My Favorite Distraction (Distraction #1)

by Stephanie Jean

  Cali helped me in the men’s department with a dress shirt and matching tie for Jason. The whole trip was done within a half an hour. I was satisfied with my purchases.

  I went to bed around midnight still feeling restless and unsettled. I slept that way.

  Chapter 15

  J Names

  I woke up at five and went on a run with Bo, trying hard to snap out of the grumpy mood I was in. I dropped Bo off at Jackson’s office and went to the coffeehouse.

  Mike sat with me in my booth, and we talked about my plans for using his parents’ ranch. He had already worked it out with them. Mike assured me that no one would be there. I felt like I did when I was younger, when I would dance on stage, both nervous and thrilled. I realized it had been a long time since I had felt so excited about anything. It snapped me out of my bad mood. I typed up my fantasy so Jason would know his part. That way there would be no confusion on his part—where to go, times, places. I arranged two different notes for two destinations. When I finished, Mike let me go in the back of his shop and print it up. I read it to myself as it came out of the printer.

  The mission, if you choose to accept it.

  Jason: You are a desperate man in need of a particular woman. So desperate, in fact, you will go through any means to achieve her. You are a very educated and smart man, but this is a woman without normal reasoning. Your words and physical appearance mean nothing to her. The only way to get her attention is to catch her. You are athletically fit and very strong , not to mention charming and good with the ladies, but for this mission, you must be quick.

  Katie: She is a woman that has never been caught by anyone. She has managed to stay hidden and unattainable. No man has come close to catching her before. If you manage to catch her, can you hold on? She is faster and more slippery than you think.

  Place: Club Red.

  Time: 6:00 p.m. Wait at the bar for further instruction. She will be dressed for attention, so you can’t miss her, but can you catch her?

  Mission: Talk to her at the club, and watch her closely. When she leaves, chase her. If you catch her, she is yours. You may claim her any way you want, but if she reaches the end of her journey (a blanket in the corner of an empty building), the mission is over, and you have to let her go.

  I wrote out the second destination after leaving the club. I worried briefly he might think I was playing too many games with him, and I knew how much he hated games. I put the two pages I printed in different envelopes.

  I approached my car after I exited the coffeehouse. There was a note on the windshield tucked neatly under the wiper. I looked at it like it was the scariest spider. I looked around the parking lot suspiciously, but I was all alone. I snatched the note and got in the car quickly. I threw it on the passenger side and drove to work trying hard not to look at the note.

  To say I was paranoid would be putting it mildly. I knew it wasn’t from my family because they wouldn’t place a note. They would have an army of body guards to escort me home. I thought about who else it could be, maybe Heather. I also knew I had a reward placed on me. Not by my family, but by my grandfather’s body guard. He was left in charge of me. Grandfather knew I would freak when he died and he asked Smith to make sure I didn’t run, told him that there were plans for me when he died. Smith sat me down the day after he died to tell me how important it was to my grandfather that I stopped running. Smith told me it was safer for me to stay put.

  So maybe someone found out about the reward and now they wanted me to pay them more money, to stay quiet. I fled from the car with the note in hand as soon as I parked at work. My keys jiggled in the lock until the door finally opened. I scurried to the back of the office and locked myself in the bathroom. I closed the lid to the toilet and had a seat. I peered down at the crumpled paper in my hand. I took a deep breath and opened my hand. The note was folded in a rectangle and had Katie written across the center. It was plain white paper and the letters were written in blue ink. I unfolded the paper slowly holding my breath the entire time. I scanned the paper to the bottom of the page before reading anything. It read, Your Boyfriend, Jason xxo. I pressed the letter to my chest and wrapped my arms around myself as tight as I could. I took another large intake of oxygen; it was like I was suffocating. How in the heck did he deliver a letter? I held the note out so I could read it.

  Dear Princess,

  I am not very good at writing letters or expressing my feelings. So here goes. I am still camping in the Alliance Redwoods and had a friend put the note on your car. I wanted to say that first so you don’t expect me at home and forget to set the alarm. The alarm is important. Please use it.

  First thing I want to say is you are not only my favorite thing, but the person that fascinates me the most. If you were just a thing I would place you on a shelf and only get you out when I wanted to play with you. I’ve watched you go about your daily activities for a long time and everything you do fascinates me. For now that’s how I feel. I cut out all the really sweet words I know you hate those.

  Second and lastly, I know you don’t enjoy the masturbating. I know you tried it for me. It was a way for me to mark your brain. If I knew you were fantasizing about me while you touch yourself for the first time, it would be one more way I have claimed your body. My plan is to leave a piece of me on every inch of you. So no more touching yourself without me. I like that you need me for that.

  Your Boyfriend, Jason xxo.

  I folded the paper neatly smoothing out the wrinkles and put it in my pocket.

  The morning went by surprisingly fast, and before lunch, I went to the break room and sat in the quiet. I rested my head on my arms. My eyelids were heavy. I jerked when I heard my phone ring and got butterflies before I answered.

  “Hello?” I thought it might be Jason. It wasn’t.

  “Hey, Katie, this is Jessica, I am going to have to cancel lunch today. Jasmine swallowed a Lego, and I am at the doctor’s office.” She sounded stressed. I heard her talking to someone else on the other end. It sounded like they were arguing. “Hey, Katie, can you do me a favor?”

  “Sure, what is it?” I was pleasantly surprised that she would ask anything from me.

  “My nephew got in a fight at school. My mom is with me, and my sister is at work. The school can’t reach her. Can you go pick him up and take him to my dad’s office?”

  I stood and glanced at a schedule posted in the lunch room. “Sure, no problem.”

  She let out a sigh of relief. “I will text you the address and call the school to tell them you will be picking him up. Make sure you have your ID.”

  I hung up after that and asked my office manager if she would take care of me if I was late coming back from lunch. Then I left.

  It was a small country school. The office was located right in front and I parked and slowly made my way to the entrance mad at myself for not asking more about the nephew. I didn’t know an age or a name. I nervously walked up to the counter and showed the first person I saw my ID. There were kids everywhere. She called out for Jake. A thin, blond-haired boy stood up and walked toward me. He had blood on his shirt and a fat lip, and he half smiled at me.

  “Hi, Jake, I’m Katie, your Uncle Jason’s friend. Are you ready…do you have your things?”

  He didn’t say anything, just shrugged as he grabbed his bag and threw it over his shoulder. I walked to my car more than OK with the silence.

  “Nice car,” he said, and it made me smile. I already liked this super smart kid because he was right it was a nice car.

  “You want the top down?”

  He smiled and nodded fast. I opened the trunk and he put his bag in and I lowered the top. When we pulled out on the road I turned up the music to break the silence between us. I noticed he was staring at me out of the corner of my eye. I reached over and turned the music down, almost off.

  “Do you want to talk about it? You could. I wouldn’t tell anyone.” Jake began rubbing his legs with his hands. He looked out at the buildings
we were passing. He was avoiding the conversation and I respected that. My hand reached out to turn the music back on, but I didn’t get the chance.

  “He called me a spoiled little rich kid. I thought we were friends, and then today he was just calling me names.”

  “Did it feel good to hit him?” I glanced at him. His brows drew up, and his eyes looked watery.

  “No, it was awful. I thought it would feel good just to shut him up, but I don’t know. I didn’t like how everyone looked at me afterwards.”

  “What are you going to do now?” I was curious. My brothers fought but never regretted it. Jake clearly regretted it. “How will you make sure it won’t happen again?”

  “I don’t know. What would you do?”

  I thought for a second. “Well, I would probably never talk to anyone again, just hide in the corner, you know.” I looked at him and shrugged. “But you look stronger than me. I think you could make a joke of it.”

  He was so confused.

  “Next time someone calls you a spoiled brat, you tell them something like, ‘Yeah, my dad is so rich he pays attention for me.’”

  He laughed and his face changed completely. His crystal blue eyes sparkled and his whole body relaxed. “So I should be funny?”

  “Well, in my opinion, everyone wants to be around the funny guy. Most of my male friends in school were funny.” I pulled in front of the sandwich place and turned off the car. “Jake, how old are you?”

  “Nine. I am in the fourth grade.” I think he anticipated my next question.

  “I don’t know any other nine-year-olds, so my advice might not mean anything, but why not make people laugh if you can?” I stepped out of the car and heard Jake do the same. “Hungry? Want to split a turkey sandwich?”

  “Yes, please,” he said, “and a chocolate milk shake.”

  I laughed and ordered some sandwiches and milk shakes, then headed to Jason’s work to eat.

  ****

  Twenty minutes later we were seated on the sofa in Jackson’s office. Bo’s large head rested on my knee. He was an adorably irresistible dog and I told him that. Jackson wasn’t there, so I gave Jake his half of my turkey sandwich and we both began eating. I could tell Jake was pondering what to say.

  “So do you think Uncle Jason is funny?”

  The thought of Jason immediately brought a goofy grin to my face.

  “No, I think your uncle Jason is confident and strong. He faces his problems head-on, and I admire that a lot, but he is not funny. Sometimes I think he is very intense.”

  “How do you think Uncle Jason would deal with a bully?”

  “Honestly, I don’t think many people would bully your uncle.” I raised my eyebrows, and we both laughed. “Your uncle still has to deal with his anger, though, and I have watched him.” Jake put his sandwich down and his eyes found mine. He was hanging on my every word. “I watch him pray.”

  His eyes lit up. His expression was full of surprise. “My uncle Jason prays?”

  “Yes, and I think it helps him find peace.”

  “How do I, uh…pray?”

  I smiled. “It would start like this: please, Lord, help me from kicking this guy’s face in.” I raised my brows, and Jake burst out in laughter. “No, just ask him to give you the strength to control your anger. You should probably talk to him first…just so he knows who you are.”

  He gave me a questioning look.

  “It’s easy. Just start by thanking him for your family.”

  I heard someone clear their throat at the door. Jackson stood in the doorway. His eyes filled with a disappointing glare. I immediately felt uncomfortable. I stood up to leave nervously, dropping the rest of my sandwich in front of Bo. I recovered like I always do by putting my shoulders back and holding my head high as I approached him, avoiding eye contact.

  “Hi, Jackson, is everything all right?” It dawned on me I could have the wrong kid.

  He stood tall like a statue in the doorway. I glanced around the room looking for another way to escape, but realized quickly I had cornered myself. The entire room was shrinking.

  “I got you a sandwich on the table.” My heart was beating fast, and hard against my chest. I was sure he could hear it. Anxiety oozed from me and I was beginning to panic. I was having flashbacks to when I was a child and my father was standing at my door, blocking my escape. I stepped back sliding my fingers along the wall and putting a chair between us.

  “Grandpa, Katie even got us milk shakes.”

  Jackson glanced at me. It was the same way Jason did when I caught him studying me. Then a slow smile filled his face, reaching his eyes. He stepped inside, but moved toward Jake. I quickly moved around the chair and made a dash for the front door.

  My hands were still shaking as I returned to work. I was fifteen minutes late and so I jumped right in. I ran late on all of my patients and after that I was exhausted when the day was over. I finished last; everyone was already done, so we all left together. I checked my phone on the way out. I received two missed calls from Jessica, so I settled in my car and called her back.

  “Hi, Jessica, this is Katie.”

  “I want you to come over for dinner tonight to thank you.”

  “No, Jessica, it’s not necessary.”

  “Are you kidding? It’s a great idea. Dad’s coming, and he’s bringing Bo. So you need to stop by and pick him up anyway.”

  Being with Jason’s family without Jason would be weird. “Jessica, if I come I can’t stay long.” My voice was both nervous and defeated.

  “All right, I am on my way. Text me your address.”

  Thirty minutes later I pulled in front of a house in the suburbs. Hers was the beautiful house on the end of the block. The landscaping was immaculate. I sat in my car and looked at the gray house with blue trim for about ten minutes, until I got up the nerve to go in. I thought about my family, something I didn’t do often. I thought about the family dinners and the fancy food, too pretty to eat. There was always an uncomfortable silence unless my mother was complaining about something. Then dinner would switch from uncomfortable to miserable. I liked dinner for one there was never any surprises. I wasn’t sure how I felt when I got out of my car or when I knocked, but right now the blond boy I met earlier answered and was smiling up at me. I followed him into the kitchen and saw Bo. He got up and walked over to greet me, and I bent down to pet him. Touching his soft short hair and watching how he enjoyed it helped me relax. I heard footsteps stop right behind me and stood up. Jessica greeted me with a hug. I wasn’t a hugger, but I did my best to give her some gentle pats on the back. I was relieved when she pulled away until I was yanked into another embrace from someone else. Awkwardly I stood there literally counting the seconds of uncomfortable torture. I got to ten and then I was disentangled from her arms. A cute brunette lady with watery eyes faced me. I took a huge step back putting Jake in front of me. What the heck? My eyes quickly shifted to the door, my escape, as she started talking.

  “Hi, I am Joanne, Jason’s mom.” I faced her again and she wiped tears from her eyes. Awkwardly, I peered at Jessica.

  “So thank you for picking up Jake today. He was so excited about meeting you that is all he has talked about.” Jessica was obviously trying to make it less strange.

  “I think I am going to take Bo and go.” I gave them both a quick nod. Their world was gushy and full of hearts and rainbows and tears. Joanne’s shirt said ‘I heart my grandchildren’. I definitely didn’t belong here. I could do dinner parties and a fancy tea gathering, but share a night with the perfect family? I had limits.

  Jake grabbed my hand snapping me out of my thoughts.

  “I have some books about being funny. There joke books.” He tugged on my hand pulling me toward a large room. We sat on the sofa facing a pool table. The exit was to my right. I also noticed a glass door straight ahead that led out to the landscaped backyard.

  Jake settled close to me moving his stack of books to the side of him. He spent the nex
t hour reading every joke. He stopped part way through and grabbed a pen and a highlighter, making notes next to all the really funny ones. Jack came in with his trucks. Josh, Jake’s brother, sat on the ground in front of us. I quickly learned things about Josh. He was eight and in the third grade. His favorite way to start a sentence was, “and guess what” and he really wanted me to touch his finger where a new nail was growing in. I declined, telling him girls don’t like to touch owies, but that didn’t stop him from asking. The two boys settled in front of us rolling around holding their stomachs, exaggerating the really funny jokes. This was turning out to be a great night. The three boys seem to get along well and watching their laughter had my face hurting, I was smiling so much.

  Jackson came in the room holding Jasmine and told the boys to get cleaned up. He cautiously approached me using Jasmine as the distraction. I knew he saw me like Jason did, especially after this afternoon’s performance where I ran. In his eyes, ‘I was a scared rabbit.’ If he only knew how brave and fearless I really was. He stopped in front of me, still focused on Jasmine. His voice was soft, making her giggle as he blew raspberries in her neck. I gracelessly attempted to move around him, but he set Jasmine down in my path and stared at me for a moment. Jasmine took off in a run-slash-wobble out of the room.

  “Katie,” his hushed tone was meant to calm me.

  I took a step back toward the sliding glass door. “Hello Dr. Riggs.”