Brother’s Best Friend

by Kaylee, Katy

  When Bradley was done, he came skipping back and grabbed Logan’s hand. “This is really nice.”

  Logan leaned down in front of Bradley. “Your mom is the most special woman that I have ever met. I want to make everything perfect for her.”

  Bradley looked confused. “Is it her birthday?”

  Logan shook his head. “Something even more special. You will see. It’s a surprise for you too.”

  Bradley was super excited. “I love surprises!”

  Bradley took a seat at the table, watching Logan walk around and finish lighting all the candles. Logan walked over and dimmed the lights in the room, bringing on a chorus of oohs and ahhs from Bradley. The fire from the candles flickered everywhere, casting shadows all over the walls like a disco ball. Logan patted his pocket and smiled before putting the trash away and pulling the food from the oven. Everything was ready, they just had to hope that Amber came home sooner rather than later.

  From the other room he could hear Bradley jump up and run toward the kitchen. His little feet pattered in and he looked at Logan excitedly. “Mom just pulled up.”

  Logan shooed him to the dining room. “Okay, sit in your seat and we’ll wait for her there.”

  Logan waited inside of the dining room until she walked in, putting down her bag with confusion. She looked down at the rose petals and up at all the candles, chuckling. “Why do I have the feeling Mr. Bradley isn’t sick at all?”

  Logan wrinkled his nose. “Well, it was a little white lie, but I promise it was for a good cause. Now, come sit down at the table. We have some delicious food prepared, and a surprise for you.”

  She followed him over and sat down as he pushed her chair in. She smiled over at Bradley, who bounced in his chair excitedly. There were domes over the food and he reached down, pulling hers off. “For you we have a crab stuffed chicken breast, potatoes, and asparagus.”

  “Mmm,” she said smiling.

  Logan walked over to Bradley and pulled his off. “And for you, sir, we have a fine course of dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets, fries, and carrots.”

  Bradley mimicked his mom. “Mmm.”

  Logan poured them both a glass of wine and Bradley a glass of sparkling cider. Amber shook her head, looking up at him. “This is so amazing, but what is it for?”

  Logan cleared his throat. “My whole life, I have had to deal with losing people. My parents died when I was young, my friends abandoned me when I was in grief, except Jordan of course. And then I lost you for a good five years. I almost lost this little man, too. When I got the two of you back, it was the happiest day of my life. For the first time, I felt like I could actually breathe again. I felt like everything in my life finally had a purpose. I felt like life had a purpose. There were so many things that seemed important before you guys, and then when I had you, those silly little things just drifted away.”

  Logan reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small black velvet box. He took a knee beside Amber and held her hand. She gasped and tears began filling her eyes. Logan pushed a piece of hair from her eyes and continued. “Amber Stark you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. You are smart, funny, kind, generous, and everything I always wanted in a partner. You take my breath away every day. You make me want to be a better person. I cannot be without you in my life. So, with Bradley’s permission, I would like to ask you if you would be my wife. What do you say, Bradley?”

  Bradley gave two thumbs up. “Of course.”

  They both laughed and Logan opened up the ring box to reveal a three-carat diamond on a platinum band. Amber put her hands to her mouth and sobbed, nodding her head up and down. She pulled her hands away and yelled out, “Yes, yes of course I will marry you. I have been waiting what seems like forever for you to ask me. I love you more than anything.”

  Logan grabbed her and lifted her from the chair, hugging her as tightly as he could. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes as he looked her in the face. “You have just made me the happiest man in the entire world. You are everything that I ever wanted. Thank you for this.”

  Bradley got up from his seat and ran around, jumping up and down. Logan put Amber down and they both bent down, hugging Bradley tight. “I am so excited. I get to be part of a wedding!”

  Logan laughed. “That’s right, you get to be the best man.”

  Amber giggled, raising an eyebrow. “Though you may have to fight your Uncle Jordan on that one. He might not take second place.”

  Bradley made a muscle and kissed it. “I got this, he will go down!”

  Amber looked up at Logan with pursed lips. “Watching wrestling again?”

  Logan smirked. “It’s a guy thing. You wouldn’t understand.”

  Bradley nodded. “Yeah. For dudes, not girls.”

  They all laughed and set back up at the table, talking about the fact that they were going to get married. As Logan looked around him, he couldn’t have been happier with the way his life had turned out. He never thought he would see the sun at the end of the storm, but there he was. His family shined brightly to him, a beaming light at the end of a dark tunnel. Everything they were reflected in his eyes.

  Logan lifted his glass in the air to made a toast. “To be forever happy and loved. To a beautiful family to share everything in life with.”

  Amber raised her glass. “To love.”

  Bradley raised his glass. “To chicken nuggets and apple juice!”

  They cheered, even to chicken nuggets and apple juice. Logan was shocked, but he had finally gotten his happily ever after, and he would never let it go.

  ***The End***

  Just Another Chance

  Description

  Rafe Buchanan – 6’3’’. Hard muscle. Marine MP. My brother’s best friend. And the guy who took my innocence five years ago!

  Also the guy who gave me the most precious gift ever – my daughter (well, our daughter I should be saying).

  Did I tell you he kinda left me, asking me to move on?

  So, that’s what I did.

  I moved on to study further, to raise my child and to work with the Marines.

  Everything is going great until…

  Rafe shows up at my clinic.

  He’s seeking a cure for PTSD, and I’m his counselor.

  It’s totally f*ck*d up, right?

  Once again, our attraction is instant, the chemistry undeniable and don’t even get me started how good he is in bed.

  I want him so bad, but can’t let him know about our daughter.

  There’s no way our relationship could work.

  They say war is hell, but isn’t love a torture!

  Prologue

  Summer

  I sat on the porch of our tired-looking, but love-filled home, as all our friends and family mingled in our front yard, enjoying barbecue, beer, and the huge sheet cake Mrs. Mason made with the words ‘Congratulations Summer’ and little plastic graduation caps on it. I was feeling extremely content. I’d achieved a big milestone; college graduate. I was the first in my family to achieve that distinction.

  “Look at you my pretty baby girl.” My father looked gruff with his buzz cut and ruddy facial features, but he was a big softy inside. “All grown up and now a college graduate. You must have been switched at the hospital because neither your mother nor I are smart enough to have bred the likes of you.”

  I smiled. “Don’t sell yourself short.”

  My father said he barely had an eighth-grade education, but I know he graduated from high school because I had the same guidance counselor as he did. Granted the counselor didn’t think much of my daddy or my brother, Gavin, but still, they both had a high school diploma.

  My father went to vocational school to learn about heating and air, and now, years later, he owned his own HVAC business. He wasn’t rich, but me and Gavin always had what we needed. I don’t know much about my momma. She ran off with some rich city guy when I was five and Gavin was nine. We talked to her a few times right after that, but wi
thin a year, she stopped calling, and we hadn’t heard from her since.

  “I’m just so proud of you, Summer, it makes my heart want to burst from my chest.”

  “Aw, dad.” I stood and gave him a hug.

  “There’s my brilliant sister.” Gavin’s voice cut through the din of noise of the guests. He walked with a limp, the result of losing his lower left leg while serving in Iraq. But the swaying was the result of drinking.

  I looked up at my father, who’s brows furrowed in a mixture of anger and pity. Since coming home from Iraq last year, Gavin had struggled to acclimate back to civilian life. He was bitter and angry a lot, and I suspected he suffered from PTSD, all of which he seemed to cope with by drinking.

  “Hey, Summer, congratulations.” Lainey Spalding, Gavin’s high school sweetheart, walked next to him. As he maneuvered the steps, he started to lose his balance. Lainey reached out to help him.

  “I can do it!” He jerked away, causing himself to nearly topple over the other way.

  “I can’t watch this,” my father murmured as he turned and headed into the house.

  “Thank you guys so much for coming,” I said to Gavin and Lainey.

  “Are you kidding? We wouldn’t miss it.” Lainey handed me a wrapped present.

  “Yeah, free beer.” Gavin grabbed a can of the brew from the cooler.

  I wanted to call my brother out, but we were at a party. He’d suffered so much in serving his country, it didn’t seem right to add insult to injury by embarrassing him in front of our friends and family.

  “Hey, Gavin!” John Lister strode to the bottom of the steps. “Hey, Summer, congrats,” he said to me before turning his attention back to Gavin. “Did you hear Rafe’s back in town?”

  “I heard his Memaw died,” Lainey said referring to Rafe Buchanan’s grandmother.

  The mention of Rafe’s name sent all sorts of feelings through me. He’d been my brother’s best friend and teammate in every sport offered at the high school and rec center, and sometimes partners in crime when they were up to mischief. They’d both enlisted in the Marines right after high school, but ended up in different places at the end of boot camp.

  For me, Rafe was the embodiment of perfection. From the moment I started puberty, he’d gone from ‘annoying friend of my irritating brother’ to the prince charming of every fairy tale dream I ever had. He was the epitome of tall, dark, and handsome. He was charming, mischievous, and while I didn’t know for sure, I suspected he was a great kisser because he had wonderfully full lips. Not that he ever noticed me.

  Rafe was raised by his grandmother because his parents couldn’t ever get off drugs and alcohol. I looked at my brother and wondered if he was heading down that same path. His drinking seemed worse every time I saw him.

  “Hard to believe God could get that woman up into heaven,” my father said returning to the porch. “Emmaline was probably dragged up there kicking and screaming.”

  I laughed. Rafe’s grandmother was known to be a handful, especially when it came to Rafe. Since she was his last living relative that he had anything to do with, I had no doubt she didn’t want to leave him behind all alone in the world.

  “Someone should invite him over,” Gavin said. “I can show him mine and he can show me his.” Gavin lifted his pant leg revealing his prosthetic leg. “Of course, knowing him, he’s unscathed.” There was bitterness in his voice that broke my heart.

  “His Memaw just died,” I said. “He’s not going to be in a party mood.”

  “Just as well. More beer for me.”

  I shook my head, wishing there was something I could do to help my brother. The military had made him hard, and war had made him angry and bitter.

  The party was in full swing, with everyone talking, a few people were dancing to the music, and a couple was necking out by the old oak tree. They were all occupied, which meant I could sneak off to visit Rafe.

  The idea that he was alone in his grandmother’s house made me sad. In the old days, Gavin would have gone, but he was nearly passed out with poor Lainey watching over him.

  Without telling anyone, I headed to the side of the house, which sat on a large corner lot, and then turned up the block toward Rafe’s grandmother's house.

  Hope, Virginia was a small, rural, country town sitting on the James River. It felt like the middle of nowhere, but in fact, was only about thirty miles from the capital, Richmond. In recent years, city folks had discovered the area, and some were moving down for the slower life and cheaper cost of living, while others had weekend homes here. It was both good and bad for residents. Good because these people brought money and improvements. The bad part was that it was driving up the cost of housing making it harder for us regular folks to live here.

  Rafe’s grandmother owned a bungalow on the river, which, when built in the 1940s, was probably considered spacious. Most of the homes around Emmaline’s house had been bought by rich folks, who tore them down and replaced them with giant three-thousand square foot homes. Fortunately, she had an acre of land, so they didn’t tower over her little piece of heaven.

  As I made my way toward the river, I wondered what Rafe was going to do with the house. While he’d been gone for nearly the entire six years he’d been enlisted, it always felt like he lived here. But now with his grandma gone, there was nothing to keep him in Hope. The idea that I might never see him again was depressing.

  As I approached the house, I saw the front door was open behind the screened door. It was May in Virginia, so it wasn’t too hot and humid yet, making it a good time of year to let fresh air in the home.

  I walked up the steps to the front porch and peered through the screen door. My heart skipped a beat as Rafe’s tall body stood with its back to me. He wore faded jeans that accentuated his fantastic back side, and a white t-shirt pulled tight across broad shoulders. He appeared to have one forearm resting on the mantel over the fireplace as if was studying the pictures there.

  For a moment, I second-guessed my visit. Perhaps he wanted to be alone. However, Southerners weren’t known for being neighborly for no reason. I just wished I thought to bring him something, like a casserole.

  “Knock, knock,” I said.

  He whipped around, almost as if startled. He stepped back, hitting the mantle and knocking over a picture frame.

  “Oh, I’m sorry, Rafe.”

  “Summer.”

  In high school, Rafe had a pretty boy handsomeness to him. The man before me was still as handsome, but it was rugged, almost dangerous looking. His hair was shorter than I’d ever seen. It was buzzed along the sides, with just a little bit more length on the top. His eyes were still dark and his lips still perfectly full. But his face seemed thinner and harder like it had been chiseled from granite.

  “Hi. I hope I’m not interrupting. I just wanted to come by and tell you how sorry I was to hear about Emmaline.”

  His body appeared to be coiled up like it was ready for a fight. But with a breath, he relaxed and even managed a small smile. “That pack a day finally caught up to her.”

  I wanted to hug him. In fact, I felt compelled to pull him into an embrace. Not just because I’d been lusting after him for eight years, but because it looked like he needed one. Rafe was a big, strong marine, but even alpha males needed support.

  I walked toward him, holding my hands up so he’d know my intentions. His eyes showed surprise, but he didn’t step away or ward me off. It was hard to hug him because he was huge, nearly 6’3” to my 5’4”. Even if our height wasn’t a problem, his width would be. He was massive through the shoulders and chest.

  But I managed to get my arms around him, and rested my head against his chest. He seemed a little stiff at first but then relaxed, holding me and even dipping his head next to mine.

  “Thank you.” He said when I reluctantly pulled away. Then he cocked his head. “Aren’t you having a party or something today?”

  I nodded. “It’s my graduation party. I earned my bachelor’s d
egree.”

  He smiled, and it was magnificent. “Congratulations, Summer. That’s awesome. Is Gavin there?”

  “Yes.”

  He must have noticed a change in my expression because he faltered. “I heard he lost his leg. How’s he doing?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess it will take time.”

  He nodded as if he knew. Of course, he would. He was with people in Gavin’s situation all the time. I studied him to see if he had any signs of injury.

  “How are you? I mean besides losing your grandma? Have you been injured?”

  His featured darkened. “I haven’t lost a limb.” The hardness in his tone told me this wasn’t a topic we needed to cover.

  I smiled, wanting to change the subject. “Have you been down to the river?”

  The tension in him relaxed slightly. “Not yet. I just got back this morning.”

  It felt presumptuous to invite him to his own riverside, so I stood there feeling like a goof.

  “I could use a break.” He said. “I don’t have anything to bring down there, food or drink wise though.”

  “That’s okay. It will be nice just to sit.”

  The area around the house and river was heavily wooded, making it feel private. Rafe grabbed a blanket from the back porch and we sat on it as we looked out over the river. The ripples of water and occasional fish jumping was hypnotic.

  “What are you going to do with the house?” I asked, taking a stick and drawing in the sand.

  “I guess I’ll sell it. I don’t see myself having the need for a house. Uncle Sam provides me with everything I need.”

  “You don’t think you’ll come back to Hope?” My heart clenched at the idea he wouldn’t ever come home.