Authors: Jessica Wilde
I turned to him and saw the
intimidating look in his eyes. It was frightening, but made me want to fist
pump the air in victory. I had been stupid to think for five seconds that this
man wasn't completely on my side.
Her face blanched and her gasp
was just as annoying as everything else about her. Her hand shot up to her
chest in shock.
He raised his voice, "If I
ever
see you again, I will not be so kind. Got it?"
Madison had been watching the
whole thing and walked straight up to the brat and got in her face.
"Megan Walker, do I need to
beat the shit out of you for the second time this year?" Madison looked
just as intimidating as Andrew had seconds before, but she looked like she
truly wanted to kill this woman.
Megan took several steps back and
glared at each of us. "Whatever," she bit out and walked away after
flipping her hair dramatically.
"Oh, what a very intelligent
thing to say! Guess you showed me, huh?!" Madison called out after her.
"That bitch is going to be the cause of me going to jail one day."
"Maddy! Watch the language
in front of Liv, please," Andrew warned her and she put up her hands and
walked passed us with a smirk on her face.
I was still fuming, but Andrew
had surprised me with his reaction and seemed to take care of the situation
just fine. The whole thing had been ridiculous. Obviously, the woman had mental
issues because I could see that Andrew had been quite clear with her and she
still didn't accept it. I didn't want any drama, but I had a feeling that this
wasn't over. Women like that started trouble.
Olivia started crying and I
quickly stepped around to the front of the stroller and tried to comfort her.
"Shh, my love. We are going. I'm so sorry that you are so tired. We should
have left sooner."
We left the park without another
word and by the time we got back to Andrew's car, Olivia had fallen asleep and
I was more on edge than ever before. I strapped her into the car seat while he
folded up the stroller and set it in the back. We had to wait for an opening
between all the people walking by and cars trying to get down the street so we
sat in silence for a few minutes. I was staring down at my hands and picking at
the pink nail polish on my nails. Something I did when I was worried or
stressed.
I watched Andrew's strong hand
cover mine and lift it to his lips sending tingles through my arm. "I'm so
sorry," he said softly. He looked back at Olivia who had drool running
down her cheek, "I guess we should probably talk."
I shrugged, attempting to look
nonchalant when I was really about to combust from his intimate touch.
"There really isn't anything to talk about, Andrew."
I didn't want him to think he had
to explain a past relationship to me. He could do whatever he wanted. Yeah, I
was jealous of the time she got to share with him, however long that was, and I
was enraged at the thought of her touching him, at the
sight
of her
touching him, but it was none of my business as long as it didn't affect
Olivia. If he was seeing other women, it obviously hadn't been affecting her
because she was happy and I felt like she was safe.
I imagined what it would do to us
if he
was
involved with other women and taking them out and having a
life with them, too. It made me sick. I loved the time we spent together. Would
he do that? Would I be able to sit back and watch that? Most likely, I wouldn't
be in his life anymore. I couldn't tell him not to date, though, because we
were
just friends
. It was only recently that things had gotten a little
more… complicated. There was still time to stop it and forget about it. That's
what I needed to do.
"Don't, Jocelyn." His
voice was tight, but calm.
"What? I don't have any
claim on you, Andrew. What you do when you aren't with me and Liv is none of my
business."
He shook his head and spoke
quietly, his voice sending a shiver through my body, "How can you say
that?"
"Because we are just
friends, remember? I told you from the beginning that I didn't want Olivia to
get hurt, and being more than what we are, would eventually hurt her
and
me."
He watched me for a minute, and I
squirmed under his stare. Those ocean blue eyes did things to me that no one
else had before. They made me feel safe and wanted, even if that may not be the
case, I liked the feeling. I didn't have to worry about my problems, because he
made me laugh enough or distracted me enough that they never had a chance to
enter my mind and I was afraid that if we stopped seeing each other, I would
just start dwelling on all of them again. But I couldn't be more. Things were
exactly where they needed to be. Right?
Without another word, he faced
forward and pulled out onto the road and headed for home. I looked back at Liv
and my heart broke. Would she remember Andrew if this friendship didn't work
out in the end?
Yes, she would. How could she
forget him?
The ride was completely silent
and when we finally parked in the driveway of my house, Andrew immediately went
to the back and pulled Olivia out of her seat and she snuggled onto his
shoulder. It was only 3 o'clock in the afternoon and she would probably stay
asleep for a couple of hours. We still had the barbeque planned for the night
and everyone was coming over at 6. I had a few hours to collect myself and get
over what happened at the park.
I followed closely behind him,
watching my little girl nestle into his arms and drool on his shirt. Monty
greeted us at the door and Andrew patted him on the head. "Hey, boy. Be
quiet, Liv is really tired, okay?" Then he climbed the stairs to her room
with Monty right behind him.
He had been talking to Monty like
that for a while now and that dog held on to every word he said, just like I
did and just like Olivia did.
We were all screwed.
That's when everything suddenly
clicked in my head and I froze in the middle of my living room staring at the
pictures of me and Liv. We needed Andrew in our lives. Olivia needed a man in
her life to show her how a man should love and take care of a child
and
a woman. He loved her. Monty needed him because I couldn't give him the kind of
attention he craved, only Andrew could. I needed him, because I couldn't
imagine my life without him anymore. I couldn't stop what was happening between
us, it would only leave us empty.
I kept questioning myself. What
if he didn't feel the same? I couldn't let this go on any longer if that was
the case. We needed to be on the same page or things would just be worse later
on.
I'll tell him tonight.
It was a risk I was going to have to take.
I heard his footsteps on the
stairs and slowly forced myself to face him. He hadn't spoken to me at all and
I had a feeling that it was coming. But when he stepped into the room he didn't
stop, he strode toward me with a purpose, his eyes smoldering and determined.
When he reached me, he buried his
hands in my hair and crushed his lips to mine, jolting me back a couple steps.
He kissed me desperately and I held onto his arms to keep my knees from
buckling under me.
Finally!
I shouted in my head. I had been keeping my
guard up and had hated myself for every minute of it.
This
is what I
truly wanted.
He nipped at my bottom lip and
ran his tongue along the seam, making me whimper and open up for him. A deep
moan rumbled in his throat and he slowly moved his tongue against mine, tasting
me and savoring it. This man knew how to kiss and I gave back all that I could.
He broke the kiss too soon and we
were both gasping for air. He waited for me to open my eyes and spoke with a
rumble. "You own me, Jocelyn. You have had the claim on my heart since the
first moment I saw you." After a long second he grinned, "You may
have to share that claim with Olivia because she has it, too." He kissed
me soft and slow, then pressed his forehead to mine. "You are my best
friend, but I want you to be more." He pulled away and looked deep into my
eyes and my breath caught at the sincerity I saw in his. "I
need
you
to be more, because… I-I don't think I can handle another minute of not being
able to touch you the way I want to touch you. And I
know
that I can't
handle you thinking that what I do is none of your business."
His hands moved down the nape of
my neck and out to rest on my shoulders. I was still reeling from the intensity
of his kiss and my heart beat wildly in my chest when I heard him saying the
words that scared and comforted me at the same time.
"I need you, too," I
breathed.
He smiled down at me and wrapped
a hand around the back of my neck, putting the slightest pressure against my
skin to pull me up to him. His lips met mine again and he kissed me hungrily. I
felt his arms wrap around my waist and lift me against him, nothing had ever
felt so good. Cupping his face in my hands, I took control of the kiss and
swallowed the groan that escaped from his throat.
"You taste even better than
I imagined," he murmured against my mouth.
I chuckled and he lowered me back
down to my feet. "You imagined what I would taste like?"
He brushed a strand of hair
behind my ear and whispered, "Every single day." His smile faded
before he continued. "I'm sorry about what happened at the park. I haven't
been involved with her for several months now, but she doesn't seem to get the
hint. When she figures out where I am working one night, she shows up and
causes problems. I promise that I haven't been seeing her or even really
talking to her."
I pressed my finger to his lips
to stop him, he kissed it and grinned. "You don't have to explain
anything. No matter what she would have said, I know you better than that. I
just wish I would have been able to strangle her like I wanted to."
He chuckled and kissed the tip of
my nose, "I noticed that and believe me, I would have loved to watch you
rip her apart, but I don't think Liv would be happy if you spent the night in
jail."
"That's why I stopped myself.
Plus, you and Maddy handled it pretty well."
He scoffed, "Yeah, Maddy
hates her and always has… you know what? Let's not talk about it. I want to
kiss you some more."
He kissed the corners of my mouth
and pulled me against him.
"Sounds good."
Andrew
I don't think I had ever really
belonged anywhere in this life, until now. I belonged with Jocelyn and Olivia
and they belonged with me. Sitting on the couch with Jocelyn snuggled in my
arms made the past 29 years of my life all but disappear. All that mattered was
our future together, and I planned on spending the rest of my life with her.
She asked me how long I had been
interested in her this way and I told her that there was never really a moment
I
wasn't
interested in her this way, I just didn't want to push her away
and I wanted her to know that I was going to be there for her and Olivia
whether we were romantically involved or not.
She shifted in my arms and looked
up at me. "We still have a lot to get to know about each other, you know that
right?"
"Yes, I do."
"Do you think we can take it
slow?"
I kissed her forehead. Slow.
Fast. I didn't care, as long as she was mine. "We can do whatever you
want, but I'm not going to be able to stop kissing you or anything. You've
already ruined me for life."
She giggled and burrowed into my
chest, "Same here."
Olivia's tiny voice came through
the monitor, "Mommy, out peez."
I let Jocelyn go get her while I
started getting the burgers ready for dinner. When she walked into the kitchen
holding Olivia and kissing her on the cheek, making her giggle, I had to take
deep breaths and focus on keeping my hands busy. I was already suffering from
the strain on the zipper of my shorts and I willed myself to get it under
control. She was just so insanely gorgeous and even more so when Liv was
around.
Jocelyn set Olivia in her
highchair and gave her some string cheese to munch on. It was already 5:30.
Time flew by with her and I couldn't help the disappointment I felt when I
thought of saying goodnight to her. I didn't want to miss any time, but I had
to be patient. I needed to take things slow and we needed to get to know each
other intimately one step at a time. Her kisses had been passionate and I could
envision how incredible we would be together. Which didn't help the path my
thoughts were taking.
One step at a time.
Everyone arrived for dinner and
Jocelyn was talking up a storm with Madison before I could ask her how she felt
about them knowing what was going on between us. I decided to just keep it
simple and do what I had always done before.
We were all seated out on the
patio laughing and watching Josh and Ella play with Olivia while Monty sat,
stoically waiting for a handout. Jocelyn was sitting across from me and I
couldn't take my eyes away from her. I studied every inch of her face and she
flushed whenever she caught my eyes on her. Everything was going well until
Madison brought up the topic of Megan.