Chasing the Sun Read online

  He loved her…he loved her…“He loves me!”

  Ian knew that she loved him too. She’d said it before and she’d she say it again. But, any amorous affirmations tonight would be post coital. After all, he had her twisting in the wind there for a while. He owed her an orgasm…or two.

  Would it be greedy to want three?

  Nah. She’d always been an overachiever.

  Comeback Story

  “So, you’re really leaving?”

  Ian paused, box in hand. The voice was a familiar one, but one he hadn’t heard in almost a year. He set the box into his Jeep and turned.

  Katrine was just as he remembered. Petite, beautiful, doe eyes and full mouth. But the difference was he didn’t feel the twinge in his groin at the sight of her.

  “Looks that way…Maddie rat me out?” When he smiled at her, she relaxed her shoulders and her booted feet took a few more cautious steps closer.

  “I can be very persuasive when I need to be,” she said.

  “I remember.” They both laughed gently, the thin smoke from their breath mingled between them.

  “I couldn’t let you leave without saying goodbye…without saying I’m sorry for how things ended between us. I can’t explain it, not without it sounding like lip service.”

  Ah, he did remember that face. The verge of tears, please forgive me face. And this time he did. It’d happened a while ago, but he wasn’t certain until this very moment.

  “There’s no need to apologize. I actually get it, trust me…Things happened as they should. You don’t have to feel guilty anymore. I’m good…really good.”

  And as if on cue she called from the door.

  “Baby, do we need this extra remote? You have like fifty. We could make a fort…” She didn’t notice they had a visitor until she was even with the small moving truck in the drive.

  “Oh hey, sorry, didn’t see you there,” Trey said, eyes shifting between Ian and Katrine.

  “Trevia, this is Katrine. Katrine, this is my fiancé,” Ian said, wrapping his arm around Trey’s shoulder.

  Katrine’s smile spread, wide and genuine.

  “It’s so nice to meet you!” Katrine hugged Trey, which she returned after a brief pause.

  “Sorry, I’m a hugger…I’ve just heard so much about you…not from this guy of course.” She jerked her thumb in his direction. “He was too busy pretending I don’t exist. But luckily my sister filled me in. Congratulations on your engagement. I hadn’t heard that part.”

  Trey smiled, but Ian could see she was confused. Like she was attempting to match the heartbreaker with the warm woman in front of her.

  “Well, it just happened this morning.” Trey beamed. Katrine’s face had a similar look.

  Katrine let out a small squeal as a small ball of brown fluff bounded towards the group.

  “There you are, you little monster,” Trey scolded. She lifted the puppy into her arms and nuzzled the floppy puff. “She must’ve been hiding in the closet again. I couldn’t find her.”

  “Oh my god! Who is this sweet thing?” Katrine cooed.

  “This is Chewy,” Trey said. A stream of baby talk came from Katrine’s mouth along with several snuggles.

  Chewy had been Ian’s wingman that morning. He’d slipped the platinum antique ring onto Chewy’s collar and set him on the air mattress they’d slept on, knowing he would pounce onto Trey’s chest. She’d cuddled the pup and it took a minute for her to notice Chewy’s new adornment.

  Of course she cried and screamed, then tackled Ian onto the comforter.

  “Is that a yes?”

  “Are you kidding me?” was all she screeched, before she kissed him cross eyed which led to other, sweatier things.

  Happiest day of his life, hands down.

  “Let me guess. Chewy is short for Chewbacca,” Katrine said with a smirk.

  “Hard to believe someone so hot is such a nerd, isn’t it?” Trey added.

  The girls both laughed.

  “Hey, you know all about Star Wars too, Katrine,” Ian said.

  “Um, I have an eleven year old son.”

  “I was once eleven, too,” Ian pointed out.

  “True…but I liked Barbies when I was young, but you don’t see me walking around with them on my t-shirts,” Katrine teased.

  “Wow, five minutes out of the dog house and you’re already busting my balls.”

  “Sorry, it’s kind of a compulsion,” Katrine said.

  “Hey, me too,” Trey said with a laugh.

  Katrine looked at Ian and smiled.

  “Well, Chewy is precious. I know Ruby can never be replaced, but I’m glad you were able to move on.” Double meaning in that, Ian was sure.

  “So happy for you two. I hope you like living in Austin, Ian.”

  “Oh, I will. I fell in love with it when I was there this summer, and of course anywhere Trey is, that’s where I wanna be…After she passes the bar, who knows where we’ll land.” He kissed Trey on the temple and she nuzzled into his side.

  Katrine’s eyes glistened a little as she looked at them. “Well, I wish you both the best of everything…And I would love it if you came to my wedding next month.”

  Ian had heard about that from Maddie, once she knew he was serious with Trey, that is. He was surprised, but glad that Manhattan did in fact love Katrine. She deserved to be loved, to be happy. But that didn’t mean he wanted to be front row Joe when she married the guy.

  “Thank you, but I don’t think Xander would want to see my face on his special day,” Ian said. It was probably true and he was going to milk that angle.

  “Oh no, he wouldn’t care…maybe if…well, you might have a point.” Katrine blew a strand of hair out of her eye.

  Ian tilted his head.

  “Okay, but know that I would want you there.”

  “Fair enough…and hey, congrats to you, too,” Ian said, giving her a small hug.

  Katrine hugged him back, with more gusto and kissed him on the cheek. Then she pulled Trey into a hug again, this time returned immediately.

  Katrine had that affect on people.

  “Bye, you guys. Drive safe…and take care of each other.” She waved one last time and walked away. She was about to get to her car when Ian called to her.

  “You take care too, Katie-Mac.”

  Katrine’s eyes teared up in earnest when she heard him use his old nick-name for her. She blew them a kiss and drove away. He wasn’t sure if he’d see her again, but he hoped their paths would cross one day.

  “Wow, she’s something else. I can see why you liked her so much,” Trey admitted, setting the wiggly pup on the ground

  “Yeah, she’s good people.”

  “Well, handsome, you ready?” Trey asked, standing on her tip toes to kiss his cheek. He bent to meet her half way.

  “Not just yet. I have one more thing I need to do before we leave.”

  “What’s that?” she asked, looping her arms around his neck.

  “You,” Ian said, giving her a sexy smirk.

  “Oh, really? There isn’t any furniture.”

  “How do you feel about hammocks?”

  Forty-five very satisfying minutes later…Ian was sawing through the ropes and throwing the christened piece of cloth in the back of his Jeep, at Trey’s insistence, despite the lack of trees in her backyard to hang it from.

  “You’re the architect, you’ll think of something.”

  The End

  Soundtrack:

  1. Cough Syrup- When the Giant (hitting the road)

  2. Mississippi- Train (melancholy strumming in his new apartment)

  3. Barely Legal- Strokes (band at the Royal)

  4. Nutshell- Alice in Chains (Private concert for Trey)

  5. Wonderwall- Ryan Adams (Performance with Rory)

  6. Dust to Dust- Civil Wars (Duet with Rory)

  7. Pretender- Foo Fighters (Punching bag)

  8. Take me to Church- Hozier

  9. Bridges- Broods (Las
t dinner with Trey)

  10. Comeback Story- Kings of Leon (Ends as it should)

  The final piece of the story and last installment of all things Rebound coming to you in December. Yes the wedding…but more importantly the week long bachelorette party with the whole crew! We’re going out with a bang, chicas!

  Connect with Moi:

  [email protected]

  Www.nikkimathisthompson.com

  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Nikki-Mathis-Thompson/332009080244449

  https://twitter.com/NikkiMThompson

  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7009372.Nikki_Mathis_Thompson

  Carrier Pigeon

  Message in a bottle

  Nudie Telegram

  Other Books By Moi:

  Rebound

  Resilient

  This is Me

  http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=rebound+nikki+mathis+thompson

  “Testing, testing, 1,2,3…”

  To my legions of fans (and by legions I mean 40) my deepest gratitude for all the love and support you throw my way. This is a time consuming and sometimes thankless pursuit, but you all make it all worth while…sometimes…kinda…let’s just say you talk me off the ledge. Rebound Mafia, you’re my girls and I love you guys!

  To all the best selling authors I’m now besties with, CoHo I’m taking to you, it’s been so much…just kidding, that hasn’t happened. I don’t know anyone and I’m still eating at the nerd table in the cafeteria. Well I am FB friends with one, but I’m not gonna be an asshole and name drop (Rhymes with Amy Harmon.)

  I have made some really cool friends along the way, a few of them authors and some bloggers, mostly readers. I love you readers!

  Speaking of bloggers, thanks to those who have supported my little books and pimped when I begged and did even before I had to ask. Karrie with Panty Dropping Book Blog and Shawn with Dauntless Indies especially!

  “Heeeeeeey, I love my betas!” (You’re supposed to sing that.) Misti, Shawn, and Hootie…thank you so so much for your time and input!

  To my winos/book ho crew. I love you girls, hard. Kimberly that last hammock line was for you.

  Sweet Miami lovelies, mucho gusto chicas!

  Natasha and Amy- readers that always have my back

  My editor Toni Rakestraw- thanks a million. (Again any left over mistakes are my fault. We do our best to get out the errors, but those pesky bastards always show up anyway. Yes, I know the difference between your and you’re, their and they’re, where and were, but sometimes when you’re writing, taking that extra second to click on the apostrophe just seems like a beat down.)

  Cover maven Natasha Brown- thank you for making time for me even when you said you had to scale back! I’m so glad I didn’t have to break anyone else in :)

  Ink Slinger PR- Thank you Nazarea Andrews for coordinating my blog tour. I needed the promo help big time!

  Hubby, thanks for always being my Guinea pig. Yes, that kind of Guinea pig. Holla!

  Kids—to the moon and back.

  Fam—gracias.

  Friends—I love you.

  Book club—word.

  Wine—you know how I feel about you…

  Coffee—I feel the same way.

  Pandora’s Zen Spa channel, for the mellow vibes by which I write- namaste.

  The F word—you had me at hello.

  Ian, I love you most of all. So glad to give you a little extra stage time. You deserved it.

  Soundtrack is important in all my stories, so I hope you take a second to listen. It really adds to the vibe.

  P.S. The hammock reference is from Resilient which contains a smoking hot scene involving said piece of cloth. So if you were like what? Read Resilient it will all make sense…

  PEACE!