Lead by Kylie Scott

  We drove in silence all the way there, a soft rain falling. Instead of pulling up out front of the restaurant, he drove around the corner and parked in the first available spot.

  "You're not just dropping me off?" I asked, reaching for my umbrella.

  "I'll see you in. Say hi to Ben."

  "All right."

  We huddled together, Jimmy's arm loosely around my back and his hand over mine, helping to hold the umbrella steady in the strong winds. The restaurant specialized in Asian French fusion cuisine and was rather fancy. Lots of carved wooden chairs and tables, with swathes of red silk on the walls. An antique mirror showed off my now damp frizzy hair to perfection. Oh well, I'd tried. Jimmy's hipster up-do still looked perfect, of course. I doubt Mother Nature would dare mess with him even at her bravest. She'd put so much effort into getting him right, after all.

  At a corner table, Ben stood and waved. Strangely enough, his smile only grew at the sight of his bandmate beside me. I nodded to the gorgeous tattooed blonde girl on the front desk and made my way through the maze of customers chowing down. There were no evening gowns in evidence, I was dressed fine.

  "Hey, Jim. Didn't know you'd be joining us." Big Ben grinned down at me. "Lena, you look fantastic."

  "Why, thank you, Ben," I said. "You look very lovely yourself."

  He bent down obviously intending to kiss my cheek. And then he bent down some more while I craned my neck and went up on tippy toes (it's important to be helpful). Besides my being a little under average height, the guy just was that damn tall.

  "Good to see you, Ben." Jimmy's hand shot into the rapidly dwindling space between Ben and me, knocking me off balance. Before I could stumble, Jimmy grabbed my elbow, holding me steady.

  "Yeah, Jim." Ben gave his hand a hearty shake. "You too."

  "He's just dropping me off and saying hi," I said. "Which he's now done."

  "Actually, I've got time for a drink." Jimmy raised a hand and a waiter hurried over. "Bottle of Coke for me and a gin and tonic for her. Thanks."

  The waiter nodded and rushed off. A bottle of Bud already sat on the table in front of Ben.

  I gave Jimmy a look as I sat. It was not a happy one.

  "What? You didn't want that?" Without waiting for an answer, he dragged over an unoccupied chair from a nearby table. Not bothering to turn it to face ours, he sat on it back to front. His arms rested along the high back. The man looked ready for a fucking photo shoot. This way he had about him, a natural grace, annoyed the living shit out of me. If only he'd be more like us little people, clumsy and inept. But no. "I know that's what you drink sometimes, Lena," he said. "It's not a big deal."

  "Water would have been fine." I smoothed the frown off my face with some effort. "How did you even know what I drink? I haven't drunk in front of you. Not ever."

  What Jimmy was going through, beating his addictions, was hard enough without me being so thoughtless. Plus, there was respect, support, solidarity, things like that to consider.

  "Dave and Ev's second wedding," he said. The pair had decided to tie the knot again for their six month anniversary. A very fancy do, much as you'd imagine. I'd been working for Jimmy a month or so then.

  "I was talking to Ben out on the balcony for an hour or so, you were inside," he said. "I guess the waiter came over, cause a while later I saw you nursing a gin and tonic. It was gone by the time I came back in."

  "How did you even notice, or remember?" I asked. "I don't know if I should be touched or worried."

  "Don't be anything." He gave me the trademark jutting of the chin. "My name is Jimmy Ferris and I'm an alcoholic. I know what Ben drinks. I know what you drink. I don't even know what the nine people sitting on the three tables around us look like. But I could tell you what every one of them is drinking."

  "The hell you can," said Ben.

  Jimmy smiled darkly and sat up in his seat, moving his face close to Ben's to show he didn't need to look around. "The table of girls to my left. Two tequila sunrises and one Long Island Iced Tea. And the poor sap with the plain OJ, guess she's the designated driver. The couple behind me is easy--the bottle's still sitting in front of them. Porters."

  "The challenge is the gents to my right--one of them is knocking back a lager, so that's simple enough. But the other two? Spirits glasses. Amber liquid, but not straight. No fizz. No ice. The clue, little children, is the tall glasses of water. They're proper drinkers, just enough of a splash of water to bring out the taste in their scotch. Since I know from past experience the top shelf here finishes somewhere in the attic. I'm guessing Blue Label Johnnie Walker." He shrugged. "Unless they're single-malt aficionados in which case I have no fucking clue."

  "Holy crap, man," said Ben, "You should be on TV."

  "I am on the TV, you chump."

  "I shouldn't have let you come in," I said. "You used to drink here. This place is a trigger for you."

  He scoffed and spread his arms wide. "This whole world is a trigger for me."

  "Jimmy, I'm serious. You should go."

  "Not just yet."

  "He doesn't trust me to behave with you," said Ben, sliding his cell onto the table.

  I scowled. "That's ridiculous."

  Jimmy just gave me a cool glance. "I love Ben like a brother, but I've known him a hell of a long time. No offense, right Ben?"

  "None at all." Something pinged on Ben's cell and he slid a finger across the screen, bending closer to read the message.

  Calm as can be, Jimmy reached over and smacked the back of his head like he was some recalcitrant child. "Don't be so fucking rude. You're out with Lena, put it away."

  "Waiting for news on something, get out of my face." Ben took a swig of his beer and winked at me. "So, Lena. What should we talk about?"

  "Christ," Jimmy groaned. "You're going to make her do all the work? Really?"

  Kill me now.

  "Seen any good movies lately?" Ben asked without missing a beat.

  "Ah, yes. We watched Thelma and Louise last night. I'd seen it before, but it's always great."

  "You and Jimmy watched it together?"

  I nodded. "Yeah, we often watch TV at night time. Have you ever seen it?"

  "Can't say I have."

  "It doesn't end happily," said Jimmy. "I can tell you that much."

  "Depends on your perspective," I countered with a smile.

  The waiter delivered our drinks. His eyes widened at the sight of Jimmy, and then he did a double take of Ben. To his credit, he didn't make an issue out of who they were. I ordered a plain soda water and slid the gin to the side.

  "You look smooth, Jim. Wish I'd thought to wear a suit." Ben had worn a red sweater and jeans. It suited him. God bless a scruffy man in a pair of fitted blue jeans. Yum. Jimmy with his suits and smooth ways had never been my type. This attraction to him basically went against the very laws of nature. I could beat it, I just had to try.

  I shuffled forward in my seat, determined to renew my efforts with my date. Who knew, maybe Ben and I would hit it off. For certain, as a couple, we made much more sense.

  "You should have thought to get her flowers too," said Jimmy. "That would have been a good thing to do."

  Ben smacked his forehead. "You're right. I should have."

  "You shouldn't have. It's fine." I gave Jimmy a warning look. Red lights and sirens, danger ahead.

  Of course, he ignored it. "Send some to the house tomorrow."

  "You got it, Jim." The cell at Ben's elbow pinged again and he gave it surreptitious look. "Sorry, Lena. I just need to reply to this."

  "Man--" Jimmy reached out again, but I caught his wrist before he could strike.

  "That's fine, Ben," I said. "Take your time."

  Jimmy narrowed his eyes. "Who is it, Benny?"

  "No one." His finger got busy tapping against the screen.

  "And this no one is more important than being polite to Lena, I take it?"

  My fingernails dug into the palms of my hands. "Shouldn't you be head
ing to David and Ev's? We don't want to hold you up."

  "It's fine. I didn't give them a time."

  Great. "Jimmy, read between the lines. It's time for you to go."

  He turned a truly pained look heavenward. "Can't a man finish his soda? Is that really too much to ask?"

  "Yes. Please leave."

  "You don't have a problem with me being here a bit longer do you, Ben?"

  "Not at all, Jim. So ... Lena." Ben finally put down his cell and picked up his beer, giving me an easy smile. "Catch the game last night?"

  With a groan, Jimmy rubbed a hand across his face. "She just told you we watched a movie. Plus, she hates sports. You're boring her, this is a disaster."

  One of the great things about this restaurant was the small tables. I could easily kick Jimmy in the shin, I hardly had to stretch at all.

  "What the fuck was that for?" he griped, reaching down to inspect his pants leg. "This is a custom-made suit, Lena. Have a little respect."

  "Oops. Sorry," I lied with a grimace, thus displaying my brilliant acting abilities. "Did I accidentally catch you with my boot?"

  "No! You kicked me on purpose."

  My lips pressed tight together. "Oh, you asshole. I lied and covered for you the other night at Ev's."

  With movements sharp and angry, Jimmy snatched up a napkin and carefully brushed off his pants. Threats of revenge shone bright in his nasty, beautiful, beady, little eyes.

  Yeah, bring it on, baby.

  "Why are you two always kicking each other?" Ben asked, interrupting the heated looks. "Just out of interest?"

  Jimmy shrugged. "Everyone has their hobbies, Ben."

  "Right." Amusement lit his face and fair enough really, this date was a farce. His phone pinged again. "Sorry."

  "Seems you're pretty busy with whoever keeps messaging you. Maybe we should try this another night, unchaperoned, even." I gave Ben a sweet smile. The one I gave Jimmy was distinctly less so.

  "No, Jim's right, I'm being rude. I'll put this away." He gave the cell one last longing look before placing it screen side down on the table. "Ah ... what shall we order?"

  With a flourish, he passed me a menu. "Anything catch your fancy?"

  Jimmy sipped his Coke in silence. He may or may not have been pouting, I refused to check.

  "Mm, everything looks good." It also looked wildly overpriced. I always went Dutch on dates, but this time, it might very well kill me. Trust Jimmy to pick the most expensive damn place in town. I was tempted to kick him once more, just for fun.

  Ben's cell pinged again and Jimmy reached over, picking it up. His brows rose high as he checked out the screen. "Fucking hell, man. Do you have a death wish?"

  "None of your business." Ben held out his hand.

  Jimmy placed the cell back in it. "Right. Good luck with that, I'll make sure your funeral's real nice."

  Ben did not reply.

  "I might just have an entree," I said, interrupting whatever was going on between them. "I'm not all that hungry."

  "What's wrong? You don't know what to try?" asked Jimmy, stealing the menu from me. He took his time looking it over. "Why don't you have the ginger chicken, it's got a caramelized sauce. You like sweet stuff. And ... vermicelli with Asian greens. That'll be good, I think you'll enjoy it."

  "I can order for myself, thanks," I bit out. "I'm just not that hungry."

  "You haven't eaten since lunch. Course you are." His face creased up in confusion. "C'mon, the chef here is great or I wouldn't have chosen the place."

  "Just a soup or something, will do. Can I please have that back, please?"

  "No."

  "Jimmy."

  He held the stupid thing out of reach. "Tell me what's wrong."

  Ben said nothing and hid behind his own menu. Coward. We were through. I could never date a man who didn't stand beside me in the face of mindless oppression. Also, he was just too tall, I'd have constant neck aches trying to get high enough to kiss the guy.

  "You are wrong," I said, face warming in anger. "You are behaving all sorts of wrong. You shouldn't even be here."

  He cocked his head and studied me. Still didn't pass the damn menu. I swear I saw red, endless expanses of it. Though that might have been the scarlet silk lining the restaurant walls.

  I clicked my fingers in demand. "Give it to me."

  A moment later his features relaxed, and finally, at long damn last, he handed the stupid thing over. "You're worried about money."

  I followed Ben's good example and hid behind the thick black folder.

  "Lena?" Jimmy hooked a finger in the top of the menu, pulling it down so he could see me. "Me or Ben will pay. Why the hell are you worrying about that? Just enjoy yourself, eat what you want. That's why I brought you here."

  I closed my eyes for a moment, searching for a calm happy place. It eluded me. "Jimmy, I pay Dutch when I go out on a date. It's my way and I expect you to respect that. Also, you didn't bring me here. Well, you did, but ... never mind, I'm supposed to be here on a date with Ben. You are supposed to be somewhere else. Not sitting here, worrying about what I'm ordering for dinner or who's paying or what we're talking about."

  "And if I was somewhere else you'd wind up eating soup you don't even want and going home hungry having been bored shitless while Benny played with his phone. So it's just as well I am here." He rested his chin atop the back of his chair. "Right, Ben?"

  "Right, Jim." Ben rose to his feet. "Guys, I'm just going to use the bathroom. Won't be long."

  "Sure," said Jim, eyes still on me.

  With a brief smile, Ben turned to go. Then stopped, collecting his cell off the table. "Better take this with me. Seriously, I'm having a great time hanging with you two. We should definitely do this more often. See you soon."

  I watched the big man wander into a hallway. The broad expanse of his back disappeared into the dimly lit tunnel. Going, going, gone.

  "He's not coming back, is he?" I asked.

  "Nope. He's probably out the back door already."

  "I've never actually run off a guy on the first date before. What an achievement."

  "Don't." Jimmy looked up from the menu, pinning me with his eyes. "It's Ben's loss. You're great."

  My mind reeled and my insides turned to mush. "No, you see? This is the problem with you. For every thoughtless assholish move you make, you then turn around and do or say something wonderful it just makes everything all right. I can never find my balance because I never know what's going to come next. You're impossible."

  He gave me a long look. "You finished?"

  "Yes."

  He stood and returned his pilfered chair to a nearby table. The he sat in the one the bass player had so recently vacated. "I'm thinking the sugarcane prawn rolls, ginger chicken, BBQ pork buns, and a couple of the vegetable dishes. Sound good?"

  "Sure."

  "I don't know that you and Ben would be good together after all. Not sure what I was thinking there." He didn't seem particularly bothered by the failure. But then again, deep down where it mattered, neither was I. A big meh now sat where any upset regarding the situation should have been. With Jimmy sitting opposite me, watching me, happy hormones flooded my brain proving yet again just what an idiot I was when it came to him.

  "Oh, well. It wouldn't have gone any better if I'd picked someone," I said with a smile. "I have the worst taste in men."

  He said nothing.

  "Sorry. No offense meant."

  "None taken."

  "My collection of past boyfriends is not something to be proud of."

  "That bad, huh?"

  "You have no idea. I have in my time dated a cheater, a thief, a repressed homosexual, a foot fetishist, and various men who just wanted a chance to meet my sister."

  "Why's the foot fetishist so bad?"

  "Always with the strappy high heels. My toes were killing me."

  "Ah."

  "Anyway, this is no longer a date." I needed to say it out loud, just put it out there
for the universe to hear. Let's not explore why.

  "No, of course not," he agreed immediately with great conviction. It only stung a little. "It's a business meeting between me and my assistant. I'm paying, order whatever you want."

  I swallowed a mouthful of soda water. "Thank you. Did I damage your suit?"

  "No, just needs cleaning. I'm pretty sure you bruised me though."

  "You bruised my toes," I said.

  "We're even then."

  I set aside the menu and slumped back in my seat while Jimmy ordered dinner. Poor, Ben. Also, how embarrassing, I hope he didn't tell the others. Though they all knew we'd been planning on going out so the story was bound to get around. They were going to laugh their collective asses off. Mal in particular would never let me live it one down. Sometimes, having friends was a pain in the butt.

  It was nothing less than the truth. They were important to me. Somehow, despite my best intentions to keep to myself, I'd failed miserably. For the first time in a long time I did have people I thought of as friends. People who came over to the house and hung out. People who invited me to things and genuinely wanted me to be there. As crap as I'd been at accepting invitations.

  It was nice.

  Before the waiter could slip away, I handed him my untouched gin. "I'm finished with that. Can you take it, please? Thank you."

  Jimmy watched in his usual blase manner, completely unruffled. "You could have drunk it. I wouldn't have minded."

  "I could have," I said. "But it wouldn't have felt right. And while it's great that you have opinions on everything I think, wear, and do, I'm not going do something that doesn't feel right just to please you, Jimmy."

  "You're not drinking it because of me, so that actually makes no sense."

  I shrugged, gave him a half-hearted smile. "Sometimes things that make the least sense are the most true. Such is the mystery of life."

  He cocked an eyebrow at me, then looked down at his menu shaking his head. "You got that out of a fortune cookie, didn't you?"

  "Maybe."

  CHAPTER NINE

  "You never said your sister was getting married soon."

  "What are you doing in here and how do you know about that?" I asked, carefully applying a last coat of mascara. Hair done, heels and dress on, round two of dating other people was a go. Hopefully, with more success tonight because it could hardly be with less. Jimmy and I needed to have a stern talk about boundaries with possible butt kicking involved.