Stepbrother Weekend (Filthy Dirty Desires)

We kiss and then he reluctantly leaves, looking so damn hot in his jeans and bomber jacket. I’ve been so proud of him.

After we fled the cottage in January, we took his car back to his mother’s house. She let us stay in the finished basement and we fell deeper in love every day.

There’s no doubt that he’s the one for me. I want to be with him for the rest of my life. Every second of it.

His mother is amazing and we bonded over the few months that I was living there. I was willing to give up Princeton, but Tanner wasn’t having any of that.

Over the summer, he moved with me to New Jersey and we got a nice cute place, which is walking distance to the campus. I accessed the trust fund my grandparents left me to help pay for it all. Tanner keeps track of every dollar spent and promises to pay it back tenfold once he gets onto his feet. I have no doubt that he will. He got a job in a big garage and has already been promoted twice after only a few months of working there.

He’s smart as hell and is learning to wield his charm in a positive way. It’s working wonders for him and with the intense ambition he has to ‘give me the life I deserve’ I know he’s going to do amazing things. I can’t wait to watch them all.

He turns and gives me that wickedly beautiful grin as he walks. That look still makes my knees weak. I smile and wave back with my cheeks blushing before I head into the campus.

Life has been perfect.

Well, almost perfect…

It’s still been radio silence when it comes to my mom and David.

The fallout was disastrous. They felt betrayed and were appalled by our love.

I tried to explain to my mother how I felt, how I knew he was the one for me, how everything would be okay if our parents hadn’t gotten together first, how we’re both adults capable of making adult decisions, and more…

She didn’t want to hear any of it. She said she needed some time to think about it.

It’s been almost eight months.

I take a deep breath and try not to let the sadness ruin my first day of college. It’s supposed to be exciting and full of—

My phone rings, interrupting my train of thought. I grab it, thinking it’s going to be Tanner telling me how much he misses me, so I answer without thinking.

“Miss me already?”

“Eleanor?”

I stop dead in my tracks. “Mom?”

We both start crying.

“I couldn’t let you start college without wishing you a good first day.”

“I’m glad you called.”

She sounds nervous and shaky. I wonder how long it took her to gain the courage to dial my number. I’m glad she did.

“How are you?”

“I’m good, Mom. Really good. And you?”

“I’m fine. Missing you a lot.”

“I miss you too, Mom.”

I can hear her sniffing.

“And how’s Tanner?”

I swallow hard. This is where it usually goes off the rails.

“Tanner is really good too. He got a new job. His boss loves him.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” she says. “I knew he could do great things if he tried.”

I walk toward my building with my heart pounding.

“I was thinking…”

“Yeah?”

“If you two don’t mind… maybe I could… come visit?”

“We’re still together, Mom. Nothing is going to change that.”

“I know,” she quickly adds. “I know. And I want you to know that I’m done trying to break you up.”

“You are?”

“Yeah. I just want to be in your life again. I want to see you happy and if being with your step—with Tanner, makes you happy, then I’m not going to stand in your way.”

I take a few deep breaths as I walk into the building and head for my class.

“I’d like that, Mom. I’d like that a lot. And I think that once you see how good we are together, you’ll even be happy for me.”

“I think so too,” she says. “I know you’re a smart woman and can make decisions that are best for you.”

“And David?” I ask as I arrive at my class. I hover outside it with my pulse racing.

“David is going to take more time,” she says honestly. “But I think he’ll get there.”

“Okay, Mom. I’m really glad you called. I have to go into class now though. It starts in three minutes.”

“Okay. Can you call me tonight and let me know how it went?”

“Absolutely,” I say with a smile. “I’d love to.”

We hang up on a positive note and I head into the class feeling light and ready for the future that I know will be amazing.

EPILOGUE

Tanner

* * *

Four Years Later…

* * *

I’m so proud of my girl it feels like my heart is going to burst out of my chest.

“Eleanor Dixie Lawson,” the announcer says through the microphone.