She sighs and climbs on top of me. I wrap my arms around her and cover us with the bedspread.
“I have a hard time believing that you’ve been lonely.” She runs a hand through my curly hair and runs it down my face, caressing me. “You’re sweet when you’re not being dramatic. Not to mention, you’re handsome and rich. That’s not a recipe for loneliness, Colt.”
I caress the skin at the base of her spine and relish having her full breasts pressed on me.
“I married young and had a child. I never cheated on my wife. Not once. And before her, there were women, but you can have a different woman in your bed every night and still be lonely.” opens her mouth to speak, but I put a finger to her lips. “Not that I had a different woman every night. Kelsey died, and one bad relationship later, I was lonely until I met you. Even though you made me chase you.”
She remains quiet in my arms, but I can tell she’s absorbing my words. She takes my hand and intertwines our fingers before she brings our joined hands to her lips. I sigh, happier than I’ve been in years.
“When I was at Duke, I met Jerry.” I freeze at the mention of another man’s name while we’re in my bed. “He was a medical student, and the first serious boyfriend I had. We were together for two years before we broke up.”
I wait for her to say more, and when she doesn’t, I ask, “Is that before or after he called you an ice queen?”
She sighs at my question. “Before, during, and after. It was a theme with him. I ran into him a few weeks before we met. He’s back in the city, it seems.”
She slides off my body, but she cuddles to my side. She throws an arm across my torso and twines her legs with mine.
“I will have no problems beating that doctor’s behind.” She lets out a loud laugh, and I love the sound so much, I make a fist to show how serious I am.
“You don’t have to worry about him. Were you in love with Kelsey?” she asks. She lowers her voice, and the previous lightheartedness is gone. The room almost turns cold at the mention of Kelsey. I want to tell Vickie that there’s no room to talk about her here, but I know we need to have this conversation.
“I hate to say this because I love my son, but no. I didn’t love her. We were high school sweethearts, but when I left for college, we broke up. She got married, had a child, and divorced young.” I take a deep breath and continue. “When I first got here, it might as well had been another planet. Like any twenty-year-old kid with more money than brains, I went a little crazy with the women.” I look away from her, but she grabs my chin, forcing me to look back at her.
“Nothing wrong with that,” she says softly. “You were young, single, and free.”
“When she got divorced, she got in touch with me. Mama had given her my number, and she was familiar. She came to visit, and we picked up where we left off. I missed Alabama and having her here was like having a piece of home in New York. It was nice. At least at first. She and her first husband never had much. I don’t know if she’d changed or if the money I had changed her, but she got pregnant on purpose. We got married, and it wasn’t good. I’m grateful she was a good mom, but she didn’t love me, and I didn’t love her. I was her ticket out of Alabama. That wasn’t strong enough to sustain a marriage. She had some vices I didn’t know about and died of a drug overdose.”
She remains quiet, but she kisses my shoulder.
“Part of the reason I was reluctant about us was because I didn’t want to compete with your dead wife. I assumed you had this great love and that there’s no way I could ever come close to that.”
I turn on my side so we can face each other. She does the same.
“You don’t ever have to compete with anyone. I’m in this. You and me, Queen Vee, we’re together, but I’m a package deal. I need you to understand that and know what it means. It means—”
She puts a finger to my lips. “Shh. I know. I come from a blended family. I know what it means. It means we’ll spend a lot of time here, or the three of us will be going to the museum or the zoo. You won’t ever have to worry about me not wanting Evan around.”
“Thank you, darlin’.” I pull her on top of me. “Even though you came into this relationship kickin’ and screamin’, I’m glad you’re here now. Make love to your man.”
TWENTY-SIX
We spendthe night wrapped around each other. When I wake up, the bed is empty, and his pillow is cold. There’s a bag with a department store logo in his spot with my name scrawled across the bag. I rub the sleep from my eyes and pour the contents onto the bed. There’s underwear, a bra, jeans, and three tops. There are also three jerseys with the Mischiefs logo and Colt’s number. My phone says it’s after nine, so I jump out of the bed and hop in the shower. When I get out, I notice the new toothbrush on the counter. After dressing and making the bed, I walk to the living room and to the sounds of laughter and the smell of breakfast.
Myra smiles and waves me over when she sees me. Colt has Evan on his back, and when they approach, he towers over me, leans down, and gives me a kiss on the lips. He holds me tight against him, uncaring about our audience.
“Hungry? Myra will make whatever you want.” Myra grabs a mug, pours coffee, and hands it to me. She points to cream and sugar on the table, and I reach for the creamer.
I exhale at the first sip of the coffee. After my third sip, I look up to find Colt looking at me. He winks, grabs Evan, and tosses him in the air. The little boy lets out a big belly laugh, and Colt does it again.
“Um, nothing to eat for me, Myra,” I tell her when I see her pull out a carton of eggs. “I’m going to go so I can get my writing done before the game tonight.” I finish my coffee, but when I approach the sink to wash the mug, Myra takes it from me.
“You can write here. Evan’s got a full day at camp, and I have practice soon. I’ll nap afterwards, and the three of us can go to the game together tonight.” With Evan now on his back, he walks over, puts an arm around me, and kisses my cheek. “How about some bacon and eggs.” He pulls out a chair for me, and Myra pulls out a skillet.
He puts Evan down, and he runs to his room to get dressed.
“I know you brought your laptop, and it’s pouring rain outside,” he says. I finally look out one of the windows and notice the rain for the first time. “Stay. I like having you here, and if you need anything at home, Kendall will arrange to have someone pick it up for you.” I hear a loud clap of thunder. The smell of the sizzling bacon finally hits my nose, and I nod.
“Another cup of coffee would be great.” He gets it for me, and I add my own cream.
