A KISS IS JUST A KISS CHAPTER 2
Once they got inside the hotel, Becks and Daniel got caught up with one another. He regaled his longtime friend with tales of his many exploits in tents and of course, with numerous women.
"Man, I can't believe it's seriously been like a couple of years since we hung out for longer than a night! Wow! I still can't forget hitting on your sister at Fashion Week back in 2006! That whole night was insane! Sorry!"
Daniel rolled his eyes, "Becks, it's fine!"
"Yeah, you keep saying that, buddy, but clearly you're NOT fine! I mean...I get that you were really messed up, you know, losing your wife after only being married a few months! I can't imagine how hard that was! But...these people were full of shit! They were just soaking you, man! You're damn lucky you have somebody like Betty on your side, looking out for you!"
He leaned forward and asked, "So, what's the deal with you two, huh? Is she….I mean...are you guys…"
"We're friends, best friends! And trust me, I realize exactly how lucky I am that Betty's looking out for me. I do know how amazing she is and that I'd probably be dead ten times over if I didn't have her help me! Hell, I told you about that one girl I dated, Rene Slater, who practically killed Betty because she was jealous of her and burned my place down!"
Becks' eyes widened, "What? Seriously? Yeah, I sort of remember you telling me that, I guess. That was a while ago, right? So, wait, she was JEALOUS of Betty, huh? Did she have reason to be?"
Daniel rolled his eyes, "Why do you keep asking about me and Betty? Is this your way to find out if she's available? No, she and I are not dating, okay? I just lost my wife, Becks! Obviously, I wasn't cheating on Molly with Betty!"
"Well, I didn't mean it like that! I just know you're ALWAYS talking about Betty all the time, that's all. But you said she had a boyfriend, anyway, right?"
"Why do you care? Are you...interested in Betty or something?"
Becks shrugged, smiling, "Maybe. I don't know. She's gotten kind of cute. I totally dig the glasses. And even with the braces, she's got a nice smile. We've talked and flirted on the phone a few times. She's dressing a lot better. She's definitely got potential. I'm not quite as shallow as you might believe. I AM a photographer, after all! I can see hidden assets a mile away, trust me! But anyway, you're saying she's off the market, huh?"
Daniel sighed, clearly not comfortable talking about Betty this way with his over-eager former hunting buddy, and feeling his protective instincts towards her kicking in, "Not right now. She and Matt broke up. Again. But he did help her 'rescue' me from The Phoenix. She said he had been involved in the program himself up in Canada I think and knew somebody had died...from a drug overdose, I guess.
SHIT! She did it again! She freaking saved my ass again! I really could have actually died, too! They said the people who overdosed were on level seven. Hell, Becks, I was already up to level five! That could have been me! Where is Betty?"
Becks smiled, as he saw his friend have his epiphany and start knocking on the door to Betty's suite, "Betty? Hey, are you decent? Can I come in, please? I really need to thank you...again!"
He heard mumbling and gave Becks a puzzled look, "Did you hear her say something? I can't make out what she's saying!"
They both stood with their ears next to the door, until she walked out, swinging the door wide, so that they both fell to the floor, as she was brushing her teeth, "Whsl dsd youdsal sak?"
"DANIEL! OHMYGOD! Are you okay? I'm so sorry! What were you two doing...against the door?" She threw her toothbrush down and leaned down to help him up, "What happened? Should I call the doctor? Do you want to talk to your mom? Tell her you're feeling better? Are you, though?"
Daniel's eyes widened as her robe started to come undone and she managed to flash him until she noticed and began grabbing her sash and furiously tying it tighter.
Becks winced and jumped up quickly, "We're both fine, thanks, Betty! You just caught us snooping a bit! We were worried because we couldn't understand what you were saying with your mouth full of ...toothpaste, apparently! Daniel was having an 'aha moment' and wanted to tell you how much he appreciated you getting him away from those creepy people in that cult that he could have died in, right, buddy?"
As he sat on the floor for a moment, still somewhat in shock, Daniel just nodded, and quickly dove onto a chair, and grabbed a pillow, looking slightly uncomfortable, but smiled, nodding at her, "Right! Yes! Thank you SO much for helping me, AGAIN, Betty! I think they were manipulating me somehow. I feel like I thought I was myself, but...the longer I'm away from their influence, I don't know if it really WAS me or something they put in my head somehow.
Maybe...if you don't mind, it would be a good idea to see about that...thing you said you know, about the drugs, I think. Am I still mad at my mom? Should I call her?"
Betty and Becks both looked at him with concern, "You have to ask? That's not good! For the record, you need to forgive your mother, dude! She loves you, too and she's very worried about you right now. Betty, you have that doctor Mrs. Meade gave you the number for, right?"
Becks handed Daniel his phone to call Claire while Betty went back in her suite, and got the doctor on the line to see if they needed to come to the ER for a tox screen.
"Daniel? Oh my goodness, dear, are you okay? And DO NOT tell me you're FINE! Betty and Becks have both been worried about you, I can tell, even when they were texting to give me updates. Is the doctor there yet to see how much they were drugging you?
Maybe just watch TV or something while they use the needle, darling. I know you don't like them! Do you need me there? Or are you still too upset with me?"
Daniel smiled sadly, shaking his head, "Not that upset, Mom. I'm fi...okay, maybe I am a little confused right now, but I have my two best friends here and Betty is talking to the doctor you got for me right now. Thanks for not giving up on me, Mom!
I think...maybe I was a little jealous! Am I too old to have middle child syndrome? Dad preferred Alex and I always thought I sort of had you on my side. But when I found out I had a 'baby brother' to take away the attention I was used to getting it sort of made me mad!"
Claire laughed softly, but he could tell she had been crying, "I'm sorry I was so mean to you, Mom."
"I'm so grateful Betty is there with you. Please have her call me!"
"Hey, what am I, chopped liver? You're welcome, Mrs. M!" Becks yelled into the phone, causing her and Daniel to both laugh.
He took it off the speaker and whispered, "I love you, Mom. Very much. We'll let you know what the doctor says about me being so loopy, okay?"
"I'm on my way there!"
He smiled, "Okay. That sounds good. Thank you!"
Becks watched, grinning, "So, I'M having a beer. Do you think it's okay for you to have one or are you too goofy already?"
Daniel shook his head, "Yeah, maybe not right now. Raincheck, after I'm checked out, though. But sure, you go ahead! Help yourself. Hey, Betty. What did the doctor say?"
"He's coming here. He's going to take your blood and...um...get a urine sample. Becks! You're drinking beer? He can't have that!"
Becks held his beer up over her head, teasingly, while she reached for it, "This is NOT for the...patient or whatever, Betty! This is for ME! And as far as I know, I haven't been drugged!"
"Oh!"
He put his arm around her waist and stole a quick kiss, taking her by surprise, "OH!"
"What the hell? Just because I told you Betty's not seeing anybody, doesn't mean you get to...molest her, Becks!"
"Sorry! Seriously, I'm really sorry, Betty. I guess I'm just...sort of nervous. I was really worried about YOU, you big dufus! All the way here, I was on pins and needles. And when I get nervous, I...flirt! Hell, you USED to do it, too!"
Betty's cheeks flamed red, and her eyes widened, as she shook her head, "That's okay Becks. I understand. I was worried about him, too. Um...I'd better go get dressed. The doctor will be here soon, and then maybe we can all go to bed, if he says you don't need to go to the hospital or anything, Daniel. I'll be right back." She ran quickly back into her suite.
"You goofball!" Daniel threw a pillow at Becks, and Becks' eyes widened as he saw what Daniel had been hiding with the pillow.
Becks laughed, putting his hand up, "Whoa! Dude! Here, take this back and cover that thing up, will you? You'll put an eye out! Geez!"
He threw the pillow back at Daniel, sitting on the other side of the room, and switching on the television, "So, is that because she accidentally flashed you earlier? STILL? Damn! That was like an hour ago! Is there Viagra in those drugs they gave you? She does have great uh… well, let's just say she's hiding her assets quite a bit, isn't she?"
Daniel rolled his eyes, "It hasn't been that long, and yeah, okay? It's been...a long time since I...had sex! Molly died almost three months ago."
"Oh. Right! Sorry! Hey, it's understandable. They don't cover that in group therapy, huh? I guess it's sort of a touchy subject."
"Very funny, asshole!"
"I didn't mean anything! Do you think Betty's mad at me for kissing her?"
"Probably not. She's pretty forgiving. Luckily for me! Since I usually do something stupid at least once a week! It used to be a lot more often. But now, I don't know how I can ever make this up to her. She had to hide in the damn men's room to stalk me and get me away from those guys'! I need to give her a raise! I can't believe all the stuff she does for me! It's not like I…"
He laughed, "YOU really are an idiot, Daniel! I mean, yeah, sure, give the girl a raise, I'm sure she deserves it. But trust me, Betty is NOT doing this stuff for you because she's your employee! Or even because she's your friend! I mean, hell, I'm your friend, too.
Or at least I was until I was replaced by someone with a much better ass and insane boobs! But I do not see myself hiding out in a bathroom stall, waiting for you! That was pretty intense what she did to save you from the pyro chick, too! Man, face it, that woman is in LOVE with you!"
"You really think so?"
He shrugged, drinking a large sip of his beer, "Sure seems that way! Did you hear how she yelled at me, worried I was contributing to the delinquency of her poor little Danny boy? That was mama bear, protecting her MAN! She is definitely into you! Lucky man! I mean, actually, it's probably a little too soon for you to be thinking about another woman, though, right? So, you know, I could...go out with her, keep her off the market until you're feeling up to a relationship."
"What? Are YOU nuts? NO! That's not...Betty would never go for you, anyway, Becks! You're not her type!"
"Who is? You? You're benched right now. So why not? Hell, I'm sort of like you. We both USED to be players! I still am. But you used to be a 'bad boy', too. Clearly, that's her type."
"Nah, the guy she went out with first, her 'first love' was this nerdy accountant! HENRY! God, I HATE that guy! He kept messing with her heart! He got his ex pregnant, but then he kept showing up! Just when she thought he was finally gone and she was really over him, the jerk showed up and proposed to her! He tried to get her to follow him to Texas or some crazy shit!"
"It was Tucson, actually." Betty walked back in, wearing jeans and a long sleeve sweater, which was buttoned up modestly, but still clung to her curves flatteringly. She had pulled her long, dark hair into a high ponytail and taken off her glasses.
Both men stood up, "Hey, Betty! Wow! You look hot! I mean...you look..nice! No glasses? Can you see?"
She nodded, motioning for them to both sit, "Sit down, please! And yes, I can see. I'm wearing contacts. I'm trying them out. I finally get my braces off next week. I'm trying new looks since I became an editor. Christina sent me this really nice blue power suit! I wore it when I told Matt off that time."
Daniel grinned, "You mean when you said that next time YOU were going to punch him?"
"Exactly!"
"Which one is Matt again? Your...ex, I take it? But is that the same guy who sort of...told Betty what was what with the Phoenix people? So...maybe send him a fruit basket or something, instead of punching the guy now, huh?"
Betty laughed, "Well, sure! We could. Except...Matt's allergic to strawberries!"
Daniel grinned, "Then, we'll definitely send him a big bunch of chocolate-covered ones! No, just kidding. I do appreciate his help. Didn't I hear you say something about him getting arrested to help you all sneak into the Phoenix building? I can't believe you guys had to resort to subterfuge on my behalf!
And you, Becks! Where were you when you got my mom's SOS to come to my rescue? Didn't you come from Thailand or something? How long were you on a plane? You all have no idea how much I appreciate you...caring so much about my welfare!"
"Of course, Daniel! We all love you!" As soon as she said it, she bit her lower lip and her blush was back. She stood and asked them, "So, did I hear you say something before you fell asleep about being hungry? How about you, Becks? I could sure go for some pizza! What kind of pie do they have here? I mean, it can't be as good as New York, of course, but...is there anything you two Hahvahd boys recommend while we're here?"
"Tony's!" they both yelled out simultaneously.
She laughed, finding it rather fun to have two such hot guys, more or less competing for her attention in many ways. It felt...empowering. She had barely had time to think about the kiss Becks had surprised her with earlier, let alone processing what on earth was going on when Daniel had really laid one on her back in the car!
She felt certain he had no memory of kissing her, so she had decided to try and simply pretend it never happened. But that didn't mean it hadn't affected her! She had always tried her very best to ignore her body's reactions to her boss's sexiness. It was just a fact that she accepted. The earth is round, the sky is blue and so are Daniel's insanely gorgeous eyes and he's a VERY hot man!
Still, he was not only her boss, he had become her friend. Her BEST friend! Not to mention, he had just lost his wife and now was going through all this fallout from his grief with the stupid cult! He wasn't ready for any kind of relationship right now with anyone!
Becks' loud declaration interrupted her thoughts, "Oh, I KNOW! We need to get you laid! I bet that will help your situation, man! Not just with the current boner...sorry, Betty, um..erection, but you know, with it just being a long time in general.
I guess you could always just take out an ad-wealthy, moderately attractive lonely, horny widow needs a 'friend with benefits. Maybe we could help you find someone. Betty, do you know anybody? I know there's that one little blonde...or…"
Daniel put his hand over his face, "BECKS! Geez! Cut it out, will you? Sorry, Betty! He's only had one beer, but clearly, the man has no filter! He's almost as bad as Amanda when it comes to keeping his damn mouth shut!"
Betty blurted out, "Oh, OH! I...see! Because it's been...a long time you mean?"
"Yes, Betty! Why are you talking slowly? I told you, I'm not...never mind! Let's just get that pizza, while we're waiting for the doctor, huh?"
"Sure! Sounds good. I'll order it. I know what you like. Betty, do you like mushrooms? Pepperoni and mushrooms sound good?"
"Sounds great!"
While Becks ordered their dinner, Betty came and sat next to Daniel, "So...um...do you really think you need...what he said?"
His eyes widened, as he gulped.