Chapter 4

I hope that I ain’t freaking you out

You probably hear it all the time

But I swear that I ain’t like the other boys

I’m a special kind

This ain’t impossible, This ain’t improbable

You are my baby tonight, And I’m your daddy

I’m Your Daddy- Weezer

Ch. 4

“Taylor, you are coming along tonight!  I already got two extra tickets and I talked to Rachel; she is excited to go as your date…”

“Wait, what?!  Tell me, how a date between you and Biz constitutes as me and Rachel also going on a date?!” I stressed into the phone.

“It works perfectly, don’t you think?!” Ari asked nervously into the phone, obviously already second guessing her split-second decision of saying yes to Biz.

“No, it sounds more like you want someone to bail you out if things go bad.”

I heard her huff into the phone and I couldn’t help but smile knowing she was going to come back with some spry remark.  “Really, Taylor.  Can you blame me?”

I snorted, thinking about how I found Biz in the bathroom the last time we went out and admitted, “Nope, definitely can’t blame you.  What time should Rachel and I meet you guys there?”

“Um, I figured we could go together…”

“Oh no!” I exaggerated into the phone as I waved my hands in a stop motion, even though she couldn’t see it.  “I plan on taking Rachel out for dinner first.  I’d like to get to know her a bit.  If I’m going to get pulled into something like this, then I’m going to take advantage of it.”

“But that means I need to be alone with Paul for the 20 minute ride into the city,” she whined.

“Yup.  This is supposed to be a time for you to get to know him, Ari.  It wouldn’t be fair if he didn’t get a reasonable shot.”

There was a pause before she mumbled in agreement.

“Besides, I need to call my date to let her know what time I’m going to pick her up,” I said, surprising myself that I was actually kind of excited to be taking Rachel out.  She was a tall, slender brunette that had a bubbly personality that I found adorable.  She had shining green eyes that seemed to light up the room every time she smiled.

It’s going to be a good night.

BizNasty2point0: Double datin’ it up with Pyatt. Two hot guys with two hot chicks. Boom!

I was nervous as hell driving over to her house.  Not quite sure how this could be worse than mowing someone’s lawn in just Speedos and work-boots, but right now it definitely seemed that way.  My goal for the evening was to get to know her.  This was something I was definitely not used to.  I was more into the whole, “Let me make your panties drop and I will show you what you’ve been missing.”  Obviously, that was not going to work with this one.

I even pulled out the nice preppy clothing for the occasion and already it was bothering the shit out of me.  I hated having my collared shirts buttoned up to the 2^nd to last button, but I assumed she wouldn’t be cool with it opened half way down my chest.  I chose a long sleeve, sea-foam green shirt that made my skin look darker than normal and I rolled the sleeves up to my forearms.  I wore my dark khaki colored cargo shorts and my new Etnies kicks that were an awesome brown color with some funky subtle pattern on them.  The ensemble was topped off with my favorite Yankees hat and a freshly shaven face.  I thought I looked damn good and hoped to impress my date.

I arrived at 7:45pm, and it was probably the first time in my life that I had ever been early for a date.  I parked behind her bright red Jetta, in the driveway and hopped out of my truck.  I took a deep breath and rang the doorbell, awaiting my date.

The door swung open and there stood my Señorita. 

Ari was in a pair of dark-washed, boot-cut jeans, a black halter top that dipped low enough to get a glimpse of some cleavage and black healed ankle boots.  She had her hair pulled back in a simple, low ponytail with just a few straight wisps’ of hair that had seemed to rebel, but they framed her face like a picture.  From what I could tell, she barely had any makeup on except for some mascara that dramatized her hazel eyes.  Her necklace with the ring just grazed the top of her cleavage; a spot that I hoped to some day place my lips.

She was a vision; all except for the fact that her plump lips were pursed tightly and she looked to almost be in pain with the thought she was going to be spending an evening with me. 

“Hey Ari,” I said with a weak smile.

“Paul,” she said as she stiffly nodded her head, reluctantly inviting me inside.

On the outside her home looked like the other homes in the Southwest.  It had stucco on the outside with a slight pitched roof in an adobe style.  Inside, I was pleasantly surprised to find that her walls had warm inviting colors on them, including yellows and reds.  There were sky-lights allowing the evening sun to penetrate into the home and she had wrought iron light fixtures and candle holders hanging on the walls and setting on tables.  It reminded me of a medieval palace of sorts.  As we walked down the hall and into the kitchen, I noticed some pictures of Ari with other people that resembled her.  There were also a few pictures of her with the Doan kids and one with a blonde, preppy looking guy looking at her possessively.  I could only assume that it was probably her late fiancé and that the photo was from their engagement.

“Drink?” she asked as she poured herself a shot of liquor and slung it back.

I cleared my throat while I blinked at the scene and mumbled a no thank you because I was driving.  She walked towards me, making me think she was going to change the no touching rule right off the bat.  Instead she flicked the collar of my shirt as she walked by and snapped, “Glad to see you decided to show up at my house this time with clothing.”

“I don’t like being different and I don’t need everyone staring at me,” I shot back as I walked down the hall after her, imprinting the shape of her ass in my head.

I heard her basically snort as she opened the front door and motioned for me to walk through, back into the evening desert heat.  I had a feeling it might just get hotter as the night progressed, unfortunately probably not the way I hoped.

His truck had too high of a lift that I was unable to climb up without some help from him.  Surprisingly he was a gentleman in helping me, and I was buckled in by the time he climbed into the driver’s seat.  As much as I didn’t want them, the butterflies seemed to churn as the tension in the cab of the truck built almost instantly.  He looked fucking hot.  His attempt to look all preppy was a nice gesture, but when a shirt clings to the arms and chest the way his was, it kind of put me in a vulnerable position.  The color made his skin look even darker and the erotic aspect of him made my hardened edges melt just a bit.  I was forever intrigued by the tattoos on his left arm, even though I had never thought them sexy before on any other guy.  I just kept my eyes focused out through the front of the windshield, waiting for him to start the truck, but after a few minutes of not moving I looked over to see what the problem was.

I found him turned towards me, waiting patiently, with his left arm draped over the steering wheel, holding a simple yellow rose as a small smirk stretched across his face.  I took in a short breath of surprise and instantly felt embarrassed.  Before I could say anything he spoke.

“Arianna.  I understand that you are not 100% okay about going on this date, and I’m pretty sure you said yes so that I would leave you alone…”

I attempted to stop him here but he just lifted a finger and placed it gently against my lips.

“Let me finish, please.”

I nodded and he went on.

“I want you to realize that I have never been so persistent with a woman before and probably would have given up a couple hours after you blew me off the first time if I wasn’t so damn attracted to you.  So, I am just asking you to give me a real chance tonight to show you that we can have a good time together.  This yellow rose is to show that I don’t expect anything more than what I am asking of you this moment.  Will you accept it?”

It took all I had not to crack up laughing at his sincerity because personally I felt like I had been thrown into an episode of the Bachelorette.  Oh holy hell, is this guy for real?!  Instead I just smiled sweetly and took the rose.

“Thank you Paul.  It’s a very nice gesture and I do promise to give you a chance tonight,” I said, actually meaning the words I spoke, even though I was still trying to figure out what his real intentions were.

The drive to Phoenix was a little awkward because it was insanely quiet.

“So, please don’t be offended, but what is your background?” I asked him, unable to take the silence any longer.

“My background?” he asked with a confused smile.

I looked down at my hands because I had all of a sudden become shy when he looked at me that way.  He looked straight into my eyes whenever he spoke to me and it completely unnerved me.  I hesitated as I reworded my question.  “Um, where are you from?”

He started out serious and slow, “Funny, I figured you would know where babies come from, but if you need me to explain, my mother and father got really drunk one night…”

I busted out laughing and swatted at his arm without even thinking.  “Seriously?! I think I know that you came from your mom and dad…”

He was laughing with me at first as he shrugged, “Well I at least know for sure I came from my mom; not totally convinced my dad had any part in it.”

I stopped laughing because he said the last part so serious-like.  “Wait, are you being serious?” I asked with big eyes.

He looked over at me and I saw the smile in his eyes.  “I didn’t take you for the gullible type, but obviously I can have a lot of fun with you,” he said with a snort as his joke finally got the best of him.

I took a deep breath, held it, crossed my arms and looked out the window, slightly annoyed because I was not the type of person who appreciated being made an ass of; even if it was in fun.

“Well, I live in Welland, Ontario which is just 25 miles north-west of Buffalo.  As for my heritage, it’s kind of a complex mathematical equation as you’ve probably already noticed.  I’m ¼ African-American, 1/8 Mike Tyson, 2/7^th’s Caucasian, 1/15^th Black Rapper, 1/16^th Coyote, and the rest of me is Canadian-Savage,” he said with another sly smirk.  As he was speaking I got over my pouting session and looked over at him.  When he finished speaking he looked back over at me and said softly, “I didn’t mean to make an ass out of you.  I’m a bit of a jokester so never take it personally.”

I gave him a weak smile and looked back out the windshield, at the road.

“So what about you?  What is your background?”

“My father was Mexican and my mom is Navajo Indian,” I said quietly.

“Well that explains your exotic beauty and raven colored hair…” he said almost to himself.  Of course this made my nerves double and I could feel the heat flush my ears and cheeks.

I had been out of the dating scene for too long it seemed.  I didn’t know how to take compliments anymore and I felt uncomfortable with anyone who put on an advance, even if it was just words.  Paul put me at the edge and I was afraid that just a weak breeze might push me over into the abyss, leaving me incapacitated without a chance to crawl back out into the real world again.  I wanted to be able to fall in love again but my scars were so deep that I just didn’t think I could put myself in the predicament of them being ripped open again, especially by a guy who thrived off of being the center of attention.  At the moment, I felt Paul was either very superficial or just trying to damn hard to get my attention.

He must have picked up on my uneasiness and realized our conversation was finished because he leaned over and turned up the music that was on his IPod.  I was surprised to hear the Deftones filtering through the speakers.  I looked over at him and said, “Good tune.”

His face lit up like a child’s when I spoke the words.  “Are you saying you like the Deftones?”

I just nodded my head in response.

“Well, I listen to everything, just so you are aware.  So, if you don’t like something, let me know.”

“Okay,” I said quietly and went back to staring out the windshield listening to the melodramatic words of Cherry Waves… “If you should sink down beneath, I’ll swim down.  Would you? Is that what you want? Escape…below…”

We arrived at the Hard Rock and drove into the VIP parking garage.  It was definitely one of the sweet perks of being a professional athlete in the town.  Even though we were basically the red-headed step children of Arizona sports life, the city still treated us well.  I quickly hopped out of the truck and ran around to the other side quickly so that she didn’t fall out of the truck.  She was a little small for it, but I thought she looked damn good sitting next to me, and I was hoping that at some point she would be cool with sitting in the middle, right beside me.  Surprising me, she put her hands on my shoulders as I put mine around her waist and lifted her down on to the ground. 

I couldn’t help but keep my hands there a minute longer than I should have.  We kept eye contact for a split second before she nervously looked away and I left go of her, trying to keep my promise of not touching her tonight.  My head was still a little fuzzy from the ride here.  It didn’t go overly awesome, but it wasn’t a complete disaster either.  I at least learned a couple new things about her and plus I had 20 minutes to fill my senses with her lavender perfume.  It has definitely been forever since a woman has had such an effect on me. 

I wanted to take her hand in mine, but I kept my distance as we walked to the elevators and into the café.  She kept her arms tightly tucked underneath her breasts and I hoped she would at least loosen up enough to enjoy the evening.  My wish was granted when I heard Py yell out behind us to grab our attention.  He and Rachel were already sitting at a table with a couple drinks in front of them, looking like they were having a good time.  A big smile came across Ari’s face as she leaned in to hug both Rachel and Pyatt.  She looked happier than she did the whole ride here and I instantly got the distinct feeling that she wasn’t too fond of me yet.

“Would you like a beer or some other kind of drink?” I asked her after she separated from whispering into Rachel’s ear.

“Sure, I’ll take whatever you are having,” she said with a smile.

“Um, I’m having 7 and 7,” I said hesitantly.

“Then I’ll have that,” she said as she turned back towards Rachel.

I raised an eyebrow at her choice as Taylor announced he would be accompanying me to the bar.  I watched with some jealousy as he kissed Rachel’s hand, telling her he’d be back soon.  “So how is it going so far, Biz?” Taylor asked as we walked away from the girls.

I took a deep breath and said, “Um, not quite sure.  Sometimes I think I’m getting somewhere and then the next minute she is zoning out and getting all nervous again.”

“I’m sure she’s scared.  This is basically her first date in a year and a half,” Taylor said, honestly.

“Really?”

“Yup.  Andre and Shane have been on her case for a while now, but she just hasn’t been ready; and truthfully, I understand where she is coming from.”

“Yeah, but you seem to have hit it off with Miss Rachel already.”

Taylor grinned, “She is really fun and sexy.  Probably something I need to get started…”

“Told you that you make panty soup wherever you go!!” I exclaimed as I patted him hard on the back.  We got the bartender’s attention and placed our order.  “Dude, does Ari always drink hard shit?”

Taylor thought a moment and said, “Um, not usually, but I have seen her drink the hard stuff when she’s really nervous.”

“Huh, okay,” I said as we paid for the drinks and headed back to the table.

By the time Maroon5 came up, Ari had drunk at least 4 glasses of 7 and 7, putting herself on the way to a damn good buzz.  Not that I’m completely complaining.  With her half drunken state she began to be more touchy feel-y with me, even snuggling into my side when I placed my arm on the back of the booth, behind her.  At one point Taylor and Rachel got up, leaving Ari and I alone.  She leaned over, pressed her nose to my chest and took a deep breath in.  I looked down at her, trying not to laugh as she looked up at me with big doe eyes and said, “Bizzzz you smell really good.”

It took all I had not to wrap my hand around the back of her neck, thread my fingers through her hair and kiss her sweet, full lips.  Of course my thoughts were left by the wayside when Maroon5 struck their first cord, causing Ari to spider climb over top of me and run out to the dance floor, attempting to get as close to the stage as possible.

I got up and used my size to push through the now crowded floor to get to her.  She was already dancing along to their new single, Misery when I got over to her.  I couldn’t help but laugh and dance along side of her.  I was mesmerized by how she got into the music and finally let herself go.  I knew she couldn’t be uptight all the time.  Halfway through the set and at least 2 more 7 and 7’s later for Ari, the group broke into Secret.  It’s a sexy song on their Songs About Jane album about a hook-up that is slow moving and definitely easy to move to with a partner. 

I couldn’t help but grab her and pull her into me so that we could move as one to the song.  She obliged me by wrapping her arms around my neck as I rested my hands low on her waist, guiding her along to the beat of the song.  The whole place was intertwined, yet it felt as though she and I were the only two on the floor.  I was drawn into her beautiful hazel eyes.  Her body moved as one with mine and every nerve ending was on fire wherever her body touched mine. 

It was all too easy to let go of her hip with my hand so that I could touch her cheek, feeling her body purr as I touched her.  She nuzzled her cheek against the palm of my hand and I was a goner with no more chance of my restrain holding me back.  I leaned down and guided her soft lips to mine.  They were full and I could have sworn they tasted like a ripe, juicy peach.  My world split apart when she opened her mouth to me, allowing my tongue to take a dip in the cool waters.  The kiss quenched my thirst like no other and I could only think about how I wanted to drink from her more.  However, before I knew it, the song was over and everyone around us was back to bouncing around.  I reluctantly pulled away from her lips as my eyes saved the picture of the aftermath of our kiss.  Her eyes were still closed but a closed lip smile graced her face.  That was the face that made me realize that this girl was more than anything I had ever known.  Too bad she is trashed and most likely will have any recollection of what we just shared.

Chapter 3

So let me be, and I’ll set you free.

I am in misery, There ain’t nobody Who can comfort me.

Why won’t you answer me?

The silence is slowly killing me.

Girl you really got me bad…I’m gonna get you back.

Misery- Maroon 5

Ch 3

“Thank you so much for coming out again today…” she said into the phone for the 5^th time in 10 minutes.

“Are you going to stop saying thank you now?  I don’t think I’ll be able to get out of my apartment with my head being this big from all your praises,” I said, laughing into the phone.  “Besides, I still feel bad that you got stuck with Biz…”

“Yeah, definitely not a big fan of him and not a big fan of you right now, either,” she said with some attitude dripping into the phone.

“Oh?” I asked as I willed myself not to smile too broadly.

“You gave him my number, didn’t you?”

“Maybe.”

I heard her huff into the phone, annoyed.  “Gee thanks, Taylor.  I thought I could trust you enough not to give my number out to complete morons.  He’s very pushy and forward…” she exclaimed before fading off.

“So, what are you up to on this Friday night, Ari?” I couldn’t help but chuckle, because I was fairly sure Biz asked her to dinner.

“Nothing,” she said short-like.

“And why not?  It’s a Friday, Ari.  Even you told me the other week that you needed to start getting out some more.”

“Cause I refuse to go to dinner with Biz,” she whined.  “I’m not really sure on him, Taylor.  Just for the short time I spent with him, he annoyed me for at least 95% of the time.”

“He takes a little getting used to.  He is a different breed, but when he gets his mind set on something, he’s usually pretty persistent.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing.”

“You can’t say nothing when I can clearly tell that nothing obviously means something.”

I hesitated and then said, “Come over to my place for dinner.  I’m making some chicken and veggies, you can be in charge of dessert…”

“I’m game.  What time?” she asked, almost sounding relieved that I was asking her.

“Um, how about you go home, get changed and come over when you are ready.  That way I have a buddy for when I’m cooking.”

“Can I make the dessert there?”

“Yup.”

“Okay.  I’ll be over then.  See you in a little Taylor.”

“Yup, bye.”

As soon as I hung up my phone it rang again.

“Yeah, Biz?”

“So, I asked Ari out on a date and she turned me down!” he whined into the phone.

I couldn’t help but chuckle, “Told you that before you asked her.”

“Dude, you gotta help me…”

“I can’t believe you are asking for help already!  You are the man that can seem to pick up any girl you want.  Do you mean to tell me that you are already out of tricks?!”

He paused and I swear I could hear the mouse wheel in his head working overtime.  “Ugh, now I know why you don’t date much, this working hard to pick up a chick, sucks ass!”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!” I yelled into the phone, knowing he was messing with me.

“I’m just saying the girls usually fall onto my bed without asking and that you usually have to work harder, that’s all.  Its cool man, not everyone can be as smooth as me…”

“Obviously you aren’t being so smooth right now, Prince Failure…” I snapped back.

“Ugh! I know. Okay. So it’s a Friday night and I don’t have a date…” he rambled on as his ADD seemed to kick in full force once more.

I knew what was coming next so I just stopped him before he even asked.  “Dude, I got plans for tonight.  I am not going out with you.”

“But, Py?!  What plans could you seriously have tonight?!  I am your fucking social director dammit!”

I rolled my eyes and chewed into the phone, “You are not my social director and for your info I have my own dinner date tonight.”

“What?! You dawg! Who?! That teacher, Miss…?”

“Arianna.”

“Shut the fuck up.”

“What?!”

“I’m going to ask you, man to man.  Do you like her more than a friend?” Biz growled semi-angrily into the phone.

“No, man.  I’ve told you this 100 times now,” I said calmly but smiling for the small victories in life.

“Is there any chance she has feelings for you?!” he asked, raising the pitch of his voice slightly.

“Nah, she’s definitely a sister to me and I know she feels the same about me.”

I heard him blow out air into the phone, causing me to pull the phone away from my ear.  “I’m not done with her.”

“Whatever,” I mumbled into the phone, becoming exhausted from this drama he was making out of nothing.  “Dude, I gotta go get some shit cleaned up.  I will talk to you later.”

“But…”

“Bye, Biz.”  At that, I hit the end button on my phone and dropped the phone on the floor as I covered my eyes and left out a semi-psychotic laugh.

God, I love fucking with him!

A week went by and I probably left more than a dozen voice mails and texts messages on her phone.  She answered three of them.  One text message said: I don’t go out on school nights.  Another text message stated: I don’t let strangers in my house, even if they do bring take-out.  And then the last text message on Friday night said: Yes, I realize it’s a Friday night, but I have house stuff to get done and tomorrow I’m doing yard work.

I got the distinct feeling she was blowing me off and I can’t remember the last time I was blown off by a chick.  It had to be way back in middle school or something…

Obviously the phone messages weren’t working and I needed to step up my approach.  So, I did what any boy would do when they were out of options; Saturday morning I headed over to the Doan’s house to ask if I could borrow their lawn mower.

I woke up at 8:30am, much to my dismay.  I probably had a few more mojito’s than I should have had and now I was paying with a slight nagging headache.  However, they tasted really good and I had a nice time spending the evening with Taylor talking about nonsense and Biz.  Of course when I left I was still not a believer when it came to Biz, even though Taylor did say it might be a good idea to give the guy a chance.  The biggest thing that bothered me this idea was that even Taylor seemed slightly hesitant to tell me to go forward with this.  Plus, to be truthful, the whole million text and voice messages were a little overkill.  The guy just seemed plain pathetic.

Last Night

“Why should I do this?  Even you sound a little unsure of telling me to go on a date with him…” I asked while eying him up through my almost empty Mojito glass.

He took a deep breath and leaned back on the couch as he looked up at the ceiling for answers.  “Okay, so Biz is…well, he can be a player,” he said slowly.

“So you are telling me to get back into the dating pool with a player?”

“Yes, I mean no, ugh.  For some reason, this time I think things might be different with him.  He really wants to get to know you,” he stopped and took a deep breath as he picked his head back up to look at me.  “For my sanity, can you please just go out on one date with him?” he pleaded.

This was obviously my cue to leave for home because I couldn’t believe Taylor was asking me to do such a thing.  I got up from the couch and began walking over to the kitchen with my empty glass.  I then stopped as my annoyed anger boiled over.  “For your sanity?!  Since when has our friendship been based on favors?!”

Taylor got up and walked over to me, putting his hands on my shoulders to try and contain my irritation.  “I’m sorry, that came out wrong.  Please forgive me,” he pleaded while his blue eyes seemed to have put me into a trance.

I shook my head and said, “Don’t give me the fucking puppy dog look, Taylor Pyatt!”  Of course by the end of my one sentence rant, I was beginning to smile because he had now popped out his lower lip for the fully puppy face effect.  I turned away and proceeded back to my initial route to the kitchen.  “I will not be pushed into anything, Taylor.  No matter how cute you look right now!”

I heard his laughter come up behind me and then off to my side as he propped himself up against the kitchen counter next to me.  “Okay, Ari.  No pushing.  I never did it before, and I won’t do that now.  Besides, I wouldn’t want you to do it to me.  I’m sorry.”

I looked over at him, trying to be stern faced but failing miserably as I pouted, “Fine, you are forgiven.”

He then pulled me into a hug and kissed me softly on the forehead like he always did when we said goodbye.

Back to today…

It was hot out early and I didn’t really have any plans until the evening.  I had decided that I would probably make my way out to the Hard Rock to see Maroon5.  I was in love with their lead singer, Adam Levine, plus I was in the mood to do some dancing to live music.  I had already talked to Rachel (Miss Sharp), and she was of course game to go out.

So, since I wasn’t up to anything, I decided to slip into my bikini and lie out on my patio and catch some sun.  I had almost dozed off when I heard a lawn mower start next door at the Doan’s.  I thought it was strange for our lawn guys to be mowing on a Saturday, but didn’t think much more about it.  I rolled over onto my belly, put the towel over my head to keep my face from burning and closed my eyes once more.  I was once again in la-la land when I was curious to find out why the lawn mower seemed so loud all of a sudden.

I lazily picked the towel up so that I could see out.  I blinked my eyes twice before it clicked that the picture I seeing was actually real.  There, mowing my lawn was a tall, dark haired, sweat glistened, tan skinned man with some of the most defined muscles I had ever seen.  He had several tattoos all over his body, including a full left sleeve of them covering his arm.  At first I found myself drooling over the fact that he had one of the most beautiful bodies I had ever seen.  Then my mind shockingly registered the fact that this man was mowing my lawn, in just a pair of work boots and a black Speedo!

“Why do you need the lawnmower and why do you need to know which house is Ari’s, Paul?” Andre asked slightly confused, but not surprised, as I stood nervously on the Doan’s front porch.

“Well I figured I’d do her a favor and mow her grass…”

“Our lawn guys take care of that for her.  We use the same guys. Besides, since when do you know Ari?” she asked suspiciously.

“Um, since last week at that school reading thing we did.”

As soon as I finished my words, Shane came down the steps and walked up behind his wife.  “Hey, Shane!”  I said with a grin.

“Did I hear you want to borrow the lawn mower?”

“Yup.”

“Is this some way of getting Ari’s attention?” he probed as he put his arm lovingly around Andre, like I might try and hit on her too.

I didn’t really expect the 20 question routine and I was getting a little flustered by this point so I just decided to spit it out.  “Look you two, I have a plan.  I’m going to mow Ari’s lawn to show that I am a nice guy…”

“Aren’t there better ways of showing her you are a nice guy?” Andre asked, obviously realizing there was more to my idea.

“I’m mowing in my Speedos,” I said, dejected by the fact that I had to give up all the details of my plan.

“Oh hell!  You really are one messed up kid, Paul,” Shane broke out, laughing.  As soon as he controlled himself a little I heard him incoherently say, “The mowers are in the shed, it’s already open.  Have at it.  I’m soo taking pictures.”

I ran off the porch as I yelled, “Thank you!”  I was relieved that I could finally get to my task.

I looked over into her back yard and couldn’t believe my luck when I saw her lying out on her patio.  I stopped and stared for a moment, taking in the beautiful site.  Her golden colored skin shimmered in the sun from the tanning oil she had put on.  Her black hair was pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head and she was sporting red, mirrored, half-framed Oakleys.  She wore the tiniest white, string bikini that contrasted just right against her already darkened skin.  She’s actually better looking in real life than she was in the fantasy I conjured up the last week while I tried to sleep.  She undeniably had the short, stocky yet well toned body going for her and I was drawn to her like a bee was drawn to honey as I stood and licked my lips, swearing I could already taste her.  I shook my head to clear my lust and get back to the task at hand.  I’m not going to even get close to tasting her if I don’t win her over first!

I started the mower and took care of the small front yard first, so at least that would look even.  Some of the neighbors were driving by and beeping their horns.  I just laughed and waved.  I thought for sure she would have come around front to check, but when I got around to the back I noticed she had rolled over onto her belly.  I almost mowed over some of her flowers as I became mesmerized in the slope of the small of her back and the perfect line that lead to the sexy curve of her ass.  I swore under my breath and went back to focusing on the straight lines of my lawn mowing endeavor.

I just made my turn to come back down the line when I looked over and noticed her standing on the edge of her patio, scowling.  I just smiled broadly and waved at her, ignoring the fact that she looked as if she just might call the cops on me.  I turned around once more and as I looked up, I found her standing in my way with her hands on her hips.  I stopped and shut off the mower.

“Morning, cupcake!”  I said with a broad smile, hoping she couldn’t see that I was actually nervous as all hell.

“What the fuck do you think you are doing?!”

“I figured that maybe if I helped you get your chores done today, I could take you out on a date tonight.”

“Um, I pay for someone to mow the grass, Paul.”

Nice, she called me by my first name.  Plus it was so in that scolding teacher voice that I was quickly finding I enjoyed.

“Well, I wanted to make sure you had no excuses tonight,” I chirped back bravely.

“Last time I checked, I don’t need excuses to say no if I don’t want to go on a date with you.”

“Last time I checked you really have nothing to lose by going on a date with me.”

She took a deep breath, obviously trying to keep her own cool.  “Paul, I do not want to go on a date with you.  We have nothing in common and I’m not really interested in a relationship right now,” she said rather calmly, surprisingly.

“Well fine, suit yourself.  I was just going to ask you if you wanted to go see a band with me tonight.  No strings attached, I would act like the perfect gentleman of course.  I’d even bring you home so that you can sleep in your own bed tonight.  No expectations, of course,” I said as nonchalant as possible.

I leaned down to start the mower again but was quickly interrupted by her walking closer to me.

“Fine!  But I swear, you lay a hand on me and you are taking me home.  I have tickets to see Maroon5 tonight at the Hard Rock.  Pick me up at 8pm…”

“I would like to take you for dinner, first…” I cut in, but she cut me right off.

“8pm.  Eat before you pick me up, we will just be attending the show.  Nothing more,” she snapped before she turned on her heal and walked back towards the house.  I was staring at her ass when she suddenly stopped and turned back to look at me.  “Oh, and for god sakes, put a pair of shorts on if you are going to finish mowing my lawn!”

Chapter 2

a/n: noticed from your comments that many of you don't know much about the Yotes... well, don't let it deter you from reading more... make sure you check out some pictures of the boys (especially Paul Bissonnette and Taylor Pyatt) and I'll make sure I post some tomorrow for you!

I see you looking, I know what you are thinking, that I will never go anywhere.

Too bad the things that make you mad are my favorite things.

And I’m so happy.

My Favorite Things – Incubus

Ch 2

Oh great, I get stuck with the tool… just my fuckin’ luck.

Everyone split up, which left me walking with the Biz character, alone.  Thank goodness we were only a few classrooms away from mine, so that I didn’t have to be uncomfortable for too long.  He respected my personal space as we walked but when I turned to ask him to wait so that I could announce him, I found him so close that I the scent of his cologne overpowered my senses.  I felt like I had to shake my head to clear the smell from my nose, but instead I stammered, “Um, can you please just wait here for a moment so that I may introduce you properly?”

“Well, I was thinking of introducing myself properly to you tonight, at dinner.  I don’t think right now would be completely appropriate…” he said with a chuckle but completely serious, forcing me to look up and him and glare.

I took a deep breath, trying not to take in anymore of his strong cologne because I was afraid of starting with a sneezing attack.  “I think you have it all wrong…” I started but was quickly cut off with a smug response.

“Oh no, I definitely have it right, but we can save that conversation for later,” he said with a sly smile that put me on edge once more.

I shook my head and turned back to the door because I was not going to waste my breath arguing with him, at least not right now.  I stepped into the classroom, where my aid already had the kids sitting on the floor, waiting extra patiently for their storyteller.  I hoped they couldn’t tell how unwrapped I was feeling at the moment because I could swear I could feel his eyes burning a hole through my back as he stared through the window of the door.

“Well kids, it’s the time you’ve all been waiting for.  Your storyteller for the day is Mr. Bissonnette from the Phoenix Coyotes, so lets give him applause to let him know we are ready for him,” I said to the 20 bright eyed children that I had been teaching for the last month.  Their claps and cheers brought Paul barging into the room like he was a big-time wrestler.  He jumped through the door and did some silly karate jump with the book in hand, making the kids laugh out of control; even I couldn’t help to smile. 

He brought along Lane Smith’s the True Story of the 3 Little Pigs, which turned out to be the best choice ever for this character of a man.  He did his own introduction, including establishing the fact that Mr. Bissonnette was his grandfather and that no one even called his dad Mr. Bissonnette; so it was imperative that they call him Biz.  The kids thought this was great and I had to shush them to get their attention off the side conversations they had begun amongst each other with all their bubbling excitement. 

Paul was perfect.  A perfect goof ball that is.  He did all the voices, even acted out some of the parts at request of some of the kids.  This tall, muscular man acted like the biggest kid in the world and the kids couldn’t get enough.  I was thankful for his enthusiasm because this is exactly what I wanted the kids to realize; that reading really could be fun.

I sat behind the kids, watching his antics and laughing along with everyone else in the room.  When he was done reading the kids stood up and gave him a standing ovation as he bowed and said his theatrical “thank you’s.”  I walked up to the front of the room to announce that we would be heading to lunch and that afterwards we would be going to the multi-purpose room for the assembly with the rest of the hockey players.

As usual with little kids, a hand flew up as a question.  “Yes, Brian?”

“Can Biz eat lunch with us, Miss Larkins?”

I couldn’t help for a small laugh to pass through my mouth as I started to answer, “Um, I think Biz is a little too old to want to sit with us at the lunch tables…”

“I’d be happy to eat lunch with you guys!” he exclaimed, effectively cutting me off.  I looked over at him to find him intently staring into my eyes as he smiled, largely.  Again a weird feeling floated through me and I quickly looked turned away and to my dismay I said to the excited cheers that were coming from my students, “Okay, I guess we are eating lunch with Biz.”

“Can I sit here too?” I asked as I walked over to Ari’s class lunch table after seeing the pleading look in her face.

“Get your own class, Pyatt,” Biz chirped jokingly as I set my tray down on the other side of Ari.

“How did it go?” Ari asked as soon as I got myself comfortable.  She looked a little annoyed that I didn’t sit between her and Biz, but I figured she could deal.  Ari had a little bit of a problem when it came to getting new people, especially when they were totally different from her.  It’s not that she wasn’t open to meeting new people, but like most people she was more comfortable around people like herself.  Biz was definitely not like Arianna.  She was often shy and most of the time quiet.  Obviously, Biz was not the quiet type and he unquestionably was not shy.

I looked over at her and smiled, “It went really well actually.  The kids loved my book and I have to say that Miss Sharp is very nice.”

I watched a smile play across her full lips and she winked as she whispered, “She’s single and she is always actively looking.”

Before I could say anything, Biz was all over it.  “Sweet, checkin’ out the teachers!  Maybe we can double date!” he exclaimed a little louder than necessary as he reached in front of Ari and held out his hand for a fist bump from me.  Luckily the kids were too enthralled with the fact that there were two hockey players eating lunch with them, so I don’t think they registered the adult talk.

However, Ari did and she quickly turned to him and I’m pretty sure gave him the look of death I had seen once or twice before.  I then heard her hiss in a quiet, but warning tone, “Excuse me Mr. Bissonnette, don’t forget where you are at right now.”

It took all I had not to bust into stitches when I watched Biz’s face twist into what looked like a cross between a child that had just been scolded and a man drooling in lust.  He slowly pulled his arm back down onto his lap as he just kept staring at her.  It was quite a look and it was at that point I realized that Arianna was in a lot of trouble.  Biz had it bad for her.

As soon as we walked out of the school and over to my car, he started in.

“How do I get her to go on a date with me?  Can you get me her number?  I want her to play my teacher in the bedroom, I’m all for being put in time-out by that raven haired beauty…”

“If you mess with her, I swear I’ll have your ass shipped to Edmonton,” Shane growled.

Biz threw his shoulder around Shane’s neck and pulled him into a semi-headlock as we walked.  “Come on Shane, help a guy out…”

Shane pushed him off and growled, “You don’t need help in the bed romping department buddy, I’ve been witness to the revolving door more than once and I won’t let you do that to Ari.  Besides, from what I saw, she doesn’t want anything to do with you.”

“Even more of a reason to go after her; I like challenges,” he said with a cocky smile.

“Dude, really?  You will be playing with fire on this one.  Not only will you have the Doan’s to deal with, but I will have to throw you off the Grand Canyon if you hurt her, Biz.” I added.

He stopped before climbing into his lifted, white, F-150 and turned to look at us.  “Do you guys think I’m that much of a jerk?” He asked, actually acting surprised that we thought he was a player.

“Yes,” Scottie, Shane and I said at the same time while Woliski and Marty just nodded their heads, trying to not to laugh at the scene unfolding in front of them.

I watched as Biz opened the door of the truck and before climbing in, he stabbed an imaginary knife into his chest.  “Ouch, I’m hurt.  Just for this, I’m going to prove to you that I can be in a serious relationship and that I can be the perfect gentleman with a woman that I have serious feelings about it,” he said proudly.

“How do you know you have serious feelings for her when you don’t even know her?” I asked, trying to figure out where he got the idea that he might have a remote chance getting with her.

“I’m going to get to know her.  Duh,” he smarted back.

I shot back, “This isn’t a game, Biz.”

“That’s right, it’s not,” he said with the most honest face I had ever seen.