Forgiven (24 page)

Caleb must have realized that I didn’t want to talk about it anymore, because he answered for me. “Yeah, the hearing is next month. Thing is, if he pleads not guilty Angie will have to testify.”

I shivered again. I was trying to not think about the possibility of having to testify. They both noticed my reaction. “We’ll be there with you if that happens,” Emily said with conviction.

“Baby, we would never leave you alone to face that,” Caleb reassured me.

I nodded. “Can we please talk about something else?”

Emily and Caleb shot each other a look and nodded. I turned to Emily. “Tell me about the cruise,” I said with a slight smile.

We talked about her trip for a bit, before Heather and Jillian came back with the pizza. We ate and joked about Jillian and Heather’s wild week. Shit, those two were a fucking train wreck together.

Caleb decided to stay the night. “I sleep better with you next to me,” he said as we cuddled in bed.

I tilted my head up and kissed him. “Night Caleb.”

“Goodnight baby.”

Angie and I spent the next few days taking turns staying at each other’s apartments. I wasn’t joking when I told her I slept better with her next to me. For some reason, she kept the nightmares away.

Now that classes were back in full swing, it was difficult for Angie and I to get as much time together as I would have liked. Tonight we were headed to Andrew’s frat party, and I couldn’t help but think about the last party. That was the first time I’d kissed Angie, but I’d walked away from her that night. This time, I had every intention of taking her home after the party and burying myself inside her warmth.

I got hard just thinking about it—good thing I was in my car waiting for Angie to finish class. Otherwise, that could’ve been extremely embarrassing. I still couldn’t believe that after everything she had been through, she had trusted me enough to make love to her for the first time.

Josh was in Angie’s class, so I was picking them both up and then we were having Angie drop us off for workout. She was going to head back to her apartment and get ready, before coming back to pick us up. Finally, I saw Angie and Josh emerge from the building where their class was held. They were laughing on their way to the car. I felt a spark of jealousy seeing Angie and Josh so close, but I had to remember they had been friends for two years. Besides, Josh was one of my best friends and he wasn’t interested in anything more than sex. Jealous? Really? I had never been jealous in my life. The problem was, I knew I loved her, but I still didn’t have enough guts to tell her.

They both got in the car and Angie leaned over to kiss me. She slid her tongue along my bottom lip, and all of my jealousy melted away. I opened my mouth and let my tongue dance with hers. Moving my lips against hers, I relished the taste of hers.

“Would you guys give the lovey-dovey shit a break?” he groaned.

I reluctantly pulled away from Angie and turned to look at Josh in the back seat. “You’re just jealous, because you’re not getting any.” I saw Angie blush out of the corner of my eye. Her innocence made her sexy as hell. I turned back around and started the car.

Once we got to the practice field, I got out and met Angie at the front of the car. I touched my lips to hers, but quickly pulled away because I had to get inside—Coach was still pissed about the fight a few weeks ago.

“I’ll see you after workout. Remember to dress in something sexy for the party,” I hinted.

“We’ll see,” she flirted. “But I’m going to get dressed at your house. I don’t feel like getting ready this early. I’ll be back at five-thirty.”

She moved over to the driver’s side and climbed in. I stayed and watched her drive away. If she was going to get ready back at my place, we might have time for a little fun before we had to leave. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and headed inside to change.

Our workout went by faster than I’d thought it would. I was excited to take Angie to the party—I wanted everyone to know that she was mine. She had taught me what no one else could in the last two years—I deserved to have love in my life. The world needed to know how wonderful she was. Josh and I walked out of the locker room to find Angie leaning against the car waiting for us.

She smiled as we approached. “Josh, do you want to ride up front. I feel bad that you’re stuck in the back.”

Josh shook his head. “Nah, I think I’ll stay in the back. I don’t want Mr. Temperamental trying to kick my ass because he can’t sit next to you,” he said pointing at me.

I shot him a disgusted look. “Eat a dick, asshole.”

Angie laughed at the two of us. “Knock it off you two,” she ordered between giggles, climbing into the passenger seat.

Once Josh and I were in the car, we headed straight back to our apartment. I was making pasta for dinner because it was quick and easy, I also wanted to make sure everyone ate before drinking that night. It was my turn to be the designated driver, but Angie had offered to drive instead. I tried to talk her out of it, but she insisted. After we finished eating, Angie went into the bathroom to get ready. She refused to show me what she’d brought to wear until she had it on.

I was already dressed in a pair of jeans and a button down shirt that I left untucked. Josh and I were sitting on the couch watching TV when my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID.

“Hey Mom,” I answered.

“Caleb, I haven’t heard from you in a while,” my mom’s voice answered from the other end.

“I know, I’m sorry things have been crazy around here lately,” I replied. If only she knew how much of an understatement that was.

“Well, how was your trip?” she asked brightly.

Mom was always trying to keep a positive attitude around me. In the beginning, she tried to make me see that it wasn’t my fault. When that didn’t work, she did everything she could to talk about only the positives in my life. Her and my dad had supported me through everything that had happened, and I knew she was going to be thrilled when I told her about Angie.

“Um…I um…decided not to go.”

“What do you mean, you decided not to go? You’ve been looking forward to this trip for over a month,” she exclaimed.

“I know, but something came up,” I evaded. I looked over at Josh who had a smirk on his face.

I threw the remote at him, which only made him laugh out loud. I still hadn’t told him about what had happened with Angie’s father. The bruises had almost healed by the time they got home, and what marks remained she was able to cover up with makeup. Besides, I figured it was her story to tell.

“Were you sick? Is everything okay?” she asked worriedly.

“No Mom, I’m fine, everything’s fine now,” I assured her.

“Are you sure?” she asked again.

“I’m positive. What’s new with you?” I asked trying to change the subject.

It worked—it always did with Mom. “Actually that’s why I’m calling. Nicole got accepted to Syracuse with a full scholarship for soccer.”

“Wow, that’s awesome.”

“I know, she’s so excited. Anyway, they have something this weekend for the new members of the team. We thought that we would drive there, drop her off, and then head over to the hotel near you for the weekend. We haven’t seen you since Christmas.”

Just then I saw Josh’s mouth drop open as he was looking towards the hallway. I instinctively turned to where he was looking.

“Holy Shit!” Angie was standing there in a black halter-top dress that accentuated her gorgeous breasts and stunning legs. She looked so fucking beautiful, that I couldn’t get my mouth to move. All I could think about was what it would be like to take her out of that dress later.

She spun around and I almost lost it—most of her back was bare. “What do you think?” she asked.

She started to walk over to me and caught sight of the forgotten phone in my hand. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were on the phone.”

I was still in a daze when I heard both my mom and Angie call my name at the same time.

I shook my head to clear it. “Sorry, baby. It’s just that…you look amazing!”

“Caleb, who are you talking to?” Mom’s voice asked.

“Mom, that was Angie. I haven’t gotten a chance to tell you about her yet,” I replied.

“Did…did you just call her baby?” Mom stuttered.

I smiled at Angie as she came to join me on the couch, “Yes Mom, I called her baby. Angie’s my girlfriend.”

“She’s your what?” Mom whispered.

“Mom, are you okay?” She didn’t answer me. “Mom? MOM?”

“Caleb, what they hell did you say to your mother,” my father’s angry voice sounded from the phone.

“I didn’t say anything,” I argued.

“Well you must have said something to upset her, she’s sitting here crying,” Dad yelled.

“I was trying to tell her about my girlfriend, Angie, when she—”

He cut me off. “Your what?”

“My girlfriend, are you guys even listening to me? What is going on there?” I was getting frustrated.

“Oh Caleb, honey, I just never thought this would happen,” Mom sniffed. She must’ve taken the phone back from Dad.

“Mom, please don’t cry,” I begged.

“Don’t worry, they’re happy tears,” she assured me. “I’m so happy for you. Can we meet her while we are there this weekend?”

I could hear the excitement in her voice—I wasn’t the only one who thought that I’d be alone forever. “Hold on, let me ask her.”

I covered the phone and looked at Angie. Her eyes had gone wide—probably round about the time she realized who I was talking to. And now I was telling them about her. “My parents are going to be here this weekend and they want to know if they can meet you?”

She looked at little nervous. “Sure.”

“How about dinner on Saturday?” I asked.

She started to fidget with her dress, but nodded her head. “Okay.”

I put the phone back up to my ear. “How does dinner on Saturday sound?”

“That sounds perfect,” Mom squealed. “I can’t wait to meet her.”

“Alright, Mom, calm down. Look we’re leaving in a few minutes to go out. We can catch up this weekend.”

“Okay, honey, I’ll call you when we get to the hotel. Love you.”

“Love you too, Mom.”

I hung up the phone and looked at Angie sitting next to me in that dress. I gave into my impulses and leaned over to touch her lips with mine, before trailing my lips down to her neck and back up to her ear. “You are sexy as hell,” I whispered.

She shivered at the feel of my breath on her neck. I pulled back and stood up before I changed my mind about going to the party. I held out my hand for her to take. “Let’s go.” I looked over my shoulder at Josh. “Are you coming or not?”

He pushed himself out of the chair. “Yeah, I’m coming.”

When we arrived at the house, the party was already in full swing. I took Angie’s hand as we walked through the front door. Jillian and Heather already had a crowd gathered around them. Josh and I grabbed a beer before moving through the house. We eventually found Emily and Andrew, dancing by the DJ.

I leaned down to Angie’s ear. “Do you want to dance?”

She smiled up at me, which was answer enough. I led her over to where Andrew and Emily were. Emily looked Angie up and down. “Damn girl, you look hot,” she shouted over the music.

Angie smiled, “Thanks, you look pretty hot yourself.”

The music started playing so I pulled her to me, and began to dance. I loved the way her body felt as it moved against mine. She wrapped one arm around my neck as my hands roamed up and down her back and ribs—almost, but not quite, touching her breast. When my hand finally grazed her breast, I felt her sharp intake of breath and she looked up into my eyes. Those brown eyes that used to terrify me now brought me comfort.

I bent down and captured her lips with mine.
Shit!
She tasted better every time I kissed her. We danced for about an hour before moving away from the DJ to talk to our friends. Josh had disappeared a while ago, so we were talking to Andrew, Emily, and a couple guys from the team.

Andrew grabbed beers from the fridge, “Thank God this semester is almost over. I’m not sure how much more of these classes I can take.”

I laughed. “You say that every semester. Just suck it up. Before you know it summer will be here.”