Chaos. I was in the midst of total and utter chaos. We had a housefull for Maddy's birthday. Actually, it was just me, Maddy, my mom and dad, my brother Mike, his wife Whitney, their son John, my sister Pam, her husband Bob, and their daughter Allie.
Mike gave me the evil eye as he wiped the pizza out of John's hair. I bit my bottom lip to keep from laughing. John had been tormenting Madeline, telling her he was smarter and better because he's a boy. Madeline proceeded to shut him up by smashing her pizza in his face and hair. I made her apologize, but silently praised her. I had always suspected that my five-year-old nephew was the devil spawn, and his behavior tonight pretty much confirmed those suspicions.
The doorbell rang. I took this as my chance to escape and darted for the door. I opened it and nearly fell over at the sight of Taylor. I stood there, speechless.
"Hi. I, um, brought something for Madeline," he said.
"That was sweet of you. You shouldn't have. Come on in," I said, leading him into the living room. "I'll go get her."
Madeline walked into the living room with me at her heels.
"Happy birthday, Maddy," Tay said, holding a semi-large box for her.
"Thank you," she replied, taking it from him.
Madeline sat down on the couch, and Taylor and I sat on either side of her. She tore off the paper and tossed it onto the floor. Upon opening the box, she discovered the cutest stuffed teddy bear inside. She squealed with delight. "Thank you, Taylor," Maddy said, giving him a hug.
At first, he didn't react. Then he put his arms around her and returned the hug. A smile spread across his face. "You're welcome," was his reply.
Madeline grabbed the bear and ran off to show everyone her present.
Taylor turned to me. "Is she always that way? So... so..."
"Open with signs of affection?" I supplied.
Taylor nodded his head yes.
"For the most part."
"But she hardly knows me."
"Yeah, but I know you. That's enough for her. Besides, she thinks you're cute," I explained.
Taylor blushed. When his face returned to its normal color he cleared his throat. "Laura, I... I... want to apologize... for all those nasty things I said last week. I wasn't thinking, and I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry." His eyes were filled with remorse.
"It's okay, Taylor. You don't have to apologize for your feelings, whatever they may be. Over the years I'd been preparing myself for your reaction. I certainly wasn't expecting you to do cartwheels or anything."
A soft smile played on his lips. "Why do you always do that?"
"Do what?"
"Make me smile, even when the subject is serious."
"I can't really answer that. But I know that if I cry anymore I'll dehydrate. Smiling and laughing is pretty much the only other option," I said, smiling. It felt good to be flirting with Tay again.
"See? There you go again," he said, laughing softly.
"Seriously though, Taylor. Whatever... whatever... you're feeling... whatever you decide... I'll go along with it." I looked him in the eyes and placed my hand on his knee.
He moved closer and kissed me. My lips parted, and our kissing became more passionate. Taylor's hands rested on my stomach for a split second, and then found their way under my shirt. My left hand was behind his neck, the right made its way from his knee up his thigh.
"AHEM!"
Taylor and I broke apart, and I swear my heart was in my throat. Standing in the living room's entrance was my father. I wanted to crawl under a rock and die.
"Time for cake," he said. He looked from me to Taylor, and back to me again. Then he left.
"What's that now? Three times?" Taylor asked laughing.
All I could manage to do was nod my head yes. Suddenly, it felt about twenty-five degrees warmer in the room.
"Laura!?!"
"What?" I squeaked out.
"You're all red! Awww, how cute! You still get embarrassed!" Taylor said, a huge grin on his face. "I'd think you be over that now, though."
"Yeah, well, it depends on the guy," I said softly, examing the plush carpet.
He lifted my chin and looked me in the eyes. "I'll call you," he said, kissing me gently on the lips. "Tell Maddy I said happy birthday."
I nodded my head and then kissed him on the cheek. "I will."
We kissed one more time, and I showed Taylor out. I then retreated to the kitchen and joined in the traditional singing of "Happy Birthday."