Chapter 5
Viper
Ipulled up to the car rider line and approached the lady with the walkie-talkie, then rolled down the window to give her my name and that I was to pick up Cat.
I was expecting her to question me further, but instead, she simply radioed in to the others, and seconds later, Cat came barreling through a crowd of kids.
When she spotted me in line, she immediately stopped and gave me a questioning look.
I motioned her forward, then leaned over and opened the passenger door.
She finally walked over and tossed her backpack onto the floorboard of my pickup. “Hey, what are you doing here?”
“Came to get you.”
“But why?” Without giving me a chance to answer, she climbed inside, closed the door, and asked, “Where’s Momma?”
“She got tied up at a meeting or something and asked me to come get ya.” I motioned my hand towards the seat belt. “Buckle up.”
Her brows were furrowed and her lips pursed as she asked, “When’s she coming home?”
“Can’t say for sure.” I gave her a slight shrug. “Don’t figure it’ll be long.”
“Oh.”
A melancholy look crossed her face as she reached over, fastened her seat belt, then peered out the window. “You all set?”
“Mm-hmm,” was all I got. It was obvious that something was troubling her, but I didn’t have a clue what it was or how to fix it. I figured it was best to just get her home and let Bec handle it whenever she got back.
As soon as we reached the house, I used Rebecca’s hidden spare key to unlock the door, then led Cat inside. I’d hoped that being home would improve the kid’s mood, but she seemed even more somber as she made her way into the pantry. “Need a hand with something?”
“I got it.” Seconds later, she came back out with a bag of Goldfish crackers in her hands. “You want some?”
“Nah, I’m good.”
She climbed up on one of the stools and opened the bag. After taking a few bites, she looked up at me with a pitiful look on her face. “Is Momma gonna make me go see Daddy?”
“What?”
“I think she’s gonna make me go.”
I had a feeling that something was up with Rebecca’s ex, but I would’ve never guessed it had anything to do with him seeing Cat. After what they’d been through, I had no doubt that Rebecca wasn’t happy about it. “How you feel about that?”
“I don’t wanna.” Her eyes drifted downward. “He scares me.”
I walked over and sat down next to her. “Have you told your momma that you don’t want to go?”
“No.” She glanced up at me with a hopeful look in her eye. “Could you tell her?”
“Yeah, I could, but I think she should hear it from you.”
“Oh.” She let out a sigh. “Okay.”
Cat lowered her head, and her curly hair fell into her eyes as she sat there considering what I’d said. After several moments, she shoved another handful of crackers into her mouth. She’d barely started to chew when she suddenly looked up at me and announced, “I got a new Barbie.”
“Is that right?”
“Mm-hmm.” She hopped down from the stool and darted out of the room. “Wanna see?”
“Yeah, sure.”
I got up and made my way into the living room. I was expecting her to come out of her room with one single doll, but instead, she had a whole damn basket of them. I sat down on the sofa and watched as she pulled out the first one. “Her name is Kimber.”
“Mm-hmm. Nice.”
“And this is Darby, and this is Ken.”
I was surprised to see that Ken had black marker scribbled all over his head and chin. She was about to reach for another when I pointed to the doll and asked, “Hold up. What’s that shit on Ken’s face?”
“That’s his beard.” She lifted his shirt, exposing more scribbling. “He’s got tattoos. too.”
“Hmm ... How about that.”
A proud smile crossed her face as she held him up and announced, “He’s you.”
“Me?” I almost choked on my own words. “You made me into a Barbie doll?”
“Noooo, silly.” She shook her head. “Barbie dolls are girls. Yours is a Ken doll.”
“Ooh. Well, thank goodness for that.”
Cat studied me for a moment, then stood and walked over to me. Without giving it a second thought, she reached over and took a hold of my beard; then, she lifted it up and examined each side. “What do you look like under there?”
“What do you mean? I look like me.”
“Hmmm.” She twisted it in her little hand, then smashed it against my face. “I’m not sure I like it.”
“You don’t,” I scoffed. “And why’s that?”
“It’s too bushy and big. And it’s gray.” Her nose crinkled. “It makes you look old.”
“I am old.”
“Not that old.” She released my beard, then placed both hands on her hips as she announced. “I think you should shave it.”
“Shave it?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“I hate to break it to ya, kid, but I’ve had this beard a long time, and I’m not looking to shave it any time soon.” I motioned my hand over to her pile of dolls. “Besides, if I shaved it, I wouldn’t match your Ken doll over there anymore.”
“Oh, yeah.” She scurried back over to her stash of toys and started pulling out more dolls. One by one, she told me the names of each and every one. “And this one is Samantha, my favorite.”
“You got a lot of dolls there, kid.”
“Yep, and I got a camper, too.” With that, she hopped up and rushed out of the room, returning moments later carrying an oversized Barbie camper. “Momma got it for me for my birthday.”
“Damn, you’ve got all the works, don’t ya?”
“Mmm-hmm.” She nodded proudly. “I got a dollhouse, too, but Momma said it’s too big and has to stay in my room.”
“Ahh, well, that’s probably for the best.”
Without saying anything more, she sprawled out on the floor and started playing like I wasn’t even in the room, which suited me just fine. I was glad to see that her mood had improved, and she was enjoying herself. I settled back on the sofa and closed my eyes as I listened to her play.
I don’t know how long she’d been at it when I heard her ask, “Are you my momma’s boyfriend?”
“Huh?” I opened my eyes and found her staring back at me. “Come again?”
“Are you her boyfriend?” She held up two of her dolls. “Like Darby and Ken?”
“Nah, just her friend.”
“Then, who’s your girlfriend?”
“Don’t have one.”
Her lips pursed like she didn’t approve of my answer. “How come?”
Before I had a chance to answer, the front door flew open, and Rebecca came rushing inside.
She was dressed in casual clothes, jeans with a nice top and jacket, and while she looked incredible, it wasn’t something she’d typically wear to one of her work meetings.
I could tell from the distant look in her eyes something was bugging her, but she tried to hide it as she smiled and said, “Hey, guys. Sorry I’m late. ”
“Momma!” Cat jumped up and ran over to her with a smile. “You’re home!”
“Yes, finally.” Rebecca knelt down and gave her a hug. “I’m sorry about not being there to pick you up from school.”
“It’s okay.”
When I stood, Rebecca turned her attention to me. “Thank you so much for your help today. It really meant a lot.”
“No problem. Glad to help.”
“Would you like to stay for dinner?” She lifted a bag of takeout. “I stopped and picked up some Chinese.”
“Thanks, but I should get going.” I looked over to Cat. “You try to stay out of trouble, you hear?”
“Yes, sir.”
I winked at Rebecca, then headed towards the door.
She placed the bag of food down on the table and told Cat, “I’ll be right back,” then followed me outside.
Once we got to my truck, I asked, “How did your meeting go today?”
“Honestly, not as well as I’d hoped.”
“Hate to hear that.”
“It’s fine.” Worry filled her eyes. “I’ll figure something out.”
I took a step towards her and said something I’d never planned on saying. “Look, I know we said we weren’t gonna get into any personal shit, but I want you to know that I’d be willing to cross a line or two if the need ever arose.”
“I have to admit, I’m surprised to hear you say that.” Her eyes drifted to the ground. “I was sure that after today you’d be ready to block my number.”
“Actually kind of enjoyed today.” I chuckled as I told her, “Did you know the kid made a doll of me?”
“What?”
“Yep. Drew a beard and a couple of tattoos on a Ken doll, and it looks pretty damn good if I do say so myself.”
“Wow, it seems you made quite an impression on her the other night.” She giggled. “I think it might’ve been the warm milk.”
“Yeah, it was definitely the milk.” Knowing it was getting late, and Rebecca had dinner waiting inside, I told her, “I better get going.”
“Oh, okay.” She raked her teeth across her bottom lip, then said, “Um, before you go, I thought I’d let you know that Cat’s going to stay over at my folks Friday night. If you’re free, maybe we could meet up?”
“Yeah, maybe. I’ll get back to you.”
“Okay, sounds good.”
I opened my truck’s door and was about to climb inside, but before I realized what I was doing, I’d slipped my arms around Rebecca’s waist and had pulled her in for a kiss—and not just any kiss.
This was the kind that quickened my pulse and put thoughts in my head I had no business thinking out there in her driveway, but that didn’t stop me from pulling her even closer.
I reached up towards the nape of her neck, clutched a fistful of hair, and gently tugged it back, giving myself access to delve deeper into her mouth.
Her moan vibrated against my lips, urging me on, and it took everything to resist the temptation of taking her right then and there.
Knowing I was on the verge of getting carried away, I forced myself to step back and release Rebecca from our embrace.
She swallowed hard, then cleared her throat before asking, “What was that?”
“Just doing what I can to make an impression. Hopefully, that one was better than the warm milk.” I winked, then said, “I’ll be in touch.”
Without giving her a chance to respond, I got in my truck, closed the door, and backed out of the driveway.
After that fucking kiss, I needed a cold one or two, so I headed towards Stilettos to check in with the boys.
When I pulled up, I was pleased that the place was packed—something I was always happy to see, especially early in the week.