Transitions (A Thousand Words Book 1) (5 page)

“Pink’s my favorite color, so you’ll be seeing a lot of it,” Lindsay said. She let her hand trail down past Dev’s chin and fall back to the table. “Maybe I should have worn purple tonight. A reminder that I know you and I support you, all of you, just as you are.”

The reference to his online identity as Pugmire the Purple made Dev smile. He nodded. “Pink’s okay. Maybe I should shake things up and change my avatar color.”

Lindsay laughed. “Oh, I bet that would go over well. Everyone would think you’re a girl. Of course Terese is alone right now.”

“She’s just the only one who admits to it.” Dev shook his head.

Lindsay perked up, Dev’s eyebrows pulled together in confusion.

“So Bec – I mean Terese
isn’t
the only girl?”

Dev hesitated then shook his head. “Rhys the Red is a girl.”

“You can’t be serious.”

Dev grinned. “Trust me, she is. I was seriously disturbed when I found out. I always pictured Rhys as a big hairy warrior-type.”

Lindsay frowned. “I’ve only seen a few posts actually. I look over your shoulder sometimes and . . . someone else’s. I don’t get to see much of your chat. Mostly I just see the unofficial information. Does Terese know?”

“I never mentioned it, so I doubt it.”

“I’m not sure I like it that you do.”

Dev analyzed Lindsay’s small frown and pursed brow, wishing he could read her as easily as she so often read his mood and even, it seemed, his mind.

“Tell me about it,” Lindsay ordered. Dev didn’t judge if she had the right to make that demand. She was his girlfriend, he’d humor her as much as he could. He felt briefly unsettled at the reminder that Lindsay was his
girlfriend.
Dev pushed his unease aside, it wasn’t like it was really . . .

Filing away his disturbing thoughts, Dev carefully told Lindsay about spring break and discovering George’s affiliation with The Web Wizards. He left her name out of it, of course, and that she flirted with him almost constantly. Lindsay didn’t need to know names, and it wasn’t his place to blow someone else’s cover.

“So she’s the one who’s been hitting on you,” Lindsay said, sitting back and folding her arms.

“What? I didn’t say that.” Dev mentally retraced his steps, wondering where he’d left the breadcrumbs Lindsay followed to that conclusion. The waiter appeared in his peripheral vision again and Dev reached for the lifeline.

“The waiter’s coming back. Quick, decide what you want.” He picked up the menu and started looking it over. Lindsay didn’t move, and he pointed to her menu as a hint.

“I’m having the butternut squash ravioli with portobello mushrooms. We’ve been here before, remember?”

Dev felt his face turn pink and concentrated on the menu. He was so distracted by Lindsay’s new look, the uncomfortable conversation, and now the pressure of the waiter standing over them that he couldn’t think. Closing the menu and setting it aside, Dev caught Lindsay’s eye.

“Fine, what do I want?”

She grinned mischievously. “To eat I assume?”

He nodded, confident his face was a darker pink than her dress by far.

Lindsay turned to the waiter and ordered for him, but Dev wasn’t paying attention. The line of Lindsay’s cheek stood pink against her creamy flesh, drawing Dev’s eye. The way she moved, the light brush of her hair against her face, the way her ear peeked out from beneath the pale strands. Lindsay’s earrings caught Dev’s attention: simple pearl studs and they bothered him for some reason. Maybe he’d buy her earrings. Jess talked about giving women jewelry, but Dev couldn’t remember the rules Jess followed at the moment. Of course it didn’t –

“Dev?” Lindsay called his name to get his attention, shaking his thoughts loose. He smiled and shook his head. “Thoughts?” she asked.

“Jess and his ideas about dating.”

“They don’t apply to us, you know that. Now that you brought it up though . . .”

Dev smiled and tried to be positive as Lindsay questioned how Jess and Kenny were likely to take her new look. He couldn’t figure out how she managed to spring it on him like this and asked her about it directly. Lindsay blushed a fascinatingly feminine shade of pink when she admitted she wore a black wig for their weekly webcam dates. One thing he always appreciated about Lindsay was her dedication. She never did anything halfway.

Somehow Dev made it through dinner. Even though Lindsay knew everything he did the last few months and vice versa, they recapped the high points before moving on to the latest news in computing. By the time he slid behind the wheel of his car, Dev was more comfortable with the new Lindsay Antoinette Caffey.

It was early yet and Dev drove out to a rocky beach on Puget Sound. He parked and told Lindsay what he knew so far about the upcoming tour. She listened attentively, but as Dev went on, he realized Lindsay wasn’t happy to hear about the musical achievement that would soon tear them apart again.

“So I have to listen to these CDs,” Dev finished weakly. He gestured to three CDs he had wedged between the seats. Lindsay picked them up, chose one, and slid it into the CD player. She forwarded to the fourth track and turned up the volume as Dev heard the first strained notes of a guitar.

“Rushing On,” Lindsay said. “You could get a worse band to open for.”

“Big crowds. More people than we could draw on our own.”

“I suppose. You’ve heard their singles, right?”

“Hard to miss,” Dev agreed.

“They mostly suck. I like this one though.” Lindsay leaned over and turned it up a little more.

They listened to the song, then Lindsay skipped over two tracks and they listened to another. Dev didn’t completely listen to all three CDs, but he got the high points. He also got a better idea of what Lindsay liked: a style completely different from A Thousand Words
.

She listened to a lot of different things, Dev told himself. Upon reflection, he realized when they listened to music together they listened to a radio station where they didn’t have control over the play list. He never suggested anything and neither did she. This, Lindsay skipping tracks and saying she didn’t care for Rushing On’s recent hits, was as close as she ever came to expressing an opinion on music.

Kenny’s rant about Lindsay not being part of that side of his life came to mind. Dev didn’t like the conflicting feelings the night’s discoveries grew in him. He felt sick, uneasy, and restless to address the problem, but terrified to discuss it with Lindsay at the same time. Worse, that there was something he couldn’t talk to her about made him worry about the very foundation of their relationship.

“Dev, you’re thinking again,” Lindsay chastised him with a sly smile. “I thought we agreed you wouldn’t overthink things. You’re breaking out in a sweat.”

Embarrassed, Dev realized she was right and tried to smile and shrug it off.

Lindsay turned off the music. “It’s about time to take me home anyway, then I’ll tell you something that should really blow your mind.”

He looked at her sharply.

“Don’t worry, I’m still not interfering in that five-year-going-to-be-in-graduate-school plan. I might settle some of that internal conflict you’ve got going that you clearly don’t want to talk about yet. Although, to be honest, it’ll probably make it a little worse until about . . . we’ll say one to two a.m. Then you can message me, text me, call me – whatever you like, and we’ll talk.”

“Is your plan this intricate and detailed because you’ve spent a long time putting it all together? Or because you know me so well you think you can predict exactly how I’m going to melt down and how long it’ll take to pull myself together again? Or are all women like this and no one thought to mention it to me?” Dev asked, starting the car again and not daring to look at Lindsay. If she laughed, he didn’t know what he’d do. She didn’t though, instead she reached over and pulled his hand from the steering wheel and held it in both of hers. She was silent, waiting, and Dev finally clenched his teeth and looked at her so she’d answer him.

“All of the above. Now, don’t worry about it.” Lindsay winked playfully and released his hand.

Dev put the car in gear and drove her home. The drive was silent, but not as uncomfortable as the previous ones were. Dev let his mind wander again, pulling up to Lindsay’s house a while later almost surprised at their arrival. He’d been driving on automatic, not paying attention to anything beyond his thoughts, and amazingly, Lindsay let him dwell the entire drive. The revelation didn’t make him happy, it was dangerous on so many levels: first, he was driving while not truly paying attention; and second, ignoring Lindsay could come back to bite him.

Helping Lindsay out of the car, Dev escorted her up the walk, lost in thought, until Lindsay stopped and turned to look at him. As Dev was still below the low steps up to her front porch, Lindsay’s position on the bottom step put her at eye level, something Dev wasn’t used to.

Looking into Lindsay’s eyes, his morose concerns over what Kenny and Jess were going to say about Lindsay’s new look fled his mind. His best friends could go to hell, he didn’t care what they thought.

Waiting for the guilt trip or snappy chastisement over his silence that was sure to come, Dev was surprised when Lindsay put her hands on his shoulders. He watched carefully for her next move so he almost didn’t flinch when Lindsay slowly leaned forward and pressed her lips to his.

The single experience Dev had with Lindsay’s kisses was a brief, light kiss brushing the corner of his mouth. As innocent as the kiss was, it still left an impression on him. Dev initially expected the same, but Lindsay’s lips softly caressed his and parted slightly. Dev’s heart rate jumped. Between the two of them, she had the experience and he acknowledged her as the teacher in this scenario. When instinct failed, Dev decided to simply do what Lindsay did. He fought back his panic as he opened his mouth to mirror her own.

Lindsay’s hands crawled across his shoulders and climbed his neck; she let her fingers slide into his hair, with her thumbs resting on his cheek bones. At the same time, Lindsay tilted her head slightly and let the tip of her tongue flick gently across the threshold of his lips.

Dev felt awkward as he put his hands on Lindsay’s waist. He wasn’t sure about what she was doing with her tongue, only that he was sure he couldn’t mimic it.

Undaunted by his failure to reciprocate, Lindsay’s tongue slid deeper into Dev’s mouth. Soon Dev lost the ability to analyze her movements, then interest in trying, as the kiss turned into an exotic dance of gentle strokes, brushes, taps, grazes, and teasing chases.

Then it was over. It seemed Lindsay glowed, but otherwise gave only a slight smile as she backed away.

“I promised earlier I’d tell you something that would blow your mind. This doesn’t change anything, not in terms of college, the tour, the band, or the guys. It won’t make our relationship easier, but I don’t think it’ll make it harder either. This is just something that I don’t think you know yet, and you really should.” Lindsay leaned over Dev’s shoulder, letting her lips brush his ear, and said softly: “You love me.”

Not waiting for an answer, Lindsay turned and disappeared behind a closing door before Dev’s mind began to formulate a response.

Dev stood on the step staring at Lindsay’s front door. That he’d thought about that original glancing kiss daily for the past few months and hoped she’d grace him with another one wasn’t lost on him. This was different. Dev didn’t have words to describe this.

A bench sat in the flowerbed that lined the walk and Dev stumbled the few feet to it and sat. Lindsay freely admitted she was leading him to something, was this it? Maybe.

How could she tell him
he
loved
her
? That was a little presumptuous. Dev leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. Wouldn’t it be more normal for her to say
she
loved
him
and then scamper off? Did she? What if she didn’t? Dev considered that. What if Lindsay
didn’t
love him but thought he loved her?

Did
he love her? Dev wasn’t sure. Was there some sort of test? Wasn’t he supposed to feel like he was falling, or have rocks in his stomach, or feel sick all the time, or something?

Bryan loved Brenda, but Dev wasn’t around when it happened. They’d always been together from his point of view. Jess and Cassie – no, Jess was more obsessed with his sister than loved her, that didn’t count. His mom – Dev didn’t want to think about his mom either with Paul or Flynn, and didn’t pay much attention to her interaction with his dad. Kenny wasn’t with Alicia long enough to count.

Back to Bryan and Brenda. Dev couldn’t see how he and Lindsay emulated Bryan and Brenda in any way. Okay, they didn’t fight. When they disagreed about anything, the girls inevitably won, that was the same. He supposed he did little things for Lindsay for no reason like Bryan did for Brenda. And Lindsay humored him, like going to the skateboard park on dates when she didn’t have to. And she put up with Kenny and Jess. She was like Brenda in those ways, he supposed.

Dev remembered the night he took Lindsay to meet the band. On the way home, Lindsay told him she’d always be there to support him no matter what he needed. She understood his hacker side and understood his music side existed, even if she wasn’t really into it. Lindsay said she was willing to be what he needed her to be.

Putting that long-ago conversation in context with everything that happened tonight, Dev started making connections. Lindsay said she kept the goth pretext going longer than she needed to because
he
wasn’t ready for her to drop it yet. Everything she did, she did for him. He was pretty sure that meant Lindsay loved him. Why not just tell him that?

Because it would freak him out, Dev smiled. Telling him that
he loved her
was a puzzle, and Lindsay knew it was a puzzle he couldn’t pass up. She knew he’d sit down and figure it out and realize she loved him, and what she’d been doing about it for – wow, a year now.

The question was: did he love her? Dev looked back to the closed door he suspected Lindsay was waiting behind. She might even be watching him through the peephole. There was something about her, something indefinable he’d known all along that made him see himself as marrying her. If he wanted to marry her, that probably counted as loving her. That was when she still looked like she was dressed for Halloween. Now there was definitely a physical attraction. He wanted to kiss her and hold her. Dev pushed those thoughts aside.

He knew what Lindsay was, what she wanted, and that would be a challenge for another time. First, he couldn’t leave her waiting.

Standing up, Dev strode up the walk with confidence. He reached for the doorbell, then hesitated. It was late and Lindsay was probably just on the other side of the door anyway. There was no reason to disturb the whole house. He knocked on the door instead.

The door opened immediately. It wasn’t even locked, Dev noticed with satisfaction. Lindsay smiled at him and leaned against the frame. She’d touched up her makeup and her face was perfect.

Dev motioned for her to step outside, she did.

“You wanted to talk to me?” Lindsay asked.

Dev nodded. “You love me too,” he said and leaned forward, pressing his lips carefully to hers. He slid his hands around her waist, surprised at how small and fragile she seemed in his hands. Lindsay’s arms rested on his shoulders, her fingers finding their way into his hair again, this time Dev didn’t mind. His lips parted, as did hers, and he tentatively let his tongue explore her mouth, beginning the intricate dance he didn’t really know the moves to. As it turned out, it didn’t matter. Lindsay was delicate and strong at the same time. She guided and tempted him, drawing him deeper, pulling him closer. Dev felt her body mold to his. He wanted to know all of her secrets and knew that she would show him, but in her own time and in her own way. Heat rose in him, in his stomach and lower. He needed to pull away, but didn’t want to as well. If he let this continue . . . Dev broke off the kiss, turning away and gasping for the cool night air.

Lindsay’s fingers gently stroked his cheek, leaving a burning trail in their wake. Dev closed his eyes, he couldn’t look at her. He had to calm down and just the thought of her wasn’t helping.

Tiny kisses on his neck made him flinch and Lindsay stopped. She held him instead, letting her head rest on his chest. They stood like that, entwined together, for what Dev felt was a long time. Finally he felt calm and steady enough to move and opened his eyes.

It wasn’t as bad as he imagined, he was simply holding her. There wasn’t anything racy to be seen. Kissing the top of Lindsay’s head, Dev relaxed his hold on her. Lindsay took a step back and smiled up at him.

“That was a bit more than I expected,” she said. “Quicker too. I underestimated you.”

Dev felt the color fill his cheeks and glanced back toward her front door, imagining Jack watching through the peephole.

“Relax, we’re alone,” Lindsay said. “Now that we’ve managed that hurdle, get some sleep.”

“Sleep? You know I get to run the gauntlet as soon as I get home, right?”

“They still ambush you?”

“I bailed on tour planning in favor of spending time with my girlfriend. Yeah, they’ll ambush me,” Dev told her.

“Dev, in the grand scheme of things, nothing’s really changed. A little bit, sure: I let the dye grow out of my hair, changed my wardrobe, and you kissed me. Not that even that much is their business, but I know Jess is really hung up on the kissing issue. Trust me, ignore Jess. Kenny isn’t qualified no matter how many psychology books he reads. You can listen to Bryan if he decides to dispense any wisdom, assuming he’s even there. If it comes to advice, Flynn is probably right if he offers any. I’m sorry, but it’s true.

“It’s really going to come down to Jess and Kenny though, isn’t it? They’re the nosy ones who’ll be waiting to ambush you.” She shrugged. “Tell them as much or little as you’re comfortable with. I’m sitting back and being supportive, as usual.”

Lindsay reached up and kissed Dev again, moist and deep. “Try to relax and get a good night’s sleep, honey. You’ve got a long week ahead of you with the tour plans and everything. I’ll leave you to it tomorrow, but the day after I expect some quality time.”

Dev smiled. “Okay, deal.”

○ ○ ○

Dev drove home, considering everything that happened. He wasn’t going to tell the guys anything. Maybe Bryan if they were alone, but otherwise, not a word. Of course they’d find out Lindsay’s clothes fit her differently when they started playing the lineup for the tour. Kenny already had everything arranged, it was just a matter of practicing so they ran together perfectly. Brenda and Lindsay would be there at least some of the time when they played, it was pretty standard.

He thought about that as he stopped at a light. Lindsay sitting there watching him, with those legs . . . she might be a distraction now. Well, if she was, he’d explain it to her and shoo her off to his room to play on his computer. No big deal.

Pulling into the driveway, Dev swore lightly when he saw Jess’s shiny red Jag sitting in the driveway. Kenny always parked his truck behind the garage, but Dev didn’t have to look to see if he was home, he was rarely anywhere else this time of night. Bryan’s practical Acura was nowhere to be found. He shouldn’t really expect it to be here. Bryan had his own house and Brenda would want him home with her. Still, it would have been nice if they were over watching a movie. Dev almost left and went to Bryan’s house to chat, but that meant disturbing Bryan and Brenda and it was late. He could talk to his best friend tomorrow. He could handle Jess and Kenny tonight. Besides, he might be able to avoid them altogether.

Dev tried to be quiet, but not so quiet he could be accused of being sneaky, as he parked and walked to the back door. Flynn was in the kitchen and he hurried past him and downstairs to the basement before his stepfather tried to engage him in conversation.

Kenny and Jess sat in the basement and Dev paused on the bottom step when he saw them there. They were watching TV, a seemingly innocent act, but Dev knew they were waiting for him.

“So how’d the date with Little Miss Walking Dead go?” Jess asked.

“Get bent.” Dev walked past them to his room without a glance. He closed the door behind him, and sat at his desk. Above his computer, a picture of Lindsay and Becky at the skateboard park caught his eye. Lindsay in her goth makeup. He already wished he had a picture of her in pink instead of black. Dev was still staring at the picture wistfully when Jess walked in without knocking, Kenny on his heels.

“Flynn’s making popcorn and Sophie wants to watch a movie,” Kenny said. “I think she’s excited summer’s here and Flynn relaxed her bedtime. She’s working her way through the James Bond series.”

“What’s she up to?” Dev asked, only half-interested.

“Roger Moore,” Kenny answered.

“Let me know when she hits Pierce Brosnan.”

Kenny nodded. He gestured to the picture of Lindsay and Becky. “How’d it go with Lin?”

Dev hesitated a fraction of a second too long. “Good.”

“That was a great answer,” Kenny said with false enthusiasm. The smile vanished from his face. “Now I’d like the truth.”

Dev gave him a blank stare.

“You’re hiding something. I’d like to know what.”

Dev shook his head. There was no way he was having this conversation with Kenny and Jess. Kenny seemed to understand his hesitation, he turned to Jess. “Take a hike.”

“What?” Jess asked.

“He’s not talking with you here, scram,” Kenny said.

Jess scowled at Dev and left, closing the door behind him. Kenny turned his attention back to Dev. “Fine, we’re alone. Now, what happened?”

“What on God’s green earth makes you think I’d tell you?” Dev asked.

“So something
did
happen? I thought so. Your posture and behavior screamed something was wrong. Something’s on your mind, and we can’t afford that right now. We’re leaving to finish the final stages for tour prep in two weeks. Less than two weeks. Relationship issues need to be worked out before then. Knowing Lindsay, it could take some time. I’d like to get started now.”

“Fuck you.” Dev rarely swore, so the words felt unfamiliar on his lips. It was the appropriate response, however, and he refused to feel guilty.

Kenny leaned against Dev’s bunk beds and watched him. Dev’s eyes glanced back to the picture of Lindsay on his wall, then he tore his eyes away, not wanting Kenny to read anything into it.

“I suppose I could ask Bryan.”

“Bryan doesn’t know.”

“Are you sure?”

Dev laughed. “Pretty sure, but you’re welcome to try. Go for it, just get out. I’d like to write some poetry while it’s on my mind.”

Kenny opened his mouth to say something, then seemed to think better of it. Dev’s gamble paid off, Kenny left.

As soon as the door closed, Dev opened the laptop on his desk and brought up a program he hadn’t used in a long time. He trusted nothing had changed while he was gone.

A window opened, offering a list of microphones to choose from. Pulling a set of headphones from a desk drawer, Dev plugged them in and selected a microphone. The sound quality was still reasonably good, meaning no one covered up the tiny bug he planted in the rec room downstairs.

“. . . something’s going on, he accidentally confirmed that much.” Kenny’s voice was slightly tinny, but recognizable.

“Should we ask Bryan? He always seems to know what’s on the kid’s mind.” Jess’s voice didn’t seem to suffer as much from the bug’s deficiencies, a curiosity Dev never put time into researching. Flynn’s voice didn’t either and it irritated him.

“No, he said Bryan didn’t know anything about it.”

“You believe him? It’s late but we could call him. You could call him. I’m not risking Brenda’s wrath.”

“You’re pathetic, you know that?”

“
You
take her on.”

Kenny laughed. “No need. I believe him when he said Bryan doesn’t know. And he said he wanted to write poetry about it too. I thought that was odd.”

“Why? He writes a ton of poetry about Lindsay, you know that. Almost all the recent love songs we have are about her in one way or another.” Someone got up and moved around. The footfalls were heavy but didn’t slide and Dev assumed it was Jess. Kenny was shorter and usually shuffled his feet slightly. “It kind of makes me sick to think about that you know. I have to
sing
those love songs.”