Page 5 of It's Only Love

Chapter 3

The next morning, the sound of groaning woke Christy. She pried her eyelids apart, squinting against the bright morning sun that was attacking her through a crack in the blinds. She tried to sit up, but the heavy arm draped across her stomach held her down. Which was just as well because the moment she tried to move, her head began to pound and her stomach flipped dramatically. She brought her hands to her temple, gritting her teeth against the throbbing pain. She clamped her lips shut to stop from moaning and vomiting as the wave of nausea increased.

God, I think I’m dying. After a few minutes, her body began to get used to being awake, and the pain and nausea ebbed away. She heard another groan, turned her head, and came face to face with Taylor, who was practically sprawled on her. Taylor’s red hair was matted all around her face, her mouth hanging open with a bit of drool leaking out. Christy snickered, the action waking Taylor. One of her emerald eyes popped open and glanced around, then settled on Christy.

“You’re much prettier than most of the guys I usually wake up to,” Taylor rasped, rolling over and instantly groaning again. “God, I think something died in my mouth.”

“I know,” Christy chuckled. “What time did we get back last night? And why did we drink so much?” She began to slowly sit up, not wanting to move too quickly and bring back the headache and nausea.

“5 am and because we were celebrating your return home.” Taylor heaved herself out of bed, tripped over her shoes from the night before but kept herself upright, avoiding cracking her head on the open bedroom door.

“First win of the day!” she cheered, fist-pumping the air. Christy shushed her gently, not able to cope with loud noises just yet. She leaned back against the pillows, not ready to actually get up. As she heard Taylor turn on the shower in the adjoining bathroom, she looked around the bedroom of Taylor’s cabin.

The room was light and airy. The bed, wardrobe, and dressing table were all cream wood, everything else was a soft baby pink. Throw cushions and blankets dotted the floor, discarded from the bed in order to fit them both in. Big, floral canvases lined the walls along with photo collages of the girls and some of Taylor and Dean. The room was surprisingly girly in contrast to the hard ass that was its owner, but not many people realized Taylor was a secret princess.

Christy focused on a photo of Taylor and Dean. They were in a field, her arms wrapped around his waist, and he was ruffling her hair, both of them pulling faces at the camera. It was adorable, Christy smiled at it, her eyes then fixated on Dean. He looked so happy, his expression goofy and boyish in a way she had never seen before. His t-shirt stretched tight to accommodate his muscles. The sun was shining down on them, picking up on the gold highlights in his hair, making them glow like a halo. She felt her heart stutter in her chest and forced herself to look away.

She looked at the collage of her, Taylor, and Justine, so many funny pictures. Sadness shifted through her as she thought of the time she spent away from them. She missed them terribly, but she wasn’t ready to move back here. This place only brought her pain. No, don’t think about that, not when you’re hungover and already emotional. She looked out the crack in the blinds, watching the huge pine trees swaying in the breeze, her eyes drifting closed. When she opened her eyes again, Taylor was standing in front of her fully dressed, wet hair piled on her head, holding a cell phone out to Christy.

“It rang, but I didn’t get to it in time.”

Christy took it from her and unlocked it. She had a missed call and a voicemail, sitting upright she listened to the message. “Hi Miss Lee, it’s Cassie from Blossom Estates, just calling to remind you of the showing this morning at 11 am. I know you said you’re fine for us to go in if you aren’t there, so this is just a courtesy call to let you know we’ll be around. If I don’t see you there, then I’ll call you with feedback once it’s finished, take care.”

“Shit!”

“What is it?” Taylor called from another room.

“The realtor is showing someone around the house this morning, but the place is a mess! I meant to tidy it up first thing, but I didn’t expect us to be out so late last night. What time is it?” she asked, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and swaying when she stood. Once she felt fine again, she looked down and saw she was fully clothed, just missing her shoes which she began to hunt for.

“It’s nearly 10 am,” Taylor replied, and Christy could hear her puttering around her little kitchen, boiling some water for coffee most likely.

“Double shit! I’ve gotta go.” Christy found her shoes and tugged them on but was still missing her purse. She ventured out of the bedroom into Taylor’s open plan living area which included the dining room and kitchen. She found her purse on one of the gray fabric armchairs and slung it over her shoulder.

“You okay to drive? You want some coffee first?” Taylor asked.

“Yeah, I’m okay to drive, just feel a bit sick but I’ll pull over if I need to. Raincheck on the coffee?” She hurried over to Taylor and pecked her cheek goodbye.

“Anytime, ma cherie, I’ll message you about tonight.”

“Tonight?” Christy called over her shoulder as she reached the front door.

“Yeah, I told you last night, Justine’s gig?”

“Of course, can’t wait, see you later, babe!” Christy flung open the door and the bright sun immediately washed over her and lit up the room, both she and Taylor groaned at the cheerful invasion. Christy rummaged in her purse for her sunglasses, shoving them on her face, she waved at Taylor and headed out.

She hurried down the weathered, wooden porch and past the row of cabins, to the parking lot. She began digging in her purse for her car keys.

“Hey, Christy!”

Her heart thudded in her chest as she recognized who that voice belonged to. She wanted the ground to swallow her up. She was wearing yesterday’s sleep rumpled clothes, was hungover as hell, probably stank of alcohol, and she hadn’t brushed her teeth or hair, her curls left untamed. Thank God she was wearing sunglasses so he wouldn’t see her panda eyes from the makeup she hadn’t removed.

She wasn’t prepared for this. Dread mounting, she slowly turned around to face Dean. He was coming towards her smiling, dimples on full display, the sun beaming down on him bouncing off the golden highlights in his hair. Seriously, how did he look this good in the morning? She shook her head, he wasn’t that good looking, she had definitely seen better-looking men, she just couldn’t think of any right now. He was wearing the same clothes as last night, except his weren’t rumpled like hers, which meant at some point he took them off to…sleep.

As the beautiful brunette he was with last night came up behind him, she felt a rush of jealousy flood her and immediately tried to stamp it down. The brunette was groomed to perfection as well, glossy hair smooth and styled. Makeup perfectly applied, smudge-free, no panda eyes here, thank you, and her clothes were also crease-free. Christy’s cheeks heated in humiliation at the comparison between them. The woman grabbed Dean’s hand as they approached and looked up at him with such affection.

“Good morning,” he said when they reached her.

“Morning, Dean,” she replied, ducking her head as his eyes ran over her. Wait, why am I feeling embarrassed, it doesn’t matter what you look like. You’re a beautiful, smart woman and his opinion of you doesn’t matter!

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