This Family of Ours (Raine #6)

by Amanda Bennett

  We quickly closed out the show, and Bryan ushered Cami to the back while Kayla ran off stage with me. Before we could even reach the side of the stage, she was layin’ one on me, and it wasn’t a small one. My lust and desire for her ran through my entire body and I wasn’t sure I would be able to pull away from her without finishin’ her off. Luckily she didn’t seem to mind that my hand was now down the front of her jeans. Before I gave her a chance to overthink what we were doin’, I pushed her roughly against the wall behind her, pullin’ her legs up and around me. I knew it would be hard to get her pants down and be inside her, but before I could even question it, she was already pullin’ at her belt with her legs wrapped tightly around my waist. I clutched onto the back of her pants, pullin’ them roughly forward so I could get access. Of course I was goin’ commando once again, just in case. I made quick work of undoin’ my pants and I slid her slick pussy down onto me. I had to take a second before continuin’, but as soon as I was ready I bounced her up and down my length until we were both breathless. I pressed my face against the base of her neck in complete and utter bliss.

  “You really know how to make a guy happy.” I smiled against her before pressin’ a tender kiss to the side of her neck.”

  “Mmmhmm, and you sure know how to make a girl want you more than ever before. The song was amazing, cowboy. Really.”

  I pulled back and lowered her down to the ground so she could fix her pants without anyone noticin’ what we had just done, but who was I kiddin’, the guys and Cami would know either way. “I’m so glad you liked it, baby.”

  “Like, no. I loved it. I’m pretty sure public sex with you just now was proof of that.” She laughed. “Oh and by the way…” Her sea of blue sought out my emerald green in the dimly lit back part of the stage. “I’m pregnant.”

  My mouth went dry, just as my jaw practically fell to the floor. “Are you serious?” I couldn’t hold back my excitement any longer. I pulled her up into my arms and swung her around the entire stage until we were back in front of the crowd. “I’M GONNA BE A DAD AGAIN!” I shouted into the microphone that was no longer on, but the bar erupted in applause anyway. I cupped Kayla’s face in my hands, pullin’ her lips mere inches away from mine. “You’ve seriously just made me the happiest man in the world, again.”

  “Glad to help.” She chided before we both broke out in a sprint to go tell the others.

  I thought she would practically have my balls for shoutin’ it to an entire place full of perfect strangers, but I was so wrong. I flung open the old rickety wood door to the back room, catchin’ everyone’s attention. “I’m gonna be a dad again! Whoohoo!” My fists were raised in the air as I held onto Kayla’s. All the guys came rushin’ over to give us hugs and says congrats. I was over the goddamn moon. Now there was only one thing left to do. My lips grazed Kayla’s ear as I lowered them to whisper so only she could hear. “We did good, pretty girl.” I winked as she wrapped her tiny arms around my waist, pullin’ me so close to her I swear we were one.

  Part Two

  Cami & Glenn

  Chapter 23

  Cami

  I was just coming home from Kayla and Madison’s house when I stopped at the end of the driveway to grab the mail. There was never anything exciting in there as of late, but I figured it was better to grab it than to have it pile up. As I pulled open the metal door and reached my hand inside, my finger caught on a jagged piece of metal. When I pulled the mail out I saw that there was more damage than I initially thought. Warm sticky blood began running down my hand as I switched the mail to my other hand and wrapped the end of my shirt around my blood stained hand.

  When I walked through the front door I instantly dropped the mail on the counter before heading over to the sink to clean myself up. Blood has never been my favorite thing to deal with, but I had to put on my big girl panties today, given the fact that Glenn still wasn’t home.

  As I went in search of a Band-Aid, something caught my attention out of the corner of my eye. Sitting there in the huge stack of mail sat a bright pink envelope, sticking out like a sore thumb. I could feel the blood soaking through the small towel I was using to apply pressure to the wound, so I snatched the pink envelope and headed to the bathroom. The handwriting on the front of the envelope was a beautiful script, and I could instantly tell that the person who wrote it took their time in doing so, making the script look absolutely perfect. I glanced at the top left hand corner of the pink paper as I wrapped my finger up tight and noticed there wasn’t a return address. It was made out to Glenn, and my stomach began to churn. I was fooling myself into thinking that it was morning sickness, but who was I kidding, I knew it was because of what that envelope possibly contained.

  I finished washing off the blood that had dripped on the sink in front of me, and then quickly turned my attention back to the pink letter that sat on the counter, taunting me with its hidden contents. I picked up the envelope and made my way out to the living room.

  I’ve never been the type of girl to go through my boyfriend’s, or now my husband’s things. I guess that has always been a huge fault of mine, trusting too many people without being cautious doesn’t always bode well for me, but I had to know. Part of my brain was telling me to just wait until Glenn got home, and hopefully he would want to open it together, but then the other part of me knew that if I didn’t look at the contents before him, I may possibly never really know what it is. I sat there hesitantly staring at that damn envelope that sat on the couch next to me for at least a solid twenty minutes, before finally giving into temptation.

  I slid my finger along the sealed triangle on the back, pulling out a rather thick stack of neatly folded up pieces of paper. I could’ve stopped there once I knew it was a letter, but the queasiness I had been feeling before, was now making a strong comeback, and I had no other choice but to read it. My gut knew something was off with this, and I was about to find out why.

  I unfolded the four pages of paper, noticing that the beautiful script that was on the front of the envelope was consistent with the script in the letter I was holding in my now trembling hands. I flipped through the pages until I was on the final one. My mouth fell open in horror as the pages slipped through my fingers, floating gently to the ground. I sat back, closing my eyes tight, trying to erase the sight of her name scrolled across the bottom. Unfortunately, I was blinded by complete and utter hatred as rage coursed through my veins. My hand instinctively fell to my burgeoning belly as I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself down. Since finding out I was pregnant, the doctor told me to specifically avoid any and all stressful situations. Apparently she had no idea the lack of control I had when it came to the chaos in our life, and the situations that somehow or another came flying our way, regardless of how hard we tried to stay away from anything toxic.

  Once my erratic breathing went back to a slow and steady pace, I decided to try and read through the letter that was addressed to my husband. I tried to stay calm as I meticulously read every word, but my once suppressed rage, soon began bubbling up to the surface again. I ripped through each page, reading every word as though the ink would disappear at any moment. Rage and anger radiated through my body as each word slowly seared through my heavy heart, scorching every piece, until the only remnants left, were ashes.

  Hot heavy tears began to roll down my face uncontrollably as I gently folded back up the pen covered pages, carefully stuffing them back into the notorious pink envelope that completely flipped my world upside down in a matter of minutes. As I sat in a state of disbelief, I couldn’t help but sit back and wonder where I had gone so wrong in this life. I’d given all of me, every single morsel to Glenn, practically from the first day I met him. I held nothing back, and I thought he had done the same, but apparently I have completely misread our entire relationship.

  After another half an hour of drowning in my own self-pity, I decided to get up and make myself useful. Nothing good was going to come out of me sitting around dwelling
on something that may or may not be true. At this point I had no other choice than to wait for Glenn to get home, and then maybe, just maybe, I would get some answers to the million and one questions I now have. I was midway through doing the dishes when I heard the alarm chirp, alerting me to the fact that the front door had just opened. I took in a deep cleansing breath as I wiped my wet hands on the towel, before turning towards the distinct boot covered footsteps coming my way.

  Glenn’s gorgeous smile came into view as I slowly closed the distance between us. “Hey baby, how are you?” He placed a chaste kiss to my lips before bending over, his hands splaying wide across my belly. “And hello to you too, baby.” His lips gently grazed the small exposed strip of skin between my shirt and pants, causing my stomach to do somersaults. When his face was back in front of mine, I could instantly tell he knew something was wrong. “Are you ok?”

  His hands gently clutched mine in his, and I immediately lost it. Tears steadily streamed down my face as my sobs shook my body to its very core. So much for holding it together. His arms were instantly wrapping me up into his tender and comforting embrace. I wanted to look up at him and tell him what it was that had me so wound up, but I couldn’t. All I could do at this moment was cry into his chest, letting all the emotions from the day escape through my salty tears.

  Glenn’s hand caressed my hair as he placed featherlike kisses to the top of my head. I knew he was dying to ask what was causing me to act so out of character, and instead of making him wait a second longer, I hesitantly pulled away from him a bit and looked up into his mesmerizing blue eyes. And just like that, the words that sat on the tip of my tongue disappeared, lost in my convoluted thoughts.

  “Cami?” His hands were cupping my face as the pad of his thumb gently wiped away the remaining tears that were still falling. “Baby, what’s goin’ on? You’re starting to scare me.” The look on his face was one of fear and genuine concern.

  I opened my mouth to answer, but the words still wouldn’t come out, so I pointed towards the bright pink envelope that was sitting on the counter across from us. When he still didn’t move, my mind began second guessing opening it in the first place. Maybe he already knew what it was and he was pissed because he saw that it was open, or maybe he just didn’t understand what I was pointing at. Thankfully it was the latter.

  “What am I looking for, Cam?” His brows were pulled together in confusion.

  I knew that if I were to try and speak I would begin to break down again, so I reached up, grabbing one of his hands that were still holding my face, and pulled him over to the other side of the kitchen with me. When we were in front of the envelope, I reached out, clutching it tightly in my hand and practically shoved it against his chest. Confusion was still evident on his face, causing me to relax a little bit, knowing that he obviously had no clue as to what it was. He placed a chaste kiss to the back of my hand that he was holding before gently setting it on the countertop in front of us.

  I watched with bated breath as he pulled out the thick folded letter. My nerves were raging through me at lightning speed, causing me to get a little bit lightheaded. When Glenn noticed, he pulled over one of the bar stools and motioned for me to sit down. I did so without question as my knees began to buckle beneath me. I sat there, staring at Glenn, trying to read the expression on his face as he read through each page. My heart was practically beating out of my chest as he neared the end of the letter. It felt as though it had been hours since he started reading, and I couldn’t take the waiting any longer. I was just about to say something when his eyes turned dark and thunderous, and I finally exhaled breath I hadn’t realized I had been holding in.

  “When did this show up?” His voice was a low growl and it sent a terrifying shiver down my spine, causing my defensive walls to shoot up. I sat there staring at Glenn, mouth agape, and my brows pulled up in shock. Was he seriously getting mad at me? He moved closer as he dropped the letter on the counter, grabbing both of my shoulders in his hands. “Cami, when did this show up?”

  My eyes fell shut for a few seconds as I tried to clear my thoughts enough to answer him. “I…I…don’t know.” I kept my eyes fixated on my feet, not wanting to see the irritation I knew he was feeling at this exact moment. “I found it in the mailbox this morning.” When he still hadn’t loosened his tight grip on my shoulder I winced in pain. His hands immediately fell to his sides as he began profusely apologizing.

  “Cami, I’m so sorry. You know I would never hurt you on purpose. I’m just…I’m…just…ugh.” His hands pushed back through his hair frantically as he began pacing around the kitchen. I wanted to get up and comfort him, but I know better than anyone that when Glenn got this way, it was best to let him sort it out himself.

  So here I sit, like a lump on a log, waiting for my husband to finish talking himself out of whatever it was he thought he could do about the situation. If I weren’t aggravated myself, I would find it quite amusing. Glenn has a way of talking to himself as he sorts things out in his mind, and he even answers the questions he asks himself. It was both adorable and endearing, and it was one of the many reasons I loved this man so damn much.

  I was lost in thought as he came to a sudden stop in front of me, slipping his finger underneath my chin, bringing my face up to his. Before he spoke, he pressed his lips against mine in the most delicate fashion. When he pulled back, lust clouded his once electric blue eyes, and in that very instant, I knew he was back to being my Glenn.

  “I’m so sorry, Cami.” His voice was barely above a whisper and my heart ached for him. “I hope you know that I don’t feel for her the way she feels for me. I need you to know that.”

  I nodded my head against his hand that was still holding my chin up. “I know.” I whispered. “But I don’t understand why she would even think that you did.”

  “I guess now is as good a time as any.” He stood up straight, pushing his hands back through his tousled hair and down his face as he let out an aggravated sigh. “I don’t think I’ve ever told you the entire story of Tanya and I.”

  Chapter 24

  Glenn

  I knew what I was about to tell my wife had the power to completely obliterate our entire relationship. I’ve never hidden anything from Cami, even from the first day I met her, I was always 100% honest with her, except about Tanya. It’s not that I never wanted her to find out, it was that I never wanted her to feel as though she came in second place, because that would never be the case. Hell, that day she agreed to marry me I’d felt like I just won the damn lottery. Never in a million years did I think I would end up with a girl like Cami. Not only was she the most amazin’ and lovin’ girl, but she accepted me without question, flaws and all. She taught me how to love wholeheartedly, and I was bound and determined to spend the rest of my life showin’ her just how much I love and adore her.

  “I know you two dated back in high school.” Her voice lacked the confidence that it usually portrayed and I knew it was because of this goddamn letter.

  “We did, but I don’t think you know the extent of our relationship.” I paused, knowing that what I was about to say next had the potential to send her runnin’. “She was my first love.” I glanced up at Cami, hopin’ she was still in front of me. Not only was she still standin’ here, but the expression on her face hadn’t changed, which was a good sign, so I continued. “I mean, I don’t know if you could actually call it love, because now I know what real love feels like, and I think it’s pretty safe to say that I was in lust with her. We dated pretty much all throughout high school, that is, until she started gettin’ crazy. Nothin’ major or traumatizin’ happened when we were together, but we did get into our fair share of trouble. She was always more into the relationship than I was, and that’s why I eventually ended things with her.” I took in a deep breath as I tried to gauge my wife’s reaction to what I had been tellin’ her.

  “Don’t stop on my account.” She grumbled.

  And there it was…she was pissed.<
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  I reached out for her hand to pull her close to me, but she was quick to pull away and start prattlin’ about the kitchen. “Cam, it’s not what you’re thinkin’.” That caught her attention.

  “And what exactly do ya think I’m thinking, Glenn? Because I would love to hear your insight on what’s going on in my brain.” Her arms were crossed over her well-endowed chest, waitin’ for a response from me.

  “That’s not what I meant.” And there goes the look of all looks, the one that could drop me to my knees in an instant, beggin’ for forgiveness even if I hadn’t done anythin’ wrong. “Cami, I’m tryin’ to be honest with you so we can get through whatever this is,” I pointed between her and I, “but you’re makin’ it damn near impossible. You act like I cheated on you or somethin’.” I regretted the words the instant they flew outta my mouth. “Wait, that’s not what…”

  “What you meant? Yeah, I got that much. What hurts the most is that you never had any intentions of telling me. If this letter wouldn’t have shown up, would you have even said anything, ever?”

  I sat back and thought long and hard about my response, knowing that if I said even one wrong thing, I would be done for it. “Of course I would have, but that’s not really somethin’ you just bring up outta the blue.”

  “And when your brother walked into our house with your ex-girlfriend on his arm as his new wife, that wasn’t a good time? Or how about when he was getting shot at by her, or how about when…”

  “Alright, alright, I get it. There have been plenty of opportunities for me to bring it up, but Jesus, Cam. With everythin’ that we’ve been through since before then and after then, it just seemed so insignificant. I mean, we’re married for cryin’ out loud, you beat cancer, and now we’re havin’ a baby. Why on earth would I let her have the power to take away any ounce of that happiness?” I could instantly tell that what I was sayin’ was sinkin’ in, because her body seemed to physically relax. When she still made no attempt to come closer, I continued. “Cami Renee Green, you are the only woman in this entire world for me, and I refuse to let an ex-girlfriend ruin that. We’re buildin’ a life together, one that I can’t wait to see what happens next. There’s no reason to let this letter get in the way of all of that, is there?” I held my hand out, prayin’ she would take it. And when she did, I breathed a sigh of relief.