Wicked Flower (18 page)

Dani knew instantly.
“Out
of gas.”

“Exactly.
So then I’m
like, ‘tell me the ticket number and I’ll swing by and get it, no worries.’ I’d
be late for a few band things but no biggie. She’s lost the claim ticket. Tells
me her mom needs them for a special dinner that night.
That
the boots were their father’s Mother’s Day gift to her twenty years ago.
She has to have these boots for that night.”

“Oh man, next I bet you’re
gonna
tell me they were at some place in
BFE
.”

Will just nodded and a gigantic smile
turned him into that man-child she’d seen beating the Mercedes dashboard at the
truck stop and shoving around with Stefan.
“Specialty shop.
Fifty miles on the other side of Los Angeles.
Freaking
Dodgers game going on, due to let out the same time my dumb ass is driving to
pick up these boots.” He still grinned, even though the details sounded
gruesome. Dani had never been but had heard of LA traffic.

“But I bet you went.”

He nodded again. “If she called me right
now, needing something, I’d find a way.”

“And all this you’d do for an in-law.
Lucky girl.”

He frowned this time and turned to her
when he said, “Lucky me. She’ll uh, she’ll always be family. So I uh, I’m sorry
for the long ass story, but I get it. Why we’re picking up the stuff for your
sister.”

Dani didn’t know what to say. She’d
wondered lots of things about Will. One of them being if he was
single,
married,
girlfriended
,
boyfriended
. Apparently he’d been married and spoke of the
woman, Honey, and her family with so much love, Dani knew in the pit of her
stomach the two hadn’t split up. She glanced at his hand, no ring. But she’d
wager there hadn’t been a divorce. Life had to have taken this Honey from him.
She wouldn’t hound him over it. But maybe he’d be okay answering something
about Stefan.

“Hey Will?”

“Yeah?”
He rubbed his
right hand through his strip of hair, tugging as he went and ending at the knot.
“What do you want to know about Stefan?” He grinned.

Shit, he’d called her bluff, expertly
she might add.
“Nothing.
I wasn’t
gonna
ask you that. About him, I mean.”

“Never been
married.
No kids. No significant other.”

She tried to stop him even though she’d
let him throw out these fragmented details about the man without end if she
could. They were presently far enough away that she couldn’t go running after
Stefan like a desperate little puppy. “You don’t have to tell me all this. I
respect his privacy.” She knew she just threw that out there for posterity.
Trying to sound better than those who would pry into his private
life even though she was curious to the point of salivation, especially after
their mutual avoidance of each other.
Only one more week and he’d be
gone. The thought was as agonizing as it was a relief.

Will just tilted his head in her
direction and smiled another soft smile.
“Six-One.
Hundred-ninety pounds.
Oh, excellent
smoothie maker, by the way.”
Did he just laugh?

“You’re teasing me, aren’t you? And this
whole time I’ve been taking you for the nice one,” she exclaimed.

“Yeah, well everything I said is true,
but I’m just messing with you. Seriously, we can talk about Stefan, if you
want. That was just my way of breaking the ice. I don’t get out much.”

“Will, you’re just about the coolest guy
I’ve ever met.” She meant it. But talking about Stefan with Will, while it
might be tempting, was entirely too nerve-wracking. Probably because she had
yet to find out if Stefan had been the type to kiss and tell.

“Code for
you’re
too nice of a girl to pry. That’s cool. If you change your mind, I can be
bribed with midnight trips to
Taggert’s
.
Just
sayin
’.”

She laughed. “You wouldn’t really
divulge his secrets, would you? Isn’t there some type of guy code you’d be
breaking?”

“There is.” He winked. “Like I said
,
if you change your mind.” And then he added, “He’s being
an idiot avoiding you.” He tilted his head and looked at her differently than
he had when they’d been joking just now. What was that about? Will continued
before she had the chance to worry anymore. “
Which is why I’m
really glad he plans to take you to dinner tonight.
You can’t say no
because I need some quality time with Mrs. C.”

A thousand emotions choked down any
chance of even one word making its way out.
Will must
not know she was the one who’d insisted on the distance in the first place which
meant Stefan hadn’t complained about her to his friend. Stefan was only doing
her bidding.
Doing it well.
Too
well.
He wasn’t an idiot for it. He was … decent.

But with Will’s admission, was there
really anything else she needed to ask? With the little bit of time they had left?
The thought that Stefan still wanted to take her to dinner and had told his friend
both excited and broke her heart. What else could come of it?

She found her voice and spit out the
first non-Stefan related thing that came to mind. “I think you’re
gonna
get a real kick out of Daisy. You remind me a lot of
her. She’s cute and can talk to just about anyone, anywhere, about anything.”

His drumming fingers stilled over his
cargo shorts. It was only when they pulled into the Super
Taggert’s
parking lot that he smiled again, and let go of the chunk of
mohawk
he’d fisted in his hand. Dani
noted his reaction to her two-second stint as cupid and vowed not to ever go
there again. But she couldn’t help but suffer a little heartbreak for the kind
man who for the strangest reason, she could totally see as being the big
brother she’d never had. He adjusted his glasses and smiled.
So
cute.

“We’re here,” she said with a shot of
overdone joy.

“Let’s shop,” Will said back, apparently
over their awkward bit about Daisy. “I know exactly where home appliances are.
Come on. Let’s take care of that baby sister of yours.”

Geez, how was she going to say goodbye
to him too? She’d have to save up and go to a Sin Pointe concert on this tour.
“Hey Will, do you guys ever come to Pittsburgh?”

“Who?
Me and Stefan?”

She pinched him, and was so happy when
he didn’t frown or flinch. “You know who I mean.
Your band.”

He stepped alongside her so that they
walked almost shoulder to shoulder but his hands were tucked deep into his
shorts pockets. “Pittsburgh is on the schedule. I’m just not sure of the date.
You’re
gonna
come see us play, aren’t you?”

“Maybe, I’d like to. I’ve never been.
We’ll see.”

“Well, I happen to know that if you show
up, there will be tickets with your name on them. Cool?”

“Cool,” she said, amazed at how much
better she felt knowing that this wasn’t it. She had something fun to look
forward to. She nearly slipped and said something about being very pregnant or
having her baby in tow at the time of the show but held it in just in time.

Dani followed behind Will who indeed
knew exactly where to go. She had to smile at the back of his tank top as she
doubled her strides to keep up with him.
Save
a drum, bang a drummer.
So he was adorable and had no idea. Daisy was
gonna
eat that up.
Will would
be
lucky if he made it out alive. But at those thoughts, her mind went right back
to Stefan, and this dinner he had planned. She’d gotten exactly what she asked
for all week with him avoiding her and now … she blew out. The more he stayed
away, the more she wished he’d never leave. More accurately, the more she
wished they didn’t have to be apart. She realized it didn’t matter where that
was.

“Will, do you think I’m dressed okay for
this dinner tonight?”

He smiled and it dazzled her because it
was so real and genuine. His blue eyes settled on her like a brother’s would.
“You’re exactly perfect, just the way you are.”

“You’re all right, too, Will Cordero.”

“That’s what they say, anyway.”
Another smile.
“Come on, let’s go get our
Taggert’s
on.”

Chapter Fourteen

Dani knocked on the door. When Katy
Perry answered because the music streamed out so loud that she and
Will
could have sung along, Will stepped up. Were they
really going to break out into a “Peacock” duet right here on Daisy’s second
story apartment door? It was so hard not to hum the words to that song but what
would be even funnier would be to hear Will sing the chorus.

“Let me,” he said, shuffling the red
toaster he’d helped her pick out over to his left arm so that he could—holy
cow—beat the heck out of her sister’s apartment door. “Sorry, was that loud?”

He had to know his own strength. “Um,
yeah, just a little.” Dani made a “tiny bit” symbol with her finger and thumb.

But Will’s pounding did the trick
because a second later, there was Daisy. She’d blackened her already jet black
hair with a midnight wash and stood there in a terry cloth shorts romper, the
one Dani loved because the turquoise did something to lighten up all the dark
stuff her baby sister tried to do to herself. Whether it was overdone or not
though, she could never deny how much Daisy’s thick, black liquid-lined cat
eyes reminded her of their mom’s senior graduation picture. It had looked
beautiful on Mom in the Sixties and just as jaw-dropping on Daisy today.

Dani went to make her introduction of
Will when she noticed him hedging back from front and center to nearly behind
her. He licked his lips several times, more like he was stressed and not
gearing up for sexy-time. Dani was about to offer him some of the cool new balm
they’d bought but he cleared his throat and raised his eyebrows just when Daisy
stuck out her hand, grabbed him before he’d completely retreated to Dani’s back
and planted a kiss on his cheek.

“Hi, I’m Daisy. I love your hair, by the
way.
Hi Dani.”
Daisy smiled and touched the ends of
Will’s
mohawk
that were pulled
back in that ponytail-knot hybrid. She was like this with everyone, Dani knew,
but poor Will looked like he’d just been mugged. “Come on in. Sorry for the
mess. Oh, is that for me?” she asked once she’d literally stood behind Will and
urged him inside with a hand to the small of his back. “Oh, that’s a great
shirt,” she gushed.

Oh God. Will, the last person on the
planet she’d think as capable of murder, was going to kill her. She figured
Daisy would take Will in and treat him like she treated everyone she met, but
this was clearly more than he was comfortable with. How did he handle being the
object of all the Sin Pointe fans’ affections? Surely he’d starred in many of
their dreams with the killer arms and sexy smart glasses.

“So,” she piped in before Daisy had Will
blushing or worse, escaping the small and yes, messy apartment. “That is indeed
for you. And this is my friend, Will. He helped pick it out.”

Dani looked at them both. It would be
hard to tell if Daisy was affected because outgoing was just her nature.
Along with touchy-feely and free-spirited.
Will, on the
other hand, could double as the poster-boy for affected if the stiff smile he hadn’t
let slip in the past five minutes was any indication.

“Oh my god, I love it.
Thank you guys!”
Daisy nearly shouted over the music and
took special care to unhinge the toaster box from Will’s fingers. “I love red.
Don’t you, Will?”

“Um, yeah, it’s great. I’m glad you like
it,” he said quietly, bashful almost.

Dani knew then and there that she needed
to have a quick word with Daisy.
Out of earshot of poor Will.
She went over to her sister, grabbed her in a hug and whispered into her ear.
“I need to talk to you in another room.”

“Okay,” Daisy said and led them to the
bedroom where the three girls managed to sleep somehow. “Be right back,” she
offered Will whose chin dipped but pressed smile never faltered.

“He’s cute. And really sweet,” said
Daisy, fingering Dani’s much more conservative neckline. “Did he really pick
out that toaster for me?”

“Yes, he did. And the blender that’s in
the bag he still hasn’t set down yet. They’re a matching set.”

“Oh my God!
Where did you
find him and why do you have him? What about Thom? Did you two break up? He was
nice but…”

“Daisy.
Please. Focus.
Will is a friend of a friend. Actually…”

“You know who he kind of reminds me of?”
Daisy said, interrupting.