or do we make it a surprise?”
“I don’t want her to cancel it,” I admitted, “so we should probably tell her we found her some chaperones. But maybe keep the superhero part a secret.”
Chaos shook his head. “You come up with the craziest shit. Always the quiet ones you've gotta watch out for. I say we do it.”
Well done, Tiguan. She’ll love it.
I tried to disregard Jesse’s voice inside my head. It wasn’t real, but it felt real, and relief poured through me. Maybe it would score me some points with Lyrical. Maybe it would go nowhere. I wasn’t sure I was comfortable asking her out, but I knew I wanted to see her smile more. She deserved it.
Last night, over a beer in the hotel bar, Chaos filled me in on some of their history. He explained that Lyrical had caught his brother’s eye while they worked on a school project together. Then, how their parents had threatened to disown Mayhem if he continued the friendship.
The man had walked right out the door for her.
Gave up a Stanford education, gave up his share of millions of dollars, and Chaos had walked with him.
They’d joined the Marines. Chaos hated college, and Mayhem wanted a way to support Lyrical, so the three of them took off.
The family pushed back—his father even offered Lyrical a bribe to leave Mayhem—but the three of them had stayed strong and together.
Now Mayhem’s extra-secretive nature about his past made a bit more sense.
While I knew there was another piece of the puzzle, particularly about their relationship, I had a whole new respect for my friend.
Hopefully, if I convinced her to go out with me, I wouldn’t come up too short of the hero she’d had in real life.