Beautiful Oblivion Read online

  "You're right. I'll tell him to stay away." She reached up to the horn and pulled it, signaling last call. Kody shoved his hands in his pockets and walked toward the entrance.

  "I guess Kody's walking me to my car tonight," I said.

  "That would be better," Raegan said.

  We cleaned our station and set up for the next night. Within an hour after close, we grabbed our coats. Raegan slung her purse over her shoulder and nodded at Gruber. "Walk me?" she asked.

  Gruber hesitated, and Kody appeared at her side. "I can walk you."

  "Kody . . ." Raegan began.

  Kody shrugged, laughing once. "I can't walk you to the car? It's part of my job, Ray."

  "Gruber can walk me, can't you, Gruby?"

  "I . . . uh . . ." Gruber stuttered.

  "C'mon, Ray. Let me walk you. Please?"

  Raegan's shoulders fell, and she sighed. "See you at home, Cami."

  I waved to her, and made sure to stay several feet back.

  Gruber and I could hear Kody pleading with Raegan at her car all the way across the parking lot, and it broke my heart. Gruber stood with me at my car until Raegan got into hers. She followed me home, and when we pulled into the parking lot, I looked over, to see Raegan sobbing into her hands.

  I opened her door. "Come on. We'll watch scary movies and eat ice cream."

  Raegan looked up at me, her eyes red and puffy. "Have you ever loved two people at the same time?" she asked.

  After a long pause, I held out my hand. "If I ever try, slap me, okay?"

  CHAPTER NINE

  At the height of the Red's Friday night crowd, Travis Maddox headed for his usual stool at my station, strutting across the bar like he always did: sexy, confident, and in command of the room. Shepley was with him, so was Shepley's girlfriend, America, and another girl--the one who I assumed he had been talking about the weekend before: the Freshman. I let the guy sitting in his usual seat know he was coming. He and his friend scattered without protest.

  Travis straddled his stool. He ordered a beer, drank half of it in a few swallows, and then turned to watch the dance floor. The Freshman was out there, dancing with America.

  Three girls were standing behind Travis, hovering like groupies, waiting for him to turn around.

  America and her friend returned, smiling and sweaty. The Freshman was a knockout, I'd give Travis that. She had that something special that one might expect from the girl who finally caught Travis Maddox's attention, but I couldn't pinpoint it. There was a certain confidence in her eyes. She knew something that no one else knew.

  "It's going to be like this all night, Mare. Just ignore them," Shepley said.

  America snarled, and glanced over at the three women who were staring at Travis and whispering among themselves. I wasn't sure why America was so angry. They weren't looking at Shepley.

  "It looks like Vegas threw up on a flock on vultures," America said.

  Travis looked over his shoulder to see who America was talking about, and then turned back, chugging his beer. He lit a cigarette and puffed out a cloud of smoke. He looked at me and held up two fingers.

  This should be interesting. I pulled two Bud Lights out of the cooler, popped the tops, and sat them in front of Travis.

  One of the vultures picked one up, but Travis took it away from her. "Uh . . . not yours," he said, handing it to the Freshman.

  The corners on the Freshman's mouth turned up just a tiny bit right before she chugged the beer for a few seconds.

  "Can you make a--" Marty, Raegan's regular, began. Raegan was on the other side of the bar, having an intense conversation with Kody.

  "Yes," I said, cutting him off. "Don't worry, Marty. I'll get you taken care of." As I was pouring Marty's particularly tricky Warninks Creme Egg Shooter, Travis and the Freshman were having a good time on the dance floor, making quite a scene. By the time Marty had finished his shot, Travis had already pissed her off, and she was storming away from him, toward the bar.

  She offered me a half smile, and held up one finger. I pulled her a beer, popped the cap, and set it in front of her. She had sucked down more than half when Travis made it back to the bar. No wonder he was so unhappy about his feelings. The two of them were exhausting me, and I didn't even know her name yet.

  Megan, Travis's tried-and-true Plan B, appeared next to him. "Well, if it isn't Travis Maddox."

  Megan didn't cause a lot of drama, but she wasn't my favorite. In addition to Travis, she had a few other guys that she liked to chase around. But never when they wanted her, and never when they were single. She liked the challenge of taking a man away from his girlfriend, and women like that are the enemy of couples everywhere.

  "What's going on?" Raegan said softly.

  Just then, Travis pulled Megan by the hand out to the dance floor, and they proceeded to dry fuck each other in front of God and everyone else.

  "Oh, Travis," I said, disappointed. "What the hell are you doing?"

  Travis wasn't gone five minutes before Ethan Coats swooped in and appropriated Travis's stool. He leaned in, immediately turning on the charm. The Freshman appreciated the attention. I wouldn't have blamed her, if the attention weren't coming from Ethan.

  "Oh, that's not good. Get that slime away from her!" Raegan hissed.

  We all knew what Ethan had done, and what he was capable of. We tried to police him while he was at the bar, but not all girls would heed our warnings.

  I saw Travis walking back to the east bar, his eyes targeting Ethan.

  "I don't think I'll have to," I said.

  Travis nearly stood in between them, and after a short exchange, Ethan was walking away with his tail tucked between his legs and Travis and the Freshman were on their way out, both seemingly on the verge of war.

  Raegan smirked. "I think Travis Maddox has met his match."

  "I think you're right," I said.

  A full hour from last call, and I was already ahead in tips for the night. Raegan was in a good mood, despite Kody walking by every so often and stopping just long enough for her to tell him she couldn't talk.

  I looked over to see Trenton take his cover charge change from Tuffy, and I gave him a nod and a smile. With the Maddox swagger no one could miss, he strolled over to the east bar and sat directly in front of me.

  "Whiskey?" I asked.

  "Water."

  "Water?" I asked, in disbelief.

  "I told you. I'm trying to save money."

  "Water it is," I said.

  Trenton took a sip, and then sat the glass down, looking around. "I saw Travis yelling at some chick in the parking lot."

  "Oh? How did that turn out?"

  "She yelled back. I don't know who she is, but I kind of like her."

  "Me, too."

  Trenton stared at the ice floating in his glass. "It's kind of weird. Watching him try to settle down."

  "You think that's what he's doing?"

  "He's talked to you about her, hasn't he?"

  I nodded.

  "There you go."

  I watched him for a while. Something was off with him, but I couldn't figure out what it was. "Anything you want to talk about?"

  He pondered that for a moment. "Nah. There's no point." He took another sip of water. He glanced behind him and noticed someone standing at the pool tables. "I'm going to head over."

  "Okay," I said. I shouldn't have been disappointed that he didn't seem all that interested in talking to me. Just a few weeks before, he'd come to the Red for drinks, to hang out with his brothers, or to find a piece of ass. But as he crossed the dance floor and picked up a pool stick, his arms flexing as he polished the tip with the cue, a weird feeling came over me.

  "What's up with him?" Raegan asked.

  "I don't know. Glad it's not just me that noticed."

  "What's up with you? You had a look on your face when he walked away. Did he say something?"

  "No," I said, shaking my head. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

  "
I'm your best friend. I probably already know."

  "It's hard to explain . . . I . . . just got this bizarre, sad feeling. Like Trent and I aren't friends anymore."

  "Maybe it's because you know that he finally believes you're just friends."

  "Maybe. I mean no," I said, backpedaling.

  "I knew it, bitch. I don't even know why you try." She stood behind me and wrapped her arms around my waist, resting her chin on my shoulder.

  We both watched as a couple of girls who had just arrived walked over to the west wall and hovered around Trenton's pool table. The pair were obviously familiar with bleach in a box, but as much as I hated to admit it, they were both stunningly beautiful. Within twenty minutes, a third girl joined them. It wasn't long before she had Trenton's full attention, and he had her backed against the pool table. She was twirling one strand of her long, brown hair around her finger, laughing as if Trenton were the funniest person she'd ever met. Her cackling could be heard over the music.

  "Christ on a cracker, I'm ready to go home," Raegan said, turning to touch her temple to my shoulder.

  "Me, too," I said, watching Trenton lean closer to the girl's face.

  Even across the room, I could see she had supermodel lips and bedroom eyes. He was looking down at her, smiling. It was kind of revolting how close they were. I'd never seen her before, so she had probably come over from Southwestern State. It was likely that Trenton had never met her either, and less than half an hour later, they were inches apart.

  Trenton put his hands on the pool table, and her ass was nestled tightly in between them. She leaned up to his ear and whispered.

  Five minutes before last call, a rowdy crowd walked in and came to the east bar calling drinks, even though most of them had already had more than a few. As I began to get back into busy mode, I caught a glimpse of Trenton leading the girl outside by the hand. I instantly felt sick to my stomach.

  "You okay?" Raegan called to me, popping the top off several beers at the same time.

  "Fine," I said. I wasn't sure if she could hear me, but it didn't matter. She knew the truth.

  CHAPTER TEN

  A knock at the door startled me awake. Another set of knocks made me fully awake. Then the pounding began. I crawled out of bed, cringing when the bright, early morning sun struck my face the second I walked into the hall.

  I stumbled across the living room and opened the door.

  "What in the hell are you doing here?" I asked.

  "She slept in hew clowes," Olive said in her sweet, tiny voice.

  I looked down, shielding the sun from my eyes with my hands. "Oh, hi, Olive. Sorry, I didn't see you down there," I said, unable to stop frowning, even for her.

  "It's okay," she said. "Twent says I'm showt."

  "We brought you breakfast," Trenton said, holding up a white sack.

  "I don't eat breakfast."

  "Yes, you do. Raisin cinnamon bagels with butter. Kody told me."

  The two lines that were already formed between my eyebrows grew deeper. I glared at Trenton, and then looked down to Olive. My expression softened, and I sighed. "I love her," I said to no one in particular. "Olive, you know I love you, but I'm going back to bed." I looked at Trenton, and narrowed my eyes. "It's not going to work this time. Take her home."

  "I can't. Her parents are out all day."

  "Then take her to your home."

  "My dad's got a cold. You don't want her to get a cold, do you?"

  "You know what I hate?" I asked.

  Trenton had desperation in his eyes. "Me. I know. I just . . . I'm a selfish, insecure idiot."

  "Yes."

  "But I'm a sorry selfish, insecure idiot with a little girl outside in the cold."

  It was my turn to sigh. I waved for Olive to come in. She happily complied, sitting on the couch. She immediately found the remote and flipped on the television, turning to Saturday morning cartoons.

  Trenton took a step and I held out my hand. "Not you."

  "What?"

  "You don't get to come in."

  "But . . . I'm watching Olive."

  "You can watch her from the window."

  Trenton crossed his arms across his chest. "You think I won't?"

  "No, I know you will." I grabbed the white sack from his hand, and then slammed the door in his face, locking the door. I tossed Olive the sack. "You like bagels, kiddo?"

  "Yep!" she said, opening the sack. "Aw you weally going to make Twent stand outside?"

  "Yes, I am," I said, walking back to my room, and falling into my bed.

  *

  "Cami!" Raegan said, shaking me. I looked at the clock. It had been almost two hours since Trenton had knocked on my door. "That little girl is watching cartoons in our living room!" she whispered, clearly uneasy.

  "I know."

  "How did she get there?"

  "Trent brought her."

  "Where's Trent?"

  "Outside, I think," I said, yawning.

  Raegan stomped out to the living room, and then back to my room. "He's sitting on the ground outside our window, playing Flappy Bird on his cell phone."

  I nodded.

  "It's thirty-three degrees outside."

  "Good," I said, sitting up. "I wish it were sleeting."

  Raegan's face screwed into disgust. "He waved at me like it was the most normal thing in the world. What the hell is going on?"

  "He brought Olive over. His dad has a cold, so he couldn't bring her home, and her parents are somewhere else all day."

  "So he couldn't watch her at her house?"

  I thought about that for a moment, and then crawled out of bed for the second time that day. I walked over to the couch. "Why didn't Trent watch you at your house?" I asked.

  "I wanted to come see you," she said matter-of-factly.

  "Oh," I said. "Trenton didn't want to see me?"

  "Yes, but he said you wouldn't like it."

  "Oh?"

  "Yeah, so then I said, pweety, pweety pwease? And he said okay."

  I smiled at her, and then walked over to the front door, opening it. Trenton turned around, and looked up at me. My smile vanished. "Come in."

  Trenton stood up and walked inside, but that's as far as he got. "You're mad at me."

  I narrowed my eyes at him.

  "Why?" he asked.

  I didn't answer.

  "Is it because I went home with that girl last night?"

  I still didn't answer.

  "I didn't bag her."

  "You want a cookie?" I asked. "Because that is prize worthy."

  "What is your deal? You tell me five times a day that we're friends, and now you're jealous of some girl I flirted with for two seconds."

  "I am not jealous!"

  "Then what are you?"

  "As your friend, I can't be concerned about your STD status?"

  "What's an ust edie?" Olive asked from the love seat.

  I closed my eyes tight. "Oh, God. I'm sorry, Olive. Forget you heard that."

  Trenton took a step toward me. "Her parents let me babysit her. You think they're worried about foul language?"

  I raised an eyebrow.

  He lowered his chin, looking straight into my eyes. "Tell me the truth. Are you angry at me because you thought I took that girl home, or is it something else? Because you're mad at me for something."

  I crossed my arms and looked away.

  "What are we doing, Cami?" he asked. "What is this?"

  "We're friends! I've told you that already!"

  "Bullshit!"

  Olive's finger hovered over the top of the love seat. "You have to put a nickow in my jawr."

  "Sorry," Trenton said, his eyebrows pushed together.

  "So you didn't . . . go home with her?" I asked.

  "Where was I going to take her? My dad's?"

  "I don't know, a hotel room?"

  "I'm not buying drinks to save money, you think I'm going to spend a hundred bucks on a hotel room for some random chick I just met?" />
  "You've done less intelligent things."

  "Like what?"

  "Like eat glue!"

  Trenton tucked his chin and looked away, clearly disgusted, and maybe a little bit embarrassed. "I never ate glue."

  I crossed my arms. "Yes, you did. In Mrs. Brandt's class."

  Raegan shrugged. "You did."

  "You weren't in my class, Ray!" Trenton said.

  "You also ate red pencils fairly regularly, according to Cami!" Raegan said, trying to stifle a laugh.

  "Whatever!" Trenton yelled. "Where's my bagel?"

  The white sack hovered above the love seat, the wrinkled, rolled top held by Olive's tiny fingers. Trenton sat beside his friend, fought with the sack, and then pulled out his breakfast, unwrapping it.

  Raegan looked at me and held three fingers over her mouth. Her body jerked with a silent laugh like a tiny hiccup, and then she retreated to her room.

  "I never ate glue," Trenton grumbled.

  "Maybe you blocked it out. I would block it out if I ate glue . . ."

  "I didn't eat glue," he snapped.

  "Okay," I said, my eyes widening for a moment. "God."

  "You want . . . you want half of my bagel?" Trenton asked.

  "Yes, please," I said.

  He handed it to me, and we ate together, quietly, while Olive watched cartoons between us. Her little feet just barely hung off the edge of the seat cushion, and she bounced them up and down once in a while.

  After two cartoons, I drifted off and woke up when my head fell forward.

  "Hey," Trenton said, patting my knee. "Why don't you go take a nap? We can go."

  "No," I said, shaking my head. "I don't want you to go."

  Trenton stared at me for a minute, and then motioned for Olive to trade places with him. She hopped up, more than happy to comply. Trenton sat next to me, leaning over a bit, and then nodded, gesturing to his shoulder. "It's comfy. Or so I hear."

  I made a face, but instead of arguing, I wrapped my arms around his, and rested my head snugly between his shoulder and his neck. Trenton rested his cheek against my hair, and at the same time we took a deep breath and relaxed against each other.

  I don't remember anything after that, until my eyes blinked open. Olive was asleep, her head on Trenton's lap. His arm was lying protectively over her, the other wrapped in my arms. His hand was resting on my thigh, and his chest rose and fell in a peaceful rhythm.

  Raegan and Brazil were sitting on the sofa, watching the muted television. When Raegan realized I was awake, she smiled.

  "Hey," she whispered.