Love Unclaimed

by Jennifer Benson

  “Uncle Gavin! Uncle Gavin, you are here!” Eva jumped out of her mother’s arms and swam to the end of the pool.

  “Eva, wait, you are all wet!” Audree gasped, as her soaking wet daughter jumped at Gavin, who was standing near the pool in his thousand dollar suit.

  “Not a problem.” Gavin swung a towel out from behind his back and opened it up to catch Eva just before her wet body hit him.

  “You’d think you’d been a boy scout; always prepared,” Audree said as she swam to the end of the pool, keeping her eyes on him until she reached the steps. She knew Gavin’s eyes were on her, even though they were hidden behind his dark sunglasses. With Eva in his arms, he had no choice but to stand there and hold her while she jabbered about who knows what. Because Audree had stopped listening to her, she was occupied with teasing Gavin.

  Audree pretended not to hear the low growl escape from Gavin as she stepped out of the water and squeezed the water from her hair. She made the short walk to the chair holding her towel last as long as possible. Once she lifted the towel to her face, she kept her back to him so he wouldn’t see the satisfied smile on her face. She knew she had driven him out of his mind before she wrapped the towel around her body. Although she would have given anything to see the look on his face, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of letting him know that the show she put on was for him.

  “Hey, man.” Travis' voice carried from the direction of the house. “We didn’t expect you until tomorrow.” He handed Audree a glass of what looked like iced tea and gave Eva a juice box, before he leaned into his brother with his empty arm for a “guy hug”, since Gavin was still holding Eva in the other arm.

  “I’m going to take Eva in to change and get something to eat.” Audree adjusted her towel around her hips and reached out for Eva’s hand.

  “Momma, can Uncle Gavin get something to eat, too?” She pulled down on Audree’s arm and waved her hand for Audree to lean down. “I heard his belly growl so I know he’s hungry.” Eva giggled. Audree had to hold back her own laugh, knowing that it wasn’t his belly that was growling.

  “Why don’t you go over and ask him and Uncle Travis to join us for lunch on the deck,” Audree whispered. “We’ll meet you all up at the house.” She adjusted her towel again, not that it needed it, but she knew it caught Gavin’s attention again. Eva ran back over to them and Gavin glanced up at Audree as he nodded down at Eva before she ran back over to her Mother. She forced herself not to turn back around as she and Eva made their way up to the back door of the house.

  ***

  A year after she graduated college with her business degree, a year behind schedule because of her two semesters off after Eva was born, Audree sat down with her parents and told them her hopes for the family farm. Eva had just turned four when Audree’s dream for the horse ranch was completed and in full-time use.

  After four years away at college, Clint had decided he still didn’t know what to do with his life and wasn’t ready to return to the farm yet. With two of his buddies from school, he’d joined the Marines and had apparently found his niche in life. He had spent the past eight years in the Marine Corps, and was well on his way to becoming a career Marine. Clint wasn’t going to be able to take care of the farm for the foreseeable future, so he had agreed to Audree’s plans. As long as his house was there for him when he retired, he had been good with the transformation.

  Mr. Montgomery and Trudy’s father had been trying to buy the Edwards’ land for years. Audree’s family farm sat nicely in between both of the other farms and was twice the size of the farms that sat on either side of it. Mainly because it was, at one time two separate farms until the families joined the land to work it together.

  Audree had become the proud part owner of the Edwards’s Farm and Rehab Center with her brother, parents, and their silent partner, Gavin Montgomery. Audree wasn’t supposed to have known that Gavin was not only a silent partner, but also the anonymous donor of much of the financial contributions that had been made to the Rehab. The farm had been kept in almost its original state. The land Audree’s parents had owned remained a farm of fruits and vegetables. The land her mother’s family owned had evolved into the family living space and remained a horse and cattle ranch.

  Audree lived in the house where she had spent her childhood, and split her childhood ranch into a private living space, with the main house in the center complete with a pool, barn, lake, and guesthouses. Her parents had built a smaller house a few miles away from the main house, closer to their farmland. Audree then opened up the horse ranch for riding lessons and for a therapy and rehab for disabled children and adults. Clint had built a small house that he kept and visited when he was on leave. Audree loved that all of her family was so close and that her idea for a rehab center was so successful.

  Although Audree was involved only on the business end of the horse ranch and rehab, she loved interacting with the people who benefitted from the therapy provided. She especially loved the whole idea that the ranch’s success truly pissed Mr. Montgomery off to no end. He wanted the land to sell off in pieces and quite possibly, to a builder, something that had been out of the question for Audree and her family. If they ever chose to sell the land, it would be to anyone but Malcolm Montgomery or Ernest Meager.

  Audree’s success had been yet another reason for Mr. Montgomery to dislike her. Mr. Montgomery had seemed to hate Audree from the day he met her. His wife, on the other hand, having no daughters of her own, had loved Audree dearly. Lizzy Montgomery grew up with Audree’s mother and had always questioned her husband’s dislike of the Edwards’ girl. He’d simply told her that she would ruin all his plans for the future. Lizzy had always hoped one of her sons would sweep Audree off her feet and marry her. Lizzy had even left her a five-acre parcel of land from the Montgomery’s farm.

  Lizzy had willed it to Audree so her husband couldn’t take it back. However, just to get the last word on the matter so that Audree couldn’t return the gift to Lizzy or the Montgomery family, she had declared that if Audree didn’t take possession of the parcel it would then go to Audree’s children on their eighteenth birthday.

  Lizzy had been well aware of the fact that her husband did not have any love for Audree. He didn’t like his wife’s or his sons’ attachment to her. He had taken every opportunity that he could to tell Audree that she was no good for his sons and that she would only hold them back. The only thing he wanted from her or her family was the land they owned.

  Audree had turned the guesthouse into living space for the therapy staff and was in the process of having it upgraded, which meant Gavin would be staying in the private family home. Because of the strained relationship of the Montgomery boys and their father, Gavin had chosen to stay with Audree and Eva. Travis would also stay in one of the guest rooms since he pretty much taken it over as his own, anyway. Audree always had a rule about Travis not bringing his women into her house. That was pretty much the only reason he kept the studio apartment in town, because he was usually at Audree’s house.

  ***

  “How is your room?” Audree asked with a gasp when Gavin walked into the kitchen. He had changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, and it didn’t escape her notice that his clothes fit perfectly and showed off every cut of every muscle of his chest, stomach, and arms. Audree’s mouth went dry at the sight of him, and she had to turn away from him to regain her composure.

  “You redecorated the rooms again.” He smiled when he heard her sigh and turn away from him. He knew his effect on her, just as she knew her own effect on him. He figured he would just give her a little payback after her show at the pool.

  “You know me, I like to change the rooms around every once in a while, keeps things feeling new.” She bent down to pick crumbs up off the floor, knowing he was watching her. Normally she would have squatted down to pick up the crumbs, but she had an audience to impress.

  “You look good, Audree,” he said from behind her, as he slipped his hands around h
er waist and pulled her back against his chest.

  “Thanks. So do you.” She leaned her head back against his shoulder.

  “So I hear you guys are having a party at the barn tonight,” he whispered against her ear.

  “You heard right. Ruby’s cousin and her fiancé are having a joint bachelor/bachelorette party. I have been renting out the space for small events.” She pushed her bottom against him, feeling him stiffen all over.

  “I like the king-sized bed that you moved into my room. It’s much nicer than the queen.” He inhaled the scent of her hair as he rocked his hips against her.

  “I figured you might.” She moaned when he circled his hips into her bottom and growled in her ear.

  “Audree!” Travis called from the hall.

  “In the kitchen, Trav,” she called back. She missed the warmth she lost when Gavin moved to the barstool at the breakfast bar in the center of the kitchen.

  “Hey, man.” Travis smacked his brother on the shoulder and took the seat next to him. The room was filled with electricity, just like it always was when Gavin and Audree were in the same room. Travis knew they had some kind of no strings attached fuck buddy agreement between them, which he’d never understood. Audree had confessed to him during a drunken night years ago and sworn him to secrecy. “You seem tense, bro. Maybe you should go take a dip in the pool and work it off before everyone gets here.” He wiggled his eyebrows and a smile spread across his face.

  I’m good, thanks.” Gavin glared at his younger brother, knowing that Travis knew that when Gavin was in town he “slept” with Audree since he’d had told him one bad night of drinking. Well, he didn’t really sleep with Audree; they would have sex, and when they were done, he would get up and leave or carry her back to her bedroom. He knew it was a totally shitty thing to do, but he couldn’t let himself want more. She was a single mother of a little girl that wasn’t his, which killed him. She was also Clint’s little sister and he figured she was still off limits to him until Clint told him otherwise. Stupid, but that is how he convinced himself that it has nothing to do with the property and his father’s desire to get it back.

  “Well, while you girls were bickering, Ruby texted me to let me know she is on her way and everyone else should be here in about an hour.” Audree put a plate of small sandwiches between them. “Share.” She glared at Travis.

  “Only some things,” Travis laughed and she smacked him on the back of his head.

  “Don’t be gross.” She grabbed her keys and headed out the back door to call Eva. “I’ll be in the barn.” She walked out of the kitchen fighting the desire to smile at Gavin.

  “You are such an asshole.” Gavin smacked his brother on the other side of the head.

  “You’re the asshole. How far did you get with her before I came in?” Travis grabbed a sandwich off the plate. “I mean would you have done it right here on the floor, if I hadn’t come in?” He shoved a square into his mouth. “She deserves better,” he said through a mouthful of food.

  “I know she deserves better. Don’t you think I know that?” He picked at the sandwich in his hand. “Believe me; I’ve tried to stay away from her but…”

  “But nothing, you either stick with her or you let her go. She loves you. She’s loved you most of her life and you treat her like…”

  “Don’t.”

  “Sorry, man, but I might have even swept her up years ago if she wasn’t like my sister. Hell, most guys around here would love a chance at Audree; she’s a great catch.” He laughed when Gavin growled at him. “But they know she is still hands off, even after all these years. Neither one of you will admit it or make a commitment, but Audree is yours and you are hers, whether you claim it or not.” Travis popped another square in his mouth. “So if you aren’t going to make the commitment to her and claim her, then let her go, man. She will be mad, and of course, hate you for a while, but she will be free and able to move on.”

  “I hear ya.” Gavin shook his head and walked out of the kitchen.

  Eight years ago…

  Audree was well aware that her mother loved Gavin and Travis, but she in no way approved of her daughter’s “relationship” with Gavin. Talia had been made painfully aware of their relationship when Audree found out she was pregnant. In her sophomore year of college, came home from school as soon as she found out and told her mother and later her father, but waited to tell everyone else until when they were together at Christmas. Her parents were not happy about the pregnancy and even more unhappy with the fact that Audree would not be marrying the father of the baby, Brooks Jennings.

  Audree’s parents had met Brooks and liked him very much, as her friend, at school. They weren’t aware their relationship had moved beyond the friendship stage until Audree dropped her pregnancy bomb. Talia knew of her daughter’s attachment to Gavin, but never said anything, hoping they would both grow out of it and move on. She’d never known that Audree and Gavin had slept together twice before her pregnancy announcement.

  Audree wanted to tell Gavin away from the family because she knew he would be more affected, even angrier than everyone else and would probably make a scene. She wanted to tell him before everyone had gathered in the living room before dinner.

  “Are you fucking kidding me right now, Audree? You’re pregnant with my kid and you tell me like this?” Gavin paced across Audree’s bedroom floor.

  “The baby…”

  “We used a condom every time! How could this happen? Why didn’t you call me right away? I had a right to know. I…”

  “It is not yours!” Audree shouted at him and stopped him mid pace.

  “Excuse me?” He turned and was right there in front of her.

  “The baby is not yours! Brooks is the father.”

  “Who the fuck is Brooks?”

  “He is a friend from school.” Audree had seen Gavin pissed off before, but this was different. This was rage mixed with disappointment and sadness.

  “A friend? You are going to have a baby with ‘a friend’? Where is he now? Why isn’t he here with you?” He sounded frustrated and full of disbelief.

  “Yes, he’s a friend. If you had bothered to come and see me at school or respond to any of my emails and texts you would have met him on several occasions. But as usual, you disappeared after we are together,” she snapped at him. She turned away from him, trying to calm her temper. “He is home with his family; it is Christmas, after all.”

  “His family? His family, like a wife and kids? Audree, what the….”

  “No! Not his wife and kids, stupid. His mother, brother, and sister are his family.”

  “You are calling me stupid? You are standing there god knows how pregnant with some shithead kid’s baby and I’m stupid?”

  “He is not a shithead. He is a good man. You don’t have a right to judge anyone. Look, look at us.” She waved her finger between them. “We fu… we slept together. You leave. You don’t talk to me. And I keep letting you,” she huffed. “Oh, and thank you so much for thinking so highly of me that you would think I would sleep with a married man.” She glared at him, and the anger began to vibrate through her body.

  “I didn’t mean to say you would…”

  “Forget it.” She threw her hand in the air dismissively.

  “Just so you know, Brooks offered to marry me, but…” she looked up at him through her lashes knowing it would hurt him that another man would marry her.

  “But what?”

  “I don’t want to marry him. I don’t love him like that.”

  “You don’t love him like that? But you love him enough to fuck him and have his kid,” Gavin ran his hands over his close-cropped head and down his face.

  “Are you saying you have been celibate since the time we were together?”

  “It has been months Audree and…”

  “And what? I can honestly say that Brooks is only the second person I’ve had sex with.”

  “I told you that...” he sighed.

 
“Audree, we agreed that night was complicated.” He ran his hands over his face again. “It was a rough week with the anniversary of Mom and all, and I was asleep and was dreaming about… and I needed….”

  “You need to fuck me to get through your mom’s anniversary.” She regretted her words as soon as they left her lips. “I’m sorry that was horrible of me to say.”

  “But it was pretty true. I’m sorry.” He walked over to her. “You’re right I don’t have a right to judge you. Are you sure you don’t want marry this guy?”

  “Yes, I’m sure. We are better friends than lovers.” She saw the grimace cross Gavin’s face at the word lover. “Travis offered to marry me too, but I also told him no as well.”

  “You told Travis before you told me?”

  “He kind of figured it out on his own when he came to visit me and noticed I wasn’t drinking and I was eating all of the time. He also thought it was yours, but I straightened him out, by telling him that you wouldn’t make such a mistake.” Her fear of telling him had turned to anger. He didn’t have a right to claim her as his own, when he refused to make a commitment to her.

  “What the fuck does that mean?”

  “I assured him that you were always very adamant and careful with protection, so there was no way for the baby to be yours.” She saw the hurt spread across his face and heard his gasp.

  “I just…”

  “I didn’t plan on getting pregnant, Gavin. I didn’t plan to have a relationship with him or anyone else, but…. Brooks and I are friends. We have known each other since the beginning of freshmen year. We met in an English class. The professor partnered us up for a project. We are together all of the time, and he is one of my best friends. One night, I was having a melt down over…” she looked at Gavin and dropped her head. “I was really upset and he was comforting me and one thing led to another. We only did it that one time and both decided that we were better as friends.” She didn’t tell him was a night of heavy drinking on the anniversary of their first kiss. She woke up crying over him, and, their fight in the barn.