Between The Sheets

Published by Julie Prestsater

Copyright 2012 Julie Prestsater

Ebook Edition, License Notes

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Table of Contents

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Epilogue

Dear Readers

Acknowledgments

Titles by Julie Prestsater

Credits

Dedication

For Lyndsi …

You’re the Melly Belly to my Shel. The Christina to my Meredith. The Carly to my Sam. The Laverne to my Shirley. You’re the best best friend any girl could ever ask for. In the last twenty six years, we’ve been through it all together. Some of the best times, and some of the worst. Some, I bet, you’re hoping never end up in a book. Ha ha. I make no promises. You’re part of almost every memory I have of growing up and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us in the future. Cheers to you … my best friend, my sister.

Chapter 1

Melissa

"Can I have this dance, pretty lady?" Tyler holds out his hand, one side of his mouth rising in a sexy grin.

I glance up at him, trying to resist his charm. "Lady huh? Do I look fifty to you?"

"Come on now, Mel. Don't be such a smart ass. Isn't it customary for the best man to dance with the maid of honor?" He rests his hands on his hips and smiles. Damn him, and his irresistible charm. My defenses have nothing against the suggestive arch of his brow and the upward curve of his lips. I doubt it’s customary for what else he has on mind. He’s totally violating every part of my body with his steamy eyes.

And, I love it.

"Well, if I must." I stand, with a sarcastic sigh, and he engulfs my teeny hand in his strong grip. I've never felt more safe and loved before in my entire life than when I’m with Tyler. This is what this man does to me. With the slightest touch, my insides swirl around like the spin cycle of a washing machine. But the unease isn't all about the sparks flying between us. I only have one week with him and then he’s going back home. How can I get that out of my mind long enough to enjoy the time we have together? It doesn't seem possible. Even if he can distract me with his intoxicating stare.

When we reach the hard wood dance floor, he takes my right hand in his, and wraps his other arm around me, resting his palm slightly above my bottom. I can feel his embrace get tighter as he leans down to nuzzle my neck. Inhaling his familiar scent, I get lightheaded and brace myself against his chest so I don't slither down his body into a boneless pile of skin.

I don't think I can ever love anyone more than I love Tyler. I've loved him almost my entire life. I’ve waited just as long for him to hold me like this and my heart aches knowing it will soon be over, again.

How many times can I really put myself through this? When he left after winter break, I'll admit it—I cried. Shelly doesn't know that and neither does Tyler. They both think I'm this strong Latina woman with tough skin like the beef jerky I eat from the little liquor store near work.

I did get over my divorce rather quickly. That was easy though. The mother fucker was cheating on me with some nasty ass blond bimbo from work. As if I was going to waste my time fretting over a man who never had enough time for me, yet he was plenty available to be screwing some colleague on his cherry wood desk in his office. No thank you. Seeing your husband and his mistress all wrapped up with your very own eyes does a lot for the recovery of a broken heart.

But damn me for not being able to resist my best friend's brother. I'd kept him at arm's length in high school—mostly—and in college, but recently, at the first opportunity, we're doing the wild thing in Shelly's spare bedroom. I wonder if she's noticed she needs a new mattress in there. Those springs are way too squeaky.

The song plays on. Adele wailing about someone who did her wrong. This is so not wedding music. If I wasn’t so happy for my best friend and her Marky Mark Calvin Klein underwear model look alike of a husband, I’d want to slit my wrists.

Tyler loosens his grip. "What are you thinking about, Melly Belly?" Gosh I used to hate it when people called me that. But with Tyler, it's like a sweet love song whispering in my ears.

"I'm thinking about how depressing this song is," I tell him, looking up into his almond-shaped green eyes.

He chuckles. "Yeah, pretty grim for a wedding, huh?"

“More appropriate for a funeral.”

“Wedding. Funeral. Aren’t they synonymous? I'm sure Matt feels like his life is ending right now."

When I smack him in the chest, he throws his head back with a big belly laugh causing all the guests who were enjoying the sad song to look our way. He snuggles me close again, still giggling in my ear. I can actually feel the goofball shaking with laughter and it makes my heart melt even more.

"You guys look like you're having way too much fun over here. You been hittin' the bar without me, Mel?" Shelly asks.

"Oh no, your brother here is just full of jokes." I punch him in the arm. Then I tell her what he said. Matt laughs along with him until Shel swings her trademark back hand into his chest. That's my girl.

"Let's go get a drink," Shel says, linking her arm in mine. "These two knuckleheads can dance with each other."

I can't help but crack up when Shel orders a beer at the bar. Here she is, in this gorgeous gown, beautiful hair, and stunning makeup, looking like the bell of the ball, elegant from head to toe. And she has a bottle of Newcastle in her hand. Not even a glass. The bartender offered and she sneered at him like he was crazy, as if he offended her.

She takes a swig and lets out a big "Ahhh" sound.

"Nice, Shel. Very lady like," I tease her.

"Oh excuse me," she snickers. "Let me put my pinky up. Is that better?"

We both laugh.

"Here's to a life full of love, happiness, and wild sex against the wall?" I toast to her.

She clinks her bottle of beer against my rather large glass of Stella Rosa sweet red wine.

"How about just wild sex anywhere? Against the wall sounds all hot and sexy and all, but it's not all that practical. Downright uncomfortable if you ask me. We’ve tried."

My bestie is way too frickin’ funny. Just when I thought my night was headed south, she comes up with this goofy shit and I can't help but laugh and smile.

"Thanks Shel."

"For what?"

"Just because."

I don't have the heart to ruin her day with my misery. I doubt she'd want to hear about how crappy I feel about her brother leaving me yet again. After winter break, I thought I could handle it. Then when he came back for Valentine's Day, when Matt proposed to Shelly in front of the entire school, I knew things were going to be difficult. We spent the weekend together before he went back home to San Francisco, and we've been Skyping, talking on the phone, and texting ever since. But that can only do so much. My heart aches for him the moment he's gone and my body yearns for his touch.

I should really just shut up and enjoy the week we have together before we go back to work.

"Hey," Shel says, startling me.

"What?"

"Do me a favor, would ya?"

"Anything for the most beautiful bride I've ever seen.”

She turns to me, narrowing her eyes. This is serious.

"Promise me to forget that Tyler is leaving on Sunday. Pretend like he's not going anywhere. And just let yourself be happy." She squeezes my shoulder and pulls me toward the dance floor.

"Am I that obvious?" I question.

"I know you better than yourself. So promise."

"I promise. I swear to have a week full of happiness, love, and wild sex against the wall with your brother." I grin at her, and she raises a brow at me.

She shakes her head, saying, "T.M.I. Melly Belly, T.M.I."

We make our way back to the dance floor, drinks in hand, already bobbing to the beat.

“Now this is a song I can get down to,” Ty says as we reach the guys.

“Get down on it,” I tell him, listening to Kool and the Gang blaring from the speakers. “Really?”

“They just don’t make songs like this anymore,” Matt adds, with a chuckle.

Shelly finishes a gulp of her beer and then says, “Yeah, now the songs just say ‘fuck me’ and ‘blow me’ rather than trying to use metaphors. You really think this old song is about dancing?”

“True dat, sista,” I agree with her in our ridiculous slang speak. You just never know when it’s going to creep up on you, when Shel and I start talking like we’re chillin’ with Snoop Dog.

“Why don’t you both just zip it and dance?” Ty jokes. He shimmies closer to me, and takes the glass from my hand. After setting it down on a nearby table, he struts his way back over to me, where he grabs both of my hands in his and starts swaying them back and forth. He turns me around, his hands squeezing my hips. I back myself up into his lap, and we spend the rest of the night grinding and freaking like a bunch of high schoolers at prom. Good thing there aren’t any chaperones around to break us apart.

The reception is coming to a close and Matt and Shel are getting ready to make their departure. I still can’t believe they’ve stayed as long as they have. I would’ve been gone a long time ago and been doing some serious damage back in the hotel room. But, I’m glad she did stay. Dancing and singing with her all night has brought back so many memories. It felt just like old times.

I can still picture our sophomore homecoming dance like it was yesterday. My date was a total dickhead and he left me hanging. Ryan only asked me to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. I wish I would’ve known that before I said yes. When we got to the dance, the ex got all possessive and wanted nothing to do with her own date. She just had to pick the dance as the place to stake her claim and ask Ryan to get back together. Ty and his date were fairing just as well as I was. His date was only interested in dancing with her girlfriends the entire night and she totally ignored him. I wanted to slap her and tell her she didn’t know what she was thinking not taking advantage of her time with such an awesome and gorgeous guy. I would have totally given my entire collection of New Kids on the Block buttons and posters to go anywhere on a date with Tyler at that time. Not that I would have ever admitted it.

Tyler saw me holding up the wall while watching Shel and her high school sweetheart, Chase, dance pressed against each other like their life depended on it. Those two were so cute at the time. They looked into each other’s eyes, smiling, leaning in for a peck every so often, while they danced to song after song. They wouldn’t have cared if I joined them, but watching them was so much more fun. Or heart breaking, maybe, because I wished more than anything to have a relationship like theirs. Maybe it was a good thing that I didn’t. Shelly sure as hell didn’t marry Chase today, thank you very much.

Just when I thought I might burst with jealousy, Ty came over and threw his arm around me. Even then, he was so much taller than I was, so I looked up into his bright happy eyes and he lifted the side of his mouth in a soft smile. He knew I was feeling down. He never asked me, but he knew. He pulled me into a side hug, squeezing my shoulder and resting his head on mine.

“My date ditched me, Melly Belly,” he had said, pouting his lips jokingly. “Will you save my reputation of being a stud and dance with me?”

We walked out on that dance floor, hand in hand, and he pretended like I was the only girl who mattered to him. He never mentioned anything about how my asshole date left me in a lurch. He made it seem like he was the one who needed saving, when in reality, he could’ve had any girl he wanted within seconds.

Instead, he was mine.

For the night.

Just like now.

But this time, I get a week before he turns back into a pumpkin.

“I can’t believe you caught the bouquet and I caught the garter. Coincidence?” Ty says, wiggling his brows up and down, as we walk to the car.

“Coincidence, my ass.” I tell him. “Your sister probably paid all the girls to let me get it. And gimme a break. Did you see the bachelors out there? Those guys are perpetual players. They’ll never get married. They ran from it like it had herpes.”

“I didn’t run,” Ty says.

What am I supposed to say to that?

No. He didn’t run. But on Sunday, he will. What the hell was I thinking starting something with someone who lives nine hours up the state from me? Really? What the hell was I thinking?

Oh, I know. I was thinking Tyler is here, he’s flirting, and he wants me. I’m single. He’s single. And I’ve been waiting for this my whole life. As if I was going to pass up my chance to sleep with the man I’ve only fantasized about since I was old enough to understand what fantasies were.

So I don’t say anything. For once, I keep my big trap shut.

Ty opens the passenger side door for me and I slide in. He walks around to his side, hops in, and we drive the entire way to my house without talking. Instead, he listens to my off-key sing-along with his hand covering mine. He turns his head to smile at me as I finish belting out a Lady Antebellum ballad. If I rocked out to Metallica, maybe he’d join me. Instead, he just listens to my horrid vocal skills.

I might be sucky, but I get a total high from singing my favorite tunes.

Singing allows me to release my emotions, stress, and it just makes me feel dang good.

If the poor guy’s ears have to bleed so I can be happy, then so be it.

As soon as we get through the doors, I make my way to my family room and plop myself on my sofa. I stare at the empty dog bed in front of the ottoman and wish I hadn’t asked my mom to dog sit. I want to snuggle with my babies.

“Tired?” Ty asks.

“Not really.” I reply. “My feet are killing me though.” I kick off my heels, and they fall to the floor. Then I think better of it, and reach down to prop them up so they’re not thrown on their sides.

“Why didn’t you tell Shel you didn’t want to wear those six-inch fuck me pumps?” he says, sitting next to me, and pulling my feet into his lap. I sink back into the pillows and allow him to massage the soreness away.

“She didn’t pick them. I did. I’ve always wanted some Louboutins, but would never spend the money on them. What better excuse than being your best friend’s maid of honor to get you to fork over the dough.” There’s just something about those red soles that I had to have. But now that my toesies are ready to crack off and the balls of my feet feel like I’ve been walking on coals all day, I’m thinking I should have just gone with some chunky Aerosoles or Crocs. I wore white Chucks under my Cinderella gown for my first wedding so I don’t know what possessed me to get all swanky for Shel’s big day.

“I see,” Ty says, working the arch of my left foot. “So what are our plans for the week?”

I hear Tyler talking but can hardly focus on his words while my feet are being manhandled by his big strong hands. I gaze up at him, barely opening my eyelids, and he grins, his eyes getting darker with desire. The look is definitely there.

“I don’t know about the rest of the week, but I know what I’d like to do right now.” I raise a brow at him. He raises one back at me.

“I like the way you think, Melissa.” Tyler lifts one of my ankles to his lips. The touch of his warm mouth sends tingles zipping up and down my body. Little by little, he works his way up my legs pushing my dress up along the way, sucking harder on the back of my calf, dragging his tongue up my thigh till he reaches my panties. He playfully bites down on my center. The feel of his mouth through the material causes a moan to slither through my lips. Or maybe more of a whimper. He looks up at me with one of those telling grins. “Let’s get you out of this thing,” he says, yanking on my dress.

“I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours.” I wink.

“I think that can be arranged.”

Chapter 2

Melissa

Waking up naked next to Tyler could easily be one of my favorite things to do. He’s still asleep and I’m just lying here on my stomach, hugging my pillow, watching him. It’s taking every ounce of self-control I have to not snuggle up next to him. He looks so peaceful. His angular jaw, strong and masculine, begs to be kissed. His long full lashes fan out just under his eyes and while his lips are thin, they are very powerful and I want nothing more than to have them all over every inch of my body. Again.

I focus on the little beauty mark just below his right eye and it makes me smile. It’s so damn sexy, and so Tyler.

I miss him already.

Ty is lying right next to me, mere inches away and I miss him horribly.

My hand reaches out and presses against his warm back. He’s still other than his body rising with each breath. I take advantage of his heavy sleep to move closer to him, running my palm up and down the soft flesh of his back. One eye pops open and Ty’s shoulder muscles flex under the weight of my hand. A boyish grin spreads across his mouth as he shuts his eyes again.

I scoot a little closer and prop myself up to lay gentle kisses along his side. Inch by inch, I graze my lips to his skin till I’ve covered every part of his body I can reach.

“Well, that’s one hell of a way to wake up,” he says, turning over and raising his arms above his head to stretch.

I tear the covers away and throw one of my legs over to straddle him. “And I’m just getting started.”

So waking up next to Ty pales in comparison to what comes after we wipe the sleep out of our eyes and do a morning stretch. My heart still races from thoughts of our marathon morning.

“Why don’t we head down to San Diego?” Ty says, coming out of the restroom with a towel around his waist and a toothbrush hanging out of his mouth. Seeing the cut of his muscular V disappearing somewhere below the low slung towel makes me drool. I want to reach out and trace my fingertips along the lines all the way down to the promise land. Dragging my tongue along the path sounds pretty good too. More than good, in fact. Damn, that capital V is my favorite letter. Tyler’s capital V.

And just like that I’m already thinking about hopping in the ring for another round.

“Mel?”

Huh? My eyes meet his again. He arches a brow at me. Right, San Diego.

“An hour ago, I would’ve jumped on the offer, but the weather’s not looking so good. April showers, I guess,” I say, turning down the TV. The weather report shows light to heavy showers all throughout the week.

Ty continues brushing and walks back toward the sink. After lazing around in my after sex glow, I finally get out of bed so I can take my turn in the shower … a very cold shower. I know by the time I get out, Ty will have breakfast made for us and another plan for the week. I’ll let him take care of the details. I wouldn’t mind staying home all week shacked up in my house and tied to my bed.

Just as I suspected, Tyler has made scrambled eggs, bacon, and crispy hash browns, just the way I like them. He’s an expert in the kitchen when it comes to breakfast foods. Lunch and dinner? Not so much.

“I love having my own personal chef when you’re visiting,” I tell him, snagging a piece of bacon off the serving dish. The salty crunchy flavor is to die for. “It’s like I have my very own Bobby Flay.”

“I’d prefer Emeril,” Ty says, shaking some pepper in his right hand. “Bam! Bam!” he calls out, sprinkling the spices on the potatoes. “See, I’m exciting like that.”

Standing on my toes, I tilt my head to pucker up to him. He leans down to plant his lips on mine. “Yes, babe. You’re more than exciting.”

“That’s what I’m saying,” he jokes. We each grab a plate and pile on food before heading to the living room to eat in front of the TV. After setting down his plate, Tyler heads into the kitchen and comes back with a cup of coffee for each of us. I take a sip and it’s just the way I like it—a little coffee with my milk, not very strong, and with a splash of French vanilla sweetener. Delicious.

“Are we really going to watch iCarly?” I ask him, already knowing the answer.

He finishes a bite of food before responding. “Hey, this is the butter sock episode. Don’t hate.” I’m not hating. I absolutely love this episode. It just cracks me up that we both watch this silliness and we don’t even have any kids. He clears his throat, and takes a swig of his coffee. “This is your fault, you know.” He gestures at the TV. “You got me hooked. I’d never watched this stuff until I spent my last vacation with you.”

“I take full responsibility.” We watch quietly for the next two episodes as we finish our breakfast and drink a few cups of coffee.

“How about Vegas?” Tyler blurts out, as I close the dishwasher and crank the dial to turn it on.

“Vegas?”

“Yeah, why not? It’s not like we have to worry about the weather there. We can pick a good hotel and then never leave it. If the weather is nice, we can hit the pool or walk the strip. But otherwise, we can just hang out inside.” He sounds like he has it all thought out. “Call your mom and ask her if she can keep the puppies for the week. If you tell her you’re going with me, she won’t say no.” He grins like an idiot and I know he’s right. My mom loves the idea of me spending time with Tyler. Loves it so much I know she’d be willing to take on my twin Chihuahuas, Mer and Der.

“Vegas huh?” I look up at him, and he raises his brows with a mischievous smile that brightens the room. He’s frickin’ adorable. Who could say no to that face? “Alright, if you say so.”

He scoops me up into a giant bear hug and spins me around the kitchen. I have no choice but to wrap my arms around his neck and hold on for the ride. “Vegas baby, Vegas!” he chants, driving me to giggle like a little girl.

By dinnertime, we’re pulling in to the valet at Paris Las Vegas. We booked a Red Room. I can’t wait to get up there and lounge across the sofa that’s shaped like puckered lips. How fun will that be? My phone is charged and ready to take multiple pictures so I can send them to Shelly. She’s going to be so jealous. I don’t care that she’s on her honeymoon in Florida, visiting the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (which by the way, I’m insanely envious), she’s going to be bummed that she’s not tearing up Vegas with me.

It’s been less than 24 hours since I’ve seen or talked to her, but I miss Shel already. Hell, I even miss Matt. I’m tempted to call her, but I want to give them the space they deserve before the honeymoon is over, both literally and figuratively. Actually, I’m pretty certain those two will be in the honeymoon stage for quite some time. I’ve never seen two people more in love. It’s sickening.

“This hotel is breathtaking,” Ty says, gazing across the ceilings painted to portray a sky so natural it appears like we’re still outside on a beautiful clear day.

“You’ve never been here before?” I ask him.

“No, that’s why I suggested it. I thought you said you hadn’t either?” He looks down at me. He looks like a college frat boy, hat turned backward, rolling my luggage behind him with a backpack slung over his shoulder

“Yeah, I’ve never stayed here. But I’ve been here to shop and eat.” His eyes look disappointed. “Ty, it’s not a big deal. The room will be new to both of us.” I reach over and squeeze his bicep, then run my hand down his arm till I weave my fingers into his.

“I guess that’s the part that matters.” He pulls me closer to him as we walk through the casino to the hotel guest elevators. He unhooks his fingers from mine and slides his hand down my back till it comes to rest on my behind. He gives my ass a little pat, and I have to stop myself from breaking out into a sprint to our room.

Later on, when we’re showering together, Ty says, “You know, we didn’t come all this way to make love in a fancy hotel the whole time. We should probably go out.”

“Okay. No more sex for the rest of the trip then,” I tell him, grinning as I lather his chest and belly.

“You keep doing that and we’re going to have to cut this trip short,” he teases. “I’m just saying. I want to take you out. I saw a club when we were walking through earlier. Let’s get some dinner and then go dancing.”

“Dancing, Ty? Really?”

He runs his hands through the conditioner in my hair and tilts my head back into the stream of the shower. He continues to rinse my hair free of the moisturizer, massaging my scalp, and making me squirm. My legs go weak every time his fingers comb through my locks and tingles spread throughout my body like rapid fire.

“So dancing, Melly?” he asks, before pressing his lips to mine softly.

“Anything for you, babe. Anything.”

“I’ll have to remember that.” He winks at me with his sly grin.

When I walk out of the bathroom, Tyler lets out a whistle.

“You look stunning, Mel.” His eyes take me in from head to toe. “You are so fucking sexy.” He struts over to me and takes my hands in his. He stretches my arms wide open, soaking me in again with his eyes.

“I’m glad you like it,” I say of my little black silk spaghetti strap dress. It’s short and about mid-thigh. The top reminds me of a triangle bikini, showing so much cleavage I can’t wear a bra. Thankfully, my girls are still perky and I don’t need one. The rest of the dress is loose fitting, giving me enough room to move when we go dancing. Sure, tight is hot, but it’s not practical when you’re going to bust a move.

“You sure you want to wear those shoes again?” he asks of my Louboutins.

“Hell yes, this is Vegas baby,” I say with a screech.

“I’m going to have to massage them later when they’re protesting.”

“Darn.” I grin. My feet being massaged by his strong hands? What a terrible thing to have to endure. Not.

Ty takes my hands and wraps them around his back, pulling me in close to him and leaning in till his lips graze my neck. “You smell delicious. I love your scent. This perfume drives me mad.”

“You know, you’re not so bad yourself. I almost fainted when I saw you all dressed up.” His charcoal gray dress pants, and black pinstripe collared shirt make him look like a model. He looks like he should be on the cover of a magazine at a newsstand. His sleeves are rolled halfway up his forearms, and he left the top two buttons of his shirt undone, along with the bottom one. He looks sexy as all hell. If you looked up Sex God in the dictionary, it would say “See Tyler Gelson” right next to it.

Oh my. This man was put on earth to torture me.

Ty continues to hold me in his arms, tracing kisses on my shoulders and brushing his lips across my neck. The warmth of his breath on my skin is making every part of my body hum with desire, some parts a lot more than others.

“We better go before we never make it out of the room,” he finally says. I sure as heck wasn’t going to say anything. I could stand in this position for eternity so long as he is nibbling on my collarbone and sucking on my ultra-sensitive neck.

Chapter 3

Melissa

We have dinner at one of the trillion hotel cafes, only ordering a club sandwich and fries to share. We ate practically an entire tub of Red Vines and a bag of Doritos on the way here. Not to mention the Super Big Gulp filled with Diet Coke and extra ice. While we have had plenty of activity to work up a healthy appetite, the small dinner hits the spot and I’m itching to boogie.

Hand in hand, fingers laced together, we head from the café to the nightclub. It’s been years since I’ve had an excuse to dress up and it feels good. Glamorous. Sexy. For so long, Shel and I have been in a routine of relaxing in our yoga gear—although we only tried yoga once and failed miserably—and drinking wine and beer while watching boxed DVD sets of our favorite TV shows. Formal wear is hardly required for that. Yet, here I am walking through a casino in Las Vegas on the arm of a man over a foot taller than me, with sparkling green eyes, a beauty mark that makes me melt, and the strongest hands that heat my body to the innermost part of my core.

And I love it. I’d trade in every pair of my yoga pants to imprint this moment in my mind forever.

“Wow, the line is pretty long,” I tell Ty as the entrance to the club comes into view. And double wow to what some of these women are wearing. I thought I was showing cleavage and too much thigh. If some of these girls’ skirts were even a millimeter shorter, I’d be able to see their whispering eyes. “Damn, it takes some guts to wear that,” I say, gesturing in the direction of a chick wearing a skirt that’s about as wide as a belt, and a halter top the looks more like suspenders.

“Yeah, and the lack of a mirror,” he says, shaking his head.

“Like you wouldn’t be gawking at little miss sexy if I wasn’t here.”

“No thank you. There’s a difference between sexy and slutty. And she’s definitely not sexy. We would have never left the room if you were dressed like that.” His distaste for the more than half naked woman shows on his face.

“No need to worry about that.” I cross my hand over my breasts, “This is about as revealing as I’ll ever get.”

“Perfect.” He smiles down at me, and bends down to press his lips to my temple. “All the men are staring at you wishing they were as lucky as I am.”

I elbow him in the side. “Oh stop.” Or don’t. What woman wouldn’t love hearing this from her man?

Another hoochie dressed in a silver shimmering sheath dress, looking like a disco ball, approaches us with a clipboard. “Can I see your invitation?”

I look over at Ty who shrugs. I notice other people have started to move away from the line, as I suspect we will be in just a moment.

“Is this an invitation only club? I thought there was just a cover charge,” he tells her.

“Yes, but you have to purchase your reservations about four to six months in advance to obtain your invitation.” I like how a “ticket” you pay for is called an invitation. I’ve never had to pay for an invitation in my life.

“Don’t worry, Ty. Let’s go. We’re too overdressed for this place anyway,” I say, turning my back to the clipboard-holding gate keeper.

Tyler snorts as he throws his arm around me and we walk away. “You’re funny, Melly belly.”

“Thank you, thank you very much,” I use my Elvis impersonation. “Where to? Let It Ride tables? Bingo?”

“Nah, I think I have a better idea.” He brings my right hand up to his mouth and brushes his lips across the back of my knuckles. He is so sweet, my heart aches and tingles at the same time.

When we reach the elevators, I’m not surprised. “Ahhh, ready for round three so soon?” I tease him.

He grins at me. Uh oh. He’s up to something.

As soon as we get into the room, I head to the lips-shaped sofa and brace myself up against the side of it to rid myself of my heels of death.

“What are you doing? Don’t get undressed yet,” he says, holding up his hands.

“Huh. Are we going back out? It’s almost midnight.”

“That’s like eight in Vegas. But no, we’re not going back out.” He goes over to the mini-fridge and I watch as he pulls out a bottle of Patron. And not a little bottle either. “We’re gonna have our own little party here and pretend like it’s a club.” He takes a swig from the bottle and blots his mouth with the back of his hand. “Only here, we don’t have to pay twenty bucks a shot.”

I take the tequila from his hand. “And we don’t need an invitation.” I bring the bottle to my lips and tilt my head back letting a stream of cold liquid flow.

Tyler dims the lights and turns on some music. His iPod is docked and he flips through a few songs, chuckling as he changes from one to another. Finally, he settles on…The Right Stuff by New Kids on the Block.

“Are you kidding me?” I laugh. “New Kids?”

“Anything for my girl,” he says.

“This reminds me of the homecoming dance.”

He does the signature move, swaying his legs back and forth.

“You’re killing me.” I begin snorting and then calm myself long enough to take another pull from the bottle of tequila. This time it hits me and I feel a little woozy.

“Like I said, anything for you.”

He takes another drink and we dance like teenagers to the rest of the song in the dim light of one of the bedside lamps.

By the time the song finishes, we’re out of breath and laughing hysterically after doing the New Kids dance over and over again. I surprise myself with how much of the choreography from the video I still know. I wonder if Shel could still do it.

Ty fumbles with his iPod again, changing the music to some more jams we listened to back in the day.

“Freak me baby,” I tell him. “Grind all up on me like you did in high school.”

He places his hands on my hips and pulls me into him as he dances. “I didn’t grind on you. You were my little sister’s best friend. There was no grinding.”

“Bullshit, yours was the first hard on I ever felt. Right here against my ribs.” I tap on the side of my stomach.

“Nice. I didn’t think you noticed. Well, I was hoping you wouldn’t. I guess my secret is out. You’ve been getting me hard for almost twenty years, baby.”

He turns me around and my ass backs up into his lap as the music pulses through our bodies. He slides his hands down my sides and squeezes my hips. I’m glad I put my heels back on so we can spoon more easily standing up.

Reaching behind me, I grasp his firm thighs and inch back pressing myself closer to him. Aww. Nothing’s changed at all. I can still make this man swell for me.

I turn myself around, wrapping my arms around his waist. We sway from side to side, as his thigh presses between mine. Oh, he makes me hot.

“You having fun, babe?” he asks, as the song switches to a slow one. Lady Antebellum’s All We’d Ever Need.

“Couldn’t be better,” I say, gazing up into his emerald eyes. He grins at me before bending down to kiss my forehead, an act so sweet my belly flutters.

Ty sweeps me into his strong arms, leaning in to nuzzle my neck as I bury my face in his chest. I tilt my head up to plant a single kiss to the tan skin peeking out of the top of his shirt. Calling him sexy would be an understatement.

We dance in slow circles with the music, exploring each other with the gentleness of only our hands. My hands travel up and down his back and I can feel his muscles flex in my palms as his fingertips make small figure eights on my bare back.

I love this man. I love Tyler. I want to tell him, right now. This love is overflowing in my heart and in my mind and I want him to know how I feel, how much I feel. But I can’t. And although the feelings I have right now are so overwhelmingly joyful, a hint of sadness weighs on my heart. I wish things were different for us. I wish we would have taken the time to make this happen so long ago, and maybe we wouldn’t be living nine hours away from each other.

Tyler combs his fingers through my wavy locks and it feels so good. He tilts my head back and traces kisses along my jaw and down my throat. My breath hitches and a moan escapes me. He brings his mouth back up and devours me. Our lips entangle and I pull back sucking on his bottom lip before going back in for more. This time our tongues seek each other out, and dance together so tenderly, my eyes well up with happiness.

If only we had more time…

I can’t dwell on Tyler leaving in six days. I just can’t.

Instead, I go to work unbuttoning his shirt. Ty pulls on the string holding up the top of my dress, and my bare chest is revealed as the triangles of material slide down. Removing his mouth from mine, he slides his tongue down my neck to my breasts. While his hands explore, he takes my nipple between his teeth and nibbles gently, igniting every flame in my body.

My fingers run through his hair and I tug on the longer strands on top pulling him closer to my chest.

He backs me up slowly till the backs of my legs make contact with the bed. His hands make their way to the zipper on the back of my dress and he slides it down. Instantly, the gown drops to the floor and I’m standing before him with nothing but a black lace thong and my four-inch Louboutins. Ty cups both my breasts in his hands and bends down to kiss each one. “You’re beautiful,” he whispers.

I reach out to his shirt and push it off his shoulders. Then I begin working at his pants, button first, and then his zipper. He kicks off his shoes and pulls off his socks by standing on the toe of each one. I don’t know why, but that makes me smile. Ty drags kisses from my breasts to my neck and back again while I slide my hands into his boxer briefs and tug them down till they fall on their own.

Taking his erection into my hand, I trace the silken skin with my fingers, and say, “I want you, Tyler.”

He places a few gentle pecks on my lips and says in a hushed tone, “I want you too, but slow down. Let’s take our time.”

I lie down on the bed and Ty follows me, stretching his long body next to my small frame. He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear and pulls me into another kiss that takes my breath away. He then nudges me on my back and I lie as still as possible as he traces kisses from my forehead to my chest to my belly to my thighs and to my calves. Slowly, gently, dragging his tongue along the way. My body shudders in waves of passion when his wet kisses find their way between my legs. The things he can do with only his tongue is pure, raw talent.

When my body finally relaxes long enough for me to move, I sit up slowly and push Tyler on his back for his turn. His skin is soft as a baby’s bottom, but his body is also hard and firm. His chest is sprinkled with just a little golden blond hair that traces a happy trail down his center. I trace my fingers down the path, taking time to suck on every inch of his chest, abs, and sides. He tugs a little harder on my hair as I drag my teeth along his V. Nibbling, licking, and pressing kisses first on the left and then on the right before taking his length in my mouth. Using my hands, my tongue, my teeth, my lips, I take him in enjoying every moan and grunt that escapes him because of my doing.

Ty curls up and places both of his hands on my shoulders and guides me up till our faces meet. He parts his lips and our tongues dive in tasting each other deeply. He rolls me over and settles himself between my legs. His eyes are darker as he gazes down at me while teasing me with his finger. “You’re so ready, Melly.”

Watching him sheath himself with protection, I smile, my breath quickening at what’s to come. “I’m always ready for you,” I murmur.

He leans down and covers my mouth with his. My lips part in a gasp as he enters me slowly and deeply. I rock my hips into his, matching his gentle pace.

We look into each other’s eyes, and I tell him what I can’t with words.

Chapter 4

Melissa

Another day in Vegas, baby. Sleeping in is awesome. With the sun resistant curtains blacking out any light from entering the room, even though it’s noon, the only evidence of the time is on the clock on the bedside table. I smile at the thought of how late it is. I live for vacations, for the chance to sleep and sleep some more. And with Ty lying next to me, all naked and sexy, I’m in no hurry to get out of bed.

Tyler throws his right arm and leg over my body and pulls me closer to him. He presses soft kisses to my bare shoulder, causing goose pimples to pop up all over my skin. The tingles make me giddy and I wonder if I will always feel this way in his arms. Will it ever get old? Will we ever just wake up and roll out of bed without snuggling first? Without striking up a conversation?

“Sleep good?” he asks.

I wiggle closer to him. “I haven’t slept this good in a long time.”

“I haven’t either. I think it’s those bad ass drapes. It looks like midnight in here.” He fumbles around, touching my thighs, belly, and arms before filling his hands with my breasts in a playful squeeze. “Wait, you’re my Melly Belly, right?”

“Your Melly, huh?” I turn around to face him. My eyes try to adjust to the darkness before I peck him on the lips.

“Well, you better not be anyone else’s,” Ty responds, and kisses me back. “I’m a nice guy, but I don’t have any intentions of sharing you.”

Excuse me? Is he trying to make some kind of declaration here without really coming out and saying it? Is he trying to say that he wants to have a real relationship? Or at the very least, he doesn’t want me to see anyone else. He hasn’t mentioned keeping it in his pants when he gets back to San Francisco. For all I know, I’ll be down here with the vadge on lock down and he’ll be up there getting so much action it’ll seem like his pecker is a flashing neon “Ride This” sign.

“Mel,” he says, tipping my chin with his thumb and index finger. “What’s wrong? You went quiet and still all of a sudden.” He searches my eyes for answers but I don’t have any. There is so much to consider. What the hell are we doing here? “Come on. Talk to me.”

With a deep breath, I sigh. I have to give him something. The man knows me to well to try and lie. “I’m just thinking.” I try lowering my eyes but he brings me back to him again with a nudge of his fingertips to my chin. “About us. About what we’re doing. What happens next? When you leave? Do we just keep meeting for a quickie between the sheets? Or is there something more?”

This time, it’s his turn to lower his eyes. He falls to his back and scrubs a hand over his face with a loud grunt. Or maybe a growl. “Do all these questions have to be answered now? Why can’t we just have a good time and see what happens?”

Typical guy. Wants to have fun without talking. Without any look into the future. He just wants to be in the here and now and has no interest in thinking about what comes next. Well, I do. “I am having a good time. But you asked what’s on my mind. So don’t get all pissy when the answer isn’t what you wanted to hear. I can’t just wait to see what happens next. You just said you don’t want to share me. What the hell does that mean? That doesn’t sound like a “we’ll see” kind of thing to say. Or is it just that you don’t want to share me but you want the freedom to share yourself with any little sex kitten who scratches up your tree?”

When I see a smile spread across his face, I could punch him. “Sex kitten?” he questions.

Out of everything I just said, this is what he focuses on. “Yes. What do you want me to call all the women who are more than willing to provide you with hours of adult entertainment?”

“Wow, Melly. You make it sound like I’m some porn star who’s getting laid everyday by someone new. You know that’s not me.” He turns to his side to face me, propping himself up on an elbow. “And even if I wanted to, who has the time? I work all day and I paint all night. Dating hasn’t really been at the top of my list of priorities.”

Now, I’m groaning. “So I am just a quick roll in the sheets. You’re not interested in making this something more.”

Without warning, his lips are on mine. If I was smart, I’d back away and get the hell out of this bed. But his moist strong lips take hold of mine and my brain suffers from a complete meltdown of wills.

His mouth hovers over my own, and he says, “You’ve never been just a roll in the hay for me. You know you’re something more to me and always will be. I want you in my life. I’m just not sure how it’s going to work.” A gentle peck presses on my mouth. “So until we can both figure it out, together, how about we exercise some patience and see what happens?”

“Patience?” I murmur.

“Yeah. I know. Asking you to be patient is like asking my sister to stop drinking beer.”

With that, he kisses me again. And again. Until I’m breathless and panting for more.

“So where to?” Ty asks, sliding his shades down to cover his eyes. The man is pure hotness in aviator glasses. I’m tempted to call him Maverick but I know he’ll toss them out the window if I do. Maybe I should tell him he reminds me of The Rock. Yeah, not so much. “What are you looking at me like that for?”

My brows rise with amusement. He caught me. “Just checking out the view.”

He smiles. “Good to know you like something above my waist. I’ve gotten so used to you gawking over my ass and my manhood, that I was starting to develop a complex.”

Laughter fills the car, as we cruise along the boulevard. “Oh, poor you. Good thing we don’t work together or it’d be considered sexual harassment.”

“Nah, I like it too much to file a claim. Ogle all you want, babe.”

With a grin, I tell him, “Oh, I plan to.”

After a few more blocks, passing casino after casino, Ty repeats his question. “Where to?”

“I don’t know. Feel like dollar margaritas? Or three buck prime rib?”

“No, thank you.” He ducks his head to look out his side window. His mouth forms an O, and my belly starts to somersault. I can already see what has caught his attention and I’m not thrilled. “Let’s go up there.” He points up. Way up.

“Nope. Not happening.”

“C’mon, Melly. I’ll hold your hand. I’ve never been to the top of the Stratosphere and I hear it’s an amazing view. I can’t think of anyone else I’d like to share it with.” He bats his freaking eyelashes at me.

Shit. “Laying it on a little thick, don’t you think?”

His bottom lips sticks out. Ty looks adorable with his pretend pout going on. “Pretty please, with a cherry on top.”

“No way. You know I’m afraid of heights.” Just the thought of going up there, all the way to the top, makes me want to throw up. My blood pressure is probably spiking to unhealthy levels just looking at the floating sphere from way down here. I’m as low to the ground as I can get in the shelter of my car and I still want to cry. My knee bounces uncontrollably as I say, “I’m not doing it.”

I know Ty hears me, but he chooses not to listen.

He steps on the gas, pulling us back against our seats with the sudden acceleration. When he reaches the hotel, he turns into the valet lane and slows to a stop.

“I’ll go in the casino and play the slots while you go on your stupid field trip.” Exiting the car, I walk ahead of him and don’t turn back.

The blast of smoke hits me as soon as I cross the threshold. Instantly, my nose starts to burn and I wish I had a gas mask. The older hotels just don’t have the same ventilation as the newer ones—not that they’re much better. I’m shocked some multi-billionaire hasn’t invested in a non-smoking casino. They’d make a boat load. I know I’d be knocking down the doors.

I find my trusty Wheel of Fortune quarter machine and slide in a twenty. Why I play this game is a mystery to me. On the off chance I get to spin the wheel, I’m always disappointed when I hit a measly twenty coins. It’s only the old ladies with silver hair who win the big money. Yet, here I am playing max bet crossing my fingers the reels land on “spin”. Pathetic, I know. But so freaking fun at the same time.

Shit! I slap my fingers down on the button one last time, playing my last three quarters.

“Nothing,” I sneer, giving the machine my evil eye.

“How about a drink?” Ty asks. He’s been hovering over me since I sat down but hasn’t said a word. He’s probably been mapping out his plan of attack to get me to travel up to the revolving floor at the top of this building. But I’d rather teach freshman English than be transported to what looks like outer space—and that says a lot.

“Think you’re gonna liquor me up and shuttle me to the outer limits of earth?”

With the slightest touch of his fingers, he brushes back a strand of my hair and tucks it behind my ear. Oh, shit. He doesn’t even have to get me wasted. Just the look in his eyes is enough to get me to follow him anywhere … even several hundred feet in the fucking air.

I shake my head to pull myself out from under his spell. “Not gonna work, hot shot. Let’s go to the bar and play some video poker. Free drinks.” Forget waiting for a response, I turn on my heels and walk away. Fast enough so that he can’t sweep me off my feet, again.

After cruising by two bars, we finally find two empty seats next to each other and sit down. When I’ve deposited another twenty into the bank account of the ridiculously rich people who own this place, the bartender trots himself over to me. “What can I get you?”

A bottle of something good, I want to tell him, since I’ve already paid plenty for this drink. “X-Rated and Sprite.” I’d like a Big Gulp size, but instead he brings me a glass the size of a Dixie rinsing cup. “Keep ‘em coming,” I tell him after I’ve tossed a five in his tip cup. Hopefully that’s enough to get a refill around here.

Ty orders a beer. Sometimes he’s so much like his sister, I feel like I’m sleeping with my best friend. “You’re gonna give in eventually, Mel. So why don’t we just get it over with?” He tilts the bottle of beer to his lips and downs half the liquid before placing it back down on the bar. Yup, just like his little sis. “Or maybe you’d rather see the view at night? I bet, with the city all lit up, it’s spectacular.”

I give him the bird, and he swipes my finger in his big hand and kisses it. Damn him. My resolve can only hold out so long.

Trying to ignore his sweet face and lingering stares, I tap at the screen determined to get a royal flush. It happens, right?

Three drinks later, I’m a little buzzed and holding a ticket worth twenty-five cents.

“How about one of the tables?” Ty suggests. “Blackjack?”

“Hell no!” I shout. “I’ll end up getting in a fight if some dumb ass gets pissed because I hit on the wrong card or stayed when I wasn’t supposed to.”

“Show?”

“How about food?” My body takes that as a cue to groan like I’ve passed gas inside my stomach. Embarrassing much.

Ty laughs. “Yeah, let’s get some food in that belly of yours before it starts eating your insides.”

We find a spot at a small fast food counter and Ty orders for both of us. Chili cheeseburgers and fries. Chocolate shakes too. I love this man. He knows the key, or keys, to my heart are fries and chocolate. And wine.

“I think we should crash a wedding while we’re here.” Ty winks as he chomps down on a fry.

“Okay. Sure.” Sarcasm laces my words.

“No, seriously. Let’s just head by the chapel and see if we can peek in. Maybe some crazy groom will be wearing an Elvis costume.” His goofy grin reminds me of his boyish looks. When we were kids, he always had the most ridiculous ideas. One time, he convinced Shel and me to smoke cigarettes. We were only ten at the time but he figured that if we did it, we couldn’t tell his parents on him and his friends. As if I would’ve ever done anything to get him into trouble. Another time, he suckered me into crashing a dance class at the Y. The two of us waltzed like an old couple and shared cookies with the senior citizens when the lesson was finished. The ladies loved him, of course. And the old dudes thought he was hysterical with his dirty jokes. I must have been about fifteen at the time, but even then, I knew Ty was special. A heart of gold and a smile that could get you to do anything.

“Stop that,” I tell him, lowering my eyes before his grin has a chance to hypnotize me.

“What?” What, my ass. He knows exactly what he’s doing. If I don’t get my ass in that elevator and go to the top of this sucker right now, my panties are going to melt. I can almost feel the crackling of burning material right now as his sexy stare brands me with heat.

I let out one long sigh. “You’re killing me, you know that.”

He dabs a fry into a glob of ketchup and then holds it to my lips. “I’m just eating, Mel.”

I bite into the delicious carb hoarding vegetable and watch Ty as his eyes narrow on my mouth when I lick my lips. Crap. How can he take a fried food, smothered in ketchup, and turn it into something sexy. If I wouldn’t scare the children trekking by with their parents, I’d push him down on this little table and have my way with him.

“Let’s go,” I tell him, as I stomp off through the casino.

“Where are we going?” He has the nerve to smirk.

“Let’s get this over with. My legs are twitching and my panties are on fire, so unless you’re gonna strip me right here and relieve me of the stress you’ve created, I need another way to release some energy.” He smiles again, and I have to squeeze my thighs together when my lady love throbs.

He bends down and presses his lips to my temple. “You’re going to love this. I know it.”

“God, I hate you.” Stepping out of an elevator after traveling almost 900 feet above the safety of the first floor, I feel like I’m ready to pass out.

Ty glances at the couple who took the ride with us. “Excuse me while I calm my woman.” With a quick grasp of my waist, he twirls me so I’m facing him, presses his lips to mine, and kisses me senseless.

The touch of his soft lips molds to mine with a force that makes me want to wrap my legs around his hard body and cry uncle. I can hardly remember my name much less where we are. How does he do this to me? His tongue sweeps into my mouth, and my knees buckle. Ty’s strong arms flex around me, pulling me closer to his body till I can feel the length of his passion digging into my belly. Are there rooms up here? Because I feel an intense need to take care of business right here and right now.

Breathless, I close out our kiss with a few pecks to Ty’s throat. He buries his face into my neck, “Feel better now?”

“Hell, no. I’m horny as hell in a public place.”

“But you’re not scared anymore?” His warm breath on my skin sends tingles down to my toes.

My eyes meet his. “No. Not scared.”

He kisses me again, lowering his hands down my shoulders, the length of my arms until his fingers thread through mine. “Then, let’s go take a look.” He stays focused on me out of the corner of his eyes as he leads us to the indoor observation deck.

I suck in a gulp of air before we reach the glass.

“Breathe, baby.”

I exhale, not even realizing I had forgotten to.

With one hand in his, I scoot closer to him and hold his arm with my other hand. I feel like a little kid hiding, and peeking out from behind a door or wall. I glance down at my grasp on Ty and smirk at the white knuckles on my hand. I loosen my hold a bit.

“Thank you,” he says. “I was starting to lose feeling in my arm.”

“Shut up. You got me up here so if you have to have your arm or fingers amputated because I’m cutting off your blood circulation, it’s your own damn fault.”

He chuckles.

“Don’t laugh at me, you jackass. This is fucking scary. I feel like I’m going to fall a hundred floors to my death.”

He touches the glass. “You’re not going anywhere, Melly. You’re completely safe.”

“Bite me.”

“Later.” He smiles, his eyes softening. “Now, I can’t distract you with kisses forever. Let’s enjoy the view.”

“Kisses sound better.” I take another deep breath trying to calm myself since apparently Ty’s not going to stick his tongue down my throat again until I take a look.

“You can do it, babe. Have a look. It’s beautiful.” He reaches behind me, placing his hand on the small of my back, and pushes me forward. “Now, open your eyes.”

My eyes are closed? Yeah, I guess they are. With another swoosh of air, my eyelids pry open and I’m breathless again.

But not because I’m hot and bothered, or because I fear for my life, but because of the view.

He was right. Like always.

It’s spectacular.

“I swear I can see my house from here. It’s amazing,” I tell him.

“It’s crazy how the hotels look so close together from here, but if you were to walk from one to another it could take hours.”

“And some of them look so small.”

“How are you feeling?” he asks with a squeeze of my shoulder.

I look up at him. “I’m okay. Still a little rattled. But this is worth it. Thank you for this.” Most of my fondest memories are shared with Tyler, and Shelly. And this just adds to them. He has a way of getting me out of my comfort zone to experience some amazing things. As we slowly walk the entire 360 degrees around the deck, when I see the Red Rocks, I remember our trip to the Grand Canyon. Shel and I were in junior high and I went on a family vacation with them. I was too afraid to get too close to the edge at the many viewpoints. At one stop, while the others were eating and taking pictures, Ty took me by the hand and led me to one of the look-outs. I didn’t even realize where we were until he stopped talking and the entire abyss of the canyon was below my feet. I looked down at the gorgeous layers of rock and up into his smiling eyes, and almost cried right there. I was so happy to see it, and so happy that he cared enough to help me experience it.

“What are you thinking about?” he asks.

A smile forms on my lips. “The Grand Canyon.”

A spark of sweetness flashes in his eyes. “That was the first time I really held your hand. I didn’t want to let you go. I can still remember the cheesy smile on your face when you looked down into the canyon. It was priceless.”

“Kind of like my cheesy smile now?”

Ty leans down and presses a gentle kiss to my temple. I close my eyes to his touch and enjoy the moment with everything I have.

Things haven’t changed much since I was a kid. Ty is still helping me conquer my fears and I’m still following him around like a lovesick puppy dog.

Chapter 5

Shelly

“Hey, Matty,” I call over my shoulder to my new husband. I still haven’t gotten sick of calling him that. My husband. Let me say it again. My very sexy, hot and sweet husband. “Did you put Mel’s wine in the freezer? You know she loves it wicked cold.”

My new husband walks into the bathroom as I’m brushing mascara onto my lashes. “Yeah, of course. I put your beer in there too.” His hands slide around my waist from behind and meet in the front. I raise a brow at him as his fingers travel under my shirt and the warmth of his palm on my skin sends heat pooling between my thighs.

“Oh no, buddy. They’re gonna be here any minute. I can’t have my brother seeing me all flushed after we get busy.”

“Get busy?” Matt laughs into my neck.

I smile at him in the mirror when his eyes meet mine. “Knock boots?”

“Sure, just don’t say bump uglies because there is nothing ugly,” his hand starts to slide down the front of my shorts, “about this.”

Dropping the tube of makeup onto the counter, I lean into his chest and tilt my head back to press kisses to his neck.

Matty’s mouth finds mine just as the doorbell sounds.

“My brother sucks!”

“Give me a minute,” he says, pushing his hardness into my ass. The thin material of our clothing separates us but there is no mistaking my man’s wood.

I swivel my hips into him and then tear myself away. “Later.”

“Count on it.”

“You’re finally back!” Mel shouts as I open the door. Her outstretched arms circle me as she steps inside the house. My brother follows her with a shake of his head.

“You two act like it’s been years since you’ve seen each other. It’s barely been a week.” He leans over and kisses the top of my head. “How was Harry?”

“Oh my god. Amazing. Come in and let’s get some drinks, and we’ll tell you all about it.” I turn on my heels and walk toward our kitchen. “And by the way, buttface, it’s been over a week since I’ve seen my bestie. I don’t think we’ve gone that long without seeing each other since …”

“Ever,” Mel answers.

“Where’s Matt?” Ty asks.

If I’m right, he’s in the shower. Nothing like a dose of cold water on his nuts to get the bad boy to go down. “He’ll be out in a minute.” I try not to snicker, but I can’t hide the smile spreading over my face or the shaking of my shoulders.

“Did you guys just finish doing it?” Mel asks. “I guess the honeymoon isn’t over.” My best friend flutters her brows at me and if my bro wasn’t standing there glaring at me with a disgusted look on his face, I’d high five her.

“No, we didn’t just do it.” Ty looks relieved, placing a hand to his chest and letting out a long breath of air. So dramatic. I can’t let that go. “But we were about to when you showed up so Matty’s waiting till he’s not pitching a tent in his pants before he comes out.”

“Oh god.” Ty presses his hand to his forehead. He opens the fridge, closes it, and then pulls the bottom drawer of the freezer open. He grabs a bottle, twists off the cap and downs a few gulps of brew. “I’ll be in the other room trying to forget my little sister has a husband.”

Matty chooses this time to walk into the kitchen. Ty snarls at him on his way out. “What’d I do, bro?”

Mel pours salt in my brother’s wounds. “You’re boinking his sister, who he still likes to imagine in pigtails.”

He slides up behind me and kisses my cheek with a chuckle. “Oh, I’ve imagined you in pigtails too. And a plaid skirt and your shirt tied up to …” The loud groan coming from the living room stops my hubby from elaborating further.

“Hey, Ty,” Mel calls out. “Maybe we should leave. You’re sister wants to do the nasty.” Her sing-song voice and booty-spanking gestures make my hubby and me crack up, and my brother growl even louder.

“Want some wine?” I ask her, not that she needs it.

“Does a bear shit in the woods?”

Matty pulls a single glass out of the cabinet for her while I take out our electric bottle opener. Within seconds the thing is uncorked and I’m pouring her a glass. “I don’t know why you even bother with a glass. I should just get you a straw so you don’t look like such a snob drinking your grape juice with a pinky in the air.” My husband passes me a beer and I take a swig.

“At least it’s more lady-like. Every time I see you chug a beer, I feel like any minute you’re gonna scratch your balls and hack a loogie.”

Just for fun, I let out a big burp and scratch at my crotch dramatically.

“I’m okay with your passing gas, but if you’re gonna keep strumming your cooch, I’m leaving.” She takes her glass and follows the path to my brother.

“I thought they’d never leave,” I say when Matty and Tyler finally head outside to get the grill going. “So what’s happening? How was Vegas? Are you and my brother like … a couple now?” I tried talking to her about this while I was on my honeymoon and I found out they were in Sin City. I half expected to come home and find they had eloped. As much as it would’ve killed me to miss my brother’s wedding to my best friend, I’m kind of disappointed he didn’t slap a ring on it and call it a day. They’ve been doing this dance half their lives already. What the hell are they waiting for?

“Shelly?” She waves her hands in the air. “Where are you?”

“Oh. Sorry,” I say, snapping out of my thoughts. “Carry on. Tell me. What’s happening?”

She kicks off her flip flops and tucks her feet under her as she turns toward me with her elbow resting on the back of the sofa. “Am I talking to my best friend right now? Or Tyler’s sister?”

“Can’t I be both?”

She’s all fidgety and serious. So unlike Mel. “No, you can’t. My best friend will listen to me and give me advice. Tyler’s sister will listen and then tell him everything I say and possibly mess everything up.”

I get it. I think, anyway. “So you’re saying, you want me to listen but keep my big trap shut with my brother.”

She groans. “When you put it that way, there’s no fucking way you can do it. Anything I tell you will turn into a long drawn out convo with your bro and I’ll never know how he truly feels. I’ll always wonder if he’s with me because he wants to be or because he’s afraid of his little sister.”

I can see the tears flooding her eyes as she hangs her head. Oh no. What the hell did he do to my friend? This is not the Mel I know. The strong Melissa who decked her ex-husband’s floozy in a parking lot, had a good cry, and moved on in a matter of days. This Mel looks like she’s about to drown in heartbreak with her quivering lip and glassy eyes. “Melly belly, don’t be sad. I’m your best friend and I always will be. I’ve got your back, even when it comes to my brother. Unless you do something to hurt him, then I’ll have to kill you with my bare hands.”

She glances up at me with the corners of her mouth lifting. “I’d never hurt him and you know that. I’ve loved that guy since the first time I realized I thought boys were cute. I’d never hurt him.”

“Then, is he hurting you? You’re obviously upset.”

She wipes her eyes with the back of her hand and sucks in a mouthful of air before exhaling slowly. “Here’s the deal. I have no idea what’s going to happen once Tyler leaves tonight. We still have close to two months of school left and I don’t know if I’ll even see him during that time. I want to see him. I want this thing we have to continue, but I’m not sure it will.” She pauses and takes another long breath. “But what I don’t want is for you to say something to him. I can’t have you telling him to be with me or not to hurt me. If he decides he wants it to work, I want it to be real. I don’t want you influencing him or pressuring him to do anything he doesn’t want to do.”

I nod, knowing exactly what she means. I’d want the same thing for me if I were her. “Don’t worry. I get you. I won’t say a thing to him. But can I tell you something?”

Her eyes perk up. “Sure. Shoot.”

“I want you two to stay together. Besides the fact that you’re meant to be, I really love having him around. I can tell he’s happy with you and I’m happy to see him. I’ve missed him so much since he left. So I’m being a little selfish by wanting you guys to make a go of it.”

“I’m also being selfish when I say I want it to work too, but at what cost?” She looks down at her tiny hands and perfect manicure. “I don’t want to move. And I don’t want him to have to move either. But this long distance thing sucks ass. He hasn’t even left yet and I already miss him.”

“Honey, don’t worry just yet. You’re talking like a relationship with my brother is doomed before it’s even had the chance to get started. Things have a way of working out. Look at me and Matty. Who woulda thunk it?” I sure as hell wouldn’t have. For a few years, he had been our sidekick. Like our mascot. Matty would go shopping with us, tag along to the movies to see chick-flicks, and a couple times he even went with us to get our toes done. While I always thought he was good looking, I never considered him doable. Now, I take any chance I can to do him.

“I always knew,” Mel says, interrupting my thoughts of my naked husband. “You don’t think he hung around with us because he liked to talk shit about Summer and eat chocolate, do you? I’m sure he only went with us to see Something Borrowed because he wanted to figure out a way to borrow you from Chase. He’s been hot for you since the day we met him.”

I like her way of thinking. I never saw it but I must say, it makes me feel pretty damn good to hear it. I glance over my shoulder at the sliding door leading to our back yard. Beyond the patio, my husband and brother are chatting, both with beers in hand, and Matty holding a long spatula in his other. Ty must have said something funny, causing my man to tip his head back with laughter. “They look so cute out there. I’m so relieved they get along so well.”

Mel nods. “They’re both easy going so there’s no surprise there.”

I down what’s left of my beer and hop to my feet. “Let’s go join them. I haven’t spent this much time without touching my husband since the night before our wedding. I’m itching to get my hands in his pants so we might need to cut this dinner short.”

Mel snorts at this just as she’s taking a drink of her wine. Her face scrunches up as she tries to get the liquid down before she starts coughing. “Are you trying to kill me?”

“It’s that damn wine again. I think you’re finally starting to come to your senses. You’ve barely had a sip.”

“I blame it on your wedding. I haven’t been able to drink much of anything since.”

“An open bar has that effect on people.”

“I guess,” she says, placing her glass on the counter.

“There’s some water in the cooler outside. I should probably drink some too to cool me down.” I wave my hand in front of my face.

She shakes her head with a chuckle. “Don’t worry, we only have a few hours before I have to get your brother off to the airport again. So you’ll have a handful of nuts in no time.”

I rub my hands together as we walk out onto the patio. “I can’t wait.”

Chapter 6

Melissa

The wheels are turning at G force speeds in my head. Before I can grasp anything I’m actually thinking, my mind wanders to something new. I gaze at Tyler, driving my car, while we head to the airport.

We had a great dinner with Shelly and Matt. They look amazing, and so very happy. I was married before, but I don’t remember feeling that sweet glow that Shel exudes with such intensity and sincerity. And the way Matt looks at her makes my heart swell with joy. His eyes light up when she walks into the room. He hangs on her every word like it’s the most important thing he’ll hear that day. The love in their eyes when they look at each other is that of a movie. I swear they’re Noah and Allie. Only they didn’t have to wait so long to finally end up together. But that love, everlasting and true? It’s there.

“What are you thinking about?” Ty asks, glancing over at me as he turns into a parking structure.

I can’t help but smile, in awe of my friends. “Shel and Matt.”

“They’re kinda perfect together, aren’t they?” His smile reaches all the way to his eyes as he speaks of his sister. “I’m so happy for her. He’s a great guy and it makes me feel good knowing how much he loves my little sister. I can see just how much every time he looks at her.”

“Well, they’re not kinda perfect. They really are perfect. They could bottle up their happiness and sell that stuff. Just thinking of them puts a smile on my face.”

He reaches across the center console of my car and places his hand over mine. “I love it when you smile.”

As much as I’d like to flash him my pearly whites, the reality of what’s about to happen sets in as he parks the car, and my smile fades. “Why are we parking? I can’t go in the terminal.”

“I know. But we have some extra time. I thought I could spend my last few minutes with you talking, and maybe a little kissing.”

My belly is filled with butterflies, skittering around, wings flapping and sending flutters of nerves bouncing around my insides.

The thought of kissing Tyler for the final minutes of him being in the same city as me sounds fantastic, but it doesn’t stop the uneasiness I feel down deep in my gut.

I’m so in love with him, my heart doesn’t know whether to beat like crazy out of sheer happiness, or pound out of pain. Every time he leaves, it’s like a hole rips open in my chest and I can’t stop reliving having to say goodbye and wondering what will happen next.

The mind is an evil thing.

Especially when my over eager imagination is working hard at giving me an ulcer. Last night, I had a dream that I sent him off on the plane today with a scorching hot kiss. But when he landed in Frisco, some faceless hot woman with long legs, a curvy ass, and wavy black hair met him at the gate with a smooch that set off fire alarms. Just thinking of it again makes me want to punch Tyler even though I know he didn’t do anything. And even if he does have some hussy waiting for him at home, what does it matter? It’s not like we’ve made any commitments to each other. Not that walking down that road really makes a difference either. My lying-cheating-no-good-sappy-country-song of an ex-husband taught me that.

“What’s got your beautiful face all crumpled up?” Ty asks, brushing his index finger in the crease between my eyes.

There’s not a thing I can do to hide my emotions. Everyone knows I can never keep my lips zipped and I always say the first thing that comes to my mind. And even when I try hard to bite my tongue, my facial expressions give it away. Like now.

“Fine. Want to know?”

He nods.

“I’m gonna get all girlie on you and just say it.” I take a deep breath, trying to relax myself. By the look on Ty’s face, he probably knows what’s coming. “I’m wondering what happens next. Will I see you again?”

He places a soft kiss on my cheek. “Of course you will.”

“I’m not talking about ever. I’m not talking about at Christmas when you come home to visit your family. I’m talking about us. Are we making plans to stay in touch? Or is this it?”

Another kiss brushes my neck. God, if he’s trying to distract me, it’s working. “Mel?” My name rolls off his tongue with a warm breath of air fluttering across my skin.

“Mmm.”

“I want to see you again. Not with my family.” His lips meet mine. “Just you. Just us. It’s not over. Not for me, at least.”

I want to kiss him back. I want to deepen his kiss and feast on his tongue like there’s no tomorrow, but my damn thoughts keep getting in the way.

“What does that mean exactly?”

He presses gentle pecks on my mouth before backing away to look into my eyes. A smile creeps across his face, slowly tugging the sides of his mouth upward. “It means I better buy that Prius I’ve always wanted because something tells me I’m going to be racking up the driving miles. There’s no way I can wait until the holidays to see you.”

“Really?” I don’t want to sound so pathetic, but I can’t help it. I’m dying to make this work. I’ve wanted this to work between us since … forever. We’re much older now, and this is our last chance to make it work. We can’t keep wondering if our time will ever come. It has come and now we have to take it. If it doesn’t work, well, at least we tried and we can move on for good. Just the thought of that makes my heart sting. It has to work this time. It just has to.

“Let’s try the long distance thing. School will be out soon. Neither one of us is teaching summer school. So pack your bags and come and visit me this time. We’ll have fun acting like tourists in my city.” He takes my hand in his and brings it to his mouth, kissing my palm. “What do you say, Melly?”

“I’m gonna go home and start packing now. As soon as that bell rings, I’ll be on the road.”

Our laughter fills the car for a moment. Then Ty lifts his arm to check the time. “I’ve got five minutes.”

“Then kiss me silly and leave me with something to remember you by.”

He takes my hand, and tugs it over to the front of his pants. “Oh really. He wasn’t memorable enough?”

I squeeze my hand around the ridge of material. “Oh no, I’ll be thinking of him every minute from the time you leave till I see him again. As a matter of fact, I’ll be counting down the days till we’re reunited.”

My sentence barely finishes before Ty dips his head and catches my mouth with his. His strong lips cover mine, working their magic at melting my body with his sexy heat. My lips part, allowing our tongues to slide past each other, lapping up the passion with each stroke. He nibbles down on my lower lip, sucking on it and dragging his teeth across it till it pops free. Oh, sweet jeezus! I’m coming undone with just his kisses.

Breathless, I pull my mouth away from his. His lips slide down my neck while my fingers comb through his hair. “I’m gonna miss you,” I whisper.

Tyler sprinkles me with kisses, outlining my face, before he places one last peck on my lips. “I’m gonna miss you too. Thankfully, there are many devices nowadays that will allow us to stay in touch. Time will fly and we’ll be together again before we know it.”

“When did you get to be such a Positive Penny?”

“You make me see the glass half-full, Mel. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I know what I’d like to happen, but for now, let’s just take it from visit to visit and try not to let the miles between us be a factor. I’m yours and yours only for as long as you’ll have me. I don’t plan on seeing anyone else while I’m with you and I hope you feel the same way.”

“I sure as hell feel the same. I don’t want you seeing anyone else either.”

“And you don’t plan on seeing anyone else either, right?” His eyes widen at me.

I chuckle. “Oh, is that what you meant? Let me think about it.”

His hand slides down my side and he pokes me. There’s nothing worse than the feeling of being tickled, and he knows this. “What?” He pokes me again. “You need to think about it?” Another poke. “Let me help you.”

“All right, all right,” I say, pushing his hands away. “I won’t see anyone else.” Instead of tickling me, Ty’s hand rests firmly on my hip, and he leans over for another kiss. “I’ll just keep my eyes closed while my other gentlemen friends keep me busy.”

Ty holds up his index finger, like he’s threatening me. “What was that about other guys keeping you busy?”

I giggle. “I don’t know. I can’t remember.”

He pokes the air. “Are you sure?”

I reach across the console and hang my arm on his shoulder, my hand gripping the back of his neck. “Come here, you big lug. I’m yours and yours only.” I press a kiss to his lips. “For as long as you’ll have me.”

The last staff meeting of the year is always the best one. Breakfast is served while retirees bid their farewells, and let’s be honest … we’re all just happy as hell that we don’t have to sit through another one of these for a few months. They can get really depressing sometimes, when test scores aren’t high, or some new program is being introduced that makes promises to increase student achievement because, apparently, our own teaching abilities aren’t good enough.

Well, enough about that. Shel and I are chatting away, me with a bagel and cream cheese stuffing my face while she chows down on a sugar twist donut. Matt walks in and I’ve never been happier to see him. He’s holding a tray with three Starbucks cups wedged inside, and I know one of them is for me.

“Good morning, ladies,” he says, as he lowers himself into a chair across the table from us. “For you, my love.” He passes Shelly a cup of coffee, and she blows him a kiss which is about as affectionate as they get on campus, or at least where people can see. Who knows what they do behind the closed—locked—doors of their classrooms. “And for you, Mel. One venti vanilla latte with extra whip.”

“Oh, Mr. Fuller. You are just wonderful. If only I could clone you into a robot, you could be my very own Rosie.” I wink at him as I take my first sip, and he just shakes his head.

“I could totally see it,” Shel adds. “He looks great in an apron.”

This time Matt rolls his eyes. “I bring you two a coffee and this is the abuse I get in return. You want me to be your maid,” he points to me, “and you want me in an apron.” He raises a brow at his wife.

She leans forward across the table. “What if I wanted you naked under that apron? Would that be a problem? I can think of many ways that could be fun.”

I can’t help but laugh, and once I get started, I can’t stop. Snorting comes next, and my body starts shaking. My bestie isn’t any different. She’s laughing her ass off and Matt just sits here quietly, shaking his head at us.

“We should have known the loudness would’ve been you two,” Summer says, as she and Chase stop at our table. “Are these seats taken?”

Hell yes, I’d like to say. But Matt gestures to the empty chairs and says, “No, join us.” How he can be so nice to this pain in the ass of a couple is beyond me. Matt and Shelly really are perfect for each other. They have the kindest souls and would never hold a grudge. Me? Not so much. I can’t stand Chase. I’ve never liked him. I only tolerated his arrogant ass out of respect for my best friend. I knew if I’d been a bitch to him, he’d win and I’d lose her. So I kept my mouth closed tight and just rode the roller coaster that was their relationship. I knew he’d screw it up eventually. That’s where Summer comes in. While Chase says he didn’t cheat on Shel, we all pretty much think he’s a lying son of a bitch. The nerve of this woman to try to befriend Shel is nauseating.

You’d think with a name like Summer, she’d be all sweet and innocent, running through a meadow with daisies in her hair, bare feet, and toe nails painted in a pink pastel. Just the thought makes me laugh inside. Ms. Summer McGallian is anything but sunshine and roses. She’s more like the she-devil in a mini skirt and long ass fake nails in place of her horns. I’m not so sure she couldn’t stab us to death with those talons. Not that I’m afraid. I was ready to take her on at one of the football games last year. She had the nerve to call me ghetto. Me? Ghetto? There’s a lot of things she could call me, but ghetto is not one of them.

“Well, good morning,” Summer says, sitting down next to Matt with Chase on her other side. My brow instinctively rises.

“What the fuck’s so good about it?” I snarl through a mouthful of cream cheese. I realize I’m about to start some crap, but sometimes this girl just bugs the shit out of me.

She rolls her eyes at me. “Do you have to be so crass, Mrs. Cruz?”

Now, it’s my turn to roll my eyes. “Are you kidding me? For most of my day, I’m surrounded by impressionable teenagers, so when I get to be alone with adults, if I want to drop an f-bomb here and there, I feel like I’ve earned it.”

“Well, to some it’s offensive,” she continues.

“Well so are your tits popping out the front of your dress and your ass hanging out of the back, but do you hear anyone bitching about that?”

Her hand shoots to her chest. “My breasts are not popping out and neither is my behind. For such an educated woman, you sound like a truck driver.”

Shel laughs, knowing I’m not gonna stop until this girl shuts up.

“Just because I have my doctorate,” which I do, in Family Literacy, “doesn’t mean I have to act like a pretentious bitch who uses a plethora of superfluous words just to sound educated. And just because I teach literature doesn’t mean I have to quote Shakespeare and Chaucer while I chat with my friends. I turn it on in the classroom, and then turn it off and have fun when I’m with my friends. I speak my mind and if you don’t like it, find another place to sit.” I lean back in my chair and tear off another piece of my bagel.

“Sometimes it’s a little hard to be your friend, Mrs. Cruz.”

“Touché, Ms. McGallian.”

“What was up with that?” Matt asks on our way to class.

“Yeah, Mel. What crawled up your Spanx and died?” Shel jokes.

“Are you guys talking about Summer?” That was almost an hour ago. After all the farewell speeches, you’d think they would’ve forgotten about the little spat. I did.

“Yeah,” they both say.

“That was nothing. Just her being her and me being me. I’m over it. I’m sure she is too.”

Shelly doesn’t say anything right away. I know she’s trying to choose the right words in her head before she speaks them. She doesn’t need to filter herself for me. She knows this, but it’s fun to watch her try.

“Are you pissed at her or something? I thought we were cool with her and Chase?”

Matt laughs. “About as cool as we can be. It’s not like he’s ever going to be my best friend.” His confession surprises me. Shel’s shocked face says she’s surprised too. “What? Come on, Shel. He’s your ex-fiancé.” He leans in to whisper, “He’s seen my wife naked.” And then he speaks in a regular tone again, “And that makes things a little uncomfortable. I can tolerate him, but I don’t want to hang out with them all the time.”

“Amen to that Ed Earl,” I tell him, holding out my hand for a high-five.

“Ed Earl?” Matt questions.

“You haven’t made him watch the movie?” I ask my friend.

She laughs. “No, I guess I haven’t. Honey, saddle up, cowboy. Tonight we’re going to the chicken ranch.”

He gives her an exaggerated frown. “Should I be scared?”

I pat him on his arm. “No, but you better hydrate. You’re gonna need some energy after watching Dolly and Burt in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he tells me, and then turns toward my friend. He squeezes his wife’s shoulder, gives her a look, and says goodbye as he turns to walk toward his classroom.

“He just kissed you with his eyes, didn’t he?” I ask her.

“Yeah, that one was just a kiss. But on Monday, you should have seen the look in his eyes. He was totally jumping my bones with his stare. It was kinda hard to teach after that. I know I was blushing. My face was hot and my knees were wobbly. I had to send Meg to get me a Diet Coke from the vending machine in the teacher’s lounge so I could cool off.”

Her story makes me laugh to full blown snorting. She’s flushed right now just talking about it. I sure as hell know the feeling though. My student aide, Stephanie, caught me after a heated textathon with Tyler. He had me so hot, a bead of sweat was actually coming down the side of my face. These dang kids have the worst timing, coming in early to class and staying in during lunch. Who does that? When Shel and I went to school here, we were never on time.

“I’ll see you at lunch,” I tell her when we get to my room.

She stops in front of my door. “Don’t think you’re off the hook. I didn’t forget about this morning.”

Shel tosses her lunch on my desk shortly after the bell rings.

“What? We’re not going to the Carver Bistro today?” I ask, mocking our cafeteria.

She shakes her head. “After your mouth this morning, I thought we’d eat in here.”

I duck my head to see inside my mini-fridge and take out my Trader Joe’s shrimp surimi salad. My mouth waters just thinking about the cocktail dressing. When I’m done gathering my stash, I toss my salad next to Shel’s along with a yogurt, string cheese, and a bottle of water. Then, I dig in my desk and pull out a Snickers bar for me and some Dove chocolates for my BFF.

“So, spill. Don’t get me wrong. It was hilarious, but that kind of came out of nowhere. What’s happening, friend?” she asks, using the back of her hand to keep lettuce from falling out of her mouth. Shel’s mom always gets on her case about talking with her mouth full. I’m guilty. It’s an occupational hazard. Comes with the teacher territory. We are often trying to do so many things at once, that when it comes time to eat, it’s usually in a hurry and we’re trying to visit with our friends and colleagues at the same time.

“You know she irritates me sometimes. Did you see what she was wearing? And she had the nerve to tell me I’m crass. Give me a break.”

My friend doesn’t let me off the hook. “But you started it with the ‘what’s so fucking good about it’ comment? You seemed fine this morning before she got there. What gives?”

I let out a sigh, and a cold piece of shrimp flies on the floor. I bend over to pick it up, stalling for more time. I’ve never had a hard time talking to my best friend before. But it’s different now. I can’t just say everything that’s whirling around in my head. Not when that everything is her big brother.

“So, maybe when I saw her and Chase come in, I got a little jealous or something.”

“Jealous of them?” she says with a cringe.

Yeah, I know. The idea makes me want to choke too. “Not them, exactly. You and Matt as well. Couples in general. You and Summer get to see your men every day. At home and at work. I’m lucky if your brother and I catch each other for a Skype call once a week. Text messaging, however hot that may be sometimes, just doesn’t cut it. I want to see him. I want his face right here.” I put my palm right up to my nose.

She tilts her head, pouty lips framing her mouth. “I’m sorry, Melly Belly. You’ll see him soon.”

Oh. That’s like a kick in the gut. “You make me miss him so much more.”

“Why? I don’t look like him.” She crumples her face at me.

“Yes, you do,” I tell her, because she does. “But that’s not it. It’s the Melly Belly thing. It’s really the dumbest nickname I could have ever been pinned with, but he gave it to me. He’s been calling me that since … I can’t remember a time he didn’t call me that.”

“Eww. My brother doesn’t call you Melly Belly during sex, does he?” She shudders.

“Eww is right. You just asked about your brother’s sex life. That’s just all sorts of wrong, Shel.”

“Okay,” she holds up a hand, “you’re right. I will try hard not to call you that anymore. But don’t be sad. And don’t go picking fights because you miss the big dork. Just think about your vacation. You get to spend a few weeks with him. That might be enough to change your mind. You remember what his room looked like at my parents’ house. I can’t imagine he’s turned into Mr. Clean overnight. I bet he has socks in his seat cushions and sticky counter tops. And good luck with food in that place. You better go grocery shopping on your way there or you’re gonna be eating Fruit Loops, PB & Js, and Top Ramen for all your meals. Scrambled eggs and bacon, or Belgian waffles are bound to get old.”

I hadn’t even thought of that. Please tell me Tyler has grown up enough to, at the very least, run a sponge over spilled jelly and buy Cup-o-Noodles.

Chapter 7

Melissa

It’s Facetime, baby. The call comes through and I’m more than thrilled to accept.

“Hey,” Ty’s face fills the screen on my phone. “Are you starting the countdown yet? In less than seven days, you get to see this mug in real life. Not on a two inch screen.”

The curve of my mouth strains with excitement. “As a matter of fact, I have. Only six days, three hours, twenty five minutes,” I glance at my watch, “and thirty six seconds.”

His eyes widen and he backs away from the screen. “You’re kidding, right?”

“Hell yes. I’m dying to see you, but that’s a little much. Even for me.”

“Whew.” He pretends to wipe the sweat from his brow. “I was about to run. Stalker!”

We both laugh. “Keep joking and you might end up with a bunny on your stove,” I tell him with a wink.

His silly grin shines through, making me want to jump through the phone and kiss every inch of his hard lean body. The tiny mole just below his left eye is calling out to me. When I was younger, I always wanted to touch it. Just a soft brush of my fingertip like it would be something special. I have no idea why, but I was always fascinated by it. It’s his trademark. Something that stands out on his face and makes him even sexier than he already is.

A few weeks ago, I had a lone zit on my cheek and wondered why a dark mole on Eva Mendez’s face could make her look hot as hell, but a little red bump on my skin made me look like a geeky teenager again.

Thankfully, that little blemish cleared up and I will be seeing my man in less than a week without feeling like I have oily fries smeared all over my face.

“So what’s happening?” he asks.

“Not much. I just finished grading so the pressure is off. I don’t want anything to keep me from leaving on time, so I’ve been busting my ass to finish.”

“I know the feeling. I’ve been cleaning up the place here. I know how you are and I don’t want you to check into a hotel because I left a pair of socks under my bed.”

He knows me too well. “I’m not that bad. Under your bed is fine. But if I found them under your pillow, and they were crusty, I’d bolt.”

“Crusty? Oh, Mel. I’m not in junior high anymore. I have a stash of soft hand towels for that.” He chuckles and so do I.

“Well, you can put your supply away when I get there. You won’t be needing them.”

He flutters his brows. “I’m looking forward to it. I have to warn you, the first time will probably last all of two seconds. I’ve been going to bed stiff every night since you left me at the airport. My balls are about to burst. They miss you.”

“Oh, I’m flattered.” I fan myself and bat my lashes at him. “Your nuts miss me. That’s like the nicest thing any man has ever said to me.”

“Not just my balls, my dick misses you too.”

“Really? Just what I’ve always wanted to hear.”

He laughs. “All right. Fine. I miss you too. I miss everything about you. Your smile, your laugh. Your foul mouth and your soft lips. How about you ditch finals and come now?”

The butterflies are going wild in my stomach again. “I wish I could. You should have come back here. You’re done with school already.”

“I was tempted. I almost flew down and surprised you for the weekend but changed my mind.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m on detox-apartment duty. I haven’t cleaned like this since … ever.”

This makes me crack up until I’m snorting.

“I miss that goofy snort too,” he says.

With a dreamy sigh, I tell him, “I miss you too. More than you’ll ever know.”

The scent of Pine Sol hits me as soon as Tyler opens his door. But before I can even crack a joke, his arms are tightening around my waist, my feet are dangling in the air, and his mouth is covering mine.

This is my kind of welcome party. My purse drops to the floor with a thud.

Ty’s eager kiss presses hard against my lips, parting them enough for him to slide into my mouth. Our tongues tangle together dueling it out with a hunger I’ve never felt before. When this kiss is over, we’ll both be winners because it’s absolutely amazing.

Just when I think he’s finished because his lips start to soften, he traces the curve of my face with his warm breath and nips at the base of my neck and collarbone. My hands thread through his hair, holding him in place and urging him on.

“I have groceries in the car,” I manage to mumble.

“Later,” he murmurs. “Just give me a few minutes.”

With a kick, I hear my bag slide across the threshold and he closes the door. My back smashes firmly against the wall, with Ty’s pulsing body holding me in place. My legs circle his waist, and I can feel his hard length against my damp core.

“I wish I needed minutes, I’ll be lucky if I last a few more seconds.” He loosens his grip on me, and frees himself from the tether of my legs. As soon as my feet hit the floor, he unbuckles my belt, my buttons, and yanks down my pants, pulling my chonies right along with them.

Within moments, he’s buried deep inside me and I can barely stifle a scream. My breath catches and I don’t exhale until our bodies are trembling against each other as we race to the finish line.

Tyler’s breath is heavy and fast-paced against my neck and my legs and arms are wrapped around him holding on for dear life.

“In the words of my amazing best friend, holy son of a Sex God, that was fucking awesome,” I say between gasps for air.

He lifts his head and plants a quick peck on my lips. “That would be funny if your best friend wasn’t my little sister.”

“Right. Probably not a good idea to talk about her while our bodies are connected in the most intimate of ways.”

He chuckles into my neck. “Yeah. Probably not.” He pats my ass and releases his hold on me. Once again, I slide down the wall until my feet are flat on the floor. “Why don’t you get comfortable while I grab your stuff from your car?”

His jeans are buckled in a blink of an eye, and all I’ve managed to do is pull up my panties. After digging around in my purse, I toss him my keys.

He opens the door, but before he leaves he turns back and pulls me toward him in a tight embrace. “I’m so happy you’re here, Mel. I’ve missed you so much. I’m gonna kiss you silly for the next two weeks so you better have brought your lip gloss.” He backs away and taps my nose with his index finger.

“Oh, Ty. I’m gonna do more than just kiss you silly. Now, go get my stuff because I plan on getting started by spending a good portion of today naked with you.”

Hours later, we’re sitting in front of the TV, with video game controllers in our hands.

“I really have a love-hate relationship with technology,” I say, as I try to remember which buttons do what.

“Really? I have a love-hate relationship with my PS3.”

“How so?”

I glance over. The tip of his tongue peeks out the side of his mouth. “Well, I really love my Play Station. And I really hate it when people interrupt me when I play it.” He chuckles with a waggle of his brows.

“Well, excuse me,” I tell him, pretending to be offended.

“Except for you, of course.”

“Good answer.”

“So why the love-hate for you?” he asks, as he sacks my quarterback.

“Well, I love my cell phone, the internet, and animated movies. But I really hate these effing controllers. What the hell happened to the one with the joystick and the big red button?” I toss the controller on the table. “This one is way too complicated. Let’s go to an arcade so I can kick your ass on Centipede. You could never beat me.”

Ty sets his controller next to mine and leans back on the sofa with his head resting on my shoulder. “Oh my god. You were like a pool shark when it came to that game. You had magic hands with that roller ball. I don’t think anyone took your name off the top score for months.”

He’s right. My hand would glide across that ball with such finesse and precision. It was like an art form with a perfect combination of roll and slap of the button. I loved Centipede. And even more, I loved it when Ty would invite me and Shel to tag along with his friends. His girlfriends didn’t like it, but I didn’t care. And I don’t think he did either.

“Remember Jen? She hated it when you and my sis would come to the arcade with us. She said I paid more attention to you than I did to her.” He shifts his head upward, lining up his eyes with mine. “She was probably right. Even when you were in junior high and I was already in high school, I had feelings for you. I don’t think I knew exactly what they meant yet, but there was definitely something there.”

“Well I knew I had a crush on you. But if anyone told me that twenty years later you’d be nailing me against your front door, I would’ve never believed it.” I waggle my brows at him. “Wait, at that age, if someone told me that, I may have thrown up.”

He chuckles. “Thanks, Melly Belly. Just what every man wants to hear.”

“Just keeping it real, dog.”

“Okay, Randy Jackson.” He reaches for my hand and links our fingers together. I watch as he studies are joined hands, tracing the connection with the fingertips of his free hand. “This would make a beautiful sketch. Your tiny little feminine fingers contrasting against my big man hands.”

“You’re right. You should sketch it for me.”

“Maybe I will.” He glances up at me. “What do you want to do today, Mel? Go out to dinner? Stay in? Do some sightseeing?”

I let my head fall back against the soft seat cushion. “Actually, I’d love to stay in and rest. It was a long drive. I’m going to be here for a couple weeks so I’m in no rush to hit the town. You got any cereal?”

“How about I make us some waffles?”

I laugh inside. “Nah. Cereal will do.”

“Fruit Loops?”

I smile. Shel called it. “Sounds like a perfect dinner to me.”

“How about a movie with our gourmet meal?”

“Even better.”

When I’m finally relaxed with a giant-sized bowl of cereal in my hands—apparently human-sized is way too small—I glance over at Tyler with a grin.

“You suck,” he says, and I can’t help laughing. “I hope you snort a Fruit Loop up your nose.”

“Shh,” I tell him. “The movie is about to start.”

He rolls his eyes.

After much debate, I won the battle of the DVDs. If he doesn’t like romantic comedies then why does he own them? Ugh. It just occurs to me that he has them for his female visitors. Why argue with me then? Is that part of the flirting game? Argue over film choice and then let the girl think she’s won. Hmm. Now, I’m skeptical. I reach for the remote and hit the pause button. “Ty, if you don’t like He’s Just Not That Into You, then why do you have it?”

He turns his head in confusion. “Huh?”

“Why do you have it? If you don’t like to watch it?”

He laughs. “ScarJo.”

“What?”

“ScarJo,” he repeats.

“Okay, is that some fetish you have or something?”

A brow rises on his left side. “Kinda.” He winks. “Scarlett Johanssen. Take a look. I have all her films. Just like you have every Bradley Cooper movie ever made. Even that really bad one. What was it called?”

“All About Steve,” I answer for him.

“Yeah. That was it. Horrible.”

I press play on the remote, scoot closer to him, and then pull my feet up to sit cross legged. “Fine, if I get Bradley, you can have ScarJo. But you have seen this movie, right? She’s such a scuz bucket.”

“And your man as the cheating husband is any better?”

“A cheating husband is never a good thing.”

“Yeah. If I ever see Nick again, he’s going to understand just how bad it is.”

Oh, how cute. He wants to defend my honor. “Don’t bother. I’m much happier now.” I lean into him with my lips puckered.

He looks adorable as he squishes his lips together making a duck face. “Me too. I should have fought for you a long time ago and you would’ve never had to go through the pain he put you through. I’m sorry, Melly.”

“Stop. You’re gonna make me get all emotional on you.” I stuff my mouth with crunchy bites so the tears don’t fall. “Now, really. Be quiet. I gotta get my Brad on. And Justin too. Oh, and Ben. Got my Fruit Loops and a screen full of studs. This is what I call a vacation.”

“You’re nuts.”

I lean over again, feeling the need to kiss him one more time before the flick starts. “Now, shh.”

I’m startled awake when I’m lifted into the air. “What are you doing?”

“I’m taking you to bed,” Ty says.

I’m fully awake now and could walk to the bedroom on my own, but being in Ty’s arms is just too damn good to pass up. I rest my head on his shoulder as he walks down the hallway. He places me on his bed and my eyes trace his body from his waist all the way up to his gorgeous green eyes as he stands to his full height.

He is pure man. All tall and hunky, like a cover model from one of my romance books. If I could just get him in a cowboy hat, an open plaid pearl-buttoned shirt displaying his taut abs, with a rope hanging over his shoulder, my ultimate fantasy could be fulfilled. Yeehaw, I want to say even though he’s standing before me in some soccer shorts and a Hurley t-shirt. My imagination is wild enough that it doesn’t matter.

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” He cups my chin in his palm, and tilts my head up.

A smile spreads over my face. “I’m not tired anymore.”

“No?”

“No.” I reach out, grasping the back of his knee and dragging my fingernails under his shorts and up the back of his thigh. “I’m wide awake. You?” My hands travel around his legs to his rock hard quads. My breath quickens when the length of his shaft pulses against the thin piece of material that covers his flesh. I allow myself to explore and discover this man is not wearing any boxers. “Free ballin’?”

“Commando’s the way to go at home,” he says, smoothing his hand over my hair. “Let’s get ready for bed. Then, I can help you get tired out again.”

“Sounds good.” I rise to my feet and circle my arms around his waist. “You go first. I’m gonna grab my bag and unpack some stuff first.”

“I already brought it in.” He gestures toward the door and sure enough, my things are sitting there waiting for me. “I cleared some space for you in my dresser so you wouldn’t have to live out of a suitcase. The whole top row is free. I also moved all my stuff from the counter in the bathroom so you can take up as much space as you need there.”

“Thank you, Ty. I appreciate it.”

“Are you surprised?” He smiles.

“No.”

“Yeah right. I bet you thought it was going to look like a frat house in here.”

The thought had crossed my mind. He’s a bachelor. And he lives alone. After Nick left, I didn’t feel the need to keep my house as tidy as I did before. Granted, the extent of my messiness is leaving a glass of wine in the sink or a pair of heels next to the couch in the living room. But Tyler’s a guy and he’s an artist. I’m surprised paint, clay, and whatever else he uses isn’t splattered all over the place.

“See.” He points a finger at me. “I knew you thought I’d be living like a slob.”

“I did not.”

He folds his arms over his chest.

“Okay. Maybe a little.”

“I have a confession to make.” A grin forms on his lips. “I did have to do a little spring cleaning. But nothing too drastic.”

“You know what I haven’t seen and I’m surprised?”

He raises a brow. “What’s that?”

“Your artwork? Your supplies? I noticed a couple of your pieces in the living room, and the painting in the hall, but where’s the rest of your stuff?”

A full blown smile lights up his eyes. “How do you know those pieces are mine?”

I place my hands on my hips. “Really?”

“Yeah.” He chuckles. “How do you know?”

He knows the answer to his own question but I’ll play along. “I don’t know. Just looks a little amateur. Like something you’d do,” I tease.

He clicks his tongue at me. “I’m not an amateur.”

I smack his arm. “I’m kidding with you,” I say, placing my palms flat against his chest. “I’d never forget that tug of war painting.” He smiles down at me and then presses a kiss to my forehead. “That’s when you first started your infatuation with hands. And I loved it. It still amazes me that you were able to capture such high school angst at such as young age. It’s something I’d expect you to do now as a teacher, not when you were a teenager yourself.”

His smile fades and his expression turns serious. The intensity worries me. “What, Ty?”

There’s silence for another breath before he cups my face in the palms of his big hands and bends down to kiss me. His lips brush softly against mine, and then he murmurs, “I love you, Melissa. I always have.”

His words linger in the air as I close my eyes, trying to determine if he really said what I thought I heard, or if I just imagined it. “Say it again.”

“I love you.” His mouth covers my own and desire spreads through my body like nothing before. Kiss after kiss, his tongue dances with mine until he dips his head and feasts on the sensitive skin at the base of my neck. I could hold him here forever, my fingers combing through his hair as he nips and sucks on my chest. But I can’t continue like this, I need to see his eyes. I need to look deep into his thoughts and know that he means what he says.

My hands mold to his jaw line and tug his face up toward mine. I can almost feel his heart thumping rapidly in his chest. His eyes melt into mine and if I’m not mistaken, they’re a little glassy. And not just from lust, but from the emotion flowing between us.

“Tyler Gelson. I’ve loved you all my life.”

Once again, I’m swooped up off the floor and I’m being carried a few steps to Ty’s bed. “We can get ready for bed later,” he says, as he lowers me onto his bedspread, his own body following until he’s horizontal on top of me, holding up his weight on his knees and elbows. “Right now, I’m going to take my time showing you just how much I love you.”

I push on his shoulder till he’s resting back on his heels, and I’m sitting up. I push him down till he’s flat on his back and I’m straddling him with a knee on either side of his waist. “Well you better buckle up, Ty, because I have my own ideas,” I rock back and forth against his thick pulsing shaft and his eyes flutter closed, “of how I’d like to express my never ending love to you.”

Chapter 8

Shelly

“I wonder what my brother and Mel are doing,” I say as I walk through the mall with my husband. You’d think I’d be tired of saying my husband over and over again by now. But I haven’t. The honeymoon is far from being over. If last night was any indication, we’ll be newlyweds for quite some time.

It’s killing me that Mel is out of town right now. I’m dying to talk to her, but I know she’s busy. As much as I’d like to interrupt her little vacay with my bro, I know they need some time alone. I just wish he’d smarten up already and take the plunge. His dumb ass is going to end up down here eventually. Mel is just wasting her time, and gas, visiting him when I know he’s going to pack it up and come home. It may as well be sooner than later.

I could kill him though. My mom and I have been trying to get him to move home for years. My dad even pleaded with him to stay before he left, but it takes all five feet of my petite best friend to get his butt to relocate. He hasn’t said he’s coming home yet. But it’s just a matter of time.

“Maybe they’re going to Alcatraz today. Mel mentioned she wanted to do that.”

Matty sighs. “Why don’t you just call her? I bet she wants to talk to you too.”

“Babe, they’re making up for all their time apart right now. If you were my brother, would you want me calling and interrupting?”

He chuckles. “Absolutely not.” He leans down and slaps a kiss on my cheek. “I kinda like having you to myself for a couple of weeks. I can walk around the house naked if I want and I don’t have to worry about Mel walking in.”

“Like that would ever happen,” I say, swinging our hands back and forth as we walk toward the bookstore.

He’s silent so I glance up at him, and his knowing look. “Hmm.”

“Okay, so that was just one time. And she didn’t even see anything. You have quick hands. And big ones too, might I add.” I flash him an exaggerated wink, and he laughs.

We make our way to the Starbucks counter before we start perusing the books. Matty orders a plain old black coffee while I get a Double Chocolaty Chip Frappuccino.

I lean back against my husband while we wait for our drinks. He rests his chin on the top of my head while he combs his fingers through the ends of my hair. “I could fall asleep.”

“We can go home and nap. I’m all for lying in bed naked with you all day. As a matter of fact, I think that’s what we should do all summer.”

“Just lie there?” I tease.

“Among other things.”

A barista holds our drinks up.

I pull myself from the comfort of Matty’s arms to get my chocolate concoction.

After circling the store a few times, we finally find the aisle we came here for.

“I’m surprised it’s not on a display somewhere. I thought it was like the bible for women.” Matty scans the titles when I glance up at him with a chuckle.

“Here it is,” I pull a copy of What To Expect When You’re Expecting from the shelves.

“Are you sure that’s what you want? We haven’t even gotten that far yet. Maybe there’s one along the lines of what to expect when you’re waiting to be expecting.”

“You’re such a dork,” I tell him, slapping the book into his gut. “This is the one. There’s a lot of pre-pregnancy stuff in here too.”

“I bet. It’s a pretty thick book.”

“That’s okay. We’ll have plenty of time to read it. It’s not like I’m gonna get prego right away. I’ve been on the pill for years. With only two weeks off of it, I doubt my uterus is baby prone just yet.”

“You never know. I’m a persistent guy. I could have Olympic swimmers who are committed to the task.”

“Oh my god. My husband has the Michael Phelps of sperm. I could be pregnant right now with those kinds of suckers plunging to the finish line.”

An older gentleman clears his throat. Matty tries to hide a smirk. The guy is ancient. I’m sure he’s heard the word sperm before. It’s not like I said Matty has magical jizz that can float through walls.

Son of a biscuit. Some people are just so uptight.

We’re in the car on our way home and I start thinking of my friend again. “I wonder what Ty and Mel are doing now.”

Matty takes my phone out of the cup holder and passes it to me. “Call her.”

“No, I don’t want to interrupt them.”

“Do it. Or I’m going to.”

I take the phone away from him. “Fi-ine.” A smile creeps across my face. “But only because you’re making me.”

“Hey,” Mel sings into the phone. “Why haven’t you called me?”

“I’ve been dying to but I didn’t want to be a cock block, playa.” I glance over at my husband and he’s shaking his head at me with a laugh. That always seems to be the theme. I say something cheeky, he shakes his head. “Why haven’t you called me?”

“Because I didn’t want to be a cock block either. Didn’t want to mess with your game, dawg.” She drags out the words of her thug speak, and another round of chuckles burst out. “Okay, seriously. You’re newlyweds on vacation. I figured Matt would have you all twisted up like a pretzel. The quiet ones are the ones you have to watch out for. I bet he gets real freaky.”

“Oh, Melly, you don’t even know. Let’s just say that Pilates class I’ve been taking has paid off. I can reach my ankles all the way to my ears.” The windshield of Matty’s car is sprayed with soda at that comment. He’s wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and chuckling at the same time. “You don’t know the meaning of deep until the front of your thighs are pressed flat against your chest.”

“Honey, you gotta stop. You’re killing me,” his voice trembles with laughter.

“Sorry, Mel. No more details. My husband’s about to hyperventilate he’s laughing so hard.”

“I bet,” she says. “I’m snorting over here.”

“When aren’t you?” I crack up because the girl is always snorting. She can’t let out just a little laugh. If she thinks something’s funny, she lets out a loud belly laugh until it crawls all the way up her nostrils and she sounds like a hog.

“You have a point.”

“So what are you up to? Where’s my brother? I’m surprised I haven’t heard him talking smack in the background.” My brother is incapable of keeping his mouth shut. Kinda like Mel. I wonder how they have conversations. I should buy them an egg timer as a wedding gift—because of course, they’re going to get married, they just don’t know it yet. They can each take turns talking until their time is up. Otherwise, I have no idea how they can communicate.

“He’s in the shower.”

“In the middle of the day?”

“Well, yeah. We had a late night. And we were busy this morning. So we’re just relaxing today.”

“Busy? What’d you guys do?”

“You really want me to spell it out, Shel?” she asks through a laugh. “Because I can give you all the sexy details. And believe me, there are plenty. And about the wild sex against the wall? Yeah, nothing uncomfortable about it over here …”

“La la la,” I chant into the phone. “No more, no more. Tell me about your sightseeing. How’s that going? Tell me all about the boatloads of Ghirardelli chocolate you’ve eaten. I won’t be mad at you if you bring some back with you.”

“I’ve eaten enough chocolate for both of us. And I can’t bring any back because I’m gonna need the extra space in my car to fit my lard ass after everything I’ve eaten on this trip. If I gain another pound, I’m never visiting your brother again. With all the sourdough bowls and chocolate fudge brownie sundaes I’ve consumed, I could fast for two months and still have enough fat stored on my body to feed a small country.”

“Yay,” I squeal. “You’re having such a good time. I’m so happy for you.” Matty reaches over and squeezes my hand in his. “You’re happy, right?”

“Definitely. I haven’t been this happy in a long time. It’s amazing to be with someone who cares so much about me. He puts me first, before anything. Before his own needs. I’ve never had that before.”

“Nick was a dumb shit.”

“Yes, he was. But I guess I didn’t know what I was missing till I found something better. In this case, the grass has definitely been greener on the other side.”

“Aww.” I press my hand to my chest, feeling my heart beating rapidly.

“Shel, can you just be my best friend for a minute and not Ty’s little sister?”

“I can try.”

“I can’t keep this in. Tyler is amazing. Stunning. Fabulous. The best lover I’ve ever had. When I say he puts my own needs before his own, I mean he puts my own needs first. My god, I can’t even describe it. When I was with Nick, I thought I was gonna have to go to the doctor’s to get treated for tennis elbow because that guy wanted me to jack him off every five seconds and then he’d have the nerve to kiss me goodnight and fall asleep.”

“Oh my god, you did not just say tennis elbow.” I crack up laughing, trying hard not to slide off my seat into hysterics. Mel is snorting in the other end of the phone. “Tennis elbow?” I repeat and Matty’s looking at me like I’m crazy.

Mel blows a big breath into the phone. “Well, my friend, I don’t have to worry about that with Ty. I might have to take Pilates with you though. And Zumba too. I don’t know if I can keep up with him. The man is like Forest Gump. He just keeps going and going.”

I can’t take anymore. “Sounds like a personal problem to me. I’m done being just your best friend. I’m officially Ty’s little sister again. So no more about his endless endurance. Got it?”

“Yes,” she says. I hear a voice in the background. “Your brother is out of the shower now. And I’m wondering how long he’s been standing here, ear hustling my conversation with you. That’s not nice, Ty.” Her tone is playful, and cute. My bestie is going to be my sister-n-law, I know it.

“Tell him I said hi and to come home.”

“Shelly says hello,” she tells him.

“You forgot the other part,” I remind her.

“No, I didn’t.”

Hmm. “You don’t want him to come home?”

“Of course I do.”

“Then what?” She doesn’t say anything. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why. I totally get it. “You want him to come home on his own. Not because we ask him to.”

“You got it, sister.”

“Who are you calling now?” Matty asks.

After waiting about fifteen minutes, I take out my phone again and start tapping on the screen. “I’m texting my brother. I want to talk to him, but I need to wait until the coast is clear.”

“Of what?” he asks as he unlocks the door to our house. He holds it open for me, I go in first, and he follows.

“Mel.” I toss my purse on the recliner and head into the kitchen. “Let’s have one last beer together before I jump on the wagon.”

With his hands on my shoulders, we shuffle into the kitchen. Matty opens the fridge, pops the cap off a bottle, and passes me a brew. “Cheers. To making babies.” He holds out his bottle to mine and they clink together.

“To having fun trying.” I narrow my gaze at him and flutter my brows. “Let’s finish this and get started.”

“Sounds like a plan to me.” He takes a drink. “So why are you trying to steer clear of Mel? You were just on the phone with her.”

“Because I want to talk to my brother about her. And I don’t want her to listen.”

He leans against the counter and lowers his eyes at me. “You shouldn’t get in their business. You’re too close to both of them, babe.”

“I know,” I admit, knowing full well that anything either one of them tells me, I can’t tell the other. Whatever they share is sacred information, and I’m really hoping I never have to keep any pressing secrets from either one of them. It’ll kill me.

“Come here,” he says, opening his arms to me. He holds me tight against him and my body sinks into his touch. I close my eyes, soaking in the moment while his citrusy outdoors scent tickles my nose. I can feel his cold beer against my back through the material of my cotton shirt. With his free hand, he wanders under my shirt and presses his warm palm to my skin. His fingertips trail down my back and inside my jeans until he cups one of my cheeks in his hand.

“I thought we were gonna drink our last beer together first.”

He turns his head to the side and brings the bottle to his mouth. After a couple of long pulls, he sets the empty on the counter. “I’m done.”

I peel myself away from him and tilt my own beer to my lips. I’m not as fast as my husband, but I guzzle the whole thing before I place it next to his. “Me too.”

His fingers graze the side of my cheeks as he brushes my hair away from my face. “I love you, Mrs. Fuller.”

“I love you too.” With my eyes closed, I wait for the first touch of his lips and sigh into his kiss. The soft press of his mouth on mine sets every part of my body on fire. I can feel the tingling all the way down to my toes and I squeeze my thighs together to stop me from coming undone right here. Gently, he teases me with kisses, his warm breath tracing over my skin as he …

“Shit.”

The Mission Impossible theme song sounds from my phone. “It’s my brother.”

He places a tender kiss to my cheek and says, “Take it. I’ll go start us a bath.”

I bite my lip. A bath? I hate my brother right now. “I’ll be right there.” Frantically, I reach for my phone and slide my index finger across the screen. “Hey.”

“Hey, little sis. What’s happening?”

“Well, I was about to try to make a baby and you just interrupted me.”

“What?”

Oh, son of a bitch. Did I really say that? So much for waiting to tell anyone about the baby. The plan was to try for a while without saying anything. I know I would’ve told Mel, but I didn’t plan on sharing it with my brother. What if he tells my mom? The last thing I need is the mother hen offering her opinion on everything I do until I get pregnant. It’s going to get even worse when I really do have a bun in the oven. She’s gonna hover like a lion ready to pounce. I just know it. “Don’t you dare tell mom or I’ll kill you.”

“So are you really trying? You want to get prego?” His cheerful voice is music to my ears. He’ll be a great uncle. If he’s home.

“Well, kinda. We want to have a baby, but we also know that it probably won’t happen right away. We’ll just try and keep our fingers crossed.”

“Good for you. Congrats.” Mel’s voice is faint in the background. “It’s my sister. She wants to get pregnant.” I hear a squealing oh my god. “Can you believe that? I can’t imagine being a dad right now. Look at this place, it’s not exactly baby proofed. I don’t mind being an uncle though. I can always give the kid back.”

“Ha ha,” I tell him. “You’ll make a great dad someday.”

“Someday is the key word. Just not anytime soon,” he says.

“Give me the phone,” I hear Mel say. “Stop. Give me the phone.” She laughs hysterically and there are some slapping sounds.

“What are you doing?”

“She’s abusing me, sister. She’s slapping me.”

Mel calls out, “He’s tickling me, Shel. He may not live to see tomorrow.”

“Foreplay,” I say, wondering if I’m talking to myself since they’re still playing around.

“I gotta go, sis.”

I guess I don’t need to wonder anymore.

Chapter 9

Melissa

When Ty asks me if I want to see Alcatraz today, I jump at the chance. I’ve been to San Francisco many times but have never made the trip out to the island. The clouds and fog have always gotten in the way, keeping me from visiting the creepy tourist attraction. But today, the coast is clear, the sun is shining and I’m only here for a few more days, so why the hell not.

The entire ride over on the boat, I can’t help thinking of Sean Connery and Nicholas Cage in The Rock. I know others must be imagining Al Capone or George “Machine Gun” Kelly locked up in the small cells on the island, but, not me. The entire film plays through my mind as we cruise through the choppy waters. The bay looks dark and scary and I wonder how in the hell any prisoner could possibly jump in that freezing water and think they could swim all the way to the shore. Maybe they did some serious training or weightlifting in the slammer and considered themselves the next to win the Iron Man triathlon or something. I doubt it though. The big lump of earth out there doesn’t look like it could’ve been geared toward keeping the inmates in the most tip top shape. Instead, it looks eerie, and damp.

We take the guided audio tour, and pass through the prison with old school headphones covering our ears.

“What the hell?” I tell Ty, after listening to interviews of raspy-voiced inmates as I scan every detail of the cement block otherwise known as a penitentiary. I rub my ear in irritation. I’m not some high school kid who wants to walk around like a DJ with these suckers plastered to my head. “What happened to the little old lady docents? What the heck kinda tour is this?”

Ty stares me down with a smirk. “Mel, this isn’t the frickin’ MOCA. We’re visiting a prison. You should just feel lucky the cell doors don’t have functioning locks or I’d accidentally throw your ass in one of them.”

“Trying to get rid of me, huh? What, did you see some hoochie mama you’d rather take home?”

“Yeah, I did. That one right there.” He gestures to a flashy woman who didn’t get the memo that leggings are meant to be worn underneath something else. Especially cheap, worn brands. I really shouldn’t be able to see that she has pink check boy shorts on. If I could manage to get any closer, I could tell you the brand too, her pants are that transparent. Nasty ass. I’d expect to see this at work, not that it’s any better, but not from a grown ass woman.

“Oh, honey. If you want that, by all means, go get her. You don’t have to lock me in a cell. I’ll gladly let you go if that’s your taste.”

He tosses his arm around me and rests his forearm on my shoulder. “I wouldn’t even know where to start.” He shudders. “I guess I’ll just keep you for now.”

“I see how it is. Keep me for now, until something better comes along. You know I can kick box, right? I could knock you on your ass with one of my Rambo kicks in half a second if you piss me off, so you better watch it, big guy.”

A big belly laugh roars from Ty.

“I wasn’t trying to be funny,” I tell him as I turn to him with a finger to his chest. “Wanna try me?”

He grasps my tiny wrist in his big hand and rests it on his shoulder. “Yeah, I wanna try you … in every way possible.”

Whew. Is it getting hot in here? His hungry stare pierces my body straight to the center of my lady love. “I’d say let’s get a room, but the metal bed frames and the bars kind of kill it.”

He flashes me one of his trademark grins and it hits me just as hard as his stare. When is the next ferry off this fucking island? I need this man. I want this man. Now.

When we’ve finished walking around the poky, Ty’s phone is loaded with comedic photos of yours truly. There is one of me behind bars reaching out to him with a psychotic facial expression crying out for help. Another one shows me flipping pages of a magazine while I sit on a dingy porcelain commode. If there had been seat covers, I would’ve pulled down my pants and let him get a shot of me with them gathered at my ankles. Now, that would’ve been some funny shit.

My all-time favorite pose is of me kneeling down in the recreation yard, my hands holding rolled up brochures, waving them in the air. My face is pained and desperate as I yell, “Don’t drop the bombs!” The brochures really don’t look like the flares in The Rock, and I can’t really pull off Nick Cage very well, but hey, I tried. And the laughs I got from the other tourists were worth getting my pants dusty in the knees. I’d say it was worth the humiliation, but this is me we’re talking about. Like I’d be embarrassed about making an ass out of myself.

“You and my sis are movie whores,” Ty says while sliding his finger across his phone, glancing at my photo shoot at the clink.

“You mean to tell me you’ve never reenacted one of your favorite movies in the big house?”

He shakes his head with a chuckle. “No, can’t say that I have.”

With a little tug on his belt, his eyes lower to mine and I murmur, “Well, I’m sure there are plenty of films we can bring to life when we get back to your place.”

Before we head to Ghirardelli Square this afternoon, I make Ty promise to go for a run with me. If I don’t want to feel guilty about consuming another 3,500 calories of hot fudge, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate fudge brownies, I need to get my ass in gear.

We’re on our second mile when Ty slows to a crawl. “What’s wrong?” I ask. “Daddy long legs can’t keep up with these little wheels?” I pat my thighs.

“Babe, you know I can keep up with you. I think I’ve more than proved I can in the last two weeks. In fact, I think you’ve burned enough calories rolling around in my sheets to eat five sundaes and about thirty truffles.” Now, he’s stopped, and is panting with his hands on his hips, sweat dripping down the side of his face. His damp skin is glistening in the early morning sun. Jeezus. This man exudes uber amounts of sex appeal, making me want to drag my tongue down his neck, lapping up the salty moisture and following the trail down to his hard abs and beyond. “Thinking about chocolate already?”

“Thinking about dipping you in chocolate and taking my time licking you clean,” I confess, my girl parts squeezing with desire.

He looks at me blankly for a second before shock registers on his face. “Well, that has to burn some calories too. I say we stop at the store on the way home and pick up some chocolate syrup. I wouldn’t want to deny you one of your fantasies. I mean … who am I to get in the way of your imagination?”

Two cans of whipped cream and a bottle of chocolate syrup later, I’m in Ty’s shower with hot water running down my body.

“I had no idea chocolate could be so sticky,” he says as he steps inside with me.

“Yeah, no kidding. Did you get everything into the washer without it dripping all over the floor?”

He laughs. “Yeah. It wasn’t as bad as it looked. I think next time we should just head to Ghirardelli’s first and eat the chocolate there. Then we can come home and work it off. Wearing it isn’t as hot as I thought it would be.”

I run my fingers down the center of his chest toward his taut abs. “Actually, you wearing it was plenty hot. Tasted pretty damn good too. And I can’t complain about the clean-up.” My palms flatten against his sculpted pecs now, and he springs to life poking me in the belly.

“On second thought, it’s not so bad at all.” With one of his hands threaded in my hair and his other firmly holding on to my ass, he leans in and devours my mouth in a seriously scorching wet kiss. The sweet taste of chocolate on his tongue fills my senses and sends my body into overload. Again.

We just finished one round of the hottest sex I’ve ever experienced. The warmth of Ty’s tongue as he sucked the chilled whipped cream from my nipples. The heat of his tongue as I watched him lick chocolate from my lips. And not the ones attached to my face. Sweet mercy, that was just minutes ago and here we are ready to do it all over again.

“I’m going to go home with muscles I didn’t know I had,” I tell Ty as he lowers himself to the floor and hikes my left thigh onto his shoulder.

“Shh. You have some more syrup down here. I thought I got it all earlier. I guess not.”

Holy shit. I think I just heard my skin sizzle with the flick of his tongue. “Poor me,” I groan.

Poor me and poor him is all I can think of as we take turns getting our fill of each other. It isn’t until we’re breathless, trying to recover from round two, that we actually grab the soap which is why we got into the shower in the first place.

Give me a minute, though. With the tender touch of Ty’s soapy hands tracing lazy circles over my body and the gentle massage of him shampooing my hair, I just might be ready for round three.

My eyes flash open way before I’m ready to get out of bed. Tyler is sleeping on his back next to me with one arm resting above his head and his other hand on my thigh. The warmth of his touch brands my skin, and I’m hoping I’ll still be able to feel it long after I leave today.

His sun-kissed bare chest is well-defined and smooth, with a golden happy trail that disappears under the bright white sheet covering his lower half. He’s beautiful. And he was all mine for two of the best weeks of my life. From parading around the town like a couple of tourists to acting like an old retired couple, we’ve made one hell of a pair.

I’m not ready to leave it all behind.

I’m not ready to say goodbye and not know when we’re going to have this again.

I’ve been bidding farewell to Tyler Gelson for more than half my life. You’d think I’d be used to it. But for many reasons, it’s even harder now. When he left for college, I knew there wouldn’t ever be anything between us, so I used it as a time to heal my heart and move on. It worked for the most part. I dated. I went to prom. I did what most teenage girls do. I hooked up with teenage boys. I sure as hell didn’t fret over my first love who was older than me and out of reach. Not much anyway.

Ty would come home to visit his family for the holidays or for anything else his mom summoned him for. I’d see him. He’d see me. It’d be awkward. And then he was gone before I could get used to seeing him again.

When I finally left for my own college experience, the run-ins with Ty happened even less. But when I did see him, even though there were uncomfortable stares, I knew there was something there. And not only on my part. I was no longer some naive girl with a nagging crush. I knew my feelings for him were real, and I knew he had feelings for me too.

That night at prom, when our dates ditched us, I discovered just how much he felt for me when we made love for the very first time on a soft plaid blanket under the stars at the top of a deserted street most of us called Hookup Hill. Silly me, I talked myself into thinking it was just a pity lay on his part. He couldn’t possibly share the same feelings I had, could he?

But years later when I looked into his eyes after I introduced him to Nick, I knew I was wrong. He did have feelings for me. Real feelings. A lot of feelings. And it was too late.

Ty had come home for a quick visit for the Fourth of July holiday. Shel and I were home for the summer. Nick and I had been dating for months but he had never met my family. So I invited him to join us. But, I didn’t know of Ty’s plan to make an appearance. I can still remember the punch in my gut when I saw him and his long stare as he took in Nick’s arm around my waist holding me tightly against him.

What sucked ass about that bittersweet day was that I had just realized Tyler Gelson, the great love of my life, really did love me and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. I had moved on. I loved Nick. Not the way I loved Ty, but it was something. That had to be the hardest goodbye of all. It was like I was saying goodbye forever.

Thankfully, I got a second chance. And this time, I’m going to do everything I can so I never have to say goodbye to Tyler again. From now on, it’s going to be a till next time kind of thing.

Ty lets out a breathy sigh, and my gaze focuses on his chest rising up and down.

This gorgeous man is mine. And I’m not going anywhere. Geographically, yes. But my heart will always be with him, no matter how many miles are between us.

I’ve finally got him back, and I’m not ever letting go.

Chapter 10

Melissa

It’s summer, yet I wake up shivering. I’m home now, and I’m alone in my bed without the warmth of Ty’s lean, hard body lying next to me. Not exactly what I want to dwell on as soon as I wake up this morning. I’d rather think about our two weeks of record-breaking heat together. And I’m not talking about the temperature in the Bay Area either. Every minute with him was amazing, falling into a routine, enjoying each other’s company, both inside the bedroom and out.

My phone rings, the sound of the Friday Night Lights theme song filling my room. I reach across my fluffy comforter and pillows to snatch my phone from the charging station on my bedside table.

“Hello.”

“Hey, Melly Belly,” Ty says, his voice cheerful so early in the morning. “How are you still in bed? I woke up hours ago. I can’t sleep without you next to me.”

My heart squeezes. “I can’t either.”

“You should have just stayed.”

I run my hand through my hair. “Yeah, I should have. I don’t have anything going on except for taking care of my pooches. I miss them and I’m sure my mom can use the break.”

“When do you get to pick them up?”

“My mom’s finally back from her vacation so I’m going to pick them up today. They’ll keep me busy, at least. I’m probably gonna go insane watching the clock tick till I see you again.” There’s an awkward silence as I consider what to say next. “And when exactly is that again?”

He clears his throat. “Not for at least three weeks. I volunteer at the local teen center. We need to get the classes up and running before I can get away. I’m kicking myself for taking this gig. I wanna jump on a plane and be there with you.”

“Soon, babe. You know you’re going to have a great time with those kids. I’m glad you’re doing it again.”

“We both have a soft spot for struggling adolescents, don’t we?” I can sense the smile in his eyes. “There’s just something about the ones who are a little rough around the edges.”

“Project?” I tease.

“No. That’s not it. I think it’s watching them succeed against all odds that does it for me. I try to help in any way I can.”

“Yup, I know the feeling. I’m a sucker for a happy ending too. When I see my kids, the ones who most thought were a lost cause, cross the stage and get their diplomas at graduation, it makes all the extra hours of phone calls and come-to-Jesus talks worth it.” This last May, I had a student introduce me to his mom. She thanked me, shaking my hand and not letting go. She expressed how grateful she was to me for being there for her son and how she didn’t think she would’ve seen him graduate if it hadn’t been for me. She’s a single mom, working two jobs to care for her elderly mother and her two children. Because of that responsibility, she wasn’t always aware that her son was ditching and getting into trouble all the time. He loves his mom, but has some serious daddy issues. But he figured it out. Now, he has a high school diploma to get him started and he got a part-time job at the airport. Each of my students has a story to tell. I could flip the pages of the yearbook and share all their sob stories, some more sad, depressing, and maddening than others. But the best tales are the ones where the students beat the odds to find success, just like Ty described.

“So what’s your plan for the day? Cuddle the doggies? Talk shit with my sis?”

He knows me well. As soon as I dig myself out of this abyss of throw pillows I call a bed, I’m heading over to my mom’s. And if she doesn’t talk my ear off the entire day, I plan on seeing my best friend. It’s been years since we’ve been away from each other this long. And I definitely miss her. Even more than Mer and Der. But I wouldn’t tell her that.

“That’s the plan,” I tell him.

“You know if you want to come up again, you can bring the little fur balls with you. No need to find a babysitter.”

The idea makes me want to pack my bags now. “Let’s see how things go. With your commitments at the center, you might not have much time. We’ll talk about it in a few weeks.” As much as I’d like to turn right back around and drive up there in time for dinner, I know I can’t. I have to exhibit some self-control. And hell, I’d like him to come to me. I can’t just spend eighteen hours in my car to make the trip to and from the Bay every time my heart warms to his voice. I’m not that pathetic.

“Okay,” he says. “But just so you know … I want you here. With me. All to myself. Now that I’ve had my fill of you, I can’t get enough.”

“Oh, Ty. I’ve had my fill of you too. Been more full of you than I could ever imagine, as a matter of fact. And believe me, we could be a hundred years old and I still will not have had enough.”

There’s a low groan in his tone when he replies, “Oh lord, woman. You’re killing me. I gotta go jump in the shower. Or maybe a tub of ice.”

There’s laughter on both ends as we end the call.

He wants me there. With him, huh?

Well, that’s definitely something to think about.

“Mom,” I shout when I enter my parents’ home. Instantly, I feel like a little kid again. Being here always makes me feel like I want to put on my PJs and watch As The World Turns with my mom and grandma. The damn show is gone now, but Grey’s works.

“I’m in the kitchen,” I hear her call out.

She turns as I come around the corner. She wears a bright smile on her face as she wipes her hands on her apron. “Hi, baby girl.” Her hands fly up, welcoming me. “How was your trip? How is Tyler?”

“Oh, Mama.” And the tears fall. What the fuck? Where did these come from? I bury my face into her shoulder and sob. “He’s wonderful.”

“Then why are you crying?” She pats my head and runs her hand down my hair.

“I don’t know. I have no idea where this is coming from.” I back away, wiping the tears from my now damp face with my fingertips.

Her concerned eyes search mine for answers, but I don’t have any. My breath hitches with a sob every time I inhale. I feel like a little girl in my mom’s kitchen after I’ve just skinned my knee. And then I start crying more as a memory resurfaces of a time just like that. I wanted to learn how to ride a skateboard so bad. I was determined and Ty was against it. He said with my lack of coordination I’d just break my face. In fact, he touched my cheek and said I’d break my “beautiful face.” Instead, I tore up my knee and he carried me inside my house and held my hand while my mom poured peroxide over the wound. I never tried riding a skateboard again. But that memory clings to my heart right now.

My mom’s eyes brighten again and she brushes the sign of the cross over her chest and forehead. “What is it?” I ask her.

“Oh, mija.” Her own eyes start to puddle. “You’re pregnant. I’m going to be a grandma.” Thankfully, she envelops me in a huge bear hug or I’m sure I’d be a pile of limp bones on the hardwood floors. “Come. Sit.”

When I’m safely rested in my dad’s La-Z Boy recliner, my mind starts to spin. “Mom, I can’t be pregnant. There are no signs. At all. I’m fine. Just a little emotional is all. I guess I miss Ty more than I thought.”

My mother sits on the coffee table across from me, her elbows resting on her knees and an I Love Lucy apron hanging between her legs. “Honey, I know it. You are.”

“How do you know? What are you gonna do? One of my abuelita’s old wives tales or something?” If she starts getting red yarn, salt, or chili peppers, I’m gonna bolt.

“No, I’m not going to do anything to you. Just relax.” She reaches out and places her soft callused hand on my bare knee. “Now, tell me. Have you been tired lately?”

“Well, yeah.” But if she knew what I’ve been doing for two weeks, she’d understand. I’m not about to tell my mama that I’ve been having marathon sex with my best friend’s brother.

“Do your chichis hurt? Are they tender?”

My hands shoot to my boobs. Huh. They are. “Yeah.” Again. That could be due to the previously mentioned marathon sex. Tyler has a way with his hands. And his teeth. God, I have to squeeze my thighs together just thinking about his talent.

“Now, when was the last time you had your period?”

Shit. Why does she look all happy? Like she’s thrilled her only daughter is knocked up out of wedlock. I’m surprised she’s not praying or something.

My thoughts flash through any memory I have of tampons and panty liners. I seriously can’t remember the last time I needed them. I haven’t had to buy some since I discovered you can buy a vibrator at the local drugstore. Imagine that. I’ll take this box of pads, the vibrator, some lube, and throw in this cockring for my special loved one. Crazy. I couldn’t believe it. I took several pictures of the feminine product aisle and sent them to Shel. She texted back and said she knew where to shop for my birthday.

“Oh shit, Mom.” Suddenly, I feel like it’s a thousand degrees. I can feel the moisture in my pits and the backs of my thighs.

“When?” she asks.

“Just before my birthday.” Holy fuck.

“Your birthday? That was in March. How could you not know you were pregnant this whole time? It’s been months.”

I lean forward, placing my head in my hands. “I don’t have my period every month. And when I do, it’s really light. I’ve been a runner since high school. That’s like birth control in itself.”

“Not a hundred percent, obviously.” She sits up, crosses her arms over her chest and gives me a knowing smirk.

“It’s not like we didn’t use anything else.” And we did. Ty has a knack for slapping on a condom in a split second without killing the mood, kinda like a relay runner grabbing the baton in stride. Although, I can’t say I haven’t wished for some bareback skin-to-skin contact, but I know better. “Hey, this isn’t a sure thing. It only comes every three to four months. It’s normal for someone who runs as much as I do,” I tell her trying to convince myself. Tyler’s words about Shel getting pregnant keep playing in my mind. He can’t give back this baby. Shit. What am I going to tell him? He doesn’t want kids.

My mom touches her thumb to her pinky first, then to her other fingers. “It’s almost four months now. I say you take a test.”

“Oh, god. I’m gonna be sick.”

“Ay, don’t be so dramatic. Get up. Let’s go. I’ll drive you.”

About twenty minutes later, I’m walking the aisles of the local drug store. The same aisle with the ribbed vibrators and fluorescent cockrings. Shel should have bought me those for my birthday. Can’t get pregnant from a toy. I pull my sunglasses over my eyes, and pull the elastic band from my head, freeing my hair to cover my face.

“What are you doing? You look like a criminal,” my mom says. “Who are you hiding from?”

“Anyone. Everyone. My students could be here. Or Shel. Or her mom. Ty’s mom.” My stomach goes sour, like I can feel my insides curdling with every second that passes until I know for sure if I’m preggers.

I stop in front of all the tests. There have to be over twenty different kinds. Why are there so many? And why are they so dang expensive? You shouldn’t have to pay more than five bucks for something you’re just going to take a leak on. My mom grabs three boxes and starts walking away from me. “Meet me in the car,” she orders.

She doesn’t have to tell me twice.

After pissing on all three sticks, which takes the speed and agility of an Olympic athlete might I add, and lining up two of them on the bathroom sink, I sit on the toilet seat and wait. Because I’m not an Olympic athlete, I dropped one in the toilet and have yet to fish it out. I’ll do that later since I have something a lot more important on my mind. The first one is pink on the end. If I hadn’t read the directions, I would’ve thought I was pregnant and having a girl. Instead, it just means my pee made it on the stick. The second one looks wet but it didn’t change color so I’m hoping it’s doing its job.

Eons pass before a bright blue plus sign shows up in a tiny window. Great. This test isn’t gender biased. But it does tell me I’m pregnant. Holy fuck. Seconds later, the words “pregnant” in bold letters shout at me from the window of the other test. Holy fuck, again!

I’m on my feet before I can think, swinging open the bathroom door. My mother is standing just outside.

“I’m pregnant.”

A smile stretches across her face and her eyes get misty. “Congratulations.”

The warm sun on my skin is like a security blanket, making me feel relaxed and comfortable which is exactly what I need right now. Sitting on my mom’s pool deck petting my pooches is just what I need to escape the chaos that has become my life in the last two hours since I first arrived at my parents’ place.

“How are you feeling, mija?” My mom stands over me with a glass of iced tea. “It’s decaf. I brought you a granola bar too. Maybe it will settle your stomach.”

I take the cool glass and bring it to my lips. The icy liquid chills my body, even in this summer heat. “Thank you.”

She sits across from me again. Mer pops her little head up and then rests back against my thigh. Der doesn’t budge. He hasn’t moved an inch since he settled on his back beside me with his arms and legs spread eagle waiting for his belly to be rubbed. Mer snuggles closer now that I’ve taken a hand away from her to take a drink.

“What’s wrong? I thought you’d be a little more excited about this. You’re having a baby. Tyler’s baby. How can you not be thrilled? I am.”

Great. I’ve disappointed my mom. As if Tyler isn’t going to be disappointed enough. And how about my dad? He’s going to kill Ty when he finds out he doesn’t want kids. This is a big fucking mess.

“Mom, it’s complicated. Ty lives in San Francisco and I don’t. He wants to stay there. I want to stay here. And if that isn’t enough to make things crazy. He doesn’t even want kids. How can I be jumping for joy when I have a baby growing inside me who won’t have a father?”

“Snap out of it,” she shouts. “You don’t know that.”

My eyes focus on hers. “Yes, I do. Shel told us she and Matt are going to start trying, and Ty specifically said he doesn’t want kids right now. He’ll be happy to be an uncle because he can give the kid back.” I thought it was funny at the time, but now it breaks my heart.

“Oh, that’s all he said. Every man I know has said that until they have their own kids, then they become proud fathers. Just like Tyler will.”

Tears sting my eyes. Every ounce of me wants to believe her, but I’m not so sure. Who knows how he’ll react. He’s been on his own for so long. He’s more than proved he doesn’t need me, or his family.

“Hey. It’s going to be okay. Don’t cry. This baby is a blessing. They all are. You’ll see.” She reaches in her pocket and hands over my phone. “Now, call your doctor. It’s still early enough the office will be open. And then I suggest you make plans for another road trip. You need to tell him. I’m guessing you’re about twelve to fourteen weeks along which means you won’t be able to hide it much longer.”

Chapter 11

Shelly

“How’s my big brother holding up without my best friend?” I toss my feet up on the giant square ottoman in my living room and fall back into my soft cushy sofa.

There’s a low groan coming from the other end of the phone. “Truthfully, I’m barely functioning. It’s ridiculous how such a little person can make such a dramatic impact on your life.”

I can’t help smiling. My brother’s in love. “You’re just barely figuring that out now?”

Another groan comes through the line. “I’ve known that since the day you brought her home with you in elementary school. Only now she has a different kind of effect on me.”

“I bet.”

“Shut up.”

“What? I didn’t say anything.” I chuckle.

“Mmm hmm.”

“So what are you going to do about it?” Someone has to give him a nudge. Mel sure as hell isn’t going to. And he’s a man for crying out loud. Not all men are like my Matty. In fact, I think he’s one of a kind. My brother’s the type of guy that needs to be led to the water and then told to drink or else he’d just sit there and stare at it.

“I don’t know yet.” A silence fills the space between us and I don’t dare say anything. Maybe he’ll figure it out on his own. Maybe. I’m crossing my fingers. “I’ve been toying with the idea of coming home.” Sweet baby Jesus, thank you.

“Really,” is all I say, very matter-of-factly. I want this to be all his idea. I’m Switzerland here, trying my hardest not to demand he get his ass home and make an honest woman out of my friend. Actually, he doesn’t have to marry her. Not unless they want to. I just want him to be here for her. And I want them to be happy. Not miles away from each other and miserable every minute they’re apart. I spoke to Mel earlier and she sounded like shit. She’ll be here any minute and I’m sure she’s going to look the same.

“Yeah. It doesn’t make sense for Mel to move up here. Her family’s down there, and so are you. I just can’t imagine leaving my students or my school.”

“I get it. I know I’d feel the same way about leaving my kiddos.” My hand reaches for my belly without even thinking about it. “So you’re thinking this thing with you and Mel might be a little permanent?” I hope that’s not too much to ask.

“More than a little. I already let her go once. I’m not gonna do it again.”

My fist shoots through the air with a silent cry of “yes”!

“Sounds like a good plan,” I tell him, trying my damnedest to not scream and yell into the phone and run circles around my house. “Mel’s probably thrilled.”

“Hey,” he shouts into the phone. “Uh,” he lowers his voice. “Don’t say anything. I haven’t mentioned the move to her. I don’t want to get her hopes up just yet. I have to find a job and a place to live. I’m not going anywhere near Nick’s fucking house, that’s for sure. Anyway, I’ll tell her when I have it all figured out. She loves surprises. The smile on her face will be worth keeping her in the dark for a few. At least, I hope so. Who knows? I may be a bit over ambitious. She could laugh in my face and tell me she doesn’t want a real commitment. Come to think of it. That’s a definite possibility. She just got divorced.”

There’s a knock at my door before it swings open bringing in a late afternoon breeze.

“Shel,” Mel calls out. “I’m here.”

“In here,” I shout back.

“Who’s that?” Ty asks.

“It’s Mel.”

“Don’t say anything.”

“I won’t.” Unfortunately, I don’t get a chance to tell him he’s a total whack job if he thinks Mel’s not entirely in this too. He can’t possibly be seriously thinking she’d be anything less than ecstatic to have him home and living with her.

Mel drags through the entry way and flops herself on the sofa next to me. Instantly, I cue in to her sadness. She looks worse than I thought. Her eyes are swollen and she looks deathly tired. “What’s wrong?” I sit up to ask her.

“Who’s that?” she whispers, pointing to the phone.

“My brother.”

“What do you mean, what’s wrong?” Ty shouts in my ear. “Is everything okay? What’s wrong with Melissa?” His use of her full name is not lost on me. And if he could see her, he’d know he was right on the money in using it.

“Shh.” Mel puts her index finger up to her lips. “Don’t say anything.”

Oh, fuck. Between these two and their secrets, I might just combust. Since when am I a vault?

“Hey, Ty. Mel just got here. And since you hogged her for two weeks, it’s my turn. I’ll talk to you later.”

Before I can hang up, he says, “Tell her I miss her.” Oh, gag me.

I tell her anyway.

“Tell him I miss him too and I’m gonna pack my puppies and be on my way back tomorrow.”

Ty chuckles. “I heard her. Tell her I’ll be waiting.”

“Alright, alright. You can talk about the details on your own time. Bye, big brother.”

And before he can say another thing, I tap the “end” button on my cordless phone and turn to my friend. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she says, her voice rising to a squeal. “Why? How are you? I feel like it’s been years.”

“Don’t you nothing me, Melissa. Your eyes are bloodshot and puffy. Looks like you’ve been crying your eyes out or you had an allergic reaction to something like the Fresh Prince in Hitch.” I stare her down, raising my right brow to show her this is serious business.

She actually clicks her tongue at me with a bitch snap of her neck. “And you don’t give me that look.”

I give a click and a snap right back. “Then spill.”

“Fine. I just left my mom’s house.” I practice my silent routine again. Twice in one day is killing me. When has anyone known me to keep my mouth shut? Yeah, that’s right. Never. “Okay, so right now, I’m talking to my best friend, right?” I nod. “We had a little heart to heart about this guy I’m seeing. And how it’s a little complicated being that it’s a long distance thing. I got a little emotional as you can see.” She gestures to her face with her two index fingers.

“Melly, it hasn’t even been a week since you left him.” I know my brother is a good looking guy but really? Is it all that serious? Who am I to talk? I’d be looking just as pathetic as her if I was in the same situation.

“I know. It’s crazy huh. I just miss him. You were right when you said we should be careful. I thought I could handle the casual thing but I guess I can’t.” With her dainty elbow perched on the back of a sofa cushion, she rests her head in her hand with a loud breathy sigh. “There are just so many ‘what ifs’ happening and it’s kind of killing me. I’m not one to be patient. After Nick left, I never thought I’d be so needy. We were married for years and I never felt the kind of desperation to see him that I feel right now for Ty. He was never home and I never missed him. But with Tyler, it sucks ass waking up every morning without him.”

Oh goodness. She’s in this one deep. So is he. And it sounds like neither one of them is talking. Dumb. How the hell do you have a relationship—long distance or otherwise—without communicating. “Have you told him how you feel?”

She shakes her head. Her eyes turn glassy again and a tear threatens to spill over her eyelids smeared with black eyeliner. “What am I supposed to say? Hey, Ty. The sex is great and all, but now I’m thinking I’d like a little more of a commitment. The guy’s a free spirit. He’s been on his own his whole life. And now, me, Miss Divorcee is going to try and tie him down.”

“I doubt he’d think of it like that,” is all I say. I’m really itching to scream, he’s moving home so don’t worry or shed one more tear. But, I can’t. Shit. What have I gotten myself into?

“I’m pathetic, huh.” Her bottom lip plumps out and she bats her long lashes at me, looking like a sad little Betty Boop with her big brown eyes all misty.

“Nah.” I reach out and pat her hand. “You’re just a woman in love.” I wince as the words come out but it’s too late to take them back. Ty would beat me with a stick if he thought I coaxed her into saying it, or feeling it. Not that she needs any coaxing.

A smile stretches across Mel’s face, and I’m happy to finally see it. “I am,” she says with a content sigh. Her eyes have gone from weepy to plain dreamy. If it wasn’t my big brother that put that look in her eye, I might get all googlie-eyed with her.

“Hey, how about you go visit him again? He can’t come home for a while. You may as well go up there. I’ll even take care of the little fur balls for you.”

She holds up a finger to scold me, “Hey, don’t you call my babies fur balls.” She’s always defending those tiny rat-looking dogs. If I was looking to get a dog, a Chihuahua would not be at the top of my list. A lab or even a cocker spaniel would be much better.

“Fine,” I hold up my hands in surrender, “they’re not fur balls. But I’ll watch them anyway.”

“Actually, my mom is going on a camping trip and she invited them to come along.” She says this with a completely straight face even though it sounds ridiculous.

“Oh, really. She invited them. And what did the Mer Der pair say? Do they want to go?” I can’t help but mock her. This is why a throw pillow comes flying at my face. “Sorry, you make it sound like she’s taking the grandkids on vacation.”

This makes my friend laugh. And laugh. A little too much laughing. I’m funny but it wasn’t that good of a joke. So I toss a pillow at her.

“Woo,” she lets out a whoosh of air. “That was funny.” She slaps her knee. “So where’s Matt?”

Her face is red but she’s finally stopped with her goofy chuckle. “He went to play basketball with some of his friends. The thought of listening to girl talk sent him running for some testosterone backup.”

“It’s not like he’s never listened before and kept our glasses refilled.” She smiles. “Wow, can you believe it? I’ve been here for quite a while and we haven’t had a drink yet. We’re losing our touch.”

“About that,” here it goes, “I’m gonna be on the wagon for another eight or so months.”

A giant O forms on her mouth, and her eyes shoot wide open in surprise. “Shelly Fuller, my best friend since I was just a little girl. My only sister from another mister. Are you trying to tell me something?”

Now, it’s my turn to turn on the waterworks. All I can do is nod.

In seconds, she has flung herself across the sofa and is squeezing me to death. I can hear her sobs and the shaking of her body in my arms.

“Oh, Shel,” she blubbers. “I’m so, so happy for you.” She backs away and gazes down at my belly, before looking up at me. “Congratulations, mama.” And then she hugs me again. “Details,” she says, as she scoots herself toward her original seat. “I want all the details.”

Matty is already in bed with an ereader in his hand when I saunter in with a late night snack. A small bowl of Captain Crunch should hit the spot. If not, there’s always seconds. Or ice cream.

“Got a little hungry, huh?” A little smirk plays on his face.

My knee goes down on the mattress first. He reaches out and takes the cereal from my hands so I can’t get comfortable without making a mess of our bed. When I’m all settled, he gives it back after shoveling a bite into his own mouth. “I don’t know if I’m really hungry, or if I’m just being mental. I feel like I’m craving food all the time now that I know we have a little guy growing in here.”

With his free hand, he reaches over and places a palm to my belly. “Honey, you were always hungry before. I hate to break it to you but this is nothing new.”

“Whatever,” I say through a mouthful of Crunch Berries.

“I take it everything went well today. Mel sent me about five different texts telling me congrats and to make sure I take care of you while she’s gone.”

I shake my head just thinking of my best friend’s concern. “She sent me quite a few too. She told me not to let you blow in my hooha. Who does that? I don’t think you’ve blown in my cooch, have you?”

Matty fumbles his electronic book and it falls to the floor with a thud on the frieze carpeting. “No, I’ve never blown inside it.” He chuckles. “Now, I can’t stop thinking about a puffer fish.” He scratches his head with a smile as I struggle to keep my food in my mouth.

“A puffer fish?” I say, when I finally swallow. “I’m going to have nightmares about my vagina inflating like a balloon.”

He laughs again. “Not that I want to, but why can’t I blow down there.”

I go on to tell him that Mel read somewhere that it could cause an air embolism. I bet it’s one of her grandma’s old wives’ tales. Matty just raises a brow at me, shuddering while I give him the details. Great, I’ll be lucky if I ever get him to go down there again. Like I really want my husband to think about a bloating fish and the possibility of killing me when he’s staring down my whispering eye. Thanks a lot, Mel.

“What about your brother? Did you tell him?”

“Yeah.”

“And?”

“He’s a guy. He’s happy. You don’t have to worry about texts from him.”

I set my empty bowl on my nightstand and flip the light switch to dim my side of the room. My husband reaches over and flips his off as well. Like clockwork, we’re snuggled together like two spoons in a silverware drawer. A light sheet covers us as I settle my booty into his lap, and his arms wrap around mine. His soft kisses on my bare shoulder ignite fireworks up and down my body.

“By the new year, we’re going to be parents,” Matty murmurs against my neck. “I can’t wait to see my baby in your arms. You’re going to be the most beautiful mother I’ve ever seen.”

My nose tingles and tears sting my eyes with emotion. “And you’re going to be the best daddy ever.” I tilt my head back and kiss the tip of his nose. “And the hottest.”

“I love you, Shelly.”

“And I love you.”

Chapter 12

Melissa

The constant ringing of the phone in my ear isn’t promising. He hasn’t answered yet so maybe he doesn’t miss me as much as I miss him.

“Melly!” he calls out, breathless. “You there?”

“Yeah.” He’s still breathing hard, and boy does that do wonders for my lady love.

“Sorry, babe. I was just getting out of the shower and I heard your ring coming from my room. And then I had to dig around in my bed to find it.” The sound of his voice is slowly getting back to normal.

“Ring?” Curiosity killed the cat but I can’t help asking. “What ring?”

He chuckles. “Well, I kinda set a new ring tone to your contact info. That way I know when you’re calling and I don’t let it go to voicemail.”

Or so he knows when he doesn’t need to take the call. Damn it. I’m giving myself some bad mojo. Tyler isn’t like that. “I’ll bite. You already know the FNL theme song comes on for you, so what do you have for me?”

There’s that laugh again. I wish I could see his face. I bet he’s smiling like crazy, proud of himself with whatever gag song he has picked out for me. “Heard of Ludacris?”

“Duh. I’m a teacher. I’m not dead. I know who he is. Lil Wayne too. And Drake. And all the rest of them. I guess you’d be surprised to know they’re all on my iPod.”

“Wow, look at you. My very own hoodrat.”

I bust up at that one. “Hoodrat, hoodrat, hoochie mama.” Oh, if he only knew how true that statement is. My stomach does a flip in response so I try changing the subject. “Shut up. I’m surprised you know who he is.”

“What? Just because I’m an artist and hate to wear shoes, you think all I listen to is the Counting Crows?”

“No, Dave Matthews Band too.”

“Ha!” he shouts, along with a round of laughter. “You’re priceless, Mel.”

“Well, c’mon. The song?”

“Oh, I almost forgot. It’s My Chick Bad.” A little snicker comes through the phone.

“My chick hood?”

“My chick do stuff that your chick wish she could,” he says with such rap star flair.

I crack up at his Luda impression. “Yeah, I bet.”

“Honey, you are one talented woman.”

“How would you like to get another taste of my talents?” I saw a window and I took it. My teeth clinch and I hold my breath for a response.

“I’d love one. Tell me you’re already in the car and on your way up here.” His tone peaks with the excitement of a little boy.

“Not quite. But I don’t think I can wait three weeks. I may be on my way up tomorrow.” There’s a long silence as I wait impatiently for him to reply. It doesn’t come. “Hey, it was just an idea. I don’t have to. I can wait.”

“It’s not that, Mel. I want you here. But I feel like I’m being a selfish ass making you do all the commuting. I don’t want this to be one-sided and for you to feel like I’m taking advantage of you.”

“It’s just a little driving. No biggie. If you want me there, I’m there. If not, then I’ll stay put. It’s your call.” My fingers instinctively cross as I wait, yet again.

Only this time, it’s less than a second before he says, “Do you have to wait until tomorrow? Come now.”

My earlier conversation with Tyler makes this very awkward appointment a little easier to handle. Having my mom at my side helps too. The waiting room in this OB office is very modern with neutral colors for the most part with a pop of color here and there. It reminds me of a model home, with all new decor that’s so precise you’re afraid to touch anything. I glance at the wall paintings and they remind me of Ty. Not that they look anything like his work, but art alone, anywhere and everywhere makes me think of him.

My right leg bounces up and down as I scan each of the women. Some are with their significant others. Some are married based on their ring fingers. Some not. One is probably with her mother like me. I want to stand up and shout, “No, my baby doesn’t have a deadbeat dad. He just doesn’t know yet or he’d be here,” but I don’t. It feels weird though, seeing these couples together and I brought my mama. Now, I really do feel like a hoodrat. Like everyone is judging me.

Oh, fuck that. I’m over thirty years old, if I want to have a baby on my own, I can. And I’d probably do a better job single than some married parents. So, bite me is what I say to any judgmental asses in this room.

“Melissa,” a woman in beige scrubs with a sage-colored patchwork print calls out my name.

I’m on my feet and walking to the door when I realize my mother is staying put. I motion for her to come with me. Reluctantly, she stands and shuffles over.

“I wasn’t sure,” she whispers.

With my head on her shoulders as we follow the nurse, I tell her, “Right now, I need my mama more than ever, so stay close. Always.”

Before I can even sit on the patient table, the nurse in the super comfortable looking scrubs hands me a cup and asks for a sample. She also explains that I need to get naked and put on the paper gown before the doctor comes in.

Nice. I thought we might get to know each other first before I start handing over my fluids.

After willing my bladder to let the flood gates open, I leave my specimen cup in the secret pass-through compartment in the wall and make my way to the exam room. Within minutes I’m shivering in my paper gown, having shed all my clothing like a freaking ninja so my mom wouldn’t have to see my white ass.

The door swings open along with a cold breeze, causing my nipples to stand at attention. And holy shit, if it wasn’t the chill, my nips may have called out anyway. Sweet jeezus, this is not my regular doctor.

The fine piece of manhood reaches out his hand. “Hello there, Melissa. I’m Dr. Bryant.” When I suddenly become mute, he continues by introducing himself to my mother, and then addressing me again. “Dr. James is on maternity leave so I’m filling in for her until she gets back. But don’t worry, I’ve been doing this for years. I have two beautiful children of my own and my wife tells me I have a great bedside manner.”

I bet she does. The man is like milk chocolate, all smooth and yummy with his height and muscular build. Dark skin and light green eyes. Holy shit. How am I going to let this god-like creature with soft strong hands and a great bedside manner touch me?

He goes on to ask the regular questions. Have I had any spotting, cramps, blah, blah, blah? How am I feeling? My medical history which my mom helps me with. Then he gets real personal and asks about my baby daddy. I’m completely honest and tell him I’m not married and I haven’t told Ty because I wanted to be sure I’m really pregnant. He nods with a sympathetic smile and taps away on his computer.

“So I hear you have irregular cycles and are not sure when you last had your period. Is that correct?”

I go on to explain how I run and I never keep track, but maybe the last time I had it was around my birthday.

“Well, according to the good ol’ urine test, you’re coming up positive for pregnancy. What we need to do now is an internal exam, listen for a heartbeat since I’m guessing we’re far enough along. And then we’ll get you set up for an ultrasound.” He places his tablet on the counter and calls out for a nurse.

“All that? Today?” I ask. It’s not what I expected. Everything online said first appointments were a bit of a let-down. But this, this is way more than I could have imagined.

“Melissa, it’s important that we get some accurate measurements on your baby. It will help us establish a due date and allow you to make plans for the duration of your pregnancy. I’m assuming you’d like to know when your baby is going to be done cooking, right?” His eyes twinkle with a smile. They freaking twinkle. I may want my baby to stay in the oven if that means I get to ogle this doctor for longer.

“Yes, that’d be nice.”

A nurse or nurse’s assistant comes in and she starts flipping up things here and there on the exam table. The most notable, of course, are the stirrups.

“Mom,” he says, “Why don’t you come up here?” I’ll have to thank him later for not giving my mom a cooch shot. Instead, she’s standing right next to my face and I take her hand.

The nurse places a light blanket over my bottom half and lifts my feet into the dreaded stirrups. This isn’t my first rodeo, but it’s never a pleasant one. I can’t think of any woman who has ever enjoyed this.

The doctor slides a pair of purple gloves on his hands and stands beside me. First, he measures my belly with a tiny tape measure. Then, he explains that I’ll feel some pressure as he does the pelvic exam to check my uterus. Oh, fun times.

When he’s finished with the exam, and I’m done wincing at the uncomfortable intrusion into my body, he says, “Well, you’re definitely far enough along to hear the heartbeat so let’s take a listen.”

The nurse removes my feet from the stirrups and slides out a platform for me to rest my legs. With the blanket still covering my lower half, the doctor takes what looks like a microphone and shimmies it in the opening of my gown. A switch is flipped and he pushes the sucker onto my belly.

At first, there is static coming from a small speaker nearby. Then …

Oh my god. One hand shoots up to my mouth, and my eyes focus on my mom’s as I squeeze her hand with my other one.

“Is that it? Is that my baby?” She nods and a quick glance at the doc shows off his sweet smile. The rhythm of the whooshing sound is amazing. “This is crazy. I’ve watched this scene in so many movies, but this is real. It’s real, isn’t it?”

“It’s very real,” Dr. Bryant says. “Wait till you see the ultrasound.”

I’m leaving early tomorrow morning to San Francisco. That leaves me with less than twenty four hours to figure out how to tell Tyler Gelson that he is going to be a father come December. Less than twenty four hours to tell him I’m fourteen weeks pregnant. Out of my first trimester. There’s a heartbeat. There’s a real baby. I saw her in the ultrasound. Not that I know she’s a she. I don’t want to know yet. For that, I have to wait for Ty. But she’s real. A beautiful face, arms, legs, hands, feet. Eyes, ears, a nose, and a mouth. She’s all there.

But first, I have to tell my dad. If my mom didn’t already know, I’d have told Ty first. But she does know. And I can’t have her keeping a secret from my dad. That’s just not the way things roll in our house.

With my feet tucked beneath me, I lounge on my mom’s sofa waiting for my dad to get home. Any minute he’s going to walk through that door and I’ll have to spill the beans.

The question is, how?

More than anything, I think every dad dreads hearing their daughters say the words, “I’m pregnant.” But I’m not a teenager anymore. Maybe he won’t be so disappointed I got knocked up out of wedlock. I’ll be the talk of the family with my aunts. That’s for sure. No doubt they’ll all be in church praying for me.

Maybe I can just do it like that old Molly Ringwald movie, Playing For Keeps. “I’m pregnant, can you pass the turnips?” Who the hell eats turnips?

There’s a sound at the door, the rustling of the door knob and then the thud of his giant footsteps on the hardwood floors. A few seconds later he appears in the archway leading into the room where my mom and I await.

He takes off his black police department ball cap and I can already see the worry in his eyes. “What happened?”

His eyes trail from mine to my mother’s and back to mine again. Then he glances at the death grip I have on the pillow and the tissue in my hands.

My mother stands and is at his side in one graceful swoop. She circles her arms around him and lifts on tip toes to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Come, take a seat.”

Before he does, he closes his strong arms around her for a brief moment and presses a soft kiss to the top of her head. My heart fills with admiration of the love they share. Close to forty years and counting and they still have it.

He sits down across the sofa from me and reaches his hand over to cover mine. “What is it, Melissa?”

“Well, it’s nothing bad, really? So you can just un-wrinkle your brow?” The crease between his eyes always gets to me. That look … like he’s scared and ready to kick ass at the same time.

He throws an arm over the backrest, relaxing into the sofa cushions, and shifts to face me. “So tell me, mija. What’s not so bad?”

I glance over at my mom and she nods. “Well, you’re going to be a grandpa?”

He takes a gasp for air and then a smile creeps over his face. “Whoa,” he covers his chest with his hands, “that’s not bad at all. Congratulations.” His eyes shift to my mom. “We’re going to be grandparents. It’s about time.”

The fear and worry escapes from my pores as I see the smile on my dad’s face brighten and light up the room. He’s not angry. He’s thrilled. Whew.

“Wait a minute.” Oh shit. I knew it was too good to be true. “Where is Tyler? Why isn’t he here with you sharing the news?” I can’t help the frown that takes over my face as my fingernails turn into the most fascinating thing in the room. “Tyler Gelson is the father, right?”

My head shoots up to look at my dad. “Of course my baby is Ty’s. I can’t believe you’d even ask that.”

“Well, he’s not here. I can’t believe he’d be such a coward,” he says, his voice rising with each word.

“Daddy, Ty is not a coward.” I pause, my lip quivering and my hands trembling. Fuck. “He doesn’t know yet.”

“Why the hell not?” A hand flies up to press to his forehead, his signature I’m confused and irritated move.

Because is all I want to say, but I know better. My dad is a master of interrogation because he happens to be an amazing cop and an even better dad. Shel and I could never get anything past him when we were younger and I still can’t. Apparently. It was dumb of me to think I might be able to share the news and walk out the door without a thousand questions. Why couldn’t he have just stopped at congratulations?

“As you know, I just got back from San Francisco. I didn’t even know I was pregnant until Mom told me.”

Dad doesn’t waste anytime staring down my mother. “How did you know?”

“She came over to visit and as soon as I saw her, I just knew. Look at her, she’s glowing like an angel at Christmas.”

His attention reverts back to me and so does his smile, thankfully. “Anyway,” I continue, “Mom suggested that I might have a bun in the oven so she took me to get a few home tests.” I leave out the part about the dildos in the aisle at the drugstore and move on to tell him about my doctor’s appointment. With tears in his eyes, he listens as I recount listening to my baby’s heartbeat. “I don’t want to tell Ty over the phone so I’m going to drive back up tomorrow morning and share the news.”

“He’s going to be so happy, I’m sure of it.”

I can only hope. Secretly, I have my fingers crossed. I haven’t forgotten what he said about Shel wanting to have a baby. The best thing about her having a kid is the ability to give it back. Well, he can’t give back this one. This little peanut is his … forever.

Chapter 13

Melissa

Nine hours is a long time to contemplate how to tell the man you love you’re having his baby. Too fucking long if you ask me. By the time I reach Ty’s apartment, I’ve sucked down three iced teas from Starbucks and had to stop to pee once every two hours. This weak bladder is killing me.

I was ready to strangle the barista at the last stop because, apparently, it is too much to ask to brew some decaf tea and then pour it over ice. I feel her though. This decaf shit is going to get real old. I don’t know if I can hold out the entire nine months. As it is, I’m going through withdrawals without my glass—glasses—of wine. Not to mention, new flavors of Stella Rosa have popped up and I’m dying to head to the winery for a tasting. If it was still 1960, I’d be able to take a drink. Damn those doctors for figuring out alcohol and a growing fetus shouldn’t mix. I laugh to myself at my joke.

Ty is waiting outside, sitting on the bottom step of the staircase that leads up to his place. He closes the distance to my car in a flash. My window glides down and he pokes his head in for a kiss before I can get out a hello.

“Dang, Mel. Hungry much?” He eyeballs the empty container of Pringles on the seat next to me. And the half eaten package of licorice next to it. And the exhausted bag of hot-n-spicy beef jerky.

“It was a long ride.” I open the door so I can get out and stretch my legs.

“Remind me to pack a cooler for you for the way home. Or a refrigerator,” he teases.

I punch him in the gut. “Ha ha. You’re so funny.”

His arms curl around my waist and tug me closer. Instantly, I feel at home in his arms. Allowing myself the comfort of his embrace, I rest my head against his chest with a long sigh of contentment. How could I be worried about telling Ty about the baby? He’s always been there for me. Since we were kids he’s been my safe house, my security blanket. The one person besides Shel or my parents who I could turn to for just about anything.

“Hey,” he says, rubbing his hands up and down my back. “Can you believe I’m going to be an uncle? When Shel said she wanted to get preggers, she meant it.” This could be my opening. “I thought they’d wait a little longer though. They haven’t had much time to enjoy being newlyweds. I don’t envy them or the lack of sleep they’re in for. I’m so not ready for that responsibility.”

Okay, maybe not. My body tenses as I back away from him. Oh shit. This is going to be a lot harder than I could have ever imagined.

After Ty has dropped my bags in his room, he leads me into the kitchen where the scent of garlic is wafting through the air.

“I thought I’d surprise you with an early dinner.” His heart-melting smile hits me in the chest and makes my knees go weak. If I were a cartoon, you’d see me in a puddle on the floor already. “I didn’t think you’d want to go out after the long drive.”

“You cooked for me?” It smells like more than just mac-n-cheese or Ramen so I’m impressed.

“Yeah. My mom helped me.”

“What?” I yelp, and my hand flies up to cover my mouth. “Oh. Sorry. I mean, you called your mom.”

He laughs because he knows how insane it sounds. “No need to apologize. It took me a good hour to work up the sanity to call her. And by the time I was finished, I regretted it but, at least, we have something good to eat.”

I know how much of a pain in the ass his mother can be. I feel for him and Shelly. The woman is downright nasty. Especially to Shel. So much so that she hasn’t even told her mom she’s expecting because she doesn’t want her watching over her every move and inserting herself into every decision she and Matt make.

“We could’ve had Taco Bell.” If I were Ty, I would have made some Hamburger Helper before I made the call to Cruella.

“I wanted to do something special for you for making the trip. And since Shel and Matt only eat Captain Crunch or pasta, I had no choice.” He shrugs.

“Well, I’ll just have to show you how much I appreciate the gesture.” I hook my finger into the waistband of his jeans and pull him closer. “So what are we having?”

“Umm. Pasta.” I chuckle, but he holds up a finger to shh me. “But it’s homemade. Not from a can like Shel uses.”

I arch a brow at him. “Impressive.”

He arches a brow right back at me. “I hope you’re saying that later.”

“You haven’t touched your wine, Melly?” Ty gestures at my glass. “I got your favorite. It’s not some cheap shit.”

Damn. I didn’t think he’d notice. “Oh, thanks.” I raise the glass to my lips and take a pretend sip. “It’s good. I just haven’t been feeling it lately. Since Shel can’t drink, maybe I’m having sympathy sobriety with her.”

He laughs at my joke. “You think you could have sympathy boobs too?” He chuckles. “I hear that’s one of the perks.”

“Oh, really. Mine aren’t big enough for you? You only have two hands.”

“Honey, your breasts are perfect. My two hands are very grateful for them. Along with other parts of my body.” He winks.

“You’ll just have to show me later.”

“Or now. I’m done.” He tosses his napkin on his plate. “That was delicious. I’ll have to email my mom to tell her so.”

“Email?”

He shakes his head with a smirk. “You don’t expect me to call her again, do you?”

My eyes roll back. “You and your sister are terrible.”

“You don’t have to tell us that. We’ve heard it our entire lives. Shel even more so. Maybe she should have considered my mom before she decided to get knocked up. The only grandparents the kid is going to have are my mom and dad. Thank god for my dad. At least, he’ll have one sane grandparent.”

“He?” I wonder if he realizes he just gave the baby a gender.

“I hope so. My mom is a lot easier on the boys. I had it ten times better than Shel ever did, and I tried to bear some of the grief for her.”

“Enough about your mom. When you email her, tell her I thought the recipe was delicious and you did an amazing job.” Which he did. The sauce was fabulous with the perfect combination of spice and tomato. And the homemade ranch dressing for the salad was mouthwatering. “Now, let’s get this place cleaned up so you can take me to bed.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

Waking up in Tyler’s arms again feels like heaven. I study the lines of his face while he sleeps. He was always good looking as a kid, but he’s grown into this gorgeous strong man. His long chiseled jawline and cheekbones are like something you’d see in his paintings. I wish I had an ounce of his artistic ability so I could sketch him, and his sexy as sin beauty mark. I’d love to see his features etched across a blank page, coming to life with the subtle movement of my hand.

“You’re staring at me while I sleep,” the muffled words escape his sexy mouth.

“I’m committing your face to memory. Drawing you in my mind since I can’t do what you do.”

With his eyes closed, a grin spreads across his lips. “Okay. Gawk all you want.” He peels back the sheet to reveal his naked body. “Commit this to memory also. I wouldn’t want you to forget the most important part of me while we’re apart.”

In a flash of movement, Ty’s body is hovering over me and his face is an inch from mine. “It’s my turn. But I don’t just want to see you, I want to feel you too.” His lips press to mine, hard and still. Then his mouth slides down my neck to my chest, his hands molding over my breasts causing heat to pulse through my sensitive body.

“Maybe you are having sympathy pains for Shel.” He squeezes my boobs. “Before, they were a handful, now the cup overfloweth.”

“You’re silly,” I tell him with a smack to his shoulder.

“They’re nice and soft too.” He sucks hard on my left breast, dragging his teeth over my nipple.

I can’t help but cry out with the sheer pleasure of his playful teasing. My hands press to his shoulders to steady myself from the overwhelming sensation. How did the tenderness of my breasts just multiply all of a sudden?

The gentle graze of his fingertips down my sides tickles but causes a few stuttered breaths.

“Mmm,” Tyler moans against my heated flesh. “Your whole body feels so soft to me. So warm and soft. I love it.” Kisses trail to my belly, and without even thinking, my knee shoots up to protect myself … and my baby.

“Is that a nice way to tell me you think I’m getting fat?”

“Fat? No way, there isn’t an ounce of fat on your body, Melly. You just have softened a bit. You don’t look like you could kick my ass as easily as you could before. He goes back about his business of sprinkling my body with kisses.

“Fine. Carry on,” I tease, running my fingers through his thick locks.

After Ty has stuffed me with the best ham and cheese omelet ever, we snuggle on the sofa to watch the tube. I sit with my back against the armrest and my legs thrown across his lap while he hugs my body with his head resting on my chest.

“My very own body pillow. How long do I get to keep you?”

“As long as you want, baby.”

“Sounds good to me.” He doesn’t say anything else so I just try to enjoy the closeness of our touch and the happiness I should feel being in Ty’s arms. Except it’s hard to enjoy it when something big, something so monumental is a secret between us. It doesn’t have to be, but I’m being a Grade A pussy who can’t open her mouth and say what’s on her mind for once. For the first time in my life, I’m at a loss for words and I feel like my throat is closing every time I open my mouth to get anything out.

“Hey, have you talked to my sister?” His question pulls me from my over analyzing mind.

“Yeah, I chatted with her the whole way up yesterday.”

“Baby talk?”

“Is there any other kind?” I say, happily thinking of my friend, but nervous about my own situation.

“Yeah, I bet. She’s probably talking Matt’s ear off. When is she due anyway?”

“Just after the New Year,” I tell him.

“So how far along does that make her now?”

“Didn’t you talk to her already?”

He chuckles. “Yeah, but I don’t remember. I was just in shock when she told me. I didn’t expect her to get pregnant so soon. They just started trying.”

“She was pregnant already when they decided to try. It wouldn’t have mattered if they wanted to or not. The baby was already coming.”

With his head still on my chest, he continues, “Lucky for them. I think whenever we decide to have babies, we should really plan it. Make sure we have everything in order before we take a step like that.”

“We?” He wants to have babies with me. That’s something, right?

“Yeah. We. Not now, of course. We don’t even live in the same zip code. That should be a requirement before we go that route, don’t you think? Hell, we’re not even married. We have a long way to go, Melly Belly. But just think. We can get some practice with the little Shel or Matt.”

Yeah, we can get some practice.

Only one problem with that.

Our baby is coming first.

Ty’s off to work at his volunteer gig so I take the opportunity to call my mother while I’m alone.

“Have you told him yet?” she asks when she answers the phone.

“Well, hello to you too, Mom.”

“Never mind the pleasantries, Melissa. Did you tell Tyler you’re pregnant?”

I feel like my doggies, with my head between my legs scurrying away. “No.”

“Why not, mija?”

As if I can just blurt out the words. It’s not like he’s been inviting the topic. “Mom, there just hasn’t been a good time. I almost died the other day when he mentioned he wanted us to plan our family and not just have it dumped in our laps.”

I hear a deep sigh on the other end of the phone. “Don’t you think everyone would love to plan a family? If it happens, that’s great but more often than not, kids come along unexpected. And then the parents deal. Just like Shelly and Matt have. And you and Ty will too. I think you’re making a big mistake keeping this from him. You’re not giving him the credit he deserves.”

“Maybe not, Mom. But I’m scared. I can’t imagine what it will be like to see the disappointment in his eyes. It hurts so bad and it hasn’t even happened.”

“I think it’s more than that, mija.”

Oh goodness. Here it comes. The psychoanalysis from my mother. She thinks just because she’s watched every episode of Oprah and Christina she can figure out what makes everyone tick.

“You’re deflecting your feelings for Nick and your breakup onto Tyler.”

“Deflecting, Mom? Really?”

“Yes, deflecting.”

“I don’t give two shits about Nick or our breakup.”

“Maybe not, but it has you scared enough to believe Tyler might leave you too. Couple that with the bad timing you’ve had in the past with him, you don’t think you two will ever be truly happy. I think you’re ready to sabotage it now before you take a chance on the love you share. You think it will hurt less if you walk away rather than giving it a shot.”

I shake my head. No. That’s not it. Why would I want to walk away from the one man who I’ve thought about my entire life and who is finally within my reach?

“Take a chance on Ty, mija. Give him the chance to prove you wrong. He’s not Nick. He’s not the teenage boy you fell in love with. He’s a man now. And he loves you too.”

A long sigh releases from my mouth. “I know, Mama. I know.” My phone beeps and I pull it away from my ear to glance at the screen. “Listen, Mom. I gotta run. It’s Shelly on the other line.”

“Okay. You need to tell him. Now. Before he figures it out on his own.”

“Fine. I’ll tell him. Bye.”

“Tell who what?” Shel’s voice is in my ear.

Oh shit. I must have hit the swap button too soon. “Nothing. What’s happening, Shel? How’s that belly of yours?”

“Growing. It’s crazy. I didn’t notice anything before. But now that I know I’m prego, I have all these symptoms that weren’t there before.”

Tell me about it. Earlier I had to rub out the worst cramp in my leg. It was like a Charlie horse to my calf with the grip that wouldn’t let go. My toes curled in pain until it was over. As soon as Ty left, I Googled it on my phone and sure enough, cramps come with the territory. I wonder what else there is.

“Like what?”

Shel doesn’t waste any time telling me about how she wants to sleep all day, her tender boobs, and how horny she is. “I never thought it was possible to want my husband any more than I already did, but the man can just kiss me and I feel like orgasmic. It’s crazy. I’m surprised there’s not some sex drug that mimics the sensation of being pregnant. It’s intense.”

“Thanks for sharing.”

“Hey, there’s another thing. I had Matt dump out my beer so I wouldn’t be reminded that I’m going to be cut off for quite some time. Then it hit me. I’d been drinking this whole time before I knew I was having a baby. I totally freaked. Got on the phone and called my doctor’s night line because I sure as hell couldn’t wait until the morning.”

Alright already. Spill it. What did he say? I want to strangle it out of her while she goes on and on about how difficult it is to speak to someone when you need them. I hadn’t even thought about all the wine I’ve had since the baby was conceived. Was it before Ty and I drowned ourselves in Patron in Vegas? Oh, fuck me. On second thought. Don’t. That’s what got me in this mess.

“I’m sure the baby will be fine,” I interrupt her rant so she’ll get to the point.

“Oh, yeah. That’s what the doctor said. He said it’s not like I’m an alcoholic.”

A snort erupts from me.

“Hey,” she yelps. “I’m not. I don’t drink every day. And I don’t always have a six pack. Anyway, he said as long as I stop now, we should be just fine and there’s no sense in worrying about something I can’t go back and change now.”

“I bet you want a beer now more than ever though.” This stress is making me want a glass of wine. Or a bottle.

“Definitely. But Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is doing the trick for now. I may gain a hundred pounds but it’ll be worth it.”

“Amen to that, sister.”

“So how’s my brother?” I guess baby talk is over. Well, if she knew the whole story, her brother and baby talk would actually go together. What sucks just as much as not telling Ty about the baby is also keeping it from Shel. But I can’t put her in the situation of keeping something so big from her brother and I really would like the chance to tell him first.

“He’s at the teen center right now.”

“I asked how he is,” she whines.

“Oh, he’s great.”

“Great? Did that dummy do something stupid?”

“Not at all.” Not intentionally anyway. He has no way of knowing he’s putting his foot in his mouth every time he talks about babies. “He said he wants to have babies with me.”

“What?”

I have to pull the phone away from my ear. Her shrill has left my ear ringing. “Yeah. Not now. But someday.”

“Someday when you live in the same city, I hope.”

“That’s what he said.”

“Good to know he’s thinking straight. You can’t very well raise a kid from two opposite ends of a coastline.” Just what I want to hear. Now, Shel doesn’t know she’s put her foot in her mouth.

“Yup, that would make it difficult.”

Shel is quiet for a minute which makes me a little uneasy. “Well, he’s making plans. That’s a good thing, right?”

“I guess. Although, I don’t think he’s making real plans. Just kinda talking about it hypothetically. It’s not like he said he’s moving. Or he wants me to move. Not anytime soon, anyway. If he was interested in that, you’d think he’d say so already. If we’re making those kinds of plans we only have the summer to get things settled before school starts again.”

“Hmm.”

That’s it? That’s all my best friend has to say to that? Hmm. What the hell?

“Have you asked him about that?”

“Of course not. I don’t want to push him.”

“Hmm.” Again? Really?”

These Gelson’s are driving me insane. I wonder if that’s another side effect of being with child.

Chapter 14

Melissa

Ty and I have settled into a nice little routine these last two weeks. I wake up to the most delicious breakfast ever which is perfect considering I have the appetite of an elephant. Then, we watch all of the morning talk shows before he leaves to the center just before lunch. I go for a run and then come back to clean myself up along with the apartment, and then get dinner ready before he gets back home.

If I ever wanted to be a stay-at-home mom, I now know better of it. I don’t know how my mom has done it all these years. For the most part, I’m bored to tears when Ty is away. Being alone with my thoughts, without Ty, or my mom or Shel is less than thrilling. At least I have time to sleep though. Shel was right. For parts of the day, I can barely keep my eyes open. And it’s not like I’ve done anything exciting to tire myself out.

“Hi, honey, I’m home,” I hear Ty shout along with the door closing shut.

The sound of Ty’s voice startles me awake. Oh, crap. I didn’t mean to fall asleep.

“Hey,” he says, coming to my side. “A little afternoon nap, huh. Isn’t summer vacation great?” He drops his bag and removes the body pillow from between my legs and slides onto the bed next to me.

“Yeah, I love it.” My arms find their way around his waist and instantly, I feel all gooey inside. He cups my ass, dragging his hand down my thigh and pulling it over his own. “For some reason, I don’t think you got into bed to nap with me.”

He arches a brow at me. “Not really. Seeing you here in those little shorts and this flimsy tank has worked me into a sweat already. There won’t be any napping.”

“I have dinner in a slow cooker. It’s ready.”

His lips touch mine for a brief, but hot, moment. “I want dessert first.” He reaches under my tank to fill his hand with a bare breast. I can feel the sizzle work its way from my nipples down my belly to my core. Every little touch, flick, pinch is heightened to red alert now, and I can hardly hold it together long enough for him to strip me of my clothes before I’m trembling with desire.

“Slow down, babe.”

“Not now, Ty. I want it fast and hard. Don’t make me wait.”

Within seconds his clothes are off and he’s positioning himself between my legs. He reaches for the drawer of his nightstand and I grasp his wrist. “Don’t bother.”

“Huh.”

“I’ve got us covered. I just want to feel you. All of you.”

“Done.” He lowers himself on top of me, looking deep into my eyes as he slides inside me inch by inch, slowly while I let curses fly out of sheer pleasure.

Ty sprinkles kisses on my mouth and neck, all while I can’t help but pound the palm of my hand into the bed and cry out and moan like never before. The sensation coming from our joined bodies slapping against each other is more than I can handle.

With one last thrust, both Ty and I come at the same time, although his whimper is no match for my scream. I’m sure his neighbors think I’m the howler from the Porky’s movies, but I can’t help it.

“Fuck me,” I say, as Ty collapses on his back next to me.

“I just did. And I’m going to need the rest of the night to recover.”

I chuckle so loud I let out a snort. “I can’t breathe.”

He reaches out to hold my hand. “Neither can I. I may kiss you silly sometimes, but you just fucked me silly and I can’t even see straight.”

I glance over and see the rapid heaving of his chest going up and down. He’s not kidding. He’s huffing and puffing just as much as I am.

“What got into you, Melly Belly?”

“I don’t know,” I say between gasps. “Maybe it was the skin to skin. I have no idea. But I just couldn’t hold back.”

“Babe, don’t ever hold back with me. I can handle anything.”

My chance was there and I didn’t take it. I should just totally bitch slap myself for being such a wuss. He was practically egging me on to tell him the truth and I just let the time pass. Damn it.

“You ready?” he asks when we park outside the teen center.

“Definitely. I can’t wait to see what your kids have been working on.”

Ty and the rest of the staff have arranged an open house tonight, a mini art-show of sorts, where the kids can show off their pieces to the community and their parents. For the parents who show an interest anyway. For many of the kids involved in the program, parents are not real active participants in their lives. That’s why they’re in the program to begin with. At-risk teens who need a place to stay out of trouble. Those who have a gift and need a way to focus their energy in a positive way.

He scoops up my small hand in his and kisses the back of my knuckles on the way into the center. As soon as we cross the threshold, Ty’s eyes light up and his smile reaches all the way to his eyes. He looks like a little boy on Christmas morning. The center is bright. A palette of many colors, dark, bright, primary, pastel, fluorescent. There are pencil sketches on the walls, along with watercolors and oils. A spray painted canvas is an amazing display of street art and should be in a museum somewhere. Not only wall art though. A variety of sculptures in clay are displayed on a few tables.

“This is amazing, Ty.”

His smile beams down on me while he squeezes my hand. “I knew you’d love it. C’mon. Let me introduce you to some of the kids.”

He practically hops over to a group of teens. While miles separate my students from his, they don’t look much different. All shapes and sizes, ethnicities and colors. Ty introduces a few and they are very polite and respectful, shaking my hand and telling me what a pleasure it is to meet me. I have a feeling this place isn’t all about art. These kids are learning the social skills they’ll need to succeed in the real world too. Manners can go a long way.

While Ty tends to business, I roam the center admiring all the work. There are definitely varying levels of skill but each piece sends its own message.

I stop before one which totally reminds me of Tyler. Whoever painted this one has been influenced greatly by his teacher.

“Like it?” a young girl asks.

“Yes, I do. Is it yours?”

“Yeah.” I don’t know why but I automatically thought a guy painted it. Not this thin little girl who can’t be older than thirteen. She looks so innocent.

“Is that you?”

“Yeah. It’s the first time I met my dad.”

What can I possibly say to that? The painting depicts two hands, which reminds me of Ty. The detail is stellar. The softness of the child’s hand shaking the rough hand of a man. A man in handcuffs. Not what I expected at all from this girl who wears a ponytail, no makeup, a pink tank, jean shorts and cute flip-flops. Not what I expected at all.

“I really like Tyler’s work. He’s always painting or sketching hands. It made me want to do this one.”

“Well, you did an amazing job. Don’t tell him, but I like this one more than any one of his.”

She smiles, looking down at her shoes.

“It must have been hard for you to capture that moment and share it with everyone. I’m glad you did. I’m honored.”

“Thank you,” she says, before she skips away.

I stare at it a minute longer.

“I see you’ve met Devin. She’s a special girl.” A taller woman with long blond hair dressed like she’s ready for Woodstock stands next to me.

“Hi, I’m Melissa.” I hold out my hand.

“I’m Taylor,” she says, with the grip of a UFC fighter. Holy fuck! “I work here with Ty.”

Oh. He’s never mentioned working with a hipster beauty. She maybe funky but she’s definitely a looker.

“Devin’s spent the last two summers with us and has worked through a lot of issues. Ty deals with all the art stuff while I work with the group therapy part of the center. The two sides go hand in hand to create an atmosphere that really heals the soul.”

“That’s fantastic. You must be very proud.”

“You too. You must be very proud of Ty to pull off something like this. I don’t know what the center or these kids would do without him.”

She turns and walks away, having filled my mind with guilt.

I glance over at Ty who is having the time of his life. He is standing in front of the graffiti mural along with a kid, who is probably the artist, and his parents. He chats with the adults while patting the kid on the shoulder. The look on the parents’ faces is stern at first, but by the time Ty finishes talking, they’re all smiling and sharing a laugh.

I make another round of the center before Ty makes his way back to me.

“Just give me fifteen more minutes and we’re out of here.”

He still hasn’t let that smile fall. His cheeks are going to hurt later. “No prob. Take your time. I’m having a blast.”

He bends down to press a kiss to the top of my head before he shuffles away.

As I watch Ty with more kids and more parents, for the first time, I really start to believe we can’t work. He can’t leave all this.

It’s his life. It’s his home.

But it’s not mine.

After watching two hours of morning talk shows, Ty gathers his things to head down to the center.

On his way out, I stop him at the door.

“Kiss me silly.”

His mouth lifts on one side, a sexy grin spreading across his face.

He drops his bag.

A gentle touch of his fingertips brushes the hair out of my face before his hands cup the back of my neck.

He tilts my head up to meet his. I watch in awe as he lowers his lips to mine. Slowly and gently, soft pecks press to my lips one after another. Then, he urges my mouth open and his tongue slides in making my knees go weak and my girl parts tighten. Oh yes, I’m silly all right.

He pulls away for a second before continuing the nip at my neck. My body can only take so much as he sucks so hard I’m afraid he’ll leave a mark. “I love you, Melissa,” he says, the warmth of his breath caressing my skin.

“I love you, Tyler Gelson.”

“And don’t you ever forget it.” He showers my lips with a few more pecks before he leaves the apartment with a sexy as hell smile and quick goodbye.

“Never,” I murmur as the door shuts behind him.

The rest of the morning I spend packing my shit. I head into the bathroom first. Taking a reusable shopping bag from the kitchen with me, I clear the counter of my stuff in one swipe of my arm. I can’t take the time to pack everything nicely or I’ll never be able to do it. I have to make this quick. Like ripping off a Band Aid.

When I’m finished with the bathroom, I make my way to Ty’s dresser. The top row of drawers is no longer mine. He can have it back. I grab all my clothes and stuff them into my suitcase on the bed. I’ll fold them all again when I get home. When I’m sure I have everything, I heave my bags down the steps of Tyler’s apartment and pack them in the trunk of my car.

I run back upstairs and take a sheet of notebook paper and a pen from his desk.

Dear Tyler,

I swear this is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do so please don’t be mad at me for being the ultimate pussy and writing it in a letter instead of saying it to your beautiful face. I’m sorry, but I just don’t have the strength to do that.

You are truly the best thing that has ever happened to me. From the time I was a little kid till now, I’ve been in love with you and I’m sure that will never change.

Since Christmas, I’ve had the time of my life reliving all the old memories from the time you held my hand at the Grand Canyon to the homecoming dance when you gave me the most beautiful first time any girl could hope for. But the thing is. Those are all memories. We had a past. A wonderful past, but that time has come and gone. We can’t live there forever.

Now, we have to look to the future and our futures are in two different places.

I can’t leave home and after last night, I’m more sure than ever that you cannot leave your home either. Your home is San Francisco. I can’t kid myself any longer. You belong with those kids and the center. If you could have seen the smile on your face last night, you’d understand what I see.

I can’t stand in the way of that.

So, I’m bowing out. Not so gracefully. But I am.

I love you, Tyler. And just as you said, I’ll never forget it. I just love you enough to let you go. To let you be who you want to be.

I’ll be in touch. There’s so much more I need to say and so much more you need to know, but I just don’t have the strength or the mindset to get it all out right now.

I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me but I’m sure you’ll come to find that it’s for the best and it was really inevitable anyway.

Enjoy the rest of your summer at the center. Those kids and their work are amazing. Especially Devin. You must feel so proud to be such an inspiration to her. I’m so proud of you.

I love you, Ty.

Melissa

Chapter 15

Shelly

“Where is she?” The sound of Ty’s voice coming through the phone is panicked.

“Where’s who? What are you talking about?”

“Shelly, don’t mess with me. Where’s Mel?”

His heaving breaths are scaring me. “Tyler, you need to calm down. I don’t know what you’re talking about. Last I talked to Mel, she was up there with you.”

“Well, she’s not anymore. Oh my god. She’s gone, Shel. All she left was a note. She broke up with me.”

Tears flood my eyes as I hear my big brother get choked up. “Slow down, brother. Tell me everything. When did this happen? What did she say?”

He takes a deep breath and then begins. “This morning everything was great as usual. Then I left to the center. Holy shit. She knew she was going to leave. She was saying goodbye.”

“When?”

“When I left, she stopped me. She never does. She told me to kiss her silly. It’s kind of our thing, you know. Anyway, she never does that. She was saying goodbye to me with that last kiss.”

I hear a loud crash, like something shattering. “Ty. Please calm down. You’re scaring me.”

“I’m sorry. I just can’t believe this. My chest hurts. It’s like I can’t breathe. I can’t believe she’d leave me, Shel. I had big plans for us. I’m already in escrow on a house about two blocks from your place. I’m supposed to get the keys in a few weeks because it’s a quick escrow. The couple I bought from moved to Oregon and the house is empty.”

“Did you tell her that?”

“No.” He sniffles. “I even sent in my resignation at work. I figured I’d try and get a job down there once I moved. But even if I don’t find anything, I have enough money saved to hold me over for a school year.”

“Why didn’t you tell her all this?”

“Because I wanted to surprise her.” He’s silent for a minute. “A lot of good that did.”

“What did she say in the note?”

He starts to speak but his voice breaks. “She said what we had is in the past. All the memories were childhood memories. That are futures are not the same. Is she crazy? What about the memories we’ve made this year? Going to the top of the Stratosphere, reenacting The Rock on Alcatraz. I have hundreds of pictures on my phone filled with memories from now. And she’s full of shit to think our future doesn’t include us being together.”

My heart breaks for my brother but there has to be more. This doesn’t sound like something my best friend would do. Just walk away from him like this.

“What brought this on, Ty? Any ideas?”

“It was the art show at the center. She thinks she can’t ask me to leave that behind. But she doesn’t have to ask. I already have, all on my own.”

“But she doesn’t know that. In her mind, she’s letting you go. To be the free spirit you’ve always been without anything tying you down.”

“I don’t want that anymore. I want her, Shel,” his voice cracks again, “I want Melissa back.”

“Well then, you better talk to her. Forget the surprise and tell her that you’ve already started making plans for your future and she’s in it.”

“Melissa, I swear I’m going to kick your ass when I see you,” I shout in the phone. “And you should be very afraid of this pregnant woman. I don’t have the patience to deal with this shit, Mel. Son of a bitch, you are killing my brother. Killing him. What else do I need to say to get you to call me back?”

I toss the phone on my kitchen table. More like slam it down.

I circle my arms around my husband and lean into him for support. “I can’t believe she’s doing this, Matty. My brother is heartbroken. Son of a fuckin’ bitch, I’m heart broken.”

“Still no word from her parents?”

“No. They’re out of town. Mel’s dad is using up all his vacation time before he retires. They just happened to have picked the worst time to do it. I wonder if they know their daughter has gone AWOL.”

“Maybe they do and they’re protecting her.” His hands work magic on my back, calming my nerves.

“From what? Or who? My brother? He needs protecting from her.” So much for the calming effect.

“Let’s go out for ice cream. That should make you feel better.”

On the way to fill my belly and baby with Apple Pie a la Coldstone, Ty sends me multiple texts asking if I’ve heard anything. I hate sending him back negatives. I’ve tried everywhere. School. Her parents’ place. I even used their spare key and sneaked in the pool house just in case she was hiding out in there. I called friends from work. Friends from college. I even called that bastard Nick. But it’s like she’s disappeared.

She did send one text to let me know she was alive and okay so I shouldn’t call the police to file a missing person’s report, but that was it. When I asked her to show me proof of life, she sent a quick video message to humor me. She looked like hell. I want to leave her a message telling her what a dumbass she is but Tyler asked me not to mention his move back home. He wants to tell her when he sees her. If that happens. She’s doing a great job at making herself scarce. Dammit. We’ve watched too many movies. She knows all the tricks. Now, if I could just figure out what movie she’s drawing on to make herself invisible, I’d have a clue.

Fuck! I’m going to kill her.

Matty and I are devouring our ice cream when Chase and Summer walk up. Not exactly who I want to see at a time like this. I don’t think I have the patience for Summer McGallian right now. Matt reaches over and places a calming hand on my thigh.

“Hey, you two,” Summer says, all cheery and full of shit. “I hear a congratulations are in order.”

What? How does she know? I didn’t plan on telling anyone from work until school started.

“Yeah, I got a call from Tyler,” Chase says. “He wanted my sister’s number. I guess he needed a realtor. Anyway, he spilled the beans.”

“I’m going to have to have a chat with my brother. I didn’t plan on sharing the news just yet,” I say through gritted teeth.

“Well, stand up,” Summer takes my hand, “Let’s get a look at your baby bump.”

I rise to my feet because this bitch is yanking on me. “You can barely see it. Maxi dresses do wonders to hide it.”

“Totally,” she says. “You’re right. I can’t see a hint of a pooch. That doesn’t work for Mel though. She must be further along than you.”

“Huh,” I choke on my own spit. “Where did you see Mel?”

“In Big Bear,” Chase begins.

Summer interrupts him, “Yeah, she had on something similar. You couldn’t tell until the wind picked up and pressed her dress against her belly. A definite baby bump. Out to about here, wouldn’t you say, babe?” She looks at Chase and he nods. “I called out her name but she kept walking. Didn’t hear me and we were in a hurry so we didn’t try and catch up with her.”

“Oh. Yeah. Well, she’s kinda keeping it a secret too. So don’t go sharing our good news until we can make the announcement,” I tell them as I grab my husband’s hand. “Hey, it was good seeing you both. We gotta run.”

I drag Matty away from them as I take out my phone to text my brother.

“What happened? Did you talk to her? Did you find her?” my brother yells as he comes running into my house with the door slamming shut behind him.

I’ve been pacing a hole in the hardwood floor of my kitchen waiting for him to get here. And now that he is, I have no idea where to start.

“She’s in Big Bear,” Matty tells him.

“Big Bear? Why didn’t I think of that before?” he says with the heel of his palm to his forehead.

“I know. I can’t believe I forgot about her parents’ place up there.”

“How do you know?”

“Summer and Chase saw her up there. But she didn’t see them.”

He steps in front of me and hauls me into his arms and plants a kiss on my head. “Thank you, sis.” He shakes my husband’s hand and turns to leave.

“That’s not all, Ty.”

He turns around slowly to face us. “Please tell me she wasn’t with another man.”

I shake my head.

“Then what?”

I start to open my mouth and then close it. I know Mel would want to tell him first.

“What?” he demands.

“She’s pregnant.”

Chapter 16

Melissa

It’s about fucking time. How long does it take to get a pizza around here? I’m starving.

I gather my wallet on the way to the door, turn the deadbolt, and whip it open.

“Shit.” My belly does a back flip and my body warms to the site of him. “What are you doing here?”

“Forget what I am doing here. Is there something you’d like to tell me, Melissa?” He stares down at my midsection. Damn these yoga pants.

His eyes are glassy and he glares at me for a good while before I walk away. I hear the door open and shut, and the lock sliding into place.

I try to gather my senses but my hands are trembling and I’m starting to feel light-headed.

There’s another knock at the door. “That’s the pizza guy. I know you want to talk. But I need to eat before I pass out.”

He backtracks to the door and quickly exchanges cash for the pizza. He carries the large box over and drops it on the kitchen counter. Then he turns around and opens a cupboard, takes out a plate and slides it down to me. Not only did he remember the cabin, he also remembers where everything is.

The nerves show in my hand as I fumble with the cardboard box to get it open and pull a slice free. Cheesy pizza had my mouth watering just an hour ago, and now I could throw up looking at it. I really do feel queasy though so I know I need the calories to get me through this unexpected visit.

After my first bite, I take a breath trying to calm myself. “How did you find me?”

“Really, Melissa? That’s what you want to know. Who gives a shit how I found you? I shouldn’t have had to look for you for weeks, worrying my ass off that you might be hurt. I shouldn’t have been killing myself trying to figure out what I did wrong to make you leave me?”

“I’m sorry.” I lower my eyes because I can’t stand to see the hurt in his.

“Sorry. You’re carrying my baby and you’re far enough along that it’s clearly visible yet you haven’t told me and all you can say is you’re sorry. That’s shit, Mel. What the hell is going on?”

“I told you in the letter I had more to say.” I take another bite of my pizza to slow down the conversation. I’ve played this discussion over in my mind a million times. But it never went over like this. Not with him finding out before I had the chance to sit him down and explain.

“You knew when you went to see me and said nothing.” His bottom lip is quivering and it breaks my heart.

“That’s why I went back up. To tell you. But I just couldn’t bring myself to say the words.”

“Why?”

“Because.” I pause and gather what little strength I have to look him in the eye. “You were adamant about not having kids. Ever since Shel brought up having babies and when she found out she was pregnant, you made it clear you didn’t want kids. Not now, at least. You said you wanted to make plans and make sure we were in the same zip code. But never did you say you’d want one now. Too late for that.” I let out a big sigh, tired already and I’m sure this is nowhere near over.

“Mel, that’s ridiculous. Whoever says they want to get pregnant on accident? People say they want to plan when to have children. But if they get pregnant they deal. You didn’t even give me a chance. Did you really think I wouldn’t want our baby?”

“No.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because your life is in San Francisco. How can we have a baby together when we live so far away from each other?”

“I’d move,” he shouts.

I groan. “That’s what I didn’t want, Ty. I don’t want you to feel like you have to move down here to be with me and our baby. I wanted you move because you wanted to be with me. Not because you had to.”

“Oh my god, Melissa. You’re pissing me off so bad right now. I can’t believe you made that decision for us. You didn’t even stop to consider my feelings before you left me with that ridiculous note to come home to. You broke my heart, Mel. And you still are. If this is what you think of me, then you don’t know me at all.”

He pushes off the counter and stalks off toward the door. Before he opens it, he turns around. “Contrary to what you believe, I want very much to be a father to my child. You’ve hurt me so bad, it’s being with you I’m not so sure of anymore. But I’m glad you’re safe. I’ll call you when I’ve calmed down.”

The door whips open and closed before I can open my mouth to respond.

He’s gone.

And all I can do is cry.

When my mom and dad arrive back at the cabin after one of their long walks, my dad peeks into my room.

“What happened?” He lowers himself onto my bed and sits beside me.

“Ty happened. He found out about the baby and showed up here.”

My dad shakes his head with a sigh. “I knew this was going to happen, Melissa. You can’t ever make things easy. How is he?”

“What do you mean, how is he? What about me?”

He stands letting out another sigh. “You, young lady, have created this mess. You should have been honest with him from the beginning. I should have called him myself, but I wanted you to come to your senses. Looks like it took you too long.”

He leaves my room with a huff. I know I screwed up royally. What I don’t need is my dad reminding me of my mistakes. I need his support. Not his judgment. If I don’t have my parents on my side, then what do I have left? Who do I have left? I’m sure Shelly is ready to kick my ass right about now. I can’t imagine she wants to be the shoulder I can cry on.

I curl myself around my body pillow, trying to disappear. I’m an absolute mess. My baby is going to be born to a mother who can’t get her shit together and to a daddy who hates her mama. What have I done?

My mom takes her turn, coming in quietly and closing the door behind her.

“I’ve already taken a beating.” I cover my head with my pillow. “If you think it’s your turn, you can leave before you get started.”

“Don’t you get fresh with me, mija. I’m not here to give you another lickin’, I’m here to see what I can do.”

I remove the pillow from my head and she reaches out to touch my cheek. “I’m sorry, Mom,” I start to mumble, but the tears stop me from saying anything else.

“I know. He’ll come back, you know. Right now, he’s just hurt. Give him time.”

“I know,” I sob. “He said he wanted to be a father to our baby, but he wasn’t sure he wanted me anymore.” The words barely make it from my mouth. My throat is so tight with sobs I can hardly breathe. “It was like a stab to the heart. Nothing will ever hurt as much as seeing the disappointment I saw in Tyler’s eyes tonight. I want to believe he can forgive me. Like him, I’m just not so sure.”

She covers my hand with hers and pats gently. “Well, what do you think that letter you wrote did to him?” she asks.

“Karma sucks ass. I thought I was doing what’s best for him. I still don’t know how I can ask him to leave his students. They need him a lot more than mine need me. He gives them so much more than I can.”

“Well, maybe that’s something to consider.”

“Are you saying I should move up there?” Just the thought makes my heart break into even more pieces. I can’t leave her or my dad. Or Shel. That’s if she’ll ever talk to me again, I’ve screwed this up so horribly.

“I’m not saying anything. I wouldn’t want to see you go, but I’d understand if you did. Love is a crazy thing. It makes you do crazy things, but when you find the one you love, you can’t just let that go. You and Tyler were made for each other. I’m not blind. I could see it blossoming when you were kids. I didn’t encourage it because he was older than you, but I knew it would happen someday. Unfortunately, Nick got in the way but now, nothing should keep you apart. And definitely not now that you’re having a baby. But where you live should be something you decide together.”

“What should I do, Mama? I can’t let him go. I have to get him back. I love him so much not having him here is tearing me apart.”

She pats my shoulder, giving it a soft squeeze. “Only you can answer that.”

And then she leaves me to my own thoughts. The ones that won’t fucking shut up for the life of me.

I grab for the remote on the other side of the bed and click on the TV.

Channel after channel, there are nothing but romances on. Ugh. I don’t need this.

It must be the bottom of the hour because I keep flipping from one happy ending to the next.

First, Tom Hanks reveals that he is really Meg Ryan’s secret internet lover.

Then, Adrian Grenier slides down the time capsule into the arms of Melissa Joan Hart.

Justin Long shows up on Ginnifer Goodwin’s doorstep with a pen in hand.

And the final nail in the coffin, Michael Vartan meets Drew Barrymore on the pitcher’s mound.

Damn, I am a movie whore.

And I’m a movie whore that knows a lot about happy endings and making the romantic grand gesture.

I was wrong.

Ty and I do have a future together. And it doesn’t matter where we live, as long as we’re together.

I can’t just sit here and cry my heart out. I need to pick myself up and get my ass out there to find my man.

My happy ending awaits.

This shit is far from over.

Chapter 17

Melissa

Shel picks up on the first ring.

“Where’s your brother?” I ask as I pull on the only pair of jeans I can squeeze my legs into. I can’t button them and the zipper only goes up part of the way, but my long top covers the waistband.

“He’s at home, Mel. What the hell were you thinking?” she yells at me. And I deserve it.

“Shel, I’m sorry I worried you. I’m sorry I lied to you. It’s been torturous keeping something so important from you. But I just needed time to figure things out.”

There’s a lot of sighing going around. She lets out a very dramatic humph. “Well, did you figure it out?” The way she asks the question makes me smile. She’s no longer shouting. And she sounds more amused than anything. Whew. I just might be able to keep her.

“Yeah. Just took me longer than I thought. I’m sorry, Shel. I really am. I hope you can forgive me because I really need my best friend right now.”

“I’m here. I always will be.”

“I gotta go.” It’s been long enough. I need to fix everything and it can’t wait another minute.

“I love you, Melly.”

“I love you too.” And because I can’t help it, I squeal, “We’re pregnant at the same time. Our babies are only going to be a month apart.”

“They’ll grow up together,” she says, and I can hear the frog in her throat. I know the sound well. A toad has taken up permanent residence in mine for the duration.

By the time I get to the airport it’s well past midnight and I have to wait for four hours for the next flight to San Francisco. I tried getting an earlier one to Oakland and Sacramento but I didn’t have any luck there. The damn plane is delayed another hour before it taxis to the runaway and we finally depart.

The ride is smooth and short, thankfully. I didn’t check a bag. I only brought a backpack with a change of clothes. If all goes as planned, Ty and I will get back together and I can fly back home a happy woman and gather the rest of my things, and my dogs. If I have to move, then so be it. I have to take that chance and be happy with the man I love. I’ve already tried living without him and that didn’t go over well. I just have to grow a pair and leave my mama’s nest. It will be hard to say goodbye to my parents and Shel but the alternative is even worse.

I take a cab from the airport to Ty’s apartment. I pay the guy and run up the stairs. As soon as I reach his door, I begin pounding. But there is no answer. I knock again. Nothing. He’s seriously going to pretend he’s not home. I look at my watch. The center isn’t open this early. He has to be here.

Another apartment opens and a woman steps outside. “I don’t think anyone’s home,” she says as she locks her place.

“Oh, okay. Thanks.”

“If you want to sit and wait, there’s a staircase leading up to the third floor at the end of the hall. It’d probably be easier to get up from the steps than from sitting on the floor.” She looks at my belly with a smile.

“Definitely. Thanks again,” I say as she walks away.

Another hour goes by and Ty still isn’t home. I flip through pages of the latest celebrity gossip mag I got at the airport to kill time. I’m not known for my patience, but for the first time I finally feel at ease. I know what I’m going to do. I know what I’m about to offer Ty and I truly think things will be okay. Don’t get me wrong, I’m nervous. But the anxiousness comes more from wanting to see him, hold him, and kiss him again, than from waiting.

I’m just about to start an article about who cheated on who when I hear some chatter.

I peek my head out into the hall and I recognize one of the faces. It’s that hippy chick from the center. The therapist with the long flowing gauze skirt. Taylor. My mouth opens to call out to her when she stops in front of Ty’s apartment and takes out a key.

“So what are you going to do first?” her friend asks.

“I don’t know yet. Ty’s pretty laid back. He said I can redecorate however I want.” And then they walk into his apartment and the door shuts behind them.

He’s moved on in less than twenty four hours. Or maybe he was doing her on the side all this time.

I guess he’s sure now.

He doesn’t want me anymore.

My eyes open way too early in the morning. After arriving back home late last night, you’d think I’d be able to sleep in. But no. My stomach is like my body’s own alarm clock and lets me know with loud rolling growls that my baby needs food.

I crawl out of bed and head into my kitchen with about as much energy as my first period students.

I open my fridge and realize I have shit to eat. I haven’t been home in weeks and there’s no man here to make me a mouthwatering breakfast.

No. He’s making breakfast for Taylor right now. He’s forgotten all about me and my baby. I can’t believe he’s shacking up with someone else already. If the wait at the airport to get to San Francisco was bad, the wait for the flight home was even worse. I plugged a set of headphones into my ears and listened to Midnight Hour on repeat, drowning my sorrows in the lyrics about love gone right and love gone bad. Tears slid down my cheeks until the well was dry and all I was left with was a headache and swollen red eyes.

That was last night and I doubt today will get any better. I’ll just stay away from mirrors so I don’t have to see myself shattered. Feeling it is horrible enough.

My belly rumbles, my little one calling out for some grub.

Since my cupboards are bare except for some microwave popcorn, crackers and wine, I go back to my bedroom to get dressed. Fast food is calling my name.

After pulling through the closest fast food joint, I dread going back to my empty house. I make a right turn at the next light for a quick detour and head to work instead. School starts in a week so I need to get into my classroom anyway and clean up. Maybe the endless task will help me take my mind off things.

When I arrive, I park as close to my building as possible, pull on my shades and haul ass to my classroom. I know I’m not alone, but if I get in and close my door fast enough, no one will notice I’m here, and I won’t have to explain my sickly appearance.

I sit down and arrange my breakfast on my desk. I attack the greasy hash browns first. Instantly, I regret the choice as my face starts to feel oily and it’s like I can sense the zits forming with each bite. I toss what’s left in the trash and move on to my breakfast croissant sandwich. The melted cheese dazzles my taste buds and I lean back into my office chair to enjoy each bite.

When I’m finished with my fat-infused breakfast, I ditch the trash in one of the wastebaskets near the door and walk to the center of my room. I do a 360, soaking in each wall and trying to envision what I’d like it to look like this year. Last year’s posters of my favorite Van Gogh paintings just won’t cut it after seeing the student work at Ty’s art center. Maybe I should call our art teacher and see if I can snag some old work so I can decorate my room. I doubt he’d mind. I’m sure he’d be happy to see it up on the walls for all to see. Or maybe I should wait until school starts and ask my students if any of them have some pieces they’d like to show off.

I decide to leave it alone for now and I fire up my computer. I’ll start with planning my first week. I have to get all my handouts ready. Pick readings to interest my kids. Come up with a writing sample so I can evaluate their skill level. So much to do and so little time.

Like always, I’m distracted again. This time by the dust on my students’ desks. It was really dumb of me to put off coming into work for so long. Usually it takes me days to figure out where to start. And today is no different. The walls, handouts, lesson plans, dusty desks. I can’t decide. I stand up and pace back and forth yet again, trying to settle on a starting point. It seems impossible. I slide into one of the desks and rest my chin in my hand, taking in the scenery.

My thoughts go into overdrive again.

The summer went by so quickly. I wish I had more time to recover from the crazy that has become my life, but I don’t. I need to snap out of this funk and move on. I can’t allow my feelings for Ty and my crushed heart to get in the way of me starting off the school year right. I can’t allow my feelings to get in the way of me taking care of myself and this little person growing inside me. Ty said he’d call when he calmed down. I should have just listened and waited for the call. Sometimes things are better left alone. And in this case, I would have liked to stay in the dark, not knowing that Ty has a new woman.

First Nick, and now Ty.

I’m destined to be alone.

The faint sound of voices and shuffling feet can be heard in the hall. I should have kept my lights off. I’m not in the mood for company and now someone is bound to stop in. Thankfully, I wore some old baggy soccer shorts and a hoodie.

I glance at the door just in time to see Shel and Matt peek their heads in.

“Oh my gosh!” she squeals. “You’re here.”

“And you’re smiling. Are you sure you’re happy to see me?”

She brushes me off with a wave of her hand. “Bitch, please. I totally wanted to kill you days ago, but I’m over it now that I see you. Get your ass up and give me a hug.”

The giddiness in her voice makes my heart swell with love for my best friend. Even after all I’ve done, she still loves me and she’s still here for me. She could easily hold a grudge for me keeping her in the dark and lying to her brother, but that’s just not Shelly’s style. We’re more than friends. We’re sisters. And we’ll always have each other’s backs. No matter how stupid we can be. Or, in this case, no matter how stupid I am.

I scoot out of the desk and open my arms to her. Matt smiles as he watches his wife and I rock back and forth in a girlie hug.

When I back away, she kneels down and plants her hands on my belly. “Hey, baby girl. This is your auntie speaking. I can’t wait to meet you.”

“How do you know she’s a girl?”

She rises to her feet. “Mother’s intuition. I’m having a boy and you’re having a girl.”

“You found out already?”

“No, but I just know. Don’t you?”

I shrug. “Maybe.” I’ve been back to the doctor’s office. Maybe I know a little something. But I’m not saying till I have a chance to share the news with Ty.

“Can I have a turn now?” Matt says, after clearing his throat.

Shel and I laugh at his expense. “Sure, big guy. Hi, Matt.”

He tosses an arm over my shoulder and squeezes me close to his side. “Nice to see you, Mel. You look great.”

I run my hand over my messy hair and yank on my ponytail. “Oh, yeah. You’re full of shit, but thanks anyway.”

Shel reaches for my hand and gives me a sympathetic stare. “How are you, Melly?”

And with that, the flood gates open. Tears well in my eyes and I try to fight the oncoming whoosh of sobs, but I can’t. It’s too late. “Not good, Shelly. Not good at all.”

“What happened now? Did Ty call you yet?”

We both sit. Matt grabs a tissue box and places it in front of me, then leans against a desk next to Shel.

“No. After I talked to you, I went to see him. I wanted to make the grand gesture, like in the movies. You know, let him know I’m willing to move to San Francisco so he can continue working in the teen center. But when I got there, it was too late. Ty is seeing someone else.”

“What?” both Shel and Matt say in unison.

“Yeah, Taylor. Not only does she work with him, she lives with him too.” I pull two tissues from the box and blot at my eyes. Then I grab a few more and blow my nose.

“Wait. Where did you go exactly? Where did you see Taylor?” Shel asks.

“San Francisco.” Where in the hell else? “I went to his apartment and waited outside for him. She had a key and was talking to a friend about Ty letting her decorate however she wanted.”

“Melly, Ty does not have a new girlfriend. I promise.”

I can’t believe she’s going to lie for her brother. “I saw her with my own eyes, Shel.”

“No, you didn’t see anything. Tyler isn’t …”

Matt interrupts her with a hand to her shoulder, “Shel, it’s not your place.”

She arches a brow at him and he narrows his eyes right back. “Fine.” Her gaze falls back to me. “What is the number one reason our students end up getting into fights?”

“What the hell does that have to do with anything?” I shout, throwing my hands up.

She slaps her hand on the desk. “Just answer the question.”

With a heaving sigh, I reply, “Miscommunication. He said. She said. And half of it isn’t even true.”

“Right. That’s what’s happening here between you and Ty. I swear if you guys would have just talked from the beginning and been your usual in-your-face selves, none of this stupid ass shit would’ve happened. You both need to learn to communicate because right now, everything is just one giant misunderstanding.”

I drag my hand through my hair again. This time pulling a little harder on my pony in frustration. “Then what, Shel? What is it I don’t know?”

She shakes her head. “You know how you wanted me to be your best friend and not Ty’s little sister?” I nod knowing very well the multiple times I pulled that card. “Well, Ty needs me to be his sister and not his girlfriend’s best friend. So my lips are sealed.”

Matt bends down and kisses the top of her head. “Well done, Shel. I knew you had it in you.”

“Liar,” she smacks his thigh. “You thought I was going to spill my guts.”

“Maybe.”

She tries to pull off an evil glare but he just gives her one of his swoon worthy grins.

“Hello,” I call out, waving my hands in the air. “What the hell? You have to tell me.”

Shel gets to her feet, and for the first time I see her bump when her loose-fitted top pulls against her midsection. She’s absolutely gorgeous with her pregnant glow.

“No, I don’t,” she says. “Just keep your phone on. I guarantee Tyler will be in touch to reassure you he is not seeing anyone else.”

Chapter 18

Melissa

“You really expect people to just believe you gained a few pounds?” Shelly asks me. “In your belly?”

“Maybe they won’t even notice me when they see your big ass,” I tell her, bouncing my hip against hers as we walk to our first meeting of the school year.

School is about to start and I’m having a baby. Alone. Without my baby’s daddy. I feel like the biggest hussy of all time. How do I even talk about this with my students? The questions are going to come. That’s a given. Mrs. Cruz, did you get married? Mrs. Cruz, are you gay or something? Mrs. Cruz, what happened to the baby’s father? Damn their inquisitive little brains.

I’m an unwed mother. That part doesn’t bother me. It’s just the other small little detail that hurts. The one that nixes Ty out of the picture. He probably still hates me for not telling him. But what could he possibly expect me to do? He didn’t love me enough to make the grand gesture. Not until he found out I’m having his child. I’m not about to trap him in a relationship he doesn’t want to be in. Maybe he can visit the baby during breaks. Maybe I can take the baby to him. I don’t think my little one likes that idea very much judging by the kick at my side. Yeah, I don’t like it either. It’ll kill me to be apart from my baby. Even more than it’s killing me to be away from her daddy.

Ty called. Just like Shel said he would. He didn’t say much. He did make it clear that the whole Taylor thing was a complete misunderstanding. He didn’t say why, but it sounds like he may be renting the extra room to her. As a studio, maybe. I told him he didn’t owe me any explanations, but he gave them anyway.

When he asked if I’d be willing to sit down and talk to him, I almost passed out. I had to pinch myself, I thought I was dreaming. He’s going to be in town this weekend. He might already be. I don’t know. Shel won’t give up any information. I’ve tried to trick her into telling me when Tyler arrives, but she hasn’t taken the bait. I gave him my work schedule for today and he said he’d call. This day is going to drag on like watching Wimbledon.

But seeing Ty will be worth the wait. I’ve practiced my speech several times. He needs to know how much I love him. He needs to know I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make our family work.

“Are you crying?” Shel asks, pulling me from my thoughts.

“Oh, fuck. These damn emotions. I’m never getting pregnant again, I tell you. If I’m not crying, I’m eating twenty pounds of chocolate. And I’m really dying for caffeine.”

“You’re preaching to the choir, Melly. I’m right there with you. At least, you’ll get reacquainted with Starbucks a whole month before me. And don’t you come around me with your coffee breath or I’ll kick your ass.”

“Shit, between my crying and your left hook, we’re going to be so much fun to work with this year.”

When we reach the auditorium, we sit down in the back row without saying anything to anyone. My plan worked. I knew if I got here early enough, I could sneak in without anyone noticing my baby bump. With my denim jacket hanging loosely across my belly, no one will notice when I’m sitting down.

Little by little, colleagues and friends who we haven’t seen all summer start to fill the seats for the meeting. Matt finds us and hands over two Venti hot teas made with Refresh, non-decaffeinated bags. When Shel and Matt got married, I got a bonus best friend. He’s a wonderful man, taking care of me too just like he does my friend.

“Thanks, Matt.”

“Anyone catch on yet?” he asks, with a grin. He thinks we should just stand up and tell everyone so people don’t have to talk behind our backs, making up stories and spreading gossip. I kind of like the idea. Let’s see what they can come up with. Maybe I’ll give the person with the best story a prize.

I shake my head. “You’re the first person to even talk to us.”

“I’m not surprised. When I walked in you were both turned toward each other like you’re in deep conversation. I wasn’t sure I should even say anything.”

A few minutes later, Chase and Summer make an appearance and sit in the row in front of us. She turns around and flashes us a wink. “Is the secret out, ladies?”

I can’t help but sneer. “Oh, cha-tha, Summer.”

“Melissa, I’m sorry. I don’t speak your ghetto talk.”

I lean forward till I’m right in her face, close enough that I can see the actual layers of makeup piled on her face. “Let me translate for you. Cha-tha fuck up.”

She turns around in her seat with a roll of her eyes. And I can’t help but laugh so hard, I actually start snorting.

Shelly taps my leg. “Hey, the principal is getting ready to start. Shh.” I can feel her shaking with laughter next to me. “That was a good one.”

I waggle my brows. “I know.” The meeting starts but my eyes wander. “Hey, I hear Mr. Erickson is single. Maybe I can convince him to be my baby daddy. For that guy, I’d consider getting prego again.”

She smacks my leg this time. “Just pay attention.”

“Good morning, Tigers. Welcome back!” the principal shouts, using his teacher voice so we can all hear. With all the technology this place has, you’d think someone would give him a microphone.

Everyone says, “Good morning.”

“We have a lot of announcements that should prove to be a lot of fun and very memorable, so we’re going to get all the business out of the way first before we get to the good stuff.”

I lean over to whisper in Shel’s ear. “Fun, memorable, good stuff? I wonder what that could be. Maybe someone joined a cult.”

Shel shhs me again.

“What do you think it is?” I ask her before sipping more of my warm tea. I wonder what the heated liquid does for the baby. Maybe she feels like she’s taking a warm bath. Ooo, that sounds good right now. Resting in a big tub, candles lit, some Spanish love tunes singing in my ear.

While the principal drones on about test scores, I take the time to study my colleagues. “Check out, Margo. She chopped off her hair.”

Shel nods.

I scan the crowd more. “Oh my god, Mary has a giant tattoo peeking out of the top of her shirt.” I wanna see it up close. It looks awesome. What an oxymoron though. I think she had wings inked on her back.

“Son of a big mouth, can you just listen already? I think he’s done with the bullshit and getting to the good stuff.”

Damn, what crawled up her ass and died? Like she’s even paying attention to this crap. I’m finally finding something to distract me from my thoughts of Ty and she’s ruining my fun.

“Next, I’d like to introduce the new additions to our staff.”

“We should have told him about the babies,” Shel says. “This would’ve been a perfect time to make the announcement.”

Matt arches a brow at her. “I told you guys that a million times,” he whispers.

The principal introduces five new teachers and two instructional assistants. All seven stand as he calls their names and gives their educational background.

“And last, I’d like to invite back one of our own.” Quickly, my mind starts thinking back to any past staff member who left and would come back. “This young man has deep roots in our community. He graduated from here not too long ago, and he even has a sibling who teaches here as well.” I look around trying to figure out who’d get their brother a job. The majority of the teachers at this school are alums so it could be anyone. “For the past ten years, he’s been a major influence in the art community in the Bay Area, working with their talented youth.” I glance at Shel, and a tear slides down her cheek. “We’re very lucky that his heart led him back home.” From the back row, all I can see are the backs of every ones’ heads. I can’t take it. I stand to get a better look. “And we’re even happier that he’s willing to share this very special moment in his life with us. Let me introduce to you our new art teacher, Tyler Gelson.”

And there he is. All six feet of him, getting to his feet, and towering over our principal. In his dark jeans and Tiger t-shirt, he looks adorable. Our eyes fix on each other, and a smile spreads across his face.

“Thank you for the nice intro. As you can tell by my last name, I’m Shelly Fuller’s brother. It was mentioned that my heart led me back here. And that’s true. Melissa, can you please come up here with me?”

It’s as if my feet are bolted to the floor.

“Go,” Shel says, taking my tea from my hand. I look down at her, as tears roll down my cheeks. Damn hormones. “Just go, Mel.” She stands next to me. “Sorry, brother. I think she’s in shock. For the first time in her life, she’s speechless.” The staff laughs at this and so do I.

“Good one,” I tell her. “Is that really Ty? Or am I having a prego moment and seeing things?” I whisper in her ear.

“That’s him. He’s here. He came back home for you. Now, go get him.” She throws her arms around me and squeezes me tight.

“Stop making the poor guy wait,” someone shouts.

With my jacket closed loosely in front of me, I make my way to Tyler.

When I reach him, he takes my left hand in his. “Last year, I was able to witness that spectacular proposal Matt planned for my sister. I’m not quite sure I can top it, but I thought I’d try and surprise you. And by the looks of it, I think my plan worked.” He presses a kiss to my temple. “Melly Belly, you’re the first girl I ever loved. And the last one. We kind of screwed things up with our lack of communication. My plan all along has been to move back home to be with you. I should have told you the first time you came up to visit, but I wanted to surprise you.”

“You did?”

“Yes. When you came to visit the second time, I had already resigned from my job and put in an offer on a house a few blocks from my sister. I already moved in.”

“You did?”

“Yes. I did. I want to be here with you. You’re my life. You’re my heart. You’re my home,” he says before going down on one knee. Holy shit. “Tell me you’ll marry me.” His eyes are wet, and he’s holding a little blue box in his palm. A single heart-shaped diamond pokes out of the top. It’s gorgeous. “Mel?”

I wipe my eyes with my free hand, and murmur, “There’s something I need to tell you.”

The worried expression on his face breaks my heart. “Whatever it is, it’ll be okay. I love you.”

Slowly, I undo the two buttons on the front of my jacket and open it. “Are you sure I’m the only girl you’ll ever love?”

He glances down at my bump and his eyes widen more than I’ve ever seen before. “Holy shit, Mel. She’s a girl? Oh my god, I love you.” He places a hand on my belly and leans in to sprinkle it with kisses. “And I love her.” He points to my bump. “My baby girl is in there,” he calls out to our colleagues. “Can I put this ring on your finger yet so I can stand up and kiss you silly?”

“Yes, Tyler. Yes. Kiss me silly.”

As he slides the ring on my finger, the staff erupts with cheers and whistles.

“I love you, baby. I want to spend the rest of my life kissing you silly and painting pictures of our family.”

More catcalls from the staff.

“It’s great to be home,” he shouts, turning to the crowd. “We’re getting married and having a baby girl.” His gaze falls to me with a silly grin. “Who wants to go to Vegas?”

Epilogue

Melissa

I kiss my husband on the lips and my princess on the top of her cute little head before I rush in to see my best friend.

Before I go, I take a second look at my beautiful family and know that this will never get old. After Ty proposed, we jumped in the car and headed for Vegas for our shotgun wedding. My parents, his parents, and Shel and Matt joined us along with a few friends from work. And Mer and Der made the trip too. We got there Friday night, got hitched on Saturday, came home on Sunday and school started on Monday. It was a wild ride but I wouldn’t change a thing.

I glance at Ty who smiles endlessly at Mia, and my heart does a little dance. I reach out and brush my fingertips through her baby fine hair.

“Damn my dominant genes,” I say as I admire my baby girl. “I so wanted her to have your blond hair and light eyes.”

He snuggles his face close to hers and kisses her tiny nose. “No way, I love seeing you when I look at her. It’s going to be no fun when she’s sixteen and looks at me with these big brown eyes.”

“She’s gonna have you wrapped around her little finger.”

He winks at me with that sexy as hell grin. “Just like her mama.”

I stand on my tippy toes to kiss his cheek. “I can think of a few things I’d like to wrap around you.”

“So can I. Two weeks more, babe. I can’t wait.” We both laugh. “Now, go. Before my sister kills both of us.”

“Oh, yeah. Stop distracting me.”

He bends down and kisses me again before I rush off. But this time I really do leave his side … when I see my mother-n-law coming down the hall.

“What took you so long?” she scolds me as soon as I run into the room.

“Your dumb ass brother had to stop and pick up food.” I don’t dare say I was smooching him outside while she’s in labor. “He said that after waiting eighteen hours for Mia to come, he knew better than to come to the hospital empty-handed.”

“Bastard,” she groans. “I’m starving.”

“Want some ice chips?” I ask, knowing that I was ready to beat Ty in the head with a block of ice when he suggested them to me. As if sucking on ice is going to make a pregnant woman less hungry.

“No, if I suck on one more, poor baby Noah is going to come out freezing his little nuts off.”

“Nice, Shel.”

She juts out her index finger at me. “Hey. Don’t get all proper on me. Just because we’re moms doesn’t mean we have to be all snooty and boring.”

“You got that right.” I hold up my hand to give her a high five. “We’re going to be the most hilarious moms ever.”

She raises her hand and then stops suddenly. “Oh fuck. Here comes another one.”

I glance at the monitors and sure enough, the contraction number is climbing. “What do you want me to do?”

“Kick my husband in the balls. He should have to feel some of this too, right?”

I have to laugh at that one. I lean up against the rails of her bed and reach for her hand. “Hell yes. But until he gets back from giving your mom and dad an update, squeeze my hand.”

She squeezes. Hard. “My mom’s here?” Her face twists up. I know how she feels.

I’m just the daughter-n-law and I was ready to ban her from the hospital. She means well, but I just wish she’d mean well silently. If she would have tried to cover me with one more cold towel thinking it was calming me, I would have gone certifiably insane. Then I would have had to have my baby in jail because I would’ve been arrested for murder. Ty finally got the hint and got her the hell away from me. His dad though could have stayed all day. He’s like a big cuddly bear.

When the contraction is over, I finally answer her. “Yeah, but she’s staying in the waiting room until after the baby is born. We kind of fibbed and told her your doctor is a real hard ass and doesn’t let anyone in but the father.”

“Where does she think you are?”

“I don’t know. I told Ty to make something up. I’m sure she’s bonding with Mia by now, trying to fix her so she is dressed appropriately and her hair is perfection.”

Shel relaxes, resting her head back on her pillows. “Better you than me.”

I notice her face twisting up again. She nods and I grab her hand. “Just try to breathe in and out. Steady, Shelly. Steady. In. Out. In. Out.”

She looks me in the eye and my heart breaks for the pain she has to endure. Childbirth is no freaking picnic. She works the breathing technique like a champ until the hurt fades away.

“My mom says I’ll forget the pain as soon as I see Noah’s face.”

I laugh so hard I snort. “Well, you’re mom lied. I can still remember the pain and Mia is almost five weeks old. I’ll never forget that. In fact, every time I look at that monitor over there my uterus cries out in protest.”

“You should have lied to me too.”

“Hey. You’ll get through it. And just think. When it’s over, we’ll both be mommies.”

Four hours and an epidural later, Shel’s ready for delivery. It was crazy for a minute there. I thought I was going to lose a finger but she finally dilated enough to get the good drugs. At first, she was afraid her labor would slow down but then I reminded her that she wasn’t going to get a Brownie patch for giving birth drug free so she called for a nurse and took her up on the offer.

The doctor has been called to make the catch so we have to wait for him to arrive. In the meantime, the nurses are in the midst of transforming the room from what looked like a bedroom moments ago to what is now a surgical suite. A giant flood light comes down from the ceiling and I take that as my cue to move from my position at the foot of Shel’s bed.

“No, stay.” Shel stops me.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, but I’ve managed my whole life to not see your twat, so don’t break my streak. That’s all Matt.”

He shakes his head at me and my friend lets out a laugh. “Just come up here, sicko.”

I glance over at her husband who has just taken a peek on the other side of the curtain. “On second thought, he may never go there again.”

He wipes his brow and tries making a joke. “It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta do it.”

Tough, my ass. I may never forget the pain of childbirth but for some reason, like maybe blue balls, men forget all about seeing their wife’s hoohas stretched out in a bloody mess when that egg timer goes off six weeks later and the doctor gives the “all clear” signal. It’s like their dicks get hard on cue. So I doubt Matt will think it’s a tough job when it comes time to get back to action again. I know for a fact my husband is counting down the days.

The doctor has arrived and it’s time to push. He calls out directions. Matt holds one of Shel’s hands while I hold the other.

It’s beautiful watching him comfort her. “Okay, baby. You can do this.” He brushes the hair from her face and kisses her forehead. “We’re going to push again. Look at me, and on the count of three. One. Two. Three.” My friend clinches her teeth and grunts, pushing with all her might till she can’t anymore. Matt tells her he loves her, kisses her forehead, and when it’s time, they start again.

On the fourth push, baby Noah is born.

Matt cuts the cord and the little guy is placed on Shelly’s chest.

All eight pounds, two ounces, and 21 inches of him. He’s a big boy. Mia finally hit eight pounds at her last appointment. She was a tiny little thing compared to this linebacker.

I can’t help but get choked up. Tears slide down my cheeks as I watch the new family get acquainted.

Shel looks over at me with glassy eyes and says to her newborn baby, “Noah, meet your Auntie Melly Belly.”

“Hi, baby Noah.” My words come out as a squeak. “Congratulations, Shel. Matt. I love you guys.”

“I love you too,” she says. “Thank you for being here.”

“You were there for me too. I wouldn’t have missed it.”

“I can’t wait to do it again,” she says through tears. Matt’s eyes look like they’re about to pop out of his head.

She’s crazy. I’m in no hurry. I have my little princess and I want to enjoy her as long as possible. In fact, I need to see her right now. “I’m gonna go. I’ll be back in a bit.”

“It took some master ninja skills but I did it, little sister.” Tyler leans down and presses a kiss to the top of her head.

“What’s that?” she says.

“Surprise,” I reveal myself from behind my husband, and I’m holding our baby girl.

Shel squeals with happiness. “I can’t believe you got her in.”

“Shh,” Ty whispers.

“Well, bring over my niece,” Matt says. Ty takes her from my hands and snuggles her to his chest. He walks around Shel’s bed to stand next to his brother-n-law. “Noah, let me introduce you to your cousin. This is Mia.”

“Baby Mia,” Ty says in his soft daddy voice. “This is your baby cousin, Noah.” The two men hold their babies close together. Mia has a head full of dark hair. Noah has a soft thin patch of blond. “He may be younger than you, but he’s going to be like a big brother and always protect you. Just like I did for his mama.”

I glance at Shel and we’re both sobbing fools.

“Look at that,” Shell says.

“It’s awesome,” I tell her. “We have so much to be thankful for.”

“Absolutely,” she agrees. “Mia’s your Thanksgiving baby.”

I smile at her, wiping a tear from my eye. “And Noah’s your Christmas-New Year’s baby.”

“I can’t believe they were both born two weeks early.”

“Impatient like their mamas.”

She blots her face with the tissues from a nearby tray.

My heart squeezes at the sight of our husbands holding our babies. “We sure are married to the most gorgeous men ever,” I murmur.

“Our soul mates.”

“And we’re parents.”

“Our babies are going to grow up together.”

I nod. “And we’re going to grow old together.”

“Best friends forever,” she says.

But I correct her. Nah. Not just friends.

“Sisters, Shel. Sisters … forever.”

The end.

Dear Readers,

You’re back! That must mean you’ve read Against The Wall and you were dying to see what happened next with Mel and Ty. Right? Thank you so much for joining me on this fun ride of love and friendship. I am amazed and humbled by all the messages I’ve received about ATW. Nora emailed me about her book club in Texas (Hey ladies!). Dawn tweeted to let me know she is spreading the word of Shel and Mel to the WhoDat Nation. And Olga and Jennifer have it covered on Facebook. And those are just a few. I wish I could name you all, one-by-one. Hearing from all of my readers is like having Christmas every day. It’s the most exciting feeling ever, to know people are reading my books and like them so much they’re actually talking about them. Truly amazing!

Please, continue to chat about Against The Wall and Between The Sheets. If you haven’t already done so, consider leaving a review on your retailer’s site and Goodreads. ATW has hit Amazon’s Top 100 Best Selling lists for contemporary romance and romance. Let’s keep it there with reviews and “likes” on Amazon. Positive, honest reviews are so instrumental to the success of an author and I’d like to thank each and every one of you for all your thoughts, ratings, likes, reviews, and comments. You’re the reason ATW is doing so well. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

So what’s next? Many of you have asked about Summer. Will she get her HEA? Has she found it already? At first, I thought I didn’t want to write her story because I don’t really like her all that much. But then, she’s been tapping on my temple with a candy apple red acrylic nail trying to wake me up, “Hello! There’s a story here. Where’s my Matty or Ty?” It’s not Chase? I guess we shall see.

Until then …

Happy reading,

Julie

Acknowledgments

Saying thank you to my circle of supporters can never get old. I’m so lucky to have such a strong support system in my corner as I manage a family, a full time job, and my love for writing stories.

An enormous round of thank yous and standing ovations go out to my hubby, my kids, my mom, my sister, Lyndsi Hanley, Heather Fueger, and Andrea Soule. Without your support, and willingness to help, my books would never leave my own computer. You make it possible. Thank you.

Titles by Julie Prestsater

Adult Romance

Against The Wall

Between The Sheets

More Than A Friend Request

Young Adult

The Double Threat Series

So I’m A Double Threat

Double Threat My Bleep

Double Time

Double Threats Forever

You Act So White

Credits

© 2012 Julie Prestsater

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of a reviewer using brief passages.

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, real products, and real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. The author also acknowledges the copyrighted or trademarked status and trademark owners of any and all wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction.

Cover Photo: © Yuri Arcurs | Dreamstime.com

Visit Julie on the Web at www.juliepbooks.com.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Epilogue

Dear Readers

Acknowledgments

Titles by Julie Prestsater

Credits