Page 27 of Falling for the Enemy

“A date? How do you know that I don’t already have one?” she asked with a grin. I'm glad she wasn't taking it weird, but she was going to make me admit that I wanted it to be a date. I was inviting myself along, but really I felt no shame over it. I wanted to be around her all the time. It was like I couldn't get enough of Amber. So instead of running away from commitment traps like a wedding and all the emotions that came with it, I was actually asking for it. I could possibly be a glutton for punishment, but I was pretty sure it was something more than that.

“I wouldn’t mind a date. I didn’t think that you would want to do that sort of thing. Weddings and family can be a scary mix, worse when it’s not your own. Not to mention that it breaks rules…” Amber’s voice trailed off.

I jokingly asked what she meant by that.

“Well, for starters, you have made me break many rules, but bringing a man home is a big no-no. They would never leave us alone. They’re crazy.”

“What rules have we broken?” I wanted to know.

Her face started to turn red, and I thought some of her rules that we had broken were natural, because she had a red blush creeping up her neck. What kind of rules did she have?

“You got a tux for it? We would have to leave in a few hours. Would you be ready for it?”

I said that I was, even though it was a bit intimidating to imagine meeting her whole family in one go, especially when I was still getting to know her myself. How was she going to introduce me, as her neighbor, friend, lover? Why was I obsessed with the answer? It shouldn’t matter, but it did. I wanted her family to know me as who I was, her man.

* * *

I went backto my place to get a few things and I made sure to bring a tux. Not only was I really going to meet her family, but I was going to impress the hell out of them. I wanted a few people on the inside on my side. The next few days were going to be important, and I didn't want to make a mistake like I had with Robert. I hoped not to see him there. As much as I’d said I’d buried the hatchet with him, it would be better if I didn't actually have to be around him. Not being around him made it easier.

When I went back over to Amber’s, I did ask who was going to be at the wedding, like I knew any other people in her life and she just kind of laughed. “Robert is not going to be there. Don’t worry.”

I didn’t want her to know what I was talking about, but of course she did. “Good.”

She asked me if I was ready to go and I said that I was. I was now seriously rethinking how ready I was, what I was getting myself into, but it was too late. We drove to the airport, and in a couple of hours, I was shaking hands with her mother and father. There were comments made about how they were surprised to see her dating so quickly. I saw the way that Amber reacted, the comment bothered her, and it bothered me too. She hadn’t talked about her parents that much and after being around them for a little while, it wasn't too hard to understand why.

We slept in separate beds at her parents’ house, and under no circumstances was I supposed to try to sneak into her room. Telling me not to made me want to even more, but I fought the urge. By morning I was seriously rethinking the whole plan of staying for the wedding. I certainly didn't want to at this point.

I was there for Amber, that's what I had to keep reminding myself and when we were finally able to get back together, she was quite a sight. I was wearing my tux and she was wearing this velvet green number that hung on her curves and pulled in all of my attention. She was beautiful and she made my sole mission in life to love her in the right way.

My mouth was dry as I took her arm and Amber asked me if I liked her dress.

“It's stunning, really.” I was staring and she told me so. I didn't care, she was lucky that I didn't rip her clothes off right then and there. How the hell was I going to get through a wedding with her looking like that?

There wasn’t long before the wedding, but we both decided that it would be better to leave and get a little privacy before it. Her parents were nice enough, but they were firmly wedged in our business and for what I was hoping for, I needed her to spend a little time with me alone. It was all I could think about, even when there was so much more to do.

25

Amber

When Frank said that he wanted to go for a little ride, that sounded like the best suggestion. My parents, my mother in particular, was difficult for me to be around. I felt like she was always judging me, and I never really measured up in her eyes. I didn't know if it was just in my own head, but getting away from that and all of the expectations that were heaped on me every time I was back home, was a few breaths of relief. I liked that Frank saw that in me, though I will admit there was probably some of his own need to get away that started it. He probably felt uncomfortable and likely he had his own agenda as well. He drove and I asked him where we were going.

“Show me your favorite place in your childhood town.”

That was something I could do, and it was actually something that made me smile to even think about it. I hadn't been down to the second dam in quite some time and since Frank wanted adventure, I knew that he would follow me out there. It was a bit tricky to get to, it took a little wading in water and even a half-mile hike, but by the time we got to my favorite place, I was feeling better. Being outside in the fresh air always seemed to lift my spirits, and this was no different.

The second dam was a working dam years ago but another one was built. Most of the water was diverted to the new one, and the second dam as everyone called it was deep in the woods after it was left to become overgrown with trees and no longer worked. It was an old relic now, just a huge, abandoned structure in the middle of deep woods and wildlife. I remembered fishing there when I was a kid and always enjoying myself. It was probably where I picked up my love for fish and for water.

While the dam was no longer in service and there was no more electricity being created, there was still the sound of some water as it went over the structure. Even though it wasn’t needed, the water had been rerouted, some had reaccumulated there. As much as my hometown had changed, it was nice to see that some of it was still the same. It was like the past, hidden away in plain sight, if only a person knew where to look.

The dam scaffolding was still intact for long-past employees, and it worked great for a place to sit and think. I could hear the water tinkling over the dam and the sound of bugs and wildlife in the air. I used to pitch a tent out there for weekends and weeks in the summer. It had always been my little oasis and I was glad that I got to share it with Frank. Of all the people in the world, he was the only one who I had brought there with me. I knew it was significant somehow, but I couldn't think like that.

“This feels like a special place,” Frank commented.

I agreed, smiling. “I spent a lot of time here when I was a kid.”

“By yourself?”

“Sometimes, most of the time really. I don't know, there were a few times that we had parties out here, but everyone would trash the place and it would annoy me.”

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