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Chapter 22: As Ready As I'll Ever Be
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2022-11-24 14:14:52Related chapters
Portwood Brothers Chapter 23: Your Funeral
Pushing himself harder, Josh made the turn around the yellow house that marked the halfway point on his old running route. There was a sense of comfort running the path he'd spent his childhood on. Things had changed, sure, but it still felt like home. It felt right. His mind drifted to Payton, and he wondered if she'd survived the night with Addison. They were sharing his and Jackson's old room even though it looked nothing like it used to. His mom had stacked the beds into bunk beds again, and the rest of the room had been made into an office for her.Slowing down as he hit the yard he checked his watch and was pleased to see he'd made the run in less than forty minutes. He took some time to stretch and cool down before making his way inside. Everyone was finally awake and sitting at the table eating breakfast. Payton looked like she was comfortable enough so he excused himself and headed downstairs to shower and change. He'd told everyone he'd go pick up Jackson from the airport, an
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 24: My Milkshake Brings All The Boys To The Yard
Addison was a small girl, but Payton had learned that no one should underestimate her. Addison had told her they were going to "shop 'til they drop," and she'd dropped about three stores back. Addison, on the other hand, was still going strong and looked like she wasn't quitting any time soon. If it weren't for the good company, Payton would have called Josh to come rescue her.Payton was looking through a rack of dresses trying to find something to wear for the Winter Formal coming up while Addison was sifting through the sales rack next to her. Pulling down a dress, Payton held it over her body and looked over in Addison's direction. When she shook her head, it went right back to the rack. Worse case scenario, she'd just wear something she or Hailey had around."Oh! That one, the white one," Addison said.Payton made a face, "I don't usually wear white.""Try it on. I bet you'd be surprised."Payton made her way into the dressing room, and she was in fact surprised with the way the d
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 25: Not A Baby
Josh held Payton and watched her as she slowly drifted off to sleep. He felt her body totally relax, and he even heard a small sigh escape her lips. What he realized as he was holding her was that he'd never seen her so relaxed before. Maybe it was because she'd never let him in this close, but maybe it was because she always had her guard up. Their relationship was shifting, and the feelings he felt for her were overwhelming. Just looking at her he knew there was so much more to the woman in his arms than he could even begin to imagine, and that scared him because he didn't know what she'd do with that once she realized it too.Just thinking about their relationship the last couple of months, he realized he'd never been happier even though he'd worked his ass off. Their relationship was the hardest thing he'd ever worked for, but he knew that's what made being with her so much better than any of his other relationships. Most of the time women were easy, they wanted to be with him, and
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 26: You Don't Have To Say It Back
Payton was still kicking herself for making such a stupid mistake when she left the bathroom wrapped in a towel. Looking over she noticed everyone's eyes on her again. The blush spread up her neck and over her face as she rushed to her room. It deepened when she noticed Josh waiting for her in the chair he'd been in the night before. She gripped the towel and looked down."Feel better?" he asked."Much.""I'm glad. I'm gonna go so you can get dressed, but come find me when you're finished."Payton took her time getting dressed, and when she finally came out, she caught the end of a conversation between Bryce and Jackson."What the hell does that crap mean anyway? Pudding? Come on. That's just stupid," Bryce was ranting about Jackson's shirt."Just because you don't get it, doesn't make it stupid.""No one gets your shirt."Payton was curious about the shirt now and made sure to get a look at it. When she read the words "Keep Calm and Eat Pudding" with a picture of Carl above it, she th
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 27: It's Not What You Think
Payton didn't know what to think, much less say to Josh's declaration of love. She wasn't stupid and knew that they were probably headed in that direction, but she didn't think that the time had come. She wasn't even sure if what she was feeling for Josh was love. If she faced the facts, she didn't have great examples of what a loving relationship should look like. Sure her grandparents had been together for over fifty years, but they were the only ones that had a stable relationship.When it all came down to it, Payton didn't want to be in love. Being in love meant she had to open herself up even more than she already had, and she'd have to be totally honest with Josh. That wouldn't be easy, and she couldn't face that.Breaking her out of her head, Josh said, "Payton, relax. I'm sorry.""You don't have to be sorry. I'm the one that's sorry.""What for?" he wondered."Because I can't say it back. You deserve that, and I can't give you that. You deserve so many things that I can't give
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 28: I Never Meant To Hurt You
Josh paced in the backyard hearing the excuses over and over in his head."I didn't mean to."How the fuck do you not mean to kiss someone? It seemed like black and white to him. You either kiss someone or you don't. Why was he never good enough for anyone? Why did girls have to do this to him? Maybe he'd just have to give up on the whole idea of bringing girls home. It was obvious that he wasn't ever enough; they always wanted to see if the grass was greener on the other side. Fuck this, he was done."That was pretty shitty of you," Jackson called from across the yard."Fuck you! You have no room to talk.""I get that you're pissed, but there's nothing to be pissed about. If you'd calm the fuck down for more than two seconds and think with the rational fucking part of your head, you'd see that.""This is just like before-""This is nothing like before," Jackson said cutting him off. "Those other girls didn't give a shit about you. Payton loves you.""No, she doesn't. She won't even te
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 29: Will You Tell Me Again?
Being back at school had been good for Payton. She'd been able to get the space she needed and had Hailey to talk to. She wanted to keep Josh at arm's length because that's how she usually coped, but Hailey had encouraged her to keep working through it with him. It had made for a rough and awkward few days, but things were better, and she was glad that she and Josh had been working on things together.There were only a couple of weeks between Thanksgiving break and Christmas break anyway, and if they had left for a month on bad terms, she wouldn't have felt right. They had both been so busy; there wasn't much time to stay upset about anything. Josh had been getting everything finalized for his student teaching, and Payton had enrolled in classes for the next semester.Payton was sitting on the floor in the living room trying to keep from getting too comfortable. She'd been sitting on the sofa earlier studying and almost fell asleep, so she was hoping the hard floor would help her focus
Last Updated : 2022-11-24Portwood Brothers Chapter 30: Head Over Feet
"You owe me one, man," Darrin said as he got off the bus."Whatever, you were leaving anyway. Besides, I've taken one for the team on more than one occasion.""Yeah, yeah. Have a good weekend.""Have fun with Tessa," Josh said.The guys said a quick goodbye as Darrin gave him a one armed man hug before heading off to his car. Josh was glad that his game had been early because that meant he was home before dinner, and he was thinking he'd take Payton out. Instead of calling, he slung his bag over his shoulder and walked over toward her place. It'd been too long since he'd seen her. They'd both been so busy over the past several days they just hadn't had time. He took the stairs two at a time and knocked impatiently on the door. When no one answered, he knocked again. Still there was no answer.He pulled his phone from his bag and called Payton's cell. Worry started to set in when it went right to voicemail. He was just getting ready to call again when Hailey came through the door that l
Last Updated : 2022-11-24
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Portwood Brothers Chapter 164: You Had Me At Ben And Jerry's
NINE MONTHS LATERWes looked up at Hailey in awe. She had overcome her fears and had rocked the shit out of her time on the stand. When she had decided to stay in DC, it was to support her friend who was pressing charges against the two guys sitting not far from Wes, guys he'd like to take outside and punch a few times. They both thought the process would be over somewhat soon, but the whole thing seemed to take time, a lot of time.During that time, they'd grown closer. They'd spent many nights talking on FaceTime and the phone. They'd only been able to see each other in person one other time, and that was in April. Wes had flown to DC to see Hailey again. He'd brought Cali with him that time, and he'd spent a week with her. While he was with her, she took him to see some of the sites. They were down at the National Mall, and as they walked by the Tidal Basin with the trees full of Cherry Blossoms, he got down on one knee and asked her to marry him. They'd gone home, and sh
Portwood Brothers Chapter 163: I Gave Up Everything For You
"You did what?"This conversation wasn't going like she planned. She had envisioned telling Wes she'd turned down the amazing opportunity, and he'd say how much he loved her and appreciated that, and they'd ride off into the sunset together. Instead, it sounded like he was... mad? How was that possible?"I thought you'd be happy.""You gave up a great opportunity on a whim? Yeah, that's something to be excited about.""I don't get you, Wes!" She yelled into the phone. "First, I don't move in with you after college, and you break up with me. Now I give up my job, and you're mad. What's a girl supposed to do?""That's just it. You didn't even bother to ask. You just made the decision on your own. It's the same as last time.""But... but I gave everything up for you."Hailey heard Wes sigh over the phone, "I don't want you to give it all up. I want us to be a team. Isn't that what you want?""I just thought that I was doing this for us.""Maybe if we'd have talked about it, we
Portwood Brothers Chapter 162: I'm Quitting My Job
Wes waited around like a kid waiting for his crush to call. He wanted to pick up his phone the second he knew Hailey got off work, but he didn't want to overwhelm her. So, he'd held off and was waiting for her to call. Only he was losing it because it had been hours since she should have gotten off work, but he hadn't heard anything at all, not even a text.When it came time for him to crawl in bed, he took Cali out, looked at his phone one more time, and finally gave up on the idea that he'd be hearing from Hailey. He hated that he still felt like she didn't include him in her life, but that would come, he hoped.Just as he was about to fall asleep, his phone rang. Grabbing it from his nightstand, he looked at the screen and was surprised to see Hailey's name there. She was a total night owl, but with her having an hour on him, he figured she'd have been in bed a long time ago."Hey," he answered."You're mad." It wasn't a question."Not mad. I'm more hurt."He heard Hailey le
Portwood Brothers Chapter 161: Stop Thinking So Hard
Wes: You're ignoring me. Stop it.Hailey looked at the text the next morning and realized that she needed to call Wes. Picking up her phone, she dialed his number. It didn't even ring twice before he picked up."Glad you decided to call. I was giving it until tomorrow, and then I was looking at plane tickets.""Wes, get serious. And here I was worried I'd be waking you up.""Oh, I've been up for a while. I haven't been able to sleep right since I got back. And I am serious. Cici has been all over my ass since I came back to work. She said the only people who can stand me are the animals. Most of them can't stand being around me either. Thankfully Cali doesn't seem to mind my mood.""She must be a good dog." "She is.""You didn't tell me much about her. When did you get a dog?" she asked."A few months ago. I went to Kentucky for Sexy Kenny's bachelor trip. We went away hoping to be doing nothing but drinking and relaxing in the woods and ended up rescuing a mom and her p
Portwood Brothers Chapter 160: Bring On The Pain
There's no two ways about it, Wes was miserable. He missed Hailey, it was colder than crap out, and things just seemed to be going downhill since he got home. On the way home, Wes' flight had been delayed overnight due to weather, so he'd got stuck in Chicago. When he got home, he found out that not only had his pilot light gone out on his furnace, but his pipes had frozen too because it'd been so cold. Thankfully they hadn't burst. Because of all that, he'd been staying at a hotel. His landlord told him that with the weather warming up next week, it should fix the issue, but there was no guarantee. The icing on the whole craptastic cake, Hailey had been distant, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. Even Cali had been standoffish sensing his foul mood.A knock at his office door had him barking out a, "What?""Geeze boss, I thought you'd have come home in a better mood," Cici said as she wondered in. "One of us was alone with a member of the opposite sex, and th
Portwood Brothers Chapter 159: Where Do We Go From Here?
Christmas music filled the space, and Wes wondered what time it was. Ever since he'd got to DC, she'd been up early, most of the time beating him up. It looked like she beat him up again. Throwing his legs over the side of the bed, he found his sweats and slid them on before heading out to see what she was up to. He hoped she wasn't going to any trouble. A flurry of activity was going on in the kitchen, and Hailey was moving around in a whirl. Pulling out a pan from the oven, she set it on the counter, and then looked up and spotted him."Hi," she said with a small smile."Hey.""I made breakfast."Smelling the rich aroma made his stomach growl, "It smells amazing.""It's just omelet muffins. It should hold us over until I can get lunch made.""I'll help with lunch," he told her as he reached over and grabbed one of the muffins burning himself in the process."You don't have to.""I want to."The pair ate breakfast together but didn't really talk about what had happened or what
Portwood Brothers Chapter 158: You Need A Plan
The pounding on the door started again, and Hailey curled up tighter. She just wanted it all to go away."Hailey, you in there?""Wes?" she asked knowing he couldn't hear her.Slowly she stood, trying to get her bearings. Her legs didn't want to work, and she was worried they might give out on her. When the loud knocking started again, it scared her so bad she jumped and held her chest hoping it would slow her heart. Checking the peephole just to make sure, she confirmed that Wes was there, hopefully alone, and opened the door."What's going on?" he asked looking angry at first and then when he took her in, his face softened. "What happened?"Reaching around Wes, Hailey looked out the door just to make sure no one was there, and then closed the door and locked it again. It wasn't until she'd done this that she could breathe again. When Wes' hand landed on her shoulder, she yelped and jumped."What the hell happened while I was gone, Hailey?""It... it was nothing.""Bullshit. Y
Portwood Brothers Chapter 157: Is It Me?
"Is that bacon?" Wes asked half asleep as he made his way into the kitchen the next morning."There's something else that smells like heaven in a pan?"Snatching a piece from a plate sitting on the counter, Wes took a bite and groaned. "If I didn't love you before, I'd totally love you now."A small noise escaped her and Wes wondered if he'd pushed it a bit too far. He'd already told her he loved her, and when she hadn't said the same, he wondered if she just needed more time. He didn't doubt that she did love him. She wouldn't let him touch her much less bring her pleasure if she didn't. He just knew she wasn't ready to jump off that bridge yet. "How'd you sleep?" she asked as she worked over the stove."Would have been better if I were sleeping next to you, but not too bad. You?""Like the dead... well after," she didn't have to finish for Wes to know what she meant. "I've had nightmares almost every night since that happened. I feel like I actually got some good sleep in."
Portwood Brothers Chapter 156: I Need You
"Get off me!" Hailey yelled even though it didn't matter. No matter how what she did, she couldn't stop the man from getting what he wanted."You can fight all you want, princess. We both know deep down you want it.""NO!""Hailey.""I said get off me." She kicked her legs and felt a sense of satisfaction when her hand connected with his face."Shit! Damn, I'm bleeding. Wake up, Hailey. Don't make me bleed on your bed."That didn't sound right. Why would Michael care about that? It was then that she realized she wasn't being held down at all, and the voice; it wasn't the one from her nightmare. The realization woke her like a bucket of ice water being thrown on her. "Wes?" Opening her eyes, she saw him sitting on the edge of her bed covering his nose. "Oh crap! I'm so sorry. I'll go get something for it. How bad?"Still holding a hand over his nose, she saw him try to smile, "It's just a flesh wound. I'll go take care of this if you're okay.""I'm awake." She wouldn't
