Over the Hedge Read online

  By the time I got a working document, I was ready to pull my hair out. And the banging from my boss was not helping. I called Brad in the meantime to explain what was going on. At 4:30, we attempted to edit the grant via phone, but it was easier for us to be in the same room. I hightailed it up to his office, mentally willing myself not to fall on the stairs. The way my day was going, it could only get worse.

  At precisely 4:58, we submitted the grant. I spent the last few hours trying to get an entire days’ worth of work done. It was a little after seven, and just about everyone had cleared out for the night. Dr. Barnes ambled out of his office, carrying a stack of small, nondescript objects piled in his arms. I stood confused wondering what he had built. He approached my desk and started laying them down one by one.

  “Oh wow!” I took in my boss’s creation wide-eyed with appreciation. Dr. Barnes had built six mini replicas of the chair he had dismantled. He lined them up in a triangle and stood back looking very pleased with his workmanship.

  “Dr. Barnes, if being a research scientist ever gets old, you could always make a living as a carpenter.”

  “I doubt it,” he said dismissively. “Leave them lined up as so. It’s a conversation piece. It’s getting late, Price. I’m going home and so should you,” he ordered, before walking away.

  Ten hours ago, I would have gladly run from the place. I eased back and looked at the little chairs. Out of chaos comes the most unexpected beauty.

  CHAPTER 5

  SEAN

  “Yo, Jackson, bring that case of beer from the bottom of the cooler.” Ian put his hands up to his mouth and hollered up the grassy path.

  “Come get this shit yourself.” Jackson’s voice could be heard a distance away.

  I looked over at Ian who shrugged. He placed his fishing rod against his chair and ran back up the path. I could hear pieces of their conversation over the rustling breeze. Although it was late January and other parts of the country were covered in snow, we were experiencing pleasant seventy-degree weather here in Florida. This was my favorite time of year. Although I hated them to the core, I could see why the snowbirds flew south every winter from northern states.

  “I think I need a whole new set of friends,” Brent grumbled around the lip of his beer bottle.

  “Fuck you too, Richie Rich,” Jackson replied. He hauled the big cooler down the slope of the walkway. Ian was right behind him with a smaller cooler and bags of food.

  “So, what did sweet Sarah pack for us today?” Brent asked as he ignored Jackson’s jab.

  “Nothing for you.” Jackson plopped the cooler down and resumed his seat. “Not sure why my wife is delegated as the one responsible for feeding you assholes during every fishing trip.”

  “That’s because you're smarter than the rest of us, Bro.” Ian chuckled at Jackson’s dirty glare. “You, my friend, had the forethought to find a woman to take care of you. While the rest of us are still fumbling around sad and alone.”

  “Speak for yourself.” Brent kicked over Ian’s fishing pole like a toddler throwing a tantrum. He received a bruising blow in the arm. I felt like it was me on the receiving end. Ian packed a mean punch. It came from all the MMA shit he was into.

  This was how things were between us. Since we all met in high school, it had been just like this. We’d experienced some major shit together and survived. From our days playing pranks around my neighborhood to raising hell in college, we had always been best friends. Now, we were here, celebrating Jackson becoming a father.

  The circumstances were crazy, the way we all met in high school. Brent initially sought me out to join the basketball team. I was one of the few big guys on campus, and they were looking for a center. When Brent approached me, he thought I would jump on the opportunity. Everyone in school wanted to be a jock. That wasn’t my thing, though.

  It wasn’t I was unathletic or uncoordinated; if anything, it was quite the opposite. I had reached 6’0” freshman year, and by junior year I was already 6’4”. I turned him down flat, but after a few conversations, he asked me to be his peer tutor when he realized I was into my academics. He was failing a few of his classes and needed to keep them up so he could stay on the team. Plus, it looked good for me since I was a scholarship student. At the time I didn’t know that Brent’s family came from money. He could have hired a private tutor.

  A few days after we met, he stopped Ian in the courtyard and randomly challenged him to a game of one-on-one. Ian was a new student on campus, having started after winter break. Ian played ball before he was adopted from the foster care system by his uncle. Ian introduced us to Jackson, who became his friend when he arrived the first day of school. Jackson was on scholarship too. He didn't play ball, but he was incredibly analytical. Rumor around the school was he was a certified genius. The school invited him to attend because of the prestige and the potential it would mean for them having him as an alumnus.

  Jackson took up an interest in basketball from hanging around Ian and Brent during practices. Not sure how it happened but he became the team's unofficial manager. He analyzed rival schools' games and broke down their offensive and defensive strategies. The head coach couldn’t believe how crazy it was that a fourteen-year-old kid could read the game so well. Our high school won the state championship that year with Brent, Ian, and our other friend Jamal playing on the court, with Jackson managing from the sidelines. I attended games just to go along for the ride.

  Ever since then, we’ve all been inseparable. We attended the same university for undergrad and stayed Florida bound for our careers. These men were the closest thing I had to a family other than my mother. They were my brothers.

  “I see Sean’s not speaking,” Ian prodded.

  “He can’t.” Brent threw his head back and laughed. “Can’t say shit when he’s got fucking black balls. Cause, I know them shits are beyond blue.”

  I shook my head. I was used to them joshing me. About three months into my celibacy I accidentally let it slip to him what I was doing; I haven’t heard the last of the jokes.

  Ian handed each of us a fresh beer. “I swear you have to be cursed or some shit.”

  “I’m at peace with myself. Why are you acting like what I’m doing is so far-fetched? Aren’t you a fucking therapist or something?” I asked.

  Ian scoffed. “I’m a man before all else and your friend too. I know you’re hurting. You do recall, I remember when you let that girl pop your cherry in college.”

  Jackson laughed. “It was like the floodgates of Sodom and Gomorrah opened up. Sean fucked around with so many girls on campus that he had to switch stomping grounds to avoid getting harassed.”

  “You remember that one chick Jasmine?” Brent inquired with a longing stare.

  “The one senior when we were freshmen or Jasmine from that coffee shop in the student union?” Ian asked.

  “He’s talking about coffee shop Jasmine,” I answered knowing that look on Brent’s face.

  “Can’t believe how many women we all happened to sleep with,” Brent said.

  Jackson held a finger in the air. “Not me.”

  “Yeah, that’s nothing to brag about.” Brent looked over at Jackson. “No man should take pride in saying he’s only been with one woman his entire life.”

  “But, you’d talk shit if a woman bragged about being with multiple men over the course of her lifetime,” Jackson countered.

  “Hell no.” Brent scoffed. “I’d expect her to be a fucking beast in the bedroom. If you’re out fucking a bunch of dudes, you better have something to show for that shit.”

  “One thing for sure, no one can ever brag about sleeping with my wife,” Jackson boasted.

  “Yeah. But, can she say the same about another woman sleeping with you?” Brent’s retort was low, but I was close enough to him to hear it.

  I looked at Jackson who was busy rifling through the basket of food. Jackson sleeping with another woman other than Sarah seemed far-fetched.

  Who and wh
en?

  They’d been together since junior high. Jackson was the last man I thought would be the type to cheat. Matter of fact, I would bet my life on it. But what exactly did Brent mean by him sleeping with someone else? I let the thought drop. I had my shit to worry about to spend time trying to figure out what secrets Jackson was hiding.

  “That’s why I am where I am, now. Don’t get me wrong. I miss it. I miss the release that comes with getting one off with a beautiful woman.” I looked out into the clear sky with longing. “But, the craziness that comes with it just wasn’t worth it,” I added.

  Ian sighed. “I can honestly say, I agree with that. I went out on a date the other night, and that shit was bogus. The woman was cool and all. Looks wise she was an eight. But, personality, she had to be in the negatives. The entire conversation revolved around her aspiring modeling career.”

  “Let me guess, she’s barely legal, and you met her on some dating site?” Jackson asked.

  “Twenty-one. But dumb as a box of rocks,” Ian replied.

  “You’re pretty much making my point for me,” I said with a grin.

  The sound of a car rolling up the hill caught our attention. I stood up to see over the ridge. The late model sports car came to a stop next to Ian’s truck. Two women stepped out an adjusted their clothes. I looked over at Ian, and the smirk on his face told me this was all his doing.

  “So, these two are here, because?” I asked.

  “Because, Brent and I are going out tonight. This is just pre-gaming,” Ian answered.

  “You didn’t think it was a good idea to check with Sean and me before you invited them?” Jackson looked at the two men.

  “What do you two care?” Brent shrugged. “The cottage has plenty of room for all of us.”

  “How about the fact this was supposed to be us celebrating Jackson becoming a father? When did bringing dates become a thing?” I asked.

  The two women made their way down the path. Both were waving excitedly at Ian. I shook my head as a third woman stepped from the car. She pulled a baseball cap low on her brow and flipped her blond hair through the opening in the back. My brain quickly did the math. Three single men…three single women.

  “You didn’t.” I turned to look at Brent.

  “I didn’t…blame this one on him.” He pointed his beer at Ian with a smirk.

  I shook my head without saying a word. I was a nice guy, sometimes way too nice. But, I wasn’t in the mood for entertaining someone right now. Not to mention why the hell would they do something like this without even consulting me.

  “So, I’m supposed to be the odd man out right?” Jackson asked.

  “We can easily remedy that for you, if you’d like,” Brent added. The look Jackson gave him caused him to raise his hands in the air in mock surrender. “Seriously just a joke.”

  “One I don’t find funny. I know that’s how you and your folks do shit. But, where I’m from, we don’t fucking make it a habit of finding new pussy when we’ve got a wife at home.” Jackson’s words were cutting.

  The amused glare Brent threw his way was one I’d seen too often. The remark hurt him, but he was too much of a hardass to let it show.

  “That’s a low blow. But, since you’re pussy whipped, I’m going to let that shit slide.” Brent teased with a wink in Jackson’s direction.

  “Thanks for fucking up my weekend.” Jackson fumed. The apple he was eating got tossed into the lake. He grabbed his phone and keys and headed back up the hill toward his car.

  “Why?” I asked Ian. There was no point trying to get an answer from Brent.

  “My bad. Honestly, it wasn’t supposed to be that big of a deal. I thought it would be cool for us to have a little fun out here with the girls. I never thought he would get so upset.”

  Brent rubbed the back of his head. “Which is a fucking problem. Why is he so mad? He’s acting like this is the first time we’ve had women here.”

  “Yeah, but it’s different now.” I offered half-heartedly.

  “How? Besides him just finding out Sarah’s pregnant, what the hell else is different?” Brent asked.

  Ian scrubbed a hand down his face. “You think something else is going on? Something with him and Sarah? Maybe something with his job?”

  “I don’t know. If there were, you’d be the first to know,” Brent replied.

  “You know how he is. When he’s ready to talk, he’ll talk. But, if Jackson doesn’t want us to know what’s going on with him there’s nothing we can do about it.” Ian sighed and plastered a fake smile on his face as the three women approached us.

  “I’ll go and talk to him,” I offered. “You two find a nice way to tell them they need to leave.”

  I trudged up the hill, nodding in salutation at the women in passing. All of them were pretty. Definitely nice enough for me to take a second look. But, I wasn’t interested. The moment the thought crossed my mind, I thought back to the scent of the woman in the elevator.

  A few days after the elevator incident I got a whiff of the scent again. This time it was while leaving the elevator to head back to my office. Unfortunately, two women were standing out in the lobby so I didn’t know who was the owner of that scent. Both were beautiful…both nothing alike. The white one looked like a real man-eater. I could read the signs that screamed gold digger all over her face. I wasn’t one that liked submissive women by nature. But she didn’t have an ounce of innocence about her. The black one, I’d only caught a quick glance at her face while she was bent over a stack of papers. But, I got an eyeful of the full round globes of her ass. The dark slacks she wore did very little to hide her figure.

  Imagine my shock when I passed by her cubicle only to notice she had a rack to match the bottom half. I felt like a perv. Not only was it unintentional, it was utterly embarrassing to be caught looking. My mind raced with a million and one questions. The big one being why was she standing in the middle of her cubicle with her blouse ripped open? The swell of her breast and the hints of her bra peeking out was like a homing beacon. How in the world could I pull my eyes away? I was a red-blooded male that hadn’t had sex in over a year. By the time I realized where we were,, and what I was doing, I couldn’t do anything but scurry away.

  The thought of her made my cock twitch in my sweatpants. This level of arousal was something I hadn’t experienced since before I lost my virginity. I was pent up and ready for a release.

  Maybe having a woman here this weekend wasn’t such a bad idea.

  CHAPTER 6

  LASHAWNDA

  A week passed before I saw those green eyes again. His head appeared over the hedge of my cubicle again while I was in the middle of a conversation with Tracy. The man was gorgeous. Simply one of those people that could easily grace the covers of a magazine. He kept moving this time, glancing at Tracy and me and then continued walking. I wanted to ask Tracy what she knew about him, but she was deep into telling me about her weekend away with her husband, so I let it drop.

  I saw him again that same evening on my walk to the garage. He was pulling out in a black Ford F-250. The fact he drove a truck was a little surprising—I envisioned him in a sleek convertible, the top pulled down year-round, straight out of a spy movie—but a man his size would need lots of leg and headroom in a vehicle. A truck was practical and sturdy. He had the front two windows low, and I could hear the beat pulsing through the song he had on. The sounds of Bruno Mars’, The Otherside filtered through the air.

  He had great taste in music. The Otherside was one of my favorite songs.

  A horn honked nearby, and I almost jumped out of my skin. I must’ve looked ridiculous, standing in the middle of the road, staring after someone else’s car. I brought my hands up in an apologetic wave as I hurried out the way. The driver of the vehicle shook his head at me, probably writing me off as an airhead. I lowered my hands to focus on making it to the sidewalk.

  The next three weeks, our encounters fell into a routine. He would walk by, and we’d ma
ke eye contact.

  I’d pretty much fall apart in my chair after he walked away. It had become so regular I was accustomed to his walk, my ears tuned in to listen for when he’d approach. He had a habit of hitting a pen on his thighs. Sometimes he hurried by without looking my way, but most of the time I would look up just in time to catch him looking right at me. He never spoke, and I did my best to give him a friendly smile, hoping one day he’d finally say something.

  To break my thoughts away from him, I called Crystal one day after work.

  “Wassup, Sissy?” Crystal asked.

  “Not much—just calling to check in. It seems like we haven’t spoken in forever,” I replied.

  “It does feel like that, but I’m doing great. I talked to Brian about our whole marriage situation.”

  “How’d that go?” As I spoke, I tipped my head to the side, pressing the phone between my ear and my shoulder.

  “I told him we might have jumped the gun in getting married so quickly. He agreed and then asked me if I wanted a divorce. Don’t get me wrong—it was on my mind too—but to hear him say it kind of hurt a little. We talked it out and agreed we would start over again and see where things go.”

  “What exactly do you mean by start over?”

  “We’re going to start dating again.”

  “Dating…Like having an open marriage?”

  “No! Are you crazy? We’re going to date each other all over again. See, if we can get that spark back,” Crystal’s laugh was bright and relaxed, and I could hear her shift in position. “But, what’s going on with you?”

  “Um, I think I met a guy.” I couldn’t keep the smile out of my voice as I spoke. The gasp Crystal let out made me cover my face with a hand.

  “Alright now!” Crystal shrieked, all her attention switching to me. “What’s his name, where did you guys meet—wait, what’s his ASL?”