11. Jeremiah
Chapter 11
Jeremiah
W e’ve been on the road for an hour, and I’ve taken advantage of every opportunity I have to steal a glance at her.
She’s so fucking gorgeous. Her full, pouty lips move slowly, as she sings along with the radio. Amberlee has the voice of an angel. Her leg bounces in sync with the beat of the song, leaving me curious if it’s nerves or just her body in tune with the music.
“Have you been to the beach before?” I finally ask.
She doesn’t answer, and I wonder if she heard me. Glancing up in the rear view mirror, I see the kiddos have passed out, drool dripping from both of their mouths. It’s my chance to finally talk openly.
I move my hand off the console and lightly cover hers that’s resting on her lap. She jumps, jerking it away to cover her mouth, muffling her shriek.
“Sorry, shit. I’m sorry.”
She’s clutching her chest, gasping. I look over my shoulder, thankful when I still see the kids sleeping. They’re out cold.
“It’s okay. You just startled me.”
“I wasn’t thinking. I asked you a question, and you didn’t answer, so I was just trying to get your attention. Guess I should’ve just turned the radio down or talked louder.”
She laughs, and it eases my anxiousness over the issue.
“What did you want?” she asks, her voice still somewhat surprised.
“Oh, umm, I asked if this was the first time you’ve been to the beach?”
“This one yes, but beaches in general, no. Our parents took us to Florida to go to Disney a few times. We always went to the beach after, and my sorority went to Daytona for spring break senior year.”
The image of horny college boys lusting over her in a bikini has my blood boiling. My thoughts quickly drift to what she will look like in a bikini now. She had a killer body seven years ago, I can only imagine what it looks like now.
I stutter for a moment, opening and closing my mouth. Swallowing harshly, I sigh, working the nerve up to ask her a question that’s been on my mind.
“Did you break some guy's heart when you moved here?”
The thought of her being with someone kills me. I’ve heard Ryan mention over the years, here or there, about her dating some new guy. Usually, he would give his thoughts if he’d met the guy or not. I’d listen, but never asked him about his sister. There were two reasons for that. One, knowing she was happy with someone was harder than not knowing, and secondly, asking Ryan personal questions about his sister was a negative if I didn’t want him to know how I felt about her. So blind oblivion it was.
She shakes her head. “No,” slips past her lips.
I won’t lie, her answer makes me happy. The men in Freeport must be idiots to let her slip through their fingertips without a fight. If I had been smarter, I would’ve never fucked around with Sylvia, but then I wouldn’t have Angel. Sylvia was nothing more than a distraction to keep my mind off the very underage and off-limits girl that I was crushing hard over.
“I’ve asked Ryan about you over the years. He said you were top of your class in college.”
Her face shoots in my direction as her eyes widen.
“You’ve asked about me?” she stammers, the pitch of her voice rising.
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I? Didn’t you ask about me?”
Please say yes!
“No. Asking my brother how his friends are doing isn’t something I’d do,” she pauses and sighs. “The only ones I know about are the ones still in our hometown. I’d see them almost daily and didn't need to ask. So, it was always Ryan asking me about them.”
Okay, I guess that’s as good an answer as I can get, one that doesn’t deflate my ego. But judging by how she’s fidgeting in her seat, biting on her full lip, and bouncing her knees up and down, I know I’m affecting her. She may not have asked Ryan about me, but I’d bet my left kidney she has, at the very least, thought about me.
“Are you excited to start working at the new school?” I change the subject just slightly, wanting her to keep talking.
“Yeah, everything I looked at online when I applied was amazing. The student teacher ratio is far better than back at home. I’m anxious to begin setting up my classroom.”
Amberlee’s face lights up when she talks about teaching. I tune out her voice, focusing on catching glimpses of her out of the corner of my eye.
Angel coughs, catching my attention, but when I look back at her, she just adjusts herself in her booster seat, never waking up.
“Are you dating anyone?” Amberlee asks softly.
“No. I mean, I have here and there, but I’m picky with Angel.” I take turns taking each of my hands off the steering wheel and running them along my thighs. Being this close to her makes me nervous. “The next woman I choose to be with needs to accept both of us since we’re a package deal. Most of the women I’ve met still want to party and they’re not ready to settle down.”
“Ohh.” She clears her throat and shifts in the seat, pressing her thighs together as she angles her legs toward the door.
“But I do have my eye on someone, she just doesn’t know it yet. There are some obstacles in the way but I’m hoping to navigate one very soon. She’s worth all the effort it’ll take to be with her,” I assure her.
Her face deflates and her shoulders slump.
Oh, it seems she thinks I’m talking about someone else. Interesting, she doesn’t seem to like the thought of me and someone else. I have four days to convince her that she’s the woman I want, the missing piece of the puzzle that will make mine and Angel’s family complete.
When she finally looks up at me, a stony expression covers her face, her eyes watering. “I hope she realizes how lucky she’d be. You seem to be a good guy and a great father. Not to mention you have an honorable career. Any woman would jump at the chance to have you.”
“Any woman? Does that include you?” I flash a smile as I softly chuckle. She’s so timid, I don’t want to scare her away, so I’m hoping she thinks I’m joking.
“Even if I wanted to, Ryan would never allow it. He’s always had a strict no dating his sister rule, even though none of his friends ever entertained the idea.”
“You’re kidding, right? He used to tell me how his friends would talk about how hot you were all the time. He even lectured me before I came home with him for the first time.”
My heart begins to race. It’s the night I met Sylvia, the nastiest bitch ever. Who just gives up their parental rights without a second thought? It didn’t take long after I married her to know I was just a way out of Freeport, and the first step in having someone take care of her. However, her idea of the money I made in the military didn’t match up with reality and she realized she couldn’t live a lavish lifestyle. She was delusional.
Amberlee’s face pinkens, and she looks away.
Her actions show how much I affect her and I love it. Her actions just reaffirm that she feels the same way as I do. Fate has stepped in and I’m not ignoring it any longer. Amberlee and I are meant to be together. I just have to get her to realize it, then let Ryan know in any uncertain terms that she’s going to be mine.
She leans forward, reaching into her oversized purse and pulls out a book, effectively telling me the conversation part of our ride is over. But I’m persistent and I’m not ready to let it end.
“What are you reading?” Her face becomes a darker shade of pink and her hands grip the edge of the book.
“Just a book.”
Interesting. She’s not willing to answer. I look harder, seeing the cover has a woman and two wolves on it. Romance? I’ve been on TikTok enough, and somehow ended up on the book side of it, so I know that without a doubt it has to be smutty.
“What’s it about? I might want to read it.” And I will. If she loves to read, I will too, just so I can be a little closer to her. When I was younger, I always felt the woman should do what the man wants and enjoys, never vice versa. But as I’ve grown, I’ve learned it’s a fifty-fifty deal. Each side has to give and take to make a relationship work.
“It’s just an omegaverse book. The female main character is bullied and pretends to be a beta and meets a man online that she ends up falling for, even though she’s never seen him. She has a different identity she uses and she’s working to help take down a corrupt foundation.”
“That sounds interesting. Maybe I can borrow it from you this weekend and start reading it until I can get my own copy. Or even better yet, you can read it to me. Let’s start now. We still have some time before we’ll be at the hotel.”
“I… I… don’t think that’s a good idea,” she stutters.
“Why?” It’s taking everything in me to hold back the laughter that’s begging to burst free.
“It’s not exactly appropriate for the kids to hear.”
“But they’re asleep,” I remind her.
She opens her mouth, then closes it, repeating the movement a couple times. I love how shy she is around me.
Love. Do I love her?
The attraction I felt was overwhelming when I met her all those years ago. It never faded throughout the years. If love at first sight is a thing, I felt it the moment I laid eyes on Amberlee Michaels.
I decide to let her off the hook.
“It’s okay, you can read it to me later, in private—maybe after Angel goes down for the night. We can sit on the balcony and have a drink while you enlighten me with a bedtime story.”
I can hear her gulp, but I don’t draw attention to her. Right now, I need to calm the growing bulge between my legs. Reaching down into the driver’s side door, I pick up my bottle of water, still cold, and place it right over my crotch, hoping like hell it puts out the fire burning within my pants.