have built you one had she had the funds.”
Does he hear himself? Can he actually hear the words coming out of his mouth? Does he even understand what I’m saying? Am I making no sense? Why does every interaction between us feel like a fight? “Did I say they were free of dysfunction?”
“I’m just sayin’.”
“Well, I’m sayin’ it’s one of my favorite places.” He asked about my bucket list, but I’m not sure I feel safe enough to share it with him right now. This place is a part of my fairy tale bucket list. I’m not naïve enough to think I get a fairy tale, but my dreams are. When I’m at this place, I turn into one of those little girls with a daddy who loved her so much, he built her a beautiful garden with looking ponds, a life-sized dollhouse, and even a pet cemetery with headstones for the animals she loved and lost.
When I look at the looking pond in front of it, I see roses and hear Christina Perri. I recall Bradley dropping to one knee and asking my sister to marry him. Additionally, thanks to being in the wrong place at the wrong time a few minutes ago, I can add seeing Joe kissing some other girl there too, and I wonder if his raspy voice tells her what he told me on the phone about how he wants it all. A wife, babies, even to be a stay-at-home dad. My stomach hardens.
A finger taps me on the shoulder, and my body jumps. “I’m sorry, Sam.” Ryan’s voice cracks. “My parents are married, there’s no alcoholic father who beats his kids, but there’s enough dysfunction to last a lifetime.” I take him in. Flecks of light dance over his dark hair and his smoldering brown eyes. “I don’t want you to have this false sense of what life’s like inside the iron gates of the garden.”
“It’s not your place to school me.” I exhale. “I shared something deeply personal with you on multiple occasions today, and both times, you’ve let me down.”
He kisses my neck. “We’re just going through a rough patch. We’ll be okay. We’ll get through it.”
But what if I don’t want to get through it? What if it’s not just a little valley? What if we’re already coasting our way through? What will life be like when the honeymoon period is over? Where are the butterflies for Ryan I hadn’t known I was missing until they flock into my stomach in droves when I’m around Joe? It’s not like it’s been a one-time thing with Joe, either. We’ve known each other for a long time. The flutters aren’t fleeting. What if Joe’s right? What if I’m with the wrong person? The wrong brother?
Bradley and I are sitting on the bench facing the amphitheater and one of the ponds that runs in front of the stage. It’s the bench where he asked me to move in with him last year. He pulls me close to his body and wraps his arm around my shoulders. His breath is warm against my ear. “Can you believe all we’ve accomplished today, Mrs. Banks?”
I smile against the hardness of his body. “In a way, it seems like forever since we made love this morning, but then again, the time seems to have flown.”
“Have you enjoyed your surprises?”
I stare into his hooded eyes. “Yes, they are all so special. You said for me to pack a bag. It’s late, and I’m wondering if your last surprise may have something to do with The Carriage House Inn?”
“We make really great memories in Aiken. Especially there, though.” His finger tugs my chin to his cool lips. Our tongues twist and turn, dancing in perfect rhythm with each other. The chill I’d been trying to escape by cuddling close to him is replaced with a sizzle. “Gabby…” His breathing hitches.
“Hmm?”
“We should go find everyone else.”
My lips curve upward. “Yes. Quickly.”
He stands and offers his hand.
I place mine in his, and he pulls me into an embrace. Triplet girls are walking in front of us. They’re wearing wide-legged pants with ruffles on the bottom with matching jackets. Their hair bows must be as big as
Does he hear himself? Can he actually hear the words coming out of his mouth? Does he even understand what I’m saying? Am I making no sense? Why does every interaction between us feel like a fight? “Did I say they were free of dysfunction?”
“I’m just sayin’.”
“Well, I’m sayin’ it’s one of my favorite places.” He asked about my bucket list, but I’m not sure I feel safe enough to share it with him right now. This place is a part of my fairy tale bucket list. I’m not naïve enough to think I get a fairy tale, but my dreams are. When I’m at this place, I turn into one of those little girls with a daddy who loved her so much, he built her a beautiful garden with looking ponds, a life-sized dollhouse, and even a pet cemetery with headstones for the animals she loved and lost.
When I look at the looking pond in front of it, I see roses and hear Christina Perri. I recall Bradley dropping to one knee and asking my sister to marry him. Additionally, thanks to being in the wrong place at the wrong time a few minutes ago, I can add seeing Joe kissing some other girl there too, and I wonder if his raspy voice tells her what he told me on the phone about how he wants it all. A wife, babies, even to be a stay-at-home dad. My stomach hardens.
A finger taps me on the shoulder, and my body jumps. “I’m sorry, Sam.” Ryan’s voice cracks. “My parents are married, there’s no alcoholic father who beats his kids, but there’s enough dysfunction to last a lifetime.” I take him in. Flecks of light dance over his dark hair and his smoldering brown eyes. “I don’t want you to have this false sense of what life’s like inside the iron gates of the garden.”
“It’s not your place to school me.” I exhale. “I shared something deeply personal with you on multiple occasions today, and both times, you’ve let me down.”
He kisses my neck. “We’re just going through a rough patch. We’ll be okay. We’ll get through it.”
But what if I don’t want to get through it? What if it’s not just a little valley? What if we’re already coasting our way through? What will life be like when the honeymoon period is over? Where are the butterflies for Ryan I hadn’t known I was missing until they flock into my stomach in droves when I’m around Joe? It’s not like it’s been a one-time thing with Joe, either. We’ve known each other for a long time. The flutters aren’t fleeting. What if Joe’s right? What if I’m with the wrong person? The wrong brother?
Bradley and I are sitting on the bench facing the amphitheater and one of the ponds that runs in front of the stage. It’s the bench where he asked me to move in with him last year. He pulls me close to his body and wraps his arm around my shoulders. His breath is warm against my ear. “Can you believe all we’ve accomplished today, Mrs. Banks?”
I smile against the hardness of his body. “In a way, it seems like forever since we made love this morning, but then again, the time seems to have flown.”
“Have you enjoyed your surprises?”
I stare into his hooded eyes. “Yes, they are all so special. You said for me to pack a bag. It’s late, and I’m wondering if your last surprise may have something to do with The Carriage House Inn?”
“We make really great memories in Aiken. Especially there, though.” His finger tugs my chin to his cool lips. Our tongues twist and turn, dancing in perfect rhythm with each other. The chill I’d been trying to escape by cuddling close to him is replaced with a sizzle. “Gabby…” His breathing hitches.
“Hmm?”
“We should go find everyone else.”
My lips curve upward. “Yes. Quickly.”
He stands and offers his hand.
I place mine in his, and he pulls me into an embrace. Triplet girls are walking in front of us. They’re wearing wide-legged pants with ruffles on the bottom with matching jackets. Their hair bows must be as big as
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