“I’ll be right there.”
“I’m going crazy.” Saying it out loud made it scarier. “Aren’t I?”
Gabe didn’t say anything for a bit and then sighed heavily into the phone. “You’re not going crazy. You’re just really stressed, okay Lisa?”
I nodded even though he couldn’t see me.
“Is it possible you saw someone who looked kind of like Taylor?” he asked gently.
“I guess, but he knew my name! My real name!”
“Lisa, I hate to break it to you but half the known universe knows your name right now—especially after the story about me went viral for months. It’s going to happen.”
I breathed a little easier. “So maybe it was just…me being…stressed?”
“Lisa, you’ve been burning the candle at both ends. Planning everything for the wedding, keeping Kiersten in the dark. Do me a favor?”
I rolled my eyes. “What?”
“Relax. Go to your room, make yourself some hot chocolate, take a shower, and read a magazine. Just unplug for a bit. Classes don’t start for another day. Just take time for yourself. You deserve it. We’ve all been through hell this last year.”
My eyes searched the parking lot again.
No Taylor.
So I was either stressed, or I was losing it. I chose to believe it was stress, going crazy so wasn’t in my life plan!
“Thanks, Gabe.” I slowly unlocked my door and started getting out of the car. “I’m sorry for interrupting you guys.”
“Lisa…” Gabe’s voice was soft. “You’re not an interruption. I’d die for you. You know that, right?”
“Yeah.” My lower lip trembled. “I do.” I cracked a smile. “Best cousin ever.”
“Ha-ha,” he teased. “Very funny.”
“I’ll just…go see about that bath now.”
“Do it. I want to hear all about your relaxing evening later on okay?”
“Deal.”
“Bye, cousin.”
“Bye, turtle.”
We hung up. I slowly walked towards the dorms and shook my head. Yeah, I was just stressed. Either that or I was going to give that little kid in Sixth Sense a run for his money because I totally saw dead people.
Real cool.
With a practiced smile, I slid my keycard over the pad and went into the building. Inside was some hot chocolate with my name on it.
Chapter Eight
When you hear bad news it’s like a literal punch to the stomach—no seriously, your body will create a physical response to your emotional trauma. When you’re heartbroken—you’re chest will actually hurt. Doctors believe that it’s possible to die from heartache, kind of makes you wonder the opposite right? Take for example a heart that’s so full, so alive, so vibrant, so—overjoyed, that it decides to skip a beat, pump a little bit longer, a little bit harder, a little bit…more than the way it was created to be. I think that’s my heart—No I know that’s my heart. When I see Kiersten. My heart is the opposite of broken—it’s full.—Wes Michels
Wes
“So…” I brought Kiersten’s fingertips to my lips and gave them a little kiss, but it wasn’t enough, so I tasted…each and every one.
Funny how a person can actually taste a certain way, to me, she tasted like heaven, which is kind of ironic since I’m pretty sure last year this time I should have been charging towards those pearly gates—or would have been had I not met her. She was my savior, miracle or not. The very fact that she’d said yes to my proposal? And that we were married?
Yeah, forget surviving cancer.
I just married the most beautiful woman God ever created—period.
“So?” Kiersten giggled. “Were you gonna finish that thought or just daydream a bit? What’s going on in Wes Michels Land, hmm?” She winked and then withdrew her hand from mine, placing it in her lap.
We’d just gotten into the car and already I was nervous about the rest of the night—not because I didn’t know what I was doing but because I’d built up so much anticipation for this very day that, now she had said yes? And she was my wife? Well all those emotions came charging down leaving me totally wiped.
It was hell trying to hide my yawn.
Kiersten ran her fingers through my hair as I pulled onto the freeway. “You look tired.”
“I look awesome,” I corrected. “And…satisfied.”
“Oh.” Kiersten shrugged. “So I guess that means you don’t need this?”
I merged into the carpool lane and glanced in her direction. Dangling. White. Lace. Bra. Holy mother of—
“Wes!” Kiersten laughed. “Stay in your lane!”
I screeched to the middle lane then almost slammed on my brakes just because my body was clearly losing all ability to function. It was like adrenaline surged through all the wrong parts forcing me to slam on the brakes while simultaneously wanting to reach over and pull Kiersten into my lap and just—I don’t know, I honestly couldn’t get past the white, the lace. Shit, why was I repeating myself? IN MY HEAD.
“Uhhh…” Throat dry I tried clearing it, but it only made things worse.
“Water?” Kiersten handed me a bottled water. Thank God.
I took a sip just as she hiked up her dress and showed me her garter.
The water sprayed out of my mouth onto the steering wheel of my Porsche Cayenne.
I hacked, I coughed, I hacked again, then wiped my mouth with the back of my hand all the while Kiersten laughed her ass off and continued flashing parts of her body.
Cursing, I took the next exit.
“Where are we going?” Kiersten’s laughter died down as she glanced out the window at the Sound. “A parking lot? We’re pulling up into a parking lot?”
Words weren’t really my thing at that moment. I was more of an action guy anyway, right? I nodded, screeched into a parking spot, threw off my seatbelt, and launched my body across the console, pulling Kiersten towards me with such force that I probably would have bruised her chin had my lips landed anywhere else but on hers.
Ah, that taste.
With a groan, I moved my left hand down her thigh. Coming into contact with that one garter was hell on my imagination.
Because, naturally there were two.
Because she had two legs.
Holy—there were two.
Garters.
I kissed her harder.
“What else?” I panted, grabbing at the back of her head with my right hand, tugging her hair, pulling at whatever I could to get her closer. “What else do you have?”
Kiersten pulled back, her face appearing innocent. Right. Nothing innocent about what was going through my mind because of that little stunt. Didn’t help that her face was flushed, her color peaked. Damn, what I wouldn’t’ do to be able to kiss her senseless right about now. “What do you mean?”
“Any more surprises?”
She grinned. “Why? Afraid you can’t handle it?”
“Sweetheart,” I moaned. “My heart can only handle you in small doses—anymore and it may damn well burst.”
Kiersten’s expression turned serious as she removed her hands from my neck where they were wrapped so tightly I’d probably have bruises in the morning. She shrugged just before she reached for her zipper. As her fingertips touched the metal she locked eyes with me. I licked my lips, my chest rising and falling with so much anticipation I was having trouble breathing. The sound of the zipper lowering had me leaning towards her.
Kiersten drew it down farther and farther with agonizing slowness, my imagination went crazy with possibilities.
“Sorry to disappoint you,” she said seductively. “But I don’t have any other surprises…” Her smile turned deadly. “Just me.”