An Angel's Fix Pt. 09

Julie breathed a sigh of relief, just as the stadium speakers faded their blaring music, giving way to the Marching Chiefs pregame performance.

The Chiefs cleared the field, and the announcer began his introductions of the home team. The girls turned to watch the massive video board behind them, cheering with the crowd as each starter's image came up. Ashley's enthusiasm ratcheted up when Joe's likeness spun a football in his hands. Her cheer startled more than a few with it's volume. A mighty roar rose when the Chiefs began the fight song and the players burst out the tunnel. Jill was half of the cheerleader pair chosen to lead the team out with a long handspring run ahead of them.

Ashley put her thumb and middle finger in her mouth and let a resounding whistle fly when Jill returned to the wall below them. "Nice tumble, girl!" she called with a thumb up.

Jill turned and flashed a broad grin. The complement was high praise from Ashley, as her friend did not give them unless justified. Sam was at the rail with his hand stretched down over the wall. Jill hopped and slapped it, returning his wide smile.

After the kickoff, Ashley noticed something few others did. Their offense bounded and skipped onto the field with Joe jogging slightly behind after the coach said one last thing to him. They huddled for a few seconds, then marched determined to the line. Gone was the jumpy high they had bounded onto the field with. The first few plays were executed efficiently, but Ashley was disappointed that they were rather short, and run-heavy. The crowd seemed to feel that way, too, as it had gotten quieter. After the third second down, Ashley suddenly got on her toes.

"Oh crap. Corner blitz," she said. Joe tapped his hip. "Good, he sees it." The ball snapped, and she saw what he did with the linebacker trying to cover the receiver. "GO FOR IT JOE!"

The spiral was so tight, the football almost looked video game-like as it raced downfield. It settled smoothly into the basket of the receiver's arms, and he strode the last ten yards into the endzone. The crowd roared it's approval, and began it's love affair with their new quarterback.

Joe ran down the field to give his receiver a slap on the back, then returned to the coach. He was welcomed by the coach saying, "Play was for the tight end."

"Yeah, but it was a total mismatch on the left side with the blitz," Joe reasoned. "I thought the goal here was to score."

The coach smiled during the TV time out. "It is. Good eye, and good job. Just making sure you knew why you threw to him."

Joe nodded and caught a wide grin from the coach just as he turned around.

An hour later, Ashley found herself in the Seminoles' press box getting prepped for the interview by the former 'Nole great, William Floyd. She was chosen to pitch the performance arts school's newest production in the fall. It was a university advertisement spot the network did every half time to show the listeners there was more to the school than sports. The interview went well, with Floyd commenting that she sounded like a pro. It was a segue to the success of the blockbuster film and the associated music. She was appreciative of the compliments and gracefully tread the line between excitement and humility. Last, he got around to mentioning her husband is Joe, who was starting today.

"What do you think of his performance so far today?" he asked.

She answered, "Not bad for the first game. Six of eight for 122 yards, one touchdown and no sacks. Schaffer is doing awesome, though. He hasn't missed a block yet, even when pulling."

The former fullback was amused and surprised that Ashley watched more than her partner on the field. She replied that the line was who protected Joe, and that warranted a keen eye. He went back to the two incompletions, and while she pointed out that the first one was a drop, she laughingly said Joe would be spending two nights on the couch for blatantly missing on the second one. Floyd laughed heartily at the comment, thanked her for coming up, and asked if she'd do it again. She said she would any time they asked.

She returned to her seat to accolades from her sisters and friends. Kim and Reena texted their atta-girls as well. Ashley was confused as to how they heard until someone nearby held up a small radio. The second half went far better than the first, and it appeared the hype surrounding their opponents had no merit. Joe threw one more score, ran for one, and his running backs scored twice. Joe and the other starters were pulled before the fourth quarter. Ashley left a text for Joe to invite Schaffer and one of the running backs to Sunday lunch. She knew he didn't have his phone with him, but he'd see the text when he got back to the lockers.

Ashley had invited Julie and her parents to the Sunday lunch toward the end of the game. She had just checked her special treat and returned it to the fridge as the receivers Joe invited arrived. Ashley and Jasmine set out a bench for Joe's game systems for the boys to play with while waiting for lunch. The guys eyed it and started wrestling for the controllers. Jasmine brought up the video on the windows, and the little fight was dropped, along with jaws. Ashley greeted some linemen and pointed to the others. The elevator raced away as soon as the doors closed, so she waited for the next trip up. Julie and her parents let an "Oh my God" slip when they arrived.

"Did you rent this for today?" asked a wide-eyed Julie.

Ashley giggled. "No, but the club downstairs is rented for lunch today. Welcome to my school home." She gave Julie a hug, then introduced herself to Julie's gawking parents with graceful handshakes. "Jasmine is the little thing over there teaching the boys how to work the TV, Jill's setting up the dining table over there, and Kim's in the bathroom."

"Gee thanks, Ash," Kim grumbled from behind. "Hello," she said while stretching out her hand. "I was just restocking the paper products, AND I washed my hands."

The parents took the hand, but were clearly distracted while absorbing the scene. "Um..." ventured her dad. "Who else shares the rent here? Are your parents doctors or something?"

Julie gritted her teeth. "Daaad!"

Ashley was blushing a bit, a habit from having money and still not being used to the attention it gathered. "Well, I, Joe, Jill, and Jasmine live here, but Joe bought it for me for Christmas a couple of years ago."

"Joe is..." led Julie's mom, unsure if a sugar daddy was involved or what was going on.

"My husband," Ashley stated. "JOE!!! Get down here!"

Julie had wandered over to "the boys" and stopped dead. "Oh wow," she gasped in realization. "Y'all are from the team."

Jasmine stepped forward with a grin, but stopped when it was apparent she wasn't needed for introductions. The unattached guys had already surrounded the new girl.

"Oh crap!" came from the balcony. Joe darted down the stairs in a well-fitting polo and jeans. "Sorry, I didn't realize everybody was here already," he said while pulling up next to Ashley and throwing an arm around her shoulders. "Sorry, babe."

She tilted her head up and kissed him. "Conference call run long again?"

"Yeah, I should know better than to ask if there's any questions. Never fails there's always that one department head who shoots out a 1 in a million what-if scenario."

"Aww, give Tara a break. She's starving."

"Starving?" broke in Julie's mom.

"For attention," Ashley giggled at the inside running joke. "Joe, these are Julie's parents...I'm sorry, I don't know your last name."

"Peterson," answered the dad a little eagerly. He turned to his wife with a goofy grin. "You know who this is?! The wonder kid from Carter Electronics!" The puzzle piece landed in the right spot in his head. "Oh wow! And this is that new pop star, Ashley!"

Joe smiled. "I, uh, I prefer Chairman of Carter."

"And, I'm not quite 'pop star' yet, but thank you for the confidence," added Ashley.

"Back in Pensacola, you are," Mr. Peterson defended.

Kim made herself known again. "And, actually as of today you are nationally, too. Soar just hit number 1 on Billboard, and Jon's confident that Dare will debut in the top 10 next week." She was beaming.

"Oh God, her head's gonna get so big, we'll have to lower her out the window." Jasmine had disentangled herself from the other guests, not that it was hard with Julie as a distraction.

Joe threw a bone to satisfy Kim's ego trip. "Well, Kim deserves a little gloating this time around. Getting Ash to sign with Jon seems to be turning out well."

Julie returned to her parents, and Ashley decided to change the subject. "Anyone want a drink? Beer? Wine? Something stronger?" Joe shifted, but Ashley noticed Mr. Peterson's disapproval as well. "Julie, we got sodas, water." She lowered her voice to a teasing sing-song. "Sweetened raspberry limonade?"

Julie's mouth watered until her tongue nearly popped out on the last one. "Raspberry limonade?"

"Sweetened," Ashley corrected. "Make it myself. Come on," she gestured with a tilt of her head toward the kitchen.

Joe ushered the older couple in the opposite direction, toward the bar next to his office area. "How about a hometown original?" he asked before fixing a pitcher.

"Oh wow! That beats the snot out of Sandshakers!" exclaimed Mrs. Peterson.

Jill came up and poured herself a glass. "Sandshakers doesn't serve Bushwackers," she said with a scoff.

"But I thought it was invented by Sandshakers," the mother protested.

"Uh uh," Jill hummed around a swallow. "They bought the recipe when they bought out another bar."

"So, what?" asked Julie's dad, aiming the question at Joe. "YOU bought the real recipe first?"

Joe smiled. "No, this is Jill's baby. She taught me the recipe."

Jasmine and Kim raised their eyebrows, as this story was new to them.

Jill took another swig. "I was a dock hand at a marina for a couple of summers in high school. One of the fishing yachts was Rum Runner." After glancing around and finding blank looks, she continued. "As in Rum Runner Bar that was downtown. Anyway, the owners invited me on board one night and handed me a drink...the same that's in that pitcher. A few after-works later, they were having me come on board and mix drinks for their friends who came over. They sold the bar later that summer, retiring to the Caribbean. Before they left, they said they liked me, and wanted me to have a gift." She leaned far over the bar and retrieved a plain black binder, holding it up. "Their mixology book."

Kim was versed in town lore, picking up tidbits from her dad's connections, and (shiver) her brother's. "But Sandshaker BOUGHT their recipes," she protested.

Jill grinned. "The things you hear when owners are blitzed with their friends. There was a loophole in the contract. It specified 'original Rum Runner recipes'. It should have stated current and former business recipes. So, they altered each one slightly -- all delicious, but not quite the perfections they built their bar on." She caught disapproving looks. "Not that I tried any but the weekend sips of Bushwackers they gave me. At least not until this summer when I turned 21. Anyway, they gave me the actual originals. See?"

She showed them the pages, most starting to yellow, and all in a female's handwriting. The Bushwacker page was near the middle of the binder.

"So, these are the perfected versions?" asked Kim.

Jill's nod provoked Jasmine. "And to think I was impressed with your 'natural' talent at mixing! But you were cheating the whole time? Ugh!" She turned and strode to the elevator. Luck was on her side when the doors opened immediately and she was able to complete her storm-off in dramatic fashion.

Ashley retrieved the pitcher from the refrigerator and nearly spun into Julie, who had been following extremely close since Kim relayed the news. "Whoa!" she squeaked while deftly raising the pitcher to avoid whacking Julie's face. Ashley giggled, "sorry, I wasn't aware my personal bubble was so small."

Julie backed a step, the grin never leaving her starstruck face. Ashley moved the pitcher in a pointing gesture toward a cabinet, and Julie took the hint to retrieve a couple of glasses. "So, Ashley, number one on the charts. That's awesome! Just don't change like all the other celebrities do."

That last comment hit home, and Ashley internally wondered if things were already changing between her and Joe. Sometimes the chemistry between them felt more like convenience and partnership than love. She sighed while pouring the brown beverage and tried to ignore the 'awesome' compliment. "Hmm, kinda looks like watery poo, but I swear it's like a sugary orgasm in a glass."

"Why aren't you excited?! I mean, I'd be peeing my pants if I found out my song is best in the country."

Ashley handed over a glass. "You're right, I guess. But until...I don't know...I just don't feel it. How's your drink?"

Julie's eyes rolled back. "Oh my God! Only the best thing ever! You can't even taste the alcohol!"

"Do what?!" her mom yelled across the space.

"NO!" Ashley nearly shrieked. "I swear there's nothing harder than honey in this pitcher!" Her defense now had the attention of everybody. She lowered her voice. "I swear. This is my own personal refreshment, as I don't 'drink' much." She caught the look from her new friend's parents. "No, seriously! Ask Joe, or Jill, or...wait, where the...where's Jasmine?"

"She's in a snit, and left," said Jill. Then turning to the parents, "Ashley's right. She hardly drinks." Jill walked over and met Ashley halfway from the kitchen, taking the glass from her hand and sipping from it. "Yeah, that's awesome. But no alcohol."

Julie was alarmed by her parents suddenly being on edge. "I meant to say sugar, but said alcohol because y'all were talking about cocktails just now. Please can we stay?"

Joe stepped in. "Mr. and Mrs. Peterson. I assure you, all the hard stuff is here in the bar. Even beer is kept in the fridge under the counter. I hope you can stay, but I understand if you're uncomfortable."

The father had been a bit starry eyed himself, and he was curious enough to see why his daughter was taken in so suddenly by this odd group of students; specifically by Ashley, who's star was clearly making leaps. Maybe it was the presence of he and his wife, but the stereotypical wild antics of college life seemed to be absent here. Even the football players in the living area seemed to feel the maturity of the hosts, and kept their video game bickering to a respectable level. He glanced over and spied the two pitchers on the coffee table among them. Both were still only half empty from the first offering, lending credence to the conclusion the contents were merely iced tea.

"Well, if you don't mind, lunch would be nice," Mr. Peterson decided.

"Great!" answered Joe. As if on cue, a large lineman came up to the group, asking about lunch. Joe smiled. "Let me go check on a few things downstairs, and I'll be right back."

Jasmine didn't have any specific destination in mind when she punched the ground floor button during her storm-off. But her legs seemed to automatically carry the rest of her straight toward the main gate of the condos. Sam was there, of course. Now having a focal point, she marched toward him as if it were her conscious idea all along. The stifling humidity had clothed her in a sheen of perspiration by the time she was halfway across the grounds, and she felt bad for him standing there in the hot sun. A car pulled up, and Sam met the driver with a smile, checked the I.D., and punched in a code, allowing the last of the party guests into the complex. He followed the car through the gate and turned to watch it close all the way. Beyond the driveway, a couple of marked cruisers were parked on the street. He turned her way to head in, and her anger from upstairs was replaced by pity. Sam's face was red and covered in sweat, his hair seemed to be a leaky faucet dripping water all over his neck line. The black polo seemed darker, and as he walked closer to her, Jasmine could see that there was not a dry thread in the fabric. Well, at least he was bucking his company's uniform of blazer and tie.

"Hey Jasmine," he greeted while swiping his forehead with a glistening arm.

Jasmine chided herself for not bringing a bottle of water. Oh yeah, she thought, that would have ruined the drama of my exit. "Hey Sam. You're heading for shade, I hope?" He strode past and she fell in step with him. "There doesn't seem to be a danger of anything freezing today."

Sam chuckled as he looked down to her. "No kidding! That's the last of the list. Anyone else who lives here that comes up to the gate will have a code to get in, so I'm heading for the garage." He looked down further. "Aren't your feet burning?"

"Yes," she said sheepishly. "I kinda left in a hurry."

Without warning, Sam grabbed her by the waist and threw her over his shoulder. She didn't resist. Even though he was drenched from shirt to socks, he somehow still smelled like he had just taken a shower, with a bit of working-man musk. Her stomach flopped, but in a delicious way, and she hated the feeling. Not yet, she admonished herself. After a hundred strides or so, he placed her bare feet on the cool concrete of the parking garage.

"So, why'd you leave in a huff?" he asked while opening a cooler he had tucked into a corner. Fetching two bottles of water, he tossed one to her.

"I didn't say 'huff,'" she defended. "I was in a hurry." His silence was an accusation in itself. "FINE, it was a huff." She withered under his gaze. "Okay, so it was an all-out hissy fit."

A car door closed, echoing through the structure and Sam glanced warily around. Quickly he determined all was normal and sat on his large cooler, patting the lid next to him to invite Jasmine to sit. "So, what's going on?"

She sat in a grump. "It was stupid, really. Jill's been making these awesome drinks, as you know, and showing us how to make them. It turns out that a brilliant former bar owner couple had given her the recipe book when they retired."

"So?"

"I thought that Jill had a natural talent, for once. But, really she's been cheating."

Sam cocked a grin. "Yeah, befriending unexpected people. That bitch."

Jasmine shot a dagger with her eyes. "That's not what I was talking about...oh...I see."

Sam chuckled. "You know, she didn't make nice with you to take advantage of your artwork. Nor did she Joe to enjoy his wealth. Same with Ashley and her music and the travels that come with her. In fact, Jill almost distances herself from all those benefits."

"Including me," Jasmine sighed.

"Can you blame her? You've been pushing your friends away for the last year or so."

"I can't help it!" she snapped. "All these extra hormones are driving me crazy!"

"From the project?" Jasmine dropped her eyes, so Sam continued. "Look, you've been working so hard with Joe on this thing, it's no wonder you saw the recipe thing as cheating." He put his arm around her.

Despite her personal reservation, Jasmine found herself melting into the embrace. "It's not fair. I'm poked, probed, and prodded for her, along with working for Jon's label, and going to school. So, they look at me as if I'm crazy when a little steam escapes."

Sam bent down and nuzzled her neck, unable to resist the urge to show his affection. "But then, Ashley doesn't know and Jill doesn't either. You should think about what it looks like to them when you lose it." There was a pause while he kissed her collarbone. "So, how many chances are left?" he murmured between pecks.

"Um," she croaked, utterly distracted by the flutters throughout her body that he was creating. She groaned and opened her neck to more attention. He took advantage of the increased surface and Jasmine's breathing quickened as his lips touched new areas. "Sam," she breathed. His kisses reached the back corner of her jaw, along with a nip from his teeth. "Oh God, please," Jasmine whimpered. He did it again. "Please...ugh...nooo." She knew her mind had to win this battle, but everything else wanted him to keep going. With immense effort, she dragged the protest through her throat. "Stop... I need ...please stop." Her hands felt like lead, but she managed to bring them up to his chest and put pressure on them. It was a token gesture, but she hoped he'd understand what it implied. Her body hoped he'd ignore it. She could almost hear her joints whine in protest when he didn't.