Make Me Forget

by Anna Brooks

  “Do you still think about the baby?”

  “Yeah.” He clears his throat. “I do. But I don’t feel anger anymore.”

  “What do you feel?”

  “Sad. I’ll see a little girl and wonder what my daughter would look like. If she’d be able to ride a bike yet or if she’d like princesses or sports.”

  “Do you still want to have kids?”

  “With you, yes.”

  I smile against him. “Yeah?”

  “Yeah, sweetheart. At least two. You?”

  I copy his words. “With you, yeah.”

  He kisses the top of my head and holds me a little tighter. I wrap my arm around him and close my eyes, hoping for a restless night’s sleep. I don't know how long the nightmares will last, but when he holds me, I know my dreams have come true.

  23

  Travis

  I slide my arm out from under Char’s sleeping head. Before I get up, I stare down at her beautiful face, and kick myself again for being an asshole last night. I wasn’t thinking when I got mad. I’m sick of her shutting down around me, but that’s no excuse to give her an ultimatum. Every time she tells me another horrible story about what that fucker did, I wish I’d done more damage.

  I grab my cell off the dresser and close the door behind me. Rummaging through my clean laundry, I pull out some running clothes. I’ve been so worried about her that I’ve skipped my regular workouts at the gym. Since she seems better now, I’ll settle for a run this morning so I can get back faster.

  I put my earbuds in and jog down the stairs. As soon as my feet hit the pavement, my mind clears and I run hard. Stress and tension leave my body as I push faster.

  A few miles later, I’m dripping with sweat when I get back to my apartment. Staring up at the brick building while I catch my breath, I know things have to change. I had the door on her condo replaced yesterday, and walking through it, I realized I’ve gotta get a house. Her place is smaller than mine is, and we need more space. She loves to paint those pictures; I’ll make sure she has her own room for that. And when we have kids, they’ll need a big yard to play in.

  “Hey.” Char smiles and meets me at the door with a kiss. “Ew, you’re all sweaty.”

  When she backs away, I take a step closer.

  “No. Don’t you dare.” She’s holding a spoon in front of her as a weapon.

  “You think that’s gonna keep me away?”

  “Yes. You wouldn’t dare risk getting spooned to death.”

  “Sounds kinky,” I laugh.

  “You’re such a perv.”

  I step closer and she runs away. “Ahh. Stop!”

  I chase her into the living room, and we end up on opposite sides of the coffee table, circling each other.

  “Get away from me!” Her voice is serious, but the goofy grin she’s wearing says otherwise.

  “Nope. Come here, I just want a hug.” I hold my arms out and fake right, before running left. She dodges me, but I graze her shirt with my fingers.

  “You’re all sweaty! And crazy!”

  “Crazy about you, baby.”

  “Oh, my God. That was lame.” Making a big show of it, she drops the spoon and holds up her hands. “Okay, I surrender.”

  I put my hands on my hips and tilt my head. “You do, huh?”

  “Yup. Now come get your hug.”

  Her eyes keep darting behind me toward the hallway, so I know she’s lying.

  “Nah, I’m gonna go take a shower. Wouldn’t want to get sweat on the princess.” I turn and leave her standing with her mouth agape.

  The steam leaves the shower for a brief moment when she enters, naked. Fake pout on her lips, she says, “What the hell? You were supposed to come hug me then I was going to dodge you and lock myself in the bedroom.”

  “I know.” I smile. “But don't you understand by now that a locked door won’t keep me from you?”

  She crosses her arms, causing her tits to smash together. My dick stands at attention, and her eyes dart down. She licks her lips. So fucking hot, she’s wet, feisty, mine.

  “Don’t you?” I repeat.

  “Yeah. But since you won that round, it’s my turn to be the victor.”

  She grips me, hard as steel, and slowly strokes from base to tip. I lean down the same time she leans up, and our tongues and lips collide. She’s slowly torturing me. I rock my hips a little faster in her hand, but she takes the other and pushes me against the wall.

  “Nope.” She smirks and drops to her knees.

  The first stroke of her tongue from my balls all the way to the leaky tip has me fighting to keep my eyes open. I want to watch her, want to see my dick disappear down her throat.

  Without taking me into her mouth all the way, she licks me like it’s a fucking sucker. Christ, everything she does is mind blowing. But this teasing shit has to stop.

  “Charlotte,” I growl, gently grabbing her hair. “You had your fun. Now open up for me.” She glares at me for a second before smiling. Then she complies, and I start to fuck her mouth. It’s fucking perfection. Like her lips were made to suck my dick.

  She adds her hand to the base and pumps along with my thrusts while massaging my balls with her delicate fingers.

  “Unless you want it in your mouth, baby, stop sucking and jack me off, I’m about to come.”

  I lean my head back against the cold tile and expect to feel the loss of her warmth around me. Instead, the suction increases, and I come straight down her throat. She’s still sucking even after she swallowed, and I have to force myself to pull back because it’s too fucking intense.

  “What the hell was that? Fuck, sweetheart.” I squat down in front of her and try to gently kiss her lips, but end up ravishing them instead.

  She moans into my mouth, and I know I have to take care of my girl. She gets turned on giving me blowjobs, and that was a killer one, so she’s probably soaked.

  I decide to tease her a little and wash her hair and her body first. She’s crossing her legs and biting her lip, obviously wanting something, but is reluctant to ask.

  I shut the water off after I wash myself and reach out to grab her a towel. Disappointment flashes in her eyes, and I shake my head a little, trying to hide the smile on my face.

  When she walks away, I come up behind her and throw her on the bed, face down, then grip her hips to position her so her knees are bent and her thighs are against her chest.

  She shrieks and tries to wriggle free. When I lift the towel to expose the perfection that is her ass, she stills. I pull her to the end of the bed and kneel on the floor for easier access. Gripping her ankles, I spread her legs a little wider, so I have a front row view of her glistening pussy. My mouth waters just looking at her. It’s my turn to be the victor.

  Charlotte

  Travis went back to work this morning. I wish he never had to leave. I loved being our old selves and hanging out all day yesterday. It’s really going to take getting used to the fact that he has to sleep at work. I got him back, and I want him all to myself, all the time. We had a copious amount of sex yesterday, and I still want more. I never realized how great it could be. It’s a whole other level. It’s ecstasy, heaven, home.

  I’ve tried to get ahold of Mary, but she doesn’t answer her phone. I’m worried about her, and even though I only knew her for a few hours, she probably saved my life. Who knows what would have happened if she hadn’t seen me in that alley. Plus, I really want to know what’s up with her and Brandon.

  I feel like shit for going against Travis’ wishes, but I know I’ll be fine. I tried to call him, but he didn’t answer. It’s not like I’m lying to him. I’m perfectly capable of driving on the interstate and walking to a door.

  I knock on the splintered wood and wait. Movement inside tells me she’s there, but after I knock again, she still doesn’t answer. “Mary, it’s Charlotte.”

  “Who?” she asks.

  “Charlotte. Umm, from the alley, remember?”

  “Oh. Hold on
.”

  Once she unlocks everything, the door opens, and I step inside. She peeks outside and quickly shuts it, replacing the locks.

  “What’s up?” She sits on the bed and crosses her long legs.

  “I, umm, tried to call you a few times, but you didn’t answer.” She stares at me, expressionless. “So, I just wanted to see if you were okay. And also to thank you for what you did that night.”

  “Oh. That. No worries.” She waves me off, and I sit opposite her.

  “Okay. How have you been?”

  “I’m fine. How’d everything go with Travis? He sure seemed happy to see you.”

  An automatic smile forms, and I gush, “Great. Perfect. Everything with him is wonderful now. We’re finally moving forward. Well, I’m the one who took forever; he’s been ready since I got back.” I tilt my head. “What about Brandon?”

  Her head seems to shake on its own accord. “Nope. Not going there. I’ll be honest with you. If you want a friend, you’ve got one. But I won’t talk about him. I won’t talk about my past, and he’s a huge part of it, so…”

  “Okay. I don’t really want to talk about my past, either.”

  “Good.”

  “Good.”

  We both laugh, and she stands up. Pulling on a pair of Nikes, she asks, “Want to go grab some food? I’m hungry.”

  “Sure, sounds great.”

  As we’re about to get in my car, a black sedan with tinted windows pulls up next to me.

  “Dammit,” Mary whispers.

  Brandon emerges and walks around his car, leaning on the passenger side door. I can’t deny how hot he is. A couple inches taller than Travis, but the same strong jawline and short hair. Dressed in black boots, black jeans, a black t-shirt, and a gun belt, I try my best not to stare.

  “Ladies,” he says. “Where you off to?” Even though he’s wearing aviators, I can tell he’s staring at Mary.

  “I’m getting some food with my friend. Is that okay with you?” Mary snaps at him over the top of my car on the passenger side.

  A very brief moment of disappointment flashes across his face before he answers, “I brought you lunch. Mom made your favorite.”

  “Tell her to stop. I don’t want your food, and I don’t want your pity. Char, let’s go.” She gets in the car, slams the door, crosses her arms, and looks out the window, away from Brandon.

  He runs his hands through his hair and blows out a frustrated breath before looking at me. “Hey, Charlotte.”

  “Hi.”

  “She doesn’t like me very much right now.”

  I laugh. “I gathered that. How are you?”

  “Been better. What about you?”

  That damn smile of mine comes back. “Good.”

  “Right. Well, I’ll see ya around. Tell Trav I said ‘hi’.”

  “Okay. And Brandon.”

  He raises his eyebrows.

  “I’m sure you can figure it out. She’s a really nice person, and I can tell she cares about you.” Her anger is fake. It’s the same way I treated Travis, and she looked at Brandon with such longing that I swear I see myself in her.

  “That’s the problem, Char. She cares way too fucking much.”

  I back out and give a wave before pulling onto the street. Mary gives me directions and when it’s quiet, I ask, “Why is he bringing you food?”

  “He thinks I’m too skinny.” Her laugh is irritated. “What kind of man tries to get a girl to eat more? It’s stupid. Every day he brings me lunch. Drives me nuts.”

  As I’m pulling into the restaurant parking lot, I look out my window and do a double take. No. It can’t be. I squint and lean over the steering wheel. My heart drops and bile rises in my throat. Mary follows my stare and gasps. Travis is standing by his car and has his arms wrapped around another woman.

  24

  Travis

  “It’s okay, Tanya.” I hug Tammy’s sister and try to console her. I’ve been avoiding this for a while now, but since I was in town, I decided seeing her was the right thing to do.

  “I still expect her to walk through the door. It’s been like eight years, Travis.” She wipes her eyes and backs up. “I’m really sorry to have bugged you. I just needed to talk to somebody.”

  “You can call me anytime. Don’t apologize.”

  “It’s the wedding. We always talked about being each other’s maid of honor, and I hate that she’s not here for this. When I have kids, they’ll never know their aunt.”

  Taking a deep breath, I try to make her feel better. Tanya was devastated when Tammy died. She blamed me for a long time, so it’s hard to forget all the shit she said to me.

  “I know. She talked to me about it, too. She loved you.”

  “Yeah,” she nods. “I’m really happy for you. Char sounds great.”

  I told Tanya about Charlotte over breakfast. I felt guilty at first, telling the sister of your dead ex-fiancée that you’re in love with someone else. But Tanya’s happy, too, and we both agreed that Tammy would want us to move on with our lives.

  “Can I see it?” she asks.

  “See what?”

  “The ring.”

  “Oh. Yeah, sure.” I open my car and pull the black velvet box out of the glove compartment. She takes it and pops the top.

  “Oh, Travis. It’s beautiful.” Turning the box to get a better angle, she admires it in every direction. The large square diamond shines in the sun. “This was your grandmother’s?”

  “Yeah. I had the stone replaced and added a couple smaller ones, but the band itself is.”

  I never even thought to give this ring to Tammy. It was a hard pill to swallow when I realized I was never really in love with her. Yeah, I loved her, but it’s not even in the same realm as what I feel for Char. I knew when I decided I was going to ask Char to marry me that I wanted to use this ring.

  “Wow. She’ll love it.” Tanya hands it back and sticks her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. “Well, I should go. Thanks again for meeting me, I really do feel better.”

  “Good. And good luck with your wedding and stuff.”

  She smiles, and I wait to leave until she’s in her car. Honking her horn as she pulls out, I stand there for a few minutes. The ring weighs about a thousand pounds in my pocket, and I can’t wait to give it to Char.

  The drive home is never ending. I feel like shit for telling Char I had to work today, but as soon as the jeweler called me and told me the ring was ready, I couldn’t wait. I pull into my parking spot and look around for her car, but don’t see it. Hopefully, she went shopping or something with Meara.

  When I open my door, the place feels empty. Calling for her, I get nothing but silence. I get to the bedroom and the emptiness of my apartment transfers to my heart. Her clothes are all gone and the drawers left open.

  I grab my phone and call her, but it goes right to voicemail. Something’s wrong. Rushing back to my car, I call Meara.

  “Yeah?” She picks up on the first ring.

  “Do you know where Char is?”

  “No. I haven’t talked to her since yesterday. Why?”

  “I came home and all her stuff is gone. She’s not answering her phone.” Dread begins to take form, and I press the gas pedal a little harder.

  “I’m alone at The Pub, but I can get someone to come in.” She’s panicking, too.

  “Let me check her place, and I’ll call you back.”

  I hang up and barely have my car in park before running to her door. Using the new keys I had made, I open her door and search, only to come up empty.

  “Fuck!” I shout.

  I run back to my car and head to the only other place I can think of.

  She has her arms around her knees and stares at the water. I breathe a sigh of relief and slowly walk toward her.

  “Hey, sweetheart.”

  Her spine straightens, but she doesn’t acknowledge me. I hop up and sit next to her.

  “What are you doing here?”

  Still ig
noring me, I set my hand on her back, but she scoots forward.

  “Char, what’s going on?”

  Her head shakes back and forth.

  “Did something happen?”

  “Just stop, okay? You don’t have to pretend anymore. I get it, alright?” Her voice leaves no room for argument.

  Fuck that. “Wanna clue me in here ‘cause I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  She whips her head around and shoots daggers at me. “I saw you.”

  “You saw me what?”

  “Don’t play games, Travis.”

  Irritation forms because I have no idea what the hell is going on.

  “I’m not playing games. I’m clueless here,” I admit.

  “I saw you. With that girl outside the restaurant.”

  Taken aback, it hits me.

  “In Chicago?”

  “Yeah. Why, is there more than one? Got a different girl in another city?” she snaps.

  “Why were you in Chicago?”

  “That doesn’t matter. What matters is I saw you with another woman. It’s fine. I figured it would happen eventually, you were too good to be true. Just go. I get it.” She turns her head back, and I laugh.

  “Oh, sweetheart, that wasn’t what it looked like.”

  Apparently she’s back to ignoring, because she doesn’t answer.

  “Char, look at me.” I lower my voice.

  She slowly turns her head, and I reach to wipe the tears that are now falling.

  “Don’t touch me.” She stands and backs away.

  “That was Tanya, Tammy’s sister.”

  Her lips part, but she doesn’t speak. I stand as well.

  “She’s been calling me to talk. She took Tammy’s death really hard and is getting married soon. She just needed to vent, and I listened. We gave each other a hug before we parted ways. That was it, I swear.”

  “It looked like more than that to me.”

  “Well, it wasn’t. I promise. Do you really think I’d cheat on you?”

  “No. I never thought you would. I trusted you. But what was I supposed to think? You had your arms wrapped around someone else.” She avoids my eyes and begins wringing her fingers in front of her. “I thought you were working anyways. You already lied about that. Why should I believe you?”