She Writes Love... (14 page)

“I see you sitting in the driveway. Sneak in and come straight up to my room. Everyone is in the kitchen.”

“Okay.”

I quietly opened the front door and looked around so I could go upstairs unnoticed. I walked into Keaton’s room and threw myself on the bed.

“So, how did it go last night?”

“It was amazing. The power went out and we lit a bunch of candles and talked by candlelight.”

“Did you fuck him?”

“Keaton!” I exclaimed as I sat up and looked at him.

“What? It’s a legit question. Come on; you had a storm, candlelight, and I bet there was music. The perfect setting for a wild night of sex.”

“There was no sex, but there was dancing and a kiss.”

“Oh my God, sis, you made it to first base!”

“Shut the fuck up.” I laughed as I threw a pillow at him.

“Okay, seriously, how was it? How were you feeling? What were you feeling? Did you at least let him touch your boobies?”

“Keaton!” I said through gritted teeth. “It was great and he’s great. And no, he did not touch my boobies. He was a perfect gentleman.”

“Okay, good answer because if he would have tried something with you, I would have had to hurt him.”

“Shut up!”

He chuckled. “Come on. You better get downstairs before they discover that you’ve been here.”

Keaton and I walked into the kitchen and my dad gave me a hug. “How are you, sweetheart?” he asked as he kissed my head.

“I’m good, Dad.”

I walked over to Charlotte and Piper and gave them each a kiss on the cheek. Then I walked over to my mom, who was bent over the oven, pulling out the roast she made.

“How did it go last night?” she asked quietly.

“It was great.” I smiled.

She smiled back as she set the roaster on the stove. My two sisters hooked their arms in mine and led me to the family room where the men were.

“So,” Piper said.

“Yeah, so...” followed Charlotte.

“It was a wonderful night minus the bad storms except when the power went out and the house was lit up by candlelight.”

“How romantic.” Piper smiled.

“Anything exciting happen?”

“We kissed and nothing else.”

“Okay. That’s good. Taking it slow is good,” Charlotte chimed in.

“I bet his mouth is amazing,” Piper swooned.

“He’s an excellent kisser and that’s all I’m going to say.”

“Did your lady parts twitch?” Charlotte winked.

“Oh my God! Stop it!”

“They did.” Piper smiled at Charlotte.

****

B
y the time the meeting let out and after sitting in L.A. traffic, it was four forty-five when I walked through the door. Romeo came running from the direction of the bedroom and meowed fiercely at me for dinner. Ben was going to be here in forty-five minutes and I wasn’t ready. I opened a can of Fancy Feast and scooped it into Romeo’s bowl before heading to the bedroom to change and freshen my makeup.

“Score!”

I looked at my phone in confusion at the text message from Keaton.

“Huh?”

“I finally got this beautiful woman from the office to go out with me.”

I rolled my eyes.

“What happened to Brielle?”

“S
he was too self-absorbed. One person like that in a relationship is enough.”

He meant himself. Keaton loved himself and he didn’t hesitate to let everyone know it.

“How old is this one?”

“Her name is Faith and she’s twenty-two. She’s an intern.”

“Your intern?”

“I wish.”

“I think it’s time I start working more from the office.”

“Bye, Keaton. I have to get ready. I’m seeing Ben.”

“Again? Have fun and behave yourself.”

Just as I walked out of the bathroom and stopped at my full-length mirror for a last minute check, the doorbell rang. My stomach began to flutter and my palms started to sweat. I had no reason to be nervous.

“Hi.” I smiled as I opened the door.

“Hi.” He kissed my cheek. “You look great.”

“Thanks. So do you.”

Romeo rubbed up against his leg and Ben reached down and picked him up. “Hi, Romeo.” He smiled as he held him close to his chest and stroked his fur.

Romeo’s purr sounded like the roaring engine of a car. He was happy and he really seemed to like Ben. Actually, seeing him with Romeo like that was turning me on.

“You ready?” I asked as I grabbed my purse.

“Yes, and I’m starving.”

“Me too. Kenny ordered lunch for us during our meeting from the food truck. It wasn’t very good, so I didn’t each much.”

He placed his hand on the small of my back, which sent shivers throughout my body as we walked out the door.

****

Ben

I
t was ironic that Paisley and I both were both craving pizza, so we ended up at Caioti’s Pizza Café in Studio City for dinner. After placing our order, Paisley looked at me and tilted her head.

“Would you like to come to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving?”

“Seriously?”

“My mom invited you, but I told her that you’d want to spend it with your family. But you didn’t seem too thrilled about going to your aunt’s house. So, if you don’t want to go there, then my family would love to have you.”

“I just told my mom last night over the phone that I wasn’t going because I’m not even going to get home until Thursday morning from my two-day shift. The last thing I want to do is drive to Santa Barbara after working for two days straight. So yes, Ms. Logan, I would love to join you and your family for Thanksgiving.”

She smiled as she reached across the table and placed her hand on mine. I wanted nothing more than to spend the holiday with her. Something was happening between us and it was happening fast. I was falling for her more every day and it freaked me out a bit, but that dream kept running through my head over and over again, which gave me some comfort. My phone started ringing in my pocket. When I pulled it out, it was Lindsey.

“Hey, Lindsey,” I answered.

“Hi, Ben. Listen, the reason why I’m calling is I was wondering if I can send Leah out to L.A. for a couple of weeks. I have to fly to Arizona for a two-week job training program and the manager said if they like me and I do well, they’ll make me a permanent employee at their company.”

“What kind of job?”

“It’s for a systems analyst for a bank. I’ve been sending out resumes since I graduated college and this company in Phoenix contacted me. Ben, this could be big for me and Leah. It’s a salaried position, full-time with amazing benefits. I would totally understand if you couldn’t have her stay with you.”

“No. No. She can come stay with me. It’ll be great to see her, plus there’s someone I want her to meet.” I smiled as I looked at Paisley.

“Oh really? Is there someone special?”

“You could say that. When is she flying in?”

“She was hoping she could spend Thanksgiving with you. I have a friend in Phoenix that I’m staying with while I’m there and she’s having Thanksgiving and wanted me to come Thursday. I was going to have Leah fly with me into Phoenix and then put her on a plane to LAX. Her flight would arrive at seven a.m.”

“That’s perfect because I leave the station at six and by time I get to the airport, her flight would be arriving.”

“Are you sure it’s not an inconvenience?”

“Not at all. I love Leah to death. You know that and I miss my sister. What about my dad?”

“She said she’ll go visit him, but she didn’t want to stay at the house. You know the two of you are a lot closer than he and she are.”

“I know. I’m spending Thanksgiving with Paisley because the parents are going to Santa Barbara, so I’m sure it’ll be okay if Leah came with me,” I said as I looked at Paisley and made a face. She nodded her head and smiled.

“Great. Leah will be thrilled. Thank you, Ben. This means the world to both of us.”

“No problem, Lindsey. I’ll be at the airport Thursday morning to pick Leah up.”

I hung up the phone and thanked Paisley. “Are you sure your mom won’t mind one more guest for Thanksgiving?”

“Nah,” she said with the wave of her hand. “She’ll love it. She loves having new people come to the house.”

“I’m excited for you to meet her.”

“I can’t wait to meet her. But I will be honest, I feel like I won’t be able to communicate with her.”

“Don’t worry. She can read lips.”

I glanced at the time and saw it was seven forty. “We better head to the meeting. You’re still up for going, right?”

“Sure.” She smiled.

Paisley

I
really didn’t want to go, but Ben did, so I agreed. We walked into the room as the meeting was about to start and took our seats in the last row, except this time, we sat next to each other. My eyes scanned the beige-colored walls and the different pictures that sat upon them that I didn’t notice last time. The pictures were all different quotes. There were quotes about life, strength, sickness, and faith. As we sat there and listened to some of the people talk, tears sprang to my eyes. Their stories, their words – so similar to mine that it was heartbreaking hearing it from someone else. Jessica had asked if anyone else would like to go up and say a few words, and when nobody else volunteered, she said that it was mingle time. Apparently, mingle time was when everyone grabbed coffee, water, or juice, and walked around talking to everyone else. Ben looked over and smiled at me.

“Would you like some coffee?”

“Yeah. Coffee sounds good.”

We got up from our seats and walked over to the white linen table and poured some coffee. There was an array of cookies that sat on a white platter. As Ben and I were taking one, Jessica, the counselor, walked up to us.

“Welcome back. I haven’t seen the two of you since that night you introduced yourselves.” She smiled.

“Thank you. I’ve been kind of busy.”

“Me too,” I replied.

“Did the two of you come together? I saw you walk in.”

“Yeah. We did,” Ben spoke. “We’re coffee buddies.”

She looked at him and then at me with a sly grin. “That’s great. I hope to see the two of you again soon.”

As she turned and walked away, I looked at Ben and we both smiled. “Did you see that look?” I asked.

“Yeah. I can only imagine what was going through her head.”

An older woman who appeared to be in her sixties approached the table and poured some coffee. When she went to put a packet of sugar in her cup, she accidentally knocked it off and coffee spilled everywhere.

“Let me help you,” Ben said as he grabbed several napkins.

“Oh no. I’m such a klutz.”

She seemed really upset, so I poured her another cup while Ben cleaned up the mess.

“Do you only take one sugar?” I asked.

“Yes. You’re very kind.” She smiled. “My husband always said I was the clumsiest person he’d ever met. God rest his soul. I miss him terribly.”

I handed her a cup of coffee and, before taking it from me, she gently placed her hand on mine. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’m sorry about your husband. When did he pass away?”

“Twelve years ago.”

I gulped, looked at Ben, and then back at her. “Twelve years and you’re still coming to these meetings?”

“Yes. It’s become my ritual and routine now. There’s no place I’d rather be. I’ve watched so many people come and go through the years and have heard so many stories. It’s sad but comforting at the same time.”

An older woman came up behind her and took her over to the other side of the room. “Did you hear that? Twelve years, Ben.”

He chuckled. “I heard. That’s just crazy.”

I shook my head, and I didn’t want to come back here ever again. We headed to the parking lot and Ben opened the truck door for me. As soon as he climbed in, he shut the door and reached over and grabbed my hand. He held it the whole way home.

****

I
sat at my desk, sipping on my hazelnut latte from Starbucks when a text message from Ben came through.

“Good morning. I just wanted to tell you that.”

I smiled.

“Good morning. Are you at the station?”

“Yeah. I’ve been here since six a.m. How about you?”

“Yep. I’m sitting at my desk.”

Carly walked by my office and I abruptly stopped her.

“Carly, can you take my picture?”

She stopped and gave me a funny look. “Sure, Paisley.”

I handed her my phone and I hopped on my desk, holding up my Starbucks cup as she snapped a picture.

“Oh, look how cute you look.” She smiled as she showed me the picture.

“Thank you, Carly.”

“Any time, Paisley.”

I sent the picture to Ben.

“You look beautiful, Paisley. Thanks for sending that.”

“Thank you. Your turn.”

A few moments later, his picture came through. He had a great smile and perfect teeth
. Who has perfect teeth like that?

“There’s that smile again,” Kenny said as he sat down across from my desk.

“Hi, Kenny.”

“I just wanted to give you an update on your sex column. It’s doing really well. People seem to be eating it up as much as your relationship column. I’ve noticed a big difference in you in the past month and I have to say I like it. I’m just going to come right out and ask you. Is there someone special that’s responsible for this change?”

As I sat there and stared at him, I didn’t know quite what to say. “Well, I have a new friend.”

He nodded as he spoke. “A new friend, eh? What’s his name?”

“Ben,” I replied with a grin.

“I like Ben. Do you like Ben?” he asked.

“You don’t even know Ben, so how can you say you like him?” I laughed.

He got up from his seat and stopped when he reached the doorway. “He makes you smile again, so therefore, I like him.” He winked as he walked down the hall.

I softly smiled and dialed my mom. I needed to tell her that Ben and Leah would be coming for Thanksgiving.

“Hello, darling.”

“Hi, Mom. I wanted to let you know that Ben and his sister will be coming over for Thanksgiving if that’s all right.”

“All right? Of course it’s all right, Paisley. I didn’t know Ben had a sister.”