Love and Repair Series Box Set

by Chelsea Camaron

  “Dina, I appreciate the offer. Yes, I’ll live with you until I can sort out everything. I cannot just accept a house from you, though. For Pete’s sake, Dina, I drive a really nice car because you paid for it. I have my dream job because you paid for it. I can’t just let you give me a house, too. Plus, you can’t afford that, can you?” As I finish responding, Dina just smiles and shrugs her shoulders.

  We’ve never discussed money or her inheritance so maybe she can afford it. Dina’s not the type of girl to let money change her. Even though, I imagine she can afford to give me a house or pay off my situation, I could never let her.

  Dina has always taken care of me, from my first heartbreak in high school; his name was Ayden. To my college party days needing someone to hold my hair after I drank too much, then buying my car, and now this. I’m thankful Ryder is here to take care of her now and I know he will always.

  Brayden

  Ryder arrives. Stress, anger, frustration, disappointment, and confusion all seem to radiate off of him. Welcome to my daily hell, the daily grind of emotions that circle on repeat in my mind. I shouldn’t feel this way, Ryder doesn’t deserve to be tied up in all this. Misery loves company though, so he can join the club.

  He walks in and begins, “Brayden, what the hell have you gotten yourself into? Maggie is hysterical. She doesn’t understand why you’re losing the house. Or why you won’t answer the damn phone! I left her packing to move into Dina’s house. Is that what you want?”

  I begin my response as the stress fills me. “Fuck, no it’s not what I want but it’s what has to happen. I lost the house. The question is do you think Dina will let me stay with her too?”

  Ryder begins pacing, running his hand through his hair. The agitation and anger evident as Ryder states. “You will not under any circumstances ask Dina to stay with them. I don’t know for sure what you’ve gotten yourself into but damn it you will not involve my girlfriend anymore then you already have.”

  I look at my longtime friend begging. “Can I crash at your house? I have no place to stay.”

  Ryder laughs a harsh, sarcastic laugh. “Hell no, you need help, not to be bailed out. You can stay here, sleep on the couch in the lobby. You can shower at my house when I’m at home. Val and I talked, I know about your past, B. If you’re into that stuff again…If you want help, I’ll get you the help to get clean. This will be your only warning though. You keep your problem out of my business, out of my house, and away from Dina. Since you won’t confide in anyone with specifics as to what is going on so we can help you I’m letting you know now. If I catch you or I can prove my suspicions right, you’re out on your ass, friend or not. Call it tough love, I don’t give a shit. We all got problems man, you gotta own that shit and face your problems not try to escape them. Get your shit straight and now.” Before I can respond, he walks away.

  I have nowhere else to go. I don’t have the kind of relationship with my mom to call her about this. Hell, I don’t have a relationship with her at all. That ended when I was fourteen. I don’t want to bother Vanessa with my issues. She has two kids they don’t need to be around the mess that is all me. Valerie is just as messed up as me so that would be pouring gasoline on a fire. Ryder is my only help right now. Sure I have other friends but not ones I would want to share my current situation with. This in itself is a huge slice of humble pie. Hello, I don’t know anyone who is proud to find themselves homeless.

  Chapter Six

  Moving On

  Maggie

  Thanks to Ryder, Dina, and a few friends, I’m moved into her guest room. All of my furniture is placed in a climate controlled storage facility. During the move, Ryder wouldn’t let Dina do any heavy lifting which typically would have upset my bestie to be told what to do by a man. We finally sit down to eat and take a break as my building curiosity gets the best of me.

  “Ok, you two what gives?” I ask wanting to know why Dina is suddenly so delicate. “I know I’m caught up in my own drama, but I’m not blind. You both act like Dina could break if she picks up the wrong thing. What the hell is going on?”

  They both laugh. Ryder pipes up to answer. “I told you she’d catch on, Dina. As for your question Maggie, there’s a chance we could be expecting. It’s too soon to know but since we know there is a possibility we’re trying to be careful.”

  I look at my best friend who looks absolutely terrified. “Shit, Dina! How… When…What are you going to do?”

  Dina looks at Ryder, almost for strength. She stutters as she answers me. “Well, you…you… know ummm… how these things happen. The when of it would be the momentary lapse of judgment and thought, due to lust, in my car. As for what to do, we wait to see if there is even a what coming. We should know any day now.”

  Not expecting this news, I’m left silenced. Dina could be pregnant. She could be a mommy and I could be an aunt. This is overwhelming to think of. Even though we’re adults, having a baby is real responsibility and commitment. This whole thing is real in every sense of the word. Knowing it’s a lot for her to take in, I hug her tight before we all settle on the couch to watch a movie. It seems we’re all moving on, some in a good way, and some in a bad way. Being here, in Dina’s house, doesn’t feel like home. This whole situation is one I’m still trying to come to terms with.

  The next morning I wake up to the aroma of bacon frying. I get up expecting to find Dina in the kitchen. Instead, I find Ryder standing over the stove smiling.

  “Well, it must be a good morning for you with a smile like that.” I say taking in the happy demeanor of the man in front of me.

  He laughs. “Ummm…any morning waking with Dina is a good morning.” His face suddenly grows serious. “Maggie, does it bother you for me to stay over? If so, I can go back to my place. Dina and I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”

  His thoughtfulness for me is overwhelming. “Ryder, you’ve made my best friend come alive again, don’t worry about me and by all means don’t stop what you are doing.”

  Dina comes in laughing. “Funny, I tell him don’t stop quite often too, but for a completely different reason.” She says as she winks at her man.

  We sit down at the kitchen table to eat the bacon, eggs, and toast Ryder cooked for us. I pour some orange juice for all of us and ask, “Ryder, when did you start cooking?”

  He smiles a flirtatious smile at Dina. “I’ve enjoyed spending time in my kitchen with my favorite cook, so I managed to pick up a trick or two.”

  I love the way the two of them are together. There was a time, not so long ago, I had that easy banter with Brayden. Oh where did things go so wrong?

  After breakfast, Ryder heads to his shop, Dina and I go to the office. I can’t focus on anything but Brayden. I haven’t heard from him. Yes, I’m angry with him, but most of all I miss him. I just want him to tell me what happened so we can fix this.

  Brayden

  Ryder comes into work with an obvious attitude directed toward me. We spend the first few hours silently working as the tension seems to be building with each passing task completed.

  Finally, he says, “Brayden, my office, now.”

  I’m annoyed at his tone which has me on the defense automatically. “What, man? I’m trying to finish this corvette today.”

  He coldly responds. “Come clean, tell me man, what’re you so messed up with? Where the hell is the Charger?”

  Right here, right now is my opportunity to be honest, come clean. I try to begin. “I have a lot of debt. I over spent. I got a crappy interest rate on the house. I sold the Charger to Dave a few months ago in order to make ends meet. Ryder, I was trying to make the house payment. I’m just sinking and losing everything.”

  “Brayden, why didn’t you ask for help, man?” He questions with his tone more somber than angry now.

  Now I’m the angry one. He wouldn’t understand, so why bother continuing this conversation. No way in hell I’m spilling my personal business to him. He has it made. He doesn’t know the str
uggles I’ve faced. I’m boiling mad now, I need to get out of here before I get my ass kicked again.

  “Ryder, just drop it man. You wouldn’t understand. Can I take my ass back to work now?”

  He simply nods at me. His frustration evident in the tension in his face and body. I should’ve told him everything. Once again, I let the opportunity pass me by.

  I drown myself in work the rest of the day, refusing to speak to anyone including clients. I feel the headache building and the tension coursing through my veins. I need a fix and with nothing available to me at the moment, I’m starting to lose the small grasp of control I have left over myself.

  Shit, who am I kidding? I’m out of control.

  Chapter Seven

  Oh Baby

  Maggie

  Four days later, Ryder and I are at the kitchen table.

  Dina comes out of the bathroom smiling, “No, baby.” She makes her way over to sit on Ryder’s lap, “I love you, Ryder Cole Davenport. Thank you for being honest with me, thank you for being so supportive, and for just being with me. I look forward to our future together and the babies we will make years from now, and I do mean years.”

  Ryder kisses her and replies, “Whenever you’re ready I’d love to have lots of babies with you, Sunshine. I hope we’ll be living together before that just so you know. I love you, Dina.”

  I’m so happy for my bestie. Ryder and Dina are meant to be together. I thought Brayden was my happily ever after. Now, I just don’t know.

  I finally muster the courage to ask, “Ryder how is Brayden? I’ve been trying to give him his space. I wish he would just talk to me.”

  Ryder sighs, “He’s stressed Maggie about a lot of stuff. He misses you. He also feels like he’s lost everything, between the car, the house and you, he’s a mess right now. A mess, I will add, he’s brought on himself.”

  I’m stunned. “Ryder, what do you mean car? Brayden has my Audi, what did he do with my car?”

  Ryder looks at Dina and then back over to me, “Not the Audi, Maggie that’s at my shop. The Charger, he sold the Charger to a client a few months back. I thought you both knew since he’s been driving the Audi for so long. He didn’t tell me up front, I found out when my client called the shop looking for parts for it.”

  The walls feel like they are closing in on me. So many secrets, so many deceptions, I’ve been sleeping with a total stranger. How could I not know this? I begin to cry so I excuse myself.

  He sold the first car he ever restored and he didn’t even tell me. That car was his pride and joy, his baby. What kind of relationship do we have? If we needed money that bad why didn’t he say something? That’s it I have to go see him. I didn’t want to do this at the shop, but I have no choice. I need answers, explanations, closure, or something.

  Brayden

  Not talking to Maggie is killing me, but what is there to say? I’ve never missed someone so much. I love her but I don’t think she will understand the skeletons in my closet. No one knows the truth and I’ve been running from it for so long I don’t know if even I can face it.

  I see a flash of yellow out front. Oh shit, that’s either Dina or Maggie. I’m not ready to see either one of them. Ryder is hard enough to face every day, but I have to, I need money. Dina will rip my head off for all the pain I’ve caused Maggie. And if it’s Maggie, well, I know I’ve fucked everything up between us.

  My eyes lock onto her as she gets out of the car. Maggie, my Maggie, seeing her my chest tightens painfully at the heartache I’ve caused both of us. Damn she looks good even in yoga pants and my old t-shirt. Her eyes are sad and puffy because of me. This is all my fault. I drop my head in shame as she approaches.

  She takes my face and cups it in her hand. “Brayden, talk to me please. I miss you. Whatever it is, let’s work through it babe. I don’t want to be without you.”

  She’s crying and it’s crushing me. Unable to manage words, I kiss her to try to numb the pain for both of us.

  Ryder comes around the corner, “Why don’t you two go somewhere and talk? I have the shop covered Bray, go fix things with your girl.” Apparently, he wasn’t far behind Maggie on her way over this morning. He must’ve known she was coming here and we would need some time.

  Maggie smiles up at me as she says, “Follow me to Dina’s house.” I’d follow her to the depths of hell if it meant she could keep smiling.

  Chapter Eight

  All Tied Up

  Maggie

  Now that I have him here in the privacy of Dina’s home, I don’t know if I want to rip his clothes off or just scream at him. For the first few minutes we both just openly stare at one another.

  I see the tears in his eyes as he begins to speak. “I’m sorry, Maggie. There are no words to explain it and I understand if you hate me. I love you Margaret Rose Lawson and I’ll do anything to make things right between us.”

  I close the space between us as I reply needing to be closer to him. “Brayden just talk to me, you sold your car and I have to find out from Ryder. If we needed money I would have asked Dina. I want this to work between us, but it takes honest communication and trust.”

  Not knowing how to get through to him, I decide to discuss the one thing we do best together, sex. I reach up and put my hands around his neck forcing him to drop his head down to look at me.

  “Remember the first time you tied me to the bed posts? We talked about my safe word and the importance of open, honest communication. The first time you blindfolded me, we discussed trust. The trust I need to have in you to bring me intense pleasure without me being able to see what would come next. We discussed freely the bond and trust you had to have in me to safe word, firecracker, if I couldn’t handle the sensations.”

  “Brayden we’re amazing in bed together. Imagine our relationship if we are just as open and honest with our communication in all areas. Brayden, you’ve tied me up, you’ve blindfolded me, you’ve spanked me, you’ve poured hot wax on me, you’ve gagged me, collared me, whipped me, dressed me up, we’ve had sex in public, we’ve attended the fetish balls, we’ve used clamps, balls, and toys, and never once have I safe worded out. I have given you complete control always in bed but also in our relationship. I trust you to know my body that well, I want to trust you to know my heart and mind that well. We need to be as open outside of bed as we are inside. I want to be your safe place. I want you to feel you can tell me anything, and trust me completely. Brayden, my love for you is unconditional.” I state in a matter of fact manner.

  Needing to be connected to him, I pull him into the living room. Taking the lead, I begin removing both our clothes as we go. Things make more sense for me in this moment. Brayden likes and needs control in the bedroom because so much of his life is out of control. He doesn’t know how to let anyone in to share his burdens with him. He lays me on the floor using his belt to bind my arms to the coffee table. As he is kissing and caressing every inch of my body, I lay there taking in every sensation. This is his silent communication of what I mean to him. He has always cherished my body and brought me unmeasurable pleasure. I become so lost in the moment with Brayden. I don’t hear the front door open.

  I don’t become conscious of what’s going on until I hear Dina screaming as she is hitting Brayden with her shoes. “Get the hell off her, you punk ass. How the hell did you get her tied up? I’m going to beat the ever loving shit out of you.”

  Brayden quickly jumps up, scrambling for his clothes, and trying to escape Dina with her shoes swinging. I’m stuck, naked on the floor, belted to the table and laughing hysterically.

  I’ve never seen Dina go at a man this forcefully before. She knows I like rough sex, I know coming home to this might be a little shocking, but I never expected her reaction to be this. I keep laughing, I’m naked, with a belt used to tie me to the coffee table leg while my very short, in comparison to Brayden, best friend who has curves in all the right places with a tiny ass waist is attempting to beat the shit out of my man who towers o
ver her with a pair of her high heels. Violence isn’t usually something Dina goes for. This whole situation is out of character for her. Then again, she has been here watching as my world falls apart.

  Brayden

  I never knew Dina was such a strong little spit fire or how sharp heels can be until this moment. All the while, I am trying to find clothes, dress, and evade injury, Maggie just keeps laughing.

  I arrived at Dina’s with the intention of coming clean to Maggie, not tie her to the table and fuck her. All the talk of ties, blindfolds, and our previous sexcapades I forgot about everything around us. I’m so used to Maggie and I being in our own place, I didn’t think of anyone walking in on us.

  When Dina finally lets up, I scramble to get my clothes on. Going over to release Maggie, I hand her the clothing I could find. I stammer over my shoulder at a now red faced Dina. “Ummm…hi Dina, how’s it going?”

  Dina laughs sarcastically staring coldly at me. “How’s it going? How’s it going? Well, pretty shitty, to walk into my house, find that you have tied up my best friend, you’re naked, and you both seem to find this funny. And this all follows directly after you screw up royally and don’t even have the decency to answer a flipping phone. How’s it going, you ask? Pffttt…Everything is dandy except I want to beat the shit out of you, and I can’t because my best friend is still in love with your sorry ass. Just get the hell out, you need to get your shit straight, Bray and quick. Maggie I’m sorry, I can’t stand the sight of him right now.” And with that she stomps away, heels swinging in her hands.