Chapter Seven
Zane
The sound is beautiful… melodic … and fuck me, familiar.
This gorgeous woman isn’t anyone I dated. She isn’t even anyone I hung with in school. She is the one person that I would never have guessed, but she is the one person if I could have picked, I would want her to be.
Wow! I’m blown away. Her laughter is as magical sounding now as it was way back then. That laugh helped me stay sane when hatred was an everyday feeling shoved down my throat. That laugh, her laugh, with its magical tone made me feel like life wasn’t so bad after all.
This mysterious, gorgeous brunette with the thick, long, luscious curls; the soft, sultry voice; and the body built to make men moan, is none other than the girl who lived next door. Lanky Laura Smith. We were secret friends without secrets.
Suddenly, I want to kiss her again, understanding what she stirs deep inside. I want to let her velvety, sweetness caress my soul.
I reach for her hand. “Laura.”
She stops laughing, and I almost regret calling her name, but then our eyes connect on another level, and time falls away. We are the two kids, best friends, that kissed on the fence and fell in love.
She gives me her hand and I gently stroke her soft skin. Back and forth, my thumb moves over hers, as I search for the words I should say and need to say.
"Laura," I tell her softly. "I’m sorry I left you behind."
She turns her hand over and takes mine to hold, then she squeezes it. Our eyes locked, sharing the same regret, and the same hunger for the other, she smiles and forgives me. "It’s okay, Zane. You weren’t in charge. You couldn’t help what happened."
I look down at her hand remembering the Christmas that my miserable life turned to shit, and I start talking.
“After our kiss, I was high as a fucking kite. No amount of hate my dad or my stepmother slung at each other or slung at me, could dampen the euphoria I was feeling when I went into the house.” I look into her eyes again, and her face shows her need to know what happened. “I had had a taste of true love and a vision of what freedom looked like.”
I look back down at our hands and she squeezes mine.
I continue, “Shit hit the fan and I ended up in the emergency room lying to nurses and doctors that my old man had fallen down the stairs while hiding my bruised knuckles.”
She gasps, “What happened?”
I shake my head. “My old man was drunk and my stepmother was packing her shit. She had had enough and was leaving us. He wanted me to stop her, and when I wouldn’t, he slapped me.”
I lift my face and the sadness in her eyes makes me continue. “I hit him. Not once, but several times. My stepmother pulled me off. I had broken his nose, so I had to take him to the emergency room. By the time, we got home, you and your family had left, and my stepmother had too.”
She touches my face. “I’m so sorry.”
I turn away from her to look out over the restaurant, shaking my head, not wanting her sympathy, and continue. “My dad couldn’t afford the house payment alone, so instead of getting evicted, we moved out.”
I turn back to stare into her soft caramel-colored eyes and confess the truth. “I was devastated having to leave without saying goodbye to you.”
She says, “I looked for you in school when I went back after Christmas, so I knew you had moved far enough away that I wouldn’t see you again. I was devastated too.”
I slip my hand through her hair, cup her ear, and tilt her face to kiss. Her sweet, softness surges into the depths of my soul as the floodgates of our memories come into focus. My mouth possesses hers, letting her know that I have no intention of leaving her ever again.
Her hands reach for me and she returns my kiss matching my passion.
Blake clears his throat as he sets the pizza onto the table, then says, “I hate to interrupt this part of the reunion, but your food is ready."
I let her lips go, but not her head, I pull it to me, and kiss her forehead. Her sweet smile and the softness of her expression assures me that she feels the same way I do. Thankful to be reunited.
“You’ll be happy to know Batman was happily devouring the hambone he had been given.” Blakey announces.
I wink at Laura, and she giggles. “He is such a good boy.”
Blake agrees, “Yes, he is, but I removed any temptation to make sure of it.” Blake agrees as he hands two small plates over the pizza to Laura.
