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Slipping on my cover while I turned to walk away, Chelsey stood and grabbed my elbow. “Come here,” she said as she wrapped her arms around me. I stood there motionless; though she felt so good against me, I was empty, which embarrassed me.
“I’ll be back in a minute,” I said as I walked off.
I walked briskly for what felt like a good thirty minutes before I slowed down. My hands, with their manicured nails, rested in the pockets of my cover-up. I grasped the vial with my right hand as I stopped in what appeared to be a secluded area of the beach. I took a hit in each nostril and my eyes watered as I blinked; then sniffed, trying to capture that single moment when the sudden rush of coke went into my system.
I knew I should stop; I could lose everything: Chelsey, my modeling career, my friends, and more importantly, myself. I waited as the rush settled into a nice hum and turned to head back toward Chelsey when I noticed I wasn’t alone after all.
He stared at me as he leaned against the railing of his balcony. He had to be on the fifth or sixth floor. The mystery man was handsome, with dark hair, tan skin, and a nice body. He nodded hishead as I walked past the beachfront condos. I returned the nod and then directed my attention back to Chelsey, who was within eyesight now, but my thoughts stayed on him.
Parker
Life itself is the most wonderful fairy tale. Hans Christian Andersen
I loved Nicole and Derrick for letting me stay with them while I was house hunting. I knew it couldn’t be easy having a third wheel around; maybe this surprise puppy would make their day.
“Come on, Simba, let's meet your new parents.” It was a gorgeous day in St. Augustine, and the golf tournament ended yesterday. I stayed an extra day to check out the cute little guy.
“Hey, Parker, buddy. You forgot the care package,” the previous owners yelled, trying to catch me as I put the puppy in the front seat of my Silverado.
“Thanks, I’m sure I’ll need that for the long drive home.” I smiled and took the box they had put together for me. What were their names? Sandy and Kyle, was it? I couldn’t remember. I put the box in the back of the truck as I thanked them again and settled in next to the cutest puppy I’d ever seen, Simba: a Vizsla, a rare breed. He reminded me a bit of a chocolate Lab as a pup, but the adult pictures I saw reminded me more of a Weimaraner. I turned the radio up to some old rock and put the windows down midway, and we were off to the races, so to speak.
After a few hours of fighting through Jacksonville traffic, I decided to pull over for a break. The hotel bed I'd slept in the night before had done no favors for my back. Leashing Simba, I took him to do his business, then put him back in the truck so I could go do mine. The RaceTrac gas station was packed with folks coming or going from the holiday weekend.
“Oh, aren't you that famous golfer?”
I couldn’t help but smile; many people recognized the face but forgot the name. “Parker. Parker Davis.”
“Oh! Can we get a picture with you and your cute puppy? What’s his name?”
The ladies, mid-forties I’d say, looked well taken care of. After the pictures, we chatted for a few minutes, and then I was on my way.
“Nothing like boosting the ego a bit, right Simba? Now, let’s get home before the secret is out of the bag and all-over social media for Nicole to find out.”
The truck rolled down the highway at speeds that were illegal, and we took our exit. By this time, my dark, usually neat brown hair was a wind-blown mess tossed all over the place, allowing its natural curls to go crazy. The sun was starting to descend on the horizon behind my sister’s place on the canal, and I felt safe at home.
“Okay, buddy. You have to be quiet for the surprise; no barking,” I whispered to the shaking little bag of bones on the seat as I scooped him up. It was clear he wasn’t a fan of such a long ride.
At the exact moment I shut the truck door, Nicole came running out. “Parker, we need help putting…” She stopped mid-sentence. She couldn’t get the words out before Simba was in her arms. “Oh, my word, he’s precious. Where did you get him? How are you going to take care of him on the road? Derr, come look!” she yelled, not stopping with the questions long enough for a single answer. I stood, with a smile stretching from ear to ear, and leaned back on the heels of my feet, arms crossed as I watched the two of them bond and listened to her nonstop chatter on the front lawn. Finally, when her husband Derrick didn’t join us, we made it inside, though she didn’t put Simba down.
“You know you’re taking it when ya get that house you put a bid on, right?” Derrick said as he walked into the living room, drying his hands with a paper towel.
“Derr, I bought him for Nikki,” I said, poking fun at the use of his name that typically only my sister used.
“No, bro. We love ya, and we’ll love this little mutt while here, but no. We’ve got too many mutts running around on two legs rightnow,” he continued in a whisper. “Besides, we’re getting them a cat for Christmas.”
“A cat!” I blurted out.
“Dude.” Derrick shot me a warning look.
“Sorry, but a cat?” I said a bit above a whisper.
“You two are insane at best! Why the hell are you whispering? The kids are down the street, dipshits,” Nicole said as she got Simba some water and laughed at the two less-than-intelligent men in the room. I just got home, so I voted Derrick was the dumbest of the two of us.
“What was it that ya needed help with anyway?”
“Oh, you mean the porch bed your sister had to have, and left me holding a corner on a ladder while she went all goo goo gaga over a puppy?That help?”
Nicole and I couldn’t help but lose our shit over that. We both doubled over, holding our stomachs in laughter. I had to admit, Derrick was a good man to put up with the both of us.
