by Sabre Rose
“Liar.”
Sadie moved to the couch and flopped down, blinking at me expectantly. “So,” she said, drawing the word out and resting her chin in her hands. “Where’s he taking you? What are you going to wear?”
“Maria’s, I imagine,” I replied, before realising she was mocking me.
“Well don’t mind me, here, alone, while you two go out and celebrate. I’m sure I’ll find something to amuse myself.”
I rolled my eyes and she laughed, leaning back into the couch and resting her hands behind her head. “I’m actually going out for dinner myself.”
“A date?” I asked, surprised. Sadie had not been on one single date that I knew of since I’d moved in. I’d heard the odd man sneak out of her room at horrendous times of the night, but she insists they were all nothing but a way to relieve an itch.
“Sort of.” She shrugged then grinned. “My little sister, Roan, is in town. She fancies herself a writer and she’s heading away to do some sort of travel article thing on this old bed and breakfast we used to stay in. She wanted to catch up before she left.”
A frown creased. “I didn’t know you had a younger sister.”
“And I didn’t know it was your birthday.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Guess we both learned something new today.” Sighing, she got to her feet. “Don’t forget we’re meeting that new client tomorrow,” she called as she walked down the hall. “I wouldn’t want you to get all distracted tonight and forget about it.”
“I love how much you trust my professionalism!” I called after her.
After receiving a sung version of Happy Birthday from Peta and her boys, complete with a tambourine, and enduring an awkward conversation with Mother where I told her I was back with Tyler, I started to get ready for my date. It was a strange sensation. Something I had never done before. Things had developed so quickly between us, and we fell into the sexual part of our relationship so easily, it had never occurred to me that we had pretty much missed the dating aspect. But things would be different this time. There was no urgency. No sense of guilt about Gabe. There was just us.
* * *
Tyler knocked on the door. Dressed in a dark suit, hair slicked back from his face and a black box between his fingers, he took my breath away.
“Hi,” I said, suddenly feeling self-conscious.
“Hi,” he breathed back. Stepping forward he held out the box and placed a chaste kiss on my cheek. “Happy Birthday,” he whispered in my ear. My heart fluttered as his scent invaded me, flooding me with memories of every time we had been together. Mentally scolding myself, I took a step back, allowing him into the house. I played with the box, between my hands, running my fingers over the ribbon that held it together, all the while my eyes flicking up and down to meet Tyler’s.
“Are you going to open it? His smile was teasing. Even though this nervousness had descended on me, it hadn’t on Tyler.
I laughed and it sounded odd and strained. Plucking at the end of the ribbon, I pulled it away from the box.
“Wait,” Tyler said, his hand moving to cover mine. I looked up at him again, a question in my eyes as he brought his hands to my face, cupping it gently as he lowered his mouth to mine. When our lips touched, all of the nervousness and tension released from me and I melted into him.
“There,” he said when he finally released me. “That’s better.” And it was.
Inside the box was a fine platinum chain, with a single tear-drop shaped diamond hanging from it. I gasped at its elegance, my hand coming to cover my mouth. “It’s beautiful,” I said, almost in a hushed whisper.
“Happy birthday,” he said again, taking the necklace and moving behind to loop it around my neck. “I’ve had this for a while. I was going to give it to you for your birthday whether you were with me or not. But I am mightily pleased you agreed to have me back.”
“Mightily pleased?” I teased.
“Mightily pleased,” he repeated, stepping closer. Without warning, the playfulness left his eyes and his stance became taut. His eyes darkened with lust and he gave me a look that had me wanting to melt into a quivering mess of desire. Instead, I cleared my throat and placed my hand on his chest with a warning glare. “Enough of that, Tyler Thornton. You promised to take me to dinner.”
A smirk slowly overtook his expression. “And take you to dinner I will,” he said, stepping back and holding out the crook of his elbow. “Shall we?”
Looping my arm through him, he led me to the car waiting complete with driver to whisk us away. Tyler slid into the back seat beside me, reaching out to take my hand and running his thumb over the soft flesh of my palm. “You look divine, by the way.”
“Divine?” I repeated.
“Like an angel.” Lifting my hand, he brushed a kiss across my knuckles.
The dress I had chosen was admittedly one of Sadie’s, but one she had never worn. It was white, with little embellishment and had a low scooping back that I knew Tyler would love. “If I’m an angel, what does that make you?”
My mind flew back to the first time I had met Tyler. I had been hidden behind Gabe, peering at him from over Gabe’s shoulder and it had struck me how different the brothers were. Gabe had been so sweet and light, I considered him my angel at the time, making me believe that the dark intensity of Tyler had to be more of the devil. I knew better now. Devil or angel, I didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was that he was mine.
“Who made the angels fall?” Tyler asked, lifting that one brow.
“I believe they made that decision themselves, though I’m sure Lucifer helped,” I replied, casting my mind back to the bible stories my mother had drilled into me as a child.
“Well, call me Lucifer,” he replied and winked wickedly. “Though there is only one direction I want you falling and that is straight into my arms.”
I couldn’t keep a straight face at that and threw my head back in laughter.
“Too much?” Tyler questioned.
“Definitely too much,” I replied. “I think you would have had Sadie running to the bathroom for that one.”
Tyler screwed up his face in confusion but I kissed it away.
The car didn’t take us where I had expected. Instead, we pulled up at a restaurant renowned for its exclusivity and long wait lists. “How did you get us in here?” I asked, stepping out of the car, careful to lift the hem of my skirt.
“I would like to say, I have my connections, but I booked-in months ago and could never quite stand to cancel. I guess, deep down, I was always hoping that you would find your way back to me.”
“Or,” I suggested. “That you would come to your senses and get over your jealousy of Gabe.”
“Or that,” he agreed.
Dinner was a more accurate use of the word divine than my appearance. Or, at least in my opinion. Every dish was exquisite. Every morsel mouth-watering.
We discussed Hamish and Billie and little baby Oliver, and Gabe and Jake’s desire to start a gym. Tyler told me how he didn’t really hear from his father anymore, he was too busy being super-dad and a health-nut, even taking the baby to music and movement classes. We laughed over the pictures Billie had posted on social media.
But there was something distracting Tyler. He wasn’t as in command or as relaxed as he normally was. Every now and again, I could feel the vibrations as his leg jiggled under the table and he would chew on his bottom lip. As much as I loved watching his mouth work like that, I knew something was bothering him and it could only be one thing. One thing he hadn’t mentioned and I suspected it was because he didn’t want to taint my birthday with his drama. But what he didn’t understand was that I wanted to be a part of his life. Every part of his life.
“Are you nervous about the weekend?” I asked once the last mouthful of some delicious dessert with a strange name had slipped down my throat.
His shoulders slumped ever so slightly. “I’m sorry.” He reached across to take my hand. “I didn’t want to talk about this on you
r birthday.”
“I want to hear.” And then I added an, “honestly” when he looked at me sceptically. “She told him today, didn’t she? Have you heard how it went?”
Tyler cleared his throat. “She called earlier.” He paused for a moment. “It was a shock, obviously but she said he’s keen to meet me and looking forward to it.”
“Of course he is,” I said, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze. “You’re his father.” I think I said it more to remind myself than Tyler. “Did you tell her that I was coming with you?”
Tyler’s eyes jerked to mine, a frown crossing his expression. “No. Should I have?”
I sighed deeply. “Yes,” I replied. “It probably would have been a good idea. She’s agreed for you to meet him. You. His father. Not his father’s girlfriend.”
Tyler scoffed. “Girlfriend. It’s such an inconsequential word for what you are to me.”
“Nevertheless,” I replied. “It’s exactly what I am.”
“I’ll call Claude again tomorrow then and let her know.”
My heart winced a little at the familiarity of her shortened name. It hadn’t really struck me before, but I was about to meet his ex-girlfriend. The only one who Tyler had told me ever meant anything to him. His first. But I pushed away that uncomfortable feeling. She was the mother of his child. There would be no avoiding her if I wanted to be with Tyler. And after all the lectures I had given him on his jealousy of Gabe, envy was not going to sit well on me.
“Is there a Mr Claudia?” I asked cautiously.
“Mr Claudia?” Tyler paused for a minute. “I never thought to ask. I guess there could be. Dante could already have a father figure in his life. I hadn’t thought of that. Oh, god.” He ran his hands through his hair. “I really hadn’t thought of that. What if he thinks I’m trying to take his place? What if Dante’s happy with his step-father and doesn’t want anything to do with me?”
“You don’t even know if the man exists. I wouldn’t start worrying just yet.”
Tyler took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling. “You’re right. Let’s just put it out of our minds and enjoy ourselves for tonight. Are you ready to go?”
“Go where?”
“It’s a surprise.” Tyler winked and gathered his jacket from the back of the chair, tossing it over his shoulders.
We walked out into the coolness of the night and Tyler took my hand, pulling me towards the centre of the city. “It’s not far,” he assured me.
We strolled through the city, under the twinkling lights that decorated the cafés and bars along the edge of the river until we stopped in front of the old movie theatre.
“The movies?” I asked, peering up at the old-fashioned cinema, with the movie titles proudly lit over the entrance.
“We never really did date,” Tyler said, looking down at me. “I thought of lots of different places to take you, but in the end, I thought a classic first date, dinner and a movie was the best place to start.”
I laughed, thinking how similar his thoughts were to mine.
“Do you hate it?” he asked, his face wincing in anticipation of my displeasure.
I took his cheeks between my hands and planted a loud kiss on his lips. “It’s perfect.”
“We can go somewhere else if you prefer. I could take you dancing. I could take you to the museum, I know someone who would let us in and we could stroll around without anyone else there, or I could—”
I cut him off with another kiss. “It is perfect,” I said again, looking him straight in the eye. “What are we going to see?”
“Whatever you want,” he replied. “I booked an entire theatre.”
“You what? That’s hardly first date material.”
“And here I thought I was being romantic,” he said with a sly grin.
In the end, we slid into the back seats of the empty theatre, but I barely saw any of the movie as I couldn’t concentrate. Tyler was too close. His hand was too warm resting on my thigh, and the only thing I wanted to do was take him home and devour him. And as soon as the movie finished, that’s exactly what I did.
21
LAUREN
Tyler was a mess. His knuckles were white as they gripped onto the steering wheel. The muscles of his jaw were clenched and tight, though every now and again he would unclench them long enough to chew on his bottom lip so hard I was afraid it would start to bleed.
There was very little I could do to help, other than sit by his side, ready to talk, ready to do anything to help ease the anxiety twisting within him. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like meeting the son you never knew you had.
I was nervous as well. Not only was I going to meet Tyler’s son, I was also meeting his ex-girlfriend and his mother. No pressure. I had almost laughed out loud when it occurred to me. But no matter what I was feeling, this meeting wasn’t about me. I was here for Tyler. I was here to lend him strength, to give him someone to lean on.
We were to meet at his mother’s house. Tyler and I would arrive around six o’clock in the evening, and Claudia and Dante would arrive later. Tyler had assured me that he had called ahead and let Claudia know that I would be with him, but he never told me her reaction to the news.
We pulled into the driveway of a modest house. It was nothing like the mansions that Hamish chose to live in. It was a simple block-styled house, weather-beaten but loved. The door swung open with a creak as soon as we stepped out of the car, and a lady with salt and pepper hair styled into a short bob smiled at us from the front porch. Tyler approached and held out his hand, but she pulled him in for an embrace, despite his obvious resistance.
“And you must be Lauren.” She walked over, arms open and ready to hug me. I glanced Tyler’s way, but he was too busy pacing the small porch, his jaw once again bulging in and out.
“It’s wonderful to meet you Mrs—” I stopped, unsure what to call her.
“Please, just call me Diana. Tyler does.” She shot a look Tyler’s way, but he didn’t notice. “Come in,” she urged. “Make yourselves at home. Claude and Dante won’t be arriving for a little while so I’ve got the kettle on and we can all have a cup of tea.”
I’m not sure what I was expecting of the mother of Tyler Thornton, but this woman who moved around the small kitchen with ease, ragged jeans adorning her legs and an over-sized woollen jersey hanging off her shoulders was not it. There was nothing about her that reminded me of Tyler. I couldn’t imagine her in the Thornton world at all. She chatted easily about nothing, the weather, the flooding that had recently passed through the town and she asked about Sadie and the company we had started. For someone who hadn’t had much contact with her son, she sure knew a lot about his life. I guess that was because of Jake. She informed me that he called every week to keep her up to date, although he was yet to come and visit her since he had been home. She said he had demons he needed to chase away first.
Tyler sat silently through it all, only speaking when his mother directly asked him questions. And even then his answers were as short as possible to the point of being rude. She didn’t seem to notice or at least acted as though she didn’t, but there was an eagerness in her eyes that was hard to miss. She was desperate for contact with Tyler. She would take anything she could get.
There was nothing about her to indicate her past apart from a lone plaque on the wall. The mantra that many addicts lived by. A prayer of sorts. There was no twitch to her movements. I don’t know why I expected one, but from the way Tyler had described her, I imagined a woman desperate for release. A woman who was only holding on by a thread to her sobriety. Instead, she was a woman like any other, and I felt shamed by my assumptions.
When tyres crunched on the gravel, Tyler’s shoulders tensed. He looked over at me, his eyes darting between mine, searching for something, maybe strength, maybe reassurance. Whatever it was, I hope he found it. Taking his hand, I squeezed tightly.
“You okay?” I whispered as Diana opened the door and called out a cheerful g
reeting.
With a deep breath, Tyler nodded. “I have never been so desperate for someone to like me before I’ve even met them,” he said, his words getting caught in his throat.
In the doorway, Diana wrapped her arms around someone and dark hair appeared over her shoulder. Tyler closed his eyes for a moment, as though sending up a silent prayer and stepped forward as Diana released Dante from her embrace. Turning with a wide smile on her face, she spoke. “Dante, I would like you to meet your father. Tyler, this is your son, Dante.”
It was like the entire house held its breath as the two of them looked at each other with the same expression on their faces. Tyler was the first to step forward, offering his hand to the boy and clearing his throat. “Dante, I can’t tell you how good it is to meet you.”
Dante shook his hand before breaking into an ear-splitting grin. “I guess now I know why I don’t look like my mother.”
Tyler laughed nervously and turned to me. “Claudia, Dante, I’d like you to meet my partner, Lauren.”
“Gidday,” Dante said easily as I held out my hand.
His mother greeted me from the doorway with a cool, “Hello,” and a nod of her head. Her eyes narrowed as she looked me up and down, and I got the impression that Tyler’s announcement of my accompanying him didn’t go all that well.
“Where are your bags?” Diana asked, breaking the start of what was about to be an awkward silence. “I’ve made up the spare bedroom for you two.”
“I’ve booked the hotel in town,” Tyler replied, his eyes never leaving his son.
“Nonsense,” Diana dismissed. “Why would you stay there when you can stay here?”
“I thought it would be more comfortable for everyone.”
Diana gave Claudia a knowing look then plastered a smile back on her face. “Well, why doesn’t everyone take a seat and get to know each other. Lauren, would you like to join me in getting some refreshments while this little family reacquaint themselves.”
Family. The word struck my heart. That’s what they were. A family. I cleared the knot in my throat, reminding myself internally that this was about Tyler and Dante and not about me, and smiled politely.