Taking a Gamble on Three of a Kind (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Kalissa Alexander

  “You’re way overanalyzing this conversation,” she said guardedly. “Whatever our parents do, it’s their decision. I’m not my mother’s keeper.”

  “Good. I’d hate to see two nice people like them break up because of something or someone acting stupid.”

  Silently they watched the dancers. Several dances later, Adam and April came back to the table. April downed the one beer and picked up the other bottle Luke had ordered for her.

  “I do love to dance,” April said with a giggle. “Now it’s your turn, Luke.” April jumped up from the chair and held her hand toward Luke. “I want to dance with you now.”

  “Duty calls,” Luke called over his shoulder as he let April lead him out onto the dance floor.

  Adam sat next to her and stretched his legs. “I like to dance, but taking a break is nice, too, but if you want to dance…”

  “No. I’m fine just watching.”

  “I like your hair long. You always used to wear it in a bob or something like that.”

  “Thanks. My dad liked it short. But I like it longer now.”

  “Everything okay with you and Luke?”

  “Sure. Why wouldn’t it be?”

  “I don’t know. I looked over your way a few times, and it looked like you two were involved in a pretty heavy conversation.”

  “I told him I wasn’t going back to school and he read a lot more into it than was necessary. That’s all.”

  “You’re not going back to school? Why?”

  “If you don’t mind, Adam. I’m talked out about school. Luke can fill you in later. It’s no big deal.”

  “It doesn’t sound like it’s no big deal, but if you don’t want to talk about it, we’ll talk about something else.”

  Jenny smiled. Adam was obviously still the quieter, less aggressive twin. He was equally as handsome, but he didn’t have Luke’s edginess. “So tell me about your medical practice with your Dad. What made you two decide to come back to Brilliance? I thought you both might practice at some city hospital.”

  “We thought about it. We could have, we had offers, but we both agreed that we wanted to come home to Brilliance. We love it here and it’s a growing place, even with the economy being so bad. There’s a future here, and besides that, it’s home.”

  “I did see a few new developments here and there, but according to my mom, the real estate business has been in a downward spiral.”

  “That’s true in most places, but I got the impression from my dad that your mother’s been one of the lucky ones. I mean, she’s pretty busy, keeps a lot of late nights with clients. Those developments you saw, she’s the one that’s been selling them.”

  “She doesn’t like to brag,” Jenny said quickly. Something wasn’t right. If her mother’s business was doing so well, why couldn’t she pay her bills? Unless, she is still gambling.

  Chapter Three

  The thought that her mother could still be going to the casino stayed with her for the rest of the evening. She danced with both the brothers and tolerated April’s dirty looks when she wasn’t insulting her. It was pretty obvious that she had set her sights on both brothers and Jenny wasn’t a welcome addition to the evening.

  “So I guess you’re going to be around all summer. Bet you can’t wait to get back to school,” April said from across the table. Adam and Luke had gone to the men’s room leaving the two women alone.

  Jenny groaned inside. She didn’t want to tell April anything, but she couldn’t ignore her question without being blatantly rude, and that wasn’t in her nature. “I’m going to take a break from school.”

  “No,” April said, her eyes widening in surprise. “Why would you want to do that?”

  “Just some things I need to take care of here at home, and I need a break. Don’t worry, I’ll be busy working so I won’t be crashing any of your dates with the twins.”

  “I’m not worried.” April shrugged. “You got nothing those boys want. Luke’s just a flirt. But when the lights are out and the covers are down, he knows where he belongs.”

  “I’m sure he does,” Jenny said, wishing Luke and Adam would hurry back and save her from further conversation with their girlfriend.

  “Besides, from what I hear, you’re practically family. When their daddy marries your mother, they’ll be your stepbrothers. I’ll be your stepsister-in-law. Won’t that be a hoot,” she said with a giggle that turned into laughter.

  “Glad to see you two girls are getting along,” Adam said, sliding back into his seat next to April. Luke sat back down next to Jenny.

  “What’s so funny?” Luke asked.

  “Nothing we want to share with you boys,” April said quickly. “Just girl talk.”

  “Is that right,” Luke said, looking pointedly at Jenny.

  “Girls do talk,” she said, playing along with April, who obviously wasn’t as sure of the twins as she would like Jenny to believe. Otherwise, she would have shared her observation about their upcoming family ties as she saw them.

  The rest of the evening Jenny spent with her shoes off and her feet dancing. The more she danced, the more she realized how much she had missed it. She had regained her second wind, and although she had thought the evening was going to be a bust, she was having fun. It was exactly what she needed to take her mind off her mother.

  When the last song was over, Luke insisted on driving her home. She was too tired to argue or drive. Adam and April followed in Adam’s Lexus. Obviously someone is doing well financially.

  She expected Luke to continue taunting her, but instead he was quiet and kept his eyes on the road. When she did look over at him, he looked her way briefly and smiled. He turned on her radio and they listened to music until he pulled up in front of her house. The porch light was on.

  Luke jumped out of the car and opened her door for her. For some reason she was having trouble with her seat belt. She felt him lean across her chest, brushing up against her breasts. She could feel her nipples harden. For a moment, she wanted to reach out and stop him from pulling away from her, but that, she knew, would not be in her best interest. Instead, she took his hand that he offered her to help her out of the car. His hand then cupped her elbow. She found herself leaning into him. She really was exhausted.

  “I think I may have worn you out, Jenny Clayton,” Luke said softly.

  “I’m going to go to sleep as soon as my head hits the pillow,” she smiled.

  “Now that you’re home, I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot more of you. Don’t beg off the family dinners. It will hurt your mother.”

  Jenny’s head snapped up. Family dinners? That was news to her. “Right. Thanks for the advice,” she said sarcastically, turning to open the door with her key.

  “I mean it, Jenny. I expect you to encourage their relationship and not to be a stumbling block.”

  He was so close she felt slightly off-balance. Her anger helped her to right herself.

  “If our parents are meant to be together, there’s nothing you or I or anyone else will be able to do to prevent it. So stop giving me orders. I don’t like being told what to do.”

  “I’m not so sure about that,” he said silkily, his hand slightly caressing her cheek.

  Jenny felt paralyzed. She watched him lower his head. Did he actually have the audacity to kiss her?

  His lips hovered above hers. “I’m just a good son who wants his father to be happy. I’m hoping you’re a good daughter who wants the same for her mother. I’m very protective of my father. His happiness means everything to me.”

  “And you think my mother’s doesn’t mean everything to me?” Whatever magic he had been weaving around her was shattered. All she wanted to do was to smack that arrogant look off his face.

  “I think you’re an only child who has been spoiled by both your mother and your father. I’m not sure you’ve ever put anyone else’s happiness above your own.”

  She felt the blood drain from her face. “That’s a horrible thing to say. You don’t k
now me.”

  “I know that you practically ignored your mother these past couple of years, and now that she and my father are close to tying the knot, you’re not only home from school but you’re staying home. What are you afraid of, Jenny?”

  “Certainly not you.” She turned from him quickly, feeling tears forming behind her lids. She hated that when she got really angry she had a tendency to cry. It was embarrassing. She saw Adam’s car pull in front of her house as she turned the door handle and scooted inside, shutting the door behind her before he could say another word. She leaned against it until she heard Adam’s car speed away. Luke had no idea who her mother really was. For that matter, neither did she. But she knew one thing, if her mother was still gambling, she was going to stop. And even if she wasn’t, and she highly doubted that, her mother was going to see a professional whether she wanted to or not.

  * * * *

  When Jenny opened her eyes the next morning, she looked over at the clock on her nightstand. It was eleven thirty. She groaned. She felt like she had been hit by a truck. Swinging her legs off the side of the bed, she massaged her calf muscles. She had really overdone it.

  She limped to the shower and turned it on as hot as she could take it. She used the shower massager to loosen her tight muscles. It felt good. When she emerged from the bathroom, she pulled on a pair of jeans and a tank top and padded barefoot down the stairs to the kitchen. Her mother was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee. As soon as she saw Jenny, she got up and poured her one.

  “Where were you last night if you don’t mind my asking?”

  “I was out dancing with Luke and Adam Rowan.”

  “You were,” she said in surprise. “How did that happen?”

  “I went to a bar for a drink, and they were there with April Mathews. They asked me to go dancing with them, so I did.”

  “Well, that was nice. I wish you had called me. I was worried about you.”

  “I should have called.” Regardless of what her mother had told her, making her worry needlessly wasn’t something she was proud of doing.

  “All’s well then,” her mother said, sitting down across from her.

  “Really? You think so?”

  “Well, you know what I mean. You’re safe. You couldn’t have been out with nicer boys.”

  “They’re not boys anymore, they’re thirty-year-old men, and from the way April was talking, if she has her way, they’ll be married men before long.”

  “That’s news to me. I know they go out here and there, but I didn’t know they were exclusive with April. I’ve never seen her at the house.”

  “And from what Adam tells me, you spend quite a bit of time over there in between running your busy real estate business and frequenting the casino.”

  “He told you no such thing!” her mother exclaimed in horror. “He knows nothing about the casino.”

  “No. You’re right about that. He knows nothing about the casino. But he did tell me how busy you are. How is it possible that you can’t pay my living expenses and we’re losing the house unless you’re still gambling?” Jenny couldn’t help that her voice had risen or that she wanted desperately to shake some sense into her mother.

  “I—” her mother began before she burst into tears and brought her hands up to cover her face.

  “I’m sorry I’m yelling at you, Mom.” Jenny lowered her voice. “It’s just I can’t believe you’re still going there after everything you told me. Why would you do such a thing?”

  “I keep thinking”—her mother lowered her hands, wiping her tears on a tissue she removed from the pocket of her slacks—“that I’ll get it back. That I can make everything right again.”

  “You’re addicted to it.”

  “I don’t know. I just don’t know.”

  “You’re never going back there again, Mom. I swear if you do, I’m going right to Jack Rowan and tell him the truth. And you’re going to get professional help. We still have insurance, right?”

  “Yes. We do. It’s from your father’s policy that carried over after he died. I’ve made sure the premiums were paid.”

  “Thank God for that.” Jenny sighed. “I’ll call the insurance company and get a list of doctors that specialize in this kind of thing, and then I’ll make you an appointment.”

  “You don’t have to do that. I can do it.”

  “I rather do it myself. I want you to get better, Mom. You have to get better.”

  “You’re right. I’ve made such a mess of things,” she said, the tears flowing once again.

  Jenny sat staring her mother. She wanted to put her arms around her and tell her everything would be okay the way her mother had done when she was a child. But instinctively, she knew she had to be strong, and the one thing she couldn’t do was enable her mother to continue this insane behavior that had landed them both into such a financial mess.

  “Mom, I need you to promise me you’re not going back there.”

  “I promise. I don’t want to go back. I really won’t.”

  “That’s a beginning. I want to look over all the bills, checking account statements, and any other accounts you might still have. I need a clear picture of what we’re facing. It’s the only way to see if there’s a way out of this.”

  Between a couple pots of coffee and sandwiches, the rest of the morning and early afternoon was spent poring over her mother’s accounts. Most everything was online, including her checking account. Jenny could see the deductions that were taken out at the casino. They were staggering in the amount and the frequency. She wanted to cry, but that wouldn’t change anything. In the end, she knew what had to be done.

  If they were to save the house, she had to speak with a few of their creditors to see if she could hopefully lower their interest rates. She also needed to get a real job. Not some summer internship or part-time hourly job, but a full-time job that paid decent money. They still had a small retirement check from her father that went directly into the account that had once held their savings. She could see from her mother’s records that her commissions had been rather good of late. However, they weren’t always consistent. But even if her mother’s commissions remained on the high side, there was no way she could even think about going back to school. The money wasn’t there, and in good conscience, she couldn’t leave her mother now.

  No matter how much she enjoyed living on her own and pursuing her degree, she had no choice but to give up her lease along with the life she had made for herself that was far removed from her life in Brilliance. She was respected by her professors and her peers. Her friends at school were going to be shocked when she told them the news and she would have tell them soon since four of them were living in her apartment over the summer.

  Jenny put her pen down and looked across the table at her mother. “It’s going to take us a few years to get this under control. But I think we can do it as long as I’m working. We’re never going to get back our savings. That’s gone. But we can survive as long as you never step foot into another casino or gamble in any way. Do you understand?”

  “I do understand, and I’m grateful to you, Jenny. I never wanted you to know how far I’d fallen. I never wanted to burden you with this. The fact that you can’t go back to school is killing me.”

  “Nothing can be done about that now. But we’re going to get through this.”

  “This is the first time I feel like maybe I can beat this thing. But you’re right. I need help.”

  “I’ll call tomorrow. We’ll find someone you can talk to.”

  “Could you make it someone who doesn’t live in Brilliance?”

  “Of course. No one need ever know about this, Mom.”

  “You won’t tell Jack, then?”

  “No, I’m not going to tell him anything as long as you’re moving in the right direction. Do you love him?” The question just popped out without forethought.

  “I’ve always loved him.”

  “What do you mean, you’ve always
loved him?”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that. I’m just not myself.”

  “You sounded like you knew exactly what you were saying. I want the truth, something we need more of around here.”

  Her mother sighed. “Okay. You already know that we all grew up here in Brilliance, your father, Jack, and me Your father was a few years older. Jack and I dated before he went away to medical school. When he came back I thought we’d get back together, although he hadn’t asked me to wait. When he did come back, he brought Abigail with him, and that was the end of the romance I thought he and I had. Your father and I started dating soon after, and we got married.”

  “You didn’t love Dad? All these years I thought you had the most wonderful marriage. I don’t know how much more I can take.”

  “I loved your father. Not the way I did Jack. But in time I came to love the man he was, and he loved me so much. I never regretted marrying him, and he never knew that I still had feelings for Jack. I want you to believe me. It’s the truth.”

  “I don’t know what the truth is anymore.” Jenny pushed herself away from the table and ran up to her room, slamming the door like she was eight years old. She couldn’t help it. She thought she had found a way to solve one problem, and then her mother told her she had always been in love with Jack Rowan and her father had been her second choice. This was more than any daughter should have to endure.

  She knew it was wrong to assume she knew things she didn’t, but looking back, she had always sensed that her father had an issue with the Rowans. How could he not have known? How it must have hurt him to know that his wife was in love with another man. And yet he stayed. He was such a good man. He would never turn his back on his family, especially his only child.

  Her mother opened her bedroom door without knocking. “Please, don’t shut me out. I know I’m a terrible mother, but I love you and I loved your father. I should have never told you about Jack. He doesn’t even know how I felt. These past few years with him have been wonderful, but I would give them all back if I could have one more day with your father.”