Calendar Girl: November: Book 11 (3 page)

“Um, no reason. Ohhh, uh…mmm. Stop it,” she said through the phone, but I doubted she was talking to me.

“Oh, you little ho-bag. You’ve got a man there!” I giggled into the phone and tsked for her benefit. She’d be giving me a steaming bag of shit if the roles were reversed.

“Huh? No. No man. Me? Pshaw.” She over-exaggerated. “Fuck…right there.” She whispered in a way I could tell the phone was away from her mouth, but nowhere near far enough for me not to hear her words.

“He’s fucking you right now?” Blech. There are some things you don’t want to share with your best friend. This was one of those things.

“Mia, babe, this is a bad time. So…so…bad…” Her voice trailed off.

“Really? Okay, well, just wanted to give you a heads up that Wes asked me to marry him. I’m getting married on January first, destination to be determined. Enjoy your fuckfest.”

I pressed the
End
button and counted down waiting for it.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

The phone rang in my palm. “Skank-a-lot-a-Puss Calling” was displayed on my cell. I waited until four rings just to make her skanky ass burn.

“Done fucking the man you’re pretending not to so soon? Must be a lousy lay.” I rushed to give her a taste of her own medicine.

Her breath was labored, though I gathered from the noises she was shuffling around the guest house. “You called me, remember? At eight o’clock in the mother flippin’ morning, on a weekday, while I was getting my hoo-hah sucked on for the first time in months and dropped that bomb on me? You suck. You know that, Mia?” She said with a heaping dose of irritation. “If you knew how bad you sucked…you’d say…God damn, I sucked!”

I snort laughed, fell back on the bed, and looked at my ring sparkling in the sunlight. Magnificent. I could not stop looking at its splendor.

“You done bitching?”

Ginelle groaned. “Well, now that I’m sans one rockin’ orgasm due to your hooker-ass dropping massive bombs on my pleasure palace, yeah, I’m done. Now, start from the beginning and tell me everything. You leave a single detail out, and I’ll replace the shampoo in your bathroom with Nair. See how much Wes likes a bald bride.”

Laughing, I went through the story of how he’d asked me. I’d spared Maddy the details that we’d just had some seriously awesome sex but not to Gin. My best friend lived off those kinds of stories.

“Wow. He’s a damn keeper for sure. So, are you really going to marry him on New Year’s Day?”

I shrugged even though she couldn’t see it. “Not sure. He seems pretty set on it. I guess the when really doesn’t matter to me. Wes, on the other hand, is bound and determined to start the new year off as Mister and Missus. Which is really funny since, when I met him in January, he was of the exact opposite mindset.”

“You were too, though,” she added helpfully.

“Not wrong there. It seems like years have gone by since then, and really, it was only ten months ago. Do you think I’m crazy or jumping into this with him?”

“Hold on.” I could hear her walking through her little guesthouse back in Malibu. A door opened and closed again, and I could just barely hear the ocean waves. She was probably on the patio overlooking the Pacific.

I had been gone only two days, and I already missed home. Amazing how quickly Wes’s mini-mansion had become home for me in such a short time.

“Really, Mia, you know I’m no expert on love, but I am an expert on you. You’ve been through some shitty men in the past.”

“Ugh. Don’t remind me.”

“No, I must, because that’s part of what makes you who you are today. Aside from douchebag Blaine, there were a few before him that you fell for, and they broke your heart.”

“True.” I nodded and worried at my fingernail, picking at a jagged edge.

“But none of them broke you. Wes being gone in Indonesia? That
destroyed
you.”

Just the thought of that time, the unbelievable pain and mountain of loss I’d felt, not knowing where he was or if he’d come back home, was a time in my life I never wanted to relive. “Yeah,” I managed to say softly.

Ginelle inhaled slowly, and I worried that maybe she was smoking but didn’t have the heart to nail her on it at that moment. “So can you imagine yourself ever being without him? Or better yet, can you imagine yourself ever being with anyone else?”

“Absolutely not,” I said instantly. And this is coming from a woman who loved love, even after having been burned by it several times in the past. On top of that, I enjoyed casual sex as much as the next person, but nothing would ever, could ever, take the place of Wes for me. “He’s the end-all be-all, Gin.”

“I think you have your answer.”

“Do you support me?” I waited with bated breath. I didn’t need to have Ginelle’s approval, but like she said, she did know me well. Very well. And she would have no problem telling me I was about to make a colossal mistake if that’s what she believed.

“Babe, I support you in everything you do. I may not always like it, but I’ll support it. However, with Wes…he
is
your end-all be-all. I can see it in you, but more importantly, Mia, I can see it in
his
eyes every single time he looks at you when he thinks no one is watching. He’s beyond madly in love. The sun, moon, stars…hell, the Earth spins for him, all because of you.”

“Thanks, Gin. It means a lot.”

“You know what means a lot?” Oh, yes, the snark was back.

“What?”

“A delayed orgasm. Tao’s going to have to get me all fired up again. Although with that sexy hunk of Samoan goodness, the floodgates open wide for him.” She made a sound as though she were licking her chops.

“Holy shit! You’re bangin’ Tao, Tai’s brother? How? When?”

She giggled. “We’ve been talking since May. He knew you were heading out. Took some time. He's spending two weeks with me, soaking up the mainlander sun and sand. I imagine we’ll need to leave the bedroom in order to soak up some sun.”

“You little harlot!”

“I know! I’m so excited. Girl…he’s making me see Hawaiian fire gods every time he—”

“Enough!” I shook my head. “Please, save the details.”

“Boo. You’re no fun!”

“Go back to your man. Get all up in that Samoan goodness.” I looked around the room and listened for the shower. It was still going. Good. “I know from experience. They will knock your frickin’ socks off.”

“I think I’d have to wear a stitch of clothing in order for that to happen, but I hear you. I hear you, girl.” Her words dragged out for emphasis.

“Touché! Have fun!” I giggled and danced around the room, super stoked that my BFF was getting hers from a really good guy with an amazing family.

“Oh, I will. I will, sister. Love your ugly face.” And as was her way, Ginelle hung up before I could get in my own jab.

Damn! She'd won again.

W
es
and I entered the lobby from the elevator on our way to meet Mason and Rachel for a lunch date. The second I stepped around the tall marble pillar and into the grand opening of the lobby area, I saw Mason's large frame with his arm casually slung over his woman.

He turned, and his eyes met mine. I smiled huge. My heart thumped in my chest. The last time I’d seen him, he was taking care of me in a hotel after I’d been attacked by the California Senator.

I stopped in my tracks, but Mason did not. He practically sprinted on those long legs to my side. He threw his arms around me, picked me up, and twirled me in the air. I tucked my feet, worried I’d tag someone in the process. Finally, he stopped, set me on my feet, cupped my cheeks, and kissed my forehead.

“God, you look good, sweetness. Let me get a good look at’cha.” He had a Boston accent. There was something about those Boston boys that could get a girl riled up. He scanned me from head to toe. As usual, I wasn’t dressed like a fashionista, but I'd made a solid effort to look good. Especially for my man. I had on a pair of dark jeans, a tight cable-knit green sweater, a pair of brown high-heeled suede boots, an infinity scarf in artistic swirls of color, and a knee-length brown leather jacket. “Yep, you look smokin’ hot!”

I shoved at his shoulder. By this time, Rachel had come up. “Mia, it’s so good to see you. All I heard about all week from this guy was how excited he was to see you and meet your boyfriend.” She laughed sweetly, and I pulled her into a hug.

“Rach, it’s so good to see you guys, especially under these circumstances.” I pulled back and pushed her golden hair off her shoulder. “You look amazing. Love suits you.”

Her grin was huge as Mace looped an arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. “Yes, yes, it does,” he agreed.

Wes hadn’t interrupted our greeting, but I could feel his heat behind my back, very close. I leaned back and, without even worrying about losing my balance, reached around. Just as I suspected, he was right there, waiting to lend me a hand or keep me upright. I grinned and looked up as I locked my arm around his waist. He smirked and winked. God, I loved when he winked at me. It was like our own special language. That one wink said, “Yes, you know I’ve got you, and I always will.”

“Mason Murphy, Rachel Denton, this is my boyfriend, Weston Channing.”

Wes held out his hand to shake first Mason's and then Rachel’s hand. “Once again, Mia, I think you mean fiancé?” He tipped his head and rubbed his nose against my temple before placing a kiss there.

Rachel’s eyes opened wide, bright as a car’s headlights in the dead of night. “You’re getting married?” she screeched.

My shoulders automatically went up toward my ears. “I so am!”

She hopped up and down, pulled off her own glove, and showed me her left hand. “Me too!”

I opened my mouth to say something, but I was so overwhelmed with emotion and joy I hopped up and down like five-year-old children would when they found out they were going on a trip to Disneyland. We hugged and squeal-hopped until we were out of breath.

“Let me see your ring!” she practically shouted.

I held out my hand.

“Stunning.” She turned my finger slightly to see the entire thing. “Understated and not ostentatious like some people I know.” She rolled her eyes and looked at Mason.

Mason's chest puffed out, and he smirked.

“Let me see yours.”

“You can’t miss it,” she said dryly, holding back an excited smile. She put out her left hand, and the bling on her finger nearly bowled me over. It was ginormous.

“Holy shit, how many carats is that?” I asked in awe, taking in all that was the giant square-cut diamond that covered the entire surface of her finger.

“Four carat center stone, one carat on each side. Total of six carats.” The cocky reply from Mason brought me right back to that moment when we’d first met and he acted like a total douchecanoe.

I pursed my lips, put a hand on my hip, and looked at him sideways.

“What? What can I say. Baseball’s been good to me, but not as good as my girl.” He tugged Rachel to his side. “You deserve more.”

“I only wanted the man,” she grumbled, but I knew she didn’t care. Rachel was not the type of woman who worried about those things. Sure, she dressed incredibly well, was perfect for keeping Mace in check, and could easily hang with all the richie riches, but deep down, she was a normal girl who just wanted the man.

Wes laid an arm on my shoulder and leaned in, his lips near my ear. Just his breath tickling the hairs there sent a ripple of desire down my spine. He’d just had me, and I was already itching for more. Would it ever not be like this? I sure as hell hoped not.

“Mia, if you want a big rock, I’m more than happy to provide. I just didn’t think you—”

I cut him off by turning around, clasping his face in my hands and slanting my lips over his.

His startled yelp was an invitation for my tongue to delve in. After a few quick tongue ticklers, I pulled back and made sure his green eyes were on mine. “I love my ring more than anything else I own. Even more than Suzi—that is, until you buy me my own personal Ducati, or maybe down the road, the MV Augusta FCC, but that goes for about a hundred and forty Gs, which is insane, but the Ducati is only forty, which is still a lot of cash…”

Wes put two fingers over my mouth and grinned like a loon. “My girl has the chance to score a half-million dollar ring and wants a crotch rocket instead. Christ, you’re the perfect woman.”

“Perfect for you!” I kissed his lips and tasted the mint from his toothpaste. Yum.

“Okay, snook-fest,” Mace chuckled, breaking through our moment. “Me and my girl are starving. Any ideas on where we’re headed for lunch? Possibly today?”

I narrowed my eyes so that I was looking through slits. “Excuse me, bat-boy, I’m kissing my fiancé. You got a problem with that?”

Mason threw up his hands in mock irritation. “Whatever. Come on, Rach. Let’s find some food!”

I
nterestingly enough
, once Wes and Mace started talking sports, I could see the tension ease out of Wes’s shoulders. He’d asked me before we were set to meet Mason if I’d had relations with him. When I told him no, he seemed relieved, but still wary. Something about this new jealous side didn’t sit right with me. I’d have to discuss it with Anita, Wes’s therapist, when we were back in Malibu. There were a lot of amazing traits about my soon-to-be husband, but this new jealousy was definitely not one of them.

I guess it could be because now we were “official,” and maybe he thought he had a right to claim me? Really, I didn’t know. All I did know was that with each and every overt gesture Mace made toward Rachel, my guy noticed it and relaxed infinitesimally further, as if every simple touch was an assurance that he had nothing to worry about. Nevertheless, what it really came down to was that he didn’t have anything to worry about because I had committed to him and only him. He needed to trust me.

That thought made me wonder why he wanted to get hitched so quickly. What was the rush? If his jealousy was the reason he wanted to get married so quickly, I was going to put a kibosh on that right quick.

“So when are you planning to get married?” I asked Rachel.

Her eyes brightened, and she leaned forward on the bar top. We’d found a pub within walking distance of the hotel that was warm, had alcoholic cider and a plethora of non-domestic beers on tap, which interested the guys, along with a decent menu.

“We’re thinking late next year. Baseball doesn’t usually end until early October, so probably right after that. Maybe the third or fourth week in October, right, honey?” She nudged Mace in the shoulder.

He crunched down on a fat onion ring the size of his palm. “Yep. Whatever you decide. I’ll be there wearing whatever you choose.”

Leave it to the man whose only plan was not to plan anything for his own wedding. Planning. Ugh. That was the last thing on Earth I wanted to do.

Rachel rolled her eyes. “It’s going to be huge. Together, we have so much family, and, of course, every member of the team and a ton of members form the other teams that he’s friends with. At last count, there were around four hundred and fifty.”

“Four hundred and fifty what?”

“People.”

“Jesus! I don’t think I even know that many people in my entire life.”

Rachel shrugged. “It’s part of the business we’re in. The more the merrier, I say. It’s going to be amazing. I’m planning it all myself. On that note, let me get my calendar up.” She plucked a few things into a handheld device she’d had in her purse. It wasn’t a phone, but smaller than a laptop. I was thinking iPad. “Okay, so what date are you looking at? We’ll cross our fingers that he won’t be at a game, but unfortunately, we can’t make any promises.” She pouted, looking genuinely sorry.

“Oh, well, we haven’t exactly decided.” I tried, but Wes would have none of that.

“I’m sorry, Rachel, did you just ask the date of our wedding?”

Her eyes went to his. “I did.”

“January first, New Year’s Day,” he said with absolute confidence.

Mace whistled. “Damn, that’s soon. You got everything ready, sweetness?”

At the endearment, Sweetness, Wes’s eyes narrowed at Mason.

I sighed. “Wes wants to do New Year’s Day, but I haven’t agreed.”

He shook his head. “Not true. You totally agreed.”

“And need I remind you that questions asked mid-orgasm should not count against me?”

Mason slapped the table a few times and laughed his ass off. Even Rachel chuckled behind her hand.

Wes grinned. “Sweetheart, you know I’m going to win this battle, yet you’re still going to come out a victor as well. We should probably start planning. My mother will want to go all out, and seven weeks is not a lot of time.”

“Seven weeks,” I gasped, just realizing how close it really was. “Go all out?” I shook my head. Going all out was not at all what I’d want. No way. No how.

“Oh, no. Mia looks like she’s gonna hurl. Sweetness, you okay?” Mace asked, but the alarms in my head continued blaring, “Danger…Danger…Danger.”

All of a sudden my body got really hot, and I tugged on the scarf at my neck. “Hot. Is it hot in here?” I asked the group, trying to suck in more air. My heart started thumping so hard I rubbed my chest. It felt squeezed as if a truck were sitting on my chest about to crack my ribs and stealing every ounce of air I managed to suck in. It felt as though I was breathing through a straw, only small bits of air filling my lungs.

“Mia, calm down. Honey, look at me. You’re having a panic attack. Look at me!” Wes’s voice broke through my daze, and I focused on his eyes. They were swirling with fear. “Breathe with me. In…now out slowly.”

I breathed with him a few times until the truck lifted off my chest and I could finally take full, deep breaths.

“Okay, there you are. Here, have some water.” He handed me a glass.

I sipped at the frosty liquid and let the calm that came with it settle in my belly.

“What happened, Mia?”

Mason was behind me. I could feel his hand smoothing up and down my spine. “Sweetness, you need to take a chill pill. This wedding stuff can get the best of you, but really, it’s only about you and my new buddy, Wes, here. Everything else is just details.”

I closed my eyes and felt Wes cup my cheeks. “Honey, do you not want a big wedding?”

I shook my head. “Never did,” I said softly, getting myself back under control. For a moment there, I thought I was going to black out.

“Okay, then. We’ll go small. Hell, we can elope if you’d like.”

Again, I shook my head. “No, your mom would be so sad. I’d never want to take that from her.”

“Well, what about something small, more quaint? Where’s a place that reminds you of one another?” Rachel spoke softly while I stared into Wes’s beautiful eyes.

We both smiled, and at the same time said exactly the same thing. “The beach.”

Rachel clapped. “That was so cute! Awww.”

Mason groaned. “Beach wedding. Cool, guys. How’s that gonna work in January? Isn’t it cold?”

Wes shook his head. “Nope. Actually, the weather in Malibu in January is usually really beautiful. Seventies, even eighties sometimes. Thought it can dip down into the sixties. Either way, it’s still perfect.”

Our beach. Marrying the man I love, steps away from where we surfed, walked, cuddled, and watched the sunset with the waves and sun as our background.

“Wes, it’s perfect. Let’s get married on our beach.”

“And what about a reception?” he asked.

And this is where I would probably score some serious points with my soon-to-be mother in law. “What about your parents’ estate?”

His eyes gleamed, positively smiled in response. “She would love that. We can get married on our beach for us. Have our reception at my childhood home.” He held my cheeks. “Christ, I love you more and more each and every day.”

“Rockin’,” I whispered as he laughed and kissed me sweetly. Nothing like his normally intense kisses, but definitely one to remember.

“Well that’s settled. Now I know it’s going to be small, but can we come? Mason will be available in January, and we’d love to see Malibu.”

“Of course. The more the merrier.” I repeated her earlier response.

“Really?” Wes’s shocked expression probably meant he hadn’t heard the sarcasm in my tone.

I shook my head. “No, not really. I can mentally make a list of twenty or less that I would invite. Can you get your list to twenty or less?”

He sucked in a breath through his teeth. “I don’t know. We’ll talk about it, though. I’ll make a list tonight.”

Tonight. He’d make a list of who to invite to our wedding tonight. The man was dead set on this happening in seven weeks. Now I only needed to get to the bottom of why.

L
unch with Mason
and Rachel turned into dinner as well. We had so much to catch up on that we hung out at the pub drinking beer, snacking, and talking about everything from their really involved wedding plans to the house they were buying. We also caught up on his family, hers, my experience with Max, and everything in between. I’d already given Mason the heads up not to talk about Wes’s captivity or the fact that I’d called him pretty regularly over the past month to hash out my feelings over some of the things Wes and I had dealt with. He was great at giving an unbiased male perspective and wasn’t the type of guy to hold it against Wes or tell him at all. We were friends, Mace and I. We’d formed a bond over the month I was there and again when he came to my rescue the last time we were in New York. My relationship with him felt very much like the relationship I had with my brother Maxwell—another person I needed to call and give a heads up about the wedding. Then again, we were due to hit Texas for Thanksgiving, so I’d see him in a couple weeks anyway. First and foremost, I needed to deal with Wes and his obsessive compulsion need to get married immediately.