In This Life (Sequel to 'In Another Life')

136

My dreams were full of a future that I wasn't sure that I was ready for. Colby and I sitting on a couch together, while two little boys, one blonde, the other with curly brown hair, ran around shooting each other with Nerf guns. There was a little girl too. She was the youngest, sitting on the floor at our feet. She looked up at me and smiled, a smile that took over most of her face. A smile that I knew well. Then she jumped up, hugged me, and crawled into Colby's lap. Her aqua eyes, my eyes, shown with so much love when she looked at her father, that it made my heart physically hurt. If I had been able to see myself while I slept, I would've noticed the smile that never left my face. I woke the next morning, and just lay there, letting the dream play over and over in my head. For some reason, I didn't want to forget it. Even if it didn't happen for years to come, the dream made me happy. For the first time in my life, the future didn't scare me. Colby's arm was thrown around my waist, while his face was buried into the crook of my neck. I could feel his hair tickling my skin. I placed my hand on his arm and tried to move it so that I could get up. He grumbled something and pulled me closer. I smiled and rolled my eyes. I tried a little harder and was finally able to dislodge myself from him without waking him. The man could sleep through almost anything. I slid some shorts on, and walked out to go grab one of my energy drinks from the fridge. Denise was already up, making coffee. She lifted her lip in disgust, and shook her head at me when I popped the tab on the cold drink and turned it up. "I don't see how you drink those things first thing in the morning," she said, stirring sugar into her coffee. I cocked my eyebrow at her and motioned my head towards her cup. "I don't see how you drink that when it's a hundred degrees outside." She pursed her lips and cocked her head. "Touche." I laughed, and sat down at the table with her. "Where's Eli?" I asked. I watched her face and noticed a small smile appear on her lips, as she tapped her nails against her coffee cup. "He's still asleep." "You really like him, huh?" I said, smiling at her. She looked up and met my gaze. "I do T. I really do. You know how I am about actually falling for someone but I don't think I ever had a choice. With Corey, it was never more than a crush. With my exes, after Alex, I never allowed myself to open up to anyone completely because I just thought that if I kept a small part of myself to myself...they couldn't break me. It's different with him." Her voice turned from soft to scared, so I put my hand over hers, making her stop the insistent tapping. "Love hurts Neece. You know that. But you never gave those other guys a chance really. You broke their hearts before they could break yours. I get you're scared, and you should be because that's part of falling in love. Being willing to give someone the ability to hold your heart in their hands, and trusting that they won't shatter it. It's so worth it though." She wiped the single tear that had traveled down her cheek, with her finger, and sniffed. "Like I said, I don't think I had a choice. I've never fallen for someone so hard, so fast. It's terrifying." I nodded, agreeing with her. "It definitely is." Colby walked into the kitchen then, wearing nothing but his joggers. His sleepy eyes found mine as he ran a hand through his messy hair. My breath caught in my throat, like it does every time I look at him. His taut stomach muscles rolled as he stretched, his arms flexing over his head. I watched his tattoos dance as his skin moved, working out his stiff muscles. I swallowed and picked up my drink. My mouth was suddenly very parched. "Good morning," he said, his voice thick and raspy with sleep. "Morning," Denise replied. I tried, but the words wouldn't come out, so I just smiled at him. He walked over to me and kissed my cheek, then went to the fridge. I watched the muscles in his back move as he grabbed the orange juice, and closed the door. It was my own personal movie that I didn't want to stop watching. He went to the cabinet and grabbed a glass out of it, then set it on the counter, and poured the juice into it. He turned around facing us, and brought the glass to his lips. He took a drink then brought it down and cleared his throat. I looked up and caught his eye. "If you don't stop staring at me like that, you're going to miss your first day of work," he said, his voice deeper now. I blushed, and looked away as Denise started laughing. Then the words he said registered in my head, causing me to jerk my gaze back to his. "Wait, what? First day of work? What do you mean?" He laughed, and took another sip of his juice. "You've got a shoot today. Two high end clients. They like their work to be immaculate so you better bring your A game." "Who? What is going on Colby? Did you get one of your friends to give me a job? You know I don't want you to do that. I'll find another job on my own." He shrugged, and put the juice back in the fridge. "Whatever. It pays good though. Like, really good, but if you're not interested, I'll call and get someone else to do it." He took his phone out of his pocket, and started swiping. "Wait!" I said, standing up, and leaning my arm on the table. "Maybe it would be okay. Just this once. I need the money." He grinned and stuck his phone back in his pocket. "Great. Now go get ready. You don't want to be late." Denise slapped my ass as I walked by her, and laughed.