Erin trudged down the dorm hall. She shifted the backpack on her shoulder and reached into her pocket for her room key. She couldn’t hear any music, which was a good sign. She hoped, hoped, hoped her roommate was gone. Her shoulders tightened as she imagined Brenda sprawled stoned on her bed. Or worse, stoned and fucking her boyfriend. How one person could do that much pot was beyond her.
She opened her door and her chest fell. Brenda was right there at her desk. She seemed to actually be studying. Or at least attempting to. She turned to reveal bloodshot eyes, but at least they focused.
“Hey,” Brenda said, “your dad called. Number’s on your desk.”
“My dad?” Erin eased her backpack to the floor beside her desk. “Why’d he leave a number?”
“How should I know? Ask him.” Brenda turned back to her book.
Erin picked up the paper and tried to decipher Brenda’s scrawl. It wasn’t as bad as normal, and after a minute, she picked up the phone. He answered on the second ring.
“Hey, Dad. What’s up?”
“Hey kiddo, I’m in Jacksonville.”
“Jacksonville. Why?”
“Repositioning flight. Broken equipment. Don’t get me started! Anyway, we’re here ’til tomorrow, so I have some time. I mean, if you wanna meet your old man for dinner. I don’t know if I’ll be good company or not, but my credit card should make up for it.”
“Okay,” she laughed.
“So, I’m in the mood for Amand’s. Interested?”
“Armand’s? Sure, sounds like fun.” Besides, anything was better than cafeteria food.
“Pick you up at six? In front of your dorm?”
“Sounds good. See you then.” They said their goodbyes and hung up. She turned to see Brenda looking at her and rolling her eyes.
“Armand’s? Really?”
“What about it? It’s supposed to be nice.”
“Totally lame.” Brenda returned to her studies.
Erin checked the clock. She had enough time to get in a little studying before she’d need to get ready. But did she need to work?
She flipped open her planner and ran a finger down her list of assignments. She’d already finished everything that was due tomorrow. She had some reading for Tuesday, but that’d be easy over the weekend.
“I’m gonna take a shower,” she announced.
As usual, Brenda ignored her as she gathered her things.
Erin stepped under the hot spray and pushed her hair back. She turned and let the water cascade down her back. The rest of the bathroom remained still and silent. It wouldn’t remain that way, which was too bad. She didn’t get many showers without having to overhear other women going about their business. Or worse.
She smirked. Kellie had gotten caught playing with herself in the shower and the other girls were still teasing her about it. Erin had learned the obvious lesson—be very, very quiet. Of course, it helped that Brenda had started actually going to one of her classes. It was only Tuesday-Thursday, but it helped. She’d had a very nice time that morning playing back memories of her trip to Tampa. Earl had been amazing…
She caught herself. She’d been soaping her breasts just a bit too long. She chuckled. She’d been worked up a lot lately. Maybe this morning hadn’t been enough.
She needed to get laid again. Instead, she was going out with her dad.
But maybe…?
She shook her head. Her dad hadn’t been anything but a dad since their wild weekend in April. Well, and the Memorial Day party, but that barely counted.
Still, she grabbed her razor and started to neaten up her pubes. She could always relive those memories after dinner.
Erin picked out her summer dress, cornflower blue. Its color matched the one she’d worn back when—well, they’d done it—but this one was more cute than sexy. It’d be fine for a fancy restaurant but wouldn’t shout “date!” to anyone who saw them. Not that it was a date. Just dinner with her dad. She checked her hair, grabbed her purse, and went down to meet him.
She didn’t have long to wait. David pulled up in one of the ugliest cars she’d ever seen. Obviously a rental, it looked someone had tried to marry a station wagon and a Jeep and created an ugly baby. She felt sorry for her dad being forced to drive it.
But he was cheerful when he hopped out and waved at Erin. He looked sharp in a pastel blue shirt and tan slacks—like someone out of Miami Vice. She smirked as she imagined him on a cigar boat with the wind in his hair. His eyes widened and flicked down her body before he smiled.
“You look nice,” he said.
“Thanks.” She gave him a quick hug and then stood back to look at him at arm’s length. “You too, wow, like, you look cool, Dad.”
“So you aren’t embarrassed to be seen with your old man?”
“Oh please. Besides, you aren’t old.”
“Heh. C’mon, let’s go. I’m hungry.”
He walked around the car and opened her door for her. She sat and paused and then slowly swung her legs in. His eyes dropped to them and he grinned when he realized she’d caught him. She smoothed her skirt down and suppressed a smirk. He closed the door and made his way around to the driver’s side.
David started up the car and put it into gear. “Sorry about this. It’s a rental.”
“No duh. It’s about as far from a corvette as you can get.”
“It’s all they had.”
She laughed. “Yeah, well, what can you do?”
“Exactly. So, how’s school?”
“Good.” She filled him in on her classes and homework. “It’s a lot different than high school. They don’t care if you come to class.”
“Yeah,” he chuckled. “But your mom does.”
“I do, too. It’s actually kind of refreshing. I mean, there aren’t so many losers making dumb jokes and ignoring the professor.”
“Yeah. Besides, you can stand out and be the best.”
“They also treat us like real adults. I mean, they showed Last Tango in Paris on campus last week.”
“Last Tango? Wow. I haven’t seen that in years.” He chuckled. “That had some hot scenes.”
“Like the butter scene?” She watched him out of the corner of his eye but he kept his expression neutral.
“Yeah, that one. That was hot.”
“They also show a bunch of artsy ones,” she said. “You know the ones Mom likes.”
“Oh, God, like La Dolce Vita.”
“Exactly, although… they could show even racier movies.”
Oh?”
“You know… Nixon’s favorite movie?”
He burst out laughing. “Deep Throat?”
She smirked.
“That’d be a sight. Deep Throat on campus.”
“It’d be fun.”
“Well, maybe then you could go see it with your boyfriend. Are you seeing anyone special?”
“Not really. College guys are cool when you’re in high school, I guess, but now that I’m in college myself… they still act like boys. You know… like they’re God’s gift to women.”
“So… what you are looking for? You’re not dating one of your professors, are you?”
“No. One of them’s kind of cute, but he’s married. Besides, I’m not really looking right now. I wanna keep my options open.”
“So, Chez Armand’s,” David said. “It used to be the French restaurant in town. I always wanted to take your mom, but I could never afford it.”
“Well, you can take me instead.”
He shot her a grin.
Armand’s nestled halfway down a street that contained posh boutiques and an antique store, all of which were about to close as David easily maneuvered into a tight parallel parking spot a few doors down. The sign was part neon, part lightbulbs, and Erin couldn’t help but roll her eyes. How it’d survived until now was a bit of a mystery.
Once he’d parked the atrocious rental car, David smiled at her and then came around to open her door.
She gave him a look.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“No, what?”
“Oh, I don’t know. You’re being a gentleman, like this is a date or something.”
“Is that a problem?” He grinned.
“No. I guess not.”
He shrugged. “Well, sometimes I like being a gentleman.”
She smiled and let him help her out of the car.
Inside, the maître d’ led them to a quiet corner table in a lushly decorated room with dark paneled walls and cushioned chairs. Classical music softly filled the room and candles flickered on each of the tables. It looked like a scene straight out of the fifties.
Erin frowned. The paint on the walls had faded a bit and a sconce on the wall clearly removed. The patrons were all white-haired and twenty years older than her dad.
To her surprise, he seemed uncharacteristically self-conscious. His Miami Vice look drew stares, even though it was really quite nice.
When they reached the table, David stepped behind her chair.
“Let me.” He pulled out the chair for her and, after she’d sat down, helped push it back in.
Erin smiled and settled in. She picked up her menu but then her eye caught the look on the older woman at the table next to them. She wore a frown with a hint of disdain in her eyes, but she quickly buried her head in her own menu.
Erin smirked.
“What?” David asked. He’d settled into his own seat.
She made a small nod toward the other table and pitched her voice low.
“She probably thinks you’re cheating on your wife with me.”
“Why? You’re my daughter.”
That was a preview of Date Night?. To read the rest purchase the book.
