by Lisa Sommers
Johnny stumbles a few steps back but manages to keep his ground. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” he grips his jaw with one hand and throws a punch with the other. It lands just below my eye.
“Just stay the hell away from her.” I grab my drink off the table and down it all in one gulp. I am just about to walk out the door when he makes one last comment.
“Screw you. I’ll see whoever the fuck I want to see. Besides, she was a good lay. She’ll be at my doorstep begging me for more.”
“You mother-fucker,” I get in one last cut before making my final exit to get the hell out of this place.
“Never come back here again,” he yells. “Do you hear me? Don’t ever show your face in my bar again!”
“I don’t plan on it.”
I wake up and stare at my black and blue eye in the mirror. That asshole done fucked with the wrong girl.
How could she get herself mixed up with that douchebag?
I don’t give a shit who’s baby it is. I need to be there for her.
I walk back out to my bedroom, grab my cell phone off the nightstand and send a text to Summer.
“When are you coming back to San Diego?”
Since I know she has no intentions of getting back to me soon, I go downstairs to make a pot of coffee.
I hear a knock at my front door as I am about to take a sip of my hot coffee.
“Who the hell can that be? If it’s Johnny coming to apologize he’s got another thing coming.”
I swing open the door and nearly drop my mug.
“Summer!”
Chapter 20
Summer
I have no idea why I came back to San Diego. As much as I care for Cal there is no way we will ever work. The odds are against us in every aspect.
My parents, brother, friends, him being a man-whore. There is just no possible chance we could ever make it as a couple. But . . . he does deserve to know he is the father of my baby. I could never strip this kind of privilege from him.
I’ve been standing on his doorstep for the past ten minutes trying to figure out what I am going to say to him. No matter how I spin it, he will think that I trapped him for his money or it’s even possible that he won’t believe that he is the father. Either way, it’s on me to tell him the truth.
I knock lightly in hopes that he doesn’t hear it and then I can have an excuse to just leave. Maybe go back to Derek’s house and think about this some more.
No such luck though. The door swings open and there he stands looking like hell.
“Summer!”
“Oh my God! What happened to you?” I reach out to touch his bruised eye but he pulls away. I drop my arm from his rejection.
“Sorry, it still hurts a little.” I’m not sure I want to hear this story but curiosity has me asking.
“Are you ok?” It’s honestly all I really want to hear the answer to. A relationship may not be able to work with us, but that doesn’t mean my feelings just get washed away.
He opens the door wide for me to enter, “Come on in. Join me for coffee.”
“Is it decaf?”
He looks over at me and his gaze travels from my eyes down to my stomach. “No, I guess it’s not.”
“That’s okay. I didn’t really come here to hang out. I just figured we needed to talk.”
He nods his head and gestures for me to take a seat on his couch. “Yeah, we do need to talk.”
I lower myself down onto the couch and try to make myself comfortable. It’s not really working.
Cal reaches for a small throw pillow and places it behind my back. “Here, maybe this will help.”
“Thank you,” I lean back into the soft cushions, but it does nothing to ease my discomfort. “Cal, I’m pregnant.”
“Yeah, I believe you told me that back in Atlanta. Or, I guess your father did.”
He looks down at his coffee and then sets it on the table.
“Summer, listen. I don’t care who the father is of this baby. I am in love with you so I will do whatever it takes to help you through this pregnancy and be there for this child.”
I gasp at his confession. “No!”
“No?”
“No.” Why is he saying he loves me? He is completely ruining what I came here to say.
“I am. Trust me, I don’t know when or where it happened, but I’m in love with you.”
“Well, you just need to unlove me,” I yell at him.
“Unlove you?” He raises his voice. “How the hell am I supposed to unlove you? I’ve never loved somebody before and from what I’ve gathered I can’t seem turn off a damn switch to stop it.”
“Cal . . .”
“Please Summer. Let me help you.”
“I don’t understand. Why would you help me if this child is not yours?” Of course it’s his. I’ve been with nobody but him in months. “Besides, what makes you think you love me?” I understand his feelings because I feel it too.
Cal lowers to his knees before me and the look on his face shows complete confusion. “I don’t know,” he reaches for my hand and grips it in his. “Trust me, this is all new to me. All I know is you are the last thing on my mind before I fall asleep. You haunt my dreams and you are certainly the first thing on my mind when I wake up.”
“I haunt your dreams?” That doesn’t sound good.
“Yes,” he brings my hand up to his mouth and he presses a gentle kiss on my palm. “I can’t physically touch you in my dreams. I can’t see you, but I know it’s you. These dreams haunt me to the point where I can’t think of anyone else besides you.”
“So you’re trying to think of other women?”
“Baby, you’re taking this all wrong. I know I love you because you’re all that I think about twenty-four seven. I’m a freaking mess when I’m not with you,” tears are threatening to take over my somewhat calm composure. Well, calm on the outside, at least. On the inside, my soul is in turmoil. I am falling more and more in love with a man that it could never work with. “Please don’t cry.”
“I’m sorry,” I swipe away a few tears that have managed to escape. “If only things were different.” I can’t believe that he confessed so much to me.
“They can be,” he assures me.
“Please don’t make this hard on me.” I beg.
Cal pulls back but not too far. “Is it because of the other guy?”
What? No! There is no other guy. I guess he has every right to think there is another man in my life because of the lie I told. I just didn’t know what to do at the time. I shake my head no because I can’t seem to force any words past the lump in my throat.
“No?” Confusion returns to his beautiful face. “Then why?” I rub the back of my fingers down his cheek. Here he is confessing his love for me and I am being such a coward for hiding behind what I think will be our demise. “You don’t feel the same about me, do you?”
Oh God, just the opposite. “That’s not it.”
He perks up just a little bit. “So you do care for me?” He moves in just a little bit closer.
“Yes,” I manage to choke out.
“Okay, okay. So, you’re just worried that I won’t love this baby enough because it is not mine. Am I right?”
“No,” oh God, how do tell him I lied? “I know you will love this baby as much as I already do.”
“You’re right, sweetie. This baby is a part of you so I know without a doubt that I will.”
I am still curious as to how he got that black eye so I reach out and lightly touch it. This time he does not back away from me. “What happened?”
Cal purses his lips before answering. “I decked him for touching you.”
Now I’m the one that is left confused. “Who?”
“Johnny,” he blatantly says.
“Johnny?” What does Johnny have to do with this? “He never touched me.” I shake my head.
“Isn’t he . . .” What is he getting at? “Baby, isn’t he the one who you slept with?”
/> “What? No!” This time, I am the one to pull back. “I never had sex with Johnny.” How could he even think that I was with that slime-ball.
“If it wasn’t him, who was it?”
I slide my legs to the right of Cal and stand up. “I can’t believe you think I’ve been sleeping around. I’m not a whore, Cal!” I am so upset right now.
“I never said that,” he stands up next to me and grips my shoulders. “You told me the baby isn’t mine and now you are telling me you didn’t sleep with Johnny. What am I supposed to think?”
He’s right. I look him in the eyes and try to find the words to tell him he is going to be a father.
“Honey, what aren’t you telling me?”
“You’re the father, Cal.” I search his face intently. Is he mad? Will he forgive me? Can he ever trust me again?
Cal releases me and takes a step back, falling into a leather chair. “Me?” He whispers.
I nod my head yes.
Cal brushes the palm of his hands over his face and keeps them there for a few moments. He lowers them just a little and looks up at me. I notice wetness form in his eyes and it breaks my heart
I hurt him.
I wait for him to make the next move because I am not sure how upset he is with me. All of a sudden he bolts up and stands mere inches from me. I can feel his heavy breath on my cheek. I want to touch him so bad. I want to tell him how sorry I am for lying to him. I want him to . . .
I squeal as he grabs my hand and briskly walks me out of the living room. Oh my God. Oh my God! He’s kicking me out. We get to the stairs and I realize he is not making me leave. We quickly take two steps at a time until we reach the top landing. Cal pushes me against the wall and holds both of my hands high above my head. “Say it again.”
Say what again? “I don’t understand.”
He bends down so that we are eye level. “Tell me who the father is.”
“You,” this one simple word seems to be the magic one.
Cal crashes his lips against mine and doesn’t let up until he walks us both into his bedroom and has the backs of my legs pressed up against his bed.
“I take it you are ok with this news?”
“Oh babe, you have no idea. It doesn’t change my feelings in any way though. I already fell in love with you and this baby whether it was mine or not.” Cal places one of his hands over my stomach. “My baby.” He simply says.
“Yes.” I confirm.
“Lay down,” he instructs.
I sit down and scoot my way up his bed just as he demands.
“You are so beautiful, Summer,” his words bring tears to my own eyes.
I mouth the words, thank you and it brings a smile to his face.
He places one knee on the bed and looms over me―taking in each and every inch of me. He bends down on all fours and starts making his way up my body. Not once does his gaze falter and the intense sexual look on his face brings a smile to my own.
He stops only once to push the hem of my shirt up and places a single kiss to my belly before continuing his climb.
“I don’t want to talk about anything right now. I want you. I want to feel you. I want to taste you. I want to be inside of you, Summer.”
Everything about this man drives me wild. There is no way I can physically deny him . . . or me. “I want all of that too.” I confess.
Cal lifts up on his knees and straddles me just at the right spot. I moan in pleasure and he makes it obvious that he enjoys my need for him. “God, I love that sound.” He removes his shirt while I manage to sit up and allow him to remove my own shirt and then he undoes my bra. He lets both articles of clothing fall to the floor.
Gently grabbing my forearms, he pushes me back so that I am flush against his white bedspread. My gaze trails down his handsome face and lands on his neck. I lift my head up so that I can taste him. I lick over his adam’s apple and nip lightly at his skin.
“Fuck baby,” he growls.
With my hands still pinned above my head, he takes my mouth once again. His tongue traces my lips turning me on even more. I part my lips slightly and tilt my head to the right giving him full access.
Cal is positioned over me but not touching my stomach. I want to feel him against me. On me. Inside of me. I wiggle my lower half giving me the friction I need to feel him press against me. I snuggle my face in the crook of his neck and release a moan against him.
“You want me, baby?” I nod my head against him. “Tell me,” his voice is hoarse and sexy. “Tell me you want me.”
“I want you,” I confess. “I want you so bad.”
He tilts his head down and whispers in my ear. “I want you, too. In more ways than one.” I’m not exactly sure what he means by that but I have a pretty good idea.
Cal releases my wrists and slides down my body. He tugs on my shorts until they are fully off and then does the same with my panties.
He starts to climb back on the bed but I tell him, “Not yet,” I point to his jeans. He smiles at me and then immediately jumps off the bed and removes them.
When he finally returns, which feels like forever, he lays sideways pressed up against my body. He drapes one leg over both of mine and snuggles in close. He buries his face in the crook of my neck and remains in that position for several minutes.
“Cal,” I get his attention while running my fingers through his hair.
“Mhm,” he moans.
“Cal, are you ok?” Did he somehow just come to the realization of what is really going on and reality is hitting him?
He lifts his head. “Yeah babe, I’m good. I’m really good.” He props up on one of his elbows and rests his head on the palm of his hand. “I was just thinking is all.”
“I see,” or do I?
“Don’t look so worried. I was just thinking that I could get used to having you in my bed like this more often.”
I raise my eyebrows in question. “Oh yeah?”
“Oh yeah,” he places a gentle kiss on my cheek and pulls back again. “You’ll stay the night with me, won’t you?”
“Cal, it’s only nine-thirty in the morning and you have practice to get to.”
Practice. Damn it! “After practice then. You’ll be here when I return, won’t you?”
“Cal . . .”
“Please,” he begs.
“There is so much we need to discuss.”
“Tonight. We’ll talk tonight.” He runs his fingers down my neck, over my chest and stomach and stops on the one spot I’ve been wanting him to touch since I got here. I moan in anticipation. “But right now, I don’t want to talk.” Cal nudges his leg in between both of mine and spreads them wide open. “It’s just me and you, babe. Nothing and no one can take this moment from us.”
He’s right. Before all hell breaks loose, we have this moment of peace. Just him and I. I flash him a mischievous smile and it makes him smirk. I push up on my elbows and roll him off of me. Cal lands on his back and I climb up and over his body so that I am the one straddling him now.
Cal chuckles at my brazenness. I pin his arms back and hold him in one place. He can easily toss my small body across the room if he wanted too. “Is something funny?”
He smiles. “Not one bit.”
“Good,” I lift my body and allow myself to easily slide onto him.
Cal throws his head back. “Fuck yeah,” he yells. He rips his arms out of my grasp and grabs each side of my face and pulls me down to him. “Fuck me, baby.” He growls into my mouth before devouring it.
I move my body up and down and find the perfect rhythm. He feels so good. I grind down until he is at full hilt and stay in that position for a couple of seconds. “Oh my God, Cal,” I manage to moan out.
He grabs my hips and easily moves me up and down, side to side until I can’t take anymore.
“Cal,” I scream.
“That’s it, baby. Cum for me,” and so I do. Cal lets me ride out this unbelievable feeling before he continues for a few more minute
s. Before I know it, I can feel Cal ready to meet me on cloud nine. He grips me by the waist and pulls me in close. “I fucking love you so much.”
I have yet to tell Cal how much I really care for him and I’m not sure if I can. There is still so much to be worked out before I can lay everything out on the line.
I bend down and kiss him until we are both out of breath. “You need to go to work,” I whisper into his mouth. “We can talk tonight.”
He agrees but still makes no move to get us out of bed. He stares at me intently as if he might not ever see me again. “You promise you’ll be here when I get home?”
I nod my head and answer with a simple, “Yes.” Not once did Cal question my actions. Not once did he not trust in me. Which makes me fall for him even more, but there is a whole other mound of issues that would never make us being together, ever possible.
My family and our friends.
Chapter 21
Cal
I haven’t felt this good in a long time―if ever. There is no better feeling than having the one you love so close.
I know Summer still has her reasons for not wanting to commit to me and I don’t blame her. Not to mention her parents already hate me. I know Derek will be more upset than anyone else when he finds out. If he doesn’t kill me.
Practice is almost over and it can’t come soon enough. Just imagining Summer waiting for me in my bed is enough to cancel the rest of practice.
Its clear nobody has said anything to Derek yet. He’s been quite happy all day but I’m sure it mostly has to do with his new bride.
“Hey man,” Derek and Shane both walk up to stand beside me. “Just want to let you know my sister is back in town, so stay away from her.” Derek laughs at his own comment before making his way into the locker rooms.
“Yeah, man. I’d stay away from both of his sisters if I were you. He’s pretty protective of them.” Shane comments.
I am not going to say anything to either of them. At least not until Summer and I talk tonight. It’s inevitable though. I’m going to be the father of her baby so eventually they will all have to deal with it.