He gave me a look and then turned to Josh. “Yeah, we’re in. Just give us a few minutes to get ready.”
Caleb turned me around and led me back to his room. “Let’s get showered. You can jump in with me to save time,” he suggested with a smirk.
I gasped. “I’m not showering with you while they’re all out there in the living room!”
He pulled me into his arms. “Don’t worry about them.”
I looked up at him. “Did you see Nick’s face? We’ve hurt him enough already, there’s no need to add insult to injury.”
“I’m not worried about him. He’ll have to get over it eventually. Come on,” he pouted at me.
Before I could protest again, he grabbed my hand and dragged me to the bathroom. I finally gave in and got in the shower with him. It wasn’t like we had time to do anything anyway.
Once we were ready, we jumped in Andrew’s explorer and headed to the diner. We sat in a circular booth, with Josh making sure that Caleb and Nick were nowhere near each other.
The guys talked about their trip and football, while I just sat back and listened. Caleb was fascinating to watch when he talked about football, and it was obviously something that he loved to do, and he did it well. The tension between Nick and Caleb seemed to diminish throughout breakfast. I was glad, I didn’t want them fighting anymore.
After breakfast, Andrew dropped us off at Caleb’s apartment. Caleb and I spent the rest of the day hanging out with Josh but as the afternoon wore on, I realized that it was time to get ready to get back to the real world. It had been such a wonderful week with Caleb—forgetting how the week had begun—that I didn’t want it to end.
We were sitting on the couch watching TV when I looked over at Caleb and grabbed his hand. “I think it’s time for me to head home.”
He kissed the back of my hand, but I could see the sadness in his eyes. He didn’t want me to go either. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay?”
I rested my head on his shoulder, “As much as I would love to, if I don’t go home and see Em, she’ll freak.”
He sighed. “Fine, but I’m hanging out with you at your apartment for a while.”
I stood up and held out my hand to him. “Well let’s go then.”
We packed up my stuff and Caleb packed a change of clothes just in case. I said goodbye to Josh and we left for my apartment. Everyone was home by the time we got there. The minute we walked through the door, Emily jumped up off the couch, grabbed my bag from Caleb, and pulled me into my room.
Once she closed the door she turned to me, concern in her eyes. “I was so worried about you all week. Are you okay?”
I sat down on my bed and smiled up at her. “I’m better than okay.”
She sat down next to me and picked up my arm to inspect my wrist, before looking back up and searching my face. Her exploration stopped when her eyes reached mine. Whatever she saw there made her gasp. “You didn’t?!”
I knew what she was talking about, but I figured I would have a little fun with her first—payback for giving Caleb such a hard time.
“I didn’t what?” I asked with a blank look on my face.
“Don’t you start with me, you know exactly what I’m talking about,” she scowled.
I laughed. “Yes I did.”
“OH MY GOD!” she yelled.
Caleb came flying in the door, “Is everything okay in here?” he asked with a panicked look on his face.
I smiled at him, “Yeah, honey, everything’s fine.”
His face lit up. “Oh, so I’m ‘honey’ now?”
My face flamed when I realized what I’d said. It had just come out, I didn’t even think about it before I said it. He walked over and cupped my cheek. “Don’t be embarrassed. I liked that you called me ‘honey’.”
He winked at me and started to walk away. “I’ll be in the living room with Jillian and Heather, so you two can finish talking.”
I looked over at Emily who was sat there in stunned silence, her mouth hanging open. I reached over and closed her mouth with my fingers, and she shook her head as if to clear it.
“Who was that? And where is Caleb Jacobs?” she asked in awe.
“Em, that’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.”
“Sexy and sweet? I guess I might have been too hard on him. I have to say, I was shocked when he said he wanted me to go on the cruise because he was going to stay with you for the week. After I left I was worried that he might regret staying and take it out on you, or bail on you. But I was wrong…very wrong.” she mused.
“And how did you finally figure it out?”
She shrugged her shoulders. “Simple…you slept with him.”
My mouth dropped open in shock. “So let me get this straight. You decided my boyfriend wasn’t a total asshole because I had sex with him? It didn’t matter that he was willing to give up his spring break trip to stay with me while you went on your cruise?” I demanded.
She turned and grasped both my hands. “That’s not what I meant. I realized that he wasn’t a total asshole when he wanted to stay with you this week. I still had concerns though, but I just figured out how special he really is, because you slept with him.”
“Huh?” I gave her a blank look. “What are you talking about?”
She gave me a sad smile. “You’ve guarded your virginity like it was the Holy Grail because of the stupid-ass lies your father’s been spouting for years. There was only one way you were going to give it up, and that was if you found that special person, someone deserving of your heart.”
“Em, I’ve only known him for a few weeks…” I trailed off looking down.
“Look me in the eye,” she demanded. I looked up and she smiled. “You love him, don’t you?” she asked.
I sighed. “Yeah, I do.”
“Well, what’s wrong with that?” she looked confused.
“I don’t know.” I shrugged. “Nothing. Everything.” I threw myself onto my bed with a huff. “It’s just,” I paused needing to collect my thoughts. “All so…new. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.”
She squeezed my hands reassuringly. “It will be fine, your heart wouldn’t choose someone who wasn’t worthy of it.”
She dropped my hands and pulled me into a hug. When she let go, I smiled at her, “Thanks.”
She stood up and held her hand out to me. “Now let’s go save Caleb from the wonder twins and their twenty questions.”
I had to laugh as I gave Emily my hand, because Heather and Jillian were probably grilling him about our week like a couple of seasoned detectives. She helped me to my feet and we headed to the living room.
Caleb sat patiently answering the questions Heather and Jillian were throwing at him. He saw us walk out of my bedroom and gave me a smile. Heather looked up then and smirked. “Well, look who decided to join us.”
I rolled my eyes at her and sat down next to Caleb. “Ha, ha, very funny. Are you done grilling my boyfriend?”
“Actually, we are. And since no one has been shopping, we were thinking about going to grab a pizza for dinner,” Jillian said.
“Sounds good to me,” Emily said pulling money out of her pocket. “Are you guys going to pick it up?”
Heather shrugged. “Sure.”
I stood up. “Let me get some money.” Caleb grabbed my hand and pulled me back down to the sofa and said, “I got it.” He pulled money out of his pocket and gave it to Heather.
She smiled approvingly at him. I turned toward him. “You don’t have to keep paying for me.”
He’d already paid for breakfast that morning, and everything else all week, so I felt bad that he was paying for pizza too. He kissed me on the forehead. “I know, but I want to.”
“Anything special on the pizza?” Jillian asked.
Everybody shook their heads. Jillian grabbed her keys and out the door they went.
Emily came and sat down on the other couch. “Now that they’re gone, tell me what’s going on with your dad.”
/> I felt my body start to shake as I thought about the call from Officer Simons. Caleb put his arm around me for support, and I took a deep breath. “He’s out on bail, but there’s a restraining order on him.”
Emily stood up. “ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?” she screamed. “They let that asshole out on bail?”
The tears were stinging my eyes as the fear overwhelmed me again. Caleb shot Emily a warning look, and pulled me in tighter to his side. “Shh, baby, I’m not gonna let him hurt you,” he soothed.
Emily came over and sat on the other side of me. “Oh Angie, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to freak out, I just can’t believe they let him out.” She linked her fingers with mine. “Everything will be okay. Did they set a hearing date?”
Caleb must have realized that I didn’t want to talk about it anymore, because he answered for me. “Yeah, the hearing is next month. Thing is, if he pleads not guilty Angie will have to testify.”
I shivered again. I was trying to not think about the possibility of having to testify. They both noticed my reaction. “We’ll be there with you if that happens,” Emily said with conviction.
“Baby, we would never leave you alone to face that,” Caleb reassured me.
I nodded. “Can we please talk about something else?”
Emily and Caleb shot each other a look and nodded. I turned to Emily. “Tell me about the cruise,” I said with a slight smile.
We talked about her trip for a bit, before Heather and Jillian came back with the pizza. We ate and joked about Jillian and Heather’s wild week. Shit, those two were a fucking train wreck together.
Caleb decided to stay the night. “I sleep better with you next to me,” he said as we cuddled in bed.
I tilted my head up and kissed him. “Night Caleb.”
“Goodnight baby.”
Angie and I spent the next few days taking turns staying at each other’s apartments. I wasn’t joking when I told her I slept better with her next to me. For some reason, she kept the nightmares away.
Now that classes were back in full swing, it was difficult for Angie and I to get as much time together as I would have liked. Tonight we were headed to Andrew’s frat party, and I couldn’t help but think about the last party. That was the first time I’d kissed Angie, but I’d walked away from her that night. This time, I had every intention of taking her home after the party and burying myself inside her warmth.
I got hard just thinking about it—good thing I was in my car waiting for Angie to finish class. Otherwise, that could’ve been extremely embarrassing. I still couldn’t believe that after everything she had been through, she had trusted me enough to make love to her for the first time.
Josh was in Angie’s class, so I was picking them both up and then we were having Angie drop us off for workout. She was going to head back to her apartment and get ready, before coming back to pick us up. Finally, I saw Angie and Josh emerge from the building where their class was held. They were laughing on their way to the car. I felt a spark of jealousy seeing Angie and Josh so close, but I had to remember they had been friends for two years. Besides, Josh was one of my best friends and he wasn’t interested in anything more than sex. Jealous? Really? I had never been jealous in my life. The problem was, I knew I loved her, but I still didn’t have enough guts to tell her.
They both got in the car and Angie leaned over to kiss me. She slid her tongue along my bottom lip, and all of my jealousy melted away. I opened my mouth and let my tongue dance with hers. Moving my lips against hers, I relished the taste of hers.
“Would you guys give the lovey-dovey shit a break?” he groaned.
I reluctantly pulled away from Angie and turned to look at Josh in the back seat. “You’re just jealous, because you’re not getting any.” I saw Angie blush out of the corner of my eye. Her innocence made her sexy as hell. I turned back around and started the car.
Once we got to the practice field, I got out and met Angie at the front of the car. I touched my lips to hers, but quickly pulled away because I had to get inside—Coach was still pissed about the fight a few weeks ago.
“I’ll see you after workout. Remember to dress in something sexy for the party,” I hinted.
“We’ll see,” she flirted. “But I’m going to get dressed at your house. I don’t feel like getting ready this early. I’ll be back at five-thirty.”
She moved over to the driver’s side and climbed in. I stayed and watched her drive away. If she was going to get ready back at my place, we might have time for a little fun before we had to leave. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and headed inside to change.
Our workout went by faster than I’d thought it would. I was excited to take Angie to the party—I wanted everyone to know that she was mine. She had taught me what no one else could in the last two years—I deserved to have love in my life. The world needed to know how wonderful she was. Josh and I walked out of the locker room to find Angie leaning against the car waiting for us.
She smiled as we approached. “Josh, do you want to ride up front. I feel bad that you’re stuck in the back.”
Josh shook his head. “Nah, I think I’ll stay in the back. I don’t want Mr. Temperamental trying to kick my ass because he can’t sit next to you,” he said pointing at me.
I shot him a disgusted look. “Eat a dick, asshole.”
Angie laughed at the two of us. “Knock it off you two,” she ordered between giggles, climbing into the passenger seat.
Once Josh and I were in the car, we headed straight back to our apartment. I was making pasta for dinner because it was quick and easy, I also wanted to make sure everyone ate before drinking that night. It was my turn to be the designated driver, but Angie had offered to drive instead. I tried to talk her out of it, but she insisted. After we finished eating, Angie went into the bathroom to get ready. She refused to show me what she’d brought to wear until she had it on.
I was already dressed in a pair of jeans and a button down shirt that I left untucked. Josh and I were sitting on the couch watching TV when my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID.
“Hey Mom,” I answered.
“Caleb, I haven’t heard from you in a while,” my mom’s voice answered from the other end.
“I know, I’m sorry things have been crazy around here lately,” I replied. If only she knew how much of an understatement that was.
“Well, how was your trip?” she asked brightly.
Mom was always trying to keep a positive attitude around me. In the beginning, she tried to make me see that it wasn’t my fault. When that didn’t work, she did everything she could to talk about only the positives in my life. Her and my dad had supported me through everything that had happened, and I knew she was going to be thrilled when I told her about Angie.
“Um…I um…decided not to go.”
“What do you mean, you decided not to go? You’ve been looking forward to this trip for over a month,” she exclaimed.
“I know, but something came up,” I evaded. I looked over at Josh who had a smirk on his face.
I threw the remote at him, which only made him laugh out loud. I still hadn’t told him about what had happened with Angie’s father. The bruises had almost healed by the time they got home, and what marks remained she was able to cover up with makeup. Besides, I figured it was her story to tell.
“Were you sick? Is everything okay?” she asked worriedly.
“No Mom, I’m fine, everything’s fine now,” I assured her.
“Are you sure?” she asked again.
“I’m positive. What’s new with you?” I asked trying to change the subject.
It worked—it always did with Mom. “Actually that’s why I’m calling. Nicole got accepted to Syracuse with a full scholarship for soccer.”
“Wow, that’s awesome.”
“I know, she’s so excited. Anyway, they have something this weekend for the new members of the team. We thought that we would drive there, drop her off, and then head over to the
hotel near you for the weekend. We haven’t seen you since Christmas.”
Just then I saw Josh’s mouth drop open as he was looking towards the hallway. I instinctively turned to where he was looking.
“Holy Shit!” Angie was standing there in a black halter-top dress that accentuated her gorgeous breasts and stunning legs. She looked so fucking beautiful, that I couldn’t get my mouth to move. All I could think about was what it would be like to take her out of that dress later.
She spun around and I almost lost it—most of her back was bare. “What do you think?” she asked.
She started to walk over to me and caught sight of the forgotten phone in my hand. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were on the phone.”
I was still in a daze when I heard both my mom and Angie call my name at the same time.
I shook my head to clear it. “Sorry, baby. It’s just that…you look amazing!”
“Caleb, who are you talking to?” Mom’s voice asked.
“Mom, that was Angie. I haven’t gotten a chance to tell you about her yet,” I replied.
“Did…did you just call her baby?” Mom stuttered.
I smiled at Angie as she came to join me on the couch, “Yes Mom, I called her baby. Angie’s my girlfriend.”
“She’s your what?” Mom whispered.
“Mom, are you okay?” She didn’t answer me. “Mom? MOM?”
“Caleb, what they hell did you say to your mother,” my father’s angry voice sounded from the phone.
“I didn’t say anything,” I argued.
“Well you must have said something to upset her, she’s sitting here crying,” Dad yelled.
“I was trying to tell her about my girlfriend, Angie, when she—”
He cut me off. “Your what?”
“My girlfriend, are you guys even listening to me? What is going on there?” I was getting frustrated.
“Oh Caleb, honey, I just never thought this would happen,” Mom sniffed. She must’ve taken the phone back from Dad.
“Mom, please don’t cry,” I begged.
“Don’t worry, they’re happy tears,” she assured me. “I’m so happy for you. Can we meet her while we are there this weekend?”
Forgiven (Forgiven Series) Page 17