Chapter 13
The following Saturday, Lisanne’s gig with 32o North went well.
The sound crew had done a really good job getting the balance right and the audience were enthusiastic.
Daniel stayed for the whole set, watching from the back with Kirsty and Vin. If it hurt him to be there, he didn’t show it.
When Lisanne came off stage, her makeup running with sweat, and her heart pounding from the adrenaline rush, he wrapped his arms around her.
“Proud of you, baby. You looked amazing up there.”
“I have to agree with Daniel,” said Kirsty, pulling Lisanne toward her. “You were awesome.”
Daniel smirked at her and Vin couldn’t help laughing.
“Well, she was!” said Kirsty, defensively.
Daniel lifted his hands, “Hey, not arguing with you!”
Lisanne rolled her eyes. “Honestly! You two!”
Vin gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “I agree with both of them—you were totally rocking, Lis. So, hey, look—I’ve talked them into holding a truce—and making a trip to the Island tomorrow with a bunch of guys I know. You in?”
Lisanne blinked at Daniel, who was holding back a small smile.”
“You said yes?”
“Sure, baby doll. I thought you’d like it.”
“Wow! Of course I like it!” and she flung herself at Daniel, who caught her easily. “Thank you,” she whispered as she kissed him on the lips.
“What did you say?” he asked, frowning slightly.
“I said, thank you. Thank you for doing this.”
“Sure, no problem.”
Vin had given them a ride, so they all piled into his SUV to take Lisanne and Daniel back to the dorm room, and Kirsty to his frat house.
During the twenty minutes it took for them to drive back, Kirsty talked relentlessly about the ‘awesome’ party that Vin’s frat house buddies were organizing just before Thanksgiving.
“And it’s going to be so much fun to really dress up. The guys will be in tuxes, so that means something slinky for me. Lis, you totally have to come shopping with me.”
“I don’t know, Kirsty. You’re much better at that than me.”
“I know,” replied Kirsty, “I am the shopping queen. But you should come—it’ll be fun. Shopping plus food—what’s not to like?”
Daniel hadn’t caught any of the conversation because Kirsty was sitting in the front seat and he couldn’t see her mouth. And even if she hadn’t been, it was almost impossible to lip read in the low, flickering light of streetlamps, as they drove along the night-time roads. Instead, Daniel had been gazing out of the window, a distant look in his eyes.
“What?” he said, when Lisanne touched his knee. She spoke slowly and clearly.
“Kirsty wants me to go dress shopping with her.”
Daniel pulled a face.
“Some people like shopping,” Lisanne said, gently.
“Whatever. Clothes are just to stop my ass from hanging out. They only have to fit.”
And he didn’t see or hear Kirsty’s dismissive snort either. Which was just as well. But then she leaned over the back of her seat.
“Hey, Lis, did I tell you I’m going to my grandmother’s in Suffolk for Thanksgiving? She always does an awesome lunch with apple-parsnip mash, and squash with cream and sage. Double yum! I’ll be like this huge afterward.”
She held her hands out to indicate an enormous belly.
Lisanne laughed.
“Yeah, my mom always does a big spread, too. We usually get loads of cousins dropping in—it gets a bit crazy and…”
She stopped abruptly, feeling awful for talking about her family’s plans for Thanksgiving when she knew Daniel didn’t have any family, or plans. She could have kicked herself for not cutting the subject as soon as Kirsty had brought it up—even though he hadn’t heard it.
“A bit of crazy is good,” said Kirsty, oblivious to Lisanne’s sudden tension. She looked at Daniel and asked politely, “What are you doing for Thanksgiving, Daniel?”
He caught ‘Thanksgiving’ and guessed the rest.
“No, no plans.”
Kirsty clearly thought that his curt answer was rude, because she bulldozed on.
“So, you’re just going to lie in bed and forget Thanksgiving exists?”
“Kirsty…” said Lisanne, a warning in her voice.
“No, enough’s enough, Lis! I’m trying to be polite and he can’t be bothered to give a proper reply? That’s just pathetic.”
“Daniel’s parents died two years ago in a car crash,” Lisanne blurted out angrily.
There was a horrified silence.
Daniel was the only one who didn’t know what had been said, but he saw Kirsty’s expression morph from combative to shocked.
“Oh … oh! I’m so, so sorry, Daniel! I had no idea. Lis never said. I … I’m so sorry.”
He looked to Lisanne for a translation of the conversation.
“Your parents. She didn’t know.”
“Oh.”
He shrugged and stared out of the window again, but when Lisanne held his hand in her lap, he didn’t pull away.
Kirsty was sitting quietly in the front, stoically ignoring Vin’s angry glances. There were no more attempts to talk.
When Vin pulled up outside the dorms, Daniel got out without speaking and Lisanne muttered a simple, “Night.”
But as Daniel turned to walk away, Vin rolled down his window and reached out with his right hand.
“Sorry about your parents, man.”
Daniel stared at him for a moment, then shook Vin’s hand.
“Thanks,” he said, quietly.
As Vin’s car pulled away, Lisanne grabbed Daniel’s arm, forcing him to look at her.
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t tell her because … well, it was private.”
He smiled tiredly.
“It’s okay, baby. I don’t want people feeling sorry for me, whatever the reason.” He let out a deep breath and forced out a smile. “See you upstairs in five.”
“Good luck with that, buddy,” said another student, in a disgruntled tone, as he walked away from the girls’ dorms. “They’ve put a security guard on the fire door—guess the dean got wise to it.”
“And the hits just keep on coming,” muttered Daniel. “Looks like we’ll both be sleeping alone tonight, baby doll.” He sighed. “Guess I’ll see you in the morning.” He gave her a small smile, “We have a beach party to go to.”
Lisanne wanted to sulk and stamp her foot. It had been a fantastic night—the gig had gone really well, and now everything had fallen apart. All she’d wanted was to fall asleep on Daniel’s chest and wake up for some awesome morning sex. Now her plans had been ruthlessly quashed.
He rubbed her arms and kissed her lips gently.
“See you at 9:30. Night, baby.”
Then he shoved his hands in his pockets and walked slowly toward the lot where he’d left Sirona. Lisanne felt bereft and filled with sadness for him. He looked so alone.
* * *
She slept badly, tossing and turning and waking several times. In her dreams, she kept seeing Daniel walking away from her. It was upsetting.
As soon as her cell phone started chirruping at 8 AM, she sent a text to Daniel.
* L: slept horribly without u. No fun : ( see you later. LA xx *
His reply made her smile.
* D: See you SOON *
She dashed into the shower before other girls from the dorm started lining up. Then she stood wrapped in a towel, staring at her wardrobe, wondering whether it would be warm enough to wear shorts. When her phone rang, she briefly considered ignoring it. The caller ID showed it was her mom and she didn’t have time for a long talk right now. Sighing, she answered, praying for a short conversation.
“Hi, Mom. How are you? How’s Dad? What’s Harry up to?”
“My! Someone’s in a hurry this morning! And I’m sad to think it’s not because you’re going to church.”
“Yeah, kind of busy. A bunch of us are going out to the Island. It’s supposed to be hot today—maybe as high as 70. Should I wear shorts?”
“Are you going on that motorcycle of Daniel’s? In which case you definitely need long pants, my girl!”
Lisanne shook her head. “No, Mom. Vin’s driving us—Kirsty’s boyfriend. He’s got a brand new SUV—totally safe.”
“Well, I’m glad to hear that. Wear shorts and take jeans, then you’ve got everything you’ll need.”
“Okay, thanks, Mom.”
“Honey, I know you’re in a rush, but I just wanted to ask you very quickly about Thanksgiving—you haven’t said which day you’re coming.”
“Oh,” said Lisanne. “Um, Mom, I was going to talk to you about this, but now’s not a good time.”
“What do you mean, Lisanne?” said her mother, in a sharp voice.
“I thought I’d stay here for Thanksgiving. With Daniel.”
There was a long silence. Lisanne held her breath.
She hadn’t discussed anything with Daniel, but having heard everyone excitedly talking about their plans for Thanksgiving, she couldn’t bear to think of Daniel stuck here with just Zef. She didn’t even know if he’d want to see her, and blurting this out to her mom now had been impulsive to say the least.
“Lisanne, you know Thanksgiving is an important holiday for our family. All the cousins make an effort to be there—it’s the one time we really see each other. And Pops and Grandma Olsen are coming a long way to spend some time with you. Your father and I would rather you be here with us.”
Lisanne felt horrible. “Mom, I know. But … He’ll be here all by himself and I can’t just leave him.”
“Why isn’t he spending time with his family?”
“He only has his older brother, and Zef will be busy with his … friends.”
“What about Daniel’s parents? Where are they? Won’t he be with them? After all…”
Lisanne had to interrupt.
“Mom, no. Daniel’s parents … they were killed in a car accident. Two years ago.”
“Oh my!” her mother gasped. “That poor boy!” Then there was a long pause. “Just wait a moment, sweetheart—I’m going to put you on hold.”
Lisanne huffed ineffectually as she held the silent phone to her ear.
After what seemed like forever, her mother came back on the line.
“Well, I just spoke to your father: we want you to bring Daniel to stay with us for Thanksgiving. No one should be alone at this time of year.”
“What? Dad agreed to that?” Lisanne’s tone was disbelieving.
“Yes, he did,” said her mom, decisively. “So could you please ask Daniel—he’ll be more than welcome.”
“Um, okay. Thanks, Mom.”
“I’ll talk to you later, honey. Have a lovely time at the beach.”
The call ended and Lisanne stared at her phone, wondering if she’d just imagined the whole conversation. Surely she couldn’t invent a universe where her father would willingly invite the boy she was sleeping with to come and stay in his house. It was too weird. Good, definitely—but weird.
After the initial shock wore off, Lisanne began to be excited by the idea. She’d like Daniel to meet her family in a more acceptable way. The question was, would he come?
When she heard the rumble of Daniel’s motorcycle, she realized she’d spent nearly 20 minutes staring at her wardrobe. Hurrying, she pulled on a pair of cut off shorts and a tank top over her tankini, and tied a plaid shirt in a knot at her waist. Then she pushed a pair of jeans into her backpack along with sunscreen, a paperback, and a large beach towel big enough for two.
Daniel was leaning on the saddle of his bike. With his sunglasses covering his eyes, and casually smoked cigarette hanging from his lips, he looked like a movie star.
And then Shawna made her appearance.
“Hi, Daniel! I didn’t know you were in on this. That’s so cool! Oh wow, did you get a new tattoo?” and she trailed a finger down his bicep.
Daniel twitched his shoulder in an irritated gesture.
“You know I’m with Lisanne, right?”
Shawna gave a fake giggle and batted her false eyelashes at him. Daniel’s gaze grazed her breasts as he wondered if they were fake, too.
He turned away, but not before Shawna had guessed the direction of his look and leapt to the wrong conclusion.
“I’ll keep your side of the bed warm,” she whispered.
Daniel didn’t hear her. He’d seen Lisanne, and a huge smile lit his face as his eyes swept up and down her bare legs. It was the least he’d seen her wear outside either the bedroom or the stage.
“I like!” he said, with a grin.
On cue, Lisanne blushed.
“Um, thanks. Didn’t you bring something to swim in?” she said, gazing at his empty hands.
“Sure, baby doll. You want to see?”
He opened the top button of his jeans and pulled down enough of the waistband to reveal a band of dark blue cotton.
“Daniel!” hissed Lisanne, her eyes darting around to see if anyone was watching.
Shawna’s eyes were drawn like magnets to the exposed skin that he was carelessly flaunting.
Daniel laughed.
“Nothing you haven’t seen before, baby.”
And he pulled her into a hug.
Shawna tossed her hair over her shoulder and sucked her teeth.
The small drama was interrupted by the arrival of Vin and Kirsty.
The SUV pulled up to the curb, followed by a convoy of three other cars, all crammed with kids from the college.
“Ready to catch some rays!” shouted Kirsty, happily.
One of the other drivers came hurrying over to Vin’s window.
“Hey, man. I’m seriously overloaded. Can you take one more?”
“I don’t know, Paul. I’ve already got three in the back.”
“We’re good, Vin,” said Daniel, surprising them all. “Lis can sit on my knee.”
Vin smiled. “You heard the man—everyone in.”
One of Vin’s football buddies, an enormous cheerful guy called Isaac, sandwiched himself in the middle, squashing Shawna into the door.
Lisanne perched awkwardly on Daniel’s knee.
“Are you okay,” she asked nervously. “Won’t I cut off the circulation in your legs? I’m pretty heavy…”
He laughed lightly. “No, baby doll. Best seat in the house. Just relax.”
He settled her comfortably and proceeded to suck the soft skin at the side of her neck.
Isaac elbowed him. “Hey! I don’t want to see you mauling your girl all the way to the beach, man!”
Daniel smiled. “You can have Shawna. She’s available.”
Lisanne hid a giggle, while Isaac eyed a furious Shawna warily.
“Hey,” said Vin, “no mauling for anyone—car rule.”
“Since when?” murmured Kirsty, raising one eyebrow.
Vin just smiled. “Lis, we need your iPod for some cool tunes. Pass it over.”
Lis handed it to Kirsty, and the car was soon filled with the rocking sounds of Gin Wigmore.
“I don’t know this one,” said Kirsty, after several more songs.
“This is Lykke Li.”
“Licky who?”
Lisanne smile. “Lykke Li—she’s Swedish.”
“And who was that one before?”
“Asa—she’s sort of soul jazz, from Paris, France.”
“And the one before that?”
“Birds of Tokyo.”
“From Japan?”
“From Perth, Australia.”
“What about good ole US rock?” snorted Isaac.
“There’s some Linkin Park on there.”
“Outstanding!” yelled Isaac, who seemed easily pleased.
Lisanne liked sharing her music but felt uneasy knowing that Daniel couldn’t. He gave her a quick smile and spent the rest of the ride gazing out of the window. It was his default position on car journeys.
The trip was short and uneventful, if Lisanne discounted Shawna’s sulky presence. Daniel half heartedly obeyed Vin’s new car rule, and contented himself with kissing her hair and resting one hand on her bare thigh.
Lisanne was fizzing with happiness. She’d never had a boyfriend before, never been to the beach with a bunch of friends, never made out in a car. She felt as if the whole world was filled with possibilities when Daniel was at her side. She felt safe and adventurous all at the same time.
She wriggled on his lap and leaned down to kiss him.
“What’s that for?” he said, grinning up at her.
Lisanne shrugged. “I’m happy.”
His grin widened, then he kissed her back.
“Car rules!” chanted Isaac and Vin at the same time.
Lisanne pushed Daniel gently.
“What?” he said, opening his eyes.
“Car rules,” she said, with a smile.
“Yeah, well, you’re a bad influence,” he replied, his eyes flashing with humor.
The temperature began to rise along with the sun, brilliant in a flawless blue sky. Vin turned on the air conditioning but Kirsty begged for open windows instead. He agreed immediately, unable to deny her a single thing.
“It’s too windy back here,” grumbled Shawna. “It’s messing up my hair.”
“We’re going to the beach, Shaw. You know, sand, seawater?”
“It’s drying out my skin,” she moaned.
“Okay, fine,” said Kirsty, shaking her head as she rolled the window back up.
When they arrived at the beach, they spilled out, happy and yelling excitedly. The other cars parked behind them and they started unloading the trunk.
The sand was a pale gold, the color and texture of unrefined sugar, and the light breeze tugged at Lisanne’s heart. She felt ridiculously happy and when she turned to look at Daniel, wanting to share the moment, the grin on his face made it feel like her body couldn’t possibly contain such pure joy.
The sound of cursing distracted her. Isaac had dropped a heavy cooler on his foot—and from the sound—and weight—of it, it was filled with beer. More and more beer coolers were unloaded, as well as an array of food.
“Um, Kirsty,” she said, quietly. “I feel really bad—I didn’t bring anything. Can I give you some money or something?”
Kirsty smiled and shook her head. “No, we’re good. Tell you what, there’s a store over there—why don’t you buy some more chips. You should see these guys eat—there’s never enough chips.”
Lisanne was grateful to her friend. Kirsty knew that she didn’t have much money, but chips she could manage.
She tapped Daniel on the shoulder. “I’m just going to buy some chips and a bottle of water. You want anything.”
He shook his head. “No, I got it, baby,” and he strode across, selecting three enormous family size bags of chips and a large bottle of water.
He was almost hidden by the chips as he walked back, making Lisanne laugh. She took a bag from him and they followed the others to the shoreline, staking out an empty patch of sand.
Vin and his buddies had already stripped down to their swim shorts, and Isaac was spinning a football on his finger. Shawna stood with her back to the ocean, enjoying the view of near naked male flesh, while Kirsty laid out an enormous beach towel and proceeded to rub sunscreen into her arms.
Vin hurried over to her, muttering something about, “My job,” which made Kirsty giggle.
“Come on, man!” yelled Isaac. “Football! You playing or what?”
“Or what,” replied Vin, rubbing sunscreen over Kirsty’s back.
“Aw hell,” muttered Isaac. “What about you, Dan? You wanna play some ball?”
Lisanne nudged Daniel’s arm as he dropped the bags of chips next to the food coolers.
“Isaac’s asking if you want to play football,” she said, quietly.
The gleam in his eye, followed by a wistful expression, hurt Lisanne’s heart.
“Go on,” she said, encouragingly. “It’s only a beach game. Just have a go. You can always come back and rub lotion into my back.”
He smiled, “Always up for that, baby.” He took a deep breath. “Okay, what the hell.” Then he turned toward Isaac. “I’m in!”
Isaac whooped and high-fived the guy standing next to him.
Daniel unbuckled his boots and peeled off his socks. Lisanne watched, dry mouthed, as he yanked off his t-shirt and dropped his pants.
“Oh my God,” gasped Shawna. “He really does have nipple rings!”
Everyone turned to stare, but Daniel didn’t know why. He froze.
“It’s okay,” Lisanne said, reassuringly. “They’re just admiring your, um, chest jewelry.”
A knowing smirk passed across Daniel’s face. “Just so long as you like it, baby doll.”
“You know I do,” she said, her face suddenly becoming hot enough to fry an egg.
He leaned down and kissed her hard, leaving her breathless and flushed throughout her entire body.
She sat down, fanning herself.
“Hot?” asked Kirsty, a wry expression on her face.
“Definitely,” agreed Lisanne.
Vin laughed out loud. “Maybe I should get some.”
“Don’t you dare!” shrieked Kirsty. “It would be weeks before we could, um, I mean, it would hurt for weeks.”
Now it was Kirsty’s turn to blush.
Lisanne turned to watch the football game that was taking place further up the beach. She didn’t really follow football, as a rule, so when Vin whistled between his teeth, she looked at him questioningly.
“Daniel just threw a 30 yard pass.”
“Is that good?”
“Yeah,” he said quietly, then sat back to watch the game, one hand idly rubbing Kirsty’s knee.
Lisanne couldn’t really tell what was going on. There seemed to be a lot of shouting, along with some running and catching.
Then Isaac yelled, “touchdown!” and threw himself at Daniel, who looked pleased.
“He’s pretty good,” said Vin.
Then he stood up and jogged over to join in.
Lisanne watched for a bit longer, but Daniel seemed to be doing okay. She pulled out a battered paperback and settled down on her stomach to read.
Shawna had wandered nearer to the football game, dressed in a bikini that was so small, Lisanne wasn’t entirely sure why she’d bothered. She felt too shy to sit around in her bathing suit, especially next to Kirsty, who looked a goddess with her long curls and flawless skin.
After half an hour of burning sun, Lisanne decided to go for a swim. Kirsty was asleep, all the guys were absorbed in the game, and Shawna was still doing her cheerleader impersonation, although it wasn’t clear who she was trying to encourage. But at least it meant no one was watching Lisanne. She slipped off her tank top and shorts, hitched the top of her tankini a bit higher, and gingerly made her way over the heated sand to the ocean’s edge.
The water rippled over her feet, making it look as if they were bending and flexing like seaweed. She waded further in, letting the water cool her hot skin. She sank down to her knees and shivered slightly as the chill reached her chest. Inching further forward, she leaned into the water and took off in a serene breast stroke.
In the distance, she heard shouting and jeers. She turned her head to see Daniel holding up his hands to the guys, as if he was apologizing for something. Then he turned and jogged along the beach for a short distance, before diving into the water and swimming a fast crawl toward her.
He jumped up next to her, with his dark hair plastered to his head, and the sun glinting on his chest as seawater poured from his shoulders.
“Hey, baby doll. Miss me?”
“Might have.”
He pouted. “Only might?”
“Well, you seemed to be having fun with the boys, I thought I’d take a swim.”
“I know,” he grinned at her. “They were pretty mad, but between them and my girl getting all wet, it was no competition.”
He pulled her toward him and her legs wrapped around his waist. His hands slipped under her ass to hold her up as he attacked her lips.
She opened her mouth and his tongue swept inside. He moaned and lifted one hand up to the center of her back, pulling her in more tightly.
When he moved his head back, his eyes were dark with desire. He groaned and shifted her carefully.
“What’s the matter?” she said, in a voice so husky she barely recognized it as her own.
“I’ve got a boner,” he muttered. “That’s not supposed to happen to guys in cold water. It’s you, baby. You’re so hot—I could fuck you right here. Nobody would know.”
Lisanne giggled a little nervously.
“I think people might notice if you suddenly started putting on a condom, unless you can do that underwater.”
Daniel groaned again. “Fuck. We’re gonna have to get you on the pill, baby. You’re driving me crazy.”
Lisanne blinked. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. But Daniel didn’t notice the change in her expression. He was too busy kissing the top of her chest and sucking her throat gently.
He looked up when Lisanne shifted in his arms.
“What’s up, baby?”
“They’re waving us to come over and have some food.”
“Shit. I’ll need a minute,” he said, letting her slide down against his body. “I’ll just swim for a bit, okay?”
“I’ll come with you—I’m not really hungry yet anyway.”
Lisanne swam parallel to the beach, while Daniel zoomed a hundred yards out, then came splashing toward her.
As his head broke the water he grinned at her.
“Feeling better? Everything back where it belongs.”
“Not sure about that, baby. My dick belongs in you.”
Lisanne blushed. He had such a dirty mouth. She loved it.
They walked back along the beach, hand in hand, with Daniel leaning down to kiss her every few paces. Lisanne was pretty sure she could have passed for a bright red fire hydrant from his very public display of affection.
“Um, Daniel? We’re nearly there now.”
“I know,” he said, nuzzling her neck. “Your nipples are so hard—I can’t wait to wrap my tongue around them.”
She smacked his arm and he looked at her in surprise.
“What?”
“Don’t!”
“Don’t what?” he said, looking confused.
“Don’t … say stuff like that in front of people. I’ll just die of embarrassment.”
Daniel narrowed his eyes at her.
“Are you ashamed of being seen with me?”
“No! God, no! It’s just … when you say all that stuff about sex—I get embarrassed. I’m not used to it,” she finished, lamely.
Lisanne was relieved to see that his smile was quickly restored.
“Okay, baby doll, but I can’t guarantee I’ll be able to keep my hands off of you. Just sayin’.”
The others had made quick work of the food, and everyone seemed to have a paper plate loaded up with something.
Daniel’s eyes just got really wide when he saw the piles of barbecue ribs, chicken wings and hot dogs. Good food on a regular basis was something of a rarity for him. He was soon digging in happily.
Lisanne preferred the lighter fare of cold pasta and salad.
They settled down onto her towel and enjoyed their food.
“You’ve got an awesome throwing arm, man,” said Vin.
Lisanne tapped Daniel’s knee, and discreetly pointed at Vin.
“Sorry, man, what?”
“I’m just surprised you didn’t try out for the team. You must have played in high school?”
“Uh, yeah, a bit.”
“More than a bit,” snorted Kirsty. “Lis said you were your school’s quarterback.”
There was a short silence while Daniel threw an accusing look at Lisanne.
“Yeah,” he said, at last.
Vin frowned. “So how come you didn’t try out this year?”
“Yeah, man,” added Isaac. “You threw a clean 30 yard pass and damn near out ran Vinny from a cold start.”
Daniel shrugged and stood up, tossing his plate into the garbage. Then he pulled a packet of cigarettes out of his jeans’ pocket.
“I was busy.”
Vin could see that for some reason Daniel was uncomfortable with the subject, so he dropped it quickly. The conversation soon turned to everyone’s plans for Thanksgiving.
Lisanne looked at Daniel and mouthed, “Sorry.”
He shrugged again, and blew his cigarette smoke away from her.
She cupped his cheek gently until he looked at her. “Sorry, really.”
He gave her a lopsided smile. “It’s okay. I like that you talk about me when I’m not there—well, if it’s good stuff.”
“Always,” said Lisanne, gently.
His answering smile was shy and sweet.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. And,” she said, taking a deep breath, “there’s something else I wanted to tell you, but I’m not sure what you’ll think about it.”
A small furrow appeared between Daniel’s eyebrows. “Go on.”
“My mom invited you to join us for Thanksgiving.”
Daniel didn’t reply—in fact, his face seemed to have frozen halfway through a thought. Lisanne felt herself babbling.
“I told Mom that you were by yourself—and that I wanted to stay here with you.”
That got his attention.
“You … you were going to stay here … with me.”
Lisanne nodded.
“Why?” he seemed genuinely puzzled.
“Because!” she said, rolling her eyes.
Daniel wasn’t generally obtuse, but sometimes he really didn’t get her.
Lisanne tried again.
“So will you? Come for Thanksgiving?”
Daniel rubbed his hands over his face.
“Seriously? Your old man is going to let me in your house for Thanksgiving … and he won’t shoot me or anything?”
Lisanne giggled at the expression on his face.
“Nope. He’ll probably just throw you a hard stare every time you look at me.”
“Sounds fun,” muttered Daniel, but Lisanne could tell he was trying to hide a smile.
“Can I tell her yes?”
“Will there be turkey?”
“Of course.”
“And mashed potatoes?”
“With gravy.”
“And pumpkin pie?”
Lisanne smiled. “Trust me—there’ll be enough food even for you.”
Daniel looked serious.
“That’s really great of them, Lis. I mean it. But I don’t think so—all those people. I won’t be able to … it’s really hard…”
She stroked his arm. “I’ll be there and I’ll help you. Today’s been okay, hasn’t it?”
He nodded and gave her a small smile.
“Yeah, today’s been great. I know I’ve missed some stuff, and some of the calls when we were playing football, but knowing you’ve got my back—that makes it a lot easier. I was going to tell you later, but … thanks. Thank you for today.”
Lisanne’s mouth dropped open with a soft pop.
“You’re welcome,” she said, faintly.
The afternoon passed peacefully. Vin organized a complicated game of Frisbee in the water, with three pieces of plastic whizzing over everyone’s heads, where no one except Vin was sure of the rules.
More food was eaten, and then most people stretched out for a sleep in the sun before heading back. Daniel had gone for another long swim, racing Isaac and one of the other guys. Then he dripped his way back up the hot sand and planted chilled kisses across Lisanne’s stomach. They lay together and dozed comfortably, her head on his chest.
Shawna had arranged to ride back in one of the other cars, which was just fine by Lisanne.
She picked some mellow music from her iPod, and soon the ambient sounds of Cults’ You Know What I Mean and some Alison Sudol was filling the car. The journey was quiet, with everyone dozing after a long day of sun, sea, and sand.
Suddenly Vin sat up straighter.
“Oh, shit,” he muttered. “I’m being pulled over.”
Lisanne felt very nervous. She’d never been in a car that had been stopped by police before. Going with Zef to collect Daniel was the closest she’d ever come to a law enforcement officer. She really hadn’t wanted a closer encounter.
Daniel twisted to look over his shoulder when Lisanne pointed behind them.
“Fuck,” he said, quietly.
Kirsty faced him and shot him an angry look.
“Do you have anything on you, Daniel? Because if you do, this could affect all of us!”
“No, I fucking don’t!” he snarled at her.
Vin tightened his jaw but didn’t say anything. He pulled over and rolled down the window of his car as the policeman approached.
“Is something wrong, officer?”
“You failed to maintain the lane while you were driving: license and registration,” said the man, abruptly.
Vin opened his wallet and handed over his driver’s license.
“If you could step out of the vehicle, please, Mr. Vescovi.”
Looking worried, Vin climbed out and the cops walked him a distance from the car. They seemed to be questioning him about something and Vin was shaking his head vigorously.
Daniel watched closely and Lisanne knew he was lip reading them. He turned to her quickly.
“Lis, I think they’re going to arrest me,” he said, his voice strained.
“What?” snapped Kirsty. “How do you know that?”
He ignored her.
“Don’t say anything to them—just get a message to Zef as quickly as you can? Please, baby?”
“I don’t understand!” cried Lisanne. “You haven’t done anything!”
“Do you think that will stop them?” he sneered. “Believe me, when your name is Colton, they don’t need a reason.”
“Daniel,” whispered Lisanne, “is there anything else—anything at all?”
The look of anger and disappointment on his face dried the words in her mouth until they tasted like ash.
The officers returned to the car and ordered them all to get out.
One man took their names, and then he got to Daniel. He didn’t even ask to see his ID.
“Turn around and face the car, Colton. I am arresting you on suspicion of possession of drugs with intent to distribute.”
Lisanne gasped as the officer cuffed Daniel’s hands behind his back. Kirsty caught her arm as she darted forward.
“Lis, no! That won’t help.” Then Kirsty spoke up. “Excuse me, officer. My father’s a lawyer and I know that…”
“Listen, kid,” said the smaller of the two policeman, “if I had a dime for every rich kid who told me their dad was a lawyer, I’d be a wealthy man—not arresting punks on the highway. My advice to you is get back in your expensive car, keep quiet, and stay away from street scum like that.”
He pointed at Daniel and gave Kirsty a warning glare.
“You have the right to remain silent,” said the bigger cop, to the back of Daniel’s head. “Anything you say or do may be used against you in a court of law.”
Lisanne collapsed against Kirsty, whose arms were wrapped around her, tightly.
“You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police,” the cop continued, “and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you before any questioning, if you wish. If you decide to answer any questions now, without an attorney present, you will still have the right to stop answering at any time until you talk to an attorney. Knowing and understanding your rights as I have explained them to you, are you willing to answer my questions without an attorney present?”
Daniel didn’t speak, and Lisanne knew he hadn’t heard a single word.
“I said do you understand these rights?” snapped the officer, and he pushed Daniel’s head so it thudded against the SUV’s roof.
“Bastard,” muttered Isaac under his breath.
Daniel was escorted into the police cruiser. He didn’t look back as they drove him away.
Vin walked back to them, white-faced and shaken. The police had completely ignored the reason he’d been pulled over—the bogus accusation of ‘failing to maintain a lane’.
Kirsty turned to Lisanne.
“I’m just going to ask you once, Lis—has Daniel got anything on him? Anything at all?”
Lisanne shook her head.
“He looked so mad when I asked him that!” she said, tears stinging her eyes.
Vin spoke quietly.
“They knew he was in the car.”
“What?” snapped Kirsty.
“They knew Dan was in the car. I mean, they didn’t ask me his name or anything. That big cop, he just said, ‘Has Colton supplied you any drugs today, or in the past?’ That was before they checked everyone’s ID. They knew who he was before they stopped me. Like they were waiting for us.”
“I have to call his brother,” said Lisanne, softly.
“No,” said Kirsty, authority ringing in her voice. “Vin, drive us to the police station.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Help Daniel,” she said. “Like I said, Dad’s a lawyer, and I know they can’t do what they just did.”
“Honey, I know you want to help…”
“I mean it, Vin. I’ll get Dad on the phone—he’ll tell me what to say.”
An hour later, a dazed looking Daniel left the police station escorted by a victorious Kirsty, to the whoops and cheers of Vin and Isaac.
Lisanne burst into tears.
“Hey, baby. Don’t cry,” he said, wiping her cheeks with his fingers. “It’s all good. I’m fine.”
Vin picked up Kirsty and whirled her around, as she laughed happily.
“What happened?” choked out Lisanne between her tears.
“Your friend was awesome,” said Daniel, with a huge smile directed at Kirsty. “Totally ripped them a new one. By the time we left they were calling her ‘ma’am’.”
“Thank you very much,” said Kirsty, with a delicate curtsey. “I have to agree with Daniel—I was totally awesome. Well, my dad was totally awesome—he talked me through everything I had to say.”
“But I don’t understand,” sniffed Lisanne. “Why did they arrest you? You hadn’t done anything.”
Kirsty looked serious.
“Honestly, Daniel. I think you’ve got a case for police harassment. Vin was right—they were looking for you and from what they weren’t saying, they wanted to use you to get to your brother.”
Daniel pulled a face.
“Nah, I’m staying well away from those fuckers.”
Kirsty sighed. “Dad says you should get out of town for a while if you can. Have you got somewhere you can stay until this calms down?”
A slow smile lifted Daniel’s lips.
“Yeah. Is the offer still open, baby?”
“Excuse me?” gasped Lisanne, completely bewildered by the change of direction.
“Is the invitation for Thanksgiving still open?”
She flung her arms around his neck, fresh tears trickling down her face.
“Yes,” she mumbled into his chest, even though he couldn’t hear her. “Yes,” she said again, looking up at his beautiful face.