K Darblyne - Unbroken Season 1

“That’s just like you, Chase.” Brooke shook her head as she still maintained eye contact with Sam. “You’re always thinking with your stomach.”

“Hey, if it was my stomach that I was thinking with, Sis, I’d send out for a pizza and stay home.”

Brooke turned her head toward her sister. “Oh…excuse me. Let me rephrase that.” Blue eyes glared at the brunette. “Just like you Chase, always thinking with my wallet.” Brooke showed her sister a contemptuous grin, thinking that she’d hit the nail on the head.

Undaunted in her effort, C.C. reached for the door while still tugging on Brooke’s sleeve. “Well, that…and my roomie.” The brunette rolled her eyes and smiled. “Come on, Brooke, we all know how much better you perform on a full stomach.” C.C. winked at the blonde and then took off running through the now opened door.

“…Sometimes we raise our guns of pain but I’ll be your defender… So lay down your arms and Baby, let’s Surrender… “

The bustle of the collegiate bar wasn’t distracting to the woman as she sat in her small booth focusing on the box in front of her. She’d spent many a time in this bar during her college years, sipping a cold one and just thinking of how she wanted her life to be. It stood to reason that now she was doing the same thing.

Brooke reflexively took a long draw on her bottle of beer, letting her gaze fall upon the label as she brought it back down to the table. Molson, huh? I even knew back then. A smile lit up her face as she thought of her numerous toasts throughout, the years all ending in that same rambling phrase of hers. She found it coming off of her lips once again, then smiled, “Sam Addams forever, but Molson for life.”

She snapped open the box in front of her and looked at the ring inside, letting her eyes transfix on it as her mind conjured up the image of one, smiling blonde. Hesitantly, Brooke’s fingertip touched the stone, admiring the dazzle that came from it, even in the subdued lighting of the bar. It immediately brought the stored images of Sam’s twinkling eyes to the forefront of her mind and there, she held her breath, reveling in the love that they shared. Lost in her thoughts, Brooke never saw her sister enter the bar and wave in her direction.

“Will you look at that…” C.C. shook her head as she started over in Brooke’s direction, “…she’s probably thinking about tonight.” The young woman sauntered along the length of the bar, then turned to cut through the crowd. As she quickly stepped around a table or two, she dodged an ill begotten hand reaching out for her backside. C.C. turned to glare at the owner of the wayward extremity as she grabbed it and politely laid it back down on the table.

Looking directly into the young man’s eyes, C.C. smiled. “You know, you’re cute but that claw of yours leaves a lot to be desired. I’d think twice before you use it again or I’ll have to sic big sister on you.” The young woman stepped slightly to the side and glanced over at the booth where Brooke was seated. “I’d hate to have to interrupt her from her thoughts,” C.C. turned back to the pensive young man. “She gets a little upset when someone hits on her baby sister.”

She watched as the young man looked over to the booth and then slowly nodded. She could tell that his fancies were already changing to that of a slightly older woman. “I’d reconsider that thought if I were you.” C.C. tapped him on his forehead, “She’s already spoken for and trust me, you don’t want to meet up with the other half of that love connection.”

“Bigger, huh?” He looked up into C.C.’s face and waited for an answer.

A knowing smile came to the brunette’s face as she thought about her roommate. Deciding that no words could equivocate Sam’s small stature, she simply stated, “And very possessive.” Seeing the look of dismay on his face, C.C. patted his hand in a comforting fashion, then left, moving toward her sister’s booth.

Pausing for a moment before sliding into the booth, C.C. eyed the small box but couldn’t make out what was held inside it. “Well, you didn’t have to buy me a gift for letting you have the room tonight, but thanks,” the brunette slid into the seat as she reached for the box. “You know, gift wrapping and bows say so much more but this will be…”

Blue eyes stared at C.C., and a low growl started in Brooke’s throat as she quickly snapped the box lid shut, encasing it in her hand.

“Whoa! And I just told that jerk,” the young woman pointed her thumb over to the table with the now chastised man, “that Sam was the possessive one.” C.C. sat back in her seat with her hands in her lap. “Boy, was I wrong.”

Brooke took in a breath and shook her head. “Nope, you were right. Sam’s possessed me for longer than I’ve even known her.” The older woman looked back at the label on her beer bottle. “C.C. do you…I mean…would you…” she bit at her lip, “…if you were Sam…I mean.” The musician’s mouth became dry and she hurriedly reached for the bottle of Molson to help her out of her bind. Setting the bottle back down after taking a drink, Brooke half choked on her last swallow as she tried to speak. The words just weren’t coming, so she did the next best thing, she opened the box and sheepishly turned it so that her sister could see what it held.

Seeing the ring and how nervous her sister was acting, C.C. made light of the situation. “Damn, Brooke, how’d you know what I wanted for Christmas?”

“Not you, stupid.” Brooke glared at C.C. “It’s for Sam.” The woman’s eyes softened with the sound of the name. “I’m…I’m going to…”

Brown eyes lit up, “Propose?” C.C. looked at her sister, and shook her head. “Damn, what’s making you move so fast now, when it took you thirty years to meet her?”

“I…I don’t want to lose her, C.C. I can’t…I’d…” Brooke took in a deep breath and then let it out.

Seeing that her sister was on the near side of panic, C.C. snatched the ring right out of the box and tried to slide it onto her finger. “Damn, I thought all rings came in my size…a perfect seven.”

“They do, but I had this one sized down to Sam’s finger already.”

“She knows and she didn’t tell me?” C.C. put the ring back into the box and watched as Brooke closed the lid. “I’m going to have to call her up on the Roommate’s Rights Act. Holding out important information on me like that just ain’t fair.”

“She doesn’t know, C.C. I haven’t even asked her yet.”

“Then how would you know what size her finger is?”

Brooke smiled. “C.C. when you get to know someone intimately, you know everything about them.” The dark-haired woman winked as she teased her sister. “You ought to try it sometime, but that takes longer than a date or two.”

C.C. stuck out her tongue, aiming it directly at Brooke just as the waitress came around.

“Can I get you another beer?” The redhead directed her question to Brooke, as she carried a tray of empties in her hand.

“No thanks, but you could bring over a Shirley Temple for my baby sister here.” Brooke nodded toward the brunette who was now trying to hide her act of childishness by wetting her lips. “C.C., would you like a cherry with that?” Brooke could see the actions in her sister’s face building up to another tongue showing episode.

“Yes, thank you.” C.C. smiled at the waitress as she kicked Brooke’s boot under the table.

“Oww…” Brooke shot a glare at her sweetly smiling sister. “I’ll…I’ll be fine with this,” Brooke picked up her bottle and raised it up to the waitress before bringing it to her mouth, taking a sip from it.

“Okay, I’ll go get your drink.” The waitress moved away, casting a look or two over her shoulder to the booth she’d just left.

“Thanks, Sis. Now I’ll get carded every time I come in here.” C.C. flicked her hair back over her shoulder. “You’re not helping my image any.”

The young woman braced for another quick comeback, but received none. Instead, Brooke toyed with the box in her hand.

There was a long pause before C.C.’s curiosity got the better of her. “So…if Sam doesn’t know yet, when are you planning on asking her?”

Brooke tapped on the box a time or two and shrugged. “Don’t know yet. But I do know that the time has to be right. I want everything about this to be perfect.”

The brunette watched her sister’s face as she concentrated on Sam. It was aglow with love for the young woman. “Well, whenever you do it…” C.C. thought of how her words sounded then corrected herself. “Whenever you propose, I mean, just do me one favor. Let me know so that I can be just as excited for you. You know, you owe me, Sis.”

Blue eyes looked up into a smiling face. “You’re right, I do.”

“Hmm…practicing already, huh?”

“What?”

“With the ‘I do’s,” C.C. smirked. “Hey, if there’s anything that I can help you with…”

“Yeah, C.C., I’ll keep that in mind.” Brooke caught the flash of blonde hair headed toward the table and quickly covered the box with her hand, sliding it into her jacket pocket. “Hey, look who’s here.”

C.C. turned her attention to the bar and saw Sam coming in their direction with her eyes locked on Brooke.

“Hey, I’m glad that we arranged to meet here over the phone.” Sam smiled lovingly at Brooke, then acknowledged her roommie, “Hi, C.C.” The blonde slid into the booth next to Brooke and giving her hand a squeeze, dropped a quick kiss on her lover’s lips. “I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.”

“One Shirley Temple,” the redheaded waitress came out of nowhere, setting the drink down in front of C.C. In effort to get Brooke’s attention, she cleared her throat as she slipped the stirrer into the drink, bobbing the cherry up and down. “I made sure that was an extra sweet one myself.” She looked over to Brooke and winked. “Do you need anything else? Anything that I could do for you?”