Authors: Sadey Quinn
Sparky agrees and is thrilled that the construction project means more time outside to play with me. I throw a frisbee for him a few times, but he quickly tires. He’s getting old.
Marilyn is coming for dinner, so I shower and fire up the grill. I haven’t told her about Rachel moving in and I’m anxious about her response. She’s always brutally honest with me, to the point of hurting my feelings, so I’m not exactly looking forward to telling her the news.
On time, as always, Marilyn raps on my door three times before letting herself in.
“Brother, I hope you’re cooking something good tonight,” she says, giving me a big hug. “I’m fucking starving.”
I chuckle. “Sister, you got it.”
She grabs two beers from my refrigerator and hands me one. “Want to sit outside? It’s nice out.”
“Absolutely. Bring this out,” I reply, giving her back my beer. I grab a couple of potatoes to throw on the grill and make sure the steaks are defrosted before following her out.
“Did you know Ryan dislocated his shoulder yesterday?” she asks. “Playing volleyball with some of his buddies at a sports bar. He said it’s the worst pain he’s ever felt in his life.”
Ryan is our youngest brother and quite accident prone. I can’t even keep track of how many bones he’s broken. “I should give him a call,” I say, feeling bad that he didn’t call me and let me know.
“If you want. He’s fine now.” She plops herself down in a chair and cracks open her beer. “So, what’s the thing you wanted to talk to me about?”
“Well, it’s about that woman I introduced to you.” I open my beer and take a long sip.
“Rachel?”
“Yeah. I’m kind of falling for her.”
“That’s great, David! I’m happy for you.”
“Thanks.”
“That’s not what you wanted to talk about, though.”
I look at her and she’s staring at me knowingly. “Very astute of you, Marilyn.”
“I know. I can read you like a book. What’s up?”
“She’s moving in,” I blurt out quickly before I lose my nerve.
Marilyn looks stunned, like she’s fallen and the wind has been knocked out of her. “Seriously?”
“Yeah.”
She nods, slowly, like she’s thinking very hard. She brings her beer to her lips, but before taking a sip, says “Wow.”
I go inside for the steaks, not wanting her to see my face. I need her to tell me this is all right. Marilyn is my kid sister, but since a few years ago, when our mother went through treatment for breast cancer, we’ve operated as peers. During the long weeks of chemotherapy, Marilyn was the strong one of the family. She made sure everyone took care of themselves while she took care of Mom. Her maturity impressed all of us, but me the most. While in the past, Marilyn had been the one to lean on me for advice and help during rough times, after Mom's battle with cancer I’ve found myself leaning on her when I need a hand.
I take a few deep breaths before going back out to face her.
She’s at the grill, turning the potatoes and texting on her phone. I roll my eyes. I hate it when she texts while I’m trying to speak with her. But when she looks up at me her eyes are sparkling and she is smiling.
“I can’t believe it,” she says. “None of us ever thought it would happen.”
“Us?”
“Ryan. Mitchell. Mom and Dad. Ryan says congratulations, by the way.” She waves her phone in the air. “I won the bet.”
“What bet?”
“The bet about how long it would take you to settle down. Ryan thought you’d be close to fifty by the time you welcomed a lady-friend into this huge house of yours.”
I glare at her and push her out of the way so I can put the steaks on. “Thanks a lot. Betting on my happiness.”
“A
friendly
bet, David.” She goes back to her chair and sits down, sighing happily. “So this is all kind of sudden, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. Very sudden.”
“I’m surprised she went for it.”
“She’s keeping her apartment.”
“Good.”
“I think it’s the right thing to do.”
Marilyn can’t wipe the silly smile off her face. She looks positively ecstatic. Her mood is contagious and I realize I’m pretty damn ecstatic, too.
We eat and chat and she gives me a giant hug before she leaves, saying, “I can’t wait to come over here and get to know her!” I tell her to drive safe, she rolls her eyes, and then I go back to work preparing for Rachel’s arrival.
I want her to have space to put things so I clean up my closet, making sure there are hangers just for her. Same thing for the bathroom; I put my stuff to the side so there is ample room for whatever she wants to add to the mix. I don’t own that many things, so there isn’t so much a space issue as much as a matter of organization.
Time is moving slowly, as if the universe is trying to torture me by making the wait for her arrival as long as possible. When I finally fall asleep it’s almost one in the morning, so when dawn comes, waking me, I’m a little groggy.
Checking in with my e-mail, I see an emergency request from a woman named Lily. She’s young, a student at the local community college, and I provide her with punishments when she receives bad grades or doesn’t complete assignments. Evidently she got a C minus on her latest chemistry exam.
Usually I work my schedule to accommodate emergency requests, but today I’ve got the cement truck coming and I want to focus most of my energy on Rachel. I write her a quick note back saying I can’t work her in, and I include stern words about how disappointed I am in her. I check her class schedule and put her down for Monday morning.
That will be better for Lily in some ways. She can have the weekend to anticipate her spanking.
Pouring the cement goes well and it’s nice to see some progress made. It’s also nice to have a distraction because time is slower than molasses. I so badly want her here with me, in my arms.
I’m pacing around my house and Sparky knows something is up. He’s following me excitedly and he barks whenever I pause. Finally, around four, earlier than expected, I hear a car pull into the driveway. I run to the front door and it’s her.
And she’s getting out fast, and running to me, a huge grin on her face. She throws herself into my arms and I catch her and hold her tight.
“You’re here,” I say. My relief is so intense and I never want to let her go.
“I couldn’t wait,” she says, breathless. “I left work early. David…”
“What, baby?”
“I’m so glad to be here.”
“I’m glad you’re here, too.” I pat her bottom and she hugs me harder.
“I love you,” she whispers.
My heart skips a beat but I don’t hesitate with my response. “I love you too.”
<<<<>>>>
A note from the author, Sadey Quinn
Hello, Reader!
Thanks so much for reading
Under His Roof
. I really hoped you enjoyed this novella. I'm planning on writing a sequel to it, where we'll see Rachel and David's relationship develop even more.
Please, if you liked or hated this book, let me know! I'm always open to feedback, and love to get reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. Interacting with readers is one of my favorite things about being an author.
I post news about books, personal anecdotes, and other random stuff on my blog—almost daily. Check it out if you're interested:
http://sadeyquinn.wordpress.com
xoxo!
Sadey
Also By Sadey Quinn
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Social Service
Slaves on Pertz
Spanktastic
Odyssey for Passion (Spring 2012)
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