DECKER

After seeing the overwhelming list of things Andi still had to do to get the shop open, I turned up bright and early the next morning to help her again. Even though I had been completely and utterly scared shitless of seeing her again, I actually enjoyed hanging out with her. She was so natural and easy going it was almost a relief to be in her presence. And enjoying the view of her perfectly gorgeous little body sure didn’t hurt much. I smiled as Andi walked down the stairs from her apartment in another pair of far too short cut off denim shorts. Whoever had decided to attack a pair of women’s Levi’s with a pair of scissors deserved a goddamn medal. She wore a tiny pink Hello Kitty shirt that left a tantalizing view of her navel. When I could drag my eyes away from the sliver of skin, I saw the smirk on her face. She was hot as hell in an almost blasé kind of way, and my dick was already bobbing around in agreement. If I was still unsure of my body’s reaction to her, my answer was swelling in my pants.

“You see what I did here?” She was pointing to her tits, and I grinned, dragging my eyes from her stomach. I let my eyes linger on her small yet mouthwatering breasts. I didn’t miss the picture of the cat on the front of her shirt, but I decided to play with her a little.

“You ditched your bra?”

Her playful grin turned into a scowl. “You wish.” She had no idea. “The shirt, you douche, I wore a kitty cat, because you like kitty cats.”

“Relax, Andi, your pussy was not lost on me.” And there was that damn cute blush again. I think I was going to like playing with Andi. Instead of throwing something at me, she laughed.

“Just can’t help yourself, can you?”

I shook my head as I began pulling stuff out of the back of my SUV. “I haven’t had my chance to interrogate you yet, Country. If we’re going on a date tonight, I need to know a little about my lady.”

“It’s not a date, it’s a fate,” she replied as she went straight into sorting through boxes of books.

“What the hell is a fate?”

“You know, a friendly date, a fate.”

I shook my head, hoping to dislodge that little pearl of wisdom. “Okayyyy,” I drew out. “I should still know my friend, who I am not taking on a date.”

“Fire away, I’m an open book.”

“Did you have a pet growing up?”

Andi sighed. “Dad was allergic to cats and dogs, so that was my loss. I had a cockatiel that flew away. I tried keeping a turtle, but it got shell rot and died. The fish lasted several weeks before they started floating. I even found one on the floor beside the bowl; he had literally jumped to his death. Apparently living in my presence was that bad.”

I laughed as she recited her animal mishaps. “So, it’s me who should be worried. You are obviously the psycho who gets off on torturing animals.”

She shook her head with a small grin. “Don’t worry, I have no plans to turn all American Psycho on you and dance naked in your blood.”

I grunted a thank you. “I guess when it comes to music, TV, and books I know what takes priority. So how about this one: chocolate, candy, or ice cream.”

Andi thought about it a moment. “Well, all three play important roles in my life. Chocolate is good for holy week.” My brow furrowed with confusion. “You know,” she blushed. “A woman’s monthly cycle.” I grinned, holy week, I liked that. “Candy is for on the go, when I don’t have time for lunch. It’s like my very own personal form of speed. And ice cream is hang-over food.”

“Good to know,” I murmured. “Lace, silk, or satin?”

Andi grinned. “I thought you had that one all figured out, hot-shot? Cotton-tails, remember?” I rolled my eyes. “But, if I were not so fond of my granny panties, it would definitely be lace.”

As if guided by forces outside of my control, my eyes automatically dropped to her breasts. Was she wearing lace right now? Was it white? Red? Black? A clearing of her throat broke the lace haze and my eyes snapped back to hers.

“Men,” she mumbled with faux irritation.

“You’re not the slightest bit curious what lies beneath all this?” I asked with a grin as I waved a hand around the front of my body.

Andi shook her head. “No, I most certainly am not.” Wow, that was spoken with so much decisiveness, it almost hurt.

“Well, moving right along, what’s your favorite holiday?” Andi’s smile was slight and wistful. Her eyes got that dreamy faraway look that had me peering over my shoulder to see what had caught her attention.

“That’s easy, April first, April Fool’s Day.”

I shook my head. “Country, that’s not a holiday.”

Andi’s eyes left the distant memory and came back to me. Her smile had dropped. “I know, but it kind of belonged to my dad and me. He was always so busy he missed most holidays, but April first is my birthday and, well, it’s April Fool’s Day. Even though Dad was buried in his own thoughts ninety-nine percent of the time, on April first it was like he came out to join the world for the day. We would prank each other, prank everyone else, and laugh, a lot! And then we would have cake.”

It suddenly occurred to me that even though I had known Andi for a long time, I knew very little about her and her family. I knew she was Bradley’s cousin and that she spent a great deal of time with him, his sister, Alice, and their parents. I couldn’t recall ever meeting Andi’s parents or any siblings.

“What does your dad do for a living?” I asked.

“He was a writer; he wrote mystery and thrillers mostly.”

Now I understood where her book addiction came from.

“Wow, that’s pretty cool. I guess the fact that he was busy so much means he’s pretty good at it.”

Andi shrugged. “He was good, won a few awards.”

“Was?” I suddenly realized how many times she had used the term ‘was’ when talking about her dad. Andi’s solemn gaze confirmed my fears.

“He passed away twelve months ago, pancreatic cancer. That’s how I was able to afford all this, my inheritance.” A thousand questions sprung into my mind.

“What about your mom?”

Andi shrugged. “She died when I was little.”

Oh man, could I honestly talk us into any more of an uncomfortable hole?

“And your brothers and sisters?”

“Only child.”

Yes, in fact I could make this conversation more awkward. Well done, me.

“Shit, Andi, I’m sorry.”

She began methodically stacking books back on the now clean book shelves. “I’m surprised you didn’t know about my mom at least. Gotta hand it to Bradley, he’s definitely not one to gossip.” Her words lacked enthusiasm, and her mood had drastically darkened since my arrival.

“So,” I began, in an effort to change the direction of this conversation, “what should I wear tonight?”

Andi snorted. “You’d be the first guy I’ve ever met to care. Don’t ya’ll just reach into your closet and wear whatever your hand lands on first?”

“Pretty much, but I wanted to impress Casey and Lionel.” I winked at her when she gave me a dumbfounded look.

“I’m pretty sure Casey would like to see you in spandex,” she said with a small smile.

“Can tell you right now that’s not gonna happen. He’ll have to settle with cotton and denim.” Andi shrugged and resumed sorting through the books on the shelf. Her mood had settled into brooding territory. I didn’t do crying chicks. It wasn’t that I thought there was something wrong with the occasional water-works, I just didn’t know how to cope with it. I hated seeing a woman drowning in sorrow, and I hated not knowing how to fix it. Needing to escape the uncomfortable melancholy, I went outside to work on the dilapidated sign.

*

“You’re kidding, right?” I exclaimed as I stood on the front concrete path outside Andi’s store. I had spent the morning fixing up her hanging sign. I had sanded it and painted it, now all it needed was her store name.

“What’s wrong with it?” she asked with a serious look on her face.

“What’s wrong with something simple, like Andi’s Book Store?” I suggested.

She rolled her eyes. “Seriously? That sucks, Decker, and it’s boring. I want something catchy and memorable. The Book Shelter is original, not boring, and it doesn’t suck. This is a book shelter, like an animal shelter. All the books that people get tired of and no longer want end up here. I house them, take care of them, and eventually other people come in and buy them. See?” Actually, when she explained it like that, it was a kind of clever. “Anyway, it’s my business. I put in the application for it, it’s done, and I want The Book Shelter, so back off or I will kick you in the balls and leave you crying right here on the street.”

Wow, she was hot when she was threatening me. I could almost see myself pissing her off just to hear her reprimand me with that sexy damn voice.

“Don’t threaten the goods, Country, you seriously have no idea how important they are to my career.”

She drew her bottom lip into her mouth as she carefully considered me. I was envious of that mouth that got to nibble on those beautiful full lips.

Suddenly her eyes sprung open wide, her smile manically crazy. “Oh my god, you’re a sperm donor.”

I laughed, because honestly, she didn’t realize how close and far from the truth she was. Sure, I donated sperm, but it certainly did not get used to make babies.

“No, Country, there is not a football team of baby Deckers out there. No donations, ever.”

“Huh, I’ll figure it out sooner or later.” It was only a matter of time.

I painted the sign and screwed it to the wall above the window. Inside, things were looking much better. There was a large canvas hanging above the counter with the quote, “A room without books is like a body without a soul.” There was a sign on the opposite wall saying, “Either buy it or shelve it. This is a book store not a library”. In front of the large glass windows at the front of the store were two large couches and a coffee table. Andi had thrown a couple of cushions down and bowl of candy sat in the middle of the table.

“I’m going to put some chairs out front and sell coffee. I’ve ordered a machine; it should come tomorrow. You aren’t allowed to read unless you buy though.” She pointed to the sign reminding customers this wasn’t a library.

“I like it,” I murmured, spinning slowly, taking in the whole space. “You’ve done good, Andi. Your folks would be proud.” I don’t know why I said that, it just slipped out without thought. Andi didn’t seem bothered by it though, a small nod the only indication that she had heard me.

I had brought some clothes with me for the street party I was escorting her to. While I waited for Andi to shower and change, I found myself pulling a photo album from one of the boxes in front of her couch. I recognized teenage Andi right away. I carefully took her in, noting the similarities. She had always been cute. A little on the thin side with an unruly head of long red hair, but her small smile and hopeful eyes tugged at my heart. On the next page was a picture of Andi standing beside a tall, thin man with a receding hairline. Andi carried his eyes and smile, there was no doubting that he was her father. I wondered what Andi’s childhood had been like. She obviously spent a lot of time with Bradley and his family; she must have been lonely. On the next page was a picture of me and Bradley. We would have been no more than seventeen. Under my arm, a pretty blonde and under Bradley’s arm was Andi, looking shy and uncomfortable.

“Amanda was a bitch.” Andi’s voice from over my shoulder startled me.

My eyes jumped to hers, and I tried really hard not to let my mouth drop open. She looked stunning. Her long curls hung over her shoulders, still wet from the shower. Her shoulders were bare; a strapless yellow dress fell to her mid-thigh, those damn boots finishing off her outfit. I cleared my throat in an attempt to find composure and lifted the album.

“Sorry, I probably should have asked first.” She shrugged as she wandered around in front of me and glanced down. I watched her visibly grimace at the picture. “Who’s Amanda?” I wondered out loud. Andi arched a brow and smirked before tapping the blonde standing beside me in the picture.

“You don’t remember her?” she asked.

I shook my head. The girl was familiar, but I couldn’t really place her in my memories. I knew the picture was taken on a beach in Florida. But I still couldn’t really recall the pretty girl my arm was draped across with smug appreciation.

“Seriously? You slept with her!” she said with a chuckle.

My eyes immediately dropped back to the blonde. Really? “I did?” I asked out loud. I glanced back up at Andi. “Did she tell you that?”

She fidgeted uncomfortably. “No, I wasn’t worthy of Amanda White’s time. She never spoke to me.” I guess Andi saw the question in my eyes. “Two nights before that photo was taken, I needed an escape from Bradley’s family; they were pretty intense sometimes, and I needed a timeout. I went for a walk, alone, down the beach.” I nodded as she stalled, encouraging her to continue. “Remember the pier, about a hundred yards down the beach from the apartment?” Like a slow moving torrent, the memory began to return to me. “I was sitting on top of it, you were underneath, and you weren’t alone. Not wanting to sit and listen to Amanda moan about how awesome you were, I tried to sneak away and I fell off the edge of the pier. Amanda was making so much noise you didn’t hear me, but I got an eyeful of you humping Amanda like the horny teenager you were. I found my feet and got the hell out of there.”

I remembered every detail of that night. Amanda wasn’t my first, not by a long shot, but she had been a firecracker. She was the first girl I ever did doggy style! I had no idea Andi had witnessed that night.

“Wow,” I said with a nervous chuckle. “I guess I should apologize or something.”

Andi snorted and grabbed a tray of mini quiches from the kitchen counter. “Don’t be ridiculous. I should have known better. I’d seen you drag Sarah under that pier two nights earlier. I called it the P.O.P. for short, the pier of penetration. I should have stayed clear of P.O.P., gosh only knows what sordid diseases I could have caught just walking past it.”

Andi stood at the doorway looking like a picture of female perfection. I suddenly found myself wishing Andi hadn’t seen me with Amanda or Sarah. If she sat herself down at a computer and typed Decker Steele into the search engine, she would be bombarded with a hell of a lot more visuals than my scrawny bare teenage ass hammering Amanda White. For the first time in my life, I felt something akin to shame.

“Come on, Decker, get your mind out of the teenage gutter and let’s go rock that party like it’s 1999!”

Closing the photo album, shutting down those memories and thoughts, I followed Andi out of the shop.