Girls You Marry

by Tina Gallagher

  “And?”

  “From what I gathered, your time here is just about up. Did I misunderstand?”

  “No,” I said. “No, you didn’t misunderstand.”

  “Then I’m confused. Did you send in a different report?”

  “No, the one you saw is the one Jodi received.” He opened his mouth to speak, but I stopped him with a halting hand. “I told her I didn’t think you needed me as your therapist any longer. You know the routine, and you’re strong enough to do your strength training on your own.”

  “Then I definitely don’t understand. You said you’re staying another three weeks.”

  “I am, but not as your therapist.” I pulled my bottom lip into my mouth and dragged it back out through my teeth. Suddenly, I felt uncertain. After all, I made my plans without even consulting Dan.

  “Then as what?”

  “I have three weeks vacation and I told Jodi I wanted to take them now.” I paused for a moment to let my words sink in. When understanding dawned in his eyes, I continued. “So I guess I’ll be here as, well, uh, as your girlfriend.” My tone raised an octave or two on the last word, turning my sentence into a question.

  Dan’s green eyes filled with such intense emotion, they trapped my gaze and held it captive. “You’re staying here because you want to?” I nodded. “Not because you have to?” I nodded again. “You’ll be here of your own free will…not out of obligation or because of any partnership?”

  “I’m staying because I’d like to. But if you’d rather I didn’t, I can change my plans.”

  Dan jumped out of his chair and was at my side, lifting me out of mine before I knew what was happening. He pulled me into his arms and kissed me fiercely. The kiss ended only when we were both about to pass out due to lack of oxygen.

  I rested my head against Dan’s chest and listened to his heart pounding in rhythm with mine. He pulled me closer and kissed my forehead, before dragging in a deep breath and letting it out by slow degrees.

  “Thank you,” he sighed.

  Chapter Twenty-seven

  I rolled over and punched my pillow. Though physically exhausted, sleep was beyond my reach. I couldn’t stop thinking about Dan and Lexi, and my feelings for them both.

  In the two weeks since I relinquished my title as therapist and became an official “girlfriend”, the three of us have spent nearly every waking moment together…and I’ve loved each and every one of them.

  I’d never really pined for marriage and family, but I’m not so sure that’s the case anymore. I could very easily see myself slipping into Dan and Lexi’s lives as wife and mother.

  I fell in love with Lexi shortly after I met her, and despite all my resolve not to, I opened my heart to Dan once again. Although I still haven’t said those three little words out loud, there’s no doubt in my mind that he knows.

  I rubbed my cheek on the pillow attempting to get comfortable. Never, in my wildest dreams, did I think I’d be in this situation again. Not with Dan or anyone. I’ve been too gun-shy since college to let myself get this emotionally involved with a man.

  Though, truth be told, Dan is the only man who ever elicited any kind of real emotion from me. I’ve never bought into the whole “soul mate” thing, but if there is one for me, it is most definitely Dan. That last thought was running through my head when the object of my musings let himself into my room and closed the door behind him. Dressed only in a pair of blue plaid boxers, he made his way to the bed and sat on the edge.

  “I didn’t wake you, did I?” he asked.

  I shook my head. “I couldn’t sleep.”

  “No?” His sly grin told me he knew exactly why I couldn’t sleep and that he was quite pleased with the fact.

  Again, I shook my head.

  “Maybe I could help you out,” he said.

  “And how would you do that?”

  “Well,” he said, dragging out the word. “I could tell you a bedtime story. That always works for Lexi.”

  “As nice as that sounds, I don’t think it’ll work in this case.”

  “Hmmm.” He rubbed his chin as though in deep thought. “I could run down to the kitchen and warm some milk. That was one of my mom’s favorite remedies for insomnia.”

  “I don’t drink warm milk.”

  “You are a difficult case,” he said, an adorable smile punctuating his words. “Let me think.” His eyes roamed over my body, causing goosebumps to break out on every inch of my skin. “I suppose I could give you a nice, slow massage to relax you.” He leaned closer and whispered in my ear, his warm breath tickling my neck. “And if that doesn’t do the trick, I could love you until you’re too tired to do anything but sleep.”

  My answering groan elicited a chuckle from Dan. “We finally found one you like.” He leaned down and nipped my earlobe. “Let’s get rid of some of these clothes and I’ll get started.”

  The words were barely out of his mouth before he had me naked. It was his turn to groan. “You are so beautiful, Sabrina.” He kissed the side of my neck down to my shoulder, and each vertebrae of my back. After paying special attention to the small of my back, he shifted and removed my shorts and underwear in one clean sweep.

  Once I was naked, I expected Dan to crawl back on top of me, and was surprised when I felt his warm hands grasp my foot and begin massaging. I looked over my shoulder and our eyes met. I couldn’t help but wonder if my gaze looked as hungry as his.

  “What were you thinking about when I came in?” he asked. While his voice was a mere whisper, it practically commanded an answer. Even if it didn’t, I knew I’d tell him anyway. I knew I had to be truthful if this relationship is going to stand a chance. After all, I want honesty from him, could I offer anything less?

  “I was thinking about you and Lexi and me.”

  His hands stilled for a moment. I’d obviously shocked him, but whether it was because I’d actually answered his question or because of what my answer was, I couldn’t say.

  “What about us?” he asked, his hands in motion once again.

  “I was trying to sort out my feelings.”

  “About you and me and Lexi?”

  I nodded and enjoyed the feel of his hands kneading my calf muscles.

  “Is there so much sorting to do that you’re kept awake at night?” Dan reached a particularly sensitive part of my anatomy, and I lost my train of thought for a moment. Moving on to my lower back, he asked the question again.

  “No. Yes. Not really,” I answered.

  He chuckled. “That answers that.”

  “It’s not my feelings I question. It’s everything else.”

  “Such as?” Dan’s thumbs rotated on either side of my spine, relaxing every muscle in my back, along with my inhibitions.

  “I worry about getting hurt again. About hurting you, and hurting Lexi in the process.”

  “Why do you think anyone’s going to get hurt?”

  “It’s not that I expect it to happen, but it is a possibility.”

  “Anything is possible, Bri. Maybe no one will get hurt. Maybe we’ll all live happily ever after.” What his hands were doing to my neck was more of a stroke than a massage, but I wasn’t about to complain. “But you have to be open to all the possibilities before any of them can happen.”

  I rolled over onto my back in order to face him. “I am open to them, Dan.”

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  “Mmm, you are so sweet,” Dan murmured as he nipped and licked his way across my back.

  “You’re much better than an alarm clock.”

  Dan’s big hands moved to my waist and rolled me over to face him. His green eyes nearly glowed in the early morning light. “I aim to please,” he said, just before his mouth lowered and devoured mine.

  And please me he did, for the next hour. With his hands and mouth and body, Dan took me to paradise and back again.

  As I lay sated and content in his arms, I felt my heart thaw. Not just a subtle melting but a full-blown thaw to its ver
y core. I knew at that moment, without a doubt, that I was truly, madly in love with him, and more importantly, I trusted him enough to share the knowledge.

  Tilting my head, I placed a series of light pecks on the underside of Dan’s jaw. As I’d hoped, he turned his head so our mouths could meet. My kiss must have conveyed my newly found—or should I say, newly admitted—feelings, because when it ended, he looked at me with slightly dazed, questioning eyes.

  Placing my hand on his face, I met his gaze and smiled. “I love you, Dan,” I said, for the first time in ten years.

  Dan closed his eyes and placed his hand over mine. I watched his Adams apple bob up and down as he swallowed. He turned his head and placed a kiss in the center of my palm before opening his eyes and facing me once again.

  “God, Bri.” His voice was hoarse. “You have no idea how much those words mean to me.” He slowly drew a breath in through his nose and let it out through his mouth. “I feel like I’ve been sucker punched.” His crooked smile was shy and disarming and oh so endearing.

  “And that’s a good thing?” I asked, knowing very well that it was.

  Dan rolled over and slid between my legs, aligning our bodies perfectly. “That’s a very good thing.”

  His mouth took mine in a powerful, loving and eminently sexual kiss. I felt Dan’s hard length brush against me and raised my hips to rub against him. I swallowed his moan.

  I allowed my hands to roam over his powerful shoulders to his muscled back, finally reaching his taut backside, where my fingers flexed, pulling his body closer to mine.

  Dan’s own hands moved over my body, stroking and loving. Everywhere he touched seemed to burn. He tore his lips from mine and moved them along the path his hands had just traveled. His hot mouth reached the juncture of my thighs, and I clenched in anticipation. Dan felt it too, I knew, and he looked up and met my gaze as his tongue reached out and flicked at the hard nub that had emerged, eagerly awaiting his touch.

  Grinding my head into the pillow, I fought to restrain the moan that was dying to get out. Dan continued to torture me with little nibbles and flicks, putting me on edge, but not quite giving me what I wanted—what, at that moment, I needed—to have.

  “Dan, please,” I gasped.

  His gaze met mine over the length of my body. With our eyes locked, he opened his mouth and settled it over my very core and sucked. My eyes widened as the sensation rocked through me. Wave after wave of pleasure moved through my body and Dan’s eyes held me captive, not allowing me to look away.

  Never in my life have I experienced anything like that. Not just the orgasm—though God knows, it was amazing—but the connection I felt to him as he watched me achieve it.

  Dan looked as awestruck as I felt and as he moved up my body and put his arms around me, I felt like I’d come home. A peace I’d never known settled over me like a comfortable blanket. And, instead of questioning the feeling, or trying to fight it, I let myself embrace it. I opened my mouth to try and convey my feelings, but a light rap on my door stopped me.

  My startled eyes looked to Dan, who simply shrugged. “Who is it?” I asked.

  “Sabrina, it’s me, Lexi.”

  Those four words set both Dan and I into action, hopping off the bed in order to retrieve our scattered clothing. Hastily slipping into his, Dan pointed to the closet and stepped inside.

  “Uh, just a second, Lex.” I slid into my robe, quickly tied the sash and opened the door.

  “What’s wrong honey?”

  “I had a bad dream.”

  Her green eyes were wide and her bottom lip quivered. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed the top of her head. “It’s okay. You’re okay,” I reassured her.

  I felt her nod against my waist. “I’m sorry I woke you up, but I just had to make sure you were still here.”

  “Why wouldn’t I be?”

  She tipped her head back and looked at me, her eyes swimming with tears. “That’s what happened in my dream. I came to find you and you were gone.” She sniffed. “And you didn’t even say good-bye.”

  The despair in her expression nearly tore my heart out. “Oh honey, that would never happen.”

  “Promise you won’t leave, Sabrina,” she pleaded.

  It amazed me that such a young child could make such a powerful request. I almost felt her anguish and my heart squeezed with her every sob. But I also knew I couldn’t promise her anything, because while Dan and I have certainly made a breakthrough in our relationship, no firm commitments have been made. So I promised her the only thing I knew to be true.

  “I’ll be here whenever you need me.”

  That seemed to satisfy her. The tension drained from her body and the arms that had been wrapped around my waist in a vice-like grip loosened.

  “Come on, let’s get you back to bed. It’s barely dawn.”

  That said I walked her across the hall and tucked her in. I sat with her until her eyes drifted shut and her breathing became slow and even.

  ****

  “We need to talk.”

  Dan was standing in the middle of my room, his hands braced on his hips. During my conversation with Lexi, I’d forgotten he was in the room, so his presence startled me.

  I closed the door behind me and moved over to the bed, perching on its edge.

  Dan’s posture relaxed a bit and I knew he’d been expecting me to give him a hard time. If just the two of were involved, I may have, but with Lexi in the picture, I knew we had to come to some kind of agreement.

  He walked across the room and sat facing me. “I love you, Sabrina.” He took my hand in his and laced our fingers together then studied them. “And I think we belong together.”

  He looked to me then, as though he expected me to comment. What could I say? Dan is everything I’ve always dreamed of, everything I’ve ever wanted. Even when I hated him, I loved him, wanted him.

  Dan smiled and inched closer, placing his hand on my cheek. “Marry me,” he said softly.

  I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out. I tried again, but still nothing. Dan chuckled.

  “You’re not screaming no, so I guess that’s a good sign.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “I’m just not sure what to say.”

  “I think you do, you’re just too afraid to say it.”

  His words were true, so I didn’t even attempt to deny them. “Okay,” he said. “It’s not very romantic, but let’s look at this logically.”

  “Logically?”

  He nodded. “Do you love me?” he asked.

  “Yes, I love you, Dan,” I answered without hesitation, which seemed to please him immensely.

  “Do you trust me?”

  If the look in his eyes was anything to go by, the answer to that question was more important than that of the previous one.

  “Yes,” I said. “I trust you.”

  “Thank you.” He leaned forward and placed a light kiss on my lips.

  He cleared his throat. “Do you think we have a future together?”

  “I do, but…”

  He placed his index finger across my lips, preventing my words from coming out. “No buts. We’ll get to them in a minute.”

  “Okay.”

  “I want you with me all the time. I want us to be a family, you, Lexi, and me, and whoever else comes along.” His gentle smile punctuated his words. “The thought of making a baby with you makes me feel…” He broke off and looked away for a moment before meeting my gaze again. The emotion in his eyes tugged at my heart. “I can’t even imagine how amazing it would be watching our baby grow inside you. But if you didn’t want any children, that’d be okay too. We could raise Lexi then concentrate on each other.”

  “I do want children,” I surprised us both by saying.

  “Yeah?” I nodded. “How many?

  “I don’t know,” I said around a laugh. “I just realized that I wanted any.”

  “How about if we just wing it?”

  “Sounds good.”
r />   “Does that mean that you’ll marry me?”

  “I…y…” Before I could answer, Dan jumped of the bed and held up a halting hand.

  “Don’t say anything yet.” He grabbed my waist and pulled me to my feet. “Come with me.” Pulling the door open, he led me out of my room and down the hall to his. “Have a seat,” he said, directing me to the bed.

  I watched as he opened a drawer and rummaged through it. I wanted to ask what was going on, but he seemed so intent on his task, I didn’t want to disturb him.

  “Yes,” I heard him say, half under his breath. He straightened and made his way back to my side. My breath hitched when he dropped to his right knee directly in front of me.

  “Sabrina Rose Kelly, will you marry me?”

  My eyes widened as Dan held up a jeweler’s box. Nestled inside was an exquisite emerald cut diamond ring.

  “Yes, Daniel Patrick McMullen, I will marry you.”

  Dan let out a breath, as though he’d been holding it. As though he hadn’t been one hundred percent sure of my answer. He removed the ring from its confines and slipped it onto my finger.

  “It’s beautiful,” I said as I moved my hand from side to side, watching the play of the light on the diamond.

  Dan sat down next to me. “Do you recognize it?” I frowned and shook my head. “We picked it out together.”

  My eyes widened as I realized what he was saying. Just before he graduated, we’d gone shopping and on a whim, stopped at a jewelry store. He prodded me into trying on engagement rings, and asked me all kinds of questions about my likes and dislikes. I told him I preferred an emerald shaped diamond in a simple, setting. The jeweler had sent his assistant into the back room and when he emerged, he was holding the ring I had just described with a one and a half carat stone. Obviously more that a soon-to-be college graduate could afford.

  “How? When?” I wasn’t sure what, exactly, I wanted to ask.

  Dan answered anyway. “Once I got a contract and started earning a real paycheck, I went back to the store and bought it.”

  “Why?”