Between a Rock and a Hard Place (56 page)

The strong hand on her back was heavier than Tommy’s, yet it didn’t contain Angel’s warmth.  She lifted her head from her mother’s shoulder to find her father peering down at her.  They never had a close relationship and the man never said much to her unless it was to reprimand her.  He always followed her mother’s lead, so she knew his acceptance was implied.  Approval may not come until later, but right now, she was happy to have her parents back in her life.

With her cheeks still wet with tears, Jessi studied her father’s face.  It was the face of the man who rocked her to sleep when she was too scared to sleep alone in her own room for the first time.  They were the same soft gray eyes of the man who read to her when she was sick in bed with strep throat when she was ten.  The rugged jaw belonged to the man who walked her down the aisle the day she married Tommy.  Today, her father’s usual stern demeanor was less formidable.  His eyes portrayed the love that she saw there when she was a child, and it told her how much he missed her in his life.

“I’m sorry if I said anything to hurt you,” he said.  “It was never my intention.  You’re my daughter, and I’ll always love you.”

She hugged her father for a long time.  Tears stained the freshly-pressed suit that he probably hadn’t worn in a decade.  His embrace, and the verbal affirmation that he loved her, wasn’t something that was readily offered.  It was a security she missed and needed, but not as much as she desperately needed her mother’s approval.  It was her mother’s love and support that she always strived for.

She relinquished her father’s embrace and hugged her mother gain.  “I love you, Mom.  I missed you at my graduation ceremony and at the opening of my store.”

“I missed you too, dear.  I should have been there.  It was my foolishness that cost us to lose valuable time together.  It won’t happen again.  I promise.  I love you, Jessi.”

Chapter Fifty-One

By the time Tommy hung up his suit, Jessi and Angel were already in bed.  He stopped in the doorway and watched them.  Angel had his head propped up on his hand and gazed up at Jessi.  She sat with her back to the headboard, while she rambled on about tonight’s party.  Her words were accentuated by the high energy of her voice, and in the manner in which she waved her hands as she spoke.  Unable to get much more than a few words in every few sentences, Angel resigned to listen to her detailed descriptions of tonight’s party.  She paused for a breath and Angel jumped in with an account of the number of guests that made the trip halfway across the Atlantic to attend.  Jessi didn’t wait for him to finish.  She chimed in with her own sentiment.  The similarities in the two always reminded Tommy why he loved them so much.

They barely noticed him as he crossed in front of the bed on his way to the bathroom.

When he returned, Angel was showing Jessi the photos from the party on his phone.  They were in the middle of the bed, in his spot, cuddling together.  Jessi rested her head on Angel’s shoulder, with her knees tucked up underneath her.  Angel had his arm looped through hers as he scrolled through the pictures.

Tommy stayed at the foot of the bed and watched them.

They turned to him at the same time.  “Why aren’t you in bed with us?”  Angel asked.

“There doesn’t seem to be any room for me.  It appears that you two have decided to squeeze me out of the bed.”

“Tommy Blade, stop teasing and get that fine ass of yours in bed this instant.”

Tommy uttered a small laugh.  He loved to tease Angel, because he always got so worked up, which meant his chest puffed in and out with deep breaths that made his golden skin ripple.  Tommy climbed up onto the bed, expecting them to open a path so he could reclaim his spot in the center, but they never moved.  Jessi and Angel stayed huddled together sharing his phone, enjoying the photos from the party.  Tommy stood at the end of the bed with his legs shoulder width apart, his hands rested on the waistband of his white Hanes briefs, as he waited for them to acknowledge him.  When neither one of them paid him any attention, he folded his arms across his chest and cleared his throat.

Again, Jessi and Angel looked up at him at the same time.  Angel dropped his phone to the bed and he wet his lips with his magnificent tongue.  “Bello, mi amor.  You look good enough to eat.”

Jessi grabbed Tommy by the hand and pulled him down on the bed.  He fell half on Angel and half into his spot in the middle of the mattress between them.  Angel let out a loud “ooof” and jerked up at the waist, which caused Jessi to roll her head back with laughter.

“You’re evil, Mrs. Blade.  You’re trying to immobilize me so you can have this beautiful man all to yourself.”

“I wouldn’t hear of it.  It’s so much more fun to share him.”

Tommy shifted to a sitting position so his back was up against the headboard.  “Let me see your phone, A.  I want to see the photos from tonight.”

Angel and Jessi both turned to him with a puzzled expression.  The two of them were starting to resemble each her in their actions, like a weird set of disjoined twins. He knew they were questioning why he wanted to look at photos instead of make love. “We can do that later.  I want to see the pictures first.  I had a lot of fun tonight.”

Angel handed him the phone and he clicked on the button that brought up the last photo they had viewed.  It was of the three of them with Jessi’s parents.  He hadn’t seen Jessi’s smile that bright in years.  She looked radiant and beautiful.  The next photo was just the three of them together.  He stared at the photo for a long time.  He was in the middle as usual, but Jessi and Angel were making eye contact with one another, and they shared an intimate smile.  He had his hands around their waists, but he was looking at the camera.  They all looked happy and in love.

Chatter drew his attention away from the photo.  Jessi and Angel were in a deep conversation about plans once they got home.  When they realized he was listening, they both fell silent, and the smile that spread across their faces held a secretive secret.

“Do you want to be the one to mention it, or should I?”  Angel asked Jessi.

“You brought it up first.  Go ahead.”

Angel paused while he composed his thoughts and put his emotions in check.  He fiddled with the bed sheet and his throat moved.  “Me and Jessi have been talking.  When the timing is right, we want to start a family.”

It was probably the furthest thing that Tommy expected to hear.  His head turned from Angel to Jessi and back again.  He had no idea they had been discussing the issue of having children.  Their lives were complicated.  How were they supposed to fit raising a family into their busy schedule?

Jessi knew what he was thinking.  She entwined her fingers through his.  “Not right now.  In a few years, maybe.  Once the craziness dies down a little.”  She sent a loving glance in Angel’s direction.  “I would love to have children with both of you.”

Angel took Tommy’s other hand. “Think about it, mi amor.  We could have a blond-haired genius on the guitar and a dark-haired singer.”  He looked over at Jessi and smiled.  “Maybe even a pink-haired rock goddess in the making.”

Jessi’s merry laughter filled the room.  “They would be our protégé.  The next generation of rock stars.”

Tommy listened to their plan for the future and absorbed the idea.  A family.  The responsibility was enormous.  It would take precedence over all else.  He evaluated his priorities.  What was the term Angel used?  Familia primero. Family first.  Tommy imagined miniature replicas of Jessi and Angel running around their enormous house, filling the empty, unused rooms with their toys and rambunctious personalities.  His chest inflated with love and pride at the imaginary picture of his future family.

Their world was hectic and demanding.  Could they fit a family into their busy lives? Once the furor of success died down it would be easier, and he knew that Angel’s mother would insist on helping with her grandchildren.  A smile slowly broadened across Tommy’s lips, and a warm sensation spread throughout his chest.  Children would complete their lives.  He held Jessi’s and Angel’s hands a little tighter and nodded his approval.  “I love the idea of having a family.”

Jessi and Angel nuzzled closer to Tommy and rested their heads on each of his shoulders.  Angel placed his left hand on Tommy’s lap and stared down at the platinum wedding band that reflected the light.  Tommy placed his hand over Angel’s so their rings lined up.  Jessi added her hand to the pile to complete their stack of wedded hands.  No one spoke.  They just gazed at the pile of rings that symbolized their love and commitment to one another.  The connection they shared, the bond that held them together, was too strong to tear apart.  They had weathered highs and lows and a vast array of emotional turmoil.  It made their relationship stronger and brought them closer together.

Tommy had struggled and drove himself crazy trying to find a way to love both Jessi and Angel.  He thought he needed to find the medium, but it wasn’t his to find.  He already loved them both equally.  The balance needed to come from Jessi and Angel.  The two of them needed to find harmony within each other’s hearts.  They needed to find a way to balance their love for one another in order for this trio to stand victorious.  Time apart caused havoc on their relationship, but it also created appreciation and strengthened the bond they had for one another. 

It was a hard road, filled with tough choices, but they made it.  They finally found the balance.

THE END

Coming Spring 2015

Punk Rock Resurrection, Radical Rock Stars Book Three

Life wasn’t always good to Damien Diamond.  An alcoholic, abusive mother left him to fend for himself with little self-esteem.  He turned to drugs and alcohol to mask his inner pain.  If it weren’t for Angel Garcia, he would have perished on the streets of New York City, but it was a dark gothic goddess who gave Damien a reason to live.  She wouldn’t put up with his self-destructive behavior, and he needed to turn his life around in order to win back the only woman he ever loved.