On the Way to Heaven (BWWM Romance) (7 page)

CHAPTER
TWELVE

    
“
Whoo
!” Trina
threw her empty funnel cake container on the table. “That was amazing.”

    
She and Neil sat at one of the eating
areas, along with others who were gorging themselves to death.

    
Neil chomped on a barbecued chicken wing.
“I told you.”

    
“Man.” Trina leaned back and stretched her
legs out under the table. “I can’t believe I ate all that.” She pushed the food
containers out of the way.

    
“The day’s still young.” Neil licked
barbecue sauce off his thumb. “After we eat, then we hit the rides. The Ferris
wheel is my favorite.”

    
“You must be crazy.” She rubbed her bloated
belly. “I’m not getting on that thing.” She could hear the people yelling on
the Ferris wheel from where she sat.

    
“You can’t come to a carnival and not get
on the Ferris wheel, Trina.” He wiped off his fingers. “Wasn’t it you who said
we came to have fun?”

    
“Being suspended in the air is not fun to
me, Neil.”

    
“You can’t be scared.” He slid the chicken
wings aside and started on the rest of his nachos.

    
“I am.” She wiped a bead of sweat from
under her shades. “Why does that surprise you?”

    
“You’re just always so confident.” He
wiggled his head while chewing. “I didn’t think much of anything scared you. I
also didn’t think you were one to run from a challenge.”

    
“God.” She propped her arm on the table.
“You’re really gonna dare me to go? Is that how it’s going down?”

    
“I’m not letting you leave until you get on
that Ferris wheel.” He chewed.

    
“We’ll do bumper cars.” She snapped her
fingers. “How about that?”

    
“We can do that.” He winked. “
After
the Ferris wheel.”

    
She groaned. “Neil—”

    
“Well, what do we have here?” a boisterous,
male voice sounded from behind Trina.

    
She turned to see an extremely tall,
slightly overweight man in white shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. He had a cute
enough face. His thick, coal-black curls jutted out from underneath the white
baseball cap. He wore flip-flops, something Trina never wanted to see a man
wearing, and had a bushy mustache that had gone out of style with Tom
Selleck
.

    
“Hey, man.” Neil jumped up and hugged him.
“What’s up, Skip?”

    
“Nothing much.” Skip looked at Trina. “You
know I never miss the carnival.”

    
Trina pulled down her top.

    
You probably never miss the food either.

    
“I hear you.” Neil sat
back down. “Trina, this is the idiot I’ve been telling you about. My best
friend, Skip Helmsley. Skip—”

    
“Wait a minute.” He rubbed his mustache.
“This cannot be Trina.”

    
“I am.” She smiled.

    
“Ooh.” He laid his hand on his chest.
“Neil, you’ve been hiding this gorgeous thing in your house?” Skip took her
hand and kissed it. “You dog, you. If I’d have known she looked like this, I’d
have been over there every day.”

    
Neil cackled with a piece of funnel cake in
his hand. “I know.”

    
Skip bent down to Trina and looked at her
from over his shades. “It’s an absolute pleasure to meet you, ma’am.”

    
“Thanks.” She tried to pull her arm back.
“Can I have my hand back, please?”

    
“Sorry.” He let it go and stood up
straight. “You’re the maid? Really?”

    
“Yes, I’m the maid.” She sipped from her
cup of soda.

    
“Neil said you were attractive, but I had
no idea you were a goddess.”

    
Neil dropped his face to his food.

    
He said I was attractive?

    
She tried to contain
her amusement. “It’s nice to finally meet you too, Skip. Is that your real
name?”

    
“Yep.” He shrugged. “Why wouldn’t it be my
real name?”

    
Neil grinned.

    
Skip squeezed onto the seat beside her.
“What brings you to Allocco? A woman like you has to have prospects.”

    
“I just wanted a change. That’s all.”

    
“Has Neil shown you the sights?” Skip
brushed against her. “If not, then I’d love to. Just name the day and time, and
I’ll be there with bells on.”

    
Trina glanced at the hard-on in his shorts.
“How about I let you guys hang for a bit?” She got up with her cup. “I’m gonna
check out the sights.”

    
“Remember…” Neil pointed at her. “We have a
date with the Ferris wheel.”

    
She grunted and walked off.

* * * *

    
“Yeah, you go check out those sights,” Skip
said while Trina walked off. “Meanwhile, I’ll check
her
out.” He took off his shades. “Jesus.” She disappeared into the crowd.

    
“Do you have to be so obvious?” Neil sipped
juice through his straw.

    
“You didn’t tell me Trina looked like
that.”

    
“What difference does it make?”

    
“Are you crazy?” Skip stared in the
direction she left in. “She’s the most beautiful woman in this damn town.”

    
Neil chewed on the straw. “She is
something, isn’t she?”

    
“Don’t even think of telling me nothing’s
going on between you two.” Skip looked him in the eyes. “No way a man can have
that goddess staying in his home, and not get tempted.”

    
“I never said I’m not tempted.” Neil set
the cup down. “I’m still a man, but nothing is going on.”

    
“The woman is a fox.” Skip touched his
shirt. “Shit I’m hard right
now
. Don’t tell me you
can live with her and control yourself all the time. If I had her in my house,
we’d have been under the sheet the first night.”

    
“I know, because you’re a dog.” Neil
scratched his arm. “I have scruples. Besides, you’re forgetting about my wife,
who I cherish more than anything.”

    
“Neil.” Skip sighed. “Everyone knows you
loved Charlotte, but when are you gonna move on?”

    
“That’s easier said than done.”

    
Skip sat back. “I love you like a brother,
and it hurts me that you think being happy would betray Charlotte. She’d want
you to be happy.”

    
“You always act like you understand, but
you don’t know what it’s like to lose your wife.”

    
“I know you seem happier than I’ve seen you
in a long time.” Skip gestured to Neil’s food. “You really like Trina, don’t
you? Do you want to be with her?”

    
Neil fidgeted. “I—”

    
“It’s not a crime just to admit you have
feelings for another woman.”

    
“Of course I have feelings for her. How can
you live with someone day after day and share with them, and not have
feelings?” Neil picked up a chicken wing. “We’ve bonded, and the girls love
her.”

    
Skip waved his chubby finger. “Looks like
instead of getting a maid, someone sent you an angel.”

    
Neil bit into the wing. “Just because I
feel something for her, doesn’t mean I need to act on those feelings.”

    
“Why not?”

    
He chewed chicken. “I don’t even know how
she feels about
me
.”

    
“Have you asked?” Skip moved his shades.

    
“Every time I think of asking her,
something stops me, and I know it’s because of Charlotte.”

    
“I’m not gonna convince you to chase a
beautiful woman.” Skip put his shades on. “If you won’t claim the goddess…” He
stood. “Then step aside, because I certainly will.”

    
“You’re not her type.” Neil dropped his
hands to his lap.

    
“Believe me, I’m every woman’s type.” Skip
sauntered off.

    
Neil didn’t have any right to be jealous…but
he was.

CHAPTER
THIRTEEN

    
“Hey there.” Skip
walked up behind Trina.

    
She concentrated on the guy playing ring
toss with his daughter. “Hey.”

    
He eased beside her. “Having fun?”

    
“It’s my first carnival.” She sucked on the
red snow cone.

    
 
“That
snow cone sure looks good.” He moaned. “Watching you eat it looks even better.”

    
“They’re over there.” She pointed to the
booth a ways behind them.

    
 
“Man, it’s hot out here.” He took off his
shades. “You smell good.”

    
She faked a smile and moved aside.

    
“Am I coming on too strong?” He laid his
hand on the curve of her back. “Forgive me. But how can you expect me to
control myself around a woman like you?”

    
She sucked the red ice.

    
“Neil must be a saint.”

    
“Apparently,” she mumbled.

    
“I’d love to get to know you better. The
offer still stands on me showing you around. Just let me know when.”

    
“I appreciate that, but I’m not
interested.”

    
“You
can
be though, right?” He
patted her back. “No one knows Allocco like I do.”

    
“I think you’re cool, Skip, really.” She
pulled his hand from her back. “Neil has told me a lot about you, but you’re
not my type.”

    
“I’m every woman’s type.” He rubbed up
against her. “I just want to show you around. Whether you wanna remain friends
or not is on you.”

    
“
Are
we friends?”

    
He frowned.

    
“I’m just kidding.” She sucked the ice.

    
“Seriously, I’m glad you’re here, Trina.”
He twirled his shades. “I’ve been worried about Neil. He didn’t seem to care
about anything before you showed up. He cares about you a lot, but he won’t
admit it.”

    
She moved a strand of hair out of her face.

    
“He talks about you all the time.” He
stretched. “The same way he used to talk about Charlotte.”

    
“Really?”

    
He nodded. “Who knows? Maybe he’ll get his
ass up and finish that boat.”

    
“What boat?”

    
 
“Neil and Charlotte’s biggest dream was to
sail around the world after the girls graduated.”

    
“That’s so romantic.”

    
“What’s romantic is that Neil was building
the boat they were going to go on. That had been their dream since high
school.” Skip lowered his arms. “Neil worked on that boat day and night, but
when she died, he stopped. He hasn’t even gone to check on it.”

    
 
“I
guess it was too painful for him to mention it to me.” Trina licked the snow
cone. “He shouldn’t give up on his dream. Wait a minute.” She grabbed Skip’s
arm. “The boat is the test.”

    
“The test?”

    
“It’s the test to show Neil can move on. If
he finishes that boat, then he can actually live again.” She smiled. “This is
my main task.”

    
“Task?” Skip grimaced.

    
“Yes. He has to finish the boat. That’s the
only way he’ll let Charlotte’s memory rest.”

    
 
“Good luck getting Neil to finish that boat.
He hasn’t even looked at it since Charlotte died.”

    
“I don’t need luck.” She passed him the
snow cone. “I’ve got
God
on my side.” She left
him standing there with the snow cone, and went toward the bumper cars.

    
“Trina!” Paige and Winter ran up to her.

    
“Where’s Violet?” Trina asked.

    
“She’s on one of the rides,” Paige said.
“Look.” She pointed to Winter’s hair. Some type of gooey, pink fuzz covered
Winter’s head.

    
“What the heck is this?” Trina bent down to
her. “Girl, what’s this stuff on your head?”
   

    
“Cotton candy,” Paige said. Winter cried as
she pulled at her sticky hair.

    
“Who did this?” Trina looked through her
hair. “God, this is a mess.”

    
“Gaston did it.” Paige pointed behind her.
“He’s over there by the Ferris wheel.”

    
“Okay, come on.” Trina grabbed Winter’s
hand and marched to the group of boys at the Ferris wheel.

    
The boys looked at her like deer caught in
headlights.

    
“Which one of you is Gaston?” Trina asked.

    
“Me.” The taller boy in the middle with the
striped T-shirt raised his hand. “Why?”

    
“Why? Did you put this mess in her hair?”
She pointed to Winter’s head. “Answer me, boy.”

    
He fidgeted and looked at his friends.

    
“Who do you think you are?” Trina bent down
to him. “You think you’re tough?”

    
He stepped back.

    
“You think it’s cool to pick on little
girls?” She poked him. “Answer me.”

    
“No,” he mumbled.

    
“Then how the hell did cotton candy get
into her hair? Let me tell you something. The crap you’ve been doing is over.
You lay another hand on Winter or mess with her again, and you’ll have to deal
with me.” She shoved him.

    
“Ow.” He rubbed his chest.

    
Trina leaned up. “And I don’t think you
could handle a girl my size.”

    
“He was just playing, lady,” said the blond
boy next to Gaston. “Chill out.”

    
“I won’t ‘chill out’ until he gets this
stuff off of her head.”

    
Gaston frowned. “How am I supposed to do
that?”

    
“You put it in there.” Trina grabbed him.
“You figure it out.”

    
“Hey, hey, hey.” A tall man, who towered
over Trina, stopped beside her. “What’s going on?”

    
“Who are you?” Trina snapped.

    
“I’m his father.” He waved the blue snow
cone toward Gaston. “Why are you manhandling my son?”

    
“Because he deserves it.” Trina let Gaston
go. “You’re his father? Do you condone the messes he makes?”

    
“What are you talking about?” He licked the
snow cone, and stuck out his blue tongue.

    
“Look at her hair.” She pointed at Winter.
“Your son put cotton candy in it.”

    
The man snickered.

    
“You think that’s funny?” Trina put her
hands on her hips. “He’s been bullying her, and it’s gonna stop now.”

    
“Bullying?” The man scoffed. “I just see
kids being kids.”

    
“Is this kids being kids?” Trina pulled the
sobbing Winter in front of her. “She’s a little girl who is crying her eyes
out. Don’t you care?”

    
“If you ask me, my son did her a favor. She
didn’t need the cotton candy anyway.”

    
“How dare you?” Trina lunged at him.

    
“Hey!” Neil ran up. “What the hell’s going
on?” He held Trina back. “Louis?”

    
“This is Louis?” Trina pointed to the man.
“The asshole who stole your job?”

    
“Yeah, that’s him.” Neil stood in front of
her. “You got a problem, Louis?”

    
“Enjoying the carnival like everyone else.”
He patted Neil’s shoulder. “And I didn’t steal no job.”

    
“Bullshit.” Neil smacked Louis’ hand from
his shoulder. “You knew I’d been counting on that job.”

    
“Forget the job,” Trina said. “Look at what
his son did to Winter.”

    
“Sweetie.” Neil pulled her to him. “What
happened to your hair?”

    
“Gaston put cotton candy in it,” Trina
said. “His father thinks it’s funny.”

    
“Like I said…he was helping her.” Louis
grinned.

    
“What did you say?” Neil got in his face.

    
“You
blind
?” Louis laughed.
“She’s the last one who needs cotton candy.”

    
“What?” Neil grabbed him by the shirt. “Say
that again.”

    
“Stop it!” Trina grabbed Neil’s arm. “He’s
not worth it.”

    
“I’m sick of you, Louis,” Neil said. “Ever
since high school, you’ve been a pain in my ass! I’m not putting up with your
shit anymore. Do you understand me?”

    
“I’m not worried about you or your fat-ass
daughter.”

    
“You son of a…” Neil raised his fist.

    
“Don’t!” Trina grabbed him. “Don’t hit
him.”

    
“Why not?” Neil huffed and puffed.

    
“Because I wanna do it.” Trina punched
Louis in the face.

    
“Ah!” He bent over and dropped the snow
cone. “What the hell?” He covered his nose. People gathered around. “You
could’ve broken my nose.” Louis removed his hand to show his sneaky grin. “I
like you.” He stood up straight. “Yeah she’s got a big mouth, but I can cure
her of that.”

    
“What?” Neil rocked. “You won’t cure her of
nothing.”

    
“I’ll handle this.” Trina got in between
them. “You wanna cure me of something, then go ahead and try, big boy.”

    
He smirked.

    
“I’m not afraid of you. You’re nothing but
a pathetic bully, just like your son. What kind of example are you setting for
that little boy?” Trina pointed to Gaston. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”

    
“I’m not a bully.” Louis straightened his
T-shirt. “What I am, is a man. A real man. Maybe if you weren’t hanging out
with pussies like Neil you’d know the difference.”

    
“Mother…” Neil jumped on Louis and threw
him to the ground.

    
“Neil!” Trina tried to pull him off. “Stop
it!”

    
“Say something else.” Neil raised a fist
over Louis. “You can do all you want to me, but don’t ever say anything about
my daughter again. You got that?”

    
“Come on!” Trina grabbed his hand. “He’s
not worth it.” Neil got off him.

    
Louis stood, laughing. “No big deal,
folks!” he yelled at the crowd. “Go on about your business. It’s just me and
Neil, doing what we do.”

    
 
“I’m
serious, Louis.” Neil swayed with his fists to his side. “I’m gonna end your
bullshit one day soon. I promise you.”

    
“Forget him.” Trina yanked Neil’s hand. “We
came to have fun, and we’re gonna have fun.”

    
“I like you, Mouth.” Louis snickered. “Sure
you can handle this one, Neil? I think she’s too much woman for you.” He
cackled. “I’ll see you again, Mouth.”

    
 
“Asshole,” Trina said.

    
She comforted Winter one last time before
Winter and Paige went in the other direction.

    
Neil stared at Louis as if he felt he could
kill him by looking at him.

    
Trina grabbed Neil’s arm and pulled him
through the crowd.