Page 1 of Charged With Forever

Chapter 1

Sawyer

"Sorry for the mess,” I apologize to Tina as we enter my three-bedroom home. “I usually clean on Saturdays." She’s a recent hire, and since we still have a mountain of stuff to do, we came here. It’s where I do my best work after hours.

"Wow, you have a nice place. It's so cozy and warm," she comments as she unloads the folders and books on my table. I operate a legal aid firm because I wanted to help people. I take after my dad that way. He was a lawyer, too, though he started in corporate before becoming a prosecutor. Now he’s a judge. As for my mom, she and her best friend, Naomi, run the local youth center. Tina looks around, her eyes landing on my photos. She gives me a playful smile as she says, “That must be Cole. He’s hot.” I don’t care for her thinking so, but I do agree with her. He and I have been together since I was seventeen, and ten years later, we still are. “Before we buckle down to work, spill the story,” she urges as we each take a seat. “Get the wine first.” She commands.

I Laugh, and grab a bottle and two glasses, knowing I have to feed her curiosity so she’ll concentrate on why she’s here. "And what story would that be?” I tease.

She waves her hand. "Your love story. How you meet and everything after."

I can’t hold back my groan. "Really?"

"Yes! I'm new to town and a hopeless romantic. Please, Sawyer," she begs as she takes a sip of wine.

"All right," I cave. "But only because I like telling it so much."

"Oh, this should be good."

"Our parents are best friends, so Cole and I have known each other our whole lives. Their careers are even intertwined. His dad is the chief of police and his mom runs the youth center. My mom works with his and my dad is a judge."

"Law enforcement runs in his family," she comments. "Was it love at first sight?"

I laugh as I admit, "Not even close. We’re very similar and didn't always get along.” I take a drink before letting her know, “Fought like siblings.”

"And it got worse when you entered high school?" She correctly guesses.

"He was the all-star basketball player. Popular and friendly, except to me, of course." I smile as the memories of that time hit me. "I also played, which meant most of our arguments were due to gym space regarding our respective teams. Him being a year older and a senior, the staff would give them priority."

"That hardly seems fair."

Though it’s long over, it still makes me mad all these years later. "It wasn't." I agree in outrage.

"What did you do?"

An evil grin crosses my face as I confess, "I blackmailed him. My mom was cleaning out the garage and found an old photo of me and Cole having a tea party when we were about four. He had on a pink press, flowered hat, and pearls." We both crack up at the visual. "There was no way his reputation would survive that, so I used it to my advantage." When she asks if it was to fix the gym situation, I say that was part of it. "I made him train me. Regardless of our differences, he was an amazing athlete and taught me so much. We spent numerous hours a day together." I put the glass to my lips and take another sip, sighing as I remember what came next. "Then it was time for the playoffs. Our teams reached the championships and won. All our hard work paid off."

"And you weren't dating yet?"

"Nope, but my feelings had changed. I was just too chicken to confess them. We went from hating each other because our parents basically forced us to be together as kids. To actual friends and wanting to spend time with each others.”

"Who confessed first?” Tina leans in, fully interested in the outcome.

"It was his graduation day and he was leaving for college soon. I still had another year of high school, but I was all set to tell him how I felt. However, I chickened out, gave him the photo I’d used, wished him the best, and walked off."

"What? No way," she gasps in shock.

"I knew I’d regret not saying anything, so I turned around to go back. He was standing right in front of me and then he kissed me."

She squeals like a teenager. "So he caved before you did. And now look at you."

"You telling lies about who admitted their feelings first again?” Cole's deep voice asks, startling us both. I roll my eyes at our usual argument about who did it.

“You kissed me first.” I remind him.

"You told me you loved me right after that kiss,” he points out as he drops a peck on my cheek. “That makes you first, babe.”

"It was only triggered by your kiss.” I helpfully insist. I introduce Tina, knowing we could keep going with this.

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