Room For You (Cranberry Inn)

by Beth Ehemann

  I let out a deep breath and opened one eye without taking my head off his chest. All I could see were our feet. I opened the other eye, still not lifting my head.

  “Take your time, when you’re ready.” He continued playing with my hair.

  Lifting my head so that it was off his chest but still leaning on him, I looked straight ahead. I could barely see over the front of the car, but I could see enough to tell that we were high, really high.

  “Don’t look down, look out.”

  The sun was about to go down behind the tall pine trees. The sky was a beautiful pallet of pink, orange and purple swirls. Airplanes left squiggly smoke trails, framing the stunning sunset.

  “If you can, look to your right.”

  I didn’t turn my head, but strained my eyes over to the right. In the distance was a big lake dotted with sailboats and buoys. The sun glistened off the water like fireworks.

  The longer I sat there taking in the view, the more I relaxed. I sat up straight, off of Brody, to get a better look at everything. He was right; it was amazing up here. I could see for miles.

  After a few minutes of my eyes dancing all around the county, I turned to him. He was just staring at me, a faint smile on his lips.

  “Thank you.” It was my turn to squeeze his knee.

  “You know why I insisted you come up here?” He leaned back in his seat, not letting go.

  I didn’t respond, just stared into his eyes.

  “You were so scared, Kacie, just like you are about life. I wanted you to see that sometimes, even when something terrifies you, if you just give it a chance it’s actually pretty incredible.”

  My eyes welled up with tears. This man was amazing, and I … was an idiot.

  Not wanting to waste one more second, I swooped over and planted my lips right on Brody’s. He responded eagerly, taking my face in his hands. He kissed me back slowly, taking his time tasting my lips, expertly pulling each one into his mouth. He sucked gently on my lower lip and I let out a soft moan that fueled his fire. His tongue gently licked across my bottom lip and I opened my mouth, giving him access. He sat up straighter, his thumbs gently rubbing my cheekbones as his warm tongue explored my mouth. We moved perfectly in sync like we had been kissing for years, losing ourselves in our surroundings and each other.

  Our perfect moment was interrupted when the Ferris wheel started moving again. My hands fisted his shirt out of fear, and I immediately pulled back and tucked my head back on his chest. He chuckled and started playing with my hair again.

  “Do me a favor, Kacie. Just keep your eyes open, okay?”

  I watched as we slowly got closer and closer to the ground, relief washing over me when the ride came to a stop at the bottom. My body was exhausted from the combination of tension and lust I had just experienced. I didn’t even know if I could walk anymore. As the metal bar lifted and we stood up, I looked around realizing that there was no one else on the Ferris wheel. We had been the only ones. I looked up at Brody who enveloped my hand with his and smiled down at me sweetly. He shook the hand of the kid running the ride as we walked by.

  “Thanks, kid.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Murphy.”

  We walked for a few minutes, still hand in hand while I came down from my latest high.

  “What just happened? I don’t … how did you…” I couldn’t get the words out.

  “Eh, he’s young. Most young kids would do just about anything for a hundred dollar bill.”

  My heart soared like those airplanes we just saw and I squeezed his hand, when reality hit me.

  “Oh my God, the girls. We need to look for everyone.” I scanned the nearby benches and lemonade stands but saw no sign of them.

  Brody took out his phone.

  “Are you texting Tommy again?” I asked, still looking through the herds of people.

  “Uh, I will in a minute.” He looked up at me with a devilish grin on his face. “After what you just did up there, I’m ordering a Ferris wheel to be installed at your mom’s place tomorrow.”

  Ever since we got off that Ferris wheel, Kacie had been very different with me—more affectionate. I was ecstatic about it. I offered to let her drive again on the way home.

  “No freaking way! I don’t think my nerves can handle one more thing today.” She climbed up into the passenger seat and snuggled up for the drive home. “I was thinking we could lounge around and watch a movie after I put the girls to bed?”

  “Sounds perfect.”

  She reached over, laced her fingers in mine and closed her eyes.

  Once home, Kacie took the girls to their rooms and tucked them in while I took Diesel out for a long walk. He gave me the cold shoulder, clearly annoyed that I’d blown him off all day for a girl. He’d better get used to it because if it were up to me, Kacie was going to become a permanent fixture in my very near future.

  Diesel and I played some make-up fetch and then he pranced around the lake for a while, trying to prove his masculinity by biting fish. I was also stalling. I didn’t want to smother Kacie. We’d had a monumental day, in my opinion, and I didn’t want to pressure her to hang with me and have her freak out again. After a little bit, D and I headed back up to the house.

  We walked through the back door. Kacie was already curled up on the couch under a blanket, a sexy, sleepy look on her face as she looked up at me. I walked over and sat down on the other end of the couch near her feet. She immediately sat up and crawled over, lying back down with her head on my lap.

  “What are we watching?” I asked her, not even remotely interested in the TV.

  “You’ve Got Mail.” She looked up at me, nervously awaiting my response, which she got when I rolled my eyes and fake snored.

  “Come on,” she argued, batting her long eyelashes at me. “It’s romantic, the way they fall in love without ever meeting?”

  “I’ll watch anything you want. I’ll even suffer through the Kardashians, as long as you stay right where you are.”

  She beamed up at me, struggling to keep her pretty green eyes open.

  “I think we should talk later, you know … about stuff. I’m just too tired now,” she murmured, cozying up to me.

  “I know, we will.” I threaded my fingers in her hair, rubbing her forehead with the pad of my thumb. “Not now though, tomorrow. Just rest.”

  She didn’t resist. The corners of her plump, pink lips curled up in a half smile and she blinked one last time. I watched her, waiting to see if her eyes would flutter open again. It’s a very relaxing thing watching someone fall asleep, that moment where they lose all control of their minds and surrender to their subconscious. They say you often dream about something that happened in your day, good or bad. I was pretty sure I’d be dreaming about Ferris wheels later, I hoped she was too.

  I quietly propped my feet up on the coffee table, careful not to disturb her head and slowly shimmied the remote from her lifeless hand.

  Kacie asleep on my lap and SportsCenter on the TV… heaven.

  “Brody. Brody, wake up.”

  I pried my eyes open and lifted my head to see who was calling my name, as pain shot up the right side of my neck. I must have fallen asleep in a funny position, but I was groggy and last thing I remembered was watching Baseball Tonight’s Web Gems with Kacie sound asleep on my lap. Where was she, anyway?

  “You okay?” Fred asked in a loud whisper.

  I rubbed the pain away. “Yeah, I’m fine, Fred.”

  “Let’s go fishing again.” A wide grin crossed Fred’s face, making him impossible to turn down, even though I wanted nothing more than to crawl up the stairs to my room and go back to sleep. I grabbed my phone to check the time but all I noticed was the little envelope lit up in the top right corner signaling a text from Kacie.

  “Sure, Fred, I’m up for fishing again. Just give me a minute to use the bathroom and grab a quick bite and I’ll meet you out there.”

  His face lit up as he reached down and patted my shoulder. “Sounds goo
d, see you in a few minutes.”

  I gave him a little wave as he disappeared out the back door and then turned my attention back to my phone.

  HEY! I WENT TO BED BUT I DIDN’T WANT TO WAKE YOU BECAUSE YOU LOOKED SO PEACEFUL. SEE YOU AT BREAKFAST. :)

  Relief washed over me. I was slightly worried after her little nap last night, she would wake up feeling like she’d made a huge mistake and possibly regret last night, especially that kiss.

  Holy shit, that kiss.

  “Thought maybe you’d bailed on me,” Fred said as I sauntered down the hill toward his run-down red canoe.

  I ran my hand through my hair and forced a smile at him. “Nope, just moving slow this morning, sorry.”

  “No problem.” He hopped out of the canoe and walked around next to me, motioning to his small wooden death trap. “Let’s push her off and hop on in.”

  Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t mind fishing with Fred at all, it was actually really relaxing. We just had a really long day yesterday, both physically and mentally exhausting, and I didn’t exactly sleep well sitting straight up on the couch overnight.

  I liked Fred, but I loved sleep.

  It really was a beautiful morning out on the lake though. The fog was still sitting just on top of the calm water, the birds were just starting to chirp, not a soul around. Fred and I paddled about fifty yards from the shore before he spoke again. “This look good?”

  “Sure. Looks great,” I said in between yawns.

  “You’re gonna let the flies in,” he teased.

  “I don’t know what’s wrong with me today, I’m never like this.” I reached down and scooped up a small handful of lake water and splashed it on the back of my neck, hoping the shock of the chilly water would wake me up.

  “Well, sleeping on that couch like you were all night certainly doesn’t help. I’m glad you came out here with me though, I want to talk to you.” He stared off in the distance and squinted his eyes. “I’ve known Sophia and Kacie for about ten years now. Sophia and I have grown to be great friends, and Kacie … well, she’s like a daughter to me, Brody.” He looked me square in the eye and I focused right back on his. “I don’t know how much she’s told you about her past, but when that little prick left her four years ago, it devastated her.”

  Kacie hadn’t filled me in on many details yet, so part of me felt like I was betraying her by listening. The other part of me didn’t dare interrupt him because I wanted every bit of information I could get about her.

  He continued, “When she called her mom from Minneapolis and told us that he was gone, we immediately went into worker-bee mode. Painting rooms, putting together cribs, buying stuffed animals … all so they would feel at home when they got here. When they did finally arrive a few days later, they weren’t ten feet in the door when Kacie set the girls down and collapsed in her mom’s arms. She didn’t leave her bed that whole first week.” Fred took his glasses off and used his pointer finger and thumb to rub his eyes. I wasn’t sure if he was tired also, or if he was getting choked up reliving this. “Sophia would make her food and take it in to her. An hour later she would go get it and bring back an untouched plate along with a small trash bag full of tissues. She was crushed, heartbroken.” He let out a heavy sigh.

  I put my hand up before he started talking again. “Wait, I don’t get it. If he was such an asshole, wouldn’t she be happy he was gone?”

  He looked down at the bottom of the boat, kicking at loose paint with his worn out leather boots. “I’m sure she didn’t tell you anything about her dad either?”

  She hadn’t said one word about him. I just shook my head, not sure I wanted to hear any more about what she’d gone through.

  “I can’t say too much about that, I wasn’t around when he was. All I really know is that he was Kacie’s hero. She followed him around like a shadow her whole life, a real daddy’s girl. Then one day, he up and left Sophia and Kacie when Kacie was ten. Divorced Sophia and left her for another woman, never really kept in touch with Kacie either. When Kacie found out she was pregnant, she was hellbent on keeping her family together and giving the girls all that she didn’t have. Then when Zach left, she felt like she was not only reliving everything with her dad again, but she’d somehow failed Lucy and Piper too.”

  We both sat in silence for a minute, staring at our feet, taking it all in.

  “Anyway, the reason I’m telling you all this is because I made a promise to myself during that time that I would never allow someone to hurt Kacie like that again. She’s an amazing girl, as you’ve seen. She’s smart, she’s beautiful, and she’s an outstanding mom. Those girls are her life and she protects them fiercely. Sophia and I both agree though, she does deserve more—she deserves to be happy.” He looked up from his boots and stared at me again, his eyes softer now. “I haven’t seen her look at a man like she’s looking at you … ever. Not even Zach. In all honesty, Brody, it scares the hell out of me.”

  “Let me stop you for a second, Fred. I don’t know what you’ve heard or read about me, but I’m not a bad man. I’m not a love ‘em and leave ‘em man. I’m not a playboy. I’ve never been in a serious relationship, though I’m not sure that’s a good thing.” He let out a nervous laugh as I continued. “What I do know is that I like Kacie. I like her a lot. Am I in love with her? No, I just met her a week ago, but there’s something about her that just gets to me. Something that keeps me wanting to spend more and more time with her and I’d like to explore that.”

  Our eyes were locked and a faint smirk teased the corners of his mouth as I kept going.

  “I know that what I do for a living is hard for some people to grasp. It’s not typical, and it’s not always an ideal situation, but I’m really hoping that it won’t interfere with Kacie and me. I also hope no one will interfere.”

  His eyebrows shot up in surprise, but his smile remained.

  Crap, I hadn’t meant for that last part to come out as aggressive as it did.

  “I like you, Brody. I don’t know why yet, but I like you. Please be gentle with her. She acts like a tough, stubborn little shit, but she’s fragile.” He extended his hand out to me and I grasped it with my right hand then clapped his with my left.

  “You have my word, Fred. No games.”

  The corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled and nodded once at me. “Good, cause this lake is pretty deep out there in the middle, and I have a lot of old weights from my military days just laying around, looking for a new purpose.”

  “You look like hell.” I stared wide-eyed at Brody as he closed the back door and dragged himself across the family room, collapsing on the kitchen table.

  “I feel like it,” he responded as his head fell onto his folded forearms.

  “Have you been out with Fred all morning?” I walked over and stood across the table from him.

  He lifted his head and rubbed his eyes. “Yeah, since about six. We probably would have stayed longer, but it started pouring on us.”

  I looked out the over-sized family room windows at the rain, bummed that the girls and I would be stuck inside for the day.

  “Did you catch anything?”

  He laughed, seemingly amused by my question.

  “What?” I asked defensively.

  “Nothing,” he said, shaking his head, a slight grin still apparent on his face. “Yeah, we caught a few bass and we talked … a lot.”

  Panic flared in me. “Uh-oh, what does that mean?”

  He looked at me without saying anything, and his eyes danced around my face. When he stared at me like that, he made me feel like I was under a microscope. Instead of metal clips holding me down, it was his two piercing green eyes.

  “It means that Fred really cares about you. You’re a lucky girl.” He took my hand, gently kissing the top of it. My skin tingled where he’d kissed it, even after he pulled his lips away.

  “Mom, what’s for breakfast?”

  I pulled my hand back quickly when Lucy came in the room. Looking at
Brody, I was relieved when he smiled and winked at me, not at all offended that I hadn’t wanted her to see his affection for me.

  “I don’t know. What should we make today?” I scooped up Lucy and sat her on the island, eye to eye with me.

  Her father’s brown eyes looked up toward the ceiling as she contemplated what she wanted to eat. “Chocolate chip pancakes!” she answered excitedly.

  “Coming right up.” She wiggled to get down, but I caught her knee before she was able to get away. “Uh … pay the toll.”

  She giggled and gave me a big smooch before hopping off the island and disappearing back down the hall.

  I grabbed the pancake mix and chocolate chips out of the cabinet and tossed them on the island, glancing over at Brody who was still sitting at the table with his elbows bent, hands clasped together, staring at me.

  “What are you looking at?”

  Without moving his folded hands from in front of his mouth, he raised one eyebrow in response to my sarcastic tone. He stood up from the table and slowly stalked over to me, stopping just inches from my chest. His left hand rested on the island to my right, while his other hand purposely grazed my elbow as he leaned in, reaching for the bag of chocolate chips and pinning my hips to the island.

  “Just thought I’d help you make pancakes.” His taunting tone was husky with underlying meaning as he bent down, his lips nearly touching mine. “My specialty is licking … the spoon when you’re done.”

  My heart was pounding against my ribcage; my pulse off the charts. The edge of the granite counter was digging into my lower back, but all I could concentrate on was trying to slow my breathing, and I was failing miserably. He was intimidating, playing with me like a cat played with a mouse, but I wasn’t going down without a fight.

  I leaned up on my tippy toes and softly kissed his lips, barely making contact and then pulled back. When he came forward for another taste, I spun around giggling. “You stink, Fish Boy, and I don’t let smelly men lick my spoon. Go shower, then we’ll talk.”