Fall for You: Boys of Alabama

by Mica Halstead

  She waves me off. “Oh, enough with that piddly shit. It’s time for you to dish to Mama Ron about that fine piece of man meat you’re boning next door.” She saddles up to the bar stool with two coffee cups and motions for me to sit. I snort-laugh, sitting beside her and taking a sip of my coffee, trying to wrap my head around everything that has transpired in the last twelve hours.

  I look at Ronnie and she’s staring at me, waiting for me to say something.

  “I love him,” I shrug, taking another sip from my cup. “I love him and those kids so fucking much it scares me,” I admit to her, tears welling up in my eyes. Ronnie reaches over and pats my hand.

  “Oh I know, baby. I knew you loved him the first time you told me about him on the phone. And don’t think I wasn’t watchin’ the two of you on the porch last night while I let you have your moment. He loves you just as much as you love him.” The tears are spilling down my face now.

  “I’m just terrified. I can’t imagine losing him. I’m not sure I’d ever live through it,” I blow out a shaky breath. If Ronnie knows about anything, it’s about loss. She lost her husband young at thirty-seven. Thought she’d have the rest of her life with him and that they’d raise babies together and grow old together. She offers me a sad smile, taking a sip from her coffee cup.

  “I know, baby. And trust me, it sucks. Losing Asher the way I did destroyed me. Destroyed me so much I never found love again. I couldn’t imagine doing life with anyone other than him. Couldn’t imagine having babies with anyone else. I still can’t ever see myself falling in love again. Asher was it for me. And I’m sure your man knows a little about loss, too. Losing his wife, thinking he’d only ever love one woman for the rest of his life. And then, this beautiful, long-legged blonde moves in next door.” She cuts me a sly smile, taking another sip of her drink. My jaw drops. She set me up with this house. Said she knew a lady who was moving into a retirement home and wasn’t sure she wanted to sell her house, so she got it for me as a cheap rental. Insanely cheap.

  “You set me up!” I cry out. She starts laughing.

  “Of course I did, child. I heard all about the young man that lived next door to Mrs. Jenkins and how broken he was. And I know a little about being broken, plus I had just spent all those years putting you back together. I knew you were ready. You just needed a little push.” I sigh, loving her and hating her all at the same time.

  “You’re a sneak,” I laugh and so does she.

  “Nah, not a sneak. Just an old lady who was broken until she found a young woman on a train, who was absolutely destroyed. A beautiful young woman that didn’t know how worthy of love she really was. I may have never wanted my own kids, but God knew I needed you, Alexis.

  I wipe the tears that are streaming down my face away and stand to wrap my arms around her frail little body. She reciprocates and clears her throat. “Alright then, enough of this blubbery bullshit. What say you and I go shopping and have lunch?” Ron stands and puts her cup in the sink. I laugh a little because that’s how she has always been. Not one for much affection.

  “I think that sounds fantastic,” I say, and I head to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

  ◆◆◆

  We are closing in on a month of school. Thirty whole days that I’ve been doing what I love, teaching students and mentoring them along the way. That also means thirty days of Crawford James. Just thinking about Ford sends a shiver down my spine. He’s incredible. It’s my planning period and the end of the day. I swing into the office to grab my mail and make copies of Monday’s homework.

  “Happy Wednesday afternoon, Miss Carter,” Holly, the high school secretary says as I make my way to the copier.

  “Same to you! How has your week been?” I ask, punching some buttons and propping myself up against the counter while I chat.

  “Oh good, good. Same old riff raff in and out, parents angry that their kids are already failing, ya know. Normal high school drama,” she says. I laugh at that because it’s so true. I’ve already received nasty emails from parents that can’t believe their precious child just isn’t doing their work or showing up to class.

  “I hear ya on that,” I say, shaking my head and making my way over to the mail slots, snagging the papers out of my box and sorting through it. A small envelope catches my eye, my name scrawled on the front. I rip it open and pull out the slip of paper.

  “Holly, did you see who put this in my box?” I ask, my voice shaking and barely above a whisper. She tilts her head.

  “No, but I did have to escort a student back to class earlier so I was out for a minute or two. Alexis, are you okay?” She asks, concern lacing her voice. I clear my throat.

  “Y-yeah. Fine,” I laugh nervously and re-read the note. But I read it correctly the first time.

  Leave town now bitch. No one wants you here. Leave. Before you get hurt. Or before I hurt someone you care about.

  I can only think of one person that would want me to leave town. Jason. But this doesn’t look like his handwriting. And I’m not sure how he would have gotten into the school and the office to drop this note in my mailbox. I stuff the paper back in the envelope. I look up and Holly is still looking at me like I’ve lost my mind. Shit, maybe I have.

  “Fine, honest. Just a thank you note from a student,” I say, grabbing my papers from the printer, “enjoy your afternoon,” I tell her as I head back towards my classroom. Once inside I shut the door and press a hand to my racing heart. This doesn’t seem like something Jason would do, but I can’t imagine anyone else wanting me out of town. I slide the envelope into my gradebook and stuff it in the bottom of the drawer and try to push it out of my mind.

  ◆◆◆

  It’s been two days since Ronnie went back to New Jersey and I’ve been sulking around the house feeling sorry for myself. We had such a good time while she was here between family dinners with Ford, Clarissa, and his entire family and shopping at the local farmers market to staying up til the early hours of the morning chatting about anything and everything. She’s part of the only family I have left even if she isn’t blood. I never knew who my dad was. My mom worked at this small diner back in our hometown as a waitress and when she was 19 she met a man on a Harley who was just passing through and they shared one weekend together. A weekend without condoms, obviously, because he left town without them ever exchanging more than first names and nine months later I came screaming into the world.

  It was always just the two of us until I was 17 and she suddenly died from a brain aneurysm and I was left as an orphan. She was an only child and both of her parents died when I was little, so there was no family to take me in. I bounced from foster home to foster home until I met Jase later that year. This incredibly sexy and smart man who was also a cop, offering me the world on a silver platter? I jumped in headfirst and we saw where that got me. Spending time with Ronnie was exactly what I needed but now I’m sad that she’s gone and I’m eating my feelings. Clarissa is working at the bar one town over and I’m halfway through a pint of Rocky Road when my phone dings from the coffee table. Dropping my spoon in the container I lean forward and snatch it off the table, seeing Ford's name.

  Ford: Put the ice cream down and get dressed.

  I roll my eyes and put the container down on the table, typing out a reply.

  Me: No. I just want to eat my feelings and watch trashy T.V. Let me wallow.

  Ford: Baby. Dressed. Jeans and boots if you have them. I have somewhere I want to take you.

  Me: I don’t own boots, Crawford. I’m from fucking Jersey.

  Ford: Fuck baby, I love your filthy mouth. Fine. Sneakers. But old ones. Be ready in 20.

  I shove off the couch with a sigh, taking the ice cream back to the freezer and begrudgingly heading to my closet to find something to wear. There’s no possible way he can make me feel better about Ron leaving, but I’m willing to let him try.

  Ford

  Lex lets out a ‘whoop’ next to me and clutches the ‘oh shit’ bar
tighter. I gun the truck and we fishtail in the mud, slinging it up and over the windshield and I flick my wipers on to try to clear some of it away. I can’t help the smile that’s spreading across my face from how much fun she’s having. I knew taking her mudding would cheer her up. I can’t believe she ever doubted me.

  “Oh my god, that was incredible!” She states breathlessly as I turn the truck into a clearing in the woods and throw it in park. I chuckle and turn it off, hopping out. Lex meets me at the back of the truck as I’m lowering the tailgate and I jump in the bed to remove a blanket and some pillows that I stuffed in the toolbox earlier, spreading them out and arranging them in the bed of the truck. She arches an eyebrow and presses her hand to her chest.

  “Now Crawford, I’m not sure just what kinda girl you think I am..” she teases, pressing her hand to her chest. I narrow my eyes at her.

  “I know exactly the kind of girl you are, Alexis. Now get your ass up here.” She throws her head back and laughs, hefting herself up into the truck. I pull two beers out of the cooler, popping the tops and passing one to her. She takes a drink and settles her back against the side of the bed, her legs kicked out in front of her and crossed at the ankles. I take the same position on the opposite side of the truck, taking a long pull from my beer before speaking.

  “So, I take it you’re having fun?” I ask her, a grin tugging at my lips.

  “I really, really am,” she answers, taking a swig of her beer and sitting it beside her. “I never thought I’d go mudding and enjoy it, but here we are. Thank you.” She tips her head, smiling at me.

  “Anything to see that smile.”

  Her cheeks start to turn red and she changes the subject by looking around us.

  “It’s so quiet out here. How’d you even find this place?”

  “I stumbled upon it right after I lost Zoe. Some nights when I thought Aria would never fall asleep, I’d load the kids up in the truck and just drive, sometimes until two or three A.M. On one of my drives I saw a for sale sign on a few acres of woods, there was a clearing that cut off from the main road in between the fields. And on nights when I just needed to breathe after the kids fell asleep in the truck, I would pull over and just sit there, listening to the crickets chirping and the bullfrogs croaking.” I clear my throat, thinking about that time in my life. How painful it was to know that all these kids had was me and I had to hope that I didn’t royally screw it up.

  I keep talking, “Zoe had been gone just a few months and that pain was still so fresh. I didn’t think I’d ever get through it.” I finish speaking and let my eyes fall on Lex and I can see the sympathy etched on her face. She wipes the tears off her cheeks and crawls across the bed of the truck and climbs onto my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck and resting her head on my shoulder.

  “I’m so sorry you had to go through that all alone. I can’t imagine how hard that must have been.” She leans back and lets her fingers fall to the nape of my neck, her eyes bouncing back and forth between mine before she leans in and presses a kiss to my lips. There’s so much emotion behind it, the hurt of my lost wife, the trials and tribulations she’s faced that brought her to Monroeville.

  I take control, sliding my hands under her shirt and running my fingers access her stomach, slipping my tongue into her mouth and pressing her body into me. This. This and my kids are the only thing I need.

  She shifts so she’s straddling me and I run my hands up her back, unhooking her bra. She breaks the kiss and leans back, her eyes darting around us in the darkness. “Listen, I am all for a little exhibitionism every now and then, but aren’t we going to get in trouble for being here?” She asks while still rocking herself against my growing erection. I lean in and nip at her lower lip.

  “I know the owner,” I say, dragging her shirt up and over her head and tossing it aside. I slide her bra the rest of the way down her arms and it joins her shirt. Leaning down, I flick her nipple with my tongue and hear her breathing start to get shallow.

  “Slow down, slow down,” she pants as she grips my hair, effectively holding me against her while her words state the opposite. “You’re sure… oh my god yesss,” she hisses as I palm her tit and pluck her hardened peak,

  I twist her hair with my hand and give it a hard tug and her eyes meet mine. “I’m the owner, Lex. I bought five acres. Now please, let me fuck you.” I end the statement with a bruising kiss and she becomes frantic, tugging my shirt out of my jeans and up and over my head. Scraping her nails down my chest, she flicks the buttons on my jeans and backs off of my lap to do the same with her own. We both finish stripping and I lay her back gently on the blankets I had spread out, kissing her shoulder and sweeping her hair out of the way. I kiss my way up to her neck, relishing every little whimper and moan coming from her.

  “You’re incredible,” I whisper, pressing my lips to her and reaching for my jeans to snag a condom. She grins against my lips and reaches out to stop me.

  “I’m on the pill,” she says, reaching down and stroking my cock. “I trust you,” she whispers, nipping my lip with her teeth, lining the head of my cock with her pussy. That’s all the permission I need. I’m on her and in her in one quick motion and she cries out, wrapping her legs around my waist, spurring me on. I hiss out a harsh breath, bare inside of her feeling like fucking Heaven. I thrust in and out of her, sliding one hand up to her throat and putting some pressure there. Her eyes widen slightly and then roll back into her head when I find her clit with my free hand, working her until she comes and I’m right behind her, telling her how much I love her.

  ◆◆◆

  Football practice has been killer for these boys today. The guys that got busted drinking have been busting their asses running suicides. They’ve sat their two games out and I made them do community service work helping clean up the town square, so I’m sure they’re regretting 99% of their life choices up to this point.

  “Alright guys, bring it in,” Jax hollers from next to me and blows his whistle. All the guys make their way over, some of them are moving a lot slower than the others.

  “Now, what did we learn after all this extra work the last couple of weeks?” Jaxson asks, directing the question at the six that are in trouble.

  “Never. Drinking. Again,” Simpson wheezes, collapsing onto the ground sprawled out and I snicker.

  “That’s right,” Jax goes on, “don’t drink until you’re 21. Don’t drink and drive. You men have entirely too much life ahead of you for it to be cut short because one of you decided he could drive after a couple beers,” Jax says. I know this is tough for him. His dad was hit and killed by a drunk driver when we were in high school. I clap him on the back and take over his speech.

  “Alright. Moving on, the championship game is coming up.. I’ve got scouts from six different universities coming to both games to see you Seniors play. For most of you, this is your only chance at being able to attend college. These scouts would be crazy not to give each one of you a chance on their team.” I can’t believe it’s almost the end of our season. I’ve watched these Seniors grow up over the last four years. Most of them were coming in as Freshman after I lost Zoe and they’ve seen me at my worst. We’ve all grown and bonded over that time, and without them I’m not sure I would have made it through. I’m just as grateful for them as they are for me.

  “Now, I wanna get this shit out of the way and then we can move on. Seniors, you were just coming in as Freshman when I lost my wife. You showed me grace, compassion, and patience as I rearranged my life to be a full-time dad, teacher, and coach. You’ve seen a grown man cry more times than I’d care to admit,” Jax snickers, “and I will forever be grateful for the impact each and every one of you have had on my life. Now hit the showers, you all reek.” They all laugh and stand, most of them giving me fist bumps before trudging off to the locker rooms. Jax and I are tossing footballs and cones into duffle bags, cleaning up the aftermath.

  “I never did thank you either, man,” I start, cutting a glan
ce at Jaxson and zipping up the bag. “I never would have got through the last five years without you.”

  “Ain’t no thing, brother. I can’t imagine going through what you went through while raising two small kids, one of them a newborn. You did good. And while we are on the subject, I’m glad you gave Lex a chance. You deserve it. Zoe would want you to be happy,” he says. And I know he’s right. She wouldn’t want me to be alone forever. She would want someone that makes me happy, someone that makes our kids happy. But I can’t help but wonder if I’m doing what’s right for the three of us.

  Lex

  Stepping into the bar, I scan the crowd, looking for Avery. She invited me to girl’s night with her and some of her girlfriends but I don’t see her anywhere, so I head to the bar and grab an empty stool. Pulling out my phone I shoot her a text and order a beer from the bartender. My phone dings just as my beer is delivered, a message from Avery letting me know there was a bath time mishap, but she is on her way. This is my first time at the bar in town and it’s cute. I look around, taking in my surroundings. It’s very rustic but in an adorable way. Even the bartender is adorable. With her long purple hair and nose piercing, she’s making her way up and down the bar, checking on everybody. She finally lands in front of me and tilts her head.