That Blue Gibson

CH 13

"What time is it?" Dave asked as they returned to their bikes.

"2:30," Liz said checking her phone.

"You ready to head back?" he asked.

No. "Sure," she smiled, trying to get rid of the feeling of disappointment. She was having too much fun.

They quickly got back on the 210 headed south towards LA. As they rode through Pasadena, Liz couldn't shake the feeling that she didn't want today to end. She had dreaded this press trip, not wanting to leave her kids so soon after the divorce. She just wanted to ride out the rest of winter at home and jump back into the fold once things settled down. But now, she wanted to pause time and let herself recover here, on the bike, with Dave, in Southern California of all places. She watched him for a little bit, wondering what the hell was going on. Most likely, Paul had insisted that Dave show Liz around a bit and he was doing this as a favor to his friend. Maybe Paul wanted her to move to LA? He was hassling her to work on a record with him and it made more sense than Dave rolling out of bed at 5 am to ride two hours across town to take her to breakfast and then fucking NASA of all places. He had left his coat back at her hotel, braving the uncertain late winter day in just a white Sonic Youth shirt and Liz found herself focusing on his faded red bicep tattoos as the wind whipped his sleeves. She scolded herself for being an idiot fangirl, but couldn't quite bring herself to look away. It was one thing to crush on the lead of her favorite band, but now he was an actual person that she was getting to know. They had similar interests, sense of humor... just thinking about it all sent a bit of a chill up her spine.

*

An hour later, they parked their bikes next to Liz's lonely sidecar in the hotel's parking garage and she used her room key to let them in a side door, avoiding the money hungry photographers and autograph seekers in the lobby. They chatted about the ride as they made their way to her top floor room, with Liz teasing Dave about his ridiculously loud Harley and him hassling her about the tiny gas tank again. She threw her keys and helmet onto the couch when they entered the room, enjoying the feeling of finally peeling off her heavy leather jacket.

"I'll let you get ready for your dinner," Dave said quietly, retrieving his black coat from the opposite couch.

Liz smiled and pulled her hair into a high pony tail to get it off of her neck as she followed Dave to the door.

"Thank you so much for today," she said with a genuine smile. "I had a lot of fun."

"Any time you need someone to take you for a breakfast full of verbal harassment, I'm your guy," Dave grinned down at her.

"Well, I know how to get a hold of you should the urge arise," she teased back. "Wait! No, I don't!" she cried and darted back to her jacket, leaving Dave at the door. She retrieved her phone and handed it to Dave. "Add your number so I can wake you up at an ungodly hour," she giggled.

He looked down at her phone to find the contacts icon and smiled. A picture of her and her boys at the beach, knee deep in blue sparkling water was set as her background. She was wearing a white bikini and held Owen on her hip, her free arm tightly around Jack's shoulders. They appeared to be all mid-laughter and Dave could hear Liz's laugh in his mind as he stared. He realized he was taking too long and quickly scrolled to the Contact icon, but Liz had noticed.

"Oregon," she explained. "Ever been?" She paused for a moment realized that was a dumb thing to say. Of course he'd been to Oregon.

Dave nodded as he added his number to her phone, "Water's too cold for me," he mumbled, handing her the phone back.

"Well maybe if you weren't such a delicate flower, Dave...," Liz teased, shoving her phone in her back pocket. He just smiled at her for a moment before pulling on his coat and she followed his cue by opening the door for him. "Thanks again," she said, leaning on the door as he walked into the hallway and turned around to face her.

"Any time," his voice was quiet and Liz felt butterflies rise in her chest. "Have fun tonight," he added and turned around to leave.

"Thanks!" she called after him and slowly closed the door before running to the couch and collapsing onto it.

Dave hurried down the long hallway and impatiently pressed the elevator call button, trying to slow his mind down. He watched his reflection in the steel door as it opened, but he couldn't make himself step in. "Fuck it," he said to himself and ran back to Liz's door, knocking loudly and startling Liz from her spot on the couch.

The moment she unlatched the door, Dave shoved it open and yanked a startled Liz into the hallway. He kicked his foot forward to keep the door from locking and wrapped one arm around her waist, pulling her to him while his other hand fisted in her hair. Her hands gripped his upper arms to steady herself and her yelp faded as he crashed his lips into hers. She relaxed against him as he kissed her before he pulled back a bit and watched her slowly open her eyes to meet his.

"Sorry," he whispered, trying to avoid an awkward moment. "Learning about space makes me really excited."

Liz's face broke into a wide smile and she dropped her hands to his forearms. "I can see that," she cleared her throat, her mind spinning too fast to reply with something witty.

"What are you doing this week?" he asked, still holding her firmly by the waist.

Liz's mind flashed to her calendar. "I'm busy all day tomorrow and the next," she admitted.

Dave felt his smile falter a little. This was a bad idea. She's not into it, he thought.

"But I'm free Thursday night," she said with a touch of excitement in her voice.

"Great," Dave said feeling his hope rise a little. "I'll see you then," he added simply before quickly releasing her and heading back down the hallway. "Have fun tonight!" he called again over his shoulder as he jogged back to the elevator.

Liz stood in the doorway in a daze. She watched him until he turned the corner at the end of the hallway before returning to her room.

"You okay?" Travis asked sleepily, emerging from his bedroom wearing only pajama pants.

Liz lightly touched her lips and nodded before rushing into her own bedroom.