I turned, leaning against the counter as I heard footsteps on the stairs. Caroline, my older sister, walked into the kitchen but didn't notice me at first. She had been jumpy for as long as I could remember.
"Morning sis!" I said more loudly than necessary, taking a sip of my coffee and smirking to myself as she leaped a foot.
"Shit! You scared me!" she said, throwing a hand over her chest, but then walking over to give me a hug. "You look really nice for your big first day! You smell good too, trying to impress somebody?"
I just had on some black suit pants and a blue button down, didn't seem like anything more than work clothes to me.
"Nah, you know that's not how I roll. Just trying to look professional." I smiled, taking her into my arms. "You want to carpool?"
"I can't. I'm going back to Bluffton after work."
My grandmother had passed recently and my mother and Caroline had been spending a lot of time out in Bluffton trying to get her house ready to go on the market. I would have been out there too, but I had just come home from college over the weekend, after having graduated last month, and today was my first day at the new job.
I watched Caroline, flipping her long blonde hair over her shoulder, as she grabbed a travel coffee mug from the cabinet and poured herself a cup.
"Mom still have a lot left to do?" I asked.
"Well, she has a couple rooms left. I think another week or so and she should have most of it wrapped up."
"Sounds good," I said, sipping my coffee.
"Listen," Caroline said, turning toward me, her big blue eyes focusing intently. "Eva's in my room. She's going to be staying here for a few days. Can you give her a lift to pick up her car from Anne Marie's when you get home tonight?"
I cocked my head in her direction. Back when I was younger I used to think Eva Williams hung the moon. She was my sister's best friend, and gorgeous with her long red hair and sparkling blue eyes. We had hooked up a few times. She was every guy's wet dream, but she slept around a lot, and I wasn't into girls like that anymore. Not since Meg.
"I'll take care of it," I smirked.
"Thanks. Oh! And Wednesday night Eva and I are going out for drinks. You want to tag along?"
"I'll be there. Just text me the details."
"Sounds good. See you at the office!" She snapped the lid on her coffee mug, grabbed her bag and headed out the door.
**
I was just locking up my desk for the evening when my dad walked into my new office.
"How was your first day son?" he asked.
Jack Foster was a big guy, most people told me I looked like him when he was younger, broad shouldered with dark sandy blond hair and blue eyes, where mine were green. He was only in his late forties, but was already starting to grey around his temples.
"It was good Dad. A little overwhelming, but hopefully I'll pick up on things pretty quickly." I stood and turned off the light as we walked together to the front door.
Foster & Company Marketing had been in our family for generations. My great grandfather had started it in the twenties, and it had grown from a three man operation into the privately held powerhouse it was now. I wasn't sure I wanted to come home and work for the company but my dad had made me an offer I couldn't refuse and it seemed I was going to be groomed to take over one day.
"Are you going to be home later?" Dad asked me.
"I have to check out a couple apartments and run Eva to get her car from Anne Marie's house. Caroline asked me to help her out. We're probably going to get a bite to eat first, but I'll be home later."
"Sounds good, son. See you then," he said, as we walked out into the hot and humid Savannah summer, heading for our respective vehicles.
As I drove through downtown Savannah, I passed Churchill's, a bar I used to frequent when I was in town. I'd to go there to pick up women, some of whom occupied my nights, and all my high school buddies hung out there when they were home from college. The last time I'd been there was well over a year ago. I'd met Meg that night and I hadn't been able to get her out of my head or return to the bar scene since.
After that night I'd cleaned up my act, stopped drinking excessively and stopped sleeping around. I had an amazing connection with Meg, I'd never met anyone like her before and the realization that I had absolutely nothing to offer her was nauseating. And that prompted me to get my shit together. If I was ever lucky enough to feel a bond like that with someone again, I wanted to have something to bring to the relationship.
When I arrived at my parents' house, Eva was waiting for me in the kitchen.
"Hey hot stuff!" she said, as I walked through the door.
"Hey yourself," I replied, dropping my briefcase on the island.
"How was the first day?" She smiled as she sauntered towards me, swinging her perfect hips on the way.
"It was good... You want to grab some dinner before we pick up your car?"
"Ooh! That sounds great! I know a place not too far from here." She launched herself into my arms, planting a kiss right on my lips.
"What the fuck Eva?" I pulled back, scowling at her.
"Oh come on Carson, we used to mess around all the time," she wiggled her tight little ass and I couldn't resist reaching around her and squeezing her into me. I had gone far too long without a woman in my bed.
A second later, she wrapped her legs around my waist and pried my lips open with her tongue, delving into my mouth. She smelled incredible, and she was soft, warm and pliant in my arms. For a few seconds I contemplated taking her up on her offer, carrying her upstairs, and losing myself in her like old times, but Meg's face kept flashing in my mind and my body cooled quickly, even as Eva was in my arms.
I pulled my mouth away from her, watching her flushed face and swollen lips as she tried to regain her composure.
"Why'd you stop?" she asked, brows drawn together, as she lowered her feet to the floor and stepped back, putting a little distance between us.
"You're gorgeous, Eva, you know that. But I'm not that guy anymore."
She narrowed her eyes at me for a moment before they lit up and she smiled at me.
"Oh well. Your loss!" She winked and I couldn't help but laugh, relieved that things weren't going to be awkward between us. "So, who is she?" Eva asked, looking up at me through her lashes.
"Who is who?"
"The girl that's got you turning over a new leaf. Don't play coy with me. I've never been turned down for a good time before, unless it's over another woman. So," she said, jumping up on the island and swinging her feet back and forth, "who is she?"
I hadn't told anyone about Meg other than Caroline. The morning I woke up in the hotel and she was gone I felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest. I had frantically called my father since I knew she was interviewing at the company, but when he read me the list of interviewees for that day, there wasn't anyone named Meg on the list. There wasn't even a female on it. Caroline was the only person I had told the whole story to. She had been there when I got home from spending the entire day at the airport, hoping Meg would wander by. I had had to pack my bags and head back to Athens with my chest feeling ripped open and raw.
Somehow, the fact that only Caroline knew about her comforted me. I could pretend Meg only existed in my head.
Chapter 2
Lou
"Come on sweet girl," I said to Carly as I picked her up from her bath in the kitchen sink and wrapped her in a soft pink hooded towel. "Mama's going out with a couple girlfriends tonight, so you be a good girl for Kelly okay?"
I carried her to my room, laying her down on my bed and dried her soft blonde head before reaching for a diaper and onesie. She smiled up at me, squinting her beautiful blue eyes and grasping her feet in her hands, cooing.
Somehow over the past year I had landed my dream job, gotten divorced, had a baby, and moved to a new town. There were days I didn't think I'd make it on my own, but coming home to Carly every day and seeing that smile made every struggle worth it
.
"I want you to stop taking your birth control pills. I think we should start trying to have a baby," Derek said to me after taking a bite of his steak.
"You want to have kids now?" I asked incredulously.
"Babe, we've been married for a year now. We love each other. We should try to have the family we've always dreamed of."
"But I'm only 19," I reasoned. "We have plenty of time for things like that. And I'm still in college. I'm not sure if we I have time for a baby right now."
Derek put down his fork and knife and ran his hands through his dark hair, staring at me. We had been high school sweethearts, although he was older than me by a few years, and had gotten married the summer after I graduated. Then we moved to southeastern Virginia immediately for Derek's job. He was incredibly book smart and had finished college in three years while I finished high school.
"Louise," he began and I grimaced. I could tell he was getting irritated at me by the way his jaw was twitching. And I hated it when he called me Louise, no one called me that except him. I had always been Lou, since the day I was born. "Louise," he said, and I raised my eyes to him. "I love you, and I want to share this experience with you. Now is as good of a time as any."
"Derek, can we even afford a baby right now?"
He leaned forward over the table. "Well, I was thinking about that too. Maybe you should get a job. That way, we could have some more cash laying around. Plus, if we keep postponing until every little thing falls into place, we'll never be ready."
I considered his suggestion. I could get a job. I wasn't sure what kind of place I could find a decently paying full time job with my limited work experience, but I supposed I could look around.
"I guess I can look for something," I said, shrugging at him.
"Good! I knew you'd see it my way," he said, picking up his fork and knife again while beaming at me from his side of the table. "Plus, my mother had me when she was twenty, so this is perfect timing!"
I rolled my eyes. Derek's mother was constantly getting involved in our relationship, and the worst part was, Derek let her. Sometimes I wondered if he'd ever do anything without her input and I gathered that she'd probably put him up to this baby talk.
The doorbell rang, snapping me back to the present as I finished dressing Carly. I picked her up and walked to the living room to open the door.
"Hi sweet angel!" Kelly said, coming into the house and taking Carly. "It's just you and me tonight baby girl!"
Carly went right to Kelly, giving her a two-tooth smile while grabbing a fist full of her blonde hair and drooling on it.
"Thanks so much for doing this for me," I said to Kelly as I dug my license, cash, and lip gloss out of my purse and moved them to my clutch.
"Please Lou, you totally deserve a night out. You work like crazy and the only fun you ever have is sitting on the porch with me drinking wine after Carly goes to bed, and I'm not even sure you can call that fun," Kelly said, following me into my bedroom as I dug shoes from my closet.
"I would definitely call it fun. Kelly, you are the best neighbor I could have ever asked for. Who knew when I moved in to this house that I'd be getting a best friend and a nanny out of the deal?"
Kelly and I lived in the same duplex. Her side mirrored my side perfectly. When I had moved in back in January, she had been the only person to knock on my door and welcome me to the neighborhood. She'd also been there to help me with Carly countless times and had officially become Carly's nanny when I started my job, which was a huge weight off my shoulders.
"I love you too, Lulu. Now, get your sexy ass out of here and don't worry about us!"
I stopped to survey myself one last time in the mirror. My dark hair was pulled back in a high ponytail that still hung down to the middle of my back. I had done a smoky eye with brown, nude, and golden toned eye shadow which made my blue eyes pop and was accented by my cream off the shoulder top. I turned around, looking in the mirror over my shoulder at my bottom, which was rounder after having Carly, but I was happy to see that it looked firm in my dark skinny jeans.
"Which shoes?" I asked Kelly, holding up a nude stiletto and tan wedge.
"Definitely the stilettos girl! Hands down."
I laughed as I slipped on the shoes, gave her a side hug, and kissed Carly on her soft chubby cheek.
"I won't be out too late. You've got my number if you need anything. I left you a note saying when to give her a bottle and how much formula..."
"Stop!" Kelly interrupted. "We'll be fine. Go enjoy yourself! I've got this!"
I smiled at her and kissed Carly once more before grabbing my clutch and heading out the door.
Chapter 3
Lou
When I arrived at Deuces, I didn't see Caroline Foster, my work associate, but I did see one of her best friends, Eva Williams, sitting at the bar, her red curls framing her alabaster face.
Caroline had asked me to meet her and Eva out at the bar and I was eager to go so I could get to know Caroline better. We'd been working at Foster & Company Marketing together since I started in their accounting department earlier that year. She had just been promoted to Account Manager, and I was in charge of her accounts receivable, so we worked closely together to ensure that her clients stayed current on their payments.
"Eva, right?" I said, sliding onto the bar stool one over from her to leave room for Caroline.
"That's me," she said. "You're Lou, we met at Caroline's office once, didn't we?"
"Yes, nice of you to remember."
Eva smiled at me as I flagged down the bartender.
"What can I get you?"
"Vodka grapefruit for me. Eva?" I looked at her expectantly.
"Dirty martini for me, please."
"Damn, I need a drink! I feel like shit," Caroline said, coming up behind us and throwing her purse down on the bar between Eva and me. As the bartender brought Eva's and my drinks Caroline ordered a rum and Coke and two shots of 'whatever is strong'.
"You look like a million bucks," Eva said to Caroline.
She did too. Her aqua top accented her blue eyes and her blonde hair was shiny and gorgeous, as always.
"Thanks, I walked over to Broughton street at lunch to pick up a new outfit. I need to get laid!" Caroline said.
"What's going on? I thought you stayed at Luke's all week?" I asked.
"I did, but he won't do anything but snuggle, not that I've asked him to. Last weekend I told him that I didn't want to have sex with him anymore because I needed to get my head on straight. Then, we had a couple of intimate moments and I decided to give us a chance to see where things would go. So I've been staying at his house, but he won't go beyond spooning and chaste kisses on the head. I am so worked up I could scream!"
She downed her shots and started on her rum and Coke.
"Aw, but it's sweet that he's willing to wait for you to be ready, right?" I asked, searching her face. Maybe that made me sound naive, but I thought it sounded better than being forced. Something I knew a little about.
"Luke is a big boy, he knows what he wants, and right now it sounds like he's waiting for Caroline to ask him nicely," Eva smirked. "And if I were you, I'd slow down on the alcohol."
"I don't want to slow down. Let's do more shots!" Caroline grumbled, signaling the bartender.
"I'll take a Red Headed Slut," a familiar male voice said as the hair on my neck and arms stood up.
"I resemble that remark," Eva laughed.
I turned my head to look toward Eva, and was blown away by the gorgeous man who had just walked up next to her.
Holy fucking shit!
His dark blonde hair was a little longer than I remembered, but messy and thick, and I was instantly reminded of how it felt between my fingers. His mouth looked full and soft, and I immediately craved the feeling of his lips on my body again. I had fantasized about him more than once in the last year. If I was being honest, it was more like every day.
I felt goosebumps rise on my skin as I let m
y gaze travel down over his strong jaw to where his broad chest, tight abs, and muscular thighs were hidden beneath his clothes, before moving upwards again.
When I landed back on his face his piercing green eyes were looking intently back at me. Heat instantly ignited in my belly as I stared at him, unwilling or unable to look away.
"Carson, this is Lou Evans. She just moved here a few months ago. She's my accounts receivable rep," Caroline said, introducing us.
He reached over to shake my hand, the recognition in his eyes was undeniable. The spark that I felt when his hand touched mine was electric.
"Who wants to dance!?" Caroline yelled excitedly, obviously not noticing the tension between Carson and me.
"I think I'll hang back," I said, staring at Carson.
"Me too, Caroline," Carson said, still not taking his eyes away from mine.
"Well, I'm in!" Eva said, following Caroline to the dance floor.
Carson watched Eva and Caroline disappear into the crowd of people before his eyes snapped back to me.
"Nice to see you again, Meg."
Chapter 4
2 Years Ago
Lou
The first year of my marriage to Derek was probably the best. I wasn't working and all my college classes were online so I was always home, studying, food prepping, cleaning, taking care of the finances and anything else Derek needed, including setting up his doctor appointments and haircuts. I didn't have any friends of my own, so the only people we ever spent time with were Derek's coworkers and their wives or girlfriends. I think it made Derek happy that I doted on him hand and foot, and he really liked that I practically had to rely on him for a social life.
When Derek had started talking about having children about a year ago, I had gotten a job as a nanny to save money and that's when things started going downhill. He said I was always comparing our relationship to that of the couple I worked for, but it was more that they had been happily married for years and knew what it took to make it work, whereas, Derek and I were still learning. He hated that I was never home, and thought that I preferred to spend all my free time with my 'nanny fam', as he called them. I don't think he liked that he couldn't control that part of my life.
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