"So this is the famous Bridget," Maureen said, getting up from her chair and going over to shake Bridget's hand. "I'm Maureen Johnson."
They were at the Cohen residence, just hanging out, as Roger had told Bridget they would. Bridget was meeting the Bohemians for the first time. And to her surprise, she wasn't nervous at all.
"Yep, that's me," Bridget said, smiling at Maureen. "It's nice to meet you, Maureen."
"This is Tom Collins," Maureen said, indicating to Collins. "And you already know Benny and Mark, I imagine?"
Bridget nodded. "Yeah, I do," she said. "It's nice to meet you, Collins."
"It's very nice to meet you, too, Bridget," Collins said, smiling warmly down at her. "So have you been in Scarsdale long?"
"Only a month or so," Bridget said. "My, uh, my mom moved us here. It's just me and her. Always has been."
Bridget suddenly looked uncomfortable. Roger saw this and decided to take control of the situation. "Bridget, why don't you sit down?" he asked. "Mark and I will go get you guys some drinks, OK? What do you want to drink, Bridget? I know what the rest of them want."
"Just water is OK with me," Bridget said, smiling at him, and she sat down on the couch. A few minutes later, Roger and Mark came back with the drinks. Roger sat down next to Bridget on the couch and put his arm around her.
"So tell us about yourself, Bridget," Maureen said.
"Um, well, I don't really know what to say," Bridget admitted. "I'm not really used to, um, you know, talking about myself."
"Well, first off, where did you come from?" Maureen asked. "It might make things easier to get that out of the way."
"I came from Wyoming," Bridget said. "My mom and my dad owned a ranch together down there. They, uh, recently divorced. My mom had to leave everything she owned down there; both of us did, for the most part, but we're hoping to settle that soon."
Maureen's normally-cheerful face fell. "Oh man," she said, "I'm sorry. Are you doing OK?"
"Yeah, I'm all right," Bridget said. "Believe me, it's better this way."
Maureen nodded. "Would it help to talk about it?" she asked, looking over at Bridget.
Bridget looked down, thinking. She didn't quite feel ready to tell them that about her yet. She had, after all, only known them for twenty-four hours so far. "Um, not yet," Bridget said, looking at Maureen. "But thanks."
Maureen smiled. "No problem, chica," she said. "So, um, down to the evil basics. What kind of music do you like?"
"I like oldies, metal, a bit of pop, and country," Bridget said. "Country's a majority for me, though. You can't live on a ranch and not like it, you know?"
Maureen nodded. "You know Roger's a metal-head, right?" she asked pointedly.
"Yeah, I know," Bridget said, looking up at Roger, who was giving Maureen a warning look. "It's OK, Roger. They're just getting to know me."
Roger nodded and Maureen went on. "What's your favorite color?" she asked.
"I like blue and green," Bridget said. "What about you?"
"Pink," Maureen said, smiling. "And Roger likes black and orange."
"Hey, they're Harley colors, what can I say?" Roger said, smirking. Bridget laughed, tossing her long brown hair. Roger closed his eyes for a second and inhaled the sweet scent of her hair. It sent chills down his spine.
"Hey, what do you guys say to going to the lake or something this weekend?" Maureen asked them.
"I think that sounds great," Roger said. "What do you think, Bridget? Would your mom let you come?"
"Um, I'm not sure, Roger," Bridget said, looking uncomfortable again. "But I'll be sure to ask her." She smiled up at him.
"OK, Baby, that's great," Roger said, kissing the top of her head. "You can just tell me in school."
Bridget nodded. "OK," she said, leaning against his chest.
"Hey, Mom?" Bridget asked, coming into her mom's study of their house, later that evening.
"Yeah, sweetie?" Mrs. Kincaid asked, looking up at her.
"I've met some new friends at school now," Bridget said, "and we need to go out to the lake to work on a project. It would be at least an overnight thing, possibly the whole weekend, but we'd be back by Sunday night. Is that OK?"
"Sure, sweetie, but be careful, OK?" Mrs. Kincaid asked, looking up at Bridget. "You know better than to drink and smoke, and all that stuff we talked about."
"Mom, I'll be 18 in three months," Bridget protested, looking down at her mother.
"I know, but until you are, you still have to abide by my rules, so long as you are living in my house, young lady," Mrs. Kincaid said. "And I want to meet this 'Roger' before you go, understand?"
"Of course you can meet Roger, Mom. Jeez, calm down. I won't disobey any of your set 'rules'," Bridget said, stung by her words. "You're starting to sound like Dad."
"Bridget—"
"But thank you for letting me go. I'm sure Roger and me and the others will have lots of fun. And I bet he'll look forward to meeting you."
Without waiting for her mother's reaction, Bridget turned around, her long brown hair flying, and she went up to her room.
"Hey, Roger!" Bridget called out, as she ran up to Roger that Thursday morning before school was due to start.
"Hey, Baby," Roger said, taking her into his arms as she came over to him. "So did your mom say if you could go tomorrow or not?"
"Yeah, she said I can go!" Bridget said happily, smiling at him. "She wants to meet you, though."
"OK," Roger said, nodding. He noticed that Bridget looked worried by this. "What's the matter, Baby? I'm sure your mom will be OK with me."
"I sure hope so, Roger," Bridget said. The warning bell rang and Bridget lifted her head off Roger's chest. "Oh man, do we really have to go to class?"
"Yeah, Baby, we do," Roger said. "But I'll tell you what. Meet me here at my locker after school, and I'll take you home, OK? Then I can meet your mom."
"That sounds brilliant, Roger," Bridget said, smiling at him. "So I'll see you after school, then?"
"You will," Roger said, leaning down to give her a quick kiss before they parted ways to go to class.
Bridget frowned nervously as they walked up the front steps of the Kincaid residence. Roger noticed her nervousness. "Hey, are you OK?" he asked, looking down at her.
"Yeah, I'm all right," Bridget said. "I'm just a little nervous about you meeting my mom."
"A little nervous?" Roger echoed, holding up her hands with his. "Baby, you're shaking in your shoes. Relax, OK? I'm sure your mom's fine."
Bridget looked into Roger's mesmerizing green eyes and took a deep breath. She was surprised by how just breathing nearby to him, she felt relaxed. "How do you do that?" she asked.
"How do I do what, Baby?" Roger asked, looking down at her and taking her into his arms.
"How do you make me feel so good, so easily?"
Roger shrugged. "I guess it's just what I do best," he said. "I protect those I love, especially the women in my life— even Mo." Bridget smiled. "Are you ready now?"
"Yes," she said, "I'm ready." Bridget knocked quickly on the door and they entered the house. "Mom, are you here?"
"In the den, Bridget," Mrs. Kincaid said. Bridget and Roger walked into the den and leaned against the doorframe, Roger's arms around Bridget's waist. Mrs. Kincaid turned around in her chair. "So this is Roger?"
"Yes, ma'am," Roger said, looking down at Mrs. Kincaid and holding out his hand, which she shook. "I'm a senior at Scarsdale High, like Bridget."
Mrs. Kincaid nodded and smiled. "So I hear you have to go with a few friends to the lake this weekend, to work on a school project?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at him.
Bridget could have sworn she saw Roger freeze for a second. She squeezed his hand slowly, but firmly, and he caught on quickly. "Oh… yeah, yeah, we do," Roger said, looking at Mrs. Kincaid and hoping she couldn't tell that he was lying. "It's for our AP Biology class."
Mrs. Kincaid nodded, still seeming unconvinced. "Uh huh," she said. "Well, as long as you don't drink, smoke—"
"Do drugs or have sex," Bridget talked over her, her cheeks reddening, "then we can go. Yeah, Mom, I know, OK? Thank you for embarrassing me like that."
"It's OK, Bridget, I understand that your mom has rules we have to follow," Roger assured her, smiling at her. "What time on Sunday do you want Bridget back, Mrs. Kincaid?"
"10 P.M. and no later, Roger," Mrs. Kincaid said, looking at him.
"10 P.M., it is, Mrs. Kincaid," Roger said, smiling at her. "Well, Bridget, I have to be getting home. I'll see you tomorrow at school, OK?"
"OK, bye, Roger," Bridget said, smiling up at him, and he leaned down to kiss her. Then he smiled one last time at Mrs. Kincaid and turned to go back to his car.
"You really like Roger, don't you, Bridget?" Mrs. Kincaid asked, looking down at her daughter.
"Yeah, Mom, I do," Bridget said, smiling at her mother. "Roger would never hurt me. He's so sweet, Mom. You should see him at school. He's not afraid to show that he has feelings for me."
Mrs. Kincaid nodded. "I can see that," she said. "Well, just be careful this weekend, OK? I don't want you getting hurt."
"Don't worry, Mom, I won't," Bridget assured her, and she went inside with her mother. Bridget immediately went up to her room and called Roger. "Roger, what are we gonna do?" she asked him. "I lied to my mother about why I'm going to the lake. You know we have no school project. I don't mean to drag you into this, but..."
"Don't worry about it, Bridget," Roger said. "We won't disobey any of your mom's rules. It'll just be us camping and hanging out and swimming a lot. Do you trust me?"
"Yes, I trust you," Bridget said, biting her lip worriedly.
"Then you've got nothing to worry about. I'll take care of you, Bridget."
Bridget smiled. "Thanks, Roger. I'll see you tomorrow, OK?"
"OK, and then we're off to have the best weekend ever," Roger said, smiling as well. "Bye, Bridget."
"Bye, Roger," Bridget said, and they hung up respectively.
Next chapter will probably be up by the end of this weekend. No promises, though. I'm writing the chapters as quickly as I can come up with them. As always, don't forget to review!
Until next time, lots of love,
Renthead07