My Last - Riley & Chelle (21 page)

“You have some nerve!” Chelle yelled back, then took a deep breath and lowered her voice, continuing in a voice that was as calm as she could muster. “This has nothing to do with Riley. You and I are not together, and will not
ever
be getting back together, because of YOU, David! Look in a mirror if you want to know why we haven’t slept together in over six months. You cheated on me. You were seeing Kayla behind my back. She’s pregnant for God’s sake!”

“There’s no baby,” David said, looking dejected, “Kayla lied. She’s not pregnant.”

Chelle was momentarily stunned. Not because she cared whether or not Kayla was pregnant…she didn’t. But the look of complete and total sadness she saw in David’s eyes caught her off guard. He looked utterly bereft. She realized it may be the first time she had seen an authentic emotion in them.

She was just about to ask if he was
okay, her nurturing instincts getting the better of her in spite of herself, when there was a loud knock on the door.

Her stomach dropped and she felt her heart skip a beat. It took her a moment before she realized that it wasn't the sudden loud noise that had caused this intense reaction. Oh, that had startled her, sure. But she was flushed and filled with adrenaline right now mainly because her mind had immediately assumed that it was Riley outside, pounding on the door.

Her breathing became labored as she walked the few steps to the front door. She looked out through the peep hole and was flooded with a confusing mixture of equal parts 'relieved' and 'disappointed.'

She opened the door and her brother Eddie pushed his way inside.

“What are you doing here?” Chelle asked, more than a little irritated. She was so not in the mood to deal with her big brother!

Eddie leaned down and kissed her on the top of the head. He had done that since they were kids. It had always made her feel safe and loved. The sweet gesture made her revisit her initial reaction to his appearance in her doorway.

“Riley called. He said Douchebag is drunk and he didn’t feel good about leaving you alone with him.”

“Is Riley still here?” Her eyebrows shot up, but otherwise she tried to mask the facial evidence that her stomach had dropped again.

A strange look crossed Eddie’s face and she thought she may have been unsuccessful. He shook his head, “Nah, he took off when I pulled up.”

A flash flood of disappointment rushed through Chelle’s body. She tried to do a better job of masking it on her face so that it wouldn’t be as glaringly obvious.

“Chelle?” Her brother’s tone indicated that she had failed to do so. Damn. She was 0 for 2. Eddie's eyes narrowed. “What's wrong?”

“
Nothing. I’m fine. Really.” She put on her bravest face and used her most confident voice as she answered.

Seemingly convinced, he dropped it.

“So, where’s the douchebag?”

Chelle looked up and saw David walking out of the kitchen holding a beer in one hand. Great. That's all the situation needed. More alcohol!

As soon as she saw the look on David’s face, she got a very strong feeling that this was not going to end well.

“What did you call me?”

Awwww....crap. She reached up and placed her hand on her brother’s arm, “Don’t, Eddie. I’m serious.”

“A douchebag.” Eddie said flatly.

Her head dropped and her shoulders slumped. Why me, she thought. WHY ME?

She saw a flash of movement out of the corner of her eye as David lunged towards her brother.

Eddie smoothly stepped a foot to the right, causing David to lose his balance and fall flat on his face, sending his beer flying.

“Get out of my house,” David yelled as he tried and failed several times to get up off the floor.

Eddie picked him up by the back of his shirt, spun him around, and pushed him up against the wall. He held him in place with his forearm pressed against his neck.

“Here’s the deal, Douchebag. You have ten minutes to get everything you need and get the hell out of here. This is my sister’s house. She lived here before you moved in. I don’t care what it says on some piece of paper. You don’t live here anymore. You're gonna get your shit, get the hell out of here, and leave my sister the hell alone.”

Eddie stared at David for what felt to Chelle like an hour but was, in reality, probably only a few seconds. David looked terrified.

“Do you understand?” Eddie asked calmly.

David nodded his head in the affirmative. Well, as much as he could with Eddie’s forearm being pressed up under his chin. Eddie released him and David scrambled back to the bedroom, presumably to collect his things.

Chelle stared at the space that David had just occupied and thought to herself, ‘Riley would never have backed down to Eddie.’

Okay. Wow. She really needed to lock that kind of thinking down if she was ever going to get over him!

A knock on the door, she had thought it was Riley. Eddie says Riley called him, she had thought he was still there. David gets punked, and she had compared him to Riley.

Riley hadn’t even been out of her life for an hour yet, and she was already on some kind of Riley-induced emotional roller coaster.

Well, time to get off that ride and get on with her own life. Her real life. Her Riley-free life.

Sigh.

Now she
really
wanted pizza and ice cream.

As he walked up the steps of the bar portion of The Grill, Riley was seriously regretting his decision to call his brother, Alex, to pick him up after he dropped off his rental car. The minute Riley had climbed into his brother’s truck, Alex had declared Riley his wingman for the night and told him they were meeting Bobby for drinks.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to spend time with his brothers. He did. It was just that he wasn’t really in a social mood. He wanted to be alone. Well, actually he wanted to be with Chelle, but since that wasn’t an option - he wanted to be alone.

Bobby was waiting for them in a booth in the back corner and, as he stood, Riley couldn’t believe his eyes. Bobby and Seth had always resembled each other, both had jet black hair and blue eyes, but now Bobby was the spitting image of Seth at age 24.

“Hey, Bro. Good to see you,” Bobby said as he stood.

Damn, he even sounded like Seth. They both had those deep, sonorous voices which lent everything they said an air of gravitas and made them sound as if they were constantly doing real-time narration of a documentary of their life. Riley felt as if he had just walked into an episode of the Twilight Zone.

“Good to see you, too,” Riley said as they briefly hugged before sitting down in the booth.

A young, attractive waitress came over to take their orders.

“Hey Nina,” Alex greeted her with a wink.

The girl blushed, “Hi, Alex.”

Riley couldn’t help but smile and shake his head a little. Some things never change, he thought.

“Can I get you guys something?” she asked, her attention still solely focused on Alex.

“How about a pitcher of Bud and some hot wings,” Bobby suggested as he set the menu down.

“
Sure, yeah...um...comin' right up,” she said, blushing, clearly a little flustered at the sudden reminder that there were actually other people at the table. She glanced once more at Alex before heading up to the bar.

Bobby’s phone beeped and a huge grin spread across his face as his fingers typed out a message.

“It’s like having dinner with teenagers,” Alex said to Riley before turning to Bobby. “No phones at the table, Bobby.”

Bobby didn’t respond to Alex baiting him.

Alex smiled as he shook his head, “Tell Sophie her favorite brother-in-law says Hi.”

“Okay
,” Bobby said without looking up, “I’ll tell her Jason says Hi.”

Riley chuckled, “Married life looks good on you, little brother.”

Initially, when he had heard of his baby brother's plans to get married, he had thought it was a very bad idea. Riley remembered what he himself had been like in his early twenties, and he knew for a fact that there was no way he would have been ready to settle down at that point. He would have ended up being miserable, and – moreover – so would the poor woman who had the misfortune of marrying him.

He had talked with Jason, though, who had convinced him it was a good thing. Jason had explained that Sophie was Bobby’s world and that they were good together.

From the look that Bobby had on his face while even just texting his new bride, Riley had a strong suspicion that Jason was right.

The waitress reappeared with the pitcher and three chilled glasses, again her cheeks turned a deep rose color when she saw Alex.

“Nina, do you know my brother Riley?” Alex heartily patted Riley on the back.

Her eyes widened, “You’re Riley Sloan?”

“Last time I checked.”

“Wow,” she breathed in awe. “I’ve heard so much about you. My brother Kenny was a few years behind you in school. And…wow, I just…all the stories I’ve heard…I can’t believe…”

Riley wanted to move on from this topic of conversation, “You shouldn’t believe everything you hear.”

“Oh, no! It was nothing bad, I think my brother just idolized you a little bit, him and all his friends. I would hear them talk about all the pranks you and Eddie Thomas would pull,” she said, clearly impressed by whatever she had heard.

“That was a long time ago. I was a kid,” He shot back, his voice hardening a bit with every word, until it was solid concrete by the time he spit out the last of it. He didn’t want to be mean, but he really wasn't in the mood to take a trip down memory lane tonight. In fact, if he went the rest of his life and never reminisced about a single memory in his childhood, that would be just fine with him.

“Don’t mind him,” Alex said giving her his go-to mega-watt smile. “He just got back from overseas and he’s a little cranky.”

Riley shot him a look that in no uncertain terms conveyed exactly how he felt about being described as ‘cranky’ - not to mention about having his travel itinerary spilled to complete strangers.

Alex completely ignored the look Riley threw him.

Riley decided that, at some point over the next few days while he was here, he and Alex were going to have to have a little talk about what Riley considered appropriate and inappropriate.

“Oh!” She snapped her fingers, “That’s right. You were in the Marines, right?”

Why she was still standing here - at their table – talking, Riley had no idea, but maybe if he answered her questions she would just go away. Why did people find him so damn interesting, anyway?

“Yep.”

“Are you home for good or just here visiting?” She asked, seeming to be genuinely interested in his reply.

Riley had forgotten how much people pried into your personal business when you lived in a small town. He didn’t like it…at all.

“I’m here for a few days.”

“Are you heading back overseas after that?”

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Alex’s smile get even bigger.
Clearly
his brother was enjoying the fact that Riley was
clearly
not enjoying this conversation.

“No.”

“Oh,” Nina said, finally taking the hint and dropping the subject.

“See, I told you,” Alex said as he “covertly” pointed in Riley’s direction and mouthed, “cranky.”

She giggled, “Well, let me know if you guys need anything else. Your wings should be up in a minute.”

As she bounced away Alex not-so-subtly checked out her rear before turning his attention back to Riley, “You didn't have to be so mean to poor Nina.”

Riley replied, un-phased, “Poor Nina didn't have to be so nosy.”

Alex smiled, obviously enjoying the banter for its own sake and not because he felt any compulsion to truly protect 'poor Nina's' honor.

“I think the phrase you're searching for is 'polite interest' dear brother,” Alex grinned.

“Drop it, Alex.” Riley took a swig of beer.

Bobby put his phone down and decided to join the conversation. “So, Jason mentioned that you were going to head down to New Orleans.”

“Yeah, I invested in a bar that a couple of my buddies opened,” Riley replied.

“Well, Sophie wants to know if you'll still be here on Sunday. She wants to throw a welcome home party for you.”

The thought of a bunch of people gathering together for the specific purpose of talking to him and prying into his private business did not sound very 'welcoming’ to Riley. In fact, if they truly wanted to give him a 'welcome home'' gift he would appreciate, it would be to forgo making a big deal about him being back in town, and for God’s sake, stop bringing up his damn past!

Yeah. That wasn't likely to happen.

So, not wanting to be rude to his new sister-in-law, he simply nodded. He knew her intentions were good, and he’d always thought she was a sweet kid. He could grin and bear it through one uncomfortable afternoon if it made her happy.

Alex must have sensed his hesitation because he chimed in, “Jason and Katie get back on Saturday. Why don’t we make it a joint party, for the newlyweds and the returning hero?”

“Sounds good to me,” Bobby shrugged, “I’ll tell Soph.”

He picked up his phone again and started texting.

“So, you staying at Dad’s or did you want to crash with me?” Alex asked as he took a swig of beer.

“I’ll stay with the old man. I wouldn’t want to cramp your style.”

“See, that’s why you make a good wingman,” Alex grinned, “But, I think you might be cramping Dad’s style more than mine. The ladies love them some Bob Sloan.”

“Dad’s dating?” Riley asked, stunned in disbelief.

“More than me, and that’s sayin' something. A lot can change in twelve years, bro.”

Riley tried to wrap his mind around the concept of his dad being a ‘ladies man.’ It didn't seem real. He shook his head. “I guess so. Alright, guess I’ll bunk with you then.”

A new server delivered the wings and Bobby quickly ate a couple before announcing he was headed home to see his wife. Of course, Riley and Alex gave him a hard time about going home to The Little Missus, but Bobby couldn't have cared less. He dropped a couple of twenties on the table and left wearing a smile that reached from ear to ear.

Riley thought that his non-reaction to the ribbing could have been because, growing up with four older brothers, you would have to develop thick skin in order to hang onto your sanity. But, more likely it was that he didn’t care about his brother's teasing because he knew what he had waiting for him when he got home. A woman he loved with all his heart, and who loved him right back.

The image of Chelle, sitting on the couch when he had gone out to rent them a movie popped into his head. His chest ached. He felt empty.

He had only dropped her off a couple of hours earlier but he missed her more than he ever knew was possible.

There was a part of him that wanted to call her. Go to her house. Hold her. Kiss her. Touch her. Feel her. Drive himself into her until the dark, heavy, empty feeling went away.

But an even bigger part of him just wanted to be near her. To hear her voice. To look in her eyes. To see her smile.

He sighed. Which was exactly why he knew he needed to stay away. If he didn’t make a clean break now, he wasn’t sure he would ever be able to walk away from her.

His phone buzzed and he pulled it quickly out of his pocket.

His first thought was…Chelle. He felt a rush of adrenaline, kind of like he would feel right before a mission. Until he saw who had sent the text, then his heart sank once again. Megan.

Shit. He had forgotten all about her. Literally. The thought of her hadn’t entered his mind in even the most fleeting instant since the first day he was in San Francisco. And the only reason he had even thought of her then was that he had been trying to convince himself that all he needed in order to get Chelle out of his system was to get laid.

Well, that hadn’t exactly gone as planned.

For the last three months, he and Megan had been exchanging texts and Facebook messages. They'd been pretty suggestive, he had to admit. He had fully intended to hook up with her while he was in town. Hell, he had actually been looking forward to it.

Now, the thought of being with someone else - not just Megan, but anyone who wasn’t Chelle - just didn’t hold the same appeal. Or
any
appeal, when it came right down to it.

He needed to let Megan know that things had changed. Riley may be an ass in a lot of ways, but he never led women on.

--- ~ ---

After working three sixteen hour days back-to-back, Chelle normally would have wanted to go home and go straight to bed. But, since she had gotten home from San Francisco four days ago, her bed did not have the same appeal that it used to.

Every night since returning home, she had lain in her bed and tossed and turned. It felt so lonely and empty. Not because the man that she had shared it with for over a year no longer occupied it. David being gone didn’t bother her at all. Nope. She was having restless nights because of the absence of a man she had shared a completely different bed with for two (yep, that's right, ladies and gentlemen...two, count 'em, TWO) nights only.

It wasn’t even as if she had any memories of Riley in her own bed. But every night since she had been home and her head hit the pillow she just felt…empty. She tried snuggling with her body pillow. It didn’t work.

So when she had gotten a text earlier in the day from Sophie saying that Katie was home and declaring tonight ‘Girl’s Night Out’...well, she had figured - what the hell?! At least being out with her friends would be better than being at home. Alone. In a Riley-less bed.

Now, as she walked up the wooden steps of The Grill Bar, she thought she may have made the wrong choice. She was exhausted and had not been able to shake the bad mood she had been in since coming back home.

As she reached the top of the steps, she was very tempted to just turn right back around and head down again the way she had come up. Just get in her car, go home, and cry.

Yep, she thought with a sort of gallows faux cheerfulness, that sounds like a much better use of my Saturday night!

She was turning to leave when Sophie and her blonde curls bounded up the stairs, enthusing, “Yay! You’re already here! I was scared you wouldn’t come!” Her hands flew up in the air, “Girls Night, Woohoo!”