One Night Bride

by Brooks, Sarah J.

  I didn’t feel all that lively, though, and every inch of my body ached with a hangover. Since moving home, my parents gave me the freedom to come and go as I pleased, although they still worried about me, and they certainly didn’t like it if I came home late and woke them up. My father probably worried just as much now as he had when I was in high school, but at least he wasn’t sitting in the old recliner waiting up for me every night.

  “Dinner at Romeo’s tonight if you’re home at six. Otherwise, we will bring you some leftovers. Love you, sweetheart,” my mother said, and then I heard the front door close behind them as they didn’t wait for me to respond.

  My eyes were practically glued shut, and my lips were so dry that I felt them crack as I opened my mouth. A late night of partying always had a morning of suffering attached to it for me. I couldn’t understand how Anna never seemed to have a hangover. She wasn’t even legally old enough to drink, yet she was much better at it than I was. Drinking and partying weren’t always my thing, but since breaking up with my boyfriend and moving back in with my parents, drinking felt like the right thing to do at this particular moment in my life. I was trying to find myself. Trying to find the next big thing in my life, and there was no hurry as I navigated the fun of the moment.

  My phone alarm went off, and I listened to Aerosmith for a whole minute before I reached for my phone and turned it off. It was 10 o’clock, and I had set my alarm to ensure I wouldn’t sleep in too much because I wanted to work out. As I rolled out of the bed, the dehydration from my alcohol was evident by the tightness in my legs and my lips as they stuck together. My muscles cramped up in pain at the slightest of movement, and I winced at the idea of exercising. It was going to be a tough run with this level of alcohol aftermath, but all I had to look forward to right now was partying and building up my running so I could do a marathon.

  I glanced out my window to see what the day looked like and was met with the warmth of the morning sun. It was June in Chicago, and I couldn’t have asked for a better day. The sky was clear of all clouds with brilliant blue ricocheting from one side of the horizon to the other. I slipped into my favorite red sports bra and black running tights and made my way downstairs.

  After drinking more water, I headed out the door at a slow enough pace to warm up and let my muscles adjust to their current condition. It was my opinion that even a slow short run was better than not going for a run at all. But only two blocks from my house my phone started ringing, so I slowed to a walk and answered it. I’d already conquered a big hurdle in actually getting out the door to go for a run; a short walk wouldn’t hinder my workout all that much.

  “Hey Monica, what’s up?” I said to my friend from work.

  “I really need you to take my shift today. Please, please, please,” she said as I heard one of her kids in the background vomiting.

  Monica was one of the most responsible girls I’d ever met. If she was calling me to work for her, there was going to be a good reason. We worked with a lot of flakes and people who hardly ever showed up on time for work. Unfortunately, our facility just didn’t pay enough to keep the high-end nurses and assistants working there. But Monica was responsible, and I was a close second behind her. I worked second shift purely so I could go out partying and not have to worry about being late for work. It was my way of being responsible while also getting to be a little wild for a change.

  “Oh, man, who’s that?”

  “It’s Chance, but Elizabeth has a fever too. I think it’s just a matter of time before she gets to the puking. I hope I don’t end up sick as well. I can’t afford to take more than one day off from work.”

  “Aww, I’m sorry Monica. Sure, I can work instead of you. Can I go in at noon?”

  “You can go in anytime you’d like. They will just be so happy to have someone there. I know they were already short staffed, so when I called in sick, they weren’t very happy. I’ll call them back right away and tell Jackson you’ll be in at noon.”

  “I can use the money. I spend more drinking than I’m saving at this point. I know my parents don’t mind me staying here, but I’d like to get my own apartment sometime before the year is up.”

  “Thanks so much, I owe you big time.”

  I started to jog in place as we wrapped up our conversation. If I had to get to work, I needed to finish my workout faster than I had planned, which meant I was going to have to pick up the pace. My leg muscles were still wobbly, but at least they weren’t cramping up like they had done when I first woke up.

  “When the kids get better, come out some night with me and the girls. You really need a night on the town.”

  “Sure, that sounds fun,” Monica said totally unconvincingly. She always said she would come out with us, but the reality of married life and her children always took precedence, which was understandable.

  As I hung up the phone, I tried to put it back in my armband carrier while I kept jogging around a tight sidewalk corner. I didn’t see him coming at all as my body rammed right into another runner as he was coming around the corner the opposite direction. My hands pressed up against the rock hard muscles of his chest, and I was stunned into silence and stood there wobbly and unbalanced as I looked up at the man.

  “Woah there little lady,” he said as he reached out and grabbed me before I fell to the ground.

  His large hand wrapped around my forearm, but then his other arm reached behind me and supported my back all in one swift motion. I was thrown off by the collision, and it took me a moment to figure out who it was I had just run into. My chest heaved as I tried to catch my breath, and my brain started to register who he was.

  “Oh, it’s you,” I said as I found my balance and looked up at the hot neighbor who was standing in front of me.

  “It’s me,” he said calmly and pulled his hands away while he took a step backward to give me some space. “I’m Devin, by the way.”

  My heart fluttered as I looked up at him. Something was different about him, and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. His hair was tussled like every other time I’d seen him through the window. His facial hair was just past the five-o’clock shadow range, similar to how it normally was. He smiled at me, and I smiled back at him still unable to put my finger on what was different.

  The buzz of my heart filled my ears, and I wasn’t sure if he had actually said something to me or not. So I just stood there looking at him and trying to figure out what I should say. What does a girl say to the hottest man she’s ever been face to face with? I searched my mind for a witty remark but couldn’t think of a thing to say.

  “You are wearing a shirt,” I said suddenly before I could stop the words from leaving my mouth. That was what was different about him from all those times I’d seen him through his window.

  He burst into laughter as he nodded his head in agreement. His smile was perfection with brilliant white teeth that looked like they were perfectly shaped for his mouth. His lips pulled back and curled up, and the lines near his eyes gave me a clue that he was at least ten years older than I was. I guessed that he was in his mid-thirties.

  “But you don’t,” he said with a wink.

  “I don’t what?” I asked in total confusion.

  My brain clearly wasn’t working in full force as his witty humor flew right over me. Instead, I stood there looking puzzled at what he thought I didn’t have.

  “You don’t have a shirt on.”

  I suddenly looked down as if I was actually out running without a shirt on. But he was making a joke about my sports bra as a top. My face flushed red at his comment, and I tried to respond without sounding too childish.

  “Oh my gosh.” I laughed. “I guess that’s technically right … well … I better keep moving,” I said as I started to walk away. “Enjoy your run. Oh, and sorry for all the noise last night.”

  I didn’t want to keep running or stop talking to him, but I couldn’t just stand there and let him flirt with me and not be able to respond in a decent ma
nner. My only option was to get away as quickly as possible and try to save a little bit of mystery. He was throwing me off my game. My mind was a jumbled mess, and I spoke to him like a little girl talking to a man she had a crush on. Nothing about that conversation was going to make him think I was a woman, and he probably thought I was some teenage girl or something like that.

  “No problem. Enjoy your run too,” he said as he returned to running.

  I couldn’t help turning and watching as he ran back toward our houses. His body was clearly his temple. Every inch of the man was covered with muscle. Devin held his arms in tight next to him with his head up in a focused sprint down the block. I’d lost this interaction battle though; he had clearly had the upper hand.

  Instead of running, I walked as I replayed the conversation in my head. He had told me his name, but I hadn’t told him my name. Instead, I’d acted like a love-struck teenager who didn’t know how to talk to a man. He was older than me, more mature, more controlled and calmer than I could ever be. Devin had flirted with me, and I’d barely been able to look him in the eyes. As much as I wanted to tease and flirt with this guy, I was just better at doing it with a window between us.

  I started to pick up the pace and jog as the disaster of my interaction kept running through my head over and over again. Soon I was in a full on sprint as I ran farther than I had intended to run and turned around and kept running all the way back home. This had been my chance to wow my hot neighbor guy, Devin. But instead of a wow, I’d given a flaming fizzle of a performance.

  My chest heaved as I made it to my lawn and collapsed in exhaustion. There was no cool down, just an all-out sprint and collapse when I made it home. The day had warmed up to nearly 80 degrees which was perfect as I lay there and let myself catch my breath before heading inside. I pulled one leg toward me to stretch and then the other, while I looked up at the sky and tried to think of any possible way I could win back the balance of my liaison with my hot neighbor Devin.

  When I felt the strength return to my legs, I gingerly made it into my house and climbed upstairs to my room. I stripped off my sweaty clothes and looked for my work outfit so I could take a shower. My curtains were still open, and I walked over to close them before Devin got too much of a show. But there he was, standing right in the middle of his bedroom with a towel wrapped around after finishing his shower.

  I quickly grabbed the corner of my curtain and pulled it in front of me. The quick movement of the curtains got the attention of Devin, and he turned toward the window and walked my way. My breath quickened as I thought of what to do next. If I just hid behind the curtain after he clearly had seen me, then I was continuing to play the little girl role. I was twenty-one years old. Devin needed to know that I wasn’t a little girl. Plus, I was much better at flirting when words weren’t involved.

  We were in the midst of a little cat and mouse game as I quickly turned away from the window and took a step deeper into my room, but I held onto the curtain, and he stayed at his window watching. I smiled at the thought of him standing there looking for me to turn back around, but I didn’t want to turn around and just stood there like some weirdo.

  I reached over and grabbed my bright red lipstick from my makeup table. Then, I turned back toward Devin’s house and used the lipstick to write on the window. Slowly, I thought about how to write my name so that he could read it. With my left hand, I held the curtain in front of me and looked up at Devin as his eyes kept an intense stare in my direction.

  I didn’t look up to see if he was still there; instead, I concentrated on writing the letters large and clear so he could see them. When I was finished with the last ‘I’, I looked up and saw Devin standing there still in his towel and waiting for me to finish. He cocked his head to the side slightly and squinted his eyes as he read my writing from his window.

  He mouthed the words, “Hi, Lilli,” and I giggled.

  “Hi,” I mouthed back to him and gave a short single wave.

  His gaze stayed focused on mine with a sexual power I’d never known before. I felt the dirty thoughts running through his mind as my whole body warmed. His eyes narrowed, and the intensity of his stare made my center warm.

  Now we were stuck with nothing else to say. With a burst of adrenaline running through me, I let the curtain drop from my hand and blew Devin a kiss. I stood there for only ten seconds, but it was a confident ten seconds, and then I turned and walked into my bathroom. For the one gleaming moment, I was filled with confidence as I let him get a peek at my body and then just as quickly disappeared away from the window.

  When I pushed the bathroom door, I started jumping up and down with excitement at what had just happened. This was a whole new level of flirting between the two of us. No longer were we strangers who just got a peek at our naked neighbor, and we now knew each other’s names, and I had just flashed him in the middle of the day. I couldn’t even say that it was the alcohol that made me do it; clearly, I was utterly sober at that moment.

  My heart continued to pound with excitement as I showered and got dressed for work. I planned a quick getaway so I wouldn’t have to run into Devin now that I’d given him the ultimate flirting. I simply walked out of my bedroom, down the stairs to my car and drove away. I didn’t look up to see if he was looking through his window nor did I look at his front door to see if he was there. I didn’t want to know if he was there because I couldn’t be distracted by him at that moment.

  My willpower did me good as I made it to the end of my block and turned toward the interstate. I wasn’t sure how any further run-ins were going to go with Devin, but I had made it out of my house and off to work successfully, so that was enough for the time being. I’d have all night at work to think about my next strategic interaction with the hot guy from next door.

  Chapter 2

  Devin

  This girl was going to be the death of me. I’d been distracted by her for weeks, and now she was heating up the teasing to a whole new level. I certainly hadn’t expected her to flash me like she did. Lilli, that was a nice name; it suited her perfectly, and now I had a name to plug into all my deliciously dirty fantasies.

  My body still throbbed as I pictured her standing in her window and letting the blue fabric of the curtains drop away to expose her body. Her long red hair draped down over her shoulders, and her milky white skin looked flawless in the glow of the afternoon sun.

  Lilli was young, though, much younger than I’d thought she was. All her late nights partying, I’d estimated she was in her mid to late twenties, but when I saw her up close and personal, she looked barely twenty-one. I had no business flirting with her; nothing good could come of it. Well, maybe a night full of good old fun, but nothing more than that. Lilli looked like trouble. Since she had returned home to her family, she’d been out partying nearly every night. Although I was over dating the party girl types, I couldn’t help imagining what a night with Lilli would be like.

  My cock was already throbbing every time I saw her. Just the thought of having her naked in my bed was enough to make my body heat up. Her womanly curves pressed against my hands were a vision I’d often gone to sleep with over the last few weeks. Certainly, I didn’t have any problems finding women to bring home, but since I’d curbed my own partying lifestyle, it was harder and harder to find time for women in my life.

  As the doorbell rang, I snapped out of my lustful daydream and hurried to let Jacob inside. We were set to be at the office in under an hour, but I needed him to give his opinion on a new company I wanted to introduce everyone in our office to. Not all my investments went through the office, and I was considering backing this company all on my own, but it was much riskier that way.

  “It’s nice to know you’re excited to see me,” Jacob said as he joked about my raging hard on that was pressing out of my pants.

  “It’s that damn girl next door. You wouldn’t believe how she teases me.”

  “Probably all in your imagination. I used to think my neig
hbor was teasing me, and then I went over there and hit on her, and she punched me in the nose.”

  “Ouch, that’s some serious mixed signals. But let’s be honest, you probably deserved it,” I joked.

  “Apparently it’s fun to flirt from afar, but when I wanted to do something about it, I was suddenly the creepy old guy next door.”

  “You are kind of creepy.” I laughed.

  “Shut it! She was flirting with me; I know it. I just can’t figure out what happened between her flirting and me making my move. But anyways, just be careful. If she’s living with her parents, she’s young, and that’s not the kind of drama you want in your life.”

  “I hear ya man. I’m over the drama. I had enough of that with Ashley to last me a lifetime.”

  “How are Ashley and Izzy? Have you seen Izzy lately at all?”

  “No, Ashley insists that my visits just upset Izzy and confuse her. That’s the last thing I want to do. I send letters, and she doesn’t answer. It’s probably better that I wait until she’s a bit older. I was a pretty crappy father the first few years of her life.”

  “That’s bullshit. You’re her father, and even if you were gone a lot at first, you’re here now. You should get to see her as much as you want to. With the amount of money you’re sending Ashley each month, she should be bowing down to let the two of you spend time together.”

  “I’m trying to understand her point of view. I was partying pretty hard for a lot of years, and I don’t think she truly believes I’ve settled down and have changed my ways. To Ashley, just because I’m busy with work, I must be busy with every woman in a skirt that’s in Chicago.”

  My ex-girlfriend hated all the traveling and partying I’d done after our daughter Izzy was born. There was no excuse for it, and I had to live with the father I’d been over those years. But I wasn’t about to push myself on my daughter now that I was ready. Izzy was ten years old now, and just to barge in on her life would be selfish of me. As much as I wanted to start building a relationship with her, I was a changed man and willing to put her needs ahead of mine. Ashley said it wasn’t the right time, so I trusted her parenting and stayed away except for Izzy’s birthday and Christmas.