Chapter Three ♥
*
Dane
“Dane, you really need to lay off.”
It had been two weeks since he last heard from Bardot. No matter what he tried or who he spoke to, he couldn’t contact her.
It was pure bullshit.
“Fable, I need to talk to her. There’s some stuff she needs to know.”
There was an exasperated sigh on the other end of the line. “God, you’re not going to confess your undying love for her are you?”
Dane paused and thought about how to answer that. “Kinda, yeah. But that’s not all! There’s something even more important than that.”
“You’re even more of a fool than I thought. Lies that you can’t uphold are the last thing she needs, and if you actually loved here there wouldn’t be anything more important.”
What the hell would you know? Dane picked at the chip in his desk. He was waiting for a client to show up to review their goals before he got to training them. Work was almost impossible with everything weighing on his shoulders.
How was he supposed to focus on deadlifts or miles run when Bardot might be knocked up?
Still, he figured no news was good news. How long did it take to start getting symptoms anyway? If she was pregnant, she probably already knew. And if that was the case, no news was good news.
There was a knock at his door as a new chunk of wood dropped from the desk onto the floor. “I have to go. Let her know I called, please.”
“Maybe.” The line went dead.
Dane had gone through a lot with the Camdens. His parents and older brother dying. Their parents divorcing. Major’s girlfriends breaking up with him.
Never, not once, had he ever been frozen out like he was. It was really frustrating.
There was nothing he could do but try to stop by her apartment and hope neither of her siblings were home.
He cringed. Going behind Major’s back sounded like an incredibly bad idea, but there was no way around it.
The whole apartment building was silent. Normally, Bardot’s neighbors to the right were having some kind of party with electronic music. The ones to the left usually were arguing while cooking curry or other spicy foods.
No sounds. No smells.
Though, Dane had never been there at lunch time before. Maybe it was normal after all.
There was a chance, Dane realized, that Bardot really didn’t want anything to do with him. He really fucked things up, sleeping with her like that.
She was a virgin, and he just fucked her like it was any other girl.
Bardot deserved better, he knew that. But if he was going to make things better, he had to man up and talk to her.
Taking a deep breath, Dane straightened out his shirt. Here goes nothing!
Knocking on the door, Dane felt his heart quicken. There was a beat of silence, and then the door slowly creeked open.
Bardot looked around the door at him. Her eyes were dark, her hair messy. She must have been napping, which was unusual for her. She was usually so full of energy.
“Dane?” She croaked out, looking at him confused. “What?”
Dane shifted his weight and hesitated. “We need to talk.”
“What?” She asked again, and then the door to the outside opened. Light flooded in around Major.
“This mother fucker...” Major muttered, then bounded up to Dane and grabbed him by the shirt. Dragging Dane to the door, he threw him out. “Leave us alone, asshole!”
Whipping around, Dane was about to make his case when the door shut between them. He was out on the street, again.
Well, there went that chance… and all of his resolve.
Bardot didn’t look great, but she was probably just sick or something. That would explain why he hadn’t run into her on the street or anything.
“No news is good news,” he said to himself, kicking a rock into the street. Looking around the street, he tried to decide what to do next.
Strangely, though, it didn’t feel like good news. He was somehow… disappointed. Did he want her to be pregnant?
“What a shit thing to think,” he chastised himself, and started down the street back to the gym.
A block before the gym, Dane found Leo standing and chatting with two women. He recognized one of the women.
“Dane!” Leo shouted, waving to his friend. “Come over here!”
“Hey,” Dane said, stepping into the group. Both of the women looked him up and down. “Kady, it’s been a while.”
“Yeah,” Kady said, reaching for his beard. He stepped back, wincing, but Kady persisted. Her fingers ran through his beard. “Gosh, I missed this face. How come I haven’t heard from you in a while?”
Dane shrugged. “I’ve been busy.”
“Dane got in trouble!” Leo joked. “He got caught with Major’s little sister.”
Kady gasped, covering her mouth. “Not little Bardot!”
“Hey, she’s not so little anymore,” Leo said.
Dane didn’t say anything. No one needs to know how I feel about Bardot. Not until she does.
“Well, if you’re in trouble, does that mean she can’t stop you from going on a date with me?”
Leo grinned. “We’re going to the bar tonight. Tasha and I were trying to think of who could accompany Kady. You in?”
“No,” Dane said. “Sorry, but I’m not available tonight.”
“Aww,” Kady whined. “I so wanted to ride that face of yours again.”
Dane’s cock didn’t even twitch. Kady was beautiful, but she had nothing on Bardot. Compared to her, Kady was shallow and homely.
“I’m sure Leo could keep you both occupied,” Dane said, winking to his friend who brightened up.
“Oh, that’s definitely true,” Leo answered, running a hand through his hair. Both of the women giggled.
“So, what, are you getting serious about Bardot?” Leo asked. “That’s not like you.”
Dane nodded. “I have to grow up some time, kid. You do, too.”
“Not too soon!”
Grinning, Dane shook his head. “You can at least wait until after your threesome tonight.”
The women giggled again. Leo almost blushed, but just puffed out his chest. “Later, man.”
“Later,” Dane answered, waving as he passed his friend and continued to the gym.
Dane wanted to have fun, too, but there were more important things.
Bardot was the most important thing.
And it didn’t matter what it took. He would get Bardot in his arms again.
He would feel her lips on his again.
He loved her. More than he knew. So much that it ached, a slow burn in his chest that made it hard to breathe sometimes.
Dane loved Bardot. Madly.
He always had.
That’s it!
Pounding his fist onto his table, Dane decided what he’d do.
I’ll buy her a ring! And I’ll propose to her! And if she says yes, there’s nothing that Major can do about it!
Standing and grabbing his coat, he rushed out the door and down the street. I’ll buy it right now, before I can get nervous.
But he was already nervous. Ridiculously so.
“Welcome to- Oh! Dane!” The woman who greeted him was slender, tall, and platinum blonde. Her ruby lips parted into a genuine smile.
“Diana, I need a ring.”
She raised both of her eyebrows. “Oh? What, for your mother, or...”
“No, it’s for a woman. And engagement ring. I need something beautiful.”
Diana led Dane to the glass cases. “Did you want something cheap, something expensive?”
“I want it to be… something a smart girl would like. Maybe something antique.”
“Ah!” Diana smiled. “We just got this gorgeous ring in, I was drooling over it. It’s a vintage radiant cut diamond with rubies on the band. The band itself is silver.”
She pulled the ring out and showed it to Dane.
“Do you know what size ring she wears?”
He frowned. No, of course he didn’t. “I can get it sized later, right?”
“Of course,” Diana smiled. “We also have an asscher cut, which is super pretty, with a rose gold band.” Pulling that one out, she put it on her own finger to show it off. “This one is more expensive.
He looked at both of the rings, trying to find out which one Bardot might like more. Glancing down at the other rings in the case, he considered each of those, too.
His stomach churned. He felt indecisive.
“This one,” he said, taking the radiant cut with rubies. “She’ll love this one. Red is her favorite color.”
Red, like her hair. Like her lips. Like her favorite dress. Bardot’s face swam in his imagination, making his heart ache.
“I never thought I’d see you settle down,” Diana said. “We just went on a date a month ago. Are you sure about moving this fast?”
“I’ve never been more sure about anything,” he lied. It was only a tiny lie.
He was sure that he loved Bardot.
It just wasn’t so clear if he was ready to ask her to marry him.
Still, he bought the ring. Paid for it, left the building, and walked down the street.
Then he turned around and marched right back. “What the fuck was I thinking?” He asked himself, clutching the ring box in his pocket.
He stopped short of the door, though. Diana watched him with a confused look on her face through the glass, making him feel ashamed of himself.
What am I doing?
One big breath in. Another big breath out. He let go of the door handle and stepped away, looking up to the dark night sky.
Even if everything went wrong and she told him to take a hike, he’d keep the ring. It’s not as if he would never get married. It was an investment. An investment that decimated his savings account, but it just meant he wouldn’t have to wipe his savings account later, when things might be harder.
Pulling the ring out of his pocket, he looked at it while he walked. It was beautiful, and really did suit Bardot’s personality.
“Dane?”
Shit. It was Leo again, without the two girls from before.
“Oh, hey!” Dane said, trying to hide the box in his pocket.
“Is that what I think it is?”
Dane winced. “That depends on what you think it is.”
“Dude, are you going to ask Bardot to marry you?” Leo crossed his arms. “That really isn’t a good idea, man. Major already wants to kill you.”
“Well, Major doesn’t get to dictate my life! Or hers! She’s an adult, not some princess to be locked away.”
Leo laughed. “So you see yourself as the night in shining armor? Classy.”
“Shut up.”
“Look, you at least need to actually talk to Major. He’ll see reason eventually, but if you never really reach out to him, how do you expect him to forgive you?”
“I didn’t do anything wrong!”
Leo sighed. “You know what I mean. He just wants to keep his sister safe, and he basically only knows you as a player. If you want him to calm down, you have to show him that you can be responsible.”
Dane frowned. “When did you start giving good advice?”
“Uh, always!” Leo yelled, laughing.
“I’m going to get through to them. Both of them.”
“I believe in you, man.”
It didn’t matter what it took. He would tell Bardot and Major how he felt about Bardot. Put the ball in her court. Let her decide what would come next.