With everything holding them back out of the way, and because Toby was honored by sweet Maggie’s willingness to deceive in order to win him over instead of being angered by it, they had gone to dinner. This time on a date, not for a planning session. And if there was one word used to describe the dinner, it was right. That’s what they had both decided. It was just...right.
And now here they were, back at his place, hoping that Parker was still on his long shift at the hospital so they could have the place to themselves.
“Or,” Maggie told him, “if he’s not at the hospital, let’s hope he has finally read Abbie’s post and is at my place doing what we are about to be doing.”
Toby smiled at her.
“I kind of like it when you talk a little bit dirty, Maggie,” he said, kissing her neck. “At least I hope that comment meant what I thought it did.”
Maggie stood on her tiptoes and merged their lips before pulling back and tugging his arm towards the couch.
“It definitely does,” she purred.
They sat down and picked up right where they had left off. Soon, Maggie was laid out on the couch with Toby resting his weight on top of her. Her breathing was getting heavier and every now and then she would make little mewing sounds as he licked and nibbled at her skin that had him standing at attention.
“Oh, Toby,” she moaned, as his hand brushed over her breast on his way to undo the buttons holding her shirt together. He removed the top and her bra quickly followed. Her skirt was hiked up around her hips, and his shirt was untucked from his unbuttoned pants, her hand gently stroking inside. Then the door opened.
Maggie moved to cover herself up as Parker walked in the door, saw what was happening, and stammered out an apology. He went to leave, but Maggie stopped him after she was decent.
“Have you looked at Abbie’s blog recently, Parker?” she asked him, her voice raspy. Toby needed this conversation to end so they could get back to where they were before Parker had entered.
“No. I’ve worked so many hours this week, I haven’t had time to sleep or eat, let alone read. Why? Do I want to read it? Is it good?”
Maggie was noncommittal, telling him he should read it for himself. But Toby noticed she was trying too hard not to smile. There was no way Parker didn’t catch the same thing. The giddy look on Parker’s face told Toby he was right.
“I’ll read it right now,” Parker said.
“And Parker,” Maggie stopped him one more time. “I’d read it fast. We plan on being pretty loud, and it might be hard to concentrate over us.”
“Mr. and Ms. Private don’t care who hears them?” Parker asked, genuinely surprised. Usually, the guys never brought girls home when the other would be there.
“There are some things, Parker,” Maggie scolded him, “that cannot wait. This is one of those things.” Then she once again pulled Toby by the arm, telling him to lead the way to the bedroom. Toby was happy to oblige, but not before telling Parker one last thing.
“Sorry you walked in on us, man,” he said, “but think of it as payback for that thing Abbie wrote about on her newest post. I hope you really did scrub down the counter.” And then they were in his room, and clothes were once again removed, and all things else were forgotten.
32
Parker had worked more hours in a row than he cared to think about, but he was fine with it. Partly because he knew that his residency was almost up and he could pick a path that was less strenuous, and partly because it meant he could take his mind off of Abbie. At least temporarily. When he was finally finished at the hospital, all he wanted to do was get home, crawl into bed, and sink into a deep slumber.
So when he came home to panting and half-naked people grinding on his couch, he was a little disappointed. When Maggie, however, told him he should check out Abbie’s blog, with a wicked little smile that definitely wasn’t all because of Toby, sleep was forgotten.
As soon as Toby and Maggie left, Parker went to his computer and pulled up the site. He could already hear moans coming from the other room, and he wanted to read this quickly so he could get out of the apartment. Hopefully to go see Abbie and finally be able to be with her completely.
He had left her house the other night dejected and with no idea as to how to solve this. Then he remembered before Maggie had come to him with the jealousy scheme, he had been planning on writing a public outpouring of emotion to Abbie just to show her she wasn’t the only one with a big mouth when it came to love. So he sat down and typed out everything he was feeling. Then he went to the hospital where he could bury his head in the sand and keep the tiny shred of hope alive. If he didn’t look at the blog, he could imagine she was saying everything he wanted her to say. If he looked at the blog, he might see that she was saying everything he didn’t want to hear.
But now here he was with the truth before him. He held his breath and dove right in. Why had he been at the hospital again? Other than the fact that it was his job and was required of him, of course. He should have skipped work. He should have called out sick. Never mind that you can’t really call out sick as a doctor unless you are near death, and even then it’s frowned on. He should have figured out a way. If he hadn’t gone in, he could have been here reading this. Or better, he could have been with Abbie.
And that was where he should be. He had to go, and not just because the squeaking bed springs and loud cries in the next room were steadily growing in frequency and volume. Maggie hadn’t been lying. He grabbed his keys and ran to his car. Finally, he was going to get the girl of his dreams.
Long-Last Confessional
Long-Last Confessional: or Abbie Baker’s Return to Life as a Bigmouth
Abbie Baker | June 3, 2015
I am making a mid-week post, but I had to – and if you saw the comment on my last post, you know why. There was no way I could hold off on this one. I am about to make up for my last couple of weeks of being absent by writing out a long confession that might shock all of you. But I’m not writing for any of you unless, of course, you are Parker Kenneth Bryant. Readers, you might know him as Wesley.
Parker, you wanted to know what I was feeling, and you wanted me to say them in a way that the whole world would hear them. And I want to make you happy. That’s my first confession. So here you go with all of the rest.
Readers, I want to apologize to you because for the last few weeks, I have been lying my ass off to you. I have not been happy. I have not been falling in love with a coworker and feeling sorry for his unlovable friend. It was all a trick to get back at them for hurting me.
Here was my plan: I would make them both think I forgave them and then act as if I was surprised when they both showed up to my trap. I would torture one with abstinence while making the other jealous. And I was going to come out on top of it all unscathed. But dreams don’t always come true and for once I am glad that mine didn’t.
No matter how much I wanted to want to, I just never wanted to hurt either of them. It just took me a while to realize why. You see, I had long since stopped feeling any type of romantic feelings for Toby, and I didn’t feel enough about him to care about what he did to me. As they say, there is a fine line between love and hate, and I was not in love with Toby or even close to it, so I couldn’t hate him enough to want to hurt him. Plus, despite the one horrible thing he did, he’s a great guy. He isn’t someone I would want to date anymore, but he’s great.
(Also, I want to take a second to send a special thanks to Toby. He hates being talked about here and wants to keep all of his business his own. But when I went to apologize to him for what I had done, I told him what I wanted to do, and he gave me free reign to say everything I want to, even if it had to do with him. I think he thinks it’s a way to settle everything so that I never talk about him again, which was one of his stipulations. I do not have permission, though, to mention his other stipulation.)
I had never stopped feeling for Parker. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t drum up the desire to hurt
Parker because I couldn’t hurt him without also hurting me. Still, I swallowed my feelings and marched on. I figured the only way to cut all ties from the horrible situation I had found myself in was to keep on with my plan. And so I did.
At some point, I just couldn’t go on anymore, and I broke up with Toby – well, we mutually parted ways in what had to be the most truly mutual break up of all times. So there I was, finally ready to end all of the negative energy in my life and start acting like an adult. This, however, lasted right up until I saw Parker again.
I wish you all could see him. I won’t post a picture because that’s not what this is about, but looking at him has always made me melt, and this time was no exception. I went to see him because we both had apologies to give if we wanted to move on with our lives. But once we had apologized, we weren’t through.
He kissed me, and then he stripped me, and then he had his way with me. Right there on his kitchen counter (I’m sure he cleaned really well, Toby. Just in case you are reading this) and then up against the wall and then finally in his bedroom. All night long. It was without a doubt the best I’ve ever had. Parker, I’m not just saying that. You wanted my honest feedback, and that’s the honest truth.
I woke up the next morning and watched him sleep. I was happy, and it was something I wasn’t used to and hadn’t felt in a long time. He looked happy and peaceful as he lay there sleeping. That’s when the panic crept in. What was I doing? I had been hurt in this situation and so had he and yet here we were going back in. So I decided to take the coward’s route. I left a note saying I was sorry and I left. And I had no plans on ever seeing him again.
Let me tell you, the next couple of days were horrible. I took that Monday off of work because I couldn’t stand to look at Toby and remember he had introduced me to Parker, who I could never see again. So I stayed indoors eating my sorrows and not showering. In just a second, you’re going to see just how incredible Parker is because he didn’t even bat an eye at my unkempt state when he did what I am about to tell you he did.
Parker showed up at my door Monday night and told me that, since I left him in such a chicken shit way (my words, not his), I owed him a chance to speak his mind. So I begrudgingly sat down and listened, though I wasn’t planning on buying into anything he was selling.
Parker didn’t beat around the bush that night – he really laid it on the line. It was a long speech, but I truly think I could write it out line for line. For once, though, I don’t want to. I’ll just tell you that we fought, and I kicked him out. He wasn’t through, though. So instead of giving up, he wrote a comment on here that changed everything. He leveled the playing field.
If you did read it, and if you didn’t, I’m sure you are about to. If you’ve read this as far as you have, then you know Parker has a way with words. And every word he said touched my heart even though I tried so hard to shield myself from him. I didn’t want to admit it because I was afraid of what it would mean. How could we go on as we had been?
Here’s the thing, though. I realized that he was right. What we had was perfect, and the only problems had come from everything else going on around us. So now that we had figured out how to solve the problems – just be honest – we could go back to being perfect. Or at least perfect for us.
So Parker, you wanted me to shout my feeling for you to the world, right? Well, get ready, because I have one more thing to confess, though it’s something you have already uncovered on your own. I love you. And I don’t care that we haven’t known each other long enough to love each other or that in the short time we have had together has consisted of problems either. Because I do. I love you, Parker. And I hope it isn’t too late.
Bye for now, dear readers. I will be sure to keep you updated on everything that happens. Because if I am as lucky as I think I am, then blabbermouth Abbie is back and better than ever because Parker doesn’t want me to change. He loves me for me – big, gossipy mouth and all.
33
When Abbie had talked to Maggie, Maggie had pulled her into a hug.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she had said and followed it up immediately with, “is it alright if I date Toby since you’re happy and in love with his best friend?”
So Parker had been right. That really did make things easier.
“Of course,” but then Abbie remembered the sneaking around and the questions Abbie had never voiced when she was so down. She had to ask. “But Maggie, have you already been dating him?”
Maggie blushed.
“No. I mean, not really. We talked about it, but neither of us was willing to do anything until we had you guys on board. And that meant we needed to get you both together. That’s why Toby was out of town when you were still hesitant to let me be around Parker. We needed you guys to be alone.”
“And that’s another thing. How could you make me think you were dating Parker?”
“Silly and immature as it is, sometimes jealousy makes you realize things you are trying to avoid. I think it might have helped, devious as it was. And remember, I was being the Glinda to your Dorothy. I told you that I was about to set you on the path to finding your way home, and I did. So I’m not ashamed.”
Her talk with Toby had gone similarly well. And her post had been a big hit. So that meant all that was left was one more talk with Parker. And then hopefully a whole lifetime of talking with Parker, among other exciting activities.
Yet here it was, Friday, and she had posted on Wednesday, but there had been no communication with Parker. She told herself he was probably working. Still, though, she would have expected him to at least set up a time to talk. She hated that she was still feeling anxious. Maybe it was time for her to find him. She grabbed her bag and ran to the door, but she didn’t have to search long. Parker was standing at the door.
He looked tired, exhausted really. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was flying in all directions. Yet still, he looked so good it made Abbie feel just a little bit jealous.
“Parker!” Should she be happy or worried, she asked herself. But before she could even finish the thought, his lips were on hers.
When he finished kissing her, he didn’t let her go, but he searched her eyes.
“You mean it this time, Abs? You meant it when you said you love me?”
“Of course,” she told him moving her hand to stroke the side of his face. “I would never lie about that.”
His smile warmed her, and she knew that her post was definitely not a mistake.
“What took you so long to get here? I expected you Wednesday night, five minutes after my post went live.”
“I was working, and I didn’t see it until today. But I was here five minutes after I had read it. That I promise you.”
He kissed her again and only stopped long enough to say, “I really do love you, Abbie,” before kissing her again. He picked her up and carried her to her bedroom to continue where they had left off before she had left his house the week before.
This time was much gentler, though. He stripped her of her clothes reverently, as if he couldn’t believe his luck that she was finally his, and she knew that was how he was treating her because it was how she was treating him.
When they were finished, they lay in Abbie’s bed, her head resting on his chest, his hand playing with hair.
“I should call Maggie,” Abbie said after a couple of minutes of peaceful contemplation.
“Why?” There was amusement in Parker’s voice, and it made Abbie happy to hear him sound happy.
“To tell her it’s official. That way she and Toby can finally start dating. I thought they would have the second I gave them my blessing, but they’re both slow to move. Maybe this was what they were waiting for.”
Parker laughed.
“Maybe you should think about telling Ms. Rachel instead. From everything I have heard about her, I don’t think she’s the kind that likes to know things last. And Maggie and Toby are not as slow as you think. I was just at home, and Maggie
was there. I have the room next to Toby’s. The noises I heard from there were proof that they weren’t waiting for us for anything.”
Parker smiled down at Abbie before continuing, “And don’t worry, they both sounded like they were having a lot of fun.”
Now, it was Abbie’s turn to laugh.
“Good for them,” she said before leaning down and kissing Parker’s jaw and then his neck, “but let’s not let them have all the fun.”
“I’m up for that,” he told her. She reached her hands underneath the covers.
“You really are.” She shivered in excitement.
“I love you, Abbie,” Parker said one more time.
“I love you too.”
About Amelie Stephens…
Amelie Stephens is a twenty-something wife and mother who loves to tell sweet and funny romantic stories, often those that have come from her own life. When she's not changing diapers or cooking meals for her family, she's writing.
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The Abbie Diaries: The Complete Series Page 19
