Color of Forgiveness (15 page)

Myra shakes her head and grins before
looking down at her hands.

“Dylan needs serious lovin’, and I
know
you are the one that can give it to him. Just be there
for him and just give him love, plain and simple. He’s been through
a hellish experience, but it’s obvious he’s ready to start over
again… with you, you lucky beyotch!” Susie yells before erupting
into a fit of giggles. Myra joins her.

After their laughter dies down, Myra looks
over at Susie. “I can’t believe I’m going home tomorrow.”

“I know. Why won’t you let me drive you to
the airport? Or have Jeff take you?”

“Because you both can’t afford to miss work;
I can take a taxi.”

Susie smirks. “You’re pigheaded.”

“I know. I’m really going to miss you.”

“Don’t start. You know I can’t cry because I
have no moisture left in my tub-o-lard body. I’m going to have to
chug a case of Gatorade before we say our goodbyes. So let me drink
myself into oblivion tonight so I can replenish my tear
reservoir.”

“I love you,” Myra says as she leans toward
Susie and gives her a hug.

“I love you more,” Susie says, squeezing her
tight. “And remember, Dylan is
not
Trent. Don’t be afraid to
open yourself up to love again.”

Myra stares at Susie for a moment before
smiling and nodding. Maybe it is time to try again.

* * *

Dylan steps out the backdoor of Chad’s house
and sits on the steps of the deck, lighting up a cigarette. Staring
up into the blackened sky scattered with tiny pin pricks of white
stars, he wonders what Myra’s doing right now. Pulling his phone
out and checking the time, he calculates the time difference and
figures she’s probably already asleep. But he really wants to hear
her voice so he dials her number anyway.

“Hi,” she says.

He smiles when he hears her voice. “Hey.
What are you doing? I didn’t call too late, did I?”

“No. I’m in bed but I was awake. I couldn’t
sleep.”

Hearing her say ‘in bed’ goes straight to
his dick. Feeling like a total perv, he clears his throat to stifle
a groan. “Good. I mean, not good that you can’t sleep just good
that I didn’t wake you up. Well… shit.”

Myra giggles softly which makes him chuckle.
“How’s everything going?” he asks.

“Good. I had a really nice dinner with
Susie’s family tonight. Her mom and one of her brothers and his
family came over. I cooked for everyone. Then Susie and I got to
spend some time together talking. It was really nice.”

“I’m sure you’re not looking forward to
leaving Susie.”

“No, I’m not. It’s really hard leaving her.
But we’re always talking to each other either on the phone or on
the computer so it’s not so bad.”

“Are you still flying home tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

“What time does your flight get in?”

“Six o’clock.”

“I decided to stay with my parents tonight,
in Boise. I’m over at my brother’s house right now. Would it be
okay if I meet you at the airport tomorrow? I could, uh, follow you
home or something…” Dylan says, hating how nervous he sounds.

“That’d be great.”

He blows out a breath. “Good. Okay. Well,
just call me tomorrow if anything changes, otherwise I’ll just see
you at the airport, all right?”

“Okay.”

He clears his throat and stands, leaning
against the banister and staring out into the darkness. “Myra?”

“Yeah…?”

“I really…” He stops and clears his throat
again. “I really fucking miss you.”

“I miss you too.”

He smiles again. “Bye,” he whispers.

“Bye.”

Dylan smiles as he tucks his phone back in
his pocket. After he finishes his cigarette, he steps back into the
house to find Chad sitting at the kitchen table eating a giant
piece of pie with what looks like a carton of ice cream on top of
it. With his mouth crammed full, he motions his hand for Dylan to
sit down. He finally gets the bite down and starts talking. “Want
some pie?” he asks.

Dylan shakes his head.

“The boys are upstairs doing their homework
so I’m sneaking a piece. You’re not still pissed at Nat for telling
me about Myra, are you?”

Dylan was pissed off when he stopped by and
Natalie confessed almost immediately that she’d told Chad about
Myra. But then after he’d thought about it, he was almost thankful
to her for saving him the embarrassment of having to tell that shit
to his brother. So far Chad has kept the teasing to a minimum.

“Nah, it’s cool.”

“Good. She’s so happy that you’re talking to
her. She’s just been so damned bored lying on that fucking couch
all day long with nothing to do. She was dying to tell me. She
couldn’t hold that shit in any longer. Besides, you knew I was
already onto your shit when you last visited and were trying to be
all sneaky and covert with those damn phone calls. I saw right
through your shit. I know you too well, bro. I’m happy for ya.”

“Thanks.”

“I’m glad you came over. I won’t be able to
get Nat to shut about it for the next fucking week. This pregnancy
has been really hard on her.”

Dylan nods.

“And it’s been really fucking hard on me
too, bro. No. Fucking. Did you hear me?
No. Fucking…
until
the baby’s born… doc’s orders. That’s like two months away. I don’t
do well without pussy, dude. This shit is fucking killing me. My
dick is gonna shrivel up and fall off. I’m so fucking glad this is
our last baby because I can’t handle any more of this shit.”

Chad’s eyes dart around the kitchen. He
lowers his voice. “Bro, she even talked me into going and getting…”
He holds two fingers up and does a scissor-motion, “… neutered,
man. She’s cutting my fucking balls off. I really hate how much
that bitch owns me. I’m so pussy whipped. She’s taking away my
manhood, bro. I’ll never be the same.” He hangs his head and picks
at the pie with his fork.

Dylan snorts.

“Fuck you. So what’s this Myra like? Is she
hot?” he asks before taking another bite of pie.

“
No
,” Dylan says, frowning. “She’s…
she’s beautiful.”

Chad stops chewing.

“What?” Dylan snaps back angrily.

Chad finishes chewing his bite, a slow grin
splitting his face. “My lil’ bro is in love.”

“No, I’m not. Eat your fucking pie and stay
out of my shit,” Dylan snarls.

Chad’s grin gets even bigger. “Nuh uh. Oh
no. You are in love, dude. Damn, this is fucking awesome! I’m ready
to get my old bro back. I’m not too fond of the grumpy assfuck
you’ve been for the past few years.” Chad laughs as Dylan throws
him the bird. “Sorry, just stating the fucking facts. You know it’s
true. I understand your anger, bro, I really do but I miss my old
bro. I’ve been seeing glimpses of him lately. Some of my best
memories are with you. It’s all right to be happy again, ya
know?”

Dylan knows Chad’s right. He has changed.
He’s not the same man he was before Mel died. That event turned him
into a bitter, angry man that he’s not too proud of. He wants to be
happy again, but he feels guilty for even thinking about it. How
can he be happy when his son is lying in a grave and never had a
chance to live?

As for love? No fucking way is he in love
with Myra. He barely even knows the woman. He’ll admit he has some
feelings for her. He does truly care about Myra. He misses her
almost to the point that it hurts when she’s not around and he
feels protective of her. He knows he’s felt jealously; just the
thought of Ray or that fucking ex of hers anywhere near her makes
his fists clench in anger. And, yes, he’s attracted to her; he
can’t keep his damn hands off of her when she’s around but that
doesn’t mean he loves her.

“Dad, I’m done with my homework,” Jackson
shouts from the hallway.

“Shit,” Chad mutters as he stuffs his face
with two more humongous bites of pie before getting up and tossing
the plate on the counter.

“Gotcha gro take,” he mutters unintelligibly
while chewing and pointing towards the hallway, “gruv boys.”

Dylan frowns and shakes his head, having no
clue what he said.

Chad continues chewing as he waves ‘come on’
at him. He follows Chad out of the kitchen and to the stairs.
“Gotta go take care of the boys,” Chad finally says after he
swallows his bite. “I’ll be right back.”

Dylan steps back into the living room where
Natalie lays on the couch. He listens to her talk about the baby.
His heart aches when she puts his hand on her belly so that he can
feel his niece moving. Flashes of feeling Mel move in Sabrina’s
belly hit him hard, almost knocking the breath out of him.

Natalie gives him a tearful goodbye and
makes him promise that he’ll stop back by tomorrow to visit her
some more before he leaves town. He tells the boys and Chad
goodbye, his eyes staying longer on Joseph as he memorizes his
face, his little hands, and notes how much taller he is.

On the drive back to his parent’s house, he
allows himself to visualize what Mel might look like now if he were
still alive. For just the briefest moment, he pictures Mel standing
next to him. He’d be so proud of him. Breathing heavily, he frowns,
rubbing that painful spot in the center of his chest and tries to
think of something else.

* * *

Myra gets off the airplane with butterflies
frantically chasing each other in her stomach. She feels ridiculous
having this reaction considering she just saw Dylan yesterday, but
she can’t help it. Just the thought of seeing him again sends her
adrenaline racing.

She makes her way to the baggage claim area
and stands by the carousel watching for her luggage when she hears
a voice in her ear. “Hey,” he says quietly, making her jump.

“You scared me,” she says breathlessly as
she turns around to face him. A black baseball cap covers most of
his hair and the scruff on his face is a little longer. He’s
wearing a white T-shirt with an unbuttoned brown plaid shirt over
it paired with faded jeans and his work boots. He takes her breath
away. His eyes are soft as they stare down at her and she sees that
“look” that Susie was telling her about. He looks at her like he
only has eyes for her, like she’s the only person in his world,
like she’s… beautiful. It makes her legs weak and causes her heart
to beat erratically.

As she stares up into his intense eyes, it
hits her. She is completely and totally in love with this man.
She’s not sure when it happened or how but she just knows. She
loves him exactly as he is with all of his flaws and
brokenness.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” he says softly
as he wraps his arms around her. “God, you’re so beautiful,” he
whispers, his voice deep and husky.

His eyes dip to her lips. “I really want to
kiss you, really fucking badly but I… I’m trying to do things right
this time.”

Myra frowns and stares at his lips. She
doesn’t want Dylan to do what’s right. She wants the old Dylan
back; the one that couldn’t keep his lips off of her, the man that
couldn’t control his hands around her. She knows they have a ton of
things to still talk about and work out, but right now she doesn’t
care.

So in the middle of the crowded airport with
people bustling all around them, she stands on her tip toes, pulls
his head down towards her and crushes her lips against his. She
puts everything into that kiss; her longing for him, her compassion
for him over the pain that he carries for his lost son and her
love. He groans into her mouth and pulls her body tight against
his. His scruffy beard scratches roughly against her skin, but it
doesn’t matter. She sucks his lower lip into her mouth, causing a
deep growling sound to vibrate in his chest. He kisses her back
with just as much passion.

Someone clears their throat. “Dylan?” a
woman’s voice calls out.

Dylan pulls his lips away from her. “
Holy
shit
,” he mumbles before his head snaps around to look behind
him. “What the hell
…
I mean, what the heck, Mom. What are
you doing here?
”

Myra peeks around Dylan’s shoulder to see an
extremely attractive older couple staring at them. She cannot
believe his parents are here and caught her attacking their son.
She wishes she could hide in a suitcase. The woman’s face contorts
into outrage as she stares at Dylan. “Dylan Andrew Lawson, don’t
you ever address me like that. I raised you better than that. I
don’t care if you are an adult now, I am your mother and you will
not
speak to me like that. Do you understand?”

Dylan looks down at Myra and slightly shakes
his head. He drops his arms from around Myra and turns around.
“Sorry,” he says to his mom. “What are you doing here?” he asks in
a strained voice.

Dylan’s mother takes a step towards Myra and
holds out her hand. “Please excuse my son’s behavior. I’m Sherri.”
She grabs Myra’s hand with both of hers. Myra can’t help but admire
how truly beautiful she is even with the small laugh lines around
her eyes. Myra can only imagine how incredibly breathtaking she
must have been as a younger woman. Looking into her eyes, she sees
Dylan’s eyes reflected back. They are the exact same color.

“I’m Myra... Myra Sommers.”

“It’s wonderful to meet you. You are even
lovelier than Dylan said you were.”

Sherri turns to the man standing behind her.
“And this is Dylan’s father, Dennis.”

Dylan’s father is equally attractive. She
can see the resemblance to Dylan in the strong jaw line and
cheekbones. Dylan definitely has good genes. “Nice to meet you,” he
says with a smile as he shakes her hand firmly.

Dennis looks at Dylan and holds his hands
up. “Son, I had nothing to do with this. This is all on your
mother. I’m completely innocent. She dragged me here against my
will. I tried to tell her this was a terrible idea.”

“Dennis, hush. Last time I checked, I didn’t
need Dylan’s permission to go to the airport or anywhere else for
that matter,” Sherri says quickly, shooting a glare to her son
before tucking her arm through Dennis’s. Myra can’t help but smile
at how cute his parents are.