I'll Be Seeing You

  "From what Laura says, you have your work cut out for you. She said she's surprised you talked her into Thursday's procedure. When are you doing the labs?"

  "Monday. If they come back clean, then I've scheduled her for Thursday. I'll take her home directly after recovery, and we'll go from there. Once she heals from that, and we get through the ball and Christmas, we'll fight it out New Year's weekend. Simple, right?" I ask, laughing, knowing the fight I'll have on my hands.

  "Yeah, good luck with that," Jessie chuckles, shaking his head.

  "Hey, Emma's been calling me," I say suddenly as an afterthought. I look down at my phone and see her name and number on my call log. "She's called fifteen times, easy. I can't figure out why she's calling all of a sudden. I guess I could listen to her voice mails, but the thought is repulsive to me." Laying my head back against my desk chair, I let out an exasperated sigh.

  "Do you want me to listen? She might actually have something to say if she's called that many times," Jessie offers.

  "Sure," I say handing him my cell phone so he can call his voicemail and listen. I watch as his eyes shoot to mine and I know this can't be good. He hits a key and listens again … then again … and then again. Once he pulls the phone from his ear, he hangs up.

  "Well?"

  "Well, I don't know how to say this, but … she's not done with you, Matthew. She said she regrets her actions of the past and wants to meet with you to see if you two can resolve any of your … issues," he says, making finger-quotes. "She says she's been trying to get tickets to the ball and all they tell her is that it's already sold out."

  "Thank God for that. The last thing I need is to have her show up at the ball," I say, staring down at my desk. "I'm just trying to figure out why, after ten years, she's back, and why does she even think she has a remote chance that I would want her back. She's up to something. I just know it," I say, running my hands through my hair.

  "She said it wasn't over for her." I notice that Jessie looks concerned.

  "She sounded pretty adamant, Matthew. I think it might be a good idea to watch your back." Given that Jessie isn't one to exaggerate, I become concerned as well. "Okay, listen, I have to get Laura to the ferry. Thanks for the dinner, man. Thank Joy for me too, will ya? I'll touch base with her on Monday when you bring her in, all right?" I nod and rise from my seat.

  "Bright and early. Glad to see you working it out with Laura, Jess. She's a beauty, so be a good boy, all right?" I say, shaking his hand and doing the guy hug thing.

  "No worries there. I was stupid the first time, I won't be doing that again," he says, before turning to leave. When we return to the kitchen, Joy is sitting with Laura having a cup of coffee.

  "Hey, baby," I say, kissing her forehead. Conrad jumps to his feet when I enter the room, his tail in full swing.

  "Hey, handsome," Joy says, smiling up at me and reaching her arm around me.

  "Sorry to leave you, good people, but I must go be a good little soldier and check in on my peeps." Laura slips her bag over her shoulder and makes her rounds hugging Joy and me. "I'm sure I’ll see you both in a few days."

  "Call me, and we’ll meet for lunch," Joy says.

  "Will do. Toodles all," she says. Jessie waves and shuts the door behind him.

  "Hey," I begin, "I'm going for a run and will have Conrad with me, all right?" I pull her in for a hug and kiss the top of her head.

  "Are you trying to steal my pooch from me, Doc?"

  "Nope. He's all yours, I just kinda like him, is all," I say, bending over to scratch his favorite spot on his chest. I look up when I hear someone coming down the stairs.

  "Morning," Brian says, through a yawn. He looks at what I'm wearing and furrows his brow. "Where are you going?"

  "For a run. Want to go with?" I ask, before taking a sip of coffee.

  "Sure. I'll be right back." He turns on the stairs, running back to his room.

  "When will you be back? I'll make sure breakfast is ready," Joy says, running her warm lips along my ear.

  "Um … um …" I say incoherently, trying to form a logical sentence. I close my eyes in pleasure as she nips and nibbles my earlobe and down my neck.

  "Um, Joy," I begin, pulling away from her. "I really would like to finish this, but Brian will be down here any minute, and your son is sitting by the door, waiting to go bye-bye." I pull her lips to mine and close my eyes, tasting her sweetness. When my tongue searches for hers, her hands snake through my hair and she begins pulling me down to her even closer. I'm nearly lost in her when Brian brings me back to reality.

  "Um …" I mumble, reluctantly pulling away from her warm mouth.

  "Let's go," I say with a sigh, placing a small peck on her nose, and then head for the door.

  "Breakfast?" Joy calls out.

  "Two hours," I call back before shutting the sliding glass door.

  Brian and I walk toward the beach and stop to stretch and warm up before we start to jog. Putting on my sunglasses, I lift my baseball cap and push my hair off my forehead, tucking it under my cap.

  "I thought we could head this way until the beach ends a few miles up. From there a path takes us back to the main road and we can continue or head back. Sound like a plan?" I ask while stretching out my calves. There are quite a few people out already, probably running off yesterday's dinner just like us.

  "Sounds like a plan. I'll just follow you," Brian says, pacing himself along with me.

  Shortly after we begin our run, two girls jog up beside us and ask if we need running partners. I look over at Brian and smile, " Baby, do you want to run with these girls? I kind of wanted you to myself this morning."

  "What a waste," the girls say, looking at us from head to toe before turning to leave us behind.

  The look on Brian's face is priceless.

  "What the fuck, Matthew?"

  I burst out laughing and shake my head at him.

  "I'm planning surgery on Joy next week. She wasn't happy about it either."

  "Are you kidding me? She's letting you do it? You're better than I thought, Davis," Brian says, pulling a bottle of water out of his pocket.

  "She doesn't have a choice. I can't let her function another day with that dormant infection in her body. I’m telling her about the other replacement surgery on New Year's weekend. I'm preparing for a fight. It won't be pretty." I drink from my bottle then put it back in my pocket. "You ready?"

  "Let's go," he says, and we jog across Main Street toward the adjacent neighborhood next to mine.

  "Um, Matthew? I’m thinking of asking Maddie to move in with me. What do you think? Do you think she will?” Brian asks. I look over at him and can see he is nervous.

  "What?"

  "Um, I want to ask her if she'll move in with me. Are you okay with that?"

  "Does she love you?" I already know that she does, but I want to hear what he has to say. I glance at him to gauge his reaction.

  "Yes."

  "I guess I can assume that you love her?"

  "Yes."

  "Do you want to marry her?"

  "Yes."

  I look forward and try to comprehend that my sister might be getting married soon.

  "I haven't asked her, and she doesn't know I plan to, but I want to marry her, yes," he clarifies.

  "Have you asked my dad?"

  "No, but I will. I wanted to ask you first … wait … we are talking about the moving in part, right?" Brian looks at me, nervously and I laugh.

  "No." I continue to laugh at the look on his face. Poor guy … he has no idea what he's in for with Maddie. I love her dearly, but she has so much energy and never slows down. Maybe he will calm that side of her. She definitely loves him though, that I am certain.

  "I’ll ask your dad when the time comes for that. I just want to be with her. We've only been together for a short time, and I don't want to freak her out by asking her to marry me yet."

  "You know she's a handful, right? I mean, she is full of piss and vinegar. She can
wear you out. You know that, right?"

  "Are you trying to talk me out of this, Matthew?" he asks, sounding a little more apprehensive.

  "No, I just don't want you and Maddie to make this kind of commitment only to see her move back home three weeks later," I say, clarifying my comments. "I know what a pistol she can be."

  "I love her, Matthew."

  "Why does it matter to you what I think?”

  "You are her twin and she loves you above anyone else. Even me, I think," he says with sincerity. I slow my jog down to a walk, then stop and stare at him.

  "Not anymore, Brian. I was the man in her life before she met you. She needed me and we are connected, that's true. We are very close. With everything in me, I love her, but you are the man in her life now. I just need to know that you will love and honor her. She’s a good woman, Brian. She will never abandon you, and so help me God, if you abandon her—"

  "Never, Matthew, never. I promise you that," he says, his wide eyes staring into mine, and I believe him.

  "Then … God help you," I say, clapping him on his back. Laughing, I take off in a jog with my loyal Conrad at my side. I look over my shoulder and see that he’s still standing there in a daze.

  "Let's go … Joy has breakfast waiting for us," I yell back at him.

  Once we barge through the front door, a wonderful aroma assaults my senses. I look down at Conrad, and we both stick our noses in the air to get a deep whiff. Conrad runs over to his dish, and I see that Joy has left him a special treat.

  "What the hell is that, Joy? It smells really good," I walk up behind her, looking into the pan, but she uses her shoulder to nudge me away.

  "Go shower, and I'll meet you in the dining room," she says, refusing to give me a hug. I am a little sweaty, admittedly.

  "What did she make, Maddie?" I ask running upstairs.

  "Not tellin'," she calls back.

  I hurry through my shower, run the brush through my hair and give it a shake before bouncing back down the stairs. I slow myself to a walk and meet everyone in the dining room. Brian was there even before me.

  "Oh, hell yeah! Biscuits and gravy," I say, sitting down, picking up my fork before my ass even hits the chair.

  "Joy made those biscuits from scratch, too," Maddie volunteers.

  As I take my first bite of the spicy gravy, I moan and groan at how good it is.

  "Thanks, baby. You sure know how to cook, girl," I say, stuffing another bite into my mouth.

  "You're very welcome. It's not too spicy, is it?" she asks, taking her first bite.

  "No, it's perfect," Maddie says, cutting into her biscuit.

  "So, I was thinking we could all go out tonight. What do you think?" Maddie squeals and starts hand clapping as usual. I didn't expect anything less. Looking over at Joy, she’s smiling, so I think she is up for it as well.

  "Sounds good," Brian says with his mouth full. "What are you thinking?"

  "Karaoke."

  ~.~

  The next morning, I wake to find it’s still dark outside and my girl warm and snuggled close into my side. It's the best part of my day. I smile to myself recalling Joy getting a little tipsy and after a light round of coercion, I persuaded her to get up on the stage to sing karaoke. She was so damn cute, too. After she sang her first song, Maddie joined her on the stage, and they brought the house down when they sang ‘Love Shack’ by the B52's. Before I knew it, Brian joined them too. I loaded my phone with pictures.

  Over the course of the weekend, we watch movies, Joy reads for us, we eat a lot of food, and I make love to my girl whenever we have the opportunity. That, undoubtedly, is my favorite part.

  After feeling Joy stir, I pull her into me closer, bringing the blanket up over her shoulder. Sadly, we go home today, and even though I've enjoyed this time with her, I'm looking forward to Thursday. I consider this one step closer to restoring her eyesight.

  Feeling my movement, she rolls over onto her back and stretches, and I watch as her perfect naked breasts peek out from under the comforter. My tongue instinctively draws my lower lip between my teeth. I want to touch her, but I don't want to wake her either. My sexy little girl lies there with her arms over her head, not knowing how incredible she looks. I roll onto my side and steady my hand over her breasts, never touching her, just feeling the heat from her body radiate up to the palm of my hand. I get a close look at how utterly perfect her breasts are. Her pale, pink nipples are waiting for my mouth to suckle them. Closing my eyes to the vision of my child getting its nourishment from them, I smile at the thought of Joy and I having a child together some day.

  I have to taste them, and my cock reacts to my decision. Lowering my mouth ever so slowly, I lightly graze my tongue over one of the firm mounds. I suck her nipple, teasing the hardened tip with my lips.

  "Mm, that feels good, baby," Joy says in a sleepy voice. Her hands lower and her fingers work themselves through my hair.

  I scoot myself closer to her and lift her leg over mine, which gives me open access to her naked body. While I feast on her breast, my palm cups her, and my finger slips inside her wetness. I chuckle when she moves her other leg, giving me total permission. Moving myself between her porcelain white thighs, I run my nose along the curve of her neck. Lowering, I kiss the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. As soon as I’m face to face with her center, my lips graze over her. I love the smell of her arousal, and my cock responds.

  "Matthew … baby, please, don't tease me," she whimpers. Her hands and fingers are nudging me to get busy.

  Taking the tip of my tongue, I gently touch her, teasing the length of her. I chuckle at how she applies more pressure to the top of my head and tugs on my hair.

  I return to her entrance, dipping my tongue deeper and taking some of her wetness across her clit, adding a bit more pressure and she arches her back in response. My baby loves my tongue.

  Repeating my action several more times, I add more pressure each time I pass over her. She’s dripping and swollen for me now, and I can't take it any longer. I drink her in and run the flat of my tongue over her hardened clit, circling it, applying the perfect amount of pressure. She's ready.

  Slowly raising my body over hers, I lower myself onto my elbows and hold her face in my hands, twisting her hair around my fingers.

  "I need you wrapped around me, baby." Her legs go around my back and her arms around my shoulders. Teasing her entrance with the tip of my cock, I give her just enough to keep her wanting.

  "You feel so good," she says, not moving her hips but allowing me to tease her tight entrance.

  "Oh, baby, you have no idea. I want to fuck you so hard right now," I say, wanting to thrust into her. After a while, I can't take it anymore, and I surprise her by thrusting my full length into her.

  "Christ, Joy.”

  Her body shudders underneath me and it takes everything in me not to pound into her when I withdraw slowly, running her clit along the length of my cock. When she lifts her legs higher across my back, giving me deeper access, I know what my baby wants.

  Pushing up onto my hands, I thrust into her hard then take her legs, hold them under her knees and watch as I fuck her, seeing my cock disappear inside her. It's a sight to behold and I slow down to enjoy the view.

  "Seeing you stretched around me as I move in and out of you is a beautiful sight, baby. The way your body takes mine inside you is sexy as hell. And the way your wetness glistens along the length of me makes me want to drink you up." I stop and watch as I tease just the head of my cock at her entrance, ever so slowly moving in and out of her. Watching as her body releases then accept me, has me wanting to do this all day.

  "Oh, baby, you are so fucking beautiful," I say, lowering down over her again, holding her tight to me as I make love to her with everything I have.

  "Oh, God, Matthew … yes, right there," she coos. "God, that feels so good. Don't … stop." Her breathing picks up, meeting me stroke-for-stroke, and I know she's ready. Thank God for that, because I can't
last much longer.

  "I'm close, baby," I say, spreading my legs for support, because I can't fuck her hard or deep enough to satisfy this need I have for her.

  "Matthew?" she cries, feeling her tightening around me; her hands are fisting the sheets.

  It's time.

  "Come, Joy. Let me feel you come," I say, just as I explode, shooting my release inside her.

  She cries my name into my neck, holding me tight to her as I feel her walls tighten and pulsate, milking me. After my last shudder, I fall onto her, stripped of energy.

  "Oh, baby." Wrapping my arms around her, I hold her tight, rolling us onto our sides.

  "I can feel how much you love me," she says, kissing my neck.

  Lord, I hope she remembers this moment on January first.

  ~.~

  I meet Joy at her place at nine o'clock sharp to take her to the clinic. I know she’s dreading this, but as much as I love her, I want her healthy, dammit.

  "This way, baby." I wrap my arm around her waist. "Once we take your sample, it will be taken to the lab and will be tested right away. We won't have to wait long. While they’re doing that, I’ll take you to where I will do the procedure on Thursday. Bridget, my Unit Coordinator, will tell you what you need to do to prepare yourself. You’ll need to fast before the procedure, but I have a feeling you know all that," I say, kissing her temple.

  "I've scheduled an early morning surgery, so you don't have to go long without eating," I explain to her as I take her down to get her blood drawn.

  As we make our way down the hall, I notice that all the nurses, and even some of the doctors, are watching us. Krista had informed me that the gossip mill was on fire about the girl in Dr. Davis's life … my life. I have my hand around her waist and press her into my side protectively.

  "They're gossiping about us, Joy," I say, bending down for only her to hear. "They want to know who the girl with the handsome Dr. Davis is." I side-glance her and see that, along with her blush, she has her beautiful smile on her face.