Forever After All by Kaylee Ryan

Chapter 6

McKenna

My feet feel as though they’re filled with lead as I walk away from his truck. I made a mistake. I should never have agreed to stay at his place last night, and I should never have stayed in his bed. It took one night for all of those hopes and dreams for what we might one day be to come rushing back. Only this time, I’m not a teenager, and neither is he. We’re both adults, and my crush is heading into the “more” category. That’s an issue seeing as our lives are too entwined. I’m home for good, and this isn’t just a fling I can walk away from.

Walking into the house, I smell Gram’s baking something. “It smells good in here,” I call out.

“McKenna.” She smiles wide when I walk into the kitchen. “How was the bonfire?”

“Good. We all stayed at Rip’s instead of going back to Laramie’s.”

“Oh, well, that was nice of him to let everyone stay at his place. He’s such a nice boy.”

“Um, Gram, I wouldn’t describe Rip as a boy. He’s definitely all man.” Thoughts of waking up in his arms with his hard length pressed against me flash in my mind. All man indeed.

“Is he now?” she asks with a knowing smile.

Gram and Gramps raised me. They’re my only family, and we’re close, so of course, they both know about my past schoolgirl crush on Rip. “Yep.” I know that my face is flushed. I can feel the heat as it creeps up from my neck to my cheeks. I’m a grown woman. Talking about him shouldn’t make me blush.

“I didn’t expect you home. It’s been ages since you’ve seen your friends.”

“It’s been ages since I’ve seen you and Gramps. Speaking of, where is he?”

“He’s out back meddling in the garden. And you’re young, McKenna, and you work so hard. You deserve some downtime with your friends.”

“We’re going to the lake later today,” I say as the back door opens and Gramps comes in, carrying a couple of tomatoes.

“Look, Agnes.” He grins. “They’re coming on early this year.” He stops next to me, leaning in and kissing my cheek. “Mac,” he says affectionately, in a way only he can. “You feeling all right? You look flushed.”

“Oh, she’s fine. We were just discussing Rip,” Gram says, teasing me.

“Stop!” I laugh. “There is nothing going on with Rip and me. He’s Laramie’s brother. We were all close growing up. You know that.” I sound defensive even to my own ears. I don’t really know what’s going on with Rip. What I do know is last night and yesterday, that’s not normal for us. I’ve never slept in his bed, and he’s never called me beautiful.

“Nice young man,” Gramps adds.

“Enough about Rip. How’s the garden?” I ask Gramps.

“Good, good.” He nods. “These beauties will taste mighty fine on a juicy cheeseburger for dinner.” He sets the tomatoes on a paper towel on the counter.

“The homegrown ones do taste better than the ones you buy at the grocery store,” I agree.

“What’s this about the lake?” Gramps asks, taking a seat next to me.

“A group of us are going to the lake later.”

“It’s a good day for it. Why are you going later instead of while the sun is high in the sky?”

“I wanted to come home and see you and Grams. I feel like I’ve barely seen you since I’ve been home.”

“Go on, enjoy your day,” Gramps encourages me. “We miss you, Mac, but you deserve some fun. Remember, I went through law school, and it’s a lot harder now than it was back then. Call your friends, and go have some fun.”

“I want to spend time with the two of you too,” I tell him. “I’ll be honest, Gramps. I’m not really feeling the love right now.”

“Trust me, darlin’, there’s more love for you in this old heart than you could ever understand.” He taps his hand on his chest.

“He’s right, you know. You need to be hanging out with your friends and relaxing. I know you’re worried about the bar, but, honey, you have to take some time to breathe and soak up the sun. It will do wonders to clear your mind. We love you, but you’re home now, McKenna.” She smiles softly. “Go, have fun.” Grams waves her hand at me. “Have you eaten? I can make you something before you go,” she offers.

“Yes. Rip made pancakes and bacon.”

“Extra crispy?” she asks.

“Yep,” I say, popping the p.

“Train him right, sweetheart.” Gramps chuckles. “Agnes, what do you say we call Mary and Tom and see if they want to go grab some ice cream?”

“Sounds like a plan to me. McKenna, take these with you.” She hands me a plastic container.

“What is it?”

“Chocolate chip cookies. I made them this morning.”

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I am. You know I love to bake. I just had an itch to do so this morning. It’s nice to spend time in the kitchen just because I want to. This is my happy place. We’ll never be able to eat all of them on our own. Now, call your friends. Go have fun.”

I stand and pull Grams into a hug. “Thank you, and thank you for the cookies. Love you.”

“I love you too,” she says as we pull out of our embrace.

“Gramps.” I walk to him with my arms wide open, and he doesn’t hesitate to wrap me in a hug. “Love you.”

“Love you too. Have fun and be safe. If you need us….” His voice trails off.

“I know. Call you. I’ll probably stay with Laramie tonight like we were supposed to last night. Oh, I forgot to tell you. Laramie and Colby got engaged last night!”

“He finally did it.” Grams smiles. “Tell them we said congratulations.”

“I will. I guess I need to go change. Enjoy your ice cream.” With a wave over my shoulder, I head upstairs to my room. The same one that hasn’t changed at all since the day I left for college.

Digging into my dresser, I pull out my black bikini. It’s from two summers ago. I don’t have much time for leisure. I need to go shopping to pick up a new one. This one will have to do. Besides, it’s barely used. Quickly, I strip out of the clothes that Lara let me borrow and grab the bikini.

“Damn, I better call Rip.” Grabbing my phone from the dresser, I send him a text.

Me:Hey. Change of plans. I’ll be ready for the lake when you are.

Not ten seconds later, my phone is ringing, and Rip’s name flashes on the screen. “Hey,” I greet him.

“Why the change of plans? I told you I didn’t mind waiting on you.”

“I know. I appreciate that. Gram and Gramps insisted I go and hang out with friends. So, I’m getting changed now.”

“Changed?”

“Into my suit?”

“Right now?”

“Yes. I’m, uh, actually naked talking to you. I was just sending a quick text. I didn’t expect you to call me.”

“You’re naked?” His voice is low and gruff.

“I am.” My voice is sultry, and I wasn’t even trying. That’s just what he does to me.

“I’m almost home. I’ll stop and get you before I go back to my place to grab the cooler.”

“Are you sure? I can meet you there,” I offer.

“Kenna, I’ll be right there. Just— Fuck, I’m on my way.” With that, the call ends.

Tossing my phone on the bed, I rush to get dressed, wondering what I might have said to upset him. He sounded upset, but there is nothing I can think of. Unless he’s mad I offered to meet him at his place. Surely not. Shit, I’m doing it again. I have to stop comparing every man to my father. I know that Rip is his own man, but other than Gramps, my experience is that if something is wrong… it’s my fault. I can hear my therapist, Maggie, in my head telling me that all men are not my father. I know that, rationally, but the little girl in me sometimes forgets.

Slipping a pair of my own cutoff jean shorts and a tank top over my bikini, I slip my feet back into my flip-flops. After sliding my phone into my back pocket, I grab a small tote from my closet. Across the hall, I grab a towel, some sunscreen, and a few hair ties out of the bathroom and shove them into my tote. The only thing I need is my wallet. After searching my room, and downstairs, I remember that I left it at Rip’s before we went to the field for the fire. It looks like I’d have been going back to his place today regardless.

I’m in the living room saying goodbye when I hear his truck pull up. “That’s Rip. I’ll see you later. I’ll be sure to let you know if I’m not coming home.” With a hug and a kiss on the cheek to each of them, I’m headed toward the door.

“Oh,” I say when I pull open the door to find Rip standing on the front porch.

He takes his time, letting his eyes roam over me. When he’s had his fill, his eyes find mine. “You got everything you need?”

“Yes.” I hold up a small tote.

“Why don’t you grab some clothes for tomorrow. Just in case,” he suggests.

“Good point. I need to wash Laramie’s from today to give them back to her.”

“Just toss them in your bag. I can wash them. She leaves them at my place anyway.”

“You don’t have—” The look he gives me shuts me up.

“Are we really going to argue over laundry twice in one day?” he asks, wearing an amused smile.

“Fine. I’ll be right back. Gram and Gramps are in the living room. You want to come in and say hi?”

“I can’t.”

“What do you mean you can’t? They love you.”

“Kenna—” He looks down at his crotch and back up to me. “I can’t.”

My eyes travel to where he was looking, and I gasp. He’s hard. Clearly, obviously hard. “Oh!” I say a little too loud. “Your… um, yeah, okay. I’ll be… I’ll be right back.” On shaking knees, I turn to head back into the house to get Laramie’s clothes and some extras for me.

“Kenna?”

I freeze and turn to look at him. His eyes are smoldering. I swallow hard. “Yeah?”

“This is your fault.”

“M-My fault?”

He nods and takes a step closer so we’re nose to nose, barely a breath apart. “You were naked when I talked to you. This is what happens when I think about you naked.” With that, he pulls back. “I’ll be in the truck. Tell them I said hi.” He points inside the house.

I turn back around and rush upstairs. “Forgot something!” I call out. My knees feel weak, and my heart is beating like a heavy drum in my chest.

I did that?

Me?

The thought of me naked did that?

I can’t think about that right now. Grabbing a backpack from the closet, I toss in the clothes I borrowed from Laramie, as well as a change of clothes for me, a bra, panties, shorts, and a tank. Across the hall, I grab my own toothbrush and call it good.

I’m on the bottom step when I remember the cookies. Making a detour to the kitchen, I place the container in my tote bag for the beach.

“Bye again,” I call over my shoulder as I rush out the door. Once I’m on the front porch, my steps slow, and I focus on pulling in even breaths. Rip reaches over and pushes open my door before settling back behind the wheel of his truck.

“All set?”

“Y-Yes.”

“Everyone is still at my place. Laramie is going to make sandwiches while I get the cooler packed.”

“I can help.”

“You’re supposed to be relaxing.”

“Trust me, making some sandwiches and packing a cooler is relaxing.”

“I don’t want you working today. This is supposed to be a break for you.”

“It’s not working. It’s making food and drinks, both of which you need in order to live. So, it’s not work. I’m just trying to live.” He glances over at me, and I give him a knowing grin.

“You’re going to kick ass at this lawyer thing, aren’t you?” he asks with humor lacing his voice.

“You know it,” I reply as he pulls into his driveway. Together, we carry in the bags from the store.

“Hey. I’m going to….” Laramie’s voice trails off when she sees me in the kitchen with Rip. “I was just going to call you to see when you wanted to head out.” She looks from me to her brother.

“Gram and Gramps insisted I go, so here I am.”

“Here you are,” she echoes. “And you called Rip?”

I nod. “Yeah. He insisted I call him when I was ready to go.”

“Interesting.” She grins.

“Are we making sandwiches or not?” I try to steer the conversation from whatever it is she finds interesting about her brother having me call him.

Before she can answer, Rip places his hand on my hip. He leans down, and I think he’s going to kiss me. Instead, he says, in a voice clearly just for me, “I’m going to go load the cooler.” With a quick tap, he releases me and walks out the door.

“Looks like you and my brother might be getting your forever after all.” Laramie grins.

“Stop. He’s just being nice.”

“Uh-huh. That”—she points at my hip—“wasn’t just nice. That’s something my fiancé would do to me. He’s got it bad. You both do.”

“Sandwiches.” I toss the lunchmeat at her across the counter.

She starts singing “U Got It Bad” by Usher, and we both dissolve in a fit of laughter.

I don’t know if she’s right about Rip, but she’s hit the nail on the head when it comes to me. What I thought was a schoolgirl crush is now so much more. I don’t know what the future holds for us, but I’m not going to stress over it. I’m just going to enjoy hanging out, and whatever happens, happens.