Tan Lines Chapter 1

Mailee Vang dropped the suitcase on the front porch and stared at the Victorian style house and sighed deeply. Sure enough, the house looked the same as it did ten years ago. The paint was chipped and the windows were dusty, the lawn overgrown, and the shutters broken. But the memory that stung her mind was the same as she imagined her grandmother opening the door and welcoming her home with open arms. She tightened her throat as tears threatened to fall. She managed to push them back and lock them with a key. She took the key from her purse, inserted it, and turned. The creek that gave out gave her a chill as she pushed the door open. The smell of must hit her fast and hard and she coughed, waving her hand in front of her trying to lighten the smell. There were white sheets covering the furniture as she walked in. The house was a two story Victorian style home with hardwood floors throughout and a large fireplace in the living room. It held two couches that were now bathing in white sheets. There were pictures of flowers on the beige wall and she looked at the lace curtains that her grandmother had hung. She touched them and felt a deep sadness enter her soul. The kitchen was smaller than most, but it held a small counter island and an updated stove and fridge. There were four bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs. The basement door was locked as it always was and she stood there, in the living room, wondering how she was going to pick up the pieces of her life. She'd gone off from this small town of Walnut Grove at the age of 18, right after high school. She hightailed it to Chicago where she met hot shot lawyer, Randall Jones, and fell in love. After two months of dating, she married him and after ten years of marriage, she divorced him. The only thing was, he'd managed to tie all of their assets to his company name. When they divorced, he took everything from her; the apartment they lived in, the summer home, and the money they had earned together. She got a lousy thousand dollars and a beat up car without any air conditioner. She turned and caught the picture of her grandmother above the mantle. Annie Vang was a soft spoken woman, but with a stern way of life. She was polite, kind, and loving. She was known among the neighbor as Blessing Annie. She gave more than she received and she was often caught helping others. Annie was a woman with soft brown eyes and long black hair always in a bun. She wore colorful hues of clothes and was never caught with a bad attitude, even on a rainy day.

Mailee gulped and she fell to the ground, her shoulders slumping forward. “Grandma, I miss you.”

Tears ran down her cheeks and she sniffed, suddenly feeling lonely. Years of marriage to Randall should have taught her better. She'd known from the start that she'd moved too fast. But she was only 18, young, headstrong, and stubborn; she wanted to prove her grandmother wrong. She lost in everything and in the end, she even lost the one woman who was like a mother. Her own mother, Diane Chang, died from an overdose when she was young. Her father, she never knew, and would never know. The memories were sweet from her grandmother's house until she decided to leave. She wanted to find herself; she wanted a life without her grandmother hovering over her. Now she felt like a fool for ever leaving her safety net.

Wiping her eyes, she walked back out to fetch her suitcase and brought it in. She walked up the stairs, the staircases playing a note underneath her feet. When she reached the top of the stairs, she stopped outside her grandmother's room and stared in. The bed was made and it felt as if there was a presence in that room. She walked into the bed and ran her fingers across the sheets. The fabric tickled her fingers and she fell to the ground, sobbing. If only she had come back to visit her grandmother, she'd be living free of this guilt. Her heart felt heavy as she sobbed and gripped the blanket that smelled of her grandmother. When she finally had the strenght to stand, she felt weak and drained. She sat on the edge of the bed and sighed heavily. Damn, tonight was going to be hell staying here alone. She stared at the empty room and shook her head. These old ghosts weren't going to go away on their own. She'd have to chase them away and she knew just the medicine.

Mailee found herself sitting at the local bar drowning herself in a shot of Patron. She was past her limit; her head was beginning to spin and her body felt heavy. She leaned on the counter for support as she stared at the woman behind the counter. She was a big woman with red curls and blue eyes. She wore a shirt that was two sizes too small and her smile was less than friendly toward Mailee. Mailee burped and held her head in her hands. A wave of dizziness washed over her and she felt as if a finger had been shoved down her throat. She gagged and the woman behind the counter looked worried.

“Perhaps you should stop,” she said.

Mailee laughed and fell off her chair, her bottom hitting the floor with such force that she moaned. She stared at her fingers as they seemed to dance with the light and her body felt heavy. She pushed herself up and stumbled to the counter. She hung there for what seemed like forever before she ran to the bathroom and puked into the toilet. When she was done, she felt relieved and she walked out, one foot stumbling in front of the other, as she made her way to the front of the bar.

“I don't think I can drive home. Is there a phone where I can call a taxi?” she slurred.

“Yeah, hold on,” the woman said.

As the woman turned around, Mailee bolted out the door, laughing that the woman had fallen for that line. She knew that the woman wouldn't let her walk out to her car the way she was. She laughed and tripped over her own feet. When she landed on the ground, at eye level, she saw a pair of black shoes before her. She laughed and poked at it with her fingers then she looked up, up, way up. Holy cow! This man was tall as he glared down at her with his dark eyes. It was just getting dark outside, but her vision was blurred and all she saw was two brown eyes staring at her, in pity or in disgust, she couldn't figure out. But he bent down and picked her up and planted her on her feet. She was stumbling as she steadied herself by putting her hands on his arms.

“Where do you think you're going?” he asked in a deep voice.

She cursed her damn eyesight for she couldn't see a thing. He looked like he had two noses and four eyes. She laughed at that and he must have frowned because he added another mouth. She laughed out loud but then the dizziness came over her and she stopped, reaching out her hands to steady herself.

“You're way over your limit, miss. You're not going anywhere tonight unless you're sitting in the passenger seat,” he said.

She snorted, very unladylike, and patted his cheek. Or was that his shoulder? “Don't worry, mister grouchy. I am fine!”

“The hell you are. I'm taking you in tonight.”

She had just muttered an angry reply when he twisted her around and suddenly she felt handcuffs on her wrists. She quickly turned around, lost her footing, and fell on her back. She slammed into the ground and let out a loud wail; her world spun and she saw stars. Muttering a very unladylike curse, she twisted until she was on her knees and then she was being picked up. She saw that the world was spinning and she shut her eyes, scared that she was seeing things. When she was placed in the car, she let out a cat like snarl and then her eyes dropped closed.

Mailee woke up with a start and sat up; big mistake, her world spun and she shut her eyes. Her throat was on fire and she coughed, feeling as if she had been run over by a car. She stared at her wrists and they were swollen with red marks on her wrists. What the hell happened last night? She touched her head and shut her eyes. Damn, she had took more shots than necessary of Patron and had paid dearly. How'd she get home? She swung her legs over the bed, got off, and walked forward with her eyes shut while massaging her head, until she slammed into iron bars. She bounced back and landed on her bottom. Her eyes flew open and she stared at the iron bars in front of her. What the hell? She stood up and realized she was in a jail cell. She walked to the iron bars and banged them.

“Hey! Is anyone out there?” she called out.

The room was quiet and she felt her heart pounding. What happened last night? Why was she in here? She called out again and this time she heard footsteps coming her way. A man appeared before her dressed in jeans and a black t-shirt. She swallowed hard and everything woman in her responded. Holy shit, he was attractive. His eyes were a deep chocolate brown and his hair was black, kept short to his scalp. His lips were bee stung and he had broad shoulders that led down to muscular arms and large hands. She could see he worked out because his pecs were finely tuned and his jeans hugged his waist neatly that finished with long, lean legs. She swallowed again and felt a sweat burn her up. She cocked her head and suddenly felt as if she was staring at her past. Who was this man? She felt as if she knew him from somewhere.

“Hello Shirley Temple,” he said.

She gasped as her childhood nickname hit her. There was only one man who knew her as Shirley Temple and that man was Neng Yang, bad boy, rebellious, and the man who took her virginity. She almost fell flat on her butt as she stared at the man before her now. Gone was the glasses he sported, the boyish figure, and the long hair. The man befor her now was nothing but a package of desire and attraction.

“Neng?” she asked, unsure of her voice.

He smiled and her stomachd did flips. “Long time no see.”

She laughed nervously and felt her hands get sweaty. “What are you doing here? Are you here to set me free? I have no idea how I got here. If you'll just call the sheriff over, I can explain.”

“Go ahead. Explain.”

“No, I need the sheriff.”

“You're looking at him.”

She went numb. “What?”

He smiled and walked to her. “You always said you loved a man in uniform.”

“You're not in uniform.”

He laughed. “Not right now.”

She sighed. “How did I end up in here?”

“Would you like the sugar coated version or right between the eyes?”

She rolled her eyes. “Just give it to me.”

He crossed his arms and his biceps looked twice its size. “You were drunk, ditzy as hell, and refused to get a ride home.”

She winced and swallowed. “Can I get the sugar coated version?”

“That was the sugar coated version.”

“Oh God!” she cried as she covered her face with her hands. “I never do this!”

He laughed and pulled her hands free from her face. “I figured that much. Don't worry, you're not in any trouble. I brought you here to prevent you from driving home. You were out like a light as soon as you fell into the car. I had no idea where you were staying so I brought you here. You're not under arrest.”

Mailee blew out a breath of relief. “Thank God!”

Neng raised an eyebrow. “Thank God? What did God do? He left you on the cement while I picked you up. Shouldn't you be thanking me?”

“Are you being smart with me?”

“Of course not, Shirley Temple.”

“Don't call me that! I no longer have curls!”

“I see that. I'd never thought I'd see the day where you had straight hair and...,” he left the sentence hanging.

Mailee narrowed her eyes. “And what?”

He smirked as his eyes fell to her chest. “And breasts.”

She slammed her hands against the railing and he jumped back. “You watch where you're looking, Sheriff!”

He laughed. “Be nice or I won't let you out.”