30. Diego
Breaking the Breakers
There”s only six short weeks of regular season play, and the Breakers are mowing through their competition. Super Bowl hopes are high, but blow outs are boring. Let”s turn our attention to the sidelines.
The bars and nightclubs in downtown Norwalk are no doubt feeling the loss of their best customer. Trent Vogt appears to be on the straight and narrow, but how long can that last?
Wedding preparations are underway for Noa Kweame and his fiancée. The official wedding date in Hawaii has been confirmed as May 23rd, but rumor has it there is a very hush-hush high security event planned for Valentine”s Day weekend under his fiancée”s last name, Rynel.
And while Diego Salazar maintains his title as the NFL”s most bangable player, it seems like he”s only got eyes for one woman. And while we hope this one sticks, any fan following the team since the beginning knows Salazar”s patter: hot and heavy through the season and then ice cold after.
”Nice of you to show up,”Rob answered from the floor of his daughter”s room. A sparkly blue tiara sat perched on his head while Noa sported a medieval, Renaissance style hat with ribbons flowing down his long black hair and onto his shoulder.
”I”m late, but I brought tea biscuits for the party.”
”Oh! Cookies?” Mila set down the porcelain teapot in her hand and rushed to my side. I opened the pastel pink box before handing it to her. ”Cookies! And they”re so pretty!”
”Dinner isn”t for another hour,” Rob grumbled.
”You can”t show up to a tea party empty-handed.” Or rather, I couldn”t show up an hour late without a distraction in the form of cookies in exchange for Mila”s affection.
”Yeah, you can”t show up for a tea party empty-handed.” Mila shot a meaningful look at Noa.
He held his hands up with a grin. ”Didn”t I just take you to the children”s museum? And the zoo?”
”Sweetie, go find your grandma and have one of those in the kitchen. We don”t need ants in your room,” Rob said placatingly.
HIs daughter nodded and ran off to the kitchen in a heartbeat.
”Fucking hell, Diego,” Rob yelled, ripping off the tiara and slamming it on the table. ”Don”t bring sweets into this house. That child is a monster when she”s eaten sugar.”
”I wonder where she gets that from,” Noa laughed good-naturedly, refusing to shrivel at Rob”s glare.
”Do you want to take this conversation down to the bar?” I asked. ”Or do I need to pick a fancy hat?”
”Nah, I need a drink.” Rob pushed himself off the ground and gestured for us to follow.
We walked downstairs, skirting around the kitchen where Mila excitedly showed her grandmother the cookies, and pushing through a set of doors into the backyard. A dense forest of trees buffered Rob”s tract of land from the noise of the city and the backyard felt like an isolated ranch rather than a suburb farm.
”Did you buy Mila a pony?” I asked, hooking a thumb at the fence surrounding a red barn.
”No,” Rob growled. ”Not yet. Maybe when she”s seven.”
”He”s definitely buying her a pony.” Noa stage whispered.
Rob opened a shed and stalked inside.
”Quite the workshop you have here,” I said with an awed whistle as I followed inside. The exterior was little more than a ramshackle barn, but the interior was pristine with shiny metal vats on the back wall and a bar with six taps behind a row of stools. ”Do you have a bunch of friends I don”t know about?”
Rob slid behind the bar and grabbed a handful of small glasses. ”What the fuck are you talking about?”
”The bar set up. You”ve got...” I eyed the bar before taking a seat. ”Ten stools which leads me to believe you have other people who come over here. Unless this is some fancy bar simulator you just made for fun.”
”Noa”s my friend. And he”s a big dude.”
”I don”t take up an entire bar.” Noa slid in beside me, taking an offered glass from Rob. ”He doesn”t have any other friends.”
”Who needs friends?” Rob muttered. ”And tell me what you think about this imperial.”
”Tell him it”s great, or he gets all whiney.” Noa knocked his elbow into me with a grin.
I took a sip. ”Boozy.”
Rob rolled his eyes, pouring himself a pint. He leaned on the bar. ”So, why the hell are you here, anyway?”
I shrugged. ”Can”t I just stop by to see my favorite center and his buddy?”
”I hope they let us scrimmage in practice.” Rob took a swig of beer. ”I”m going to tackle your rude ass into the turf.”
”I”m guessing Cassandra”s not around today?” Noa asked.
”City walking tour and then a shift at the bar,” I grumbled, wiping condensation off the glass with my thumb. ”I”m going to stop by at closing and pick her up.”
”You realize you”re not actually dating this girl, right?” Rob raised an eyebrow. ”Because seems like you”re doing a ton of boyfriend shit for someone you”re paying to pretend to be your girlfriend.”
I blew out an exasperated breath. ”Trust me, I”m trying to get her to date me. It”s not going well.”
Rob snorted.
I ignored him. ”She”s leaving at the end of the month. When we made the deal, I thought she”d stay through the regular season. But Bec”s lease is up at the end of the year and James wrote the contract to end in November.”
”So, real soon.” Noa frowned at his drink.
”Too soon.”
”If she wanted to stay, she could.” Rob threw back the rest of his beer and poured a second glass from the tap. ”Maybe she just doesn”t want to date you. Or maybe she knows you”ll just dump her at the end of the season, anyway. Why not be the first one to leave? Sounds smart to me.”
Noa shook his head. ”Not helpful, bud.”
”I”m being realistic.”
”You”re being an asshole,” Noa stated matter-of-factly. He turned in his chair. ”Ignore Rob. He”s a work in progress. I thought Cassandra was kicking around until January?”
”I thought so too, but apparently James ended the contract in November. That way, she”d sort of slip away during the holidays and then we”d be in the divisional and no one would notice.”
”And she”s definitely leaving?”
I shrugged. ”She”s not sure she”s staying.”
”But you”ve told her you want her to stay?”
”I told her I wanted to date her.”
”That”s not asking her to stay,” Rob chimed in unhelpfully.
”What was her reaction?” Noa asked.
”Not great,” I admitted with a wince. ”She had a bunch of reasons it wouldn”t work. A bunch of excuses, anyway.”
”Sounds like she doesn”t want to date you,” Rob reiterated.
”The sex is amazing, we get along great?—”
”Wait, back up. You”re sleeping with her?” Noa shot a glance at Rob.
”Intermittently. Although, since we got back from Mississippi, more often.”
The late nights playing video games had morphed into sleepovers, and neither of us seemed capable of being in bed and not falling into each other”s arms. But each morning, she woke up with a shy, apologetic smile before slipping out of bed with a chaste kiss on the cheek. Our friendship would resume, with slightly less flirtation until we repeated the cycle again.
Rob guffawed. ”She”s using you for sex! That”s unreal.”
”She”s not using him for sex,” Noa said gently, his bear-like hand gripping my forearm in case I made a lunge at Rob. And I was tempted. ”You”ve been upfront with her, which is great. Now just prove that you want her to stay.”
”Prove it?”
Noa nodded. ”Rob has a point. You”ve fallen for the last four season’s girlfriends. How does Cassie know that she”s just not number five? Prove it.”
Rob”s smug smile had me about to deck him. I redirected my attention to Noa. ”How?”
“She’s worried the contract is clouding your feelings, so wait until it’s over.”
“So, do what I’m currently doing?”
Noa sighed. “No, because I know you, and you’re probably pestering the shit out of her about dating and a relationship, and hell, if you haven’t offered to let her move in with you yet, I’ll be shocked.”
Tempted, but I hadn’t. Yet.
“Just wait. Take a breath and give her some space to think.”
* * *
I parked downtown, walking around drunken pedestrians emptying the bars at last call, and entered the Crown Copper. A few patrons still peppered the building, a couple made out in a booth in the back, two guys chatted animatedly to each other at the bar, and an exhausted-looking barback slowly wiped glasses and stared into space.
Cassandra stood behind the bar, a smile on her face as the two guys pulled her into their conversation. She leaned over the bar, the top two buttons on her white shirt popped and her hair pulled back with a sparkly headband. She wrinkled her nose, laughing before glancing beyond the two guys at the bar to me.
My heart jumped into my throat as she beamed in my direction, face lighting up and eyes glittering, mesmerizing me with her smile.
”Hey, stranger,” she said, scooting to the opposite side of the bar and setting a menu down on the bar.
I slid into the seat in front of her. ”Are you having a good night?”
”Better, now that you”re here,” she grinned. ”Now, what are you ordering? Nothing off the front of the menu. I”m going to wow you with one of my creations.”
My eyes wandered down the list of words on the menu. ”What exactly is this?”
”You pick two and I make you something that fulfills the brief. I suggest you stay away from spicy and spicy if you know what”s good for you.”
”Good advice. Now I need to decide whether I”m trying to get a decent drink or I”m trying to make you sweat.”
”You can”t do it,” Cassandra said, setting a balled fist on her waist. ”I”ve been practicing, and there”s nothing on this menu I can”t nail.”
”Cocky. I love that.” I winked. Her face flushed, eyes jetting down to the opposite end of the bar before her lips turned up in a smile. ”Alright, a challenge it is. Refreshing and Umami.”
”Ah, I hate umami,” she admitted. ”Especially since it”s nearly 2 a.m.”
”You said there”s nothing you couldn”t nail.”
She narrowed her eyes and walked to the liquor, pursing her lips as she grabbed a bottle. She effortlessly moved around the bar, taking two last call drink orders as she mixed my drink. Once she”d rung out the couple in the back, she returned with a pale pink drink garnished with a purple flower. ”I”m calling it the Passport. It”s a sake with miso-honey syrup, persimmon and pomegranate liquor, and a touch of grappa.”
I took a sip, letting the flavors coat my tongue. ”Wow. You really are good at this.”
Cassandra bit her bottom lip, holding back a smile. ”And here you thought I was just the best ghost tour operator in North America and an up-and-coming disc golf champion.”
”North America, now?” I raised an eyebrow.
”My talent can”t be contained.” She leaned over the bar and swiped a kiss across my cheek before turning to the stragglers in the bar. ”Wrap it up, people! It”s time to close up.”
I sipped on the drink as Cassandra finished closing up the bar. By the time she collapsed into my car, it was nearly three.
She rested her head on her arm, not even bothering to raid my console for snacks. ”Bec”s place or yours?”
A voice at the back of my head died to tell her my place, but Noa hadn’t steered me wrong before.
”Whichever one you want.” I pulled up to a stop sign, waiting for Cassandra to decide which way to go.
”Yours,” she muttered. ”I like your place better.”