by Lulu Pratt
“See! He’s so gullible. He’s been flirting and trying to get me to send him nudes.” Catharine pointed to a specific message in their exchange.
“What are you going to do?” I wondered. Surely she wouldn’t send him photos of her own body, but I’d never considered how she would cross that inevitable bridge.
“Ashley, he thinks he’s talking to a model from California. He’ll believe anything. All I have to do is find some cute nudes on the internet. He’ll never know the difference,” she explained.
A loud cry from the park caught my attention, but when I glanced up, I saw it wasn’t Jasper. Another young boy had come to play at the park. A soft smile fell over my lips knowing Jasper would have a friend to play with.
“I just need to find a way to make the photos more than the standard nude,” Catharine continued.
“Okay, can you stop saying nude.” I glanced over my shoulders. The place was filled with families and elderly people. It was more like a thing to do than simply a place to eat. There were several stalls serving all types of food, and every vendor used locally grown ingredients.
My father used to bring me here on the weekends when I was little. It was the only place in town where he could find beef bacon, his favorite. We’d make the short drive that felt like an adventure back then, and I’d always get an ice cream cone from the end stand. They featured a different flavor for every season. Peach was my favorite, because it was only available in the summer.
“Fine. I have to find a way to make sure the pictures Nathan sends are enough to end his career,” she restated.
“Catharine, do you not think you’re taking this a bit far?”
“What do you mean?” She paused, looking back at the park. “Your whole life has changed from this betrayal. He took everything, and do you think Nathan thought he took it a bit far? No. He’s somewhere playing video games, not thinking about how you’re making ends meet after he stole everything from you.”
I didn’t have an argument. She was right and we both knew it. Nathan was never one to express any remorse. Still, I wasn’t sure Catharine’s approach was the best option for us to take. How did it end without our hands getting dirty? Nathan would have to know it was us behind all this at some point, and that reality scared me.
“What will he do when he finds out it’s you talking to him?”
“Shit his pants!” She slapped the table before breaking into laughter.
Watching her amusement, I could only fight the urge to join her for so long. Imagining the look on Nathan’s face when he learned he’d been texting Catharine was hilarious. I would never tell her, but he always thought her unattractive.
Since middle school, I knew that boys preferred me, but I didn’t care. Catharine was my best friend and oftentimes my backbone. Her light brown hair, hazel eyes and good looks always made her stand out, especially since she was the tallest kid in class until the boys hit puberty. She was tall and slender, with an exotic look I couldn’t explain. But Nathan would never want to be flirting with her. As far as I was concerned, that was all the revenge I needed. Making a joke of him, and seeing how I’d dodged a bullet leaving him in the past.
“Seriously, I’m not going to let him get away with this. You tried to do something nice for him, because that’s who you are. You always see the good in people and want to help. But he fucked you over and took your kindness for weakness. So, I’ve got to step in and set him straight. That’s who I am. And it’s the reason we work so well together,” she said.
Just then, Jasper came running to the table. He was whining about the other boy pushing him down the slide as he made his way around the table.
“You okay?” I asked in a soft voice as I lifted him onto my lap.
“Seepy,” he murmured, rubbing his eyes with the backs of his knuckles.
“He’s worn himself out.” I smiled, but when I looked up to Catharine I could see the shock on her face.
Without speaking a word, I knew she thought I was too involved. It had only been a short while since I’d taken the job, but my connection with Jasper was undeniable.
“I need to get him home for a nap,” I quickly added, gathering our things as Jasper clung tightly to my neck.
Catharine walked us out, but we barely said another word to each other. I tried not to pay much attention to her confused stares, and she didn’t mention the influx of toys lining the backseat of my Honda. When I drove away, I felt a separation between us I’d never experienced, like we were on two very different paths.
Chapter 18
JAKE
I TOOK ONE last deep breath before hopping from the truck. The garage had been cleared and organized thanks to Ashley. Before, I used to have to step over and around boxes to make my way inside, but now things were clean and manageable. The second I opened the door, a strong aroma of home hit me. It smelled like the slow-cooked roasts my mom would make on Sundays when I was younger.
Turning the corner, I first saw Jasper, strapped into the booster chair I’d bought him. He was clapping his hands as he looked to the kitchen. Following his eyes, I saw Ashley. Dressed in a red and white apron, she was carrying a small, blue, plastic plate divided into three sections.
“Oh, hey. I didn’t know you’d be home so early. Do you want to join us for dinner?” she asked when her eyes landed on me.
Even in her apron, she was beautiful, even more than normal. The idea of coming home to her every night was a dream, one I’d given more thought than I liked to admit.
“I’d love to,” I said after finding my words. Ashley nodded before returning to the kitchen as she called out her instructions.
“Go ahead and wash your hands. I’ll make your plate. Are you hungry?” She smiled up at me, a warm and inviting smile I tried not to read too much into.
“Starving,” I claimed before leaning down to kiss the top of Jasper’s head. He looked up with amusement before returning to look at Ashley as he began to whine.
“Just a second. Daddy’s going to join us, so he needs a plate too,” she called to Jasper, but I didn’t hear anything other than her calling me Daddy. Blood rushed between my legs watching her move around the kitchen to make my plate.
Realizing I was standing in place, frozen by my desires, I rushed to wash my hands before she finished. We both settled into our seats at the dining table, which Ashley had set up perfectly. I’d never considered the small details necessary to make a house a home, but the improvement made my chest swell.
“This is delicious,” I complimented Ashley before swallowing my first bite. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had roast, but it definitely wasn’t as good as hers.
“Thank you,” she smiled bashfully. “I cooked it all day.”
“Whatever you did, it worked perfectly.” I shook my head in disbelief. She was too good to be true.
“How was your day?” She glanced up at me before moving something on Jasper’s plate. She was so attentive.
“Oh, you know, just another day,” I shrugged. Truthfully, I’d spent much of the day thinking about her and how I’d apologize for the previous night. I just had to wait for the right time. At least that was the excuse I was giving myself. “And how about you? What did you two get up to today?”
“Nothing too much. I met my friend Catharine for lunch, so Jasper got to see the old North Carolina Farmers Market Restaurant,” she smiled over to my son.
“Really? I haven’t been by there in years. I didn’t know they were still open,” I said, recalling many childhood days spent running between the stalls.
“Yep, he got to play at the playground until he wore himself out. Then he came home to nap while I cooked and finished the laundry,” she said.
“Sounds like a full day.” I nodded, impressed by how busy she stayed. My weekends with Jasper were enough for me to learn how difficult it was to get anything done with him. I still marveled at how productive she managed to be while looking after him.
“Done!” Jasper anno
unced, holding his hands in the air.
Ashley smiled, taking the plastic spoon from his hand. “He’s started doing this after every meal. It’s the sweetest thing.”
Leaving her half-eaten plate, she carried Jasper to the sink, where she carefully washed his hands. Sitting him on the counter, she used a towel to dry his small hands and then placed him on the ground. He ran to the playroom like they’d previously made a plan, and Ashley returned to the table to finish her plate.
Quickly, she ate the last few bites before placing the plate and fork into a sink of sudsy water. I was watching in silence as I finished my dinner. I’d never seen their nightly routine, but it was clear she had Jasper on a schedule, something my mother said was extremely important.
“Don’t worry about that,” I objected as she began washing the dishes.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. You can do whatever else you have to do, or just relax for a bit,” I insisted, making my way around the table.
“Okay, I’ll get Jasper ready for his bath. I’ll relax once he’s down for the night.” She smiled over her shoulder as she left the kitchen. Again, I felt there was something lying beneath her words, a hidden message she’d left dangling for me.
Watching her take my son into her arms, nuzzling his neck as he squealed with laughter, I hoped I wasn’t reading too far into her signals. My body craved for her, but the last thing I wanted to do was make things any more weird between us. She clearly had forgiven me, so all I had to do was stop from putting my foot in my mouth again.
After finishing the sink of dishes, I followed her angelic voice to find her pulling Jasper out of the bath. He yawned as she wrapped him in the plush bath towel, and I silently prayed he would go to sleep quickly. I was desperate to be alone with her.
“You tired, buddy?” I asked him, pleading with my eyes.
“Daddy, read my book!” He pointed his little finger without raising his head from Ashley’s shoulder.
“Looks like he’s putting you to work.” Ashley said before continuing to his connecting bedroom. It was the first time I noticed the new additions she’d made – a theme from his favorite movie Cars.
The red bedding matched the lamp, which sat beside the bed on a cute bookshelf. While Ashley tucked Jasper into bed, lightly singing the same melody I’d heard before, I knelt looking for a book. Many of the titles I was familiar with. Some of them had been mine when I was younger. But there were so many books I’d never seen, obviously new additions from Ashley.
Just when I’d picked a book to read to Jasper, I turned to see him fast asleep. She pressed her index finger to her lips before tiptoeing through the room. I followed quietly before gently closing the door.
“I’m impressed,” I whispered.
She laughed softly, her shoulders bouncing slightly as she led the way to the kitchen. My nerves began to build like a teenager now that we were finally alone. Rick had given me a game plan, but now that it was time to put it to play, I felt less than confident about telling Ashley how interested I was in her.
“You’ve mastered that. Getting him to go to sleep takes me at least an hour,” I mentioned.
“The trick is to wear them out during the day. Jasper makes it easy, because that kid can run like a track star,” she joked.
Ashley began to climb onto the bar stool at the kitchen island and I found my eyes dropping to her ass. She was wearing a fitted sweat suit and still left me breathless. Tilting her neck from one side to the other, she pulled at her ponytail until her hair fell down her back. Needing a little space, I made my way to my small wine collection.
“Want a drink?” I asked.
“Please,” she said, her voice more like a moan than a statement. I felt myself hardening at every move she made.
I opened the wine with more aggression than necessary, trying to suppress my needs. After pouring two glasses, I slid one across the island, taking a deep breath before beginning the inevitable.
“I want to apologize about the other night,” I said. Her cheeks reddened almost immediately as she twirled her long blonde hair around her finger. “I should have never overstepped a boundary like that.”
“No,” she shook her head before taking a large gulp of the wine. “It was equally my fault, Jake.”
My manhood lengthened hearing my name roll off her tongue like lyrics to the song. Then I began wondering if she still wanted me as much as I wanted her.
Chapter 19
ASHLEY
“CHEERS TO US getting through that awkward conversation that I’d been dreading all day.” Jake lifted his wine glass and I raised mine to meet him.
Covering my smile, I gulped the red wine, fighting back the tickle at the back of my throat. I couldn’t understand why so many people loved wine. To me, it was too bitter to enjoy, but it was clear that Jake enjoyed it, so I didn’t complain.
Besides, I could use every bit of liquid courage around him. I’d feared I would say something silly since he came home early, surprising me during dinner. His gaze was so intimidating. At times, I felt like he could see through me the way his gray eyes bored into me.
“Do you have a big family?” he asked, breaking the deafening silence between us.
“Me? No, it’s just me, really,” I admitted before taking another gulp.
“Really? From the way you care for Jasper, I assumed you were used to taking care of people,” he explained his question.
“Oh, yeah, I am. I was always the woman of the house, being raised by my dad. And he was a bit of a ladies’ man, so he always had a girlfriend. By the time I was twelve, I was a constant babysitter, cooking dinner every night for different families.”
The memory was bittersweet. In the moment, I hated always having to take care of everyone. I wanted to go and play with my friends like everyone else. But when my dad would walk in the house, happy to see me and bragging about how well I’d done, it was all worth it. Thinking back on it now, those memories were the prized moments of my life.
“Oh, so you’re a career babysitter, huh?” he asked, refilling our glasses.
“Yep, I’ve been doing this all my life. What about you? Do you have any siblings?”
“No, it’s just me and my mom.” He shrugged, lifting his glass to his lips.
I could still feel his lips pressed against mine, taste the sweetness of his tongue exploring new territory. I had to push the naughty thoughts away and focus. It was clear Jake wanted to keep things professional. He was right. It was the best thing we could do. However, that did nothing to the hunger building deep within me.
“I didn’t take you for a mama’s boy,” I teased, nudging him with my shoulder. Sitting side by side at the kitchen island, I felt the need to touch him. Jake’s shoulder felt like a block of concrete, hard and immovable. I leaned back to my side as he laughed heartily.
“I think my mom wishes I was a mama’s boy. But I never was. I looked at her as my responsibility. Kind of how you say you were the woman of the house,” he glanced at me and I nodded. “I was the man of the house. I’ve always tried to take care of my mom.”
“That’s nice,” I gushed. “I’m sure she appreciates it.”
“Yeah, she definitely does. We’ve been through a lot, the two of us. She’s always been my biggest supporter,” he recalled with love in his eyes. I could tell he cared deeply for his mother, and that attracted me to him even more.
“And now you have your own son to look after. Does your mom like being a grandma?” I asked, turning back and forth in my bar stool.
“She’s still getting used to it. I think she thought things would come about differently, and so that plays a part in it. She missed the beginning of Jasper’s life, and she was right here in Raleigh. But she loves spending time with him, and he took to her instantly,” he said. I could sense a range of emotions as he talked about Jasper’s new addition to his life.
“Jasper is a sweet boy. He’s so loving and inviting,” I added, and Jake beamed
with pride.
For a young boy thrust into such different environments, Jasper adapted so quickly I was often impressed. Wherever I took him, he made friends without question. Most children needed a buffer of time before warming up to new people, but not Jasper. He welcomed me from the first time I met him.
“Yeah, he’s very charismatic. I like to think he’s my little wingman,” he added with a laugh. A lump of jealousy caught in my throat at the thought of him pursuing other women.
“Really?” I tried to sound as nonchalant as possible.
“Yeah, when we went to get ice cream, he fell asleep at the perfect time,” he continued and I exhaled with a laugh of relief. “If he hadn’t, I probably wouldn’t have gotten to know you that day.”
Hearing him talk about getting to know me as if it was a great memory brought butterflies to my belly. It was hard to read Jake, with his mysterious gray eyes and hard demeanor. It was easy to mistake his intentions, but now I was almost certain that he was still interested in me, despite his apology. My heart rate quickened as our eyes locked on one another, the silence calming and not the least bit awkward.
“You know, the day you came to interview, I didn’t think you would be anything like this.” Jake broke the silence with a light smile fighting to emerge.
“Oh no?” I asked. “What did you expect?”
“Before you got here, I thought the interview, like all the others, would be a waste of my time,” he admitted and we both laughed before finishing the last of our wine. “I had no idea how difficult it was to find quality help.”
I listened quietly, nodding softly as he continued. “And then when I saw you, I thought you were too young. Maybe it was your ponytail, or the way you seemed so quick to accept my ridiculous terms. I just never thought you could be this good at what you do.”
My heart bloomed, feeling both appreciated and admired from the way he looked at me. It was one of the first times in my life when I knew I was feeling the same thing. The look in Jake’s eyes grew darker the longer he stared at me, the desire multiplying by the second.
