Blind Side Of Love (9 page)

“Well, you should do it more often, especially if it’s something that makes you happy. Not to mention that you have a true talent.”

“Well, thanks. You’re the first person that ever encouraged me to keep drawing. My parents always say it’s just the weird creative side of me coming out and creativity gets you nowhere in life.”

“That’s not true, Becca. Don’t ever let that side of you fade away, that’s what makes you different.”

Just when I thought that I couldn’t like him anymore than I already did, he would do or say something that would make my heart leap from my chest. He just seemed to
get me
on so many different levels. He allowed me to be the girl that I truly wanted to be without being chastised for it.

I ripped the sketch from by book when I saw the man getting up. “Excuse me,” I said as I stood up and approached him. “I hope you don’t mind, but while you and your dog were taking a little rest, I drew this up. I thought that maybe you would want to have it.” I noticed that he was looking past me, making me feel a little uneasy, before it finally dawned on me, he was blind and this was his seeing-eye dog. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry,” I whispered.

“Don’t be.” He smiled. “I
can
see it, you know?”

“You can? How?” I asked.

“In my mind and in my heart. You’d be surprised by the beautiful pictures I have stored in there.” I placed the picture in his hands and he bent down to show the dog. “What do you think Sampson, is this a good picture of us?” The dog barked loudly. “Well, Sampson seems to love it and since he’s my eyes, I love it, too. Would you just mind doing me a favor and sign the bottom for me if you haven't done so already? That way I can say that I have an original when you become famous.”

I laughed at that outrageous thought, but obeyed his wishes, signing and dating it for him. “I’m Becca Keeton, by the way,” I said, placing my hand in his.

“I’m Luke Thompson,” he replied while shaking my hand. “Thank you so much for this. I’m going to have my wife get a frame so we can hang it over the mantle where all of my favorite pictures are displayed.”

A smile came from deep inside my stomach. I had truly made someone happy with something that I created and even though I knew that he couldn’t see it with his eyes, he had shown me that he could feel it in his heart which meant more to me than anything. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Miss Keeton, and I will be sure to remember the name to make sure that no one gets their hands on my original when you become famous.”

“Well, I think the chances of that happening are slim to none, so for now just enjoy the picture.”

“Oh, never say never, child. I could tell you’re a very creative person, just by your voice. You’re beautiful on the inside and out. You put your heart into everything that you do and give all of yourself to those you care about.”

I smiled at this observation. “Well, I’d like to believe that’s true.”

“Oh it is. I’ve been blind my whole life. I use my other senses to make up for what my eyes lack. I don’t see beauty like most people do. I feel it. It’s more than just the physical makings of a person, it’s what’s inside. If you ask me, everyone should be blind before they could see. People would view the world much differently.”

“That sounds like a really good thought, Mr. Thompson.”

He smiled and nodded before grabbing onto his dog’s leash. “Ready, Sampson?” The dog looked up at him, leading him on his way as I stood there silently, watching them walk away.

Drew came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and kissing my neck. “You know, everything that man said about you was true. And, I was very impressed with the way that you handled his compliments.”

I leaned my head back into his chest. “Did you ever feel like certain people come into your life for a reason, even if it’s only for a few minutes and you never see them again?”

“I guess I never thought about it,” he said, planting another gentle kiss on my neck. I turned around to face him, placing my arms around him.

“Well, I do, and that man just now, he came into my life for some reason tonight. I don’t know why, but I just feel it.”

He pressed his forehead up against mine. “Maybe it was just to reinforce the lessons that I’ve already taught you. That even a blind man can see just how beautiful you are.”

“Well, thank you.” I stood on my tiptoes and planted a gentle kiss on his lips.

“I think you may have graduated from my school of confidence, Becca.”

“Oh good, does that mean that we can get started on the next lesson that we discussed last night?”

The smile on his face made me want to rip my clothes and his off right there and prove to him that I could be an A plus student. “I believe that class is in session right now.”

I giggled as he scooped me up in his arms and carried me off the beach and back to his house, finally placing me down on his bed. I couldn’t get my lips on his fast enough. He held his hands up and laughed. “Wow, an over enthusiastic student, I like that.”

“Well, I can’t help it if I’ve got a little crush on my teacher.”

“Geez, you’re not even giving me time to think of what today’s lesson is going to be.”

“Oh I know!” I grinned.

“What’s your suggestion, Becca?”

“An oral presentation.” I giggled.

His eyes widened and his smile deepened. “Becca! What happened to that sweet little innocent girl?”

“She’s still here, just a little more confident.”

Drew and I had our first lesson that night and it was the best class I had ever taken. My nerves from last night had completely diminished and it was nothing short of wonderful. By the time it was over, Drew had made sure that I had achieved something for the very first time that I had only heard about. And as with any good teacher, he assured that it completely lived up to my expectations, making me want to show up for class every day so I could experience it over and over.

The big red 2:47 on the clock came into focus as I raised my head from Drew’s chest and opened my tired eyes. “Shit,” I whispered. I tried to quietly reach for my phone from the nightstand to see if my brother had tried calling me, or worse yet, my parents.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Drew asked in a sleepy voice.

“I’m just checking to see if my brother tried calling. I should really get going,” I said, breathing a sigh of relief upon seeing no missed calls or text messages. He pulled me back down and hugged me. My stomach flipped, feeling his naked body pressing up against mine.

“Stay, Becca. It’s the middle of the night. Your brother is probably sleeping.” A million things raced through my mind….
What if my parents came home early? What if Jordan was doing something stupid like he did last night and I wasn’t there to stop him?
  Every single thought that was going through my head quickly diminished when I felt Drew’s lips on my bare back. I turned around, forgetting about all of my responsibilities and not even caring if it meant paying the price with my parents later on. At that moment, the only thing that mattered was Drew and making love to him once again.

Drew was still lying in bed, staring at me as I dressed once we woke up later that morning. “What are you looking at?” I smirked as I pulled my shirt over my head.

“One gorgeous woman!” He smiled back.

“Why thank you Mr. Bryant, I know I am.” I giggled.

“Yeah, you aced that class. And after last night, you aced the second one, too.”

“Well, I’ll keep attending the second one if you don’t mind. You know, for extra credit?”

“Sounds good to me.”

I leaned down to kiss him on the cheek and he pulled me on top of him. “I know I said this before but I just have to say it again, you are one amazing and gorgeous girl.”

I hugged him tightly. “Well, thank you, but I have to really get going,” I said with reluctance. 

“Well, you better get while you still can,” he teased.  I stood up and he was right behind me, pulling on his shorts. “Does she have you going anywhere this week?” he asked as he walked me to the door.

I rolled my eyes. This whole charity was really starting to get to me. It definitely wasn’t what I signed on for. “Who knows, I’m sure she’ll text me if she does.”

“I’ll call ya later,” he said just as his doorbell rang. He looked out the window and gave me an uneasy look.

“What’s the matter?”

“It’s your favorite person.”

My stomach clenched not only because I wanted to haul off and punch Ashton right in the face over the situation that he had put my brother in, but also because I was fairly certain that even he was smart enough to put the pieces together and figure out that I had spent the night here. I took a deep breath before Drew opened the door.

The familiar arrogant smirk that he always had plastered across his face was the first thing I saw. He looked me over. “Well, well, well, sweet little Becca! Does Daddy know where you spent the night?”

“Don’t even talk to me, you dirt bag.”

“Damn and here I thought that once you got fucked you would get the stick out of your ass!”

“You are nothing but an asshole, Ashton Barrett, plain and simple. Stay the hell away from me and stay the hell away from my brother.”

“Well, I will say you’ve gotten a little more spunk in you since Drew’s been boinkin’ you.”

“Ashton, just shut the fuck up!” Drew chimed in.

“I get it, bro. You don’t want me pissing off your piece of ass and I respect that, but maybe you should tell her to lighten up a little so we could all get along.”             

“I will
never
get along with you and I will
never
be friends with you, so I don’t have to lighten up.”

“Suit yourself, Becca. I didn’t come here to talk to you, anyway. I came to see Drew.” He raised his eyebrow at me before turning his attention to Drew. “A bunch of us
guys
are going kayaking today and maybe doing a little par-taying after. You in?” Drew looked at me almost like he was asking my permission. Unfortunately, Ashton picked up on it right away as well. “Oh my God, are you fuckin’ serious?” Ashton shouted. “She has you that whipped already?”

I did my best to ignore him, but at the same time I didn’t want Drew to feel as if he had to ask for my approval to go. Even though I couldn’t help but wonder in the back of my mind, what girls would be at this party afterward. I wrapped my arms around Drew’s neck and kissed him deeply, acting as if Ashton wasn’t even standing two feet away. “Have fun today and call me later,” I said.

“See ya, gorgeous,” he said, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek.

It took everything in me to keep walking out the door and not smack Ashton across the face when he shouted, “Oh my God, I think I’m gonna throw up!”

I hopped into my car and pulled my phone from my purse to call my brother. “Great!” I said, upon noticing that the battery had gone dead. Reality was finally sinking in and I was praying that he had behaved himself last night, especially after I promised my parents that I would keep a close eye on him this weekend.

My stomach dropped when I pulled into the driveway and saw my father’s car. They weren’t supposed to be back until tonight. I felt myself instantly breaking out in a sweat as I tried to come up with an excuse as to where I spent the night. My legs were trembling as I walked up the driveway and in the front door.

“Becca! Is that you?” my mother shouted from the family room.

I slowly inched my way closer. “Yeah, what’s going–” my jaw dropped when I saw my mother walking around the living room, tossing beer bottles into a garbage bag. “What….what happened?” I asked.

“I don’t know, Becca. Why don’t you tell us?” my father asked as he came walking down the steps.

“I-I…..had to do some work on the charity yesterday for Lynn and then Krista and I went back to her house and watched a few movies and I ended up falling asleep.”

“Don’t lie to me, Becca!” my father shouted. “I called Krista looking for you and she said she had no clue where you were. You were with that boy, weren’t you?” I looked at him and nodded. “Well, while you were out having fun last night, your brother decided to throw a party with God knows how many kids getting drunk off their asses and trashing the house.”