KendalI took a deep breath and reached up to knock on the door, my heart aching at the thought of having to spend the night in the presence of my friends. They would all know that I was faking the calm I wore. It was more like being numb than calm. A facade I'd been practicing for a while. It served me many times over my long life.Two weeks of dragging my ass through life, wondering what cosmic genie I'd pissed off and how I'd done it. Not only was the last member of my family gone, but any hope for a torrid love affair with Dana was over."Dude. Good to see you!" Matthew Bryant, my best friend's little brother smiled like a tom-cat and reached for me, pulling me into a warm hug.I wrapped my arms around him and patted his back. "Hey, man. Good to see you. Seattle treating you okay?""Better than you." He moved back and gripped my shoulders. "Damon said that out of all of the women in Dallas you ended up with Ana's sister? That's just so far beyond fucked up. I'm mind-blown.""Matt!
Kendal"You sure you're okay, man? We're worried about you." Damon's voice filled up the living room as I had him on speaker phone."Yeah. I'll get it over it, man. I just thought this was my turn. That it was time to breathe again.""Kendal. It is time. Go after her and explain yourself. You didn't set this shit up. You didn't know-""Stop, okay? I love that you care about me, but I'll be okay. Someone else will come along in a few years and she'll be the right person." My words got lodged in my throat. Dana was the right person. She was my woman, the one I wanted to make love to every night and hold until we grew old together.I could see us building a house and having kids. Becoming the type of couple that other's would become jealous over. We'd have something they didn't have. We'd have what they all wanted.What I wanted. Deep, intense love."What can I do to fix this for you? I'll go talk to her.""No, Damon. We've been friends for a long-time man, and you're all I've got. Pleas
DanaThe gold and crimson leaves all over the ground were usually one of my favorite parts of fall in Texas, but nothing seemed to matter as I walked toward the hospital. I'd been avoiding Kendal like the plague for a little over two weeks, though it almost killed me to do it.But how in the hell could I do anything else but avoid him?His Ana was my Ana.Bile rose in my throat as I forced myself to jog up the stairs to the front door. How anyone who had been with my perfect, older sister could want me was a mystery. A sickening mystery.Ana was tall and thin, her skin flawless, her boobs big and curves alluring. She was everything I wasn't.Every nasty thing Cameron had said to me over the last few years rose up inside of me, his insults and degradation drowning me in sorrow.No. Ignoring Kendal was the most responsible thing to do - for both of us. If he was the type of man that wanted a girl like my sister, then with me, he was settling. He deserved better than that.We both did.H
Dana"And then there he was. His eyes as big as saucers, his lips ruby red like those shiny-ass slippers from The Wizard of Oz movie back in 1939. You should have seen him." Mrs. Delmaz laughed, her eyes closing as she relaxed against the white sheets and chuckled. "He was my favorite husband. Great guy. Really. Too bad he up and died. Old bastard."I pressed my hand to my mouth as she opened her eyes. It was hard not to giggle at her ridiculous stories. She had a million of them, and I was quickly becoming addicted to them."He sounds great."She reached out her hand. "Dana. Do you have a beau?"I took her hand and moved to sit on the edge of the bed. I knew better than to let another one of my patients into my heart, but I couldn't help it. I would always lead with my heart instead of my head where people were concerned."I did, but we broke up recently." I shrugged, hoping she would let it be."That's no good. A pretty girl like you deserves a beautiful man." She smiled and studied
KendalI dragged myself out of bed the next morning after hitting the snooze button ten times. A groan left me as my head pounded. Drinking in my thirties was hella different than drinking in my twenties, or maybe I was used to burning the liquor out of my system through sex.Something had to give. I'd have to find a different way to dull the pain. Liquor just gave a temporary reprieve only to show up the next day in a new way.The alarm went off, and I growled and walked toward the phone. "Alright. Fuck. I'm up." I turned it off and pulled my T-shirt over my head and kicked off my pants on the way to the shower.Leaving the light off, I started the hot water and got in, letting the warmth pour over my shoulders and chest. I bowed my head and ran my hands over my face as relief swam through me."God, I miss you so much," I mumbled softly and turned, putting my back to the water. Memories of Dana danced through my skull, leaving my stomach tight, my cock rock hard.I wanted to offer my
Kendal"Mark's advice to take care of Heather didn't make much sense either, but he's more interested in getting a promotion than taking care of the fucking department.""Yep, and that leaves all of us in quite a predicament." Her phone rang and she glanced at it. "That's my granddaughter. Let me get it and I'll come down to your office when I'm done.""No, it's okay." I stood up and picked up my bag. "I'll catch you later.""Alright. I'm here if you need me." She gave me a tight smile before I turned and walked out into the hallway.Mark nodded as he caught sight of me and motioned for me to come closer. "Dr. Tarrington. Good to see you. Some of your students have been asking about the accuracy of your office hours.""Yeah, losing my little sister has me a little off." I extended my hand to shake his. "I'll be back on track starting next week. I'll have one of my TAs send out a note letting everyone know.""Sounds great." He shook my hand with vigor. "You know the Fall Festival for B
DanaGoing on a date with Talon was the last thing I wanted to do, but of course the guy called shortly after I got off the phone with Brandon. He didn't even ask, but simply assumed I was willing to go seeing that my brother already made the confirmation with him.I grumbled all the way to work the next morning. My evenings were my time to soak in a hot tub, drown myself in ice cream and wine and cry until I had no tears left inside of me.It was becoming a tradition. A very fucked up, nightly tradition."Dana. You have a minute?" Dr. Lewis stood beside the ER reception desk. "I apologize about having to miss our meeting yesterday. Something came up with my wife.""Sure. No problem." I readjusted my backpack on my shoulder and moved up beside him as we walked down the hallway. "I hope your wife is okay.""She's undergoing cancer treatments." He glanced over at me, the worried expression on his face shooting an arrow through my heart."Oh. I'm sorry." I tried to think of something bet
Dana"That was fun." Talon glanced over at me from the driver's side of his beat-up pickup truck. "You want me to take you back to your Mom’s or do you maybe wanna-""My Mom’s." I gave him a shy smile, feeling like shit for pretending to have a good time. The date wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. It felt like going out with a stranger that I never planned on seeing again. Weird. Awkward. A lie."Oh okay." He chuckled nervously. "I was just going to see if you wanted to have a drink back at my place.""Maybe next time." Fuck. Had I just agreed to a next time? It wasn't happening. I'd have to tell Brandon to let his friend down softly. He'd set the poor guy up with his broken-hearted sister, he could let him down.I was an idiot for agreeing to it."Oh yeah. For sure. Next time." He snorted and pulled up in my mother's driveway. "You want me to walk you to the door?""Nope." I opened the door and got out, turning back toward him. His spiky blond hair had enough mousse to last a we