Repercussions (The Hot Mess Duet Book 1)

by B. L. Olson

  I instead find my mother carrying another freaking sunflower planted in a pot. I cross my arms across my chest and level her with a glare, "Would you care to explain what is going on with all the sunflowers?"

  She ignores me and selects a spot on the porch for the flower in her arms, then turns to trudge back down the stairs towards Wyatt's truck in the distance. I hadn't noticed it before, but now that I do I can see it is packed full of sunflowers.

  This time I wisely turn slowly at the sound of footsteps on the stairs and see Wyatt. He manages to make sorrowful and regretful look sexy, and I hate him all the more for it. He doesn't get to feel regret for what transpired between us, and he doesn't get to enlist my mother in some sort of apparent scheme to apologize.

  I open my mouth to tell him as much but he puts up a hand up to stop me before I can, "Look, Stormy, I know you want to rage right now. And you have every single fucking right to. I completely suck and failed you not just as your boyfriend, but as a compassionate human being." I wave my hand at him to continue, the corner of his mouth ticks as if he's repressing a smile I didn't tell him to fuck off right then and there.

  I really want to, but the curious writer in me wants to know where he's going with all this, and at the end of the day I have the power to say go away. He might be a badass gunslinger, but I can track down my dad's guns and rival him. We could have a showdown right here on the porch, heck maybe we already are but with words instead of weapons.

  He clears his throat and runs his hand across his face, the stubble from his overgrown facial hair scratching as he does, "I've spent the last two years in a hell made of my own guilt and shame for what happened to Brielle. Rather than fire and brimstone though, mine was made up of darkness and shadows that could consume me at any moment.

  "The very second I met you, Annie, it was like there was light penetrating that shadowed world for the first time in a very long time." He gestures at the flowers scattered across the porch that keeps capturing my attention, "Since I know your curiosity is eating at you, there is a reason for the sunflowers."

  "And?" I demand.

  He lets out a low chuckle, "I'm getting there, Stormy. " His eyes gaze around the porch before they settle on the swing. Gesturing at it he asks gently, "I know you must still be in a lot of pain, why don't you sit down?"

  I war with myself to defy him for the sake of it, but remember that stubbornness is one of those repercussions I need to steer clear of a bit more. And heaven knows my body is screaming at me to get off my feet.

  I drop slowly onto the seat and swing at a pace that won't jostle my body. Wyatt leans against the railing on the deck across from me and continues where he left off while my mom unloads the rest of the flowers from the truck and ignores us, "Anyways, your light guided me to the very edge of the darkness. A spot where I could stand and ponder on a life better than the one I was living, consider returning to the career I worked so hard for, and reflect on the woman that I fucking love with everything in me."

  My eyes skirt to his and I see the truth in his eyes at his admission, "You don't just leave someone you love like that, alone and broken in a hospital bed."

  Shame crosses his features before he schools his expression, "You're right, you don't do that. The accident was the catalyst my subconscious used to shove me right back into the depths of the darkness, and while that doesn't excuse my actions, it was too soon for someone who was only just getting accustomed to the light."

  He sits down next to me and is silent for a long moment, "The thought of losing you when I just gained you, and the similarities to my old insecurities caused me to push you away at the worst fucking time. I abhor myself for leaving you when you needed me to be strong for the both of us and I regret not telling you about my daughter myself. I sincerely apologize you had to find out from someone else, I couldn't bring myself to utter the words to you."

  "I don't need you to be strong for me, Wyatt. I am strong enough all on my own."

  He turns and regards me for a moment, "Fuck if I don't know it. And as much as I should let you get over me and move on with someone else, that thought has me freaking putting myself back together faster than I ever thought possible. The idea of a life without you Annie scares the ever-loving shit out of me. And while there's still the possibility that one day your clumsy ass will kill you, at least I would get a chance to love you every moment until then without regret."

  I ponder his words for a moment and trail my eyes over the sunflowers. He must have asked my mom what my favorite flower is, there is no way he could know that I prefer the sunny and cheery flower.

  His gruff voice breaks through my thoughts, "So, the reason for the sunflowers."

  I turn to give him a knowing look, "My mother?"

  He looks confused but continues, "No? How much do you know about sunflowers?"

  "A bit considering they're my favorite flower."

  He looks surprised for a moment before he stretches out across the bench, his arm reaching along the back of the swing behind me, "Well then you know that much like you being the light that guided me out of the darkness, the sunflower follows the sun to soak up every available ray of sunshine." He gestures at the closest sunflower sitting in front of us, "What I am trying to say, Annie, is that I am this sunflower. Without your light to guide me, I will forever be lost in the shadows."

  I try not to let his confession defrost my attitude towards him, but damned if I am losing the battle. My gaze trails back over the sunflowers and I decide that if he wants me, he would fight. Declaration of love aside, I have to know that he is willing to go to the mat for me and not run at the next sign of conflict.

  "I don't know Wyatt. I've been doing pretty well single ladying it up lately." I pick some fuzz off my loose cotton t-shirt and refuse to meet his powerful gaze.

  "Knock it off." I try not to smile at his command. He's going to give me the fight I so desperately want. The one I craved and missed for the past several days.

  "Excuse me? Knock what off?"

  "I know what you're doing and I get it, okay? But this is me, here fighting for you Annie, and I will spend every single day doing the same until you get it through your stubborn freaking head that I love you, and you love me too."

  My eyes meet his and I let out a small sigh, "I can't help it. You're such a frustratingly beautiful bastard."

  He lets out a small laugh and gently scoots closer to me on the seat, "But I am your frustratingly beautiful bastard. And you wouldn't have me any other way."

  I lean my head on his shoulder and agree with him, "There's only ever you Gunslinger. And I can't believe you were going to make me go it alone without my backup for the rest of my life."

  He kisses my forehead and murmurs into my hair, "Never again. I solemnly vow that from now on it is Stormy and Gunslinger against the world. "

  I sit up slowly and turn to face him, "I love you, Wyatt." It's the first time I have said it aloud to him, and it just feels right. I may be giving him the key to breaking me again, but I have faith he would never dare. That he actually learned from his repercussions.

  He leans forward and cups my chin, placing a gentle kiss against my lips, "I love you too Annie."

  Chapter 25- Wyatt

  Repercussion #369: There is no such thing as secrets in a small town. Even the most well-guarded ones can leak and wreak havoc on your personal life.

  FIVE MONTHS LATER…

  The moment I unfold my long legs from the truck, a drug out wolf whistle is directed right at me. Turning in the direction it came from, I see Annie swinging on the swing I built for her on our own porch.

  Ours. I wasted no time in asking her to move in with me, showing her that I am true to my word on not wasting a single moment between now and when one of us inevitably bites the dust. With her clumsiness and my career choice, it's a toss-up on which one of us it will be. Maybe we would both get lucky and live into old age together, playing Bingo at the same rec center my grandmother kn
ocked some sense into me.

  I approach the porch and Annie appraises me standing in my uniform before her, a slow grin overtaking her face, "I don't think I'll ever get over seeing you in your uniform Gunslinger. I want to jump you whenever you're wearing it." Her fingers grip my belt and tug me closer.

  I lean down to give her a kiss and casually rub my hand over her belly, "Probably how this happened for the second time in less than a year."

  She lets out a snort and turns her head towards her parent's house next door, "Are you sure we need to tell them today? I'm finally out of their house and out from under their thumb. Telling them they have a grandchild on the way will only cause my mom to tighten her leash and give me a bunch of unsolicited advice."

  "Stormy, you're already in your second trimester. Sooner or later, your parents are going to notice." I sit down on the swing next to her, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close.

  "I've made it this far without them noticing anything amiss."

  "That's because you're always a hot mess. Pregnancy hormones only amplify it." I let out an oof when she pokes me harshly in the ribs.

  "Speaking of pregnancy, we're gonna have to be careful Gunslinger or we are going to end up with an entire brood of kids."

  I waggle my eyebrows at her, "I can't help it if I am extremely virile."

  Annie rolls her eyes at me and moves as if to stand up. I lock my arms around her to get her to sit with me just a bit longer, "I want to hear how the second book is coming along."

  There have been a lot of changes the last few months, all for the better. Annie finished her first book and had her pick of publishing contracts when she wrapped up her edits and has been weighing her options between traditional and self-publication. She's currently plugging away at her second highly-anticipated book while the first is getting ready for release.

  She's come a long ways from the woman I found stuck to my fence that day in the storm. I couldn't be more proud to watch her grow and build her name, and a career she is passionate about. I even talked her into quitting the library so she would have more time to write.

  Man was that a fight. But I will always love fighting with my woman.

  As for me, I am back on the force full time. I still have days where I experience hurtful flashbacks, but coming home to Annie at the end of the day has made those moments bearable. She is constantly guiding me out of the dark and back into the light and I fucking love her for it.

  "It's going amazingly! I just finished the part where-" the slam of a door next door makes both of us jump and Natalie Ellis comes storming out of her house and heads our way.

  "Annie Taylor Ellis. How dare you not tell me?" I watch the color drain from her face at the thought that somewhere, somehow her mom has found out the secret she has been hiding from her.

  Little does Annie know, Natalie isn't quite done not so secretly meddling in our relationship.

  Trying to keep the smile off my face at the act, I try and mirror Annie's own flabbergasted expression, 'What didn't I tell you, mom?"

  She gives her daughter a cold glare, clearly getting into the role we talked about, "I just heard from Jeanine down at the bank that you and Wyatt are getting married! Why the heck didn't you tell me? Let me see the ring!" She holds her hands out and uses the gimme gesture.

  Annie shoots me a bewildered look before turning her attention back on her mom, "I don't know what you're talking about mom. Wyatt and I aren't engaged." She turns to me for backup, "Right?"

  I shrug nonchalantly, "We had a fake relationship there for a while, why not give a fake engagement a try?"

  She looks at me like I've grown a second head, "What the heck are you talking about?"

  I slowly stand up from the swing so I can kneel down on the porch in front of her, her eyes growing wide as realization sets in, "Maybe not a fake engagement though. I very much want to marry you for real, just like I wanted to date you back then and couldn't let myself consider it.

  Annie, I have watched you grow and become a stubbornly independent woman. I know what I am asking may seem like you are giving up the last bit of freedom you have, but I promise you I will spend every moment of marriage showing you that I love you and the family we are building together. That we can tackle any obstacle, overcome any injury or hurt, and argue and still love each other at the end of the day."

  Digging into my uniform pocket for the velvet box I stuck in there just minutes before in my truck, I clasp my fingers around it and bring it out and hold it in front of Annie. Tears start to build up in her eyes as she fully realizes that this isn't an act or pretend. I want to marry the fuck out this woman.

  "Stormy, will you marry me?"

  The girl of my dreams nods her head enthusiastically before throwing her arms around me, giving me a hungry kiss. Breaking from the embrace she sticks her left hand out so I can slide the ring her mother helped me pick out onto her finger. The white gold band with one large diamond surrounded by a halo of smaller ones fits perfectly.

  Neither of us are strangers to life dealing us a rough hand, but at this moment I know that everything we endured led us here.

  Together, in love, and better for it.

  Epilogue- Annie

  "Will you hurry? Maddie is going to Skype us any moment."

  I let out a huff and waddle towards the computer he set up on the bar in the kitchen, "It's getting slightly harder to move around the fatter I get here. Some sympathy since you are part of the reason I got fat would be nice."

  My fiance gives me a chastised grin and pulls the stool next to him out for me. Before I can even think about climbing into the thing, he picks me up with zero effort and sets me down on the bar stool. I don't think I will ever get used to being picked up with those strong ass arms my man has, even with a plus one on board at the moment.

  Wedding planning is going amazingly, the one thing we don't seem to fight about. We both want something simple and it was a no-brainer when we chose sunflowers as the central theme. We were just waiting for the baby to come and things to die down before we went through with it. I've been pretty adamant about not looking like a fat cow in the pictures I would be staring at for the rest of my life.

  Wyatt argues that I look even more beautiful with my pregnancy glow, and doesn't seem to believe me when I explain that it's just a constant sheen of sweat. The date of the wedding has been the one thing we fight about, him wanting sooner rather than later, but it's an argument I won in the end.

  I can't wait to fight with him for the rest of our lives.

  "How is she doing being back in your hometown?" I drum my fingers on the bar and wait for the call sign to pop up on the computer screen between us.

  "I've kind of been worried that it would freak her out being away from everything that became comfortable and familiar to her, and to a place that has almost as many bad memories for her as overseas does. But I think she is handling it pretty well, all things considered."

  The familiar Skype ringtone sound bounces around our kitchen and Wyatt leans over to connect the call. Maddie's serious expression fills the screen, her dark hair up in a messy bun on top of her head, and a fire burning in her eyes.

  "Hey there Mads, did you get to meet your new boss today?"

  Maddie had been contacted by a restaurant owner back in her old town in Michigan that heard about her culinary graduation and offered her a job overhauling their kitchen and menu. She took a page from her big brother's book and decided it was time for a fresh start for herself, to hopefully overcome the consequences of what occurred during her time in the military.

  "Yeah, you wanna know who the freaking bar and restaurant manager is?"

  Wyatt looks confused at his sister's outburst, Maddie not one for big displays of emotion unless she is dealing with a flashback that came on suddenly, "Who?"

  "Graham fucking Mathis is who."

  Wyatt blocks the camera with his thumb for a moment and shoots me a smirk. I have no idea w
ho Graham is, but it looks like Maddie is in for some fun if her brother's reaction is any indication.

  Wyatt removes his thumb from the screen and asks his sister, "So you skip town and break his heart, only to end up right back where you started?"

  Maddie lets out a huff and starts picking at her nails, "You know leaving wasn't entirely my idea, the townsfolk didn't want me here any more than I wanted to be." She stops picking and looks back into the camera, "Enough about my miserable luck. Are you two finally going to tell me if I am going to have a niece or nephew?"

  I give Wyatt a nod in permission. We would be sharing that information with the rest of the family later that day anyway, "You're going to have a niece lil' sis."

  Maddie squeals and claps her hands together, probably the most excitement she has shown around me since meeting her, "And have you two decided on a name yet?"

  The thought of the name we picked warms me from head to toe. We went back and forth on all the possibilities, all the ways to honor the baby we lost, the people in our lives who touched us and helped us become the people we are today.

  I turn to look at Wyatt and see him studying me, the happiest and goofiest grin on his face, and reply to his sister's question, "Fern. Her name will be Fern Layla Haynes."

  Acknowledgements

  It has been a long journey to get to this release. Twenty long years of abandoned projects, stray ideas, and a cycle of various voices in my mind.

  My best friend Heather was the first and only person for a long time to be subjected to my earlier projects. She is always there for me to bounce ideas off of, tell me when my plot ideas need to be reworked or thought about more, and even helps me name random places and characters when I draw a blank. I would not have gotten to the point of writing, let alone publishing, Repercussions without her. Thank you so much babe for everything!