Author's Chapter Notes:
Can't believe I got this one done so quickly; hope you enjoy! Thanks so much to all my faithful readers and reviewers...you're greatly appreciated. And welcome to any newcomers! :)
“Just where on God’s green earth have you been?” Denise questioned her son the minute he stepped back through the door.
Alex winced some at the tone in her voice and tossed his keys onto the table nearby. “Hey, Ma.”
“Don’t, ‘hey, Ma’, me; do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?”
“I’m not a child anymore, Mom; I love you to death, but I don’t have to explain where I go or what I do.”
“You will always be my child, Alex and you will always have to answer to me.” She frowned at him. “You take off on me yesterday and are gone the entire night, only showing up mid morning today. For all I know, you could have been lying dead in a ditch somewhere, or lied up in the hospital or even in jail!”
Alex gritted his teeth and took a moment to make sure he remained calm. “I went over to Nick’s and stayed the night there. I wasn’t in a ditch or the hospital or jail, so can we just drop it and move on?”
Denise frowned, knowing she probably didn’t want to pick at it anymore, he already seemed on edge. “Well, next time, please call us; we’ve been worried something horrible had happened to you.”
He sighed then moved and kissed his mother on the forehead. “I’m just fine.”
“Good.” She squeezed his side then took his arm. “How ‘bout we go sit and talk a bit; Renee’s announcement left me rather shocked and speechless, I might say.”
“Do we have to at this moment? I really just wanna go take a hot shower and change into some clean clothes.” The last thing he wanted to do was talk to his mom about all the drama going on in his life. He knew he needed to sooner than later, but today just wasn’t the day he felt he could. Nick’s concoction had helped his hangover, but he was afraid discussing it would bring on that strong urge to have a drink and he wasn’t sure he had the strength at the moment to fight it.
His mother sighed and frowned, but released his arm. “Alright, but we’re going to talk, Alex, you’re not getting out of it.”
“I don’t expect to.” Then he kissed his mother’s cheek and hurried from the room before she could add anything more.
He ran into Brielle in the hallway upstairs and slowed some as she took notice of him; her eyes widening in surprise then relief flashing over her face. “Alex, you’re back; we’ve been so worried.”
“Yeah, I’m good; no accidents or jail; just spent a little time with a friend.”
“Oh, well good.” She flashed a small grin. “I hope you had a good time.”
“Best to be expected.” He shrugged some then concern etched his face and he reached out and touched her shoulder. “How are you feeling, you doing okay?”
“Yeah, I’m good; I was just worried about you. We thought something horrible had happened. When Lily and I got back and Denise said you’d just taken off, I didn’t know what to think and then you weren’t back and I got scared that you had been in an accident or something terrible like that.”
He felt the punch to his gut at the look of fear and worry in her eyes, hating that he’d caused it in her, especially when that was one of the last things she needed to be stressing over. “I’m sorry, I should have called. I won’t let it happen again.”
“Oh, gosh no, Alex,” Brielle shook her head and took his hand in hers, “you don’t have to answer to me or check in with me; I’m not keeping tabs on you. I was just…” she shrugged slightly, “worried is all.”
“Yeah, but I don’t want you to worry. You shouldn’t be stressing yourself; it’s not good for you or the baby.”
“Well, I’ll try not to worry then.”
He couldn’t help the tiny grin that tugged at his mouth; she was so adorable and endearing and had no idea. “Well, you aren’t going to have to worry about worrying, because I’m not gonna just take off like that again; I promise, cross my heart.” He took a finger and drew an imaginary cross over his chest just above his heart.
Brielle flashed her own beautiful smile. “Okay, but you know you can go off and spend time with your friends and what not without checking with me.”
“Oh, I know,” he leaned and brushed his lips across her cheek, “and I plan to, I’m just going to let you know what I’m doing before I do it.”
“Okay,” she watched him a moment then giggled low, “I’ll let you get on your way, you looked like a man on a mission.”
Alex liked the way her laugh made him feel; all warm inside. “I was, I’m gonna take a shower and get changed. Where are you headed?”
“Downstairs; I have a craving for some Doritos with sour cream on them.”
“Nacho cheese or cool ranch?”
“The jalapeño kind.”
He wrinkled his nose and chuckled. “Must be those pregnancy cravings, huh?”
“I think so, because I would never eat something like that normally.”
Alex laughed. “How ‘bout I come find you after I’m done; you can tell me about your day out with Lily and Leigh.”
Her grin spread and he noted the sparkle in her eyes. “And James.”
“Right and James.” He kissed her cheek softly again, noting for the first time how she smelled like fresh apples.
“Okay, go shower.” She touched his arm then pulled back from his reach. “I’ll be downstairs when you’re done.”
“You got it.” He flashed one more grin then moved past her and continued on the path to his room.
Brielle watched him go with a grin of her own then turned and jumped as she spotted Lily in the doorway to the room she was staying in. “Shit, you scared me.” She pressed a hand to her chest.
“Sorry,” Lily chuckled some then peered in the direction Alex had gone, “what was that all about?”
“What was what all about?”
“Oh, don’t play coy with me; I saw the way you two were looking at each other.”
Brielle arched a brow. “We weren’t looking at each other in any specific way; we were just talking.”
“Uh huh,” her friend eyed her with a knowing expression, “and I’m the Queen of England; you two were fawning over one another, it was so obvious.”
The blonde blinked and her eyes stretched. “We were not! I was simply telling him that we were worried when he didn’t show last night and he was telling me that he was okay and he wouldn’t disappear again.”
“You two were being awfully touchy feeling for just that,” she mused in a knowing tone, pushing herself from the doorway and disappearing back into her room.
Brielle followed her in. “What are you talking about?”
“You know very well what I’m talking about.”
“I do not.”
“Do so.”
“Do not.”
Lily sighed. “Seriously, Brielle, how old are we? Let’s discuss this like adults here.”
“Okay, so I might have a small inclination of what you’re implying, but seriously, Lily, there’s nothing going on or going to go on; you know there’s way too much drama and the last thing either of us are going to do is add to it.” She sighed and sank down onto the bed, watching as the brunette began to pack the last of her belongings. It was Friday; the day Brielle had been dreading because it meant her best friend was leaving her and returning to New York. They were going to be an entire country apart and the blonde was at a loss for how she was going to survive without her friend; especially now that Renee was back.
“You never know.”
Brielle shook her head. “I do know; even if it’s something we both end up wanting, it’s never going to happen. He has way too much going on with me, this baby and Renee and her baby, besides, you heard her yesterday; they’re going to be getting married very shortly. There’s just no way that I’m going to let myself get put into an even more compromising position than I already am.”
Lily folded a shirt and carefully placed it into her suitcase. “For someone so young, you sure do sound older; that’s very big and mature of you to say that. But who knows, Brie, they haven’t even set a date; maybe there won’t be a wedding.”
“There’s going to be a wedding even if she has to drag him down that aisle.”
Her friend laughed. “I can actually see that happening; she has her claws so deep in him they may never come out. That poor guy is seriously fucked.”
“And you’re going to just leave me with all this mess.”
“Aww, Brie, you know I don’t want to, but I have no choice,” she pouted, “Jordan is going crazy without me there and it’s almost Christmas; I need to get back to him.”
“I know,” the blonde frowned and fell backward into the pillows, “I’m gonna miss you something terrible.”
“I’m gonna miss you too, Brie bear,” she spoke; using an old nickname her friend had grown up with and told the brunette about. “But we’re gonna make sure to visit each other and talk all the time.”
“I know, but it’s not the same.”
“I know.” She finished folding another shirt and set it in the suitcase then joined her friend on the bed. “It’s gonna be okay, you know. I’ll be back out here when you give birth and you’ll be coming to my wedding; you better be because you’re my maid of honor.”
Brielle smiled at her friend. “I’ll be there.”
“And you know,” Lily settled herself next to the other girl, their arms brushing, “if you ever need me, you can call me anytime; day or night. And I’ll be out here as quick as I can.”
“I know and I appreciate that.”
“And if Renee gives you too much trouble, you just let me know and I’ll make sure to have a few words with her.”
Brielle chuckled. “Deal.”
Her friend sighed some, staring up at the ceiling above. “But you know, you just don’t worry about her; you live your life and go about your way, doing what you need to, to get through everything. You let Alex do all he can to help you and don’t worry about imposing on him or coming between the two of them. I think he’s going to make sure she doesn’t give you more stress.”
“I hope so. And I hope I can get a job soon and find a place of my own. Being here while they’re in the middle of planning their wedding is going to be very awkward.”
Lily made a face. “I don’t think they’re going to be planning a wedding. I think Alex is slowly starting to come around and realize just how big a mistake it would be to marry someone like Renee. Besides,” she smirked over at her friend, “I think he likes you a lot more than he lets on.”
Brielle remembered the kiss and rubbed her forehead. “I don’t know.”
“I see the way he looks at you. You should have seen how freaked out he was when he came barreling into that hospital and we had no idea what was going on.”
The blonde shifted to her side and rose up on her elbow. “He’s dealing with so much, Lily; I’m not gonna even add to it. The guy pushed me out a window because he freaked out that his mother would get upset with his drinking; and now he’s taking off and hiding out at friend’s houses just to escape everything. Do you seriously think it’s a good idea to give in to whatever feelings either of us may have, considering all the mess around us?”
Lily pushed herself into a sitting position. “You’re probably right,” she relented. “But I will say this; maybe it’s what you both need at the moment. You could find comfort in each other and maybe something like that would help him.”
“I don’t think so.” She sat up next to her friend. “I don’t think allowing myself to develop feelings for him is going to help either of us; it’d only hamper things and make ‘em worse. And Lord help me if Renee found out. She’d kill me and hide my body.”
“Maybe you’re right,” the brunette finally admitted. “I guess I’m just a sucker for a happy ending and what a perfect story it’d be to tell your kids and grandkids. Not to mention; I hate Renee and someone as wonderful as Alex is deserves someone like you and not anyone like her. It’s hard to see someone so horrible and evil getting something so wonderful.”
“Sounds like you’re the one with the crush,” Brielle teased her friend.
Lily chuckled. “He’s a gorgeous man with a good heart; he deserves true love and real happiness just like you do. I told you, I’m a real sucker for a happy ending, or a fairytale.”
“I know you are.” She reached over and pulled her friend in for a hug. “I’m gonna miss you so much.”
“Aww, don’t make me cry.” Lily returned the hug, holding her friend close.
“I can’t help it.” The blonde felt her own tears forming in her eyes and pulled back to wipe at them. “All I’ve wanted to do today is cry.”
“Those damn pregnancy hormones.”
“It must be.” She sniffed then cleared her throat. “Okay, I’ll let you finish packing. What time is Denise going to take you to the airport?”
Lily checked her watch. “Um, in about two hours and you don’t have to leave; you can visit with me while I pack.”
“Okay, but we can’t talk about anything sad.”
“How ‘bout we talk about babies?”
Brielle smiled. “I can handle that.”
~*~*~*~*~
After his shower and a fresh change of clothes, Alex found Brielle in the guest bedroom, helping Lily finish up her packing. He frowned at having forgotten that her best friend was leaving her today and immediately hated himself for disappearing on them last night. He really needed to get himself under control, because after today, she’d be on her own if he fell back into his old habits and that’s the last thing he wanted.
“Am I interrupting anything?” He questioned as he rapped lightly on the open door and poked his head into the room.
Both girls looked over and Brielle grinned at him. “No, I was just keeping her company as she finished packing her bags.”
“Nice.” He slipped into the room and watched as the brunette worked on zipping her large suitcase. “Need any help with that?”
Lily shook her head, the tip of her tongue poking from the corner of her mouth as she concentrated on her task at hand. “Nope, I got it.”
“She needs to sit on it.”
Alex chuckled at that and sank down into a chair there on one side of the room. “I’ve done that quite a few times; it’s very useful.”
“I’m not sitting on my suitcase.” She tugged the zipper then gave a squawk as it quickly slid along the track and she stumbled back against the bed. “Damn thing.”
Brielle giggled then clapped. “You got it closed!”
“About time.” Lily smirked then stood up and smoothed her shirt, giving the room a once over. “I do believe that’s everything.”
“What time do you need to leave for the airport?”
The brunette turned her lively green eyes onto the male in the room. “Your mom is taking me; we weren’t sure what time you’d be back today, so she just said she would drive me there.”
“Oh, okay, well …sure.”
Brielle nodded. “I told her I couldn’t go; I don’t want any part in helping her leave me.”
Alex chuckled at the expression on her face. “We can stay here and distract ourselves.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Lily looked between the two then rested her gaze on their host. “Think you can help me take my bags downstairs?”
“Of course.” He rose to his feet then moved and gathered the bags. Together, the trio made their way out of the bedroom then down the hall and downstairs to the first floor.
Denise joined them as they stacked the bags in the foyer by the front door and herded everyone into the kitchen where she had a nice lunch of ham and cheese sandwiches, chips and freshly squeezed lemonade. Brielle finally got her jalapeño Doritos with sour cream and the four ate lunch with minimal conversation that was free of Renee, pregnancies and weddings. After they were done eating, Alex loaded the bags into his SUV and handed the keys over to his mom. He thanked her for taking Lily and assured Denise that he would stay with Brielle and keep her occupied.
The two girls started their goodbyes early and it still took fifteen minutes past the time of their scheduled departure before Lily climbed into the vehicle and the two finally headed off down the drive.
Brielle waved until the SUV was no longer in sight then turned to Alex, tears shimmering in her eyes and a pout on her lips. “I can’t believe she’s gone.”
Alex felt the tug on his heart and he opened his arms, wrapping them around her as she melted into his embrace and buried her face in his chest. “It’s gonna be okay,” he soothed, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
Brielle sniffed and her shoulders jerked some, her own arms sliding around his waist and holding him close. “Eventually, but she left me,” she managed out between soft sobs.
“Aww, Brie, baby,” he kissed her head again and held her a bit tighter, hating how upset she was, “I promise you that you’ll get to see her lots and lots. We’ll fly you two back and forth so much you’ll get sick of each other.”
“I could never get sick of her.” She finally pulled back and wiped at her damp cheeks. “She’s the only friend I have and now she’s gone.” Her chin quivered and she pressed her lips together in an attempt to still it.
“Oh, hey now, don’t say that,” he reached and smoothed his thumbs under her eyes, brushing away the tears that continued to fall, “you have me and my mom and you’re going to make so many new friends out here, you’ll see.”
“It’s not the same.” She pulled from his touch and headed for the front door.
Alex followed behind up the walk then back into the house. “Do you really not want to be out here?” He closed the door securely behind them and reset the alarm.
“No, I do, but I wish Lily was going to be out here with me.” Her blue eyes pooled with fresh tears and she cleared her throat. “You and Denise are both so wonderful, but you’re not Lily. Besides, you’re a boy.”
He chuckled at that and brushed some hair from her face. “Just not the same, is it?”
She wordlessly shook her head and he couldn’t fight the urge to pull her back into his embrace.
“C’mere.” He led her down and into the living room then gently tugged her onto the sofa next to him. Once seated, she leaned into his side and he wrapped both arms around her petite frame, holding her as close and secure as he could without either of them being uncomfortable. “We can just sit here and you can cry all you want,” he soothed as he rubbed her back gently and pressed his cheek against her head.
Brielle tucked her head against his chest and let her arm drape across his chest. “I’m sorry for getting all emotional.”
“Oh, hey, don’t apologize,” he tilted his head to see her face, “you have every right to be upset and sad. And I’m sure the pregnancy hormones aren’t helping.”
“They’re really not.”
He chuckled and brushed his lips lightly across her forehead. “How ‘bout we talk about something?”
“Like what?”
“Well,” he mulled her question over, “did you have fun yesterday with Leigh, Lily and James?”
Brielle sat up at that and wiped her face, drying her hands onto the pantleg of her jeans. “I did; Leigh is so sweet and James is probably the cutest little baby I’ve seen.”
Alex grinned some at that, his hand continuing to smooth along her back. “Gosh, he’s not so much a baby anymore, is he?”
“Well, he’s not a little baby; she said he was nineteen months and he’s so sweet!” She smiled thinking back on him. “He has the most precious laugh and it just makes you want to giggle along with him. And his eyes are so big and beautiful.” A sigh. “I hope our baby is that beautiful.”
“Well, with you as the mother and me as the father; how can it not be?”
She smiled wistfully. “I know,” then she shook herself from the thought, “but yeah, we had a good time. She took us to this amazing restaurant that looked out over the ocean and the breadsticks nearly melt right in your mouth. Then we went shopping at these little boutique stores that specialized in different things; jewelry, hats, handbags and this one store where she got James some new shoes.” Brielle put a hand to her chest. “I thought I was going to die when I saw how tiny and sweet the little baby shoes are.”
He couldn’t stop the grin that was spreading over his face. She seemed so excited and entertained with her day out with Leigh and Alex made a mental note to call and thank the older woman. “Did you tell Leigh about the baby?”
“Well, not at first, but she kind of figured it out when Lily and I were oohing over some of the tiniest, little, black Mary Jane shoes. Lily wanted to get them for me, but I told her we don’t know if the baby is a girl yet, so she needed to wait.”
“What’d she say?”
Brielle’s baby blues turned to him. “Lily or Leigh?”
“Leigh.”
“Oh,” she tilted her head, “well, she was surprised, but said she had a feeling that was the situation. She didn’t like…say anything negative or even bring up Renee.”
Alex smoothed his hand from her back and clasped her knee, giving it a squeeze. “Leigh has lots of class and she isn’t the type to run her mouth about people. She’s really a sweetheart.”
Brielle smiled, her hand finding his and resting on the back of it. “I really like her. She said that we could get together again and if I needed anything; questions or to talk or just anything, I can give her a call. She gave me her number.”
“Good.” His thumb smoothed small circles on the outside of her knee and the thought of how comfortable it was with her flashed through his mind, but he pushed it away as quick as it had come. “I hope you two can get together again.”
“Me too.”
They fell into a comfortable silence and Brielle shifted some, snuggling up against his side and getting more comfortable. “So, how are you doing?” She questioned as she leaned her head against his shoulder, their hands brushing each other as they rested on her leg.
Alex sighed and stretched his legs out before him. “I’m alright.”
She cast her eyes toward his face. “Just alright?”
“Yeah, not horrible, but I could feel a hell of a lot better.”
Her hand found its way to his chest and she began to rub it gently before she even realized what she was doing. “You feeling bad about Renee?”
“I don’t know if you could say, bad. I don’t know how I’m feeling about her, right now.” He shivered slightly at her touch then relaxed as the simple action began to soothe him.
“I understand that. She wasn’t very happy with you yesterday.”
He shifted his eyes down to her. “She was still here when you guys got back?” Brielle nodded and he made a face. “I’m sorry.”
“Oh, don’t be sorry.” She sat up, but her hand continued to smooth over his chest. “We handled it well; your mom played the neutral part and Renee and I just ignored each other; or I tried to and she spat out little remarks in hopes of hurting my feelings.”
“Did it work?”
A brilliant smile lit her face and he felt the twinge inside his chest, remembering one of the reasons he was so attracted to the blonde. “Nope.”
“That’s my girl.” His hand reached up and he stroked her cheek. “I’m glad you’re not letting her pettiness get under your skin.”
Brielle knew she needed to pull away before things got out of hand, but at the moment she couldn’t bring herself to move. “Me too; I’ve just decided that she isn’t worth any anguish to me and if I let her upset me then she’s won.”
His thumb was now smoothing along the curve of her jaw and Alex could feel the pulse in his neck growing stronger. “That’s a very good way of looking at it.”
“Yeah.” Her breath was catching in her throat, their eyes locked on each other. She probably only had about five seconds to either change the subject or move away from him if she didn’t want a replay of what happened between them on the piano bench to occur.
“Uh huh.”
Brielle could hear her heart pounding in her ears and the tip of her tongue came out and wet her bottom lip. “Um, Alex…” her voice wavered and she didn’t know if she’d be able to continue.
“Yeah?” He leaned in more, his breath tickling the soft skin of her cheek.
“I um..I…”
“Hm?” His lips ever so lightly skimmed along her jaw.
Goosebumps flashed over the blonde’s skin at that. “Um…this…I…uh…don’t…think…”
His large hand reached up and cupped her opposite cheek as his mouth sought out her ear. “Shh, don’t think,” he rasped out before his teeth nipped at the lobe.
Brielle gave a soft sound, knowing she’d be a goner if he found that spot behind her ear that always weakened her defenses. Moving a hand up, she grasped the back of his and struggled with her conscience on if she should stop him.
“Much better,” his voice was thick and he nipped her ear than began to place soft kisses back down her jaw.
“I um…” she was nearly speechless as the heat he was evoking began to stir inside of her.
Alex’s lips were now nearing her own and his hand smoothed to the back of her neck, drawing her closer. Inside his chest, his heart was hammering loud enough for the both of them and he was doing his best to forget about his fiancée. She was nearly gone from his mind and his mouth sought out Brielle’s, nipping gently at her lower lip before claiming her mouth for his own.
The sound of the doorbell echoing through the house interrupted the two and Brielle jerked back, blinking and shooting up from the couch. “What was that?”
He slowly opened his eyes and laughed low at the startled expression on her face. “The doorbell.” He rubbed the back of his neck then cursed silently and rose to his feet.
“Oh,” she fiddled with the sleeve of her shirt, shifting on her feet, “I knew that.”
Alex smirked. “Sure you did; I had you so befuddled you wouldn’t know what something was even if it smacked you in the face.” Hitching his pants up higher, he smoothed his shirt then sauntered toward the front door.
Checking the peephole, Alex frowned at the unfamiliar faces of the man and woman standing on the porch. He’d never seem them before and immediately wondered how they’d gotten past his security gate. Alarm squeezed his chest, but against better judgment, he reset his alarm system and pulled the door open. “Yes?”
“Hi.” The woman smiled in an uncomfortable fashion and something inside of the homeowner told him that she seemed familiar.
His dark gaze shifted between the tall, thin blonde woman and the taller, slightly robust man with dark hair and a moustache. “What can I help you with?”
The two exchanged a glance. “We um, well we know this may sound strange,” the gentleman spoke up, his clear blue eyes settling on Alex.
Again, that familiar sensation entered his chest and he wondered if maybe he had met them before somewhere. Maybe in his drunken state last night and he’d invited them over to his house today; the Lord knows what kind of bullshit he got himself into when he wasn’t in his right mind. “Um…what’s that?”
Again, they exchanged glances before the woman took a breath and spoke up, “Well-”
But the sound of glass exploding interrupted her and Alex spun to find Brielle behind him, the remains of a glass shattered around her feet. He blinked and opened his mouth to speak, but stopped at the look of shock that covered her face; her eyes stretched wide and her mouth open slightly. Following her gaze to the couple, he frowned then looked to her again. “Brielle?”
But she didn’t move, instead, she stared at the two newcomers with a look he couldn’t quite figure out. Turning back to them, he noticed the strange expressions on their own faces. Something weird was going on here.
“Wh…what…what are you doing here?” The blonde finally managed to speak, but stayed rooted in her spot; shards of glass sprinkled along the floor.
“Oh, Brielle,” the woman breathed out, fidgeting and trying to take a step into the house, but Alex stood in the entryway, prohibiting her from entering.
“We had to see you,” the gentleman added, his arm going around the tall woman as if for comfort.
The homeowner’s frown deepened and his gaze shifted between the strangers and Brielle. “You…know these people?”
Her heart melting blue eyes lifted to his face and he noted a look of anguish that tore him to the core. “Unfortunately, I do,” she wet her bottom lip then turned her attention back onto the couple on the porch, her gaze darkening and her eyes narrowing some, “they're my parents.”
