Effortless (57 page)

Grinning at my dad, Kellan stood up. “Sure, no problem.”

He paused to kiss my head before leaving and I whispered a thank
you for humoring my father. Maybe Dad realized the respect Kellan
was showing him, for he clapped him on the shoulder as they left
the room together. Then Dad started talking about baseball with him
and I couldn’t contain my smile. Dad was making an effort to bond
with Kellan. That meant a lot to me.

Kellan drove us to school when I was ready to go. I smoothed my
tight dress over my thighs, played with the guitar shaped necklace
around my neck, then twisted the promise ring on my finger. I
couldn’t stop moving. Nervous, excited energy was pouring through
my body. When I started the cycle of movement over again, Kellan
grabbed my hand, calming me with his silent support. It worked,
too.

Once there, my mother started bawling. It made me sniffle,
watching the older version of my sister and I cry, but I managed to
keep it all together as I hugged her. Dad shuffled her off, and
Anna gave me a swift hug. The baby kicked right as our stomachs
connected and I stared down at it.

“Did you feel that?”

Anna laughed at my question and rubbed her side. “The little
gymnast? Yeah, I feel that constantly.” Contently smiling, she
shook her perfect head of dark brown hair. “I’m just grateful that
she’s moved away from my bladder.”

Kellan chuckled at Anna, slinging an arm around my waist. Anna
gave me a quick kiss on the cheek then wobbled off after Mom and
Dad. As always, Kellan stayed by my side, and walked me to where I
needed to go. My eyes on the expanse of thigh my dress was showing,
I leaned into his side. “I love how you take care of me,” I told
him.

Looking down at me, he cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t think
I’m…clingy? Always needing to be near you?”

I laughed and looked up at him. “No…I think you got that part
just right.”

He gave me a crooked grin, then glancing up, stopped me.
Wondering why, I glanced up too. A springy redhead that had given
me no end of grief over my time here was standing a few feet in
front of us. Candy. Kellan’s…ex. She had her back to us as she
talked with a small group of friends, her two spies included. I
considered just going around the woman, but she started turning in
our direction and I blinked in surprise. Her belly was swollen with
life, and she was much larger than my sister. She really was
pregnant.

Kellan raised an eyebrow at seeing her condition, but didn’t
comment on it. When Candy noticed us watching her, she did a double
take. I sighed when she disengaged herself from her friends and
started heading our way. So much for closing out the school year
with never seeing her again. Oh well. Maybe we could finally get
that introduction that we’ve never, ever had.

Kellan watched her impassively as she approached us. Candy
lowered her eyes and looked a little glum. Before I could say
anything to her, she started speaking to me. “Hey, I just wanted to
apologize…for all the crap I used to give to you about Kellan.”

She peeked up at me, then over at him. Her freckled cheeks
flushed with color as Kellan bunched his brows. Shaking her head,
she shrugged. “I guess I wanted attention.” She looked down again.
“I was pretty ignored in my high school, and being with you, gave
me a certain amount of…clout…here.” Her sad eyes looked back up at
him. “Sorry. That was pretty shallow of me.”

Kellan gave her a half smile and shook his head. “It doesn’t
matter.” His eyes drifted down her belly, then over to me. “We’re
not those people anymore, Candy.” He looked back at her. “Don’t
worry about it.”

I smiled that he finally remembered her name. Candy nodded,
then, rubbing her stomach, walked away. I was curious over who the
father was, but didn’t ask. Rumor had it that it was our ethics
professor. Our
married
ethics professor. But, as I knew,
rumors could be wrong. Then again, they could also be right.

Shaking off the drama that, for once, didn’t involve me, I
clutched Kellan’s hand and went to find the one girl I
did
want to introduce him to. Cheyenne was just coming out of the
bathroom when she spotted me. She squealed and gave me a huge hug,
forcefully yanking me from Kellan.

“Kiera, can you believe it! We did it!” Her slight southern
drawl thickened in her excitement. Then her pale eyes seemed to
notice that I wasn’t alone. She eyed Kellan, then gave him a cute
smile that made her eyes sparkle. “You must be the boyfriend?”

Kellan nodded and extended his hand. “Kellan.”

Shaking his hand, she muttered to me, “Now I can see why you’re
straight. I think he’d make any person reconsider their
orientation.”

Hearing her, Kellan raised an eyebrow. Then he got a devilish
smile and locked gazes with me. I knew he’d figured it out then,
that Cheyenne had been the girl at school who’d kissed me. Rolling
my eyes at the hopelessly attractive smile on his face, I shoved
his shoulder back. “Why don’t you go have a seat with my
parents.”

Grinning, Kellan looked between Cheyenne and me. “You sure? Are
you…good…here?”

He chuckled a little, his lips curving seductively. Rolling my
eyes again, I forcefully turned him around and made him walk away
from us. He looked back at us before disappearing around a
corner—the grin there was decidedly inappropriate. Men.

Cheyenne laughed a little as she turned back to me. “Kellan
seems…nice.”

I shook my head. “Nice…really isn’t the best word to describe
him.” Amazing, hot, sexy, soulful, talented, deep, playful, moody,
loving, and at times, considerate, yes…but nice? Well, okay, maybe
it did suit him.

The actual ceremony was a blur to me. I was so energized and
emotional, I only recalled bits and pieces. Seeing my family in the
stands—my mom crying, my dad secretly wiping his eyes, Anna
whistling around her fingers, and Denny and Kellan beaming at me as
they sat side by side.  I vaguely remembered the speeches and
music. I recalled my name being announced and the ear-splitting
noise from my cheering section. And then it was over and we were
back in Kellan’s car, driving off to Pete’s.

My mom, dad, and Anna piled out of the car once Kellan parked
it, eager to start on the celebration. I watched my sister hug
Jenny and Kate in the parking lot, Cheyenne meeting up with them a
couple of seconds later. Once my parents and my friends disappeared
through the front doors, I unfastened my seat belt and prepared to
join them.

“Coming?” I asked, cracking the car door.

Kellan hadn’t moved since stopping the car; his hands were still
fixed on the steering wheel. His eyes glued to the image of the bar
in his rearview mirror, he muttered, “I’ll be there in a sec.”

Pale, he looked like he might start the car and drive off once I
left. Closing my door, I twisted back around to him. “Hey, you
okay?”

He reluctantly pulled his gaze from the mirror to look at me.
Eyes wide, he whispered, “I don’t think I can do this, Kiera.”

I put my hand on his cheek and held his gaze. “Yes, you can. You
can do anything.” He shook his head and I pressed my lips to his.
He didn’t kiss me back at first. Too scared or freaked out about
facing his biological father, his lips were rigid against mine.
Using everything he’d taught me over the years, I teased, licked
and sucked his mouth into submission. Within moments, he was
kissing me back heartily, his earlier trepidation gone.

When he clutched my cheek and looked about ready to lay me down
on his front seat, I pushed his chest away from me. Eyes burning
into mine, he breathed raggedly. I bit my lip at the sight of this
insanely erotic, yet deeply sensitive man. “Come on, people are
waiting for us. Let’s go say hello.”

He shook his head a little as I opened my door. His eyes
clearer, he frowned at me. “You turned me on…that’s cheating.”

Laughing, I got out of the car. When he popped up on the other
side of it, I shook my head. “When do I ever
not
turn you
on?”

Smiling at me acknowledging my attractiveness, he closed his
door. “Well, finally you understand the problem that has plagued me
from day one.”

Holding my hand out to him, I waited for him to join me. “Yes, I
do.” When our hands met up, I leaned over to nibble on his ear.
“And I’ll fix your little problem later, I promise.”

He gave me a devilish grin as he pulled me towards the bar.
“Let’s get this over with then.”

Kellan tensed and held his breath as he stepped through the
double doors. Only seeing the usual suspects, and not an older
version of himself, he instantly relaxed. As the crowd assembled
near the doors cheered for me, my cheeks blossomed with heat. I
held my head high, though, proud of my accomplishment, and accepted
the praise from my friends, family and coworkers.

As it was a Saturday afternoon, the day crew was on shift. Troy
smiled at Kellan as we walked past the bar, and Kellan smiled
back.  As long as the person who fancied him was respectful to
me, Kellan was always cordial with them, even the guys. Hun and
Sweetie, the gray-haired ancient waitresses that owed this place
during daylight hours shuffled around, bringing everyone sodas and
water. And Sal, Pete’s business partner and the daytime cook,
stepped out with plates and plates of food. Everybody was
celebrating.

I looked around the sea of familiar faces in the warm, familiar
bar. The cream-colored walls were just as cheery as when I’d first
stepped inside here. The oak floor just as worn. A few more bar
signs dotted the walls and windows, but overall, it looked exactly
the same. Although, the instruments that now held a place of honor
on the darkened stage were a bright pink, a deep purple and an
electric teal. One even had Hello Kitty stickers on it. But Jenny’s
portrait of our boys was behind the feminine instruments, keeping
the boys place in the bar, even if it was a smaller place now.

Friends and study mates came up to me, giving me warm,
congratulatory hugs. I returned them and gave the graduates my own
well wishes. Cheyenne gave me a hug, followed by Meadow. The
uniquely named woman was playing the bar later tonight with her
band, but by the way she was holding Cheyenne’s hand, it was clear
that she was here for her. I grinned at the schoolmate, that had
saved my butt on numerous occasions when it came to poetry, and her
lyrical girlfriend. Meadow had hair the color of a deep sunset, and
eyes as dark as Denny’s, but the small smile on her lips exactly
matched Cheyenne’s, and I was thrilled that the sweet woman had
found love after all.

As Kellan hopped up to the bar to get our table some drinks,
Denny and Abby stepped through the doors. Kellan greeted them
first, clapping Denny on the shoulder as he pointed back at me.
Making sure my parents were comfortably seated, I jumped up to toss
my arms around Denny.

He was all grins as I pulled away. “I did it, Denny!”

Tilting his dark head, he gave me a lopsided grin. “Did you ever
think you wouldn’t?”

My grin matching his, I nodded. “Yeah, there were times when
school was just about the last thing on my mind.”

Denny and I both turned to look over at Kellan talking to Troy
at the bar. Smirking, Denny twisted back to me. “Yeah, I know.”
Just when I was feeling a bit of guilt seep into me, he laughed.
“It’s a miracle you graduated.”

His humor cooling my feelings, I thumped him on the chest.
“Quiet, you.”

Laughing at me, he slung his arms around Abby and kissed her
head. Then Abby gave me a brief hug and congratulated me. I shook
my head at the warm…forgiving…pair and made room for them at the
table with my parents. My mom looked between Denny, Kellan, and me
with a very confused face. She must have pieced together what had
really happened between the three of us, and was probably wondering
how we could all still be friends. I wondered that too sometimes… I
was very blessed.

As Kellan brought the table sodas, I tried to make sure my
sister was as comfortable as could be. I even found a pillow in the
back room for her to lean against, since bar chairs aren’t
notorious for being comfortable.

Just as she was giggling and thanking me, the doors burst open
with loud fanfare.

Jaw dropping, I spun to watch Griffin and the rest of the D-Bags
step inside. I hadn’t realized that they’d come up with Kellan. I
was touched that they’d come back, then I remembered that they had
just as much reason to come up as Kellan did.

Evan’s eyes locked onto Jenny a split-second before she jumped
into his arms and showered him with kisses. Matt shook his head at
Evan and looked back at Rachel walking through the door behind him.
The Latin-Asian beauty tenderly grabbed the blond guitarist’s hand
as they quietly screamed their affection in one, simple glance. All
of the D-Bags’ hearts resided in Seattle. Even Griffin…if he ever
stopped to think about it.

As it was, he was looking around the packed bar for someone…for
Anna. She stiffened in her chair and her face went sheet white. She
still hadn’t told him she was pregnant. She hadn’t told Matt or
Evan either, and had made every person who saw her condition
promise to not tell anyone who might tell Griffin. She’d made
everyone promise that she could be the one to tell him, even though
that terrified her.