Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight; we own rattled nerves from all of these Oklahoma storms that will be hitting us for the next two days.
Something came up. So, I'll just meet you at Willie's at 7:00.
I reread the text Jasper sent to me a few hours ago when I was in my guitar lesson with Cherry.
Just thinking about our lessons together makes my chest tighten, as well as other, more obvious, parts of my body.
I thought that the lessons would be weird after finding out Cherry works for 5th Cell, but surprisingly enough, us working together on a professional level has only made our non-professional relationship that much better.
It's been two weeks since our meeting at Whip It, and we're gradually becoming more relaxed around each other, or should I say that I am becoming more relaxed around her. Cherry is always relaxed. She's so sure of herself, even in unfamiliar territory, like the guitar lessons. I think that's one of her most attractive qualities.
Today's lesson was a little awkward toward the end, though. I felt like Cherry was wanting to say something to me but she never did. She kept watching me with a pensive look on her face, not worried or anxious, just like something was on the tip of her tongue and she needed to say it. When I'd catch her looking at me, she'd avert her eyes and draw her bottom lip in between her teeth.
Sometimes, the physical tension I feel when I'm around her is palpable. It's not a bad tension and she probably can't feel it, but I sure as hell can.
During our lessons, I'm forced to touch her. I try to keep things platonic - really I do - but my instincts occasionally take over, and I find my touch lingering. My hand stays on hers longer than necessary; or my arm rests around her body when I'm teaching her a new chord. She doesn't seem to notice; if she does, she doesn't mind. Either way, it's making it harder for me to keep myself in check. With every touch, I want more.
I don't know how long I'll be able to take it before I break and just kiss the shit out of her. My need for her reached an all-time high today as she was leaving. My hands were desperate to run through her soft brown hair and pull her to me, as well as other less chaste ideas, so I quickly waved and closed the door behind her when she told me goodbye.
I packed up my guitar and the music, and practically ran home. I had personal business to tend to; my cock was screaming for relief. At least I've gotten smarter and started wearing flannel shirts over my t-shirts when I'm around her...untucked. They work great at camouflaging my constant raging hard-on but, if I don't get control of myself soon, I'm afraid I'm going to scare her off, and that's the last thing I want to happen. So, I've gotta manage to play it cool...somehow.
Tonight, Jasper and I are meeting Cherry and Barbie to celebrate the closing of our deal. 5th Cell has agreed to take on our project and Barbie was able to secure our financing so all systems are go! We couldn't be more excited...all of us. Cherry and Barbie are almost as pumped about this as Jasper and I are. You would think that it's their app which technically, I guess it is, in a way. They were our inspiration.
We've decided that when we start the design on the interactive game, we'll use members from the Seattle Sex Packets as models. The derby attire and personas will be reflective of girls on the team, which will be fucking cool. This is so above and beyond our wildest dreams. When we first started gathering our ideas for the app, Jasper and I just wanted to create something that would benefit roller derby fans and increase support and attention for the sport. We wanted something that people could download and use to keep up with schedules, bouts, and standings. The interactive game and all of the other add-ons are just a bonus.
None of this would be possible without Cherry and Barbie, so needless to say, the drinks are on us tonight.
I hop up from the couch, the thought of seeing Cherry twice in one day gives me a sudden surge of energy. It's still a bit early to get ready, but I can't just sit here any longer.
Less than an hour later, I'm walking into Willie's thirty minutes earlier than I'm supposed to. I figure it'll give me time to down a beer or two and shoot the shit with Marcus before everyone else shows up. I need to talk to him about next week anyway, make sure I'm still on for Tuesday night. I took a couple of weeks off after the near-miss with Cherry and Punky. I don't know why, but it makes me really fucking nervous to think that Cherry might possibly come here just to see me...well, Masen, but me. I know, eventually, I'll need to come clean and tell her, if she hasn't already figured it out.
Who the fuck am I kidding? Of course she's probably figured it out. It's Cherry I'm talking about, the smartest girl I know. Fuck! We really should talk. I should man up and just tell her how I feel and that I'm Masen...and that I think I might be in love with her.
I laugh to myself.
Okay, so maybe not that last part. That'll need to wait, especially since she has a boyfriend!
Shit, the thought of Paul makes me furious; and the thought of Paul and Cherry together makes me sick to my stomach.
I need a drink.
"Hey, Edward!" Marcus looks up from a couple of pitchers he's filling with beer. "What brings you in here on a Saturday night?"
"Well, I'm supposed to be meeting Jasper here later, and Cherry and Barbie..." The last part comes out quieter and is muffled by a fake cough.
Marcus looks at me funny. "What was that last part? Sounded something like Cherry and..." Marcus mimics my fake cough and gives me a sly grin.
I scratch the back of my head, looking sheepish. It feels weird to talk casually about a girl I've only fantasized about. "Yeah, crazy coincidence. Cherry works for 5th Cell." I pause and smile. "And Barbie just so happens to be the chief financing officer at a bank." I pause again. "And the two of them are helping me and Jasper launch our app."
"Well, congratulations, man!" Marcus says, sticking his hand across the counter to shake mine. "I know you guys have worked really hard on it. Must feel good to finally get it off the ground!"
"Yeah, yeah, it does," I say, letting it sink in that we're actually doing this.
"I'd say a celebratory shot is in order!" He slams two shot glasses down on the bar and fills them to the brim with tequila.
"To new ventures and success!" he says, before we each toss our shots back. I let the warmth of the liquid relax me.
"Another?" Marcus asks.
"Nah, I think I'll wait on everyone else to get here," I laugh.
"Sounds good! First round is on me tonight," Marcus says, walking away to help another customer. "Oh, and Jasper is already here...I saw him a little bit ago. He's in the back by the dart boards."
I start walking toward the back of the room just in time to see Jasper's back turn to me, as he presses some chick up against the wall beside one of the dart-boards.
What the fuck?
About that time, a waitress drops a tray of glasses. They make a loud clatter, all eyes turning in her direction, but mine are still on Jasper, in disbelief.
As he turns around, I see that the chick he's with is none other than Punky...Punky BruiseHer. Punky and Jasper? Together? How did I not know this? Jasper tells me everything. I've known about every girl he's ever even thought about kissing for the past few years. He would definitely tell me about this, about Punky. Punky is his Cherry.
We make eye contact and I can tell by the look on his face that he knows I've seen everything. Jasper turns around and whispers something to Punky before walking over to where I'm still standing at the bar.
"Hey, man," he says, as he walks up.
"What the fuck, Jas?" There's no sense mixing words. Jasper and I don't do that, which is why it really pisses me off that he didn't say anything about Punky.
"Yeah," he blows out a deep breath and turns around to check on Punky, who's drinking her beer and paying no attention to us...or, at least, pretending not to. "About that, I was going to tell you, but..." he pauses, hesitating.
"But what? Why wouldn't you tell me about this?" I ask, motioning toward the back of the bar.
"I was going to, but I didn't want to jinx anything, all right? Things are actually going good...better than good...they're pretty great, and I don't want to fuck anything up. You of all people should understand that."
I do. I completely understand about not wanting to fuck things up.
"I get it," I tell him, feeling bad for being upset in the first place. "It just caught me off guard. So, you two, huh?" I ask, raising my eyebrows suggestively.
Jasper laughs, his face relaxing when he realizes that I'm cool with everything. "Uhhhh, yeah..."
Before he can say anything else, we're interrupted by Cherry and Barbie walking into the bar. They're laughing and talking as they walk in, making my head turn in their direction. An involuntary smile spreads across my face; I just can't help it.
"Hey, guys!" Cherry greets us. "Marcus!" she calls out, looking over our shoulders. "We're here to celebrate and we need drinks!" she demands.
We all sit down at a large table and Punky joins our group. The liquor begins to flow and everyone falls into easy conversation. We talk about everything from the app to our favorite restaurants...and there's a lot of derby talk. It's really cool being on this side of the game and hearing stories from the players' mouths. We know what things look like from a spectator's point-of-view, but it's so different hearing it from the players themselves.
Every once in awhile, I catch Jasper touching Punky's shoulder or resting his hand on her back. She returns the gestures with quick kisses on his cheek and playing with his hair.
Something about the easiness between them makes me have an ache down in the pit of my stomach. I want to touch someone like that...and not just anyone, I want that someone to be Cherry.
"Well, well, well," I hear behind me, as two burly hands come to rest on either side of my head. "What do we have here?"
I turn around to see Emmett standing behind me.
"I can't believe you're having a party without me," he says with mock hurt. "I mean, can it really even be a party if I'm not here?"
"Just sit your ass down and shut up!" I laugh, pushing his oversized paws off me.
"Well, isn't this sweet? It's like a group date!" Emmett says, winking at Barbie as he slides in beside her.
"Marcus, get Em a drink so he'll shut the hell up," I yell toward the bar.
"I thought you were going to be out of town tonight."
"Yeah, well, I got back early and couldn't find you two dipshits. So, I figured I'd try Willie's and even if you weren't here, I could still get drunk. Seemed like a win-win to me. Then, I walk in and see your two ugly mugs with these beautiful ladies and...well, it was obvious that it was fate."
"You're so full of shit," Jasper says, throwing a half-eaten chicken wing at Emmett's head, barely missing.
"You think you're some Casanova," I laugh, leaning back in my chair.
"That's right, fuckers," Emmett says proudly.
"I'm hoping he's not a Casanova," Barbie pipes up, leaning over closer to Emmett. "Because that would just be too bad," she says, lowering her voice and her eyelids, as she traces a finger down Emmett's massive biceps.
"Why's that?" Emmett asks, swallowing the obvious lump in his throat.
"Well, you see," Barbie continues. "Casanova was known to be quite the philanderer...a very unscrupulous lover."
"In English..." Emmett pleads, rolling his eyes.
Barbie sits back in her chair and crosses her arms. "He was a player...a womanizer...douchebag...asshole...heartbreaker...t ake your pick."
"Uh, yeah...I'm - I'm definitely not a Casanova," Emmett says, completely disowning his statement from just a moment ago.
The expression on Barbie's face is one of satisfaction.
She just played Emmett like a fucking fiddle.
Bella leans over in my direction, across the table filled with empty beer glasses and says, "I was meaning to ask you if there's another day that we could practice. We have that big bout against the Sin City Rollergirls in two weeks and Coach has called Saturday practices."
The bar is loud and our friends are all wrapped up in their own conversations, so I lean in closer to Cherry to respond. "Well, we could practice about any night you'd want to, but we'd have to meet at my house...or...uh, we could always just wait a couple of weeks..."
"No! I want to practice!" Cherry blurts out. "I mean, I don't want to miss a practice. I'm just getting the hang of it and I don't want to forget what I've learned so far," she says, letting one of her hands come down and rest on my forearm. Our heads are only inches apart and it's making my heart feel like it's about to beat out of my fucking chest. "Edward, I don't know how to thank you for teaching me to play the guitar. You've been awesome and really patient...and well, I really love it...and..."
"Hooking me and Jasper up with a development deal is more than enough," I say, smiling back at her. "Oh, and introducing us to Rose," I motion across the table to where Rose and Emmett are having some deep conversation, both leaning on the table with one elbow, and turned toward each other...completely oblivious to anyone else around them. I look back at Cherry who's still staring at me. Normally, I'd be embarrassed and uncomfortable, but I'm not. Something deep down inside me tells me not to be...to just go with it. "See, now I'm the one who needs to find a way to thank you," I say in a quiet voice only she can hear.
Our eyes are locked on each other. Cherry leans in farther on the table, her long mahogany hair creating a curtain which blocks us from the rest of the table. I see her tongue dart out and moisten her lips, the act makes me want to lean in and feel them myself...touch them, taste them. She seems to be leaning in toward me and I almost have my courage built up, when a loud, booming voice fills the bar.
Cherry's posture stiffens, as she slowly turns to the person who just walked up to our table.
"Bella, aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?" I know that voice and it makes a snarl form on my lips...the ones that were just about to kiss Cherry...his girlfriend.
"Paul," Cherry says, curtly. "You know Rose and Alice," she says, nodding across the table to her two friends. "And, this is Edward," she tells him, looking at me. Her eyes aren't as confident as they usually are and the happiness that was in them only a moment ago has faded.
I look up at him and nod, trying to be polite and avoid any sort of scene from arising.
"This is Emmett and Jasper," she says, pointing across the table at them. "We're just having a few drinks to celebrate the close of a business deal."
"I'm Bella's boyfriend," Paul says, reaching his hand out to me, as if to shake mine. I don't take the bait. I'm not falling for that shit. I don't trust him.
"You're not my fucking boyfriend!" Cherry says, standing up quickly, her chair falling backward behind her.
I bend over to pick up her chair, but stop in the middle of what I'm doing.
Wait a second!
Did she just say...
"You're not my boyfriend and you're not staying," Cherry says a little louder, making her position on this matter perfectly clear.
He ignores her and continues, "I'm sure your friends won't mind if I have a seat and join the fun, right?"
Paul already smells like he's been at a party, not the kind we're having here, but a party nonetheless.
"Actually," Barbie says, standing up, her chair screeching across the wood floor, "we do mind!" She crosses her arms and stands at her full five feet and eleven inches. If she had heels on, she'd be towering above him.
"Oh, Rose! You know you love me...come on, be a sport; just let me hang out for a while!"
He goes to walk around the table, inching closer to Barbie, but before he can get there, Emmett's out of his seat and standing in front of her. His bulky muscles are bulging from beneath his t-shirt. He looks menacing. I know he's not, but if I was any regular Joe off the street, he'd scare the shit out of me.
"Uh, Emmett," Rose says, stepping around him, "why don't you boys go get us another round of drinks?"
"What? No!" Emmett exclaims, looking at her like she's grown either a second head or a third tit.
"Yes!" Rose says, looking at him with a glare. "We've got this under control."
"Fine, but we'll be right over there," he huffs, looking directly at Paul and pointing over at the bar, "and I'll be watching!"
As he walks past Paul, he shoulder-checks him, never looking back.
Jasper and I follow Emmett, but I can't help glancing over my shoulder to check on Cherry. I hate that she's with him. I hate that he makes her upset. I hate that he's such a fucking Neanderthal. I hate that he interrupted our almost-kiss.
I want to kick his ass!
"I want to kick his ass!" I say, turning around to face Emmett and Jasper. "I've never wanted to kick someone's ass more than I want to kick his...okay, I've never really wanted to kick someone's ass, but I do now!"
I feel the adrenaline pumping through my body. This must be what those MMA fighters feel like right before they step into the ring - except, I'd rather not look like my face got put through a meat grinder.
"Join the fucking club!" Emmett snorts. "I'd love nothing more than to mop the floor with that fucking douchebag! If he even looks like he's going to lay a finger on..."
Before Emmett can finish his thought, we hear a large commotion in the direction of where we just came from.
As I turn around, I see Punky and Barbie flanking Paul, each grabbing an arm. In one swift movement, Cherry knees him in his balls, bringing him to the ground. She pulls his head up by the hair on the top of his head, the words leaving his mouth are garbled and laced with "fucks" and I think I hear a "bitch"...and that's when Emmett goes from standing at the bar to standing in between the girls and Paul, in less than two seconds flat.
Emmett muscles him up into a standing position and drags him to the door of the bar, yelling over his shoulder for Marcus to call a cab.
"And this will be the day that Paul learns to never fuck with either Emmett McCarty or those three," Jasper says, letting out a joyless laugh, as he points to the girls standing by the table.
My eyes find Cherry's, and something about the way she looks in this moment makes me think of the night I offered her a ride. Her hair is a little crazy and her eyes have a wild gleam in them...she's never looked more beautiful.
Two things I now know: Paul is not Cherry's boyfriend and I want to kiss her so bad it hurts.
Suddenly, I feel like I'm on stage with my guitar...and the tunnel vision sets in. All I see is Cherry, everyone else in the bar fades away and it's just me and her. My feet move of their own accord, until I'm standing right in front of her. Reaching out, I pull her toward me, one hand cupping her cheek. I search her face, looking for any sign that she's not OK with what we both know is about to happen, and I see none.
My lips collide with hers.
In that moment, I want her as close to me as possible...even our clothing is too much of a barrier. I want her...all of her, but I'll settle for this.
The kiss is hard and soft...sexy and sweet...and long overdue.
I pull my lips back, slowly...brushing them against hers.
I hear her moan softly; when I open my eyes to look at her, hers are still closed, a small smile breaking across her lips.
As she opens her eyes, I see that the happiness is back...and there's a different kind of glimmer in them now. A look that makes my heart beat faster and the bulge in my pants get harder.
"What took you so long?" she asks, with a wink.
A/Ns:
Jiff: Mother humpin' SQUEEEEEEEEEEE!
Jenny Kate: They kissed! FINALLY! :) And, Paul isn't her boyfriend...at least, not anymore! So, there's that. We'll have more on that later, but for now let's just do a happy dance that they kissed and Paul got EJECTED from the game! ;)
Jiff is driving to La as I'm typing this, so there won't be any long A/Ns for this chapter and possibly not for the next few chapters. We've had crazy ass weather in Oklahoma recently, as most of you know, and it seems to always get worse at night, which is when we usually do our A/Ns and post chapters. PLUS, Jiff's internet has been acting like a biotch the last few days...AND she will be relocating to TX in just a couple of weeks! Lots happening in JiffyKate Land...so, please forgive us if our schedule gets a little off-track!
We love you guys and appreciate all of your reviews and support...it's what keeps us going! Thank you for reading our stories!
A huge "THANK YOU" to our beta, Mauigirl60 (aka Bernadette)! She makes our words better!