She’d only been to this small Texas town a few times in her life before today. Her most recent visit had come just two weeks ago. Every occasion she’d come to Lusty had been to see her Aunt Shirley.
Most often over the past several years, her aunt had visited her in El Paso, or they had gotten together in either Houston or Dallas. She and Shirley would meet for their semiannual shopping excursions, and to catch up on each others’ busy lives.
Jillian sighed. She was really going to miss her Aunt Shirley.
Now Shirley had retired and moved to Florida, likely already settled in close to Uncle Hal and Aunt Betty. And Jillian was here, in Lusty, Texas, getting ready to move in to her aunt’s vacated apartment and her vacated job.
Shirley had been planning to go into retirement and live next to her last surviving brother and his wife for the last few years. No one had been as surprised as Jillian when the older woman had declared, just a month before, that the time had come for her to do exactly that.
In truth, her aunt’s timing couldn’t have been better for Jillian. Recently rendered jobless by the closure of the small private clinic where she’d worked for the last five years, Jillian had been wondering if she was ever going to get another job in her chosen field.
She’d also been thinking lately that it was time for her to leave El Paso—and not just because she was having trouble finding a job that was a good fit. Around Christmastime, her ex-husband had begun calling her and calling on her. Apparently the novelty of wife number two had already worn off. Jillian had no intention of offering her ex any kind of comfort whatsoever.
“Been there, done that.” Jillian’s voice echoed in the car. She shook her head, turned off the engine, and exited the vehicle.
Her aunt, the one person who’d been there for her most of her life, had given her this golden opportunity to start over, and start over she would.
She’d left no forwarding address.
Movement near the front of the building drew her attention, and Jillian got out of her vehicle and headed toward the sidewalk. The man approaching her held an attaché case in his right hand, a cell phone in his left, and looked as if he could take on the world. If she hadn’t sworn off men for the rest of her natural life, she’d think he was a pretty hot-looking specimen of beefcake.
Oh, hell, Jill, he’s hot regardless of your vow and you know it.
She didn’t think it would be considered rude if she ignored her inner imp.
He put his cell phone away and gave her a smile that made Jillian nearly regret her no-men-ever-again rule.
“You must be Ms. Gillespie. I’m Jake Kendall.”
“Ah. The lawyer. Hello.” Jillian offered him her hand. The earth didn’t move when he accepted her handshake, which was just as well. She did recall her aunt had told her that Jake Kendall was taken—if that was even what you called it here in Lusty.
So he’s off-limits regardless of my promise to myself. Good.
Jillian had only had the one relationship, as she’d married right out of high school and hadn’t dated since her divorce. There certainly hadn’t been much benefit for her in being part of a couple as far as she was concerned in the entire experience. At this point in her life, she sure as hell didn’t want another one.
Especially not in this town.
“You said the word lawyer as if it was like any other word. Thank you for that. For some reason, some folks like to make fun of us legal eagles.”
Jillian laughed, and realized that the man had put her at ease, just that simply.
“I have nothing against lawyers, Mr. Kendall. Someone has to make sense out of all that legalese so the rest of us can get on with life.”
“Jake, please. The apartment is on the ground floor, as you know. It’s a two bedroom.” He used his free arm to indicate that she could precede him to the front door of the building, which she did.
He quickly unlocked the front door, held it while she entered, and then walked with her to apartment 110. Jake continued to give her information as if she didn’t know anything about the place.
“It’s fully furnished, but if anything doesn’t suit, just let me know. We can arrange for you to visit the warehouse. There’s enough furniture and accessories there, you’re bound to find something you like. Or, of course, you can feel free to purchase anything you want for yourself. We’ll remove any unwanted items, no charge, of course.”
“Y’all are very accommodating. I appreciate it.” Her aunt had told her about the warehouse, and the way folks here had a habit of making newcomers feel welcome.
Shirley had also told her about the “alternative lifestyle” of many of the Lusty residents—pun definitely intended. Shirley had assured her that the women of this small Texas town were content to have two, or even three husbands—those that chose to do so.
All Jillian could imagine was two husbands equaled twice the work and twice the bullshit. Thanks, but no thanks.
Still, she wasn’t one to cast aspersions. Everyone ought to be free to live how they wanted to live and love whomever they chose. This was, after all, supposed to be a free country.
Jillian stopped in front of the door to the apartment that had so recently been her aunt’s and waited while Jake Kendall unlocked the door. As soon as she entered, he handed her the key—or rather the keys, since there were four on the ring.
“The one with the black tab is for the outside door, and the brass-colored ones are for the clinic.”
The apartment smelled fresh and clean—cleaner than even her fastidious aunt had kept it. She also noticed that the living room carpet had been changed, and the walls freshly painted a soft eggshell.
“Someone’s done a lot in a short time. It really wasn’t necessary. The way Shirley left the place was fine with me.”
Jake Kendall waved that off, and then waited for her to sit at the kitchen table. “The Town Trust takes care of the properties it owns. Refreshing an apartment for a new tenant is standard operating procedure.” Then he smiled. “Everyone in town loved Shirley. The Doctors Jessop often said that she kept that clinic afloat single-handedly.”
Jillian smiled. “Shirley spoke well of them, and this town, too. I know that she really loved living here. She just wanted to be close to her brother. He’s getting on in years. My dad—her other brother—died several years ago, when I was just eight.”
“I understand your mother is gone, too, and that you’re divorced.”
Jillian didn’t mind Jake Kendall knowing all of that. These days, landlords had to be careful about who they took on as tenants. So she only said, “Yes, that’s right. I have one son. Brandon is twenty, and he’s in the Marines.”
Jake grinned. “Really? Good for him. I served in the National Guard, myself.”
Because her son was in the service, she said, “Thank you for your service.” She wished Jake Kendall would quit smiling at her. He really made her want to totally relax, and she didn’t think that would be a good idea just yet.
He seemed to somehow understand her slight discomfort, as he opened his case and pulled out a sheaf of papers. “This is a lease agreement, for one year. If you’d like to take a look—you’ll be happy to know there isn’t much legalese. We like to keep things simple, here.”
Jillian took the papers and began to read. She got to the paragraph that stated the amount of the rent and blinked. “This can’t be right.”
Jake got up and came over to look over her shoulder. “It is.”
“I was expecting to pay twice that. And this says that the rent includes electricity and water.”
“That’s right, it does.”
Jillian shook her head. “Well, I won’t complain. This certainly is a good deal for me.” She could rework her budget. It would appear she’d be able to put a lot more money into that savings account for Brandon than she’d dared to hope.
Jake gave her a pen and she signed on the dotted line. Then he signed as witness, and gave her one copy of the document.
“How well do you know the town, Ms. Gillespie?”
“Just Jillian, please. I must confess I don’t know it that well.” When his response was to raise one eyebrow, she shrugged. “Shirley told me the basics, I guess. I know you have an energetic if small business area downtown.” When he continued to give her what she could almost dub a patient, lawyerly look, she said, “I also know that many of the folks here about live an alternate lifestyle. I’m fine with that.”
He nodded as if that was what he wanted to know. Then he gave her that smile again. “We have a great restaurant, Lusty Appetites. My fiancée, Ginny, works there.” He went on to tell her about the other stores and services available in Lusty. She figured it wouldn’t take her long to get her bearings in town.
While she was interested in the amenities available, her main concern was the job she’d be starting on Monday. She intended to be the best clinic administrator—sorry, Aunt Shirley—the town of Lusty had ever seen. “Is the clinic open today?”
Jake shook his head. “There’s at least one doctor on duty there from Monday to Friday. Otherwise, one of the doctors is on call, if needed.” Jake put his papers back into his attaché case. “So no, it’s closed unless an emergency comes up. Of course, you have your keys. If you wanted to go and familiarize yourself with the place, no one would object.”
A moving van was on its way from El Paso and would arrive shortly. Jillian thought she just might go and take a look around the clinic after her things arrived and she’d dealt with them.
In her mind, the sooner she got started with her new job, the sooner her fresh start would be completely underway.
* * * *
Robert Jessop stood back and looked at the results of his labor. The pansies lifted their cheery faces up to the late afternoon sun and seemed to dance in the light breeze. He’d planted them well, watered them well, and knew they’d take. Of course, they’d take a lot of watering and care, too, but he considered them well worth the effort. His back ached, and his hands were covered in good Texas soil.
Gardening didn’t beat a good workout in one of the playrooms in the club he’d frequented up north. But for the time being—since their personal playroom wasn’t completely ready and they didn’t even know any local subs yet—it would have to do.
“You look a bit more relaxed, brother.”
He turned and watched as David jogged up to him. Sweat streamed down his brother’s chest, and he’d taken his T-shirt off and tucked it into the front of his shorts where it dangled like a towel. He used it that way now, and then began his series of cool-down stretches.
Twins they might be, but different they certainly were. Robert didn’t particularly like jogging. “I thought you were only going to run a couple of miles.”
David smirked. “So did I. And then, as I was hitting my stride at my midway point, I encountered Dev Wakefield, just heading out. He got to ribbing me about being, ha ha, a pansy, and out of shape and pampered and one thing led to another.”
Robert shook his head. His womb-mate had never been able to turn his back on a challenge of any kind. “So how far did you go, in all?”
David groaned and gave up on his stretches. Instead he bent from the waist, hands on his knees, and struggled for breath.
“Seven fucking miles. Fuck me, I’m an idiot.”
“Are you expecting me to tell you otherwise, brother?”
David laughed. No one had a better sense of humor or healthier outlook on life than David Jessop. Robert envied him that.
“Hell, no. I’m okay with being a bit of an idiot from time to time. There is, after all, value in being considered the comic relief of the family.” Then his smile sobered, and his gaze became very direct and piercing. “How are you doing?”
In response, Robert held up his hands. “For now, not bad. The good news is, there are a lot of flower beds in Lusty just crying out for my expert touch. The bad news is, hell, I’m not as young as I used to be. My back is killing me.”
David shrugged. “So we give the playroom we’re building some priority, and we get our asses into Houston. Visit that club Jordan Fitzpatrick told us about. If we’re lucky, we’ll meet someone.”
Robert appreciated his brother’s suggestion. While they’d both enjoyed their time together at Reckless Abandon, the club Fitzpatrick owned, and training to be proper Doms, Robert had needed the practice in self-discipline and self-control more than David had. Robert knew his brother had gone along with him out of filial devotion. “Yeah. Actually, Jordan called this morning just after you left on your ill-fated jog. He’s spoken to the owner of the Lyon’s Den, Christopher Lyons. Turns out Jonathan Steele knows Lyons, too. The man’s expecting to hear from us. I guess with two Doms that are friends of his vouching for us, we won’t need to jump through too many hoops to join, if we like the club.”
“Good. Maybe we could head there tonight, then.” He turned back and looked at the newly planted garden.
Robert tried to see the finished landscaping with an unbiased eye. The flowers definitely added something to the front of the house they’d moved into just a few weeks before.
“I’m glad we’re home,” David said.
“Me, too. You know, if we’d fully appreciated the toll that five years practicing at an inner-city hospital was going to take on us…” Robert let the sentence hang. What was the point? They couldn’t go back and change what had been. And if he could, he wouldn’t waste that kind of miracle on something as insignificant as lessening his own burdens.
David clapped him on the shoulder. “We did what we could there. We had some good times, and we did some good work, too. There were some days when I thought I really made a difference. And you, too, brother mine. You definitely made a difference. Call me a coward but I’m glad to be back home, where life is more familiar and comfortable and less traumatic. ”
“You’re no coward, David. And neither, by damn, am I. We’re just men, just human. And you’re right. We did what we could there.” They’d done their best. He’d done his best. No one could be expected to do any more than that.
“So, let’s review our master plan.” David rubbed his hands together and smirked, his play on words, Robert figured, deliberate. “We’ve moved into the house we wanted, and we’ve got our rotation schedules at the hospital in Waco. We’ve pegged the days we’ll help the dads by manning the clinic. That was the professional agenda.” David changed his expression again, and now Robert could see he’d dropped the clown routine. “You know, we vaguely discussed that moving home would also mean finding a wife and getting married. But we never put a time frame on that part of it.”
Robert laughed. “Because I was in such a mess when we made this plan last year.” The inner city had taken its toll on him. There’d been too many people he hadn’t been able to save. But he and his brother were home, and the time had come to shove the past further into the past. Everything could be new again, if they let it be.
If he let it be.
They could have a new beginning. They just had to choose to have one.
Robert inhaled deeply. “You know that I would like a family. I’d like us to move on to that next phase of life. I really want to find a woman we can both fall in love with. But I figure it’s going to take us a while to settle in, and a while to find her.” He shrugged. “Although we might meet someone in Houston. As Grandma Kate is fond of saying, you just never know when love will find you.”
He headed toward the side of the house, his mother’s long-standing rule on hosing off before entering from outside having followed him into adulthood, even when it was his own house in question. He held the hose between his knees so he could rub his hands together under the fall of water.
Hands somewhat cleaner, hose re-coiled, he turned back to his brother. David hadn’t said anything about his last suggestion.
“I guess I’m more into the D/s scene for play, and to enhance the sex. I’m not sure I want to live it twenty-four seven.”
“N
either do I, necessarily. But it would be nice to be able to play from time to time. And in order to do that, we really do need a woman who’s a sub. Or one who’s a hell of an adventuress and wouldn’t mind slipping into that role occasionally.”
David grinned. “Amen to that. I’m all for adventure in the bedroom.”
Robert turned his attention to the street, and the silver Audi pulling to the curb. Jake Kendall emerged from the vehicle, his gaze on the newly planted flower bed.
“The new garden looks good. Those posies bring new life to the old place. Of course, you’re going to have to water them constantly.” Then Jake grinned. “Since y’all have planted Yankee flowers instead of good, native Texas ones.”
“Fuck you, too, cousin,” Robert said.
Jake laughed and shook his head. “Seeing as how the families’ two best gardeners returned home within weeks of each other, I figure you ought to be prepared. You know you and Rick are going to be getting requests for landscaping assistance from every damn body.”
“Rick and I have already discussed the possibilities. We both agree it would be a good hobby for us. We’re going to start with the Inn. And you know what? I don’t mind so much,” Robert smiled. “It’s how we earned our spending money when we were kids. So I guess we owe the craft something.”
Jake nodded. “Used to piss me off. The two of you always had cash to spare.”
Robert grinned. That was one of his cherished memories. Wealthy the families may have been, but every parent in Lusty stressed the virtue of the kids earning their own way and working for any extras they wanted. Spending money always had to be earned, either through doing chores at home or—in the case of himself and his cousin Rick—entrepreneurial initiative. He said, “And we used to love rubbing it in, too.”
“I remember that about you. Anyway, I thought I’d stop by to let you know the new clinic admin has arrived in town. Moved in, lease signed, and clinic keys delivered. She drives a purple Neon, so if you wander by the place and see such a car there, you’ll know it’s her.”
Love Under Two Doctors [The Lusty, Texas Collection] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 2
