Free Cherishing You by JoRae Andrews

pretty much said right there at the table that she was going back to Texas, and we weren’t going to stop her.
    Not that I would have anyway. I’d never get in the way of her being happy, which is why I let her leave last time without telling her how I felt. I couldn’t do it. At the time, I thought I was having a baby with Kelly, and there was no way I could make Andi have that future—make her fall in love with me and be a stepmom to my kid. She’s not the person who fell asleep drunk one night and woke up with a girl lying naked on his chest. That night was the one and only time I’ve ever had moonshine, and I don’t ever plan to drink it again. I’ll never let myself get so drunk that I don’t remember what happened.
    Kelly swore we made love several times that night, but I don’t remember a single thing after the second shot. I didn’t remember even driving home, let alone have sex multiple times in one night with some girl I knew I wasn’t in love with. I’m not saying I couldn’t; that’s every guy’s dream, isn’t it? I’d love to do it, but only with Andi, and I want to remember every detail about it, not be drunk and stupid.
    No, Andi had her whole future in front of her; she still had a chance to make something of herself and follow her dreams, and I was not going to be the one to stand in her way. If she stayed, I wanted it to be because she wanted to be there. I never want to see regret in her eyes
    When I get home, I throw my keys on the hook by the door. I know Mom isn’t going to be home tonight, and probably not for a few days this time. The last message she sent me said she was with Tim, her on-again/off-again boyfriend. Yeah, he’s a real winner, and the sad part is she knows it. She’ll get mad at him and dump him, but then a few days or maybe even a few weeks later she hooks back up with him. Same old story every time; “Well, he said he was sorry for being an asshole, and you know, Ethan, life is too short to let a little argument keep true love apart.” Yeah right, and she would know all about true love now, wouldn’t she? She has had more one-night stands than I care to keep track of. Don’t get me wrong; she’s a very sweet person, but ever since my dad died, she’s never been the same. Maybe that was her problem—maybe he was her true love. Hell, I don’t know; I can’t figure out how to fix my own love life, let alone how to make hers better. Of course, not going back to that jackass, Tim, would make a damn good start.
    I walk to the kitchen and grab a beer, tossing the cap from the bottle in the trash. I’m not a big drinker, but I do have a few beers every now and then, particularly after stressful days like today. I feel like I’m all wound up without a release button. Oh, I know a way I could get a release, but it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen either. Of course, I could resort to old faithful—my hand and Andi’s face. And now I have a lot more to add to my fantasies of her. But I don’t want to think about that right now; I just want to unplug and forget for a while.
    I sit down on the couch and lay my head back, staring at the ceiling. I desperately want to not think about anything, but Andi keeps running through my mind. I can almost feel her straddling my lap on the dock, the way her body shook as it was wracked with an orgasm. Oh, what a sight it was too. I think that memory will be forever etched in my mind. It was the most beautiful sight I have ever seen.
    I’m lost in the memory of the pond when I hear a knock on the door. It startles me, and I damn near dump the rest of my beer in my lap. I catch it before it spills, downing the rest of it before setting the bottle on the table. When I walk over and open the door, I’m shocked to see Andi standing there.
    “Hi.”
    “Hi, um . . . I’m sorry to bug you, but I was wondering if I could talk to you for a few minutes, you know, if you weren’t busy or anything. If this is a bad time, I