Faithful (20 page)

“Okay, first off, just stop. I love Heather, and I think of her as a sister. You’re totally grossing me the fuck out with the picture you’re putting in my head, you asshole. Second, don’t worry. It’s going to be perfect no matter what you’re doing or when it is or even where it is. Just let it happen when it feels right.”

“What did you do for Ellie?” I stopped pacing and stared at Gunner.

He started looking everywhere but at me.

“Gunner? What did you do for your first time with Ellie?”

Gunner looked at me and shook his head. “Dude, I don’t think you really want me to tell you what I did.”

I just stared at him. “Yeah, I do. What did you do?”

“I, um…well, I had Jenny…she’s Aaron’s wife. You know Aaron, Drake’s son? Anyway, Jenny decorated the old deer cabin that I had remodeled. She filled it with daisies and other flowers and champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries and all of that good shit. But I, um...I...well, first I…”

“Jesus, spit it out.”

“I asked her to marry me first,” Gunner said with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Wait…what? How long did you date her before you asked her to marry you?”

“About six months,” he said with a smile.

“You dated her for six months and never had sex with her?” I asked, stunned.

“Yep. I didn’t want to rush it. I wanted it to be perfect. Believe me, there were a few times we almost went too far, but I always stopped it before we got carried away.”

“You’re my fucking hero!”

Gunner let out a laugh and sat down on my bed. “Just don’t rush it, dude. I know you want to remember everything about those years you lost, especially your memories about Heather, but it’ll come back. And if it doesn’t…well, you’ll make new ones.”

Just then, there was a knock on my door. I walked over and opened it to see Ellie and Heather standing there. Heather’s face instantly blushed.
Shit, why does she get so flushed around me?
I smiled as she walked in, and the smile she gave back almost brought me to my knees.
There isn’t a damn thing I wouldn’t do for this girl.

“Hate to interrupt guy time, but we better head back before it gets too late. I don’t want to leave Alex with your parents for too long,” Ellie said as she walked by me and gave me a wink.

She’s the sweetest thing ever.

Gunner got up, took her in his arms, and kissed the shit out of her.

When I looked away, I caught Heather staring at me. My heart started pounding, and my hands started sweating.
Jesus H. Christ. Am I in high school?
I winked at her, and there went the blushing again. I let out a little laugh, and she tilted her head at me. Then, she bit down on her lower lip. I was pretty sure a small moan escaped from me. She giggled and looked away.

The next thing I knew, Gunner slapped the shit out of my back.

With a wink, he said, “Remember what I said, dude.” He turned, leaned down, and kissed Heather on the cheek. “Take good care of the birthday boy, sweetheart.”

When Ellie hugged Heather good-bye, she whispered something in Heather’s ear that made her smile and blush again.

I felt my dick getting harder by the second.
Calm the fuck down, Josh. Think about something else.

Before Gunner walked out, I called out to him. “Gunner! What did you think about?”

He turned and smiled.

Bastard knows exactly what I’m asking.

“Dogs.”

“Dogs?” I asked, confused as hell.

He let out a laugh and nodded. “Yep…fucking dogs.”

Ellie looked at Gunner, and then she glanced over at Heather. Heather just shrugged her shoulders. I watched as Gunner and Ellie started walking out.

Ellie turned, and before she shut the bedroom door, she gave me a wink. “Happy birthday!”

Once the door was shut, I pulled Heather into my arms. I pressed my body against hers, so she could feel how much I wanted her. I looked down at her mouth and ran my finger along her lower lip, pulling it out from between her teeth.

“Let me.” Leaning down, I took her lip in my mouth and sucked on it.
God, she tastes like honey.
Then, I kissed her with as much passion as I could.

“Oh god,” she whispered.

“You want to go for that drive?” I looked into her beautiful blue eyes.

“What?” she asked, confused. She almost seemed like she was in a daze.

“Our drive that we’ve been trying to go on for the last few nights,” I said with a smile.

She giggled and nodded. “Okay. Can I go change into some jeans though? It’s getting kinda chilly outside.”

“Okay. Hurry and meet me at my truck. I’m gonna try and sneak out without anyone seeing me,” I said with a wicked grin.

She raised her eyebrows at me before she reached up and gave me a quick kiss. “It’s a date!” she called out as she opened my door and skipped down to her room.

I shut my door and quickly changed into some jeans and a long-sleeve shirt.

When I got downstairs, I heard my parents talking to their best friends in the kitchen. I tiptoed around the corner and hustled down the back hallway to the garage. I went out the garage and jogged over to my truck. Thankfully, I’d parked down by the barn, so no one was blocking me in.

The next thing I knew, I heard Heather laughing as she was running to the truck. When I turned, she jumped into my arms.

Oh my god, my ribs.
I couldn’t help it. I let out a grunt.

“Oh my god! Oh shit, shit, shit! I forgot about your ribs. Oh, Josh, I’m so sorry!”

I laughed and pulled her back to me. With one look into those eyes, I forgot all about the pain. I kissed her quickly before I picked her up and carried her over to the passenger side of my truck. Once she was in, I jogged around to the other side and got in.

As I pulled out of the driveway, I saw my parents standing outside the garage door, smiling. I gave them a quick wave and headed off to the back pasture.

I parked the truck in my favorite spot and turned it off. I looked over at Heather and smiled. She was grinning from ear to ear.

“I thought we were going for a ride?”

“We did. This is my favorite place to come to when I just want to relax and think. Wait until you see the stars.” I rolled down the truck windows and turned up my iPod. “Come on, the sun is going down. They’re gonna start popping out!”

I jumped out of the truck and went over to help her out. I took her hand and led her to the front of the truck. “Climb up,” I said.

“Up where?”

“Onto the hood of the truck.”

“You want me to climb up on the hood of your brand new truck? And do what?”

I let out a laugh.
God, she’s so damn adorable.
“Just lie back and look at the sky, princess. I promise it’ll be worth it.” Then, I stopped and stared at her. “Have I ever brought you out here?”

She smiled and shook her head. “Nope, this would be a first!”

Perfect.

I wasn’t sure how long we were on the hood of my truck, just talking. We talked about everything from the grades we made in high school to our first fight. I couldn’t get enough of her. She cried once when she started to tell me about her parents. I hated that she had to live through it all over again, just to tell me once more, but I wanted to know.

Everything about her was…amazing. She was beyond perfect in every way.

“I still can’t believe Jeff talked you into buying a Ford. You loved your Dodge so much.”

I sat up on my elbows and looked at her, stunned. “Wait, Jeff said I wanted to get a Ford because my Dodge was having a hard time pulling my trailer with the furniture on it.” I started to get a sick feeling in my stomach.

Heather let out a laugh. “Your Dodge pulled your trailer just fine! Jeff always teased you about your truck, and…” She stopped when she realized what was going on. “Oh no, Josh!” She giggled.

“That dirty, rotten, motherfuckin’ asshole. I’m gonna kill him! I’m. Going. To. Kill. Him.”

Heather couldn’t stop laughing.

I just sat there in shock.
I let that bastard talk me into a Ford truck.
“I trusted that motherfucker. And Gunner! Why didn’t he say anything?”

“Probably because they both love Fords,” Heather said with a shrug.

I leaned back and looked up at the sky. I was tired of talking. I just wanted to enjoy this time with her.

Then, I heard Jason Aldean’s “Talk” playing through my speakers.
So perfect.
I grabbed her hand and slid us down the hood. “Dance with me.”

She smiled and walked into my arms. I pulled her in closer to me and just held her as we danced under the stars.

“I want to make love to you so damn bad, princess,” I said in her ear.

“Yes,” she whispered back.

“But I won’t do it in my truck or in my parents’ house. I want it to be perfect for you.”

She grabbed on to my shirt and took a deep breath. “Amanda’s in Austin this weekend, staying at her parents’ house. She has to go see Brad and meet with his counselor. We could, um…well, we could go and stay the night at my house after Luckenbach. Then, you could head to your apartment in the morning, like you planned,” she said with a twinkle in her eyes.

When I smiled at her, her face lit up like Christmas morning.

I love this girl so much.
“It’s a date, princess,” I said before I leaned down and kissed her.

I watched as Ellie bent down and kissed Alex for the fourth time.

“Ellie, sweetheart, let’s go!” I called out.

Grams and Gramps started laughing.

“Ellie, I raised two boys, darling. I’ve got this,” Grams said before she kissed Ellie on the cheek.

Ellie skipped over to my truck. I opened the door, and she jumped in.

“Let’s go cut a rug, Mr. Mathews!” she said with a smile.

After we parked and got out of the truck, I heard Ari call out, “Ellie!”

Ellie’s face brightened as she waved at Ari.

“Hey, bitch! Dropping the baby off two days in a row! Aren’t you brave?” Ari said as she winked at me.

“Shut up, Ari. You’re gonna make me turn around and go back and get her,” Ellie said as she pouted her lips.

I grabbed her and pulled her chin up to me. “I’ve arranged to have Grams keep Alex all night,” I said as I winked at her.

“Really?” Ellie gave me a wicked look.

“Six weeks, baby.” I captured her lips with mine.

“Oh, for Christ’s sake, I don’t need to hear that shit!” Jeff grabbed Ari’s hand and headed into the Luckenbach dance hall.

Ellie and I both started laughing.

Once we got in, I spotted Josh and Heather on the dance floor. I smiled as I watched the two of them. When Ellie had told me that Heather was pregnant, my heart just broke. Heather had gone to the doctor yesterday morning and confirmed it all.

“Ells, do you think it’s a good idea for Heather to not tell Josh about the baby?” I asked.

Ellie turned and looked at me with such sadness in her eyes. “Ari and I talked about it with her. She wants to wait just a little longer. With Josh getting little bits and pieces of his memory back, she’s holding out hope that he’ll get it all back.” She turned and looked at them both dancing.

Kenny Chesney’s “Don’t Happen Twice” was playing, and Josh had the biggest smile on his face.