Rekindled (9 page)

“I don’t need closure, but I do think I need a new best friend,” I say, drily.

“Just hear me out on this, and I promise I won’t bring it up again, okay?” He sits up and swings his legs over the side of the bed and leans forward resting his forearms on his thighs, his fingers steepled, something he only does when he’s mulling things over. “You told me that you never talked to her after that day at the restaurant, and that you never found out why she really left in the first place. Maybe this is your chance to hear her out, listen to her side of the story, you know, close that chapter of your life before starting another with Julia.”

I sigh. “There’s nothing to close. She left because Zach could give her things I couldn’t. I wasn’t good enough, that’s all there is to it. And even if there were more, it doesn’t matter now. Julia is the only woman I’m in love with. It’s like you and Macy. You just know when it’s meant to be.”

“Right.” He pauses. “I hope you’re a better liar than that when Julia asks you the same things I did, because your words are saying one thing, but your face says something completely different.”

“Coffee, Tate?” Julia reaches up and grabs two mugs from the cupboard, pouring each of us a generous dose to help get us started this morning. Grabbing the jar of sugar, she slides it my way across the countertop before pulling out a packet of Stevia for herself, flicking it against her wrist before ripping the paper open. “Do you want something to eat before I head out?”

Reaching out, I wrap my arms around her waist and tug her closer to me. “Hmmm,” I hum against the curve of her neck. “I can think of only one thing I want to eat right now…” I grin and guide her face down to mine where I lightly suck on her bottom lip until she parts her lips and she kisses me back. I let my hands roam over her ass and down the backside of her legs until I reach the hem of her skirt, lifting it slowly.

“Tate,” Julia says, breaking our kiss and pulling back slightly. “I’m going to be late.”

“I promise I’ll be quick,” I respond with a wolfish grin. I hook my fingers underneath the edge of her panties and slide them aside, using my knee to wedge her legs apart while I slip my index finger inside her. Her head falls back and her breaths become wispy from pleasure. My smile widens as I insert another finger, slowly pushing in and out of her wet folds, and I gently run the tip of my finger over her clit. But just as I think she’s about to succumb to my touch, her eyes blink open and her hands push against my arms as she straightens and takes a step backward so I’m out of her reach.

“Seriously, I can’t be late today. Mrs. McGuffie broke out in hives this morning and I need to get down there, get her some medication and see what’s causing it.”

Well, that picture definitely killed my erection.

Sighing, I pick up my coffee and drain it in three quick gulps, before pouring myself another cup, knowing I’ll need it to stay alert today. It’s been three days since my encounter with Callie, but just knowing she’s back in town has been fucking with my head, making it nearly impossible to sleep peacefully without some kind of memory of her holding my dreams hostage. Last night’s dream was the worst one yet.

“You’re insanely bad at this,” Callie says with a laugh as she watches the ring hit the side of the bottle and slip between the cracks.

“You can pretend like Callie and I are being held captive and the only way to free us is if you can get that ring around the bottle neck. Like maybe we were all on a ship and there was this giant storm and we made it onto a life raft, but just as we see land these pirates come and kidnap us,” Rylee says hopping up and down. “And somehow you find a way to escape, but we’re still stuck and—“

“Jesus, Rylee, I’m telling dad you watch too much TV. No nine-year old should get that happy over being kidnapped.” Exhaling a sharp breath, I dig into my pocket and pull out another dollar bill. “Five more rings, please,” I say, handing the cash over to the pimple-faced Carnie manning the ring-toss booth.

He collects five rings and lays them in front of me wishing me good luck before turning to a family on the other side waiting for their turn.

“Okay, Tate, you can do this,” Callie says as she places her hand on my shoulder. “Just concentrate.”

Closing my eyes, I let out a slow exhale as lazy old-time organ music drifts through the air from the carousel a few feet over. The smell of popcorn and grease mingles with the soft scent of Callie’s perfume, filtering into my lungs with each breath. When I open my eyes, I focus on an oversized stuffed husky dog wedged in between a row of bears, bunnies and monkeys. I need to land three out of the five rings in order to win that dog for Callie. The odds definitely are not in my favor, but she’s worth it to at least try.

Picking up the first ring, I run my tongue over my bottom lip, concentrating on the bottle in the center as my goal. Lobbing the ring into the air, I hold my breath watching it twirl and twist until it wobbles around the neck and falls off to the side. Fuck.

“Well, there go my arms. Better make the next shot or my kidnapper is going to saw off my legs, and then Rylee’s next,” Callie says with a hint of a smile. “Think of the children, Tate. Do it to save your baby sister’s life!” She grips Rylee’s shoulders and shakes her like a ragdoll, making my sister’s short brown strands of hair fly across her face. “Think of this face! This adorable little face!” She presses her fingertips into Rylee’s cheeks giving her fish lips as they both stare at me dramatically.

“Yeah, Tate, don’t let me die,” Rylee echoes. “Think of my face!”

“You both are absolutely ridiculous.” I shoot them an annoyed look before picking up the next ring and trying again. Miss. I ignore their jeers and manage to get the third ring around a bottle, but miss the fourth and fifth one, which means I get a choice between a scrawny looking rubber duck and a sad looking stuffed skunk the size of my palm.

“I’m pretty sure it’s safe to say that I will never become a professional at tossing rings,” I say as the Carnie pulls down the skunk and hands it to Callie. “Sorry I couldn’t win you the husky like you wanted.”

She laughs and hugs the skunk to her chest. “Don’t be sorry, this is a great prize.” Turning to Rylee, she holds him out to her. “Ry, why don’t you keep Pepe with you? I think he’d like your room more than mine.”

Rylee’s eyes light up as she takes the stuffed skunk and wraps her arms around Callie’s waist. “Thanks, Callie! I’m gonna go show dad.”

Rylee sprints off towards our dad who’s doing a crossword puzzle at one of the picnic tables, leaving me alone with Callie.

“Pepe? Really? As in Pepe Le Pew? How very original.”

She sticks her tongue out at me and bumps her shoulder against mine. “Not everything has to be original. I don’t know why everyone feels like there’s something wrong with traditional names. I mean, people get all crazy about having unique names and then suddenly you’ve got a poor kid growing up named Apple. What’s so wrong with just naming your kid Jennifer or Sarah?”

“Says the girl named Callia.”

“Touché. But it’s not like I got to choose my name. When I have kids, they’re not going to be named anything weird like North and have to be like a bad who’s-on-first joke the rest of their life. They’re going to have normal, traditional, but still beautiful names.”

“You’ve already picked out your kids names? You’re only fifteen.”

“It’s never too early to start planning. You don’t think about how many kids you’ll want when you’re older or what you’ll name them?”

“Not really. I’m more concerned about the fact that we haven’t eaten in three hours and I’m starving. Want to get a corndog and funnel cake?”

“Tate, I swear, you’re going to be as big as a house when you’re older if you keep eating this way.”

I shrug and grab her hand, dragging her to the row of colorful booths where I buy us each a corndog and a funnel cake with strawberries to share. We find a spare picnic table and eat our food in silence as the sun dips below the mountains, allowing the neon lights to breathe life into the fair with magic. In the distance, satisfied shrieks can be heard from the midway and Callie smiles when she watches a little girl shoving cotton candy into her mouth skip alongside her parents whose hands are joined together.

“I think I’d want two kids,” I say reaching for a napkin and quickly swiping it across my lips.

“Boys or girls?”

“One of each.”

She nods in agreement. “I think I’d want to name them something like Emily or Joshua.”

“Those are nice, but what about Elizabeth for a girl and Jonah for a boy?”

She pauses and stares up at the sky, contemplating my suggestions. “Elizabeth and Jonah…Elizabeth and Jonah Winters. You know what? It’s perfect, I love it.”

“I knew you would.” …

“How’d you sleep last night?” Julia asks bringing me back from my thoughts, while placing her cup in the sink and reaching for her coat which is hanging off the back of her chair.

“Pretty good.” I know I can’t tell her the truth because she’s been so great dealing with the fact that Callie’s back in town. Not that she has anything to worry about because while I know part of me will always care for Callie, I’m happy with Julia. Julia’s never shown any signs of jealousy, but still, telling her the truth about my dreams at night seems like it might plant false ideas, and that’s not something that either of us needs.

She pauses with one arm through the jacket armhole. “Really? Because you were tossing and turning practically the whole night like you were having a nightmare or something.”

“That’s weird, I don’t remember having any bad dreams last night.”

She extends her hand and cups my cheek, letting her thumb graze against the stubble that I haven’t had a chance to shave off yet. Leaning down, she presses her lips gently against mine before pulling back and looking me the eyes. “Tate, I love you, and if something’s weighing on your mind, I want you to know that you can talk to me.”

I reach up and place my hand on top of hers. “I love you, too, and you don’t need to worry about me. I probably was just having a nightmare about a jump.”

“Alright, so I’ll see you tonight for dinner?”

“It’s a date.”

She smiles at me and plucks her purse from the countertop, slinging it over her shoulder. Grabbing her keys from the holder that she had installed next to the front door, right above the shoe rack she insists we use so that we don’t track mud into the house, she gives me a quick wave before heading out the front door.

Stripping off my clothes, I make my way to the bathroom and turn the shower on as hot as it goes. I need to not only scrub away the dirt on my body, but also the marred spots on my conscience that are beginning to appear with the knowledge that I just lied to my fiancée for the first time.