by Jodie Larson
“What are you doing here?”
I scoff and cross my arms. “I was about to ask you the same question.”
Susan looks between us. “Both of you, sit.” She points to the dining room table. Neither of us moves a muscle. “Sit!” she says more forcefully. This time, we comply, sitting on opposite sides of the table from each other.
The tension in the room is palpable as we stare each other down. He thinks he’s so intimidating, but really, he’s just the same controlling asshole he’s always been.
Clearing her throat, Susan looks between the two of us. “Now, I’ve called you here because this has gone on long enough.” She turns her attention to Myles. “Sweetheart, I love you, but you need to get your head out of your ass.”
His affronted expression almost makes me laugh. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.” Her no-nonsense tone has us both straightening in our chairs. “Lizzie is an adult and can date whoever she wants. You should be thrilled she wants to date someone you already know and love. It’s also not your place to tell her what she can and cannot do.”
Myles points an accusing finger at me. “He’s not good enough for her.”
Susan’s eyes soften around the edges. “It’s sweet you’re acting as her protector, but now you need to let it go.”
“He’s taking advantage of her.”
Red tints my vision as heat slowly crawls up my neck. “I. Am. Not. Taking. Advantage. Of. Her.” My words are methodical, barely containing the rage inside. It’s out of respect for his parents that I’m not flying over this table and kicking the shit out of him again. The green discoloration on the side of his face does lift my spirit slightly.
A flash of panic shows in Susan’s eyes as she takes in my tightening jaw, cracking slightly as I clamp down on my teeth.
“Myles, knock it off. Now.” He has the decency to look like the petulant child he’s emulating. Susan swings her gaze to me. “Breck, honey, we know you’re not taking advantage of her. You would never do that. It’s not in your nature. But I don’t think my son,” she briefly looks his way, “understands what you two have. Now, you are to sit here and figure things out. No one moves until you’re friends again. I don’t care if it takes all day.”
“But Mom,” Myles starts.
Holding her hand up, she glares and gives him pause. “But nothing. You two are best friends. Work it out.” Without another word, she leaves us alone.
Well, this is fun. I haven’t seen this fucker in a week and now I’m being forced to talk to him against my will. Nothing will change. He made his mind up nine years ago and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it.
Silence. A grunt. More silence. Followed by another grunt.
Yep, exactly how I want to spend my day.
We continue our stare down, waiting for someone to make the first move.
“Why did you lie to me?” His question is so quiet I almost think I misheard it.
With a cautious breath, I try to organize my thoughts into a simple answer. “Lizzie didn’t want me to get hurt.”
“You?” he scoffs. “You’d be the last person who’d get hurt. She’s just a child.”
“She’s not,” I say, slamming my fists against the table. “She’s a woman. Jesus, your mom’s right. Get your head out of your ass. She’s twenty-six, man. She’s almost the same age we were when our careers started taking off. She doesn’t need your protection. She never did. Lizzie’s smart, beautiful, and the most caring person I’ve ever met.”
He blinks once, twice, and then scoffs. “Of course she is. I’m not an idiot.”
I blow out a breath. “I know you aren’t an idiot, but you have to realize you’re wrong and obviously blind.” I run a frustrated hand through my hair, tugging at the roots. “God, I’ve been in love with her for years, but I couldn’t say anything because I knew you’d fly off the handle.”
“If you were so in love with her, why’d you sleep around while we were on the road?”
The laugh that comes from my mouth doesn’t even sound like mine. “Lizzie and I weren’t a thing. She had no idea how I felt. My relationships on the road are irrelevant. Besides, I didn’t sleep with every girl you saw me with. You assumed I did because you were slumming around. But they would never fill the hole in my heart, the one that ached for the girl I couldn’t have. They didn’t hold a candle to your sister. How could they? You’re my best friend and so is she.”
He looks down, studying his fingers as he picks at his nails. “I-I didn’t realize you liked her that much.”
Sinking back into my chair, the tension in my shoulders starts to fade. “Because I could never tell you. You saw her as a younger sibling. I saw her for the woman she is.”
He nods. “Okay, so, now what?”
Isn’t that the million-dollar question. “I’m not sure. You pretty much scared her away.” Myles grimaces. “All because you had to be the macho man and control her life.”
Another nod. Finally, he looks up, staring directly at me. “You swear you won’t hurt her?”
Holding a hand over my heart and the other up in the air, I brace myself to confess the one thing I never thought I’d say to him. “I’d rather die than hurt her. I love Lizzie like you love Tatum. It’s always been her. Let us have a chance.”
The air in the room shifts; all hostility leaving like a swift breeze was blowing it out the window. Myles cracks a smile and extends his hand.
“Lizzie Lavery sounds stupid, you know.”
I laugh and shake his hand. “So you’re saying I should be Brecken Donovan?”
“Fuck no. Just…just treat her right.” He pauses. “Oh, and if you bring her on the bus, under no circumstances do I want to hear you two having sex.” He visibly shudders to drive in his point.
“Deal.” It feels good to have my best friend back.
Susan peeks her head around the corner. “Now, I don’t want to haul your sorry asses back here again. Play nice, be good, and listen to each other.”
“Yes, Mom,” we reply in unison.
Kissing us both on the cheek, she turns but stops before completely leaving the room. “Oh, and Brecken moves back into the old house. His mother called and said even though she loves him with her whole heart, he can’t be home anymore. He’s really cramping their romantic style.”
Myles starts laughing. Then even more. “Dude! Your parents are having sex all over the house.” He’s practically doubled over with tears streaming from his eyes.
“That’s not funny,” I deadpan, fighting the vomit from rising.
Susan gets the last laugh. “Uh, what do you think your father and I do now that you both are gone?” She gives a pointed look to the table before slinking away, letting the comment hang in the air.
As if in slow motion, we both look at the table and jump away like it was diseased.
Myles jerks his head toward the door. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Fast.”
We walk out the door and shove our hands into our pockets, keeping our eyes downcast to the sidewalk. “I’m sorry,” I say.
“Yeah, me too. Mom’s right. I should be happy my sister wants a guy like you. Out of all her boyfriends, you’re definitely the best candidate. And we’re already brothers, so that’ll help when you finally decide to settle down.”
I smile. “If I can get her back. We kind of did a number on her this time.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
I raise a brow. “Really?”
“It’s the least I can do since I’ve basically been screwing you over for almost ten years.”
“True,” I say. “You kind of owe us one.”
“Come on,” he says, jerking his head. “Let’s get a beer. I’m buying.”
Still no word from Lizzie even though Myles and I have patched things up. Kade was happy as well since we no longer have to add in my bass guitar and vocals to the album. That would have sucked.
Tatum’s helping me finish Lizzie’
s house. The company finally showed up and is putting the finishing touches on her place as we speak. Since I don’t feel right being in her house without her there, Tatum is overseeing the project, which kills me because I wanted to be the one to transform her house.
Now that this project is going, I realize my time here is almost gone. This weekend is the reception, which leaves me one last chance to prove we belong together.
Pax takes a seat across from me at the table, his cereal bowl thudding against the wood. “How are you holding up?”
I shrug and shove a spoonful of Golden Grahams into my mouth. “Not well, but I don’t know what else to do. She hasn’t tried contacting me, so I don’t know where we stand.”
“Have you tried texting her?” He holds the spoon out, waving it at me.
“No,” I sigh. “I’m afraid.”
“Jesus, are you a chick now? Please tell me we’re not about to watch a bunch of sappy movies and eat our feelings away.”
“Aw, but I was looking forward to the Beaches marathon I had planned out.” Pax flips me off, making me laugh for the first time today. “But seriously. I know she feels the same about me. I can feel it. But I don’t know how much time she needs to figure it out.”
Pax shrugs and shoves a spoonful into his mouth. “It’s all about patience with women. You can’t rush them.” He pauses to swallow. “Have your speech ready for next weekend?”
I groan and let my head fall back. “No. I haven’t exactly been in the right frame of mind to talk about two other people being in love.”
“Myles said your mom kicked you out for cramping her sex life?” Fucker has the audacity to snicker.
“Yeah, well, apparently Myles’ parents had sex on the dining room table. You know, the one we ate off of last night.”
Pax turns green in an instant. “Fuck, dude, that’s….aw.”
I laugh at his discomfort. “Didn’t you wonder why Myles and I were holding our plates?”
“No! I just figured you two were weird. That’s, dude. They’re like our parents.” He gags and tosses his spoon into the bowl. “Now I need to take a shower and cleanse my brain. I’m never getting that thought out of my head.”
“Good. Welcome to the club.”
I laugh while Pax tries to recover from his shock. “That’s not right, man.”
“Fine, I’m sorry. But seriously, what should I do about Lizzie?”
Looking up, he places both hands on the table, pushing himself to stand. “What did you used to do to get her attention?”
I tap my chin and look up, trying to remember everything that worked in the past. “Nothing. We were always together.”
He shrugs while picking up his empty bowl. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out.”
A lot of help he is. I have half a mind to walk into her office and demand to see her, but since I don’t have a child, that’d be kind of hard. Maybe Adrienne will let me borrow Lyric?
No. I won’t stoop to that level.
Instead, I opt to write my speech for Myles and Tatum. First, I need inspiration.
I close the door to my room and scroll through my playlist. Inspiration hits when I hit play on “Faithfully” by Journey. Steve Perry’s smooth voice fills the room as I lay back on my bed with my pen and paper in hand.
This song serves a dual purpose. It really speaks to the both of us because Lizzie and Tatum are in the same position. They’re both in love with music men who are constantly on the road, possibly leaving them behind. It’s through faith and love that will keep us—or them—together.
I jot down the notes and close my eyes as I listen to the song. If only I could go all Say Anything on her and boom box this song outside her door. Yeah, it’s not Peter Gabriel, but means something to us. She needs to know that our relationship can work because we belong together.
After I write down my speech—though I plan on ad-libbing a lot of it—I write down something else, something solely for Lizzie to read.
The song changes to Theory of a Deadman’s “Wait for Me.” My heart aches as I think about the last time we were together and how long it’s been since I’ve seen her.
I can’t wait any longer. But I’ll have to. I need her to tell me the truth and the only way she’ll do that is if she’s asleep. Contrary to her belief, that girl talks up a storm in her sleep.
So I wait until midnight outside her door. Yeah, it’s a little stalker-y, but I can’t stop thinking about her.
When the final light goes off, I wait a few more minutes before using the hide-a-key and going in through the front door.
No time to look at the remodel. I’m a man on a mission.
Sneaking down the hall, stopping periodically as a floorboard creaks, I push open her door and find her curled up on what is normally my side of the bed. Her small body is wrapped around my pillow with her face buried in it.
It’s then I notice the shirt she’s wearing. No wonder I haven’t been able to find my Foo Fighters shirt in a month. She’s had it stowed away here.
The bed dips slightly as I sit, brushing back a few stray hairs to show her angelic face. She looks so at peace when she sleeps. Her face instantly relaxes as a smile forms on her lips.
“Breck,” she whispers.
Now’s my chance.
“I’m here, baby.”
“I miss you.”
It takes everything I have not to crawl into bed with her and cradle her in my arms. “Me too. I just needed to see you tonight.”
Her hand reaches out, seeking me even in sleep. “Stay with me. I can’t lose you again.”
I grab her hand, holding it, feeling her warmth penetrate my skin. Thank God she’s a heavy sleeper. “You won’t. I just need you to wait for me. We’ll be together soon.”
“Wait,” she repeats.
“That’s right.” Leaning down, I place a feather-light kiss on her forehead, withholding my laugh as tiny worry lines form where my lips were.
“I love you,” she says, clear as day.
I pause and close my eyes. Logically, I know she’s not actually saying it to me since she’s asleep. But people always speak the truth during this magic hour because their inner voice isn’t holding them back. Nothing is telling them this is wrong.
Lizzie loves me. And it’s enough to get me through the next few days.
“I love you, too. Get some sleep. We’ll see each other soon.”
She snuggles back into the warmth of the blankets without another word.
This is what I needed. Now I know everything will be okay.
“I’m so glad you two put a halt to the penguin suits and all that crap. I can handle a dress shirt and tie,” I say to Myles and Tatum in the back room of the reception hall.
“Two hundred people showed up. Way more than I thought. I was expecting close family and friends. Guess I never realized how many friends we had, or our parents have I should say since it’s not really about us.” Tatum keeps looking out the doors, expecting to find something else.
“Relax,” I say, handing her a glass of vodka. “Drink this. It’ll make you feel better.”
She eyes the glass before looking over at Myles. He promptly takes it from her fingers and downs the liquid himself.
“She needs water.”
I let my gaze bounce from Myles to Tatum until realization dawns.
“You’re pregnant.”
“Shh!” she hisses. “Not so loud. I don’t want to jinx anything.”
“What are you talking about?” I ask, tilting my head.
Tatum moves closer. “We just found out earlier this week. No one knows, not even our parents.” She’s positively glowing with happiness. “It’s still really early; only about four or five weeks. We’re waiting until I’m out of the first trimester, just in case something goes wrong.”
“Nothing will go wrong. If anyone deserves a baby, it’s you two.” I pull her into a hug as she wraps her arms around my neck, holding me in place. We stay like this for a moment
before I let go and give my best friend a hug as well.
“We’re being extra cautious. We know we’re high risk, so everything will be by the book. Tatum’s going to stay home and rest. Being on a tour bus might be a bit much for her. Not to mention she won’t get the prenatal care that she requires. Not that we’re going on tour right away, but I know it’ll happen toward the end.”
I nod. “Seems logical. You better let Linda know so they can start planning around your absence.”
Myles slaps my back. “Everything all set on your end?”
I nod. “Yep, I’m ready.”
“Nice of you to use our special day to steal the spotlight.”
Tatum smacks his chest. “Like you care. You didn’t even want to have this party.”
He nods. “I’m only here for the food and booze.”
That was obviously the wrong thing to say. “Oh, I have news for you, mister. If I’m not drinking for nine months, you’re not either.”
All the color drains from his face. “You can’t be serious.”
“Did I fucking stutter?” Tatum’s face is utter stone.
I leave the two of them to battle it out. Once they get going, it’s best to let them have at it. Looking out into the reception hall, I watch the people file in, taking their seats while gathering around friends and family to get reacquainted with each other.
But it’s the brunette on the other side of the room who has my rapt attention. Standing in her knee-length pink dress, she’s positively breathtaking. Her hair falls in loose waves over her shoulders, looking flawless, almost innocent. Lizzie is good looking any day of the week, but when she’s without all the extra frills, she’s radiant. In fact, I think she’s at her best the minute she wakes up with her dreams slowly leaving her eyes as they blink into focus. That’s usually followed by a smile and a kiss, which turns into another round of lovemaking.
It’s hard not to stare, considering it’s been weeks since we’ve actually spoken to each other. Her sleepy confirmation the other night tided me over, but now that we’re in the same place, I know how this will work out.
