Page 111 of Barron's Second Chance
"What the fuck, Ian!" He kept his voice low, not wanting to alarm the patrons that an employee tiff was happening. He watched as his usually calm and collected manager hightailed it ahead of him. Ian opened one of the double doors a fraction, peeking inside like Timid Tim before closing the door again and turning back to face him.
"Through there," Ian stepped aside.
"Yes, I know where the private rooms are, Ian!" He snapped, his exasperation level on overdrive. He swore he could see the other man fighting a grin, too.
Barron fixed a pleasant smile on his face before pushing open the double doors.
"SURPRISE!"
Barron leaped back just as a flash exploded in his face, causing him to turn his head. His heart was frantically beating from the shock.
"Oops! I think I blinded him." The amused voice sounded familiar, but he was too busy blinking the blue and white dots from his eyes.
"What the fuck?"
"Language!" Okay, that voice definitely belonged to his mom.
"Ma? What the fu- hell is going on?"
His mouth dropped as, through blinking eyes, he finally took in the room.
A long table was in the center of the room. It had a fancy black tablecloth with some gold crap on it. Fake candles, flowers, matching plates, and cutlery. It sure looked like a fancy setup for an engagement dinner.
Except the eager, smiling faces staring at him were his own family and friends. And the big as fuck sign on the wall in front of him that read "Happy Birthday, Barron!" clued him in on whose dinner this was for.
"Oh, shit," he murmured as his heart sank. It was a surprise birthday party for him.
He stood there shell-shocked as he took in his parents' faces, his Uncle Ray and Aunt Gail with Simon. Uncle Kevin and Aunt Sara with a grinning Bailey. Ryan, Sofia, and Sefina were present. His friends from soccer. And in the corner were Susan and Mike.
Susan smiled broadly at him, and his heart seized as he attempted to return her expression. As lovely as it was to see her, it reminded him of how much he missed Eden.
And then, as he was about to plaster a fake smile on his face and put his high school performing arts classes to the test, Susan and Mike parted.
And an angelic beauty in a short, black, low-cut dress stepped through them. A shy smile was on her beautiful red-painted lips.
At first, Barron thought he'd dreamed her up. Like someone wandering the desert, dying of thirst, and seeing a mirage of an oasis that wasn't really there.
The only thing that took him out and convinced him that this was really fucking happening was Ian's hand on his shoulder and a low whisper, "Dude, you're making things awkward."
Eden was still standing there.
She was real.
Without saying a word, Barron strode forward and snatched his girl up, swallowing her yelp with his mouth. Her arms automatically wrapped around his neck as she eagerly returned his kiss. He held on tight to her waist as he poured every love and adoration he felt for her into their passionate embrace.
He heard the faint sound of wolf whistles and laughs, but he didn't care.
Until the sound of his dad's voice grumbling, "what are we, chopped liver?" caused Barron to break away as he fought to focus on the fact that they weren't alone.
As much as he loved and missed Eden, the reminder that his parents were there was a surefire boner killer.
"Happy birthday, Barron," Eden softly said. He was thankful that she wore some sort of kiss-proof lipstick, as her mouth still looked as luscious and red as ever. Or maybe that was the aftermath of their hot as fuck kiss.
"Thank you, baby," he softly told her as he drank in her lovely features. His anxiety over their separation and loss of contact vanished. Now he knew why she hadn't been contactable the last 24 hours. He went to frame her face but stopped when she cleared her throat.
"Um, everyone's probably waiting for you to acknowledge them," she laughed.
He wanted to say "fuck them" before dragging her delectable ass to his office to fucking devour her body. But decent manners forced him to play nice.
