Be Mine, Sweetheart (Something Borrowed)

by Codi Gary

  “No one goes into a relationship thinking it’s going to fail, but with us, we have more at stake. You are everything to me Kelly, and if I screw this up…I can’t imagine my life without you.”

  A bitter laugh escaped her lips as she wiped at her eyes. “So, you’re saying that you want me in your life, but you’re just not sure I can be your everything? I can be your friend, or I can be your lover, but I can’t be both?”

  “I…” If he answered honestly, it was going to just make things worse, so he said nothing.

  Kelly shook her head, and started gathering up her clothes. “You know, for a smart guy, you can be an idiot.”

  “Kelly, come on.” He reached for her and she moved out of reach.

  “Don’t touch me. Not right now. I need space.”

  He backed up. “Okay.”

  Chris watched her leave, carrying her clothes against her chest. Every cell in his body was screaming to go after her, but he couldn’t do that. If she needed time and space, he’d give it to her.

  It was all he could do.

  Chapter 22

  The next day, Kelly sat at Rylie’s kitchen table, her arm held out for her to wrap. The adorable two-bedroom house Rylie rented was cozy, and warm, filled with knickknacks and decorations meant to make you feel comfortable. Kelly loved it here, especially because two of her favorite people were sitting with her.

  Although, she wasn’t a huge fan of having her bandage changed, since it hurt like a real bitch today.

  Marley Stevenson sat next to her, sipping her coffee and watching silently. Her blond hair was pulled back in a braid, and her French-tipped nails clicked against the mug as Rylie placed the sterile pad with the burn cream on her wound. It was worse today, itching like crazy, and the skin under the peeling blisters was bright red.

  “Ow! Dammit, be gentle,” Kelly snapped.

  Rylie took the gauze, holding the edge of the pad to keep it in place as she wound the medical supplies around her arm. “I am being gentle. You’re just being cranky.”

  “You are kind of cranky,” Marley agreed.

  “I am not.”

  Marley set her mug down and clapped her hands. “Now, after that witty rejoinder, would you like to talk about what is really bothering you?”

  Kelly glared at Marley. They’d known each other a long time, and while Kelly had been Marley’s employer for seven years, they were also friends. Now, Marley did freelance editing for self-published authors and was doing well. She was also very involved in the Buzzard Gulch project, which was her baby.

  Still, today was not the day to mess with Kelly.

  “I think it has something to do with Christian,” Rylie said.

  “You, hush, or I’ll find myself another baker.”

  Marley snorted. “Not one whose cakes taste as fantastic as Rylie’s. At least not within a hundred miles.”

  Kelly pointed her finger at Marley. “You’re annoying, you know that?”

  “Seriously, I’ve never seen you like this,” Rylie said, putting the green stretch wrap around the gauze. “What happened?”

  Kelly did not want to talk about it, mostly because she felt like such a damn fool. She’d let her hormones get the best of her and jumped Chris. He’d given her every opportunity to run for the hills and she’d been like a puppy starved for affection. Coming off like a clingy, crazy woman. If she’d gone out with a guy for the first time, she wouldn’t have slept with him and even after they did, she wouldn’t have started in about their future. That would have been crazy.

  She would have been cool. Given nothing away. At least, that’s what she hoped she’d have done, because she hadn’t been that way with Chris.

  “Kelly?” Marley prodded.

  Her friends sat there, staring at her like she was losing her damn mind.

  And maybe she was.

  “Have you ever done something completely out of character?”

  Both Rylie and Marley looked at each other and burst out laughing. Marley raised her hand.

  “Got involved with the best man of a wedding I was working.”

  “And I fell I love with my co-worker at Something Borrowed,” Rylie chimed in.

  “So yeah, I think we’ve both done some things that were completely out of character, but only because they were the right thing for us.” Marley cocked her head, studying Kelly. “What did you do?”

  Kelly took a drink of her coffee and smiled sheepishly. “Chris. Twice.”

  Marley’s jaw dropped while Rylie squealed, “I knew it! I knew you and Chris had the hots for each other.”

  “Yeah, but I don’t really know if we do. He said he got caught up in the moment and that he was worried he was going to lose me to someone else.”

  “Excuse me?” Marley said.

  “Yeah, and, he said he didn’t know what the future would hold for us and is afraid of losing me if we don’t work out.”

  “He gave you the ‘your friendship means so much to me that I am afraid dating will ruin it’ talk?” Rylie said.

  Kelly and Marley turned to an outraged Rylie.

  “That is the biggest load of horseshit!”

  Kelly threw up one hand in solidarity. “That’s what I said, but now I am wondering if I overreacted.”

  Marley shook her head. “Um, no. First, relationships are rough, and there is no room for cowardice. If you want someone, you must go for it, because they might not wait for you.”

  “So, do you want Chris?” Rylie asked.

  “I don’t know!” Kelly groaned. “I have no idea what I want. I mean, he’s the person that knows me better than anyone. We have so much in common and we get along great together.”

  “How was the sex?” Marley asked.

  Kelly blushed. “Pretty sure I had an out-of-body experience.”

  Both women laughed.

  “Who started it?” Rylie leaned forward, her brown eyes sparkling.

  Kelly pointed to her chest. “Me, I guess. I asked him to kiss me, which kind of set the whole thing in motion.”

  “Regardless of whether he can rock your world, you need to make him chase you,” Marley said. “Right now, he thinks he’s got you panting after him, and that isn’t the case. He thought he could sex you into submission, so you wouldn’t ditch his ass.”

  Rylie cracked up. “Sexed her into submission?”

  Marley made an “o” with one hand and thrust her trigger finger through it in rapid succession, imitating sex. “Yes. He used his skills to make her forget that she had options. He needs to pay.”

  “Pay how?” Kelly asked.

  “First, you need to figure out what you want from him.”

  Kelly thought about Chris. His smile. His eyes. The way he laughed. And the touch of his hands. The press of his lips.

  “I want him to want to be with me.”

  “Okay. Time for plots and plans, then,” Marley said, grabbing a pad of paper and pen from the counter.

  “She needs some competition for him. Hank Townsend should be good at that,” Rylie said.

  “I don’t feel comfortable including my client in this.”

  “Give him the option. He’s an actor. He is perfect for the job,” Marley said.

  Rylie snapped her fingers. “Oh, and she is going to need to drive him crazy. She’s got a great butt.”

  “Oh, yeah, and with the right bra, her boobs would just pop right up and say howdy.”

  Kelly waved her hands and made a time out symbol. “Whoa, whoa! I am right here, so stop talking about me like I’m not. I also don’t think I need to tart myself up to get Chris to admit that he wants more with me.”

  “Fine.” Marley set the pen down and folded her hands over the top of the pad. “What’s your plan then?”

  Kelly wracked her brain, but didn’t have a single idea to contri
bute.

  “All right, I’ll let you two work your magic.”

  Chapter 23

  On Thursday, Chris walked into Something Borrowed with a stack of new contracts. The office door opened up to reveal the large reception area with two desks and several comfortable chairs in various colors and styles. He’d planned on just leaving the pages with one of the receptionists, but he needed to see Kelly. He’d tried giving her space like she asked, but it was killing him. He hated when she was mad at him, and worse, the fact that she didn’t think he cared, that he’d just used sex as an excuse to keep her close. It wasn’t true. He’d made love to Kelly because he hadn’t been able to stop himself, caught up in everything that he loved about her.

  Chris walked down the hallways, plus several offices on either side to Kelly’s, which was at the very end. He knocked on her closed door gently.

  “Come in.”

  Chris turned the knob and stepped inside, only to halt in shock.

  Kelly, her long dark hair loose, was hanging over the shoulder of Hank Townsend. Her low-cut shirt gave Chris a fabulous view of her breasts, and she hadn’t looked up at him yet, but Hank saw him.

  And the smug son of a bitch was grinning.

  “Chris. Good to see you. We’re going over the menu for the wedding. Kelly is trying to convince me to have a steak options on top of chicken, fish, vegetarian, and vegan, but I’m not sure. Thoughts?”

  Kelly stood up, and he was struck by the smoky eyes and dark cranberry lipstick. He’d never seen her face like that. Her black top was tight and low-cut, the bottom flaring out over her hips. She had on a wide black belt, drawing attention to her slim waist. Hank was blocking the rest, but the change was so stark, he had to blink several times to make sure it was really her.

  “You can leave the contracts on the desk,” she said, coolly.

  That knocked Chris out of his stupor and he set them where she’d pointed almost timidly.

  “Sure.” Very much aware of Hank’s gaze following the two of them, Chris said, “Kelly, I was wondering if I could make an appointment to talk to you.”

  She shrugged nonchalantly. “You can check with my assistant, but I think I’m pretty busy until the Valdez wedding next week.”

  “And helping me plan my sister’s wedding,” Hank said.

  Chris stood awkwardly, and the longer he was there, the more he wanted to punch Hank in his smug, stupid face.

  “I’ll check with your assistant. You two have a good day.”

  “You too, Chris,” Kelly said.

  Hank wiggled his fingers at him. “Toodle-oo.”

  He stepped into the hallway, closing the door behind him and didn’t bother checking with Samantha. From Kelly’s cold demeanor, she still hadn’t forgiven him and wasn’t ready to talk.

  But damn, what was going on with her total makeover, stone-cold fox edition?

  He left the building and headed back to his truck. This was his last appointment of the day, mostly because he’d thought that Kelly and he would have a lot to talk about.

  Seems like he’d been wrong.

  Chris drove home, and he couldn’t shake the image of Kelly leaning over Hank, her hair basically falling into his lap. His hands tightened on the steering wheel. Was that what her new look was about? Was she taking it to the next level with Hank? It had only been five days since they’d been together!

  He didn’t like it. Didn’t like that she could move onto someone new so fast.

  Chris walked through the front door of his home, and as he passed by the couch, Fungi leaped onto the back of it and sprang at him like a tiny ninja assassin.

  “Hey!” Chris caught him up in his hands, and held him a few inches from his face, giving the kitten a mock scowl. “You want a piece of me, small fry?”

  Fungi’s chest vibrated against the palm of his hand, reaching his paws out toward him in a stretch. It was as though Chris’s very touch had rendered him lazy.

  Chris tucked him in against his chest and walked into the kitchen, planning on making dinner.

  His cell rang in his pocket and to his surprise it was Luke Jessup, Marley Stevenson’s fiancée. Luke was a Sheriff’s deputy and a nice guy who always invited him to poker night with a bunch of cops and Dustin Kent, but Chris wasn’t in the mood to gamble tonight.

  “Hey Luke. What’s up?”

  “Hey, man. Was gonna hit up Shotguns for burgers and beers. Wanna join me?”

  Chris wasn’t really in the mood for company, but beers and burgers sounded better than the leftover Subway sandwich in his fridge.

  “Sure, when are you heading over?”

  “I need about a half an hour to change out of my uniform and then I’m getting the hell out of dodge. Marley is hosting a book club tonight, and told me I need to vacate the premises.”

  Chris laughed. “Fun. What book are they reading?”

  “Fuck if I know. All I do know is if I’m around while Marley has a group of women over, there is a good chance I’ll be man-bashed.”

  “Pretty sure Marley loves you and wouldn’t bash you.”

  “Yeah, but a lot of her friends are going through some nasty breakups and if they even catch a man’s scent, they are like lions with an injured gazelle.”

  Okay, so maybe hanging with Luke would make him feel better. The guy was hilarious.

  “All right, I’ll change out of my uptight lawyer gear and meet you there.”

  “See you.”

  Chris ended the call and grabbed a can of cat food from the cupboard. Once he’d placed the nasty smelling meat on the plate, Fungi went nuts trying to get to it. He set both the plate and cat on the floor, then Chris went upstairs to change while he ate. He’d give Fungi his medicine when he got home.

  Chris washed his hands before unbuttoning his shirt. As he slid the blue button off down his arms, something on his chest caught his eye in the mirror. He turned on the light and stepped closer, squinting to get a better look.

  High on the right side of his chest was a red circle the size of a dime.

  “Son of a fucking bitch!”

  He had ringworm. His best friend hated him, was hooking up with a guy who was rich as hell, and now he had motherfucking ringworm.

  He needed a drink. Stat.

  Chris showered and after applying anti-fungal cream to his spot, dressed quickly. His black T-shirt rubbed against the ring on his chest and he had no idea if it was the fact that he knew about it now, but it itched like crazy.

  He walked into Shotgun Wedding Bar and Grill a half an hour later and found Luke sitting at the bar, talking to Dustin Kent.

  “Hey, guys,” Chris said, sitting in the barstool next to Dustin.

  “Hey,” Dustin said.

  Luke slapped Dustin on the back. “Hope you don’t mind, but Rylie was going to book club, so I figured I’d invite this fool, so he didn’t spend all night swimming in his millions.”

  Dustin laughed. “You seem to confuse me with Scrooge McDuck a lot.”

  “All I know is, if you don’t stop taking my money at poker night, I’m going to shoot you,” Luke joked.

  “Or you could just stop inviting him,” Chris said.

  “Then I’ll be described as petty. Can’t have that.”

  “What can I get you?” the bartender asked. She was a pretty blonde Chris had never seen before and her sparkling blue eyes reminded him of the Pacific Ocean.

  But that was as far as the observations went. “I’ll take a beer, whatever they’re having.”

  She winked at him. “Coming up.”

  She walked away, and Chris didn’t realize that Dustin and Luke were both staring at him.

  “What?”

  “Did you see her smile at you, man? She wants you.”

  Chris shook his head. “Not really interested right now. Thinking of taking
a break from women.”

  “Yeah right. Who is she?” Dustin asked.

  “Who is who?”

  Dustin took a pull of his beer before answering. “The chick you’re hung up on.”

  “I’m not hung up on anyone.”

  Luke scoffed. “Right, which is why you aren’t interested in hot blondes and why you’re hanging out with us on a Thursday night.”

  The bartender came back with his beer and set it on the bar. “Here you go. That will be a buck.”

  “Why so cheap?” Chris asked.

  She pointed to the chalkboard sign above the liquor shelf. “It’s Thirsty Thursday. Dollar drafts until ten.”

  “Nice, thanks.” He handed her a five. “No change.”

  She beamed at him. “Thanks.”

  She took off again and Chris laughed at the guys’ skeptical expressions. “Jesus, you’re as bad as Kelly. She thinks women hit on me everywhere I go.”

  Dustin chuckled. “Hey, we’re both on the hook. We have to live vicariously through our single friends.”

  “Trust me, the single life isn’t so great.” Chris held his beer up, as though toasting. “It’s complicated and messy. I’d much rather be with one girl, curled up on the couch watching Netflix.”

  Luke shook his head. “So, why are you swearing off women, then, if you want to get shackled like us?”

  Chris wasn’t used to discussing his problems with anyone but Kelly. Sometimes he would vent to his lawyer friends, but that was usually about work.

  But it might be kind of nice to get other men’s opinion about what was happening with Kelly, without naming names.

  “Because I messed up bad with a woman I really liked and now I feel like a jackass.”

  “Gotcha.” Dustin took a drink of his beer and continued, “As a former asshole—”

  “What do you mean, former?” Luke teased.

  Dustin pointed at Luke. “Fuck you.” Luke cracked up and Dustin ignored him, focusing all his attention on Chris. “As I was saying, I messed up a lot with women and if she is the right one, she’ll forgive you. Just tell her how you feel and see where the chips fall. If she tells you hell no, at least you know you tried.”