Blind Love (The Complete Box Set Romance Series) (21 page)

Chapter Thirty
Five

Dylan

I had dozed off. When I woke, Taylor was
still there. The clock told me it was after midnight. This had been the best
evening of my life. I had had no idea when I walked in from work that she’d be
here.

Hopefully, this wouldn’t blow up in her
face. I didn’t want her to get in any more trouble.

I could go another round, but I wanted to
talk to her first. Her head rested on my shoulder. I didn’t want to move ever,
but I did need to get some food since I hadn’t eaten when I go home.

“Hey, Taylor?”

“Mm?”

“I need food. You want some?”

“Let’s get pizza.”

I didn’t have the money for that. No take
out for me for a long while.

As if reading my mind, she sat up and
said, “I’ve got cash.”

I smiled. “Okay. If you’re paying.”

“I am.” She grabbed my phone off the nightstand.
“I’m ordering, too.”

There she was – the most beautiful girl in
school and she was naked in my bed, about to buy me pizza. How did I get this
lucky? I tucked my hands behind my head, feeling like the biggest stud in
school.

I knew I’d pleased her and now she was
buying me food.

“What do you want?”

“Something with meat.”

“Okay.”

She ordered the pizza to be delivered. I
told her the address. She hung up and dropped my phone on the nightstand,
reaching across me to do it. Her breasts grazed my stomach. Oh, God. I was
ready again.

She rested her chin on my chest, her eyes
looking up at me. That meant her breasts were still against my stomach. What
better place to be, other than between her legs. She tasted like honey to me.

I knew some guys who didn’t like that, but
I certainly did.

As much as I wanted to have her again, we
needed to talk about the future. Or maybe, I needed to talk about the future.

“What should we do? The pizza will be here
in forty minutes,” she said.

“We should talk.”

Her pout was adorable. “Aw.”

I laughed. “We’ll do it again, Taylor, but
I want to hear your plans and I want to tell you mine.”

She cocked her head. “I’ve applied to some
schools for January enrollment. I haven’t heard back from any. After I
graduate, I’m going to look for a full time job and work there until I go to
school. Most of the schools are a few hours away.”

“What kind of job do you want to get?”

“In healthcare. Maybe working at the
hospital. I might as well be in that environment,” she said.

I was proud that she’d thought it out. Her
parents would like that she had a plan.

“I’ve been accepted to four places. I’m
still waiting on hearing about financial aid for each. Then I’ll choose which
one. I have to go to the one that gives me the most money.”

“Makes sense. Where are they all?”

“They are all a few hours away. We aren’t
going to be able to be together. That’s the reality of our future.”

She frowned. “I know. And, I know you have
to be the realist, but I still want to wish it would be different.”

I liked that she wasn’t giving up on me,
on us, but I knew that it was going to get harder and harder to be together. I
didn’t want her to feel daunted, but I had to remember our situation. Tonight
was a fantasy, a lovely moment in time that I loved, but this wasn’t real. We
weren’t playing house. We were in high school and her parents didn’t want us
together. This wasn’t a teen movie, it was reality.

And my reality was different from hers.
She’d always have a home to come to. I wasn’t sure what my future held in terms
of my living arrangements. My uncle could decide to sell this place.

“I don’t want to think about any of that
tonight.”

She slid up my body, arousing me, then
kissed me on the lips. I could do the deed before the pizza guy was here, but I
really needed food. Besides, my best work was done with patience and care.
Taylor didn’t know any different since I had been her only lover, but still. I
wasn’t going to shortchange the girl.

I thought I loved her.

As much as I wished I didn’t, I did. I
couldn’t say it. She might run the other way. I brushed a hair out of her eyes.
“I better get dressed so I can greet the pizza man. I don’t want to be naked.
You stay here.”

She crawled of off me, grabbing her purse
from the floor. She handed me cash to pay for the food. I pulled on a pair of
sweats and a t-shirt, then I sat on the edge of the bed. “I’m really glad you
came here tonight, Taylor.”

She smiled, her head on my pillow and
curled up on her side. I wanted to crawl back in there with her.

“Helena is a great friend for covering for
me.”

“She is.”

She looked so right in my bed. I wanted
this all to be true, but she’d go back to her house tomorrow and I’d be stuck
here. Someone knocked on the door.

“Pizza man. Stay here.”

She smiled and nodded. I grabbed the cash and
met the man at the door. The pizza smelled great and my stomach rumbled.

“Coast is clear, Taylor,” I called after
the delivery man left.

She walked out of the bedroom wearing one
of my shirts. God, she looked sexy. Down boy, I told myself. I needed food
before we went at it again. We sat at my kitchen table like a poor, married
couple. I didn’t want to be anywhere else. This was the best night ever.

Chapter Thirty Six

Taylor

Dylan looked stressed when I saw him at
school a few days later. He’d been out of class, but he’d assured me it was
just work. He wasn’t sick. I hoped he was keeping up with his school work. I
hated to see him get behind. He had such potential, and now, he had ambition.

I stopped him before math class. “What’s
wrong?”

“My uncle is selling the land and the
trailer I’m living in. In a few months, I’m going to be homeless. I can’t
afford rent.”

“Oh, Dylan. That’s terrible.”

He frowned. “I know, but don’t worry. I’ll
figure it out.”

“You shouldn’t have to go through this alone.”

“But I am alone, Taylor.”

I shook my head. “You have me.”

“What can you do?”

“I’m sure I can figure this out. Trust me,
Dylan. Don’t do anything drastic until I’ve exhausted all possibilities,” I
said.

I would fix this. I can’t imagine that my
father would let Dylan be homeless. I had to appeal to him. Dylan smiled down
at me. “Thanks for being on my side, Taylor.”

The day couldn’t go fast enough. I really
wanted to talk to my dad.

“I don’t think he’s going to change his
mind and he might be mad that you still talk to Dylan,” Helena said at lunch.

“I have to risk it. Dylan will be homeless.”

“Won’t his uncle take him in?”

“No, and his uncle doesn’t live here. He
lives somewhere else and wants nothing to do with Dylan because of his mother.”

“I wonder where Dylan’s father is. He
should be stepping in.”

“Dylan doesn’t know. He’s never seen his
birth certificate.”

“Maybe he should find it and find out who
his father is. The man needs to step up and take care of his son.”

I nodded. “I’ll suggest that to him, but
in the meantime, I’m going to talk to my father. I have to make him see that
Dylan needs us. That he took responsibility for him once and needs to do it again.”

“Boy, when you get on a subject, you are
unstoppable,” Helena said. “I’ve never seen you like this.”

“I’ve never felt about anyone the way I
feel about Dylan.”

“Oh?”

“I think I love him, Helena.”

“Wow. That’s deep. And, sort of cool. I
can’t say I’ve ever loved a boy.”

“He isn’t a boy. He’s a man and he likes
me back. Me. Selfish, immature Taylor Dean.”

“Go figure, but I don’t think that you are
as selfish as you once were, Taylor,” Helena said.

That made me feel good. I smiled at her.
“Thanks, Helena. That means a lot to me.”

“Let me think about Dylan’s dilemma. If I
come up with anything, I’ll text you,” she said.

“Thanks.”

I pondered the situation for the rest of
the school day. I probably should have paid more attention, but the thought of
Dylan homeless made me nuts. That was so unfair. Life sucked.

Where would he live? Where would he get
mail? He had to go to college.

I sighed. Daddy picked me up after
practice since my car was in the shop. This was the only part of Dylan being
gone that I liked. I had my dad all to myself.

“Hi, Daddy.”

“Hello, kitten.”

I kissed him on the cheek. “I have something
to talk to you about.”

“Sure, Taylor.”

I took a deep breath. “Dylan’s uncle is
selling the trailer. He’s going to be homeless.”

“His uncle won’t take him?”

“No, he won’t. Dylan won’t have a place to
stay. I’m worried about him.”

“You shouldn’t even be talking to him,
Taylor.”

“We are in math together. I see him five
days a week. You can’t expect me to go from being his friend to ignoring him,”
I said.

“It was being more than his friend that
was the problem.”

“Daddy, you know more about Dylan than you
did any other guy who took me on a date. You invited him into our home.”

“Not to date my daughter.”

“I know that, but think about it. You know
what his family life is like. You knew where he lived.”

“He can’t live with us. He betrayed my
trust.”

“I did, too, Daddy, but you didn’t kick me
out.”

He stared at me for a moment and I thought
I might be getting through to him. “It’s not the same. You’re my daughter.”

“You said he was the son you never had,” I
countered. I was going to play on every emotion of his that I could. I was
going to win this.

“Taylor, that isn’t fair. Both of you
acted irresponsibly.”

“Then you’ll set rules for us.”

“You’d stop seeing him and not go with him
to the prom if I let him back in the house?”

“Yes, Daddy. It’s that important to me.
Who taught me that? You.”

He eyed me as if he was seeing me for the
first time. I must have impressed him because his face softened. “Let me think
on it.”

“Thank you, Daddy. Wouldn’t you feel
guilty if in five years you saw him working at a gas station having never gone
to college?”

“I probably would, kitten, but both of you
have to follow the rules. You aren’t together. Someone else takes you to the
prom.”

I would get past the prom issue, but not
today. My mother always said to pick your battles. “Whatever rules you lay down,
we’ll abide by them. I’ll go to the prom with someone else. We won’t be
boyfriend and girlfriend. Promise.”

“Okay. Let me talk to you mother, and if
she has additional rules, you follow them.”

“Of course, Daddy. I just want Dylan to be
safe. That’s important to me.”

And, I would follow all the rules. Well,
except for prom. I really wanted to go to that with Dylan. I could convince my father
that it would be okay. Dylan was a good kid.

Chapter Thirty
Seven

Dylan

Mr. Dean picked me up from school that day
to take me to the trailer so I could pack and move back with them. I had no
idea what deal Taylor made, but I figured I was going to find out. She was
pretty amazing.

Happy to be back in the Dean household, I
listened carefully to what Mr. Dean said. “You and Taylor cannot date. You
cannot go out on a date with each other or among friends.”

“Okay.”

Right now, I’d do almost anything to stay
in the Dean house. The trailer was getting to me, leaving me hopeless. I wasn’t
going to do anything to screw myself here. Taylor would have to behave and if
she didn’t, I would have to deal with it.

Or tell on her, which I would hate to do.

Yes, I was giving up sex so I could have a
home. What teenager could do that? Well, I’d grown up some since I’d been
living on my own. It was time to be a man. Taylor could still be a teenage
girl. I would have to take control of the situation and be strong.

“You can’t be in each other’s room. And
we’d prefer if you weren’t home alone with each other. I know sometimes that is
tough, but with preplanning, you can do it,” he said.

“I’m still keeping my job, so that will
keep me pretty busy. I can change my schedule so I’m out of the house when Mrs.
Dean is in class.”

“That would be helpful. Welcome back, Dylan.
Taylor really pushed for you.”

“I know and I’ve thanked her. That was
very sweet.”

“Yes, I know. Don’t think about it that
way. As much as I love my daughter, she does sometimes bend the rules to fit
what she wants to do.”

I laughed. “I’ll stay strong. I hated my
time at the trailer. Cole kept saying it was cool, but he didn’t have to stay
there. He wanted to have a party.”

“Did you?”

“No, sir. I don’t drink. I saw what that
did to my mother. I want to be more than a minimum wage job.”

We pulled into the garage, and Mr. Dean
clapped me on the shoulder. “You are a good kid, Dylan. Just keep your nose
clean. We don’t mind if you and Taylor do homework together, but you have to be
either in the dining room or the basement where we can see you.”

“Understood, Mr. Dean.”

I unpacked, then went into the basement to
do some homework. Taylor was there, and she smiled when she saw me.

“Thanks for working so hard to get me back
here.”

“Next job, prom.”

I shook my head. “Taylor, you don’t
understand. I don’t want to go back to the trailer. I think we should just
quit.”

She pouted and my heart threatened to
melt. My stay here was contingent upon me behaving. The Deans had no idea that
we’d had sex, and I didn’t want them to know. I wanted to stay here. I wanted
to be part of the Dean family.

That meant that I had to stay away from
Taylor. Now might be a good time.

“I’m going to work in my room.”

She pouted more. “Why?”

“Because at this point, you are too much
temptation,” I said.

I brought my stuff up to my room. I’d assumed
that Taylor had been told the rules. I know she would flout some of them, but I
wasn’t going to push any boundaries. To stay here, I had to be good.

Even if I thought I could get away with
something, I wouldn’t. My focus was on catching up at school. I’d missed a few
days because of work and I was behind.

Taylor appeared in my doorway.

“Taylor, please go away,” I said.

“Why?”

“Because we are not allowed into each
other’s room. Didn’t your father tell you the rules? If we don’t follow them, I
might as well move out. It’s going to come to that.”

She stood in the doorway as if she was pondering
what I said. I walked over to close the door when Mrs. Dean walked past. I must
have looked guilty.

“What’s going on?” she said.

“I was just closing my door,” I said.

She looked from Taylor to me then back
again. I shrugged. “You know the rules.”

And of course, Mrs. Dean would be looking
for a reason to send me back. She was the only one who hadn’t seen the trailer.
“We weren’t doing anything.”

Tailor nodded. “It was my fault, Mom.
Dylan was telling me to leave.”

“I’m not comfortable with this arrangement,
so the moment you step out of line, either of you, he’s back home.”

I nodded.

Taylor frowned then walked away. Mrs. Dean
kept looking at me. I wanted to scream that it was her daughter who came into
my room.

“I’ll keep my door closed and locked from
now on,” I said.

“That might be in your best interest,” she
said.

I’d dodged a bullet, and I wanted to tell
Taylor where to go. She’d almost ruined it for me. She didn’t get that our
actions had consequences –
that
I would be out on my
ass if we didn’t do what her parents said.

It continually amazed me how much Taylor
had grown up and how much she hadn’t. She sent me a text. “Sorry. You’re right.
We need to stay apart, but I’m still going to see if we can go to prom.”

I sighed. Hopefully, she would still feel
that way and remember it the next time she wanted to flout the rules. I didn’t
want to be homeless.

I didn’t care about the prom. I know she
did, but I thought she should go with someone else who would appreciate it.
Someone her parents approved of. It was only prom, not the end of the world. At
least, not for me.