Running Away

by Jen Andrews

  All I could do was nod in agreement. My entire body was sore, my eyes were burning from the chlorine, and my lungs were on fire. I made my way over to Teagan to thank her as Adam sank under the water for the ring. Teagan had her sundress pulled up over her knees to keep it dry as she soaked her feet and legs in the cool water.

  I stood in front of her and rested my wet hands on the top of her knees. She took my hands in hers and turned them over, palm up. “Your hands look like raisins. Let me get you a towel so you can get out,” she said as she smiled down at me. She bent over and hugged me around the neck, so I wrapped my arms around her waist, and then realized I was getting her wet.

  “Sorry, I’m getting your dress wet,” I said to her and tried to pull away.

  She pulled back and combed my wet hair away from my face. “It’s only water. I won’t melt.” She kissed the scar below my hairline.

  I let go of her and put my palms on either side of her thighs and pushed up out of the water, completely drenching her in the process. I balanced on my hands with my legs still in the pool. I was now eye level with the prettiest woman at the house. I pressed my lips to hers right in front of every single person in my family and didn’t feel the slightest bit weird about it.

  Apparently, she thought it was funny because she was laughing with her lips pressed hard against mine. Teagan wrapped her arms and legs around me and squeezed tightly.

  I was glad she wasn’t mad at me for getting her all wet. Cammie would’ve thrown a hissy fit. That’s what I loved about Teagan. She was easy going, and didn’t give a crap that her dress was soaked, especially in front of people she’d only known for a few hours.

  She also didn’t seem to mind my PDA, which was cool too. Not that PDA’s were a big deal with my family because they all did it, even my parents. Nobody ever went overboard or anything, but they were affectionate toward their spouses.

  “Can I get everyone’s attention, please?” Adam called out from behind me.

  The girls stayed where they were, and my brothers, along with Andy, and my parents came to the pool with all the kids. I turned around to face Adam and rested against the wall of the pool in between Teagan’s knees. She placed her hands on my shoulders, leaving just enough room for me to kiss the ring on her right hand.

  Adam swam through the water then stood in front of Angie. He looked up at her and smiled. “Angie, this isn’t the way I planned on doing this, but plans change.” He glared over at me. Angie giggled then her eyes filled with tears as Adam said, “Angie, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life loving you. Will you marry me?”

  Adam held the diamond engagement ring up to her and waited for an answer. Angie held out her left hand, and Adam slid the ring on her finger.

  “Yes, Adam! Absolutely, yes!” She quickly emptied the pockets on her shorts, jumped into the pool, and threw her arms around him. “I love you so much, baby,” she cried as my family cheered around us.

  Teagan bent over, wrapped her arms around my shoulders, and kissed me on the side of the neck. I rested my cheek against hers. “Thank you for finding the ring, Teagan. You just saved my ass. I would’ve felt like shit if I ruined his surprise more than I already had.”

  I watched as Adam and Angie hugged while Angie checked out her new engagement ring. Adam glanced over at me, and the look of relief on his face made me feel better, but I still mouthed “I’m sorry” to him. He nodded once and smiled a big, toothy grin.

  Either he was forgiving me for tossing him in the pool and losing the ring temporarily, or that was a look letting me know revenge was coming. It could be either so I’d watch my back for the rest of the day.

  Adam and Angie got out of the pool, and the rest of my family went back to the table for dessert, but I stood right where I was, feeling more comfortable and happy than I had in a long time. Teagan might be a feisty little thing, but she made me feel . . . whole. She filled the missing piece of my heart and completed my life.

  Holy fuck, this is really happening to me. I wanted to embrace every second of this relationship with Teagan because inevitably, I would screw up. The way I’d lived my life before I met Teagan was biting me in the ass. The trouble Cammie was causing was only a taste of what could happen. If I’d only known I would meet someone like her eventually, I surely would have done things differently.

  “Hey, where’d you go just now?” Teagan asked softly. “You’re thinking about something awfully hard. Is everything okay?”

  I wanted to tell her what I was thinking, but the words wouldn’t come out. I opened my mouth twice to speak . . . and nothing . . . I’d spilled my guts to her the entire weekend, and now I was mute.

  I was scared shitless.

  Flat out scared I was going to lose this perfect woman because of the way I used to be—someone I no longer wanted to be.

  All I wanted was to be with Teagan.

  I stared down at the ring she’d put on my right hand for several long seconds, before realizing Teagan was in the water in front of me, still wearing her pretty, green sundress.

  “What are you doing?” I asked. “You’re getting your dress wet.”

  “It’s already wet, and you’re kind of scaring me. Please tell me what’s wrong.” Her emerald eyes searched my face for a hint. Her soft hands slid up my chest and she locked her fingers together behind my neck. “Do you want to leave? Are you ready for me to go home?”

  I shook my head and pulled her to me, wrapping my arms around her small body. “That’s the problem. I don’t want you to go . . . at all,” I said quietly as I rested my cheek against hers again. “I like having you with me at my house. I like you here with my family.” I took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Tomorrow’s Monday, and we both have to go back to work. I don’t want this weekend to be over.”

  “Jeremy, remember what we said yesterday? Remember the decisions we made?” She looked me in the eyes again. “I’m not changing my mind about us.” She pulled my right hand up out of the water and rubbed her finger over my ring. “This means we’re together, no matter what. When I’m at work, when I am away from you for whatever reason . . . we’re still together.”

  “I know. I’ve gotten used to having you around already. I like getting up every morning to go running with you . . . I like being with you.” God, I feel like a total bitch right now. “I want you to stay.”

  “What do you mean stay, Jeremy?”

  “Do you know that aside from the night when my friends and I got drunk and crashed at my house, the first night I spent there, was with you?” I asked. “The night I wasn’t at Dub’s was because I had been moving out of my apartment. The night you stayed, was the day I officially moved in.” I laughed when I remembered the morning after the garage arranging party. “Oh, and I forgot one other person has slept on my bed.”

  Teagan looked at me curiously and narrowed her eyes at me.

  “Don’t worry, it was John.”

  “Do I want to know that story?” she asked then laughed.

  I told her about finding his naked ass on my bed.

  “Do you guys party like that all the time?”

  “No, not anymore. Not for the last year or so, anyway. We only do the MMA nights now. That night was an exception. Like I said, I’m ready to settle down and be a grown-up now.”

  She seemed relieved then smiled at me. “You’re doing a good job of that too, by the way. New house, new girlfriend, and you’ve become a godfather. I’d say you’re well on your way to becoming a full-fledged grown up.”

  “Don’t make me toss you into the deep end, Red.”

  She feigned innocence and batted her dark eyelashes at me. “You wouldn’t. My hair would get all wet and I’d have to throw a fit and embarrass you in front of your family.”

  Knowing she couldn’t care less if her hair was wet, I picked her up and tossed her. She squealed as she flew through the air before splashing into the water. When she surfaced, she laughed and splashed me in the face.

  �
�Remember, Jeremy . . . payback’s a bitch.” She pulled the bottom of her dress out of the water and wiped away the makeup that was running down her face then laughed.

  Shit. She does get even. She proved that when I tossed her over my shoulder the other night and packed her out of Dub’s. Now I had to watch my back with her and Adam.

  Teagan swam up, slipped her arms around me, and kissed me quickly on the cheek.

  I heard the sound of someone coming up behind me. I turned and found Angie bringing two dessert plates. She set them down at the edge of the pool. “Thought you might want this before there’s none left.”

  I was opening my mouth to thank her and the next thing I knew, Teagan was yanking my freaking boxers down my legs. They were already past my knees before I realized what was going on. Angie was laughing, and my only option was to cover my dick with my hands so I didn’t give my brother’s new fiancée an eyeful.

  I thought Teagan was going to leave my boxers around my feet. But no, she grasped my ankles and yanked my feet out from under me, submerging me, and taking my boxers in the process. I stood and turned my back to Angie but kept my junk covered because now I was facing Teagan.

  I was fucking naked in the pool with my entire family within twenty feet. Perfect.

  Teagan laughed as she tried to run-swim to the pool steps with my boxers in her hand. Her waterlogged dress was making it hard for her to move across the pool quickly.

  “Teagan Shea Donnelly, if you don’t bring those back right now, you’re in big trouble,” I said through gritted teeth.

  “Adam, I have something for you!” she called out. She made it to the steps and tossed my boxers onto the patio at Adam’s feet before she sloshed out of the pool.

  He picked her up in his arms and swung her around a few times before setting her back on her feet. “Oh, Teagan . . .” Adam said enthusiastically, “I do believe I owe you big for this. Anytime you need a favor, you call me. I’ve got your back.”

  Since my spirited new girlfriend had forcefully unclothed me, I stepped back over to the side of the pool where Angie had set the dessert plates. I dug in to my dessert of whole strawberries with a side of fruit dip. It’s not like I could get out of the pool now.

  “Hey, handsome,” Teagan said as she approached with two beach towels. Her green dress, saturated with water, hung heavily on her small frame and dripped a trail of water behind her. Her long, wet, red hair was plastered to her shoulders and arms. “Did you lose something?” She sat down and dropped her feet back into the pool, then picked up her dessert plate.

  “Nope, I didn’t lose anything,” I said as I bit into a ripe strawberry. “Did you?”

  She set her plate on the patio and looked herself over. “No, I don’t seem to have lost anything. All of my clothes are still on.” She looked over the edge of the pool at me. “You definitely lost yours though.”

  “Can you please hand me a towel so I can get out and get dressed? I’ve been in the water too long.”

  “Are you mad at me for that?” Her smiled turned to a frown. She quickly picked up a towel and went to stand.

  I pulled her back down and held my hand out for the towel, which she handed over quickly. “No, but you have a slightly unfair advantage now,” I said with a smirk.

  I took my towel and walked to the steps to get out of the pool. I held the towel up as a shield so nobody would see anything, and wrapped it securely around my waist when I reached the top of the steps.

  Teagan met me there. “What do you mean by unfair advantage?”

  I moved in close to her so nobody could hear. “You’ve seen me naked, but I haven’t seen you naked. It’s just not fair.” My eyes roamed over her beautiful, fully covered body.

  Teagan burst out laughing and clapped her hands together in amusement. “Are you sure about that?” she whispered. “I seem to remember waking up in your clothes once, and I know I didn’t change into them myself.”

  I gripped her around the waist and pulled her close to me. I rested my cheek against hers, so my mouth was close to her ear. The closeness of being cheek to cheek with her was quickly becoming my favorite thing. “For your information, it was dark in the house that night and my eyes were closed the entire time I was helping your drunk-ass change into my clothes . . . so technically, I haven’t seen anything.”

  She pulled back and her eyes grew big with surprise. “You’re joking.”

  I shook my head. “Nope, I’m dead serious.”

  I picked up my boxers then tossed them onto the drying rack. I left Teagan standing there stunned as I gathered my shorts and T-shirt from the patio and went inside the house to dry off and put on my clothes. I was glad Adam hadn’t thought to hide them from me.

  When I came back out, I found Teagan sitting at the table with my family finishing her dessert. She’d brought mine back to the table with her, so I sat next to her and resumed eating. I looked around the table at my family and every single one of them had a smirk or a smile on their face.

  “What’s up, everyone?”

  When I glanced at my mom, my gut clenched because even though she had a smile on her face, the sudden uncertainty in her eyes had me second-guessing my abilities to be worthy of Teagan. My entire family thought I was a player with women and I’d never corrected them. Now I wished I had. Finally, I broke my silence. “I know what you’re all thinking . . . I’ve finally met my match, and I swear I’m gonna try my hardest to not ruin it.”

  Teagan glanced at me with hope and reassurance in her eyes then squeezed my thigh under the table. I reached down, took her hand in mine, and made a silent vow that I would never let her go.

  Later that night after we were back at my house sitting on the couch, trying to find something to watch on TV, Teagan took a breath to say something, and then changed her mind.

  After a few minutes, she still hadn’t said anything.

  “What’s wrong, Teagan?” I waited for her to tell me it was time for her to go home. I didn’t want to hear her say it . . . I didn’t want her to go.

  “Are you sure you aren’t mad at me for the boxer’s prank?” she asked quietly.

  I chuckled at the thought. “I’m not mad at you, but if you wanted to see me naked, all you had to do is ask.”

  She laughed and playfully smacked me on the arm. “What’s wrong then? Things got all weird after that. Even with your family, it just felt tense.”

  When she pulled back, I caught her hand and faced her. “There’s nothing to worry about with my family, okay? They loved you. I just don’t want you to go.”

  “I can stay another night,” she replied. “But why is my leaving freaking you out so badly?”

  “Because, the last two times you left my house, I didn’t think I’d ever see you again. Well, technically, the first time you left, you snuck out and ran away. And the next time, I thought you were gone for good because I saw my keys lying on the table,” I admitted.

  “I’m sorry . . . I really am. I was confused, and with all the crap going on with Cammie—I didn’t trust you. That doesn’t mean I didn’t have feelings for you, because I did. I came back because I needed to see if you were the same person I met that day in the ER, and then at Dub’s.”

  She scooted closer to me and moved onto my lap. I am being a pussy, but shit happens. The idea of her leaving and her friend Reese staying with her was unbearable. I knew he was gay, but he was still a guy, and I wouldn’t have her all to myself anymore.

  “When does your friend get into town?”

  “Tomorrow evening sometime. He’s on his way already, driving a U-Haul truck and towing his car all the way from Denver.”

  Fuck, that soon?

  “You know, we can all hang out together, right?” she asked. “He’s never been to California before, but since I have to work, he’ll be going to check out his new job and meet his coworkers. He has a lot of things to do until the apartment is ready to move in to next week.”

  “Okay,” I said. “I’ll do whatever
you want, as long as I don’t have to wait another week to see you.”

  She pressed her lips against mine. “I’ll miss you every second I’m away from you,” she said when she pulled away.

  I pulled her back to me and kissed her again. Our lips parted, our tongues tasted each other, and when I couldn’t hold back any longer, a groan involuntarily escaped me.

  Teagan let out a quiet giggle, and spun on my lap so she was straddling me. She was wearing one of my long T-shirts and it rode up her thighs. Feeling the heat between her legs through my shorts made me want to be inside her and I was horny as hell now.

  Obviously, she wanted the same thing, because she suddenly slipped her hand past the elastic waistband of my shorts and boxers to grasp my rock hard dick. Jesus, she went straight for the kill. There was nothing between her soft hand and my dick. It was skin on skin, and if I died right then, I would die happy.

  But, I didn’t want it this way with her . . . it had to be different. My mind tried to send that message to my dick, but my dick blocked the message. Does that mean my dick just mind-blocked me? Hmm, that’s a new one. Usually my mind does the blocking, not the other way around.

  Teagan slowly stroked me, and I let her. She abruptly let go of me and gripped the waistband of my shorts and my boxers to pull them down.

  It was just enough time for my mind to clear. “I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but we need to stop, Teagan.” I took hold of both of her hands and unhooked them from my shorts. I looked her in the eyes and she seemed a little hurt.

  “I don’t understand, Jeremy. Did I do something wrong?” The rejection in her eyes was obvious.

  “No, you could never do anything wrong. I don’t want our relationship to start out this way. I don’t want to mess things up, and I think if we go any further . . .” I trailed off, hoping this was making sense to her. “I want to do this right—and now is not the time for us to take things to that level.”

  She straddled me again and rested her arms across my shoulders. “Thank you, Jeremy.”