Craving Rose (The Aces' Sons)

by Nicole Jacquelyn

  “You’ve already had two,” he yelled back. “Get somethin’ else.”

  “I’ll get ice water,” she said with a put-out sigh.

  “You should freeze some lemons and limes in ice cubes,” I told her as I grabbed a couple beers out of the fridge. “For your water.”

  “That’s a good idea,” she said, pulling an ice tray out of the freezer. “You could do cucumber, too. Or mint.”

  “Ooh, mint sounds good.”

  “I can’t wait until I’m an adult,” she said, filling her glass with water. “I’m going to eat crap and drink whatever I want.”

  “You’ll also have to pay bills,” I pointed out dryly. “And cook your own food, and do your own laundry.”

  “I’m not going to cook,” she replied as we walked back outside. “I’ll eat out all the time.”

  “You can’t eat out all the time,” Mack said reasonably, joining the conversation with a sentence that made my cheeks heat with embarrassment.

  “Watch me,” Kara muttered as she sat down at the table.

  “Get your mind outta the gutter,” Mack whispered to me as he set the hamburgers on the table.

  “Stop putting my mind in the gutter,” I hissed back. I sat down as he laughed at me.

  It was one of the best dinners I’d had in my entire life, and it made me imagine all sorts of things. I wanted this. I wanted to sit down to dinner and listen to Kara and Mack tease each other. I wanted to pass the ketchup, and add in my two cents when they were discussing dirt bikes, and kiss Mack in thanks when he grabbed us another round of beers without asking. Suddenly, my easy ramen dinners in front of the TV didn’t seem so relaxing. They just seemed sad.

  When we were done, we all worked together to bring the food and dishes inside.

  “Load the dishwasher before you watch a movie,” Mack said to Kara. “And don’t forget to wipe down the counters.”

  “I can help,” I said easily.

  “Nope,” Mack replied just as easily. “It’s part of her chores. Even if we’ve got company.”

  “I’m on it,” Kara said.

  “Sorry,” I murmured as Mack led me out the back door. “I didn’t know it was a thing.”

  “Nothin’ to be sorry for,” Mack replied, leading me across the yard. “Bein’ polite’s always nice.”

  “Where are we going?” I asked, lacing my fingers with his.

  “Hammock,” he said with a grin.

  They had a blue and green striped hammock strung between two trees, and I eyed it with trepidation as Mack pulled the edges apart and sat down sideways in it, his feet flat on the grass.

  “You want me to get on that?” I asked.

  “Lay with me for a bit,” he replied. He spun easily and lay back, the hammock gently swinging from side to side.

  “If I try to climb on, I’ll tip us both over,” I said, laughing nervously.

  “Nah,” he said, pulling one leg out and setting his foot back on the ground. “Come on, baby, I’ll make sure we don’t tip.”

  I really didn’t want to get on that hammock. When I was eight, me and Lily were screwing around on a hammock, and I’d busted my face so hard when I fell off that it knocked out one of my teeth. I’d been lucky the dentist was able to put it back in, and the ensuing root canal was no fun. I rubbed my tongue over that tooth as Mack reached his hand toward me.

  “This is a terrible idea,” I said as I let him help me onto the hammock.

  It was a snug fit, our bodies plastered together with one of my arms around his waist and my head on his shoulder, but we made it sort of comfortable.

  “See?” he said, letting out a long breath. “Easy.”

  “Don’t move,” I said nervously as he shifted.

  “We’re not gonna tip over,” he said with a chuckle.

  We laid there quietly for a long time as the sun started to set. It took a while, but I eventually relaxed against him.

  “Finally,” he murmured, running his fingers up and down my arm.

  “I’m glad I didn’t have to work tonight,” I said, tilting my head up to look at him.

  “Me, too,” he said, smiling. “How’d you manage that?”

  “I knew it would be a slow night, so I called in sick this morning,” I confessed.

  “Such a rebel,” he said with a chuckle.

  “Worth it,” I replied, laying my head back down.

  “I’m glad you’re here,” he said, kissing my forehead.

  Kara didn’t seem phased a few hours later when she told us goodnight and headed to her room. It was like she’d assumed I’d be sleeping over. After she was gone and Mack and I were curled up on the couch watching some treasure hunting show, Mack spoke quietly.

  “See,” he said. “If she woulda heard something the other night, she wouldn’t have been so cool about you stayin’ over.”

  “Jesus,” I muttered. “You had to bring it up again, didn’t you?”

  Mack laughed. “You were so freaked.”

  “Uh, yeah,” I said, pulling away from him so I could see his face. “I don’t want her hearing us having crazy monkey sex!”

  “She’s cool,” he replied.

  I looked at him incredulously.

  “I mean, she’s cool—she isn’t gonna hear anything,” he said with a shake of his head. “Shit, I don’t want her to fuckin’ hear us, either.”

  “I’ve never had to worry before,” I said, leaning back against him.

  “You never dated a guy with kids?” he asked.

  “Not that I knew of,” I replied.

  “That gonna be a problem?” That’s when I noticed that he’d gone completely still.

  “Of course not,” I replied quickly.

  “If it is—”

  “Mack,” I said, cutting him off sharply. Grabbing his chin, I turned his face toward mine. “I knew you were a dad long before we started this. It’s not like it was a surprise.”

  “Still,” he said, watching me closely. “Different when you’re in it.”

  “It’s not any different for me,” I argued. “I like that you’re a dad.”

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “Don’t make it weird,” I said, lightly slapping his chest. “I like you, okay? Being a dad is part of who you are.”

  “You like me?” he said, lips twitching. “You askin’ me to go steady?”

  I sat up straighter. “You should be so lucky,” I replied, narrowing my eyes.

  “You’re so full of shit,” he said with a laugh. “You’ve got it bad for me.”

  “Whatever.” I threw myself against the back of the couch.

  “You can’t get enough of me,” he continued, yanking me down until I was flat on the couch. He leaned over me, grinning. “You’re fuckin’ crazy about me.”

  I stared at him, refusing to reply.

  “It’s all good, baby,” he said in a whisper, closing the distance between us until our noses were practically touching. “’Cause I’m fuckin’ gone for you.”

  “Yeah?” I said, searching his eyes. A lump got caught in my throat as I tried to swallow.

  “All tangled up,” he confirmed.

  We didn’t talk anymore, but at some point, we made our way to the bedroom. And later, the words between us were spoken in whispers because they were too filthy for anyone else to hear.

  * * *

  Things between Mack and I heated up quickly, no matter how hard I tried to keep myself from becoming too attached. I knew how these things went, and I knew how easily they could go sideways. It was easy to fall in headfirst, riding the high of a new relationship, until you slammed back to earth with a heavy dose of reality. I’d made a promise to myself that I wouldn’t let myself fall into that trap again. That I’d take my time and keep what little distance I could so that when it ended, I wouldn’t fall apart like I had the last time.

  I knew within the first two weeks that all of my plans and promises meant nothing. How could they, when Mack looked at me like I was the most beautiful
woman in the world? How was I supposed to keep my distance when he stopped by my work just to give me a kiss, or when he picked me up in the middle of the day to take me out to lunch, even though I knew he’d be working late to make up the time? I couldn’t stop the butterflies in my stomach when he smiled any more than I could stop the sun from rising. Our relationship wasn’t like anything I’d ever had before—it was effortless, and I was falling hard and fast. I should have known that nothing so good lasts forever, but I couldn’t see any scenario where I wouldn’t want to wake up to Mack’s bleary eyes and morning breath.

  I was in my bathroom getting ready for work when my phone rang.

  “Hey,” I said, putting the phone on speaker as I worked on taming my crazy eyebrows.

  “Kara started her period,” Mack replied, forgoing any pleasantries. “And I’ve got no idea what I’m supposed to get her.”

  “Get her?” I asked, drawing a blank.

  “You know, pads or whatever,” he shot back, the panic evident in his voice. “There’s like five hundred fucking choices.”

  “Oh,” I said, leaning back from the mirror and picking up my phone so I could pay closer attention to our conversation.

  “I’ve bought this shit before,” he said, his voice kind of high. “But usually, you get sent to the store with specifics, and I’m flying fuckin’ blind here.”

  I ignored the pang I got at the idea of Mack buying period products for another woman. “Okay, it’s not rocket science. We’ll figure it out.”

  “What brand, though?” he asked. “And I’m not buying her tampons.” His voice got even higher. “She’s fuckin’ twelve. Isn’t this too early? I thought I had more time before we dealt with this shit. Should I take her to the doctor? What if something is wrong?”

  “Whoa,” I replied, trying not to laugh. “No, twelve’s a pretty normal age to start having periods. And don’t take her to the doctor unless you want to embarrass the hell out of her.”

  “She’s at the house and she won’t come out of the bathroom,” he said, curtly. “Pretty sure she’s already embarrassed.” His tone immediately put me on edge.

  “Why don’t you go home, and I’ll run to the store and get her some supplies?” I offered, trying to calm him down a little.

  “I got it,” he replied. “I just need to know what to get.”

  “I don’t know without looking at the selection,” I replied, trying to imagine the store in my mind. The supplies I used weren’t necessarily what a twelve year old would need, and I didn’t want her ending up with some diaper-like pad that had her hating her life. “I can just run down—”

  “Rose,” he snapped. “I said I got it. You know what, I can just call my ma.”

  “Mack,” I said, trying to keep my voice even. What the hell was his problem? He called me for help, and was being an ass when I tried to give it. “Just get her regular pads,” I said finally. “Ones with wings. Unscented. Try and find some with colorful packaging.”

  “Regular. Wings. Unscented. Pretty,” he repeated. “Thanks.”

  He hung up without saying goodbye, and I forced myself to set my phone calmly on the countertop instead of tossing it across the room. It shouldn’t have been a big deal that he was short with me. People had bad moods. Intellectually, I knew that. But my stomach churned with anxiety, anyway.

  Chapter 8

  Mack

  I leaned back in bed and finished my beer in one huge swallow. I didn’t bring the twelve-pack into my room like I wanted to, but I’d already made my way through four out of the six I’d set on my nightstand. Still wasn’t relaxed. Still didn’t know what the fuck I was supposed to do about my daughter, who’d barely looked in my direction during dinner because she was so damn embarrassed about something that shouldn’t be embarrassing at all. Still felt like shit about how I’d snapped at Rose.

  I cracked open another bottle and set it on my chest, the glass cool against my skin. I was out of my fucking depth and I knew it. I’d been banking on Kara being able to talk to my mom about all the woman shit, periods and makeup and boys, ignoring the fact that my parents were out of state most of the year. Stupid, yeah, but how the fuck was I supposed to prepare for that shit? I’d had the sex talk with Kara when she was ten and came home spouting off bullshit she’d heard at school. Both of us had been uncomfortable as hell, but I hadn’t wanted her believing all the wrong shit kids her age pieced together from overheard conversations and crap on the internet.

  Kara hadn’t wanted me tonight, and that burned. I took another drink of my beer and stared at the ceiling. She’d wanted to be anywhere but at home, talking to anyone but me, and I was pretty sure her tears had been more about asking me to get her supplies than the fact that she’d started her period. I didn’t know what to do. She’d always been my little sidekick. If she was hurt, she wanted her daddy. If she was happy, she wanted me. Hell, if she was pissed, she wanted to take it out on me. But this wasn’t something that she wanted me anywhere near, and that fucking killed me.

  It meant things were changing, and I wasn’t fucking ready for that.

  When Rose had offered to get Kara some stuff at the store, for a split second, I’d considered taking her up on it. Hell, it would’ve been easy to let Rose come in and save the day, with her no-nonsense attitude and knowledge of shit I had no idea about. But then I’d been pissed for even considering it, and irritated that she’d asked.

  Rose was my woman, and I had a lot of fun with her. I was crazy for her, if I was being honest. But she wasn’t Kara’s mother, and never would be. I didn’t want her stepping into that role. There was no way in hell I’d ever give that kind of power to someone else, not after what we’d already been through.

  I still felt like an asshole, though, for the way I’d handled things earlier in the day. I should’ve said thanks, but no thanks, and instead I’d snapped at her and hung up on her. Fuck. I’d be lucky if she even answered her phone when I called. Rose wasn’t exactly the forgiving type, not if her prank wars were anything to go by. I’d seen her refuse to talk to Tommy for an entire month once because he’d eaten the pizza she’d left in her parents’ fridge.

  Screw it. I wasn’t going to spend all night wondering if Rose was pissed at me. She could be pissed all she wanted, but she’d still come back. The chemistry was too good for her to stay away. I huffed and took another drink. I knew firsthand that this thing between us was too hard to walk away from.

  * * *

  When I woke up the next morning, Kara was already dressed and ready downstairs.

  “Hey, princess,” I greeted, running my hand down her ponytail as I walked toward the coffee pot. “You’re up early.”

  “Can I go to Charlie’s today?” she asked, pausing with her spoonful of cereal halfway to her mouth. “I called her last night and her mom said it was cool.”

  “She did, huh?” I asked. I’d been contemplating calling in to work and taking my girl for some fun, but I could tell by the stubborn set to her chin that wasn’t going to fly. If I was reading her right, she wanted to get away from me. Wasn’t that some shit.

  “Please, Dad,” she said, trying and failing to keep the whine out of her voice. “I don’t want to hang at the clubhouse all day. Please.”

  “Fine with me,” I said as I poured my coffee.

  We both went silent, and I had no fucking clue what to say.

  “You feelin’ okay?” I finally asked.

  Kara’s face went beet red. “I’m fine.”

  “It’s nothin’ to be embarrassed about,” I replied, making her blush even harder.

  “I’m not embarrassed,” she lied.

  “Women have been bleedin’ once a month for thousands of—”

  “Jeez, Dad!” she yelled. “I’m fine.”

  “It’s gonna happen again,” I continued. “And I don’t want you thinkin’ it’s somethin’ you gotta hide, or—”

  I stopped talking when she stood from her chair and raced out of the room.

/>   Well, that had gone fucking fantastic.

  I kept my mouth shut for the rest of the morning, and things were almost normal by the time I dropped Kara at Casper’s place.

  “Bye, Dad,” Kara said quickly, not even bothering to take off her helmet before dashing up the porch steps.

  I followed her at a more reasonable pace and reached the doorway just as she went inside.

  “Hey, Mack,” Farrah said, meeting me at the door.

  “Thanks for having her over,” I replied as she gave me a sympathetic look and stepped outside. “She didn’t want to hang at the club today.”

  “Charlie told me,” she said, giving me a look. “How you holding up, Papa?”

  I laughed. “I’m not ready for her to grow up,” I said seriously.

  “Well, you can’t stop it,” she replied, smiling. “Believe me, I’ve tried.”

  “Yeah.” I shook my head. “She was embarrassed. Because of me.”

  “I’ll talk to her today about shit, see if I can get a read on her,” Farrah said. “First periods are weird when you’ve got a mom to talk to, I’m sure it’s worse when you’re dealing with a dad. Hell, I don’t think Cody’s ever even acknowledged that our girls have a monthly visitor.”

  “It’s a fuckin’ natural event,” I said in frustration. “It’s not a big deal.”

  “Well, aren’t you progressive?” Farrah teased. “Don’t worry. The girls didn’t even like talking to me about it at that age.”

  I huffed and Farrah laughed. “If it’s that bad, why don’t you let Rose take the lead on this one? The girls never wanted to talk to me, but they did talk to Trix. And Lily went to CeeCee, if I remember right.”

  “Nah.” I shook my head.

  “So, it’s like that, huh?” Farrah replied knowingly.

  “Like what?”

  “She’s in your bed, but that’s it?” There was an edge to her voice that hadn’t been there before, and the hair on the back of my neck stood straight up. Farrah was Rose’s aunt, they were as close as mother and daughter, and I had to tread carefully.

  “That’s not how it is,” I replied. “But we aren’t to the point where Rose is makin’ decisions about my kid or steppin’ into that role.”