Relinquishing Liberty (8 page)

“You look really beautiful tonight, Liberty.” I was so distracted by him softly tracing slow circles across my hand, that I didn’t notice him staring straight at me. The night sky was crystal clear, and all I could see were the stars that reflected in his eyes. The way they glittered was so mesmerizing. I couldn’t look away even if I tried.

“I’m really glad you called. I wanted to see you, but I wasn’t sure if there was anything going on between you and Brett. I know, I know…you said there wasn’t, but I just got the vibe that there was something more between the two of you. Besides, I’m not the type of guy to steal another guy’s girl. Well…maybe I was before, but that was a long time ago. I’m sure Brett filled you on my lovely reputation.”

“He might’ve mentioned something about it,” I said, looking down at our still joined hands.

“Well, that’s why I really wanted to talk to you. I haven’t talked to Brett, let alone anyone else from high school, in a really long time, and I’m not the same person they knew back then. That was four years ago. A lot has changed since then. I’m not the playboy everyone makes me out to be, but it seems some people’s opinions of me haven’t changed.”

I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. It wasn’t right for me to let others’ opinions of him overshadow my own. If I wanted to get to know the real Shayne, I was going to have to do it on my own terms.

“Is that what you and Brett were talking about before when he pulled you away?”

He bent his head down as he rubbed the back of his neck and laughed. “Yeah. I got quite an earful from him. I guess I wasn’t on
his
guest list, and he was ready to ask me to leave before I mentioned that you invited me. He wasn’t happy about it, but he agreed to let me stay. He then went on to warn me that if I hurt you, he’d ‘sew my ass to my face’,” Shayne said as he motioned with air quotes. “He got a little pissed off when I burst out laughing. I don’t think he realized he just quoted an episode of
Seinfeld
.”

I had to laugh at that too because I was a huge
Seinfeld
fan. Poor Shayne. He didn’t deserve to be treated like that. Brett was neither my boyfriend nor my brother, so he had no say with who I chose to associate with, romantically or not.

I reached for both of Shayne’s hands and pulled them into my lap. “Shayne you have nothing to worry about with Brett. I can assure you there is definitely nothing going on between us. We’ve just become really good friends. I know he’s been crazy protective of me ever since I arrived in Savannah, and to be quite honest it’s starting to drive me crazy. Let me talk to him. I’m sure I can get him to ease up on both of us.” I gave him a reassuring smile. I wasn’t going to let whatever Brett had said to him put a damper on something that hasn’t even had a chance to ignite.

I was worried when he pulled back both of his hands that I was still holding in my lap. He leaned in closer, and for a second I thought he was going to kiss me. My heart fluttered in anticipation of feeling those luscious lips pressed against mine. His hand reached toward my side and dipped into the pocket of the jacket wrapped around me. He pulled out a small box wrapped in shiny gold paper and topped with little gold bow.

“I almost forgot to give the birthday girl her present.” He placed it in my lap, and his knuckles brushed against my bare legs as he pulled away. I felt something pooling deep inside of me as he touched my bare skin.

“You didn’t have to get me anything! You being here is enough of a gift.”

He nodded toward the present still sitting in my lap. “Go on, open it. The suspense is killing me!”

He was shifting nervously like a little kid. God, he was so friggin’ adorable! I slowly started peeling the wrapping paper away at the edges. There was a black velvet box resting in my shaky palm.
Holy shit, he got me jewelry?
This was too much. Slowly, I pried it open as the hinges of the box fought against me. Finally revealing its contents, I was pleasantly surprised. Nestled in the center of the box was a silver linked bracelet with a single charm dangling at the end that was encrusted with a small diamond. I was even more surprised by the charm he chose: a dolphin. Looking up at him with an awestruck expression on my face, I was at a loss for words.
How did he know?

“Thank you.” I whispered, still in awe. “It’s beautiful, Shayne. I have to ask though, what made you choose a dolphin?”

“When I walked into the jewelry store, I had no fucking clue what to get for you. I mean, I’ve never bought a present for a girl before, let alone jewelry, so I felt kind of out of place. But when I saw this, I knew it was perfect. It reminded me of the first day we met.” I was still just as puzzled, and it must have been painted on my face because he laughed huskily and continued with his explanation.

“After you ran off down the beach, I packed up my fishing gear and was about to head inside, when I saw a pod of dolphins not too far from the shore. I sat there for a while watching them leap out of the water and ride the waves, so carefree. That’s kind of how you looked when you ran into me with your eyes closed. You looked so at peace and carefree. Now anytime I see a dolphin…I think of you. Although I have to admit, you’re on my mind a lot more than is probably healthy,” he chuckled softly.

Removing the bracelet from the box, he wrapped the chain around my wrist and closed the clasp. His fingers lingered there, caressing my skin along the edge of the bracelet with the pad of his thumb. “It sounds silly, I know.”

“No, not at all. It’s just kind of ironic…dolphins are my favorite. But you obviously couldn’t have known that.”

“Well I’m glad I chose that one.”

I looked up into his eyes, drinking him in. “It’s perfect.”

We sat there in silence, reveling in the moment together. The nerves and anxiety I had been experiencing all day finally dissipated. There was so much we both wanted to say, but we didn’t need to use our words to converse. It was amazing how much I could read into his emotions just by looking into his gorgeous green eyes. I could tell he had been nervous too, but he appeared much more relaxed now.

It was growing later, and I knew our time together was growing short, but I didn’t want him to go just yet. I wondered when we would get a chance to see each other again.

“Would you like to go somewhere with me next weekend?” He said, catching his bottom lip between his teeth nervously, but his eyes looked hopeful.

“Together? Like a date?”

“Yeah, like a date.” He looked down as he laughed, but his eyes peered up at me through his mile-long lashes.

“Depends. What did you have in mind?” I didn’t want to come off too eager.

“It’s a surprise.” Of course. I hated surprises, and the expression on my face must have told him so.

“Don’t worry, it’s not bad. You’ll like it.”

“You seem pretty confident for someone who barely knows me.”

“Well, I’d really like to get to know you better, Liberty.”

A light breeze blew a strand of my hair softly across my face. Shayne reached over brushing it away, but his hand remained there, running his thumb across my jaw. Shayne’s tongue dipped out wetting his lips, and I closed my eyes, anticipating Shayne’s kiss. I felt his warm breath against my face as he chastely pressed his lips to the corner of my mouth. I slowly peeled my eyes open as he pulled away.

“Goodnight, sweet Liberty.”

I watched as he walked off towards the parking lot, and smiled, noticing there was a little extra bounce in his step. I stood there unconsciously spinning the bracelet back and forth around my wrist until he was out of sight and let out a happy sigh. This was by far, the best birthday ever!

After Shayne left, I walked back up to Brett’s apartment, and to my surprise, most of the guests had already left. Honestly it didn’t faze me. I knew they weren’t really here for me. They just wanted an excuse to party and get free booze. I looked around for Maddie, but she was nowhere in sight. Great, she was my ride here.

“Liberty, there you are! Where the hell have you been, darlin’?” With a beer in hand, Brett definitely wasn’t done partying.

“Sorry, I was just outside talking to Shayne. I couldn’t hear over the music, and I wanted to get some fresh air.”

“Yeah, I was surprised when I saw him waltz into my apartment like he owned the place. I didn’t realize you invited him.” He smiled at me, but I could tell it was forced.

I didn’t understand what he had against Shayne, but I could’ve really cared less. Brett would just have to deal with the fact that Shayne might be around more often, especially if our date next weekend went well.

My buzz was starting to wear off, and all I wanted to do was get some sleep. I could already tell tomorrow I was going to have a wicked hangover.

“Do you know where Maddie is? She was my ride here,” I said as I scanned the room.

“Yeah, she already left with some guy…Josh, Jeff, Jeremy…something like that.”
Left?
How could she just leave me here? Did she expect me to walk all the way back to our apartment this late at night?

“No worries, darlin’. I already told Maddie it was fine if you stay here tonight.”

“Fine, I’ll take the couch. Do you have some clothes I can borrow? There’s no way in hell I’m sleeping in this dress.”

“Actually you’re going to have to stay in my room. I don’t trust Travis to keep his hands to himself when he’s drunk. Well…I don’t really trust him when he’s sober, either.” He laughed, but I didn’t find the situation humorous at all. First I’m informed I’m stranded here, and now I have to share a bed with Brett. Could anything else go wrong?

“As long as you stay on your side of the bed, I don’t really care. I just want to get some sleep.”

Brett led me back to his room and tossed one of his t-shirts at me, shutting the door behind him so I had some privacy to change. It only hit me about mid-thigh, but it got the job done. I crawled under the plush covers and passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow.

I’m not sure when Brett came back in the room, but the sun was just barely beginning to peek through the curtains, and there was now a warm, shirtless chest pressed up against my back. His hot breath tickled the back of my neck as I felt his chest rise and fall next to me. I started to freak out when I realized there was a hand under my shirt, flat against my bare stomach, just inches away from my lace panties. The other was clutching my breast with nothing more than the thin material of Brett’s t-shirt that I had borrowed providing a barrier from his hand.
Oh no…no, no, no! Please tell me this isn’t happening!
I was in full-blown panic mode as I sprung out of his bed, searching the floor frantically for my dress and shoes.

“Whoa, Liberty, calm down! Why are you freaking the fuck out?”

I buried my face in my hands. “Brett…please tell me we did not have sex last night!” I peeked through my fingers to gauge his reaction.

“What? No! Of course not! Darlin’, I’m pretty sure I’d remember something like that.” A smug grin spread across his face, but I was not buying it.

“Then why the hell were you pressed up against me with your hands everywhere!?”
Oh God, this could not be happening!
I had to hold back the tears that were quickly welling up in my eyes. There is no way I had lost my virginity and missed out on the whole thing…with Brett of all people! Oh. My. God. This would ruin everything!

“Liberty, shhh, it’s okay.” He cautiously pulled me towards him, gently rubbing my shoulders to help me relax. “I swear we didn’t have sex. You were passed out cold when I got in bed, and I fell asleep on my side, but I guess I must have gravitated towards you during the night. I’m sorry if that made you uncomfortable, but honestly, I didn’t do it on purpose. I would never make you do anything you didn’t want to do, especially after you were drinking. You know I would never do anything to hurt you, right?”

My heart rate gradually came down and returned to normal when I realized that what he was telling me was the truth. How could I honestly believe that Brett would ever take advantage of me like that? He was like a brother to me for fuck’s sake! When I turned to look at him I could see the hurt in his eyes, and I immediately regretted jumping to that conclusion.

“Jesus, Brett, I’m sorry, too. I didn’t mean to assume anything. I know you would never do anything like that. I just freaked out. I mean, with the position we were in...it…it just looked bad. I really am sorry. Do you forgive me?”

Brett waved his hands in front of him, dismissing my plea. “Liberty, you don’t need my forgiveness. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

He bent down and placed a kiss on my forehead before walking over to his closet, pulling my dress down from one of the hangers and placing it on the bed next to me. He must have found it after I drunkenly tossed it across the room last night. That was sweet of him to hang it up; most guys were slobs and would have just left it on the floor to wrinkle.

“Why don’t you go get changed, and I’ll give you a ride home. If you’re a good girl, I just might grab you some coffee on the way there.” He smiled and winked at me over his shoulder before shutting the door behind him.