“It’s your shirt.” I smiled, and he narrowed his eyes at me completely unamused. “And I was sleeping on my stomach when he first walked in.”
“As if that's any better,” he mumbled. “He got a clear shot of your ass instead.” With that I couldn’t argue, so instead I gave him my best innocent look, and suddenly his body was completely covering mine as he hovered over me. “Don’t like anyone else seeing what’s mine.”
“Yours?”
“Oh yes.” Rhett’s hand slid beneath my ass and he offered a gentle squeeze. “All mine.” He practically growled the words as he pushed his hips forward while lifting my own off the bed higher. “Tonight I’ll prove just who your body belongs to.”
When I attempted to argue once more, he covered my lips with his own and kissed me until I was breathless. “Don’t come out of this room until you’re dressed, preferably in a snowsuit.”
Rhett was up off the bed and out of the room before I could register what to say in return. I had so much I wanted to do today, but instead of climbing out of bed, I curled into Rhett’s pillow and slowly dozed off as I breathed in his manly scent. I found it comforting.
“AJ,” I heard my name being whispered softly. “Baby, wake up.” I peeked through one half-opened eye and found Rhett kneeling near his side of the bed. “Hey there, sleeping beauty, you plan on sleeping all day?”
“I didn’t mean to fall back to sleep. I’ve just been crazy tired lately.” I’d felt sluggish for a few days. “I think it’s the stress of finals and then my mom.”
“Mikey wants me to go over to his place and help him work on the bathroom.” Rhett pushed my hair from my face, and I found my eyes falling shut once more. I simply loved when he did things like that. Simple gestures managed to make my heart race. “Tonight I’ll bring home dinner, and we can eat it in our favorite spot before the window and watch the sunset.” I nodded my head, because it actually sounded perfect. “There are a few things I want to talk to you about.”
“Should I worry?”
Rhett kissed my lips softly before leaning back to look me directly in the eyes. The look of devotion and sincerity in his eyes floored me. “With me, AJ, you have nothing to worry about. I am so in love with you that sometimes I feel almost as if I can’t even breathe with the impact it holds.”
I was momentarily speechless. Rhett said sweet things often. He’d call me beautiful and gorgeous and tell me that he loved me, but never had he been so in-depth with his explanations of what he was feeling. It both worried me and settled me at once.
“I’ll see you tonight,” he added, kissing me once more. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
I lay in bed, watching as he disappeared from the room. I remained there until I heard the door close and shortly after the sound of his truck starting from beneath me.
***
I was nervous. Okay, nervous didn’t cover it. I was a wreck as I stood on the front porch of the home I’d lived in for the last five years. There was a time or two I’d lifted my hand to knock only to feel foolish for considering it. This was still my home, even though I hadn’t been staying there. Since the moment she came back to Brooklet I hadn’t felt welcome here.
I knew that was my fault. I placed that distance between me and my father, and I’d pushed for the wedge that had been driven between my mother and me to remain. I could have chosen to do as my dad had and welcomed her back into my life, but I’d chosen to hold a grudge. The same grudge I’ve kept since day one but had been doing everything to let go of.
In all honesty, I think what bothered me the most was that there were so many times over the past years when I needed my mother. There were so many things I wanted to talk to her about and seek guidance, only I couldn’t. But I also knew that my future now held times when I would need her again. A daughter should have a mother they can rely on as they walk through the stages of life, and my life was changing with each day that passed. I also knew that it would be changing again soon, and the idea of being able to turn to my mother, I’ll admit, did strike excitement inside me.
I took in one more deep breath and reached out for the door handle, turning it slowly. I could instantly hear the laughter of my mother, followed by my father’s own happiness. I was faced with the knowledge that she gave him that. She always did, and I know that one of the reasons why he never let go was because he never stopped loving her. In his world, there wasn’t another person who could ever make him as happy as she had.
I walked inside, careful to be as quiet as possible. I didn’t want to interrupt; in fact, I wanted to see them. I wanted to watch them together and see for myself that she was genuine with her regrets.
There they stood in the dining room near the entry to the kitchen, my father's arms wrapped around my mother securely. Her body arched inward toward his as her arms circled his neck. She
