When I’m With You by Sandi Lynn

Chapter 11

Paisley

“Paisley, in my office,” Kenny yelled from his doorway across the open office.

I got up from my chair and walked across the floor as my colleagues stared at me with worried looks on their faces. As soon as I reached the doorway, Kenny instructed me to shut the door.

“Something wrong?” I asked.

“Did you tell someone that they shouldn’t marry their fiancé because of his mother?”

“Oh.” I narrowed my eyes. “She said that her future mother-in-law does everything for her son, including packing his lunch and doing his laundry. She does everything except have sex with him.”

Kenny put his hand up. “Don’t go there.”

“He’s a thirty-five-year-old man who can’t function on his own. I simply told her that she needs to sit down and have a talk with her fiancé and that he needs to be responsible and contribute to the daily marriage and household needs, and if he doesn’t agree, then she shouldn’t marry him.”

He rubbed his face in his hands. “The mother called in and complained because, apparently, her son’s fiancée told him to take a hike.”

“Good for her.” I smiled. “Is there really a problem here, Kenny? Because you’re wasting my time.”

“She’s threatening to sue us because she said you were the one who broke up her son’s relationship.”

I rolled my eyes. “Of course she is, because she’s a control freak. She can’t sue us.”

“She wants you to convince the girl to go back.”

“She can go to Hell. I’m not convincing anyone of anything. I did my job and I stand by my answer. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go home.” I walked out of Kenny’s office, grabbed my purse, and walked out of the building.

As soon as I walked through the door, Romeo strutted across the floor after completing a long stretch. I threw my keys in the basket and stared at the treadmill sitting in the corner of the living room. After I changed into my workout clothes and started running on the treadmill, my phone rang.

“Hey, Piper. What’s up?”

“What’s all that noise?”

“I’m on the treadmill.”

“Oh. Well, me and Charlotte are on our way over.”

“For?”

“To have some sister-bonding time. It’s been a while and I’m bringing the wine for us and Charlotte’s bringing her juice.”

Great. I didn’t feel like having anyone over. I just wanted to take a bath and curl up with Romeo and watch a movie. There was always an agenda when one of them organized sister-bonding time.

“And if I told you that I was going out tonight?”

“You don’t go out, so we wouldn’t believe you. Be over in ten.” Click.

I upped the speed on the treadmill to burn off the anger I was feeling at the moment. Before I knew it, the door opened, and Charlotte and Piper walked in. As I got off the treadmill, completely out of breath, Piper handed me the towel I had folded on the couch.

“Thanks.” I smiled as I wiped the sweat from my face. “I’m going to go change. Menus are in the drawer.” Whenever we did a sister-bonding night, we had wine and take-out.

I changed out of my sweaty workout clothes, changed into yoga pants and a tank top, and washed my face so I would feel less gross.

“How’s pizza? I’m kind of craving it,” Charlotte yelled from the kitchen.

“Pizza’s fine, but only if we get the thin crust,” I replied.

When I walked back to the kitchen, Piper had my glass of wine already poured.

“So, what prompted this sister-bonding night?” I asked curiously.

“Nothing. It’s been a while since the three of us had a night alone in and Piper wasn’t doing anything, and I wasn’t either. We knew you’d be home, so we thought tonight would be perfect.”

“So what’s new on the column front?” Piper asked as we set the table.

“Not much. First week of the new sex column and someone’s threatening to sue the paper.” I laughed.

“Who?”

“Just an overbearing, overprotective mother who can’t cut the apron strings with her thirty-five-year-old son.”

“Wait. I’m confused,” Charlotte said as she sat down. “His mother was asking you about sex with her son? What did she do, catch him masturbating?”

“Ew.” Piper laughed.

“No! The fiancée asked me what she should do, since his mother does everything for him, including all his laundry. She said she’s a career woman and isn’t looking to take care of a child. I simply told her to talk to him about it and, if he didn’t agree, then she should leave him. I guess she left him, and the future mother-in-law is pissed and said I broke them up.”

“Oh, that’s good!” Piper smiled as she held up her wine glass.

After paying the pizza guy, we set the box in the center of the table and each took a couple of slices.

“You should have seen this hot fireman that was in the ER a couple of nights ago,” Charlotte said as she bit into her pizza. “I’ve seen him before and I swear each time he gets sexier and more buff.”

“Why was he in the ER?” I asked.

“Checking in on a guy they pulled out of a house.”

“That’s nice,” I said.

“Maybe you should come hang out in the ER sometime.” She winked.

“No thanks. I’m good.”

“I saw Elena the other day. She was with some guy and it wasn’t Keaton. She looked really nervous when she saw me,” Piper said.

“She and Keaton are on a break.”

“I know, but I didn’t know that dating other people while on a break was negotiated.”

“Who knows. According to Keaton, there are plenty of women out there to explore.”

I knew after I said that, a comment would be made.

“And men.” Charlotte smiled as she held up her glass of juice.

I rolled my eyes and prayed that the conversation didn’t go any further. After we finished off the entire large pizza and the bottle of wine and talked, Charlotte and Piper left. Romeo followed me into the bathroom as I started the bath and sprawled out on the rug. I climbed in and immersed myself in the water, thinking about whether or not I was going to go back to that support group tomorrow night. Ben had been popping in and out of my mind all week and I didn’t know why. Yeah, he was hot as hell, but even though we didn’t know each other, we shared a bond – a mental connection of the same emotions and grief.