Rookie (28 page)

He tried a smile but failed.  “The entire time, Melanie was sitting at home, wondering what I was doing.  She’d given up her college opportunities because she’d had so much faith in me.  She always believed that I would be a big star and that life would be good.”

Not sure what to say, Sidney remained quiet.  She’d let him talk; let him get it all off his chest.

Clasping his hands between his knees, he studied the floor.  “When she left, I just thought it wasn’t meant to be.  I focused on my music and nothing else.  Sure, I’d screw around here or there, but I never let myself become involved with anyone else.  I wanted to prove to her that I was going to make it, you know?  I wanted to show her that it wasn’t all for nothing.”

“So,” he sighed.  “Once my career got off the ground, I called her.  She was working in a retail shop while going to school.  She’d just about obtained her degree and was about to enter the fashion world. 
She was happy to hear that I’d made it, but she wanted her turn.  She didn’t want to be tied down to a husband whose first love was music.”

Sidney nodded, afraid to speak and stop him.

“You know how it went.  Years rolled by and we’d keep in contact; hook up for a weekend here or there.  It wasn’t until earlier this year that she decided she wanted to try again.  At first, I was all for it.  But something happened this spring that made me think twice.”

She didn’t ask.  She wanted to know, but didn’t ask.  He’d tell her in time.  At least she hoped.  But he was on a roll and she didn’t want to interrupt.

“I wasn’t sure what to do about it.  I decided to just roll with things and see what happened. I dated Melanie, for lack of a better word, and sometimes, it seemed like old times.  But other times, it seemed like an effort.  I didn’t want it to feel like that.”

He stood to pace again.  Her heart went out to him.

“When you and I argued and stopped speaking, I spent more time with Mel, thinking that would stop the hurt.  It didn’t work, though.  I missed you.”

He smiled at her before turning away.

“I went on this cruise, not as a last ditch effort, but as closure, I guess.  I wanted to talk to Melanie and find out how she really felt.  That’s when she told me about the guy she’d been seeing in San Francisco.  I was relieved.  I couldn’t believe how relieved I was.  Once she admitted it, then I told her about us – about what happened.”

“Oh,” Sidney muttered.

He turned to smile at her.  “Yeah.  She was hurt, of course, but she understood why it happened, and, particularly, that her and I weren’t even together at the time.  That’s when we really began to talk.”

“And?”
Sidney whispered.

“We sorted through our feelings and realized that, although we’ll probably always love each other, that we’re not in love anymore.  That all these efforts were more for nostalgic reasons than anything else.”

Sidney shook her head, confusion clouding her brain.  “What do you mean?”

He sat beside her on the bed.  “It means that
me and Melanie don’t work that way anymore.  Maybe we never did.  But we both know it now and we’re both free to move on – get on with our lives.”

“Meaning?” she asked, tamping down the hope rising in her heart.

He took her hand and kissed her cheek.  “Meaning let’s get out of here.  Your room is waiting at my house and Mrs. B would love to fuss over you again.”

***

Mrs. B truly was waiting to fuss over her.  As soon as she walked through the door, Mrs. B pounced, tsking at the cuts and bruises on her face.

“And you’re too thin,” Mrs. B frowned.  “You need a good meal and a good night’s sleep.”

Rob shot Sidney a wink before carrying her bag up to the guest room.

Mrs. B wrapped an arm around Sidney’s shoulder and guided her into the kitchen.  “Everything is going to be all right now.  Just you watch.”

That night, after dinner, Sidney followed Rob out to the deck.  Her heart twittered, not sure which way to go.  It seemed as if everything was slipping back into place, but questions still blazed her mind, begging to be asked.

They settled into their usual chairs and watched the sun color the sky in brilliant rays of gold, amber, and dusty red before bowing out for the night.

“How you feeling, Rookie?” he asked.

“Good,” she said as she sipped from her water bottle. 
“How about you? All this stuff with Melanie, it has to hurt.”

“Actually, it doesn’t.  Not really.  I mean, I sort of feel free now.  Something loosened in my chest.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Sidney said.

He got up from his chair to perch on the edge of her chaise.  “We still need to discuss some things, Sid.  I don’t want to overwhelm you…”

“You won’t,” she said.  “I agree, we do need to talk.”

He smiled as he patted her leg.  “I don’t know how to say this.  It’s never been this hard.”

She nibbled on her lip as he dropped his head, taking deep breaths. 

“It looks like things are on the right track with us and I don’t want to screw it up again, but I think there are things that need to be said.”

“I agree.”

He lifted his head to smile.  “Even before…that night…there was something between us.  Well, at least I felt it.  I don’t know if you did.”

“I did,” she whispered.

His smile grew.  “I thought so. 
I…oh, hell.”

He stood and paced the length of the deck.  She watched, helpless.  He stopped before her and offered a hand.  She took it and he helped her to her feet.  Carefully cupping her face, he sighed.

“I hurt you, Sid.  I said some awful things – especially about you and the Mystic Dash guys and I’m sorry.”

“I know,” she said.  “It’s okay.”

“It’s not,” he said.  “As soon as I said it, I regretted it.  I never wanted to hurt you.”

“Then why did you say it?” she asked.  “Why did you say something so horrible to me?  You know my past and you knew that I would never sleep with one of them.”

“I was jealous, Sid,” he said, dropping her face and turning away. “I was so damn jealous.”

“Jealous? 
Of what?”

He dropped his head.  “They’re great guys.  And they’re closer to your age than I am.  I watched the five of you in the rehearsal room that day and you seemed to click with them.  I couldn’t stand it.  And then, at the party, they flocked to you and took care of you when you were…”

“Drunk?” she finished.  “Yeah, they did.  Because they are my friends – nothing more.”

“But I was your friend, too, remember?” he asked as he turned around.

Lifting her chin, she bared her soul.  “You were never just my friend, Rob.  You were always something more.”

A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. 
“Back at you, Rookie.”

Her brow lifted as confusion crossed her face.  He stepped closer, rubbing the back of his neck.  “Hell, Sid, how do I say it?”

“Say what?”

He cupped her chin, lifting her eyes to his.  “I love you, Sid.  I’m in love with you.  I told Mel that but she’d already sort of figured it out.”

Sidney’s eyes widened as her heart began to sing.  “I love you, too.”

He pressed a soft kiss to her lips.  “I don’t want to scare you off, or anything.  I mean, things haven’t exactly been easy for us.”

She shook her head, her body trembling.  “No, not exactly.”

“And I want to do this right,” he said, stroking her cheek with his thumb.  “I don’t want to mess up again.”

“What do you have in mind?” she asked, holding her breath.

Dropping his hand from her face, he wrapped her in his arms and tugged her to his body. She nestled her head under his chin, closing her eyes.  She’d stay there forever if he’d let her.

“I think we need to take it slow,” he said.  “I don’t want us to just jump into something.  I want to do this right.  I think you should stay in your room and me in mine.”

He leaned back to look into her face.

“Unless you need me or something.”

She
smiled, her heart filling with love.  “Okay.”

“So, what do you think?  Do you want to give this a shot?”

She grinned.  “Absolutely.”

He kissed her to seal the deal.

Epilogue

Knocking on his door, she waited for his response before walking in.  He was stretched on his bed, wearing shorts and a t-shirt, remote in hand.  He muted the TV when he spotted her and smiled.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing,” she said as she crossed the room.  He patted the spot next to him so she hopped on the bed and snuggled into his side.  “What are you watching?”

“Was watching the news,” he said.  “But I’ve had enough of death and destruction.  Can’t sleep?”

She lifted a shoulder as she considered what she wanted to say.

It had been three months since she’d moved back into his house.  She’d considered finding a new apartment or even moving back into the cottage once the damage was fixed, but Rob convinced her to stay.

So, she had.

And he’d kept true to his word.  He dated her – took her out a few times a week.  They’d go for dinner or to the movies and he’d hold her hand.  When they’d return home, he’d kiss her goodnight and they’d part for their separate bedrooms.

Things seemed to be falling back into place, though not quickly enough for Sidney.  Her relationship with
Lexie strengthened.  They decided to have a girl’s night, sending Chad to Rob’s for the evening so they could spend time together and talk.  After putting everything on the table, and after a tearful, tense conversation, they managed to move forward and were becoming very good friends.

Melanie opted to return to the home store in San Francisco.  She’d gone to dinner with Rob one night to explain her decision.  They decided that, in order for both of them to move on with their lives, they needed to put some miles between them.

Lexie had a hard time with it, but she understood and welcomed the growing relationship between her cousin and Sidney.

Although Sidney was living in Rob’s house, they hadn’t engaged in anything more than heavy kissing sessions.  She was touched by his determination to wine and dine her and do things right, but she was getting tired of waiting.

“You know, it’s been three months,” Sidney said, resting her chin on his chest.

A smirk toyed with the corners of his mouth as he played with her hair.  “I know.”

“You said we should take it slow and we have.”

“Yep,” he said, prodding her frustration.

“Well, I don’t want to wait anymore.”

He lifted a brow as his hand froze in her hair. 
“Hmm.  You think?”

She lifted her chin and scooted up his body.  “I know.”

He pulled her closer, his lips on hers.  “Far be it from me to disappoint a beautiful woman.”

She smiled as her body tingled in anticipation. His kiss deepened as he shifted so that she was underneath him.  She clung to his body, waiting, shivering.  Finally, he broke the kiss and lifted her shirt over her head.  He continued to kiss her, starting with her lips and moving to her neck.

As he removed the rest of her clothes, he sighed, placing his mouth near her ear.

“I’ve missed you, Sid.”

When it was over, he held her to his chest.  She closed her eyes, a soft smile on her face.

“What am I going to call you now?” he asked.

She nestled into his chest.  “What do you mean?”

“Well, you’ve been with the company for
awhile now,” he said.  “Rookie doesn’t seem to fit anymore.”

“I don’t know,” she said around a yawn.

“I was thinking,” he said, pausing.  “Maybe we should call you Mrs. Ross.”

Her head snapped up, her jaw unhinged.  “Rob, um, it’s a little soon, don’t you think?”

He kissed her and cupped her cheek.  “You said you were tired of waiting.”

“Tired of waiting for this,” she said, pointing at their naked bodies.

“Okay, fine,” he said with a wink.  “We’ll wait a little longer for that, then.”

“Yes, that’s a good idea.”

She placed her head on the pillow next to him as her body relaxed and drowsiness washed over her in waves.

“But I’m not waiting long,” he whispered as he turned off the TV and pulled her closer.