Play It Safe(49)

Three weeks and three days later…

I opened my eyes and saw my pillow illuminated by weak, early morning in February Colorado sun.

But I felt Gray’s long, warm body curved into my back, his steady breath on my neck and his arm tight around my belly.

This was the third time we’d slept all night together.

I couldn’t wait for the day when it would happen all the time.

But it sucked that it happened last night because of what Casey did.

I closed my eyes and snuggled backward into Gray. He responded in his sleep by pressing deeper into me, taking me partly to my front, his arm curling tighter around me.

That was Gray. He gave even in his sleep.

I sighed.

Then the last three and a half weeks washed through my brain.

* * * * *

In those weeks I was surprised to find that normal was not boring and this didn’t have to do with Casey until last night.

I had always hankered after a routine, a pattern, steady money, steady life. But I found that Casey and I being on the road half our time, hanging in bars the other half and occasionally hustling someone at pool had more steadiness than everyday life.

This, I decided, had to do with the fact that steady meant most my time was spent with Casey.

In normal, my time was spent with everyone in Gray’s life and everyone who came in the bar which was to say pretty much everyone in Mustang.

For instance, Janie loved her man Danny and he was loveable. I’d met him, Gray and I had had a drink with him and Gray had known him for years. He was a big, burly bear of a man with a full beard, lots of long hair, an easy smile and a booming laugh. But that didn’t mean Danny and Janie didn’t fight and do it a lot. Which meant Janie came in complaining about him a lot. Their relationship was passionate and volatile and Janie didn’t mind sharing it. In detail.

Another example was that I met Macy, Gray’s aunt and I didn’t need to spend ten years honing the art of reading people to read instantly she had piss and vinegar. I knew this when she came right in the bar, all five foot four, square-bodied, big-boobed, permed-fluffy-mouse-brown-hair of her and gave me what for for taking a job with Janie at Mustang’s rival bar.

Then Janie got in her face on my behalf and I (and the patrons, the male ones looking on avidly) thought I’d have to break up a catfight. But surprisingly, when Janie explained I was restarting my life and my job came with the room over the bar, Macy backed down.

Then she turned her attention to me and announced, “So Mirry doesn’t ride your ass the rest of your life, you better learn how to cook. Lessons start your next day off. My house. Hear you don’t have a car so get Gray to get his fine ass in that POS truck ‘a his and get your fine ass to my house. Eleven o’clock. You’re makin’ lunch.”

Then she stomped out.

My next day off, grinning, Gray dropped me off at Olly and Macy’s house.

I learned how to make hamburgers and fries.

It wasn’t that hard.

Then came Gray’s Uncle Charlie who looked a lot like Gray if Gray had an extra twenty or so years, drank and ate five times more than he did and spent the vast majority of his time with his behind on a barstool or in a Barcalounger. And when I say Uncle Charlie came, I mean he came straight into the bar, straight up to me and started straight talking.

“Shee-it, seein’ you from afar was enough, up close, I’m in love.”

Yes, that was his opening line delivered while doing a head-to-toe and back five times.

Then came, “Also hear you’re the shit at pool. Got a guy at The Alibi that needs a lesson. When you’re off tonight, get Gray to bring you in. I’ll set ‘im up then you get your cue. See you at nine.”

Then he left before I could say word one.

Needless to say, when Gray came in that night with the intention of having a beer in the final half hour of my shift then taking me upstairs to cuddle, fool around and then make love, he was not super delighted with the change in plans as decreed by his uncle.

I knew this when he stared at me after I gave him his open bottle of beer, his lips to the mouth of the bottle but not taking a tug, his eyes aimed around the bottle at me, his body unmoving. Then, when I got done telling him his uncle’s plans for that night, the bottle hit the bar, Gray’s boots hit the floor and then he was gone.

About an hour later, when I was in my room reading a library book I’d legally borrowed (yes, I had an address so I also had a library card!), Gray showed up. Then he stalked to me, plucked me out of the couch, planted us in it with me on my back and him on me and declared, “Your decision is you’re through hustlin’ pool, you’re through hustlin’ pool. You got an offer you wanna accept, up to you. But no one tells you to hustle pool and no one and that means no one uses you to hustle pool or for any f**kin’ reason. You with me?”

His face, his tone, the look in his eyes and the way he held his body even while lying on top of me made me answer what I’d answer anyway, “Yes.”

At my answer, Gray dispensed with the cuddling and got right into the fooling around then making love.

And I decided, if that was my reward (even though I liked cuddling, definitely), I’d agree to just about anything Grayson Cody decreed.

* * * * *

Every once in awhile, after my shifts but definitely on my days off (when I wasn’t at cooking lessons with Macy), Gray took me to his house. After our bathroom drama, Grandma Miriam’s attitude toward me changed. That was to say, she now tentatively liked me which meant I was open for her to boss me like it seemed she bossed everybody.