“Not exactly?” my mother repeated.
Gavin nodded and steered her toward her seat. For some reason I had a strange feeling I should run as he made his way to my side of the counter. It was odd since he had just single-handedly saved my mother’s career.
“I don’t understand.” She sat hard in her seat as she stared at him.
“Well see, Liv loves a good story with the pictures she buys and snow bunny just isn’t going to do it.” I stared at him like he’d just developed a third horn. Hadn’t he heard? She was being blackballed by the models. There weren’t many choices.
“What does she want then?” Mom asked. By the second, her face was falling. There wasn’t much she could do about this.
“Me,” he said.
“What?” I stared hard at him. I just didn’t get it. I mean, sure he was perfect enough for a magazine but why?
Gavin laughed at me, and I tried to wipe off whatever expression had been so funny.
“I guess more specifically,” he began, staring into my eyes, a hand firmly on my shoulder, “me and my friends.”
I jumped, but his hand kept me firmly in place. Damn him! Next time my mind told me to run, I’d run.
“No,” I said.
“Yes.” My mother jumped up. “Oh, this is perfect. I can do this.”
She looked around the old house, and I could see the wheels turning. “Winter vacation,” she mumbled.
“No,” I hissed at him as my mother walked away.
“Em,” he said quietly. “It’s the only way. I caused this mess, and I’d really like to fix it.”
I stared into his earnest eyes and wanted to melt. I knew that there really was no other way, and although I hadn’t been happy she had left me for work, I was damn proud of the success she had achieved.
“So does Liv really love Mom’s work?” I whispered in case she came back in.
“Yup.” Gavin leaned in grinning. “Well that and she loves nothing more than to piss my mother off. I see it as a win, win.”
I wrapped my arms around his head and kissed his beautiful smiling mouth. He gasped in surprise but stepped in closer. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sweet loving kiss.
We jumped apart when my mother cleared her throat. I was surprised to see Gavin’s cheeks turn a bit pink at being caught.
“So what do I need to do?” she said from the door frame.
“I’ve already called in our friends.” He turned to look at me. “They should be getting in tonight.” Gavin turned back to my mother. “Just come with your equipment and some clothes. I think if we spend a few days on this, you’ll be able to get what you’re looking for.”
My mother clapped her hands and raced to put her coat back on. “There so much to do,” she said excitedly.
I laughed openly as she raced across the snow, high heels and all, and hopped into her car. With a wave, she fishtailed her way down the drive and onto the mostly clear road.
Gavin wrapped his arms around me, and I turned into his embrace.
“Thank you,” I said and slipped my arms around his neck.
“I’m just sorry she has to go through this.” The pain in his voice lanced through me.
When he brought his head to mine, I captured his mouth in a searing kiss.
“This wasn’t you,” I said with conviction. “You are not your mother.”
This time when his mouth dropped to mine, I slowed my pace, taking the time to relish the feel of him. Slowly, I pulled away and placed open-mouthed kisses along his neck to his ear.
“Take me to bed,” I whispered.
Chapter Twenty
“Mom,” I cried. “Seriously, no more!”
“But you all are just so cute together.” She smiled wide when Gavin grabbed me from behind and pulled me back to him. I turned my head to scowl up at him but ended up smiling instead.
“You really shouldn’t encourage her,” I said as sternly as I could muster.
Gavin shrugged. The white shirt he was loosely wearing slipped, exposing his shoulder. I wanted to lean forward and kiss the exposed skin, but then, I’d been feeling that way all day. It was amazing considering how overexposed we had all been over the past three days of shooting. And yet it still hadn’t killed the flames of desire.
“Oh gross,” Grace called from across the room. “If you all don’t stop eye fucking each other, I’m going to start tossing things at you.”
Heather and Dean snickered from the corner.
I sighed and went to the clothes wrack to take off the very pricy number I was currently in. I stopped when Gavin came up and whispered in my ear.
“Maybe,” he said, unzipping the back. “You should see if your mom will let you keep this one.”
I blushed, which only seemed to make him grin more.
“Seriously.” Grace pushed him back. “Out or I’m going vomit.”
I giggled as he grumbled his way across the room.
When I turned, Grace was shooting him daggers. I sighed. It had been this way since she arrived. I thought she’d be happy that we were together, but all she seemed to do was bitch. More than likely this had less to do with us and more to do with Chance. Or the lack thereof.
Not that this bothered Dean any. I turned and caught him staring in her direction. Of course Grace was determined not to pay him any mind. We were well past due for a heart to heart, and it looked like that time was at hand.
I slipped off the slinky blue dress and hung it on the back of the chair. Gavin was right. A dress like that was worth keeping. I turned to find him staring hungrily at me. Even in my plain white cotton set, I felt like a sex goddess.
Grace made gagging noises behind me, and I slipped on my jeans and t-shirt.
After picking up the blue dress, I stopped to sit next to my mother on the loveseat.
“How’d we do?” I said, peering over her shoulder at the pictures she was scrolling through. I had to admit, we all looked pretty amazing.
“Lots of good material here.” She looked up and smiled. “They are a pretty amazing bunch.”
I surveyed the room and smiled. They really were. So different in so many ways, and yet we all worked so well together. My eyes landed on Heather, and I felt a twinge for her. Such a great group, but no one for her. Not that it seemed to bother her.
I turned back to my mom and held up the dress. “I was thinking of keeping this.” Uncertainty laced my words. It wasn’t often that I asked for something, but it left me feeling awkward and exposed.
She suddenly threw her arms around my neck and brought me in for a crushing hug.
“It’s yours,” she said to my shoulder. “I’m so proud of you.”
Warmth spread through me, as I digested what she’d said.
“I want you to be happy. You just remember that.” I nodded at her words and blinked when she moved back.
“Okay.” She stood and packed the last of her equipment. “Now if I can just get you strong men to help me load the car, I’ll be on my way.”
I watched as they loaded the car, my mother waiting impatiently in the front and giggled.
“For the love of…” I turned to find Grace rolling her eyes at me.
“All right, that’s it,” I said, arms crossed and ready for war. “Upstairs to my room.” I turned to find Heather standing to the side and watching our exchange. “You too, up.”
If I hadn’t been so irritated, I might have recognized how easy it was to get them up the stairs. Usually getting Grace anywhere was about as easy as herding cats.
We marched into the room, and I shut the door with a bang.
“Spill.” I pointed to Grace.
She narrowed her eyes at me and flopped down on the bed, like some sort of petulant child.
“Spill what?” She pouted.
“You’ve had nothing but nasty comments for Gavin and I. Have you changed your mind about us?” As much as I hated it, I could hear the quiver in my voice.
Her face relaxed, and she shook her
head. “No,” she said. “I’m actually really happy you all are finally together.”
I sat down next to her and watched as Heather took the other side.
“Is it Chance?” Heather asked.
“Yes,” she shot back. She frowned. “No.”
“Well, which is it?” Heather pressed.
“It has to do with Chance, but it’s really not about him,” she said cryptically.
“Grace,” I said sternly. “I want to be friends with the real you, not the one you show the world.”
She sighed loudly and threw herself back.
“Chance is a dick,” she said flatly. “He’s always been a dick. I’ve just tried to not see it that way. Now with all this new stuff and Grandmother’s decree, I just don’t know where to go.”
“Decree?” I asked.
“I was visiting her for Christmas, and she told Father to stuff it over Chance.”
I laughed out loud. “I’m sure he loved that!”
Grace grinned. “Not many people can catch him off guard, but I swear Grandmother makes a sport of it. Then she said I needed some life experience.” She turned to me. “What the hell does that even mean?”
I shrugged.
“Did she elaborate?” Heather asked.
“She said to get into the real world and live a little,” Grace said. She looked as if she’s just been told to eat dirt.
“And what about Dean?” Heather said. “He’s got some real life experience.”
Grace’s brow knit together as she thought over that.
“I suppose,” she said. A wistful look passed over her almost as fast as it had started.
“Listen,” I said, taking her hand. “Just take it one day at a time. We’ll figure things out and you might even have some fun.”
Grace scrunched her nose. “Doubtful.” After a few moments, she looked at me and smiled. “You know what would help?”
I shook my head.
“Some of your famous cocoa.” She grinned from ear to ear.
“You make famous cocoa?” Heather asked.
I rolled my eyes. “She only thinks it’s famous because it’s not from a package.”
Heather laughed loudly. “That does sound pretty amazing. Lead on, oh master.”
I laughed as they followed me down the stairs bowing all the while.
* * *
Classes started back up and things fell into routine like normal. Well not quite like normal. Gavin had taken to staying with me every night, and Grace had grown accustomed to wearing ear plugs. I cooked for us all and on the weekends, Dean and Heather would stop in for dinner and a movie. We were becoming one big family, and for once, I was feeling the comfort of acceptance.
Everything was going as it should with one exception. Pop literature. I thought James was bad in the women’s lit class, but this was one hundred times worse. Nothing seemed to make any sense, and all his pop culture references were primarily dated to his childhood. From what I could tell, we were really getting the James hour.
I stared blankly as he droned on at the front of the class about some cartoon that really should have been made into a book.
There was only one this worse than listening to his nonsense, listening to Patricia Walter. If I had to listen to her brownnose one more day I was going to lose it.
“After spring break we’ll go over fall topics,” James said from the front. “If Emma and Patricia would stay after, I‘ve got news on the internship.”
I perked up and waited for the room to clear. I walked up front and sat next to Patricia. Her pinched face glared at me, and I debated tossing her the finger.
“Thank you both so much for waiting.” He smiled brightly at us both. “So I’ve just had news that the internship will admit one student into the program. I know you both have worked hard, but I’m just afraid that’s the way it is. Have a good day.”
We nodded our understanding gathered our things. Patricia pushed past me, her nose firmly planted in the air. I watched as she made it out the door.
“She really needs to remove the stick from her ass,” James said from behind me. His nearness made me shiver, and I moved out of reach. “I wanted to tell you,” he continued. “That you are my top choice.”
I smiled brightly at him. “Really?”
“To be honest, I just don’t like her much.” His brow pinched together. “That’s why,” he said, “I’m making this offer to you not her.”
I stared at him, dread filling the pit of my stomach.
“After break I’m offer some sessions at my house.” He looked down his nose at me. “This way you can get individualized lessons on the publishing lifestyle.”
My stomached rolled. His private lessons were a joke, and I had a good idea as to what he meant.
“Thanks,” I said and stepped around him. “I’ll keep you posted.”
“Wait,” James cried desperately. “Just remember this could make or break your career.”
My stomach twisted. My career. Surely there was another option.
I waved and grabbed my stuff as quickly as I could.
Chapter Twenty-One
“No,” Gavin said on the phone.
“You need to listen,” I said.
“No, this guy just wants to get into your panties.” I could just picture him forming a hard line with his mouth.
“This is my best chance to nail that internship.” I gripped the steering wheel as I turned into the drive to Gran’s.
“Fuck the internship.” He huffed into the phone. “I’ll get you an internship.”
I groaned. Not this one again. “Gavin, I want to get in on my own. I don’t think they’ll take my seriously if use my boyfriend to get in.”
I stopped the car around back and turned off the engine.
“Say it again,” his voice rumbled over the line, and I shivered at the sound.
“Boyfriend.” The word came out breathy, and I found myself wanting to be doing all sorts of naughty things as I said it.
Gavin groaned. “Tell me again why you’re there, and I’m here.”
I chuckled. “Because the charity people are going to be by early in the morning, and the new furniture will be in by the afternoon.”
“As soon as my midterm is over I’ll be on my way,” he said. “I miss you. I love you.”
I smiled. It was nice to be missed. “I miss you too.”
He was silent for a moment before he spoke. “Are you ever going to say it?”
I flinched at the sadness in his voice. Gavin had been so open with his love, where I found myself holding back still. For what, I couldn’t even guess. Maybe I just had to be sure.
“Yes,” I said. “I know you’ve been so amazing, and I’m the worst girlfriend ever, but the feelings I have for you…” I stopped. Tears swelled in my eyes. “Just wait a little longer.”
He sighed. I knew it hurt him, but I just couldn’t. Not now.
“Okay,” he said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
The dead air cut me, and I knew I deserved it. He had been good. More than good, he’d been everything I could hope for.
I pulled myself together and stepped out of the car. The winter snow had melted and little crocus flowers littered the yard. It was nice being home again.
I groaned as I made my way to the door. Whoever had been filling the wood was behind. No fire for me tonight.
I quickly walked in and set the groceries on the counter. Just as I put them all away, my phone rang. When I pulled it out, I stared at ‘unknown caller.’ It had been months, so long that it seemed like a lifetime ago. My stomach flipped as I hit end.
Almost immediately it started to ring again. I pressed end again. As it started up again, I answered.
“What the fuck do you want?” I yelled into the receiver.
“Just couldn’t leave him alone, could you?” a woman’s voice came over the line.
“What?” I tried to process what she was saying.
“Everything was going j
ust fine until I’m strolling the checkout and see your ugly face on the cover. Staring at what’s mine.” With each word, her voice rose higher and higher.
“Lori?” I felt bile rise up into my throat.
“I’m not going to let you have him.” Her voice went deadly quiet. “He’s mine.”
The line clicked off and panic rose in my chest. She was going for Gavin.
I flipped to his name and hit send.
“Pick up. Pick up. Pick up.” I whispered as the phone continued to ring.
“I’m sorry I hung up earlier, I was just—”
“Where are you? Are you safe?” I rushed to say what I needed to. Hopefully, he could get out of there before anything happened.
“I’m fine,” I could hear the panic in his voice.
“It’s Lori,” my words poured out. “She just called and threatened to take you out.”
“Oh, I think you have that wrong,” Lori spoke from the door leading outside, a large knife in hand and wearing the shimmery blue dress from the shoot.
“Em,” I could hear Gavin in the phone, but I was too afraid to speak. “Em, run! Get out of there!” he screamed into the line.
She hadn’t moved from the door yet.
“I love you,” I whispered into the phone and flipped it shut.
“Touching,” she said. The knife hung down at her side, and I kept a close eye on it. At least it was a knife and not a gun. A knife I could at least try to dodge.
“Calculating a getaway?” She laughed at some private joke. “I’ve helped you out a bit. Your tires looked like they needed a bit of a shave.”
She swiped the knife in the air a few time, mimicking what she had done.
“How do you like my dress?” She held out her arms. The dress hung on her small frame. The jagged scars down her arm were bright and visible. “He’s going to love me in this,” she said sweetly and giggled as she turned a circle.
I tried to stay as quiet as possible. Maybe Gavin would get the police here in time to save the day. She seemed to be having bouts of lucidity followed by psychotic breaks.
“He’s been cheating on me, and it’s all your fault!” Her face contorted in rage, and I shook from head to toe.
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