Hidden Barriers (26 page)

“Oh, you know, I knock all the girls I love in the face with a hospital door.”

Chuckling softly, I think how crazy a story that will be to tell our grandkids someday.

Shit. I just went there, didn’t I? Well, I’ve now officially crossed over to
that
side. This whole being in love thing is clearly starting to play tricks on my mind as well as my heart.

Nick and I are sitting at the roller derby arena just taking it all in. It’s opening day for the C-Naughties’ season, and my eyes have never seen so many
different
sights before. Double yellow track tape is mapped out on the floor for the derby race. The only way to describe it is to imagine a NASCAR racetrack with derby girls instead of racecars.

Men dressed as referees roll about in the center of the track, following the girls around with a whistle in their mouths as they wave and point their arms constantly. There are penalty boxes, announcers, and let’s not even go there about what the hell my girlfriend is currently wearing.

If I thought what she had on that day in the hospital was crazy, what she has on today is even worse. With this type of crowd, I am not worried about getting hit on by the women. It’s Sam that will probably be hit on by them. I swear, the woman who was next to me in the beer line had an Adam’s apple and a bulge. Just saying.

I see Sam roll out from the dressing room, adjusting her shoulder guard straps as she chews on her mouth guard that dangles from her lips. Her helmet sparkles with pink glitter and matches her elbow and kneepads, which are also pink.

That’s not what’s giving me a panic attack, though. She’s wearing her team tank top, which is fine. It’s the bootie shorts that rise up to her ass crack along with the fishnet stockings and pink garters on her thighs that have me on high alert. Sam rolls over to the rest of the team as I watch her converse with Lucy on the sideline. Lucy must see Nick and me in the crowd of various people as she gives us a quick gaze. Sam turns to give me a devilish smile before turning her back to me and bending over to fix her roller skate, giving me a full view of her ass in the air.

Nick chokes on his beer when his gaze travels to watch my girlfriend’s ass in full view for everyone to see, but it’s when Lucy smacks her, that he completely loses it. Beer shoots from his nose as he coughs to clear his throat. The glare on my face tells him not to even go there.

The music finally gets cranking as the derby is set to start. “Eye of the Tiger”
blasts over the speakers as I begin to jam out and do my best Rocky Balboa impersonation. My hands start air drumming while I lip synch along. Nick laughs at my bad attempt to imitate. By the time I pop my jacket collar and roll up my sleeves, he’s in complete hysterics laughing.

The music dies down when the masters of ceremony interrupt to get the derby underway. Sam and the girls leave the bench and stand with their coach along the side of the track in a huddle. They all throw their hands into the circle before shouting, “1…2…3…Naughtie sistas for life!”

Nick leans over to catch my ear. “Dude, their coach is a scary looking chick. I’ve seen a lot of shit, but she is legit scary.”

Sam’s told me stories about Dee, but “scary” she is not. If anything, she’s the biggest softy and loves each of those C-Naughtie girls as if they were blood. I turn my head to Nick. “Trust me. Underneath all those tattoos and piercings, she’s so much more than you think. She’s helped Sam in more ways than you’ll ever know.”

As the announcers begin the team introductions, I’m amazed at the creativity of some of the girls’ derby names. I’m aware of the ones from the Naughtie house, but the others really blow my mind. “Kamikaze Cash,” “MC Slamher,” and “Scarin’ Blockovich” are just a few. The spotlight finds Sam on the track as she rolls her way to the front of the team before I hear them say, “And here’s Sammy Sweet Cheeks, last season’s leading scorer.” The crowd, along with Nick and me, erupts in a mixture of cheers and hollers.

I see Kim and Rose standing in their all-star team section, fist pumping the air and sounding their air horns for her. They really are a
family
like none other. The level of support and love cannot compare on so many levels.

I get up from my seat and ask Nick if he wants a couple of beers before Sam’s bout starts. He’s too engrossed in the fact that he’s actually got to think before he hits on a chick at this event. There aren’t exactly a lot playing on the team he wants. I laugh as I flag down the beer guy in the aisle, passing him the money before settling in to watch the race.

A couple of minutes later, I am watching my girl kick ass on the track. She pushes her way through the pack of blockers to score the maximum number of points allowed after she pumps her hands on her hips to call off the race, or jam, as they refer to it. Sam rolls quickly to the team bench, removing the single star helmet cover and hands it to Lucy. The single star on the helmet shows who the lead jammer is. They are the only ones who can score for the team when they race.

The race starts all over again as I continue to watch the derby girls round the track. I’m amazed I’ve picked up this much information on derby rules and terminology. If Sam hadn’t given me a cheat sheet one day, I wouldn’t know what the hell is going on right now, which is probably why Nick looks like a deer in the headlights.

After taking a drink, Nick asks me, “Seriously, what did you drag me to? I can’t for the life of me figure out this shit. Other than a bunch of girls in short shorts rolling around a track getting pushed around and hitting walls, I have no idea what I’m watching.”

“You and me both, man. I have the basic info. Other than that, I’m just as lost as you.” I take another sip of my beer, and my eyes narrow in on a fixture lurking in the dark corner far away from the track. I nudge Nick with my elbow and push my chin in the direction I’m looking. “What do you make of that?” I ask.

His mouth narrows as he checks out the same figure I see. He shrugs his shoulders, shaking his head. “No idea. You want to go check it out? We’re out of our jurisdiction down here in Boston, but when has that ever stopped us from acting like cops?”

“Nah, it’s probably nothing, and Sam will get pissed if I miss any of her race. Right now, things are good with us, so I’d like to keep it that way,” I state before taking another glance toward the dark corner. Whoever it was standing there is now gone.

For the next hour, I watch my girl roll around the track, push girls out of her way, get thrown to the ground, and score the most points to get named MVP. The minute her race is over, Nick and I are trackside as she rolls over to me. I grab her sweaty ass and pull her in for a kiss. “So, Sweet Cheeks, what do you want to do now to celebrate the big win?”

“I want an ice cold beer, a really hot shower, and a neck massage!” she shouts over the crowd.

“I’m pretty sure all of that can be arranged at a price.” I wink at her.

“Oh, really? And, how much will all that cost me?” she asks as she throws her hand on her hip.

“I think we both know how you can repay me,” I imply as I try to move in for a kiss. Sam’s faster, though, and rolls out of my reach.

“Not so fast, big guy. You forget I’m the MVP. Tonight is my night, and I shouldn’t have to pay for anything,” Sam says while twirling her helmet in her hand.

“We’ll see about that, sugar. I don’t usually provide my services for free.”

Weeks continue to fly by now that I’m back at work, and the derby season has officially begun. Josh fills in most of the between time, either at his house or mine. Sometimes, I have a hard time believing that it’s been almost three months since we ran into each other. It seems as though we’ve fallen into a routine these days, and everything has become second nature.

The other day he had lunch with his family for his brother’s girlfriend Emily’s birthday. From what Josh told me, his family is planning a trip to Savannah, Georgia, the beginning of May, so his brother can propose and elope. I said there is no way that would ever work. Sure, she’ll say yes to the proposal, because from what I’ve heard about Emily from Courtney and Josh, she is his soul mate. But, to propose and already have a wedding planned without her knowing, well, that’s a whole different ballgame. I won’t lie; I can’t see her agreeing to it. I hope I’m wrong, because then the entire weekend Josh is away would almost seem like a waste.

I know. I’m selfish. I can’t help it. I’ve grown attached to him.

Cara and I are just about done closing up Vines. Josh and Nick didn’t have a chance to come by; apparently, they are having a guys’ night at their place. There’s some major NHL game on television they are going to watch.

Cara is almost done restocking the wine in the fridge when she stands and tosses her rag onto the counter. “Hey, Sam, you know what we ought to do? We should surprise the guys and show up at their so-called guys’ night,” she proposes.

“I don’t know, Cara. I feel like I impede on Josh’s spare time already. Showing up unannounced might be overdoing it,” I insinuate.
Cara flashes me a look that says I’m full of shit. “Oh, c’mon, Sam. Josh stops in here unannounced all the time when you’re working. How is stopping by on the way home overdoing it?” I can’t come up with any reasonable answer fast enough as she overpowers me and tells me to grab my stuff because we are making a short detour on the way home. Something tells me she just wants another chance to flirt with Nick, but Cara is so indecisive when it comes to guys that she may have other reasons for this unscheduled visit.

Once we close up the bar and find our cars, we drive to the guys’ townhouse. All the lights are blaring in the living room, and I can see a few unfamiliar faces from the street. Something tells me I should have called before we decided to swing by, but it’s too late now, since Cara has already made her way up the steps and is ringing the doorbell.

“Cara, I have a bad feeling about this,” I reaffirm my doubts from earlier.

A strange voice sounds from the other side of the door. When it swings open, we’re met with a set of eyes nearly identical to Josh’s. “Can I help you, ladies?” he asks as he looks at us suspiciously. Then, I hear Josh’s voice from the other room getting louder as he approaches.