The Heart of Mine Read online

  I kissed the back of her hand. "I'm so sorry you had to endure that, pretty girl. People are so fuckin' cruel."

  "Language, son." Mr. James warned.

  "Sorry, sir. Anything else I should know or shouldn't know?" I knew Kayla could sense the hurt and anger in my voice and she instantly felt bad.

  "No, nothing else. But, now I get to see you as much as I want and we can get busy decorating-"

  "I'm sorry, decorating what?"

  "Nothin', I'll show you later. Head on over to see your gran. I know she's been dying to see ya." The look on her face let me know that she was up to somethin'. Somethin' that she obviously didn't want me around for.

  "Do ya wanna come with me?" I was hoping she would say yes, but I knew the answer before I even asked.

  "No. You go spend some quality time with her. My grams and I have some errands to run and then we can meet back up."

  I excused myself from the table and made my way into the kitchen after gathering everyone's plates. I gave them a quick rinse and then placed them in the dishwasher before dryin' my hands.

  "Okay, pretty girl I'm gonna go. Promise you'll call me as soon as you get back from your "errands"?"

  "I promise." I bent down planting a slow and gentle kiss upon her lips.

  "Love you."

  "Love you too, cowboy."

  "Thanks for breakfast y'all."

  "Anytime, son. Glad to have ya home, Madison."

  I gave a wave over my shoulder in Mr. James' direction as I walked out the front door. I sat in my truck for a few minutes longer than necessary, but I was finding it hard to wrap my mind around how cruel everyone had been to my pretty girl. I searched for my phone in the cab of the truck, finding it inside the old ashtray that had never been used. I scrolled through the numbers and when I came across Joey's, I almost dialed.

  I wanted to know how he could have let Kayla down so badly, but the better, more logical part of myself took over and I clicked the phone off. I needed to stop takin' my frustrations out on him. It wasn't his fault anymore than it was Kayla's. But beating up half of the school was lookin' like a magnificent idea. Jail on the other hand, was not. I decided to let it go. Obviously it had been taken care of in the right manner and I wasn't about to screw anything up with Kayla.

  My gran was elated to see me home so early. It felt nice to know how much I was missed while I was gone. Kayla had set up Skype on my gran's computer while I was gone, so we actually talked more through video than anything else.

  "You cut your hair. Madison Raine, how did you not tell me this?" She smacked my upper arm, hard.

  "Sorry Gran. It was time to let go of the past. I needed a new look for a new future. You don't like it?"

  "Of course I do. I'd love ya with a paper bag on your head though, guess that doesn't say much now does it?" She laughed and my heart filled with joy hearing the small familiar sound. I had missed her effervescent personality. There was a time for a while that I thought it might never return, but in time, it did. I guess it just takes time when you lose your other half.

  I pulled her into a deep hug, not wanting to let go of her. I kissed the top of her head and pulled her over to the small dining room table. "So, tell me what you've been up to lately." She was always so inquisitive.

  "Well, I got back way early this mornin' and went straight to Kayla's house. Man Gran, I didn't think it was possible to miss or love someone that much."

  "You're tellin' me." She laughed.

  "So, I know it was over a month ago, but did y'all do anything big and exciting for her birthday? I was thinkin' of throwin' her a little party."

  She perked up at the idea of this and I knew I had her full attention. "We just had dinner and Cami came into town to visit her. She didn't want anything big or extravagant, said it didn't matter if you weren't here to celebrate with her."

  My heart melted. Man, I loved that girl. On the day that you are expected to be your most selfish, she was worried about me and what we could have been doin' together. "Okay, good. Then I'll get something put together for this weekend. Gran, she's getting so big. I can't wait to meet my little angel. It kicked me this morning, twice." I could feel the excitement spread across my face and by the expression on my gran's face; I knew she saw it too.

  "She is gettin' mighty big lately. Not that it's a bad thing. She looks absolutely radiant. I'm so glad you got to feel the baby move. It's a magical feelin'."

  "Sure is." I smiled.

  "Still don't want to know the sex?"

  "Nope. Kayla's pretty adamant that she knows what we are havin' so she doesn't see the point in finding out."

  "Well, that'll be fun then. Okay, so I have her baby shower all planned out next month. I wasn't sure if y'all wanted to make it a co-ed thing and just get all y'all's friends together, so I'll leave that up to you."

  "I like that idea." I really did. I had already missed too many appointments to count and endless hours of just getting to watch her grow, so this sounded like the best way to see everyone and still have some time with her.

  "Okay, well I'll get everything together, all I need from y'all is a guest list." She stood and headed in the direction of the front door.

  "Where are ya goin'? I came over to spend some time with ya." I was disappointed that everyone seemed too busy to even hang out with me today.

  "I'll be back shortly. Go hang with your girls." She winked and then she disappeared behind the tall oak door.

  I made my way out back, knowin' that Kayla and her grandmother probably weren't back yet. I was instantly bored. I could go for a ride, swim, I could even find some work to do around the property, but my motivation was severely lacking today. I just wanted to hang with my girl.

  I pulled a smoke from my front pocket and lit it up, fillin' my lungs with the toxic air. I knew I was gonna have to quit soon and I definitely wasn't goin' to smoke around Kayla, but my body craved the nicotine at the moment, so I gave in.

  As I was finishing up my smoke, I found myself headed in the direction of the willow tree. My jaw dropped to the ground when I caught sight of the newly built structure that was now in place off to the side. I tried to reel in my thoughts and wrap my mind around what I was seein', but utter confusion was all I was feelin' at the moment. I stomped out the remnants of my cigarette and slowly made my way over to the tan and red structure. As I got closer, I realized it was a house, but definitely one I had never seen before.

  I ran my fingers across the fresh coat of paint and brick. When I reached the front porch that opened up and wrapped around the entire house, I noticed two large rocking chairs and one smaller one. "Huh?" I said to myself. I turned the knob, not knowin' what to expect if it was unlocked. The white door swung open, exposing a large front room and open floor plan. There was absolutely no furniture inside except for the three rocking chairs I had come across outside, and I found this odd.

  Had my grandmother sold part of the land to someone? And how could she even do that without my consent? Maybe it was technically on someone else's property. Man, so many unanswered questions flooded my brain and I thought I was gonna pass out.

  "Do you like it?" Her small voice filled and echoed throughout the empty space, startlin' me.

  "I do, but whose is it?"

  Her tiny little frame came waddlin' in my direction. She slipped her arms around my waist and laid her head on my chest. "It's ours. I had it built for us while you were gone."

  I peered down at the amazing woman in front of me. My hand came up and brushed back a piece of loose hair from her face. "You did all of this?"

  "Totally! All by myself too." She grinned.

  "Okay smart ass, you know what I mean."

  "I know. Yes, after you left on tour, I contacted an architect and started having plans drawn up. That was the easy part. The rest of it has been a giant pain in my ass, that's for sure."

  I slipped my finger under her chin, bringing her lips up to meet mine. I pressed them firmly together and placed both of my
hands on both sides of her face. "You amaze me everyday, you know that?"

  "I can see that." She whispered breathless. "You want a tour." She was bouncing up and down and there was no way in hell I was about to say no, not with that kind of excitement exuding from her. I nodded and she took my hand in hers.

  "Well obviously this is the living room." We walked through the first vast open space that she had found me in. Then she led me down a small hallway with stairs to the right and an empty room to the left. "That over there, we call those stairs." She giggled. I smacked her ass and she giggled even more. "This room will be a study or library of some sort. I haven't figured it all out quite yet."

  The rooms that opened up after passing the stairs were enormous in size. This place definitely looked a lot smaller from the outside. "This is obviously the kitchen, this is the dining room, and this is the play room. Mainly for big people play, not little people." She smiled and it was infectious. I found myself with the same goofy grin across my face. We made our way back down a small hallway that led to a huge room with an even bigger bathroom attached.

  "This is our room." She twirled in a small circle before heading towards the bathroom. "This is my bathroom," she laughed, "Okay I'll share, but I had it drawn to my specifications."

  There was a giant tub that jutted out from the middle of the wide room. There sat a sink and vanity on each side of the tub and behind those sat a his and hers set of closets. "I like the closet idea. You have way too many clothes." I laughed. "Um, where is the shower? Don't get me wrong, I love baths with you and all, but showers can be fun too." I winked.

  She grabbed my hand and led me past the tub and around the back of it. "Here ya go."

  The entire back wall from where the tub sat was an open tiled shower with two showerheads hanging from the ceiling. I wrapped her up in my arms and sealed my lips over hers. My hands gripped at the back of her dress and quickly slid my hand up her backside. I wanted her, here and now. She pulled back ever so slightly, "Don't you wanna see the rest?"

  I could tell by the look in her eyes that I wasn't gettin' any right now anyhow. I kissed the tip of her nose and let her lead me back out of our new bathroom. We headed upstairs next. The hallway wasn't actually a hallway at all, but more of a four way stop with four bedrooms all facing one another. They were bigger than your average bedrooms, which were nice I suppose, but the amount of rooms confused me.

  "Are we plannin' on havin' a litter?"

  "No, these will be guest rooms and nurseries."

  "Is there somethin' you're not tellin' me?"

  "No, just that I would love to have at least one more child with you. Well, given that this one is a decent one." She let out a loud laugh and it echoed off of every wall.

  "I agree." I kissed her one last time before we made our way back out onto the porch. "Isn't the view from here amazing?" She asked leaning against the railing.

  "It sure is." I replied as I licked my lips.

  "Really? All the time? I can't get a clean brain for at least two minutes."

  "Nope." I shrugged.

  We sat on the porch until the sun started to set, hands linked between our matching rocking chairs. "I feel like an eighty year old man." I quipped.

  "Just enjoy it. Before you know it, this house will be filled with kids, family, friends, their kids and life."

  I glanced over at her, taking in all of her beauty as the setting sun gleamed in her eyes. "I can't wait."

  Chapter 28

  Kayla

  Madison had been home for a week now and I was loving every minute of it. Though he had his moments when he was grating on my nerves, I found quiet places to retreat to for little bits of time and then I was fine. We were settling into a good routine and it felt nice, normal even.

  The house was coming along nicely and we were almost all set to move in, but for some reason Madison said he wanted to wait until after this weekend. I wasn't exactly sure what he was up to, but I knew it was something good. I was hauling over a box of pillows when my phone started ringing from my front pocket. I dropped the box and fished it out, seeing Cami's exuberant smile flash across the screen.

  "Well hey there. How is my engaged friend doin' these days?"

  "Yay, I'm so glad you answered. I'm doin' great, but more importantly how is my super preggo friend doing?"

  "I'll ask her when I see her." I laughed. "I'm doin' good and so is baby. He or she is kickin' up a storm and I'm sleeping like shit now because of it. Madison finds it hilarious because as soon as he speaks, the baby goes nuts and starts karate chopping at my insides."

  "You make pregnancy sound so pleasant." She teased. "So, did he like the house?"

  "He loved it. Thank you so much for all of your help. I couldn't have done it without you."

  "Always here to help."

  "Cam, your phone is cutting out, where the hell are you?"

  "What?" She shouted and I swear I could hear her voice, not just through the phone.

  I turned and saw her running at me at full speed. I dropped my phone to the ground and held my arms wide open. She stopped just short of almost hitting me and instead of hugging me, she bent down and went straight for my belly.

  "How is my little niece or nephew? Aunt Cami has missed you so much." She kissed my belly and then looked up at me. "Oh and hello to you too best friend."

  She wrapped her tiny arms around my neck and squeezed. I had missed her almost as much as Madison. The couple times that the guys had made it home, Cami wasn't able to. For some reason or another she always found a way around coming out here. Although she did manage to make it out for my eighteenth birthday, which made that day far less painful.

  "Okay, I'll grab the box, you lead the way."

  I nodded and off we went to our soon-to-be home. When we walked in, I watched her face light up in awe. "Oh my god, Kay. It looks amazing. You did a wonderful job. I think you may have found your calling." She joked.

  I grabbed us both something to drink from the fridge and we made our way out onto the front porch over looking the millions of acres of land spread out before us. As soon as I was comfortable, I dove right in with questions. "So, how's the wedding planning goin'? Any date set yet?"

  "Actually, that's kind of why I'm here. We have a surprise for all of you, but we aren't gonna tell y'all until after tomorrow."

  "Look at you using the word y'all. You'll be one of us in no time." I beamed. "Wait, you're still planning on moving here right?"

  "Of course. Yeah like I could stay away from my best friend and new little niece or nephew. You're crazy. That's not the surprise though. You'll have to wait. I promise it'll be worth it."

  "I trust you."

  We sat in silence for a few minutes just taking in the surroundings, when we eventually heard all the guys show up. First one to make it on the deck was of course Madison, and just as Cami had, he bypassed me and went straight to my belly, just chatting away. When the rest of the guys had made it up onto the porch, Madison finally tore himself away from my stomach long enough to give me a long drawn out kiss and then headed inside.

  I stood up to say hi to everyone and of course, so everyone could greet my stomach. I was starting to get a complex with everyone ignoring me. Joey was the last one up and I quickly pulled him into a deep hug.

  "I've missed you, Jo. How's school?"

  "Oh, ya know its school. More importantly, how are you?"

  "Better than ever. Come on let's get inside with the others." Joey pulled me in for one last hug.

  "Hey, keep your hands where I can see them, Green."

  He put his hands up in surrender and then met Madison half way for a hug. "Good to see ya, bro."

  Madison patted Joey on the back, a little harder than necessary but then we all made our way inside. I stood back admiring the picture laid out in front of me. This was exactly how I imagined our home, full of all of our friends and full of life.

  I joined everyone in the kitchen, sliding up next to Madison as he d
raped his arm over my shoulders. We both looked at one another and smiled.

  "Everything you ever wanted?"

  "Close." I whispered as my hand fell to my stomach. "So close."

  "So I have an announcement to make." Glenn cleared his throat while pretending to tap his beer bottle to get everyone's attention. "We have a show tonight at the bar in town. Bryan set it up, and it will be our official last show until that little one comes into this world." He pointed in my direction as I smiled. "Everyone and I mean everyone," he looked at me again. "Will be there."

  "Did you know about this?" I implored.

  "Nope, but I can't say I'm not excited. You haven't seen me perform in so long. This is gonna be fun."

  Loads, I was sure. I knew I wouldn't run into too many people at the bar because of the age restriction, but I definitely wasn't looking forward to seein' anyone from school.

  A few hours later all the guys left to go set up at the bar and Cami and I stayed back to get ready. She helped me curl my hair and do my makeup and I snuck into my closet to find the dress I had picked out for a special occasion. It was a short white lace eyelet dress with a fuller skirt and spaghetti straps. The weather was warm enough now for me to wear it at night, and Madison had yet to see it on me. When I emerged from the closet, Cami's face fell to the floor.

  "Oh my god, Kay. I don't think I have ever seen you look so beautiful. You look radiant. Madison is gonna die when he catches sight of you tonight."

  "That's the plan."

  I pulled on my usual cowboy boots and off we went. We had a hard time trying to find a parking spot when we got to the bar a little while later. It would appear that over the last couple months their band had become quite popular with the locals.

  We did another drive by to see if a space had opened up, when I caught sight of Bryan waving us in his direction.

  "Well hello beautiful ladies. I have a space all reserved for ya around the side. Go down this driveway and then turn left, you'll see the spot."

  "Thanks, love." I chimed as I placed a chaste kiss to his cheek.

  As soon as we parked, Bryan was at the passenger door helping me out. He guided us through the hectic crowd and then to a small table near the front of the bar, close to the stage. I hadn't gotten to know Bryan as much as I would have liked to, but I knew that he was definitely a guy I wanted as my friend. Now if I could just figure out what he saw in Taryn. I laughed to myself.