He pulled me into the corner of the porch where
the shadows surrounded us. “I think you can,” he said, caressing my buttocks with the palms of his hands, sending a rush of heat to my pelvis. “Just one little kiss for luck, tonight?”
I could see
the fire burning in his sultry eyes and couldn’t resist. “For luck,” I whispered right before his mouth captured mine, taking my breath away. I closed my eyes as one of his hands moved up and slid into my hair, holding me in place while the other pulled my hips against his. When I felt his hardness pressing against my stomach, it took everything I had not to reach for it.
“Jake,” I breathed, pushing him away. “We
really have to stop doing this.”
“Why?
” he whispered, staring at my lips. “We’re both adults.”
Just then
, a white car pulled to a stop right in front of my house.
“Anyone you know
?” Jake asked me as we stepped out of the shadows.
I shook my head. “No.”
We watched as the person let the car idle while he lit a cigarette. I could see the clear silhouette of a bald head as the lighter flickered out and the hair stood up on the back of my neck.
The guy from the restaurant?
“Well,” said Jake when the man eventually pulled away. “I supposed I’d better go. Hey,” he said, staring down at me with concern. “Are you okay?”
I stared
at him for a minute, wanting so much to tell him what had happened the night before, but the stranger’s warnings wouldn’t allow me to. I’d never risk the lives of my children.
“I’m fine. Just tired,” I said.
He smiled. “Well, get a good night’s sleep. If you feel like running tomorrow, I’ll be stretching out at ten o’clock sharp.”
I nodded. “Okay.”
He moved towards me again as if he was going to kiss me, when the front door opened.
“Hey
, Jake,” said Jeremy, stepping onto the porch. “I thought it was just Darcy and mom out here.”
“
Darcy just left,” said Jake. “By the way, is your computer running any better?” he asked.
Jeremy nodded vehemently
. “Yeah, thanks for cleaning it up. It runs so much faster now. It’s like night and day.”
“
Good, now remember what I told you and be very careful of what you’re downloading on the Internet,” said Jake with a stern look. “Some websites are a haven for viruses which will destroy your computer. Stay away from those sites and you won’t have to worry about your computer acting up again.”
I raised my eyebrows.
Jeremy’s face was flaming red and he looked slightly mortified. I began to wonder which websites he was referring to.
“It wasn’t me,” stammered Jeremy. “It was
Hugo.”
“What
kind of websites are we talking about?” I asked.
Jake smiled.
“Just some stupid sites hosting malware that the boys must have clicked on by accident. No big deal, I helped him fix it the other day after his computer froze up.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“We can’t afford to buy him a new computer, obviously.”
“
His should work just fine now. Well, I’d better get going. Jeremy, take care of your mother and your computer,” said Jake, walking down the stairs. “Okay, bud?”
“Yeah, sure,” said Jeremy. “See you
, Jake!”
Jake waved and then jogged back to his house.
“That guy is cool,” said Jeremy. “He knows a lot about computers.”
“Lucky for you.
Now, let’s go inside.”
It was after nine by the time I’d gotten both kids showered and ready for bed. I then double-chec
ked to make sure all of the new locks were engaged, grabbed the butcher knife from my kitchen, and filled up the tub in the bathroom. It had been a long day and I wanted to end it early by trying to relax in a warm bubble bath as if everything was normal. Needless to say, clearing my mind of the last twenty-four hours was next to impossible. As I closed my eyes and tried to let go, all I could think about was the man who’d broken into my home and threatened my children, and the other man, who’d lived in my home and threatened our marriage.
My life was beginning to resemble a
Lifetime
movie.
It was my
landline phone that woke me up early the next morning. When I saw who was on the other end calling me at such an absurd hour, I groaned.
“Hi
, mom,” I said, resting the phone on my shoulder.
“Hello
, sweetheart.”
I looked at the clock. “It’s only six o’clock here,
even earlier for you, why are you up so early?”
“I just couldn’t sleep,” she said. “I kept worrying about you and decided to call.”
“I’m fine. How about we talk when the sun is up?”
And I’ve had enough coffee to tackle you
.
She ignored me and cleared her thro
at. “Lindsey, I’ve been thinking, you and the kids should move out here with me. I have plenty of room and I can even offer you a job at the store.”
“Oh, mom, that’s a great offer
but the kids would be livid if I took them out of their comfort zone. All of their friends are here and Scott would never agree to that.”
“Who gives a shit a
bout that bastard?” she said, in a thick voice.
I raised my eyebrows. “Mom, have you been drinking?”
“Oh, I may have had a couple of drinks,” she said. “But this is about you, not me.”
I sighed.
“Are you okay?”
She paused for a few seconds.
“Mom?” I prodded. “Talk to me.”
“It’s Kyle,” she said. “We’re
…we’re not together anymore.”
I sat up
. “No! What happened? You must be going crazy.”
“
I’m fine. Actually, I asked him to leave, honey.”
“Seriously?”
I asked, trying to hide the relief in my voice. Kyle had always annoyed me. He wasn’t much older than I was, but his attitude was always slightly condescending, as if his intellect was far more superior to mine.
“
Oh, he was getting a little too controlling. Kind of like your husband, if you really want to know the truth.”
I raised my eyebrows.
“You thought Scott was controlling, too, huh?” I asked.
She snorted. “Is a tomato a fruit?”
I giggled. “I’m still up in the air about that one.”
“Anyway,” s
he said. “Now that you’ve kicked out Scott, I started thinking about Kyle and you know what? I was actually a little jealous that you were free and I had a deadbeat living with me. One who was trying to manipulate everything in my life but not contributing anything but sex.”
I cringed. “Oh
, mom…”
She chuckled.
“He certainly had the tools and knew how to use them. But a stiff wanker doesn’t pay the bills, you know, my dear?”
I shuddered, trying not to imagine Kyle and my mom in the wild throes of passion.
“Anyway,” she sighed, her voice tinged with melancholy. “He’s gone.”
I sighed.
“Well, you still don’t sound very happy.”
She cleared her throat.
“It’s still hard, letting someone go.”
I
nodded. “I know that all-too well.”
“Yes,
unfortunately you do.”
“Well
, so what are you going to do about the shop?”
“
Aunt Ruthie is going to be helping me run it until I hire a new assistant fulltime. You know, that would be the perfect position for you, honey.”
I bit the side of my lip.
“Well, I don’t know. I’d have to really think about it.”
“The kids could just as easily make friends out here.”
I rubbed my forehead and nodded. “I suppose.”
The truth of the matter was
, I didn’t know if I could leave Darcy. She’d already done so much for me and we were so damn close.
“Well
, I’d better call Ruthie and let her know that I’m not coming in this morning. We’ll talk more about this when I get into town for the holidays.”
“Okay, mom.”
“Love you, honey.”
“I love you
, too.”
After I hung up
with her, I went to the kitchen and made a cup of coffee. As I waited for it to fill, I thought about my mother’s offer and decided that it would never really work. Although I loved her dearly, I wasn’t about to relive the days of being bossed around by her, even if I was getting paid for it. It was a nice gesture, but not in the best interests of my sanity.
Satisfied with my decision,
I added cream to my coffee and then went over to the kitchen table where my cell phone was resting. After noticing that my message light was blinking, I picked it up and read the screen.
Stay away from the cop!
The message had come late in the night from an unknown number.
Frowning, I sent a message back.
Who is this?
After waiting ten minutes, I received another text.
Who is this?
They asked.
I sighed and answered back.
You sent me a text late last night. Who are you?
I watched my phone but the other person didn’t respond. Then a horrible thought flashed through my brain. What if Tina had sent me the message
secretly last night and now her husband had received my response this morning? Had I just set Tina up with another beating from her maniacal husband?
I began to panic,
wondering what I should do. I very well couldn’t go over there to check on her, I was much too terrified and didn’t want my children hurt. Not for her or anyone else.
Then it hit me.
We
could
stay with my mother, if only temporary. My kids would be much safer out there and I wouldn’t have to worry about feeling threatened anymore. I could also let Jake know what was happening and he could help me without the risk of harm to my kids.
I quickly called my mother back.
“You’ve reconsidered?” she squealed, still much more excited than I was.
“Well, actually I want
it to be a temporary thing,” I said. “I’d like to bring the kids out for a couple of weeks, maybe longer. Nothing permanent.”
“What about school?” she asked.
“I haven’t really figured that out yet,” I said. “I’m sure I could work something out with their teachers. Like I said, it would only be temporary, until I’ve taken care of some problems out here.”
“Well, let me know when you’re coming out,” she yawned.
“I will. I’m still going to have to discuss it with Scott and the kids, but I’ll call you when I figure things out.”
“Okay.”
After I hung up the phone, I decided to dangle the idea in front of the kids during breakfast. Their reactions were better than I expected.
“Are you serious!” cried Regan.
“A trip to Florida! That would be totally awesome!”
“Just for a couple of weeks,” I sai
d, hoping it wouldn’t be any longer. “Grandma is lonely and needs company. She broke up with Kyle.”
“He was a loser,” said Jeremy. “I’m glad she kicked him to the curb.”
I bit back a smile. “Wow, don’t hold back. Tell me more.”
“I can’t. You’d
ground me for using such inflammatory language.”
I ruffled his hair. “Well,
then, thanks for sparing our ears.”
“
You’re welcome,” he said.
“
Anyway, we have to talk to dad about this first,” I said, grabbing the syrup from the refrigerator.
Jeremy’s face lit up. “
Does this mean you’re staying back here with dad, to try and work things out?”
“I’m staying behind because I need to fi
nd a job,” I said, handing him his plate of pancakes.
“Well, I’m all for it,” he said, spreading butter over his food. “I need a change. It’s been too stressful around here.”
“I know,” I said. “And I’m really sorry about that.”
He shrugged.
“Well, what about school?” asked Regan.
“That’s what I’m going to have to figure out,” I said. “It’s almost Thanksgiving and you’ll have some time off anyway. I’m hoping it won’t interfere with your grades too much
, and that they can give you homework to do while you’re out there.”
“I wonder what dad will say,” said Jeremy
, between bites.
“
Oh, I’m sure he’ll be fine with it. Besides, it’s only for a couple of weeks,” I said.