by Amy Brent
“What’s for dinner?” I asked.
“You’ll see.”
We rode through the town before we hit the main highway, leaving all the restaurants I knew about behind us. I knew about the types of restaurants L.A. had: there were the vegetarian restaurants and the hipster cafes. There were the high-profile restaurants and the specialty ones. Then, there were the ones men brought their girlfriends to when they knew they’d fucked up. Ones with ambiance that dripped of ‘sorry sex’ and served only aphrodisiacs for meals in order to bring couples closer together.
They made their money by temporarily fixing other people’s problems, but all those restaurants faded into the background while we cruised the coastline of the beach.
“Thomas?” I asked.
“Just hang on,” he said.
He slipped his hand over to me, and I felt his fingertips dance along my knee. I was furious at him for thinking he could whisk me away like this when I knew he’d been with another woman. I was enraged at the fact that his touch still melted me, even though I knew he’d been sinking it into another woman for weeks.
He wasn’t getting out of this that easily.
By the time we pulled to a stop, we were parked just beyond the beach. He got out of his car and opened my door for me, but all I could do was stare in confusion. He offered me his hand, and I took it mindlessly. My stomach slowly dropped to the ground when I saw the line of rose petals cresting the sand dune he expected me to walk up in those heels.
That is, until he swept me off my feet and walked me over the sand dune himself.
“Thomas, what the hell’s going on?” I asked.
“You can’t walk this sand dune in those shoes, though I might ask you to keep them on later,” he said.
“You’re not touching me until we talk,” I said with a growl.
“Fair enough.”
He set me back on my feet when we got to the beach, and my heels sank into the sand. We were surrounded with red rose petals and the crashing of the waves against the shore, and my eyes connected with his for a split second before I remembered why I was here.
“Thomas—”
“Just let me go first,” he said.
I heard footsteps behind us and turned around to see Lacey and his parents, and I wondered what he had trapped me into. Maybe he knew what was coming, and he thought if his family was here, I wouldn’t accuse him. Maybe this was some sort of ploy to manipulate me and keep me around for my fame and fortune, or maybe he was about to spring the media on me and spill my secret to the world for a lifetime’s worth of money.
But everything fell to the wayside when Thomas dropped down onto one knee and pulled a box from his pocket.
“I’ve seen your suspicious looks for the past few weeks, and I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering if I was seeing someone else. If I had somehow given up on us but didn’t want to let you go because of your money.”
“Thomas,” I said breathlessly.
“And it’s all right you thought that. I promise. But it’s not what you think.”
He cracked the box open to reveal the most beautiful diamond ring I had ever seen. The three-carat ring had one light pink stone in the middle with beautiful yellow ones cascading down the sides. It glistened in the moonlight as tears rose to my eyes, and my hands flew to my face while Lacey squealed with delight in the background.
“You are, without a doubt, the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. Moving into that home with you and creating this life with you has been one of the best blessings my life has ever received. I see you with Lacey, and it warms my heart. I watch you laugh with my parents, and it brings a joy to my soul I’ve never experienced. I hold you close to my body at night, and I bury my face into your hair, and the moment I wake up, my heart is filled with every single emotion a man in love could feel.”
“Thomas,” I whispered.
“There are no words to describe what you’ve brought to my life, but I do have the words to tell you that I don’t want to let you go. I don’t want another day to go by where you question where my loyalty lies or where my body lies. I don’t want another moment to go by where you question what might happen in the future or what will happen if this falls apart. I love you, Bridget Meyers, with every single part of my being. Will you marry me so I can spend the rest of my life protecting you and giving you exactly what you deserve?”
“And what is it I deserve?” I asked.
Thomas stood up and plucked the ring from the little velvet case, taking my left hand within his before he poised the ring at the tip of my finger. I could feel his hands shaking around mine, with all of his energy flowing directly into this very moment while he hung onto every word that flew from between my lips.
“The world,” he said.
“Yes,” I said, nodding relentlessly. “Yes, yes, yes! I’ll marry you!”
He slipped that beautiful ring onto my finger, and I threw my arms around his neck. I heard his parents clapping as he picked me up and swung me around, but when my feet hit the sand, I felt a small hand tug at my dress.
“Bridget?” Lacey asked.
“Yes, baby?”
“Will you be my mommy?” she asked.
Tears streamed down my face as I picked her up and swung her around. I planted kisses all over her face while she giggled and kicked in my grasp, and then I set her down and cupped her beautiful face with my hands.
“I would love to be your mommy,” I said.
I wrapped her up in my arms once again before Thomas wrapped both of us up in his. I didn’t know how I could’ve been so stupid as to think this beautiful man would wander off on me like that, but as his grip tightened, I realized I would never feel anything but this for the rest of my life. I felt beautiful, loved, and protected in the arms of this man, and I’d spend every waking moment of my life making sure Lacey was happy and making sure Thomas knew how happy he made me.
Every single day and every single night.
“Come on, you guys!” Mr. Jeffries called out. “I’m hungry!”
“Not gonna lie, but I kinda am, too,” Mrs. Jeffries said.
“How about it?” I asked. “You hungry, Lacey?”
“Always!” she exclaimed.
“What would you like to eat?” Thomas asked her.
“Could we have macaroni and cheese and popsicles?” she asked.
“We can do a popsicle when we get home,” I said.
“But macaroni and cheese for dinner, right?” Lacey asked.
“Whatever you want,” I said.
“Exactly,” Thomas said as my eyes fluttered up to him. “Whatever you want.”
And as his eyes stared directly into mine, I rose up on my toes and captured his lips in a kiss underneath the light of the ocean moon.
***The End***
IT’S NOT OVER YET…THE PARTY HAS JUST STARTED….
As a thank you for downloading this book, this book includes an EXCLUSIVE STORY: DADDY’S FRIENDS, which can be accessed on the next page!
Exclusive Romance: Daddy’s Friends
Chapter 1
I walk out the back door of my home. It is the beginning of June in the suburbs of New York, but bright Christmas lights wrap around the trees and decorate the front porch of my large home. A giant white tent full of round tables underneath it breaks the several acre yard. The bright blue pool shimmers in the light. It is a good thing the water slide has been fixed, because it is a hot and humid evening.
I stand facing the immaculate backyard. Everything is decorated above and beyond the normal college graduation party. I didn't think most people even celebrated graduating with a degree. I thought it is more of a casual dinner with the family, but that is Mark for you. My father loves to put on a good show. It’s always about the show. I adjust the royal blue short dress I am wearing. I love this dress. The way it hugs my curves and lifts my breasts, giving the idea there is more there. My platinum blonde hair is swept up in a large updo I learned how to d
o. I look my best.
The back door slides open, and I hear Mark’s heavy footsteps come up behind me. The tinkling of his ice swishing around in his scotch, lets me know it's him. It's only seven in the evening, but he’s already on his second drink. He stands next to me, taking a long sip. I hear his lips slurp against the glass and my skins crawls. I hate when he does that right in my ear. It is so obnoxious.
One of the caterers scurries by holding a large silver platter of orderves. Fancy little bread things with cheese covering them and some sort of fish. I don’t know. I didn’t pick them out. If it were up to me, it would probably be shrimp or some sort of pizza.
“Looks good,” Mark says, staring out into the yard.
We don’t look at each other. I’ve seen enough of those tired brown eyes and thin lips. He scratches the front of his silver hair.
“It does...thanks,” I say, half-heartedly.
I had been away at college for so long that being home with him becomes almost double the difficulty. We have never gotten along well. I squeeze my hands around the railing and let out a long sigh.
We stand in silence for a short period. There finally comes a warm breeze that is relaxing. I close my eyes and listen to the ice swishing in his glass, as he slurps away.
I glance over and see the sweat on his forehead, but he looks good. I will give him that. Being one of the top heart surgeons in New York, he has always maintained his health.
“What time is everyone coming?” I ask.
“Dinner is to be served at seven thirty.”
“What about Christian and Ryan?”
We look at each other then. My dad shakes his head and takes another long drink. The noise from sucking the drink makes me want to slap the glass right out of his hands.
“I think they are arriving a little later.”
“But do you know when?” There is a light strain in my voice as I ask. Christian and Ryan are the only two people I care about seeing tonight. They might be Mark’s best friends, but to me they are everything. They have been there for me even when my own father hasn’t - no matter what.
“I don’t know, Jasmina. They didn’t say.”
He looks back at the tent and grabs an oyster of a platter passing by us.
“You know I haven’t seen them since my first day of college?”
He nods.
“They’re excited to see you too.” He cracks open the shell of the seafood and throws it back against his tongue.
Suddenly, the stereo begins to play music. I jump at the scare of the intense bass rocking the deck.
“What kind of party did you throw?” I ask my dad. He shrugs.
“A good one. You could try and enjoy it.”
Head lights appear in the driveway, and just like that the first guests have arrived. Mark leaves me, so he can go greet them. I hear the happy voices welcome one another, and then another car pulls into our long wrap-around driveway. My father’s somber expression suddenly shifts into a jovial one. I hate him for that. Why did I never receive that sort of warmth? I shake my head.
More and more cars appear to line up around us, and the people that brought them come onto the yard. I don’t know anyone from the large crowd which now swarms our house like a flock of birds. But I wait, standing at the driveway watching every car that pulls in and everyone who climbs out. Every time one of the guests is not Christian or Ryan, my impatience grows. I chew on my bottom lip. I feel myself getting warm and anxious. The excitement ripples through me with each pulse of my heart.
With no other options, I make my way to the bar Mark has set up in the middle of the tent. A very few amount of people recognize me and congratulate me on receiving my bachelor’s. But most don’t even know who Mark’s daughter is, or the fact that he has one. I’m a great kept secret.
I push my way through a thick crowd of drunks; Jesus, how these people drink; and find my way to the temporary bar counter. My eyes cross a fifth of grey goose vodka. That will have to do for now.
I ask for a vodka and soda. The bartender smiles and quickly makes the drink, setting the clear glass onto the counter. I take a long sip and let the vodka set on my tongue for a moment. The first sip is good, so I waste no time downing the rest.
I hate spending time with my father’s people and peers. I don’t blend in being an Arts and Humanities major. That wasn’t even my first choice, It was the only thing Mark and I could settle on. I wanted just painting, but forget that. You don’t need a degree to do paint is what he told me in response. I argued you go to college to learn not to get a job. That did not go over well. But I was out of the house, and he was far away. His manipulation could no longer work on me. I chose to go Arizona state, and since I went on a full scholarship, there wasn't much he could fight me about.
I slip my fingers around the glass and order another. The bartender sets it down in front of him.
“What time is it?” I ask.
The small man looks down at his phone.
“Its nine.”
I frown. I had been avoiding the clock all night. Why are they taking so long? I wasn’t even going to come out of the house until I found out that Chris and Ryan would be coming,
“Thanks,” I say and start to head up to the deck. I suppose now, I will just go to bed.
I hear my father’s booming voice from across the yard. He stands amongst a group of young entrepreneurs and doctors - only the most elite and the most snobby. They were all part of the same country club. One I had absolutely no interest in.
“Jasmina!” I hear a voice call out. I slowly turn around. Please, god, just go away. An older man, and his wife face me. They look vaguely familiar, but no names come to my mind.
“Hi,” I say forcing a smile.
The man had a short cropped silver beard, and his wife looked like an aged leather Barbie doll. It seems no one told her to quit the plastic surgery. I am sure she was absolutely stunning once.
“Congratulations on getting your degree.”
“Thank you,” I respond, praying that’s the end of that. The woman reaches a long claw out and gently touches my arm.
“We are so excited to hear you chose to go to into medical school instead of pursuing art.”
“Art just is not practical,” the man said in addition. I want to throw up. What is my dad telling people? I glance back in his direction. He makes eye contact with me. In one look, I feel the threat of “Play along, don’t embarrass me in front of these people, or I will make you regret it.“ My stomach churns. He is lying to these people, because he thinks getting an art degree is degrading and shameful. I chew on my bottom lip.
“Yup...it's very unpractical. That’s why people perform drastically better in academics when it's incorporated into their studies.” They stare at me for a long moment. They don’t know what to say. “Football and science. That’s all America needs.” They don’t think I am very funny.
I take a long sip from my glass. I finish it actually. Their over plucked eyebrows furrow in confusion by what I said.
“Did you know that studying music will make you better in maths?” a voice suddenly says behind me. I jump.
“But I do like football and science,” another adds.
I spin around fast to see Ryan and Christian staring at me.
“You guys are here!” I squeal throwing my thin arms around both of them at once. Their arms wrap around me. It is the best feeling in the world. I wish I could stay pushed up against them safe forever.
“Of course we came, baby girl,” Christian whispers in my ear. We pull out of the embrace. I see his handsome blue twinkling eyes. His warm, slightly crooked smile flashes at mine.
“You’ve cut your hair!” I exclaim, reaching up and patting the thick black hair. He used to have it long, but now it was flecked with silver and trimmed short.
“With the gray coming through, it looked way too sloppy,” Ryan adds, slapping Christian on the back. They both laugh.
Ryan’s perfect white teeth shine under a short brown beard. His deep golden, green eyes glance over at me. I feel a warmth spread inside of me as we laugh together. Ryan stands about a head taller than Christian at 6’4’’, but both are in peak shape for forty-five year olds.
My mood completely shifts now that they are here. And I have a new surge of energy.
“Wow, look at you, Jasmina,” Christian says with large round eyes.
“You’re all grown up,” Ryan adds on.
“I know...” I smile and spin, my blue dress twirling around me.
“Well, come on. Let’s go get a drink!” Christian says, waving his muscular arm and heading toward the bar. “It’s time to celebrate!”
“I already have one!” I shout, over the other voices.
“Do you think I care? I don’t!”
The older couple looks offended by our vulgarity. Ryan bends forward in front of me.
“Jaz, jump on my back?”
“I’ll hurt you.”
“What? All 10 pounds of you? Jump!”
I giggle foolishly and piggyback onto Ryan. I wrap my arms around his hard chest. I feel his hands scoop under my thighs and hold tight. I nuzzle my cheek against his neck in a friendly way. But the heat and feeling of his body excite me a little.