Sean (26 page)

Chapter 18

My eyes shot open as I realized there really was someone knocking on my door. I jumped off the couch and ran to it. When I swung it open
, I was shocked to see Maria.

“Maria,” I said. “Is Brynn okay?” It was the only reason I could think of as to why she’d be at my house in the middle of the night. My heart raced.

“No, I mean, yes, she’s physically okay.” I pulled her in and shut the door. “She’s had a rough couple of days. Juanita paid her a visit and told her about her real father.”
Oh, my god. My poor girl.
I was shaking with nervousness and anxiety. I wanted Maria to talk faster. I had to know how Brynn was. “She also told her about the visit between you and Professor Crane. She listened outside the door and heard everything you told him.” She smiled approvingly. I desperately tried to remember everything I’d said.

“Maria, why are you here? Where’s Brynn?” I couldn’t breathe.

“Sean, I’ve watched her suffer every day as she’s tried to get over you. She’s miserable without you and she loves you as much as you love her. She’s a mess right now as she’s trying to deal with the shit Juanita told her, but please go get her. She’s in the car.” I released the breath I was holding and wrapped my mind around the words that came out of Maria’s mouth.

I ran to the street and frantically scanned the parked cars. I saw a door slowly open and I couldn’t get to it fast enough. My knees were weak and my eyes weren’t focusing because of the tears
, but as I approached, I knew it was my girl. I took her hand and pulled her to her feet. I took her face in my hands and kissed her tears before I picked her up and carried her to my door.

Maria winked as we passed on the landing and I mouthed ‘thank you’ to her. I wanted to hug her but there was no way I
was letting go of Brynn.

I carried her in and kicked the door shut. Her arms held tight around my neck as her head
rested on my shoulder. Her little legs hung freely and her bare feet swung around when I moved. I sat at the bar on a stool and held her on my lap as she cried. I stroked her hair and her back as I kissed the top of her head. The vanilla scent I’d missed so much filled my nostrils and I could’ve sat like that, with her, forever.

“I’m sorry,” she said through her stifled breaths.

“Shh,” I said. “You have nothing to be sorry for. I’m the one who’s sorry. Just let me hold you. We don’t have to talk right now. Just let me hold you.” I was completely content with her in my arms. It was what I’d dreamed about for the last four months.

She released her arms from my neck and put them around my waist as she tried to get comfortable sitting sideways on my lap. I stood and carried her to the couch. I never let her go as I sat first and then pulled her down with me so we were lying on our sides facing each other. I pulled her tight
and she relaxed into my arms again.

“Better?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“I love you, Brynn.”

She looked up at me with red swollen eyes and smiled. “I know you do. I love you, Sean.” She started to cry again. “There wasn’t anyone else. I lied because I wanted you to feel the pain I felt every time I saw you look at Gia.” She sobbed into my chest as she apologized.

“Shh, baby. It’s okay. I forgive you. I’m so sorry I made you feel that way. Please believe me when I tell you that it wasn’t what you thought with Gia. I never, ever felt about her the way I feel about you
. I know I made it hard for you and it took me a long time to see that. I’d give anything to be able to go back, knowing what I know now, and change it.” I tilted her head up so I could look into her eyes. “You’ve never been my second choice. You’ve always been my
only
choice. I was prepared to spend however long it took to not only tell you that, but prove it to you. Please let me do that.”

“You fought for me,” she cried. “You came after me time after time.” She buried her face in my chest again. Her tears soaked my shirt and I felt the coolness on my chest.

“Of course I did,” I told her as I stroked her hair. “You’re my girl and I love you.” She cried twenty-three years of held back tears in my arms.

“I’m so tired,”
she whispered when her breathing finally returned to normal.

“Would you like me to take you to bed?”

“Yes.” She nodded.

I
carried her through the kitchen as I locked up and turned out the lights. I pulled back the comforter and she sighed as I laid her in the middle. I took off my wet shirt and climbed in next to her, pulling the comforter back over us. I held her and she snuggled into me. It felt perfect.

“Good night. I love you
. Happy Valentine’s Day,” I whispered. I felt her smile.

“Good night. I love you. Happy Valentine’s Day,” she said.

***

I woke up before Brynn
, so I took the opportunity to watch her sleep. Her eyes were still puffy from crying and she looked worn down even as she rested. I wondered how crazy her schedule was between
Grease
and Sashay. Now she was going to have the family stuff to deal with on top of them. I was fully prepared to help her however I could.

I slowly got up and showered. As I made breakfast I whistled a tune, over and over, as I smiled wholeheartedly. I felt like a new man.
I felt her arms come around my waist and her head against my back.

“Mmm, good morning,” I said as I turned to face her.
She looked tired. “Why don’t you stay in bed? I’ll bring you some breakfast in a bit.”

“
That sounds really nice,” she said. “But I don’t want to waste our first day together sleeping.”

“Any day spent with you would not be wasted,” I told her. “Are you telling me you have the entire day free?” That was unexpected.

“Yes.” She smiled. “I took a few days off after Juanita came. I couldn’t function. Last night was the first I’ve slept for a couple of days.”

I picked her up and carried her back to bed. I tucked her in tight and kissed her on the forehead. “I don’t want to see you until at least noon,” I told her as I shut the blinds.

“You’re the best boyfriend in the world,” she said. “There’s so much I want to talk to you about. Between work and
Grease
and my dad…” I leaned down and put my finger against her lips.

“Do I get you for the entire day and night?” I asked. She nodded. “Good, then stop with all
the thinking and relax. You need to get some rest. I’ll be right here when you wake up.” She smiled and snuggled against her pillow. I think she fell asleep before I got back to the kitchen.

Gia called after I ate and she was ecstatic when I told her about Brynn and I. Ethan even got on the phone and told me how he’d been considering a trip here just to find her and get us back together.

“I don’t know how you did it for four months,” he told me. “But I know you did a lot of work on yourself and now you can have it all again, buddy. I couldn’t be happier for you, and for Brynn. You two are really great together.”

“Thanks, man,” I told him. “Thanks for everything.” I knew he was genuinely relieved and that he’d been
running all kinds of ideas by Gia that I could try to get Brynn to talk to me.

They were planning on coming to
Grease
and I promised to have Brynn call Gia to discuss the schedule.

After
I hung up with them, I threw Brynn’s clothes in the wash with mine. I stood above the washer after it had filled and watched them for a minute with a big, fat smile on my face. I probably would’ve watched the entire cycle if it hadn’t been for my phone ringing.

It was Maria calling
to check on Brynn. I told her I was forcing her to sleep in and she laughed.

“She actually listens to you, huh?” she said. “
All she ever did was roll her eyes at me when I tried to tell her what she should do.”

“Yeah, she’s a stubborn one,” I said. “Thank you, Maria, for bring
ing her here last night. I don’t know how much longer I could’ve waited before I would’ve had to come after her.”

“You’re welcome, and if it
means anything, I know she wanted to long before last night. She just couldn’t. She had something to prove to herself.”

“That means a lot,” I told her. “
I’m glad she took the time to do what she had to, but I’m elated that she’s here now and giving me another chance. I love her, Maria, and I want to take care of her.”

“Good luck with that.” She laughed. “Take this however you want to, but she mentioned the fact that you’d asked her to move in with you more times than I could count.”

“Really? Good to know. Thanks.” I really hoped that meant what I thought it did.

***

It was one-thirty in the afternoon when I heard the shower in my bathroom come on. I smiled. I felt all warm and fuzzy inside knowing Brynn was there. I made her some tea and waited for her to emerge. She walked in wearing my sweats and t-shirt. Her hair was damp and sexy and her bare feet slapped against the wood floor as she ran to me and hopped onto my lap.

She put her soft hands on my face and kissed me like the first time. Every hair I had stood as my body responded to her
. God, I’d missed kissing her. It felt new, yet familiar, and as I pressed my hands against her back, I sighed. I’d been holding my breath for four months and was finally able to exhale again.

“I used your toothbrush,” she said.

“That’s why you taste deliciously minty.” I squeezed her and she squeezed back, arms, legs and all. I took another deep breath and closed my eyes as I exhaled. “I’d be happy to take you to get your own toothbrush…and your other things.”

“I thought you liked me in your sweats.” She pretended to be offended.

“I love you in my sweats, especially when I’m wearing them, but I want you to have your things here, too.” She pulled back and studied my face. I nodded. “I want
all
of your things here. I want your clothes and shoes scattered all over our bedroom. I want your makeup and hair products cluttering our bathroom vanity. I want your razor, body wash and shampoo shoved into our little shower caddy. I want you, in our bed, every night.” A smile took over her entire face, all the way up to her hairline. She nodded. My heart beat fast as I stood and danced around the kitchen. She leaned her head back, giggling, as she held on tight.

“You know I’m very organized, right?” she asked when we sat down again.

“Yes.” I chuckled. It made her uncomfortable just thinking about her things strung about the house. She was borderline OCD about it and I loved her little quirk.

“Sean, there’s so much to talk about, so much to do and figure out. I have to be honest, I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed these days
, and as much as I love where we are right now, I’m feeling very anxious.” She was still her sweet, honest, self.

“Take a deep breath,” I told her. “Look into my eyes. You have a lot on your plate rig
ht now, I know that. I want to hear everything about the last four months of your life and I want to talk about you and me and what happened, and how we’re never going to let that happen again. I want to deal with the situation about your dad and help you through all that. It’s all important stuff and it’s all swimming around in your beautiful little head, making you anxious. The most important thing right now is us. We’re going to face all of those things together, as a team. Let’s take today off from anything that isn’t
us
, because as long as I have you, I’m not scared or anxious to face all of those things and anything else life is going to throw at me, and I want you to feel the same way about me.” She took another deep breath and nodded.

“Actually, I do feel the same way about you. Thank you for reminding me to stop and smell the roses. I’ve been so busy lately I haven’t been taking the time. I knew if I stopped for a second I was going to lose control.
I can finally stop running and just breathe.” She closed her eyes and took another deep breath. She smiled and opened her eyes. “Let’s make love.”
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah, hallelujah, halleelujahhh!

I carried h
er to our bed and slowly undressed her as she smiled at me with anticipation. Her body was softer and smelled sweeter than I’d remembered. I tasted her vanilla beneath my body wash she’d used in the shower and it took me all the way back to the beginning. Her fingers played in my hair, sending waves of heat across my shoulders and down my back. She arched her back as her body responded to my touch.

My fingers traced h
er jawline and down her neck before they held her breast for my hungry lips. She moaned as I sucked each nipple and pressed my thigh between her legs. She dug her fingers into my back as she raised her hips tighter against me. As her thigh pushed against my cock and balls, I gasped. The sensation exhilarated me. It felt as though it had been released from a four month lock down, allowed to stand tall again and eager to please.