It was a little before 6:00 when I got back to town. I slowed down going past the service garage to see if Dan might be there. I spotted his truck sitting out close to the road. I pulled into the lot noticing a for sale sign in the window of the truck. I pulled up to the building but Danās father had already closed the business for the evening. I walked out to the truck to see if there really was a sign stuck in the windshield. It was a for sale sign, the garageās phone number listed at the bottom.
I quickly drove home to find out what the hell was going on. Dan wasnāt at the apartment, not many of his clothes were either. The closet doors were wide open and there were a lot of empty hangers. I checked the bathroom and heād pretty much cleaned out the medicine cabinet too. I noticed a note on the kitchen table. I could tell by the terrible hand writing it was from Dan. It was brief. He said he was going out of town for a few weeks and heād be back sometime to get the rest of his clothes. He didnāt say where he was going or with whom. I crumpled up the note tossing it into the trashcan. I didnāt cry, I wasnāt going to let the news get the best of me. Fuck him!
I drove over to Momās. She was eating dinner. She knew by the look on my face that something was wrong. I told her about seeing Danās truck at the garage with the for sale sign in it and the note Iād found on the kitchen table. It was pretty all pretty obvious.
Mom offered to share dinner with me but I couldnāt eat anything. She asked me about work and I told her about the male model, Bryan. She kidded me saying I should have called her in case Derek needed any help. I laughed at her remark. I was hesitant to tell her about me modeling for Derek with the motorcycle but I figured she wouldnāt object to me modeling. I went through the whole scenario about the scheduled model not being able to make it. I described what Iād worn, not telling her about the blue panty and bra outfit. I thought that might upset her. I did tell her about getting the modeling fee check, that excited her. She asked if I was going to turn āproā. I just told her it was for fun and to help Derek out.
We decided to keep our plans alive for tomorrowās shopping trip. I told her about Derek mentioning the āRocky Roadā nightclub. She agreed, it sounded like we should stop in and check it out.
āMaybe Iāll get lucky!ā She said, laughing.
I watched TV with mom till later in the evening. I drove back to the apartment and went to bed. I wasnāt really sleepy, just tired. Saturday morning I got up and cleaned the apartment. Dan had thrown things everywhere, it was a mess. After getting things put back, I stretched out on the couch, dosing off.
I woke up when I heard loud knocking at the door. It was my mother; sheād been trying to call me on the phone. I didnāt hear the phone ring, it wasnāt working. Mom looked at the wall jack, the phone cord had been yanked out. Dan must have jerked it out of the plug, either drunk or in a rage. I was able to get the little plug out of the wall socket. I mentioned to Mom to remind me to get another cord while we were shopping. I showered and got dressed, putting on my make-up and fixing my hair. Mom had gone to the local beauty salon during the afternoon and gotten her hair done. She looked nice.
I drove Momās car to Pueblo since itās a lot roomier than mine. We hit one of the malls and bought some things, including a new phone cord. Mom talked me into going into one of those upscale lingerie stores. I picked up a few things, not out of necessity, more out of treating myself to something nice. Mom bought some new shoes; I picked up another pair of high heels. I only had the one pair. I didnāt want Derek to think thatās the only pair I had. We ate in the food court, I felt a little more like eating this evening. It was almost 9:00pm and we were both tired from shopping. We decided weād go over by the āRocky Roadā and see what it was like.
I knew about were the club was in the old historic district so we didnāt have much trouble finding it. Most of the little shops on the block were already closed so we were able to park close by. Mom checked herself in the visor mirror; I had to grin at her primping. We locked the car and walked towards the club. It was a little crowded but there were a few tables open. The band was just warming up. They were introducing themselves and doing sound checks. I pointed to a table that looked available.
We were making our way through the people when I spotted Derek sitting at a table with some of his friends. He jumped up and waved us over. I waved back acknowledging Iād seen him. We made our way to his table. There was another couple and a middle-age man sitting with him. Derek was smiling as we approached. He introduced us to his friends. I introduced my mother to them. Derek wanted us to join him and his friends. They all seemed very nice. I sat next to Derek. Mom sat next to Kenny, a nice looking guy with salt and paper hair. He was the sales manager for one of the local car dealerships. He looked close to my motherās age and he was very friendly. The waitress asked us for our drink order; I didnāt know what to ask for. Mom asked for a beer, I figured Iād just get a soft drink. Derek noticed I was at a loss for words so he ordered me a glass of red wine. I smiled at him for bailing me out. He said Iād like the wine, it wasnāt real alcoholic. The waitress returned with the drinks and I took a sip of the wine. It tasted great so I took another sip. I was thirsty but I didnāt want to gulp it down.
The band started out with some fairly fast dance music but only a few couple took to the dance floor. After a few songs, they slowed the tempo down and more couples took to the floor. Kenny asked Mom to dance, she readily agreed. Mom always loved to dance, my dad hated it. Kenny put both his hands at Momās waist; Mom put her arms on his shoulders. He pulled her close in to him. Mom looked like she was really having a good time. She was smiling and laughing as they danced. The other couple sitting with us took to the dance floor, leaving Derek and me alone at the table. Derek asked me how my day had gone. I just talked about the shopping, not mentioning what Iād found when I got back home the evening before.
āYou sure youāre alright?ā He asked. āYou seem a little down.ā
I told him I was just a little tired from not sleeping and all the shopping. Derek took my hand in his and put it under the table. We watched Kenny and Mom dance several dances. Mom had her head on Kennyās shoulder, her were closed. She was having a good time, I was happy seeing her enjoy herself.
āWe might have to keep a close eye on those two.ā Derek kidded.
āYep, Mom might try to take advantage of him!ā I kidded back.
Although it was amusing, it almost looked like it could happen. They looked good dancing together. He continued holding Mom firmly at the waist and she was glued right to him.
The music stopped briefly and Mom and Kenny returned to the table. Kenny mentioned that Derek had told him about me doing the modeling session with the chopper instead of the model. I blushed saying I hoped the pictures didnāt turn out too awfully bad.
āThey didnāt. They were great. Better than great.ā Derek stated. āI worked on them all day to get them done.ā
I squeezed Derekās hand when made the compliment. It was my way of saying āthank youā. Derek noticed it and he gave me a gentle squeeze in return.
Kenny said he couldnāt wait to see them. It was his motorcycle weād used for the shoot. I hadnāt realized that, till he mentioned it. Heād stopped by the studio and picked it up that morning. Kenny mentioned that even though it was his pride and joy but he was thinking about selling it. He worried something would happen to it and heād have to deal with the insurance company on a settlement.