Chapter Six
She sighed as she felt him crawl into bed beside her, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her close.
"How is she?" Alison whispered as she felt him place a kiss on the nape of neck.
"That kid's an idiot." Rafe said, his voice hushed but still so angry.
"Rafe." Alison sighed as she turned to face him. She ran a hand over his cheek. "It might take some time but trust me, she'll be OK."
"He made her cry." Rafe said softly, his eyes looking as if he might too.
"Oh Rafe." She said with a smile as she kissed him. "I love you. You are such a wonderful father."
"I love you too." He replied as he pulled her closer. His hand trailed up and down her arm. "And you know what? If I'm so wonderful, let's get back to what we talked about earlier."
The feel of his hands on her skin made her want to purr. "Rafe…" She sighed as his fingers eased the strap of her nightgown off her shoulder, replacing them with his lips almost instantly. "Did you lock the door?" Alison whispered.
Mumbling "Yes.." he turned her in his arms and hovered above her, covering her body with his.
"So you really…" She said as his lips met hers. "….want to try…" She murmured as he took her mouth once more. "….this again?" Alison finally managed to get a sentence out before he finally took her breath away.
Alison fell under his spell as they slowly made their way together. It never changed. The way he touched her made her heart pound, the way he kissed her made her head spin. They'd been together for more than twenty years but it didn't matter. Each time was like the very first time. The way they were together still amazed and delighted her. She used to think that the feeling she got being with him would end someday and maybe it would. But right now, all she could do was feel him and that was much more than enough.
Coming back to earth, she giggled as she kissed a path from his stomach to the base of his throat, her hands running lightly over his skin as she did. "OK. I guess you do."
"Do what?" She was murder on his concentration. He didn't remember at all what they were discussing.
"Want another baby." She said as she laughed, staring into his eyes. "I thought maybe dealing with Kate tonight might have changed your mind."
"Are you kidding? Never." He vowed, kissing her deeply. "Piece of cake." He laughed back at her as he pulled away.
She pulled his mouth back to hers and laughed harder. He was such a liar. "What if it's another girl? Kate's already taken a few years off your life and you still have Becky to deal with."
His eyes twinkled. "I can take it."
"You don't fool me." Alison said softly. She traced the line of his face with her fingers, pushing his hair off his forehead. "You're a lunatic when it comes to all of them, especially the girls."
"I am not." He tried to deny it.
"Oh. OK. Who was it who hid in the hallway when Becky first went to kindergarten? And who donated a bench in the park so that he'd have a reserved seat near the swings when Kate and Grant were old enough to ride them?" Just saying the words had her heart melting. "Someone who looked just like you I think."
"I don't know what you're talking about." He said, ready to change the subject. He nibbled on her ear.
"Sure you don't." She sighed as his lips nipped at her shoulder. She knew exactly what he was up to and as tempting as it was, she tried to resist. "Rafe. We have to be up early tomorrow. Becky has a soccer game."
He could sleep tomorrow, Rafe thought with a grin. Tonight, he couldn't get enough of her. "So we'll be tired. We don't have to play, we just have to watch." He laughed as he covered her mouth with his again.
*************************
The next day, the sun shone brightly. Kate didn't know why she was so nervous about facing everyone. As she walked out to the driveway, she dropped her keys on the way to the car. She grumbled as she bent down to pick them up. "Don't start with me today, Grant. I'm warning you."
He stopped in his tracks and just stared at her. "I didn't say a word. Geez. Lighten up."
"Thanks for the sympathy." She glared at him.
She was so moody sometimes. It drove him nuts. He wasn't in the mood for her either. "Whatever - Kate. It's not my fault Dad came to get you. Mom was the one who told him what time your bus was coming in."
She sighed. "Grant, I don't care that he came to get me. I just don't want to talk about what happened. OK?"
"OK." He shrugged. "Fine with me. As far as I remember I wasn't the one starting a conversation about it."
She clicked her seat belt on and started the car. "I'm not making ten stops so tell me where you want to go." Kate warned him.
"I'm not asking you to make ten stops - just one. The gym. I'm meeting Chloe." He said softly, kicking himself for adding that little detail, knowing what was coming next.
Finally, something to take her mind off her own pathetic life. "Tell her how you feel about her yet?" She giggled as she teased him.
Grant wanted to ignore her, but he knew it was useless. "Did I ask you for advice on my love life? I just said I'm meeting her at the gym."
"Oh my God. Are you kidding me? What love life? You've been in love with her since before you could walk and haven't done a thing about it yet."
"Oh - like you're the expert." He countered. "Telling a friend you had feelings for them worked out so well for you."
"And now - there you go. That was a low blow, Grant. I knew you'd start with me." She said, her eyes filling up.
Now she was crying? Seriously, girls drove him crazy. He couldn't figure them out. "Kate. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up what happened. But, c'mon. Please. You started with me first. You have to stop bugging me about Chloe. I'll tell her when I'm ready."
"Who's she dating now?" Kate asked him then, sniffling a bit.
"Katie. Stop." He warned her again.
"No. Who - Grant? I want to know. I'm telling you, I don't get it. Chloe's an amazing person. She's so sweet and she's absolutely gorgeous. You keep waiting and she'll end up with someone else. I honestly don't know what's the matter with you. The way you feel about her? It's an amazing thing. You've known exactly what you wanted forever. I don't understand why you're wasting so much time."
"She's dating Doug Miller." He muttered. The captain of the football team dating the head cheerleader. That fact made his blood boil. How cliché could it be?
It killed him to admit it, but Kate was right. He'd gone on plenty of dates but rarely got past the first one. He didn't think it was fair to lead other girls on. There was only one person in the world for him. He'd loved Chloe Ramsey for as long as he could remember. He knew he'd have to tell her soon, but he was terrified. He didn't know what he'd do if she didn't feel the same way.
He turned to his sister, curious. "If you could do it over again, would you still have gone out with Danny?"
"Yes." She replied without hesitation. "As badly as it ended - I would."
"C'mon Kate. Tell me. What happened up there anyway?" He asked
"He cheated on me. He found someone else." She said softly.
Grant's mouth dropped open. "What!?!"
"I caught him - in the shower of all places - with someone else. Her name's Taylor." She said with a grimace.
"Are you kidding me!?!" Grant said, his voice rising.
"Grant - calm down." God, he sounded just like Dad. Kate thought.
"What an ass. Wait till I see him." Grant was ready to pummel him.
Kate rolled her eyes. "Fantastic. That's great. You and Dad, go ahead. Beat the crap out of him. That's productive. It'll bring us right back together."
Grant still couldn't believed his ears. Danny and Kate were really broken up. It was such a shock. Everyone thought they were the perfect couple. "Kate. When you found them - what did you do?"
"I confronted her, threw a picture frame and ran out of the room." She said, all of it rushing back again.
"You threw a picture at her?" Grant knew his sister had a temper, but he couldn't believe she would do such a thing.
"NO." She laughed then. "I threw it at the wall. Grant - it's really OK. Danny told me everything. He didn't plan this. It just happened. One thing led to another and he fell in love with her. He and I - we weren't meant to be. It's OK. I know in my heart that we'll be friends again someday. It's just going to take some time."
He sat and stared out the window for a few minutes.
She could see his mind working in overdrive. She decided to give it one last shot. "Danny and me? How that ended? It doesn't mean you shouldn't tell Chloe, Grant. I think if you did you'd be pleasantly surprised." She said softly.
"You think?" He asked, still not believing.
She smiled. Her poor brother. He had it so bad. "Why don't you try it and see?"