Writing a Wrong (4 page)

"Just a little initiation. It's a pleasure to meet you, son," Pops said, shaking Alec's hand. "So Alec, are you a betting man?" Pops asked, adding a five-dollar bill to the stack Dad and my brother Riley had dropped on the table.

Alec, who didn't even pause, pulled a five out of his wallet and added it to the pile. "I've been known to dabble a bit. My money's on Zachary."

I raised my eyebrow. "I'd pay close attention to your wallet in this crowd. You might find it empty by the end of the evening and you won't know what hit you." It was common knowledge in our house that among all my brothers, Tony was the scrapper. Zachary always had to work hard to get the best of him and those times were rare.

Alec shot me a grin. "His girl is watching. Guys are different when their ladies are present." He nodded toward Ashley, who had just placed her own five on the table in favor of Tony. "Ouch, that's harsh," he added.

We all laughed as Tony made quick work of pinning Zachary, as usual.

"I've been around them longer, Alec. I know a sucker bet when I see one," Ashley answered, winking at us.

Tony may have gotten the better of Zachary, but both my brothers lay on their backs, breathing heavily. "I let him win," Zachary wheezed.

Ashley stood up, laughing, and reached a hand down to help her knight in shining armor to his feet. "Sure you did, babe." She pecked him on the lips. "And at least you have a girl," she whispered loudly so we could all hear.

Olivia chose that moment to walk through the front door."Yeah, but Tony has two good hands," Riley said as Tony climbed to his feet.

"Riley Donovan Blake," Mom screeched, rapping Riley on the head with a wooden spoon.

Ashley and I exchanged looks of amusement as Tony flushed several shades of red while trying to smooth down his hair.

"Did I miss all the fun?" Olivia asked, taking in the disheveled room.

"Just some one-on-one rolling around—if you're interested in playing," Tony answered, turning on the flirting like a light switch.

"From what I heard, you prefer to play with yourself," Olivia said.

Riley clapped loudly and hollered his appreciation while Zachary attempted to add his two cents, but Ashley clamped a hand over his mouth.

Tony placed a hand over his heart, not wanting to back down in front of my brothers, who continued egging him on. "That doesn't mean I don't like playing with others."

What Tony had never learned in all the years he had been chasing Olivia was that she wasn't the type to back down, nor did she embarrass easily. She took a step forward, closing the gap between them. "You mean skip out on dinner?" She trailed her finger down his chest. From my vantage point, it was clear she was playing Tony like a fiddle. "Sure," he gulped.

"You don't think your mom or grandma would mind?" She breathed heavily into his neck. "After all, your grams probably slaved away all day making that famous pecan pie you're so fond of." She patted his cheek. "Not this time, slick."

Tony finally pulled his attention away from Olivia to see everyone in the room watching him with open amusement. "What's everybody looking at? I was just kidding around."

Zachary and Riley snickered, earning Riley a flick in the ear from Dad. "Hey, damn, Dad. Come on. How are we supposed to not laugh at that? He's got no game," he defended himself.

"Reminds me of your father when he used to come around trying to get your mother to notice him. He didn't have any game either," Pops piped in, earning a round of laughter throughout the room for his juicy revelation.

"Like father like son, hey, Dad?" Zachary laughed, socking Dad in the arm.

"Mom, I didn't know you were a tease," I laughed.

"Not a tease. He just had to work for it," she answered.

"Hey, let me remind everyone that none of you would be standing here if I didn't have any game," he said, defending himself as he strutted off toward the kitchen.

I could see Alec trying to remain polite, unsure whether or not to laugh. He'd been exposed to my family a couple times in the past few months, but we were in rare form during the holidays, and a far cry from his own parents, who we had spent the previous day with for a pre-Thanksgiving dinner with his daughter, Lily. It was only the second time I had met Alec's mother and father. They were very welcoming, but much more reserved than my family.

"See what you started. You're positively evil," I said to Olivia when she joined us. She lifted her hand and blew on her nails as she wiggled her fingers. "I have no earthly idea what you're talking about," she answered, blowing a kiss at Tony, who still only had eyes for her.

We linked arms and headed toward the dining room when Mom announced it was time to eat. "Evil, evil, evil."

"He likes it. Besides, your mother had it right. You got to work to get with this." 

"Ew. The way you said that conjures up an image of my parents that is just all wrong. You are bad indeed."

"Oh please. Like you and Alec don't enjoy playing doctor," she added, winking at Alec, who trailed behind us.

The noise level remained the same throughout dinner. Olivia and Tony continued their twisted flirting war while Mom, Grandma, Ashley, and I discussed my upcoming tour. Alec sat quietly beside me, but he didn't contribute much to the conversation. He and I had already discussed the trip in great detail. We both understood that the tour was a once-in-a-lifetime type of opportunity that I couldn't pass on. He was happy for me, but he remained as unenthusiastic as I was about our impending separation. Still, he would never tell me not to go. Nor did he put any pressure on me or try to guilt me in any way. The situation was going to suck, but we'd already agreed we would make it work.

Zachary eventually interrupted the table conversation when he insisted it was time for dessert. None of us would have given a second thought to his demand, considering he had always had a bottomless pit for a stomach, but when he insisted that Ashley have the special cupcake he'd bought her, it became clear something was up.

Tears filled Ashley's eyes when she slowly opened the lid of the box to reveal the sparkle of a diamond ring nestled atop a cloud of frosting.

Mom and I gasped together as Zachary sank down to his knee at Ashley's side.

"Ashley Renee Grant, will you do me the honor of agreeing to become my wife in the presence of my loud, obnoxious family and friends? I promise if you agree to be my wife, I'll be the best husband, to the best of my abilities, with no Dutch ovens," he proposed, grinning mischievously.

Mom groaned and looked like she wanted to sink through the floor, but Ashley laughed through the tears streaming down her face as she nodded. "Yes," she said, throwing her arms around his neck. "Definitely yes," she added.

Her answer brought a roar of approval from all of us. We watched happily as Zachary slid the frosting-covered ring on her finger. It fit perfectly.

Chapter 4

Alec was uncharacteristically quiet during the drive home that evening. I figured maybe his first Thanksgiving experience with my family had driven him to some much-needed chill time. In hindsight, I probably could have given him more fair warning going in, but in my defense, there really was no way to prepare someone for a situation where anything could and usually did happen.

His silence continued even after we got home and prepared for bed. I gave him his space, figuring he would talk when he was ready, but I also noticed he kept shooting me hooded looks when he thought I wasn't paying attention. Obviously he had something to say and expected me to ask.

"Christmas works for me," I said after we turned off the lights and snuggled under my thick down comforter.

"What?"

"A Christmas proposal. That works for me. I think that's the only way we can top Zachary's proposal. Maybe you can do something with mistletoe. Oh, or better yet, Christmas lights."

The way Alec had been silent in the car was nothing compared to the way he laid next to me at that moment. I couldn't even hear him breathing. He was too easy. I had to cover my mouth to keep from laughing, imagining the look of panic on his face as he searched his brain for some kind of response.

Alec cleared his throat loudly and I ruined the moment by giggling. "What?" he choked out.

My giggles turned into a flat-out belly laugh.

"What's so funny?"

"You're what's so funny," I said, catching my breath. "I bet you're lying there trying to decide if you can bolt without me noticing. Wishing you would have never given up your apartment." A fresh wave of giggles cascaded out of me, shaking the bed. "I was teasing, you fool."

"Whatever," he chuckled. "I was just messing with you too."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He became quiet again, probably unsure of what the right answer should be. "Alec? What do you mean you were messing with me? Are you saying you wouldn't marry me?"

The dark stillness of the room felt like a heavy weight from my sudden sternness. Once again, Alec could have been a corpse the way he laid like a statue next to me. "Are you serious?" he finally asked.

"Nope." I burst out laughing again. "Oh my god, I could do this all night."

Alec rolled over, smothering me with his pillow. "You're evil. I think you're channeling Olivia. Time for your punishment." He tickled every sensitive spot on my body, taking my breath away from laughter. "Hey, what was it Zachary mentioned earlier, a Dutch oven?" he asked, trapping me under the comforter.

"Don't you do it!" I screamed.

"Oh man. I shouldn't have eaten all that green bean casserole."

I squirmed under the comforter, but he held me in place. "I'll kill you, I swear."

He released his hold on me, nearly falling out of bed from laughing so hard. "Jerk," I complained, slapping at any part of his body I could get my hands on. "You're so lucky you didn't actually do that. We're talking burning bed kind of punishment."

"Aw, I'm sorry, sweets. Don't be mad." I couldn't see him, but I could tell by the way he talked that he was smiling.

I shifted my body toward him, finding the side of his face with my hand. "Fine, I'm sorry too. I couldn't resist," I said, gently stroking him.

"What if it wasn't a joke though?" he asked.

"What?"

"You tease, but one of these days I'm going to want to make you my wife, and I want to know you'll be on board with that."

The last of my giggling became a large lump in my throat. Even lying in bed, my stomach nearly dropped to my knees. Alec, who barely six months ago had commitment issues to the point where we almost didn't happen, couldn't possibly be hinting at something as permanent as marriage.

"I mean, I'd like to be further along in medical school, but one day the moment will come, and I want to make sure laughter will be the last response that comes to your mind."

It took me a moment to gather my thoughts, which were running away in several different directions. "I thought you said marriage wasn't in the cards for you," I said, recalling a conversation we'd had months ago.

His hand reached out in the dark to cup my face. "Marriage wasn't in the cards for me with Candace. That doesn't mean I never want to get married. I want a family for Lily, like you have, with lots of siblings," he said huskily, stroking a thumb across my cheekbone.

One of the things I had learned about Alec since we'd been together was that he was an only child. His mother was no longer able to have children after he was born due to some kind of complications during his delivery. Alec's biggest wish growing up had been to have a brother or sister. I tried convincing him how good he had it as an only child. I had to fight for everything while growing up in a sports-crazed house with three brothers. I had to fight for my dinner before they ate everything in sight. I had to fight for the TV just to watch something other than ESPN. And don't get me started on sharing one bathroom with three disgusting slobs, none of which had any sense of aim near the toilet.

In spite of my negative spin on siblings and the madness he had witnessed during dinner earlier, Alec still insisted that a big family would be his idea of heaven. The thought of carrying his baby created a warm feeling of joy that spread through my veins. I was far from ready to have children, but the promise of one day raising a houseful of kids was appealing. Snuggling closer to Alec's hard body, I suddenly felt more turned on than I probably should have been. The mere talk of babies should have had me scurrying away to double up on birth control with my knees sewn together.

"You don't want a big family?" he asked, gliding his hand over my hip to cup my ass. He dragged the lower part of my body toward him so that I was pressed flush against him.

"Yes," I whispered as his hands began tugging off my pajamas, distracting me from any further conversation.

***

Before I could blink we were halfway into December. My mind was in a constant haze, trying to plan for Christmas and my upcoming trip. It was a stressful effort to organize and prepare for two and a half months away from home. I practically broke down in tears one afternoon over the idea of leaving Severus for that long. Alec eased my mind, if only slightly, by promising that he wouldn't let anything happen to him.

My publisher was handling the bus tour side of the trip, which would be taking the other authors and me from one side of the country to the other, and that was after spending two weeks in New York first. Going over my itinerary with Olivia was as frightening as it was exciting. I had no idea how I would take to riding on the bus. Sometimes I was prone to motion sickness when I tried to look at my cell phone while riding in a car. We would be spending a lot of hours driving from one city to the next. What if I spent the entire time slumped over the toilet?

The only thing keeping me sane was the fact that Olivia would be with me during the first leg of the trip, and Mom volunteered to fly to the West Coast for the latter part of the trip to spend some time with me. Her college roommate lived in San Francisco, and she thought it would be a good opportunity to catch up. My agent lived in Northern California, so we would be getting together as well. If I could make it that long.

I tried to keep my apprehensions to myself as much as possible, not wanting Alec to worry. It was no secret that he was battling his own demons over my trip. He came home one day with four canisters of pepper spray, which I was pretty sure wouldn't make it through airport security, but I kept that tidbit to myself.

Somehow during the next couple of weeks, we managed to finish all the preparations for the trip and made it to Christmas Eve without any meltdowns. Lily had come over to spend the evening with us, and we laid out cookies and milk for Santa, along with a sprinkle of glitter on the patio for his reindeer.

"Are you sure he'll know I'm here?" Lily asked as we arranged the last of the cookies she had baked earlier with Mom on the special Santa plate we picked out together at the store.

"Positive. He's smart that way. One time my family was on vacation in Hawaii during Christmas and he found us, even there. That's what the glitter is for," I answered. Lily had been excited after hearing the news that she would be spending Christmas Eve with us, but the idea that Santa wouldn't know where to leave her gifts was a big worry on her mind. A call to her mom, Candace, helped reassure her, especially after Candace told her she'd leave a note for Santa, just in case.

Lily nibbled on her lip as she weighed my words. "He really found you?"

I ruffled her hair. "Yep, and he brought me the doll I wanted so badly."

"I want an American Girl doll," she reminded me. "I've been a really good girl." As usual, she sounded older than her five years.

"You have been," I agreed. I knew for a fact that the doll would be waiting under my tree for her in the morning. Alec had special ordered it months ago after studying the catalog for days. We finally settled on one that had blue eyes and long blond ringlets like Lily's. I even ordered matching outfits for the two of them. I joked with Olivia that the doll outfits were almost as expensive as Lily's, but I couldn't resist ordering a few. Candace bought the doll bed and wardrobe. My family even got into the action and bought every accessory she could want from the catalog. Dad ended up having to reel Mom in when she got a little too out of hand. Needless to say, Lily was going to have a very merry Christmas, and I was thankful I was going to be a part of it.

"Who wants cookies and hot cocoa?" Alec asked, carrying a tray of goodies from the kitchen. His hair was still wet from his shower, and he was wearing the Simpsons Christmas pajama bottoms I'd bought him a couple weeks ago. They were intended to be a joke, but Alec instantly took to them and wore them all the time.

"Me!" Lily jumped up and down with excitement. She laced her fingers through mine and dragged me toward the coffee table where Alec sat with a plate of cookies. "Me too," I said with equal amounts of excitement. Lily plunked herself on my lap when I sat cross-legged in front of the table. I wrapped my arms around her in a squishy hug. In the few months since I met her, I'd grown quite fond of the three-foot-nothing bundle of activity. She was too adorable.

Alec switched on the television and found a station that was showing classic Christmas cartoons. Lily and I made our way through our share of cookies and then climbed up on the couch with Alec to snuggle after he turned all the lights off but the Christmas tree. Lily held out as long as she could, continuing to chatter away until she fell into an exhausted slumber.

"Is it wrong that I'm almost as excited for tomorrow morning as she is?" I whispered over her head since she was still lying in my lap.

Alec grinned. "Excited about the presents Santa is going to bring you? You've been a bit naughty, so you might want to prepare yourself for some coal."

I swatted at him. "You're the naughty one. Not me. Matter of fact, coal might not be enough for you. You deserve a spanking."

"Now you're talking," he said, winking. "That's a gift that keeps on giving."

I snorted loudly. Lily shifted in my lap and I covered my mouth. "You're such a perv. Back on topic. I'm excited to see what she thinks of all her presents. I can't remember the last time I anticipated Christmas morning so much. Is it always like this?"

His flirtatious look turned to warmth as he beamed down at Lily's feet that were resting in his lap. "Each year gets better and better. When she was a baby she didn't get it, obviously. Last year was the first time she made a list for Santa, and the first time we got her to sit on his lap at the mall, but this year she totally gets it. I think that's what makes it so much fun. We get to live vicariously through her excitement." He reached over and laced his fingers through mine.

I smiled at him. "She's going to be so excited," I agreed happily. This was definitely my happy place. The idea that we could have years and years of this same night made me all kinds of warm and fuzzy inside.

The next morning it took a little work and a hot cup of coffee to generate the same level of excitement. Lily woke us at the crack of dawn by jumping up and down on the bed. Her shrieks of joy penetrated my slumber better than any alarm clock.

I yawned widely. "Remind me why we were looking forward to this?"

"No one told you that you needed to stay up late," Alec said, pulling me toward the living room.

I rolled my eyes. "That's right. I should have just rolled over and ignored you."

"Well, there is access from that side too."

"You're such a perv," I said, slapping him on the arm.

"Merry Christmas!" Lily yelled, holding her arms outstretched as we entered the room. She began tearing through her presents even before Alec could sit and help her sort through them. When she finally got to the American Girl doll, I thought she was going to take off like a rocket she was so excited.

Hours later the living room looked like a cyclone had landed. There wasn't an inch of floor to be seen under the wrapping paper, empty boxes, and wrappers. Lily sat happily amongst the mess, putting her doll in the dress that matched the one she was wearing.