The Beginning of Us (298 page)

I make my way out to the two of them and jump right into the conversation. After some friendly banter between the three of us, I grab my coffee mug and slide my other arm around Char. I love the way her body fits perfectly up against mine and even after just waking up she looks sexy as hell.

Poor Char, she is trying to express herself but is not able to complete her thought when Derrick interrupts her with a comment of his own.

"Ok stop right there, I don't want to know the details." Derrick says with an extreme look of embarrassment on his face.

"Oh come on Derrick, I’ve walked in on more steamy moments between you and Chloe." She shares while curling herself into my lap on the couch.

"Well you two love birds live it up for a bit. I brought over some stuff to cook you breakfast. I figured you wouldn't have the time to go out and get anything for me to eat anyway."

Derrick leaves the apartment to go get the groceries from his car and this split second of time gives me the perfect opportunity to do something I’ve wanted to do since I woke up this morning.

I begin to feather my fingertips up and down Char's back. With my light touch I can see that I’m sending chills down her spine and I am in such awe of the way my emotions thrive for this woman. I grab our coffee mugs and set them down on the side table. I turn her to face me and place a hand on either side of her face.

"Thank you." I tell her and I lean in to give her the softest kiss.

I figure that we only have a few brief moments till Derrick waltzes back in so I take the kiss a little deeper until Char greets her tongue against mine.

We are broken apart by the sound of a throat scratching and we tear ourselves apart.

Assuming it is Derrick coming back in I lean forward to give Char a peck on the lips, but then I hear a man’s voice I was not anticipating.

"Well I can see you two were not expecting company. I mean with the door standing wide open and you two are smooching on the couch."

"Daddy!" Char squeaks, jumping from my lap.

"So would one of you like to tell me what is going on here? I sure as hell did not think this was going to be the start of my week back here in Boston, that's for sure." Bryce says with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Daddy, I can explain." Char says as she walks over to her dad in the doorway.

"Hey guys I brought some good stu…shit. Hey Bryce, what's up man? When did you stop by?" Derrick rattles off and I begin to think he is more nervous about Bryce being here than I am.

"Hi there Derrick. Why don't you get to cooking while I sit and chat with Char and Riley here?" Bryce says while taking a seat next to me on the couch.

"You got it. Is everyone good with western omelets and rye toast?" Derrick asks while busying himself in Char's kitchen. Hmm wonder if he needs some help.

"Yes!" We all shout at him in unison.

"So I wanted to stop over this morning to drop off your cell phone since you left it in the car last night. On my way over here I was thinking about asking you to come to lunch with your mother and me, but as I can see you have plans." Bryce's tone continues to sound agitated.

"I appreciate you bringing over my phone Daddy, but I don't understand why you are getting so upset about me having company in my apartment. I’m a grown woman, what is the problem?" She says to her father in a whisper.

Way to go Char, stick it to him.

"The fact that you have company is not my problem and to be completely honest it’s not my business. But what has me angry is that it seems the two of you are hiding something from me. I asked you both how you knew each other when we were at my office last Friday. The other day I asked you, Char if you had a relationship with Riley and you blew it off as if there was nothing to discuss. Now what I just saw walking in here didn't look like nothing to me. Unless I have the wrong impression of you Char, which I hope I do not."

Ok now I need to step in. I don't like the way Char's father is talking to her and to be on the same wave length here we did not do anything wrong, what the fuck is his deal?

"Bryce, it’s not what you are thinking. When you asked us the other day, we were both upfront and honest with you. Char and I bumped into each other a few times and the first interaction we had a chance to talk was at Derrick's last week. Then last Saturday we spent the day on Derrick's boat and for me things just seemed to click."

"Things just clicked?" Bryce asks looking in Char's direction with a sly smile creeping up his lips.

"Seriously Daddy this is just crazy, please tell me you are playing with us right now." Char says as she looks at her father with those intense eyes.

"God you two need to lighten up a bit here, you look like I caught you two with your hands in the cookie jar." Bryce says with a belly laugh.

"Gotcha!" Derrick says running into the living room.

"What the fuck guys?" I am lost, what the hell is happening here.

"I called Derrick to let him know I would be stopping over to give you your phone. I knew he would be over for Sunday brunch, so I thought I would give him a heads up. Derrick can't keep his mouth shut, plus Chloe was on the phone with Mom last night giving us all the details of Riley's surprises." Bryce shares as he walks into the kitchen to get himself a mug of coffee.

"You’ve got to me kidding me, right?" I say to Char, I am seriously dumbstruck right now.

So am I cool with Bryce? Is he okay with me and Char? Shit now that he knows I spent the night at Char's will I have job tomorrow?

Chapter 18

CHAR

After Riley just about shit his pants with Derrick and Daddy's prank we sat down and ate our delicious breakfast. Derrick is a great cook, when he wants to be, and made some killer western omelets.

As nervous as I was for Daddy to be here with Riley in such a personal setting, everything felt natural and we had a great morning together. The guys chatted about the Red Sox in the playoffs, Daddy and I talked about our week with Chloe in LA, and Riley shared some details of his first week on-the-job with Taylor & Sons Contracting.

Shortly after the men licked their plates clean, Riley and I cleaned up the kitchen while Daddy and Derrick discussed Chloe's new life in LA. I love how in sync Riley and I are with each other in such a short amount of time. His body knows just where mine is and with little thought what my next step will be.

The guys decide to take the rest of the day to do some male bonding and head over to Derrick’s house to watch the game. I think it’s great that Daddy and Derrick are including Riley in this time together, I just hope Riley feels the same way and isn't too nervous.

While Derrick and Riley head out to their cars I take a quick opportunity to chat with Daddy. His opinion means a lot to me and I want to reassure him that my relationship with Riley is a good thing and not to worry about me.

"Thanks for a fun morning baby girl." Daddy says while giving me a tight bear hug.

"Next time you can bring me in on the prank to make it twice as fun." I giggle in his grasp.

I return his hug of affection and give him a big, wet and sloppy kiss on the cheek.

"You are the best Daddy, thanks for being so supportive of this with Riley."

"Well whatever, this is baby girl, he better treat you right."

"He will Daddy, if not he knows Derrick will kick his ass."

"You know it Char." He says while walking out the door. "Love you."

"You too Daddy. Be nice to Riley, please." I say to him. We walk our way out to his car in the parking lot where Derrick and Riley are waiting.

I say goodbye to my three guys and wish them a fun day of bonding. Riley leans in and gives me a sweet peek on the cheek and tells me he will call me later. This time we exchange numbers so that we never have to be without contact.

This morning was a total whirl wind; in fact everything has taken me by surprise since Riley showed up at my door last night. I was especially taken off guard with Daddy's behavior this morning and proud that Riley stood his ground. I'm fortunate to have a father who loves and cares about me the way that mine does. I know that all he wants for me is to be happy. Once he got a glimpse of Riley and I interacting together this morning I think he can see that I am happy.

No wait, I’m not just happy, it’s so much more than that. What I am feeling for Riley is stronger than anything I’ve ever experienced before.

I had an interest in him since I spotted him in Derrick's kitchen. It was an instant physical attraction for me, but now that I‘m getting a better chance to know him, I am learning things that I can appreciate in a man.

Riley is hot as hell, has an amazing body, is a great kisser, and has a touch that sends shivers through my body.  Most of all he has this side to him that touches me deeper than just through his fingertips. We have such a crazy connection that when I am with him, I can sense him physically. He knows how to touch me and what he can expect by my mannerisms.

He was the one that said he wanted to take things slow and I was all for it last night, but I can't make any promises the next time we are alone together.

My fear now comes into place wondering if we can connect emotionally as well.

How the hell is all this happening so fast? I’m insane to be falling for Riley?

Since I have most of the day to myself, I need to get my head back on track and get ready for life to go back to reality. Being away from work an entire week means that I will have an in-box full of e-mails waiting for me when I arrive.

I might as well get some things done early so that I can spend the rest of tonight relaxing. Maybe pull out the iPad, a glass of wine, and take a long soak to end my week-long vacation.

Sounds like a master plan to me.

I look over at the clock on the living room wall and it reads eight o'clock. The apartment is as clean as it's going to get, the laundry is done, the fridge is full, and my clothes are out and ready for work tomorrow. I think it's about time to grab my tub-time gear and go relax before calling it a night.

RILEY

Holy shit today has been one hell of a day to say the least. After dealing with heart failure this morning from Bryce's practical joke I was a bit nervous to spend the rest of the day with him and Derrick. These two guys seem to have a tight bond and I can tell that Bryce trusts Derrick with his girls. I can only hope in time, Bryce and I can have a similar type of relationship.

The three of us sit in the living room to catch the one o'clock game. We ordered some wings and pizza to go along with our beer. I would say we are set up for an afternoon of baseball.

Go Red Sox!

Throughout the game we laugh at one another for the strong emotions we emit for our team. Between the bad calls and the lack of motivation from the players, I feel like one of us is ready at any minute to jump through the screen.  It’s great to have something in common with Char's dad, but I’m still not sure how this will impact me tomorrow at work. I figure I will play it cool and take things as they come; after all we are having a good time just being guys today.

A few times throughout the day I felt the need to call or text Char, thank god I finally got her number. I don't want to be punk or a pain in the ass, but I do feel the need to hear her voice. Her voice is something else; it’s the sexiest thing I’ve ever heard. When she talks to me and looks at me with those big, beautiful, brown eyes I just want to touch her and never let her go.

If I can't touch her, I at least need to hear her. The way I feel about Char is so new to me and it’s almost too good to be true. I've had short relationships in the past, but they were more about the sex than anything else. With Char I want more than just the sex.

Fucking shit, sex with Char! I’m getting a hard on just thinking about it. But I don't want to jump into anything like that quite yet with her. With Char I want to do it right, I mean she could be the one I am meant to be with forever. I’ve never had such strong feelings for a chick so fast and I am thinking it’s because this one is meant to be mine.

I’m in such a Char coma that I lose track of the game and snap back to reality when Derrick tosses a wing at my face.

"What the hell assface, if this wing would’ve landed on the couch you would only have yourself to blame." I yell at Derrick while chomping down on the wing.

"Well if you would be paying attention instead of off in la la land thinking about Char you would’ve heard us yelling your name." Derrick says while getting up and heading into the kitchen.

"You need another beer son?" Bryce asks me while attempting to hide a fit of laughter.

Son, wow what a step up from Riley, I got to do this guy bonding thing more often.

"Yea thanks that would be great. Derrick bring me some napkins while you’re out there too, I have to clean wing sauce out of my hair." I say as I find even more sauce running down my cheek.

"And for your information I was not daydreaming, I heard you. Just didn't feel like answering your annoying voice."

"Yea, yea putz. Just admit it; you have it bad for a Taylor girl." Derrick laughs while tossing a beer in my direction.