“Uhhh.” Was the only sound Dade could make when he forced open his eyes, they had dried out. Where the hell am I? He opened one eye slowly again this time. My room. I’m in my room. Oh good.
Turning slowly onto his side, he opened an eye again, trying to focus on the clock, two twelve. Very bright...afternoon. He sighed slowly. Day was? Nothing. Why is my stomach on fire?
Dade slowly rubbed a hand over his eyes. Doc was here. He moaned remembering small bits, a cold shower and small lecture…before that, he had no clue. Wait. Owen was here too. Wasn’t he?
He did remember one hell of a dream though, well most of it. He smiled.
Rubbing his hand down his face, he felt his jaw. Have I turned into an ape? He thought. No, he remembered seeing himself in the mirror last night. Well, you’re a big mess aren’t you, Jones?
He tried to lift his head and bombs went off in both temples. Dropping back to the pillow he groaned, waiting out the explosion. Inhaling slowly, he thought there was a familiar scent there. Well that’s one hell of a dream when he could smell Cora, he thought.
Letting out a slow breath, he raised his head, slowly, held tightly between his hands. He’d taken aspirin. Where?
Bathroom.
Had to get there.
He stood but wanted to drop to the floor. His legs hurt, his stomach was an inferno and his brain was oozing out of his ears. He opened one eye and tried to look around.
Oh that was bad. Don’t move your head stupid. He took shaky steps towards the door and panted out in relief as he reached the doorjamb. Resting against it for a moment, he took a deep breath and tried to see how far he had left to go.
Might as well be a hundred miles, he thought.
You can do this. Painkillers wait for you there.
He stumbled into the bathroom and almost fell to his knees in relief when he saw the aspirin. With weak hands, he wrestled with the cap. Who designed these containers? he wondered, obviously people that had never had a hangover.
Stupid arrow is lined up!
When it finally flew off, he didn’t care that half of the aspirin landed on the floor. He dumped three into his hand and was about to put them in his mouth when he thought of water.
He looked for a glass. There was nothing to put water in. He looked at the sink and groaned, knowing that he would suffer if he had to lower his head to the tap.
Resting his face on the cool countertop he took a moment. Felt like he’d just run a marathon. He was suddenly happy he lived alone and no one would witness his suffering.
He opened his eyes and tried to focus on the white object a few inches from his face.
Without lifting his cheek off the counter top, he reached over and picked it up. A pipe? I have a pipe? Since when? He brought it closer and did what would be the most stupid move of his day, so far, and sniffed it. His stomach lurched and he flicked it across the counter like it was a giant bug.
You lost all your brains didn’t you, Jones? He gripped the edge of the counter with shaking arms and slowly pushed himself up. His eyes squinted as the pounding began again. Nap. Long nap. Just get back to your bed.
He slid along the wall using his shoulder as a guide, trying very hard to not slide down the wall and hit the floor face first.
Almost there.
When he hit the doorjamb with his shoulder he didn’t care. The bed was five feet away and had never looked so good.
Dropping slowly, he slid his hands up as he crawled to his pillow. Something stuck into his palm. Turning his hand over, he saw a tiny red button in his hand.
A button? From where? He flattened out the covers to see three more scattered against the beige material. Sighing, he closed his eyes. Nap now, mystery later.
He crawled to where the sheet was visible and stared down between his hands.
That was blood. Looking down he tried to remember. Am I hurt? Not that it mattered, everywhere was hurting. Later, he thought again.
Reaching the pillows, he slowly lowered his face into them.
You did it.
You’re going to live.
He rolled slowly to pull the other pillow into his burning stomach.
Both eyes opened wide despite the pain as he focused on the white something, lying by the pillow. With a shaking hand, he reached over and picked it up. Holding it up he turned it in his hand.
“Shit!” He spat bolting up, then groaned and grabbed his head.
What did I do?
He took a few deep breaths and waited until the pain eased enough that he could open his eyes.
“The dream.” He whispered out loud.
It. Wasn’t. A. Dream.
He looked down at the ripped underwear in his hands, then to the blood on the bed. “Coralee.” His heart rose to his throat and he flopped back on the bed. “You stupid fuck!” He snapped. In your drunken stupor you took Cora…who was a virgin? He’d get back to that. You took her and don’t even remember doing it.
Dropping his hand over his eyes he moaned in agony. He couldn’t go to her now, he wouldn’t make it to the stairs, never mind drive. Please say I didn’t hurt her. He closed his eyes and tried to remember more.
He remembered Steven talking to him, he took aspirin and then he woke up. Turning he moved across the bed and reached for the phone. What is Doc’s number? He tried to focus and dial but had to hang up, twice. Come on.
When the phone rang, he was surprised that he’d managed it. “Doctor O’Reily, please.” He was panting from speaking.
Steven’s voice came on the line.
“Doc!”
“Dade? You’re moving?”
He opened one eye. “I wouldn’t say that.”
Steven chuckled. “I won’t ask how you’re feeling, I can hear that answer.”
“Listen was anyone else here last night with you and Owen?”
“Not that I know of. Did we have a few delusions after I left, because that wouldn’t surprise me.”
“Delusions wouldn’t leave buttons…” he held up the underwear and grimaced, “behind.”
“Buttons? Where did you find buttons?”
He sighed. “In my bed.”
Steven cleared his throat. “I don’t know anything about those. You take a nap and I’ll swing by after work and see if we can figure out where the buttons came from.”
Dade sighed again. “Great. Good. See you later.” He focused on the phone and hung up. Doc was smart he’d figure it out.
He looked at the underwear again and set them on the table. Please let her be all right, he thought closing his eyes and breathing slowly.
Dade was walking slowly down the stairs as Steven walked in. He grinned up at him.
“You found your face again.”
Dade ran a hand over his jaw. “For a few moments when I woke up, thought I’d turned into an ape.” He came down the rest of the stairs. “At least I know how I’d look with a beard.” He grimaced.
Steven went into the living room and looked around. “Haven’t gotten around to cleaning yet huh?”
Dade shook his head. “No, this is the first time I’ve been downstairs, need some toast or something.” He rubbed a hand over his stomach. “My guts are on fire.”
Steven walked towards the kitchen. “That will happen when you put that much alcohol in.”
They stood in the kitchen and looked at the bottles on the counter. “I drank all that?” Dade groaned.
Steven nodded. “We didn’t find any evidence of anyone else, well at least not until you found your buttons.” He watched Dade bend slowly and pull a toaster out. “So where are the buttons?”
Dade opened a bag with bread and took a piece out examining it for mold. “Go look on my bed.”
“Be right back.”
Steven came down to find him sitting at the table eating in slow motion. “Well.” He tossed the underwear on the table. “Well.” He sat down and looked at the buttons in his hand. “How could you have been capable, with everything in your system …”
Dade shook his head. “Oh, I managed.”
Steven sat there watching him. “The stain on the sheet, is that old?”
He took another bite and shook his head. Grabbing the underwear, he stuffed them into his pocket under the table.
Steven sat there pushing the buttons around on the table. “Do you remember anything?”
Opening the bottle of water, he drank slowly. Closing his eyes, he hoped it stayed down. “Yeah.”
Steven leaned closer and looked at him. “So, you know the virgin that was in your bed last night?”
Dade nodded. Leaning forward he played with one of the buttons then looked up at him. “Just don’t slug me, okay?” He let out a slow breath. “It was Cora.”
Steven’s eyes widened. “Coralee?” He frowned then waved his hand. “We’ll get back to the fact that I didn’t know she was a virgin in a minute.” He opened his mouth than snapped it shut and thought for a moment. “Did you? Was she…?”
Sitting back, Dade exhaled. “I don’t remember the details, they’re kind of sketchy…”
“Have you called her? Is she all right?”
Dade tossed his hands up in frustration. “And say what? Coralee, honey, about that sex last night, can you fill in some details?” He rubbed a hand down over his face. “What do I do?” Opening his eyes, he looked at Steven. “You can’t tell anyone. I mean anyone.”
Steven shrugged. “It’s not like it’s going to come up in general conversation.”
“Doc, I kept your secret.”
Steven laughed. “That was a bit different wouldn’t you say? Rachel wasn’t a virgin. We were both quite sober and aware.” He paused. “What the hell was she doing here?”
Dade shook his head. “I don’t know.” He put his head down and took a breath. His stomach hurt like hell. “She hasn’t spoken to me since that little scene you witnessed around the fire at Mabon.”
“What was that little scene about?”
Dade sipped the water again. “You know that little blonde, the one passing the bottle through the drummers every two minutes?” Steven nodded. “She stumbled over to me and could barely stand.” He shrugged. “I walked her towards the cabins, you know, kind of point in the right direction, she just attached herself to me, strong little thing, I couldn’t peel her off.” He took another sip. “So, she’s suctioned to my face and I’m trying to push her away, she wanted me to go back to the cabin and, ah, drum for her.” Steven’s eyebrows raised. “So, I finally get her off me and send her in the right direction. I turn around and Cora was standing watching.”
Steven hissed out a breath. “Oh.”
“Yeah.” He took another drink. “Then I take off back to the house to talk to her, to explain…”
“You do see the irony, don’t you? For years, you used the lame excuse that they were drunk and that one was…”
Dade waved his hand. “Yeah, I got all that. So, Cora comes out and she is crying, I can do anything but her tears, you know…it’s like they rip me in two.” He rubbed his hand over his face. “Then she tells me how she’s been waiting for ten years for me to…I don’t know, settle the fuck down and not jump every female that smiles at me, ten fucking years! I had no clue.”
Steven got up and got a bottle of water. Taking a drink, he leaned against the counter and studied him. “You could have been with Cora all this time?”
“Apparently.” He sighed. “I—well, fuck, you know I’ve been drooling at her feet for several years.” He ran both hands through his long hair pushing it off his face. “Fuck! I haven’t been with another woman in two years, I wanted Cora…”
“Seems you had her.”
Dade scowled at him. “I just, fuck! I don’t know.” He dropped his head into his hands and leaned on the table.
“Ah, so, the piling one fuck up on top of the other, it makes more sense now.”
Dade looked at him and rolled his eyes.
“What are you going to do?”
Dade threw his arms up in the air and then squinted from the pain in his head. “Crawl to her on my hands and knees and throw myself at her mercy? I don’t know.”
Steven smirked. “You’re lucky she doesn’t have Rach or Kasey’s talents, friend.”
“No shit.” He pushed the chair back and stood up. “First thing I need to do is clean this place up. What the hell did I do here?”
Steven shook his head slowly and walked through the door. He stopped suddenly and Dade walked into him.
Looking around the other man Dade saw the women they’d just mentioned standing in his living room with their hands on their hips, looking very unhappy. All four of them, he thought. “Oh shit,” he whispered.
“Uh huh.” Steven replied in a quiet tone.
Rachel smiled and walked over to Steven. “So, Doc, how’s the…” She studied Dade half hiding behind her fiancé. “Patient this evening?”
Steven wasn’t sure if falling to his own knees would save him from the crossfire so he just quietly answered. “He’ll live.”
“That’s debatable.” Leena said walking over. She stopped and glared at Dade or what she could see of him from behind Steven. “Head okay, Dade?’ She asked quietly. He shrugged. “Good.” She said sweetly.
Kasey looked around the living room again then turned to glare at Dade. She walked towards them and both stepped aside as she opened the kitchen door and looked in. “There isn’t a clean place to sit, anywhere.” She said looking at Cora. She spun back towards the men.
Steven went to step away and felt Dade grip his shirt from behind in a silent plea. “Don’t sit on the couch, uh, we, uh, poured water over him.”
Dade looked at him in surprise.
“Did you think Rachel wouldn’t share the details with us?” Cora asked in a hissing voice looking at Dade.
He swallowed and shook his head. He studied her face trying to see, something.
Leena blew out a breath and walked over and looked in the kitchen. “Well, at least it’s dry in there.” She pointed to the kitchen. “Sit.”
Neither man had ever heard her use that tone and immediately turned and walked into the kitchen. Steven turned and looked at Rachel.
She smirked at him. “Stop looking like the guilty child, Doc, we’re not mad at you.”
He put his hand over his heart and let out a quick breath. “Whew.” He stood behind her and pulled her back into him. Then looked to see Dade sitting at the table looking pitiful with the three women hovering around him.
Kasey leaned on the table and brought her face down, eye level with Dade. “Well?”
He looked at her. Then down at the table. Three buttons were in the center of the table. Leaning forward he put his hands over them. “I’m an—asshole.” He said quietly searching for the right word to make them happy.
She snorted. “Clearly.”
“Kase?” Chris’s voice bellowed from the door.
“In the kitchen, Chris.” All heads turned towards the door as Chris stepped in.
He looked around and rubbed his jaw. Then gave Dade a sympathetic look. “Need a lawyer?” He asked him quietly. Kasey glared at him. “Sorry.” He said softly and leaned against the counter.
Chris looked at Dade and shook his head in sympathy, a ‘you’re on your own’ expression clearly evident.
Dade let out a long breath. “I appreciate your concern…”
“Concern?” Cora hissed. “You appreciate our concern?” Slapping both hands on the table she leaned down and stared at him. Speaking quietly, she continued, “Do you have any idea, any inkling how worried we’ve all been about you for the last two weeks, Dade Jones?”
He opened his mouth, then closed it, and shook his head. “I didn’t realize…”
“Realize what?” Kasey spat at him stepping back to the table.
Owen entered the room and looked around. He smirked at Dade. “Bet you wished you did die now, you dumb son of a bitch.”
Dade closed his hand over the buttons and started to stand. A slap of wind knocked him back into his chair. He looked around to see Rachel shaking her head.
“We’re not finished with you yet.” She said, almost sweetly.
He stuffed his hands into his pockets shoving the buttons in. He watched Steven glance towards the table then his hand. Looking around at them he shrugged. “I fucked up. I was messed up…”
“From?” Cora asked quietly crossing her hands over her chest.
He opened his mouth then clenched his jaw stubbornly.
“Do you know anything that’s been happening in the last few weeks, Dade?” Leena asked him. He shrugged. “You do know we have a handfast happening in three weeks?”
He grinned and nodded.
“And that you agreed to be a witness, with Cora, for all of us?”
He looked at Steven for confirmation. He nodded at him. Not knowing what to say he looked back at Leena.
“Did you know Owen sold his house…”
He grinned. “Yes. I know that,” he added quickly.
“To Cora.” She finished quietly.
He looked from Owen to Cora. “Oh.”
Kasey crossed her arms. “Did you know Kevin is going to be working here and is subletting Cora’s apartment?”
He looked quickly at Cora then back to Kasey and shook his head.
Kasey threw up her hands and walked out of the room, the bottles on the counter rattling with her exit. “I can’t talk to him right now.”
Chris shot Dade a look and went after her.
Dade let out a slow breath. “I’m sorry, more than you know. I’m over it. It won’t happen again.” He rubbed his hands over his face.
Cora hissed out a breath and walked out of the room.
He watched her go then turned to look at Leena. “Lee, I can’t talk about this to everyone, I just…”
Leena looked at him sympathetically for a moment, then turned and walked out.
Owen looked at him and shook his head. “Well, when you fuck up you do it large, bro.” He followed Leena out.
Dade groaned and leaned back in his chair. He looked at Steven who raised his hands then dropped them back to Rachel’s shoulders. Rachel was looking at him, slowly shaking her head. Then, she too, turned and walked out the door.
Steven dropped his head down and let out a long breath. “Well, you’re still alive.” He opened the door, then turned his head and whispered. “You are going to be sucking up for months over this one.”
Shoving back the chair, Dade got up and went into the living room. The men were working to cool down the pissed off women. He turned to see Cora quickly walking down the stairs.
She stopped and looked at him. When Kasey turned, she sighed. “I put your bedding in the washing machine, the smell is even up there.”
Dade watched her. He knew exactly why she’d gone upstairs, bedding may have been a part of it but the real reason was in his pockets. “Thank you.” He said quietly, willing her to look at him. She wasn’t retreating from him, he hoped that meant he hadn’t hurt her too badly.
Kasey stepped towards the door then spun around. She pointed to Chris and the other two males. “You three are going to stay and help him shovel this mess up, and then bring him to the house, and we’ll feed the jerk!” She opened the door and walked out, leaving it open.
Chris’s mouth dropped open and he looked at Dade.
Leena nodded as she followed Kasey. “I’ll see you there, Owen.”
Rachel grinned at Steven then followed Cora and Leena out the door, slamming it behind her.
All three men turned to Dade. He held up his hands and whined. “Please not you, too.”
Steven started laughing. “I am so glad I’m not you right now.”
Chris patted him on the back and looked around. “What’s this I heard about illegal herbs?” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Owen’s jaw dropped. “You’re a lawyer.”
“What?” Chris held up his hands. “I want them for Kasey, she’s going to need help settling down this time.”
Dade grinned. “I’m sure you can find some use for her excess energy.”
Chris grinned. “Maybe, unless she’s mad at me too, just for knowing your sorry ass.”
Owen stood back and looked around. “Well, on the off chance they’ll come back and check, I think we’d better see what we can do with all this.”
Dade sighed and put his hands on his hips. “I just want to crawl back into bed.”
“Ha! Not a chance.” Chris snorted. He turned and looked at Dade. “Do you know what I went through, being dragged out of a meeting when Kasey called? I couldn’t understand a word she said, caught only about every third word, and had no clue what I was walking into tonight.” He pointed at him. “Your sorry ass is going to stay upright, and clean. Then we’re taking you to those pissed off women and leaving you at their mercy.”
“Damn right.” Owen said quietly. “Leena cried when I told her.” He pointed at Dade with a big hand. “You owe me big time for that. Not to mention dragging your ass up those stairs with Doc last night.”
Dade nodded. “I know. I know.”
Steven smirked. “You’re lucky I didn’t let Rachel come here last night, she was halfway to the car by the time I caught her. You would have been one sorry son of a bitch if she’d called them all here last night.” Dade’s eyes met his and a silent thought passed between them. He was damn lucky they didn’t show up when Cora was here.
Dade bent down slowly and picked up the cushions from the couch. “So…” He looked around at the others moving around the room. “How long do you think it’s going to take them to get over this?”
Chris laughed. “You’re going to be paying for months my friend, if not forever.” He shrugged. “Funny thing with females, they never forget anything like this, ever.”
Letting out a breath Dade stood up and walked towards the basement. “I’ll go see if I have any boxes to put all the bottles in.”