"Maybe I'm like Mom in more than one way. She went for an older man too." Talia nudged her dad with her shoulder.
"Hmmph. There're only five years between your mother and I. Not nine."
She scoffed. Right, four more years is the end of the world, isn't it?
"We're just friends, Dad. I was teasing you. Geez, lighten up!" Talia had to take a deep breath. She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice. While not friendly with Sean, her dad had remained calm today and they had to start somewhere. She didn't want to mess that up by pissing him off. Her dad hadn't warmed to Sean yet, but she hoped he would in time.
Their conversation trailed off when Zane and Sean came back. The two men were deep in conversation as they trekked back up the stairs with the last few boxes.
"I can only spare a couple hours. I need to be at Garden by about four."
"Yeah, well, maybe you should lay off the booze a bit. I mean, you do spend most of your time in a bar."
"Got bills to pay."
"Which would be easier if you didn't spend all your money on alcohol."
Sean just shook his head. But he was smiling, so he clearly didn't mind the teasing.
Talia couldn't keep the smile off her face, seeing Sean and Zane goof around. Her brother had never liked Caleb—was barely even polite to Caleb. But he got along great with Sean. Talia considered that a good sign. If only her dad would come around.
"Yeah, man, it would be great if you could help us get the bed and some of the other furniture up here. Leave the small boxes, I can get them myself. Some of my furniture is pretty big. I think the couch was the worst of it, though."
Talia's mom called to say she was on her way over. When the men left to pick up another load, Talia stayed behind to unpack and wait for her. That gave her some much-needed time to think.
Sean had been careful prior to today to keep his distance physically. A quick hug or a little hand-holding, he'd allow, but rarely anything more. Yet, if Zane hadn't walked in earlier Sean would have kissed her. And she had wanted him to, so much.
Her sigh was audible and filled with regret for the missed opportunity. The perfection of that first kiss stayed at the forefront of her mind. The lost chance at recreating it tormented her. All the time she'd spent with Sean over the past weeks only increased her desire to be with him. He wasn't perfect, but neither was she. He made her feel perfect, though, and after Caleb, she never thought she'd have that. He accepted her, flaws and all. Friendship would never be enough.
Sean and Zane stumbled through the door with a dresser and interrupted her thoughts. Talia hurried to unpack the box in front of her while the men went back downstairs. Shit, she'd spent so much time thinking about Sean she hadn't unpacked a single box. Her mom followed behind the men as they strong-armed the mattress up the stairs, a stack of pizzas in her arms.
Her mom sat the pizzas on the counter. Wrapping an arm around Talia, she leaned close to whisper in her ear. "Not interested, huh? Men don't carry heavy furniture for no reason. He likes you."
Talia couldn't tamp down the blush, but her lips curled into a smile. She prayed her mom was right.
Her mom stepped over and introduced herself to Sean. "Hi. We've never actually met. I'm Talia's mom, Helen. You're Sean, right?"
"Yes, ma'am."
Talia sighed in relief when her mom just patted him on the arm and handed him a soda and a slice of pizza.
With no dining room furniture moved yet, he headed into the living room with his food. Talia and her mom joined the men and put the rest of the pizzas on the coffee table. Sean started to rise and give up his seat, but Talia shoved him back down and sat on the arm of the chair.
"No point in you sitting in the floor. I can sit here. Stay where you are."
He smiled at her and leaned back to savor his pizza. Making quick work of that slice, Sean placed a hand on the small of her back and reached forward to grab another. His grazing touch set off a peal of giggles. Talia jerked away from him crying, "Oh, that tickled."
"I barely touched you. I was trying to make sure you didn't flip off the chair when I leaned up."
"Didn't you know that Talia is extremely ticklish?" Zane interjected with mischief in his voice.
"Shut up, Zane!" she snapped at her brother.
"He didn't know, did he? Well, well, what kind of brother would I be if I didn't tell him that you are ticklish all over, with the exception of, maybe your forehead?" The twinkling in his eyes only intensified when their mom elbowed him.
"The kind that lives to see tomorrow!" She threw a bit of pizza crust at her older brother. "Shut up!"
Zane slumped down on the couch between their parents laughing. Clutching his sides, Zane's hearty laugh filled the room.
Sean shifted back in the chair and Talia turned to him. His eyes narrowed, but he didn't say a word as he slowly finished his pizza.
"Just how ticklish are you?" he asked with a roguish grin.
"Don't you dare!" she squealed. He wouldn't! Would he?
With a loud snort, Sean tugged Talia into his lap with one big hand. His other rose to her side. When he brushed his fingers against her ribs, she shrieked and swatted at him, grabbing his neck to steady herself. She gasped for air before Sean stopped tickling her.
Chest heaving, she fought to move air into her oxygen-starved lungs. Resting her head on his shoulder, she didn't offer to get off his lap. Firm muscles beneath her shook as he laughed. He flexed his hand against her side and she let out another string of giggles in response. She tightened her grip on his neck and pulled his head down toward hers.
Sean's eyes met hers and she gasped at the longing in his eyes. Her tongue darted out to moisten her lips while his hand came up to tangle in her hair. With his breathing as ragged as hers, he moved his head closer.
"Alright, that's enough. Talia, get off that man's lap and behave yourself! What are you doing? You told me a few weeks back that he was nothing but an acquaintance."
Turning his glare on Sean, her dad growled, "And you lied to me. You told me that you weren't after my daughter and didn't even have her phone number. Well, obviously that was a lie since she's in your lap with your hands all over her. I told you to stay away from Talia."
Talia couldn't hold back the sigh. Another lost opportunity.
Sean threw his hands up in a gesture of surrender and straightened up away from her. "I didn't lie. That day, I had no more interest in Talia than any other man would with a beautiful woman. Yeah, I'd given it some thought, but brushed it off with her being too young. I didn't have her number, and that's the truth."
Hope blossomed at his wording. That day. As in, his words no longer applied.
"Daddy, I'd tried to give him my number and he refused to take it. I didn't get him to take my number until the night of Karly's party. I spent half the evening talking to him, instead of hanging out with Karly, Zane and the others."
Sam ground out, "And yet you are still sitting on his lap. Get. Up. Talia." He enunciated every single syllable through clenched teeth. His face reddened, further proof of his anger.
She pulled herself up from Sean's lap to perch on the arm of his chair. "Daddy, Sean and I are just friends. Why are you being so unreasonable about this?"
"I can see in his eyes that he's interested in you, Talia, and not as friends. I know when a man is about to kiss a woman. And that man was about to kiss you!" His work-worn hand slapped down on the coffee table to emphasize his point.
"Well, he was the one who ended our one and only kiss. He shoved me away and said we couldn't see each other. Which kind of contradicts your point, Daddy."
Sean whispered her name. Probably trying to get her to hush, but she needed to clear the air with her father. This antagonism against Sean had gone on long enough. "Daddy, I've been the one pursuing him. Not the other way around. So, if you want to yell at someone, yell at me! Sean's been nothing but a gentleman to me. Cut him some slack, will you, please?"
Her mom spoke up and
told them both to hush. "Sean has been nothing but polite that I have seen, Sam. You're being a little harsh. All they were doing is goofing around a little, no harm done. And Talia, I didn't raise you to speak so disrespectfully to your father. Both of you need to calm down."
"I don't want to cause any trouble, so I'm just going to go. I have to get over to the club soon anyway," Sean's deep voice rumbled. He eased up from the chair, taking care not to knock Talia off the arm where she still perched. "Do you need a ride?" She shook her head no. "I'll call you later then," he whispered to her, squeezing her hand before he left.
"I don't want you around him, Talia. I want better for you than a damn bartender. Let me introduce you to the new kid I hired. He seems like a good guy."
She found it somewhat amusing that a bartender failed to be good enough, but a construction worker was. Neither was a bad job, but her dad's logic made no sense.
"Daddy, no. Thanks, but no. I'm not interested in meeting anyone right now," Talia said, sinking into the chair Sean had vacated.
"You seem interested in him though." Her father's retort made the word him sound like a slur.
"I am. It's no secret. He knows it, you know it. He isn't interested in getting involved with me though, so it's not going anywhere."
"He most definitely is interested in you. Even a damn blind man could see that. Talia, that man is not right for you."
Tired of fighting, Talia asked, "Mom, can I borrow your car? I rode over with Sean and I just really can't do this anymore." She needed a nice, long soak in the tub.
Sean called her from the club later that night. Glad that she had left it within reach, she answered the phone with a lazy voice. The relaxing scent of her bubble bath and the hot water eased the tension from her muscles.
"Hey, sweetheart, is your daddy still on the warpath?"
"Sean! I'm glad you called. I honestly don't know about Daddy. I borrowed Mom's car and left Zane's a few minutes after you did. I assume he's calmed down. He started talking about introducing me to some new guy at his work and I took off."
Sean didn't say anything for a minute. The thump of the bass coming through the phone told her that he hadn't hung up. When he spoke, his voice sounded odd to her ears, but she couldn't place why. "He wants to hook you up with someone?"
"Yeah, some guy he works with. He got pissed when I said I wasn't interested and that's when I left. I don't even know who this guy is, but I know I don't want to meet him."
"Why not? Don't you want your daddy to pick your dates for you?"
"No, I don't." Talia laughed. "If you have to know, there's someone else I'm into right now. But he's stubborn and thinks he isn't good enough for me, even though I'm not anything special."
"Talia…"
"Look, Sean, it's getting late. Do you want to hang out tomorrow? I don't have to work. Can you believe it, a short shift on Saturday and Sunday off?"
"Sure. You want me to pick you up?"
"I'll just come over. Say about noon? Or is that too early?"
"Noon is fine. I'll make sure I'm up. And Talia, you are more special than you know." He ended the call before she could respond. His last comment left her sinking down into the bubbles with a broad smile on her face.
Chapter Twenty
Pounding noises pulled Sean from his sleep. He stumbled to the door, pulling a T-shirt over his head as he went. Still half asleep, he opened it. Talia stood there smiling at him and he felt his lips turn up in response. Noon was too fucking early.
"You look worn out. Didn't you get much sleep?" Talia asked as he stepped back to let her in.
"Couldn't get my mind to shut off long enough to really fall asleep. When I did doze off, I tossed and turned. It's okay. The club is closed tonight, so I'll get to bed early."
"I could just go..."
"No. Stay. Please." Yeah, he was exhausted. But he damn well wanted to see her. He'd tossed and turned all night thinking about her. She's the reason he'd needed a cold shower at five this morning after a particularly realistic dream.
"What did you have in mind for today?" Stretching his arms, his T-shirt tightened across his chest. Talia's eyes widened at his motions. The tip of her little tongue peeked out to moisten her lips. She glanced up at his face. He winked at her and she turned pink. How far down would that blush go? Unfortunately, her shirt wasn't low-cut enough for him to find out. Too fucking bad, really.
He stretched again, to toy with her.
When he repeated the question, the pink in her cheeks deepened. "Well, Claire and some friends are getting together at her place to watch some movies. She invited us, if you want to go. If not, that's cool. We can come up with something else."
Hang out with a bunch of college kids? Wasn't exactly what he had in mind, but whatever. He'd suck it up and deal for a couple hours. "Can we get something to eat first? I just got up and I'm starved."
"Oh, I haven't eaten either. I counted on you not eating yet, actually," Talia responded with a big smile. "How's Japanese sound?"
The noisy restaurant, and a couple glasses of soda, helped him wake up and feel more like a man and less like a zombie. When they got out of the car at Claire's, Talia slid her soft little hand into his and peeked up at him shyly. He shouldn't encourage her. The memory of her pressed against him at the waterfall still tormented him. Holding her hand was only the tip of the iceberg of what he wanted to do with Talia. He wanted to back her up against a wall and kiss her for all he was worth. But he didn't. Because he shouldn't want any of that. They were just friends, and friends didn't do that.
When they went in, Talia released his hand and he felt the loss. She introduced him to half a dozen people whose names he would never remember. Sean enjoyed seeing Talia relax and interact with her friends. She'd never mentioned any of them but Claire, so he doubted she'd mind if he forgot someone's name.
Claire's apartment looked to be bigger than his, but was filled with people. Seating was in short supply, so Sean stretched out on his stomach on the floor. He wasn't surprised when Talia propped herself against him and settled in to watch the movie. Exhaustion took its toll and not long after the opening credits he was fast asleep.
He woke to a very insistent hard-on. Talia lay pressed up alongside him. His legs had entangled with hers. And her ass—Lord, that ass—was snug against him like they were made for each other. He suppressed a groan. He lay still for a moment to judge if she had noticed him throbbing between her ass cheeks. But her slow and steady breathing told him she was asleep. Thank God.
Her friends' voices cut through his drowsiness. "What do you think she sees in that guy?" That one question made it clear they were talking about him and Talia. He didn't know what she saw in him either, but his days of saying no to her were nearing the end. All of the hand-holding and snuggling and goodbye hugs, with her tits smashed against his chest. He didn't know if he could take much more of this.
Talia's muscles tightened when she woke. Her breathing quickened. Ah, she must have heard some of their comments. Yup, she was angry. He ran his hand up her arm soothingly. When she felt the tension in his arms loosen, she bolted upright like a shot.
Chapter Twenty-one
Sean had dozed off pretty early into the movie and Talia'd grabbed one of the blankets Claire had gotten out to cover him. Spreading the fleece over him, she crawled under the blanket with him seeking out his body heat. Claire liked to keep her apartment ice cold. Talia always froze there. He mumbled when she slipped in beside him, but didn't wake up. His arm came around her and held her close. Talia sighed before snuggling into his hold. She didn't make it to the halfway point of the movie before she drifted off herself, warm and cozy against Sean.
When Talia woke, Sean's big body engulfed her. Warm breath ruffled her hair with each breath he took. The tension in his muscles concerned her. Before she could ask what was wrong, she heard one of her friend's voices.
"Have you ever had a 'friend' that you cuddled with like that?"
Claire resp
onded, "Nope, sure haven't. I can't blame her for not wanting to actually date him though. Why would she date this guy after dating Caleb? Caleb was so hot. I mean, he's kinda cute and all, but as big as he is, I'd be a little afraid of him. He's gotta be at least six-six, right? He totally towers over her."
"I'd be afraid he'd crush me or something. You know… during 'stuff'." The other girl giggled.
Claire snorted. "I'm curious to know if he's at least proportionate. But, yeah, dating a guy that much bigger than me would have me nervous. Lord, if he ever took a swing at her, he'd kill her. Did you see the size of his hands?"
The tautness in Sean's muscles told Talia that he was awake and listening. Listening to her friends talk about them and put him down... put her down.
She bolted up to confront her so-called friends. "Maybe 'she' likes that he's nothing like Caleb! Maybe his being nothing like Caleb is a good thing—a very good thing. Caleb was cute, yes. He was also a controlling ass who treated me like something he'd stepped in and then made me believe that it was my fault."
Claire sat there staring with a hand over her mouth, acting like Talia's speech shocked her. That bitch.
Stopping to take a couple deep breaths, she paused for a moment before yelling again. "God, Claire, you know what Caleb put me through and how he made me feel. You, of all people, should know I'd want something, or someone, completely different. Here's a crazy thought, but maybe I like having someone treat me like I am special. Like I matter."
Someone hit pause on the movie as she became the entertainment. "And as far as Sean's size goes, it is not any of your damned business. I will say this, he's given me more satisfaction than Caleb ever managed. If you think Caleb is so perfect, you can have him and his tiny little dick. He's lousy in bed, but hey, he's popular and that's what matters isn't it? Not his character, not how he treats his girlfriend, but damn, he's pretty. Fuck you, Claire. Fuck all of you."
Sean's Sweetheart Page 7
