Pulled (5 page)

“Daniel, are you asking me out on a date after avoiding my phone cal s for the last three months?” I couldn’t tel if she was mad or surprised, but it real y didn’t matter. It wasn’t as if I actual y wanted to go out with her.

I paused before answering. “I guess I am.” Now I did owe her. I’d just given her what she’d set her sights on five months ago.

“Then I guess I’l have to accept on one condition; we do actual y meet on Thursday for lunch.”

“Fine.”

Okay, there was nothing fine about the whole situation, but what was I going to do?

“Tavalindo’s at noon?”

“Sure. I’l see you Thursday.” I hung up the phone, gripping my head as I leaned back against my chair, wondering how I got myself into this shit.

I glanced at the clock—noon. I had no appetite, but I had to get out of my smal office. I felt caged, irritable.

I passed through the lobby, throwing Lisa a halfhearted wave as I walked out the front door. I shoved my hands in the pockets of my slacks and strode the half-block to my favorite coffee shop just up the street from our temporary office. It was packed, the crowd only serving to flare my already chafed nerves.

Fifteen minutes later, I made it to the front of the line.

I ordered my regular, a large latte with a double shot of espresso, careful not to make eye contact with the brown-haired barista taking my order. She handed me my coffee, and I took a sip of it as I stuffed a couple of bucks in the tip jar and mumbled, “Thanks,” before I hurried outside.

I plopped into a metal chair at a smal bistro table sitting on the sidewalk. I had to escape reality for a couple of minutes. Closing my eyes, I raised my face to the sky and al owed my mind to drift in the cool Chicago breeze.

September 1997

“Good morning, sweetheart,” Mom sang as I
walked into the kitchen. I smiled in her direction where she
sat at the small breakfast bar with Dad and Erin.

“Morning.” I yawned and rubbed my face, trying
to wake myself up. I filled a bowl with cereal and milk and
took my place next to Erin. Dad and Erin were talking
about the upcoming school year. Erin was nervous about
the two sophomore AP classes she had signed up for,
and Mom and Dad were giving her encouragement.

I nudged my sister’s shoulder, her blonde wavy
hair swaying across her back.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I had both of those
classes last year. I’ll help you study if you need me to.”
Erin’s face brightened, and she nodded.

“Thanks, Daniel.”

“No problem.” I grinned at her. Of course I’d help
her. I adored her, even if she drove me crazy sometimes.

Dad glanced at his watch and reluctantly stood,
draining the last bit of coffee from his mug. “I have to get
to the hospital.”

He patted my shoulder, kissed Erin’s head, and
stopped to pull Mom up to him. He wrapped her in his
arms and kissed her hard, making her giggle against his
mouth. She swatted him playfully. “Be good.”
Erin grinned at me and rolled her eyes while I
screwed up my face in mock disgust at the affection our
parents showered upon each other. But secretly I hoped
that I’d find a girl to love as much as Dad loved Mom.

After Dad left, Mom went upstairs to shower,
leaving Erin and me to do the dishes. We chatted a little
more about school before Erin’s hazel eyes lit up.

“Oh, there’s a new girl who started working at the
coffee shop last night, Melanie Winters. She just moved
here from Texas with her dad. I invited her to come over
today.” Erin paused before adding in a singsong voice,

“She’s really pretty.”

I narrowed my eyes, knowing where Erin was
going with this. She was constantly trying to set me up with
someone.

“Not even remotely interested.”

She glared at me. “You don’t have to be like that
all the time. I really like her. Would it kill you to be nice to
her?”

It wasn’t like I wasn’t nice to her friends, but I
suppose I wasn’t exactly friendly, either. I couldn’t imagine
this girl was any different than the rest of them, easy with
not a brain cell to her name. No, thank you.

Sure, I dated a bit here and there, but the girls I’d
met never held my interest for long. They were all so
superficial; all they cared about was how I looked, what I
had, and what I could give them. So I didn’t waste my time.

It had earned me a reputation of being a dick who thought
he was too good for everyone, but I really didn’t care.

With only two years of high school left to prepare
for college, I needed perfect grades since I’d finally
decided I wanted to become a doctor. Dad never pushed
me, but I knew he’d always hoped I’d follow in his
footsteps. He said other than seeing his family happy,
he’d never found more joy than in helping someone heal.

“Fine. I’ll make an extra effort to say hi to her,” I
grumbled.

After helping Mom around the house, I went
upstairs to my room to watch TV, glad to have the rest of
the day to relax. I heard a car pull into the driveway and
stop in front of the house. A door slammed, and then the
car drove away. I heard footsteps on the wooden porch
and the sound of Erin’s voice.

I shook my head, trying to focus on the football
game on TV. I didn’t care what was going on downstairs. I
turned up the TV to drown out the sounds from below, but
it didn’t help. It was more as if I could feel the footsteps
rather than hear them. When the front door opened and
closed, I could ignore it no longer.

I strode from my room and down the hall. When I
saw her, I froze at the top of the stairs, unable to take my
eyes off the girl standing in the middle of the living room,
her intense emerald eyes staring back at me.

She was breathtaking—literally. We stood there
for I didn’t know how long before I tore my eyes away from
hers so I could take in the rest of her. Erin had said she
was pretty, but her beauty was beyond words. She had
long, brown hair that flowed in soft, thick curls all the way
down her back. Her skin was pale and smooth like a
porcelain doll. She didn’t have Erin’s hourglass figure, but
her slender build was gentle with feminine curves, and
she was maybe an inch shorter than Erin’s five-foot eight.

She wore tight jeans and an old band T-shirt that was a
little snug, accentuating the perfection that was Melanie
Winters.

In that moment, I knew I would never be the
same.

Erin cleared her throat.

“Um, Melanie, this is my brother, Daniel.

Daniel...Melanie.” She gestured between the two of us, but
it was unnecessary. I was already on my way down the
stairs. It was as if there was a magnet drawing me to her.

Even if I had tried, I couldn’t have walked away. I reached
for Melanie’s hand, not to shake it but to hold it in mine.

The warmth of her skin traveled through my body. It was
relaxing, but exciting at the same time.

Melanie looked at our hands, then back to my
face and smiled timidly. “Hi.” The sound of her voice sent
a shiver rolling through my body.

“Hi.” I smiled back, still unable to look away.

“So, Melanie, are you hungry or anything?” Erin
sounded cautious, almost awkward.

Melanie glanced at me, pensive, before slowly
withdrawing her hand. “Sure.”

For the first time in my life, I felt empty as I
watched her walk away, trailing Erin through the door and
into the kitchen.

Not quite willing to return to my room, I dropped
onto the couch, picked up the remote, and flipped on the
game I’d been watching upstairs. Melanie and Erin’s
voices carried through the thin barrier of the kitchen door,
muted, yet distinct of each other. Erin’s laugh was hearty,
substantial, while Melanie’s came soft and gentle, though
not inhibited or shy. She sounded comfortable. Quietly
confident.

It took me about five minutes to decide I was
hungry, too.

Silence fell over the kitchen as I stepped in.

Melanie and Erin turned to look at me from the small
breakfast table where they ate potato chips and drank
soda. Melanie’s face spread into a warm smile.

God, she was so beautiful.

I held her gaze for a moment before I shook
myself out of it and walked across the kitchen to get
something to drink. I could feel her eyes on me as I
leaned into the fridge and grabbed a soda, and they met
mine when I turned to face her, unfailing as I took two
steps toward the door.

I knew I should, but I just couldn’t leave the room.

“Erin.” I looked at my sister, my eyes pleading,
hoping she would understand that I was asking her to
leave Melanie and me alone.

She did. “I’m supposed to be at work at five. I
should get ready.” She stood up, looking awkwardly
between Melanie and me. I flashed a thankful smile.

Melanie stood as if she were going to leave.

I almost panicked.

“Can you stay?” My voice came out sounding
desperate.

What looked like relief swept over Melanie’s
face, and she nodded.

“I’ll see you soon, Melanie?” Erin asked as if she
were trying to gauge what Melanie wanted.

She turned to my sister, giving her a hug. “Yeah,
I would like that. Thank you for inviting me over.” Her
voice was soft and kind, sincere. Erin grinned at us, her
eyes glinting with approval and just a little smugness as
Melanie stepped to my side.

No doubt, I was going to hear it from my baby
sister later.

The door swung closed behind Erin, leaving us
alone.

I stood inches from her, staring into the warmth of
her green eyes, feeling emotions I’d never felt before.

This time, she reached for me, her hand moving
to grasp my index finger.

I closed my eyes, trying to make sense of what
was happening between us.

My eyes flickered open to find hers studying my
face as if she were memorizing every line. I intertwined our
fingers, squeezing her hand, telling her without words that I
felt it too.

I held onto her hand as I led her out of the
kitchen and up the stairs, sneaking glances back at her to
make sure she was real.

We spent the afternoon in my room just getting
to know each other.

I learned she was fifteen and would be sixteen in
April, ten months younger and a grade behind me.

I hung on her every word as she told me about
her childhood, everything she had liked and disliked. I
paid attention to what made her frown and what made her
smile. I listened as she told me that her parents had
divorced when she was young, but since both of her
parents had lived within minutes of each other, she had
grown up happy with what had felt like one big, extended
family. Peggy, her mom, was married to her stepfather
Mark, and she a little sister named Sarah.

Melanie had two stepbrothers from her father’s
second wife Cheryl. It was her father’s recent divorce from
Cheryl that brought Melanie to Colorado. Steve,
Melanie’s father, had taken the divorce hard, and he didn’t
want to stay in the same city as Cheryl. Melanie had
moved with her dad, certain he shouldn’t be alone in such
dark times.