Stepbrother Forever: A Stepbrother Romance (21 page)

ASHLEY

Chapter 5

Lunch was busy, which makes the
day go by faster. It also means more money in my pocket, which is even better.
After I clean the tables in my section and reset everything for the dinner
crowd, I pour myself a lemonade and go sit at a table outside to relax and
enjoy my break. I take my phone out to kill some time and see I have a couple
of texts and a voicemail.

One text is from Rachel letting
me know she’ll probably stop in after dinner, which I reply to with a smiley
face. One is from my brother sarcastically asking if I am excited for tomorrow
night. I reply to him in the same tone:
More
than anything ever.

Tomorrow night we are supposed
to go to my mom’s house on Long Island where she will be introducing us to Tom,
her boyfriend of several months. Supposedly, they’re in love.

It’s not that I’m not happy for
her—I know she had a tough time after my father left, and I don’t blame her.
Twenty-two years of marriage and then he tells her he’s in love with someone
else. Someone else was Katie, a girl not much older than myself. He met her
when he had knee surgery. She was a physical therapy intern. Apparently, she
knew how to take care of more than just his leg.

Mom wrote off men for a long
time. When we finally convinced her to get back in the game, she used an online
dating site and met a couple of real losers. She probably would have given up
except her friend, Carol, had introduced her to Tom, a divorcée from her
husband’s golf club. It took him a while to woo her, but according to my mom,
that first date was all it took.

Now, almost a year later, we
will officially meet Tom and his sons. I’m sure if nothing else, it will be
interesting.

I finish my lemonade and send a
text to Michael.
Hope you’re having a
great day,
with a smiley face blowing a kiss. I know he doesn’t like to
talk on the phone at work, but he can text quick if he wants.

I hit “play” and listen to my
voicemail message. It’s my mom, Cynthia. She sounds excited and nervous and
says she
’
s
looking forward to meeting Michael. She also asks me to bring dessert to her
house “if I have time,” which is her way of saying “bake something or I will
make you feel guilty that you didn’t.” Tomorrow’s my day off, so I can cook
something before I head out.

The rest of my night goes
pretty smoothly, and even though so many people leave the city for the weekends
during the summer, we stay busy. I only have a couple of tables left when I see
Rachel walk in.

Rachel is gorgeous and always
turning heads. Being a yoga instructor is her dream job. She has a huge
following and her classes are always full. She carries herself with an air of
confidence that draws people in. Men are always attracted to her and she has no
problem telling them when she’s not interested. She can be sweet, but if you
rub her the wrong way, she can tear you to pieces.

She strolls up to the bar and
smiles at Sam, the bartender. I have been working here long enough that he
knows she’s my friend. I walk over and say hello as Sam hands her a glass of
white wine.

“I just have a couple of tables
left and I’m done,” I tell her as I go to ring the last of the bills into the
register.

“No worries. I don’t mind
having a drink while I wait. It’s been that kind of day,” she says, rolling her
eyes as she takes a long sip of her wine.

Rachel drinks and talk to Sam
as he serves the other few patrons at the bar and cleans up from the night. I
close out my checks, clean my station, and head into the bathroom to wash my
hands and face before joining Rachel.

I dry my face and take a look
at my phone. I
’
m a
little disappointed—Michael never returned my text from this afternoon.

I head back out to the bar to
sit next to Rachel. Sam already has a merlot poured for me. I love a glass of
wine at the end of the night. Helps me unwind.

“I was just telling Sam about
my day,” she says. “This jerk-off came to my class for the first time. I can
always spot a pervert right away. You know that guy who’s there just to meet
chicks and look at their asses? Well, he came into the wrong yoga studio. I
won’t get into it, but before the end of class, he was leaving with his tail
between his legs and won’t be looking to hook up at a yoga studio any time
soon.” She smiles in a self-satisfied way as she takes the last sip of wine
from her glass and motions to Sam for a refill.

“What’s with men, anyway?” she
muses, not really looking for an answer. I can tell she’s already a little
buzzed and she’s only one glass in. “Like that guy last night. What a prick. He
treated you like he could say anything at all and you’d just drop your panties
for him out of principle.” Sam hands her another glass and she sips.

If only she knew that I’d
fantasized all night about exactly that. But I couldn’t share that with her,
even though she’s my best friend. She’s seen me fall for the bad boy too many
times. I can’t imagine what she would say if I told her.

“Men are so stupid,” Rachel
finishes at last. “I mean, most of them. I’m glad I found Chris when I did or I
might have given up all together.”

Then she looks at me. “Michael
seems like a great guy too, Ash. Maybe he’ll be The One.”

“I don’t know. I thought we
were going somewhere, but with the way things have been between us lately, I’m
not sure they are,” I say out loud for the first time. “I mean, he doesn’t even
ask me to leave a change of clothes or a toothbrush or anything at his place.
You would think after all the nights I’ve spent there it would be common
courtesy.” I’m realizing I feel worse about this than I thought.

“Well, you’ve only been
together a few months, but I see what you’re saying,” Rachel replies with a
glum look “Maybe he just wants to take it slow.”

“Maybe,” I answer, thinking she
could be right. I’m not even twenty yet and he’s only a few years older. I know
he’s had a couple long-term relationships that ended badly. Maybe he’s just
looking to play it safe, kind of like I am.

“Sometimes I think I should’ve
stuck with the bad boys. At least I know what to expect from them—nothing.” I’m
only half-joking.

And suddenly I’m thinking of
Jayson again. I can’t help it. He is a player and definitely a bad boy, but I
know he would more than satisfy me sexually. If he can make me squirm without
even touching me, I can only imagine how he would make me feel with those big,
full lips sucking their way down from my neck to my breasts and then my pussy,
which would be so wet by the time he pressed his tongue into it.

I snap back into reality. We
are talking about Michael, not some random asshole I met for two minutes at a
bar.

“You’re crazy Ash. Stick it out
with Michael. Maybe you can have a nice guy
and
mind-blowing sex. You’re amazing and you deserve to have it both ways.” Rachel
always knows how to make me feel good about myself.

I smile at her. “Thanks.”

We continue chit-chatting for a
while at the bar. I remind her that I’m going to meet my mom’s boyfriend
tomorrow night. I wish she could come to keep me company. Michael’s going,
sure, but there’s just something about a best friend that always makes
everything better.

And truthfully, even when Michael
and I are together, I’ve started feeling alone.

We finish our drinks, say
goodnight, and leave the restaurant together. The east side of Manhattan is
always busy, even on a summer weekend. We pass through groups of people smoking
outside bars and waiting to get into others. When we get to my apartment, we
say goodnight and Rachel blows me a kiss before walking to her own home just a
few blocks from mine.

I’m lost in thought while I
fumble with my keys and open the door. Michael still hasn’t responded to my
text and I don’t think I’ll call him again tonight. Until that night at the
bar—until I met Jayson—I’d thought things between Michael and I were going
pretty well, but now that I’ve felt that spark, I can’t help but wonder what
I’m missing out on.

I realize with a start that
I’ve never felt like this about Michael.

A vision of Jayson appears in
my head, which is senseless. He meant nothing and forgot about me in minutes,
which was apparent by the way he had his hands all over that blonde. Why was I
wasting my time even thinking of him?

Because I wanted him in a
purely animal way. I wanted to feel his big cock inside me, his hard body on
top of mine. Feel his hot breath on my neck again. I was getting worked up just
thinking about it. Maybe nice guys don’t do it for me, or maybe like Rachel
says, I deserve both.

I mentally plan my morning as I
get ready for bed. Maybe Michael and I will have some time to talk on the train
and I can see what he thinks about me and our relationship. Maybe he’s just scared
to get too close too soon.

I get in bed and fall asleep
easily after my long day at work. I try not to hold it against my subconscious
when I dream about Jayson.

_____

I wake up early and throw on
some clothes so I can head to the grocery store. I decided I’ll make my mom’s
favorite—strawberry shortcake with homemade whipped cream. It’s easy enough to
make and I know she’ll appreciate it.

I call Michael on my way to the
store and get his voicemail. It’s early yet, so he’s probably still sleeping. I
leave a message for him.

Getting what I need from the
store doesn’t take long. Back at home, I mix my batter and put my shortcake in
the oven. I whip the cream and mix the strawberries and sugar. I clean up the
kitchen and by the time the timer goes off, my counters and sink are looking
spotless. I take the cake out and go take a shower so I can get ready to leave.

My phone starts ringing as I
get out, but it’s not near me, so I let it go to voicemail. I dry off and get
dressed, but before doing my makeup, I hurry into the other room and grab my
phone. I’m going to have to leave soon and still haven’t spoken to Michael. I’m
hoping he’s the one who called.

When I look at my screen I have
a notification for a missed call and voicemail. I press “play” and hear
Michael’s voice on the other end.

“Hey, Ash. Sorry we didn’t get
to talk yesterday. I’m not going to be able to go with you today. Honestly, I
just… I just can’t. I don’t think I’m ready to meet your family. Not that
there’s anything wrong with you, or them, it’s just… me. I’m not ready. I hope
you understand. We’ll talk later, okay? Promise. Bye.” And that was it.

Is he fucking kidding me? My
“nice guy” boyfriend is ditching me via voicemail! Is he breaking up with me?
Or is he just scared to meet my family?

Screw this. I call him back. He
picks up after the fourth ring.

“Hey, Ash,” Michael says
hesitantly.

“Hey, Michael. What’s up?” I’m
trying to sound nonchalant but I’m not sure how it’s coming across when my
teeth are clenched and my hands are shaking.

“I don’t know. I was thinking
about going to your mother’s house, and it just doesn’t seem right.”

I swallow the venom rising up
from my throat. “Could you be a little more specific?”

Michael sighs. “Look, I like
you. A lot. And I love hanging out with you. But lately, I’ve realized I don’t
see our relationship going to the next level.”

I realize now that part of me
saw this coming. All the signs were there. All the red flags. But the force of
his confession still hits me like a ton of bricks, and I have to sit down.
“You… don’t?”

“No, Ash. Shit, I’m sorry. I
should have told you sooner…”

“You’re goddamn right!” I snap.
“How the hell do you think it’s okay to break up with me over the phone? Do you
not have the balls to tell me to my face?”

“I didn’t want to hurt you,
Ashley. I really do like you. And I care about you,” he adds, almost as an
afterthought. But that saccharine tone of voice isn’t something I’m ready to
believe. Not anymore.