Page 183 of Rock Chick

Tod came in wearing his flight attendant uniform. “I saw Chowleena healthy and happy out there and your door open. I knew you’d have coffee. You always have coffee and I need coffee. The Beemer’s in the shop so we only have one car. I have to stay awake and go back to DIA and get Stevie later this morning, and I’m dead on my feet. Your coffee’s so strong, you could melt nails in it and…”

Tod had been talking while he entered the kitchen through the back door and grabbed himself a mug o’ joe. He stopped dead in the kitchen doorway and his mouth dropped open. He stared between Lee and Eddie. Back and forth. Back again and forth.

Then his eyes swung to me.

“What’re you doing? Collecting the straight, super-macho Village People?”

Eddie burst out laughing and Lee looked down and to the side, but I caught the fact that his eyes crinkled.

I clenched my teeth.

Once Eddie quit laughing I said, “Tod, Eddie. Eddie, Tod.”

They nodded to each other.

Then I didn’t hesitate. I was being ganged up on, I needed backup.

So I asked Tod, “What do you think of my outfit?”

Tod looked around again, but this time only between me and Lee.

“Uh-oh, is there trouble in paradise?”

“Just answer the question,” I snapped.

“Okay, girlie, keep your pants on.” Tod went into assessment mode, looking me up and down. “Very cute pants. YouknowI’m not fond of flip-flops but they work. Pretty bra but I only say that because I can see every inch of it. Normally my motto is, if you got it, flaunt it. But with your bazungas, youreallygot it. You in that top and bra might cause traffic collisions. Are you prepared to live with that on your conscience?”

Great.

I avoided looking at Lee and turned in a huff and headed to the stairs. “Fine. I’ll change. I wouldn’t want to cause bodily harm.”

I went back upstairs, changed the track bottoms for jeans, put on a fitted, plaid, cuffed-short-sleeved, western style shirt with pearl snap buttons up the front and on the two breast pockets and switched out the red flip-flops for brown leather ones and stomped back down the stairs and into the kitchen.

Tod was now sitting with the boys at the table enjoying his coffee, Chowleena lying beside him on the floor. Chowleena followed me into the kitchen and I threw her a biscuit for her show of camaraderie.

“We girls have to stick together,” I told her as I rifled through my junk drawer, looking for my crazy, thick gold Elvis-framed sunglasses that would be kickass with my shirt.

I found them as Lee walked into the kitchen. I threw him a glance that would pulverize rock and slid my glasses into the mess of hair on my head.

“Later,” I said, intending to walk right by him.

He stepped in front of me, advanced and backed me into the corner next to the fridge by the coffeepot, a corner that you couldn’t see from the dining room.

“We haven’t talked about the second thing you forgot,” he said to me, his hands settling on the counter on either side of me.

Ignoring his fencing me in, I planted my hands on my hips. “And what’s that?”

His arms wrapped around me and kissed me.

After he finished, trying to recover from the kiss and not let it show, I demanded, “Move back.”

“You’re pissed,” he stated the obvious.

“Damn straight,” I confirmed.

“We’ll talk about it tonight.”

“No we won’t. Tonight is girl’s night out. I’m busy.”

---