Wallflowers:Three of a Kind Read online

  “Oh, um, River Street. But I don’t need to go home. My cheek burns, but it’s not bad.”

  “Are you near Jacobs’ Ladder?”

  “Yeah. It’s a few blocks from my apartment.”

  “Perfect. Poppy, hold the question and answer session until we get there. She’s more likely to open up with alcohol in her system.”

  “Open up?” I chuckled.

  “Well, duh. You’re this hotshot editor who no one knows diddly about. Sienna and I have been curious about you for a while.”

  I looked back and forth between them as Sienna navigated the mile to River Street. “You’ve been curious about me?”

  “Oh yeah. Normally, you’ve got this look about you that screams back off, keep your distance,” she explained. “I can tell by lookin’ at you that there’s a story behind those walls.”

  “And here I thought I’d hid it so well.”

  “I knew it.” Poppy smiled.

  Ten minutes later, Sienna pulled in behind the bar off River Street and threw the car into park. We all piled out and made our way down the side of the old brick building, then turned onto River Street and kept going until we reached Jacobs’ Ladder. I’d never been inside the bar, but I’d heard the music spilling out the door when I’d passed by. It consisted of two levels, with the upper floor open to the one below. The main bar was in the center of the lower level, facing the river. The walls were Georgia oak and covered in University of Georgia memorabilia and art. There was a huge picture of a bulldog over the bar wearing a Georgia T-shirt, but I could tell from the markings it wasn’t the current mascot for the school.

  Sienna pointed to a table on the second level, so we headed for the stairs. I was ready to take the first step when coal-black hair caught my attention through the crowd. With each rise of the stairs, I tried to see around the crowd standing at the bar. On the fifth tread, the man turned his head while laughing, and I paused. It was Devin Hawthorne, and standing next to him was his girlfriend and two other men. Peeling my eyes off his face, I continued up the stairs and followed Poppy and Sienna to a table that allowed us a view of everything below. I chose a seat so I could watch my new neighbor for no other reason than I clearly loved to torture myself.

  I’d brought the bag of ice with me, but it was dripping, so I grabbed a napkin from the table and wrapped it up before I placed it back on my cheek. When our waitress came over, she raised a brow at me.

  “Did you give as good as you got?” she asked.

  “Pardon?”

  “Your face,” she answered, pointing to the ice pack.

  “Oh, um, I got hit with a ball. Nothin’ nefarious.”

  “Mhm. I’ve heard that one before. If nefarious shows up, let me know, and I’ll set a bouncer on him.”

  Poppy and Sienna snickered, and I rolled my eyes. “Thanks,” I answered. “If the culprit who did this shows up, I’ll be sure and let you know. For now, can I get a Stella?”

  “You got it, sweetie. And for you ladies?”

  “I’m drivin’, so I’ll just have a sweet tea,” Sienna said.

  “Arnold Palmer,” Poppy threw out, and the waitress wrote that down as well, mumbling, “Be right back,” and then headed downstairs to the bar.

  I followed her with my eyes, but they stopped when I caught sight of Devin raising a bottle of beer to his mouth. I watched intently as his mouth possessed the lip of the bottle.

  “Earth to Cali?” I heard Sienna say, so I answered, “Hmm,” as Devin’s Adam’s apple bobbed.

  His neck was wide and muscled, but I could still see the apple move. There was something about his throat that held my attention as he tilted his head back.

  An image popped into my mind as I watched, one of his neck thrown back in pleasure as an orgasm ripped through his body; and I was the one riding him in the vision. My body responded as if I were there and began to heat, wetness gathering between my legs as the visual replayed in a loop.

  A knock on the table broke through my erotic haze, and I turned my head, asking, “Sorry. Did you say somethin’?”

  Sienna turned in her chair and looked below, then turned back at me and asked, “Who’s got your attention?”

  “Nobody,” I hedged, then figured what the hell. “Well, somebody. But nobody to me. We had a new tenant move in yesterday and he’s here. I was just checkin’ him and his girlfriend out.” I’d been more than checking him out, which had never happened before. Not with any man.

  “Which one?” Poppy asked.

  I tried to point him out discreetly, saying, “The big one with the black hair.”

  “Lord, he’s hot. He also looks familiar,” Poppy answered.

  “He looks like Devil.”

  “Who?” Sienna asked, but Poppy understood immediately.

  “Holy hell. You’re right.”

  I pulled out my copy of Devil’s Bride and showed Sienna. She looked back at Devin and grinned. “Well, well, a fictional character come to life. Pity he’s taken.”

  “Or not,” Poppy mumbled.

  I turned in my chair and looked at her. “You said earlier that men weren’t worth the time. I’m sensin’ a story there.”

  She shrugged, then turned and faced me. “Show me yours, and I’ll show you mine. Spill. Tell us your story and why you keep to yourself.”

  With that question, the memory always came.

  The doorbell ringing.

  An officer speaking in hushed tones.

  The wailing sound of a child screaming for her parents.

  Shit.

  I can do this.

  Our waitress came back with our drinks, so I waited for her to leave before I answered. Taking a pull from my beer, I swallowed and cleared my throat. It was time to let go of the past. I figured you couldn’t be friends with someone unless you showed them your true self.

  “I have been closed off. You’re right about that. When I was six, my parents and brother died in a car accident and I didn’t deal well with the loss.” Both Poppy and Sienna gasped, so I held up my hand. “It was a long time ago.” That was lie; it felt like yesterday sometimes, but today was a new day, and a new beginning. “I wasn’t in the beginnin’, though. I shut down and pushed people away. It was easier that way. I avoided close relationships and rarely went out with men. And I kept doin’ it until recently, to be truthful. I don’t know why I pushed people away other than the fact that I’d convinced myself that by doin’ so, I would shield myself from further pain. Sort of a defense mechanism. It made complete sense to me at the time, but now that I’ve examined my motivation, I realize I’ve been pretty stupid.” I picked up Devil’s Bride from the table and tapped the cover. “This is my favorite book. Wanna know why?”

  “You’re Honoria,” Sienna stated.

  I was shocked she knew the answer.

  “You’re a bibliophile as well?”

  “When I’m not runnin’ Alexandra’s life, yes. I spend most of my downtime buried between the pages of a book.”

  “Contemporary or historical?” I asked.

  “Historical. Definitely.”

  I turned and looked at Poppy. “What about you?”

  “Same. There’s somethin’ about a duke that does it for me,” she sighed.

  I looked back and forth between these two stunning women. They were intelligent, easy to talk to, and they loved the written word as well. I’d just hit the friendship jackpot.

  “Are you two dating?”

  Poppy snorted. “Sienna’s hot and all, but I prefer a thick sausage to a bun.”

  They both threw their heads back and laughed while I rolled my eyes.

  “It’s been a while for me, though,” Sienna giggled, “I don’t remember what sex is like. Maybe we should give it a go, Poppy? A night of Imax and climax or Netflix and chill?”

  “Sex? I don’t even remember how to spell it,” Poppy groused.

  Yes, I definitely hit the jackpot with these two.

  “My aunts will love you two,” I chuckled,
looking back at Devin. He’d wrapped his arm around his girlfriend’s shoulders as he laughed about something.

  Baby steps, I reminded myself. Taken or not, he was more man than I could handle, so I needed to let it go.

  “So you kept people at bay to protect yourself. I can understand that,” Sienna finally stated, pulling me from my voyeuristic tendencies.

  “Yes, but now I’m twenty-seven and I’ve never had a real relationship with a man.”

  Poppy blinked once then twice.

  “Oh. My. God. You’re not a virgin are you?” she gasped.

  “No. I’ve . . . you know. I just didn’t want anything from him afterwards.”

  “So what you’re sayin’ is you’re every man’s dream woman?” Sienna chuckled. “Sex without the emotional baggage.”

  “Hardly. I just, you know, experimented for a while in college.”

  “Cali, if you can’t say the words out loud, how do you expect to, you know, experiment now?” Poppy said with a grin.

  “I’m not a prude, if that’s what you think. I’m just not sure what the rules are.”

  “The rules are, there are no rules. Anything goes when it comes to men,” Sienna explained

  “That doesn’t help me at all. I need a crash course in datin’.” I looked at Poppy and thought about what she’d said earlier. About the butterflies in her stomach and being pressed against a wall. “What’s your experience?” I asked her. “You said earlier you missed datin’.”

  Poppy sobered, her face pulling into a blank mask for a moment. Then she picked up her drink and replied in a tight voice, “I’ve had a few relationships, but they all turned out the same. The minute you think you’re buildin’ somethin’ special, they disappear.”

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered, placing my hand on her arm. “I didn’t mean to bring up painful memories.”

  “You should stick with your books and a good vibrator like I said before. My father didn’t stick around and none of the men I’ve met have had an ounce of integrity.”

  I looked across the table at Sienna. Her face had pulled into a look of sorrow as she stared back at Poppy. Then she reached across the table and took her hand. “Don’t let one man dictate the rest of your life.”

  “Don’t let the loss of a man you never had dictate yours,” Poppy snapped back.

  Sienna sucked in a breath, then, after a moment, she nodded. “You’re right. I need to let it go. If Chase and I were meant to be, he wouldn’t have married someone else.”

  It was clear these two had been friends for a while. Much longer than the few weeks Poppy had been with Poe.

  Maybe if I’d been paying attention, I would have noticed.

  “How long have you two known each other?”

  Leaning back in her seat, Poppy grabbed her drink and took a sip before answering. “We met a few years back at Chase’s weddin’. I was datin’ a friend of Chase’s, one of those dirtbags I told you about, and Sienna here is Chase’s best friend’s younger sister. It was the stereotypical trope you read about. She fell for her brother’s best friend, and he didn’t see her as anything but his friend's little sister. I saw her throwin’ back drinks as she watched Chase and his new bride. I could tell she was wallowin’ in unrequited love, so I went over and talked to her. We’ve been friends ever since.”

  “Dark days.” Sienna shivered. “She held my hair while I puked in the reception hall bathroom. It was friendship at first sight.”

  “Did he know how you felt about him?” I asked.

  “Pretty sure kissin’ him and tellin’ him I loved him one night when I was drunk expressed it clearly.”

  “And he didn’t feel the same, I take it?”

  “He avoided bein’ in the same room with me until the day he got married.”

  Ouch!

  “I’m sorry, Sienna. I don’t know what that’s like, but I’m sure the right guy is out there just waitin’ for you to come along.”

  “He’s takin’ his sweet time,” she sighed.

  I thought about what these women had endured and it hit me we were all in the same boat. None of us were happy with the present course of our lives. I wasn’t sure how I was gonna change mine, but meeting them was a good first step.

  Then an idea began to form.

  “So I take it neither of you are datin’ then?”

  They both shook their heads.

  “Do you ladies want to find someone to spend the rest of your life with?”

  Sienna’s eyes shot to Poppy, who raised a brow. Poppy exhaled loudly and ran her hands across her face, tangling them in her hair.

  “I’ll admit,” she finally said, “that I would love for a man to prove me wrong. A vibrator is great for stress relief, but I miss the connection, havin’ someone to rely on, and most definitely the skin on skin, dirty words and, well, everything.”

  “What about you, Sienna?”

  “Yeah,” she answered immediately. “It’s been almost two years. I’ve let it go—to a degree. But I haven’t had time to think about anyone new.”

  Looking down at Devin, I watched as he took another drink. My stomach fluttered as the corded column of his neck tilted back, reminding me of my daydream. I wanted someone in my life who made my stomach flutter just like he did.

  Peeling my eyes from the scene below, I looked back at my new friends. “Would you be interested in findin’ someone together?”

  “Together?” Poppy questioned.

  Hawthorne’s quote floated to the surface again, and I grinned. I wasn’t the only one who needed to cast off my past so my roots could grow from the ruins.

  “Did I tell you that Cali is short for Calla Lily?”

  They both shook their heads as grins pulled across their faces. Yeah, it was a corny name, but it was my mother’s favorite flower.

  “In case you missed it, we have a couple of things in common. One, we’re all named after flowers. And two, we’ve been sittin’ against the wall watchin’ life pass us by. I don’t know about you, but I, for one, don’t want to be a Wallflower anymore. I say it’s time we stood up and took a spin around the dance floor. I think it’s time that we three Wallflowers take life by the horns and made our own destiny. . . What about you?”

  ✿✿✿

  “Are you ready to meet Gertrude?” Nate asked Devin after they finished dinner. Grabbing his beer, Devin stood from his stool and gestured for Nate to lead the way.

  Nate pulled a ball cap from his back pocket and threw the hat on backwards over his shoulder-length, light brown hair he’d tied back at his neck.

  “God bless the dirty south,” Devin chuckled. “It’s the only place in the world a businessman would be taken seriously with hair like that.”

  Nate’s black eyes, the color of rich hickory coffee, sparked with humor as he walked around the gleaming oak bar and grabbed a Jacobs’ Ladder ball cap from behind the counter. Shoving the cap in Devin’s gut as he came out from behind the bar, he mumbled, “Live a little. Women love the hair.”

  “As I recall,” Devin said as he placed the cap on backwards, “the ladies loved other things about you as well.”

  “Do tell?” Megan laughed as she and her husband pulled up the rear, following Nate to his apartment.

  Devin looked back at his cousin and winked. “His dimples made them swoon.”

  Jacobs’ Ladder was built in the front half of the two-story building. Nate had taken the back half and turned it into a split-level apartment five years after he opened. The constant late nights and early mornings were a hassle driving back and forth from the country, so he’d opted for city living.

  As they approached the locked door that led to his apartment, Devin could hear opera playing. “Gertrude likes opera?” he asked as Nate unlocked the door.

  “I tried to persuade her to listen to Skynyrd, but she balked at it.”

  “Jesus, that’s blasphemy,” Devin chuckled low.

  When he heard off-pitch singing coming from another room, he paused at t
he threshold. “Does she do that all day?”

  “Woman!” Nate shouted. “Get your ass out here.”

  The pitter-patter of feet bounding at a rapid pace made Devin smile. When Gertrude came around the corner with her sights set on Nate, he stepped to the side to avoid the collision.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Nate ordered in a deep voice.

  Like any intelligent woman, Gertrude did as she pleased and ran at him, trying to take Nate to the ground so she could kiss him.

  Chuckling as he took in the fifty-pound ball of muscle, Devin smiled when Gertrude danced around Nate in circles, her tongue lolling as she squirmed. She was the finest-looking English bulldog he’d seen since he left U of G. “I can’t believe your bull sings opera.”

  “No woman is perfect,” Nate answered as he rubbed her belly. “But you’re damn close, aren’t you, sugar?”

  “Greg, if you agree with him, you’re sleepin’ on the couch,” Megan warned her husband.

  “I’m not stupid,” he grinned, leaning against the doorframe. “I married you, didn’t I?”

  “Smooth, Pierce.” Nate chuckled.

  Kneeling so he could get a closer look at Gertrude, Devin mumbled, “Perfect is overrated. Give me complicated and passionate any day.”

  “Then you’re in the perfect town for that. You won’t find anything but complicated here,” Nate replied as he stood. “All right, woman. Back to your bed,” he ordered, pointing to a large dog bed. Gertrude whined, so Nate raised a brow. When she didn’t move, he started counting. On the word ‘three’, she woofed low, then took off as fast as her stubby legs would carry her.

  “We’re gonna head out,” Megan said as they stepped out of the apartment and headed back to the bar. “It’s already past ten, and we have to get up early for church.”

  As they wound their way back to the bar, laughter from above caught Devin’s attention. He looked up and Megan followed suit. Illuminated in a glow from the overhead light, he watched silently as the woman from the shop window threw her head back as she laughed with two other women. Her light blonde hair flowed loosely around her face, softening her features further as the light threw a halo around her head like an angel from above.

  “Isn’t that your blonde from the window?” Megan asked.