Misty Reigenborn Romance Boxed Set (41 page)

Kimber

Since she and Paul planned
to get married on Valentine's Day, they had a lot of planning to do in a short time.  With the holiday season coming up as well, there was even more for her to do and the days seemed to pass quickly.  But they were happy days.  She and Paul planned to move into a five bedroom house they had found on the outskirts of town, figuring that any miles they could save on driving when trading the kids off would be good for all of them.   The house had a huge yard and the kids loved it, happily choosing their bedrooms.  Both her house and Paul's sold relatively quickly and everything seemed to be going better than she could have ever hoped for.  The sizzle was still definitely there in their sex life and Paul was even learning to be spontaneous in bed which made her even happier.

Valentine’s Day

Paul

Paul was nervous on his wedding day.  It was one of the happiest days of his life, and he couldn't wait until he could call Kimber his wife.  But his heart was pounding so hard he thought it was going to pound right out of his chest. 

They had booked a local community center for the wedding, and it was decorated beautifully.  The children were all sharing the tasks of "throwing flowers" again.  He was proud of all of them as he waited for Kimber to walk down the aisle.

Kimber

Kimber's heart was beating fast as she walked down the aisle, her eyes locked on Paul.  He looked so handsome and so happy.  Her eyes grew moist as she approached him, and she could see tears standing in his eyes as well as he took her hands in his own.

It felt almost dreamlike as she repeated her vows, but it was no dream as Paul kissed her for the first time as her husband.  Everyone clapped and Luke even let out a hoot, winking at her when she looked at him.  She shook her head at him and he smiled.

The reception was very nice but Kimber couldn't wait for it to be over.  She was anxious for her honeymoon and very much looking forward to spending many blissful hours in bed with Paul.

Sierra

When Sierra walked into work the day after Paul and Kimber's wedding, she could immediately tell that something was wrong.  Mrs. Peterson avoided her eyes as soon as she walked in, and no one else seemed to want to look at her either.

Her stomach was already a little queasy and it only got worse when Mr. Moran called her into his office.

He motioned for her to sit down.  She sat uncomfortably on the chair across from his desk and waited for him to begin, wondering if she was losing her job.

Moran cleared his throat.

"I want you to understand that this isn't easy for me Sierra.  The children adore you and you're so good at teaching them."

Her heart sank even further.

"We've had to make some tough decisions lately.  I know that you were told we would be able to hold your position for you until you returned from maternity leave."

He sighed.  "But unfortunately we just found out that we're going to be losing further funding at the end of the month.  We'll have to cut back to two teachers, and since you'll be leaving in another few months anyway, we're going to have to let you go Sierra.  I'm sorry."

Sierra's temper made her want to tell him to go screw himself since she had caught him trying to look down her shirt on several occasions, but she held her tongue.  She wasn't sure what he expected her to say, but he was giving her a look that told her he expected her to say something.

"I understand."

She didn't really, but she gave him a tight smile as she stood, though her heart felt like it was breaking in her chest.  She was beginning to think that the universe was against her having a job.  It pissed her off almost as much as it saddened her.

"Is there anything else Mr. Moran?"

"No.  We'll have a party on your last day for the children.  We will all miss you Sierra."

"Right."

She turned and walked out of the office, afraid she was going to say something that would make him ask her to leave that day.

The day was hard for her as she knew that every day of the last two weeks she spent with her students would be.  She adored each and every one of the children that she taught. 

Between her overall unhappiness with the day and her pregnancy hormones, she was close to tears most of the day.  She let herself cry a little when she got into her car after work.  It seemed to help a little, but she was in tears again by the time she pulled into her driveway and found herself unable to stop crying.

Luke

Sierra was in tears when she walked in the door and Luke was glad that the kids were upstairs in their rooms.  If it was hard for him to see the woman he loved cry, he knew it would be even harder on both the kids and her if they saw her crying.

He immediately took his pregnant wife into his arms.  "Oh baby, what's wrong?"

Sierra had to take a deep breath and let it out before she could speak.

"I got fired Luke."

"Oh baby, I'm so sorry.  I thought they told you they could hold your job for you."

He handed her a handful of tissues.

"Moran said funding got cut and they had to eliminate a teaching position.  And of course since I'm already leaving, they chose to eliminate me.  Dammit Luke, why does it seem like the whole damned world is against me having a job?"

"Ahh baby.  It's gonna be okay."

"Don't try to put me off Luke, this job was important to me.  It's pointless to look for another job when I'm going to be having a baby in a few months."

"So you'll find another job after you have the baby.  I know it sucks Sie, but it's not the end of the world."

Sierra got a dangerous look in her eyes then, and Luke knew that he'd said the wrong thing.

"You sound just like Paul.  You don't need a job Sierra, you can be a baby maker.  I love being a mother Luke, but I want more from my life.  It doesn't mean I love the kids any less."

"I know Sie.  I'm not Paul and I'm not going to tell you how to handle your career.  Do you want to take the kids to the movies?"

Sierra sighed.  "I'm in such a bad mood.  I don't want to spoil it for everyone."

"Would you like to rest while I take the kids to the movies?"

Since Kimber and Paul were on their honeymoon, Luke and Sierra had all three kids.

"I think I'd like that.  I'm sorry Luke.  It's been such a shitty day.  I'm gonna miss my kids so much."

He squeezed her hand.  "I know baby.  You'll find another job.  An even better one."

Sierra gave him a weak smile.  "I hope so."

"You can look for a job anywhere you want babe."

She brightened a little.  "I didn't think about that.  It would be nice to be closer to your kids.  Easier on all of us all around too."

"See baby, sometimes the shit that life throws at us can be a blessing in disguise."

Sierra laughed.  "I love you Luke."

"I love you too beautiful.  More than you'll ever know."

"I'm going to go check on the kids.  They seem quiet."

"I fed them lunch a little while ago.  The boys might be asleep, and you know Alexis hardly ever gets into mischief."

"How did your daughter turn out to be such an angel?"

Luke chuckled.  "They get that from their mom.  I think Nathan must get his angelic side from you too."

Sierra snorted.  "You're sweet Luke, but be serious."

He smiled.  "I love you Sierra.  Go check on the kids and then take your beautiful butt to bed or the couch or wherever you plan to relax."

"I love you Luke.  Are you sure you can put up with me for the rest of our lives?"

"As long as you can put up with me."

"I think I can."

Sierra gave him a quick kiss and then headed for the stairs.  He was glad her mood was somewhat better at least and was sure that by the time he and the kids returned, she would be more like herself.

Paul

Paul had never had as much sex in four days
’ time in his life as he did on his honeymoon with Kimber.  But it was so wonderful that he couldn't imagine not wanting to make love to Kimber.  He even found himself fantasizing about what she would look like when she was pregnant with his child.  Sierra had looked even more beautiful to him when she'd been pregnant with Nathan, but he'd been so afraid to hurt her or the baby that he hadn't wanted to make love to her.  He knew that things would be different with Kimber though.  He could talk to her about anything, and was looking forward to sharing his life with her.

Kimber

Their honeymoon was amazing.  Kimber felt like she was walking around in a state of perpetual bliss.  She was sad to see it end, but she knew that it was time to go home and start their lives together as man and wife.

When they picked the kids up from Luke and Sierra, they got the news that Sierra was going to look for a teaching job closer to where she and Paul lived after her maternity leave.  Paul smiled so wide she thought his face would split and she was happy they would be closer together too.

Sierra

When everything seemed to fall into place almost immediately after her last day at work, Sierra started to believe that losing her job had been meant to be.  She did miss her kids, but the loss of her job stung a lot less as the days passed.  She was happy at home with Luke and the kids and her pregnancy was going well, no bed rest this time.  They found a house close to Paul and Kimber and made plans for their move after the birth of the baby.  Sierra found several teaching jobs that looked promising and all in all life was good.

Luke

When Sierra gave birth right on time to a healthy baby girl, he cried.  He was a little embarrassed, but he was so happy that his wife and child were doing well that he didn't care that a hospital room full of people saw him crying.

They named the beautiful six pound four ounce baby girl who had Luke's darker blonde hair and Sierra's gorgeous green eyes Taylor Sienna Stone.  All three went home from the hospital together and spent a few days alone.  Paul was thrilled to have extra time with Nathan and Sierra knew that her son adored his stepmother.

Everything went as planned with the move, though their old house didn't sell right away.  They didn't exactly need the money, especially since Luke had managed to write another hit song.  When the house still hadn't sold several months later, they agreed to donate it to a local organization that provided a temporary place to stay for men that had been physically abused by their partners. 

Sierra secured a job at a local head start program.  Her new job made her very happy, even more so since Luke was taking care of Taylor.  The job didn't pay that well, but she loved the children and there had always been much more in life that was more important to her than money.  Nathan and Halden were very proud big brothers and Alexis adored her baby sister.

Paul loved his new job and the extra time he had with Nathan was very good for both of them.  On the one year anniversary of his wedding Paul got the news he was going to be a father again.  Life had never been better for him or Kimber.

While things weren't always easy for Sierra and Luke and Kimber and Paul, the twists of fate that had brought them together and blended their families seemed to be meant to be.  And they all lived (mostly) happily ever after.

Misty Reigenborn

Copyright 2012

By Misty Reigenborn

Chapter 1

Brandylynn was lying in bed in her bra and panties watching a movie.  She heard her boyfriend walking around in the living room and called out to him “Chad.  C’mere baby.”

Chad stood in the doorway to their bedroom.  “What’s up Brandy?”

“I need a line babe.  Just one.  I promise I’ll be really good to you in bed tonight.”

“You’re always good to me in bed Brandy, but I don’t have any coke.  I need to go out and restock my supply.”

Brandy gave him a pout.  She sat up in bed, tossing the sheet aside.  She tossed her dark hair over her shoulder and gave him a look that she hoped showed him how much she was pleading with him and how sexy she was at the same time.

“Please Chad?  Don’t tell me that you don’t have one line.  I’ll be even better in bed tonight.  I’ll let you do that thing to me that I never let you do because I think it’s nasty.”

Chad smiled, but then it faded.  “I seriously don’t have anything babe.  That’s why I gotta get out of here.”

Brandy looked at the clock.  It was close to midnight.  “You’re going to go buy drugs at this time of night?  Do you have gas money?  I might be able to get my mom to send me some money if you have a calling card.  And don’t take too long being gone.  I’m horny.”

Chad laughed.  “You’re always horny Brandy.  Those chick flicks you watch all the time might as well be porn.  I have gas money babe.  I gotta have money to buy drugs don’t I?”

Brandy made a face.  “I miss you when you’re gone.  This apartment, this life we’re living is nothing like you promised me when I left town with you.”

Chad crossed to the bed and kissed her.  “I’m sorry baby.  I don’t have a calling card.  I don’t think your mom wants to talk to you anyway.”

“Thanks a lot Chad.  You’re an asshole, you know that?”

“Never said I wasn’t babe.  I really gotta get outta here.  It’s silly of you to ask if I can buy drugs at this time of night, but these guys only stay up so long.  I’ll bring you back some coke, I promise.  Try to go to sleep.  Before you know it, I’ll be back.”

“Yeah right.  Sometimes you’re gone all night.  I worry that you’re in jail or something.  My mom really wouldn’t give me the money to bail you out.  She doesn’t like you.”

“I know that.  I don’t think your parents would like me if I wasn’t dealing.  But they’re weird so who cares?”

Brandy sighed.  “We didn’t come here so you could deal Chad.  We were both supposed to get clean.  You were supposed to have a real job waiting for you.”

“I know baby.  I gotta go.”  Chad turned to leave.

“I love you Chad.”

When he didn’t reply she said “There’s someone else isn’t there?”

Chad turned back.  “Brandy don’t be ridiculous.  How could I handle another woman?  Sometimes I think you’d be too much for two guys to handle.”

Brandy rolled her eyes.  “Ha ha.  Do you have a cigarette?”

“I’m almost out babe.  I’ll pick some up while I’m out.”

“Give me what you have left then since you’re going to pick up more while you’re out.”

Chad sighed and pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket.  He took one out and threw the rest of the pack to Brandy.  She caught it.  He turned to leave again.  “Hey.”

Chad turned back.  She could see that he was losing patience with her.  “What Brandy?”

“Aren’t you gonna kiss me goodbye?”

Chad moved back to the bed.  She ran one hand over his crotch while she ran her other hand through his hair.  When Chad pulled away from her kiss several minutes later, he shoved her hand away and gave her a look that so was close to disgusted that she felt insulted.

“Brandy.”

“What?  I told you I was horny.  Don’t you have time for a quickie before you go?”

“No.  Damn, sometimes I think you’re a sex addict.”

“You admit that you’re addicted to sex so what does it matter if I am?”

Chad sighed.  “I’m gonna go because you’re going to try to trap me here all night if I don’t.”

He walked out of their bedroom and closed the door behind him.

She threw his pillow at the door.  “Fuck you Chad.  You wanna know who’s trapped?  It’s sure as hell not you.”

She heard Chad laugh as he opened the door to the apartment.  It closed with a loud bang. She wondered why he didn’t care about waking up the neighbors since they had kids, but then she figured that he didn’t care because half of the people that had kids in their building bought drugs from him.

Brandy lay back on the bed and lit a cigarette.  She stared at the water stains on the ceiling and wondered how in the hell she had gotten herself into this life.  When she was little she’d had dreams like everyone else.  They had started to go away after she’d ended up pregnant twice a teenager though, and everyone seemed to stop looking at her as anything other than a pretty, stupid girl who wouldn’t keep her legs closed.

She had truly thought that Chad loved her when she’d come to Brunton with him.  She’d thought that he was going to get her away from her parents and give her a good life.  She’d been sure that they would eventually get married and have kids.  She missed Joey, her three year old son that her parents had insisted she put up for adoption so much that she could hardly stand it. 
She didn’t want to admit to Chad how much she wanted to get married and have a baby though.  She was sure he would think it was silly. 

She put her cigarette out in the ashtray on the nightstand and picked up the remote for the DVD player.  She’d missed the good part of the movie when she’d been arguing with Chad, and she wanted to see it.  She found the scene, and started it over, trying not to let herself feel anything.  She missed Chad.  She missed the way their relationship used to feel.  She also wanted to get high pretty badly and she really was rather horny she thought.

Brandy was asleep before the movie ended.  She was half awake the next morning when she rolled over and patted the bed beside her without opening her eyes, hoping to feel the warmth of Chad’s naked body since he always slept nude.  She was still horny and she was hoping to talk Chad into some wake up and make up sex-but his side of the bed was empty.

She groaned as she sat up, feeling totally pissed off that he wasn’t home.  The clock on the nightstand read 5 minutes after 8.  That meant he’d been gone at least eight hours.  Just how long did he want her to believe it took him to buy drugs she thought?

She got out of bed and used the restroom then lit a cigarette and walked out to the living room, blinking in the bright light because the blinds had fallen down again.  She sighed when she saw that Chad wasn’t in either the living room or the kitchen and reminded herself to put the blind back up after she got dressed.  She wondered if she had enough change to call his cell phone as she headed back to the bedroom. 

She put her cigarette out after smoking half and dug in her purse for her wallet.  She had enough change to make three phone calls and nothing else.  There wasn’t even a rumpled dollar bill in the bottom of her purse.  She knew that the fridge was almost empty again so she hoped that Chad came back soon for more reasons than one.

She started the movie that she’d watched the last night over because it had been part of the reason that she’d been feeling so turned on the night before.  She thought the male lead was very hot.  She wanted that feeling when Chad finally decided to come home, instead of all the anger that was starting to bubble up at him again.

He wasn’t home by the time the movie was over and she’d let the movie get to her even more than it had the night before.  She liked to think that it was funny when Chad said the movies she watched might as well be porn, but sometimes she thought that it was true.  She only liked movies with hot actors who didn’t mind taking their shirts off that also had racy sex scenes. 

She went into the bathroom and turned the shower on, hoping that the hot water was in the mood to last today because it certainly wasn’t always.  She stripped and stepped under the spray, wondering if she could wait until Chad got home to release the sexual tension that had been building up since the night before.  She pondered the idea for a minute then decided that she’d wait since it always felt so much better to have Chad do the things to her that she liked and even better when he did things to her that she couldn’t do for herself.  She washed her hair and her body thoroughly, rinsed off and turned the shower off.

She stepped out of the shower and frowned at her reflection in the mirror.  She had dark circles under her eyes and a pimple had popped up on her chin.  She washed her face again and wished that whoever had told her you stopped getting pimples at twenty had been telling the truth. 

She dressed and went out to the living room.  Chad still wasn’t home.  She re hung the blinds and made herself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, wishing that they had bananas.  She was tired of peanut butter and jelly, and bananas made the sandwiches less boring though the only time she ate bananas was in sandwiches or cereal. 

She went back to bedroom with the thought in her head that if her boyfriend had to be a drug dealer the least he could do was be good at it instead of being so bad that they were barely able to pay the rent and utilities and put food on the table, and buy cigarettes once in a while.  Of course they both had a coke habit, and Brandy had a feeling that Chad had been using meth for a while now too.  She flopped back onto the bed with a sigh, wondering when it was going to be her turn to have a fairy tale romance.

She watched three movies and fell asleep again, trying to keep her craving for coke at bay.  When she awoke several hours later the apartment was silent and she knew that Chad still hadn’t come home.  It was dark outside and she was hungry again.  She lit a cigarette and went to the kitchen.  She opened the cupboards, but only managed to find a dented can of tuna and a can of peas.  They didn’t have any mayonnaise or mustard, which were the only ways she could stand to eat tuna fish.  She opened the fridge again, not finding anything besides the expected loaf of bread, and jar of jelly.

She made herself a sandwich and took it with her outside to the payphone.  On the way, she ended up giving her sandwich to a sad eyed dirty little kid who was wandering around in the parking lot of the complex.  She thought that he belonged to one of the women that bought drugs from Chad on a regular basis, but she wasn’t sure.  She felt guilty that she didn’t have more to offer the child when he ran back towards the playground.

She checked the phone to make sure it had a dial tone and then put her money in, dialing Chad’s number from memory.  Her call went straight to voicemail.   She cursed under her breath while she waited for the beep.

“Where the hell are you Chad?  There’s no food in the house.  I’m almost out of cigarettes and I want to get high.  You know they threatened to cut off the electricity if you didn’t pay them something by tomorrow.  So get your ass home.  And bring me a soda, cigarettes, some coke and something real to eat.  Bye asshole.”

She hung up the phone and walked away, glad to see that the child had disappeared inside.  She went back to her apartment and made herself another sandwich and took it back to the bedroom with her not caring that Chad always bitched at her when she ate in bed because she always managed to leave crumbs on his side of the bed.

She finished her sandwich and wanted another one, but there were only a few pieces of bread left.  She really didn’t think that her mother would send her more money even if she told her she was starving.  If Chad was around they could go to a food bank in the morning but she couldn’t walk there and walk back with the boxes of food by herself.  She was even more pissed off at him for not being home by the time she fell asleep that night.  She only had two cigarettes left.

The next morning she awoke to a knock on the door.  She rolled over in bed and sat up; giving Chad’s side of the bed a dirty look when she saw it was still empty.  The knocking had subsided.  When she opened the door she noticed a truck with the logo from the power company pulling out of the lot.  She pulled the shut off notice off of the door, balled it up and threw it back in the house.  She didn’t bother to put her shoes on before she headed to the payphone.  She didn’t care that she was in her pajamas either. 

She pulled the change out of her pocket that she’d put there before she’d left the bedroom and picked up the phone receiver.  The dial tone buzzed at her.  She put the coins into the slot and dialed Chad’s phone number.  It kicked straight to voicemail again, and she cursed aloud this time. 

“Fuck.”  She waited for the beep and then said “Get your sorry ass home Chad.  I mean it.  And stop and make a payment on the electric bill on the way you jerk since it’s in my name.  I want food, and I want cigarettes.  I want something to drink besides nasty tap water and I want a line like you wouldn’t believe.  You’d better be nice to me if you ever want to get laid again.” 

Brandy banged the phone back into the cradle.  She stalked back to the apartment and paced back and forth across the living room for a while.  It soon made her realize how hungry she was and she made herself a sandwich.  She ate in the living room, staring out the window, blinds open so that she could see Chad’s crappy car as soon as it pulled into the lot.  He still hadn’t returned home by the afternoon.  She was tempted to call her mother but wondered if she’d bother to answer the call since she’d have to call collect again.