by L. K. Gandy
“Dad, is she okay?” Armie rushes to his side grabbing for his hand.
“I hope so buddy,” he says hugging his son quickly. “Sawyer?” Branson’s concern is evident in his voice. He’s now kneeling in front of me, making sure I’m not about to faint. Slowly I regain my composure. Taking in a massive amount of air I let it all out at once, my cheeks puffing out in the process.
“Sorry about that,” I say wrapping my arm around my waist gripping my shirt for support. “I’m fine, thank you.”
“Are you sure? Do you need to sit down?” His hands close around my face lifting my gaze to his since he’s standing once again. His eyes travel back and forth looking at each of mine with matched intensity, trying to find the truth in them.
“No, I promise, I’m alright.” I try to smile at him but it’s strained and I know he can tell.
“Brooks, why don’t you take Armie for the rest of the day while I take Sawyer home to rest? Is that alright with you buddy?” Branson kneels down to look Armie in the face before giving him a hug when he vigorously nods his head.
“That’s fine Dad. See ya later! Come on B,” he says dragging Brooks toward the rows of cars. He turns back to look at us with a smile and waves, but suddenly a look of concern comes over his face. Immediately he breaks his grip and rushes toward us or me rather. His tiny arms wrap around my neck, and I can feel him squeezing me tighter. “Feel better,” he whispers in my ear before releasing his hold on me. My mouth is closed, and a small sigh of air escapes through my nose. I have so much adoration for this little boy in this very moment.
“Thank you sweetheart,” I say running a hand down his cheek. “Whatever you do today, make sure you beat your Uncle Brooks for me alright?”
“That’ll be easy,” he says beaming.
“Make sure you’re on your best behavior too,” Branson chimes in pointing a finger at Armie. He needs to work on his intimidation skills.
“I can’t make any promises,” Armie responds before running away.
“Lord, help me. I don’t know what I’ll do when he gets older.”
“You’ll learn,” I say laughing. “Although, that’s not entirely true; my parents never did. Look on the bright side though, I turned out just fine.” I shrug my shoulders to make my point.
“Is that what they call ‘this’ these days; fine?” he says pointing at me with a smirk on his face.
“Can it, asshole,” I say laughing.
“Come on babe, I’ll take you home.” There’s that wink again.
HAVING BRANSON IN MY HOUSE oddly puts me at ease. I haven’t had another man in here since Jaxx passed, other than the few dysfunctional times my father showed up to check on his real estate. He said he was stopping to see me but I know the truth, especially when he barely made eye contact the entire five minutes he was here.
“Can I get you something to drink?” I ask opening the refrigerator door, leaning in to get a better look. I don’t know why people do that it’s not like leaning in will actually help you see any better around all the clutter. Gross, I seriously need to clean this thing out. I hear Branson coming closer and shut the door quickly. That’s not the first thing he needs to see in my house.
“I’m fine, thank you, but maybe you need some water before we sit down.” His elbows rest on the island counter with his fingers laced together. His leaning body puts weight on his arms making his muscles bulge slightly more than normal. What I wouldn’t do to see those arms without all that material covering them again. “Stop undressing me with your eyes you sneaky vixen,” he says with a coy smile. How does he do that?
“Why do you assume I was ‘undressing you with my eyes’? Maybe you just want to take your clothes off for me,” I tease. “Not that I would mind,” I say throwing my left hand around nonchalantly, “you can if you want to. I won’t argue.” Please, take off your clothes.
“For one,” he says straightening his back to stand. “Your mouth was wide open.” He struts closer, slowly making his way towards me. “Two, we both know the tension in the air was starting to build. I’m guessing you’re an arm woman.” He’s right, I do love a nice set of arms. “Three,” he’s closing in on me, stalking me like prey, forcing my body against the counter next to the sink. “I know how your mind works; just like mine. I know because I was undressing you the moment you bent over with your head in that door.” His solid chest towers over me, forcing my gaze upward. I can see his chest rise and fall with controlled rhythm. His breathing deepens as he moves closer to my lips with every passing second. “Four,” he whispers, his lips now less than an inch from mine, “you find me irresistible. Admit it Sawyer, you want me right here and now on top this counter. My lips on your body as you wrap your legs around me.” Fuck. Me. Branson eases his body away from mine, and I’m momentarily confused, until I see him throwing his shirt on the kitchen floor. If I wasn’t drooling before, I sure as hell am now. I seriously need to get that shit under control. His body sinks back into mine, spreading my legs farther apart at the same time. I resist wrapping my legs around his waist. I’m a stubborn woman, and I’m not about to let him win. His lips are once again hovering over me, his eyes boring straight into mine. The need to have me is radiating from his body, intoxicating me like a drug.
“Branson.”
“Hmm.” He grabs my ass, lifting me onto the counter. My hands reach for him to stabilize myself and they rest on his biceps. Holy nuts, those are some NICE arms.
“Branson, I…”
“What is it Sawyer? Cat got your tongue?” His masculine hands grip my thighs, yanking me across the granite counter closer to his body until we’re touching. Him being so tall makes the counter top the perfect height to feel his growing erection between my legs. I want, no I need more.
“I’m not a cat person. Let’s just say your penis has my tongue…wait, no, that didn’t come out right.” I walked right into that one, high five Sawyer. I can tell he’s trying hard to contain himself, but fails miserably. Laughing hysterically at my misfortune, Branson hunches his body over to hide his face. Little bastard, two can play this game. Moving as slowly as I can I reach over to the sink next to me, turning on the water and pulling the hose out. I wait for the perfect moment, and as he picks his head up to look me in the eyes I take my shot. Water sprays across his body soaking his face and chest.
“Think I’m funny do you?”
“What the hell!” Branson can’t stop smiling though and tries to fight me for the hose, but I don’t let up. When he’s finally had enough I slam the handle on the faucet down and make a run for it, careful not to slip in the growing puddle on the floor. I don’t get very far when a solid body slams into me from behind causing us both to fall onto the couch.
“Branson! You’re soaking wet, get your ass off of me and my couch or so help me I’ll make you clean every square inch of this place!” Damn he’s a big guy. “You’re squishing me. I can’t…breath,” I say between fake attempts at coughing.
“Really, the fake cough? I wasn’t born yesterday. What do you think Brooks did growing up when I would sit on him? I’m a veteran at this game sweetheart. Try again.”
“My boobs hurt?” I say it as a question hoping to get some sympathy points.
“Well we can’t have that, now can we?” Branson chuckles before standing up. He offers me his hand, helping me to my feet.
“Ha! I knew that would work,” I smile up at him.
“Wait a second, did you just lie to get your way?”
“Me? No, no, I wouldn’t do that. They did, do, really hurt,” I pat my breasts to make my point, but now it’s awkward and I can’t stop. His eyes are finding it hard to look anywhere else, so I throw my hands to my sides. “We’re all good now. Follow me.”
“Where are you taking me?” Branson seems genuinely curious. “Should I get my shirt back on?”
“You, don’t really need it,” I say shaking my head with a sarcastic look on my face.
“Now I’m worried,” he la
ughs. I swear I could listen to that all day long.
“As you should. I’m taking you on a very intense tour of my home so pay attention. You’ve already seen the foyer and some of the living room. Obviously that,” I say pointing, “is the kitchen. You seem to like my counters quite a bit.” I raise my eyebrows at him. “This is the rest of the living room.” He releases my hand to look at the framed pictures lining my mantle. He takes his time, inspecting each one carefully. Great, I haven’t put any new ones up recently so this might be a little embarrassing.
“You and Charlee have quite the history,” he says holding up a picture from freshman year of college. Yep. Embarrassing.
“We were paired together to share a dorm freshman year. She insisted on documenting every minute of the process but that ended quickly when I snatched the camera from her hands. We’ve been inseparable ever since.” I smile at the memories.
“What about the twins? You, uh, date either of them?” I can’t help but laugh at the curious and worried look on Branson’s face. If I didn’t know any better I’d think he might be jealous. He scratches his head in anticipation of my answer.
“Not that I don’t find them attractive,” I wink at him, “but, no, they’re just friends. The one on the left is Graham the other is Harrington. We met our sophomore year. Come on, enough of those, there’s more to see.” I motion for him to follow me down the hall. “Closet to your left, that’s the bathroom a little further down on the right and this,” I say opening the door dramatically, “is my room.” I’ve always been proud of my bedroom, so showing it off gives me satisfaction. I handpicked distressed antiques to complement each other giving an inviting feel. I keep an eye on Branson, watching for any reaction he might give. The man delivers.
“This is a bedroom? It’s the size of my living room Sawyer,” he says with his mouth hanging open.
“It used to be a four bedroom but I decided there was just too much wasted space, so I had some walls knocked down. Plus, I really had to have a master suite,” I say matter-of-factly. “I’m not sure I want to even show you my closet after getting that reaction.”
“You mean there’s more?” The shock in his voice is apparent.
“There’s also a bathroom through that door on the left,” I point.
“This place makes mine look tiny, babe.”
“I love your house Branson, it’s charming. This one is actually pretty small, just big in the right places.”
“That’s what she said,” he mumbles quickly in response. Maybe a little too quickly, I should have seen that coming.
“Alright wise guy, this is my closet. The one place in my house I wouldn’t change a thing about.” Opening the door to the massive walk-in I can hear the intake of breath as he steps foot in the doorway.
“How many pairs of damn shoes do you need woman?” he practically yells in surprise. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that many in a store at one time, not including the unruly amount of clothes that are in here. You can’t possibly wear everything.” Branson turns toward me waiting for an answer, his anticipation growing by the second.
“You’d be surprised, actually. I’ve worn everything at least once. Granted, I do have favorites, just like anything else, but I won’t buy something unless I’m going to use it. Just seems wasteful to do that.”
“Whatever you say babe,” he says shaking his head in astonishment, blinking his eyes rapidly. I chuckle at the look on his face, knowing that it probably seems ridiculous to a man to want something like this, but I’m a woman damn it, and I get what I want. I turn to go back toward the hallway, walking past the bed.
“Is this the old boyfriend?” Chills immediately run up my spine, and I’m frozen in place, shuddering. My mouth is agape and my eyes widen in shock. I’m able to look over my shoulder to see Branson sitting on my bed holding up a picture of Jaxx and me from the night we got engaged. “I guess fiancé is more fitting by the looks of things.” Finally able to close my mouth I swallow audibly. Closing my eyes I take a deep breath. I can do this. I have to do this.
FORCING MYSELF TO MOVE, I slowly make my way over to sit beside Branson on the bed. The mattress sinks from the weight of his body, and I slide into his side as I sit down. Taking the frame from his hands, I lay it in my lap. This is one of the few times in my life when I’ve actually allowed myself to think before speaking. Hopefully it pays off.
“I didn’t bring you in here to rub this picture in your face. It didn’t even register in my mind. I keep it on my nightstand as a reminder, not only of lost love and cherished memories, but of hope, too.” I can tell by the look in his eyes that he’s confused but he stays quiet waiting for more. “Jaxx and I started dating our sophomore year of college. I think it was love at first sight for him, not so much on my end,” I say chuckling to myself. “He was leaving the gym laughing at a joke his best friend Graham had told him, not paying attention to where he was going. I had just gotten out of history with my head in a novel, trying to get a quick run in before meeting Charlee for the party we were supposed to be going to that night. He ran straight into me. Obviously it wasn’t my fault, and it knocked me right on my ass. He dropped everything he had and rushed to pick me up off the ground, grabbing my butt in the process. He told me later that it wasn’t intentional, but I never believed him.” Smiling I continue, “Anyway, he pretty much lost his breath when I looked up at him. I’m not saying that in a cocky way, it’s the truth. He stopped breathing and fell to the ground with me in his arms, as if he hadn’t already done enough damage. By this point I was pissed off. My ass hurt, I’d been violated, and all I wanted to do was get to the damn gym and read my book without this creep staring at me, so I did what any woman in her right mind would do, I punched him. Almost broke his nose, too. I still pat myself on the back for that one,” I say to Branson with a smirk. “Turns out the party we were going to that night was at his apartment. Talk about awkward.”
“I can imagine,” Branson says. “I’m glad you got over that punching phase before we met.”
“I never said I did, but I think you’re safe. When we got to the party you can imagine my surprise when I see him standing in the middle of a group of his friends with a beer in his hand. I think he was equally surprised as well and maybe a little scared. After some convincing by Graham he finally got the nerve to come talk to me. I guess I felt bad for hitting him because I agreed to talk to him on the porch, away from the loud noise of the growing crowd inside. We sat out there for hours talking about anything we could come up with. Trust me, some weird shit came up too. I’m not even going to start on his love for muskrats,” I say shaking my head. “We were inseparable ever since. Turns out he wasn’t that much of a creeper, and I might have gotten a little ahead of myself throwing that punch. We graduated and started our jobs in the real world. As corny as it sounds we truly had the picture-perfect relationship. We hardly fought; we were constantly thinking about the other. I laughed every single day with him. Call me a romantic but I think that’s important. I never thought I’d find another man as amazing as him, and I never planned on having to.” I swallow hard, trying to hold back the tears that I can feel coming forward. “It was a few months after graduation that our friends decided to get together at a lake house for a weekend getaway. We hadn’t seen each other and needed a mini-vacation. Little did they know it was perfect timing for some big news. That night, Jaxx surprised me by proposing. He had never mentioned marriage before and I think it had to do with his family. His parents divorced when he was six years old and from what I was told it was a messy ordeal. There was verbal abuse between the two during the entire process that continued for quite a while afterward. Eventually they decided it was best to ignore one another. I don’t think Jaxx ever got over the situation, and it made him guard his heart. I was lucky enough to be the one he let down his walls for.” Wringing my hands together I know I have to continue with the story, but I’m terrified. I’m not sure what Branson’s reaction will be once he knows.
“Jaxx got a surprise of his own that night though. A few days before, I found out…oh wow, how do I say this?” I take a deep breath, trying to prepare myself. “I found out I was pregnant.” I keep my eyes down, away from his. I can’t look at him. I’m too nervous. “Obviously it wasn’t planned and came as quite a shock to us both, but it was a blessing in disguise. Jaxx, after he finished choking and scaring the shit out of me, was extremely excited. Being pregnant was amazing and a pain in the ass all at the same time. I was tired of waiting to see our little boy. Did I mention I was ready to drink wine again?” Trying to narrate the story of my relationship with Jaxx, and in a way that gives it at least an ounce of justice is proving to be a harder task than I had originally thought. Running my hand down my face I continue. “My parents weren’t too thrilled with the news. Actually, let me rephrase that. My father wasn’t thrilled; he never was a fan of Jaxx. Not that I cared, he was always an asshole growing up. He still is; we don’t really talk. The only thing we have in common is our careers. He’s one of the top lawyers in Nashville, but I try not to associate myself with the name he’s made for himself. I want to do things on my own; get ahead by my own accomplishments.” Branson reaches for my hand and squeezes it slightly trying to comfort me. “It’s alright, I’m immune to it now,” I say in response. I’m glad he’s concerned, though. “My mom seemed happy about the idea, but she’s always following in the shadows of my father doing as he pleases; too afraid to stand up for herself and what she believes in.” I never understood how a woman could allow a man to control her life to the point that she’s just a shell of the person she used to be, as if he’s scared of the powerful force he knows she could be.