Love Me Like You Do (Love Me Book 1)

by Jaime Russell

  Max replies first. “Are you going to tell us or do we have to guess?” He has a twinkle in his eye, and I think that Abby missed it because she was looking between everyone.

  “Cash and I are getting married!” Abby holds her left hand to show the bread tie like it was a ten thousand dollar diamond ring. Sarah squeals and hugs her while Rob and Aaron shake hands with me. All eyes are fixated on Max to see what his reaction was going to be. “Max, are you okay?”

  “I don’t know if I’m fine with this or not,” He says with a serious face.

  “What? Are you serious?” She asks him with a tremble in her voice. He moves to her side and squats so he’s eye level with her.

  “Abby, I couldn’t be happier for you. I’m going to miss you when you move here, but I can come down to see you.” She lunges out of her seat and knocks him over in an attempt to hug him.

  “I’m so thankful that you’re okay with this because I wouldn’t be able to get married without your blessing,” She tells him honestly as he gets to his feet and clears his throat.

  “You know how much you mean to me so I could never deny this for you.” He has this look of love in his eyes. They finally return to their seats after embracing each other in a warm hug.

  We discuss my visit to Pennsylvania for Valentine’s Day and what they should plan for me to do. I’m looking forward to it and hope the month flies by. Mrs. G finally comes out of the kitchen when we’re getting ready to leave.

  “Oh you, Mr. Cash why are you leaving without seeing me? You should be ashamed of yourself.” She waggles her finger at me.

  “Your devilish husband didn’t answer my question if you were here or not. He’s trying to keep you from me.” I kiss her on the cheek.

  “Who are your friends?”

  “Well, this beautiful woman is my fiancé, Abby. Abby, this is Mrs. G.” I start to introduce everyone else, but she doesn’t let me. She gushes over Abby, making a fuss. She hurries back to the kitchen to grab sweets, coming back out and handing all of some treats for the road. I’m finally able to introduce Max, Sarah, Aaron, and Rob. She tells them when they come back to Miami, to see her and they said they would. We say our goodbyes and head back to the hotel.

  ABBY

  “We staying here tonight or your place?” I ask Cash as we get out of the car and head into the hotel.

  “Where would you like to stay?” he asks me before we get to the elevator.

  “Does your apartment have enough memories to last until I come back in March?” I bump his hip.

  “It doesn’t have nearly enough, but I’m satisfied with them until March,” I shiver from his breath so close to my ear.

  “Let’s stay here tonight so I can get you naked and inside me faster.” We all get into the elevator and head to our rooms. I sigh as we enter his room, this is going to be the last night I spend here. The last time I make love to him for a month and a half.

  “Should we talk about it?” he asks me as he empties his pockets on the dresser like he does every night.

  “I want to, but I don’t want to do it.” I laugh to cover up a sob.

  “Please don’t cry. It hurts me to see the tears. It’s going to suck being apart but we will get through it. I promise. I love you.”

  “I love you too. I’m going to need a lot of strength to help me through this because my insecurities are going to rear their ugly head,” I laid my head on his chest crying as he rubbed my back.

  “Baby, you can’t be controlled by your insecurities. I know it will be hard, but you need to trust me. We’ll still talk every day and see each other every four to six weeks and be married in six to eight months. Then we never have to be apart.” I’m calming down. Cash seems to connect with my emotions better than I do. He knows me, understands me, and loves me without fail.

  He leads me over to the bed, gently removing my clothes leaving them on the floor. He pulls back the blanket and sheet for me to climb in to get comfortable. Once I’m under them, he walks into the bathroom. Cash comes out with a washcloth that is warm as he lays on my forehead. I watch his movements to see what he’s doing now. The moonlight is the only light in the room, and I see his silhouette as he gets naked. This man has the perfect body of muscles, tattoos and the famous V that makes me forget my name. He goes into the other room and comes back with his laptop and DVD. He puts in, and Pride and Prejudice start playing.

  “I know this is your favorite movie when you don’t feel well to be playing. You like falling asleep to the handsome Mr. Darcy’s romantic words.” He climbs into bed sitting slightly up so I can lay on his stomach. He is playing my hair telling me how much he loves me and that everything will be okay. I fall asleep feeling the weight of the world leaving my shoulders.

  I wake up with a headache and my eyes hurting. I stare at this man who I love and am going to marry. I hate that I’m leaving him. How will I get through the days without him? He’s so ingrained into me body, mind, and soul. How do I live without him now that I’ve had him? Can I trust him? Can I trust our love? That he will be faithful? My dad told me all the time that I didn’t deserve love or a man to marry me. I look over at the nightstand to grab my cell phone. I snap a couple of pictures of him sleeping so I can have them with me when I wake up. “I did the same thing while you were sleeping.” His voice startles me, and I glance up to see him smiling at me with his eyes still closed.

  “I guess great minds think alike.” He snatches my phone and pulls me into him so he can snap some photos of us together. I can’t wait to print them so I can carry them with me.

  “What time are you leaving?” he asks.

  “10 a.m. Rob has to work early the day after tomorrow, so we’re driving straight through.” I say and look at the phone. 9:15 a.m. He sees the time as well and decides that we need to make love one more time before February. He’s gentle and so attentive to me. We both find our release at the same time after he gave me two toe -curling orgasms. My cell phone is going off, and I know that I’m late meeting everyone. Cash puts the call on speaker.

  “Hey Sarah,” he answers trying to catch his breath.

  “Oh sorry if I interrupted something important but we need to go. It is 10:30.” I can hear the disappointment in her voice.

  “Do you have to go? Can’t you all just move here and so I never have to be away from Abby?” He begs her.

  “I thought about that, but we have jobs to get back to, sucks being an adult. But I can give you guys twenty minutes, so go shower. I don’t want the car smelling like sex the whole trip home.” She hangs up.

  Cash tosses the cell phone onto the bed and runs his hands over his face. He stands up, sighs, and grabs my hand. We don’t say anything as we walk into the shower. He washes me, from toes to head. He doesn’t try to get me off; his eyes are closed the whole time. I think he’s trying to capture to memory what I feel like. “Let me wash you,” I whisper. He hands me the washcloth and soap. I repeat the same movements that he did for me. I need to touch him, kiss him, and just feel him. When I stand up after washing his legs, thighs, cock, and move to his wash his shoulders and stomach, he’s staring at the wall with no expression on his face. Breaking my heart. We dress in silence, and I gather up my things. I notice that he’s taking some of my clothes. I smile because that I did the same thing.

  “You ready?” he asks somberly. I nod because I can’t say anything to him. We walk to the elevator hand in hand, clinging to each other while I cry into his chest. The elevator dings and I just keep repeating “no” and he whispers that he loves me in my ear. Coming out of the hotel, we see everyone is already standing at the car waiting for us. Max casts me a sympathetic look; I must be a sight to see. Aaron grabs my bag from Cash’s hand to put in the SUV. Cash says his goodbyes to my friends while Sarah holds me, trying to calm me down. Coming over to us, he wraps us in a hug. “Please watch over my girl,” He tells Sarah, kissing her temple. She’s crying but promises that she will. She gets in the car and leaves me standing there wit
h Cash. He takes my hand and looks deep into my eyes.

  “This isn’t goodbye. We’ll see each other in six weeks. I have a week off, so you get me for ten whole days,” he reminds me as he puts his arms around me.

  “I know, but this just hurts,” I tell him as I cling to him. Max moves to my side and touches my arm.

  “Abby, we have to go. I’m sorry.” He starts to pull me away from Cash, but I don’t let go, and neither does Cash. Max calls for Rob to come help. He gets out of the car and puts his hand on my shoulder, telling me we need to go. Cash puts both hands on the sides of my face and lowers his lips to mine. We pour everything into that last kiss, all the love, sadness, and longing that we’re feeling. Shawn appears at our side as we finally break apart. I give him one last look before I climb in the SUV, my throat too thick with emotion to allow me to speak. Max hugs Cash and shakes hands with Shawn. Max gets into the car next to me and pulls me into his side.

  “Shh. Abby everything will be okay, I promise you.” He’s never been good at comforting me; he usually calls Sarah when I cry, but something has changed in him.

  “I can’t breathe. I feel like my heart is being ripped out of my chest. I have this ache right here.” I punched my empty feeling chest. I can feel my heart beating, but it isn’t whole any longer. I look back, but we’re too far down the road for me to catch another glimpse of Cash. “I feel so fucking lost. What am I going to do? I can’t live like this. I need him. I love him. I can’t do this,” I sob. I can feel a panic attack starting as I gasp for air. My hands are clammy as I bend over trying to catch my breath.

  “What the fuck did I do?” Max asks with regret in his voice. “I did this to her. It was my stupid idea to bring her here to him. I didn’t think this would happen. I shouldn’t have done it.”

  “Don’t say that, please don’t ever say that you regret this trip,” I tell him angrily.

  “Look at you. You’re crying, having a panic attack, and acting like you can’t live without him.” Max comments strike my last nerve.

  “Fuck you.” I spit out my words. “I found my soul mate, the man I’m going to marry, and never want to be apart from. I just left him standing there with both our hearts breaking. I hope you get a chance to pull your goddamn head out of your ass to experience love like this, but this right here sucks more than anything.” I yell, ignoring his look of sadness.

  “Abby, I’m sorry.” He puts his ear-buds in and turns the music up.

  I sit in my seat and stare out the window, not talking to anyone. I finally fall asleep, cell phone in hand, looking at a picture of Cash laughing.

  CASH

  The SUV pulls away, and I feel like my heart is dead. I fall to my knees. “Come on, Cash. It’s five o’clock somewhere.” Shawn says as he helps me stand up. “I’ll call Nic to see if she will open up early for us.” My staff are all staring at me, but I don’t care. Shawn makes arrangements with Nic and steers me towards his car, insisting that he drive. We get there before her and end up sitting in the parking lot. I start checking my pockets for my cell. I must have left it at the hotel, so I can’t even text Abby. I hate technology some days—I don’t know her number.

  “What are you looking for?” Shawn asks.

  “I forgot my phone in my room. I can’t even check on Abby or tell her that I love her.” I explain as he pulls out his phone and quickly types out a message. It dings a few minutes later, signaling an incoming message.

  “Sarah responded,” he tells me. “Abby’s crying, all she will say is that she didn’t want to leave. I told her that you forgot your phone, and she wants you to text Abby when you get back to your room.”

  “Thanks. I know you will take my man card for this, but I feel lost without her. I haven’t felt pain like this since my parents died.” I continue to stare out the window. “I don’t want to get drunk. Alcohol is not going to help me deal with this.”

  “You’ll talk to her, text her, and see her on Skype. Your relationship will be okay. You two are strong.” Shawn reassures me.

  “I asked her to marry me.” I tell him, and he turns to look at me.

  “Come again?”

  “That’s what he said.” We bust out laughing. “We were fighting, and our fear of being apart kinda got the best of me so I blurted out that we should get married. I used a bread tie to make a ring for her,” I finish with a laugh.

  “Congrats, man. When’s the big day?”

  “Summer. I told her to plan it all. I’ll break the news to Sally when I’m ready.”

  Shawn wipes a fake tear away from his eye. “My little boy is growing up.”

  “I know I keep asking this, but why are we still friends?” I ask as we get out of the car after seeing Nic pull up. Nic lets us in and pours all of us a shot of bourbon. I fill her in on what has happened since New Year’s Eve. I tell her about how I proposed and she laughs at me. She comes around the bar and gives me a hug. “I like Abby, in fact, I like that whole crew. I hope they all move here.”

  “They will be if Abby has anything to do with it.”

  “Sarah and Max won’t be far behind because they are pretty close, kinda like us.” She pours us more bourbon and grabs some beers. “How are you doing with her leaving?”

  “To be honest, I’m crushed. I’ve never felt this way before but I remember my dad telling me this is how he felt when he first met my mom. He said that he couldn’t breathe without her.” Nic’s hands are folded together, she tilts her head and sighs.

  “I want to find that. I can’t believe Mr. Man-whore is getting married. I thought Shawn would be the first one in our group to get married.” Nic’s in shock.

  “No way! I enjoy being single and not pussy whipped,” Shawn tells her as he drinks his beer.

  “Oh, I forgot you don’t like to keep your dick warm in the same pussy. You like a variety, a buffet line of pussies lined up for you.” Shawn shakes his head at her, laughing. We talk and drink for the next few hours until Nic’s staff starts showing up to start their day. I paid our tab so Shawn can drop me off at the hotel. “What are you going to do now?” he asks after we’ve said our goodbyes to Nic.

  “I need to gather up my stuff and either head home or work.”

  “Well I think you should work, then maybe kill some pixels,” he tells me as he turns into the hotel parking lot.

  “I was thinking about work then maybe working out. I want to tire myself out, so I go home to sleep.”

  “Alright, man, but if you need anything, I’m here.”

  “Thanks, man. See you tomorrow at work.” I get out of his car and head to my room to pack up my stuff. Walking into the room, the smell of Abby and sex hits me like a ton of bricks. I clutch my chest thinking about how I’m not going to see her for six weeks. Someone knocks on the door, and I opened it to find the housekeeper. “Come back in ten minutes. I’m packing up now.” She nods and goes on her way. I find my cell phone; opening it, I have a lot of missed calls from Jenny and the hotel, several text messages from Jenny as well. I grab my bag and take one more look around the room before turning and leaving the room. I head down to my office and notice that Sally and Jenny are there. “Ladies,” I greet them, and I open my office door. I put my bag down and start up my computer. Jenny comes in and looks at me with sadness in her eyes. “I heard Abby left.”

  “Yeah, but I already booked my plane ticket for February. I can’t wait to see her.” Sally smiles as she sits down at my desk.

  “I put an ad in the newspaper about the part-time party planner. A few people have contacted us for parties. I figure since we’re getting busy, it’ll be nice to have some help.”

  “Thank you. I never thought about hiring a couple of part-timers to help you. Jenny, do you need an assistant?”

  “Here’s the list of things that needs your attention. Can I grab you a coffee?” she asks me in an I-just-gave-you-a-bunch-of-work-that-will-keep-you-glued-to-your-seat voice.

  “Sure. Can you grab me lunch too?” She says sh
e will and leaves. I open my email and find one from Abby. I smile as I click on it.

  FROM: astephens@crestmorehigh.com

  TO: cashhawthorne@hawthornehotel.com

  Cash,

  I’m counting down the days until you are in my arms again. I can’t believe how much this hurts to be separated from you. I begged them to turn around to leave me with you, but they said no. I don’t know if you found it or not, but I made a video for you on your phone. When you’re missing me, watch it. It’s G -rated, so you don’t have to worry about that part.

  I love you with all of my heart.

  Abby

  I scroll through my phone and press play when I find the video. She’s standing on the balcony, the view of the ocean in the background. “Cash, I miss you already, and I haven’t left yet. I can’t wait until you are in Pennsylvania with me. I look at this background then back to you and realize that I’m home. I love you, my future husband.” The video stops with the image of her blowing me a kiss.

  “Future husband?” Sally and Jenny both yell at the same time and I couldn’t help but smile.

  “Abby is it for me. Remember when mom and dad would talk about their story and their feelings for each other? It’s the same way with us.” I fill them in on everything.

  Sally was the first one to speak up, “Are you giving her mom’s ring?”

  “Yes, it’s at the jeweler now. I’m giving it to her in six weeks. Do you think mom would approve?”

  “She would love Abby. I’m so happy for you. Let me know if you need help or advice about planning it.” She stands kisses me on the top of my head. “You’re happier with her. You seem more alive instead of gliding through life as you have been. I’m getting a sister!” With that, she’s out the door. I watch the video a few more times before setting the phone aside and diving back into my work.

  ABBY

  Valentine’s Day Weekend