by Claire Adams
Life hadn’t been easy for me. It had thrown me some wild and crazy turns.
I certainly hadn’t expected to find love while working at a dating company and I hadn’t expected for one date to turn into the amazing feelings that I had toward Brandon. But there we were: two hurt humans who had found each other and healed each other.
Epilogue
Brandon
“If we hurry, we can catch the sunset,” I urged as we got into the car that was waiting for us at the airport.
“Brandon, if you hadn’t been on that call with your new business partners, we would have gotten off the plane in time to get over here,” Delilah teased me as we had the driver head to the beach. “Don’t blame this on me. I had all my shoes packed and ready to go on time.”
“Mom, where are we going?” Connor asked.
Connor had done fantastically on our flight from Los Angeles to Honolulu. It was a long flight over a lot of water and I wasn’t sure how well he was going to handle it. Delilah had told me that he was afraid of planes and even had a nightmare the night before because he thought our plane was going to crash.
As soon as the plane took off though, Connor seemed to relax as he cuddled between Delilah and I, and we had a smooth flight. It probably didn’t hurt that I had splurged on a private jet – it was nearly impossible not to be comfortable on one of those. I didn’t like to waste money, but if it was going to make him comfortable, I was willing to do it. In fact, I would do almost anything for that boy.
Delilah and I had been dating for several months and my time with Connor had really helped me grow as a man. I’d been so caught up in the loss of Noah that I worried I wouldn’t be able to be around Connor, but I loved being around him. He was fun, and we played and got along great. He taught me all about his favorite animal, the squirrel, and I taught him about throwing a baseball and how to hit off a tee for his tee ball league. We had without doubt become buddies, which was a huge relief for me.
“We are heading to the beach before it gets too dark to see the sunset. Remember that really cool picture at Brandon’s house? The blue and red one that is in the living room?” Delilah said as she held Connor’s hand.
“The giant one? Oh, man, I love that painting. I like the blue side better than the red, though.”
“Yeah, we are going to see the beach that reminds Brandon of his son Noah and the painting he made at school. Remember I told you the story of how Noah had painted a picture that looked almost exactly like that painting on the wall?”
“Oh, that’s awesome. I can’t wait to see it. Will there be those mean words on the red part, though? I don’t like those.”
“No, there won’t be those. It’s going to look a little different than the painting, but I know you’re going to love it.”
“You know I’m really sorry I had to take that business call. I’m just so excited about this new company,” I said to Del as our driver made his way down the coast and toward the beach we were heading to. “Things are really going fantastic, and we are turning a profit already. It’s almost unheard of to be profitable at this early in the business.”
“Oh, honey, I know. I’m just teasing you. You take all the time you need. I’m really excited about your new company, too. It’s going to be huge. After all those cyber-attacks that have been going on, a company that truly can help keep people’s information safe is exactly what businesses are looking for.”
Delilah and I had come up with the best idea for a new dating company. Not only would it have state-of-the-art technology, but we hired the best of the best to incorporate the most top of the line security available. Customers could trust that their intimate information was safe and nothing was going to happen to it.
Luckily, the company had been doing great and within the first few months, we had seen huge growth. Not only had our clients doubled, but our advertisers loved the concept and we were gaining more revenue than any of our competition. We had a winner already and it was hard not to be excited about the whole thing. I needed a business to run and couldn’t have stayed home without work another week longer.
“Are we almost there?” Connor asked as it started to get dark in the car.
We had been traveling almost all day long. Between getting packed and driving to the airport, then flying and sitting on the tarmac in Hawaii, Connor looked exhausted. It was a lot to expect he could stay up too much longer, but I hoped he’d at least make it to see the sunset.
“Yep, we are getting close. Keep your eye out over there. Soon the waves will look like the blue from the painting and the sky will look like the red, but without the words,” I said softly to him.
I loved Delilah’s son like he was my own. It had been hard at first to be around him because he reminded me so much of my Noah. Not that they looked alike or anything like that, just his innocence and joy when he looked at the world.
I really had been terrified that I wouldn’t be able to handle the job of being any sort of father figure to Connor. Luckily, Connor had made the transition flawless for me and my fears quickly died down.
“You’re doing great with him,” Del said as she grabbed my hand. “He really likes you. I think sometimes he even likes you more than he likes me. That’s pretty darn good for being the new guy in his life.”
“I feel like I’m doing it all for the first time again. You would think I’d remember how this whole thing worked. Sometimes I think I sound like the lamest old guy on earth.”
“Well, it’s different with every kid. There’s no real way to know if you’re doing it right or not. I guess we will just have to see how much therapy he has to go through when he becomes an adult.”
We both laughed at the thought of Connor someday being an adult. I’d only known him a few months, but I really had started to bond with him. He was a funny kid and so much like Delilah. He was turning six soon, and I hoped we would continue to get along as he made his way to adulthood, although I certainly couldn’t imagine that day ever coming.
“We are here,” the driver said. “I’ll stay here and wait for you. Take your time.”
“Oh, Brandon, it looks just like the painting,” Del said as we got out of the car and went to the beach to sit for a minute.
She was right: it did look just like the painting. I could hardly move as I took it all in.
Of course, it was different because it was real and not an actual painting, but I flashed back to when Noah had given me his version of the sight and how excited he had been. His eyes had lit up and he was so proud of the work. I could tell this spot and our trip to Hawaii had meant a lot to him.
“Yeah, even more beautiful than I remember it,” I managed to say as I held back my tears.
“I wish you still had Noah’s painting, but I’m so glad you bought the one you did. I can just imagine what his painting looked like and what it must have meant to you.”
“This moment means so much to me, Del. This is what I want for my future, for our future. I want you and I want Connor. We both have pasts, and I don’t want either one of us to have to forget about those, but I want to go to beautiful places and sit on beaches and make memories together, the three of us.
“Delilah Hunter, will you marry me?”
The words hadn’t been planned at all. I didn’t have a ring and I hadn’t talked to her family, but as the emotion of the moment hit me, I couldn’t let it pass us by. I was done living in the past and ready to live in the future with Delilah and Connor. My heart raced as I waited for her to give me some sort of answer. I even slid down to one knee and looked up at her hoping that she would say yes.
“I don’t know. What about Connor? I haven’t talked to him yet about this. I should probably…”
“Mom, say yes, he loves you,” Connor said as he turned around from looking at the sunset and came to stand next to me.
“Thanks, man,” I said as I gave him a fist bump and pulled him next to me. “See, we are a team.”
“Well, then… if my little ma
n here is on board, then my answer is definitely yes.”
“Yes?” I asked to verify. “Dude, did your mom just say yes to marrying me?” I whispered as I kneeled next to Connor and gave him a hug. “I think she really did say yes.”
“Yep, she did.”
“Yes. I said yes, you silly boys!”
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SECOND CHANCE
By Claire Adams
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 Claire Adams
Chapter One
Roman
I grabbed my phone, checking the time before sliding it into my pocket. It was only about twenty minutes past eight; class didn't start till nine and the walk there from my apartment would take me fifteen minutes, tops. I could drive; that would make the trip even shorter. It was early in the morning, too, which meant I wouldn't have a problem finding a parking spot. Why not?
I grabbed my keys, chugging down the last of my protein shake and filling the blender with water. Ronnie had been right about that making it easier to wash after. I had to hit the gym every morning, whether I had early classes or not. I liked it, but even if I didn't, I had to because of football, even though finals meant I hadn't really been playing as much.
Athletes got a bad rep. Yeah, a lot of guys were only in college because they wanted to get into the draft and be able to go pro without working up through the minors. And, I'd be a liar if I said that wasn't me, too. A lot of people didn't realize just how fucking hard that was, though. College ball was the peak for most of the guys playing. We only needed like a 2.0 GPA to stay on the team, so if the football thing didn't pan out, you could hardly do anything else anyway.
I didn't want to have to use my degree, I wanted to play football. But if I did need it, I wanted to have graduated with something higher than a fucking 2.0. I grabbed my backpack and walked out the door. Living in a college town, there were tons of affordable apartments close to school, so the drive only took about five minutes.
Ronnie was already in the classroom when I walked in, head down, reading a textbook. Nobody else was in there with her. That was the thing with early morning classes – you could be a little late and people wouldn't get on your ass for it, but she was still early as fuck. She took this stuff seriously. She sat all the way up at the front of the classroom and went for all the tutorials, too, the stuff you would tease kids for doing back in middle and high school. It was paying off, though, because she had kept up her 3.8 GPA since her first semester.
She was wrapping her sophomore year, too, and the only reason we were in this class together was we had both ended up picking Western Civilization II as an elective. She was a Psych major because she was smart. I was a business major because I needed a degree in something and when playing football, the less involved your course load was, the easier it was to keep your GPA high enough to stay on the team.
Her hair was tied up in a bun and she was in a hoodie and jeans. Two tall coffee cups were sitting on the desk next to her textbook. "One of those for me?" I asked, walking up to her. She jumped at my voice, but smiled when she saw me.
"Hi, baby," she said, holding a cup out. I leaned down to kiss her.
"Hey, were you waiting for me?" I asked. I took the cup and drank deeply from it; it had been standing there long enough to not be too hot anymore. It was just your standard coffee, no sugar, but made with almond milk instead of cow milk. Ron would just get us the same order when she bought coffee. I wasn't even sure I could tell the difference, but it was supposed to be better for you. I just took her word for it.
"I was just thinking about calling you."
"When did you get here?" I asked. The sun was out and the light that was filtering into the room was catching the gold in her blonde hair. It was long and curly when she wore it down. She wore makeup most days, but not today; it would cover the light freckles on the tops of her cheeks when she did. Her eyes were the kind of green that made me think of spring, everything coming up fresh and new after months of freezing temperatures.
"Only about ten minutes ago," she said.
"You drove?" I asked.
"Car refused to start this morning. I walked,” she said as she shook her head. She had gotten her car at seventeen; it had been a piece of shit then and still was now. It practically stopped working during winter and when it did work, it would break down on her constantly. She liked it because she had gotten it herself as her first car, but I wished she wouldn't drive it. Acuras was supposed to be safe, but when they were that beat up, the safety measure had to go down some.
"Why didn't you call me? I would have picked you up."
"It's out of your way," she said, shrugging. "It's not that far walking."
"I'll take you home after class," I said. "I need to use the library anyway."
"Are you gonna be there till late like last night?"
"No. This close to finals, it's going to be packed."
"Good thing finals only last a week."
"Is it me or was this one the longest week we've had yet?"
"It's just you," she said smiling. "We're almost at the finish line, so the wait feels longer."
"Just one more week," I said wistfully. I knew she was right. It didn't change anything, though. I was looking forward to the semester ending, but I wasn't really that hyped about summer this year.
"Excited to go home?" she asked, as if she knew what was on my mind.
I would be if that was where I was going. I shrugged non-commitally. Both our families lived in Aberdeen. Early this year, we had talked about going on vacation together, just me and Ron. I wanted to take her to Glacier National Park to spend our days alone together in the woods while I had time before summer training started.
That really wasn't in the cards anymore. I had told Ron it was because I wanted to spend that time at home, instead. It wasn’t that much of a lie, but it wasn’t really the truth. I didn't like lying to her, but I had been doing it a lot this past month.
Just because you had a good reason for doing something shitty didn't stop it from still being a dick move. It was all for nothing in the end, anyway. We weren't going on vacation together, and I wasn't even going to end up going home.
"Wanna head out?" I asked suddenly.
"What? Now?" she asked. I nodded. "Are you asking me to ditch class?" She sounded like she thought I was kidding, but she had a smile pulling the corners of her mouth.
"Yeah. Let's go."
"Where? We have class."
"It's the last one before finals, we've covered the entire outline already. Beckett isn't going to come in here with new material," I said. A few other people had filtered into the classroom, but it was still mostly empty.
"What do you want to do?" she asked.
"Go to my place?" I suggested. It didn't really matter what we did when we got there. I mostly just didn't want to be in class anymore. I wanted to spend some time with her. We had the class together, but that was her, me, fifteen other students, and Professor Beckett. School was letting out and in a perfect world it would be her and me in a cabin in the woods, but shit was a little different this year. Because of finals, times like this were the only ones we had when we weren't in class or studying. It was not enough. Nowhere near enough.
She shrugged her shoulders and closed her textbook.
"I'm never doing this with you again," she said with a glint in her eye. She packed up and grabbed her coffee. I took her hand, and we were back out the door before Professor Beckett and the rest of the class showed up.
Instead of my place, we went to hers. Her roommate ended up being home,
but it didn't matter. We weren't staying long. I had an idea where we could go.
The park wasn't that big and was edged on one side by some woods. When it was winter and the trees were bare, the little clearing was easy to make out. There were stumps along the tree line that I had watched get covered in moss and lichen in the years that I'd been coming here. I hadn't known how Veronica would react the first time I brought her. It was back when we were still pretty casual, before I had asked her to be my girlfriend.
Her best friend and my sister happened to be the same person, so I had her to thank for letting me know that picnics were one of Ron's favorite things to do. She kept a blanket and basket in her car for that reason. We grabbed those before we left and after buying some sandwiches and pastries at her regular coffee shop, we were walking through the trees to our spot.
We had never been interrupted and since neither of us had ever brought anyone else there, it felt like it was ours. It was about as private as we could get while being outside in a public park. The only thing I sort of wished it had was a stream or something; we weren’t near the river. Water always made places look better. Ron and I had talked about it a lot. She wanted to swim in each one of the five oceans, and I wanted to do it with her.
She gave me half her sandwich since she wasn't that hungry. As we ate, she started asking me about summer classes and football training, but I changed the subject. I wasn't going this year and I didn't want to tell her why...not just yet. She tried to pull her textbook out again, but I took it from her, stashing it in my backpack till it was time to go. I was feeling selfish. I didn't want to share her.
Doing so reminded me that I had something for her. I told her to close her eyes.
"What is it?" she asked.
"Don't look," I said. The small rectangular box had been in my bag since last weekend when I had bought it.
"What is it?" she repeated, eyes shut like I had asked her. I popped the box open and looked inside. A light pink stone on a gold chain. I had wanted something that would remind her of me, but got something that made me think of her instead. It was pretty and feminine, like her. The lady at the store I had gotten it at said the stone stood for love, and that was enough reason to get it.