Thanks for the reviews, babes!
THANK YOU, MeteorOnAMoonlessNight for the beta work on this one!
Chapter 2 — Ed
I wash my hands thoroughly in the sink that hangs next to the workbench in the garage, running wet fingers through my hair. There's laughter in the kitchen, which is odd because the house is usually quiet except for the music that's always playing. Everywhere.
When Alice called me to take me up on my offer to let her stay here with her friend, I was over the moon. I'd only seen my baby girl a handful of times over the last year since she was so busy with law school. Yeah, she was in the city, but our meet-ups were usually coffee and a sub, or an event here and there.
Of course, it was a little different, having her best friend here as well. I didn't know the girl, and I'm very much into having privacy, into doing whatever and whenever since my own home is the only place where I can do that. I always wanted to do music, since it's what I eat and breathe, what consumes me. What I hadn't anticipated was that every time I would eat and breathe, there'd be a camera to fucking document it.
Yeah, I Facebook stalked my daughter's best friend because I wanted to know who I'd be dealing with. Knowing Alice and what she does, I expected an extrovert extraordinaire. I found the opposite of that. Isabella Swan, no instruments or major hobbies except for her photography. She's a cat meme aficionado, vodka soda drinker, and music lover. She rarely goes out, though. But neither does Alice. I wish they'd ask me for tickets to shows more often because a fucking warning would have been nice. The girl's a fucking stunner, thick black hair braided to one side, freckles around big, deep brown eyes. She's got her nose pierced and the kind of lips people pay for, but I can tell they're natural. My brand-slut of a kid is best friends with the type of woman who usually makes me think a little less with the head that's on my shoulders. The T-shirts and jeans type, red Vans on her feet.
I throw the towel in the sink when I'm done and go to the kitchen where the girls sit at the island. They're supposed to make another trip back to their old place to pick up the rest of their knickknacks, but I convinced them to wait until tomorrow so I could help out and drive them with the Escalade. Alice said that car could fit the contents of her entire existence.
"Dad, you don't have girl drinks in here," Alice says, rummaging through the pantry.
"Girl drinks, eh?" I watch her curiously, amused by the way Alice is a carbon copy of her mother, but different in the way that my girl has her heart in the right place. "There's soda in the garage," I tell her.
"I'm twenty-one, Father." She scowls, rolling her eyes. I hear Bella snicker
"You're not here to party, Alice. My house, my rules. And that means no drinking on weeknights." I don't drink myself. Not anymore. Been there, done that, earned my sober chips. Eventually.
"God, you're no fun. This is supposed to be a celebration," Alice says.
"It is. We're having pizza." I lean against the fridge. My eyes glide over to bestie who's looking around my kitchen like it's Disneyland.
Yeah, my daughter failed to mention her friend is a knockout with a great rack underneath that tattered plaid shirt. It's got a couple of buttons undone, lace cami peeking through, and she's rested her elbows on the marble kitchen island, pushing the girls up and together. Don't look, Masen. She's a kid. Your kid's friend.
"How long will it take for it to be here?" Alice asks.
"Usually about forty minutes."
"I'll show Bella her room, and then grab a shower, okay?"
"Sure, I cleaned up the second guest room for her."
Alice nods. Bella looks a little awkward and bites that goddamn lip. I clear my throat.
"Thanks so much for letting me stay here, Mr. Masen," she says.
I chuckle at her calling me that. Makes me feel like my dad. "It's Ed, Bella. Just Ed. And you're welcome. Any friend of Alice is a friend of mine." She shoots me a smile that could power the whole fucking street before she follows Alice upstairs with one of her boxes in her arms.
I let out a breath when they leave and my music is the only thing surrounding me again. It'll take some getting used to, from living alone to living with two twenty-one-year-olds. By the time they get back, I decided I must've done some bad karma shit because the way Bella's shorts showcase long legs and hug her ass is nothing short of torture. I bite my tongue and down my bottle of water.
I can't be looking at my kid's friend like that.
She's too young for you, Masen. And Alice would have your head.
When the doorbell rings, Alice shoots off to the hall, yelling "I've got it!"
Bella smiles meekly at me, playing with the rubber band that secures her hair into that braid. "My room is so nice, M—Ed. Thanks so much for letting me stay here," she says again.
This girl is so sweet it makes my teeth ache. She must not be used to people just doing stuff for her. Alice has told me about her, about her home situation, which leaves a lot to be desired. I always thought I wasn't a good father to Alice since I'm gone with the band so often, and her living at her mother's most of the time, but the way she told me about Bella's parents, them not supporting her dreams in life and cutting her off as they have? That makes me feel like Dad of the year.
"It's no big deal, really. I have the room, and Alice will love having you around. Don't worry about me terrorizing the both of you either. I'll be gone a lot, so just make yourself at home."
"I did want to talk to you about paying rent, though. Alice said you didn't want any money, but I can't just live here like a freeloader. That's just gonna make me feel bad." Bella gnaws her bottom lip and holds my gaze. I break eye contact because the intensity of her brown eyes in combination with those fucking shorts and the tight little shirt is too much for me to handle.
"Don't worry about rent. It's completely unnecessary."
"Can I at least do other things then? In return for you letting me live here?"
The list of other things builds up in my mind, but none of them are appropriate for me to even think about.
"Like what?" My voice is too husky, too low, and I clear my throat, erasing the smirk on my face.
She blushes for just a second before Alice comes walking back into the kitchen carrying three pizza boxes.
"What did I miss?" she asks, the smell of melted cheese and marinara sauce wafting through the air.
"I just told Bella I don't need her to pay rent," I say. Alice knows this but she also told me her friend wouldn't just agree to that. Even when she's broke as fuck, she always carried her load, paying for utilities and groceries when Alice stepped up and covered most of the rent for their apartment downtown.
"Just accept it, Bell, my dad's even more stubborn than I am," Alice smirks. "Just do what you said you would and he'll be more than grateful." She takes her own pizza and starts eating it standing up. I roll my eyes at her, the petite, graceful girl wearing silk pajamas eating a slice of Hawaiian pizza in the middle of my kitchen.
"Well, yeah, what did you have in mind, Bell?" I use Alice's nickname, which seems to make her smile.
"I'd like to cook and clean… pay for groceries…"
"Drop the groceries and we have a plan. I have the guys over pretty often, so letting you pay for their food and drinks would be unfair, anyway."
"Okay," she says softly.
"Can we eat now?" Alice asks, annoyed.
"You're already one step ahead of us, kitten," I joke. "Let's eat in the living room."
"Don't fucking call me that, Dad," Alice sneers over her shoulder.
I just laugh, watching as Bella follows my daughter to the TV room, trying my hardest not to stare at her ass on the way.