Chapter 21
It was the first day Melissa could remember awaking with a smile on her face in quite some time. It was a beautiful spring day already. The sun shone down into her window casting bright light, transforming her room in an instant. She rose from her bed, walking to the window and looking out. The wet Panhandle winter had given them plenty of moisture and the lawn in her back yard was so green, it almost didn�t look real. She laughed as she watched Cleo and Ceasar playing tug-of-war with their rope toy. Neither dog would ever give up, she thought, until they had claimed the prize for their own. Finally, when Ceasar tried to get a better grip, the rope slipped loose and Cleo gained control. As soon as she figured out that she had won, she began to run madly around the yard, followed closely by the larger male. Melissa laughed aloud at the two. �Give him hell,� she said between giggles.
She even decided to make breakfast, something she hadn�t done since the day after she met Joey. She didn�t feel the least bit queasy. �Good, maybe the worst of this is over,� she thought. She cooked bacon and eggs along with cinnamon rolls and she ate til she thought she�d bust.
Brandi came down as she was rinsing the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher. �Mmmm, cinnamon rolls,� she said as she grabbed one and sat down. �Hey Lyss,� she said in her sweetest voice. �Can I borrow an outfit tonight?�
�Yeah, sure,� she said with a grin. �Get whatever you want. Have you and Jon got plans?�
�Yeah,� she said, beaming. She and Jonathan had been dating for a few weeks and she was already crazy about him. She understood now what Melissa meant when she said she felt like she�d always known Joey. �He�s coming over in a couple of hours to watch a movie too.�
�Ok,� Melissa said as she closed the dishwasher. �Well, I think that I�m gonna take the dogs for a walk. It�s such a gorgeous Saturday morning!�
After hugging Brandi she went upstairs and changed into a pair of loose sweats and a t-shirt. As she walked into the back yard, she breathed in the warm spring air. She loved this time of year. Everything was so new and clean. It was the perfect setting for a new beginning.
Cassie had decided to go along with her and the two talked as they attempted to keep up with the large dogs who tried to pull the women behind them. Cassie was glad to see that Melissa was feeling better. She knew that losing Joey was hard for her and she wasn�t completely over him yet, but she was improving each day. She still talked to JC occasionally. Each time, he had asked about Melissa, saying Joey was not himself since she left. It was the same for Melissa, even if she did wear a smile, and secretly Cassie hoped they would find a way to be together. With she and JC it was clear-cut from the beginning. They enjoyed each other�s company and that was all. There wasn�t any type of romance, but a mutual attraction that they had acted on. With Joey and Melissa, though, there was something there from the beginning.
After a brisk walk around their neighborhood, the two friends headed back home. �Ahh, Jon�s already here,� Melissa said noticing his car sitting in the driveway. �They are SO cute together!�
They walked into the back door to find that Jon was indeed there, sitting with Brandi on the couch, cuddling as they kissed.Melissa exchanged a quick hello before running upstairs to take a long, warm bath.
The water felt so good covering her body. She sunk into the tub as she thought of Joey. God, she missed him. Maybe she should call him. Why shouldn�t she believe Lance when he told her that Joey hadn�t seen anyone else since her? She didn�t think he had any reason to mislead her. She needed to call him anyway. They needed to talk and she knew it. The grin she�d worn all day only grew when she thought of talking to Joey again.
Melissa was still smiling when her cell phone chimed about an hour later. She knew that it was Lance, wanting an answer.
�Hello,� she said cheerily.
�Good mornin,� a yawning Lance replied.
Melissa giggled at Lance as she fought a yawn as well. �Well good mornin, sweetheart. If that�s what you wanna call it. It�s almost noon, hun.�
Lance laughed for a moment, before his head started to pound again. �OK, Laughing...not so much a good idea right now. I was only out til about 1:30, but I made it count. Besides, here it�s�oh wait, I�m an hour ahead of you. Nevermind,� he said recalling his severe words toward Joey. He needed to go talk to him. Sure, everything he told him was true, but he was being harsh and he owed Joey an apology for that. �And you know why I�m up,� he continued.
�I know,� she said smiling. �I took it last night.�
�And?� Lance asked impatiently.
She giggled at Lance. �God, you �re so anxious,� she teased as she heard the doorbell. �Shit, Lance. Someone�s at the door. Lemme call you back.�
�Melissa, you can�t do that. You have to tell me.�
�Oh fine,� she said before continuing, telling Lance the news he wanted to hear.
�That�s great, Melissa� Lance said, the smile apparent in his voice.
�Yeah, I think it is,� she said thoughtfully. �Well, I� ll talk to ya later, hun,� she said as they hung up.
Melissa began to walk downstairs when she heard a voice that stopped her in her tracks. �Hey, uhm is Melissa here?� Joey asked the young man who answered the door.
�Oh, well I think she�s still in the shower,� he said.
Joey suddenly felt a wave of jealousy surge through his body. �Who the hell is this punk?� he thought as he sized him up mentally. �Oh, well, I need to see her,� he continued.
His mind raced. Lance had said that Melissa loved him. If he was right, then why the hell had she already moved on? He sure as hell hadn�t and he�d been lonely as hell without her. Last night the thought had entered his mind to take the brunette to his hotel room, but he hadn�t. And no matter what Lance thought it wasn�t only his words that had prevented that mistake. He�d thought maybe if he gave into his urges, he could forget Melissa, but something wouldn�t let him. That something was his heart, because no matter how he tried to fight it, he knew he was in love with Melissa. He was envious of this new man who had apparently found his way into her life, but more than that he was hurt.
�Well, come on in,� he said, looking strangely at the larger man as he opened the door wider.
�Who is it, hun?� Brandi said as she entered from the kitchen.
Suddenly, Joey realized that he�d read the situation incorrectly. He was overwhelmed by emotions. He felt embarrassed and relieved at once. More than anything, though, he felt utter happiness that there was still a chance. Had he not already intended to tell her his feelings, he knew this would have prompted him to do so. Joey introduced himself to Jonathan and gave Brandi a hug.
�I�ll go get her,� she said as she walked toward the stairs and Joey sat on the couch across from Jonathan.
Melissa, of course, knew that Joey was there. She�d heard the entire exchange that had taken place between the two men only moments earlier. Before he was in the house, she had dashed upstairs to gain her composure. Now she sat on her bed, staring blankly ahead. He was really here. Why was he here? Her heart beat loudly through her ears as she willed herself to breathe.
As she attempted to calm herself down, she heard a knock on the door. �Lyss?� Brandi said, attempting poorly to conceal the excitement in her voice.
�Yeah, uhm come on in,� Melissa stuttered.
�Lyss, he�s here,� she said grinning widely.
�I know,� she said blankly. "I heard him. I�Oh my God,� she said. �Why did he come Brandi? I�m trying to get over him. He can�t be here.� Suddenly, she remembered the watch in her dresser. �Of course,� she said absently as she walked to her dresser, opening the drawer. �He wants his watch back.�
Brandi didn�t even make an effort to suppress her laughter. �Melissa Kathryn Jameson, I can�t believe you. Are you crazy? Who the hell would fly cross country in the middle of the night to get a watch back?�
�Well, it�s an expensive watch,� she said indignantly, eliciting more amusement from her sister.
�I don�t care how fuckin pricey it is. He�s not here for the damn watch. He�s here for you.�
Melissa�s heart rate increased even more at the thought of being held in his arms again. She couldn�t even think straight right now. She had planned out what to say to him when she called him tonight, but she knew that any premeditated speech would go right out the window when he was standing before her.
�Lyss, do you wanna come down? Or should I send him up to you?�
Melissa knew that Brandi and Jonathan were watching television downstairs and she and Joey needed to talk. �No, y�all watch your movie. Uhm, go ahead and tell him I�m up here.�
�Ok, I�m sure he knows the way,� she said mockingly as she closed the door.
As soon as Brandi left, Melissa felt her palms sweat. She forced herself to calm down as she waited for him. Soon, she heard his footsteps falling and knew he was near. Her heart felt like it would leap from her chest at any moment and the butterflies she had banished long ago had found their way back into her stomach.
She walked to stand in front of the door, waiting for a knock or for him to simply come into the room. When he did neither, she opened the door and found him standing there, looking almost as shook up as she was.
"Melissa,� he said breathlessly as his eyes swept over her face and down her body.
�Hi, Joey,� she said, failing miserably at attempting coolness about his presence.
They looked at each other for a few moments and then there were no words as Joey quickly closed the short distance between them and took her into his arms. Without an utterance, Joey�s lips came down on Melissa�s with all of the desire he had held inside for the past month. He held her close as his lips parted, his tongue gliding out to caress her lips.
With no argument, Melissa�s lips parted and she welcomed his tongue into her mouth. They stood in the doorway for what seemed like an eternity, their bodies moving in accord, kissing and touching until they felt as if they were one again.
Once they had temporarily satisfied their hunger, they stopped, holding to one another for support as they breathed raggedly. �Oh my God, I�ve missed you,� Joey said into Melissa�s hair as he breathed in her familiar scent.
�Joey, I�ve missed you too,� she said as her head began to clear. �But why are you here?� As much as she wanted to lose herself in Joey, she knew there was something on his mind. It was obvious and her mind teemed with explanations.
Joey sighed, smiling down at Melissa. He�d thought this would be hard, but now he knew how natural it was to love her and how simple it would be to tell her. �I need to talk to you,� he said, smiling.
�Ok,� she said slowly. �What about?� Her heart�s rhythm seemed to double as she waited for the details.
�Melissa, something has been on my mind for quite some time. As much as I tried, I could never forget. Then last night, Lance had a little�talk with me,� he said with a grin.
Lance had talked to him last night about�Suddenly, she knew exactly why he was here and her questions were replaced by anger. �Lance,� she said loudly. �I told him to keep his mouth shut. I told him that I would talk to you myself if need be. He promised me he wouldn�t say anything and�what the fuck? �
Joey was a little surprised by her reaction. �Melissa, I already knew in my heart. Lance just prompted me to do something about it.�
Melissa was only hearing half of what Joey said. She felt completely betrayed. �Joey, I don�t care. It was for me to tell you. But he just couldn�t stay out of it. He had no right to tell you I was pregnant.�
Joey�s words stopped in his throat as Melissa�s words began to sink in. �Told me you were?� He was speechless.
�Don�t worry though, Joey. I can take care of myself,� she said indignantly. �You didn�t have to run back here just because you thought that I would make things harder for you. You have nothing to worry about,� she said, almost yelling as angry tears began to fall from her eyes. �I was going to tell you,� she said through her sobs. The tears multiplied and intensified as Joey simply sat, looking at her with shock.
Joey was stunned by Melissa�s confession. He didn�t know how to react. �Pregnant?� he said absently as she continued to sob. �Melissa,� he said walking closer to her. �Lyss, why didn�t you call and tell me?�
�I would have Joey. I was going to, but�� She couldn�t offer a justification for telling Lance. She had just done it because she needed someone to talk to. With a sigh, she sat on the edge of her bad, placing her head in her hands.
�But what Melissa? I have the right to know. And to tell Lance before calling me�Lyss, why didn�t you call?�
�Joey, I didn�t want to bother you before I knew. And Lance only knew because he called me. I needed someone to talk to and Lance was there for me. And I asked him not to say anything until I knew.�
Joey wasn�t terribly angry that Lance knew but mostly shocked that she hadn�t told him first. When she said that she needed someone to talk to though, he re-directed his irritation, pointing it toward himself. He hadn�t been there for her and that�s why she went to Lance. �Melissa, Lance didn�t tell me anything.�
Had the situation not been so serious, Joey would have laughed at the expression on Melissa�s face. It was the look of someone who just figured out they had said too much. �A baby�� Joey said thoughtfully. True, it wasn�t the best situation, but hadn�t he imagined starting a family with Melissa?
�Wait, Joey, Lance didn�t say anything? You said he talked to you.�
�Yeah, he did. He told me what a schmuck I was for treating you the way I had,� he said as his mind snapped back into the present and why he�d come. �Melissa,� he said softly, taking her hands as he sat down on her large bed beside her. �He was right. I should never have let you get off of that bus without telling you how I felt. Lyss, I�m not here because of the baby. I�m here because I love you.�
Melissa sat staring straight ahead for a few moments, not sure of what she had heard. Once she was certain he had said those words, she wasn�t sure what to say first. �Oh my God, Joey. I love you, too. I�ve loved you for as long as I can remember.�
Joey leaned in, kissing her lips full, then breaking to kiss her tear-kissed cheeks. �I love you, Melissa. And I don�t know where to go from here, but I have to be with you. It�s all I know. When we�re together, I breathe easier. I smile more. Everything is better with you. And I want a family with you. This baby is going to know just how much his mommy and daddy love him and each other.�
�Joey,� Melissa said, allowing tears of happiness to flow freely from her eyes. �I�m not pregnant. It was a false alarm, baby. The test I took last night was negative. I�ve just had a stomach flu.�
Joey looked back at her, unsure. In a way, he felt disappointed, but he knew it was for the best. They needed time together, time to love each other. Hopefully, one day they could share that love with a family. For now, though, all that they needed was each other. �Not pregnant?� he said, looking ahead.
�No,� she said smiling a little sadly. �No baby.�
�Well,� Joey said with a sly grin. �We�d better get busy then.�
Melissa laughed aloud, something she couldn�t recall doing since they last time they had seen each other. �Joseph Anthony Fatone!�
�Well hey, we can at least get some practice in,� he said as he lay across the bed, bringing Melissa with him.
�You�d better believe it, Mr. Lots and lots of practice,� Melissa said, tracing her fingers over his face.
�Good,� he said raising his eyebrows as he kissed her face again. �God, I love you.�
Melissa smiled widely. �I love you, Joey. I love you so much.� They celebrated their reunion, making love through the day and into the hours of the night. They laughed and cried together, knowing they had a tomorrow. They didn�t know where it would take them, but they did know that they would face each new day together.