HE WAS WAITING for me when I stepped outside. The afternoon sun cast a glow on him that made me need to shield my eyes. The look on his face was one of unsureness. It was as if he were waiting to see what I’d throw at him. I felt terrible as the realization began to sink in over what I’d done to him. I’d pushed and shoved so many times and still he kept coming back. He’d come back for more no matter what I dished out, and I wondered how long I could have kept it up before he stopped.
“Why?” I crossed my arms over my chest as I came to a stop right in front of him.
His head snapped back before he stuffed his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his feet. “Why what?”
“Why are you trying so hard? Why are you still here?” I murmured before slowly lifting my head so I could peer up at his face.
The skin around his eyes crinkled as a grin slowly spread across his face. “You know,” he paused as a quiet laugh escaped his lips “for a smart woman, you ask some dumb questions. I’m here because I love you. I always have, and I always will… no matter what. I meant what I said all those years ago. For better or for worse. The ‘better’ is the easy part. Not many will stick around for the ‘worse’.”
I stood there dumbfounded. How could he still love me? I kicked him out. I pushed him away. I treated him like an outsider for months. “I’m sorry,” I murmured as I let my chin drop. “I’m so sorry.”
“Hey,” he leaned down and let his forehead rest against mine, “nothing to be sorry for. We’re fixing us, right?”
“Yeah,” I nodded, causing our heads to bump. “I need to get this filled. Wanna walk down the street?” I pointed to where the local drugstore sat on the corner.
“Sure. I’ve got an idea to pass the wait time,” he smiled as he pulled one hand out and offered it to me.
“Ok,” I pressed my lips together as the corners of my mouth began to pull into a smile. It felt foreign, it had been so long since I’d smiled.
We walked together down the street hand-in-hand in comfortable silence. Trevor didn’t push me to talk about my session, and I wasn’t really ready to tell him anything. I needed to process all the things Dr. Marlow had told me anyway. Hearing something and accepting it as truth are very different.
After dropping off my script with the pharmacist, Trevor began leading me down the street again. He came to a stop in front of the local park and turned to lead me inside. “What’s in here?” I tugged at his hand.
“Remember when we used to go to the park when we were little?” he smiled as he squeezed my hand.
“Yeah. I remember swimming and playing in the stream.” Cherryville’s park was very different. It wasn’t manicured like this one. It bordered the back of the orchard, and we spent many days of our childhood playing there.
“I remember some of the other things too,” Trevor snickered. He pulled us to a stop near a babbling brook.
“Trev!” I gasped.
“What?” he shrugged as he turned to face me. “Sit,” he pointed to a patch of grass he stopped on. I lowered myself to the ground and watched as he joined me. “Remember when I asked you to the Spring Dance?”
I rolled my eyes as images of our thirteen-year-old selves flitted through my mind. “Sure. You kissed me that day.”
“You let me be your first kiss,” he grinned as he slowly reached up and rubbed my lower lip with his thumb. “I never realized how much I take that for granted, kissing,” he clarified. “I miss kissing you, Shar. I miss all of it,” his eyes went soft as his hand went to a spot beside him and he plucked at the grass.
I smiled as I watched him tug at the blades. It had always been a nervous habit of his, and I felt comfort in knowing that he was as unsure of all this as I was. “Do you ever miss it?” I murmured as I stared at the stream. “The new feeling you get when you start dating? Do you ever wish you could go back?”
“I was an idiot back then, so no,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t have waited so long to tell you how I felt if I was smart.”
“You weren’t an idiot. We were kids,” I nibbled my lip. Parts of me wanted all the things we used to have, but other parts made me worry that I’d damaged us to the point that we’d never be the same.
“I was an idiot,” he scoffed before turning to face me. “I let my brothers tease me into thinking that liking you was a bad thing. I always puffed myself up around you hoping you’d see me as more than I really was. It took me weeks to ask you to that dance.”
It hurt listening to him berate himself for things that happened years ago. I didn’t know why he was doing this after all the fighting he’d done to get me here. “We were kids, and I knew even back then that you were special,” I smiled.
“I shouldn’t have waited so long,” he scooted closer to me. “I’m never letting anything keep me from what I want ever again. Not time, not you, not anything,” he growled before pressing his mouth to mine. It was a soft, but insistent kiss that held promise. He wasn’t pushing me, but letting me know that I wasn’t going to be able to stop him.
It ended more quickly than I would have liked, but the look on his face told me it was only the beginning. “Come on,” he stood up and offered his hand. “We’re going to go pick up your stuff, and then we’re finishing this,” he motioned between us with his finger. “I have plans for the evening,” he kissed my forehead, and then began leading me back to the drugstore.
THE DRIVE INTO the city was quiet. Sharron watched out the window, and I drove in silence. It was different than the ride to the doctor’s though. This time, it was a peaceful quiet. It was as if things were finally heading in a direction that I liked. There was still a slight tension between us, but Sharron seemed to have made peace with some of her demons. I knew we had a way to go, but the fact that she let me kiss her and reminisced with me about our earlier days left me feeling hopeful.
“We’re here,” I pulled up to the front of The Plaza and stopped by the valet.
“We can’t afford this,” Sharron looked at me with a panicked expression.
“Nope,” I grinned as I opened my door, “but Ty can,” I grinned as I leaned back down and smiled at her.
“Trev,” she scrambled out of the car and stared at me in disbelief.
“Relax,” I rolled my eyes before rounding the rear of the car and grabbing our bags from the trunk. “He pulled some strings. I said yes. He wants to help,” I closed the trunk, tossed my keys to the waiting valet, and reached for Sharron’s hand. “We are going to have a weekend of luxury,” I pulled her along behind me as I breezed through the door. “Trust me, and let go. Stop worrying. I’m taking care of us. We’re going to do some of the things we always said we wanted to do.”
As we breezed through the lobby, I couldn’t help but take the place in. It was grander than I had ever imagined. Sharron and I had dreams when we younger about coming here. I remember how we’d talk on phone until the wee hours of the morning planning out all the things we’d do when we were older. Little did we know that life would get in the way and change all our plans. The marble floors shone so bright they looked as if they were made of glass. Plush couches and chairs surrounded several seating areas. A group of bellmen stood off to the side just waiting to help customers, and brass trimmed almost every surface. The stairs leading to the elevators had a red carpeted runner down the center, and it made me think about how Sharron always talked about being famous one day. She’d laugh and say that she wasn’t sure how, but she would be known for something. Now, I just wondered what was running through her head.
“Nice, huh?” I nudged her when we stopped at the desk to check in. Her head bobbed as wide eyes scanned the room. “I have a reservation for Cook.” The woman behind the desk tapped away on her keyboard before smiling up at me.
“It seems you’ve been upgraded, Sir,” she opened a small drawer and pulled two key cards out. After activating them, she handed them over.
“I didn’t ask for an upgrade,” I panicked a little, wondering what the price difference was going to be as I thought about what I had planned and how I’d budgeted exactly what we’d need.
“Someone called this morning and changed your reservation to a suite,” she motioned for a bellhop before tapping a few keys. “Everything’s been taken care of. Reggie,” she smiled at the bellhop. “Can you take Mr. and Mrs. Cook up to room 312?” Reggie nodded and took the bags from me before stepping toward the elevator.
At that exact moment, my phone buzzed. I sighed as I pulled it from my pocket thinking it was work and not really wanting to deal with that at the moment. When I looked at the text, I saw it was my brother.
TyObject: Enjoy your suite. It cost Tay and I a pretty penny.
Trevor: You guys didn’t have to do that.
TyObject: Yes, we did. You weren’t closing the deal. You needed help. Now turn off phone and go remind your wife why she fell in love with you.
Trevor: I’m paying you back
TyObject: Turn off the phone and go fuck your wife.
I shook my head as I stuffed my cell back in my pocket and wrapped an arm around Shar’s shoulders. She leaned into my side just like she always has, and I felt comfort with the familiarity of it all.
After the bellman had dropped our bag at the door, he left, and we were alone again but this time in a place of luxury. “This is so beautiful,” Sharron began to wander around the space, taking it all in. There was a living room complete with a full kitchen and dining area. To the right, was a bedroom complete with a huge bathroom. A bottle of champagne was chilling in a silver bucket by the bed. A plate of chocolate covered strawberries was placed on the end of the bed with a black box beside it. Gold lettering on the box labeled it a ‘romance kit’. After careful inspection, Sharron began to giggle before passing it to me. I was so stunned at hearing her laugh that I was willing to do whatever the box said. I wanted to keep this lightheartedness between us, and I was a little worried about doing or saying something that would cause it to go away.
“What is it?” I furrowed my brow as I flipped over the box in my hand. In tiny lettering on the back, the contents were listed. Massage oil, vibrator, condoms, cock ring, nipple clamps, edible underwear, and handcuffs. I swallowed as I tossed the box back on the bed. Sharron and I had never been kinky in the bedroom. We’d used food before, but never any toys. I had no idea if she’s was even into this type of stuff. The blush on her face said she might want to try, but I wasn’t going to push her. Deciding to lighten the mood, I chuckled, “Well, I already have cuffs. I don’t know what Ty was thinking because you know this was his idea.” I shook my head before pulling out my phone, and staring at it. At first I was going to send him a message asking him what the fuck he was trying to do, but then I thought about what he’d said and powered it off instead. I turned toward my suitcase and unzipped one of the side pockets. After placing my phone inside, I turned back to Sharron.
“Did you just turn it off?” her eyes flashed wide.
“This weekend is about us. Nothing else,” I tipped my head to the side as I walked over to stand in front of her. “It’s about getting you and me back on track. They can wait,” I motioned to where I’d left the phone.
“But what about the kids?” her eyes held worry as she stared at me.
“My brothers will look after them. They’ll be fine,” I leaned in and let our foreheads touch. “What do say to getting some dinner? I’ve got a nice evening planned.”
She glanced around the room before a small smile formed, “Dinner sounds nice.”
Little did she know that I had the perfect evening planned. Dreams that we’d had as kids were going to come to fruition this weekend. I was getting my Sharron back. She was already starting to appear, like the bulbs in the spring. The small green buds were appearing, and before the weekend was over I was hoping to see her bloom.