by C. A. Harms
“It’s okay, I—”
“Run along.” I shoo her, and she wrinkles her forehead.
I pull the bag from her shoulder, and again I am hit with a sense of warmth as the silkiness of her shoulder connects with the tips of my fingers. Remembering what it felt like to touch her, craving a repeat, only this time I would take my time and ensure she felt every single movement of my hands always.
“I’ll put this in your Jeep.” I force the words past my lips, and she takes a step sideways, immediately intensifying that ache.
Looking away, I open her door, and out of my peripheral vision I can see her watching me. Then she backs away, and when she turns her back, I use that as my opportunity to watch her. The way her shorts hug her ass and the muscles in her legs flex with each step she takes make my heart race.
I thought being with her the way I wanted to be would be impossible, but the truth is being friends with Janelle is definitely going to be even harder than that.
Chapter Twenty
Janelle
“Who came up with this idea?” I whisper to Ally, who is at my left.
“Your aunt.” I wish I could say that I am surprised, but gestures like this are so like Lottie. She may try for badass and fully independent, which she is that, but she is also a woman with a heart of gold. So giving, so considerate, and she thrives on the happiness of others.
“This is amazing.” Beyond amazing. I never in a million years would have thought to do something this meaningful.
“Once a month, she closes the salon and we choose a location. We spend the entire day offering our services making people feel beautiful again. Give them back a sense of who they are in a way.” Ally curls the woman’s hair that sits before her and then slowly combs her fingers through the graying locks. “Everyone deserves to feel pretty; every woman should be pampered.”
Looking around the room, I take in each stylist and the woman sitting before them. Some are alert enough to know they are being taking care of, others not so much. But the smiles on everyone’s face, the workers that assist us, and the families of those who live in the facility are mesmerizing.
“I love this.” It is draining, but so worth it. It doesn’t matter that today I will make absolutely nothing. The satisfaction of giving back is more than enough. I’d do this very thing every single day if it wasn’t for the fact that living in Phoenix does not come free.
Then Shane’s face pops into my mind. His words from last night ring through my mind.
“I work three jobs, and almost everything I earn goes to pay for their care. I take care of these properties around here, the maintenance so that I can live rent free.”
If only he knew who I really am.
Heritage Nursing Home is full of women that rarely get the opportunity to have their hair and makeup done. They don’t get to have facials, pedicures, and manicures. It is sad really to think that they are tucked away inside these walls and left to settle for what little life has left to give them. My heart aches at the idea, and I want nothing more than to be able to travel from one facility to the next offering nothing but the best treatment for each and every resident who lives within these types of places.
Today has made me love my aunt Lottie even more; it’s a confirmation of something I already knew. She has a beautiful soul.
***
“My feet hurt.” I lounge back in my father’s recliner and kick up my feet. “But it was so worth it.” I smile to myself and hear the rustle of tiny feet as Whitney comes shuffling into the room and climbs up on the arm of the chair.
Opening my eyes just as my mother rounds the end of the couch, I see the smile on her face. After six hours on my feet, I left the nursing home and came straight to her house so that I could gush about what I’d just spent my day doing. Of course my mother was not surprised. She is fully aware that her sister-in-law has done these types of things for years.
“Not all of them could respond, Mom, but I swear to it there was a light shining in their eyes that wasn’t there before. Like they actually felt whole again, beautiful even, and knowing that I am part of a place that offers that type of service without getting anything in return but the knowledge that we gave back is such an amazing feeling.”
I swear to it I feel like I am floating on a cloud.
“One day is hardly enough.” I reach out and take Whitney onto my lap, hugging her close. “I wish I could do that every single day.”
“You’ve always been my giver.” My gaze shifts toward the sound of my mother’s voice, and I wrinkle my forehead in curiosity. “Even when you were little, you were always giving to others, trying to make everyone around you smile, even if it meant you were going to go without. The first to give your sisters candy from your own stash when theirs ran low. The first to go through your closet and donate anything you could to those in need. Now here you are a grown woman and you are still loving the idea of making others less fortunate happy even if it means you walk away with only a smile to show for all your hard work.”
“A smile and a full heart, Mom.” Full didn’t even begin to describe it. My goodness, I feel almost like it could burst.
“Are you staying for dinner?”
“I should get home.” I give Whit a kiss on her temple and a little tickle, making her wiggle in my lap. “I need to let Bear out.”
“I wanna see Bear.” Whitney attaches herself to my arm and refuses to let go. “He misses me.” Looking up at me, she offers those puppy dog eyes that always seem to get her exactly what she wants.
“When is Jackie due back?”
“Late tonight.” My mother gives me a knowing look. Today marks the final settlement day of her divorce. Her ex and the babysitter he decided to sleep with have decided to sell the house he and Jackie bought together and move into a larger, more lavish one. Apparently little Miss Homewrecker didn’t like the idea of living in a house he built his family in. It didn’t stop her from screwing his brains out in it, but no one said she’s a smart one. Nineteen years old, yes, a baby herself, and he threw away his family for her. One day I truly hope it comes back to bite him in the ass, hard. And by then I hope Jackie has found herself a good man who beats the ass of her ex just for being such a dumb shit.
Jackie was in court today, then afterwards she is going to the home she thought would be forever to get any last items she may have forgotten. She refused to let anyone go with her, but that is Jackie. The idea of anyone seeing her weak is something she just cannot allow.
The thoughts of what she is going through today makes me hate my sleazy ex-brother-in-law even more. I hope his whore gives him chlamydia and his dick turns green.
“How about you spend the night with me and Bear tonight?” I ask Whitney, already knowing that she’ll say yes. Jackie would come back here after, and knowing that she will have the comfort of our mother without Whitney around to witness her fall gives me a sense of peace. I know she will take the comfort my parents offer, and then tomorrow she will get up and put on the brave face she always wears and kick the ass of each day that follows. Because Jackie is a warrior; she would not let this break her, because my big sis is unbreakable.
Chapter Twenty-One
Shane
“Whitney, no!” I hear a loud squeal as I exit my truck and pause in the driveway, looking toward the back of the house. “That’s so cold!” Janelle yells, only it’s followed by a laugh. “You’re supposed to put the hose in the pool, not point it at me.”
Instead of walking to the front door, I bypass the garage and pause near the fence, peeking over into Janelle’s yard. The same little girl I had seen before and again with her sister at the shop is standing a few feet away from her. A mischievous grin lights her face while she stares at her aunt, aiming the running hose in her direction. Janelle holds a float that looks like a cupcake in front of her, and her eyes are still fully focused on the girl.
Bear, her dog, sits at the side of the girl. He’s obviously chosen his side.
“We’re never gonna have enough water to float if you keep hosing me instead.” All I can see is her bare legs poking out from beneath the float and her hair piled on her head in a messy bun. “I thought I was your favorite?” I smile as she tries to bargain with the young girl. “We had ice cream and cookies even though your mother will get mad at me for spoiling your dinner, and after this we are doing makeovers, yet you are choosing to torture me now?”
“You are my favorite,” the little one shrugs, “because if I did this to Aunt Janie, she would tackle me and then take away all the fun. You won’t. You’re too nice.”
Too nice, that Janelle was. I’ve taken advantage myself of that kindness. The thought sours in my stomach.
Moving back out of view, I turn and walk back around to the front of the house. A white SUV slows to a stop in front of Janelle’s, and slowly the window begins to lower. “Excuse me.” A dark-haired man leans his elbow on the top of the door. “Can you tell me if this is where Janelle Pearson lives?”
“That I can’t tell you.” I have no idea who this man is.
“That’s her Jeep.” A petite younger girl leans over the center console, pointing at Janelle’s Jeep. “It’s that same weird thing hanging from the rearview mirror that’s always been there.” The girl is young, maybe a teen. It soothes the uneasy feeling I have thinking his daughter is with him, so maybe it’s a family member.
Before I can ask any questions or go let Janelle know she has company, another car pulls in behind this one. Like a raging bull, Jackie climbs out of the driver’s side and barrels around toward the man in the SUV.
“I told you no.” She gets close to the man, pointing her finger close to his face. “You have the nerve to show up at my sister’s with your whore after what you did.”
“Jackie, stop being so dramatic.” I know in that second that I don’t care for the man. “Don’t make a scene.”
I see the young girl roll her eyes.
“Do it again, you little slut, and I’ll show you what I’m capable of.” I hide my smile because I have no doubt Jackie will rip the girl’s head off but still unsure as to why she dislikes this young girl. I assume she and the man have a history.
“I gave up so much for you so that you could finish your degree. I worked my ass off while you spent every day tearing me down more and more. I know this little whore isn’t the only one you were screwing behind my back. But you fucked her in our home, in our bed—” Okay, now I get it. “—while our daughter was sleeping in the next room, and you tell me to calm down. In my opinion, I’ve been overly civil through this whole thing. I should have beat the snot out of this little bimbo and your worthless ass long ago. But this is the last straw. You need to stay away from my family.”
“Whitney is my daughter. I want to share the news with her.”
Jackie laughs. “Share the news with your three-year-old daughter who believes her daddy should still be with her mommy that you are sleeping with her babysitter. Not only sleeping with her but are now marrying because the two of you are having a child together.”
Oh fuck, this is some Jerry Springer shit.
“Who, in my opinion, probably isn’t even your child. Once a slut, always a slut, and I have no doubt that little skank has been bouncing around from bed to bed.”
“Don’t talk about her like that.” The man narrows his eyes at Jackie, and suddenly I feel defensive of her.
“Talk about her like that? Where the hell was the man I married when he should have been defending me instead of fucking the girl I entrusted with our daughter? Where the hell was he, huh?” I hear the moment her voice breaks, and I see the satisfaction on the young girl’s face. It’s then I know that this is over; I’ve seen enough.
I set my shit down on the drive next to my car and walk in Jackie’s direction. Stepping in behind her, I place my hand on her stomach and pull her body back against my own. Her back contours to my chest as I hold her firmly in my arms. Her pitiful ex watches the movements of my hand and our bodies now close, and I notice the flare of ownership flickering in his eyes.
What a pathetic fool.
I also don’t miss the way the young girl at his side shows a little too much interest in me instead of the situation.
“I think you need to leave.” Jackie looks over her shoulder at me, and I do my best to convey that I’m doing what I’m doing to help her, nothing more. “Jackie doesn’t want you here, and I can guess that her sister doesn’t, either.”
“Who are you to tell me to leave?” What a piece of work her ex is. But Jackie takes the reins, and to say I’m surprised would be an understatement, but I hold my cool and refuse to give any signs of what she is spewing is untrue.
“He’s the man I am seeing.” She squares her shoulders. “He also owns both of these properties.” Placing her hand over mine that still rests on her lower abdomen, she links her fingers in mine. “Visitation has been set for a reason, and tonight is not your night. I guess you’ll have to wait a few more days before you crush all the hopes and dreams of our daughter.”
The two of them share an uncomfortable stare down before he rolls up his window and then pulls away slowly.
Jackie and I remain exactly where we are until we know that he’s completely gone. Stepping back, my hand falls away from her body, and I see her shoulders hunch forward. I give her a few seconds, and when her shoulders starts to shake, I rush forward and wrap my arms around her once more.
“I’m so sorry.” Her words come out between sobs as she turns in my arms and places her forehead in tighter to my chest.
Saying nothing, I continue to hold her until her cries slow. Soothingly, I rub her back, much like my mother had many times for me as I was growing up. Sometimes people just need to break, and this is that time for Jackie.
She took in a few deep breaths before finally stepping back and crossing her arms over her chest. “Today our divorce was final.” She doesn’t owe me an explanation, but something tells me that she needs to say this more than I need to hear it. “As you’ve probably already figured out, he cheated with our babysitter. After I found out, I left with Whitney, and she and I moved in with my parents until I found an apartment. He stayed in our home, and after a couple weeks, he moved that whore in. She lived in our home, playing house with him all this time. He has decided to sell the house. Even though I couldn’t have kept it, it all still hurts. That home held my dreams, ya know, the things I wanted for my little girl. All the memories I wanted to make with her and my husband were dreamt up when I first walked through that house. It’s all gone now. Not to mention he allowed that little slut to get rid of all my things without stopping her.”
“What?”
“I went there today to clean out the last of my things before the agent came to place a For Sale sign in the front yard and I found it all already gone. He says he didn’t know, but how could he have not? Everything I had in the basement, in closets, even my dishes and things from my childhood I saved in hope of giving them to Whitney one day, it’s all gone.” I have no idea what to say.
“I had some things; don’t get me wrong. I know it’s all my fault…I should have gone sooner…but I could never face them really. I was ashamed, broken, even though I put up a front when I’m with my family. I couldn’t go there, knowing that my husband had picked a younger, prettier model and threw me away.”
“Hey.” Stepping in toward her, I grip her shoulders and force her to look at me. “He’s an idiot.” She looks downward, much like her sister has done when she feels embarrassed or she is trying to hide her emotions. “You are a Pearson sister, and I say this not to make you feel better, but because it is completely true. The three of you are gorgeous, fun, and without a doubt three of the greatest girls I’ve ever met. That man is a fool to let you go. From what I’ve just seen he downgraded when he chose that girl over you. He lost, Jackie, you’re the lucky one to be given the opportunity to find a better man. He didn’t deserve you; he didn’t deserve you or Whitney.
”
Her body shudders as she takes in a deep breath, lifting her gaze to meet mine. “Thank you.” A soft whisper leaves her lips just before she takes in another breath.
“Jackie?”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Janelle
I stand in my doorway, staring out into the drive.
Confused.
“Jackie?”
I watch as my sister and Shane part quickly, and I feel like the breath is knocked from my lungs. The look on their faces as they both look back at me does nothing for the unsettled feelings racing through me.
“Hey,” my sister finally says as she steps around Shane and begins to walk in my direction. “I was just talking to Shane.” Looked like a lot more than just talking but I don’t say what I am thinking. I notice the redness around Jackie’s eyes and the puffiness in her lips. My mind races again with ideas and thoughts that hurt to even think.
I try to be levelheaded and remain calm, but it’s so hard.
“Thanks, Shane.” She thanked him. What in the hell? He offers a nod before he walks toward his house, refusing to make eye contact with me. A sense of betrayal I have no right to feel chills inside of me. I stand in the open doorway, frozen with the idea that Shane and Jackie—I shake my head to clear the thoughts.
“Hey, sweetheart, how was your time with Aunt Janelle?” Turning around, I listen to Whitney ramble on to her mother about our time. From ice cream to cookies with chocolate syrup, I watch as Jackie takes in every single word of her daughter. The way she watches her with awe almost. Hanging on every single word she speaks, it’s beautiful but heartbreaking, too. I know my sister, I see the way she’s hurting, and it pisses me off and breaks my heart at the same time.
