Damaged Souls (Broken Man) Read online

  “You know it’s fine with me, especially if he cleans up this mess,” he replied as he surveyed the disaster in the back yard. “We should probably join the parents for a little while and then wrap this party up before these kids get too wired.”

  “Look at you,” Amanda teased him. “Already plotting a way to get me alone.”

  “Well, it wouldn’t be a Sunday without it,” Jack laughed, knowing she had read his mind.

  * * *

  “Here is your martini, sir,” Delaney presented another drink as Greg enjoyed the formality of her bartender routine.

  She is so beautiful, he thought to himself as he looked away, trying not to stare. The most beautiful girl in school, the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He had formed this crush on her from the day they met in middle school, Delaney already mature and stunning while he was just a short, awkward, braces wearing kid trying to recover from the loss of his father.

  He didn’t know her well at first. They only had one class together as sixth graders, fortunately it was math. It wasn’t her best subject and a couple times he had helped her with her work during quiet study time. Even now, he remembered the way she would twirl her long blonde hair around her fingers as she struggled with concepts that came so easily to him.

  But, math was the only subject where she came up short. A great student and an even nicer person, everyone liked her and every boy in the school had a crush on her. There had simply been no way for Greg to compete, and he had quickly fallen into the dreaded friend zone.

  “What are you doing, Greg,” the sound of her voice snapped him out of his trance. “Am I going to have to serve every drink.”

  “I’m sorry,” he apologized and smiled sheepishly. “Just fell asleep for a second.”

  “Well, wake up now,” Delaney replied as she smiled back at him. “I have to run inside for a minute.”

  “Okay,” Greg managed to mutter as he admired her perfect figure walking away and returned to his thoughts.

  I guess it’s not so bad being friends, he remembered how she always treated him normally when the other kids subconsciously ignored him for the first few months after his father’s death. She would never know how much it meant to him during that difficult time, and he had returned the favor when Delaney finally returned to school after her own mother’s tragic death at the hands of a drunk driver.

  And while they never really talked about their parents’ deaths, it formed a bond between them that would never be broken. They had been best friends for the last five years and did everything together. They studied together, babysat for Logan together, worked at the same job bussing tables at Jack’s hotel, they would even be going to the same university together in the fall. There was nothing they didn’t do together. Well, almost nothing.

  “Everything going okay,” Delaney asked as she returned to behind the bar and poured a bucket of ice into the well.

  “Everything is good,” he replied and tried to show he was paying attention. “Looks like the party is winding down.”

  “It does,” she drove him crazy as she tied her hair up with a rubber band, exposing her neck and well toned arms. “You’re staying for dinner, right.”

  “Yeah, Amanda invited me,” he sensed an opportunity that probably wasn’t there. “Maybe we can catch a movie this afternoon.”

  “That sounds great,” Delaney quickly lifted his hopes before just as quickly deflating them. “Logan has been wanting to see that new Disney movie, we can take him to see that.”

  “Sounds good,” Greg replied as he quietly slid back into that dreaded friend zone.

  * * *

  “Delaney, Delaney, throw me in the pool one more time.”

  “Okay, Logan, one more time,” Delaney agreed as she picked him up. “But then we have to help Greg clean up.”

  “Okay, Delaney,” he responded excitedly as she knew he was ignoring her.

  “Are you ready.”

  “I’m ready,” she heard his r’s come out like w’s and started to swing him behind her.

  “One, two, three,” they counted down together.

  Logan splashed into the pool for what must have been the tenth time that afternoon. He certainly doesn’t need any more sugar, Delaney smiled as she watched him bubble to the surface, his cute little floaties aiding the process.

  “That was your best one yet, bud,” she complimented him as he looked at her for approval.

  “Thanks, Delaney,” she could tell how proud he was as he paddled to the edge of the pool. “Can we do it one more time.”

  “Greg needs our help, honey,” Delaney let him down easily as she helped him out of the pool and wrapped a towel around him. “Don’t forget, we are going to the movies in a little while. Why don’t you run inside and have Mommy help you get ready.”

  “Okay, Delaney,” he obeyed as he dropped his towel to the patio and turned to run inside.

  Delaney smiled as she watched Logan run towards the screen door. He really is the little brother I always wanted. It’s nice spending so much time with him now that I live with Jack and Amanda.

  It really just makes sense for me to live here, Delaney thought to herself as she straightened up the pool area from the party. Nothing against her Dad or even Wendy for that matter, but she had always felt like a third wheel in their household. Dad had his new wife, Bailey had Wendy’s daughter, and Delaney more or less had nobody. Her dad even seemed to understand and hadn’t really resisted the move once she turned eighteen.

  It was different with Jack and Amanda, Delaney thought as she caught a glance of a shirtless Greg lifting a table into the back of his truck. He looks pretty good, her mind drifted as she admired the muscles of his chest and his wavy dark hair as he manhandled the table. That would make a nice picture, Delaney smiled as she contrasted him with the small, awkward boy she had met six years earlier and took a snapshot in her mind.

  He is also like a brother to me or at the very least my best friend, Delaney quickly dismissed her thoughts as she remembered growing up with Greg. They had so much pain in common, it would have been impossible for them not to have been drawn to one another. But, there was so much more to it than just that.

  Greg was just different than the other boys and had always been. There was simply nothing frivolous about him. He took his studies seriously, he took his work seriously, and he took his relationships seriously. He wasn’t anything like all the shallow, immature boys at school.

  Sometimes, Delaney wished he wouldn’t take everything so seriously, but that just wasn’t in his makeup and she understood. He couldn’t afford not to be serious, especially with regard to his troubles at home and the pressure on him to provide and succeed. No, she appreciated his dedication to his mother despite her problems, and she appreciated his commitment to her.

  Greg had always been there for her. Other boys came and went, other girls pretended to be her friend for a short while, but Greg was one of the few friends who always stuck around. He really was like a dog with a bone, and Delaney knew he would always be there to look after her.

  “Are you going to help me out here or am I going to have to do everything as usual,” Delaney blushed as he caught her staring at him and teased her about her lack of progress.

  “It looks like you have everything under control,” she answered before turning away shyly. “Do you want some lemonade or something.”

  “No, I’ve got a coke right here,” he responded as his muscles dripped with sweat and she tried not to look at him. “Are you okay, Delaney. You are acting kind of weird.”

  “I’m fine,” she tried to act normal as she looked up at his pale blue eyes. “Just a little tired, that’s all.”

  “We can skip the movie if you want.”

  “No, that’s okay. Logan is looking forward to it, and Jack and Amanda need their nap time,” she responded slyly and made pretend quotation marks in the air.

  “You’re awful,” he replied and smiled although Delaney could tell he wasn’t co
mfortable talking about anything involving sex with her. “I’ll get a shower in a few minutes and then we’ll get going, okay.”

  “Sounds good,” she answered as she tried not to think about him in the shower and instead returned to her work.

  * * *

  “Jack,” Amanda enjoyed finally being alone with him as she tickled him with her tongue. “Do you think Greg is going to ask Delaney to the prom.”

  “You want to talk about that now,” he asked incredulously as she kissed his stomach and looked up at him.

  “Of course I want to talk about it now,” Amanda replied as she worked her way up his stomach to his chest. “You know me, this is the best time to talk.”

  “You weren’t talking so much a couple minutes ago,” Jack teased her about her bedroom noises. “Except to say ‘Oh, right there, Jack, don’t stop, don’t stop.”

  “I don’t sound like that,” she laughed at his imitation. “But, if you keep teasing me, I may not let you do that to me anymore.”

  “I don’t think that’s going to happen,” he replied as his mouth found her breast and she almost forgot about their conversation.

  “One second, Jack,” she moved her body so they were again face to face. “I’m serious now, do you think Greg is going to ask Delaney to the prom.”

  “I don’t know,” he laughed, accustomed to her bedroom interrogations after five years together. “We’re guys, we don’t talk about things like that.”

  “Why not,” Amanda still didn’t entirely understand men. “Delaney and I have talked about it a couple times.”

  “Of course you have, and what did the two of you decide.”

  “Delaney would love to go to the prom with Greg,” she paused as she thought about their last conversation. “As friends.”

  “Ahhh,” Jack teased her. “There’s the catch. Is that what you’re worried about.”

  “Well, yeah,” Amanda smiled, knowing Jack thought she was being silly. “I guess it’s better than nothing, but when are those two going to realize they are in love with each other.”

  “Amanda,” Jack scolded her with a smile. “They have plenty of time to figure it out. They’re only eighteen. Maybe it’s best they just remain friends right now and maybe even date other people. I really don’t want you too push too hard on this, okay.”

  “Okay, Jack, you might be right,” she responded as the wheels turned more slowly in her head and she rolled over onto her side. “But promise me, you will talk to him about it.”

  “Okay, I promise, honey. Are you all done now.”

  “Not quite, Jack,” Amanda answered as her body finally gave in to him. “But, you can come get me now.”

  Chapter Two

  Greg arrived home near eleven o’clock after a long day and a longer weekend. As he unlocked the door and walked into the house, he was surprised to find his mother still awake and sitting at the kitchen table, a bottle of wine perched just in front of her. This isn’t going to go well, Greg thought, why couldn’t she be passed out as usual.

  “Hey, Mom,” he tried to gauge her level of drunkenness as he sat down at the table. “What’s going on.”

  “What are you doing home so late on a school night,” she slurred her words. “I’m still your mother you know.”

  “I was just over at Delaney’s house,” Greg replied curtly as he took in the condition of their living area and stood up to straighten the kitchen.

  “So, your little girlfriend is more important than me now. I barely saw you all weekend.”

  “She’s not my girlfriend, mom,” Greg really didn’t want to hear it. “And it’s not like you would have seen me anyway even if I had been home.”

  “Don’t get fresh with me young man, I’m still your mother,” she repeated herself as she reached for the bottle of wine and knocked it over. “Now look at what you’ve made me do.”

  “Goddamn it,” Greg swore quietly as he moved his books off the table.

  “Don’t swear at me, Greg.”

  “I’m not swearing at you, Mom,” Greg realized she was trying his well worn patience as he picked up the bottle and threw a towel onto the puddle of wine. “Why don’t you go to bed. We can talk in the morning.”

  “We can talk now. You can’t avoid me forever, Greg. You never spend any time with me anymore. Don’t you still love me.”

  “It’s not that,” he tried to be reassuring. “I just have a lot of school work not to mention a bunch of lawns to mow and events to work at the hotel on top of that. It doesn’t leave me a lot of time.”

  “I’m sorry, honey,” she replied, somehow aware she had gone too far. “It’s just that I still miss him sometimes.”

  “It’s okay, Mom,” Greg replied cooly, accustomed to her sudden mood changes. “I miss him, too. Let’s get you to bed, okay.”

  “Okay, Greg,” she complied as he helped her up from the table and started the walk down the hall. “You know I love you right.”

  “I know,” he answered as they reached her room and he deposited her into bed. “I love you too, now try to get some rest.”

  Greg knew she was already passed out and wouldn’t remember anything in the morning as he quietly exited her room.

  * * *

  “What are you doing up,” Amanda asked as Delaney closed the screen door behind her and stepped onto the porch.

  “I couldn’t sleep,” Delaney replied as she sat down at the table. “Too much excitement today I guess. Where’s Jack.”

  “He had to go back to the hotel for a little while. He’ll be home soon. Is everything okay, honey.”

  “Yeah, I’m okay,” Delaney hesitated, unsure she could talk about the thoughts she was having with Amanda quite yet. “I’m just a little worried about Greg.”

  “How do you mean,” Amanda appeared perplexed. “He seemed like he was fine today.”

  “You know Greg, he is never going to show what he’s really thinking,” Delaney thought of how to handle her subject. “I just get the feeling that his mother isn’t doing well.”

  “What makes you say that Delaney. Has he said anything to you.”

  “Not yet,” she replied, knowing that he wouldn’t. “But, I can just tell he is worried about something.”

  “Do you want me to talk to him,” Amanda offered her help as she took a sip of wine. “My door is always open to him or to his mother for that matter.”

  “No, that’s okay,” Delaney tried to figure out how to handle the situation. “I don’t think he is going talk to you or me about it. Do you think maybe Jack could talk to him.”

  “That might be a good idea, I will talk to him about it,” Amanda understood where Delaney was going. “Is anything else bothering you Delaney. You just don’t seem yourself.”

  “No, I’m okay,” she was too embarrassed to talk about the the other things she was feeling for Greg. “How about you. Did you have a good time today.”

  “I had a great time. I was just thinking that I can’t believe Logan is already four years old. Time does move quickly.”

  “He had a big time today,” Delaney replied as she thought of Logan. “He loved the party and he loved the movie Greg and I took him to.”

  “Yeah, he couldn’t stop talking about it all night. Thanks for doing that by the way. I love that little boy, but he wears me out sometimes. That nap today was a godsend.”

  “But did you get any sleep,” Delaney teased Amanda about her so called nap.

  “Delaney, I am shocked,” she laughed about her not so secret sex life. “But, yes, we did manage to get a little sleep, at least for a few minutes.”

  “God, you guys are just like teenagers,” Delaney pretended to be grossed out as she rolled her eyes. “Don’t you ever get sick of each other.”

  “We haven’t yet,” Amanda responded as she seemed to relive her afternoon with Jack. “That man is something else.”

  “Oh, gross,” Delaney laughed at Amanda’s bedroom eyes and enjoyed the always informal nature of their conv
ersations as she stood up from her chair. “I better get to bed, sounds like you could use some time alone.”

  “Very funny, Delaney,” she chuckled before taking on a more serious tone. “But if you need to talk, you know about anything, I’m always here.”

  “Thanks, Amanda, I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Okay, sleep well.”

  * * *

  Greg couldn’t concentrate on his homework as he sat at the kitchen table and thought about his mother as midnight approached. Maybe Delaney is still up, he thought to himself as he pulled out his phone and sent her a text. She’ll help take my mind off of her.

  No response. Not even a hint or one of those thought bubbles. Is that what they’re called, Greg wondered as he got up and grabbed a beer from the refrigerator. She must be sleeping, he concluded as he sat down and tried again to focus.

  It had been almost seven years since his father’s death, Greg realized as he took a sip of beer and opened his Trig book. She should be over it by now, he thought to himself as the equations made no sense in his distracted state. But instead, she had actually regressed during the past year.

  What is going on with her, Greg wondered as he again tried to turn his attention to the work in front of him. She had actually gotten better for a few years, finding a steady job and limiting her drinking to the weekends. They even settled into a somewhat steady routine and she seemed to be getting better by the year.

  But, the last six months had been a disaster. It all started in September with a DUI. Greg remembered picking her up at the police station and the sickening feeling that this was the start of something that wasn’t going to end well. Fortunately, Jack helped him get a good lawyer, and his mother had been lucky to only receive a fine, probation, and a suspended license instead of jail time.

  However, what should have been a wakeup call instead turned into her surrender. Rather than finding a bottom and fighting to turn it around, his mother chose to give up. Instead of accepting his offer to drive her to work and pick her up every day, she opted just to quit.