Chapter 19: Drips
“You what?”
“I’m in Michigan… with Marshall.”
“Well shit.” Mark sounded surprised on the other end of the line. “When did all this happen?”
Riley had to smile, “Right under your nose.”
“So it would seem,” Mark returned, sounding miffed. He was throwing off the vibe that he was upset that she didn’t tell him. Riley looked down at her feet and shifted them in the grass. The air was warm outside and it was nice to be in the fresh air. The garden was nice with tall trees and kids play equipment absolutely everywhere.
“Mark, don’t be like that,” She said, softly.
“Oh no, I see how it is,” Mark bit, dramatically. “You just don’t care anymore. After all I’ve done for you-”
“For the love of god,” Riley muttered, rolling her eyes. Mark was so over the top, sometimes but she could hear him chuckling on the end of the phone. “Please tell me you didn’t call just to check up on me….”
Mark sighed, “Well, I haven’t heard from you left the airport. And the doorman said you’d left almost as soon as you arrived.”
“You called the doorman?” Riley exclaimed in disbelief.
Mark practically ignored her. “He said you looked terrified. Are you okay?”
Riley sighed, not particularly wanting to retell the whole Richard story. Just thinking about it got her heart going. “I’m fine.”
“You’re also a liar,” Mark added.
Riley swallowed, “Fine. Richard went insane and got really violent. When I told Marshall about it he invited me to Michigan to just… get away from him. You know, until I find a new apartment building.”
“Right,” Mark returned, disbelievingly. “Look Riley, I know these last few weeks have been tough on you-”
She removed her phone from her ear, holding it against her chest. Sighing, she felt peaceful out here in the summer breeze. It brought back such a sense of nostalgia or déjà vu. If she strained her memory, she knew that she’d been at a foster home here in Detroit, but she couldn’t remember any details. It was as if she’d shut that door and refused to let herself recall what had happened in that dark corner of her life.
Placing the phone back up to her ear, Mark was still running his mouth, “-but I’ll might take a look around for some apartments in Miami for you? Just make sure you recoup and take care of yourself.”
“Okay, dad,” Riley teased. She looked up at the sound of the back door opening. Marshall stood there, leaning against the doorframe, just staring. “I’ll call you soon.” Cutting the connection, she shoved her phone back into her pocket.
She felt that same pang of nostalgia hit her as she stared at him from across the yard. There was something about him that she just couldn’t put her finger on. It was like they’d known each other in another life: they had an unseen connection that had been instant. Feet skirting through the soft grass, she shoved her hands into her short pockets and wandered over to him.
He had a sly look on his face, “How’s daddy taking all of this?”
She had to smirk, “He’s worried, but that’s nothing unusual.”
Marshall nodded, standing up straight. “Paul’s always like that with me.” He stepped in closer, wrapping his arm around Riley’s waist. She tried not to react, but his very touch sent waves of warmth and comfort through her body. “I was thinking….” He said, staring deep into her eyes. “After I drop the girls of, we could go for a drive, find a nice quiet spot. It’d be nice to have some time to ourselves.”
She tried to hold back her blush, but felt like she failed. “That sounds great.”
He looked surprised by her response, but only for a second. “Okay, well-”
There was a loud shout and the sounds of footsteps racing towards them. As Riley looked up she spotted Hailie, skidding around the corner. They jumped away from each other, quickly. Feeling stupid, she tried to look like she was minding her own business.
Luckily, Hailie suspected nothing. She just stared up at him, with big round eyes. “Daddy! I can’t find my lunchbox… Can you help me look?”
Marshall nodded, lifting her up. She clung onto his side, beaming. “Did you check the kitchen?” Hailie shook her head as he carried her off down the hall, glancing back at Riley over his shoulder with a smile.
“Marshall, where are we going?”
He kept his smile and his answer to himself as Riley followed him through the short grass, dodging and weaving through the leafy trees. He readjusted the backpack that was slung over his shoulder and continued through the tiny park, right on the edge of Lake Saint Clair. Despite the weather usually being cold, they’d lucked out with a heat wave this summer, making the park pleasant and almost hot.
Riley finally caught his side, “You’re crazy.” She was shaking her head.
He shrugged. This wasn’t the first time he’d taken her out without telling her. He just prayed that it would work out better than Santa Monica. Glancing around, he couldn’t see anybody in the park, let along some snobby paparazzi. They were still crawling around the school after he’d dropped the girls off this morning. Disgust flowed through him. He could handle the media bugging him but they were ruining his kids’ lives…
“Now that’s a bad face,” Riley muttered, staring at him. He realized he must have let his emotions slip. As he glanced over, she had a deep look in her eyes and they walked. “What’s on your mind?”
Drawing in a deep breath, he just shook his head. “Nothing.” Riley just pinned him with a hard, disbelieving stare. He rolled his eyes, “I was worried about the media.”
Riley laughed and pulled his baseball cap straight over his eyes, “Now they won’t know it’s you.” She laughed, the sound so beautiful it was like honey: sweet to the taste and so irresistible.
As he lifted the hat back up, he saw her take the lead as they stepped down the small slope that ended harshly with the stone wall dropped off to the lake. The water looked absolutely serene in the crisp light of midday.
He couldn’t help but watch the way she walked, the way her hips moved so fluently. His head started spinning, almost like he was tripping. There was something about the way she moved… every little single thing she did. With her glowing face, the way she lit up every room she walked into just made him want to scream. She was making him loose his mind.
Setting down the backpack on the grass, carefully, Marshall joined Riley right on the edge of the stone, staring out at the wide vast of water. For a moment, they were silent. The calm of the lake and the soft wind was the definition of serenity and he felt his nerves instantly wind down as relaxation overtook him. Riley sighed, “It’s beautiful.”
Without so much as thinking, Marshall spoke, “Not as beautiful as you.”
Surprise crossed Riley’s face as she whipped her head and stared at him. That beautiful rosiness returned to her cheeks as she became embarrassed beyond the point of talking. She looked down to her feet. “I… ah…”
He had to smile a little. You’d think for a model, she’d be used to hearing she was beautiful… but every time she acted like it was new information, like she didn’t believe something as simple as the truth. “It’s true.”
She cleared her throat and looked back up at him, turning away, as if she wanted to run. “Marshall, I-” She cut off and took a step away. That’s when he saw the fear spread across her face. Confusion overwhelmed him. Why was she so afraid?
She took another small step away but he grabbed her arm. However, his sudden grip on her threw her off balance, and she took a step forwards to try and steady herself. All too quickly, she slipped and began to fall, straight off the edge of the stone wall. Horrified, but with no power to stop himself, Riley pulled him with her.
Toppling backwards, he felt his body fall, almost in slow motion, as they both crashed into the freezing lake below. Releasing Riley’s hand, he made it up to the surface, coughing for air, in complete shock over what had just happened. Riley arose from the surface, jaw dropped, shaking from the cold. Unable to even comprehend how the fall happened, they swam back to the stone edge.
Marshall hauled himself back up and helped Riley. Breathing heavily, they sat on the edge of the stone wall, feet touching the water below, both shaking and absolutely soaked. He was about to say something when Riley started to laugh. It started small, but grew louder and more hysterical. As he watched her, he couldn’t help but start chuckling too. Until they were both sitting on the edge of the goddam lake, laughing so hard they were crying.
“This is all your fault,” Riley finally managed to squeeze out, as she pulled herself together.
“My fault?” He snickered. They were both absolutely beaming, despite being drenched. “You were the one that lost your balance! And you pulled me over with you!” He gave her a little push. “This is your fault!”
Her jaw dropped, “I can’t believe you’re blaming me.” She pushed him back, so roughly that he felt himself slide back off the edge. He almost caught himself but found to be back in the water before he knew what happened. Resurfacing, he shook his head, reaching out for her dangling feet.
“Oh it is on!” He snatched a grip on her left ankle and pulled her down with her.
The next thing he knew they were floating in the damn lake, splashing water at each other like a bunch of school kids. In the end, he forgot whose fault it originally was. By the time they gave in and drip dried in the sun, they were both freezing, huddling around his damn backpack.
“I’ll have you know,” Marshall insisted, pulling out a plastic container. “I made some a nice lunch for us.” He snapped it open and handed her a plain looking ham and cheese sandwich.
She smiled and bit into it. “This would be much better if I wasn’t soaking wet.”
He smirked and grabbed his own sandwich. “Staying dry was my plan. You clearly had other ideas.”
She grinned but suddenly turned serious. Glancing up at him, it was easy to get lost in her deep blue eyes. “Thank you, Marshall… for everything.”
He nodded, shrugging off her appreciation like he always did. But his curiosity was burning. “Why’d you freak out, earlier?” Riley looked down at her feet, as if to consider how she was going to answer the question. “You act like nobody has ever told you you’re beautiful.”
Swallowing, she finally said, “Nobody does really…” He gave her a confused look. Sighing, she sat down on the grass. He joined her, interested in her elaboration. “People think that… because I’m a model, I have a sense of entitlement. They think that nobody needs to compliment me because I should already know it. But honestly…” She paused, but as she looked back up at him, he gave her an assuring look. He wanted her to trust him. “The first person to tell me I was beautiful was Mark. It was the first thing he ever said to me.” She sighed again. “I didn’t have many friends or any family growing up… they’re the people that tell you you’re special and wonderful. And I guess I’m not used to hearing it…”
Marshall nodded, thinking about his own childhood and the experiences he’d been dealt with. “I get it.” She gave him another surprised expression. “You don’t have to be embarrassed about it. People tell you these things because they’re true. You are special and beautiful and funny and smart. And you should believe it.”
And for the first time, she didn’t blush.