The Beauty Within (7 page)

Panthers against the San Diego Chargers. They had local heroes on the Panth-

ers team; and since the Chargers were a touchdown favorite, their little crew

was going to cheer loud and hard in Wendy and Damon’s living room.

They went into the chip aisle and put every version of chips in their buggy.

They had no doubts all of them would be gone by the time the final seconds

ticked down in the game, either. Tyler was perusing the dips when she felt her

sister’s stare.

“What.”

“Gunnar’s gonna be there.”

Tyler was glad she didn’t do anything that expressed her interest in that

bit of news. “I wasn’t aware Gunnar and Damon were friends like that.”

“Yeah. We’ve actually gone on double dates before. The girls Gunnar dated

though…wow…it was just hard to watch.”

“Why?”

The Beauty Within

37

“They had the depth of a raindrop! Or if they didn’t, they would only talk

about their favorite subject—themselves. Gunnar is a man, though, so what

can you expect?”

“Standards? Taste?”

Tyler saw Wendy shrug out the corner of her eye. “Maybe he hadn’t found

a woman who met those things yet. And if you haven’t noticed, Gunnar is a

fine man, and he has needs. Going with those women would assure those needs

are met—”

“
Why
are we talking about this?”

“Because your big sister isn’t an idiot, and she knows when her baby sister

is interested in someone.”

“You’re only two years older than I am! And it’s not like I’ve never—”

“It’s been a minute and you know it!”

“This is new—older sis is trying to get younger sis some action!”

“Not action,” Wendy said, her demeanor becoming serious. “Some love.”

“Love,” Tyler scoffed.

“You can’t find it unless you put yourself out there.”

“I
have
.”

She didn’t want to talk about it, either. They still had shopping to do.

Tyler dumped the dips into the buggy and went down to the sodas, getting

an eclectic array of two-liter bottles. Though she much preferred sweet tea

herself, she wouldn’t deny the easy convenience of the carbonated drinks.

Wendy came behind her, sliding her arms around her sister’s waist and

resting her chin on Tyler’s shoulder. “You know I’m right.”

Tyler’s nostrils flared. “And so now you’re playing cupid for me and Gun-

nar?”

“Not necessarily. Damon has other single friends too.”

“That would be awkward.”

“Why?”

“They’re more like brothers!”

“And Gunnar?”

“
Why
are you bringing him up?”

Wendy took the bottles Tyler held and put them in the buggy. She then

grasped Tyler’s shoulders and turned her around so they faced each other. “I’m

bringing him up because he’s the first guy since—” Wendy took a deep breath,

clearly discomfited by the murderous look Tyler gave her. “You know I hadn’t

been overly excited by some of the fools you’ve dated recently, but Gunnar

seems different—”

“He’s white!”

“So the hell what? You think only black men can cross over? Don’t you get

that
twisted, hon! Does his whiteness bother you?”

“Not enough for me to reject him,” Tyler admitted.

“Then what is it?”

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Savannah J. Frierson

“It’s not him at all.”

Wendy’s frown went from confused to absolutely livid. “Tyler Carver!

There is
nothing
wrong
with you—!”

“We need to hurry up and finish here. I gotta get started on preparing the

food and all that…”

Tyler went behind their buggy and began pushing, blinking furiously at

the tears that had come unbidden. It was easy for Wendy to say there was

nothing wrong, especially since she had the perfect body her own self. Besides,

Wendy was her sister and she was supposed to say things like that, even if

they weren’t completely true. Tyler knew she wasn’t repulsive, she’d gone on

dates before, and she wasn’t a virgin, but her sister had been right as well.

None of those guys had been “long-haul” candidates, not like Damon was for

Wendy. Perhaps it was subconscious on her part, to choose men who wouldn’t

mean a damn to her on that all-important level, but someone had dwelled there

before, and when he’d moved out, he’d left it wrecked and close to inhospita-

ble. Tyler was slowly rebuilding, but she knew it would be a long time before

she could welcome a new resident.

“Just because
he
sold you short doesn’t mean
you
have to.”

Wendy’s voice was a gnat, especially so since she was right. “I know.”

Wendy came beside Tyler and kissed her temple. “I know you know.

Doesn’t mean I shouldn’t remind you sometimes.”

They managed to finish shopping quickly, Tyler silently thanking her sister

for suggesting they come at dawn to beat the Super Bowl party rush. Checkout

was painless, and they used the buggy to transport the many bags to Wendy’s

dark-green Jetta. Tyler offered to take the buggy back, deciding to forgo the

drop-off points in the parking lot and go back to the store. The exercise would

be good for her…

“Excuse me, Miss?”

Tyler started. She’d been so busy trying to shove the buggy in its proper

place in line she hadn’t been aware someone was calling her. She turned

towards the voice and damn near dropped her mouth in lust. He was tall,

almost taller than Damon, and was the color of dark chocolate. He had a sharp

mustache along his top lip and his hair was cut short and close to his head. He

wasn’t as large as Damon or Gunnar, but it was obvious the man took care of

himself, given the workout jacket and matching pants he wore.

Her hands immediately went to her hair, which was covered by a worn

bandana, though her own outfit of sweats wasn’t that much better, either.

“Yes?”

He grinned and Tyler wanted to whimper. “Normally I’m not so bold but, I

wanted to ask you a question.”

She frowned, curious. “Okay.”

The Beauty Within

39

He shuffled a little and put his hands in his pockets. His hesitation

charmed her. “Your friend is…extremely beautiful. I was wondering if she was

single?”

Tyler felt like an idiot, and her throat began closing with tears. “She’s my

sister, and no, she’s not.”

The shock that overcame his features didn’t make her feel any better. “Oh! I

had no idea—I’m sorry.”

Tyler knew he meant more than his inquiry about Wendy. “That’s all

right.”

The beep of a horn made them both jump, and she wished the concrete

would open up and swallow her. “That’s my sister. Apparently we’re in a real

hurry at six-thirty in the morning.”

He chuckled. “Apparently. Well…um…have a good one. And sorry again.”

“No problem, you too.”

Tyler got in the car with as much dignity as she could muster, but cursed

when Wendy slapped her shoulder. “Damn!
What
?”

Wendy was unfazed by her sister’s rough tone. “That man was
fione
! Did

you get the digits?”

“No, but he sure wanted yours,” Tyler said, leaning her head against the

cool window. And here Wendy wanted her to try something with Gunnar! If

Mr. BroFine wasn’t interested, how could she think Gunnar would be?

Sometimes Wendy was a little too optimistic for her own good.

“Well, goes to show fineness ain’t an indicator of intelligence. He’s a fool

not to want to get to know you better,” Wendy muttered, pulling away from

the curb and beginning the drive to her house.

Tyler grinned but said nothing. High optimism or not, when Wendy was

right, she was right.

Tyler really
did
love her football. She was unapologetic in her passion, curs-

ing, cheering, celebrating, and carousing with as much fervor as the other

guests watching the game. The Panthers were down by a field goal and they

were on what could only be the last drive of the game, and everyone was on the

edge of his seat.

Except Tyler. She’d gone into the kitchen because “she couldn’t take it.”

Wendy and Damon had called her a wuss while Damon’s other friend

cackled in agreement, but Gunnar completely understood Tyler’s flight. She

needed to hold on to the last vestige of her sanity she had left, for the game had

taken her on an emotional gamut, especially these last thirteen minutes of it.

The two teams had exchanged leads with as much frequency as tennis volleys,

and with the game on the line, Gunnar couldn’t blame Tyler’s reluctance to see

how it all went down.

40

Savannah J. Frierson

“That’s what TiVo’s for, after all,” Tyler had called when Damon had teased

her about leaving. Even still, every time they screamed, Tyler would poke her

head out the kitchen to see what was going on, unaware to everyone but him.

He couldn’t help it, though. She made it impossible for him to ignore, even if

she wore an oversized jersey of a Panther’s player (last name Peppers, appar-

ently some popular defensive player) and jeans. It reminded him of a light-blue

version of her smock at the barbershop, and it was just as ineffective at hiding

her curves as the smock was.

He tried not to stare, but every time she bent over to place a fresh bowl of

chips on the coffee table or refill someone’s drink, that abundant bum of hers

mocked him to touch. He noticed another one of Damon’s friends noticing, too,

but Tyler had been completely oblivious to the perusal. Gunnar couldn’t help

but feel smug about that. He shouldn’t be the only one suffering frustration.

“I’mma tell RayRay on you,” Wendy had teased when Tyler had come

down in the jersey. “You know you should be wearin’ his numbers!” Rayshon

Powers apparently was the hometown hero who was having a very good

season in the running back position.

“I love RayRay, I do, but you know I’m marryin’ Peppers!” Tyler said, wink-

ing at Damon.

“Does Peppers ‘know’ that?” Damon had asked.

“I’ve yet to inform him of our upcoming nuptials, but he’s been rather busy

getting ready for the game, hasn’t he?” Tyler said, not missing a beat.

Though Gunnar knew they were only joking, the thought of some other

man having indisputable rights to touch her made him irritable. He’d been

quiet during the first quarter of the game, trying to dismiss the idle ribbing,

and it wasn’t until Tyler of all people had nudged him in the side did he get his

head in the game.

“Are you all right?” she’d asked in his ear, her tone kind and understanding.

Clearly she was remembering their conversation from almost two weeks ago,

and he couldn’t help but feel pleased she’d deemed the conversation important

enough to be memorable.

“I’m fine. How about you? I’ve never seen you so into something.”

He knew Tyler had blushed, though he couldn’t see it, and she’d shrugged

her shoulders. “Can’t be helped. Football turns me into a fiend!”

“Never that,” Gunnar had said sincerely, and Tyler had turned her atten-

tion back to the game, her invisible blush even more intense.

Now, as the game ticked down to the final quadruple zeroes, Gunnar

found his attention more on Tyler than the actual contest.

He’d had a blast, admittedly touched Damon had thought to include him in

the festivities. He liked football as much as the next person, but he hadn’t

made any real plans to watch because he was only vaguely interested in the

two teams. He didn’t have any real loyalty to one of the thirty-two franchises,

but since he was a North Carolinian, he did have a soft spot for the Panthers.

The Beauty Within

41

Damon’s friends were welcoming, seeming unfazed he was the only white

person in the room, and brought him into the fold easily. Then again, given he’d

played football for a good number of his life, and many of the team’s players

had been black, Gunnar didn’t feel very out of place himself. It was only Tyler’s

presence that had him edgy, and the fact both Damon and Wendy had been

watching him like hawks whenever they were together.

Damon had backed off from his earlier threat regarding Tyler, but Gunnar

knew that didn’t mean he was completely off the hook. Damon knew better

than to stop an attraction from running its course, especially with Wendy

apparently threatening bodily harm if he didn’t let
her
sister live her own life.

Wendy, on the other hand, seemed pleased as punch someone was showing a

shining to Tyler, but Gunnar actually had more fear of her than Damon. If he

did something to hurt Tyler, he had no doubt Wendy would kill him and

dispose of his body so it would never be found.

It was, apparently, in the Older Sister’s Creed.

Shaking his head, Gunnar chose this latest commercial break to go into the

kitchen. Tyler was reaching into the cabinet, causing the jersey to pull tightly

across her body, and Gunnar stifled a moan. He waited until she was flat on

her feet before speaking.

“You need any help?”

She whirled toward him, her hand over her chest as if to still the rapid

beating of her heart. She glowered at him. “You scared me!”