Every Kiss (20 page)

“Could’ve been better,” I yawn, topping off my coffee with
my favorite caramel creamer. “I was too excited to sleep, I guess.”

She sweeps her bangs across her forehead as if they weren’t
already in perfect place. “Well, I bet you’ll catch up while you’re on
vacation. You and Makenna can just be as lazy as you want, and you’ll have the
place all to yourself, so you can do whatever you want to.”

I screw up my face and look at her like she’s totally lost
it. “Mom, I told you we’re going with Makenna’s
parents
. Just like
before.”

“I know what you said.” She grins. “And I also know that
when her parents were asked to go museum hopping in Washington D.C., they
called me to see if your dad and I would like to take their reservation at the
beach house, so you and Makenna could still go. I told them you girls have been
working hard in school and deserved a vacation on your own. So . . . that’s
what you’re doing. We’ve split the cost of the house for the week, and . . .”
She reaches into her scrubs pocket for a pink envelope. “Open it.”

For one of the few times in my life, I’m speechless, so I
open it. The card boasts “Happy Birthday” in bright, bold lettering across the
front, and as soon as I open it to read it, one-hundred dollar bills fall out.
Ten of them. “Mom . . . a thousand dollars?”

“Just read the card.”

A thousand times a day, we’re thankful for the amazing
person you’ve become. A thousand times a day, we’re thankful for the opportunity
to love you. Enjoy your birthday, sweetheart, because a thousand times a day,
we’re thankful you were born. We love you more than you’ll ever know.

Love, Mom and Dad

“Mom.” I’m not going to cry. Damn it, I’m not Makenna. “I
don’t know what to say. This is too much.”

“Oh, hush and take it. Your dad and I want you to have it.
You’re about to start your last year of college, then comes the job hunt, so
this may be your last chance at a vacation before you start teaching. We want
it to be a good one.”

I drop the card on the counter and fling my arms around her
waist. “Thanks, Mom. And tell Dad for me, too, when he calls.”

“You’re welcome, sweetie.” She rubs her hand up and down my
back. “I want you to just rest and enjoy yourself. I miss my mouthy, opinionated
daughter, so why don’t you see if you can find her down there and bring her
back. Once your dad gets home, I’m going to need someone to help me keep him in
line.”

She’s not kidding either. “I’ll see what I can do. Love you,
Mom.”

“I love you, too, Cal,” she says, smacking a kiss on my
forehead as the doorbell rings. “Come on in, Makenna.”

The front door swings wide open. “You and me, alone in Gulf
Shores, baby!” Makenna sings, pumping a fist in the air.

My mom and I look at each other and shake our heads. “She’s
way too sheltered,” I say. “You’d think a couple years of college would’ve
remedied that, but clearly I still have some work to do.”

Makenna gasps and puts her hands on her hips. “Shut up! You
know you’re excited.”

“I’m really excited, but I’m going to let you look like the
idiot.” I feel a huge grin creep onto my face when her eyes grow wider. “But
you’re my favorite idiot.”

“Damn, right I am!” She slaps a hand over her mouth. “Sorry,
Mrs. Kristie.”

Mom laughs and kisses my cheek after slipping my card into
the front pocket of my suitcase. “Bless her heart. Get Makenna out of here and
hunt down some sailors to show her how to really curse. Have a good time and
call me if you need anything. I’ll call you tomorrow and wish you a happy
birthday.”

“Consider it done. Love you, Mom.” I call out to her while
dragging Makenna with one hand and my suitcase with the other out the front
door.

I’m beginning to wonder just how relaxing a week alone with
Makenna will really be.

AS SOON AS I spot the turquoise
water, the rest of the world just fades away. The beach is my happy place, and
I’m not going to let any of my worries follow me here. Including our stops for
gas and lunch, it takes us just a little over five hours to make it into Gulf
Shores, and with every mile that we traveled, my tension level has decreased.

Of course, it could also be the fact that we’ve actually had
a lot of fun on this trip. The entire time, we’ve had the radio cranked up, so
we could sing along at the top of our lungs, which also attracted the attention
of quite a few truck drivers along the way. Oh, and the old man that was
staring at us, causing his wife to smack him with her clutch. It’s been quite
an entertaining trip. And much needed. I haven’t smiled this much in a while.

Makenna flicks on her turn signal and stops singing. We both
look down the narrow, sandy lane that leads to the familiar beach house. It’s
been the same bright yellow color for as long as I’ve been coming here, but it
appears to have had a fresh coat or two of paint recently. The garage is
underneath the house, and there’s a flight of stairs you have to climb that
leads to the main level of the house, which has a deck wrapping all the way
around. The side that faces the ocean has a much larger deck, and the last time
we came here, I spent a lot of time out there.

The inside is quite nice, too. There are all the usual rooms
of a house on the main floor, but this place also has a bar area. Two small
bedrooms are on the main floor, and a single flight of stairs leads to the
master suite upstairs. It has a living room, bathroom, and huge bedroom with a
balcony looking out over the ocean. Makenna’s parents have always let us have
that room when we’ve come here before.

We manage to manhandle our suitcases up the stairs, and
Makenna announces that she wants me to have the master bedroom for the first
half of the week, since it’s my birthday and all. Like I’d argue with that
logic.

After hurrying to unpack everything, we make a trip to the
grocery store to stock up on food for the week. We’ve decided to take turns
cooking, so while she’s looking at meats and pastas and, you know, stuff you
actually have to cook, I’m tossing frozen pizzas and microwavable meals into
the basket. She knows better than to expect anything more than that from me.
I’m no chef, that’s for sure.

Once we get back and put away the groceries, Makenna makes
the declaration that we should spend the last couple hours of daylight on the
beach, so we make sandwiches, grab a couple bottles of water and a bag of
chips, and do just that. Two hours of digging my toes into the sand, listening
to the soft crash of the waves, feeling the ocean breeze in my hair, and
chatting with my best friend . . . it’s exactly what I need. And when I snuggle
into bed, there’s still a smile on my face when I fall asleep.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO you!” Makenna
sings, jumping up and down on my bed. “It’s going to be a lovely day filled
with birthday surprises. Not to mention the fact that we have to go hunt down a
liquor store, so you can buy something. It’s a rite of passage into adulthood.”

I throw my pillow at her, nearly knocking her off balance.
“For my first birthday surprise, I’d like to sleep, thankyouverymuch.”

“No way. Not happening. Besides, it’s after ten.” She bounds
off the bed and flings the double doors to the balcony open. “Do you see this?
You’re going to sleep the entire day when you could be out there?”

“Well, when you put it that way . . .”

“I’m always right. You know that.”

We both look at each other before bursting into laughter.
Never
right would be more like it, and she knows that.

“So what are these big birthday surprises you have in store
for me? It may be a determining factor of whether or not I choose to get out of
bed.”

“Be right back.” She races from the room and downstairs
before racing right back up and pouncing back on the bed. “Surprise number
one.” She shoves a wrapped gift at me. Although I’m not entirely sure that
“wrapped” is what you’d call it. It’s more like there’s some paper wadded up around
it and some tape stuck on there haphazardly. The girl can’t wrap a gift to save
her life, but it’s the thought that counts.

I tear at the first opening I can find to shed the box of
the layered mass of paper surrounding it, and I lift the lid from the top.
Inside is a brand new Breaking Benjamin t-shirt. “You know me too well. I love
it, Mak.”

A sly grin curls up the corners of her mouth. “Look
underneath it.”

I lift the shirt carefully to find two concert tickets
nestled in the tissue paper. They’re for one of their upcoming concerts in
Atlanta this summer. I have no words. So I just squeal.

Finally, after a few minutes of hugging her and bouncing up
and down, I shower and get ready for the day. She tells me there’s more in
store for me, so if the other surprises are anything like those tickets, it’s
going to be a damn good day. Makenna knows me better than I know myself most of
the time, so she knows exactly what I want or need, even when I don’t know
sometimes. That’s one of the many reasons she’s my best friend.

My hair is dry and styled into the perfect beach waves, I’m
wearing my favorite denim shorts and new t-shirt, and I just polished all of my
nails in the perfect shade of ocean blue. I feel fantastic for a change, and
today is going to be a great day. I have no doubt about that.

Descending the stairs, I look back and forth at the shoes
I’m holding in each hand. “Makenna, which shoes look best? These black flip
flops or the sandals?” I’m nothing if not a shoe whore. Like I’d totally sell
myself to buy shoes. Okay, maybe not, but I’d come awful close to it.

“Sandals,” a voice calls back from the living room. But it’s
the fact that it’s a male voice has me flinging shoes across the room and
screaming.

Wes throws his arms up to keep from being pelted in the face
by a wayward flip flop. “Take it easy. It’s just me.”

“What the hell are you doing here?” I pound a fist into his
chest when he approaches me. My heart is hammering in my chest so hard that I
feel somewhat dizzy. I’m not sure, though, if it’s the fact that I thought a
man broke into the house or if it’s the fact that it’s Wes. So much for my
troubles not following me here.

Wes grabs my swinging arms and steadies me. “I think we’ve
been set up.” He jerks his head to Makenna’s room. “Shane asked me a couple of
days ago if I wanted to come down here for the weekend to get away, saying he
wanted to come down to see Mak while she’s here with her folks but didn’t want
to travel by himself. He even said he already had us a room booked. I stupidly
agreed but didn’t think anything of it until I pulled in the drive and
Makenna’s car was here. I probably would’ve just assumed her parents rode with
her, but the stupid shit-eating grin on Shane’s face was a dead giveaway. As
soon as we got here, she dragged him into that room, and I immediately heard
you singing upstairs. I’m sorry that they’re idiots and don’t realize that I’m
the last person you want to see.”

I try to tug my wrists free from his grip, but he doesn’t
release me. “Let me go.”

“Callie, I swear I didn’t know, and I should beat Shane’s
ass for lying to me.” He opens his hands, allowing my arms to fall free.
“Makenna was in on this, too, you know.”

“Obviously. I’m assuming you’re one of my ‘birthday
surprises’ she told me about. Hell of a surprise.”

He shoves his hands into his pockets. “Your birthday is
today?”

I nod, refusing to look at him. “Yep.”

“Well, I know it’s not worth much coming from me, but happy
birthday.”

Before I can come up with anything remotely snarky to say,
the door to Makenna’s room creaks open, and Makenna steps out with Shane on her
heels. “Well, I guess you found birthday surprise number two.”

“About that . . . you and I need to have a little chat.” I
fold my arms over my chest and raise my eyebrows. Shane is glancing between Wes
and me, snickering hysterically, and I figure out why when I look over at Wes.
We’re both postured exactly the same—same folded arms, same scowl, same raised
eyebrows. “This isn’t funny, Shane.”

He catches his breath enough to answer me. “Hey, you two played
a joke on us, so it’s only fair. You know what they say about paybacks.”

“Besides,” Makenna begins, cautiously approaching me, “you
may not realize it now, but you’ll thank us for it later.”

Wes glares at Shane. “Highly doubtful.”

“Can I talk to you for a second upstairs, Makenna?”

She looks at me with wide eyes and pulls both of her lips
between her teeth before answering. “Sure.”

I march upstairs without a word, allowing all of my thoughts
to gather in a somewhat organized collection of violent, malicious words. I
want to make her cry. I want her to know that she can’t treat people like
pawns, pushing them together when all they want to do is . . . is . . . hell, I
don’t know what I want to do about him. But she has to know this isn’t okay.

As soon as I shut the door and turn to her, I open my mouth,
about to release my wrath upon her, when she holds up a hand to stop me.

“Wait just a second. Before you say anything, I need you to
do one thing for me. After you do this, you can say whatever you want to say to
me. You can rip me a new asshole if you want. But when my parents told me that
we were coming down here alone, I had this idea, and Shane agreed that it would
be risky but totally worth it. Forty-eight hours. That’s all I’m asking for.
Shane is telling Wes the exact same thing. Let it play out and see what
happens. If you still can’t stand the sight of each other after this weekend,
then you can both say whatever you want to say to us. I just need you to give
it two days, Callie. Please.”

“Why? Why should I wait two days to tell you exactly what I
think of your stupid little scheme? It’s all quite fresh on my mind right this
minute.”

She flings her hair over her shoulder and crosses her arms
defensively. “Because you’re my best friend in the whole world, and I know you
well enough to see that you want this. You’re just too stubborn to admit it. I
may rarely be right about things, but there’s not any doubt in my mind that I’m
right about this.”

“Even if you were right—and I’m not saying you are—how can
you be so sure that
he’ll
agree to this? What’s your plan if one of us
doesn’t agree to your little experiment? Or if neither of us agrees?”

She reaches out and rests both of her hands on my shoulders.
“But that’s not going to happen. Shane and I wouldn’t have set this up if we
weren’t confident you wouldn’t agree to it. We love both of you, and we want to
see you happy. You and Wes haven’t been happy since the weekend we all went to
the banquet, and the reasons are obvious. We just wanted to give both of you an
opportunity to see it for yourself.”

Is she freaking serious? Regardless of the fact that I
secretly think her ridiculous plan is genius, Wes wouldn’t ever agree to it. He
got what he wanted from me, and he’s probably gone back to screwing Allison every
time he gets the urge, so he has absolutely no use for me anymore. He never
disagreed with me when I called him a coward, and I think that’s because he
knows it.

“You know what, Makenna? Fine. I’ll give you the damn two
days, but only because I can’t wait to prove how wrong you are yet again. And
if he doesn’t agree to it, then that will prove that you’re wrong, too. Either
way, I’ll win, and believe me, I can’t wait to tell you exactly what I think
about it.”

A smug grin forms on her lips. “Oh, I can’t wait either.
Stay here just a second, and I’ll find out his answer.”

“Good. Hurry back, so I can start tearing into you. It may
take a while.”

To think that the two of them actually think that this would
actually work. It’s ridiculous. If they knew the whole story, then maybe they
wouldn’t be so confident. Wes will never agree to this nonsense.