by Rye Hart
Ben sighs deeply. “Look Cole, it’s not that I don’t give a shit. It’s just that it was hard for me to be around there after mom and dad died.”
“You don’t think it was hard for Luke and me too?” Cole asks. “Shit Ben, Luke was only fourteen when you left and he was so damn lost. But we stayed and we worked our asses off, and we turned the place into something mom and dad would be really proud of.”
“I know,” Ben says softly. “It’s just that, well, I made a really bad investment and-”
“For fuck’s sake Ben, is that was this is about? You need money? Why didn’t you just come to us and ask for help?” Cole asks.
“I’ve been gone for fifteen years Cole, I didn’t exactly think you’d be chomping at the bit to help me out.”
“No, you thought trying to take what Luke and I have worked for those fifteen years was a better idea? Jesus.”
I finally open my eyes and sit upright, clearing my throat. I don’t want them to know how much I’ve heard so I play it up with a fake yawn and stretch.
“What’s going on?” I ask innocently.
“What’s going on is that my brother is an idiot,” Cole says.
Ben is again looking down at his boots with his hands stuffed in his pockets. It is clear how much his big brother’s opinion of him still matters after all of this time and distance.
“We all make mistakes Cole,” I say softly, touching his arm.
“Yeah well this was a pretty colossal fucking mistake,” he says and Ben nods his agreement.
Just then, a nurse comes in to inform us that Luke is awake and asking to see Cole. Cole looks to me and I nod. He rushes out of the room after the nurse, leaving Ben and I alone.
“So, Cole says that you are a friend of our Aunt Nora’s?” he asks.
I nod my head. “Yes. She thought I needed some time away from my job back in Chicago and suggested I come out here for a bit. I have to say I think she was spot on.”
“What do you do in Chicago?” he asked.
I clear my throat and shift my weight from one foot to the other. “Um, well. I’m a lawyer,” I say, watching the color nearly drain from Ben’s face.
“Ah,” he says.
“Look Ben, you don’t have to go through with the lawsuit. It seems to me that Cole would be more than willing to help you out if you need it. But you can’t take the ranch.”
Ben sat down heavily in a chair and put his head in his hands. “I know,” he said quietly. “I just didn’t know what else to do.”
“You’ll come home and we’ll figure it out together,” came Cole’s voice from the doorway.
“Home?” Ben asked.
“Yeah, home. Where you belong. Where we all belong. Luke’s asking for you. He said not to worry, his good arm is in a cast,” Cole said, slapping Ben’s back on his way out the door.
I stood and went to Cole, wrapping my arms around him and laying my head on his chest. “How’s Luke” I ask.
“He’s pretty banged up but I think he’s gonna be ok,” Cole said, relieved.
“Good, I’m so glad,” I said, looking up at Cole.
“You know I meant what I said,” he says.
“About?”
“Home being where we all belong,” he says.
I look deep into his eyes and find my absolute truth there. “Then let’s all go home.”
THE END
INFATUATED
INFATUATED
CHAPTER ONE
EMMA
“I can't believe mom and dad are letting you come back,” my sister Riley said.
She spoke without even looking up from her iPad as I walked into the living room, where she was sitting in her usual spot on the couch.
“I can,” I said. “I was always their favorite.”
“You should be in college,” Riley said with a sigh. “Or somewhere else wasting your life.”
“You should have some friends,” I retorted.
She rolled her eyes at me. “I do have friends,” she said. “At least all mine aren't away at college still. You know, where you should be?”
“You know I'm choosing to take time off, right?” I said, plopping down on the loveseat across from her. “It's not like I was kicked out or anything.”
“You should have stayed gone,” she said.
“You're just jealous because I'm moving into the family room, and you wanted that to be your room,” I said. “You always wanted it, and now, it's all mine.”
“It should have been my room,” she said, meeting my gaze for the first time.
Riley was two years younger than me and a senior in high school, but for whatever reason, most people assumed we were twins. We both looked like our mother, with our blonde hair and blue eyes. Typical Southern California girls, you might say. Riley was taller, thinner and less curvy than I was – she kept in shape by running track at her school.
She'd been approached to model, and she'd dabbled in it a time or two. On the other side of that coin though, was me. I was too short to model, standing at only five foot four, and was too curvy in the hips and bust. Secretly, I'd always been jealous of her for being tall and lean – the kind of girl that caught the eye of modeling agencies.
But I was pleased to note, that for the first time in my life, she was jealous of me. Jealous, because I got to live in the basement apartment. It had once been the family room when we all lived together, but it rarely got used anymore.
“You're just jealous because you can't sneak boys in anymore,” I said.
My mother came into the room, carrying a basket of my clothes. She looked pretty young for her age; more like a slightly older version of my sister and me.
“We still need to paint down there,” she said. “We didn't expect anyone moving in so soon.”
That just annoyed Riley even more. She sighed dramatically and left the room in a huff.
“What's wrong with her?” dad asked, following my mom in from outside.
“She's just mad that I'm getting the basement,” I said.
“Ahhh,” my dad said, pushing his glasses up higher on his face. He was carrying a box of my stuff in from the car too. “I never really wanted her to have it in the first place. I was always afraid she might sneak her boyfriend in.”
“Exactly!” I said.
“But I have that fear about you too, of course,” he said.
“Dad, I was in college, if I wanted to have sex, I would have,” I said and then shot him a mischievous grin. “Or, at least I'd be smart enough to have it somewhere else.”
He cringed, obviously feeling a little uncomfortable over how open I was about the subject. It was true though. I'd had plenty of opportunities to jump into the beds of more than a few guys while I'd been in school down at San Diego State, but I hadn’t.
I hadn't, because I wasn't stupid and didn't find any guys that actually interested me. My sister, on the other hand, was very likely already sleeping with her boyfriend of nine months. My parents had a legit concern there, but they didn't have to worry about me. As far as I was concerned, a guy better be pretty damn amazing to get in my pants, and so far, I hadn't met anyone worthy of taking my V-card.
We carried my items down to my new room. The basement had its own separate entrance into the backyard, which was nice. We had a large patio that overlooked the pool in the back and lucky for me, it was just outside those doors. My parents were right about it needing a paint job though. But it was actually, pretty awesome, all things considered.
The actual family room part of the basement had a sofa and an entertainment center already set up and ready to go. There was a bathroom and a bedroom off to one side.
All in all, it wasn't too shabby. It sure beat the dorms at college, that was for sure. I was thankful that I'd no longer have to put up with my slutty roommate getting it on in bed beside me all the damn time, at least. Nor would I have to worry about stepping on used condoms with my bare feet as I got ready in the morning. I shuddered just thinking about
it.
As much as I disliked her, my roommate wasn't the only reason I took time off of school. I found that the whole college culture in general just wasn't for me. All the partying, the sex, the pot smoking, really wasn't really my thing. Of course, I should have known what I was getting into when I decided to go to a party school, but I figured I'd be able to tune out all of the unwanted distractions. I honestly didn't realize just how bad it would be until I got there.
It didn't take very long to figure out that it was all too much for me.
We finished unloading the car and my mom went upstairs to make us some lunch. My father had some errands to run, which left me alone in my new room. The first thing I did was step outside and let the warm California sunshine touch my skin. I turned my face up into the warmth, basking in the glow of the sun.
The reason I chose to go to school in San Diego in the first place was simple enough – I loved Southern California and I loved the beach. And not being too far from home made me feel better. Some people liked to go far away, leaving everything and everyone they knew behind, but I wasn't one of those types. I preferred being somewhat close to my family and friends. San Diego had some of my favorite beaches, sure, but being back in Huntington Beach was nice. It was comfortable; it was home.
I heard my neighbor's kids playing in their pool. I could barely see over the fence that divided our properties, but I could see Marcus Pratt's head well enough. He'd been our neighbor for as long as I could remember. I'd always thought he was a nice guy and a good father. I'd also always thought that he was drop dead gorgeous. He was watching his kids in the pool, an inscrutable expression on his face, when he looked over and saw me staring.
I blushed, looking away a moment after he'd caught me . I felt foolish because I'd always had a silly, schoolgirl crush on the man even though he was almost my father's age.
“Emma, I didn't know you were back,” he said, leaning over the fence and giving me a small smile. “The semester over already?”
“Not exactly,” I said, biting my lip. “I decided SDSU wasn't for me.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah,” I said, quickly changing the subject. “How are the kids?”
“Good, good,” he said. “Zoey is finishing up first grade, Zack starts kindergarten next fall. Both are doing well. They've missed you though and will be happy to see that you're back. And honestly, I missed having you babysit for them.”
“I'd be happy to watch them again, now that I'm back,” I said. Not like I have much else going on at the moment, I thought but didn't say.
“That would be great,” he said. “Riley watches them sometimes, but she's so busy, you know?”
“Yeah,” I said. “I think school and track keep her tied up pretty well.”
As well as her boyfriend, whom she spent all her free time with lately.
Marcus was a really, really attractive man, like the type of man women dreamt of at night. He'd played football back when he'd been in college and he'd almost gone pro back in the day my dad said – and you could tell. He was still in fabulous shape. I'd seen him shirtless countless times when he played in the pool with his kids and always caught myself staring at him.
Every now and then, I'd get a nice view of him and did my best not to stare, but damn it was hard. He had chocolate brown hair and hazel eyes that I caught myself getting lost in all too often. He was the type of man I'd happily give my virginity to, if it wasn't for the fact that he was so much older than I was.
Well, that, and the fact that he'd never shown any interest in me. Even when I'd tanned by the pool in my itty-bitty bikinis back in the day – partly, hoping to catch his eye – I'd never caught him staring. He'd always been incredibly well-behaved, which I took to mean, he had no interest in me.
“Well, tell the kids I said hello,” I said. “And I hope to see them soon.”
“Will do,” he said.
He smiled, but it was a friendly, almost perfunctory smile. It didn't quite reach his eyes and didn't strike me as a genuine smile. Though, I couldn't recall ever seeing Marcus actually smile; not in a really long time. It had been several years since his wife had died, and I knew he missed her terribly, but was doing his best to carry on. He was a good father, devoted to his children and his career, but he was always so very serious.
What I wouldn't give to see a smile on that man's face – one that lit his eyes up from the inside out. I couldn't recall ever seeing it anymore, not even when he was with his kids. He always seemed so distracted or stressed out about something.
All I knew is it was no way to live your life and my heart went out to him.
CHAPTER TWO
“Riley went out with Seth,” my mom said, coming down a few of the stairs into the basement a while later and looked at me. “I'm inviting some of the neighbors over for a barbeque. Figured it would sort of be a ‘Welcome Back’ party for you.”
“Mom, you didn't have to do that,” I said.
“It's just a few people,” she said. “Nothing big. I promise. If you have any friends you'd like to invite, go right ahead.”
Yeah, right. All my friends were still away at college. Of my two best friends, Rachel, was at UC-Berkeley, and Hannah was somewhere on the East coast because she was a rebel and wanted to get as far away as possible. And as I scrolled down the list of friends in my head, all of them were away at college. I was the only failure in my group of friends who'd given up and gone home.
It didn't matter though. It was a backyard barbecue, not some big party. I started to get myself ready, using some makeup tricks my former roommate taught me when she wasn't having sex or getting wasted. She was a pretty girl, so I'd picked up a few pointers from her on how to make my blue eyes pop even more.
She was also the one who'd talked me into dying the underside of my hair pink and getting my nose pierced. And I hadn't even been flat out drunk either time. Though, in all honestly, I'd allowed myself to get just a little tipsy as I tried to fit in with the other girls.
Even though it was warm out at the moment, I knew it would be cool later. I put on some black leggings with a pink t-shirt dress over top . I cinched it with a black belt and was good to go.
I went out back and found my dad already at the grill, enjoying a beer with Marcus. Zoey and Zack were running around the backyard with some of the other kids who lived on our street. It was slightly chaotic, and laughter filled the air. I had to admit, it felt good to be home.
I looked over at Marcus, but tried not to stare. He was wearing tight, dark jeans and a t-shirt that hugged his thick, sun-darkened arms. I could see his biceps bulging beneath the thin fabric and tried to imagine what it would be like to feel them wrapped around me, pulling me close, and holding me tight.
Of course, as always, he picked that moment to look over and catch me staring.
“There she is!” my dad said, motioning for me to come over to where they were standing.
Feeling all kinds of awkward for getting caught leering at Marcus – again – I walked over and hugged my dad, doing my very best to avoid looking at Marcus. My dad had some pork steaks on the grill along with some chicken. He was an avid griller and was always looking for an excuse to cook for people. My mom brought out some bags of chips and some dips, setting them on the table not far from us.
The O'Briens from down the street walked in, their two young kids rushing toward Zoey and Zack.
I had really missed this. I'd always been more of a homebody anyway, not one big into the party scene, and never one to stray too far from Huntington Beach . My sister seemed to take it all for granted, but I knew I had it good there. I had a dad that made a nice living, which allowed us to live in a beautiful home and able to afford a lot of luxuries in life. I also had a mom who was able to spend time raising us as well as volunteer in the community instead of working full-time. And of course, I had a sister that was, well, a pain in the rear to be honest, but I also loved her dearly. Before I left, we'd been very close. But me being a
way had put a distance between us, and that was something I was eager to work on fixing.
“Emma, it's great to see you,” Natalie O'Brien said, hugging me close. “We're glad to have you back home.”
Natalie and her husband, Liam, were also parents I'd babysat for at times over the years. Everyone knew me on the block because I'd watched everyone's kids. Heck, maybe that was something I could use that to my advantage somehow. Maybe, I could become a nanny.
“Great to see you too,” I said. “How are the kids?”
“Stubborn and loud, as always,” she laughed. “But no, really, they're great.”
“Glad to hear it,” I said.
More people filtered into the backyard, but I found myself repeatedly glancing over at Marcus. I so badly wanted to speak to him, to start a conversation that wasn't about me watching his kids, but I didn't know what to say, adult-to-adult. To him, I was always just the girl next door, the child of his friend. And I wasn't sure anything would change that.
CHAPTER THREE
MARCUS
“I don't want my issues affecting my kids,” I said, staring down at my hands as I spoke to the therapist sitting across from me. “I know I don't spend enough time with them as it is. And I know that when I do, it's almost always dropping them in front of the television while I work on my laptop. Gina wouldn't have wanted our kids to be raised that way, but I don't know what else to do. Being a single parent isn't all that simple.”
“What about making time just for the three of you?” Dr. Miller asked. “An activity outside the house that all three of you could enjoy together?”
“Like what?” I asked, scratching my chin.
“You're an athletic person, what about an outdoor activity you could do and stay active together?
Raising an eyebrow, I stared at Dr. Miller, trying to come up with something we could do. “What, maybe something like hiking?” I asked.
“Yes, like hiking,” he replied. “But instead, make it something with a specific time and date, so it's on your schedule. Not just when you get time for it, because we both know, you'll never find time for it otherwise. You need to schedule these things.”
