“I love that,” Jose squealed, slapping him on the arm. “Don’t you just love that? Wylda never sang to me, or played music,” she added, squinting as she tried to remember something. “Hey, Tabby said you were singing that the first night she met you in the slammer?”
His deep baritone laugh boomed through the night and made me want to smile because it was that infectious. “The slammer?” When Jose nodded, looking as serious as she could, he shook his head, still laughing at the description. “Yeah, I think I was singing it.”
“Why’d you get hit by the fuzz? You’re such a nice guy?”
Mental note to self – record Jose when she’s drunk. The fuzz?
“Dude was beating on his woman, and I cut in because no way in hell am I letting that shit happen. He went to cut me with a bottle, so I knocked him out. That’s the basics of it all.”
With a dramatic gasp, Jose whirled and stomped a foot, almost falling off the drive and into the front lawn. “Why? Why are you to blame? I’m gonna kick that man’s ass,” she yelled, making to walk back down the drive, but only lifting a foot in the air before Jarrod caught her arm.
Looking up at me then, he rolled his eyes and shook his head, laughing silently. “The dude’s not worth it, girl. He’s just a sad, bitter asshole who never learned to treat a lady right.”
“Not him,” she hissed, poking Jarrod in the chest. “The fuzz who arrested you. You’re a victim here, not the bad guy. Damn cops thinking they rule the town, I’ll show him what it feels…”
There was a wheeze as Jarrod bent over, holding his side as his shoulders shook. “Girl, it was DB.”
“I know that,” she huffed, throwing her arms up in the air. “Never liked that man, going around arresting innocent people. Do you know how many times he’s arrested that new pink haired chick in town?”
Making myself comfy, I leaned a shoulder against the door frame and watched Jarrod gasp in a breath. “Your sister?”
“Potato – potahto. Do you?”
“How many times?” he asked, the words coming out strangled.
“I don’t know, that’s why I was asking you. She’s nice, isn’t she? Such pretty hair, but it’s not real, just in case you were thinking it was,” she waved an arm, swaying with it.
“I can confirm that I didn’t think it was real,” he snickered, putting his hands on his hips as he watched her wave her arm around like she was trying to hit something. “Jose, you know, DB did me a solid that night. The guy has issues and likes to hold up the victim card - he’s sued people all over the country for assault. He’s also suspected in crimes against people of color, men and women, that were never proven. DB knew he was a shady bastard – excuse the language…”
“I don’t mind the word shady,” she shrugged, totally missing the point.
Jesus Christ, this woman never failed to amaze me. She was like the rainbow, made up of so many colors that you could only see clearly if you looked at her up close. And I’d never seen this side of her, so I’d missed out on a color!
Her response knocked Jarrod off for a second, and then he just shook his head and continued. “Anyway, DB put me in that cell overnight so that Robert couldn’t kick up shit about me after he got out of hospital. He was also deterred from even attempting to do that by the visit DB paid him, where he pulled out a huge folder full of statements confirming he was the one who technically threw the first punch, had the weapon, and who was beating up a woman who was all of five foot tall.”
“Holy shit,” she breathed, her eyes wide as it sank in through the alcohol. “Where is he now?”
“In prison in San Francisco for a small crime, he’ll be out soon, but his cell door is locked – mine wasn’t.”
“What?”
Throwing his arm around her shoulders, Jarrod pulled her into his side and gently pulled her toward the door. “DB never locked the cell door, Jose. I was as free as a bird, but safe from any bullshit the guy tried. You get me?”
Stopping again, she turned and grabbed him by the t-shirt, trying to shake him. “I love that guy. He’s such a great guy, isn’t he? Like tonight he came over and took Liv as soon as he walked through the door so we could drink. We’re not alcoholics, in case you were wondering. We just needed a drink to get rid of our brains.”
“I know, honey,” Jarrod pulled her in for a hug, looking at me over her shoulder with concern. “You guys will get through this, and you never know what this news is gonna bring with it.”