Chapter 1

Dave sat there at the local Tim Hortons, drinking a double double, and eating a sour cream glazed donut while scrolling on his phone. The man was just killing time, as he had nothing pressing to do that afternoon. While he worked a decent job at a data firm, the man was bored, even though he had things he could do at home. He just didn’t want to do anything at that moment, and he didn’t know why.

Maybe it was because he was lonely and had been like this for some time. It wasn’t as though he lacked for companionship when he wanted it. Dave was a handsome enough man, with his shop style brown hair and brown eyes, and Euro-Balkan features. Women didn’t swoon when he walked by, but they weren’t appalled by him either. As far as looks went, he occupied a decent middle ground, but had a few things going for him.

First of which was his height, as the man was well past six foot three. He was no Jack Reacher, but he was close enough that most women almost always nabbed a second look. While Dave wasn’t as chiseled as he would have liked, he did have the strength he’d always wanted, and that was enough for him.

The other thing he had going for him was his deep personality, as the man was not one taken by shallow looks or surface level conversation. He had no problem speaking to people, but he was selective with who he talked to. The only times that Dave spoke was when he felt there was something to be learned or gained via conversation.

Dave wasn’t arrogant or snobbish, he just valued his time and would rather spend it learning something to better himself. He abhorred small talk and the many social niceties that were expected of him whenever he mingled among people. It’s not that he couldn’t keep a conversation going, it’s just that he would get insanely bored doing what everyone else wanted to do.

Lastly, there was his sense of style and dress that often caught a woman’s eye. Dave dressed well whenever he went to work or when he was out in the world at large. His job paid him well enough to where he was able to eke out a comfortable living. As the old saying went, ‘Clothes make the man’ and Dave certainly was the man. At least, that’s what all the hungry feminine stares told him.

But the loneliness that Dave felt stemmed from something far deeper than just the company of women. It was the absence of family and having people who were there for him, no matter what. He had no family, not anymore, not since they disowned him after he left them behind. It’s not like they didn’t have it coming, being the narcissistic types that they were.

His father had tried to keep him close, but the strong and proud man he had once been was gone. Much of what Dave had learned had been on his own, as his father wasn’t much of a teacher on such a topic. But it’s not like he had much choice, with his mother and sisters ruling the roost as they did. It hadn’t always been like this, as there was a time when his father had been in charge, but those days had passed.

His mother and his sisters had ground his father down over time, taking small little potshots at him over the years. Rather than react and do something about their behavior, his father just took the abuse. Bottled everything up and kept it to himself, which Dave knew was not good for anyone. All that did was break the man, and it hurt Dave to see his father wind up like that.

Dave’s mother, a prideful and vain woman, had thrown him out of the house the moment he fought back. She told him he was no longer welcome under her roof and that everything that was his was now hers, by right. Dave could have fought against her, brought the cops into the mix, but he knew that to be a bad idea. His mother was good friends with several of the local officers, and would make his life hell if he tried that.

‘Fine by me! Everything you touch is tainted, witch, and I don’t want any of it! Don’t come looking for me. We are done and nothing you can say or do will ever change that,’ Dave thought to himself, reminiscing over the last words he’d said to that hateful woman.

It had been tough, climbing upwards on his own with nothing but the clothes on his back, but he’d done it. The man reflected on the path he had taken to get here to Toronto, the business hub of his country. There were a great many things he had done to get here and some of them were ... less than savory. As he was mulling over everything in his head, was when a voice snapped him out of his recollections.

“Dave? David Norland?!” a feminine voice called out in recognition. The man knew that voice, but ... it was impossible! Unless ... he turned his head to find the speaker and saw her standing there only a few feet away. He remembered this woman and thought he would never see her again!

“Sarah? Sarah Robinson?!” Dave gasped, getting to his feet. Before he could do much else, the woman bolted to him at full tilt and mobbed the man in a hug. Dave hugged her back and held her tight, never wanting to let her go. A few of the onlookers in the Timmies smiled, with the women sighing at the happy reunion.

“Ummm ... Dave? Air?” he heard Sarah wheeze and he quickly let her go. Sarah caught her breath and smiled up at the big man, her eyes alight with joy.

“I ... I ... damn, it’s good to see you, Sarah!” Dave told her with a grin.

“Likewise! May I ... or are you waiting for someone?” Sarah asked, gesturing to the seat where he had his work satchel.

“Oh! No! No one is coming by! Just here by myself, enjoying a Timmies,” Dave told the woman as he moved his satchel to the floor by his seat.

“And doing some heavy thinking, by the looks of it,” Sarah told him as she took a seat.

“Am I still that easy to read?” Dave groused playfully.

“Still? Nah. Always!” Sarah giggled as she sipped at her beverage.

Dave couldn’t believe it! Sarah Robinson, his best friend growing up, was sitting right here, in front of him, after more than eight years apart! It had been many, many years since he’d seen this woman, but the last time he saw her, they were just graduating high school! While it had been quite some time, Dave took in Sarah’s figure and noted that she had certainly filled out since he last saw her!

While she was the epitome of a tomboy growing up, she was every inch a woman now! She was every inch a thick, womanly tomboy, especially with her pixie style hair! Sarah was fairly tall, just shy of five-foot-nine, and while she had been stick thin before, now she had curves that went on for days! Not only that, but she’d also put on some weight in all the right places, especially her chest!

During their high school days, they both joked about how flat she was, but Dave had every confidence that she’d grow proper boobs one day. It seemed he was right, as she was far more than a handful now! He couldn’t quite guess her size, but he could tell that she was large, far larger than most women! Aside from her body, her face was far more beautiful than he remembered it!

Of all the things that Sarah had when they were growing up together, she had the most womanly features of anyone he knew. The shape of her brows, her cheekbones, her chin and even her nose told everyone that she was a woman. There was no mistaking her feminine features, as they were too beautiful to be ignored. This was something a few of the male patrons in the Timmies had taken notice of and couldn’t help but envy Dave.

“So, just what have you been up to all these years?” Dave questioned as Sarah made herself comfortable.

“I could ask the same of you, as our friendship went off the rails all those years ago,” Sarah reminded him, flicking him an accusatory look.

“To be fair, it wasn’t just my girlfriend at the time who was total twatwaffle. I seem to recall your man at the time being a total dick about you and me being friends too,” Dave shot back. Sarah sighed and looked away and grumbled something.

“I’m sorry? I’m afraid I didn’t catch that,” Dave told her.

“I said, ‘Damn you and that memory of yours!’” Sarah huffed, turning her face to look at the man.

“You know, you’re cute when you grumble,” Dave teased, chuckling to himself. Just then, Sarah buried her face in her drink and Dave swore she was blushing!

“So ... what have you been up to?” Sarah asked as she brought her face up from her iced capp.

“I asked first! But, because I’m feeling nice, I’ll speak. Mostly just been figuring my shit out as I meander on through life. Got a lot of shit to unpack and been doing that, one day at a time,” Dave told her.

“Sounds ominous! What does your family think about it?” Sarah asked.

“I could give two shits what they think. They don’t matter to me. Not anymore,” Dave told her.

“Oh? What happened? If ... it’s OK for me to ask?” Sarah wondered, seeing the look of anger on her friend’s face.

“You’re my bestie! Of course it’s OK for you to ask! The only question is ... where to begin?” Dave wondered as he pursed his lips.

“Maybe start when we saw each other last? Before my ex made me sever contact with you?” Sarah asked.

“That’s a good place as any to start. You know how uptight and controlling my mom was, right?” Dave queried.

“How could I forget? That woman was so damned bad that she made Cersei Lannister look cheery for fuck’s sake!” Sarah sighed.

“Hmm. Harsh, but warranted and accurate. Well, let’s just say what we saw of her growing up was the watered-down version of that woman. After I had become an adult, that was when the fully concentrated version came out and by the gods, was she one raging bitch!” Dave growled.

“What did she do?” Sarah asked.

“I think the more appropriate question is, ‘what didn’t she do?’. Anything and everything you could imagine a wicked woman being? That was what my mother was, in a nutshell,” Dave told her.

“Can you be ... more specific?” Sarah asked, hoping she wasn’t pushing her luck.

“Taking every dollar I earned for myself and using it to get whatever she wanted. For herself and my sisters, and for my little brother every now and again. Never gave a damned thing to me or my dad. Birthdays and holidays were just another workday for me, and she constantly pushed me to always do overtime. Hardly ever left enough food for me to have a proper meal, leaving little but scraps for me to eat,” Dave told her.

“Holy...” Sarah breathed.

“But ... that’s not the worst of it. There was also abuse, a lot of it,” Dave continued.

“W-what?”

“Yeah. Mental and verbal abuse for the most part. My sisters would also jump in for that shit whenever they could. That woman ... she even encouraged them to go to town on me if I got ‘uppity’. Told me I had to learn my place, as my father had,” Dave finished.

“Fuck ... me!! I knew she could be cruel, but ... that’s just ... fuck!! How did you get out?” Sarah asked.

“It wasn’t easy! To be honest, I almost didn’t get out! Part of me wanted to stay. Thought this was the best I’d ever get in life! That I would not make it out here on my own!” Dave told her.

“What changed?” Sarah asked, aghast that her friend had to live through that.

“I did. Or more like, my mom changed me with one action,” Dave said.

“What did she do?” Sarah wondered, reaching out and taking Dave’s hand. He smiled at her and appreciated the gesture, squeezing her hand gently.

“She hit me.”

“I’m sorry, what!?” Sarah exclaimed.

“Yeah. She hit me. Full power backhand right across my face. I don’t know how or what happened, but right after that, it’s like a switch flipped in me. From that point on, I resolved I would never serve them, or their selfish ends, again. I started doing whatever I could to squirrel away any money I had to get away from them. This meant that I had to resort to doing things that were ... questionable,” Dave told his oldest friend.

“Did anyone get hurt?” Sarah asked, knowing this was some serious territory that Dave was treading in.

“No one who didn’t have it coming. You remember Glen Westbrook?” Dave asked.

“I wish I could forget that piece of shit! The things he did to people should have landed that bastard behind bars!” Sarah griped, remembering the man who was both a dealer and a pimp, but one who was the worst kind you could ever imagine. “But ... what happened to him?”

“Let’s just say that anything he earned was ... redistributed to me and a few friends of mine. Right now, he’s enjoying a lengthy prison sentence with a three hundred and fifty pound fiancé called Duke. Apparently, his cellmate’s favorite game is something called ‘hide the salami’,” Dave chuckled. Sarah then snorted as she laughed, and she put her hand up on her mouth to stop herself from spraying Dave with iced coffee.

“How do you know that?” Sarah giggled, curious about the matter.

“I stuck around home long enough to see the bastard get his just desserts. It took a bit of work to find shit on the guy, as he was careful with a lot of things. Even though he had friends among some of the local cops, we made sure the evidence we found on him was far too damning to just wave off. But even after he got put away, things started getting too hot for all of us involved, so we got scarce,” Dave stated.

“Anyone I know besides you?” Sarah wondered, happy to hear the news that human refuse like Glen had been put away.

“Not really. Most of the guys involved were those who had family that Glen had victimized. Putting the bastard away was also a blow to my sisters, as he was their supplier for their ‘fun times’. They started accusing me of being a goody two shoes and ruining their fun. That’s where shit got ugly between me and my ‘family’,” Dave went on.

“It must have been a ... difficult time,” Sarah sighed, hating that Dave had to go through all of that.

“That’s a hell of an understatement. Nearly had to leave everything I had behind. My books, my consoles, my clothes, even my damn toothbrush!” Dave groused.

“You family wouldn’t even let you take your damned toothbrush?” Sarah gasped, appalled by such cruel indifference.

“Yup. Couldn’t grab any of it, as my mother and my sisters claimed it for themselves. Saying it was theirs to claim since I had ‘forfeited my place in the family’ by standing up to them. I’d had more than enough by that point and was more than happy to walk away from those toxic people,” Dave sighed.

“Did you get any of your stuff back?” Sarah asked.

“Well, I had some of those guys I’d ‘worked’ with go to my house and buy up the shit my family was selling. Most of it was my clothing and books, which they didn’t want. They kept my other shit, like my bed, my TV and my consoles. While it wasn’t everything I’d wanted to get back, I at least had enough to go on. Once I got back everything I could, I bought a couple of duffle bags, loaded them up, got on a bus and never looked back,” Dave finished.

“Fuck! How long were you there for? After high school?” Sarah asked.

“The better part of two years. Worst two years of my life,” Dave sighed as he shook his head. “It was those years where you being around would have made life better. Or at least, bearable.”

“If I’d known what things were like, and what would have happened with me and Darrin, I would have dumped his ass and stayed in town,” Sarah responded.

“Speaking of which, what happened after you left?” Dave wondered, turning his mind from his past to Sarah’s.

“It was ... bad. Much worse than I would have thought it could have been,” Sarah groaned, clearly not liking the topic.

“How much worse was it? If ... you’re OK talking about it?” Dave asked.

“Well, you asked and because you are my best friend, I’ll tell you,” Sarah replied.

“Take your time. I’m in no rush,” Dave told her.

“OK. Now, where to start? Ah, I know! It was right after Darrin and I left town to head west to California. We both picked up visas to go and work in the United States and since my dream was to be an actress, it seemed the most logical place to start,” Sarah told him.

“Indeed, it is! If you want to make it in the movies, that is the more traditional approach to get there,” Dave agreed.

“Yeah and I had ... some success in some small roles. No major films or TV shows, but they did see me wind up with some work, and enough money to get by. It was fun at first and exciting as all hell! But, after a year or so ... the charm started wearing off and things got ... bad,” Sarah said with a huff.

“What happened? I mean, are you all right talking about it?” Dave wondered, hoping he wasn’t treading on forbidden ground.

“Well ... let’s just say that not long after things got tough, Darrin walked. He never really cared about me or the dreams I had. All he really wanted was someone to hitch his ride to, in the hope he’d get to such a level of fame and wealth and didn’t have to do jack shit,” Sarah growled, remembering the snide and asinine attitude the man had.

“Honey, I could have told you that! The guy was a pretty boy man-whore who only cared about his image,” Dave chuckled.

“Why didn’t you tell me about that shit?” Sarah asked, glaring at Dave.

“I did. You punched me in the shoulder and told me to not be such a killjoy, as you found a guy you actually liked for once,” Dave reminded her. Sarah opened her mouth, then recalled the memory before facepalming herself cutely.

“Oh! Got me there!” Sarah replied, feeling chagrined.

“Anyway...”

“Anyway, things got a little nuts for a while. Especially after Darrin, the arrogant bastard, took every dollar I had saved so he could live large. All while I was trying to pay rent, eat and pay down a couple of loans we had taken out. I kept trying everything possible to get out there and known. But no one picked me up, especially after I started doing ... what I had to just to survive out there,” Sarah said, looking away from her best friend in shame.

“Like what? If ... you’re ready to tell me?” Dave queried.

“I’m not ready, but I will tell you ... and only you ... when I am ready,” she said to the man with a resigned sigh.

“That’s more than fair. If it makes you feel any better, I don’t judge for what you had to do. We all do fucked up things to get by sometimes and we’re often not proud of it. In fact, I have no place to judge, because that would make me the biggest fucking hypocrite ever!” Dave smiled as he tried to catch Sarah’s gaze again.

“It ... does make me feel better. A whole lot better, actually!” Sarah said, turning to face the man, her smile and warmth returning to her face.

“There’s that gorgeous smile I remember,” Dave said to her, and Sarah blushed, not trying to hide it this time.

“Mmmm! After I got my finances squared away, I kept trying to land roles for whatever was out there. I picked up a few small advertising gigs, but nothing that really stuck. After a couple years, I gave it up and decided to try my hand at the way things used to be done to make it in Hollywood,” Sarah stated.

“Which was?”

“Broadway. Before people hit Hollywood, looking to break into the big screen, you had to work Broadway first. At least, that’s how the old school actors did it in the first place,” Sarah told him.

“Makes sense. If you can’t sell a performance in the theater, then how are you going to manage it in TV and films?” Dave agreed.

“That was my thought exactly! It was a bit rough, but not nearly as rough or creepy as Hollywood was. But it was still a pain to try to land roles, even though I had talent and training. Lot of the directors were sexist as fuck, not to mention their particular preference for the women they wanted in the roles they were directing,” Sarah grunted, sounding a bit sour over the matter.

“Let me guess, they wanted women who were little more than girls, who were rail thin, white skin, with blonde hair and blue eyes?” Dave asked, taking a shot in the dark.

“Most of them, yeah. Those that were looking for women who weren’t of that type often went with daughters of friends or people from the ritzier schools, like Julliard,” Sarah sighed.

“Ugh! I swear, it’s like things get harder and harder for regular folk to break into any role out there. You either have to be connected out the wazoo, be related to someone in the industry, or screw your way to the top,” Dave growled, saddened that his best friend had such a hard time of it.

“Yeah, and there was no way in the stars was I going to go the third route, no matter how desperate I got! I’d rather get to the top with my skills and abilities as opposed to becoming a cliché that many girls in that industry are,” Sarah said with a shake of her head.

“How long were you there for?” Dave wondered.

“Two and a half years. I was making some headway in some of the gigs I landed and was seeing some success. But it wasn’t long after, I was being constantly told that I was too old for the roles I was trying out for. So, after being told I was too old for the three thousandth time, I gave it up and moved back here to the GTA,” Sarah replied, smiling over at Dave.

“Something which I am very happy about!” Dave told her with a grin.

“I can tell!”

“So, what do you do for work now?” Dave asked, curious about what Sarah was doing to earn a living.

“I ... work as a waitress at a popular chain restaurant,” Sarah said, sighing heavily.

“Are you managing OK?” Dave wondered, hoping she wasn’t in the hole as far as money was concerned.

“Yeah. I got here a while back and nabbed a really sweet deal on an apartment before they went through the roof!” Sarah said to him. “Besides, between the cheap rent I’m paying now, coupled with all the tips I earn as a waitress, I’m doing pretty well for myself!”

“That’s great to hear!” Dave replied as he took a sip of his coffee. “Besides, there’s no shame in being a waitress. The tips you make balance things out considerably and as I’m sure you know, it can be really good money!”

“Especially during the stat holidays! What about you? What are you doing to make a living these days?” Sarah enquired.

“Eh! I became a corporate worker. Sitting behind a desk all day, making reports, cross-referencing with those from others to get the facts straight, then handing them into my boss,” Dave said with a shrug.

“That sounds monotonously boring!” Sarah said in her best Professor Frink voice.

“Honey, you have no idea just how boring!” Dave shot back in his best Homer Simpson voice.

“Glad to see you still got it!” Sarah snickered as she finished her iced coffee.

“Those were the days, weren’t they?” Dave asked, referring back to the times he and Sarah had palled around their neighborhood.

“They were! You remember that time when we both flunked that math test Mr. Mounstein gave us?” Sarah asked.

“Oh, I remember! That guy was a real piece of work!” Dave chuckled. “But we didn’t let his asshole ways get us down, did we?”

“No, we did not! Even though we both had to study, I found a way for us to have some fun while waiting to take the math 11 retest!” Sarah giggled.

“You certainly did! Sneaking out to hit the local arcade was a grand idea! A night full of food, fun games and great times!” Dave said as he remembered the great time they had.

“Don’t be forgetting all the yummy things we had at Mama Bee’s cafe!” Sarah chided him.

“Oh, I doubt I would ever forget that! I stuffed myself so silly, I felt like a Thanksgiving turkey!” Dave laughed.

“I think we walked a good portion of that off afterwards! At least, until your mother showed up and ruined the night,” Sarah groused, huffing at the matriarchal bitch in her memories.

“Yeah. I was grounded for a month after that! But it was sooo worth it!!” Dave chuckled before he perked up. “Hey, I just got an idea!”

“Oh?! What’s the idea? Tell me, tell me, tell me!!” Sarah begged.

“How about we recreate that night? We’re both adults now and the masters of our fate! So, let’s do that again, but this time, there will be no one coming after us for being out too late! Let’s make it a proper night out, just the two of us!” Dave told her. Sarah’s eyes lit up and the impish smile on her face would have outshone the sun in its radiance.

“Tonight?!” Sarah asked, her voice almost cracking with excitement.

“I would love to, but I have a report that’s due tomorrow morning and I need to get it finished! How about Thursday? It’s May Long this weekend! Unless you have plans?” Dave asked. Sarah chewed her bottom lip for a moment as she considered it before she nodded, her smile just as wide as it was a moment ago.

“It’s a date!” she said out loud, hoping she wasn’t pushing her luck by saying it that way. But Dave just smiled happily and pulled out his smartphone, entering it into his calendar. They then exchanged phones and entered each other’s information on it, so they could get ahold of one another. They then handed the phones back, grinning like idiots.

“Damn right it is!” Dave replied.

“This ... this was great, Dave! I am so glad we ran into each other like this!” Sarah said with a grin. “I’ll see you Thursday!”

“See you Thursday!”

Sarah then stood up and sauntered out of the Tim Hortons, feeling like she was on cloud nine. She couldn’t believe that she had finally found Dave after all this time! The very thought of being out with him again made her giggle like she was a little girl. But when she imagined being out with the man he had become made her all warm and melty inside. Sarah knew it would be a night to remember!

It was Wednesday morning, just as the first coffee break hit, that Dave strolled into the office of his boss, one Damaris Whitaker. She looked up at the man, her gray eyes catching his brown ones as he walked into her office. Damaris straightened up and stood, walking over to the tall and brawny man expectantly.

“I do hope you have something for me, David?” the older woman asked, her womanly voice almost commanding him to hand over the report.

“Got it done last night and went over it this morning with a few additions and addendums for clarity,” Dave said to her, handing her the report.

“Damn, that was fast!” the redheaded woman told him. “How did you manage that? I for sure thought you would have needed another day to complete it!”

“Got a sudden burst of energy last night and just figured I’d burn it away by knocking this out ASAP,” Dave told his MILFy boss.

“Chug a few Monsters to get it done?”

“Ran into an old friend last night, one I haven’t seen in years! It was good to reconnect with her after so much time had passed,” Dave told her with a grin.

“Her? A friend friend, or a girlfriend?” Damaris questioned with a knowing smile.

“My best friend growing up! We went our separate ways after high school, but with her being back in the city, it was only a matter of time before we ran into each other!” Dave chuckled.

“Sounds like there’s plans in the works!” Damaris giggled.

“We’re hanging out on Thursday evening! Just like old times!” Dave responded.

“Well, I for one am happy to see you upbeat and full of life! You’ve been such a grump lately and a few of the folks in the office have taken notice,” Damaris told him.

“I have, too. Been trying to keep my attitude going upwards, but it’s been tough with the way things are lately,” Dave replied.

“I hear you on that, David. Too much bullshit and garbage going around these days, and not enough people talking sense,” Damaris huffed, having a good idea of what he was getting at.

“You don’t have to tell me that! But thankfully, a little ray of sunshine has found its way into my life!” Dave sighed as he turned to leave.

“I’ll bet! Be sure to get a start on the Wilkinson contract before you finish for the day. Oh, and David?” Damaris called out.

“Yeah?”

“If you plan to kiss that girl, you make sure she feels it. Women want to know that you are there to be a man for them, not a boy,” Damaris said with a slight smirk.

“Will do, boss!” Dave laughed as he closed the door behind him.

As he shut the door, Dave noted a slight air of despondence around Damaris. He wasn’t sure what that was about, but if it came up again, he might bring it up. While this woman was his boss, she was also someone he wanted to be sure was OK. Dave didn’t like it when those he knew were in a bad spot and did everything he could to make sure they were doing all right, no matter who it was.

He shifted his focus back to his break and headed for the break room, hoping to grab some coffee before it was gone. Dave smiled as he walked in, seeing a fresh pot just finishing brewing, and a bag of beans from Balzac’s sitting right next to it. The man perked up at this and smiled even wider when he saw that there was a box of donuts from 6ix Donuts in downtown.

“Now this is nice! Who sprung for all of this gloriousness?” Dave asked as he walked up to help himself to a donut while he poured himself a coffee.

“You have Cindy to thank for that! She wanted to do a little something nice, since she’s seen everyone a bit on edge lately,” replied Sean, one of his co-workers in his cubicle group.

“She head back to her desk?” Dave wondered.