Forgiving Reed (Southern Boys #1) (17 page)

Chapter Thirty-One

It’s Reed’s turn

Things seemed to change when we got back from Boston. Over the last month, Kori had been carefree and vibrant. She laughed and smiled almost constantly. Nothing seemed to phase her, nothing broke her spirit.

In fact, I found her finger painting with Rhett this morning, and when he got it all over her new blouse, she laughed and began using it as her own canvas. I stood in the doorway, watching as they painted her shirt together.

It was as if the young girl I once knew had reappeared, and she was so damn happy.

About a week after we got back from Boston, Rhett and Kori went back home. That shit stung. I wanted to beg her to stay. I wanted to ask her to just move in with me, but I thought she would feel it was too soon.

So now we were sharing a few nights a week at each other’s places. The nights without them were long and miserable. I felt like I was half empty and slept like shit. I would worry if they were okay and sometimes found myself going for a drive by her place, just to ease my mind.

With spring just around the corner I had jobs crawling out of the woodwork. The bar pretty much ran itself lately. Ben took over managing the place for me. He needed the extra cash with the baby and all. I focused on staying busy with my hands. I loved the manual labor, it was more my speed.

***

I drove up Kori’s parents’ drive. They were having a Sunday dinner, and I was already running behind. I ran into some problems with a door I was putting in for a guy across town. Taking in all the cars, I groaned out loud. I thought it was just gonna be a small dinner, but I guessed I was wrong.

Crawling out of my truck, I grabbed the baseball cap from my truck seat and slipped it on. Yeah, baseball caps weren’t usually my thing, but I forgot my Stetson at home. I twisted my neck from side to side and walked up the porch steps, ready to eat. I was starving, and Kori’s momma was one hell of a cook.

“Well, it’s about damn time.” I heard Maria once I entered the house. “You do know her momma was about to send out the search party. She has been holding us all off, and there are a shit ton of hungry ass cowboys ready to gut you like a fish.” She laughed as she stalked off to the dining room.

“He’s here people, let’s chow,” she hollered out, and the assholes clapped and hooted.

Rhett rounded the corner, and I knelt just in time to catch him midair as he dove for me. “Hey, pal. How was your day? You have fun with your granny?”

His little head bobbing a hundred miles per hour made me chuckle. He looked like a little bobble head. “Yesh,” he squealed and began wiggling back down my body. He was a wild one, with enough energy for ten toddlers. The kid wore me out. I had no idea how Kori’s momma did it all day.

“I was beginning to think you had come to your senses and skipped town, running far away from me and my crazy toddler.” Kori walked toward me with her hands tucked into her back pockets, swaying her hips with each step. With her arms positioned like that, it only thrust her tits out further. I was a guy, so I noticed those things.

I placed my hands on her hips and pulled her in against my body. I placed a soft kiss on her lips as I wrapped my hands around her back. “Not a chance in hell. You’re so stuck with me.” She smiled up at me, and my knees went slightly weak. Kori had always been such a beautiful person. Not only because of her long blonde hair and perfect features, but because she was so kind. Seeing her get mad was a rare occasion. You had to really piss her off before she let you have it. Even when Kim was starting her shit, Kori was polite to her. I don’t know how she did it. I would have been all up in a dude’s face if he was spouting shit about her to me.

“You get stuck at Mr. Willow’s?” I nodded. “You should have called, I was starting to worry.”

“I’m sorry, I just wanted to stay at it. It meant I could get here faster.” I tucked her hair behind her ear and tried to gauge her mood.

“Just call next time or text. Something quick.” I nodded and kissed the tip of her nose.

“You got it. Now let’s go eat, I’m starving.”

***

Dinner was full of me being harassed and hounded for holding up everyone’s chow time. I took it in stride and let all the guys hassle me.

I noticed a silent conversation going on between Gavin and Maria throughout dinner. I was pretty sure Kori had missed it, but I saw the lust in that man’s eyes. It was hard to miss. I just hoped Maria knew what she was doing. From what I’d heard, he had shared a few nights with a girl named Josie who worked at the grocery store across town. The guy was definitely a player. He had no intentions of settling down any time soon. Hell, he wasn’t even divorced yet.

The two of them disappeared right after dinner, and I knew it was just across the drive to his place. He lived in a tiny one bedroom that was for the farmhand.

I walked Kori out, and she immediately noticed Maria’s car parked next to Gavin’s truck. One small light was on in his place, and it didn’t take a genius to figure out what was going on. “Baby, she is a big girl. You have to let her make her own mistakes.”

“I know,” she whispered. “I just wish she could see what I see. When I look at her, I see so much more than his plaything. He’s using her, and she’s letting him.”

I closed the back door of her Escape and moved in front of her. Lifting her chin up with my finger, I looked over her face. She was worried. “You can’t let yourself get all worked up over it. She’s a big girl, she makes her own choices.”

“I know,” she agreed. “Doesn’t make it any easier to accept, though.”

“So you coming back to my place tonight?” It had been four nights since I’d had her in my arms. I was craving some physical connection, and I hoped she was on the same page.

When she shook her head, I fought off the groan of frustration. “No, I’m gonna head home. I got an early morning, and I didn’t bring my stuff with me for school tomorrow.”

“You live five minutes from here. I can follow you, and we can grab your things. Or I could just stay at your place.” I hooked my finger into her belt buckle and tugged at it playfully.

“I’m tired, and you’ve had a long day. Let’s just call it a night.” God damn Maria and her fucking self-destruction. She was cock-blocking me, and I felt like marching over to Gavin’s and knocking some sense into her. “Maybe tomorrow night. Call me when you’re done working.”

I nodded, but on the inside I was kicking at the dirt beneath my feet and cussing like a sailor. “Okay.” I kissed her once more and stepped back as she climbed into her car. Leaning in through the window, I kissed her again. Watching her carefully, I couldn’t help but ask. “Kori, did I do something wrong?”

Shaking her head, she smiled forcefully. “No. I’m just tired. I just need a good night’s sleep. It’s nothing more than that.”

“It’s just been four nights since we were together. I’m kinda missing ya. I got so used to having you both around all the time,” I declared.

“Tomorrow night, I promise.” I agreed once again, but only on the outside. I wanted to force her to tell me what was going on.

I watched her taillights as she drove down the driveway, and my stomach dropped. I was tempted to jump in my truck and follow her home. Why the hell did it feel like she was pulling away from me? The thought was driving me crazy.

I wasn’t happy about the feelings I had flowing through me. They were quickly overtaking my mind. Something didn’t feel right. The idea of losing her made me nauseated.

Chapter Thirty-Two

“So asshole, did you ask her yet?” Ben barged into my office at the back of the bar. I had some paperwork to finish up, so today I would be tucked behind closed doors.

He flopped down in the chair on the other side of my desk and crossed his arms. “What are you talking about?” I asked.

“You know exactly what I’m talking about, pussy. Kori, you were gonna ask her to move in.” He leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees. “You grow a set yet, or you still thinking it over, coming up with a plan of attack?”

“I’m working up to it.” I was in a pissed off mood today, and I really didn’t have the strength to fight this out with him. The guy could read me like a book.

“Why you keep waiting? You two bounce back and forth all the time. Why not make it easier for the both of you?” I slid my chair back and pushed my legs out before me.

I stared across my desk at my best friend for over twenty years, and at this moment I had a strong urge to deck his ass. “We haven’t stayed over with each other for five nights now, so I’m not sure asking her to move into my place would be a good idea. Not when I can’t even convince her to spend the night.” I ran my hand through my hair and sighed in frustration. “Maybe she’s having second thoughts about us. Maybe she thinks things moved too fast, and now she’s pulling back.”

“Nah, you two are good together. She loves you, man, you can see it when she looks at you. You ain’t got shit to worry about. Just let it ride out.”

“Yeah, I hope you’re right.” I sat back up, leaning forward on my desk. “She said we’d get together tonight.” I shrugged.

“See, it’s all good, bud, no worries.” Ben stood up and walked from the room. I only wished I felt like his words were true. I had spent every moment since she drove away last night with my stomach in knots. The thought of losing her and Rhett was turning me inside out.

***

Not working past 4. We still on for tonight? R

Yeah, I’ll be at your house at five. I’ll bring dinner. K

Okay, I love you. R

Love you too. K

Staring down at my phone, my heart raced. Tonight was it. I was going to ask her what the hell was going on and make her tell me.

I finished up everything and stopped by the flower shop on the way home. I grabbed a bouquet of flowers and made it home before five.

I was just climbing out of the shower when I heard Kori holler from the living room. “Hello?”

I poked my head out the door and told her I was just getting dressed. “I’ll be right out.”

I threw on a pair of lounge pants and opted out of a shirt. When I walked into the living room, I found Kori smelling the flowers on the counter that separated the kitchen. “Hey, baby.” I kissed the side of her neck. “Those are for you.”

“Thank you.” She turned to face me and pressed her lips against mine. I took advantage of our closeness and deepened the kiss, swallowing her moans. “Wow,” she gasped as I pulled back.

“Are we okay?” I asked

Her eyebrows creased in confusion. “Of course, why wouldn’t we be?”

“You just seem distant, and it’s had me worried. Like I messed up in some way, or maybe you’re having second thoughts about us.” Her hand traced the skin along the top of my lounge pants. It felt so nice to have her touching me.

“I’ve been worried about Maria. She isn’t really talking to me a whole lot. She’s keeping her distance and not sharing anything. She won’t talk about Gavin. If I bring him up at all, she shoots it down.” She tucked her finger in the top of my pants and looked down. “She thinks I’ll go off on him again.” She shrugged and sighed. “I probably would, I just hate the entire situation. It makes me sick to my stomach because I know she feels more than he does. She’s setting herself up for disaster.”

Kori came closer and placed a soft kiss against the center of my chest, before looking up into my eyes. “But never once have I regretted us, our closeness. I’m sorry if I made you feel that way. I love you.” I brought my lips to hers once more for another kiss. “If it wasn’t for you and the support you give me, I’m not sure where I’d be right now. You mean the world to me and to Rhett. Don’t ever think that I’m pulling away from you. Remember, we talk things out…we agreed.”

I grinned down at the girl who stole my heart all those years ago, and my chest ached with the overpowering love I felt for her. She had the ability to weaken me like no other. Between her and Rhett, I had no hope of survival if I ever lost them.

After dinner and the cleanup, we put a movie in and relaxed on the couch. I held her in my arms, and Rhett curled up next to me. I was getting used to the animated movies, those had become our go-to. Tonight it was
The Croods
. I’m pretty sure I could recite it word for word, if I were asked to. For only being a year and a half, Rhett was very attentive. He was able to sit through a movie, and we could all enjoy it.

We put Rhett to bed in the room I called his. I had made it into a bedroom just for him. It was full of the things he loved, and most days it was like pulling teeth to get him to leave it. I imagined daily what it would look like to have his tractor bed, along with his other things, filling the room. I wanted them with me. I wanted to know that when I came home from work, they would be here.

I was lost, so in love with the thought of both of them filling my home. I wanted that so badly.

Kori and I crawled into bed, and I pulled her close to me, covering her body with mine. Her smile lit up my life in ways I couldn’t explain.

“I’ve missed you the last few days. I don’t like being apart. I love having you both here.” I kissed her jaw and whispered in her ear. “You two mean so much to me.”

Running her fingers through my hair, I felt her body shudder as I trailed kisses down her neck. “I love you too, and I love being here with you.”

“Move in with me.” I met her gaze and grinned. “Move in, and let’s start our life together…here.”

I could see the glistening shimmer in her eyes. She continued to look up at me as her lower lip trembled and her hand rested against my chest. “You sure you want us here, all the time? You won’t get sick of us?”

I chuckled and skimmed my nose over hers. “There is no way I could get sick of either one of you. When you’re not here, it feels empty. I want both of you in my world always, every day. You said it needs a woman’s touch, so move in and make it your home too.”

She gripped the back of my neck and pulled me down, crushing her lips to mine. The kiss was heavy, her tongue sweeping through my mouth. It wasn’t going to take much to get me all riled up. It had been too damn long since I had touched her.

“Okay,” she whispered, and that was all it took. I felt like the weight that had been pressing on my chest over the last week was now lifted.

Over the next hour there was not a space on her body I didn’t kiss and devour. I was almost carnal, I did everything I could to keep my shit under control. It was one of the hardest moments of my life.