Chapter 7
*~* Barbara *~*
I’ve been as fidgety as a cat on a hot tin roof all morning.
I’m finally going to get some time with Cannon.
I must be a bad person because I don’t give a damn that my neighbor's dog died and gave me this opportunity. If he isn’t there when I get there, I’m going to be crushed.
I know I may be setting myself up for a fall, but I can’t help it.
I’ve been sitting on the sidelines for too long, and it’s time I got in the game.
I know what, or should I say who, I want, and I’m going to have him or die trying. Going into the kitchen to refill my water bottle for what must be the tenth time, I bump into Molly, literally.
“Sorry, Molly. My mind was elsewhere.” I’m glad she wasn’t carrying a mug of coffee, that would have been a disaster. Oh, I would have had to go home and get changed before meeting Cannon.
“Yes, you would. Never mind that we both could have been scalded.” Molly looks at me with raised eyebrows, and I almost burst into tears. “My office, now. Let’s go.” Molly spins me around and pushes me out of the kitchen door and towards her office.
Once inside, she shuts her door, something she rarely does, and points to a chair. “Sit, young lady. It’s time you told me what’s going on. It can be our secret if that’s how you want it, but I need you to tell me why you’re being such a goofball lately.”
“There’s nothing to tell…” That’s as far as I get before she slaps her hand on her desk and almost makes me pee my pants in surprise.
“Enough of the bullshit. You are not being yourself, and I know the signs well enough. There’s a man at the bottom of this, and you need to tell me who he is and what he’s done so I can make him pay.” Her intense look scares the hell out of me, I can tell you.
“It’s not like that, Molly, honestly. No one has done anything.
That’s the problem. I’d love it if he did.
” There you have it. It’s out before I know it.
“You have to swear that you won’t say anything.
He genuinely doesn’t know how I feel. I don’t think he even knows I exist, to be honest.” I feel tears welling up, but force them to stop.
I can’t be going anywhere with puffy, red eyes. Not today of all days.
“I knew it. I knew there’d be a man behind it all.
It’s always a man when a woman behaves like you have been doing.
Goddamn men and their stupidity. Why on earth God created them first, I’ll never understand.
He should have made woman first, never mind that ‘in his own image’ crap, and then we could have explained things to the man right from the get-go.
The world would have been a better place! ”
Jesus. What a rant. She’s really on her soapbox now. I thought she was good with her relationship with Breaker, but holy hell.
“I don’t know about better, especially if you’d been first, but I’ll concede that it would have been different.” I look at her and she starts to giggle.
“I do get a little overexcited at times. I admit to liking the sound of my own voice when I’m passionate about a subject, and I do get passionate about the subject of men and their complete inability to think straight when it comes to us women.
If we didn’t take the lead sometimes, I think the world would have a very limited population.
Left to themselves, men would never get into a stable relationship and have a family. ”
“I think you’re doing some men an injustice there, you know.” She’s scary when she gets her serious head on at work, but this is like a whole new level. “I’m good. I can sort my man out. You don’t need to get involved. It’s fine, everything’s fine.”
“Okay. Rant over, and back to normal. Who is it?” Molly looks like she’s back to the Molly we all know and love, so here goes.
“It’s Cannon. He’s the one, and by that, I mean, he’s the ONE. He’s my man for life’s journey, trials, and tribulations. He just doesn’t know it yet. I wanted to kill your hubby when he offered to take me home and not Cannon.”
“I knew it. I saw how you reacted, and the look on your face told the story. Okay, what can I do to help? Is he going to be one of those that needs to be rounded up and hogtied before he sees sense or what?”
“I don’t need any help right now, thank you.
I have a meeting with him later, so we’ll see how that pans out and go from there.
Please don’t get involved unless I ask for help.
Promise me that, and also that this is our secret.
” She looks a bit crestfallen as though I’ve just rained on her parade, but she nods and agrees to leave things well alone.
Seeing the time, I tell her I’ve got to run, then I head for the ladies' room to do a makeup check and general spruce-up. Once that’s done and I’m happy with myself, I head out to the pet crem and my destiny.
Arriving at the crem, I do yet another check in the rearview mirror to be sure I still look my best and then head inside.
Seeing no one around, I turn to the office, where the door is open.
I hear Cannon's voice and I stop for a moment.
I love his deep, manly voice. As I take it in I start to eavesdrop, not intentionally just as an aside to listening to his voice.
Realizing the description is of me, I assume the person describing me is Prophet from earlier.
Hearing that my eyes are my best feature I adjust my tits in my bra and wonder what’s wrong with them.
Actually, I’m glad that they both think that.
It’s a refreshing change. Hmm, they haven’t mentioned my ass. I like my ass.
Oh. That’s good. I like knowing that I can raise Cannon’s temperature. I should definitely do that far more now I know.
I’m just about to walk in quietly when an opening presents itself.
“I don’t have a dog. It’s my neighbor's.” Seeing them both flinch at the sound of my voice, it is Prophet who recovers fastest out of the two of them. He makes his excuse to escape, then has a dig at Cannon before deliberately leaving us alone in a closed office.
Cannon tries to get out of the hole he’s dug himself, but I’m not letting him off easily. When the opportunity presents itself, I jump in and get him to take me to lunch. Oh, yes. That was a good move on my part. I like this.
Once outside, I see he’s on his hog, as they call their bikes.
I might have to ask why they named their bikes after wild pigs.
That, or I’ll Google it. I don’t want to show a biker I’m ignorant of something I’m sure is common knowledge everywhere but in my head.
Grabbing a helmet from the ‘hog’ next to Cannon’s, I push my hair up and it fits a bit more snugly.
I can sort my hair out later. It being curly helps.
He resigns himself to the fact that we’re going on his bike and I slip on behind him.
Wrapping my hands around his waist and just above his belt, I feel him stiffen.
I mean his body and not what’s below the belt.
As we ride along, I love the deep rumble and matching throbbing you hear and feel from the engine.
Leaning my head against his back, I think I’ve died and gone to heaven.
This is stuff to dream about, and I love it.
Hearing him comment about being with a beautiful woman, I feel my whole body react.
Thanking him, I settle into the ride again and I want to let my hands wander below that belt.
This throbbing engine is having an effect I hadn’t planned for.
I keep my hands firmly gripping above his waist and plaster myself to his back.
I’m sure that if i let my hands do what they want to do, we could end up crashing, and that’s not how I want this ride to end.
Not having paid any attention to our destination, or anything other than the body I’m gripping onto, I’m surprised when we pull to a stop in a parking lot.
I look around and see that we’re at an Italian restaurant.
I slip off the bike, remove my helmet, bend over and give my hair a good shake.
Standing straight again, I run my fingers through my hair.
Handing the helmet to Cannon, he is staring at me, glassy-eyed. The moment could only be more perfect if he became one of those cartoon wolves from bygone days that howled at a beautiful woman.
Snapping out of his stare, he takes the helmet and hangs it from a mirror, doing the same with his own.
Without saying a word, I slip my arm through his, and we head into the restaurant.
As we walk in, a server recognizes him and does a double take when she sees me on his arm.
Coming over, she gives him a peck on each cheek, does the same to me, and asks if he’d like his usual table.
Once we’re seated, I take a deep breath and ask, “You must come here often to get a greeting like that. Not many servers kiss the customers as they arrive.” That did not come out as I intended.
“Not many customers served with her brother, either.” He snaps that back at me, and I deserve it. Shit. I haven’t got this off to a wonderful start.
“Bring many women here, do you?” Oh, fuck. What is wrong with me? Just shut the fuck up already.
“If this is going to be an inquisition, you can call a cab and go fetch your Toyota, and I’ll go back to work. You can discuss the dog with one of the others.” He looks completely serious, and I can’t blame him.
“I’m sorry. Please don’t leave, and let’s start this again. The ride over was amazing and I don’t want to spoil lunch by being a bitch.”
“Fine. I can live with that.” He looks over and sees the server is busy at a table. I feel another pang of jealousy and struggle to keep my emotions in check.
“You served with her brother? Should I ask where or just leave it at that. I don’t want to drag up any bad memories.” Probably asking that was enough. Hell, Barbara, get a grip.
“We went all over the world, wherever they sent us. He didn’t come back from our last mission before we were due to be discharged. I immediately re-enlisted rather than have to face Allegra. I was a coward, and I hope Romeo forgives me for it when we next meet.”
I opened an old wound there, or should I say I touched a still-open wound.
I wasn’t expecting any of this for a simple lunch date.
My reactions to another woman, my jealousy that he may have brought me somewhere he brings his women, his openness about his friend.
Phew. This is some heavy stuff on a first date.
“You know we’re never going to have any secrets if we both keep speaking what’s supposed to stay in our heads.” Holy shit. Not again.
“Well, secrets are sometimes best shared. Was your comment on the bike supposed to stay in your head?” I hold my breath for his answer.
“It was, but I’m not sorry you heard it. I would have probably said it to you over lunch anyway.” His big hands are on the table in front of him, and I reach out and place mine over them.
“It’s the most wonderful thing anyone has ever said to me or about me. Thank you.” He pulls his hands out from under mine, and I’m just about to pull them back when he takes hold of them. They disappear inside his hands, but my heart feels like it’s about to burst.
The server comes over with the menu, giving Cannon a huge smile before turning her attention to me.
In a thick Italian voice, she says, “You should go to the bathroom.” I must look startled, because she then says, “Not you, him. Cannon, my brother, you need to leave us women alone for a few minutes.”
Now it’s his turn to look startled. As he opens his mouth to speak, she silences him. “Ah, ah, ah. Do as Allegra tells you. You know you cannot win with me. Go, go, go.” I love her accent and the way she pronounces some of her English.
Holding his hands up in defeat, he gives me a ‘sorry’ kinda look and then leaves us.
“Why are you here?” There’s no messing with this woman.
“I didn’t know I was coming here. I told Cannon he had to buy me lunch, coming here was his decision. I just sat on the back of the bike and enjoyed the ride.”
“He brought you here of his own free will?” She squints at me and it’s quite scary.
“Well, yeah. I didn’t put a gun to his head if that’s what you mean.”
“And you came on the back of his bike? You didn’t follow him here or meet him here?” She’s still squinting at me, and it is quite unnerving.
“Yes, on his bike, and no, I didn’t follow him. Is that so unusual?”
“For most, no, but for him, very. He has never been here with a woman all the time I have known him. He eats here occasionally and always alone. You must be special for him to bring you here, I think.”
“He told me about your brother, Romeo.” She looks at me as though I just gave her the secret of life, or something.
“FOCK! He told you about Romeo? Fock! He never speaks of Romeo, not even to me. He carries guilt for Romeo that is not his to bear. It was Romeo’s time, that was it.
You cannot change these things. One day I will get him to accept it, or perhaps that will become your task now, eh?
” Tilting her head, she looks at me differently than she has so far.
Perhaps I am now accepted? “If you hurt him, I will hunt you down and cut out your heart with a rusty spoon. This I can do, you understand?”
“Okaaay. Maybe you could be my maid of honor at the wedding? Is that also something you can do?” I ask her as sarcastically as I know how.
“Yes, that is something I can do too. Very good. I will bring you both your food shortly.” She smiles such an enthusiastic smile I don’t know if I’m in reality right now or some alternate one.
“We haven’t ordered yet. You still have the menus.”
“You don’t need a menu. He has the same thing every time he comes. I’ll get two of them.” As she walks away, she almost skips into the kitchen.
Cannon must have been somewhere he could see us, because as soon as Allegra leaves, he reappears.
“Everything okay?” He asks me this with a smile.
“Fine, everything is fine. Apparently, she’s going to be my maid of honor at our wedding, though she may cut my heart out with a rusty spoon if we ever get divorced.” I say this as if I’m in a trance, which I may well be. I just don’t know.
“Excellent. That’s all good then. If she didn’t like you, she would have done it already. Is she bringing the food?”
What…the…fuck!