Entrelacen (17 page)

I get done having dinner with Gran
and tell her I’m going to go check on the
store to make sure April closed it
correctly, since it was her first time to do
it. I know it’s not hard. All you have to do
is pick up trash, turn off the lights, and
lock the door. I just wanted an excuse to
try to see her again. Plain and simple. I
park around back and go in through the
back door. I hear singing. It's not horrible,
but it’s definitely not amazing. It makes
me laugh. I creep through the door. April
is dusting all the book shelves, dancing and
singing.

She has no clue how beautiful she is.
She’s making her way to where I’m hiding,
so I take cover. Lame I know, but I don’t
want her to know I’m watching her. When
did I become a stalker? She walks into the
room, looks around, and then walks back
out. When I start to hear her sing again, I
make my way back to the door to watch
her.

Everything inside of me is begging
me to reach out and touch her, talk to
her, or do anything to get her attention.
I’m craving it. That’s when the phone
rings. I knew it was going to be Gran, but
I didn’t expect for April to pick it up since
it’s so late. I see April look at the clock,
and she starts to work faster. She’s so
caught up in dancing, singing, and
cleaning that she doesn’t notice me
leaning on the wall.

After putting up the cleaning
supplies, she gets the coffee and tea ready
for tomorrow. Making her way to the
light switches, she looks up and her gazes
is locked on me. First she looks scared, but
then her eyes recognize me. I can’t tell
whether shock or relief shines through
more, but whatever It’s, she is frozen in
place. She’s fighting a smile. My eyes
narrow in on her mouth. She’s biting the
corner of her lips again. Just that small
movement has my body aching in ways
that I didn’t know were possible.

I start to move toward her, and she
takes a step back, so I stop. What is she
doing? Trying to drive me crazy with lust?
I mirror her step for step, but I still
manage to get closer to her. Those hazel
eyes of hers show amusement. She’s
playing a game I realize. Excitement is
begging me to continue, and I see the wall
before she does. When she backs into it her
palms lie flat against it. She looks like she’s
trying to disappear into the wall itself.

I reach her, and she looks up at me.
I can see the fire burning in her eyes. My
hands automatically press into the wall on
each side of her, encasing her so she
wouldn't run away. Neither one of us
makes a move at first. We just stare. She
licks her bottom lip, and her teeth sink
into it again. I want to be the one that
bites her lip. I’m hyper-aware that her
hands are now pressing on my chest.
They’re not pushing me away, but making
sure I’m real.

My right hand lifts to push her hair
back behind her ear. When my skin makes
contact with her face, sparks fly. It’s like
when you get a static shock that races its
way all over your body. Her eyes widen,
and that’s when I know she felt it too. I
trace her jaw line, and her lips part. My
thumb skims over her bottom lip,
releasing it from the torture her teeth
seem to be inflicting on it. Her lips are soft
and smooth. Her breath smells sweet. I
desperately want to taste her. My eyes
connect with hers as I begin to lean in,
giving her the okay to push me away if
she wants me to stop. The only movement
is her rapid breathings. Her chest is
connecting with mine, and my lips are
about to connect to hers.

Our phones both ring.
I ignore mine, knowing the only
person who could be calling is Gran. I
know she’s calling to interrupt what was
just about to happen. April looks at her
phone, and the desire that was burning
just a few seconds before disappears. I
would never have believed she could switch
emotions so quickly if I hadn't seen it
first-hand. The atmosphere has shifted.
Urgency to leave is pouring out of April. It
worries me. She closes the phone, sighs,
and looks at me.
“Everything okay, April?”
She tries to smile at me, but it’s
forced. “I need to go; do you think you
can lock the doors for me please?”
I want to say more. I want to ask
her what’s wrong, so I can be there for
her. “Sure. No problem. I’ll see you
tomorrow.”
“Umm… yeah. Thanks again Logan.”
I can tell she wants to say more, but
she stops herself. I walk her to her car.
She’s driving an Expedition. I’m surprised.
She seems more like a car kind of girl. I
could see her driving a mustang. She looks
tiny compared to this SUV. I lock all the
doors, turn off the lights, and get into my
car.
I definitely need to drive around to calm
myself before I head back home. I almost
kissed her. Me. It wasn’t like when Elise
kissed me. I wanted to kiss April; Elise
wanted to kiss me. I know the moment
that my lips connect with April's, I’m
going to be done in. She is slowly
becoming my addiction. I need to get to
know her before I scare her away. So
that’s what I’m going to do for the next
few weeks, get to know her and become
friends first.
Once my decision was made, I head home.
I walk in, and see Gran in the kitchen
having some tea. I smile at her and start
heading up the stairs to my room.
“Be careful Logan. Get to know her
first.”
“I know Gran! I fully intend to do
that.”
I laugh because Gran has been overly
protective of me since everything
happened. Then I stop laughing and
wonder why she is being this protective of
April. Does she know more that she’s not
telling me? Of course she does. I’ll just
have to get April to talk to me.
I make it to my room, look around,
and start to feel lonely. I already miss the
heat I felt from April and the way it felt
when her heaving chest rubbed mine. I
stumble into bed groaning. Everything
that is going through my body right now
makes it difficult to fall asleep, but
eventually I do.

I get into the car and take a few deep breaths.
My hands are shaking, and my body is vibrating with
a need that’s foreign to me. I’ve had sex and made out
with guys, but I’ve never had that intense desire
devour me so completely. I can still see the fire
burning in his eyes and feel the softness of his fingers
tracing my jaw. I’m totally screwed. Thank goodness
for the interruption from our phones. It was my mom
trying to see where I was.

The boys are asking for you. Where are you?
I start the car and head home. I can’t deny our
building attraction or the fact that I want something to
happen between us, but I have the boys to think about.
Logan is probably a year or two younger than me.
There's no way he would be into having a relationship
with me. We could be friends. That way I can get to
know him and not have to worry about telling him
about the kids.
I get attacked as soon as the door opens. All
my troubles are pushed to the back of my mind as I
make my way through the pile of kids. Mathew takes
a bath downstairs. Lee already had his, so I put him to
bed. I take Michael upstairs to give him his bath in my
bathroom. Once we’re done doing that, I get the older
boys into bed too. They’re asleep fast, so I get ready
for tomorrow. Pulling out their uniforms, I grab my
Kindle to read a little before bed. I decide to read
'Wishing for Someday Soon' by Tiffany King again.
This book was one of the few things that gave me
hope when I was going through the custody battle for
the boys. The main character shows tremendous hope,
love, and determination to get her and her brother to
someday soon.
I hear an annoying
beep beep beep
and open
one eye to see the alarm on my right going off. I guess
I fell asleep. Oh well. Time to get the kids up, dressed,
and loaded into the car to go to school. We make it
with enough time for them to have breakfast. I leave
quickly after getting them situated, so I could go
home to take a shower before work.
I’m feeling a little lazy today, so I skip blow
drying and straightening my hair. I just put some
moose and hair spray in my hair to define my natural
curls. I put on a jean skirt, a black strapless top, and
some black ballet flats. I quickly apply just a little
makeup and grab my purse, phone and keys. Heading
out to the car, I know it's going to be a long day. I
didn’t dream about Logan, but I was thinking about
him the moment my eyes opened. I hope today won't
be awkward. I really want this job and don't want
anything to jeopardize it. We really need to talk.
I pull up into the spot that I’ve claimed as
mine, walk straight through the door, and notice there
are only a few customers in the shop. Then, the
butterflies decide to take flight, so I know he must be
around. I look around, but I don’t recognize anyone. I
check to see if Gran is in the back, and there Logan
sits, facing the door. It’s like he was expecting me to
walk in at that precise moment. All the nervousness I
was feeling about today being awkward is gone.
Instead, red hot desire takes its place. Plus, the energy
this room throws off, with all of its mystical
properties, isn’t helping.
I clear my throat, “Good morning Logan. Is
Gran around?”
“She said she would be in later. You’re stuck
with me this morning.”
I’m groaning internally. I can’t do this right
now. It’s going to be agonizing torture. Right now, I
just want to walk up to him, straddle him in the chair,
pull his hair back with my hands, and kiss him like
there’s no tomorrow. I let go of the breath I was
holding.
“Sounds good. I’ll just go keep myself busy
out there,” I spit out in a hurry, while gesturing to the
store behind me. I start to turn away from him. I
swear looking at him should require a bottle of water,
fan, and a defibrillator to start your heart again. He
can make the smartest person look stupid by doing
nothing but stand there.
“Hey, I was thinking that maybe we can have
lunch together today. I know Gran is probably going
to bring something back for the both of us, but would
you mind joining me out back? We have a table I
usually sit at out there.”
I glance over my shoulder with a coy smile,
“Sure, sounds great. Thanks.”
Why am I trying to be coy? He knows how
good he looks. With the way I behaved last night, I’m
sure he knows how badly my body wants him too.
Before I let him say anything else, I pass through the
door and sigh in relief when I see my little Snow
White waiting by the rocking chair. As I approach, she
smiles at me. I notice that todaywe’re going to be
reading Little Red Riding Hood. I have just as much
fun this time around as I did yesterday. There are just
as many kids this time. Some of them even have
books of their own. I sit in that chair reading until
every book had been read. Snow White eventually
falls asleep on my lap. She wiggled her way onto it so
she could help be the voice of some of the characters.
She liked playing the wolf best because she got to
make her voice deep.
Parents start collecting the bags of books
they’ve bought as well as a few sleeping children. I
carry Snow White out to the car with her mother and
get ready to have lunch with Logan. Thinking about it
sets my blood on fire, the butterflies that have been
resting start to fly again, and my nerves make my
palms sweat. I make my way back inside, head to the
bathroom to wash my hands, and mentally prepare
myself for this. It shouldn't be such a big deal though
because we’re just friends, and friends have lunch,
right?
I head to the new age section to see if Gran
has made it here yet and see that she’s sitting at the
table with enough food to feed everyone in the store.
“Good afternoon April.”
“Hey Gran. Are you planning to feed everyone
here today?”
She chuckles, although it sounds more like a
cackle. “No child, just you and my boy. Have you
seen the way he eats? It might be best to get a plate
now while he’s occupied up front.”
I laugh, and she looks at me surprised. “What
is it gran?”
“It’s the first time I’ve heard you laugh and
seem worry free.”
“I like being here. It feels like home. My boys
are good, life is good.”
“Does life being good have anything to do
with him?” she says, pointing out toward the front of
the store. I had to stop and think about it. Does it? I
was happy when I got custody of the boys, excited
when we were able to move back to Las Vegas, and
thrilled when I landed this job. So did Logan have
anything to deal with the smile on my face right now?
It’s very possible.
“I would be lying if I said no. Yes, he has
something to do with it. It’s always good to make new
friends, and I feel like I can trust him. It’s like we
have a deeper connection somehow.”
“Who has something to do with what and has
a deep connection with you?”
I turn around, though I already know who It’s
by the voice, to see Logan standing in the door way
looking slightly amused and worried. I could stare at
him all day. He is wearing his typical jeans and a tshirt that has the word TRUTH written across his
chest, along with his signature Vans. His hair is messy
but neat. It’s always the eyes that draw me in though,
so I try to avoid looking at them. Gran answers for
me.
“Now boy, if that was any of your business,
you would have been in here for the whole
conversation, now wouldn’t ya?”
“Ah Gran. Come on, you know I wasn’t trying
to be nosey.”
I laugh. “It’s okay Logan. Maybe I’ll tell you
about it over lunch.”
That earns me a smile from him and a look
from Gran.
Be careful April. You deserve to be happy, but
you have a bigger destiny ahead of you, and so does
Logan. If you decide to go down this path, then be
honest. He deserves to make the choice.
I look around, and my gaze to lands on Gran.
She’s smiling at me, so I raise my eyebrows, and she
nods discretely. So I decide to try something out.
Don’t worry Gran. I wouldn’t hurt him
intentionally, and I know I have a bigger destiny, but
is it wrong to want to include Logan in that too? I’ll
let him know about my kiddos. You are right; he does
deserve to know that. I’m not looking for anything
more than friendship. I can keep him at arm’s length if
needed.
Her eyes widen, showing me that I projected
my words directly to her. I look at Logan to see him
studying us. Wait, did I say it out loud?
“So are you ready for that lunch Logan? I have
to leave soon.”
“Uh, yeah.” He’s looking at gran like he
knows something is going but doesn’t want to be
obvious about it.
“I’ll take the stuff outside. Can you grab the
drinks?”
“Sure.” He walks out the door.
“He knows you are different April, but this is a
conversation that needs to take place between the both
of you.”
“Okay Gran. Thanks again for the lunch.” I
smile and walk out the door to have lunch with
Logan.
It’s a beautiful day, so I raise my face to the
sky to feel the warmth on my skin. I smile
automatically. That's when I feel his eyes on me, so I
open mine and look right at him. I don’t think I’m
ever going to get over how gorgeous he is.
“What?”
I feel selfconscious, like there’s something
wrong with what I’m wearing, or there’s something
on my face.
“Nothing. So what just happened back there
with Gram and this connection you share with
someone? Who is he?”
“Well, I guess we can do this now. Okay, so
you know that I’m originally from Texas, right? Well
part of the reason I came to this bookstore was
because I love to read. Books are somewhat of a
passion of mine, but when I came here and ran into
you, literally, the store felt like home. It's like I belong
here.”
“So that didn’t answer any of my questions"
he says while laughing.
“I’m getting to it.” I laugh, which only makes
him smile. “I spoke to Gran that day and found out
she can hear my thoughts, but just now, I don’t think it
was her hearing my thoughts as much as it was me
projecting mine. Before you think I’m crazy, that’s
what just happened. We had a small conversation in
our head.” I look everywhere but at him. He’s
definitely going to think I’m crazy. I take the chance
and look up at him. He is watching me with a look of
wonder. Then, he speaks.