Page 69 of Charm City Rocks
He could easily think some generic thing, likeHoly shit, I can’t believe this is happening. Billy doesn’t think that, though, because hecanbelieve it. He’s been waiting for it, actually. Well, maybe not this specifically: Lawson Daniels sitting at Robyn’s kitchen table wearing an incredibly cool leather jacket. But he’s been waiting forsomethinglike this to happen. Something that would shake Margot out of whatever this is and make her realize that it’s time to go, that she’s better than all this. Better than him.
Because, up until now, this has all been just too good, hasn’t it? Too easy?
He’s standing next to Margot, but they’re not touching. He imagines putting his arm around her and announcing that he’s her manfriend and that he’s seen the pink loofah she uses in the shower. Robyn, Aaron, and Caleb are seated across from Lawson, and they’re all staring at the actor. The only person in the room who looks as if this is all perfectly normal is Lawson.
“I signed that little bloke’s Wall of Fame,” he says. “He was quite happy about it. Signed right next to you, Mar. Your signature’s still a mess. Like it was scribbled by a toddler. But it was fun to see us there, side by side.”
Billy makes a note to give Grady the silent treatment next time he sees him.
“Can I get you a drink?” asks Robyn. She stands as she says this, and her chair slides across the floor and strikes the wall. “Beer or…or maybe some wine?”
“Appreciate it, love,” Lawson says. “No booze for me, though. Truth is, I’m a bit pissed already. Went on an adventure to find our little Miss Hammer, here. Stopped at that music bar where you played, Mar, the Horse something. Rather boisterous lady there sent me to the record shop, but not before making me drink a few bottles of the most godawful beer I’ve ever tasted. Nappy or Natty something or other. Tasted like a mouthful of bubbly pennies.”
No one present knows it yet, but pictures and videos of Lawson Daniels drinking at the Horse You Came In On are currently being shared all over social media, and, therefore, Earth. Billy will later see a shot of Beth kissing Lawson on the cheek while he demonstrates disgust at a bottle of Natty Boh.
“I’d love a cup of tea, though,” says Lawson.
“Like,teatea?” Robyn asks.
“Well, we Brits only say it once, but I suppose you can call it what you like.”
Robyn rushes to the cupboard above the coffeemaker, stumbles over a pair of Caleb’s giant sneakers on the way, then nearly drops the kettle on her head as she pulls it off the shelf.
“Careful now,” says Lawson.
Billy can see that Robyn isn’t just nervous, she’s scared. Billy can relate. As much as he wishes Lawson weren’t here, he’s so starstruck by him that his heart is racing. The guy isn’t just handsome; he’s beautiful.
“Earl Grey okay?” Robyn asks.
“Well, you’ve gone and made my night, Robyn,” says Lawson, and Robyn laughs, nearly dropping the kettle again.
“Lovely home you have,” says Lawson, smiling. “Nice little city, too. Mar, I see why you’ve settled in here. You’re…you’re in that little flat, then?” He points over his shoulder with his thumb. “The one over the garage?”
He pronouncesgaragelike a British person—“gay-raahj”—and something about the posh lilt hurts. Billy has spent the last couple of decades building a life that he’s cautiously proud of. Seeing it now, though, through Lawson’s eyes is embarrassing. “It’s only temporary,” he says. “It’s just—”
“Lawson, what the hell are you doing here?”
These are the first words Margot has spoken since she and Billy came out of the apartment and saw Lawson standing in the driveway.
“Nice to see you, too, love,” he says.
She folds her arms. “This isn’t funny. What are youdoinghere?”
A few years ago, when Robyn and Aaron redecorated their kitchen, they sprang for something called an induction stove top. The product’s claim to fame is that it uses magnets capable of boiling water in a matter of seconds. So, as Lawson leans forward and levels everyone in the room with another smile, the kettle begins to howl like an approaching locomotive.
“Well, isn’t it obvious, love?” he says. “I’ve come to win you back.”
—
Five minutes later, Billy is sitting outside on the deck by the firepit with Robyn, Aaron, and Caleb. As a group, they’re quiet, because what is there to say? Aaron throws a log on some burning embers. Caleb says, “You guys want me to go get some marshmallows or something?”
The fact that his son is seriously asking this would normallymake Billy’s heart swell with love at the tone deafness of youth, but his heart is otherwise occupied.
“Nah,” Caleb says. “On second thought, going back in there would be awkward.”
They left Margot and Lawson alone inside…totalk.This seemed reasonable five minutes ago, but now Billy wishes he could crash back through the side of the house like the Kool-Aid Man.
“You know, he’s shorter than I thought he’d be,” says Aaron, apropos of nothing. “So’s Margot, though. Maybe that’s just how it is with famous people.”
