by Autumn Marks
“Get in here,” Emily said, stepping aside to let her through.
“Why didn’t you introduce him to me at the wedding?” Audrey asked, setting her shopping bags down on the table. Audrey had asked Emily to have a girls’ evening together since her husband was having some guys over for a Friday night poker game.
“He only came to the reception and I barely got any time with him myself,” Emily said. It was as good of an explanation as she was going to get. Really, Emily had avoided showing him around to everyone because that would’ve led to questions she didn’t have all the answers to. It wasn’t a lie if you didn’t talk about it.
Audrey pulled down her shades to reveal a scrutinizing glare. “I feel like I’m missing something here. You’ve always told me everything. But with this guy…nothing. I wasn’t even aware you were dating anyone.” She removed her shades completely and Emily had no choice but to look at her while she lied.
“It was really sudden. And we’re neighbors. It makes for a lot of chances for us to see each other.”
Audrey reached into one of the shopping bags and pulled out a can of diet pop. She popped the top on it and took a swig. “How did you guys meet? Did he come over and introduce himself to you?”
That was one question Emily could answer without lying. “His dog pooped on my lawn.”
Audrey laughed, her blond curls bouncing around her face. “How the hell do you go from pooping on your lawn to boyfriend and girlfriend?”
“It happened more than once. And because of his dog, we started talking to one another and then it grew from there,” Emily said with a shrug.
“I don’t quite understand it, but stranger things have happened.”
“So what did you bring for us to eat?” Emily asked, looking through the shopping bags.
“I brought some salads and some pasta. I also bought us a cake mix.” Audrey’s eyes brightened. “Today is my cheat day.”
“I don’t know why you diet all the time,” Emily said. “How many times have I told you you’re gorgeous?” With her blond hair, blue eyes, and curvy figure, Audrey looked like a modern-day Marilyn Monroe. Growing up, Emily had always envied Audrey because so many of the boys were attracted to her. But a popular girl who’d been jealous of Audrey’s looks—and the attention she’d been getting—called her fat in high school once and the comment stuck with her ever since.
“I know you don’t like it, but I’ve never been as thin as you. Never. You’ve never had a weight issue so you’ve never had to experience clothes not fitting like you want them to.”
The only time she’d had clothes that didn’t fit had been when she’d lost a bunch of weight after her mother died. Her father had been close to putting her in therapy because of it. “I won’t comment on it any further,” Emily said.
“Is your boyfriend home? I’d like to meet him. Maybe you should invite him over for dinner.”
No way was that happening. Anything said to Audrey would get back to Stephanie and Emily was nowhere near ready for that level of inquisition. “First of all, he’s not home now. And second, I’d like to keep it a girls’ night like we had originally agreed upon.”
“Okay, maybe not dinner. But if I’m still here when he gets home later, will you introduce me to him?”
Emily shook her head.
“Come on. What’s the big deal?” Audrey asked, pressing even further.
“It’s not a good time. That’s all.”
Audrey furrowed her brow. “Why not? Why are you keeping him a secret?”
“I’m not. He just found out his dad is dying of cancer, okay?” She’d been blunt on purpose. Hopefully Audrey would drop it now.
“That’s terrible. You know what that’s like so it’s good you’re able to comfort him during this time.”
Emily wasn’t sure it was her comfort he wanted. She nodded in agreement anyway.
“I’m worried about you though. It’s so soon after Jason and I feel like you haven’t been able to fully recover from that,” Audrey said.
Emily didn’t have to guess where Audrey’s concern was coming from. “Has Stephanie talked to you? I assume she put you up to this?”
“It’s not her fault. She wants to make sure you’re doing okay. There’s been a lot happening in such a short time and she wants to make sure you’re not jumping into anything too soon.”
“I’m a big girl. I’m pretty sure I can handle myself.”
“That’s what I told Steph. But you know how she is. She worries about everything.”
“She means well and I appreciate your concern. I’ve got it covered.”
“That’s all I’m saying. Now when Stephanie asks me, I can tell her I talked to you and I’ll make sure to tell her to get off your case,” Audrey said with a chuckle.
“Please do. But enough talk of boyfriends. Let’s start making that cake.”
On Friday afternoon, Brandon pulled into the driveway of his parents’ house. After his talk with Mickey, it had taken him almost an entire day to convince himself to come here. But even though he was here, he couldn’t bring himself to step out of the car.
Since being back, he’d made it a point not to drive by this place. He didn’t want to spark any memories. Returning to Brookview had been bad enough. Coming here was like rubbing even more salt into the wound—a wound that wasn’t fully healed.
The light blue sided home hadn’t changed much, but the more Brandon stared at it, the more he spotted little things that showed its age—and how long he’d been away. There was a thin layer of grime that needed to be power washed off, and instead of being black, like they’d been when he’d left, the shutters were now almost gray with all the fading from the sun. The windows were still the same ones he remembered. The same ones that creaked and never quite lined up when you tried to close them. The landscaping was impeccable, though, as it had always been.
Then something caught his eye—the garage door had been replaced. Any physical evidence of the damage he’d done so many years ago had been erased. But what couldn’t be erased was the mental toll that day had caused. He would never forget how much his life had changed the day his father kicked him out.
While the rest of his family was at Julie’s high school graduation, Brandon was asleep in his bed, resting before his shift at the local appliance parts factory. His father, Peter, was the one who had told him to stay home. Julie was the head of her class and didn’t need her day marred by his presence.
Brandon didn’t even know anyone had come home until he saw his father’s crazed face staring at him. Peter grabbed hold of Brandon’s shirt and got so close, Brandon could feel his father’s hot breath on his face. His father began shouting, ‘Look at you, you piece of shit. You could’ve been somebody. You had every opportunity and you fucked it up,’ were just a few of the choice phrases uttered. Brandon had gotten used to comments such as these over the years, and had known to ignore them. But there was something different about his father this time, an anger in his father’s eyes he had never seen before.
Peter left Brandon’s room, allowing Brandon to think that maybe he was finished. But just as he began to relax, his father returned with a couple of suitcases. He tossed them at Brandon and spat out, “Get the fuck out of my house and get your shit together!”
Never mind the fact that Brandon had been working to pay for his own therapy. Never mind the fact that he had enrolled in college courses that were starting in the fall. Brandon was trying to better himself. He was trying to overcome the crippling depression that had robbed him of so much. But none of that mattered. What mattered was Brandon had his chance to succeed—and he blew it.
After his father was done with his verbal assault, Brandon stormed out of the house to put some distance between him and his father. On the way out, he punched the garage door, denting one of the panels and injuring his hand in the process. He barely felt the pain. The emotional pain of being cast aside by his father hurt far worse than any physical pain could.
/> That evening, while everyone else was celebrating Julie’s graduation at the reception hall, Brandon packed those suitcases and hightailed it out of Brookview to begin anew in Charlotte.
Coming here was a mistake. Brandon had known this as soon as he pulled in the driveway. But he had to do it. He’d never be able to move on from this if he didn’t confront his father. His father should know how much it had hurt to be kicked out of the house.
How did he expect Brandon to survive?
Brandon surmised he wasn’t supposed to survive. He wasn’t supposed to succeed. He was supposed to fall flat on his ass.
His father had written him off, yet, his father was the one wanting to reconcile. Like somehow now, on the brink of death, was the time to atone for his sins. Brandon would give his father the evening. He’d hear him out and then he could get him out of his head once and for all.
With a deep breath, he stepped out of the car and knocked on the door. his mother opened the door and her eyes widened.
“Brandon! I wasn’t expecting you.”
Brandon hadn’t told his mother on purpose. He wanted to give himself the option of backing out. “I had some time today and I thought I would come and see him.” Refusing to call him Dad wasn’t an accident.
“He’s in the family room watching TV. You can go in there if you’d like.”
Brandon stepped across the threshold and did his best to tamp down the memories that flooded his brain. He didn’t want to think about the time he and his father had worked through the night to make the pinewood derby car that would eventually win the race. He didn’t want to think about the time his father had taught him how to shave his face in the upstairs bathroom. He didn’t want to think about the time when he and his father had prepared breakfast in bed for his mom one Mother’s Day.
Those were happy times, something he no longer associated with this house.
“Yeah, sure,” he said. He assumed his mother could sense his apprehension because she placed a hand on his shoulder.
“If you’re not ready, I understand.”
“No, I’m here. I need to at least talk to him.”
“Can I get you anything to drink?”
“No thanks.” He wasn’t planning on staying long.
Brandon walked into the family room and saw what was left of his father sitting in a reclining chair. His dad’s appearance still shocked him. It was so unlike the man he remembered.
“Hey, Brandon. How’s it going?” Peter was watching a show on a food channel.
Brandon took a seat on the couch opposite his father. “I’m fine. How are you doing?”
“As good as can be expected given the circumstances,” his father said, cracking a smile.
Brandon didn’t find any humor in that statement and didn’t smile back. “That’s good, I guess.”
“Look at this,” Peter said, pointing to the TV. “I’m watching them make all this food and I can’t stomach any of it.”
“Sounds like hell.”
“It is. All of this is hell.” There was a moment of silence before his father spoke again. “I’m glad you came. It’s hard for me to believe you’ve been gone all these years. You look different.”
“Different how?” Brandon asked.
“All grown up, mature. I still can’t believe you left.”
“Yeah, well, you didn’t give me much of a choice.” The muscles in Brandon’s jaw tensed. He’d been here barely five minutes and he was ready to leave.
“What do you mean?”
“You kicked me out of the house.”
Peter shook his head, as much as he was able to. “I did no such thing. You must’ve misunderstood me.”
“Oh, really? ‘Get the fuck out of my house and get your shit together’ doesn’t leave much room for interpretation.”
Peter continued to shake his head. “I never said that.”
“Yes, you did. Right after Julie’s graduation.”
“It’s just like you, always twisting my words around to play the victim.”
Brandon continued. “I was no longer your pride and joy and you didn’t want to support me anymore. I was forced to support myself in a strange state, a strange town. Not once did you even bother to check on me.”
“I didn’t make you go to North Carolina. That was your choice.”
“I needed to get the hell away from you.” Brandon shot up from the couch. “It was a mistake to come here.” He breezed past his mother who was standing right outside the room. She rushed to catch up with him before he stormed out the door.
“Brandon, I’m sorry. I didn’t know he’d be like this,” Linda said.
“You were wrong, Mom. His intent wasn’t to reconcile. He wanted to clear his conscience by placing blame on me. He wanted to put me in my place.”
“I thought he’d want to talk to you more, not accuse you of anything. You’ve been gone for fourteen years,” she said, tears pricking the corners of her eyes. “You’d think he’d want to make amends.”
“Clearly not.”
“He’s changed. The cancer has made him angry and bitter.”
“He hasn’t changed, but I have. I’m done. I’m not trying again. He had his chance to reconcile and he blew it.”
Linda nodded. “Can I stop by tomorrow and see you and Ollie?”
Brandon gave his mother a warm smile. “Mom, you’re always welcome at my place,” he said, wrapping his arms around her. In all of this, she was the one who’d never turned her back on him. And he’d never turn his back on her.
Chapter 20
“I should get going. I have to work the Saturday shift tomorrow at the bank and it’s getting late,” Audrey said.
“Sure. Do you want to take anything home with you?” Emily asked.
“No, I’m good. You can keep it and have it for leftovers. I will take a piece of cake home with me…for Tyler.”
Emily raised a brow. “How about I give you two? I know I’m going to be having another piece later and I’d hate for you to miss out.”
Audrey hesitated for a moment. “Okay, you convinced me. I’ll take two.”
The two women went into the kitchen and Emily put two pieces of cake in a storage container. Audrey grabbed the rest of her belongings and headed to the front door with Emily following behind.
“Thanks for having me over. It was nice to be able to have a conversation with you that didn’t involve Stephanie’s wedding.”
“I think we’re all glad that’s over,” Emily said.
“So when can we expect your wedding? Is this new guy The One?” Audrey wagged her eyebrows.
Emily let her thoughts drift to what marrying Brandon would be like. He’d be all dressed up and looking damn sexy in a suit, waiting on his bride-to-be…which was her. But that was absurd to even consider. They were still very much strangers. “You’re unbelievable,” she said. “This is Brookview, not Hollywood. Love at first sight doesn’t happen here.”
“Don’t chalk this up to me watching too many romance movies,” Audrey said, defending herself. “Maybe the reason you’ve been keeping him a secret is because you’re afraid to admit he’s the one for you.”
A pair of headlights in the neighboring driveway caught their attention. Oh, shit. Brandon was home and Audrey was still standing on her front porch. She’d never be able to avoid the two of them meeting now.
“Is that his car?” Audrey asked.
“Audrey, don’t even think about it. He’s going through a difficult time and I think it’s best to give him some space.”
“Okay, I get it. I’ll meet him some other time.” Audrey walked down the steps with Emily right on her heels. She didn’t want Audrey shouting anything or making a scene.
“The next time you’re free, give me a holler,” Emily said as Audrey was opening up her car door. Her gaze flitted over to Brandon’s car where he was exiting it. With twilight creeping in, she couldn’t make out his facial expression. His muscular stature, however, wasn’t difficul
t to see. His T-shirt stretched across his muscles and his athletic shorts sat low on his hips and she almost licked her lips in appreciation. The man was sex on legs. There was no denying it.
Audrey turned her head toward Brandon, then whipped her head back around to Emily. “I swear I didn’t do anything.”
Of course she didn’t. Emily had been standing with her the whole time. But that still didn’t explain why Brandon was walking their way. “I know you didn’t,” Emily said. “It looks like you’ll get your wish. You’re going to meet him after all.”
Audrey leaned in close to Emily’s ear. “Damn. Stephanie wasn’t kidding. He really is hot.”
“Shut up. He can probably hear you,” Emily hissed.
“Hello, ladies,” Brandon said in an ever-so-sexy deep voice while striding across the front lawn.
Emily cracked a smile. “Hey,” she said with a familiarity that wasn’t earned. She had to play it off like they’d seen each other all the time.
“And who is this here?” Brandon asked, coming up beside Emily.
“Hi, I’m Audrey, Emily’s friend.”
“Oh, right. I remember seeing you at the wedding. You were one of the bridesmaids,” he said.
Brandon snaked an arm around Emily’s waist which sent her insides all aflutter. She tried to keep her body from responding to him, but she would never forget how he had kissed her on the night of Stephanie’s wedding. Would they kiss like that again? Maybe tonight? Never? Both had crossed her mind.
“That’s right. I don’t remember seeing you there though,” Audrey said.
“I kept to myself most of the night, except when I stole Emily away from there,” he said with a wink.
Audrey looked like she needed a fan. If she didn’t leave soon, she’d probably faint. Brandon could definitely pass as the hero in one of her romance movies she loved so much.
“Well, I won’t keep the two of you any longer. I have to be at work early tomorrow,” Audrey said. “Brandon, it was really nice to meet you finally.”
