“My parents hated him. They were big into being descendants of the Texas Republic and all that jazz. I don’t know if you know this, but I come from one of the richest families in Jupiter.”
“All six families that live there?” May asked, obviously making fun of the tiny hometown Amber was from.
“Hush. Well, anyway, they complained a lot about my dating him.” She shrugged. “We didn’t let it bother us. We were still sweethearts in high school, and he took me to prom. A couple of weeks before prom, we made a pact that we were going to have sex for the first time on prom night. My mom had a long talk with me about John not being right for me as I was getting ready for prom, and she reminded me that if I married him before I was twenty-one, I’d forfeit my trust fund.”
“Did you care?” May asked.
Amber shook her head. “Not really. But she also talked to me about sex, which is never a comfortable discussion with your mother. Anyway, we were crowned king and queen, which I expected, but after prom, I couldn’t go to the hotel with him. I don’t know why, but suddenly it didn’t feel right.”
“You were what? Seventeen?” May asked. “That’s really young, and I don’t care if everyone is doing it at that age.”
Amber nodded. “He had just turned eighteen, but I was still seventeen. Anyway, I told him I wasn’t ready, and he took me home. It was obvious he was mad, and he apologized before I got out of the car, but I was furious with him for trying to push me.”
May nodded. “And you stormed off?”
“Worse. I told him I was done with him, and I ran into the house. I started dating his worst enemy, a boy my mom had been pushing me to date for years, the very next day. I didn’t even like him.”
May closed her eyes. “I do understand. Was John your ghost yesterday?”
Amber nodded. “Yeah, but there’s more to the story. I found out yesterday that Brian, John’s enemy, went to him at school on Monday—so, two days later—and told him how good I was in bed, and they got into a fight. John said at the moment he believed it, but later he knew better. He immediately started dating this girl I couldn’t stand who was known for putting out. Her name was Kayla. It wasn’t long before I heard Kayla was pregnant, and it broke my heart.”
May shook her head. “Did he marry her? Is he still married?”
“Yes, he married her, and no, Kayla ran off shortly after Nicki was born. But in the meantime, I almost married Brian. On our wedding day, I went to the church and broke it off. I couldn’t marry him. It would have freed up my trust fund money, which was really the only reason I was marrying him, but I couldn’t marry anyone else when I knew I still loved John.” Amber ate another chip slowly. “Brian came to the church with Karen, my best friend. He told me they’d been sleeping together the whole time we’d been dating. He had a trust fund situation like mine and just wanted his money free so he could do whatever he wanted, which was be with Karen forever. But he was there to break it off with me as well. Neither of us wanted to marry the other.”
“Sounds like a twisted situation.”
Amber nodded. “It was. And a lot of it was my fault. Anyway, Brian and Karen left the church, were hit by a train and killed. Rumors flew in every direction. I heard they were going to be filming a new drama in Wiggieville, and I went to a walk-on audition, expecting to get a tiny part. I was cast as MaryBeth. I haven’t seen my parents since.”
“But Jupiter is like thirty miles from here!”
“I know. They were furious with me. Brian’s mother blamed me for the wreck, and my mom and Brian’s mom were close.” Amber shook her head. “I have no desire to go back to that world.”
“So what’s going on with John?” Valerie asked.
Amber took a deep breath. “As you know, I went out with him last night. He said Nicki would be there, but he had her spend the night with his mom at the last minute. We talked, and he talked me into three dates. He thinks he can convince me that we still love each other in three dates.”
“Can he?” May asked softly.
“I don’t know!” Amber’s voice was almost a wail. “I don’t know what to do. He touches my hand, and I can feel it all through my body.”
“Did he kiss you?” Valerie asked.
Amber nodded slowly. “He did. And it was just like it always was. One kiss and I’m ready to strip and do anything he wants.”
May made a face. “Did you ever sleep with Brian?”
“Of course not! He made my skin crawl. I thought about it, as a way to get back at John when I heard he was married to Kayla, but I couldn’t go through with it.”
“And John wants to date you now? And you still have feelings for him?” Valerie asked.
Amber shrugged. “I know he’s the only man I’ll ever love. I think I knew it even when we broke it off on prom night. Nicki said he has a picture of us from ‘prob’ in his bedroom at home.”
May leaned back in her chair, her hand going to her stomach to rub it, even though it wasn’t yet obvious she was pregnant. “How do you feel about getting back together?”
“I don’t know! I love him, but I’m so scared he’s going to break my heart again! I told him I wouldn’t date him unless Nicki was allowed to come along, so he agreed to that.”
Valerie smiled at Amber. “You’ve loved him all this time. I know you have. I think you need to see what happens. Give him a chance.”
Amber looked at Valerie. “I’m scared. I don’t know if I can survive having my heart broken by him again.”
Valerie reached out and covered Amber’s hand with hers. “He’s not going to break your heart again. It sounds like he reacted predictably, and you flew off the handle, which caused a chain reaction. You dated Brian the idiot, and he dated Kayla the sleaze bucket. You both got hurt. Can you handle dealing with Nicki, knowing she’s Kayla’s child?”
“That doesn’t bother me. She’s also part of John. She’s the cutest little thing. I was worried she watched our show, and I asked, but she said Sesame Street was more her thing.”
May laughed. “Sounds like a sweet kid.”
“She really is. I want to keep her forever.”
“Enough to trust John with your heart?” May asked.
“No idea.”
“You know that I didn’t trust Bob when I married him, right? I couldn’t believe he saw something in me that he thought was worth marrying, and I turned him down over and over.”
Amber made a face. “But you married him within a week of meeting him!”
“He proposed within hours.” May shook her head. “I had to remind myself that I believe in love. I had to get up the courage to grab the brass ring and live my life, opening myself to love. It was hard, but I did it, and you know how much in love Bob and I are.”
Amber rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I heard all your mushiness the night of the Emmys.”
“It didn’t kill you!”
“Maybe not, but I’m sure I’m scarred for life!”
Valerie grinned at Amber. “I think our situation was the opposite, because I didn’t know I loved Jesse, but he knew he loved me. He put everything on the line to get me to marry him, and I’m so glad he did. I don’t know that I’d have had the guts to stay away from Curtis otherwise.”
All three of them knew that Curtis had abused her and later kidnapped her sister. He was currently serving time in a maximum security prison and wouldn’t be out for a very long while. “How’s Rikki?” May asked, seemingly out of the blue.
Valerie sighed. “My sister's doing better now that we have her settled in Culpepper. She’s working for the bakery that I told you about, and she’s staying with a widow during the time that Jesse and I are away. She can’t stay by herself without getting scared yet. I know she’ll eventually get over it, but she’s refusing to continue with therapy. She said she needs to become stronger.”
“She’s probably right.” Amber had only met Rikki once, and that had been the night she’d been rescued from her kidnapper. She was a sweet girl
, and Amber wished she had a magic wand to just make her better.
The girl that brought their food sneered at May. “I hear you’re pregnant.” She slammed down their plates.
May nodded. “Yes, I am. How are you, Tiffani? You look tired.”
“We don’t all sit around all day, doing whatever we want!” Tiffani said, turning away from them.
“Who was that?” Amber asked.
May sighed. “We’re talking about your ghosts. We’ll save mine for later.”
Amber looked between her friends. “So you both think I should go for it?” She decided to wait until May was ready to talk about the rude server. She’d seen the girl many times before, but she’d only ever been nice, so she wasn’t certain what the problem was now.
Valerie nodded. “Give him a chance. Pretend you just met him and start over. Don’t hold the past against him.”
May nodded. “I agree. I think it was all a set of mistakes by both of you. Don’t give up on love because of something that happened when you were seventeen. I want you to be happy.”
“You don’t think I’m happy?” Amber asked.
May shook her head. “I knew you weren’t happy the first time I met you. It was always obvious there was something you weren’t telling people, and I guess that something is named John.”
Amber sighed. “I guess I should give him a chance. I don’t know what I’ll do when he breaks my heart though.”
“He’s not going to break your heart this time. If you go into it assuming he will, it’s only going to make you miserable. I know it’s hard, but you have to give him a fair chance. Pretend you just got out of high school, and you didn’t break up at prom. What would be your next step with him?”
Amber laughed. “I’d marry him on the spot, of course. Partially to annoy my mother, and partially because I still love him as much as I ever did.”
“What about the whole trust fund thing?” Valerie asked. “Not that you need it.”
Amber shook her head. “Now that I’m over twenty-one, I have access to it whenever I’m ready. I haven’t asked for access though, because I don’t need it.”
“Of course you don’t.” Valerie took a bite of her taco. “Baby boy sure does love tacos.”
May grinned, patting her own belly. “Baby Bob likes tacos too. I don’t think I’ll eat anything else for at least seven months.”
“Please don’t name that baby Bobbette,” Valerie pleaded. “I can’t imagine that would be good for anyone.”
May shrugged. “If he names her Bobbette, I’ll just call her Bobbi. Won’t hurt a thing.”
Amber shook her head. “And if it’s a boy?”
“We’ll name him Robert and call him Bobby. You know Bob. He loves the idea of having a Little Bob running around.”
Valerie sighed. “Bobbi or Bobby will be very loved by both parents. I guess that’s all that really matters.”
“I could name him Bucky, and it wouldn’t matter,” May agreed. “He or she will be loved.”
“I just hate the idea of Bob winning!” Amber exclaimed. “He seems to always get what he wants.”
“Sad, isn’t it?” May asked with a grin, taking a bite of her taco. “I needed this so badly!”
“You both had tacos on Friday!”
“And last night,” May and Valerie said together, and they all dissolved into giggles.
“You two are going to make me crazy. Who said you could both be pregnant at the same time?”
May shrugged. “I don’t recall asking. We’re both happy, though, so I guess you should rejoice with us.”
“I do. I just…I’m jealous.”
Valerie put down her taco and leaned toward Amber. “Stop being jealous. You have a chance at a future with the only man you’ve ever loved. Seize the day! Take your happiness in your own hands and make it happen! If you don’t, I’m going to let May write a love story for you!”
May made a face. “No one can stop me once I have it in my brain to write about someone. I might kill you off in a book if you don’t at least try to be happy with John.”
Amber laughed. “Like you’d kill someone in a book.”
May looked around her before leaning forward and whispering, “Let me tell you how I killed off that mean waitress who brought us our food!”
Chapter 4
Amber had been back in her trailer for less than an hour when her cell phone rang. She looked at the display and closed her eyes, not wanting to have the conversation that was about to take place. “Hi, Mother.”
“Amber, when do you have time off from your little job?”
Amber plopped down on the couch, putting her feet up on her coffee table, only because she knew it would annoy her mother. “From my little job? I’m an actress, and I just won an Emmy. It’s called time off from filming.”
“Fine! When do you have time off from filming?”
“Not this week, but next.” Amber hoped her mother didn’t think she’d get to see her.
“I thought we could host a little welcome home party for you.”
“Why would I need a welcome home party? I’m not coming home!”
“You were seen having dinner with that awful boy you dated in high school. The one who followed the path of his parents and got his girlfriend pregnant.”
Amber sighed. “I had dinner with John. So what?”
“Well, I’m sure that means you’ll be marrying him. When you marry him, you’ll move back to Jupiter.”
Amber blinked, trying to follow her mother’s reasoning. “And why would I do that?”
“Because that’s where he lives. He’s training horses outside of town.”
“Why are you keeping up with his life? You hate him.”
It was her mother’s turn to sigh. “I don’t hate him, Amber. I just don’t think he’s good enough for you.”
“Well, your opinion ceased to matter five years ago. No, I don’t want a welcome home party. I’m not marrying John. I’m just going out with him.”
“You know he’s divorced, don’t you?”
“I do know that. I know he’s free to date me again. You have nothing to do with any of it.”
“Fine. Don’t think you’re getting your trust fund when you marry him.”
Amber shook her head. “Mother, if you had any idea what I make, you wouldn’t be mentioning the trust fund. Please, let me live my life.” She knew as well as her mother that she could have had it any time after turning twenty-one. Her mother had no control over it any longer.
“I’ve done the best I knew to do with you. Please, come home for a visit.” Her mother’s voice sounded small, and Amber almost caved, but she knew the experience would be a disaster. Her mother was a master of manipulation.
“I’ll come see you when I’m ready, but I need to decide what I’m going to do about John first—without your interference.” Her feelings were confusing enough without adding in her mother’s nonsense!
“When have I ever interfered?”
“Goodbye, Mother.”
There was a dramatic sigh. “Goodbye, Amber.”
Amber put her phone down beside her and leaned her head back against the couch. A year ago, a call like that would have had her running to Valerie and pouring her heart out. It was harder now that Valerie and Jesse had finally married.
It wasn’t that Amber was sad her friend was happy. She was thrilled for her. She just wished things were still the same between them. They couldn’t be, and she understood that, but she missed the way their friendship had been.
Her phone rang against. “What now, Mother?” she asked as she answered.
There was a pause. “It’s John. I wanted to see if you would like to go on a picnic with Nicki and me this evening? We could ride down to the river like we used to.”
“I have a feeling it will be nothing like it used to be,” Amber said without thinking. She hadn’t meant to be so flirtatious, but the words came out before she could stop them.
He chuckled.
“Probably not with Nicki around, but I could find her a sitter.”
“No, I want her to be there with us. I want her to know how important she is.” She thought about her schedule for the next day. Her first scene was early, but they wouldn’t stay out too late with Nicki anyway, she was sure. “I have to be in by eight or so. I have a sunrise scene to film in the morning, which means I need to be up by four.”
“That’s no problem. I’ll pack a picnic. Do you want me to come get you? Or do you want to drive out here?”
Amber thought about it for a moment. “Come get me if you would. Do you know where the set is?” She had no desire to be alone anywhere close to Jupiter. If she happened to run into her mother and John was there, nothing would be said. If she was alone, she wasn’t sure what would happen.
“I do. I’ll see you at five. Does that work?”
“Works fine. See you then.”
She stared down at her phone for a moment, smiling. She was going on another date with John in a little more than an hour. He had the means to mess up her life, but as her friends had said, he had the means to make her happy too. She was going to let things happen as they would. She couldn’t snub her nose at happiness again.
John looked down at Nicki and gave her a thumbs up. “We’re going to pick Amber up in an hour. Let’s go to the grocery store and get picnic stuff.”
“Can we use the real picnic basket?” she asked, bouncing up and down excitedly.
The picnic basket had been a gift from his mother for Christmas one year, and it had never been used for anything but teddy bear picnics. “Yeah, get the picnic basket.”
She hurried off to grab the basket while he got his car keys. She ran back to him, taking his hand. “Let’s go, Daddy. I want Amber to be my new mama.”
“I know you do, precious. I want her to be your new mama too.”
“Do you think we can make it happen?”
He shrugged. “We can only try.”
They stopped at the grocery store and got what they needed before making the drive to the set. It was only a fifteen-minute drive from his ranch, and he’d driven past more times than he could count over the last four years, hoping to see her out filming, or doing anything really. He had caught her on horseback a few times, but he’d always just driven on, not feeling like she was ready for him to come back into her life.
Lying Love (Lazy Love Book 3) Page 4
