Indelible Love Series + Entwined Bundle

by DW Cee

  “Just a movie and dinner. I should have her home before midnight.”

  “You can keep her if you like. She’s way too old to be living at home. Why at her age, I think I was already pregnant with my third child.”

  “Gram, are you trying to get rid of me?”

  “Obviously, someone’s going to have to try. You’re too comfortable here.”

  “Aaah!” My niece belched out her enthusiasm while bouncing on Gram’s lap. We needed to get out of here before she attached herself to my boyfriend...again.

  She kept up the screaming and arm flailing, ready to jump regardless of Max’s intention to catch her. Max didn’t keep her waiting long.

  “Elizabeth!” He hugged and kissed her as though she were his own child. To be fair, he put her in his left arm and took James into his right arm. It was like juggling two basketballs. “Hello James!” He gave him the same greeting. “I see you are both feeling well now. What have you been doing with your time?”

  James, who was normally shy with most people and mostly an observer rather than a participant, must’ve bonded with my man back in New York. He gave Max a wide and bright smile and started babbling about who knows what.

  “Is that right, Master James?” Max conversed back with him.

  Ellie wouldn’t be outdone. She too said a lot of gibberish.

  “Why don’t you start walking, and we’ll take the twins back. It’s time for their dinner and bath.”

  “Say bye-bye,” Max encouraged.

  They both waved their hands and said something remotely like bye-bye.

  “You want me to take one?”

  “No, I’m good.”

  “Da!!!!” Ellie’s piercing scream almost took out my eardrums. “Da!” James joined in as they both saw my brother’s car pull into their driveway.

  “How do they know he’s in there?” I asked, confounded at their level of comprehension.

  “They must be smart like their aunt,” Max joked.

  “Shut up,” I punched him in the arm, lightly.

  Both kids jumped into their dad’s arms and didn’t give us a second thought. It was a serious love-fest between the three of them till Emily came out and of course, the twins wanted nothing to do with their dad and moved on to Mom. They were so fickle!

  “Where are you two off to?” Emily called out in between accepting kisses from her babies.

  “The movies, then dinner. You want to join us?” I asked.

  “Possibly for dinner. Let me get the twins down, and if Laney is around, I’ll see if she can babysit while they’re sleeping. Text you later?”

  “Sure.” We called out.

  We saw an early showing of Les Mis and it was phenomenal!

  “What a great movie, huh? I didn’t realize that Russell Crowe could sing.”

  “How do you even remember what happened during the movie? I think my eyes were shut more than they were open.” I complained. “I had trouble seeing and breathing.”

  “Really, Lady Jane? I do remember someone insinuating herself on my lap soon after the movie started and getting very comfortable with me.”

  I laughed. “I guess those are the perks of watching a movie a month after its release date. Everyone else has seen it already.”

  “You and I need to consider getting different living arrangements. Aside from lack of time, we both have too many roommates.”

  “So what are you suggesting?”

  “I don’t have any solutions yet, but we definitely need some privacy.”

  A part of me was scared he might suggest we move in together; then another part of me was relieved he didn’t mention it; but that last part of me was ticked off he didn’t suggest it. I needed to let that one go for now.

  “Tell me about your grandmother and Sir Ascot. What’s their story?”

  “I’ll let Jake tell that story. He knows the details better than I. I see them waiting for us over there.”

  “How was the movie? I’d like to see it when it comes out on video.” Emily looked happy to be out of the house.

  “Emi, I’ll take you to go see Les Mis if you want. You don’t have to wait for the DVD version.”

  “A dinner and a movie with babies at home? Forget it. Too time consuming. I’ll take dinner over a movie, any day.”

  “Laney babysitting?” I inquired.

  “Yes.” My brother answered. “Last we left her, Donovan was helping her study for a statistics final.”

  “Donovan?” Why was I a little bit upset that they were together?

  “He came by to get Roland’s signature on some documents and stopped by our place to say hello. I was helping Laney with her studies when he popped in so I put him to work.” Jake looked triumphant for some reason.

  “What’d you do that for? Laney doesn’t like him.”

  “Could’ve fooled me. Emily just called home to check up on the kids and he was still there. They’d just finished eating dinner.” Jake had that smug look I so hated.

  “What?” Now I was more than slightly upset. I was almost pissed.

  “Uh-oh. My gem is coming out, but for reasons I’m not too happy about.”

  “What’s a gem?” Emily wanted to know.

  “Acronym for green-eyed monster. My gem has a tendency to get jealous over stupid things.”

  I should’ve gotten upset with Max for telling my brother and sister about my jealous tendencies, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Donovan and Laney.

  DONOVAN and LANEY??? NO‼!

  Jan. 28, 2013 Let’s Get the Elephant Out!

  Lunch today?

  No can do. I have a business mtg./lunch on the Westside. Dinner instead?

  Sure.

  Bowl of spaghetti bolognese and linguine in cream sauce with shaved white truffles?

  You had me at white truffles.

  No one can accuse you of being a cheap date.

  Perhaps we’ll go dutch, then it won’t be a date.

  Whatever. 7:30, Madeo Restaurant.

  That was the text I started with Donovan, the moment I got into the office.

  Is it okay if I have a friendly dinner with Donovan tonight?

  Is this to grill him about Laney?

  Is it because you’re still attracted to him even though you are with me? OR

  Is it truly a friendly dinner where you will tell him you are madly in love with me and you want him to stop harassing you?

  If it’s #3, then ok.

  Aargh! How does Max do this to me every time? And we’re only texting!

  I have no interest in him and Laney (plus he’ll have no interest in Laney)

  I am not attracted to Donovan (though I admit he’s a tiny bit good looking)

  I am not madly in love with you!

  Uh-huh, keep telling yourself that (and that too)

  You better not be (your admission gives me the freedom to find other women attractive)

  Aren’t you though?

  My blood was boiling at this point. Max was seriously pissing me off.

  Whatever

  Whatever

  I am not! Why would I admit to something you haven’t admitted to yet?

  Do you want my admission now?

  No. I don’t want to read about it in a text. That’s worse than breaking up via text. If you have an admission to make to me, see me in person and tell me then.

  Okay, my stunning gem. I’m going out with some of the guys after rounds. Have a good dinner.

  That psycho better not be there!

  Goodbye!

  Geez, I’ve only been back at this relationship business for a little over a month and I can see why even super couples like Jake and Emily had problems before marriage. This relationship stuff was serious give and take. It would be so much easier if I could just take...and take...and take...

  After a long day with the crazy boss lady driving me up the wall, I was ready for a good dinner and a nice Italian white to go with my white truffled pasta. Mmmm!

  “Have you been wait
ing long?” Donovan rushed in.

  “No. I got here a few minutes ago and ordered myself a prosecco. You want a glass?”

  “Sure. Did you drive here?”

  “Nope. Caught a ride with Simon as he was leaving for home and I figured you’d drive me home. Then, I can have a glass of wine or two with the promised truffles without worrying about driving.”

  “Good thinking. I have the company car again so we can both relax tonight.” He smiled and kissed me on the head.

  “Why do you always do that?”

  “Do what?”

  “Kiss me on some part of my head? I feel like a little girl whenever you do that.”

  “In some ways, I still see the little girl who used to follow me and her brothers around the house.”

  There was so much tenderness in that statement. Many times, Donovan just simply made me happy! He didn’t stir any ugly emotions. He didn’t make me see red. Instead, he always stirred up those girly emotions—like those you feel when watching a Disney princess movie. Just happily-ever-after happiness!

  “What’s the deal with you and Laney?” Brain-to-mouth filter was a bit off again.

  He looked at me, mid-prosecco sip. “What about Laney?”

  “Why were you hanging out with her the other night?”

  “Why the sudden interest?”

  “That’s what I should be asking you. Why the sudden interest? She’s like a decade younger than you.”

  “Miss Jane Sydney Reid. Do I detect a note of jealousy? I don’t think you have any right to be jealous about what I do with my evenings when you can’t even dance a waltz with me without your bodyguard’s approval. How’d you get out tonight? He actually let go of you for a few hours?” Donovan laughed a mocking laugh.

  “Okay, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. If you are/were attracted to me, why haven’t you asked me out in the past? Is it something that just developed when I came back to LA? I’ve told you that I’ve crushed on you since I was seven. I’m sure you and my brothers all knew even before I admitted it at the Laker game.”

  “Your moron of a brother wouldn’t let me ask you out.”

  “Jake or Nick?”

  “Jake, of course. Using my age as an excuse, he said he’d kick my ass if I asked you out when you first moved to New York, then the jerk went off and got engaged to someone exactly your age. I should’ve kicked his ass for being a hypocrite.” He laughed another dry laugh.

  “You were going to ask me out when I got to New York?”

  Somehow he nodded his head yes while sipping his drink. “I was actually first going to ask you out when I did my internship at Ascot, Ascot, and Pemberly in San Francisco.”

  “That was like...” I counted back a few years to when Donovan lived in San Francisco for a summer. “Wasn’t that the summer before my sophomore year in undergrad?”

  “Something like that. In the few years I hadn’t seen you, you went from being a pretty girl to a gorgeous one. You had my nerves going in all directions.”

  “Why not back then?”

  “Your brother, again. He didn’t want me trifling with his sister, who was only a sophomore in undergrad. And, I agreed with him at that time. Plus, I think you were dating someone.”

  “What’d you care what my brother thought? Why’d you listen to him?”

  “Well, aside from the fact that he was my best friend and possibly a future brother-in-law, what he said made sense. Back when you were nineteen and I was twenty-four, I did find you striking, but young. Then when you were twenty-two and I was twenty-seven, you were settling down in a new state, finding your way through law school, and I was just about to move back to LA. I didn’t want a long distance relationship and soon after I moved to LA, I ended up dating Kate, again. And now that I’m free, you are not. I guess it wasn’t meant to be for us.”

  I sat and contemplated that one.

  “And as for Laney, as you stated earlier, she is a decade younger than I am. I find her to be an attractive girl, but I’m not attracted to her. She’s way too young for me. Plus, I get the feeling I’m not her favorite person.”

  I knew it! You see, Max. I was right!

  “What’s going on between you and Max? He’s appears to be as territorial as they come.”

  I cracked up.

  “He’s not like that at all. You seem to bring out the alpha male in him. Emily tells me that he was always easy going and laissez-faire when they were dating. With me, we’re always fighting and looking to one up each other. He drives me nuts all the time, and I suppose I do the same to him. But somehow, it seems to work. I...”

  Was I going to admit for the first time that I loved Max...and to someone who wasn’t Max?

  “You and Emily are very different people. When I’m around Emily, she makes a man want to take care of her and protect her with all his life. She has that gentleness that brings out the good in people. Look at your brother. Look at what a mush pot he’s become since meeting her. Who would’ve thought that playboy would become the model husband and father?”

  I hated being compared to my sister-in-law. I could never win.

  “But you, my vixen, make a man want to fight for you. You have that tigress personality that draws a man in and sucks the life out of him. He’ll draw blood at dawn to have a chance to woo you.”

  “Is that good? I think I’d rather have Emily’s description.”

  “Miss Jane, I’d rather date a vixen than a saint any day. Your sister-in-law, your cousin Laney—they both fall into the category of deceptively high-maintenance. A man would have to be near perfect to feel worthy of being with them. With you...what you see is what you get.”

  “Hmmm...the other description still sounds better. In any case, are we okay? Can we still be friends?”

  “Have we ever been anything but friends? You know where I stand. Don’t know how long I’ll be standing here, but until you give me the green light, or until I move on to another pasture, we will stay life-long, good friends.” He kissed me again on my forehead. This felt like our last supper, and that kiss was the kiss of Judas. “I see the server with our linguine and the white truffle isn’t far behind. Let’s eat!”

  Jan. 31, 2013 Surprises All Around

  Donovan and I were in a weird funk with our friendship, but fortunately, unless we sought each other out in the office, our paths did not cross too often. He worked in a different department and our floor was huge. And a lot of the times, he was on a different floor or out of the office for meetings, as he was a young but high-powered lawyer with Ascot, Ascot, and Pemberly.

  It’s been fantastic having Gimpy at work. Since he had first dibs on the company car and driver, I carpooled with him and he filled our long car ride with interesting stories about his life, his family and his love for my grandmother. I thought Jake and Emily had an intense love for one another—Gimpy had been holding a torch for Gram for sixty+ years. He loved the wife of his youth, but she passed on early and he never remarried.