Love Redone

by Peyton Reeser

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  They’d gone off on a driving adventure, which helped lift Shannon’s spirits considerably. She loved early September in Southern California. People joked that L.A. only had two seasons, green and brown, but that was an exaggeration in her mind or evidence that people really didn’t slow down and smell the roses very much anymore.

  They cruised up the coastal highway with the satellite radio providing classic rock-n-roll music while Shannon rolled down the window of his behemoth SUV and joked that all that the luxury vehicle needed to be perfect was a convertible roof. Nick teased her by saying maybe Santa would bring her a shiny red convertible for Christmas as she laughed with abandon.

  They stopped at a cute outdoor café well north of Malibu that offered umbrella-covered tables and a view of the Pacific Ocean that was worth the outrageous price of the organic fare on the menu.

  Nobody could enjoy a burger quite the way Shannon did, so Nick ordered up a feast of toppings and side dishes and then sat back and relished her enjoyment of their lunch. She was awfully damn cute as she tried to manage the over-loaded burger in her delicate hands and they laughed together each time catsup squirted or half the lettuce, tomatoes or avocado slices slide from the bun.

  It was mid-afternoon when they made their way back to the canyon where Shannon lived. The smell of late summer sage hung in the air and a sense of well-being sank into each of them. This day, so far, was a check mark in the win column.

  They hadn’t been back in the house for very long when the doorbell sounded. Shannon had been making her way from the bathroom after having insisted on using the crutches instead of Nick’s arms while Nick was standing in the middle of the living room, remote control in hand, engrossed in whatever sporting event he’d channel surfed to when the bell pierced their solitude.

  Raising an eyebrow at her as she appeared in the living room, he asked, “Expecting somebody?” before he tossed the remote down and headed to answer the door.

  She called after him, “Actually, no. I can’t imagine who’d come by out of the blue.” With that, she hobbled further into the living area and plunked down onto a wing chair that offered ample view of the door as Nick pulled the heavy wood door wide.

  A clamor of laughter and good cheer followed as Ned and Dominic stepped over the threshold, followed by a worried-looking Jules, who had toddler Amy cradled against her chest. After a quick bro-hug, Ned swept right past his brother-in-law and headed to Shannon’s side as Domenic literally flung himself onto Nick’s legs, which he bear-hugged with all the abandon a rambunctious six-year-old could muster while he cried, “Uncle Nicky, I’ve missed you!”

  Laughing, Jules stopped for a quick brother-sister peck on the cheek, telling Nick, “He’s been rattling on and on about the light saber you gave him for his birthday. Thanks a lot, big brother! The darn thing makes the most annoying noise. I suppose you did that on purpose though, right?” Jules laughed as she, too, then headed for Shannon’s side. Smiling affectionately at her friend, Jules added, “I’m thinking next year will be a Star Wars party, Shannon! You up for it?”

  A little embarrassed, Shannon didn’t know what to say at first. This was new territory for her, the first time she had the reality of Nick and his family in her face. That the family was one she was friends with made the entire scenario a bit surreal.

  Ned jumped in and distracted Shannon with questions about her condition and recovery with the focused precision one would expect from a lawyer as Jules sank to the end of the sofa nearby, cradling Amy while she babbled contentedly in her mother’s embrace. Just like the last few hours with Nick, it all felt so normal and easy.

  Finally Shannon laughed and suggested that Ned calm down since she wasn’t going to be suing them for her injuries, which brought a round of laughter from the three of them. Yes, Shannon thought, I really like these people.

  Ned, Jules, and Shannon jumped into conversation then, a debrief of Dom’s party, with Jules putting Shannon’s mind at ease over having missed most of the affair by showing her pictures on her cell phone of memorable moments that happened throughout the day. Satisfied that Dominic’s party had been a success, Shannon lifted her eyes to the little boy she liked so much and found him engaged in some heavy-looking guy talk with his uncle.

  As if sensing her attention, Dom’s little head snapped up at her smiling face and came running toward her. “Shanny, Shanny, thank you sooooooooo much for the cowboy day!” he cheered launching himself into a hug. “You’re the bestest ever!” he gushed with total little-boy sincerity.

  A beaming Shannon hugged him back and kissed him all over his face and then set him back saying, “Now there! You have stinky cowgirl kisses all over your face! Yuck!” as they all laughed together.

  “Nah, Shanny, it’s just Amy with the gooey baby kisses that are yuck,” Dom said in all seriousness. “You can kiss me anytime you want!”

  At that his mother leaned in, ruffled his hair, and said, “And there my friends is the Barrett-Stevens charm in all its glory!”

  Jules fixed her brother with a laughing grin, declaring, “You might have a bit of competition going on here, Nicky!”

  Hearing that, Dom slid from Shannon’s hug and scampered back to his uncle’s side. “I want Shanny to be my girlfriend, Uncle Nicky, but Mom and Dad say that you lost something or Shanny took something…dunno which, but that you were gonna problee’ marry each other. I won’t mind if she can still be my girlfriend,” he baldly declared.

  The whole room got eerily silent. Thinking he could diffuse the sudden tension in the room, Nick cleared his throat as he knelt down casually by Dom’s side and asked, “What did your parents say got lost, Dom, hmmm?”

  He expected the answer to be something silly or befitting a six-year-old, but what he got instead was the earnest-faced boy reverently whispering, “Your heart” with wide, serious eyes.

  “They say you lost your heart or that Shanny took it. I don’t know what they mean, Uncle Nicky, but it’ll be okay. Just ask Shanny for it back and I’m sure she’ll make it better. She’s the bestest ever. Swear!”

  Was that the sound of a pin dropping? Shannon couldn’t be sure because all she was aware of after that was the way Nick’s glittering eyes pinned her to the spot and held on for long moments. She couldn’t have looked away if her life depended on it.

  Nobody moved.

  Ned looked at his wife with uncertain eyes.

  Jules gasped at her son’s words as she turned toward Shannon.

  Several long moments passed as the precocious six-year old effortlessly switched to a barrage of comments about his light saber as Shannon and Nick continued to search each other’s eyes. He marked each emotion that crossed her face.

  Taking an endlessly chattering Dom by the hand, Nick moved over to the seating area where everyone else was relaxing and sat down next to Jules on the sofa. As Nick watched his favorite nephew with unabashed delight, Dom stumbled over his uncle’s long legs to reach his mom and little sister, where he proceeded to quietly baby-talk to little Amy the same way Nick had probably once done for his baby sister. Nick’s heart flooded with love for Jules and her brood. What she and Ned had was exactly what he was hoping for with Shannon. The sight of the sister he adored, happily teasing the husband who worshipped her, and their two small children, tightened Nick’s chest.

  After a bit, Jules asked Nick, “Do you know if Mom is home yet? I called and left a message but haven’t heard anything back. Aunt Lizbeth sent a picture in an email the other day showing Mom looking like a deranged brown mummy all bound up in a spa mud wrap. It was hilarious! I’ll forward it to you, Nicky. You have them checking out another health resort, don’t you?”

  Ned chortled at the description of his mother-in-law as a mummy. “I read over the contracts your office sent last week, bro, and your mom will be well-pleased to hear that the Sedona spa is on pace to open with quite the splash next spring. Everything is in order, but I’ll send Jason from my personal te
am to meet the spa coordinator in the next few weeks.”

  “Thanks, dude. You have no idea how convenient it is that my little sister married the best damn lawyer on the planet! And doesn’t hurt that I know where all your skeletons are buried, Stewart,” he added theatrically.

  Both men laughed at that while Jules muttered something about how there better not be any skeletons.

  “Shannon needs to be back east for a family occasion next week, so we’ll be flying out together in a few days. We’ll stop in New York first so I can clear more of my schedule, and then I thought we’d head to Connecticut for a few days with Alanna before continuing up to Boston for Shannon’s family reunion.”

  Shannon, who had been enjoying the easy repartee between the three, sat there stunned for a moment when she learned that Nick had simply taken over once he’d learned that she would have to be in Boston next weekend. She shouldn’t have been surprised, since this was essentially what the Nick she had known and loved would do. There was a situation and he did what he always had, simply stepped in and put plans in place. This was something she’d have to get used to, a thought that let her know that in her heart, plans for the future were already a done deal.

  “Oh, Nicky, Shannon! How marvelous!” Jules cried. “You’ll love the white house, Shannon. It’s practically perfect in every way. We had the best childhood there.”

  “Ummm…the white house?” Shannon asked, clearly confused. “Surely you aren’t talking 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, right?”

  Jules laughed, as did Nick and Ned. “Oh my, nothing quite so glamorous, Shannon!” she exclaimed in delight. “You’ll see, though. The white house is a lot like every other home in the neighborhood, but there is something really special about it. Picture your standard colonial with dark blue shutters and climbing rose vines that cover the single story addition Dad had built. Really, the house is every kid’s dream and parents’ wish. There’s a basketball hoop down the driveway up against the garage and a tree house in the backyard that looks like it came out of Architectural Digest. Nicky, you must show Shannon the tree house when you’re there!”

  “I remember that tree house,” Ned chimed in. “Isn’t that where we kept a crappy old box of ancient Playboys?”

  Jules groaned. “Daddy! Ixnay on the aboyplay,” she hissed while making the not in front of the kids face. Ned laughed and pressed a quieting kiss on his wife’s lips.

  “Calm down, Mommy,” he said while nodding his head toward his son. “Young Master Stevens is blissfully ignoring the adults in the room as he quietly instructs his little sister how to stick her tongue out.”

  Once again, laughter returned to the conversation as they sat for the next hour passing the baby around the group for quick snuggles and kisses while they chatted about everything from Ned’s current obsession with one of the reality singing shows to Shannon’s laugh-inducing awkwardness using the crutches; Jules’s annoyance with Dom’s first-grade teacher over something stupid and insignificant and Nick’s admission that he actually hated surfing and couldn’t believe he’d even vaguely entertained the notion that this was something he wanted to do while on vacation.

  It was a pleasant gathering, with Shannon deeply touched by how quickly and easily Nick’s sister and best friend accepted her undeniable presence in his life. Hell, they more than accepted it. Ned and Jules seemed all but giddy at the prospect that she and Nick were somehow a couple. Shannon had to admit that the prospect made her giddy as well. She couldn’t help but wonder if this was what happily ever after felt like.

  When the Stevens clan left to head home and get dinner ready for the kiddies, Shannon and Nick had stood hand-in-hand saying good-bye to their guests like an old married couple. A hundred more bricks from her wall of isolation and loneliness fell away.

  It had indeed turned out to be a very good day. Their dinner, this time on the veranda, had been perfect. He’d set votive candles in small glasses all around the natural wood table she’d just had added to the outdoor setting. Shannon had loved the rustic look and feel of it, and now, her favorite outdoor hideaway was shimmering with soft candles and a colorful riot of brightly colored pillows arranged on the long, carved backbench along the massive table.

  He’d obviously discovered the strands of tiny twinkle lights strewn throughout the tress that shrouded the patio from view. The effect of the glittering lights and flickering candles, the aroma of grilling meat, and the presence of a somewhat-rakish twinkle in Nick’s eyes, Shannon knew she was on borrowed time as far as being able to count on his sense of control was concerned.

  “What can I do to help, Nick?” she asked as he guided her gently to the cushion-stacked bench, keeping his hand resting at her waist in case her steps faltered as she gingerly moved on her injured foot.

  “Oh no, Shannon, you just relax and let me do all the work. I’m a man of many talents, remember?” He laughed with a comical wink while placing an apron fashioned from a bar towel around his hips.

  The sight of him with that makeshift apron placed oh-so-strategically across his groin, while he was wearing a pair of jeans that made her mind melt, hiked the temperature up a few degrees on the patio.

  He was trying to charm her, and she was letting him lead the show. This was what scared her the most, that she not only was letting him but that deep inside she was aglow under his attention and secretly thrilled in her female heart of hearts that this colossus of a man, her gentle giant, was focused totally on her.

  It had been a long, eventful day, which they discussed over another splendid meal. They also made their way through an entire bottle of a heady Merlot that Shannon found a bit too relaxing. The subtle influence of the alcohol seemed to turn off all her filters and defensive habits while intense feelings of pleasure and arousal worked their way into her system. Not only did the temperature rise on that patio as they lingered over their meal, so did the humidity as the sultry moistness gathering in her core made its presence known.

  When it was time to head back inside for the night, Shannon lurched around on the inelegant crutches, bringing Nick to her side in case she needed assistance. Staying close, he reached around her shoulder to push aside the French door when she suddenly stopped short, stranding him in place lest he continue forward and thump her back.

  Whipping her head and upper torso around, she fixed him with a bold gaze, reached back with one hand gripping his chin, and guided them both to a mind-blowing kiss.

  His hand never left its grip on the door, and he did everything he could not to spin her toward him, molding her voluptuous curves against his mighty profile, deepening the kiss until she was melting in his arms.

  It was reason that kept him in place, letting her play out whatever she was comfortable with. The powerful skills of a serious business tycoon helped him keep his baser instincts in check. This was clearly not about him or what he wanted. No, this was about letting her come to him on her own terms and in whatever way was necessary for that bond they’d shared so long ago to be reformed. Like a flame that had gone out, it must now be reignited or both of them would simply perish from the endless, empty ache left by the other’s absence.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  He let her lead the kiss and allowed her to pull away when she was ready. The look of smoldering sensuality on her face as they separated lit up Nick’s soul. He licked his lips, savoring the aftermath, and smiled in male approval when her eyes flared while watching his tongue smooth over his hungry mouth.

  With a slight grunt that sounded like equal parts satisfaction and frustration, Nick swung Shannon up into his steady arms, making her crutches go crashing to the patio floor. Kicking them away, he strode forward, his eyes barely leaving hers, before ending at the sofa where he lowered her slowly as he leaned in and stole a heart-pounding kiss that was as quick and sexy as a wet kiss with plenty of tongue action could be.

  While Nick cleared dinner away, Shannon found a movie for them to watch, which turned out to be a little bit too much in the way o
f a ladies rom com than most guys could sit through. She let him struggle through half the movie, laughing in her head at how he was so clearly taking one for the team, sitting there pretending to be interested in the god-awful film.

  She found it amusing, the lengths he was willing to go in order to let Shannon think she was making all the decisions. My god, men were so dense at times, she thought. It wasn’t deciding what their entertainment choices would be that got women worked up. It was the Me Tarzan, You Jane approach where all the big stuff got handled without female input that drove her crazy.

  Eventually she let him off the hook after she’d had enough amusement at his long-suffering expense. Sending him off to the kitchen to make microwave popcorn, Shannon checked the channel guide and switched on a baseball game, which she knew would hold his attention much better than a group of women discussing men and relationships, no matter how funny the dialogue was.

  When Nick returned a few minutes later with a huge bowl heaped with hot buttered popcorn, he tried to get her to change the channel back to the movie in some weirdly modern show of chivalry that made Shannon laugh.

  “Oh, so you were enjoying the movie?” she queried with raised eyebrows and a humorous smirk.

  “Uh, sure,” he replied. “It was, um…well written, and I like that actress with the accent.” Shannon all but fell over giggling at that. The entire cast had accents that ranged from English to Spanish to Indian. He was cute as hell when he was trying to placate her.

  She popped a few kernels of buttery popcorn delight into her mouth and, with a deceptively innocent delivery, asked what part of the movie he liked the most so far. When he couldn’t answer right away, Shannon burst out laughing and grabbed his shirt, pulling him forward to share a salty, buttered kiss. “Nice try, but no points!” She giggled at his shocked but pleased expression. “We’ll save the dripping-water-torture chick flick for the next time you act like a typical man and need a quick apology intervention!”