Roxy Muñoz (sticksandrox) wrote in shadows_rpg, @ 2021-10-21 08:21:00 |
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Entry tags: | #june 2018, roxy, roxy x spence, spence |
Who: Spence and Roxy
When: evening, Tuesday, June 19th
Where: car, Dragonfly
Status: complete
It had been a rough night for Roxy. Caden hadn’t tried to come and kill her or anything, but she’d been plagued with nightmares about being forced to go to his wedding in the middle of a noisy casino. The woman he’d been marrying had looked just like her behind the veil, and no one had been able to hear Roxy’s protests about it. She woke up on Tuesday disgusted with herself and had spent most of the day cleaning the house for Mila while she was at work. Once Aaron got up, he didn’t speak to her at all before he left for his shift at the bar, and Roxy felt hollow and at loose ends once she was fully alone again.
Spence had sent her a text the evening before, but Roxy hadn’t felt up to answering at the time. She’d texted a hello to him earlier in the day, but she knew he didn’t get a lot of time to be on his phone at work, so Roxy waited until she was pretty sure he would be off to hit him up again. She felt restless inside, she needed something to do, and a needy part of her wanted to see a man who actually gave a shit about her. If Caden could get fucking married, she could see Spence, for god’s sake.
Hey again ... evening plans? she sent to Spence, then set her phone down to start going through her clothes for something decent to wear.
Spence was doing his best to give Roxy space. She had just gotten out of a long term relationship and he knew that she wasn't going to be okay overnight. He still kept in touch with her, just to see how she was doing, wanting to let Roxy do things at her own pace. So he wasn't overly concerned when she didn't respond to his text the night before, aware that she was staying at Mila's house, which also happened to be Caden's brother's house. The whole situation felt a bit complicated, so he did his best to stay out of it.
That evening when he had gotten home Spence had begun to change out of his work clothes when his phone buzzed again with a text from Roxy. It was pretty clear that she wanted to see him, which was great because he wanted to see her too. no plans. did you have something in mind?? He hoped so. Maybe getting out of the house would be good for both of them.
The double question marks made her smile a bit. Roxy had considered just going over to his house -- her future house, if she wanted it -- but she found that she wanted to go out, even if it was just for a little while. She wanted to look cute and go on a date, goddammit. And if she and Spence were going to rebuild something between them, dating was a good place to start. Roxy knew it wasn’t going to be the smoothest road, but she wanted to try. She deserved to try. At least she already knew that Spence would be more patient with her than most other men. Dragonfly for a drink or 2? Come pick me up ;) like a real date Smiling faintly, Roxy went back to finding something decent to wear.
It hadn't been that long since Roxy broke up with Caden so Spence felt a bit unsure about a real date, but he did want to see Roxy so it was impossible to say no. Smiling, Spence thumbed in a quick response, be there in twenty, and then set his phone aside to find something clean to wear. When he was ready, he drove towards Mila Moretti's house, more than ready to have a drink. He hadn't been to Dragonfly for quite some time and it felt like a good night to get out and relax for a bit. Pulling into the driveway, Spence knew he could have texted her to let her know he was there, but Spence felt like he ought to walk up to the door and greet her, so that's what he did. He hadn't been to Mila's house before and as he pushed the doorbell, he silently hoped that Aaron wouldn't answer.
Twenty minutes wasn’t a ton of time, but Roxy had already had a shower, so it was easy enough to slip into some tights and a comfortable dress that flattered her figure, then slap on a bit of makeup. She left her hair down and looked herself over in the bathroom mirror -- the area around her eyes was still a little puffy, but she thought she looked good for the first time in a while. Roxy grabbed her purse and headed downstairs just as the bell rang. Perfect timing, and of course he would come to the door like a gentleman. She crossed paths with Mila in the living room and let her know what was going on, then smooched her cheek before she went to answer the door. Roxy opened it and gave Spence a smile, liking the way her heart fluttered a bit at the sight of him. She just wanted to put Caden and his bullshit behind her for a night and start to live her life. “Hey,” she greeted Spence, stepping out. “Sorry for no notice, I’m glad you were free.”
To Spence, she looked beautiful and he grinned when he saw her. "Hey. Yeah, you were pretty lucky you caught me tonight because my social calendar is... mostly empty." He chuckled and stepped back so they could walk together to his car. “You look great, by the way." She did, so he wanted to say so. "How've things been?" Spence understood why she would want to be alone for a while and not really talk, so he wanted to make sure everything was okay and she was doing all right. Breakups were difficult, even if it was the right thing to do.
“It would be just my luck to hit you up on one of the nights you did have plans,” Roxy chuckled, feeling warm at the compliment. She’d tried not to get too dressy, because it was just Dragonfly, but it was nice to feel somewhat pretty. She walked alongside Spence toward his car, trying to find a good way to describe how things had been. “Um ... pretty insane, actually. I don’t want to dwell on it, but apparently Caden’s way of coping was to spend the weekend wasted in Atlantic City and get married to a complete stranger.” Roxy’s tone was sarcastically light, and she laughed as she climbed into Spence’s car.
That was definitely insane and it took Spence by surprise. It took him a second to push past the news and get into the car after Roxy had. "He got married?" Spence was sure he hadn't heard it wrong, but it was just so... asinine. “I... don't want to ask if you're okay because... that seems like an equally stupid question. Have you talked to him?" He had heard stories of people going to Vegas to elope, but never Atlantic City. Did people really let drunk morons get married? It happened in the movies but real life?
Spence seemed just as baffled as everybody else, and that was slightly validating. Part of Roxy wanted to tell him that was all they were going to say about it, but she knew she would’ve been asking the same questions if she was in his position. It was hard not to be curious. “I, um ... I saw him, and basically told him to go fuck himself, does that count?” Roxy posed, her tone still airy. She buckled her seatbelt and glanced over at Spence. “... after I slashed his tires and fucked up his paint job. Probably ought to own up to that too.” She hoped that wouldn’t make Spence think she was some insane woman, but it had felt really good, and she didn’t regret it for a second. If he knew what she’d gone through for years, he would understand.
Spence started up the car, but looked over at her in mild surprise. It wasn't shocking to hear. Roxy had always had a temper, though thankfully she had left all of his personal belongings alone whenever they'd had a fight. Of course, that had been high school and teenagers were hormonal and irrational at times. "Remind me to never make you angry," Spence said finally, chuckling as he pulled away from Aaron and Mila's house. "Are you going to get in trouble for that?" Caden Lucas was an asshole so Spence wouldn't put it past him to press charges or something like that. Then again, maybe Caden would take the vandalism to mean they were even or some shit.
“Don’t abuse me and string me along about marriage for five years until I can’t take it anymore, then turn around and marry some rando bitch a couple days later just to piss me off, and you’ll be fine,” Roxy deadpanned. She was trying not to sound defensive, but it was all still so raw. Maybe she’d played right into his hands, like Mila had said. Roxy had lost the ‘Who Can Care Less’ game, but she always had. She’d always cared more, and it had never been as obvious as it was now. Whatever satisfaction Caden had derived from watching her lose her shit, she hoped he choked on it. “Not in trouble with the law, at least,” she went on with a sigh. “It’s Lucas family policy to never involve the cops in personal stuff. He might retaliate, he might not, but I don’t give a shit, honestly.”
Spence nodded and took a breath. "Yeah, I don't think you have to worry about any of that." For one thing, he wasn't an asshole. At least not that brand of asshole. He glanced at her as he drove, frowning a bit. "Are you safe? Do you... h-have a gun, or anything?" It made him nervous to think that Caden might be pissed off enough to try and hurt Roxy again, especially living with his brother and Mila. What if the guy snapped? Spence was very aware of how many abused women ended up dying at the hands of their abuser and it made his heart beat a bit faster to think Caden could try such a thing.
She kind of wanted to drop the entire subject, but Spence sounded worried and Roxy didn’t want him to fret all night. “I do have a gun,” she admitted after a moment’s hesitation. “And I know how to shoot. It’s a .38 revolver, I keep it close.” She didn’t know if she could ever bring herself to actually shoot Caden, but if he was trying to kill her ... the instinct to survive found a way, didn’t it? Roxy looked over and reached to give his arm a gentle squeeze. “I think I’m okay, Spence,” Roxy murmured, softer. “The one thing Caden gives a shit about is his family, and he knows he would lose them if he did anything really bad to me. He had his petty revenge, I bet now he’ll just ... write it off and be glad I’m gone.” If Caden was going to fly off the handle, Roxy was willing to bet he would’ve done it already.
Spence hoped she was right. He hadn't been around the two of them to know how their relationship had worked, only that Roxy had seemed unhappy. Maybe now this would help her move on, or at least begin to. "Well, if you need anything, I'm here," he murmured, though he was pretty sure she already knew that. Considering the amount of drama surrounding their relationship, he figured it would take her some time to really heal from it. But if she had people around who cared about her... hopefully that helped. "I think a couple of drinks is definitely needed tonight."
Roxy knew he was there, and she appreciated it more than she could put into words. It was probably best not to tell him how she’d had random impulses to just show up at his door and throw herself at him. Or just move straight in, going against everything she’d said before. Roxy certainly didn’t want to use Spence as some kind of weapon in all this bullshit, like Caden was using whatever-her-name-was. She was better than that, and Spence deserved better. Roxy huffed out a laugh at the last part. “Absolutely,” she murmured. “And I know you are, thank you. I just ... don’t even want to think about it anymore tonight. Let’s just have a nice night together, guilt and drama free.”
"I can do that," he said with a nod. He didn't really want to think about Caden Lucas anymore that night either. Or ever, preferably, though that probably wouldn't happen, considering he was Roxy's ex and this was a small town. "I haven't been out to Dragonfly in a while," he admitted, "but it's a pretty chill place, I think. I used to go to a lot of bars back in the day and there was always drama, or fighting going on. Don't think that's ever happened at Nate's place. But... if we sense drama, we'll take our drinks and leave." Spence grinned at her. "Find a dark street and make out or something."
“Yes!” Roxy agreed with a laugh. “Perfect. That’s the kind of night I want. Making out and none of my own drama.” She’d been to Dragonfly several times now, and she always felt good there. In spite of everything that had happened in the past couple of days, Roxy was willing to bet that once she was there with Spence and a drink in her hand, she would feel better. Even if that feeling didn’t last, she wanted to bask in it for a while. “I always like it there. It’s just got a good vibe,” she said. And if they did a bit of making out in one of the booths or something, Roxy wasn’t going to complain about it. She didn’t know if Spence would want to do anything physical with her, considering her situation ... but part of her really hoped he would. She deserved to feel good and sexy and valued and all of that, if only for a few hours.
"Places with good vibes are hard to find in Point Pleasant." He had never really visited the Porch for a drink but that was definitely off of his list of places he could go, or wanted to. Not to mention Spence had a feeling that if he walked into that place and saw Caden Lucas, he'd probably punch the guy. "Is it weird that our first date is going to be at a bar on a Tuesday night?" Spence grinned. "I feel like I ought to call this a... pre-first date, date. A practice run or something." Their first real date had been in high school but that was so long ago that it felt like they were getting a do-over now.
The Porch was not the place to go for good vibes, that was for damn sure. Even if she and Caden had nothing to do with each other, Roxy wouldn’t go there for fun. Dragonfly was much more her speed. She chuckled and shrugged a bit. “Everything about my life is weird right now, so this hardly even counts,” she said. “... counts as weird, I mean, not hardly counts as a date. But sure, it can be just a ... a practice date. I probably need the training wheels anyway.” Roxy hadn’t dated anyone in years, and when she and Caden had gotten together, there hadn’t been a lot of going out involved. Or romance. But Roxy was putting him out of her mind tonight, so she tried to do so. Comparison was pointless. “No pressure,” she added, glancing over at Spence. “I just wanted to see you, and get out of the house for a bit.”
"I'm glad," Spence said. "I wanted to see you too. I just wanted to make sure I was giving you enough space. It's been a while since I've... done this. I guess I'm pretty r-rusty with it too." At least they had the benefit of knowing each other. Maybe there were new things to discover, but Spence felt comfortable with Roxy. No first date jitters or fear that she might find something about him that she didn't like. Maybe that could still happen, considering they weren't the same people they had been in high school, but the familiarity was there.
It was probably selfish and gross of her somehow, but Roxy liked the idea of her being on Spence’s mind, even when he wasn’t reaching out. He was already putting more thought into handling her feelings properly than Caden ever had in their whole relationship. That was how Roxy felt, anyway. It made her want to kiss him. “We can be rusty together,” Roxy murmured, still gazing over at him. “Just creaking all over the place, that’s us.” She chuckled faintly. If Spence wasn’t in her life already, she definitely wouldn’t have been dating anybody this quickly. Roxy couldn’t even think of anyone she would look up for a booty call. If she was rushing herself, there wasn’t anybody better to do it with, that was for sure. “You’ve been great already, Spence,” she added softly.
Spence flashed a smile at her. He knew Caden had left Roxy with a lot of baggage but Spence felt like he carried his own too. Not as heavy, but there were issues he was still working through himself. He really wasn't sure what to say about how great he was or wasn't being. All Spence could do was be patient. And if Roxy needed anything else, hopefully she would tell him. "How're things at Mila's?" Spence asked instead, taking the next road that would lead to Dragonfly. "Are you comfortable there and everything?"
“They’re okay,” Roxy answered. “Adrian gave up the guest bedroom for me. It’s a little strange, living there with him too ... I mean, I knew him for years as Mila’s big brother, and then he was quote-unquote ‘dead’ for so long ... He’s perfectly nice, though. And Aaron’s been very gracious and sweet to me. I think they’re all tiptoeing around me a little bit, but that’s okay. I like seeing Mila so often.” It wasn’t a perfect arrangement, of course, but she felt as at home there as anywhere else. Aaron never brought up Caden. Roxy liked to think marrying Mila would still make Aaron a quasi-brother to her. He was her favorite male Lucas, so that worked out. “How is the house coming along?”
That was good to hear. Spence knew it had to be a bit crowded in Mila's house, but as long as they were taking care of Roxy... He was just glad she had a friend like Mila. They had always been inseparable in high school and it was nice to see that hadn't changed as they both got older. Spence had a very vague thought as to what would happen with Aaron and Mila's wedding next month, but that was really none of his business. "The house... it's coming along. Still got a lot of work to do," he admitted. "But I'm kind of doing it all on my own. Could use an extra pair of hands or two but I can't really afford to pay anyone right now. The upstairs bathroom is nearly done though, so... progress."
Roxy still wanted to help Spence decorate the place, pick out paint colors and put up art, make it into a home. A home for them. She knew that was too fast though, and the only way she would know if it was a true desire to build a life with this particular man or just an escapist fantasy was to see if it lasted. Spence deserved for her to be sure. “I would volunteer, but I’m no good at the construction-y stuff,” Roxy told him with a regretful nose wrinkle. “But I would still love to help decorate. And I could come cheer you on while you get all sweaty and dirty working on it, maybe bring some food ...” That particular line of thought was devolving into a fantasy in her mind, but Roxy was okay with that.
Spence had a way to go before any real decorating started but he knew he would want Roxy's help when the time came. They had talked about it before and he hoped she would still be willing. In the back of Spence's mind, he was hoping she would end up moving in with him eventually anyway. "I don't know about wanting to watch me get sweaty but I'm definitely okay with the food part," he told her with a laugh. "I may rope Greg into helping me out some this summer. The kid doesn't have a job yet and I could probably get away with paying him a ridiculously l-low sum." Spence pulled into the parking lot near Dragonfly, ready to grab a drink and relax for a bit.
“He should do it for free, like a good brother,” Roxy said lightly with a little snort. What good was having family if they wouldn’t help you out when you needed it? Not that she knew anything about that, since she barely talked to her own siblings. In fact, nobody in her family even knew yet that she’d left Caden. Roxy wasn’t looking forward to those phone calls. She didn’t want to dwell on it tonight, though, and as soon as Spence had turned the car off, Roxy climbed out to head inside with him. Once Spence was close enough, she impulsively reached to slip her hand into his, a faint smile on her face.
Spence gripped her hand, thankful for the physical contact. It was something he had missed and he was glad Roxy felt comfortable enough to do it. "Yeah, he'd probably do it for free if I asked him but he's a high school graduate without a job yet and I'm sure he'd like the cash. Maybe I'm the good brother," he said with a grin. "I'll make sure to let him know that too... if he agrees to help out, anyway. Maybe the promise of money and free food will get his ass in gear." Holding the door open for Roxy, Spence followed her inside, already feeling more at ease by just being there. They found a table and sat and Spence eyed her with a bit of tentativeness. "And you know... if you ever need a break from Mila's house, you can always stay with me."
Caden had never been big on PDA, except maybe in the beginning of their relationship when it made everyone uncomfortable, but he’d rarely held her hand out in public, and it felt really nice to be escorted into a building like that. “Tell Greg I’ll bring tamales if he’ll show up,” Roxy replied with a grin as they walked to a table. Spence was a good big brother, she didn’t even have to ask Greg to know that. She settled into her seat and smiled at him again, something warmer in it this time. “I’m going to take you up on that,” she said. Roxy didn’t know when it would happen, but she knew it would. Part of her wanted to take him up on it tonight, but she didn’t know if that was a bad idea or not. Or if it even mattered. “I love her for taking me in and I’m so grateful, but it’s a big adjustment from mostly having a place to myself, you know?”
Given how much Greg liked to eat, Spence was betting tamales and money would definitely be enough to bribe his brother to help him out. It felt nice to be out in public with Roxy again and not worry about whether or not the wrong person would see. She looked amazing and there was a part of him that wanted to just forget the past decade and pretend nothing had changed between them. "I can only imagine. And they're expecting a baby, aren't they? So that house is probably only going to feel much smaller in time. Not to rush you out of there or anything, but if you want a break from it all sometime, I've got the room. And a working bathroom." He grinned as he spoke, because that was really the only space in the house he had renovated almost completely.
Roxy made a brief ‘yikes’ face at the mention of the baby. She could not wait to meet her beautiful little pseudo-niece, she was as excited as everyone else in spite of her personal disappointments ... but she didn’t want to still be living there when the baby came. “A working bathroom is a must, glad you got that covered,” she told Spence with a little laugh. “But yeah, I definitely plan to be out of there before the baby arrives. We’ve still got several months, but I want to be gone long before that. Poor Adrian is sleeping on the floor in the nursery right now. They deserve to have room to spread out and be a family.” Roxy felt a bit like she was telling him she was moving in within the next couple of months ... and would that be so bad?
Spence didn't think it would be a bad thing if Roxy moved in soon. He didn't want to rush it, despite the fact that her ex was already married. But he wanted to do it right and not be a rebound relationship. Not that he thought that was what was happening, but... Spence thought they had started something again before and then she had gotten engaged. So he still felt a bit tentative about moving too fast. "Sounds like they might end up being the parents who let all their daughter's friends stay over whenever they get in trouble at home," Spence pointed out with a soft laugh of his own. "Does Adrian plan to stay for a while? That whole story still kind of blows my mind."
She thought he was probably right about Aaron and Mila’s future as being the neighborhood parents, and it made her smile to think about. Those types of parents could be invaluable to so many kids if they were struggling at home. She’d had a couple of them herself, in her teenagehood ... but none of them had really been able to save her from a shitty home life. Roxy opened her mouth to answer, but a waitress turned up to take their drink orders. She asked for a long island iced tea and let Spence put his own request. “I think he wants to get back on his feet as quick as he can too,” she said once the waitress was gone. “He went to Portland for a couple of days to try and sort out his paperwork and everything. But yeah, it’s pretty crazy.”
Spence ordered the same as Roxy, thinking it was probably better that he didn't drink drink tonight. Too much alcohol tended to trigger bad dreams and he really didn't want to wake up in a sweaty mess later. "Sounds like you're both dealing with a lot of change," Spence said. He supposed he ought to be more freaked out by the fact that Adrian Moretti had been "dead" for so long and turned out to be not dead, but stranger things had happened in this town, and in the world. It was definitely a mind blowing story though.
Roxy chuckled softly. “That’s one way to put it, yeah.” Her changes were much more mundane than Adrian’s, but thankfully had less paperwork, so it was easy to put it in perspective and count her blessings there. Things would be a lot more difficult if she and Caden had actually gotten married and had kids and all the things she wanted ... but would she still have left him then? It was pointless to think about, at least tonight. Being in Dragonfly with Spence, out on a semi-date, was making her feel good, and Roxy wanted to focus on that more than anything else. Still smiling at him, she propped her chin up on one hand. “So ... how was work, dear?” she asked, only half teasing.
Laughing, Spence rested back against the seat. He was definitely more relaxed now than he had been for most of the week. It was difficult not to enjoy himself when he was with Roxy. "Uh, work was work. It was fine. Tedious as always, but I'm good at it, so..." He shrugged and then grimaced. "I sound so boring, fuck. Unfortunately there are very few things I could say to make maintenance work sound exciting." He certainly didn't own a bar. Bars were full of interesting stories. "Have you started looking for a place to work yet?"
She didn’t mind hearing boring maintenance stories, it was more about talking with him than what they talked about. Roxy liked the sound of his voice, and that domestic sort of feeling that came with listening to someone talk about their day. Mundane shit was nice sometimes, especially when everything else was such a mess. “No,” she said with a little sigh. “I’m going to give myself a week, at least. Just to ... y’know, have a break. But after that ... I really don’t want to waitress anymore.” Roxy wrinkled her nose. “I feel like if a customer pinched my ass ever again, I would just lose it. So ... I dunno what I’m going to look for, but something else. Maybe office work or something.”
"That's what I like about my job... I deal with very few people," he said with a lopsided grin. "If you need any help searching for something, let me know. I'm all over town so I can poke around and see if anyone's looking to hire." Spence had no idea what Roxy might enjoy but with summer kicking in, he knew a lot of places wanted some help. And he had a feeling that once she had a job away from Caden's bar, she would get back on her feet and hopefully be happier. "What would you have wanted to do, if you had the choice?"
Even if Spence had a public-facing job, Roxy doubted he would’ve endured the same kind of crap she did, as a woman, but she wasn’t going to point that out. She was hopefully going to move out of the service industry and into something else where that kind of shit happened less. “Yeah, if you hear about any openings or anything, let me know. I know tourist season’s starting, but I need more than part time teenager stuff,” she said. As for what she wanted to do, Roxy didn’t have a ready answer for it. She pursed her lips a bit and thought for a moment. “I’m not sure,” she admitted after a moment. “I never really had like ... career dreams. But now ... I think I’d enjoy something with kids. Or animals. Like a vet assistant or something. Do you need school for that?” Roxy wrinkled her nose thoughtfully. “Maybe I can try some like, online classes or something eventually.”
Spence could understand not wanting part time work, or a job that would thrust her in the middle of a bunch of younger kids. He was probably biased as hell, but he thought Roxy was amazing and was wasted at the bar anyway. Someone in town was going to be incredibly lucky to hire her. "They've got online programs for stuff like that," he said with a nod. "You can be certified. Don't know if you've got to do the whole four year college thing, but you'd be great with animals and kids. Starting o-over is always scary, but I think there's something exhilarating about it too. It's definitely past time for you to do whatever makes you happy." And he meant that. Even if things between them didn't work out, Spence felt like Roxy was on the right path to being happy. It was a process, but she was strong.
It was probably the most supportive thing any man had ever said to her, and Roxy couldn’t do anything but smile at Spence for a long moment. Hell, pretty much everything that came out of Spence’s mouth was like that -- sincere and supportive and sweet, and probably completely natural for him to say, but it meant a lot to her. Roxy never got the sense that he was just trying to get into her pants, either. Not that he would have to try hard, but still, there was never an ulterior motive behind any of it, and Roxy had become a master at finding ulterior motives. “I think, for right now,” she murmured, leaning in a bit closer to him. “It would make me really happy if you kissed me.” They hadn’t even gotten their drinks yet, but Roxy was feeling really good, better than she had in days, and she wanted Spence’s lips on hers, even briefly.
Spence eyed her with playful wariness when she smiled at him. And then she leaned in closer to him and the playfulness turned into something else. It had been a while since he had felt those sparks of desire, at least for anyone other than Roxy, but they triggered again in his gut and she certainly didn't have to ask him twice. Being out in public he couldn't exactly kiss her the way he really wanted to, but he wasn't about to make it a chaste peck on the lips either. His hand came up to hold her chin gently as his mouth met hers. She tasted exactly how he remembered and it felt a bit like coming home. Her lips were soft and yielding and Spence took his time, given he had been wanting to do this for ages.
They had kissed before, but something felt different about it now, like something important inside of Roxy had shifted. She felt zero guilt about it, had zero doubts that it was too fast or not right, and she didn’t feel like she had to rush through it. She was actually able to just feel Spence, without all that baggage weighing her down. And damn did he feel good. Warmth bloomed in Roxy’s lower belly and her hand moved to rest on his thigh under the table as she parted her lips for a bit of a deeper taste. She wasn’t going to truly lose herself in making out with him, since they were indeed out in public, but it was a nice tease for what was hopefully to come. Roxy felt a little dazed as she pulled back and opened her eyes, smiling softly again. “Yup ... happy,” she murmured.
It was definitely nice to not have Caden hanging over their heads this time. That was all in the past now and hopefully he would stay there. There was a sense of familiarity, kissing Roxy now, but it also felt new and Spence wanted to cling to that feeling for as long as possible. His body was acutely aware of her hand on his thigh and Spence smiled immediately when she pulled back from him. "Happy is one word," he said with a soft chuckle. Reaching out, he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear as just their drinks were served. "I missed kissing you," he admitted. "Ever since I went to college."
Roxy barely noticed the waitress setting drinks down in front of them. She was at least good enough at her job to scoot away right afterward too, with none of the chit-chat or asking if they wanted anything else yet. The way they were looking at each other was probably enough of a Go Away signal. Roxy’s stomach fluttered with emotion, hearing that, and she sucked her bottom lip into her mouth briefly. “Same here,” she told him. “We were pretty good at it together, weren’t we?” God knew they got plenty of practice before Spence left. Roxy tried not to think about how heartbreaking that had been -- it was another thing to put in the past. Spence was back now and all hers if she wanted him, and she did and she could have him now, with no guilt and no fear. Roxy left her hand on his leg and reached for her Long Island to take a sip, suddenly needing some alcohol.
"Yeah, we were." Spence chuckled and reached for her own drink. He knew it had been difficult when he left. But trying to maintain something long distance, especially after joining the army, would have been impossible. And he certainly hadn't wanted to do that to her. It was strange to think about his journey after, especially considering he had nearly gotten married. Life was fucking unpredictable, he knew that much for sure. "I'm glad you called," he said after taking a drink from his glass. "Or, I guess, texted. The only place I've been for the past few days besides work has been my mom's and she can be a bit much from time to time."
Unpredictable was an understatement. Not once during the past five years had Roxy thought that not only would she leave Caden, she would turn around and rekindle something with Spence Wheeler, and look at them now. “I’m glad you were there to text,” Roxy said with a little smile. She’d been holed up at Mila’s, licking her wounds and feeling out of sorts and crazy ... and then Caden had made her crazy spike and now she felt a bit more balanced, weird as that was. Like maybe she could let him and their failed relationship go easier since he’d more or less thrown gas on the fire. Maybe now it would burn out faster. “How’s your mom doing? And the rest of the fam and everything?”
"They're fine," Spence said before grinning. "I know that sounds like a cop out answer but honestly... they're fine. I think I already told you Greg is thinking about becoming a firefighter. Sounds like he's going to stay in town for the time being. I was kind of hoping he'd go somewhere for college and see parts of the world but his girlfriend is here, so... young love, what can ya do." He set his glass back down. "What about your family? Have you spoken to them lately?" He knew Roxy's family life hadn't been the best and he really had no idea if she was even close to any of them anymore.
Roxy had to chuckle. “You Wheelers and your high school loves,” she murmured, smirking at him for a moment. It was sweet that Greg wanted to stick around for a girlfriend, and she could easily see him becoming a firefighter, so all of that tracked. When Spence asked about her own family, she shrugged. “Not lately,” she said. “I texted my brothers that I’d left Caden, but they haven’t really said anything back yet ... it takes a while, sometimes.” She was sure the news had gotten to her parents by now, but nobody had called her, and Roxy wasn’t really surprised. They’d been done with each other for many years now, partly because of Caden. “I don’t know if it will help us be closer or what, but ... I have a lot of support here.” Roxy smiled at Spence and gently squeezed his leg.
Spence knew he couldn't really push Greg out of town, no matter how badly he wanted to. Ophelia was still in high school and the longevity odds were not in their favor. Then again, maybe Greg was sticking around for reasons that had nothing to do with his girlfriend. Spence just wanted to make sure his brother was getting the most out of life while he could. He considered Roxy's words as he took another drink. It wasn't hard to imagine her family pulling back because of her relationship, though he wished they had been more supportive of her. Everyone made mistakes. "You do," he said with a smile, after placing his glass back down. "And I know I've said it a million times already, but I'm here if you need anything. Starting over is scary, but you're going to be fine."
He had indeed said it at least a few dozen times, if not quite a million, but Roxy wasn’t bothered by that at all. Especially not right then, sitting in Dragonfly with a handsome semi-date and a yummy drink in front of her. It was sweet of him to keep reassuring her, and Roxy thought that if Greg was anything like Spence, that girlfriend was a lucky little lady. “I know you are,” she murmured to Spence, her smile warm. “I might need you to trust that I will definitely let you know if I need anything ... but honestly it’s nice to hear over and over.” She gave a soft laugh. How many times over their relationship had Caden offered to help her with hard emotional things? Roxy bit her tongue on that part and tried to banish him from her thoughts again. He would take a while to go away, she was sure, but she would just take it a moment at a time. “Tonight I just need you to enjoy yourself with me.”
Spence grinned sheepishly. "I trust that you will. I just know it's easy for help to kind of get lost in other things." And he knew Caden probably wasn't all that supportive of anything and he wanted Roxy to know that Spence was there, no matter what it was. "I can definitely enjoy the night with you though. I already am." Dragonfly was a nice place and he was enjoying the drink and company. They could sit there all night and just talk and Spence knew it would be better than anything else he could be doing. He just wanted to spend as much time with Roxy as he could.