Growing Love (Brookfield) (11 page)

Chapter Thirteen

Diane’s heart raced as the phone rang on the other end. Finally after the third ring, Tom answered.

“Hey.” He sounded thrilled to hear from her, which was going to make this harder.

“Hi.”

“What’s wrong? I can tell by your tone. I want to come this weekend. I heard from a few friends you’re having a shower. I can’t wait to go baby shopping.”

He sounded so happy. And now she had to crush it. “About that.” She took a deep breath, hoping it would calm her nerves. No such luck. “Please don’t come to the shower.”

“Why?”

Patrick stirred in the bouncy seat. She set her foot to it and lightly pressed it so it bounced again, keeping him asleep a little longer. “I’ve got to let you go for now. This isn’t something new. You’ve been telling me I need to concentrate on Matt. That’s what I’m doing. And right now I need you out of our lives.”

“I understand I need to step back, but to miss the shower? Is he really that—”

“No ill words, please. Matt is the father of my child and the man I love. I don’t want to hear anything negative. I’ve got to fix this. I’ve made such a mess of things, it isn’t even funny.”

“Oh, sweetie. You’re not the only one to blame.”

She smiled. “I know, but neither is Matt. We’ve got to do this together.”

“I hate not being able to come, but I will still go baby shopping and send along the gifts with a friend of yours. Will that be okay?”

“Of course. Patrick will love the gifts his Uncle Tom sends.”

Her son started to stir
again and his little blue eyes opened. “Patrick’s awake. He might start screaming in a minute. I should’ve peed while I was on the phone with you.” She giggled. “Now I’ll need to wait for the next cat-nap.”

“Little people, they’re so demanding.”

“You have no idea.” She felt slightly guilty saying it, knowing not but a few months ago, he was supposed to be this kid’s father and now he was simply the uncle. “I wouldn’t trade him for anything.”

“Call me when you can. But I understand if it’s
awhile.”

“Bye, Tom.” She set the phone down then picked up her son.

She rocked in the chair with him. She’d done the right thing. Now Matt and she could get on the right track. She loved him. It was time to start showing him that.

*
* *

Matt was finally off on what he called paternity leave. The baby shower had been a success and now Patrick was spoiled rotten with rattles, blankets, clothes, and so on. He was pretty sure his son owned more things tha
n he did.

Tom hadn’t been at the baby shower and in the days that followed his and Diane’s argument, he hadn’t seen her talk to
Tom on the phone. This should’ve made him happy. He’d won. Diane was his, sort of. But he hated feeling like he’d given her an ultimatum to give up a friend. Someone who had been there when he wasn’t. A man who had agreed to raise his child when Matt was too damn stubborn to go after the woman he loved.

He needed to talk to her. Find out where her head was. But it was hard with the baby. He was the king of cat
-naps and when he was asleep, Diane did things like laundry and bathe. He supposed he could call Alyssa again. Heck, Diane might enjoy the break.

Matt turned the TV off. The kitchen was a disaster. He should be in there cleaning it up, helping the woman he loved so she could feel less stress
, not sitting here staring at the television.

H
e began rinsing dishes and putting them into the dishwasher. Once the sink was empty, he began wiping down the counters.

“I was just coming to do that.” Diane entered the kitchen—baby free.

“You don’t have to do everything around here.” He grinned and tossed the wipe in the trash. “What else can I do?”

“If you really want to help, I’ve got a load of Patrick’s clothes in the dryer that need to be folded.”

“I can do that.”

She leaned against the counter. Her hair was a mess. She’d always been one who
took the time to curl it every day, but now she wore it straight or in a messy bun. He wasn’t even sure she’d gotten a brush through it yet that day.

“You’re beautiful.” The words left his mouth
though he’d meant for them to stay a thought.

“You’re delusional.” She laughed. “I’ve got spit up down the front of my shirt
. I haven’t had makeup on in days, besides what hasn’t been washed off yet by the shower.”

He stepped closer and rubbed her cheek. He knew what she needed from him and he’d been denying her. She needed to know he loved her and he needed to show her in a way he wasn’t
letting her to do for him.

He titled her chin up and before his lips touched hers, he whispered, “I love you.”

The kiss was slow at first as the tips of their tongues barely touched. He could feel her holding back, most likely waiting on him to push her away like he’d been doing. But not this time. He was going to kiss her until she could feel how sorry he was.

Matt wrapped an arm around her waist and tugged her to him. His erection was front and center and he had no problem letting her feel what she did to him. Finally,
she laced her arms around his waist. It felt so good to be held by her again. Her fingers traced his spine, sending waves of shivers through him.

This
kiss would be nothing more than that. But hopefully it would be a start to them. He was so tired of dancing around this. Maybe the only way to fix their issues was to start connecting again.

Diane was the one who pulled away. She gazed up into his eyes. “Do you really mean it?”

He stared back, wondering what she meant at first, but then it dawned on him. “Yes.”

“I love you, Matt.”

His heart fluttered like a school boy after his first kiss. They were going to be okay.

“We might only have five minutes before you
-know-who wakes.”

“I’ll get on that laundry.” He started to move away, but she grabbed his hand.

“I rather like what we were just doing. There’s no telling when we might get five minutes again.”

He winked then picked her up and place
d her on the counter. She opened her legs wide and he positioned himself between them. “Let’s make the best of this time then.” Even if it wouldn’t go past second base.

*
* *

Diane grinned as she stir
red the pasta sauce. The sound coming from the living room melted her heart. Matt was singing to the baby. Her heart wasn’t melting because he had a beautiful voice. Quite the opposite, actually. But he didn’t care and she assumed Patrick liked it, because he was being quiet for a change.

She poured the noodles into the boiling water. Having Matt home was nice. She actually got to feel more like a person again. She could hand him the baby whenever her bladder demanded attention. Or even if she needed a quick minute to breath
e.

She loved her son, but man
, was he demanding. How much longer until he was self-sufficient? She giggled slightly. Many more years and if she had her way, he was going to be a mama’s boy.

As she waited for the angel
-hair pasta to cook, she pulled the plates down from the cabinet. A moment later, she checked the noodles and found them done. After everything was ready, she set the table. Matt came over carrying the bouncy seat. He set it next to his chair and hooked Patrick in.

“Maybe he’ll let us enjoy our dinner together.” Matt took a seat.

“Turn the little vibrating thing on. That usually helps.” She pointed at the switch on the blue bouncy chair.

“Whoever invented this thing was brilliant.”

“That and the swing. He’s beginning to like that one too.” She stirred the pasta once more.

After she had spaghetti on her plate, the awkwardness set in. They hadn’t really talked since lip
-locking in the kitchen.

“Want a glass of wine?” he asked.

“Oh, yeah, sure.” She’d completely forgotten about a beverage.

He returned a m
inute later and set a glass down for her. She took a small sip, her first one since getting pregnant. She knew it would hit her fast and she didn’t need to even be tipsy while taking care of Patrick.

“I’ve been thinking
,” Matt paused as though he were waiting on her to look at him, “let’s start fresh.”

“You and me?”

He nodded. “We’ve both played games in the past and done things to hurt each other. But now we’ve got this little guy. It’s time to grow up and do this real relationship thing. I think we should leave the past where it belongs and live in the present and worry about the future when it comes.”

“I’d like that. I want it to work between us, I really do. I never should’ve walked out on you—”

He held his hand up. “I’m sorry, you’re sorry. Let’s move on.”

“Can we really do that?” She wasn’t so sure. And if leaving the past behind, did that mean
leaving Tom behind as well?

“I think we can. It’s not going to be easy.”

She spun the noodles around her fork. As she ate it, she glanced over at Patrick. He was her world. She then looked at Matt, whom she also loved. These two were it for her. They were enough.

She put her fork down, stood, and held her hand out to Matt. He took it and she pulled him up to her. “I love you, Matt. It’s time to bury the past.”

He leaned down and kissed her. Her whole world stopped. It was just them touching, exploring, and needing one another. Life was how it was supposed to be. And as they stood there in one another’s arms, all the hurt seemed to wash away.

“Damn it, is he six weeks old yet?” Matt groaned as he stopped kissing her.

She laughed. “We can play still, you know?”

“Maybe when he’s asleep tonight
, you should sneak into my room?”

“Maybe I should move into your room and let Patrick have the other one.”

His eyes lit up. “Really?”

“I’ll think about
it.” She glanced over her shoulder at the tiny baby, not sure if she was ready yet to leave him all alone in the room. Sure, babies slept in their own rooms all the time, but…

Matt placed a kiss on her cheek. “We’ll just sneak around for now until he’s a little older. Let’s finish eating.”

As she took a seat, she smiled. Right now she was a lucky girl, maybe even the luckiest in the world. She had a perfect son and a wonderful man who loved her. She should be beyond content, so why did she still long for Tom?

Chapter Fourteen

Matt waited as patiently as he could. He was already hard as a rock, ready to shoot. It had been a long time since anything other than his hand had stroked his cock. He couldn’t wait to feel her warm hand and moist mouth pleasure him.

They’d flirted since dinner
, each of them antsy for Patrick to go down for the night. Well, he’d be up in a few hours, but at least he’d be asleep in another room. But his son must have felt the tension between Diane and him, because the kid was giving her a hard time by refusing to sleep.

He’d checked on them a few times and she’d waved him off. She loved doing most of the hard parenting things herself. He was thankful
, to be honest. A kid screaming in his ear—that was not for him. He didn’t know how she stayed so calm when he got so flustered.

Finally, Diane appeared in his doorway. In his fantasy she’d have been naked by now, but the sweatpants and T-shirt would be gone in no time anyway.

She climbed on the bed and he wasted no time. He flipped her onto her back, claimed her lips, and got down to the business he’d been longing for.

“Someone’s in a hurry.” She giggled be
tween kisses.

“Sssh. We don’t want you
-know-who to wake up.”

His mouth found her neck as he pushed her shirt up. Thank God she was braless. One last thing between him and victory.

He clamped his mouth around one of her hard nipples. He drew it into his mouth as far as he could, not realizing how much he’d missed breasts. He hadn’t tasted one of these magnificent things in what felt like forever. He could stay here all night. But his manhood reminded him of other needs.

He wasn’t sure what all she could d
o after just having a baby. They didn’t make a book about that—or at least he couldn’t find one. Perhaps a Google search could help with that one.

Kissing his way down her belly, he began to slip
down the two layers of bottoms she had on, blocking him from where he really wanted his mouth to be.

“Matt,” she whispered as her panties and pants hit the floor.

“Yeah?”

“Remove your bottom
s.”

Where was the fun in that? He wanted to have her touch him the way he was her. But he did as she asked and his cock was happy to be free from the re
straint of jeans. As he started to kiss her again, she tugged at his sides. What did the woman want now? He was trying to pleasure her.

But she kept pulling at him and it finally registered. Fuck yeah! He spun his lower half toward her and positioned his cock right over her face. Her warm mouth sucked him in as his
tongue pleasured her.

All thoughts vanished from his head and all he could do was try to pleasure her and not orgasm too early. Her hips grinded up and he could tell she was having the same fight with herself. Screw it. He knew how to bring her over the edge fast and they both desired this. No reason to prolong what they each wanted.

As his tongue swirled around her sensitive nub, he pressed two fingers deep inside her opening. She withered under him and sucked harder. Oh fuck, he couldn’t hold back any longer.

He pulled his dick from her mouth just in time to spill his seed on the bed beside her. She cried out as her release hit
. He stroked her a few more times before rolling off of her to catch his breath.

He
spun so he could lay next to her and wrapped his arm around her waist. She smiled at him and his whole world felt complete.

“That was good,” he said.

“And quick.” She smiled.

“I haven’t been with anyone since that last time I was with you either.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Really?” He nodded, before she added, “You could’ve got a hooker.”

Matt pinched her side,
causing her to shriek. “I didn’t know it was a—”

“I know, I know.” She rolled her eyes but sti
ll grinned. “You’d never pick up a hooker. You have me.”

Her lips lightly brushed his cheek and his body began to stir again. “Let’s play again. That was fun.”

He leaned forward, grabbed her wrists, and pinned them above her head. She wiggled under him. “This time, I’m pleasuring you.”

*
* *

Over the next week, Diane and Matt fell into a good groove with one another. Having him home 
was wonderful. He helped her during the day and when their son was asleep, they rekindled their love. It wasn’t always in a physical way. Many evenings they sat curled up on the couch simply talking about the things they wanted in their future. She loved him, but now she was hopelessly
in love
with him.

Today the home felt empty with him back at wor
k. Sure, her son was here. They’d finally gotten into a routine. She had a feeding and sleeping schedule down for him. Life was falling in to place.

S
he poured another cup of coffee then started a fresh pot. Alyssa would be coming by soon to watch Patrick so Diane could get a few groceries for the week. The weather was turning and getting cooler. The last thing she wanted was for her son to catch a cold.

Diane sipped the hot beverage when her phone dinged. She saw a text from Alyssa that she was outside the door. She laughed. Why didn’t she just knock?

Opening the door, she found Alyssa standing there with a big smile. “You dork, why did you text?”

Quietly, she said,
“I wasn’t sure if Patrick was sleeping. I didn’t want to wake him.”

“How
courteous since it’s you who is babysitting. If you were coming to visit, you wouldn’t have cared.”

Alyssa closed the door as she entered the home. “Wow, it’s so clean. Have you been decorating?”

She grinned. “Slowly, so Matt doesn’t notice.”

“Has he?”

Diane shrugged. “If he has, he hasn’t said anything. Want some coffee? I think the pot I brewed for you just finished.”

“Yes, please.”

Alyssa joined her in the kitchen. And once they each had a coffee, they leaned against a counter opposite of one another.

Alyssa broke the comfortable silence.
“How’s it going with Matt?”

“Good.
” It felt nice to report good things for a change. “We’re happy now and really working on us.”

“I’m glad.”
Alyssa blew gently on her coffee before taking another sip and smacking her lips together in satisfaction.

“Is this weird?” Because it sure as hell felt weird.

She placed a hand behind her on the counter. “What?”

“Talking ab
out Matt. You and him were an item.” It was still awkward to discuss him with her. Would it ever not be?

Alyssa sighed. “You’ve got to move past that. I have. In fact, Connor and I have set a date.”

“You have?”

“We have. And I’d like it you were m
y maid of honor.” Alyssa set her mug gently down on the counter and beamed in Diane’s direction. She had a glow about her, not unlike how Diane had looked during pregnancy. Happiness did things to a woman.

“Yes. Yes. Yes!” Diane
squealed and had to refrain from spilling her coffee. She wanted to clap so bad. “You’ve made my day. I’ve got to call Tom. He’s fabulous at planning. I’m sure he’d love to help.” She set her drink down and debated what to do first: rush to the phone to share the good news or give her sister a hug.

“Great. I need all the help I can get. So, is Matt over this thing with Tom?”
Alyssa twirled a strand of hair and watched Diane intently.

Diane sighed
, halfway to the phone. She halted mid-reach and bit her lip. “I don’t know. We’ve left that subject alone. I’m honestly not sure if when I agreed to leave the past in the past, if that means Tom.”

Alyssa frowned. “Surely not. You know, I understand you two are fixing things and I’m thrilled. But if you want Tom in your life, you should be a
llowed.”

“It’s not that easy. I understand why it’s hard on Matt.”

“That’s between you two. Make sure he’s okay with Tom helping me before we move forward, deal?”

Diane nodded. “Enjoy my little bean. I won’t be gone long.”

“Take as long as you need. Hell, go get a pedicure.”

A pedicure sounded wonderful. Maybe if she shopped fast, she’d in fact do just that. “Thanks, sis.
Kiss him for me. I wouldn’t want to wake him up on you.”

Finally, they embraced. Diane took a deep breath and then giggled as a strand of her sister’s hair tickled her nose. They both held on just a little longer than was necessary. As they parted, Diane planted a kiss
on Alyssa’s cheek before grabbing her purse and quietly heading out the front door. The second she was out of the apartment, she felt a pang, missing Patrick. Who knew you could love someone so much that even a minute away from them was too much?

*
* *

The forecasted thunderstorms on the radar meant Matt got to leave work
early. Which was fine with him. He’d much rather be home with his two special people. As he entered the apartment, he heard his son making gurgling noises. He’d missed that guy today as well as the woman of the house.

He followed his son’s noises back to the bedroom Diane and h
e still shared. He poked his head in and was surprised to find Alyssa instead of Diane. “Hey.”

“Oh, hey. What are you doing home?”

“Thunderstorms. Not good for the construction site. Where’s Diane?”

“Grocery store. And I told her to get a pedi as well. Hopefully she listens.”

“She needs to spend some time feeling like a woman.”

Alyssa smiled from the rocking chair. “So, Connor and I have set a wedding date.”

“That’s great. I’m happy for you.”

“Yeah, and, uh, Diane recommended I hire Tom to plan the wedding.”

He nodded, not sure what to say. He’d been doing his best to not think about Tom, but the man seemed to always linger in the back of his mind regardless.

“Would you be okay with that?” she asked.

What was he supposed to say? The sight of the man made him want to punch something. This was his problem though, not Alyssa’s. “It’s fine.”

She chuckled. “She loves you. She’s chosen you. But I do think she should be able to have him as a friend.”

“I’m working on it. That’s all I can do.” He glanced at his watch, seeing how early in the day it was. “Listen, do you mind if I run out and do a few things while you’re still here?”

She waved her hand.
“No, go. I like babysitting.”

“Thanks. Oh, and do me a favor. Don’t tell Diane I was here, okay?”

She raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

“You’ll find out.” He kissed the top of his son’s head
, inhaling the sweet baby smell. “Thanks, Alyssa.”

As he left the apartment, he knew what had to be done.

* * *

“Thank you for meeting me on such short notice.”
With a coffee in hand, Matt sat down at the small bistro table outside the coffee shop he’d asked Tom to meet him at.

“It’s no problem.” Tom sat on the opposite side of the table. “Everything okay?”

“Actually, it seems almost perfect.” He stared at the man in front of him. The man Diane had leaned on for months. The man he had a hard time being around.

“I’m really glad to hear that. I want things to work out between you and Diane. Truly.”

“Why?” This was what bothered him the most. Why had Tom backed down so easily? What didn’t he marry Diane?

“Why am I happy?”

“Yes. I don’t get it. You obviously love her. You planned on being Patrick’s father. Why did you back down so easy and let me have her? She deserves to be fought for. Something I didn’t do.” Matt raked a hand through his hair.

“I’m gay.”

“No, you’re not.” That didn’t make any sense.

Tom chuckled. “I am. To be honest, when I entered into the relationship with you and Diane, I had hoped you and me would explore things a little further.”

Had he heard him right? Tom wanted… “I’m not following.”

“
This is never easy to say. I always considered myself bi-sexual. I had no problems with the arrangement we had with Diane. But I always found myself imagining it was you.”

Matt was shocked and had no words. All this time he’d thought Tom wanted Diane, but he’d really wanted
him.
What could he say? He was a little freaked out by this admission.

Tom smirked as he crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair.
“I’m not in love with you, Matt. Don’t worry. And I know you don’t swing my way. You made that very clear repeatedly. But I like men a lot more than women. And I’ve decided to pursue a relationship with men only from here on out.”

This certainly made sense now as to why he wasn’t fighting for Diane.
“I wish you luck on your…” He stumbled verbally, at a loss for words.