by Robin Huber
“Yeah, well, I didn’t get as much done today as I had planned, so...” He glances at me and I fight hard against a smile.
“That’s my boy,” my dad says, oblivious to the reason why he didn’t get much done today. He wraps his arm around Gabe’s shoulders and gives him a firm squeeze. “That kind of work ethic can’t be taught,” he says loudly to me and my mom, pointing at Gabe. He lowers his voice. “You just keep making those beautiful pieces, son, and you’ll go far.” He looks at me and my mom again. “People are going to pay good money to have a Gabriel North piece in their home,” he says loudly, “just wait and see.”
Gabe and I both laugh at my tipsy father. “Okay, Daddy,” I say, peeling him off Gabe. “We’ve got to go.”
My dad smiles wide. “This has been a good night. A real good night.”
I smile and push Gabe toward the door.
“Thank you for dinner, Maggie,” he says, spinning around, but I keep my hands on his stomach, shoving him backward.
“My pleasure, Gabe. Come back soon. You know you’re always welcome,” she says with a warm smile.
We step onto the front porch, close the door behind us, and share a passionate kiss. I smile up at Gabe, glad to be alone with him, and a little giddy because the night went so well.
When I pull up beside Gabe’s truck in the gravel lot in front of Charlie’s, I ask, “Do you really have to work tomorrow?”
He scrunches his nose and nods. “I was supposed to finish a table today. I’ll have to finish it tomorrow.”
I push my lips into a pout.
“But I have to eat. Maybe you could bring me lunch again?”
“Okay.”
“Something healthy this time, though. I can’t keep eating like a Dalton. You people have some seriously good genes. I don’t know how Duke’s not three hundred pounds by now.”
“All right, something healthy, got it. And for the record, I run a lot.”
He drops his chin and I know he’s thinking about our little jog on the beach.
“You know, you really gave me a workout that morning.”
He shakes his head and says, “I’m sorry. My head wasn’t in a good place. I was a jerk that day.”
“Well, I guess I forgive you.”
“Maybe we can try it again sometime?”
I smile. “I do love running on the beach at sunrise.”
“I’ll just walk fast to keep your pace,” he says, teasing me.
I shove his shoulder, and he laughs.
“Come here.” He reaches for my hand and pulls me close to him. “Thank you for asking me to come tonight.” He gives me a gentle smile.
“Thank you for coming.”
He cups my face in his hand and I melt into his warm kiss. I moan softly into his mouth as his tongue caresses mine, but the chatter of bar patrons making their way through the parking lot reminds me we’re not alone.
I fall back into my seat.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come back to my place for a little while?”
“Of course I want to. But you and I both know I won’t make it home in time to see Trisha off if I do that.”
He nods reluctantly. “All right.”
“I’ll come over tomorrow around noon.”
“Okay.” He smiles, and kisses me again.
* * *
I pull into the driveway at my parents’ house and see my mom sitting on the front porch steps sipping a cup of coffee, holding a tissue in her hand. I get out of my car and go to her.
“Momma, what’s wrong?” I ask when I see that she’s been crying.
She shakes her head and smiles. “Nothing’s wrong.”
“Then why are you crying?” I ask, sitting down next to her. “Did you and Daddy get into a fight or something?”
“No, Daddy and I are fine.”
“Well, what’s going on? Why are you crying?”
“You were right. I just can’t believe that I didn’t see it before.”
“See what?”
“We thought it was the accident. All this time. We thought that the injury caused the change in his personality, in his behavior.” She holds the tissue to her nose. “But we were wrong. It was you. He changed because he lost you.” She looks at me with watery eyes. “He was like the old Gabe tonight. He was so happy. And so were you.”
I smile and nod. “I am happy. For the first time in a long time, I’m really happy.”
She dabs the tissue under her eyes. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear you say that.” She puts her arm around me and hugs me tightly. She sits up straight and wipes her face. “I know it’s been a hard road for both of you, but maybe this is where it was supposed to lead you.”
I reach for her hand. “I think so.”
She puts her other hand on top of mine.
“I still love him...after all these years. I love him so much it’s hard to breathe sometimes.”
“And he loves you.”
I nod my head and tell her, “He lied, Momma.”
She gives me a disconcerted look.
“Before I left,” I explain. “When he told me that he didn’t love me anymore. He lied. He just wanted me to finish college and start my life. He thought I was wasting it here. He thought I deserved more...something better”—I shake my head—“something better than him.”
She brings the tissue to her nose again and sips her coffee, but she doesn’t say anything. She just stares straight ahead. And suddenly, my world shifts.
“You knew,” I say skeptically. She doesn’t look at me and I huff a disbelieving breath. “You did, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I knew,” she says softly. “He was heartbroken after you left. He couldn’t hide that from Jackie. She told me everything.”
“Oh my God,” I say shocked. “How could you not tell me? How could you let me believe he didn’t love me anymore?”
“Liv—”
“I was heartbroken,” I cry, blinking back tears. “And you knew it. You watched me cry myself to sleep for weeks before I left for Raleigh. You listened to me cry on the phone for months afterward. How could you do that?” I ask, getting up from the steps.
“Liv, you don’t understand. Sit down.”
“I don’t want to sit down.”
She puts her cup of coffee down and stands up. “Liv...Gabe lied to you because he loved you. Because even though he was getting better, he didn’t know if he’d ever make a full recovery. And he couldn’t watch you waste another minute of your life waiting on him.”
“That was my choice to make.”
“You were spending every second of your time over there. It was all you could think about. How to get Gabe better. How to fix him.”
“So, I cared too much? That’s why you lied?”
“You didn’t care about anything else! That’s why. You didn’t do anything for yourself. You didn’t go out with your friends. You didn’t spend time with me and Daddy. You didn’t read or watch TV anymore. You were losing yourself and Gabe could see it. We all could.”
“You should have told me.”
“If I had, you would have come home. And I’m sorry, but as a parent, I couldn’t let that happen. It was my responsibility to make sure you took your chance at life, got on your own two feet.”
“Yeah, well, look where it brought me”—I cross my arms—“right back here to Gabe.”
She shakes her head and sighs. “You can’t see it right now, Liv, but you’ve grown so much since you’ve been gone. When you left, you were heartbroken. I know that. It broke my heart too. But since then, you’ve become a strong, independent woman. The one I always knew you could be. The one that Gabe wanted you to be. Who knows what would have happened if you stayed...the resentment you both might have felt.” She wraps her hand around mine and I let her. “I love you so much, Liv. Please don’t be angry at me. I just wanted what was best for you.”
I look at the ground, my anger dissipating a little, and say softly, “I guess that
’s something you and Gabe have in common.”
She squeezes my hand and nods. “Because we both love you.”
“Yeah.” I sit back down on the steps, and my mother sits beside me, but I still feel unsettled. I understand her reasoning for not telling me the truth, but it’s like I was left in the dark for seven years.
What else hasn’t she told me?
After a few silent seconds, I ask, “Who’s Jackson Landry?”
She gives me a strange look as she brings her coffee cup to her mouth. She takes a sip and asks, “How do you know about him?”
“It’s a small town.”
She exhales a deep breath and looks up at the stars. “Jack was a friend of mine a very long time ago.”
“Was he ever more than a friend?”
She lets out a soft, curious laugh. “For a short time, before I met your father.”
“Well, what happened?”
“Oh, honey, it was so long ago. Why the sudden interest in my old boyfriends?”
“Well, I recently discovered that my mother is a vault of secrets, so pardon my interest in the truth.”
“Liv, stop being dramatic. Just because I haven’t told you every uninteresting detail of my love life before I married your father doesn’t make me a vault of secrets.”
“I happen to find Jackson Landry very interesting.”
“Why?”
“Because he joined the Navy when you and Daddy got married, and I don’t think it was so he could see the world.”
She sighs. “Jack loved me. And, I thought I loved him too, for a time. Until I met your father.”
“When Daddy moved here from Macon?”
“Yes. He was seventeen and so handsome. And charming. I loved that man within five minutes of talking to him.”
“So what happened? Did you break up with Jack?”
“Yes. And I broke his heart. He wanted to get married. But I wanted to go to college. And I wanted to go wherever your father was going.”
I smile, thinking of their alma mater and all the pictures of them together at the University of Georgia. “Go Dawgs.”
She laughs softly. “Go Dawgs.”
“So, I guess the rest is history, then?”
“It really is. I hate that I hurt Jack, but he wasn’t right for me. Duke was. And so are you. And so was Brandon. I found my family, and that’s always given me peace.”
“Thanks for telling me that.”
“Honey, I’m so sorry that I hurt you, but know now that I’ll always tell you anything you ever want to know. No more secrets.” She holds her pinky out and I wrap mine around it.
“No more secrets.”
“I love you. And I’m so happy that you’ve found happiness again. I didn’t expect it to be with Gabe, but what a blessing to have you both back.”
I lean against her arm, lay my head on her shoulder, and say, “We can finally be a family again.”
She inhales a shallow breath and whispers, “My cup runneth over.”
Chapter 16
Liv
I finish my morning shift at the diner and head home to get showered—the only way to get rid of the bacon smell clinging to my hair, which Trisha so dutifully pointed out during her short visit. She’s only been gone a few hours, but I miss her already. Luckily, I’ve got a pretty good distraction waiting for me to bring him lunch.
I didn’t have time to make him anything, so I picked up some turkey wraps on the way over.
When I pull onto the Norths’ property, I drive past the little brick house, ignoring the telltale signs that someone is home. The windows are open and there are gardening tools laying on the sidewalk, but I don’t see anyone. I’m still not ready to see his parents. When will I be? I’m beginning to wonder. I know I won’t be able to avoid them much longer.
I park next to Gabe’s truck, which is loaded with lumber, and find him in the garage working on the early makings of what looks like a large armoire. I call his name, but he doesn’t hear me over the music and the intermittent buzzing of the table saw.
Roxy runs over to me and circles my legs. “Hi, Roxy.” I rub her floppy ears. The music stops and I look up.
Gabe smiles at me and runs his hands through his hair, showing off his toned torso. “Hey.”
“Hey.” I laugh quietly. Will I ever get used to my new Gabe? I make my way over to him and rest my hand on his bare stomach, dewy from working in the Georgia heat. “I brought you lunch. A whole-wheat turkey wrap and fruit. Healthy...like you asked.” I stand on my tip-toes so I can kiss him.
“Very,” he mumbles against my lips.
I press my lips together, tasting the salt on them.
“Sorry, I’m sweaty.”
“Don’t be.” I smile and kiss him again, and he moans softly.
I drop back down onto my heels. “Hungry?”
“You have no idea,” he says suggestively.
“Good.” I hop up on the table behind me and begin pulling our lunch out of the deli bag. “Let’s eat.”
He narrows his eyes at me.
“Seriously, I’m really hungry.”
He laughs and sits on the table across from me. He reaches for a wrap and says, “You know, you’re supposed to sit at the table, not on top of it.”
I rub my hand over the smooth tabletop. “I thought I’d test out your craftsmanship.”
“Don’t worry,” he says confidently, “I make ‘em sturdy.” His deep voice is laced with insinuation.
“Good to know,” I say over my mouthful as I chew. I smile and touch the long, wide planks of knotted wood that are matched seamlessly together. The stain around the edges is dark, but it fades to a lighter color in the middle, like the bottom half has been buried beneath the earth for twenty years.
“This is really incredible. I can’t believe you made this.”
He smiles and takes a bite of his wrap. “Thanks, it took me forever to get the stain right. I’m doing this new unearthed collection.”
“That’s exactly what I thought. It looks like it was pulled right out of the ground.”
He rubs his hand over the edge of the table, eyeing his work thoughtfully. “That’s what I was going for.”
“I really love it.”
We sit across from each other on top of the table, eating our lunch and glancing up at each other every few seconds. Gabe pops a few grapes into his mouth and I do the same. I hold one to my lips, letting them close around it to make an O-shape, before sucking it into my mouth. Gabe’s eyes and nostrils flare, so I decide to have a little more fun. I lick my fingers, keeping my eyes on him the whole time.
Seconds later, he’s kissing me and pushing me down on the table.
“Gabe!” I laugh and squirm beneath him.
Roxy starts to dance around the table and bark.
“Lay down, Rox,” Gabe says to her, pointing across the garage, and she does as she’s told. He kisses my neck and holds my hands over my head against the table so I can’t move, not that I would if I could. He drops his head to my stomach and works my shirt up over my breasts, growling against them when he sees that I’m not wearing a bra. “Je te veux.” I want you. My back bows beneath him and his mouth moves down to my thighs. He pushes my skirt up and says, “Jesus, Liv,” when he sees that I’m not wearing any panties either.
“Didn’t want to risk it,” I say, panting down at him.
His mouth immediately covers me and his tongue moves over the most sensitive spot between my legs. I groan and rock my hips up reflexively. I drop my head back against the table and press my fingertips to the smooth surface of the wood, thinking of how he created this beautiful, one of a kind masterpiece as a fire scorches through me. He pushes me further and further until I’m on the brink of what I know is going to be an earth-shattering orgasm. I gasp and let out a soft moan that goes on... and on... and on. “Gabe,” I cry when I can’t take it anymore.
He looks up at me with parted, glistening lips. His eyes are like warm honey and his cheeks
are flushed with desire.
“I want you,” I say, needing to feel him inside me. He wipes his mouth and crawls over me, and I lean up and kiss his chest. It’s salty, a sign of the effort he put into the new masterpiece he was working on today. I kiss him again, tasting the salt on his neck.
He unbuttons his jeans and settles over me, leaving my shirt pushed up over my breasts and my skirt gathered around my waist. He positions himself between my legs and sinks into me with his jeans still hanging off his hips, and we make love on top of the beautiful table, hidden behind all of his other works of art.
* * *
“You cannot sell this to my dad,” I say, hopping down off the table that now holds two of my orgasms in its grain.
Gabe presses his lips together and looks down at the table, conflicted. I’m sure that it would make him a lot of money. He knocks his knuckles against the wood. “Yeah, well, I’m not sure I could let this one go now.” He smiles. “It’s turning out to be my favorite piece.”
I smile and wind my hands in his hair. “Mine too.”
He looks around at the scattered pieces of wood and piles of sawdust on the floor. “I just need a few hours to finish up in here. Will you come over later?”
“Yes.” I nod my head once and reach for his hand.
“I love you, sunshine.”
I exhale a shallow breath. “Is this real? Are we really...together again?”
He takes my face in his hands and looks into my eyes, into my soul, and says, “Yeah, baby, we’re really together again.”
I’m at once wrapped in warmth and shrouded in fear. It seems too easy. I don’t want to think about how or when the other shoe will drop, but the last time I was this happy, that’s exactly what happened.
I let Gabe get back to work and head home, thinking about this. Obsessing about it, actually. By the time I get home, I’m racked with anxiety. I sit in my car in my parents’ driveway with my head against the steering wheel. I should get out and go inside, but I’m paralyzed with fear that something is going to happen, that somehow, I’m going to lose Gabe again.
I’m startled by a knock on my car window. “Liv, what are you doing in there?” my dad asks.
I sit up. “Um, nothing. I was just getting out,” I say through the glass.