Unbreak Me (Second Chances #1) (23 page)

“Yep, the first year I got everything I asked for,” Katie nodded.

“What exactly did you ask for?” Melanie wrinkled her forehead.

“A dad,” Katie shrugged. She skipped into the kitchen and plopped down on a chair. “Let’s eat!”

After breakfast, the family made their way back into the living room. Hannah and Katie cleaned up the mess from the presents and then went back to Hannah’s room to watch TV and brain storm a gift idea for Patrick.

Melanie and Austin settled on the couch together to discuss their impending nuptials.

“I don’t care where we do this,” Austin looked into her eyes. “We’ll go where ever you want to.”

“I don‘t really want anything big. Just family and maybe a few friends,” she shrugged. “I don’t have much vacation time right now anyway. We’d have to do this near a weekend if we wanted any time away. How do you feel about a destination wedding? Somewhere warm and tropical,” she glanced past him at the snow falling outside.

“Okay, are you sure? You don’t even want something small in a church? You could have more people if we kept in local,” he picked up her hand and kissed it.

“That’s not important to me,” she shook her head. “I just want to marry you...on a beach in the warm sand, then spend the rest of the time in bed,” she grinned coquettishly up at him as she slowly drug her fingernails up his thigh.

“Okay… a beach wedding it is then, but you gotta stop that,” he kissed her and pointed at her hand. “How does Aruba sound?” he tilted his head to the side.

“It sounds wonderful,” she began teasing him with her nails again.

He reached down and pinned her hand to his thigh in an iron grip. “What day do you want to have the ceremony on?” he ground out and gave her a warning glare.

“How about the most romantic day of the year?” she giggled as she tried to flex her fingers.

“Melanie, I’m warning you,” he groaned.

“About what?” she grinned.

He shook his head and sighed as he released her hand, deciding to have a little fun of his own.

“Really, you’d pick Super Bowl Sunday?” he teased.

“Austin,” she shoved at his shoulder, “I meant Valentine’s Day.”

“Okay, you do realize that that’s only six weeks away, right?” he cocked his head to the side and grazed his hand down her ribs settling right on her hip.

“Yes,” she giggled and shifted uncomfortably. The desire she had felt from earlier that morning was back with a vengeance. She‘d yet to quench it and being around him like this had her quite flustered. “I’m ready to start waking up with you,” she blushed. “That’s all the time I need to move you in.”
And I’m growing rather tired of pleasuring myself
she silently thought.

“Alright,” he kissed her cheek. “Valentine’s Day it is.”

She turned into him and pressed a kiss to his lips. He deepened it and then pulled away. “I’ve got to do the dishes. Why don’t you sit here and relax. I’ll be back shortly and we can lounge and watch some TV.”

“Hurry back,” she giggled. As he moved to stand, she swatted him playfully on the rear. He released a groan as he sauntered back towards the kitchen.
Six weeks seems like forever,
he thought.

She leaned back into the couch and glanced around the room at the remnants from the morning.
Yep, definitely the best Christmas ever.
She too had gotten everything she wanted.

Chapter 21

New Year’s Eve 2012

As the Christmas excitement was winding down, Melanie had been preparing for Austin and Hannah to move into the brownstone. She’d cleaned out her extra room, so Hannah could have her own, and she’d been collecting boxes from where ever she could find them. She and Austin had both decided that they would rent a storage unit for anything that wasn’t going to fit in the house. One day, they both hoped to build a house outside of the city. Currently she was trying to decide what to wear to the McKinley’s party.

Jason had given her an invite at the hospital the other day. They were having their annual New Year’s Eve party, and he was inviting as many people as he could from work. They still didn’t know very many people in the neighborhood and this was his chance to meet some of them.

“Katie,” Melanie called. “Are you about ready? Austin’s going to be here with Hannah any minute now.”

“I guess,” Katie huffed from her room as she flopped down on the bed.

She’d changed clothes three times in the last fifteen minutes. Patrick had told her that after the party got in full swing, they could sneak away. He had rented some movies and they could go watch them in his room. His parents rarely noticed when he left the parties, and he’d grown rather bored with them over the years. Suzanne, his mom, was quite the entertainer and he had a routine to avoid the crowds.

Katie was looking forward to having an excuse to hang out with him rather than be stuck with the adults. Between all of her cousins, she was the youngest by several years. Anytime anyone in her family hosted an event, she was always forced to hang out with the adults. Many of her cousins saw her as the baby and didn’t want her around for their exploits. She’d quickly learned how to blend in at the parties. The fact that Patrick had wanted to escape with her just made this party that much more exciting. Katie kept switching back and forth between jeans and a skirt. She wanted to be comfortable when she sat up in his room, but she also wanted to look nice. He was having other friends over that she hadn’t met yet, and she didn’t want to embarrass herself.

Melanie stuck her head in the door. “What are you doing in here?”

Katie shrugged, “I can’t decide.” She flopped back on the bed, “Comfort or looks?”

“Katie you can still look nice and be comfortable,” Melanie laughed. “Pick something so we’re not late.”

When Katie finally emerged from her room, she had decided on a pair of black cords with a red sweater. “This ok?” she turned.

“You look fine,” Melanie shook her head. “What’s the big deal anyway? It’s Patrick.”

“I just want to look nice is all,” Katie blushed.

Just then there was a knock at the door. Melanie opened it to find Austin and Hannah on the other side.

“Come on in,” Melanie motioned inside. “I just need to get my coat.”

Hannah came over to Katie and the two began whispering. Katie had told Hannah about the plan to escape the party and engage in some fun. The girls were giggling when Melanie rounded the corner with her coat in hand.

“Let’s go,” she waved in the direction of the door.

“So how many uptight doctors are going to be here tonight?” Austin chuckled.

“Austin,” Melanie shoved him slightly. “Be nice!”

She shook her head as he leaned over and kissed her temple, “I’m always nice.”

After putting on their coats, they stepped out so Melanie could lock the door and they began walking next door. It was a cool crisp night with a slight bite in the air. Laughter and music could be heard from the sidewalk as they headed for the McKinley’s front door.

They walked up to the front steps and knocked. Suzanne swung the door open. “Welcome, please come in.”

When they entered, the house was a buzz of activity. People were everywhere. The big screen TV in the family room had a Patriots game on. Melanie wasn’t sure who they were playing, but it was playoff time so it didn’t really matter in the eyes of the men. There was a pool table set up with several men shooting pool around it. The kitchen and dining room had numerous plates of food set out. Couples were sporadically placed throughout the house. Men mostly graced the family room, where as women spilled out of the kitchen. A few teens were milling around and picking at the food. Suzanne took Melanie and Austin’s coats and pointed to the different rooms.

“Make yourself at home. There’s plenty to eat in there, and I think Jason’s keeping most of the boys,” she rolled her eyes “occupied in there,” she pointed at the football game that was in full swing on the TV.

Melanie laughed as Austin leaned into her ear. “Let’s get a bite to eat first.”

She nodded and they headed in to kitchen area. As she walked up to the counter to put some finger foods on a plate, she watched Austin as he bent into the fridge to grab a beer. He was wearing a dark grey button down and black dress slacks. They hung low on his hips and caressed his backside at just the right places. He had left the top few buttons of his shirt undone, and he’d rolled the sleeves up to the middle of his forearms.

Her eyes were glazed over as she zoned out and she didn’t notice Nikki, a nurse from the hospital, come up behind her. “Isn’t that Austin Montgomery, one of Boston’s most eligible bachelors?”

“Yes, and not anymore.” Melanie flashed her hand in front of Nikki’s face and grinned.

“Oh my god. This is the man you’ve been so goo goo over lately?” Nikki’s mouth hung open. “How’d you manage to snag that?”

Melanie just giggled as Austin made his way back in her direction. When he reached her side, he wrapped his arm around her waist and tugged her over to him. He placed a kiss to her cheek as a collective round of “Awwwwes” were uttered.

“This is Nikki, a charge nurse that I work with,” Melanie pointed and Nikki reached to shake his hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Austin smiled as he grabbed her hand.

“And this,” Melanie pointed at Austin, “is my fiancé, Austin Montgomery.”

Austin leaned in next to her ear and whispered, “As much fun as I’m having being ogled by you and your friends, I think I’m going to go in there with the guys.”

Melanie blushed, “Okay, have fun.”

Austin released her from his side and meandered in the direction of the family room. Before he rounded the corner, he looked back over his shoulder to see Melanie’s smoldering gaze right on his backside. He chuckled and shook his hips suggestively as Melanie and Nikki erupted in a fit of giggles.

“He’s delicious,” Nikki licked her lips and snickered. “I bet he’s great in bed.”

Melanie averted her eyes as she mumbled, “I wouldn’t know.”

“Wait, what?” Nikki gasped and scanned the room to make sure no one was listening to them. “Has he not tried to get you in his bed? Is something wrong with him?”

“No, nothing’s wrong,” Melanie whispered. “And believe me, he’s tried. I told him that I want to wait, and he’s respected that. I think he might combust before the wedding though. I’ve gotten him pretty worked up lately,” she giggled as she slapped her hand over her mouth.

Pretty soon, Suzanne made her way over to the two women, “So that man of yours is really something.”

“Yes, he sure is,” Melanie agreed.

“You’ll have to bring him over this summer when we open our pool. I’d like to see what’s under all those suits,” she snickered.

“Suzanne,” Nikki chided. “He’ll be her husband by then.”

“I didn’t say I wanted to touch,” Suzanne giggled. “I just want to… Mmmmm.”

Melanie blushed and excused herself from the group. She didn’t want to hear any more from Suzanne. It was just too weird. She knew that she was happily married, and Jason was no slouch to look at either.

Over the next few hours, Melanie made herself comfortable talking to the women while Austin was engrossed in the game in the other room. Every once in a while you would here a shout or a groan from the men. The women would just shake their heads and laugh.

At one point Patrick had crept up behind Katie and Hannah. “You bored yet?”

“Why?” Katie whispered.

“Let’s get outta here. I’ve got a stack of movies upstairs. They won’t even miss us, trust me,” he pointed at his mom who was holding a glass of wine and swaying from side to side. “Max has gone to bed, and she’s teetering on the edge.”

“Okay, let me tell my mom that we’ll be up there so she doesn’t worry,” Katie smiled.

After telling Melanie that they were going to watch movies, Katie and Hannah met Patrick at the bottom of the stairs.

“This will go on for hours, trust me. Once my dad pulls out the liquor, the night drags into the morning,” he shook he head as he watched as Jason pour himself a glass of bourbon in the other room as the group climbed the stairs.

Katie and Hannah rounded the corner to a closed door and paused. Patrick reached pass them and opened it. There were two more boys and another girl sitting on his bed.

“These are some of my friends from my home school group,” he waved his arm in the direction of the bed. “This is Shannon,” he pointed to the girl. She was petit with curly red hair. “And they are Matt and John,” he pointed to the boys.

Katie recognized Matt from the hockey team. He was tall and thin with dark hair. John was short and on the pudgy side. He had buzzed blonde hair and bright green eyes.

Hannah pointed to Matt. “You play on the hockey team,” she stated more than questioned.

“Yep,” he nodded. “Someone’s got to score the goals,” he chided.

“Watch it, Mills,” Patrick glared at him.

“You scored a goal?” Katie raised her brows in question. “Funny, I was at the last four games and I don’t remember that,” she shrugged.

“Oh, burn!” John laughed as he flopped back and grabbed his belly.

“That right there, is why I like this girl,” Patrick threw his arm around Katie’s shoulder and hip checked her.

She blushed and glanced over at Hannah who was shaking her head.

“Have a seat,” Patrick pointed around the room.

There were a couple of soft chairs along with a beanbag, and then the bed. Katie flopped down in a seated position on the end of the bed, and Hannah slid in next to her.

“So, who’s having fun?” Patrick shrugged. “I know these parties are such a blast,” he rolled his eyes.

“Katie flopped back and threw her arm over her eyes laughing, “Don’t be so dramatic.”

The rest of the room erupted in laughter.

“I like you, you’re funny,” Shannon giggled.

“So what’ll it be?” Patrick tossed the movies onto the bed.

They were all classics. Katie cocked her head to the side and smirked.

“What?” he shrugged. “I like old movies, you already knew this. It‘s nothing new.”

“This one,” Shannon tossed a box in his direction.

She had selected Footloose. “I love me some Kevin Bacon,” she laughed.

“Classics huh?” Katie giggled.

“Yeah, now quiet so we can hear,” he shouldered into her.

Katie was beginning to see a whole new side of Patrick. He was on his feet dancing during the musical numbers and rolling on his back laughing at his friends when they tried to dance, too. The cocky tough guy that she’d seen when she first met him had a silly carefree side, too. She laughed as she watched him cut loose. When the movie ended, Shannon and John stood up to leave.

“My dad’s probably ready to go,” Shannon shrugged.

“Yeah, it’s getting late,” John moved towards the door.

“We’ll see ya later Patrick,” they waved as they walked out the door.

After they left, Matt had moved over to sit on the beanbag and Hannah moved to the chair in the corner. Katie flopped back on the bed as Patrick scooted up near the headboard.

“I’m glad you like it,” he smiled.

She flipped her head to the side. “Like what?”

“Your Christmas gift,” he pointed and shrugged at the same time.

Patrick had given Katie a small gold daisy charm. She had put it on the same chain as her “best friends” heart that she shared with Hannah. She wore the chain everyday, so she had it on that night. When she had flopped back on the bed it had fallen out of her shirt. He had told her that daisies symbolized friendship and he was glad they were friends.

She shrugged as she rolled on to her stomach so she was facing him, “I love it. I wear it everyday”.

Matt rolled his eyes at them. “Friends, huh?”

Patrick pulled the pillow out from behind his back and heaved it in Matt’s direction. “Shut it, Mills.”

Hannah and Katie both laughed as Matt tried to block the assault.

“On that note, I’m outta here,” he stood and headed for the door.

After he left, Hannah turned in Patrick’s direction. “So did you like your gift?”

Hannah had helped Katie pick out a Bruins jersey for Patrick. She thought that being a hockey player, it’d be the perfect gift.

“Yes, I love it,” he pointed to the back of the bedroom door where it was currently hanging. “I’m hoping to make it to a game so I can get it autographed,” he shrugged.

Hannah shook her head from side to side. “Well we better check and see if our parents are ready to go. It is getting late.”