My Brother's Best Friend Page 5

  “Sure,” Larissa interrupted. “‘Uh…uh…’ Yeah, you really sounded in top form.” She laughed. “So did Devin drag you straight out of bed or did you at least eat before coming?”

  I blushed. “Yeah, I ate. I just—”

  “I didn’t give her time to change. I was running late so I told her just to go like this. Besides, she doesn’t look bad,” Devin interjected.

  “No, certainly not,” another one of the cast members said.

  “Back off, Brian,” Larissa said, pushing him slightly out of the way. “Hey, we’re going out tonight, you’re totally welcome to come.”

  “Uh, sure, maybe,” I responded. I mean I wasn’t much of a party person, not since high school anyway. Besides, I wasn’t much of a drinker either. And when you “go out” everyone expects you to drink.

  Larissa laughed. “You sound just like Devin. Come on, you have to come. I’m going to give you my number and I’ll make sure you’re on the list.” She pulled out her phone and asked me for my number and proceeded to call me. “There, now you have it. I’m expecting you to be there. You’ll really disappoint me if you don’t come. It’s called the Rumba Room and come any time after eight.”

  “Okay, sure.” I smiled hesitantly.

  “We’ll see you later,” Zach said as they walked out of Devin’s studio office to go shoot the scene they had just recorded.

  Robert turned to Devin. “Can you have a rough track put together in the next hour? The kids will be in makeup and wardrobe before they can shoot anything. So have it done by two-thirty?”

  “Yeah, sure. I’ll start right now. I’ll send it to both you and Terry. It should be pretty close to the original, in terms of duration. I might tweak it some more later.”

  “Sounds good. Thanks again for coming in on short notice. Terry just thought the original wasn’t exciting, the song choice, not the recording.”

  Devin laughed and clapped Robert on the back. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve dealt with Terry on other projects. This isn’t the first time I’ve had to do a last minute change.”

  Robert nodded his head then turned to face me. “It was a pleasure seeing you again, Christy. I hope we meet again soon.”

  “Thank you, but really I was the one who enjoyed it, so thank you for letting me crash the session.”

  “You should crash more often, the cast seemed to really respond to a new audience. By the way, excellent ideas about the song, you really have an ear for music. Do you play anything?”

  “I used to. Piano. I also did a few musicals in high school, but mostly, I just have an ear for music. Well, for an amateur, that is.”

  “You better be careful, Devin. She could put you out of a job,” Robert joked.

  “No, Devin knows all the technical stuff,” I told him.

  “Well, you never know, I might just have to pair you two up more often. I better go, see you later.” He opened Devin’s door and walked down the hallway in the same direction as the cast had gone.

  “You know we’re going to have to go to the club now, don’t you?” Devin said.

  “Why do you say that?”

  “Because Larissa invited you, and I know Larissa. And when she’s expecting you to come, you better come.”

  “I think I can handle it. Besides, you don’t have to come,” I told him.

  “Yeah, and leave you in a club in LA by yourself? I don’t think so, Mitch would kill me if he found out. If you go, I go.”

  I smiled. “Fine, then we’re going, if only to see you out of your comfort zone, apparently. I’m surprised you don’t go out with them more often.”

  “It’s not my scene. Now either sit there or make yourself useful,” he said, pulling up the tracks he had just recorded.

  For the rest of the hour I watched as Devin listened to and cut pieces from the different recordings to make a seamless soundtrack. “There,” he said, turning to look at me. “I’m done. Let me just send this to Rob and Terry and we can head back home.”

  Chapter Five

  So we went to the club later that night. It wasn’t what I was expecting. I mean, I don’t know exactly what I was expecting, but not what happened. The music was so loud you could feel the vibrations. We waded through the crowds to the VIP section where Larissa had told us to meet them.

  “Oh, I love this song,” Larissa said as she set her drink down. “Come on, I’m not going alone.” She pulled on Zach’s arm, and he reluctantly stood up. “Please don’t give me that. I know it’s what you really want to do.”

  “Fine, but we’re taking Christy with us.”

  I looked up, suddenly terrified. I hadn’t danced in front of anyone except Devin and that was strictly for educational purposes. Before we came here, he had spent the past few hours teaching me a few moves. I can’t dance. He knew it, and I knew it. So I struck a deal with him, teach me how to dance and I would cook dinner and do some of his laundry. So when Larissa and Zach pulled me to my feet, I started freaking out. I mean what if I couldn’t dance with them? I could only dance because Devin knew how to lead a fumbling idiot.

  “We’re not going unless you go too,” Zach told me again while Larissa looked over at me with desperate eyes.

  My guilt suckered me into going. “Fine, but I’ll only go if Devin comes too.” I looked over at Devin and gave him a look of sheer terror.

  He knew right away why I wanted him to come. “All right, you win, CJ.” Devin stood up and took hold of my hand and together we all walked out toward the crowd.

  Larissa immediately began to dance with Zach and they looked amazing together.

  “Don’t pay attention to what they’re doing, just follow me.” Devin’s voice focused me back on his face.

  “Thanks, Dev,” I said and followed his movements in time with the music.

  “You're getting better at this,” he said.

  “Only because you spent more than an hour practicing with me. But really, thank you. I owe you one.”

  We continued dancing. I looked over at Larissa, and she smiled. She held up her finger as if to tell me to wait. She whispered in Zach’s ear and he walked off while Larissa came to stand by us.

  She pulled me aside. “You dance pretty well for a beginner.”

  “Am I that obvious?” I asked, embarrassed.

  “No, just to the professionals.” She smiled. “I asked Zach to request a song, so go back to Devin and just follow me, okay?”

  “Do I know the song?”

  “Yes, now go back to Devin, the song will be on in a second.”

  I walked the short distance back to Devin and smiled as the song changed. The loud speakers blared, Wyclef Jean’s self-entitled song Your Favorite Song.

  I shouted to be heard over the beat. “Yeah, I wonder how Larissa knew.”

  Devin shrugged his shoulders. “It was probably a random choice. So I guess this means we’re staying for one more song?”

  “Yeah, if you don’t mind.” I looked over to see Larissa pulling Zach toward her then giving me a knowing nod.

  Devin looked over at Larissa then down at me. “What’s that about?”

  “Larissa wants me to follow her lead. But I don’t think—”

  “If Larissa told you to do something, you better do it. She’ll make you regret it if you don’t.” He smiled, trying to goad me into doing it.

  I shook my head then looked over to see Larissa turning her back to Zach. I looked up at Devin. “Fine, but you asked for it. I may look dumb, but you’ll look dumber dancing with me.”

  “I’m prepared to face the consequences, whatever they may be.”

  I turned my head to see Larissa and began to copy her movements. She repeated them several times until I seemed to get it, then she’d do something else. I continued to copy her until I became distracted by the rhythm of the song. I wasn’t even thinking as my body slid up and down Devin’s.

  It wasn’t until the music stopped and I was face to face with Devin, panting, that I realized what I had done an
d realized the effect it had on Devin. My mind was suddenly racing but the only coherent thought was how amazing Devin looked with his ruffled light brown hair and how good it felt to have his hands resting on my hips.

  “Who do we have here? A slut and her prey?” A voice pierced through our haze, and I turned to see the one person I had hoped never to see again. “You actually looked good out there, Christy. For a moment there, I almost didn’t recognize you. So you’ve definitely learned a thing or two since high school. I might actually enjoy having you under me this time. How much are you selling for these days?” Eric Gunderson said.

  I cringed at his words and opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out.

  Instead Devin stepped forward. “I think you better leave, Gunderson.”

  “Devin Malone, is that you? I wouldn’t have pictured you with this.” He pointed at me. “Though I have to ask, how is she? Much improved since I last had her, I’m guessing. ‘Cause I have to be honest, she was pretty lousy four years ago.”

  “I’ll say it only once, leave us alone and I’ll leave your face in one piece.” Devin stepped forward aggressively.

  “I’ll leave, I’ll leave, but can I just ask how you went from making her the laughing-stock in high school to actually dating her?”

  “Let’s just say I have you to thank for that. Now leave.”

  I watched as the one person I hated most walked away. Before I could even thank Devin, he pulled me toward him in a hug. “Are you okay? I’m sorry I didn’t do more.” He stepped back and looked down at my face, his hands on my shoulders. “I just thought it best he leave instead of beating him to a bloody pulp and having to face murder charges.”

  I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck, catching him off guard “What you did was perfect, though the bloody pulp thing is tempting. Thanks, Dev.”

  “For you, anytime, CJ.”

  I was about to ask what he meant when Larissa and Zach walked up.

  “What happened? We didn’t see much except that you were upset at someone.” Larissa said. “You looked like you wanted to punch his lights out. Who was it? We didn’t catch what he looked like.”

  “Did I hear that guy say you were dating her?” Zach asked.

  “Yes, but—”

  “I knew it!” Larissa shouted excitedly over the music. “I told you, didn’t I?” she said, looking at Zach.

  “Fine, you win, but the others won’t let you win so easily next time.”

  Devin interrupted before I could say anything. “You guys had bets that I was dating Christy?”

  “Not Christy exactly, just someone. But then I saw Christy this afternoon and I went double or nothing on her. And guess what? I totally just won two hundred bucks!”

  “I hate to break it to you—” Devin tried to tell them.

  Larissa interrupted again, “So who was the creep?”

  I looked up at Devin suddenly, unable to speak. He gave me a sympathetic smile and put an arm around my shoulders. “He is Christy’s ex from high school. The biggest asshole in the world.”

  “So can I ask a question?” Zach hesitated. Devin nodded his head but kept a tight grip on me as if he was afraid the question would physically weaken me. “What did you do to make Christy the laughing-stock of school?”

  Larissa hit him in the arm.

  I cracked a smile. “It’s okay. I don’t mind that part of the story,” I told them. “A long time ago I wrote in my journal that I was going to marry Devin.”

  “How cute,” Larissa cooed.

  “Well, my brother showed Devin and Devin brought it to school—mind you, I was a freshman at the time—and he showed it to everyone as a joke. So people knew me as the stupid little girl who loved Devin. But I guess the thing that made it worse was the fact that because Devin and my brother made fun of me for it, everyone else thought they could too. So until I graduated, people still remembered me as that girl.”

  “Wow, Dev, that’s pretty harsh stuff. It’s a wonder you managed to get her to go out with you in the first place,” Zach said.

  “I’m still not completely in her good graces.” Devin smiled and looked down at me. I saw it in his eyes the moment he realized they still believed we were dating. But before he could say anything, Larissa’s phone rang.

  “Hey! Yeah, we're at the club. Okay, I’ll tell him. Yeah, all right. See you in a bit.” Larissa looked at Zach. “That was Kevin, he said the others are at his place.” I recognized the name of one of their fellow cast members. They were probably having their own get together.

  “Okay, awesome.” Zach looked at us. “Sorry to cut this short, I really want to hear more about this little duo that’s going on here,” he said, motioning to the two of us. “But we got to head out. See you tomorrow?”

  Devin tried once more to tell them the truth but Zach and Larissa just waved as they ran off.

  “I’ll just tell them tomorrow.” Devin shrugged.

  “Poor Larissa. She’s going to have to give them their money back.”

  “She’ll survive. She seems to win any bet she makes,” Devin said. “Do you want to leave now?”

  “I just need to get my jacket.”

  I walked back toward the VIP room, pushing through the crowd. I looked back and couldn’t see Devin behind me.

  “Looking for your boyfriend?” Eric asked, and I flinched. “Not so tough now without him, are you?”

  I kept walking, thinking it was best not to engage him. I’d be near the VIP room in a few steps anyway.

  “You know, I think what I miss most about you, Christy, is how willing you were to do anything I wanted, as long as it made me happy, right? I’ll never forget your face though, at that party, when you found out it was fake. We had a pretty good laugh, too bad you didn’t stick around.”

  I reached the guard standing by the VIP room with tears in my eyes. Before I could go any further, Eric grabbed my arm and I reacted. “Don’t touch me!” I jerked my arm out of his forcefully and looked up at the guard, who recognized me from earlier.

  “Is this man bothering you?” the guard asked.

  I nodded, unable to talk.

  “Go on up, miss. I’ll handle this.”

  I didn’t wait to see what was going on, instead I ran up the stairs as I heard Eric tell the guard to let go of him.

  I found my jacket and collapsed on the couch. “Can I get you something to drink?” the same waiter who served us before asked. “Larissa said to bill her, so you are not to worry about paying.”

  I looked up at him and wiped the tears away. “In that case, bring me the strongest thing you have and make it a double. I need to do some forgetting tonight.”

  He brought me a drink almost immediately, and I chugged it down. He raised an eyebrow and brought me another, so I emptied that one too.

  “Hey, there you are. I was wondering what was taking so long,” Devin said as he walked over to the couch.

  He frowned at me. “Have you been drinking?”

  “Isn’t that pretty obvious?” I was probably slurring a little. I had managed to kick back several glasses before Devin showed up.

  “What are you doing?” He pulled the glass out of my hand.

  That’s when I broke down. I wasn’t as strong as I looked, though now I doubt I looked strong at all.

  “What’s wrong, Chris? Are you still bothered by that encounter with Eric earlier?”

  I shook my head. “It forced me to relive what happened. I can’t handle remembering, Devin. It’s like looking down and realizing the knife that was plunged into me all those years ago hasn’t been removed, only hidden. Now it’s been twisted to expose the gaping wound, making me feel the pain of it all over again.”

  Devin sat down and pulled me into his arms as I cried. “Well, now we know there’s a wound still hurting. Shouldn’t we take the knife out and sew you back up?”

  I nodded my head as I sniffed and wiped away tears.

  “Why don’t you start by telling me what h
appened. Describe the knife that hurt you. I want to fix this for you.”

  That sounded like something Dr. Stone would say.

  I let my thoughts drift back to high school, back to when Eric Gunderson first came into my life. He was the star quarterback and every girl wanted him. During my senior year, I couldn’t believe it when he dumped his girlfriend and asked me out. I found it so odd, in fact, that at first I said no. But the girls on my volleyball team encouraged me to just see where it would lead. It wasn’t like it was anything but dinner, they said.

  One dinner led to another and then the movies and pretty soon we were the next ‘it’ couple, or at least that’s what I thought.

  I took a deep breath. “Well, you already know I dated Eric in high school, right?” I asked Devin, stalling.

  He nodded patiently, tucking a few strands of my hair behind my ear and gazing deeply into my eyes.

  “I loved him, or at least I thought I did. And I thought he loved me too. I didn’t realize it was all a game to him.”

  Devin’s hazel eyes darkened. “What do you mean?”

  I felt heat creeping up my cheeks, but I realized that maybe Devin and Dr. Stone were right. I’d held this all inside for so long. Maybe it would be good to get it out. And after how Devin how found me in the aftermath of all of this, he couldn’t possible think any less of me.

  “After prom, he booked a room at a hotel,” I began haltingly. “I was a virgin, but he told me that if I loved him…”

  A muscle leapt in Devin’s jaw, as though he were clenching his teeth. “I understand.”

  I didn’t think he really did, but I didn’t really want to go into this part of it. My only knowledge of sex was what I had seen in the movies or read in books. But I quickly found out that life wasn’t like the movies. It never would be.

  “Needless to say, I couldn’t get him to rise to the occasion. I blame it on my nerves and also on the simple fact that he was trying to control everything that happened—when I didn’t do something right, he would comment on it—making me do things I wasn’t sure I was ready to do.

  “Anyway,” I hurried on. “The next weekend he invited me to a party. When we got there, I saw my volleyball team and the cheerleaders all grouped together, laughing, obviously planning something. I went over and tried to join them, but they told me that it was a surprise for me and Eric.”