Catching Fox
Page 25
Adalynne felt like she was the victim of some sick cosmic joke. Her whole life she had convinced herself Fox felt something more for her when he did not, stringing herself along in this twisted one-sided love affair since she was a little girl. After all that happened, after what she discovered about Fox, he still chose to stay away from her.
John remained elusive when it came to her questions about Fox. She knew he was in contact with Fox on a regular basis and it pained her when she realized John was avoiding her questions, only letting her know that he was doing well and figuring things out. As much as it relieved her to know that rehab had been a positive experience and he was now able to move forward with his life, she was sad to realize his plan did not involve her. Luckily, she had the grand opening of the Music House to distract her. She knew Katie was worried for her. She could see it every time she looked into her eyes.
She felt like she was in mourning again, she was grieving the hope she had held onto for her entire life. The hope that Fox would one day be hers to love felt as if it were drifting further and further away. She had promised she would wait for him the last time she had seen him and she intended to keep that promise even if it meant that she would be alone for the rest of her life. She had already tried to love another and failed miserably, this was her life and she would have to learn to accept it. She had played all her cards and lost her hand and now all she could do is sit out of the game of love.
***
The construction of the Music House had been completed a few weeks ago. Adalynne started music classes immediately in the new facility. The building was larger than the original, allowing much more space and flexibility. The concert room was large enough to host all of the families of the children, and the acoustics were optimal for music. More classrooms meant more opportunities to teach and she was already receiving resumes for music instructors wanting to join their reputable new school. News of their school spread and people were requesting classes from outside the community, making the commute to join their establishment.
They were praised for the quality of music they were exposing to their students. Adalynne ensured standards Elizabeth had established were carried on in her memory. Adalynne sold Elizabeth’s old house once they moved the classes back to the Music House. She used the funds to build a new playground for the children and also built an amphitheatre on the large property. It was exciting to think they could now host outside performances in the warm months. John had taken responsibility to build the amphitheatre. He did a beautiful job and Adalynne was overwhelmed with his workmanship. He could create anything from raw materials. It was always so impressive to see what he was capable of producing. The future of the Music House was bright and the crowd that was forming on the grounds for the grand opening was in support of this.
“Well done,” Molly praised, giving Adalynne a hug.
“Thanks Molly, and thank you for your help,” Adalynne said gratefully. Molly had been a wonderful help in preparation for the celebration. She had arranged for local bands to play on the new stage and advertised on the website about the official opening celebration.
People were gathering as the first band set up. Adalynne just finished setting up the BBQ that Molly and Brooke offered to run during the event. Brooke had recently toned down her appearance and was going for a more natural look. She had decided to try a more professional career path of real estate and was now trying to fit the profile. “Who’s the one with the long hair and wild shirt?” Brooke narrowed her gaze on Kent, who was currently helping John with something by the stage.
“Oh Kent, he’s a good guy. You would like him,” Adalynne encouraged.
“I do. I like. Is he single?” Brooke asked with bright eyes.
“Like it matters to you,” Molly scoffed.
“Yes, he is.” Adalynne laughed as Molly and Brooke playfully quarreled about Brooke’s morals. “I’ll see you guys later. I’m going to see what John is up to.” Adalynne wasn’t even sure if the girls heard her as they continued their banter.
Adalynne walked up to the stage. John was putting a plaque up on the front of the wooden structure. “Oh hey, Addie. What do you think?” Adalynne read the words on the metal plaque now secured on the front of the stage. It read:
In memory of Elizabeth Martin. She will live on in our hearts and in the music we play.
Tears immediately came to Adalynne’s eyes.
“It’s wonderful, John.” She wrapped her arms around him. He squeezed her back in a warm hug.
“I thought you would like it,” he said proudly.
It wasn’t long before the large property was filled with people. The band played and people enjoyed the atmosphere and the food. Children played with balloons, danced to the music, and tried out the new playground.
“Addie!” Katie called excitedly as she walked toward Adalynne. Taylor was in her arms and Steven was a few steps behind her weighed down by all the bags Katie had brought. “Wow, girl. This is quite the gathering. You must be proud,” Katie said as she swayed Taylor to the music, now in full swing onstage.
“Yes, it’s wonderful to see so many people come.” Adalynne smiled. She leaned in to kiss Taylor’s round cheeks. “I can’t wait to teach these little fingers to play music,” she said, kissing her little hands, making her beautiful little face break out into a smile. Every time she saw Taylor she looked bigger, she was growing so fast.
Everyone praised Adalynne for the work she did, commenting on the beautiful new Music House. It was nice to be surrounded by so many appreciative people. Adalynne quickly forgot all her fussing over all the details and became lost in the excitement. She was enjoying the company of her friends here to show their support.
Meredith arrived and Adalynne was elated when she noticed that John took her hand when they stood side by side. John met Adalynne’s gaze and winked. She was glad he was finally moving on and exploring the relationship they had developed between them. She knew they cared for each other. She could see it in the way they looked at one another and now that John no longer needed her as a sponsor, their relationship took its natural course.
The conversation in their group died away. “Why didn’t you tell me?” Katie hollered wide eyed at Adalynne, who looked back at her in confusion.
Adalynne turned to see why the crowd started cheering loudly. Her eyes found Fox onstage and she was immediately overcome with shock. The crowd cried out in excitement, people were amazed to see Outcome walk onstage to play for the small community gathering. It was funny that no one recognized him as the troubled little boy that grew up here, the very one they warned their children to say away from. They only saw the star he had become but Adalynne saw the boy who found her in her backyard so many years ago. The boy who crawled into her window at night and learned how to play the most beautiful music she had ever heard. He was her Fox, the boy she had fallen in love with. Adalynne’s mouth dropped open. John squeezed her shoulder but she could not take her eyes from Fox or even bring herself to move.
“Good afternoon, everyone.” His velvety voice floated over the crowd, he looked around at all the people until his eyes settled on Adalynne. “I have a new song I would like to play for you today. I wrote it for someone who means very much to me.” The crowd shouted out in anticipation. His eyes stayed with Adalynne as the band began to play, the song was captivating and everyone became entranced in the music.
He sang of his love for a girl, the most beautiful girl in the world who was always out of his reach. He dreamed to make that girl his and to love her like she deserved to be loved. It made Adalynne ache for him as he sang directly to her, his eyes never leaving hers. Katie grabbed her hand and stood beside her as they listened to his song. She didn’t even realize she was crying until Katie passed her a tissue.
“I would like everyone to know that Adalynne Fairweather is the love of my life. I have loved her from the first time I saw her and I will love her for the rest of my life.” The entire crowd turned to look at her.
“You don’t know how long I have waited to hear those words,” she breathed. Her words sounded funny to her, she was ready to fall apart in his arms.
“You don’t know how long I have waited to say them.” He smiled before he leaned down and brought his mouth against hers. His lips molded perfectly to hers and they both savored the kiss. When he pulled back from her, she touched her lips, still tingling from his touch. That was how a kiss was supposed to feel like.
“Sorry it took me so long. Rock bottom is a hard place to climb out of,” Fox said softly, tucking her hair behind her ear and trailing his fingers along her cheek. The sensual touch made her body crave more of him.
“I told you I would wait no matter how long it took.” Adalynne smiled brightly. The force that drew her to him was strong and undeniable. It flowed through her body like an electrical current. Every part of her wanted to be closer to him, to touch him, to love him.
“I want you so bad,” he whispered wickedly into her ear and it caused heat to pool in her as her body responded to his words. She felt like she could not contain herself being so close to him.
Adalynne’s surroundings slowly came back into focus as everyone cheered for them. They were surrounded by all the people she loved. The promise in his eyes spoke of what was in store for her and her body reeled with anticipation of the fact Fox loved her.
She caught her mother’s gaze. She hadn’t even noticed her arrival amongst the commotion. Adalynne broke out into a ridiculous smile as her mother beamed back at her.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Don’t peek,” Fox warned. The excitement in his voice was evident in his words. Adalynne could picture the smile spread across his handsome face.
“I’m not looking. I can’t see a thing with your hands over my eyes anyway.” Adalynne let out a nervous laugh as he led her through their house.
It had been a month since Fox and Adalynne had moved in together. Fox insisted on buying a new place to share together so the only memories they had of their place would be the ones they shared together as a couple. They walked through their living room and Adalynne’s fingers skimmed the wall, nearly knocking a picture down. She quickly righted it. She knew the pictures from memory, every frame to touch. She had practically covered the entire wall with pictures of people that were close to their hearts. There were pictures of her parents and her favorite ones of her father that showed his beautiful smile that she missed every day. There was the only family picture Fox had before his mother had died. He was only a baby cradled in his mother’s arms while John stood proudly behind them with his arm around her shoulder. Fox had his mother’s unbelievable green eyes, but the masculine features of his father’s handsome face.
There was also her favorite moment with Elizabeth when they first opened the original Music House. They both had ridiculous smiles on their faces and it was a moment she would always remember. Her favorite photos of Katie’s wedding always made her smile because the joy captured in those few stills spoke volumes of the love that they had for one another. The most recent addition to the wall were the photos of John and Meredith’s wedding. They had traveled south for a beautiful beach ceremony, a trip that was still fresh in their minds. Fox’s skin was still irresistibly tanned, reminding her of all the wonderful moments they shared under the sun.
Fox and Adalynne were having so much fun making their house specific to their tastes, deciding on furniture and decorations usually resulted in trying to mesh different styles and unusual things together. Adalynne was painting a huge mural around their fireplace that tied all the varied colors of the items that encompassed the room. The result was comfortable craziness they called it and they loved their space.
“We can’t be late for Taylor’s birthday party. A little girl turns one only once, after all.” Adalynne said as Fox continued to guide her. “Where are you taking me anyway?” She squeaked nervously as they continued forward, unsure of what Fox had planned.
“Trust me,” he whispered in her ear. His nearness caused her body to heat and she could feel the familiar pull toward him. After all the years she knew him it never faded.
“Always.” She smiled. He pulled his hands off her eyes and kissed the smile from her face. “Umm…is this my surprise?” she asked, running her hands up through his soft hair, always begging to be touched. She was greedily accepting his kiss, demanding more.
“Keep it up and we’ll never make it to Taylor’s party.” His voice was breathy as he pulled away from her with a smile. “This is your surprise.” He stepped back and motioned toward the backyard. Adalynne looked over to see their camp, the place they had built together so many years ago in their secret hideaway in the woods. It was strange to see it in their backyard and she couldn’t help the shock that took over her features.
“How did you get it here?” Adalynne recovered, her open mouth was replaced with an excited smile. She looked up at Fox’s beautiful smile lighting up his endless green eyes.
“Not without difficulty but completely worth it to see your reaction.”
Adalynne screamed with excitement and jumped into his arms. She kissed him as he walked toward the camp and ducked into the door, bringing them inside. He set her down and Adalynne looked around, it felt like it had been such a long time since she had been inside but it was exactly how she remembered it. She reached up and touched the painting and smiled. “I love that you did this. I missed this place.” Adalynne spun around while he watched her. “Do you know that this was the first place we kissed and umm…” She looked mischievously at him.
“Oh, I remember very well what happened in these walls.” Fox gave her his sexy smile before grabbing his guitar, leaning against the wall, pulling the strap over his head. He sat down on a wooden crate and Adalynne did the same, wanting to listen to his beautiful music. Looking around, she noticed everything they had kept inside was still in its place. Their stash of supplies still sat in a box in the corner.
“Any requests?” He smiled while looking over at her.
“Surprise me.” Adalynne smiled excitedly.
Fox began strumming his guitar. He always took her breath away. He affected her on every level and she was completely captivated by him. It was more than love.
Adalynne looked into his eyes as he began to sing to her. He was playing a song new to her and she listened as he sang the words.
“There once was a fox that fell in love with a bee
The most beautiful creature that he ever did see.”
Adalynne listened with tears of joy in her eyes. He continued to sing the most beautiful lyrics she had ever heard. His words spoke of them, his love for her and his desire to spend his life with her.
“Oh Bee…marry me.”
The realization of what was taking place hit her as he sang on and she was left crying before him. He slid the guitar off his lap and knelt down before her, retrieving a small box from his pocket.
“Adalynne Fairweather, will you make me the happiest man in this world and be my wife?”
Adalynne looked at the ring he presented to her. It was a form of a bee designed in diamonds. The sight of it made her gasp. “Yes, a thousand times, yes! I will marry you!” Adalynne cried. She climbed into his lap and kissed him through her tears and he held her like she was the most precious thing in the world.
“You know, I wrote that song when I was twelve years old. I’ve waited a long time to sing it to you,” He said softly, stroking her cheek and tracing her swollen lips w
ith his thumb.
“You knew you wanted to marry me when you were twelve?” Adalynne looked up at him, through her tear soaked lashes.
“No, I never thought I would be lucky enough but I wanted to.”
“I love you, Fox.” Adalynne pressed her lips against his.
“I love you too, Bee. More than you could ever possibly know.”
Epilogue
Ten Years Later…
Fox
Fox looked down at his guitar as he strummed. He had been trying to find the right melody for a song he was working on. He closed his eyes and let the sound consume him as his fingers moved over the strings. Music was his language and he loved the process of creating, putting different combinations of chords together to create something that could pull the emotions out of listeners. He loved the raw reaction of fans as he stood on stage and played music they could connect with, sing along to, and dance to until exhaustion claimed them and they were emotionally spent.
He pulled his small, chewed pencil from his mouth and scribbled notes on the sheets of paper on his music stand. Movement caught his attention and he looked down. A set of big green eyes looked up at him. Fox pulled his headphones off his head and set his guitar down.
A deep smile captivated his face as he looked down at his beautiful little boy. He wore his favorite monster truck pajamas and had his toy guitar slung over his shoulder. “Shouldn’t you be asleep, little man?”
“I ’ave a new song to show’d you.” Quinlan looked up with his adorable crooked smile and it melted Fox’s heart.
“Let’s hear it then.” Fox moved his music stand to give his son room to perform.
Quinlan swung his guitar around and positioned his tiny little hands on the frets. Adalynne had been teaching him the basics and he absorbed it all with his hungry little mind. He shared his parents’ love of music deep in his bones.