Worth the Wait

by Rhonda Laurel

  Wyatt watched as she sped down the street and made a right turn at the corner. This wasn’t how he’d planned to spend the evening. Seeing Avery in the same vicinity as that jerk Riley was like a gut punch. He hated to admit it, but he could see the appeal a guy like that might have for her. He was in danger of losing her.

  His cell phone pinged. Bo and Summer were home. He dashed back to the building and hopped on the elevator. He was suddenly exhausted, but he knew if he bailed on Bo tonight, his brother would just make plans for another dinner date to discuss Wyatt’s future.

  “Wyatt!” Summer hugged him as he soon as he came into the living room. “How’s my favorite college student?”

  “Summer, you look beautiful. I see newlywed life has been good for both of you.” She positively glowed. Bo came into the room and had the same peaceful look about him.

  “Very good.” Bo winked. “Babe, Wyatt and I will set the table.”

  “OK. Wyatt, I hope you’re in the mood for beef ribs.”

  “Do you have my special barbecue sauce?”

  “The kind that makes your eyes bleed? Yes.” Summer laughed and went into the kitchen.

  Bo placed the silverware on the table. “I talked to Corbett today. He sounds like he’s holding up well under the circumstances.”

  “For now.” Wyatt rubbed the back of his neck. “Corbett’s like a dormant volcano. One day all of this will come erupting out of the blue and there will be major collateral damage.”

  “Ah. Well, we’re his brothers. We’ll be there for him when it happens.”

  “I know he’s in pain, but I won’t miss Courtney. She was a nightmare. I can’t believe she said those things to Anna Beth at the wedding reception.”

  “It was a jealous knee jerk reaction,” Bo said.

  Wyatt looked at him.

  “She wanted Corbett’s undivided attention and she tolerated him being polite to the women in the family that were hitched. There was no competition. But women like Anna Beth and Parker were another story.”

  “She didn’t pull that crap on Parker.”

  “Parker carries a gun.” Bo laughed. “Much to J.J. and Sam’s dismay.”

  Summer came back and put the salad on the table. “I think we should do something for him. He’s stopped the plans for the house; maybe we can find another way to cheer him up.”

  “That’s a great idea.” Bo put his arm around her waist and kissed her.

  “If you expect me to keep my dinner down, cut out the newlywed crap.” Wyatt shook his head.

  Bo and Wyatt went into the kitchen and retrieved the beef ribs and veggies. As soon as he plopped into a chair, Bo started up again. “Let’s get to the matter at hand. Your future. I have some ideas.”

  “Bo, I—”

  “Wyatt,” Summer interrupted as she sat down too. “Bo and I had a long talk, and he’s agreed that he may have been putting some pressure on you about your career aspirations. So, he has a proposal for you.”

  “I’d like you to spend some time at Blake Enterprises. We all do something different for the company and you get to see if anything catches your eye.”

  Wyatt smirked. “The only thing that catches my eye at Blake Enterprises is Anna Beth, but I’ve been told she was off limits.”

  “You better not let Avery hear you say that.” Summer squinted at him.

  The same Avery who’d he’d just seen buddying up to Riley Sloane. He gripped his fork. “I doubt that she cares. She’s too busy being cordial to your new building neighbor, Riley.”

  “Riley isn’t stupid. He knows what Seth said about Avery,” Bo replied.

  “Someone should give him a refresher course,” he grumbled.

  Summer made eyes at Bo. “Sounds like someone is jealous.”

  “I’m not jealous. I’m just disappointed she’d fall for that knuckle-dragger’s act.”

  “Maybe you should give her something else to focus on.”

  “Speaking of focus,” Bo said before Wyatt could reply. “I think spending time at Blake Enterprises with your big brother would be just what you need to kick-start that imagination of yours. What do you say?”

  “Of course. I’d like that.”

  Wyatt hoped that gesture was enough to appease Bo for a while.

  * * *

  Avery had been home only a few days and had seen every relative that lived in a twenty-mile radius of her parents’ home. The news had continued to spread about her acceptance to medical school, and there was no short supply of well-wishers. She’d dropped by the precinct to surprise her dad when she’d arrived in town and was mortified at how he boasted about his baby girl’s career goals. She knew they were proud of her, but it embarrassed her when her mom and dad gushed about her future plans.

  One of the things she loved about coming home lately was that she was now being treated like an adult. She was included in conversations with the family that had previously been considered grown folk’s talk. No more being sent from the room if her mom was gabbing something sensitive. It felt good to know her transition from teen to adult was being acknowledged by the family in that subtle way.

  She did, however, receive a mixed reception on the blonde streak. Friends and family reacted to it like she’d chopped all her hair off and colored it purple. That was the thing about being the responsible staple in everyone’s life—there was just no room to grow.

  After visiting a few friends, her grandparents, and Great-Grandma Reed, she was ready for some quality time with her mom. They’d had a wonderful day at the farmer’s market. There was something therapeutic about unearthing vegetables with her bare hands. She’d watched her mom all day and she could finally see the resemblance between them. They had the same height and stature. Now they were preparing food for the gathering the family was having tomorrow in her honor at her grand parents’ house.

  “We have enough food here to feed an army. Do we really need fifty ears of corn for the cookout?” Avery quipped.

  “Your grandfather loves grilling vegetables, especially corn.”

  “Grandma and Grandpa aren’t going through any trouble with the cookout tomorrow, are they?”

  “Not at all. You know your grandfather doesn’t need an excuse to fire up the grill.”

  “John Jacob is the same way. Grilling is mandatory on Sundays.”

  Her mom laughed gently and threw a glance her way. “How are your classes going?”

  “Good,” Avery said while shucking corn. “I couldn’t have asked for a better schedule. I get to help out at the animal shelter and I put in some hours at Reed Bradley.”

  “You’re not spreading yourself too thin, right? It is your last year. You could, dare I say it, slack off a bit.”

  “I’m fine. I hang out with a few friends. I even had enough time to turn in my proposal for the Blake Foundation animal rescue program to Aunt Morgan and keep an eye on my wayward parents.” She smiled.

  “Your dad told me how you helped him plan my birthday surprise.”

  “It was all him. I just organized the great ideas he had.”

  “Well, thanks. We haven’t had such a fun, romantic time in ages.”

  “No thanks necessary as long as I don’t get a new baby brother or sister out of it. Not that you would want to at your age.” She flashed her mother a cheesy grin.

  Alicia put her hand on her hip. “I’ll have you know I can still have a baby at my age. It’s not impossible.”

  “But why would you want to? You’re so close to the finish line.”

  “There’s no finish line with parents when it comes to their children. This is just a second phase of worry that’s a little less stressful than the first.”

  “Still, it’s got to be a relief you don’t have to do this again.” She giggled. “Why didn’t the two of you have more children?”

  “Because we had you and you were perfection.”

  “Mom.” She rolled her eyes.

  She didn’t mind being an only child. After all, it came with
many perks. She never fought for her parents’ attention or had to share any toys. And she got everything she’d ever wanted. There were the occasional bouts of loneliness, but she had plenty of friends and cousins. The Reed extended family was huge. Great-Grandma Reed had siblings who had lots of offspring, so you couldn’t turn a corner without bumping into a third or a fourth cousin. But still, with all the love they had to give, her parents didn’t have another child.

  Alicia stopped shucking the corn. “Actually, you should have had another sibling.”

  “What?”

  “I got pregnant again when you were two, but I miscarried.”

  “Really?” She gulped. “I don’t remember you being pregnant.”

  “How could you? You were two years old.”

  “Oh, Mom.” Avery got up and hugged her mother. “Why didn’t you tell me about this before?”

  “It never came up.” Alicia stroked her hair. “Besides I didn’t want to dwell on what could have been. We were thankful for the healthy baby girl we had who was born perfect with ten fingers and ten toes and those bright curious eyes. Now she’s all grown up and beautiful and becoming a doctor.”

  “I couldn’t ask for better parents.” She sniffed. “I thanked Aunt Morgan again for all she and Uncle Seth have done for my education. I know it’s saved you and dad a lot of financial headaches.”

  “It did.” Alicia patted her cheek. “Your dad and I can retire a little earlier if we want. But I do have other plans for the money, like paying for your wedding one day. We did spend some of it though.”

  “On what? A boat? No, wait. Remodeling the house?”

  “No, we donated money to a college scholarship program. We hope to do for another person what your aunt and uncle and his family did for you.”

  “That’s great, Mom.”

  “Now,” Alicia said and dabbed at her eyes. “Let’s talk about this hair streak.”

  “Good grief. I thought I was being fun and whimsical.”

  “I know my child. Whimsical for you is reorganizing your closet. This is symptomatic of something else.”

  “Well, I did just bust my hump completing a four-year curriculum in three years.”

  “Expected. You’ve always thrived on academic pressure. What other excuses do you have?”

  Leave it to her mom to see the symbolism in coloring her hair. That streak meant she’d thrown caution to the wind, or so she thought. It was fun doing something that wasn’t expected of her. There’d been a rush of excitement when she did it.

  “Mom. Can we talk?”

  “I thought we were.” Alicia gave her a knowing look.

  “I mean, about something personal. But I—” The words wouldn’t come out.

  “It has been my experience that if you can’t talk about it, maybe you shouldn’t be doing whatever it is you plan on doing.”

  “I almost had sex with Wyatt.” She bit her lip.

  “Define, almost.” Alicia went to the fridge and got out a bottle of wine and a pitcher of lemonade.

  Avery watched as her mom took a seat on the stool next to the kitchen island and poured the wine and set it in front of herself. She then poured Avery the glass of lemonade and handed it to her.

  “It happened at Uncle Bo’s wedding. We were in the middle of an argument and then the next thing you know we were touching and kissing and for a moment I felt like I was ready. I told him I was a virgin and he stopped. I mean he had condoms and everything, but he stopped anyway and said he was taking me back to the party. He did a total about-face like he didn’t want me anymore.”

  Alicia sipped her wine again. “How did you feel about it?”

  “I’m a little pissed. He’s been dodging me ever since.”

  “I was talking about Wyatt and almost being intimate with him. You two have been friends for three years. How do you feel about Wyatt?”

  This wasn’t going at all like she’d imagined. She thought by now she’d be peeling her mom off the ceiling or she’d be sending her to her room without supper.

  “I like him, a lot. I know he comes off as a slacker who likes to party, but there’s a side he doesn’t show many people. He’s funny, sweet, and much smarter than he shows. It’s like he doesn’t want anyone to have high expectations of him so he flies below the radar of mediocrity.”

  “And he’s easy on the eyes,” Alicia quipped.

  She blushed. “Being handsome doesn’t hurt.”

  “Wyatt is a nice young man. I’ve enjoyed watching the two of you blossom as young people. Your dad, not so much.”

  “Dad just grunts whenever I mention his name, but he recently paid him a compliment.”

  “He has to keep up pretenses. If he gives any inkling he likes Wyatt, he thinks it means he’s losing his touch.” Her mom chuckled and she swirled the wine around in the glass. “I like Wyatt.”

  “So you’re not opposed to me having sex?”

  “I’m not opposed to you being intimate as long as you’re being responsible and you’re mentally ready for it. I’m happy that things slowed down, no matter whose idea it was to stop. This is going to change you and you’ll remember that moment for the rest of your life. Don’t let it be filled with rash decisions because of a raging libido.”

  Avery had dreamed of her first time for the longest and she did want it to be special.

  “Do you think we could go over birth control options? I want to be prepared when I’m ready to take that next step.”

  “We can do that. I’ll see if the doctor can fit you in before you head back.”

  “Thanks for being so understanding. Aunt Morgan said you would be.” She hugged her mother.

  “Morgan and I have done a lot of girl talk over the years. I’m glad you have her and Isabelle to talk to in Texas.”

  “Do you think dad will think differently of me when he hears about this?”

  “Your dad knows you’re not a kid anymore. He won’t be thrilled, but he’ll sleep better knowing you’re being responsible and safe.”

  Just then, Robert entered the kitchen and put two bags of groceries on the counter.

  “How are my ladies? Can I get in on the hugging?”

  “Of course.” She hugged her dad.

  “So what’s going on?”

  “We were just having a little girl talk.” Alicia rubbed his cheek.

  “I have something for the two of you.” Avery walked over to the chair and rifled through her purse. “It’s a little early, but I wanted to give you enough time to prepare for it.”

  Alicia raised an eyebrow. “What did you do?”

  Avery handed them a large embossed envelope with an anchor logo on it. “Happy anniversary.”

  “This must have cost a fortune,” Robert said.

  “It didn’t break my piggy bank. Theresa got me a really good deal.”

  “What are we going to do for ten days?” her mother said.

  “We’ll think of something.” Robert smirked as he continued to peruse the papers.

  “Wow.” Avery shook her head and held up the brochure, pointing to the venues on the ship. “There’s a casino on board and tons of activities. And you’re going to dock at least three times.”

  “Wait a minute. This cruise is the week of your birthday,” Alicia said.

  She shrugged. “So is your anniversary.”

  “We always spend your birthday together.”

  “Well, I thought this year I would do something with friends. Parker and I made plans. Besides, I got a better rate on the trip for that week. Anything later would have been five hundred dollars more.” She bit her lip hoping she didn’t bite it off. She hated lying to her parents.

  “Oh.” Robert nodded his head. “There’s nothing wrong with being frugal. Good job.”

  “Are you excited about this?”

  “Yes.” Alicia gave her a kiss on the cheek. “This was so generous of you. Thank you, baby.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  They went back to prepping th
e food for tomorrow’s party. Avery smiled as her mom and dad bantered and prattled on about their upcoming trip. She’d saved all summer for the ten-day Caribbean cruise. The look on her parents’ faces as they read the documents made her feel good. She was also happy she’d taken her Aunt Morgan’s advice and talked to her mother. Learning she’d almost had a sibling was a shocker, but it all made sense why they doted on her.

  The party the next day went well. It was always good to see Great-Grandma Reed. Charisma looked happier than Avery had ever seen her. Derek didn’t leave her side for a moment during the party. She loved spending time with them. They were the new occasional tenants at Seth and Morgan’s guesthouse. Charisma was in Texas more often on business with Jared, and Derek joined her whenever he could. She’d even had dinner with them a few times when they’d visited Texas together. It was amazing how finding the right person had done wonders for her cousin.

  Later that night she sent Wyatt a text message to check up on him. He was getting ready to go spend the day at Blake Enterprises with his brother. She told him to wear his blue shirt that looked great on him with a pair of slacks. Bo would be surprised that he’d made the effort to dress business casual. They could have texted for hours, but she knew he needed his sleep. Hopefully he’d get a sense of direction tomorrow. She bid him goodnight and sent a hugging emoji. He sent back a kissing emoji.

  * * *

  When Bo texted him a list of other places he should visit to get ideas about possible careers, Wyatt thought he was joking. In addition to visiting his brother at Blake Enterprises, he’d be spending time at NuWave Gaming, Reed Bradley Books, Tomcats Stadium, Cassidy’s law firm, Tate’s recording studio, and with Tyler’s pit crew. But he didn’t get why doing extra work around the ranch would help in his decision making process. He said that was Bo Sr.’s idea. A hard day’s work would help clear the brain.

  Wyatt arrived on time to Blake Enterprises, anxious to get on with the day. Anna Beth informed him that Bo had come into the office earlier than usual to help clear up a problem he’d discovered the afternoon before. There was a discrepancy with the budget for a huge project that was rolling out, and Bo had everyone there bright and early to figure out where the money had gone.