Entrelacen (24 page)

She literally falls into my arms
sobbing. I’m so confused. I feel like I’m in
over my head. I don’t know how to deal
with a crying girl, but I figure holding her
is a good start. When she locks her arms
around me, I squeeze her tight and kiss
the top of her head, “Baby, what’s
wrong?”

She chokes out, “You called them
our boys.”
“Right, so why are you crying?” I
ask, still completely lost. What’s the big
deal if I called them our boys? That’s what
they’re or will be, right? Now I’m just
confusing myself. Of course they’re our
boys. If I want things to work out between
us, the kids are included. They come first
no matter what.
“I’m crying because I wasn’t
expecting that. I’m crying because I want
that. I want a family with you and the
boys,” she manages to get out with a few
hiccups. Her tears have stopped, but she
looks like she could start crying again any
minute.
Come on Gran.Where the hellare
you?
I try to let go of April, so I can lock
the door and turn the ‘Open’ sign to
‘Close’, but she clings to me, which is so
unlike her. If I’ve learned anything about
her, it’s that she is extremely
independent, so her clinging to me shows
that she’s really worried. Instead of letting
her go, I lace our hands and walk over to
the door with her. She flips the sign. I lead
us in the direction of the nook, so we can
sit on the couch and still have a complete
view of the front and back of the store.
I sit down with my back leaning
against the armrest and pull April into
my lap. She’s so stressed and exhausted
that I put her head on my chest and tell
her, “Sleep for a little while. I’ll wake you
when Gran gets here.” She doesn’t even
argue, and I know she’s asleep when her
breathing evens out.
I start dozing off too when Gran
walks through the front doors. She sees
April and comes to take the seat across
from us.
“How long has she been out?” She
whispers.
Clearing my throat, I say, “Twenty
minutes maybe. She came in with the
amulet that Mom was supposed to
protect. One of the boys found it in the
backyard. Do you know what that means
Agatha? Dad was a few streets away from
us the whole time.”
With a heavy breath, she replies,
“Yes I know. So did your mother, but she
thought we could keep him away from
you. Obviously we were wrong. Did she say
which kid?”
“No, she didn’t. Why is that
important? It doesn’t matter which kid
because he won’t get hurt,” I say kind of
loudly, and April stirs.
“Hey Gran,” she says sleepily. “We
need to talk.”
“Hugs first child, and then we can
talk.”
Gran gets up and hugs April. She’s
missed her these last few days. April gets
up to go to the bathroom, while I start
some coffee for the 3 of us. April grabs the
amulet on her way back to the couch and
hands it to Gran.
“I was told this is useless now, that
it has served its purpose by locating the
next target for them,” she explains
heatedly.
“You were told right. When Logan’s
father took it from his mother, his body
absorbed its power, for a lack of a better
explanation. It’s the eldest boy, isn’t it?”
April doesn’t use her voice but a sad
look comes over her face, and she nods. I
hate all of this. Why them? Why those
kids? Haven’t they been through enough as
It’s? All I know is I’m going to do whatever
it takes to make sure April and the boys
are safe. I’ll do anything, even if that
means sacrificing myself because that’s
what you do for love and for family. You
do anything within your power to do,
even if it means laying down your life.
“Do you know what you have to do
April?” It’s the softest I’ve ever heard
Gran speak.
“They won’t tell me, but they did
tell me that I chose this life and this
specific mission. Apparently I was created
for this moment,” her voice trails off.
Gran nods her head as if she already
knew that. I’m sitting here and I’m still
confused as hell because I don’t see why
she would be created only for that specific
purpose.
“Wait a second April. Are you saying
what I think you are?” I ask, freaking out
slightly.
If she thinks she was only created to
save Mathew, she is wrong. She was
created to be with me.
“Logan, there are bigger factors in
this than you and me. I’ve known since I
was a kid that I have a purpose. One was
adopting the boys to give them a chance
at life, and the second is doing whatever,
and I mean whatever, it takes to protect
them. If protecting Mathew completes my
mission or purpose, then yes, that’s
exactly what I mean.”
She’s annoyed with me. I can tell by
the way her voice deepens slightly, and
she pops her hip out with one hand on it.
Her Italian side comes out when she starts
pointing and waving her hand at me.
Then the head starts rolling. If I wasn’t so
mad that she thinks she’s going to sacrifice
herself, I would be totally turned on with
her snarky little attitude.
“Yeah, well sorry to bust your cute
little tirade bubble, but that’s not going to
happen, not while I’m around anyways.
We can both watch Mathew to make sure
he’s always safe. I’ll also watch you to
make sure you don’t do anything stupid,”
I say, sounding a little bit cocky.
The funny thing about our
relationship is that I already know her
looks. The one she’s giving me right now
means she’s going to tear into my ass and
put me in my place, while making me
proud of her in the same breath.
“Listen here. I’ll do what I have to
do, not what YOU tell me to do. Will I
watch out for Mathew? You’re damn right
I’ll. YOU however can watch out for him if
you must, but watch your own damn back
because I can take care of myself, thank
you very much. I don’t need you or
anyone else to try to be my savior when I
don’t need one. You got it? Or do I need
to write it out for you?”
See what I mean? So damn sexy
when she gets riled up. “April calm down.
I’m not saying you need someone to watch
your back. I know you can take care of
yourself, but that doesn’t change the fact
that I’m going to keep an eye on you too.
You just don’t understand that I refuse to
let anything happen to you. I couldn’t take
it if something happened to you.”
I can tell she wants to say more. It’s
amazing to see a battle play out in
someone’s eyes. April’s eyes are like a book;
you can read everything from her eyes.
“Fine, whatever Logan. You’re not
going to listen to me no matter what, but
we will come to an agreement. Promise
me something?” She asks, the playfulness
gone.
She’s completely serious about
whatever is about to come out of her
mouth. For some unknown reason, I’m
completely terrified of what she has to
say. “Okay,” I manage to choke out.
“Our main focus needs to be on
Mathew. If something happens to me, you
have to make sure you get him out of
there. I promise I’ll do the same if
something happens to you.” Her voice is
flat and lacks the excitement it usually
holds.
It takes me a long time to answer
her. How do I promise to walk away from
her? I weigh all of my options. If the roles
were reversed, I would probably ask her to
do the same thing. I take a few deep
breaths to settle myself. “I promise you
April, if anything happens to you, I’ll get
Mathew out of there.”
Ignoring Gran, she walks over to me,
stands on her tippy toes, and reaches
around my neck. Her eyes search mine to
make sure I’m telling the truth. “Thank
you,” escapes her lips before she presses
them into mine. This kiss is different. It’s
not like our normal ones, which are filled
with desire and need. This one is
like…goodbye.

We have two more days until the full moon,
two days until the darkness comes after Mathew. I
know the man is here already. I can always feel him
lingering around me. He wants to know what I plan
on doing, but I don’t even know yet. All I know is that
I have to keep Mathew and Logan safe. When I kiss
him, It’s everything and nothing. It's all the kisses
we’ve missed these last few days, and it’s all kiss we
could miss if something happens to one of us. It’s a
goodbye kiss. HopefullyIt’s not the last kiss because I
plan to spend the rest of my life with him.

Those kisses will be needy, but this kiss
we’re
still locked in is everything.
Breaking apart from the kiss, I expected to feel
lost, like my heart would be breaking all over again,
but I don’t. With my eyes still closed, my forehead
rests against his. Our noses are touching, and our
breathing is labored. Our lips are so close that I feel
his inhale and exhale of air. My hands are playing in
his hair at the nape of his neck, while his are flexing
on my hips. Hundreds of scenarios are going through
my mind. I'm thinking about ways to get us all out
alive, ways I could fail, and some ways he could fail.
Failing is not an option though so I push those
thoughts aside and focus on the here and now.
“Come home with me Logan. Stay with us
until all this happens. The boys have been asking
about you, and I’m afraid if I let you go...” I trail off,
not wanting to finish that thought.
“April, nothing is going to happen. Everything
is going to be fine, but I won’t refuse the offer," he
replies, as if he has no intention of letting me go.
I look for Gran but see that she must have
already left. "I guess that was too much for Gran. Are
you ready to go?”
“Let’s get the boys out of school early and go
to the park. “
I laugh, "Oh, you’re in for it! Let’s go. “
“I’ll follow you home, and then we can go
pick up the kids. Sound good?”
I nod my head and follow him out the store.
He locks up, and we head to our cars. The sky is
getting darker. There are not many cars in the parking
lot. Come to think of it, I didn’t see one person drive
up the store the whole time we were here. Weird. I
shake it off because tonight should be fun and carefree.
We pick the boys up from school, stop to get
some snacks, and head to the park. The boys were so
excited to get out of school early to play at the park
and see Logan. We have an awesome time, and we’re
all feeling pretty happy.
The sun is starting to set behind Red Rock,
casting pinks and oranges through the sky. I have
always been drawn to the Red Rock Mountains, and
this sunset makes it even more enticing. After getting
so engrossed in the landscape, I feel arms wrap
around me, and I’m pressed back into a solid chest.
Normally I would have stiffened up, but I know his
smell. I can pick him out of a crowded room. I lace
my hands with his while they’re resting on my
stomach.
I can feel his breath on my ear, “It’s getting
late babe. We should get the boys home.”
That one sentence does all sorts of crazy
things to me. The butterflies are going crazy in my
abdomen, and my heart is setting its own tempo to
their flight. I sigh. What else could I do? In this
moment, everything is perfect. I have a guy that loves
me despite my flaws, and I have three amazing boys.
This is closer to perfect than anything I can imagine.
If I could freeze this moment and live in it forever, I
totally would. The problem is that in 2 days,
everything we have in this moment could disappear.
We start getting all of our things ready to go
home. For the first time ever, I have no problem
getting the kids to leave the park. Figures! A guy tells
them to do something, and they hop to it. A chuckle
escapes my lips, and Logan looks at me with
eyebrows raised and a smile forming on his lips. I just
wave him off and continue driving home.
We pick up some pizza and a few movies on
the way to the house. Once the pizza is gone. My
mom gives all the boys their baths and puts them to
bed, giving me Logan some time alone. We head up to
my room to watch a movie. I change into some old
athletic shorts and a band t-shirt. Then I realize that
Logan doesn’t have anything to change into.
“Hey, umm April, you don’t mind if I just
sleep in my boxers, do you?” He asks, barely
containing his grin.
Play it cool April. “No, not at all. I’ll end up
taking my shorts off after the boys are asleep
anyways.”
I look over at him to see him freeze as his eyes
devour my body. Desired effect, Check. I start pulling
back the covers on the bed while he sets up the movie.
I have a grin on my face that just won’t go away, and I
absolutely love it. I love being in love! I used to think
I was in love with James, but that doesn’t even
compare to what I feel now. What I felt for James was
just an idea of what I thought love was. Logan. Well,
what I feel for Logan is the emotion personified. He’s
the moon bathing its light on me in the night, the sun
warming my body, and the air that surrounds me.
I get in bed as Logan makes his way over. He
sits on the bed to take his shoes off. Next off is his
shirt. I have to divert my eyes. I’ve never thought of a
guy’s back being sexy, but I’ll be damned if Logan
doesn’t have the sexiest back ever. I feel him slide in
next to me and pull the covers up on top of us.
He reaches one arm behind my back to grab
my hip so he can move me over. He starts piling my
pillows against the headboard, leans back, picks me
up and sits me in between his legs. I never thought
being controlled could be such a turn on. I settle into
his chest to watch the movie while he traces patterns
on the tops of my thighs. I can’t even tell you what
I’m watching because all my attention is on the way
his fingers feel against my skin and how every
movement he makes is sending shockwaves through
my entire body. I’m starting to feel moist between the
apexes of my thighs.
Feeling torn, I jump up to go check on the
boys. I get to their door, and they’re passed out. Now,
do I go through with my threat of sleeping with no
shorts, or just go to bed? Ishut the kids’ door and
head back to my own. I shut the door and come face
to chest with Logan. I look up, and he has this
confused look on his face.
“What?” I ask confused.
“Are you sure you want me to stay? The way
you just bolted makes me think otherwise.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. That was sudden, huh? I do
want you to stay. It’s just that your touch is driving me
crazy, and I just want to lay with you.” I say shyly,
looking at everything in my room but him.
He grabs my chin to make me look at him. He
tilts my face up and kisses me, as I sigh into his
mouth. How am I supposed to resist this man when he
kisses me like this?
“Baby, I just want to sleep in the same bed as
you. We don’t have to do anything more than cuddle
and sleep,” he says through a smile.
Before I can get another word out, he throws
me over his shoulder and sets me on the bed. He turns
the TV off, so I slide my shorts off. He groans,
running his hands over his face. I bite my lip, and he
instantly objects, “Baby no lip biting, unless you plan
on changing your mind about us doing nothing more
than sleeping.”
Laughing, I say, “I’m sorry.”
“Babe, we both know that’s a lie.”
“You’re right, I’m not sorry. I do love the
effect I have on you though.” I laugh.
He settles back on the pillows, and I lay on
him, my new favorite pillow. I kiss his neck, where
my head is resting, and he sighs. After a while, there’s
no sound other than the slow rhythm of his heart. It’s
become one of the most important sounds in my
world. The most important being my three kids’
voices when they call me “Mom”.