Chapter Seven

“Macayla…”

She groaned and burrowed deeper in the sheets, trying to block out the light and the voice that kept repeating her name.

“MaCayla…”

“What…” She flopped onto her back and looked up into Dale’s smiling face. “What are you…” She frowned at the breeze she felt, realizing that her ass was uncovered and he was getting a wonderful view of her backside. “What are you doing here? Is Kellen okay?”

“He’s fine.” Dale chuckled as she shifted, pulling the sheets tightly around her as she sat up. “I was going to see if you wanted to go to dinner with us…”

“How’d you get in?”

“Spare key. So you wanna go?”

She thought for a moment, realizing that Kellen wasn’t with him. “Who’s we?”

“Me, Kellen, Kelley, Jimmy, and Karsyn.”

“Martin’s not going?”

Dale shook his head. “No. Said he wasn’t up for family time tonight, he was going out with a couple of the other drivers to some clubs.”

She rubbed her eyes, slowly nodding her head. “Yeah. Give me about ten minutes.”

He nodded and left the coach, locking the door behind him as he went.

Macayla scratched her head and threw back the covers, with more force than she’d anticipated. As much as she hated to admit it, she was pissed all to hell about Martin. Just because she didn’t want him to spend the night with her didn’t mean she didn’t want anything to do with him anymore.

Now he’s off getting hammered, in hopes of getting hammered with a bunch of other guys, all of them, no doubt horny and drunk.

But, if he wanted to be that way, it was his problem. She was here to work and being with Martin had been an unexpected benefit, but it wasn’t a necessary one and the last thing she was going to do was worry about it. She dampened her fingers in a meager attempt to tame her hair, then opted for a baby blue bandana. Tying it snuggly around her head.

She slipped on a pair of khaki cargos and a long sleeve white hoodie then stepped outside, grabbing her flip-flops on the way. “Is this okay or do I need to change?”

Kelley smiled and nodded. “You’re fine. We’re just going to a little seafood place down on the beach. You’re dressed perfectly.”

Macayla smiled and locked the door to the coach, then took Kellen out of Dale’s arms. “You look like Aunt Jemima…” he joked as she rolled her eyes in response.

The ride to the restaurant was quiet for the most part. Every now and then Karsyn would look at Dale then at Macayla and ask if she was “Unca June’s new guwlfweind”. Kelley would just laugh and shake her head and Dale would look on in embarrassment.

They hurried into the restaurant as Jimmy dropped them off at the door and went to park. Dale asked for a table out of the way and two high chairs, receiving an odd look from the hostess. People still had trouble believing he was a father.
They were seated at a large round table in the back of the restaurant, quickly ordering their drinks and sending the waitress away.

Kellen sat in a high chair between Dale and Macayla. Kelley and Jimmy sat next to Dale. And Karsyn having decided in the car, that Macayla was her new favorite person, was sitting next to her with a big smile.

Macayla looked at the children surrounding her and did her best not to get choked up, but it wasn’t easy. This was a fresh reminder of what she’d never have.

“So Macayla, are you tired of working for Dale yet? Cause we could use some help with Karsyn. The older she gets, the more like Dale she gets. We’re gonna have to stop letting him spend so much time with her,” Jimmy joked, having noted the sudden change in her demeanor.

She laughed and shook her head. “I haven’t had much chance to get tired yet, unless you include babysitting Martin. I think he’s a bigger handful than Kellen… or Dale.”

Kelley laughed and patted Dale on the back. “So you’re finally growing up, baby brother. I’m proud of you.”

“Shut up Kel.”

“Oh!” Karsyn gasped from her seat, quickly slapping her hands over her mouth. “Unca June say shut up…”

Every one looked at Dale, doing their best to look at him like he’d done something wrong but the look on Karsyn’s face was making them all laugh.

He hung his head and slowly shook it. “This is gonna be a long night…”

---

Martin squeezed through the crowded bar, trying his best to keep up with Jamie and Elliott. After storming out of Macayla’s coach, he’d been dead set on going to his coach and drinking himself into a stupor. Unfortunately, he’d run into the two of them along the way and they’d managed to talk him into going out and having some fun.

But he wasn’t.

All he could think about was what an ass he’d been, storming out the way he had. The really sucky part was, he understood why she wanted to be alone. For the last three weeks, she’d been living with him, Dale and Kellen and never had a moment to herself.

She was either taking care of Kellen or hanging out with him. On top of that, she’d practically taken on the role of maid and was doing everything around the house. Not that she’d been told to, but it was something to keep her busy. She always kept herself busy.

He hadn’t really thought about it up until now but maybe that was her way of keeping her mind off of her loss. On rare occasions he would look at her and the light would be gone from her eyes and this blank look would blanket her face and for a few minutes, there was no way anyone could break through.

Then in an instant, it would be gone.

“Hey Martin!”

“Earth to Martin…”

He shook his head, focusing on Elliott and Jamie, who’d stopped a few feet in front of him. “Yeah?”

“What’s going on with you man? You’re in a room full of hunnies and you’re standing here like an old fart…” Elliott said, receiving a raised brow from Jamie and frown from Martin.

“Just not really in the mood for this, I guess. I probably shouldn’t have come.”

Jamie sighed heavily. “You’re not leaving. Go out there and find some chick to dance with.”

Martin watched as Jamie and Elliott did exactly that, then turned around and found an empty booth in the back of the bar. After ordering a beer, he casually watched people, some dancing and laughing, some crying in their beers, some fighting. And then there was him. Hanging in limbo, not knowing what his problem was.

“Mind if I join you?”

He looked up into a smiling face. “Sure…” he shrugged, watching at the woman bounced into the booth across from him.

“Hi, I’m Ashley,” she said cheerfully, reaching across the table to shake his hand.

“Martin.”

She leaned on her arms as the waitress placed his beer in front of him and ordered a coke, waiting until she left to start her conversation. “Why are you sitting in the corner?”

He raised his eyebrows at her and crossed his arms over his chest. “Why are you sitting in the corner with someone you don’t know?”

She shrugged and smiled. “I know who you are. I just want to know why you’re sitting in the corner by yourself while you’re friends are out there having a good time. Not to mention there are a dozen half dressed women that haven’t been able to take their eyes off of you since the moment you walked through the door.”

“Do you always bug people that you don’t know in bars about why they’re not having a good time?”

Ashley shook her head. “Nah. You’re special.”

Martin took a swig of his beer, watching her closely before saying anything else. She wasn’t like any of the other girls in the bar. She was wearing a plain white t-shirt and an old pair of blue jeans, she had her hair pulled sloppily on top of her head and she didn’t have a stitch of make up on. She was definitely cute. But seeing how she was drinking a coke, he was pretty sure she wasn’t twenty-one and that immediately set her off limits.

“Why I am special, Ashley?”

A big smile stretched across her face. “Because you’re the only one with a girl on his mind that isn’t out there trying to get laid by the first thing that throws itself at him.”

“I don’t have a girl…”

“Yeah ya do. It’s written all over your face. It’s why you’re sitting here, by yourself instead of having a good time.”

Martin just shook his head. “Well what am I supposed to do about it? I was stupid and immature. She’s probably pissed at me, for good reason. How am I supposed to fix that?”

“What’d you do wrong?”

“I didn’t understand. She wanted to be alone. I wanted to be with her. I got pissed and took off.”

She appeared to be thinking quietly to herself before a smile escaped her lips. “You go back to her with flowers and chocolate. Tell her you’re an immature ass and you’ll be there when she’s ready for you. You kiss her and you go home.”

Martin slowly blinked, staring at her. “Wanna tell me how I’m supposed to do that? I don’t have a car. If I go into any store around here, I’m gonna get mobbed…”

“I’ll do it…”

“Huh?”

She stood up and tossed some money on the table for her coke and his beer and grabbed her purse. “Come on…”

He watched as she pushed her way through the crowd, stopping to talk to a girl that was dancing with Elliott before turning around and waving for him to follow.

The moment her back was turned he picked her money up off of the table and slipped it into his pocket, and flagged down the waitress. “These drinks are on McMurray’s tab…” he said as she smiled and nodded, then sashayed away.

“Martin, where ya goin?” Jamie yelled as Martin passed by.

“I’m outta here…”

“She looks a little young man…”

Martin shook his head and waved him off. “I didn’t ask you…”

He walked out of the bar to find Ashley getting into her car. The very car he’d seen earlier that day. “Chance 2 Madam?”

She blushed. “Yeah…”

He chuckled and shook his head. “Are you sure this isn’t some evil attempt to have me at your mercy?” he asked as he got into the car.

“Not yet. If things don’t work out with your friend… then I’ll make my move.” She winked at him and started the car.

“How old are you anyway?”

“Eighteen.”

Martin rolled his eyes. “You have proof of that?”

-next-

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