Maybe This Time (20 page)

“I’m
fine!”

“Sure you
are.”

“Ryan!”

“Come on, you
and I are spending the night together,” Ryan says, exaggerating his
voice. I nod. Ryan is always good company.

“What’s going
on?” I freeze at Reid’s voice. Ryan and I both glance up at Reid,
who's standing there watching us. I notice several subtle emotions
pass on his face.

“Summer?” he
says, looking at me strangely. If he asks me what’s wrong, I think
I might scream.

“Hey,” I say,
stepping back from Ryan’s hold.

“Come on, let
me take you home. I wanna talk to you,” he says, putting his hand
out.

I take his
hand, stepping closer to him. “We can talk, but I’m going with
Ryan,” I reply.

“You can see
Ryan after,” he says, his voice hardening.

“I just told
Ryan we'd hang out. I haven’t seen him in a few days,” I say,
pushing my hair back behind my ear.

“You haven’t
seen me either,” he says, narrowing his eyes.

“Not my
fault,” I say, lifting my shoulder in shrug.

“So that’s how
it’s gonna be, huh? You aren’t gonna support me, be understanding
about this?”

“Reid, I’ll
come see you tomorrow morning, how about that?” I say, trying to
placate him. I’m not ditching Ryan just because Reid suddenly
remembered he had a girlfriend.

“Mia was
right, you're way too immature to handle this,” he says to himself.
That comment hits me like a blow to the chest. One thing I’ve
learnt about Reid, his words can be cutting. He knows exactly what
to say to hurt you the most. And he hit his intended mark with that
one.

“Ryan, let’s
go,” I say, my eyes still on Reid. Instead of shuttering my
emotions, I let them show, but don’t feel any satisfaction when he
flinches at the pain I know is clearly displayed.

His face
softens. “Summer-”

Ignoring him,
I walk out into the car park looking for Ryan’s car. When I spot
his motorcycle instead, I grin. A ride on that will definitely
improve my mood. I turn back and see Ryan and Reid talking, Ryan
making angry hand gestures. Shit, the last thing I want is to come
between them, I’ve never met siblings as close as those two. Reid
walks out alone a few minutes later, a scowl etched on his handsome
face. He storms up to me, where I stand waiting next to Ryan’s
bike.

“We need to
talk,” he demands, taking me by the elbow and pulling me closer to
him.

“What do you
wanna talk about?”

“I’m sorry I
haven’t seen you, or came back to your house like I said I would.
Mia’s been annoying the fuck out of me, and I’ve been trying to
spend some time with River,” he says, looking apologetic.

“I’m proud of
you for stepping up, Reid, but I honestly don’t know how this is
gonna affect us. I’m not trying to be a bitch, I’m just being
honest. Mia is gonna get in the way-”

“I won’t let
her!”

“She’s your
kid's mother, Reid. Shit’s gonna be different now,” I say softly,
looking at the ground.

He lifts my
chin up with his finger. “It might be different, but it doesn’t
mean it’s going to be any less amazing between us. I love you,
Summer. I don’t wanna lose you. I need you to be patient, and be
there with me through this.”

He loves
me?

“Let’s go,
babe,” Ryan calls out as he walks up to us.

Reid takes a
helmet and puts it on for me. "You going to our place?"

“You gonna be
there?” I ask him.

He clears his
throat. “No, Mia wants me to come over there and...”

I cut him off.
“Right. Well, then yeah, I guess I’ll be at yours.”

Reid curses,
and I hate the helpless look on his face. I hop on the bike and
wrap my arms around Ryan. I see Reid watch us together and scowl. I
wave my fingers at him, and then we're off.

“Could you at
least pretend to be enjoying my company right now?” Ryan says,
throwing a piece of popcorn at my head.

“I always
enjoy your company.”

“You’ve been
staring at the wall for the last ten minutes,” he points out.

“Did you see
River?” I ask him, curious.

“Not yet, I
told Reid to bring him here tomorrow. I wanna go shopping first and
get the little guy some presents. Kids love presents,” he says, his
eyes lighting up.

“You gonna see
Zara again?” I ask, talking about the woman he went away with.

“Maybe,” he
says, smiling mischievously.

I roll my
eyes. “Your dick is gonna fall off one day.”

I laugh when I
see him cupping himself and frowning.

“Touch wood,”
I say, grinning. He looks down at his crotch again, looking
confused.

I burst out in
laughter. “No, I meant touch something wood. You know, when you say
something and you don’t want it to happen, so you touch something
wood. Like a table or something, not… that,” I point to his
penis.

“Oh." Then his
eyes widen with realisation. "Ohh,” he says.

“Oh, indeed,”
I say, wiping away tears of laughter.

He chuckles.
“You’re so weird.”

“Thank you for
making me laugh.”

“Anytime. Now
you gonna watch the movie?” he asks, raising a brow.

“Yep,” I say,
in a much better mood now. Reid told me he loved me tonight, and I
didn’t even get to enjoy the moment. The truth is, I love him
too.

More than
anything.

I just hope we
can work this out.

Dash and
Xander drop by, and I laugh when I see that my brother has gone to
the grocery store and bought all the ingredients for his favourite
meal. He actually brought them all to Ryan’s apartment and asked me
if I would cook for him with puppy dog eyes he knows I can’t say no
to. Dash looks hopeful, too, his violet eyes smiling at me.

“Where the
heck have you been, Dash?” I ask him as I’m peeling potatoes.

“Around,” he
says vaguely.

“You hardly
come to the bar anymore.”

“Yeah, I’ve
been a little distracted,” he says, looking down at his shoes.

“I’m always
here if you wanna talk,” I say softly, studying him.

“I know,
baby,” he says, walking over and kissing me on the forehead. “You
know when I first saw you, I was gonna make a move on you.”

“What?
Really?” I remember him checking me out that first day, but that’s
about it.

“Sure, you’re
beautiful, loving, there’s just something about you, Summer Kane,”
he says, flashing me a crooked smile.

“So, what
happened?” I ask, nudging him with my elbow.

“I saw how you
looked at Reid, you were done for, baby girl,” he says, shaking his
head at me. I blush, looking down at the potato. “I heard what
happened. Didn’t see that one coming.”

“You and me
both,” I say, enunciating each word dramatically.

“Well, you
know where to look if the two of you break up,” he says, waggling
his dark eyebrows.

“Ryan?” I
joke.

“Ha-ha, very
funny,” he says. “You want some help?”

“Sure, you can
cut up some tomatoes for me. Thanks.”

“No problem.
Don’t think I can handle any more Dynasty Warriors with those two,”
he says, groaning.

I gape at him.
“Dynasty Warriors is my favourite game. In fact, I’m the one who
bought it!”

“That explains
it,” he says, his lip twitching.

I point at his
chest with my finger. “See. You and I wouldn’t have worked
out.”

“Cos I don’t
like that stupid game?” he asks, chuckling.

“Yes.”

“Does Reid
like it?”

“Reid
loves
it,” I say.

“I’ll bet he
does,” Dash says, his eyes twinkling.

“What does
that mean?”

“It means I’m
sure Reid likes anything you like, or at least pretends to. Hell,
if you were mine, I’d play that stupid game, too, just to see you
smile.”

My eyes flare
in surprise. “That was... really sweet, Dash.”

He winces.
“Yeah, let’s keep that between the two of us.”

We share a
look. “Always.”

“I brought you
coffee,” Silas says as he takes a seat next to me.

“
You
are a lifesaver, I really need to get this assignment done,” I say,
grinning up at him. I take a sip of my coffee. Strong, just the way
I like it.

“What happened
to you?” I ask when I see his cut lip.

He touches his
mouth with the back of his hand. “Just a scuffle.”

“Let me guess,
I should see the other guy?”

He chuckles.
“Exactly.”

“How’s your
assignment going?” I ask him.

“Almost done,”
he says.

“Lucky you,” I
grumble, highlighting something in my text book.

“You seem
happier today,” he observes. I haven’t seen Reid in three days, but
we’ve been talking a heap on the phone. I’ve been really busy with
class and Reid’s been busy with training, River and running the
bar. I was in here yesterday and the day before, and so was Silas.
We're kind of each other’s unofficial study buddies.

“I feel
happier today,” I tell him. And I do. I’ve thought about Reid,
River and Mia a lot since I found out the news, and I think that I
love Reid enough to make this work. If he still wants me. I plan on
heading to his house after this to talk, and move forward. Sure, I
don’t know anything about kids.

But I could be
River’s friend.

I could
support Reid. It’s not like he’s asking me to act like River’s
step-mother.

I realise I’ve
hurt Reid, and I haven’t been there for him because of my own
jealousy and insecurities.

First things
first, I need to finish this damn assignment.

The drive to
Reid’s apartment is filled with nervous energy. I park my car a
little crooked, jump out and rush up the stairs. Ryan answers the
door after several knocks. He smiles when he sees me.

“Hey,
babe.”

“Hey. Reid
here?”

“He’s at the
park with River,” he says, stepping back so I can enter.

“I’ll wait for
him.”

“Good. He’s
been moody as hell, you two need to make up. For the sake of my
sanity. Even Jade won’t go near him,” he says as we walk into the
living room.

I sink down on
the couch, and slip my thongs off my feet. “How’s River doing?”

“Good. He
loves me,” he beams. He runs his hands through his hair, the blond
locks falling right back into place.

“Loving the
stubble, Ry,” I say honestly, checking out his scruffy look.

“Really? Hmm,
maybe I’ll leave it,” he says, a gleam in his eyes.

The door
opens, and Reid walks in. He’s holding River up in the air, the
both of them smiling. Mia walks in behind them, and seeing me, lays
a possessive hand on Reid’s chest.

That one move
has me seeing red.

I watch as
Reid smiles widely as he sees me, putting River down carefully and
practically running to me.

“You’re a
sight for sore eyes, beauty,” he whispers in my ear, before he
pulls back and kisses me on the lips.

“You’re in
front of your son, Reid,” Mia scolds, her face going an
unattractive shade of red. Reid ignores her and kisses me once
more, soft and sweet.

“We needa
talk, baby.”

I nod. He
trails his gaze over my face, as if memorizing each individual
feature.

“I’m going to
go then, Reid,” Mia says sternly, trying to pull the attention back
to her. Reid turns towards her, but only has eyes for his son. He
picks River up and hugs him close to his chest.

“I’ll come and
see him tomorrow, alright,” he says to Mia. “I’ll go walk them out,
Summer.”

Ryan chuckles
and I look at him, curious. “What?”

“Mia wanted to
stay here and cook dinner for Reid tonight. She didn’t expect you
to be here.”

I scrunch up
my page. “She better get used to it.”

He laughs
again, clearly amused. “I should get some popcorn, watch how this
plays out.”

“You’re meant
to have my back! Some BFFL you are,” I complain.

“What the fuck
is a BFFL?” he asks, looking baffled.

“Best friend
for life,” I say. Duh.

“That term is
so overdone. I’m more like your pole,” he says after a few
thoughtful seconds.

I blink twice.
“Did you just call yourself my pole?”

“I did,” he
says, looking pleased with himself.

“A pole.”

“Yes, a
pole.”

“Are you gonna
explain that, or just leave me sitting here with my ‘what the fuck’
face on?”

“I’m here for
you whenever you need to lean on me. Like a pole.”

I look at him
for a few full seconds before I start laughing so hard, my stomach
starts to hurt.

Ryan actually
starts to look offended. “I’m pretty sure a BFFL isn’t meant to
laugh at you so much.”

“What’s so
funny?” Reid asks as he walks in.

“Your brother
is hilarious,” I say, looking at Ryan again, and immediately
erupting in another fit of laughter.

Reid loses his
patience and lifts me into his arms, bride style. I’m still
giggling when he lays me down on the bed.

“God, you're
even more beautiful than when I last saw you,” he says reverently,
taking my hand in his and kissing my knuckles.

“I’m sorry I
wasn’t here for you, Reid. I was scared, and a little jealous, to
be honest.”

He instantly
looks over and gives me his full attention. “Why would you be
jealous?”

“You’re connected to Mia now, for life, and she
still wants you. I’m not your priority anymore, and I get that,
your son should come first. I just couldn’t help the way I felt,
though. I went from being your everything, to you not even having
time to come and see me. I know it sounds selfish,” I say in a
small voice.

“It’s
perfectly understandable, babe, I shouldn’t have done that to you.
I don’t want you to feel as though you aren’t important to me,
because you are. I fucking love you, baby, there's nothing more
important to me. Things will change, they will get better for
us.”