“He asked me to coffee that one day, I said yes. Ever since then we’ve been like talk, text, and computer buddies,” she shrugged.
“What do you mean talk, text, and computer buddies?”
Shell rolled her eyes. “You remember when we were younger and AOL was the shit and it was the thing to IM people a/s/l, and then sometimes you would luck up and find somebody interesting?”
“That crap never worked for me, ever,” Hannah groaned, “but please continue.”
“Well, Jared’s pretty interesting in that kind of way. He knows a gazillion things that I don’t know. He’s been a million places that I’ve never been to, and he’s experienced things I’ve never even thought of. I get the feeling he needs a friend.”
“Has he told you about himself?” Hannah asked carefully.
“That he’s a drug addict? Yes.” She made a face. “But I’m trying not to let it cloud my opinion of him. I know by talking to him that he wants to be in a better place, I’m just not sure he knows how to get there. And he mentioned that Vegas is a test for him, so to tell you that I’m worried is putting it lightly. I just wanna see him though—after talking to him for these past few weeks I feel like I’ve known him my whole life. That’s what I mean by that AOL remark. You know how you thought that person was going to be ‘it’ for you until the day they stopped logging onto AIM, or you finally met them in person and you realized all they wanted was sex and your whole world ended? That’s kinda what I’m expecting from this meeting with Jared. I need to know if he’s anything like what I think he is or if I’ve built him up in my mind.”
“All I’m asking is that you go into it with two eyes wide open. It’s never easy dealing with someone who doesn’t want help,” Hannah whispered.
“Just like you didn’t?”
“My addiction wasn’t drugs,” she argued.
“It wasn’t, but bulimia could have killed you just as easily if you hadn’t gotten help when you did. I helped you, I can help him.”
Hannah closed her eyes and wondered if she should say her next words or not. In the end, her conscience won over, and she knew she had to. She had to be honest with this person she considered family because; after all, friends are family. “Please remember that sometimes people don’t want to be saved, and if that’s the case with Jared, it’s not your fault.”
“I know that,” Shell nodded her head affirmatively.
But in her heart, Hannah knew that Shell cared about everyone way too much to just let things go, and in the end that would be the one thing that could hurt her. Caring so much, when maybe Jared really wouldn’t care at all. Shaking the melancholy off, Hannah did her best to smile for her friend before taking a picture of the two of them and uploading it onto Instagram with the caption Vegas or Bust!
Chapter Twenty-One
* * *
“Do you think the guys are here yet?”
Hannah rolled her head to the side and opened her eyes. The two of them had rented a cabana at the hotel and were currently sitting poolside. Even though it was early April, it was a hot 90 degrees in Vegas, and they were going to enjoy it. Shielding her eyes with her hand, she held her phone up. “Garrett texted me about fifteen minutes ago and said they just got to the hotel. I told him where we were and where he could get the keys for his parents. So he’s going to come down here when they get settled. He’s bringing his mom and dad with him.”
“Are you nervous?” Shell took a drink of beer, turning over so that her back faced the sun.
“I’d be lyin’ if I said I wasn’t,” she admitted, taking a sip of her own mixed drink. “I mean, I’ve talked to his mom on the phone, and we do the social media thing back and forth, but that’s different than meeting someone in person. I hope they like me.”
“I’m sure they will. You’re a great person, and I’m not just saying that because you’re my bestie. I’m saying it because you are a good person. They’d be crazy not to like you, but I can see where you’re nervous. Hell, I’m nervous about meeting Jared, so I can kind of get where you’re coming from.”
“Is Jared coming down here with the rest of them?” Hannah asked, excited about the possibility that maybe other people would be meeting each other at the same time.
“He actually just texted me and asked me to meet him at the bar, so I think I’m going to do that. Ya know, give you some time alone with his family. It’s important that you make the first impression,” she said as she got up and put her cover-up on. “I have every faith that you’ll be the amazing woman that you always are.”
Hannah wanted to ask Shell to stay, but knew that this was something she had to do on her own. “Oh alright, have fun without me.”
“We’re meeting up later, and you know it.” Shell smacked her in the arm as she got up to leave. “But look alive ’cause here they come, and your boyfriend is attracting a lot of female attention. You need to lock that down.” Shell gave her a thumbs up.
“Shut up,” Hannah hissed.
“Where are you going?” Garrett asked Shell as they passed each other.
“Meeting Jared at the bar,” she admitted. “Figured he might need somebody there with him.”
“That’s probably about right, but before you go, Shell, these are my parents Marie and Kevin Thompson. Mom and Dad, this is Shell. She’s Hannah’s best friend and personal assistant, also the girl Jared’s been talking about,” he grinned, shooting his eyebrows up and down.
“Nice to meet you two,” Shell reached out her hand, shaking theirs. “And you, shut it about me and Jared. I don’t tease you.” She slapped at his arm.
“Yeah, yeah. Are we seeing you for sushi later?” he asked.
“Definitely. Just have Hannah text me what time. My room wasn’t ready when we got here, so my stuff is in her room anyway. See y’all later.”
Hannah watched the meeting between them wringing her hands together, hoping that this would go well. She desperately needed this to go well. It was at that moment that Garrett turned so that he faced her and saw her for the first time. A grin broke across his face, and he hurried over to where she stood, scooping her up in his arms and twirling her around. She squealed, clasping him around the neck, before he stopped and brought his lips to her ear.
“You look hot in a bikini. I’m glad I get to see it.”
“Garrett,” she laughed, reaching down with her feet, but he was so much taller than her that she couldn’t make them touch the ground. “Put me down.”
He did as she asked and stood with his arm around her waist, facing his parents. “Mom and Dad, this is Hannah Stewart. Hannah, this is Marie and Kevin Thompson, even though you and my mom are like Instagram buddies now.” He rolled his eyes, pulling a face with his dad.
“It’s so good to meet you,” Marie said as she opened her arms for Hannah. “Even though I already feel like I know you because we talk a few times a day.”
Hannah laughed. “I know. It’s nice to put a face with a name though, right?”
“So true, and you are more beautiful in person than you even are in your pictures.”
Garrett loved the way Hannah’s face turned red. It was nice to hear someone else give her compliments. His mom could hopefully help in convincing her that she really was beautiful.
“Thank you so much.” She pulled away from Marie and turned to face Garrett. “She’s so sweet. I see where you get it from.”
“He does get it from me. He gets his temper from Kevin over here.”
Marie pulled Kevin to stand beside them. “She’s beautiful, isn’t she?”
“She is.” He hugged her to him and then looked up at his son. “You didn’t tell us how polite she was either.”
“One thing you need to know about her.” Garrett’s large hand cupped around her hip, and he couldn’t help the mischievous grin that came to his face. “She hates the word fuck. So be sure and say it as much as possible.”
Hannah’s mouth twisted in a frown. “You know I absolutely hate that wor
d. Between you and Shell, I’m beginning to think you guys are saying it just to make me mad.”
“Nooooo.” He put his hand up to his chest. “Never…I mean, would I do that?”
“I think you would,” Marie told him, slapping him in the stomach.
“Damn Mom, last time you were cockblocking me, and now you’re beating me up.”
“She’s good at that,” Kevin laughed. “Beating up someone, I mean. Not the cockblocking.”
Hannah couldn’t believe what she was hearing. They were so comfortable with each other. Her family wasn’t like this at all, but at the same time, it intrigued her.
“If you don’t mind, I’m gonna take your mom out of here to get a drink. Us old folk have never been to Vegas, we’ll catch up with you in a few.”
The younger couple watched as the older couple waded into the pool and made their way up to the water bar before placing their orders.
“They’re cute,” she told Garrett, looking at him as he watched his parents.
“They are,” he nodded. “Married thirty-five years and counting. A few times I thought that maybe I’d stressed them enough to break up, but I never did. When I get married I want it to be like that.”
“Me too,” she echoed. That was definitely what she planned on. One and done, she didn’t want to be one of these performers who married three to four times before they got it right. She would do it once and that would be it.
He wrapped his strong arms around her again. “God, I missed you.” He led her over to the cabana and out of the eyesight of most of the people at the pool. They had a seat so that they could relax.
“I missed you too. I’m so glad that you’re here. And we have three days together. Can you believe that?”
Her excitement made him excited about everything that was to come in the next few days. He had never been this ready to spend time with a woman. “I can and I wanted to make sure, I’m staying with you in your room, right? Or are you and Shell bunking together?”
“You’re staying with me. It’s just us for a few days. How does that sound?”
He turned in his seat and spread his legs, bringing her to stand in front of him. “That sounds pretty damn good,” he whispered, tilting his head up as he put his hands in her hair and pushed her lips down to his. “But before we talk about anything else, I gotta get me a taste of those sweet lips.”
Those words warmed a place inside her that she didn’t know was cold without him. It was like she’d lost a little bit of spark in the weeks since she had last seen him, but she hadn’t realized it until she saw him again. This was quickly moving into dangerous territory, but strangely it didn’t scare her. It felt like a natural progression. Maybe what he said about them moving along at a different pace because of their lifestyles had some truth to it. She let herself sink into his arms, her mouth melt against his, allowed his tongue to coax hers into his mouth and moaned when he nipped softly at her bottom lip.
“I needed that too,” she admitted as she reached up to his face and took his sunglasses off.
“Sometimes I like to see those eyes.” They were impossibly green against the backdrop of his face. He had gotten a little bit of sun since the last time she had seen him, and his freckles were much more prominent, causing his eyes to pop. She could just imagine how he would look after three days in this paradise.
“All you gotta do is ask,” he told her, his hands caressing her lower back. “I’ll give you pretty much anything you ask for, all you gotta do is say the word.”
That was power, a lot more power than she had ever had before. The feelings weren’t scary, but the power was. Power could hurt, and she hoped with everything that she had, they wouldn’t hurt each other.
“So we’re having sushi later?” she asked, putting her hands on his shoulders.
“We are.” He placed a kiss on her chin. “You need to text Shell and let her know that we’re meeting at six. Mom and Dad can’t party like they used to.” He kissed her nose. “Which is a good thing because I have such plans for partying with you later.” He kissed the side of her neck, using his tongue to lick a trail to the juncture where her neck and shoulder met.
She gripped his shoulders. “You do, do you?”
“I do, I can’t wait to get you alone. I mean, it’s cool and all that you can meet my parents and all our friends can come, but I need some Garrett/Hannah time.”
She needed that too. It had happened so quickly, the fact that she ached to have time with him, that she hadn’t even noticed it. But he was right; they did need some time alone. There were still things that they hadn’t learned about each other that would take time, and that time would need to be between the two of them. They didn’t need an audience to move their relationship forward. They needed peace, quiet, and possibly a few mixed drinks.
“I do too,” she bit her lip. “After sushi we hit the hotel room with some drinks?”
“Sounds like a plan to me. We can always go out tomorrow night. And I can always tell my parents I have jet lag.”
“Do you think they’re going to believe you?” She nodded her head to where they sat in the water, drinking from plastic cups.
“Probably not, but to be with you, I don’t care.”
That was one of the things she liked most about him. He didn’t mind expressing his feelings to her, and that was something that she needed. Ashton had been such a closed book when it came to how he felt. With Garrett, if his sunglasses were off she could look in his eyes and see what his feelings were. Looking there now, she saw an honesty that hadn’t been there before.
“Then I don’t care either. After sushi, it’s me and you, Garrett Thompson. You better bring your ‘A’ game,” she grinned.
“Babe, my game is always A+…you better bring yours.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
* * *
Garrett sat on the bed of the hotel room he was sharing with Hannah and watched her put on her makeup. This was different for him out of all the other relationships that he had been in. Even with Vanessa, who had traveled with him, it hadn’t been this intimate. He theorized that maybe this time it was because he was older and he could appreciate the little things about being with a woman that he hadn’t before.
“Why are you staring at me?” Hannah asked, turning from the mirror where she was sweeping blush across the apples of her cheeks.
“Can I not just look at you?” He grinned.
“I guess so, but it’s sort of unnerving.” She turned back to face the mirror, using a mascara wand this time to put color on her lashes.
“It’s nice, ya know?”
Hannah looked back at him. “What’s nice?”
“The fact that you’re standing in front of me in just a bra and underwear. I’m enjoying the view.”
Flipping the mascara wand up on its end, she put her arms across her stomach. “I’m working on not being embarrassed to be myself in front of you.”
“Good,” he smiled. “I’m really glad to hear that.”
“You’re making me feel like a piece of meat, though,” she laughed. “Sitting there staring at me like that.”
He didn’t say anything when she turned back around to finish applying her mascara and then moved to her lip gloss.
“You’re pretty patient to be sitting there, watching me do all this.”
He watched as she plugged in what he assumed was a curling iron, but it looked a little bit like a wand. “I’m enjoying myself, to be honest with you.”
Grabbing up a section of her hair, she turned to face him, hitching her hip out. “Why don’t you get ready? Because as soon as I’m done with my hair, all I have to do is put my dress and a jacket on.”
“I guess I could,” he sighed as he got up off the bed. “Why are we hanging out with the rest of them and not just ourselves tonight again?”
She laughed. “You’re crazy. But they are your family, and we do have friends here too.”
“I know, it’s just…” He couldn’t ex
actly put into words what he wanted to say, but he crowded against her in the bathroom, needing to be near her.
“We just don’t get to spend much time together?” she supplied for him.
“Yeah, but I get what you mean. I don’t get to spend much time with my family either. I’m just kind of selfish when it comes to you.”
“I’m good with that.” She leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek.
He turned his head at the last second and captured her mouth with his lips. “Please tell me this dinner is going to be quick,” he whispered against her lips.
“It’s sushi.” She turned back towards the mirror, meeting his eyes as she lifted her arms over her head to curl one more strand of hair. “Sushi is never quick.”
“I know.” He rubbed his hands over his face. “You’re right, I need to enjoy the time I have with my parents.”
She grabbed her perfume and sprayed it on her neck and wrist before turning back around to face him. “It’s true. My parents hardly ever get to come out with me, and I’m sure yours miss you. Are you an only child?”
He couldn’t believe that they had never talked about that, but it just proved that they did indeed need more time together. “I have a sister, she’s younger than me.” Even though Hannah was a fan, she wouldn’t know that. He purposely kept her name out of the press. Just because he was famous, didn’t mean she had to have her life intruded upon.
“Where is she?” Hannah asked as she walked into the bedroom and went to the closet. They had been lucky to get a suite with a living area. And of course, they were going to be there for a few extra days.
“She’s in college right now. Stacey’s in her senior year. I invited her, but she was worried about getting behind. Graduation is in May, so I can understand it.”
“It’s weird that we’ve been talking for such a long time and we haven’t gotten into stuff like that. I’m an only child.” She wrinkled her nose. “I think that’s why Shell and I are so close. She’s the sister I never had.”
Only The Beginning (Rockin' Country) Page 14
