Wide Open (15 page)

His lips twisted. "Did you honestly think that after the speech I gave you last night, I was going to be done with you so quickly? And that I'd go out you if I really wanted to be seeing someone else?"

"I thought you realized your error and figured out I was a lost cause."

He smiled. "Someone said that about me once. Not too long ago."

"They were wrong."

"So are you, about this."

"I thought I was the counselor and you were the newbie," I joked.

"Role-playing," he mused and grinned. "I like it." His grin faded away and he looked completely serious in his mission as he leaned forward while also tugging me closer. My hands gripped his shirt at his sides to balance me as he took my lips.

I didn't think. I just felt.

I let everything I felt in that moment, just this moment, roll over me and take control. When my mouth opened under his, it wasn't careful like before, it was an invitation. I could tell when he knew this time was different. He dove deep, and the groan that rattled from him made me flush. He let one of his arms wind around my waist and press me to him as his tongue plundered. I felt my fingers wrap in something soft and tugged. Tugging on his hair made him produce all sorts of noises that had me smiling from the inside out.

His thumb smoothed my cheekbone, such a contrast to the scruff from his chin. His hand rubbed across the bottom of my back, over and over.

He pulled back and looked at me. For once, I didn’t squirm. I figured he deserved it for putting up with me. "Can I see you later?"

I nodded emphatically. He smiled wide at that. I swung my arms around his neck and pulled him back to me. His palms moved to my sides, and it was amazing how warm they were. It was like he was on fire.

I nibbled and bit into his bottom lip.

"Good night, woman." He chuckled against my mouth. "You're torturing me."

"Are you on your lunch break?" He nodded and looked at my watch, lifting my wrist. "And you're late," I guessed.

"I'm not going to have a job anymore if I keep this up, bt would be worth it."

He leaned up and kissed my forehead before standing. He smirked, walking backward away from me a few steps before turning. I wasn't ashamed to say I watched his behind as he left. He turned quickly and his smirk grew into a burning smile that had me struggling for normal breaths. "I saw that," he said smugly. He chuckled, probably seeing the way my neck turned pink from where he was. "Bye, sweetheart."

"Bye, Milo," I said loudly, letting him know that Milo was indeed the final name I had decided to call him. A man should be called by the name his mother gave him.

Milo

I knew I was pushing my luck, but I asked to be let off work an hour early. Tom was such a sap—a sap that brought in his wife's cookies and homemade sweet bread almost every day. I'd been to their house once and never, ever saw two people who loved each other the way those two did.

So I knew the big softy would understand.

I told him a basic rundown of everything that had happened and how I needed to beat Maya home, to get a few things ready. That I needed to take the chasing up a notch if I wanted this girl to trust me and let me into every single part of her. That she put up a very convincing front, but inside she was a girl screaming for someone to love her unconditionally, to promise to never leave her as everyone before had done, even if they hadn't meant to.

I may not have embellished that much, but he got the gist.

He laughed and cheesy-smiled as he said I could take off early, especially when I told him what I had planned. So I went to my apartment, took the quickest shower of my life, and then high-tailed it downstairs to pick up the order I had called in at the Chinese place.

I knocked on Will's door and hoped the guy wasn't sleeping or at work. I hadn't even thought about that. I didn't know if he'd gone back to work or not. He answered, looking crummier than before, if that was possible, but immediately brightened at what he saw in my arms. He laughed. "Wow. Whipped like butter."

I grinned. "They are revoking my man-card as we speak."

He laughed his words. "Come on in."

I felt a little bit of embarrassment, but there was no backing out at this point. Extreme measures were called for with this girl. "Thanks, man."

"I take it you made up?"

I dumped everything on the table. "Why? This wouldn't be a good apology?"

"It totally would be." He grinned, enjoying my squirming. He was a tall guy, his hair dark like hers, his skin pale but different—where she was fair, he looked pale in the sick way. "However, from the stupid grin on your face, I'd say this wasn't an apology. You're trying to drive your point home. Am I right?"

"Your sister is a beautiful pain in my rear."

He laughed hard, leaning on the counter with his elbow. "That's the best description I've ever heard."

"I have some things I have to do tonight, so I figured I'd…" I looked at the pile. "Make sure she was thinking about me."

"Mission accomplished, brother." He laughed, but that turned into a cough. A deep cough.

"You all right? Still sick?"

He looked up. His head shook just barely, not in answer, but in disappointment. "She's going to come around one day. She'll bust wide open and everything she's kept locked away will come spilling out. Just tell me that you'll be there to pick up the pieces and she won't be alone. Tell me that you won't be the guy who likes the chase and then bails when things get hard." His throat worked. "Tell me she'll have one person in her life who won't leave her."

This was way more than some big brother talk. God, no… "Will, what's wrong…with you? What kind of sickness do you have?"

He chuckled a little sullenly. "Strangely...in this case, it's not mine to tell." He sobered and shuffled his bare feet to stand in front of me. He was taller than me by a mere inch. "If you're not up to the task, then leave now. I love her, but I know her. She won't survive anything else."

"This isn't some fling, if that's what you mean. I don't know what's going on with you, man, but Maya and me… She's safe with me. I promise you."

He nodded. "That's all I needed to hear."

He patted me on the shoulder as he passed. I watched him go. You couldn't miss how thin he was, how miserable he was, but tried to pretend he wasn't. I leaned against the counter and thought. I wondered when she was going to tell me everything—about her brother most of all.

I had to figure out a way to show her she could trust me with this.

I looked at the pile I'd brought and smiled as I imagined her coming home to find it. And then I got to work.

I hopped out of the Jeep at my apartment and jingled my keys in my hand, smiling to myself smugly as I thought about her coming home. I changed before taking off to the farewell dinner for Joey. Her parents were throwing her a
Congratulations on your new job
party at the church.

She seemed a little different though. She didn't seem as happy about the decision to leave as she had been before, like maybe things hadn't turned out as perfect and rosy as she thought they'd be. After I saw Maya at the church the other day and knew that she had gotten the wrong idea about Joey and me, Joey had acted a little strange about her. She said that any girl that stalked me all over town wasn't worth my time, but she didn't understand anything about Maya and me.

I knew Maya hadn't 'stalked' me all over town. I believed her when she said she happened to see my Jeep when she drove by, but Joey had always been that way. She didn't give people many chances, she didn't waste her time on guys who didn't call her after a date. She was respectful of her parents, but pretty much did whatever she wanted to. She was a definitional free spirit, and I had always wondered why, since all of those things made up Joey, she had given me chance after chance, helping me come back to the land of the living.

That girl was a conundrum.

I pulled into the preacher's driveway and accepted all their hugs and answered their questions on how I was doing as I made my way inside. Joey's mom cooked a meatloaf dinner, enough to feed the whole town. After it was over, Joey and a couple of her friends wanted to go out her last night in town before she went back to Texas and begged me to tag along.

I caved and followed them out to a bonfire some people were throwing at the lake. We roasted marshmallows, or burned them really, and then they started dancing to some Taylor Swift CD. I was done at that point, happy to retreat and listen to some of the guys tell their high school football stories and about how college sucked, nothing like everyone made it out to be.

Since I might attend college next year, somehow, I asked some questions of my own. When the beer was brought out, I told Joey I was gone. She was a little miffed at them, saying she didn't know that they'd be drinking or she wouldn't have invited me. I told her it was all right, though her not knowing a bunch of college kids at a lake party would be getting drunk was a little naïve of her.

She pulled me aside and asked how I was doing. Were the "meeting thingies" still working out for me? As much as I loved her and owed her a huge debt of gratitude,

she was pretty clueless sometimes.

I assured her they were and that I was fine. It didn't take much convincing and she was bouncing off again to enjoy her farewell party. I rolled my eyes at her and laughed when my phone dinged as soon as I walked into my apartment.

I pulled it out, expecting it to be her asking for a ride or something, but it was that same unknown number as before.

Your nephew is due in a few days.

I took a deep breath as I plopped down on the couch, my elbows on my knees. If I expected Maya to face her past, then I had to stop running from mine.

So I heard. What you naming him?

The response was slow. I knew he hadn't expected me to answer.

Jackson

Emma doing OK?

She's great. Hasn't been too rough on her. I think she kinda likes it.

She looked really great. Mamma did too.

You can come back anytime.

I left it with that.

I spent the next hour running around the neighborhood and doing weights. Running at night or early in the morning was my favorite time. It wasn't hot and there was hardly anyone around. I could listen to my music and not worry about traffic, go shirtless and not feel weird.

I was just getting back when I saw a dark-haired beauty on my stairs, headed back down toward the lot. "Hey!"