Chapter 19: Young
She felt like she was back in high school again. Another bottle of whiskey dangling from in between her fingers. Tyler wrapping his arms around her waist. Laughter ringing out as a soft rock song played from the stereo. Her dressed in a nice sun dress. Dainty sandals on her feet. The little diamond studs he bought her for her 18th birthday.
She was young again.
Tyler had shoved her into the bathroom and threw a change of clothes at her. "Take your time. Lilah and me will get started on dinner," were his instructions as he disappeared back down the stairs. She could hear pots and pans being banged around downstairs as she settled into the bubble bath she had run.
Like it was their first time in that house. Candles lit. Vanilla and honey bubble bath. Nice, tall glass of whiskey.
Like they were young again.
Before all the drama. Before things got complicated. When all they lived for was the club. Before they made all the mistakes. Before everything.
She slipped into the dress, leaving her clothes in a pile in the corner of the bathroom. Dana skipped the bra, knowing that's what he liked. The fact that she didn't dry herself off made the dress cling to her body, magnifying every curve in her body. She knew what she was doing the moment she slipped into the bathtub and poured herself another drink.
It was when she hatched her master plan and decided that tonight, she would break another heart.
Hers.
Tonight, she would cause herself pain because it was the right thing to do.
The heartbreak would make her feel better.
The alcohol would make her forget.
By the time Dana managed to saunter down the stairs, she could barely walk without stumbling. Tyler realized that she was shitfaced as he watched her enter the kitchen, using the walls as a guide. She glanced around the kitchen, finding the table empty. "Where's Lilah?"
"She got sleepy and decided to call it an early night. How you feeling?"
Before Dana could respond, he slid up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist- drawing her closer. He inhaled her scent, relishing the soft, wet hair that touched his face as he nestled himself into the crook of her neck.
How he used to do back in the day.
She purred softly, loving the soft scratches his beard was giving her. "I'm feeling really good right now," she whispered, running her fingers through his hair. "Come to bed," he whispered, dragging her towards the bedroom, yearning for her touch.
Dana giggled softly as she threw her arms around his neck and allowed him to pick her up, wrapping her legs around his middle. The room began to spin around her as he made his way upstairs, to their old bedroom. She knew she was past the point of being drunk as she felt her neck give way and she collapsed on his shoulder.
Her laid her out on the bed and began to place soft kisses on her neck, inhaling her scent once again. Engraving this moment in the back of his mind. He knew she would regret it in the morning. He knew he would regret it as soon as he came to terms with the fact that he was still in love with her.
If anything, her absence showed him what he was missing. Her being imprisoned showed him that he was wrong all those years. It was too late to go back, but he was willing to try again. He was willing to put it all behind him and give her the life she wanted. The house. The cars. The big family.
He just hoped that it wasn't too late for them.
He just hoped that tonight he could make her forget about it all.
And that tomorrow would be a brand new day.
But as luck would have it, he had no control over the situation. He was simply there to please her. Make her remember the man he was, or so he thought. As Tyler pushed her panties aside and entered her, Dana's imagination took over. She had not control over herself as she began to imagine him.
Like as if they were young again.
Like as if they were just passing the time once again.
She began to imagine that Jax was the one that making love to her that night. That Jax was the one that grabbed on to her hair and thrusted into her. That Jax was the one that was moaning into her ear as she tugged softly on his hair.
And her imagination really kicked in when she felt herself teetering on the edge. When she felt herself about to come. When her knees went weak and she was moaning loudly. When Tyler reached over and put a hand over mouth, trying to stifle her moans.
And when he removed it to grasp onto her breast.
That was when she opened her mouth and let that forsaken name slip out of her mouth.
"Jackson."
There was no denying it. The name was said. And as Tyler thrusted faster and harder, he tried to forget. He tried to erase that moment when she whispered another man's name in bed. That moment when he realized that she was in love with his best friend. His wife, his other best friend, was in love with….
Him.
Not Tyler. Not him.
But him.
Jackson.
The one he had spent his entire life living up to.
The one whose shadow he had been living in forever.
Jackson.