by Rachel Hanna
She elbowed him in the side. “You mean your only brother-in-law right? And no, it’s just me this time. He’s just really busy. I was actually on my way when I called this morning, but I wanted to make sure everyone was cool with it first.”
“Why wouldn’t we want you here, sis? We could always use another girl in the mix, right Mom?” Their mother smiled as she walked past with a basket full of laundry.
“Well apparently I’m not the only new woman addition here. I here that Aaron has a new belle and that you, sir, are about to get a family. That’s so exciting, right?”
Jackson could tell by the smile and jumping for joy that she wasn’t exactly clear on the details. “It’s not really like that, Addison. Roma’s my ex, and it wasn’t even serious. She just kind of showed up here this morning and ruined breakfast and my relationship with an amazing woman. I was even going to move here for her. I’m not sure what Roma wants, I mean she’s got plenty of money, and she doesn’t really seem to be the motherly type.”
Jackson realized looking at Addison that she was suddenly mad. “I would think you’d be a little more sensitive, Jackson. It takes two to get pregnant, and she’s probably scared to death. She just doesn’t want to be alone in this, I’m sure.” Addison stormed upstairs. “I’m going to take a shower.” Jackson and his mother exchanged confused glances as she slammed the door.
“What’s going on with her, Mom?”
Mrs. Parker shook her head. “She just got here a few minutes before you did, and she hasn’t said much. I think her marriage is a little on the rocks. She’ll talk about whatever is going on when she’s ready.”
Jackson nodded and then heard a knock on the door. He went to open it to find Leo standing on the doorstep. This morning was really full of surprises.
“What are you doing here, Leo? I don’t think your mother would want you to be here right now. Does she even know you left?”
Leo shrugged and stepped into the house. “I overheard the basics of what’s going on, and she didn’t like my opinion. We fought, and I decided to ride my skateboard here. I actually wanted to talk to you about it.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Leo. I mean, this is a pretty grown up problem.”
Leo interrupted, “Don’t give me that. I’m fourteen, not six. Plus, I’m from New York. This sort of stuff happens up there all the time. I’m here because I was wondering if the model in question happened to be Roma Maggiano, the Italian girl from Atlanta?”
Overhearing, his nosy mother came to sit down with them. She put her finger over her lips and then pointed upstairs, a signal to be quiet since Roma was right up there and might hear.
“Yes, that’s the one. Why do you ask?”
Leo reached into his pocket a pulled out some folded up pieces of paper and handed them to Jackson. Mrs. Parker leaned forward to look over his shoulder. On the paper was a story printed from an Internet tabloid. It was clearly about Roma and showed pictures of her doing cocaine in the back of some club. The story was talking about how she was going broke buying drugs and had lost her last two gigs because she showed up high. Mrs. Parker ripped the paper out of his hands and started scanning the story again with wide eyes. “Look, Leo, I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but tabloids aren’t really right all the time. They like to make things up and use photoshop to corroborate their stories. It makes them more money if it’s something outrageous.” Mrs. Parker didn’t seem to be buying Jackson’s doubts and made her way up the stairs to where Roma was staying with pursed lips.
Jackson knew that look meant she was on a mission and there was no changing her mind, so instead, he just followed her so he could be there to calm things down when the damage was done.
Mrs. Parker swung the bedroom door open like a mad woman to find Roma laughing on her cell phone and speaking with someone in Italian. Without a word, she grabbed Roma’s purse and dumped it out on the bed. Everyone gasped as a small bottle of Jack Daniels, half full, and a rolled up bag full of white powder rolled out onto the mattress. Roma’s eyes went wide, and she hung up on whoever she was talking to. She was clearly about to plead or make an excuse, but Mrs. Parker beat her to it.
“So, you thought you could fool my family and use my son? You must be a really dumb model, dumber than the rest. Your pretty face isn’t going to save you here. Get out of my house before I call the police and report the fact that you brought drugs into my home!”
“But, I’m having his baby...” she pleaded in a thick Italian accent. She was squeezing her eyes in an attempt to produce tears on demand, but her tear ducts were not cooperating.
“Are you? Well, let me go get that home pregnancy test so we can confirm everything right now,” Adele said as she started toward the door.
“No!” Roma shouted, and Jackson knew the answer. She wasn’t pregnant.
“No? And why is that, Roma?” Adele said, hands on her hips.
“Um... I... Well, I may not be pregnant...”
Roma glanced at Jackson, looking for a savior, but he put his head down and moved out of her way. Roma grabbed her stuff and scooped it back into her purse before running out of the door. She left the Parker house without a word, even as Leo yelled some choice words after her.
Jackson’s mother made a motion like she was dusting herself off after some hard, dirty work, and turned to her son. “Well, don’t just stand there. I believe you have a nice woman to win over. Now scoot.” Jackson smiled at his mother’s back as she went back about her business as if nothing happened. Leo held up his hand to give Jackson a high five, but instead Jackson went in for a hug. He was just so relieved that Leo of all people had helped him find a way out of this mess. He should’ve known Roma wouldn’t dare be pregnant. And he wondered for a moment just how far she would have taken the fake pregnancy. The thought scared him a little.
“So how are we going to convince your mom to listen, buddy?” Leo thought for a minute then whispered an idea into Jackson’s ear. “Well, then, I guess I’ll see you tonight, Leo. Thanks again for helping a guy out." Jackson winked at him and walked him out. Leo’s skateboard was sitting on the porch, and Leo hopped on it to skate back home.
Jackson ran upstairs to change. He had some things he had to take care of, and he only had a few hours to do them in.
***
Rebecca had somehow made it through the day without unloading on a customer or having another fight with Leo. He’d gone for a ride on his skateboard for a little while that afternoon and came back in a better mood. Hopefully, she would be able to get her optimism back half as easy as her teenage son.
Now in the shower, she let the warm water distract her and work out some of the kinks in her stressed body. When she turned off the water she could hear music coming from the living room. Curious as to what Leo was up to, she quickly wiped down and pulled on some pajamas. She didn’t expect it to be a high impact night. She’d probably read and sulk in the bed most of the night.
When she stepped out into the living room, her eyes quickly narrowed. The music playing was Frank Sinatra, not something her son would generally be listening to. Out from the shadows stepped Jackson, dressed in some nice jeans and a polo, one of the most dressed down outfits she’d seen him in. She was about to tell him to get out of her house when Leo came out of his room. “Just dance with him, Mom. Do it for me.” Leo and Jackson must have cooked up something together, and she didn’t like the feeling that she was being manipulated. However, she also couldn’t ignore the request of her son. She was just now able to communicate with him again, and she couldn’t afford to ruin it.
Jackson held out his hand to her, and she set her face in a scowl but approached him and took his hand nonetheless. Leo disappeared back into his bedroom, probably to give them privacy. At least without him in there she could be honest and didn’t have to pretend to be okay with this.
“So, now you’re using my son to manipulate me?” Jackson looked offended by her question, and she almost wanted to take it
back, but then again, she didn’t want to give him the chance to toy with her either.
“Your son actually came to my mother’s house today with some interesting information. It turns out that your teenage son knew more about Roma than I did.” Rebecca found herself getting slightly curious. “He found an article about her in a tabloid that said she was losing money and contracts because of drug use. My mom confirmed that this afternoon when she searched Roma’s purse. We assume she just wanted money. There’s no baby, Rebecca.”
As much as Rebecca wanted to breathe a sigh of relief, she wasn’t sure she was out of the woods yet. The situation had really shaken her up, and she’d been rethinking the fact that she should get into a relationship in the first place. When Rebecca didn’t respond, Jackson dipped her and smiled. “I have some other news too. I called the office today and talked to Mark, my assistant. He’s going to step into a leadership position and help me learn to take time off and enjoy life again. They’re going to be sending me a computer. I’ll be looking for an apartment and moving some of my work here. I’ll still have to go into Atlanta once or twice a month, but I’ll be living here. I want to be with you and Leo, Rebecca.”
As much as Rebecca wanted to protest and stay strong she just couldn’t. She had been strong for too many years, and she just needed someone to count on and lean on right now. She fell into Jackson, forgetting about the music and the bad morning she’d had and just clung onto him for dear life. She began to cry and he just held onto her, rubbing her back. It felt so comforting, reminding her of the way she used to comfort Leo after he had nightmares when he was little. “I love you,” she told him, and he whispered it back in her ear as they swayed back and forth to the music.
She just barely noticed Leo peeking out from his room, winking and giving her the thumbs up. She laughed away her tears and invited him in for a hug. For the first time in a long time she felt like she had a family, and she was happy. She hoped that wherever her husband had gone he was happy for her too.
Chapter 15
Addison shut the door to her old room and looked at herself in the vanity mirror. It had been a long time since she’d been back in this room alone, since she usually visited during the holidays with her husband. She could tell by looking at herself that she looked different, like something was going on in her life, but she hoped that it was her paranoia.
Not that her mother hadn’t already noticed that something was going on with her, and Jackson would probably sniff it out soon too. She hoped that it might be awhile since he had his own stuff to deal with right now. She was very happy for him, finally looking for a woman to be serious with. She’d secretly been worried about him for years, wondering if he’d ever find a serious woman and step away from his work long enough to have a family.
Thinking about the future he might have made her sad though, and she pulled out her phone to check it. As usual, there were no messages of any kind. Something about a cell phone not in use could really make a woman feel lonely.
She sighed and tugged at her shirt. It felt a little tight these days. She’d found herself gaining a little weight over the past few months, and her body didn’t look quite like it used to.
She had once loved change, especially when she got married and moved to another city. Everything felt great and brand new with someone to share it with, but now she hated change. It made her afraid. She knew she should probably talk with her family about what was going on since they’d find out eventually one way or the other. She couldn’t hide what was going on with her forever, but she just hoped to hold it off until after the holidays.
She wanted nothing more right now than to distract herself, and everyone else, with a fun Parker Christmas, an event the whole family came for every year.
But would her own problems end up causing drama she didn't want or need right now?
THE END
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from the Author.
