Defying Gravity (Healing Hearts Book 2)

by Laura Farr

  I peeled the paint-soaked clothes off and stood in just my bra and panties. The paint had seeped through my top, and my once black lace bra was now smeared a pale yellow. I also noticed I had paint all over my stomach and across the tops of my breasts. I was going to kill Josh if it didn’t wash off. Huffing to myself, I turned and started running the faucet to fill the bath. Leaving the water running, I wandered into my bedroom in search of my iPod, wanting to listen to some music while I relaxed in the bath. As I walked back through the door, I walked straight into a hard body. Not expecting there to be anyone in my room, I let out a scream. Warm hands grabbed me around the waist, pulling my body against theirs.

  “Savannah, it’s me, Josh.”

  “Josh!” I exclaimed. “What are you doing in here?” I took a small step back, his hands digging into the bare skin of my waist. I looked up to see his eyes fixed on my practically see-through bra. My body reacted to the feel of his hands on me and my nipples pebbled and pushed against the fabric. I could tell by the widening of his eyes that he could see how my body was responding to him, and my face heated with embarrassment. I stepped away, his hands dropping from my waist. Immediately missing the feel of his hands on me, I reached my arms across my chest, attempting to hide the fact that I was wearing almost nothing.

  “I’m sorry, Sav,” he finally said, dragging his eyes up to meet mine. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I knocked, but when there was no answer, I assumed you’d be in the shower.” He held my phone out to me. “You left this at the cottage, and I figured you’d want it. I just thought I’d leave it on your bed.”

  “Oh, okay.” I hadn’t realized I’d forgotten it. “You could have just left it downstairs—I could have been naked.”

  “You may as well be,” he muttered under his breath. “I’m sorry,” he said in a louder voice. “I didn’t think.” He backed away slowly, his eyes tracking up and down my body. “I’ll leave you to…get cleaned up.” His eyes finally landed back on mine.

  Suddenly, realizing he had more paint on him than I did, I blurted out, “You can shower here if you want.” He raised his eyebrows in surprise. “I don’t mean shower here with me, I mean in Brody’s bathroom. You can borrow some of his clothes, you know, if you don’t want to get paint all over your truck.” The words rushed from my mouth and I closed my eyes in embarrassment. God I sound like an idiot. “Shit! I left the water running!” I exclaimed, hurrying into the bathroom and quickly turning it off before the bath overflowed.

  “Everything okay?” Josh asked from behind me. I spun around to see him standing in the doorway, his tall frame filling the small space of my bathroom. I nodded. “I think I will have that shower, if you don’t mind. It’s either that or drive home in my boxers,” he said with a smile, looking down to his paint-splattered clothes.

  I bit my lip as I imagined him in his just his boxers. I’d seen him plenty of times in his swimming shorts when we’d all swam in the lake as kids, but it had been a while since then and his body had filled out with muscle.

  “Erm, yeah, of course. Let me just grab…” I reached around him for my robe, which hung next to where he was standing. He made no attempt to move and my arm brushed against his hard chest. I moved back and quickly slipped on the robe before leading him into the hallway and down to Brody’s room. “Just help yourself. Clean towels should be in the cabinet, and I’m sure Brody won’t mind you borrowing some clothes. If there’s anything you need, let me know.”

  “Thanks Sav.” He watched me as I backed slowly out of Brody’s room. Closing the door, I rested my head back against it and closed my eyes. How was I ever going to be able to relax in the bath knowing he was down the hall, naked in Brody’s shower? I let out a groan before heading back to my room and climbing into the hot water.

  20 minutes later, I’d washed the yellow paint from my body and hair and was lying on my bed, trying to fall asleep. My mind was working overtime and I was replaying the day’s events with Josh over and over in my head—the brief touches, the lingering stares, the flirty incident with the paint. Was I reading too much into things or was he acting differently around me? My pregnancy hormones were all over the place, and I did question if I was being too sensitive. While Josh and I had spent time together over the years, we’d always been in a group and rarely spent time alone. Maybe this was the real Josh and I’d just never seen it before. He obviously wasn’t interested though—after all, he had a date that night. A quiet knock sounded on my door, pulling me from my thoughts.

  “Sav,” I heard Josh say quietly through the door. “Are you awake?”

  I rolled over and groaned into my pillow. Sitting up, I took a deep breath. “Yes, come in,” I called out. The door opened and he walked in wearing a pair of Brody’s shorts and one of his t-shirts. The shirt was small on him, and it stretched tight across his chest. His hair was damp from the shower, his feet were bare, and he looked gorgeous. “Hi,” I said quietly, tearing my eyes away from his body.

  “I’m heading out. Thanks for letting me use the shower. I’ll see you tomorrow?” he asked expectantly. I nodded and gave him a small smile. “Have a good time tonight,” he said.

  “You too. Bye Josh.”

  “Bye Sav.” He closed the door behind him and I flopped back down on the bed, hating how good he looked and feeling incredibly jealous of Beth. I’d never met her, but I already hated her.

  I closed my eyes, desperate to fall asleep. I knew if I didn’t get a nap, I’d never make it the whole night, and I didn’t want to have to go home early; this could be one of the last times I went out dancing. I didn’t like the idea of being out in bars when I was showing. At the moment, you couldn’t really tell I was pregnant, unless you knew and were looking for my small bump.

  I must have eventually dozed off as I was awoken by my phone alerting me to an incoming message. Rolling over, I grabbed it off the nightstand. There was a message from Libby.

  Libby: Hey Sav, we’ll be over in 30 mins, can’t wait to get dancing

  30 minutes? I checked the time on my phone and saw that it was already 6:30—I’d slept for almost two hours. I sent Lib a quick message back before swinging my legs over the side of the bed and heading for my closet. I wanted to wear my favorite dress—if I could fit into it. I walked into my closet and started flicking through my clothes, finally finding what I was looking for. I held the dress up against me. It was a white cotton skater dress that flared out slightly at the waist and fell mid-thigh. It looked great with my tan belt and boots.

  I quickly did my hair, curling it so it fell in waves down my back. I decided to go all out with my makeup; if this was the last time I would be out for a while, I was going to look the best I could. Now for the moment of truth—could I fit into my dress? I slipped it over my head, taking care not to mess up my hair and makeup. Standing sideways at the mirror, I smoothed the material over my stomach. It was tight, but not too tight. I reached for the belt and fixed it around me. Wearing the belt seemed to push my tiny bump out, and I moved around, trying to see myself from every angle.

  “What are you doing?” I heard Lib say from the doorway, and I spun around to face her. “Wow Sav, you look amazing,” she said, crossing the room to stand next to me.

  “Thank you.” I turned back toward the mirror. “Do I look pregnant in this?” I asked her, still unsure of the dress. She came up behind me, looking over my shoulder at my reflection.

  “No, you look beautiful. I know how much you love that dress. Are you wearing your tan cowboy boots?” I nodded and went back to the closet to get them. I loved cowboy boots and had quite a few pairs, so it took me a while to find the ones I wanted. Pulling them on, I reached for my denim jacket and purse before heading back to Lib.

  “You look great too Lib,” I told her, looking at her jean skirt and sleeveless top. Being in love suited her, and she was almost glowing with happiness. I linked our arms and led her toward the stairs. “Where’s lover boy?” I asked as we made our way downstairs.

/>   “He’s on the porch swing with Brody, they’re waiting for us.” I nodded, tucking my hair behind my ear. “Do you know you have yellow paint on your ear?” Lib said with a smile. “How did you manage to get paint there?”

  “What? I thought I got it all off!” I peered into the mirror in the hall, rubbing my ear with my fingers. “I’m going to kill Josh!” I exclaimed.

  “What does Josh have to do with it?” Lib asked in surprise.

  I rolled my eyes before meeting her stare in the mirror. “It’s a long story. I’ll fill you in later.”

  “Ooooo, sounds interesting.” She clapped her hands together.

  “What sounds interesting baby?” Mason asked as he appeared at the door. Coming into the hall, he circled his arms around Libby, pulling her backward onto his chest. I watched as her whole face lit up at being in his arms.

  “Girl talk babe,” she told him, turning in his embrace and kissing him.

  “Let’s get going and you can have your girl talk at the bar,” he said, kissing her on the nose. I stared at them, wondering if anyone would ever look at me the way Mason was gazing at Libby. There would be no doubt for anyone watching them that they were very much in love. I was happy for Lib; she deserved someone like Mason to love her. I just hoped one day I would be able to experience what they had.

  20 minutes later, we were fighting through the crowds at the Brass Hall. Even for a Friday night, the bar was packed. Libby grabbed my hand and tugged on it. “Quick, there’s a table over there.” She pulled me behind her and we managed to find what I was guessing was the only free table in the place, right on the edge of the dance floor.

  “Drinks, ladies?” Brody asked.

  “Just a Diet Coke for me please. Sav, what are you having?” Lib asked, scooting along the booth seat to sit next to me.

  “Same for me please, Brode,” I replied.

  “I’ll go with Brody and help with the drinks,” Mason said, reaching over and kissing Libby before they both turned and fought their way across the dance floor to the bar.

  “So…” Lib said, pausing until I turned to look at her. “Yellow paint?” She raised her eyebrows and waited for me to explain.

  “Turns out Brody asked Josh to help out at the cottage…so he was there all day looking gorgeous and getting me all hot and bothered.” I sighed and shifted in my seat. “Urghh, I don’t know if it’s the pregnancy hormones or spending the day with Josh and then knowing he was naked in Brody’s room earlier, but I’m turned on all the time!” I exclaimed.

  “Whoa, slow down—why was Josh naked in Brody’s room earlier and what does that have to do with having paint on your ear?” Lib asked, confused.

  I filled Libby in on what had happened during the day, as well as Josh storming out the night before when he found out I was pregnant. I watched her smile as I told her about the paint fight and Josh catching me in my room in my underwear. “He’s been acting kind of weird Lib,” I said, fiddling with a beer mat on the table in front of me.

  “What do you mean, weird?”

  “I don’t know, he’s just been different—hugging me when I got upset, staring at me, covering me in paint.” I gave her a small smile, turning to face her. “I’m probably reading too much into it. It’s not like he wants to be with me—he’s got a girlfriend anyway.” I sighed loudly, trying not to think of him with someone else.

  “A girlfriend? Since when?”

  “Not sure, but he’s out with some girl named Beth, and it didn’t sound like it was their first date.” I shrugged my shoulders.

  “That doesn’t make her his girlfriend. We’ve never met her so she can’t be that important to him.”

  “It doesn’t matter if she’s his girlfriend or not, he’s never going to see me as anything other than Brody’s little sister.”

  “Sav, I’ve seen how he looks at you. There were times when we were out that he couldn’t take his eyes off you. I know you never saw it, but it happened.”

  Her words surprised me. “If that’s true, then why didn’t he do something about it? He knows how I feel about him, and it’s too late now, girlfriend or not,” I said with a sad smile.

  “You’re pregnant, not dying. Plenty of men are happy to be with women who have children. You aren’t going to be on your own forever—you’re beautiful and deserve someone to love you.” She smiled reassuringly at me. “I don’t know why he’s holding back, but I’m sure that he is.”

  “Well he’s out on a date right now so he can’t be that bothered.” I wanted to believe what she was saying, and there had been times—even as recently as earlier that day—when I thought he might be interested, but now that I knew he was seeing someone, I was even more confused by his behavior. I was sure that as soon as the cottage was finished, I would go back to only seeing him when he came to the house to see Brody. I caught sight of Mason and Brody heading back to the table, drinks in their hands. “They’re coming back,” I said to Lib, gesturing with my head into the crowd. “Let’s talk later.”

  “Hey baby,” Mason said to Lib as he sat down next to her, pushing her drink toward her.

  “Hey, mind if me and Sav go dance?” she asked him, grinning over at me.

  He laughed. “No sweetheart, I know how much you love to dance.” She reached over and kissed him before taking my hand and pulling me onto the dance floor.

  “Stay where we can see you,” Brody shouted. I rolled my eyes at him and began moving my body to the music. It had been too long since I’d been out dancing with Lib.

  After dancing for a while, I was in desperate need of a drink and I motioned to Lib to head back to the boys. We had somehow managed to move into the middle of the dance floor and we had to fight our way through the crowd to get back to the table. Lib dropped into Mason’s lap, and after taking a swig of my drink, I shouted to Lib that I was heading to the restroom.

  After using the bathroom, I reapplied my lip gloss in the mirror before heading back out to the bar. It was even busier than before and I instinctively placed my hand on my stomach in an attempt to protect myself from getting knocked around. Stopping at the bar, I ordered another round of drinks, and as two bottles of Bud were put in front of me, I felt a warm body behind me and two hands grip my waist. I began to turn around, ready to give whoever was groping me an earful, when I felt breath on my neck and a voice whisper in my ear, “Do you need a hand with those?” I closed my eyes tightly and took in a deep breath when I recognized the voice. I spun around and the hands dropped from my waist.

  “Josh, what are you doing here? Where’s Beth?” I hated that I was going to have to spend the night watching him with some girl. He reached past me and gestured to the bartender for another two beers. Paying for the whole round, he passed me the bottles as he picked up the rest of the drinks.

  “In the bathroom,” he said, his eyes meeting mine. “I didn’t realize you’d be here, I just saw you at the bar. Where’s everyone else? Did Brody and Mason let you come to the bar on your own?”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “I’m 21 Josh—I don’t need anyone’s permission to use the bathroom and get a round of drinks. What exactly do you think is going to happen to me?” I asked incredulously. I watched as he shrugged his shoulders.

  “I wouldn’t let my girl wander around a crowded bar on her own. This place is full of jerks.”

  I let out a sarcastic laugh. “Well luckily for you, I’m not your girl. I don’t like being told what I can and can’t do.” I watched as the corners of his mouth pulled up with a smile.

  “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

  “Aren’t you letting your girl wander around a crowded bar on her own?” I held his gaze in challenge.

  “Beth’s in the bathroom, and I can see the door from here—and Savannah.” He stepped closer toward me, so close that his aftershave invaded my senses and my breathing hitched. “She’s not my girl,” he whispered in my ear. I quickly took a small step back, not wanting him to see how my body was reacting to his voice
. I didn’t get a chance to respond, as the prettiest girl I’d ever seen came up behind Josh and snaked her arm around his waist.

  “Hey babe, is one of those mine?” She gestured with her head to the bottles he was holding.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” I said, quickly disappearing into the crowd, praying he didn’t follow me.

  “Savannah.” I heard him shout behind me, but I didn’t stop. I didn’t want to see him with Beth. I wanted to get as far away from him as I could, as quickly as I could, and I planned on getting to Lib and spending the rest of the night on the dance floor.

  “Libby, can we dance? Now?” I asked as I reached them, dropping the drinks down heavily on the table. The conversation stopped, and Libby looked at me with wide eyes.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked, standing up and making her way to me.

  “Can we just go out on the dance floor?” I asked, quickly looking around in the hope that Josh wasn’t going to show up behind me.

  “Okay.” I watched as she glanced at Mason and Brody and shrugged her shoulders. She took my arm and guided me into the center of the dance floor. “What’s going on?” she shouted over the music.

  “Josh is here with Beth.”

  “Oh, do you want to go home?” she asked, giving me a sympathetic smile.

  “No!” I exclaimed. “I want to enjoy my night out. I can’t believe he’s here with her!”

  “Did he know we were coming here?”

  “Well…no, but we always come here.” I pouted, knowing I was being ridiculous but not able to stop myself.

  “Let’s just forget about him for now. Maybe he’ll go somewhere else if he knows you’re upset.” She paused and stopped dancing. “But if he doesn’t Sav, you’re going to have to face him. You can’t avoid him forever.” I nodded; I knew she was right, but I really didn’t want to spend the night watching him with a girl, and a gorgeous girl at that. He’d said at the bar that she wasn’t his girl, but I wondered if she was aware of that.