You Are My Air: Breathless Book 1 (27 page)

Mom came from money. Her parents had died before she met my father, and since she was an only child, had inherited everything. How my father managed to instill a work ethic into both of his kids still stunned me. I had whatever I wanted while I was growing up, but had always been appreciative and grateful for everything I had been afforded. I knew my mother loved me and was a good person, but her version of reality was so different from mine that we struggled to connect sometimes.

"Natalie," I heard my mother's voice, and I shook myself out of my thoughts as she approached our table and took a seat across from me.

"Hi, Mom." I greeted her with a genuine smile. She looked beautiful as usual, dressed in a precisely cut pink business suit with a skirt and lace camisole underneath. She eyed my gray pants suit momentarily, but said nothing. I had been at work, and she would just have to live with me wearing pants to lunch today.

"I'm glad you could meet me for lunch, honey," she began. "I have so much to talk about since the charity dinner." I managed not to groan out loud. I was going to hear about every minute detail, whether I liked it or not. The waiter showed up giving me a brief reprieve as we ordered our lunch. Mom ordered a salad and I was starving, so I ordered a heavy pasta dish I knew I'd work off when I ran after work tonight. She eyed me again as I ordered, but I ignored her. I don't why she even bothered to do it anymore. I always ordered whatever I wanted.

"Your date was quite the handsome man, wasn't he?" Mom asked after the waiter had left.

"Yes, he was," I answered, unable to help my wide smile at the thought of David in his tuxedo.

"He was quite charming too," Mom added with an answering smile. "I liked him."

"I do too, Mom." I was still amused by how quickly David had won my mother over with a few polite words and little flattery.

"Are you two getting serious?"

"Maybe," I admitted, not ready to tell her how I really felt about him. "It's too soon to know for sure." However, I
was
sure. I was in love with David, but I wasn't going to tell anybody that until I could tell him. I hoped I had the patience to wait for him to say it first, because it was getting harder and harder to keep from telling him before that happened.

"I was thinking that if you two do end up getting serious, that the convention center would make a great location for a wedding reception," she said with a bright smile and an excited gleam in her eyes.

"Mom," I told her in exasperation. "We've only been dating for a few weeks. It's way too soon to talk about anything like that." Not to mention the fact that if she said anything about it to David, he'd probable run for the hills. After his broken engagement, I'd be surprised if a big wedding and a reception were anything he'd even want, if our relationship progressed to that point. Although, a deep part of me did like thinking about the possibility of marrying him, which shocked me. I didn't think about anything like that with any of my other boyfriends. Probably because I didn't actually love them. My feelings for David were like nothing I had ever felt before, and proved that fact. If I wasn't with David, that insight would have been a depressing revelation.

"Have you met his family yet?" she asked. "I hope he comes from a good one." That was code for rich I think, but I decided to take it a different way. I didn't care if David or his family had money or not.

"He does," I told her with a smile. "They're all very close and have been really nice to me." I told her about David's mother and grandmother immigrating here from the Ukraine, and about his sister and her family, and his stepfather. I was a little worried how she'd react to them being immigrants, but she didn't seem to be concerned with it. She did, however, ask about David's father. "David has never met his father," I said truthfully.

"Never?" she asked incredulously.

I shook my head.

"Did his parents get a divorce?" she asked with concern.

"No, mother," I answered tersely; knowing where this was going now. "They were never married. He didn't even take his father's last name." If she was going to judge David for being illegitimate, I was going to lay it all out for her and then let her know, in no uncertain terms, that I didn't agree with her at all.

"That's too bad," my mother said, and I braced to unleash a tirade on her, even if we were in public. "Does it bother him not to know his father?" I snapped my mouth shut at her unexpected question. Her face actually looked sad.

"Um...I don't think so," I answered her, still perplexed. "I guess he doesn't miss what he never had."

"I suppose that's true," Mom replied. "I guess since I lost mine, that I'm a little sensitive on the subject. I still miss them everyday." A painful expression crossed her face.

"Mom?" I quietly asked in a concerned voice.

"I know that I'm not the most stable mother, and I know I exasperate you and your brother often," she said as I watched her lower lip tremble. "I'm too clingy and I tend to smother both of you, but it's only because I love you so much." She reached across the table towards me, and I took her hand in mine. "I know what it's like to lose the people you love, and it makes me overly concerned and overprotective at times. I think that's part of what broke your father and I apart. I wish we could have worked it out and stayed together for Ford and you. I worry about the effect the divorce had on both of you all the time. I know it was hard, especially for your brother. The way he acted in high school was awful."

"He's doing alright now, Mom," I said to reassure her. "He turned out great."

She nodded. "I know you blamed yourself and tried to keep our family together, Natalie."

I pulled my head back in shock. I didn't think anyone knew my secret about that. I had never told anyone. "I...I don't think that anymore, Mom."

"Good." She squeezed my hand reassuringly. "There was nothing you could have done to stop it, honey. Your father and I just weren't meant to stay together."

"I know."

"I hope the divorce didn't cause you to think that marriage is a bad thing," she said. "I'd hate for you to miss out on something amazing because my marriage didn't work."

Not that long ago I would have admitted that was probably true. I'm sure the divorce had a lot to do with my loveless relationships, but now I had David in my life, and it felt like maybe I had just been waiting for the right man to come along.

"David seems to care about you," Mom continued. "And I've seen the way you look at him. It's the same way my mother always looked at my father. They were madly in love with each other. In some ways, I think it was good that they died together in that plane crash. I don't think either of them would have survived without the other."

I sat and stared at my mother. I'd never heard her talk so candidly about her parents and her marriage with me before.

"Anyway," Mom said with a flourish as she released my hand. "That's enough depressing talk for one lunch." She leaned toward me. "You won't believe the horrid things Amelia Parker said about the charity dinner."

I groaned inwardly. I guess it was too much to hope that I wouldn't have to sit through a play by play of Saturday night. However, I was a good daughter, and I loved my mother, even if she was crazy.

**********

"Remember when I told you I was bullied in high school?" David asked me as he drove us to dinner with Maggie Tuesday night.

"Yeah," I said matter-of-factly as I smirked at him. "That's what nerds do. They get bullied."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "Very funny."

"I know," I added haughtily. "I'm hilarious."

His mouth stretched into a grin. "I agree, sweetheart, but I'm trying to be serious here."

I put my elbow on the armrest between us, rested my chin on my hand, and stared at him with a grave expression on my face. "You have my undivided attention."

He snorted out a laugh. "You're in rare form tonight."

"That's because being with you makes me happy." I smiled at him, letting warmth fill my eyes. "I missed you yesterday."

"You make me happy too." He grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze.

"What did you want to tell me?" I asked him as I leaned back into my seat, our hands still clasped together.

"When I met your brother at the charity dinner, I realized he was my biggest bully from high school," he said uncomfortably without looking my way.

"What?" I asked in surprise as I jerked my gaze to his face.

"Yeah," he added as he glanced at me worriedly. "He made my freshman and sophomore years pretty god-awful."

I felt anger starting to bubble up inside me. "I'm going to kick Ford's ass," I growled out. "I had no idea he was doing that to people. Just because Mom and Dad were splitting up didn't mean he could do that to you. When I get my hands on him, I'm going to..."

"Natalie, stop," David interrupted my tirade with an amused smile. "It's okay. We worked it out. He apologized, and I accepted it. I just wanted you to know about it. Please don't maim your brother on my account."

"I'm so sorry," I told him sincerely as I squeezed his hand tighter.

"Why are you sorry?" he asked in confusion.

"He's my brother," I told him. "I guess I feel guilty by association."

"Well, I do appreciate your willingness to kick his ass for me," David said with a wide grin. "Especially, since he's on crutches right now, and you could probably pull it off."

"I could, couldn't I," I said with narrowed eyes. "There are a few childhood incidents that could use some payback. You know he pulled all the arms off my Barbie dolls once. He never did apologize for that."

"You look kind of scary right now, sweetheart," he said wryly. "I'm starting to worry about Ford's well-being."

"You should," I told him with an evil grin. "And if you warn him before I can get a hold of him, you'll have me to deal with."

"Remind me not to piss you off," he laughed as he pulled into the parking lot of the steakhouse that we were meeting Maggie at tonight.

I noticed her car as we pulled into a parking spot. "Oh good, she's already here."

David came around and opened the car door for me like he always did, then gave me a hand out of the vehicle. I didn't need his assistance, but I was starting to count on it since it made me feel special. I started to walk toward the restaurant, but he pulled me back and took me in his arms. His free hand glided down my cheek, his eyes traveling all over my face with a tenderness that made my breath catch. His lips parted, and I thought this was it. He was finally going to tell me he loved me. My heart began to pound in my chest as I braced for the impact those three words would have on me. Then I saw stark terror flash across his face once again, and the moment was gone.

His hand slid to the back of my neck, and he leaned forward to kiss me. His warm lips moved with reverence and care as he showed me how he felt, the kiss deep and emotional. If I had ever doubted that he loved me, this kiss wiped that all away. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my body into his, needing as much physical contact with him as I could get. I needed this moment. I needed to sear it into my mind, so I could remember it when I began to doubt his feelings for me. I needed something to cling to while I waited for him to say it out loud. He broke the kiss with an effort of will, and he rested his forehead against mine, breathing heavily; his eyes closed. "
Ty moe povitrya,
" he whispered raggedly.

"You're my air too," I whispered back and a corner of his mouth curled up into a small smile.

He opened his eyes to look at me. His face turned apologetic and I gave him a reassuring smile, trying to convey to him that I would wait until he was ready, and that I wasn't upset with him.

"We'd better go in, before I ravage you in my car," he said, his voice still rough. He took my hand, and led me to the front door and into the steakhouse.

I spotted Maggie as we walked up to the hostess station. She waved at us, and we made our way between the tables until we reached the booth she was sitting in alone. She smiled brightly at us as we walked up to her. "Hi, guys," she said as I slid into the booth across from her.

"Hi, Maggie," I replied with a smile. David sat down next to me and took my hand under the table.

"Hello, Maggie," he said. "I'm glad we can see each other under normal circumstances."

"You mean sober circumstances," Maggie added with a smirk at me.

"I kind of like her drunk," David said in amusement as he squeezed my hand. "She shares all kinds of stuff when she's been drinking."

"Yes, she does," Maggie laughed. "She's a T.M.I. drunk. You've got to watch out though, or she'll throw up on you."

"Maggie," I said in exasperation as I glared at her. "Why did you have to tell him that?"

"The man needs to be warned," Maggie answered. "I'd never forgive myself if he plied you with alcohol to get information and got barfed on."

"You're a real riot, Maggie." I narrowed my eyes as David laughed, deepening my glare, but she was immune.

The rest of our dinner went well. Maggie told David how the two of us had been roommates in college and some of the stupidity we got into back then. When she discovered that David had been to the Ukraine, she started asking all kinds of questions about what it had been like. Maggie was fascinated by foreign cultures and dreamed about traveling the world someday, so picking David's brain about the Ukraine occupied most of our conversation. I was alright with that. I was just happy that my best friend and my boyfriend were getting along so well. By the time we left, I was fairly certain David had gotten the Maggie seal of approval.

"So," David began as he drove us out of the restaurant parking lot, "How did I do? Did I pass the best friend test?"

"With flying colors, I'd say," I answered him with a grin.

"Maggie is pretty wild isn't she?" David asked as he smiled back at me.

"You have no idea." I shook of my head. "She drags me into all kinds of things that I never would have considered doing."

"Like half marathons?" he asked, his smile turning affectionate.