A Reason (A Reason, Season, Lifetime Series)

by Champlain, CL

  “So, what do you want to eat? You didn’t really get a chance to have any lunch, I noticed. We’re having my mom’s spaghetti and meat sauce for dinner, but that’s a couple of hours away. I need to stop and grab bread on the way home from the variety store.”

  “If you have to go to the variety store anyway, we can just have ice cream sundaes.” I tell him.

  “Dessert before dinner? Works for me, I love ice cream.” Ryan says and starts the Jeep. The variety store is on Main Street, just up the road from the school, maybe a half mile. Next to it is our Hardware Store, our one Bank, and there are two churches within a half mile. We drive by the fire house, our little library, and then get to the corner of Main Street. Ryan parks across the street from the little store. There isn’t much traffic here, it is easy enough to walk across.

  I take off my seatbelt, and before I could jump down, Ryan is there to pick me up out of the Jeep. “You have two choices, my Queen. You enjoy winning our bet and let your slave carry you across or you get on my back to get across.”

  “So, either way you carry me, I just get a choice of being on your back or not? You think you can carry me up the steps too? There’s five or six steep steps to get into the store, Ryan.”

  “Which will hurt your legs. So back or front, or you tell me what you want on your Sundae and I make it for you if you want a third option.”

  He has a point, it would hurt my legs, but no one is making me my sundae. It’s an art form. “Fine, I’ll get on your back I guess because I want you to be able to see the steps and the curb and not drop me!”

  He smiles, my heart stutters, and he turns around. You can tell this guy works out because his shoulders are broad and strong. My hands itch to want to touch him. I lean forward, wrapping my arms around his neck and he grabs my legs to wrap around him. I can feel his muscles bunch as he adjusts me on his back. Um, wow. A virgin should probably not be feeling the lust I am right now, but holy yum. Thank God he has a shirt on is all I have to say.

  He jogs, yes jogs, across the street and up the steps of the store as if I was a simple backpack or something. My thighs ache a little from holding onto him, but I can’t help but be impressed.

  We get inside finally, after just a little work to get the door open without putting me down. There are seats inside, so he sits me down on one of the tables.

  “Um, tables are for glasses, not asses, you could have set me down on the floor, Ryan, I do have feet.”

  He laughs, throwing his head back. “Cute, Bambi. What do you want on your sundae?”

  “I have to make it myself, you’ll totally mess it up. I can walk that far, help me down so I don’t have to jump, please. That would probably hurt.”

  We walk over to the ice cream area and I choose mint cookie, it has Oreo’s in it as well as mint ice cream. He chooses cookie dough. We get to the toppings and I turn around and grab a bag of plain chips. I wave it to the lady behind the counter and she waves me on. I crumble up the chips and put some on my sundae. I then pour some hot fudge, and fluff on top. I sprinkle nuts and grab three cherries. Three is my favorite number, it’s just my thing.

  “Wow, seriously? A tiny little thing like you can eat all that? Chips on a sundae?” Ryan says with a laugh.

  “Honey you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Was it a bad day, baby girl?” The woman behind the counter asks.

  “Yes, Mona. Mom is back in the hospital, for the whole weekend.” I tell her.

  “Well then come on over here baby and momma Mona will hook you right up.”

  I smile at her and walk a few steps over to the deli. She sprinkles some pickle juice on my sundae and gives me some sweet pickles by tucking a couple into the sides of my sundae. She grabs a can of whipped cream out from behind the counter and hands me the can. “I love you, momma Mona. You are totally my favorite person right now.” I walk over to the table with my sundae, past Ryan, whose mouth is hanging open.

  “Get used to it, handsome. That girl deserves pickles and a can of whipped cream and anything else her little heart desires. She asks for very little and gives more than most ever have to.”

  “So what toppings should I try, since you’re the expert, my Queen?” Ryan asks me.

  “Cookie Dough? It needs more cookies for one thing. Open a package of Grandma’s over there. Give him a dill pickle please, momma Mona, some whipped cream, hot fudge and three cherries. Oh, wait, before the whipped cream I have chips left, come here so I don’t have to get back up.”

  “Why are you so sore today, baby girl? Cheer practice rough today?”

  “No, momma Mona, I decided to bet this one I could push the whole rack on the leg press. Of course I won, but then I started singing and dancing along to the radio and held it too long. My legs are like jello with Charlie horses.”

  Mona throws her head back and laughs. “Of course you did. You never can resist showing up them boys. I’ll tell you a secret, since you’re still kinda new around here, handsome. Your money should always be on the country girl, especially that one.” She winks at him and motions for him to come back to her after I sprinkle chips on his sundae. She fixes his sundae up for him and he walks back over to sit with me.

  We grab our spoons and dig in. The hot fudge is hot so everything is already starting to melt together. The hot fudge melts to the chips which is heavenly. Chocolate and salt is a heavenly combo.

  “Ryan, I think you’re moaning. Shush before you make Momma Mona come over here and swat you.”

  “This is freaking amazing. The salt from the pickle and the chips with the sweetness of everything else, it’s ridiculous. My tongue is having a field day. The fudge melted to the chips which is incredible. Wow, Bambi, you continue to surprise me.”

  “Stop talking with your mouthful before you lose your nickname of handsome. Mona and I will both cuff you for bad table manners. Glad you like it, you never know until you try it. I was bored one day, was really stressed out and just wanted ice cream. I had to get out of my house, so I walked to town. Momma Mona got me talking and made me lunch, including a crazy sundae. I come and visit her at least once a week now. She’s become family, and a friend. She teaches me to cook, and other things. I’m not allowed to see my grandparents. My sperm donor says they are too nosy, so she’s the closest thing to a grandparent. Can we just eat and not talk for a few minutes, please?”

  Ryan reaches over, squeezes my hand and goes back to just eating his sundae. Mona puts Bon Jovi Slippery When Wet tape into the radio and we just enjoy hanging out for a little while.

  Later we get to his house and he insists on carrying me inside, on his back because he had to walk up a few steps. We get inside and we are the first ones there.

  It’s a big white farmhouse about a mile from my house. Inside it looks like has original wood details. The stairs are beautiful. Ryan walks through, with me on his back, to give me a tour.

  “Here’s the main living room, the comfortable one. We have a fancier sitting room on the other side for if mom has adult company, but this is where we can be comfortable and spend most of our time. This is obviously the dining room and through that door is the kitchen. You’ll see that soon when I teach you how to make homemade garlic bread.” Ryan laughs and jiggles me on his back.

  “Yum, garlic bread. My mom buys it in a foil bag and we just bake it. My Gran is an amazing cook, she’s Irish and loves to make most everything from scratch. I don’t get to see her though because of my father. You’ll need to help me with our duffle bags later, they are as long as I am tall, and will be a pain in the ass to carry up your pretty stairs.”

  “I’ll get them myself. Do you want me to show you the room you and Eva will be sharing or would you feel better waiting for my mom and Eva to get here?”

  “I trust you, Ryan. I think you’ve more than proven that I can trust you. It’s fine you can show me around, so I can choose what bed I want before my sister gets here.”

  We head up the stairs with me still on his back. I can’t help but th
ink this poor guy is going to be sore later after carrying me around so much. At the top of the stairs you can go right or left. He heads left first. “Down here is my room, a game room with some workout equipment and two bathrooms. One is actually connected to my room, the other is the hallway bathroom. There is an extra bedroom on this side, there, but my mom wanted you girls on her side of the house, so this room is empty.” The game room looks cool. I see a big television, a punching bag and some weights, but we didn’t walk in. We get to the end of the hallway and he stops. “Do you want to see my room, or do you just want to go see yours? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or anything.”

  “Seriously, Ryan, you have already done a lot to help me today and if you were going to be inappropriate, you would have tried something when I was just in my underwear earlier. I think I can handle seeing your room when your mom and my sister will be here any minute.”

  We walk in and he has a big end room with two windows. One is on the back wall, it’s a bay window with a window seat. I want to just sit there and read so badly. His bed is the biggest bed I have ever seen. “Is that a water bed? Holy big bed, mat rat, I don’t know if I want to sit there or your window seat first! Okay, yeah, totally on the water bed. Can I sit on it, please?”

  I can feel him shake with laughter. He swings me around and puts me down on his bed. I fall back so I’m lying down on it. He looks down at me, curses, and walks out. What the hell? Whatever, he must have to do something. I’m going to just enjoy the water bed! I pull myself back a bit and enjoy the motion of it. Oh my God, I have heard of these but I have never been on one. It is so warm, it must be heated! I grab his pillow, and notice it smells like him. I need to remember to look for his cologne later and see what kind it is.

  ~Chapter 2~

  “Emma, sweetheart? I’m worried that you didn’t eat. Ryan told me you had ice cream, but that’s not dinner, honey.” I hear a woman’s voice and I try to wake up. When I go to roll over, I start moving and remember I’m on Ryan’s water bed. I open my eyes and sit up quickly.

  “Oh my God, I’m so sorry! I asked Ryan if I could sit on his water bed, it looked so comfortable, I can’t believe I fell asleep! Where’s Eva?”

  “It’s alright, honey. Ryan, Eva and Grant are in the game room. Grant decided to come and check on you. Good thing Ryan was downstairs when we got here or Grant may have flattened my son. Those boys are very protective of you, and I think that’s a great thing. Eva and I were a bit concerned why you had changed your clothes, but Grant and Ryan explained about your amazing leg presses and the tub. How are you feeling now?”

  “Um, I think I feel better. This bed is amazing, I’ve never been on a waterbed before. It must be heated, my body doesn’t feel as achy.”

  “Yes, it’s heated. Since my son works out so much and plays so many sports, we decided a waterbed would be good for him. He of course had to have the biggest one in the store. King sized. Why don’t you try to stand and then you can go eat? We ate a couple of hours ago, but I’m sure Ryan will make you up some fresh garlic bread, and my sauce is on warm in the pot.”

  “Hours? Oh my God, how long did I sleep? I am really sorry, Ms. Doyle! You open your home to us, and I crash on your sons’ bed five minutes after walking in the door!” I can feel myself blushing.

  “First, don’t apologize for sleeping. You and your sister have been through a lot. She and I have had a long talk. I know how often you stay awake at night while your parents fight to make sure your mom is okay. I know how good your grades are, plus all of your extra-curricular activities. No wonder you were exhausted. Try to stand, and if your legs are still sore, I’m sure the boys will be happy to help you get downstairs. I was up extremely early for an emergency case, so I will excuse myself for a shower and an early bed time, unless you need me for anything?”

  I’m up sitting on the edge of the bed next to her now. My legs don’t really hurt at all anymore. I stand up, and I know I can walk fine. I turn to her and give her a hug. “Thank you, for everything. I would love to try your spaghetti sauce and garlic bread. I’m okay for tonight. I may stay up for a while and read now that I slept for so many hours, but I’m fine. No one called? There weren’t any issues with my parents?”

  She hugs me back and pulls back to look at me. “No, no problems. Your sister said goodnight to your mom already and explained you were really tired and sleeping already. Your mom said to tell you she loves you and goodnight. Let’s go get the kids from the game room so you can eat.”

  We walk down the hall and Eva is fighting against Grant on Mortal Kombat while Ryan watches.

  “Ryan, would you make Emma some of your amazing garlic bread now, please? She is hungry, I can hear her poor stomach growling while we talk. I’m headed off to bed. Grant, you are welcome to use the extra bedroom next to Ryan’s. Goodnight everyone! I’ll see you bright and early for a big pancake breakfast!” She waves and walks down the hall towards the other wing.

  “You slept for hours. I’m glad you like my bed, it’s comfy, isn’t it? Let’s go grab food while your sister kicks Grant’s ass at Mortal Kombat.” Ryan says with a laugh.

  “Um, I want to freshen up a bit, brush my teeth and see how bad my hair is. Do Eva and I have a certain bathroom to use?”

  “Yep, you can use this one in the hall. Eva and Ma already set up your stuff in there. Do you want a shower while I bake your bread?”

  “That sounds nice, but the bath earlier was heaven. My hair is naturally curly, and if I shower at night, it would be a mess in the morning. I’ll shower when I wake up if that’s okay?”

  “Yeah, come on, let’s get you food. Eva, did you want some dessert now since you skipped it earlier?” Ryan asks her.

  “No, thanks. I’m going to crush Grant here. Since I don’t stand a chance in real life, I can beat him in the game.” She says with a giggle.

  “Seriously, this girl is kicking my ass. I may have to beat up your boyfriend later to feel like a man again.” Grant says with a nod at Ryan and a laugh.

  Ryan snickers and I walk towards the bathroom to get washed up. The bathroom is pretty, everything is done in pastel blue with a few touches of purple. It’s very soothing. Even the soaps are purple and smell like lavender. I see a bag on the counter with my name on it, Eva has her own as well. It has a toothbrush, deodorant and even some makeup in it. I see my favorite hair stuff and wonder if Ms. Doyle took Eva shopping for the stuff. How would they know what I need for my hair? I spray some leave in conditioner and pick my hair out to get the curls looking a bit better. I must have slept like a rock, because my hair was only a little flat on one side. I brush my teeth, spray some deodorant and I’m ready to go downstairs. I open the door and head down to the kitchen. I can smell the spaghetti sauce and my stomach growls. I walk into the kitchen and see Ryan is getting butter out of the fridge.

  “I’ll show you how to make garlic bread if you want it, or you can just have buttered Italian bread. Which do you prefer?” He asks me.

  “Um, I think I’ll skip the garlic today, but thanks. You can show me another time. Italian bread with some butter sounds good with it actually. The sauce smells amazing.” I walk over and lift the lid on the stock pot. I can see Italian sausage and a lot of ground meat in the sauce. It’s a really thick meat sauce and it smells like heaven! There goes my stupid stomach growling again.

  “Bowl or plate? Do you want the pasta too, or just sauce and bread?”

  “Oh, just the sauce and bread sounds good actually, and a bowl, please.” He grabs a bowl and walks over to the stock pot. He grabs a big spoon and scoops a bunch of sauce into the bowl. We get set up at the table and he sits down with me with his own bowl and some bread.

  “I have some sweet tea, water, milk or coffee. We’re out of soda, though soda should be illegal to have with spaghetti anyway.”

  I just laugh and nod at that, I completely agree with him. “Yeah, I’m not big on soda anyway. I think I’ll try the sweet tea, thanks. If you tell me
where the glasses are, I can get it.”

  He raises an eyebrow at me, then shrugs. “Okay. The cupboard to the right of the sink. I’ll take the tea too.” He says and laughs a little, it’s more like a snicker. Am I missing a joke?

  I walk over to the sink, and realize I can just reach the knob to open the cupboard, but there is no way I can reach the glasses on the second shelf. I’m too short. I look for a step stool and realize both Ryan and his mom are pretty tall. Crap. I feel Ryan’s arms go around my waist and he puts his head on top of mine. “Kind of short, aren’t ya, little Bambi? I guess you’ll just have to let me get it for you, or ask for help.”

  He has been really nice to me, so I won’t put an elbow in his stomach, yet. “It’s not funny to tease short people. It sucks not being able to reach stuff! I help my mom go grocery shopping, do you have any idea how often a four foot eleven inch girl needs to ask tall people to reach stuff?”

  “Do you have any idea how much torture it was to see this beautiful, short girl that I have dreamed about for months, sleeping in my bed?” He’s now whispering in my ear and I feel my body react to him.

  He turns me around, and picks me up so I’m sitting on the counter, which makes me almost even with him. He has one hand on the counter, and reaches the other one to the side of my face. His eyes are the most amazing shade of green, but being this close I see there are specks of brown and blue. I wonder if his eyes change with his moods. Brenda’s do that, she says it’s her German side. I’ve never looked this close into Ryan’s eyes to really notice. I want to ask him, but I’m having a hard time forming words. I lick my bottom lip, and then bite it, debating if I can ask him, when he groans.

  “You are always licking and biting your bottom lip when you’re thinking. Do you know how often you do that? I see you in school, when you’re concentrating, and I just want to suck that bottom lip into my mouth and nibble on it myself.”

  My mouth drops open. I’m now looking at his mouth, thinking about that. I had no idea he had been thinking about me this way, when I had daydreamed, and had night dreams, about him too. My dreams are weird, they come true, a lot. I often dream about my father hurting my mom, then I wake up and it really happens, just like I dreamed. I try to move my mouth, to form words, and my eyes go back up to his. He moves his hand to the back of my neck, in my hair, and pulls my mouth to his.