Desire Page 3

  Type… type… type… answer phone… type some more… forget about lunch… forget about getting to show any properties today… type… type… type…

  “Kaplin and Green…”

  “Hey Pumpkin.”

  “Hey Daddy,” she scrunched the phone against her shoulder and kept right on typing. “How’s your trip?”

  “We tore the house down in Raleigh and Billy and I worked a tag match last night. He did really good out there.”

  “Great.” Billy - the last thing she needed to be thinking about while tackling this never ending mound of paper. She wondered if he had even read her note?

  “That’s why I called. Billy’s going to move into the apartment over the garage. Can you get it cleaned up when you get home from work tonight?”

  “Okay.” Now she’s a secretary and a maid.

  “Thanks sweetie. We’ll be in real late so tell your mom not to wait up for me.”

  “Will do.”

  “Love you.”

  Type… type… type… broken fingernail… damn… damn… damn…

  “Miss Bryson?”

  She looked up at a huge bouquet of flowers. Pinks. Yellows. Oranges. Reds. Greens. And a whole bunch of daisies. Clean white daisies. Her favorite.

  “For me?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  The card read:

  Lizzie,

  Looking forward to our lunch date.

  Billy

  She plucked a daisy and did the ‘he loves me – he loves me not’ thing about twenty times and ended up with – a big fat 'he loves me'.

  Chapter 5

  “You awake?”

  “Huh? Yeah, I’m up,” Billy said, not wanting to admit he had dozed off. “Want me to drive us in?”

  “No, I’m good.”

  Paul looked anything but good with the death grip he had on the steering wheel. After a couple of nights with all Paul’s lady friends, Billy had learned the hard way that he was going to have to start getting his own room when they travel together. That catnap in the car had been the best sleep he’d gotten since Christmas morning.

  After the Christmas night show in Raleigh, it was Greensboro, then on to Lynchburg and then Roanoke, Virginia. On Sunday, their normal day off, Paul had made a special appearance at a school for blind and deaf kids all the way up in Staunton, Virginia.

  Just as they were crossing I40, so close to home, Paul realized he had forgotten his watch and wedding ring in Raleigh. That put them headed two and a half hours out of their way for Paul to run by the motel. Billy knew good and well that Paul could have waited until the next week to get his things. It was obvious he just wanted an excuse to spend a couple more hours with Carol Ann before finally heading home.

  “About what you saw between me and Carol Ann and us going back to Raleigh.”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’d appreciate it a great deal if that was never mentioned again, especially if you’re going to start keeping company with my daughter.”

  “Understood,” Billy nodded. “As far as I’m concerned, none of it ever happened.”

  “Oh shit.” Paul hit the brakes at the sight of blue lights flashing in the rear view mirror.

  He handed Billy the big styrofoam cup he’d been sipping on since they had pulled out of a store a couple of hours ago. From the whiff Billy got it, Paul had obviously doctored up his drink.

  “Wouldn’t Will just love finding out I got hauled off to jail from drinking the Jack he gave me for Christmas?”

  Billy didn’t know what else to do but chug the last of the drink. It had him letting out a big burp just as Paul rolled down the window to greet the cop that pulled them over.

  “Evening officer,” Paul turned on his best working smile.

  “Sir, do you realize how fast you were going?” The cop leaned in the window as Paul quickly turned away to dig out his wallet.

  “I’m so sorry about that,” Paul handed over his license without being asked. “I reckon I was in too big a hurry to get home. We’ve been on the road since Christmas Day.”

  “Hey, you’re Paul Bryson.” That sure did change the guy’s attitude. “I watch you every Saturday afternoon with my boys. My kids love that wrestling. I was thinking about taking them to see your match with William Fletcher next Thursday night over at the Coliseum.”

  “How old are your boys?” Paul asked.

  “Twelve and sixteen.”

  “I got a fifteen year old myself,” went on like he’d known about Carol Ann’s kid all along. “They’re a handful.”

  “Sure are.”

  “If you’ll give me your name, I’ll leave you some tickets at the box office. Will four tickets be enough for your family?” That cop had no idea he was being worked by the master good guy.

  “Three would be great. The wife will stay home and we can make it a guy’s night out.”

  “I hear ya. My Lois doesn’t ever go with me to the matches. Always stays home with our little girl.” Paul turned to face Billy with that smile plastered on his face. “Get my briefcase out of the trunk so I can give the officer some autographed photos to take home to his kids.”

  “You’d better scoot over and let me do the rest of the driving,” Billy said, handing him the Halliburton.

  “That might be a good idea.” The cop nodded in agreement after it must have finally dawned on him that Paul was drunk as a skunk.

  “I was getting kinda tired with my schedule being all off.” Paul popped the lid off a marker and asked, “What are your boys names?”

  “Mark and Mike.”

  “Good solid names.” Paul scrawled his autograph and handed the photos over to Billy. “Go ahead and sign them too.”

  “You’re that big kid that got a win on last week’s show. Hell of a match,” the cop grinned at Billy, “Go on and put your John Hancock on them too.”

  They both breathed a sigh of relief when he tore up the ticket and gave Paul back his license along with his info to set up the free tickets.

  “Hey Mike,” Paul said just as the officer was about to walk away. “We usually grab a bite to eat over at that barbecue place behind the Coliseum. Bring your kids, about 5:30 or so. I’d love to meet them. Maybe I can bring Paul Junior along with me that night.”

  “I’ll do that. It sure was a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Bryson.” He waved them off. “Y’all drive careful now, ya hear?”

  “Paul Junior?” Billy laughed as he rolled up the window.

  “She named the kid after me and her husband never even caught on.” Paul leaned back with a big old satisfied grin on his face. “Her ex must not be all that bright considering my boy looks just like me.”

  They made it through to the other side of Greensboro before Paul had to stop to take a piss. He had already gotten so soused he could hardly walk into that little store to get another Coke to water down the rest of his Jack from the bottle hidden under the seat of the car.

  “How old are you now, Billy?” He asked when they were back on the road again.

  “I’ll be twenty-one in June.”

  “What I wouldn’t give to be that age again. Don’t even think about settling down and getting married until you’re at least thirty. I wouldn’t take nothing in this world for my Lizzie but her mama’s another story.”

  Since Paul was two sheets to the wind, Billy decided to go ahead and risk asking, “So, does that mean I still have to wait twenty-six more days before I get my date with Lizzie?”

  “Now don’t you go getting any ideas about trying to use what you know against me.”

  “I didn’t mean it that way.”

  “Lois knows I have a girl in Raleigh. She caught me with Carol Ann probably about six years ago. You know what she said about it?”

  At the rate Paul was going, Billy figured he was gonna hear about it whether he wanted to know or not.

  “If you’re going to fuck around on me, at least find a pretty girl to do it with.” His Lois impersonation sounded more like the whin
y blonde, maybe because Billy couldn’t even imagine prim and proper Lois using the 'F' word.

  “It wasn’t that I was screwing around on her. What made her mad was that she didn’t think Carol Ann was attractive enough for me.” He downed a huge swallow of courage. “I happen to think Carol Ann is a very pretty woman, don’t you?”

  Billy leaned toward agreeing with Lois, but he just nodded and let Paul keep going.

  “At least she loves me, and unfortunately, I can’t say the same for my beautiful wife.” He chugged some more of his drink and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Too bad she didn’t catch me in bed with Will’s little slut. Maybe that one would have been hot enough for her.”

  He got quiet for a couple of miles before starting in again, “I can’t even remember the last time I screwed my own damn wife and right now I don’t care if she ever spreads her legs for me again. She sleeps with the bedroom door locked. Like I’m going to force myself on her or something. Come on, I get more action than I can handle when I’m on the road.”

  He stopped ranting long enough to concentrate on adding more Jack to his cup.

  “If I make her so damn miserable, why won’t she just let me go? She sure as hell doesn’t have any problem spending my money just about as fast as I can make it. That’s all she does. Shop, pop pills and give me the cold shoulder. You know what I’d like to do?”

  Billy could only image.

  “I’d like to tell that stupid bitch to go on back to the mountains with her mama. Pack her up and get the hell out of my damn house because Carol Ann and that boy are moving in with me and Lizzie.”

  He laughed so hard he jostled his drink.

  “Wonder what she’d think about that? Carol Ann gave me the son I’ve always wanted. She’s the one I’ve been in love with all these years, not that damn Lois fucking DuBois.”

  Billy just put the petal to the medal and got them back to that Raleigh motel as quick as he could. Seeing Carol Ann’s little sports car already there, Billy figured it would be a long wait, so he rolled the seat back and tried to get in a snooze.

  So much for getting a good nap. Billy had just gotten situated when Paul slammed the door shut and slumped into the seat beside him. He uncapped the last of the Jack and downed it in two big gulps.

  “Just get me the hell out of this fucking town,” Paul barked. “I’ve had it with both those damn women.”

  Billy did as he was told and high tailed the Coupe De Ville towards Charlotte.

  After riding in a seething silence for several miles, Paul finally said, “Carol Ann told me I can’t meet my son until I divorce Lois. She’s not going to let me see my kid. If I leave Lois, she’ll take everything I’ve ever worked for. What the fuck am I supposed to do?”

  Before Billy could come up with any kind of answer Paul started snoring. His hero, the all American wrestling superstar, passed out drunk, slumped over the seat of his new Cadillac.

  ***

  A morning burst of sunshine glared in Billy’s eyes just as they hit The Queen City. Afraid that Lizzie would be getting ready for work, Billy cruised on over to Independence Blvd. There was no way he could take a chance on letting Lizzie see her father in such a state.

  The ‘HOT and NOW’ sign flashed red at Krispy Kreme, drawing Billy into the parking lot. Leaving Paul snoring, he headed into the store. A cup of coffee and three donuts later and he still had to shake Paul awake.

  “Come on Paul, you need to get on up.” Billy waved a fresh cup of coffee under his nose.

  Good thing he’d left the passenger side door open because Paul hurled all that liquor right out of his stomach onto the pavement. About ten minutes later, he came out of that store with a big box of donuts looking fresh as a daisy.

  “Thank you for stopping,” he said as Billy pulled the car up in his driveway. “I don’t normally drink like that.”

  “I reckon after the last couple of days you deserve it.” Billy grabbed Paul’s bags and headed towards the back door.

  There was a light on in the kitchen so he’d been right about Lizzie being up getting ready for work. He opened the door to find her sitting at the kitchen table looking as cute as could be in her red and white striped flannel pajamas. That red hair sticking out every which way like she’d just rolled out of bed.

  “Good morning,” Billy sat down the bags and backed towards the door.

  “Hey baby,” Paul gave Lizzie a big hug that made Billy jealous because that was exactly how he would have liked to have greeted her. “It was a rough trip. Can you show Billy up to his new digs?”

  She got a key and led him back outside and up a rickety flight of stairs behind the garage, jumping to grab hold of the cord dangling from the light bulb in the middle of the single room.

  “I fixed it up as nice as I could.”

  Crisp white curtain hung over the only window above a little table and one chair that looked like it had been rescued from an empty arena. An old icebox hummed in the corner behind the front door and a full size bed took up the other half of the room. That bed looked like paradise made up with fresh linens and covered with a handmade quilt.

  “The bathroom is right here.” She pushed open the other door to show him a room about as big as a closet with a toilet and stand up shower.

  “I can stick my feet in the shower while using the john.” Billy laughed as he opened the blue shower curtain, admiring the way it set off her eyes. She’d also hung him up a clean matching towel.

  “I hope you’re not disappointed.”

  “It’s a mansion compared to rooming at the Downtown Inn.”

  “I made you some cookies.” She pointed towards the wrapped up plate on the nightstand. “There’s milk in the fridge.”

  “Thank you.” He sat down on the bed and sampled one of her cookies. “These are good.”

  Billy would have loved to offer her a seat beside him on the bed but he was afraid her daddy would come bounding up the stairs any minute now to see what was taking her so long.

  “I’d better go finish getting ready for work.”

  “What time should I call on you for lunch?” he asked.

  “One will be good,” she hesitated, “if you don’t need to get some rest.”

  “I’ll take me a nap and be raring to go by then.”

  After she went on down the stairs, Billy went out to his car to get the rest of his stuff. He didn’t have a lot to unpack, just his granny’s coffee mugs, a hotplate, a clock radio, and an old snapshot of his mama smiling from the ring.

  He hung his only suit on its hanger on the peg outside the bathroom door, tossed some underwear and socks in the nightstand, and shoved the suitcase under the bed. It wasn’t even seven am and there he was all moved into the new place.

  Thinking about someday curling up under the covers with Lizzie, he kicked off his boots and polished off her cookies and milk. In that simple moment he couldn’t believe how good his life had gotten.

  ***

  Lizzie got back to the kitchen to find Gran helping herself to a donut.

  “Please tell me we have tomato juice,” Daddy said, with a bottle of vodka in his hand.

  “In the fridge,” Gran didn’t look up from doing her crossword puzzle.

  ”How about I whip us up a pitcher of Bloody Mary’s, Glenda?”

  “I knew there was a reason you're my favorite son-in-law.” Gran laughed and offered Lizzie the last donut from the Krispy Kreme box.

  After biting into the chocolate filling, Lizzie said, “Some of us have to go to work today.”

  “Elizabeth, love,” Daddy kissed her on the cheek to where she could smell the alcohol still on his breath. “I’d like to take my favorite working girl out to lunch today. What do you say?”

  “I can’t,” She lied exaggerating a disappointed frown, “I’m going to work through lunch so I can leave early tomorrow for New Year’s Eve.”

  “If that old goat Greenbriar is working you too hard, I’d be glad to come down and stret
ch him.”

  “Daddy, Kaplin is the old goat of the pair.” She gave him a giggly kiss before starting up the stairs to get dressed.

  Her mother met her on the landing, dressed in a new Chanel suit, Gucci suitcase and matching purse in hand.

  ‘Why aren’t you dressed yet? I thought you were taking me to the airport.”

  “Daddy’s home, he can take you.”

  “Where do you think you’re going?” Her daddy appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

  “New Orleans, to visit Dinera, I’ll only be gone a couple of weeks.

  ”You know we always go to Crockett’s New Year’s Eve party. You always said it was your favorite social event of the year.” Daddy glared at her. “I do recall that just a couple of weeks ago you spent an outrageous amount of money on a new evening gown for the party.

  “I’ll wear it while I’m out with Dinera.”

  “Fucking bitch.”

  “Excuse me?” Her mother shrilled.

  It wasn’t like her Daddy to curse like that. Obviously he’d forgotten Lizzie was listening from the top of the stairs.

  “In that case, I think I’ll just go on to Raleigh,” heavy accent on the word Raleigh, “tomorrow afternoon.”

  “You do that,” Mom snapped at him, “I’m sure your homely lady friend,” heavy accent on friend, “doesn’t have a date for New Year’s Eve.”

  “Kayfabe!” Gran screamed from the kitchen. “Both of you just kayfabe.”

  “Sound like I just walked into the middle of something I shouldn’t be hearing,” Billy said, coming through the kitchen door.

  “No, darling, I’m very glad to see you,” Gran said smooth as silk. “I think Lois and Paul forgot that their daughter is upstairs getting dressed. Both of them need to save the bickering until after my grandbaby leaves for work.”

  “You heard your mother, kayfabe the kizzids.”

  “Do not speak carny in my home.”

  “Lois, take your butt out to the car, I’ll drive you to the airport.” Gran said icily.