Heart Of Marley

by Leigh, T. K.

  Nothing ever changed. I would see him come home from work. Apparently, he worked as a carpet cleaner these days. I hoped that the only homes he cleaned were vacant and he never came into contact with any families that had little girls. I refused to believe he was a reformed man, regardless of my uncle’s convictions that God had judged him enough.

  I remained parked on the street that Friday, just like I had done so many other times in the past. I watched his car pull up and he got out, walking toward the house. A few hours passed as I sat there, wondering if this was a waste of time. Suddenly, just before eight o’clock, he walked out of the house with that same woman on his arm. I wondered if she knew about his predisposition for underage girls.

  He helped her into his car and within moments, they were heading down the street. Cranking the engine of my Jeep, I maintained a discreet distance as I followed them to a downtown section of town, where he parked the car and got out. I observed them enter an upscale restaurant, and I hated Buck for being able to go on a date with a rather attractive older woman.

  I was about to leave and call it a night when I saw the hostess seat them at a table by the window. Shrugging my shoulders, I decided to stay and keep watch, and that’s when I saw it…the light from the candle on the table reflecting on her ring finger. Buck grabbed her hand in his and kissed it in an affectionate manner. She smiled with an enthusiasm that a woman could only give if in love with someone. I punched the steering wheel at the thought that the bastard was getting married.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  UNWELCOME

  THE DOWNSIDE OF HAVING a job in retail is the busy Christmas season. From Thanksgiving through Christmas Eve, the mall is packed with holiday shoppers trying to find the perfect gift for that special someone.

  As I pulled into the parking lot on the last Friday before the big day, there were barely any spots to be found. About to give up, I decided to drive across the street to a vacant grass lot that people used during busy times at the mall…like the Friday before Christmas.

  Locking my Mustang, I hurried across the street, walked the extensive mall parking lot, and made my way into the crowded shopping center. When I entered the boutique clothing store that I worked at, I groaned at the disaster that greeted me.

  “Hey, Marley!” Kristen exclaimed, running up and hugging me, completely ignoring the customer she was helping. “I’m so glad you got me a job here! It’s the best ever!”

  “You’re welcome. Now don’t make me look bad and try to actually work for your paycheck, okay?”

  She winked. “You got it.” She turned to walk back to the now irritated woman she had been helping and then stopped, facing me once more. “Oh, by the way, Doug came by looking for you.”

  My face flushed. “Really? When?”

  “A few hours ago. He had some Christmas shopping to do and said he’d try to swing by before he had to get home.”

  “But he’s Jewish.”

  “But you’re not.” She raised her eyebrows at me.

  I groaned.

  “What did you get for him?”

  “Nothing yet. I’ve never had a serious boyfriend before so I’m at a complete loss about what to get him for Christmas or Hanukkah…or Christmaskah, as he’s been calling it.”

  “You have a brother, though. It can’t be much different.”

  “I don’t want to give him something that I’d give Cam. I want to give him something a little more meaningful.”

  She giggled. “I know what he’d like and it’s definitely not something you can give Cam.”

  “Really? What?”

  “Sleep with him. He’d love it. That’s what I’m planning to give Mason for Christmas.”

  I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. “You’re dating Mason? This is the first I’m hearing of it.”

  “Oh, no. We’re not dating. But I’ve heard he’s good in bed. Carla and I are meeting him and Grady after I get off here tonight, and I’m probably going to give him his present then.”

  I rolled my eyes. “He’s a pig. Stay away.” I pushed past her, walking toward the back room to drop off my bag and start my shift.

  She followed. “But seriously. Doug and you… You should let him fuck you.”

  I avoided her eyes.

  “Unless… Marley Jane! You’ve slept with Doug?!” she shouted so half the store could hear.

  I lowered my head, my entire face flushing red in embarrassment from the looks I was getting from a few of the guys I went to school with that were shopping in the store.

  “Kristen,” I hissed, my teeth clenched. “It’s none of your business if I’m sleeping with him or not. What we do in private is exactly that. Private.”

  She crossed her arms over her chest. “Fine. But if you haven’t, you can give that to him. And if you have, think about spicing things up. I think there’s a store in the mall that sells fuzzy handcuffs and grape-flavored condoms.”

  I rolled my eyes and retreated into the staff room, wondering why the hell I was actually considering Kristen’s advice. I did want to give Doug a present that meant something, but I had no idea what that could be. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that Kristen had a point. Doug and I had been sleeping together for almost a month, and, every time, he had been gentle and cautious, almost as if he was scared to do something that would set me off. What Doug needed was freedom. I needed the freedom, too.

  Going back into the store and taking my place next to Kristen behind the cash registers, I leaned over and whispered in her ear, “So, what store sells those fuzzy handcuffs?”

  She giggled and beamed at me. I hated and loved her at the same time.

  The evening flew by as the line to check out seemed to never end. I barely had time to even take a break. Thankfully, I managed to escape for a bit to go grab a few things from the store that Kristen had mentioned. I thought I would be slightly embarrassed to buy handcuffs, an eye mask, and body paint, but I wasn’t. I was incredibly turned on just thinking about Doug using it all on me. A year ago, or even a few months ago, the thought of being restrained in any way would have caused me to scream and break down, but I trusted Doug with my heart. More importantly, I trusted him with my body, something I never thought I’d be able to do. Doug was my future. Finally realizing I had a future made my past seem insignificant in comparison.

  As I was walking to my car after closing the store, all thoughts were of Doug. He never stopped by during my shift, which kind of disappointed me, but I understood that it was the first night of Hanukkah and he should celebrate with his family. I was in a complete trance as I contemplated the expression on his face when he opened his gift, my entire being overwhelmed with excitement and nerves at the same time.

  Unlocking my car, I nearly jumped when I heard a deep voice call my name. Turning around, I scrunched my eyebrows. “Mason… Grady… What are you doing here? Kristen got off work over an hour ago.”

  “I know,” Mason said. “She and Carla just left to go home. We were about to leave when we saw you. Not too smart to be walking all alone across an empty parking lot this late at night.” His dark eyes narrowed on the bit of cleavage that was showing from my fitted black shirt.

  Crossing my arms in front of my chest, I raised my eyebrows at them. “Get what you wanted from Carla and Kristen then? You two make me sick sometimes. They’re real people with real feelings. I know they say they’re not interested in a relationship, but maybe if you assholes acted more like Doug, my friends wouldn’t feel like they had to sleep with half the school.”

  They both stepped toward me and I backed into my car. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you that variety is the spice of life, Marley?” Grady said, licking his lips in a sly manner.

  “I much prefer monogamy. That’s my kind of turn-on. But that’s me. There’s plenty of other ways to spice things up, Grady.”

  I spun around and was about to pull the door open when I felt a hand on my shoulder. My gut reaction kicked in and I grabbed the hand, reeli
ng around and pinning it behind the body attached to it.

  “I like a girl with fight in her, don’t you, Mason?” Grady asked coyly.

  “Makes it more fun,” he offered in agreement.

  Grady pushed out of my hold with ease and they began to walk away.

  Looking over his shoulder, Mason said, “Don’t worry, Marley. One of these days, you’ll get sick of boring old Doug. When that happens, I’ll be happy to show you some real spice.”

  “Don’t hold your breath,” I spat out.

  “We’ll even put those handcuffs in your bag to good use,” Grady interjected, his brown eyes scanning my body.

  Climbing into my car, I tried to shake off the interaction. It wasn’t the first time something like that occurred between us. It usually happened when they got bored with whatever girl they were sleeping with at the time. They certainly made the rounds. There were a handful of us that they always attempted to flirt with, but lately, their flirting had become more and more aggressive. Brianna had noticed it, too. Cam and Mason had gotten into quite a few fights when he had seen Mason grabbing or touching Brianna in the hallways, begging her to reconsider and take him back. I wondered if that was what caused her to close down on occasion. Maybe their flirting had turned into something else…something unwelcomed that she was forced to keep to herself to salvage her mother’s friendship.

  The thought consumed me as I drove from the mall and toward my house.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  MARLEY JANE

  MERRY CHRISTMAS! I’D BEEN nervous about today ever since listening to Kristen’s brilliant, but nerve-wracking idea of giving Doug the gift of kink, as I’d been referring to it. I’m pretty sure Jesus would be turning over in his grave if he found out I was celebrating his birthday by allowing my boyfriend to tie me up and do what he wanted with my body. I wonder if Jesus had a kinky side. I’m probably going to hell for even thinking that.

  I woke up late this morning and bounded down the stairs to see my mama sitting in the living room by the tree, reading a book. “Merry Christmas, Mama,” I said.

  “Merry Christmas, Marley Jane.”

  “Where’s Cam?” I asked.

  “He’s upstairs. Brianna just called and said she wasn’t feeling well so she wouldn’t be able to make it today. I think he’s a little disappointed.”

  I sat down next to her on the couch and she wrapped her arms around me. “I can imagine. I think he was really looking forward to giving her the gift he bought her.”

  “What did he get her?”

  “She’s had her eye on these pearl earrings. He saved all his tips over the past few months so he could buy them for her.”

  Mama shook her head, a brilliant smile on her face. “That’s something your father would have done.” She stared at me with a contemplative look. “Have I ever told you the story about how he proposed to me?”

  “No.”

  “Well,” she started as I rested my head against her shoulder, “I always went to the dirt track. I loved cars…the sound of the engine, the vibrations when they revved their motors. I just adored it. That’s how I met your father. I had been seeing this guy who had this beautiful sixty-eight Roadrunner, and he would bring it to the track to race every weekend. One day, your father showed up with a sixty-six Firebird that was complete shit. I mean, it was the biggest piece of crap I had ever seen.” She laughed at the memory and I could tell she was still heartbroken that he was gone.

  “But that never discouraged him,” she continued. “At first, he just watched the races. He checked out the cars, talked to the guys and, as the months went on, something would be different on that Firebird every single week. One day he showed up, and it didn’t look like the same car it had been six months ago. He completely revamped it. He took his time and was patient. I admired his dedication. This wasn’t just something he did to simply pass the time. It was something that he was passionate about. I wanted that passion in my life.”

  I sighed as I recalled my dad’s exuberance for all things car-related. He loved us very much, but when he spoke of cars, there was a spark and vibrancy about him that wasn’t there any other time. I would have wanted that passion in my life, too.

  “One day, I approached him to talk about his car, and there was this magnetism there, Marley Jane. I couldn’t remember feeling this way about anyone before. He told me how this was just a side project he had been working on, unbeknownst to his family, while he attended law school. I could tell that they did not approve of his fascination with cars and it killed me to think that someone had been discouraging him from doing what he loved.

  “We started dating and I persuaded him to follow his dreams instead of do what was expected or demanded of him. You can probably figure out that this is why his side of the family has never really liked me. He dropped out of law school and became a car mechanic. He didn’t make nearly as much money as he would have made as an attorney, but that didn’t matter. You can’t put a price on happiness. Every week, he would race his Firebird. And nearly every week, he would win. He would take those winnings and put them into a coffee canister. I always wondered what he was saving up for.”

  “I know…” I teased.

  “Well, one Friday night after we got home from the track, he handed me the roll of cash that he had just won and asked me to go put it in the canister for him. This wasn’t an odd request. I had done it on occasion. But that Friday night in May, over twenty years ago, I opened the canister and in it sat a black velvet box.”

  I looked up at my mama and saw tears flowing down her cheeks.

  “I spun around and he was standing in the doorway of our bedroom, dressed in the most ridiculous suit I had ever seen. It was horrible, Marley Jane,” she said, laughing and crying at the same time. “Well, he grabbed the canister out of my hands, got down on one knee, and asked me to spend the rest of my life with him.” She glanced at her left hand and toyed with the simple diamond that still sat on her ring finger. “It wasn’t big or extravagant, but I didn’t care about having anything flashy. All I cared about was his love and passion. And I got to enjoy that for ten years.”

  “Do you still miss him?” I asked quietly.

  “Not one second of any day goes by that I don’t miss him, Marley Jane.” She wiped her tears and her eyes settled on me. “Did you know that he’s the one that picked out your name? We knew we were having twins, but they thought that you were both going to be boys. You can imagine our surprise when you popped out.”

  “I never knew that!” I exclaimed, my eyes growing wide, pulling out of her embrace.

  “The second the doctor said that you were a girl, your father started sobbing like I had never seen him cry.” She pulled me back into her arms and I looked up at her as she continued her story, “He wanted a little girl so badly, although he would never admit it. We had always said as long as you both arrived happy and healthy, that was all that mattered. Cam was always going to be Cameron Michael. You were supposed to be Declan Joseph.”

  “I was supposed to be a Declan?” I said in disbelief. “I’m glad I’m a Marley.”

  A genuine smile crossed Mama’s face. “When the doctor turned to us after delivering you, we could sense that something was wrong. We were so worried that you weren’t going to make it. When he said that you were a girl, your father grabbed you out of the doctor’s hands and held you. He whispered ‘Marley Jane’ without giving it a moment’s thought.”

  She brushed my hair out of my face. “He loved you very much. And I know he’d be so proud to know what a strong, beautiful, amazing woman that his Marley Jane has become.”

  “Thanks, Mama.” I hugged her and thought how different our relationship was since just a few months ago.

  “Good. Now that’s out of the way, call Douglas and remind him to bring condoms with him for this weekend.”

  I shot out of her arms, my eyes wide with shock. “What do you mean? We haven’t…”

  “Marley Jane, I was not born yes
terday. I am perfectly aware of what you two were doing up in your room when you were here for Thanksgiving. And you’d have to be a complete idiot to think that I didn’t hear him sneak into your bedroom after I went to sleep. So let’s not pretend. He’s more than welcome to stay here the weekend and sleep in your bedroom with you. I’m not going to be one of those parents that ignores the fact that their child is having sex. I know you are. Just be safe.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “And have fun.”

  I giggled. “Don’t worry about that.” I winked, bringing a smile to my mama’s face.

  Doug arrived a short while later, and Cam came down to join our small Christmas celebration. I could tell that he was upset about Brianna.

  “I’m sorry that Bri couldn’t make it,” I offered as we were washing dishes, allowing Doug and Mama to get to know each other a little better, considering he was sleeping with her daughter and she knew about it.

  “Me, too,” he responded. “I just feel like she’s been avoiding me.”

  “What makes you think that?”

  He shrugged, keeping his attention on the dish he had been drying for the past few minutes. It couldn’t be any drier if it had spent the last several months in the Mojave Desert.

  “It’s hard to say. I called her Friday night after I got home from my study group because we were planning to meet at the beach, and she didn’t answer. Then, on Saturday, I went to the gym and she was working at the front desk, but she tensed up when she saw me.”

  He lowered his voice. “I noticed a bruise on her arm and when I asked her about it, she flipped out on me. It’s not the first time that’s happened. Maybe it’s not over with Mason. Maybe they’re still fooling around with each other.”

  My mind flashed back to Friday night and running into Mason and Grady. Brianna had been working at the gym that night. Did they go find her after they left me?