When Love Comes Around Read online

  Alisanne turns to move away from me, as if ashamed. I grab her wrist, stopping her. She looks back at me with tears in her eyes as I bring her hand to my lips and kiss the back of it.

  “You’re beautiful, Ali.”

  “You, are too,” she replies, letting the tears fall down.

  “Are we interrupting?”

  Surprised, I look to the doorway to see Evie and Granny Mabel standing there. Evelynn is smiling ear to ear her eyes shining with love and tears. Granny Mabel appears like she wants to cry too. I’ve never seen her like this.

  “Did Megan come?” The words are out before I can stop them and Evie looks confused.

  “What do you mean? We let Megan come in first because she’s been so worried sick about you I thought she’d die if she had to wait another minute to see you.”

  “What? I didn’t see her did you?” I ask turning to Alisanne.

  “I did see a woman with beautiful red hair standing at the door, but she turned around so quickly I thought she had the wrong room.”

  “I told you her visit seemed too quick,” Granny says to Evie. “And the way she rushed back to the hotel was suspicious. Can’t blame her, though.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask in confusion.

  “If the man I’d made myself sick over for the past month-and-a-half, were holding some other woman’s hand when I finally saw him again, I’d be pretty upset about it too.”

  Granny Mabel’s words cause me to look at my hand and damn if I’m not still holding Ali’s hand. She flushes with embarrassment and pulls her hand away.

  Damn it! Can’t anything go right for me?

  **********

  “What happened? Where were you?” Evie finally asks. It’s been three days since they first arrived at the Carl R. Darnell Army Medical Center. They’ve visited every day, but they’re leaving back to California tomorrow. Megan left the first day, and I never got to see her, but Evie told me how she worried about me and that she regretted what happened between us before I left.

  I hate that it took me deploying for her to acknowledge any type of feelings for me, but I guess it’s something. Now I have to explain what she saw between Ali and me. Which seems silly, since Megan and I aren’t together and there’s nothing between Alisanne and me anyway. Women are such fickle creatures.

  “You know I can’t tell you that, baby sis.”

  “I know. It’s just that I’m going to be worried out of my mind anytime you say you have to deploy somewhere from now on.” She has a pouty look on her face, which is contradicted by the radiance emanating from her.

  “What’s happening with you?”

  “What do you mean?” she asks.

  “I don’t know. Something looks different about you. It’s like you’re prettier or something.”

  “Really, Trevor? Really?” she says sarcastically. She’s sitting in one of the visitor's chair’s, munching on a bag of peanut M&M’s. It seems like she’s been snacking non-stop…

  “Evelynn Rae Woods!”

  “What?”

  “Are you pregnant?”

  “Good grief. I swear there’s a freaking sign on my forehead.”

  “So, you are pregnant?”

  “Of course she is. A blind man can see her pregnancy glow from a mile away, and she’s eating like she’s feeding ten, instead of two,” Granny Mabel chimes in as she walks in the room. Evie looks shocked at Granny’s comment. I guess she hadn’t told Granny yet.

  “You knew?” Evie asks her.

  “You think Trevor figured it out, and I didn’t?” she asks rhetorically. “Honey-child, please. You better hurry up and tell Hunter before everybody knows, except him.”

  “Trevor is an excellent name,” I tell her.

  “Ugh, you sound just like Megan. The two of you can name your baby Trevor. Leave me and mine out of it.”

  “Speaking of Megan. How is she?”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Megan

  “Another shot?” Jake asks, pouring another one before the question is fully out of his mouth.

  “Keep’em coming,” I tell him. He was going to anyway, hoping that he's getting lucky tonight, and he probably will.

  I feel like such an idiot. Here I was sitting at home, wasting away with worry over Trevor and he was off wooing some other woman. When the hell did he find time to do that anyway? I thought he was supposed to be missing in action somewhere. Leave it to him to find some beautiful French damsel in distress.

  I could hear her sweet French accent floating across the room as the talked quietly to one another. My stomach churned with anger and… no, just anger. I deny the idea that I was even remotely jealous when I heard him call her beautiful.

  “You feeling okay?” Jake asks with concern.

  No. I want to scream, cry, and vomit all at once. I toss back the shot he just placed in front of me. Fuck men! What the hell was I thinking anyway? That Trevor and I would fall magically in love and live happily ever after. I knew that shit wasn’t real.

  Looking around the place, I see that Shay’s is pretty lively tonight. I could probably go home with any man I want. Lucky for Jake, he’s the hottest guy in here this evening. I watch as he flirts and smiles with all the beautiful women at the bar, but he always makes his way back to me, flashing his sexy dimples and giving me a look that melts the panties off of most women. Smiling back at him, I fake interest, because I can still remember the feel of Trevor’s feather light kisses against my skin, and his tongue teasing my clit until I burst into flames.

  My face feels wet. I reach up with numb fingertips, to wipe at the dampness. Am I crying? This can’t be. I must be tired. I just need to rest my head right here…

  **********

  “Hey, Megan.”

  “Huh?” I groan from under the covers. My head is hammering and the morning light hurts my eyes as I try to peek out from under the blankets. I spy Jake standing next to my bed shirtless, before I bury me head again, unable to take the light any longer.

  “I’ve got classes this morning, but I’ll call you later.”

  “Mmmkay.” I could care less if he calls me later, but right now I’ll say anything to get him to leave. A few minutes later I hear him exit, and I fall back to sleep.

  “Knock, knock,” Gina says along with her taps on my bedroom door. She's just being polite because the door is wide open.

  “Come in,” I tell her, not hiding my annoyance at her presence. She ignores my attitude and takes a seat at the foot of my bed.

  “You wanna talk about it?”

  “Not really,” I reply, sitting up in the bed. A quick glance under the blankets reveals that I’m wearing a tank top and panties so I don’t bother to cover myself.

  “You’re changing,” Gina says, surprising me. “When Trevor was missing, you shut yourself away from everyone, and you became more reserved. Now that Trevor’s back, so to speak, you’ve gotten crazy wild. Don’t get me wrong, you’ve always been wild. But not like this. The kind of wild you were before was a free, I-know-who-I-am-and-I –love-me, kind of wild. This here,..” she waves her hand over me. “…is a self-destructive kind of wild.”

  “I don’t need your opinion.”

  “No, you don’t. But you’re going to get it, and not because I’m judging you, but because I care.” She looks at me for a moment, before continuing on. “Evie says that woman you saw Trevor with is a friend. He wants to talk to you and explain everything as soon as he gets back here. The doctors are keeping him for another week for surveillance, and then he can take leave to come home and recuperate some more. All I’m asking is that you wait to talk to him before doing anything drastic. Just think about it, okay?”

  Gina pats me on the leg, and then gets up and leaves the room. Why do I feel like everyone is on Trevor’s side instead of mine? And how do I know I haven’t gone and made things worse than they already were?

  **********

  I took Gina’s advice, but I didn’t.

&n
bsp; I haven’t had any more drunken flings, but I haven’t spoken to Trevor since he came back almost a week ago. He’s called and stopped by over a dozen times but to no avail. I guess he finally gave up.

  For the first time in my life, I’m acting like a coward. I’m afraid that if I talk to Trevor, he’ll convince me that what I saw was wrong. And isn’t that what happens to women all the time? Baby, it’s not what it looks like. Sweetheart, she means nothing to me, it’s you that I love. And so on and so forth.

  No, thank you.

  I’m sitting at the bar in Kandy Kane’s waiting for Hunter to show. It’s only a few more months until the wedding, and I suggested he have his bachelor party here, my treat. He doesn’t know my mother owns the place so he was a little offended at my offer, but agreed to come have a look anyway.

  I’m sipping an apple martini and watching one of the girls go through her routine on stage. I’m going to have to tell these ladies that under no circumstances are Hunter and his friends to have private lap dances during their party. As a matter of fact, I’ll pay them extra not to, because I’d hate to have to kill Hunter before the wedding.

  “Hey, lovely lady. What are you drinking?” A good looking guy, with deep brown skin, and a warm smile, slides onto the barstool next to me. He’s a few inches shorter than Trevor, but still a few inches taller than me. He doesn’t look like Trevor, but a few more apple martinis and he’ll pass for his long lost cousin.

  “I’ve got my own drinks covered, but I wouldn’t mind a little conversation.”

  By the time I see Hunter walk in the door I’ve gotten friendly with Oliver, and have had one too many drinks. My heart drops to the pit of my stomach when I see Trevor and Brayden walking in behind Hunter. I told him to come alone. I should have known better.

  Brayden and Trevor stop at a table near the stage and take a seat while Hunter continues in my direction. Hunter’s gaze is menacing as it lands on Oliver, but he appears unfazed by the glaring, blond, giant.

  “Glad you could make it,” I say, stepping off the stool and giving him a hug. “I see you brought some friends.”

  “Yeah, well, you know,” Hunter replies, smiling and shrugging his shoulders. “Tell me something. Is this Kandy Kane’s, as in, belongs to the Kane’s?”

  “Maybe. Maybe not,” I say, winking at him. I notice Oliver’s ears perk up at that. I hadn’t told him my last name, only my first.

  “In that case, feel free to cover the bachelor party expenses. This place is classy, for a strip joint,” he says, looking genuinely surprised. “How come you never told us that your mom owned this place?”

  Shrugging my shoulders, I take a drink of what I think is my fifth, martini. “I don’t know. It’s not exactly like being the heiress to a hotel franchise.”

  Looking past Hunter, I see Cinnamon, one of the club’s most popular dancer’s, giving Trevor a lap dance. He doesn’t seem that into it, but he’s not pushing her away either. I finish my drink and order another one. Buster’s in the back, but he’s not a bartender anyway, he just waits on me if he knows I’m here. Lucy, the regular bartender, quickly fixes me another drink.

  “You really do own the place, don’t you?” Oliver, asks when he notices that I have yet to pay for a drink.

  “No, I don’t. My mother does,” I reply, finishing off the new martini, my eyes still glued on Trevor.

  Hunter’s gaze slowly follows mine. “I’ll be right back,” he says, hurrying over to Trevor and Brayden.

  “What’s wrong?” Oliver asks me.

  “Nothing you can’t fix,” I say, grabbing him by his shirt and pulling him to the back of the club where the girl’s dressing rooms are located.

  I’m way past tipsy, but I don’t care. I need someone to make me feel good and forget Trevor. I need to fill the hole in my heart he created, leaving me vulnerable and scared.

  “Give me a sec,” I tell him, ducking into one of the small rooms to make sure it’s unoccupied. Flicking on the lights, I take a look around. Except for flimsy costumes and a million different colored boas, it’s empty. Shutting the lights off again, I reach outside the closet and grab Oliver by his shirt, dragging him into the costume closet with me.

  Once inside, Oliver doesn’t hesitate. His hands smooth down my body, causing shivers in their wake. His lips find, and capture mine in the dark, and I could swear that it’s Trevor kissing me. That’s exactly what I was hoping for when I turned the lights out. That the combination of the darkness, and the alcohol, would help me convince myself that Trevor is the one making love to me, instead of in the club, being ground on by a gorgeous, caramel-skinned, stripper.

  Desperate to feel his skin underneath my hands, I tug frantically at his shirt, and he obliges, removing it from his body. Ripped muscles bunch beneath my fingertips, and I hear his breath catch as I begin to unbuckle his pants.

  “Megan,” he breathes huskily. In my inebriated state, he even sounds a little like Trevor. I can barely stand up, but I’m desperate to have this man inside of me.

  “Shhh. Just take me,” I beg.

  My skirt is quickly pushed up my legs, and my panties pushed to the side, as he quickly thrusts into me. There’s no pain, only pleasure, as he takes me against the wall, kissing the side of my neck in between grunts. I don’t expect to find release with him, but my body begins to respond to his thrusts, greedily clenching around his manhood. His pumps become slower and more measured as if concerned about my pleasure, touching places in me that only one man has reached before. Strong hands grasp onto my ass, helping him push deeper inside of me, over and over again.

  “Oh, Trevor!” I cry out, as I erupt into an unexpected orgasm. Moments later, I feel his hot seed shoot into me, before he rests his forehead against mine. And then, I slip into unconsciousness.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Trevor

  I almost killed a man tonight.

  Megan has got me so fucked up, I don’t know which way is up. I went with Hunter to the strip club, because I knew she would be there, and it would be my last opportunity to talk with her before I leave tomorrow. I’ll be back again in a few months, for the wedding, but I wanted to talk things out with her way before then. But she had to go and make me lose my cool by dragging that guy to the back of the club.

  Sugar, Spice, or whatever she calls herself, was grinding her ass all over me, but I couldn’t keep my eyes off Megan. When she pulled that pretty-boy looking guy to the back, I was out of my seat like a rocket, dropping Nutmeg on her perfectly rounded ass.

  After she passed out, Megan’s mom and her manager, Buster, got her home safely. I wanted to do it, but I was too angry, and I have a plane to catch early tomorrow. I look at my cell phone. Scratch that, in a few hours.

  Nothing is waiting for me back at Fort Hood, except for doctors’ check-ups, and mandatory PTSD counseling. Alisanne went back home to France, but we talk regularly. She’s also receiving counseling, but unlike me, she seems to enjoy it.

  “You up?” Granny Mabel calls out from the other side of my bedroom door.

  “Yeah.”

  “You decent?” I’m still in the clothes I went to Kandy Kane’s in. I didn’t bother to undress or even roll back the blankets on the bed, opting to lay on top of them.

  “Yeah.”

  “Is that all you got in you now, one-word answers?”

  I contemplate giving another ‘yeah,’ but think better of it.

  “Did you get a chance to speak with Megan?” she pries.

  “Not exactly. She was otherwise occupied,” I add before Granny Mabel can ask why.

  “Hmm, well. Don’t give up hope. I know she cares about you. She just doesn’t know what to do with her feelings,” Granny Mabel tells me. “Normally I’d say, cut your ties and count yourself lucky. But I seen what the thought of losing you did to that girl. She ain’t use to catching feelings, and you’re taking her out of her comfort zone. She’s got something she needs closure on. I don’t know what that is, but my guess is, a
s soon as she gets her closure, she’ll be better equipped to deal with her feelings for you. Just give her time.”

  “Just give her time, huh? And in the meantime, she’s gonna give me a damn ulcer.”

  “You watch your mouth, young man,” Granny says sternly, but I see a small smile playing at the corners of her lips. “Anything worth having…”

  “…is worth fighting for,” I finish for her. “Yeah, I know, Granny.”

  “No, you don’t. But you will.”

  **********

  “So, Trevor, tell me more about this woman back in California that’s got you so angry you see red,” Dr. Wilder says.

  “I thought we were here to discuss my PTSD,” I remind her.

  “I feel that you’re PTSD is remarkably improved. I do, however, feel that your emotions regarding this woman, Megan,” she says, referring back to her notes. “Is hindering progress in other areas of your life.”

  “Ain’t that the truth.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Nothing. What is it you’d like to know Doctor?”

  “Have you spoken to Megan since you came back from leave?”

  “No.”

  “Have you tried?”

  “Yes.”

  Dr. Wilder sighs, sounding a little frustrated, which is surprising for her. She typically remains very neutral in her opinions and expressions.

  “Could you please give me more than one-word answers, Mr. Woods?” Uh oh, she’s not happy with me. She only calls me Mr. Woods when she’s getting frustrated with me.

  “I don’t know what you want me to tell you, Doc. I call, she doesn’t answer. I leave voice messages, she doesn’t respond. My sister, who is her best friend, can’t even get her to talk to me. What am I supposed to do? How do you love a woman that won’t let you love her?”

  “Thank you, Trevor. That’s what I needed to hear.”

  “I don’t understand. What exactly did you need to hear?”

  “That you care, and that you’re angry and frustrated, but you’re not sitting idly by waiting for things to happen. You’re invested in your future and a future with this woman.”