“I just hope Zak takes it easy in that car. He shouldn’t be driving when he’s upset,” Justin said.
Maggie and Justin both suddenly remembered the night that Zak had the car accident when he was coming back to apologize to Maggie for having slept with Jacqueline.
“What should we do, Justin?”
“I’m not sure there’s anything we can do, Maggie”
“Maybe Zak went to a bar to get drunk.”
“You might be right Maggie. We could try calling some of the local bars where we used to play. Zak might be at one of them.”
“O.k. let’s go back to my house. I’ll make some calls while we wait for Tucker to get back with the kids. At least Ben’s mother was going to drop off Jake after their play date, so we don’t have to worry about him.”
“Maybe we should go pick him up Maggie, so we know where he is.
“O.k. They live nearby, so it won’t take long.”
When they got back to Maggie and Zak’s house, Maggie called Ben’s mother and told her that there had been a change in plans and that she was coming to pick up Jake. Maggie and Justin took the van and picked up Jake and brought him home. Half an hour later, Tucker showed up in his rental car with Gabriel and Isabel. He joined Maggie and Justin on the porch while the kids went into the living room and put on a video.
“So how did it go?” Tucker asked quietly.
“Not too well,” Justin answered. “Zak was very upset and said some nasty things to us and then took off in his Porsche. We’re kind of worried about him. Maggie made a few phone calls, but no one’s seen him.”
“Did you call his mother and brother?” Tucker asked.
“Yes, I called them first but they hadn’t seen him,” Maggie said. “I also called his girlfriend Sarah but she didn’t know where he was either. Knowing Zak, I’m guessing he’s gone to a bar somewhere to get drunk.”
“That is probably a bad idea in combination with the Porsche.” Tucker started to look worried too. “I think we’d better find him.”
Half an hour later, the kitchen phone rang. Maggie let Justin answer the phone, she was afraid that it might be bad news. It was the bartender at the Purple Peacock. He said that Zak was there and had several drinks. He asked Justin to come get him because he didn’t think Zak should drive. Justin hung up and told them he was going to get Zak at the Purple Peacock.
“Maybe I should go, Justin,” said Tucker. “I’m guessing that Zak isn’t going to want to see you at the moment. He’s probably not mad at me.”
“Good point, Tucker.” Justin gave Tucker directions to the bar and then he and Maggie went into the living room with the kids.
“What’s going on, Mama?” asked Belle.
“Justin and I had to tell your father something that made him very upset. Tucker’s going to get him.”
“What did you tell him, Mama?” Belle asked.
“We’ll tell you all about it later,” Maggie said.
Justin reached over and took Maggie’s hand in his.
“I’m so sorry Maggie,” he said.
She was so overwhelmed, she couldn’t think of anything to say. They just quietly watched the video with the kids and waited for Zak and Tucker to return. They hadn’t showed up by nine o’clock, so Maggie put the kids to bed. She didn’t want there to be any kind of scene in front of them when Zak got home. Two hours later, Tucker’s car pulled up in front of the house. Maggie and Justin looked out the window and they could see Tucker helping Zak to the house. Zak was so drunk that he could barely walk. When they entered the living room, Zak looked at Maggie and Justin with a blank stare like he was having trouble focusing.
“I think you two should leave,” Zak mumbled.
“Maggie, why don’t you and Justin go back to Justin’s house. I’ll take care of things here,” Tucker said as he helped Zak to his bedroom.
Maggie and Justin waited for Tucker to come back.
“Zak should sleep for a while,” Tucker said when he returned. “I’ll stay here and make sure that he and the children are o.k. It’s probably better if Zak doesn’t wake up in the morning to find you here.”
Justin and Maggie looked at each other. They said goodnight to Tucker and then walked back to Justin’s house. They sat on the couch together and Justin put his arm around Maggie. She leaned back against him and after a few minutes, fell asleep. It had been a long, emotional day and she was completely exhausted. Justin gradually shifted position until he was lying down on the couch with Maggie in his arms. He lay awake thinking for an hour or two and then fell asleep too.
They were awakened the next morning by the sound of the Porsche roaring out of the driveway, and then Tucker knocking on the door.
“Zak’s decided to spend a couple of days at Sarah’s. So maybe you should come back to the house and stay with the children, Maggie.”
“What are we going to tell the kids, Tucker?” Maggie asked.
“I think you should wait a few days and then maybe you and Zak should talk to them together. Justin should probably be there too.”
“They’re probably going to have a lot of questions that I can’t answer,” Maggie said.
“You never know with kids,” said Tucker. “They might surprise you.”
Tucker turned out to be right. A couple days later, Zak came home to help break the news to Jake and his brother and sister. First they took Jake aside and explained to him that they had found out when they went to the hospital that Justin was his father.
He seemed very confused by this.
“So you’re not going to be my dad anymore?” he asked Zak.
Zak looked at Jake and said, “I will always be your dad. But Justin is your biological father. You’ll understand what that means when you’re a little older. It also means that your last name is Boudreau and not Robichaud.”
“Does that mean that Gabe and Belle aren’t my brother and sister anymore?” Jake asked.
“No, they’re still your brother and sister because I’m everyone’s mother,” Maggie said.
“Oh, o.k.,” Jake said but he still looked somewhat confused.
Then they called in the other children to try to explain the situation to them too. They said that they had just found out that Jake had a different dad and that it was Uncle Justin. Gabe and Belle’s dad was Zak and that everyone’s mother was Maggie. The kids didn’t seem overly disturbed by this news.
“O.k., can we go now?” Belle asked.
“Don’t you have any questions?” Maggie answered.
“What about Tucker?” Gabe wanted to know. “I thought he was going to be our new dad.”
“He will be your stepfather when we get married,” Maggie explained.
“Just like Dad is Jake’s stepfather?” Gabe continued.
“I guess so, Gabe,” said Maggie feeling a little confused herself.
“And is Uncle Justin our stepfather too?” Gabe said with a frown trying to work out the new relationships.
“No Gabe, because Justin and I were never married,” Maggie admitted.
“But I thought you couldn’t have a baby unless you were married, Mama,” said Belle.
“This is something that we’ll have to discuss when you get a little older. O.k. kids, I think you can leave now.”
Maggie looked relieved as the children left the room.
“That was difficult,” she said. “And I’m certainly not prepared to bring up the birds and the bees yet.”
“It won’t be long before you have to Maggie, and I’m going to stay out of that conversation. It’s in the divorce agreement that it’s your responsibility,” Zak said and laughed briefly.
Maggie smiled at him and felt some hope that they would all get through this eventually.
.
Chapter 8
Zak decided to go back to Sarah’s and Maggie and Tucker moved back into her house so that they could stay with the children. Justin was happy to move back into his own house. Maggie and Tucker discussed what they
should do next. Tucker decided to go back to Nashville by himself as he had some business to attend to. Maggie would stay in Louisiana for a couple weeks while everyone got used to the new situation. Tucker felt that Justin and Jake needed some time together to get to know each other. He was sympathetic to Justin’s situation since he had been divorced multiple times and had been estranged from his own daughter. Then Maggie and the children would fly down to Nashville and join Tucker as they had previously planned.
Maggie felt bereft when Tucker left for the airport. She had gotten used to depending on him and they hadn’t been separated for several years. Justin was still trying to figure out where he stood with Maggie. He was secretly hoping that now that she knew that he was Jake’s father then she might be interested in a relationship with him, but she seemed committed to staying with Tucker.
Maggie was sincerely fond of Tucker and their musical partnership had developed into a strong bond. She not only admired his musical talent, but also his generosity, sense of humor and mature perspective. Like Zak, he had problems in his past with drinking, drugs and women, but had managed to overcome them. He had reached a point in his life where he was happy and content. Although other people might have been concerned about the age difference between Tucker and Maggie, it had never been an issue for the two of them. They had always accepted and appreciated each other and tried to provide mutual support for one another.
So after Tucker left for the airport, Maggie tried to make sure that nothing happened between her and Justin. She stayed in her house and he stayed in his, and their interaction mostly revolved around the children and playing music. Maggie tried to make sure that there weren’t too many opportunities for her to be alone with Justin. She knew that in spite of her love for Tucker, she was still attracted to Justin.
One afternoon, they headed over to Spencer’s to rehearse with Little Maggie. Maggie had decided to bring the children, they always liked visiting their old house too. As soon as they got there, Gabe and Belle went to see their old bedroom. It was smaller than they remembered and Spencer had changed the paint color. There was a queen size bed where their twin beds used to be. They found these changes vaguely disturbing, so they decided to go to the studio and hang out with the adults and Jake.
When they got there, Justin was showing Jake how to play his bass. Jake was sitting in Justin’s lap while his father held the heavy bass in front of him. Justin was teaching him the notes on the fret board while Jake plucked the strings. Maggie looked at the two of them, Justin’s head was bent over his son, and she could see the strong resemblance. She wondered why she had never noticed it before. Justin suddenly looked up at her and smiled.
“Listen Maggie, I’ve taught him the bass line to ‘Sunshine of Your Love’.”
Jake slowly played the line and Justin looked down at him with fatherly pride. Maggie felt attracted to Justin in a way that she never had before, maybe because they were both parents of this beautiful child.
“Great job Jake,” she said. Maggie and Justin smiled at each other.
The rest of the band arrived and started tuning up, so the children decided to take a ball outside and play in the yard. After they left the studio, Maggie looked at Justin and then announced that she had something she wanted to tell everyone.
“Justin and I have recently discovered that Jake is Justin’s son. We told Zak and the children and everyone seems to have come to terms with this.”
The members of the band looked surprised and were quiet.
Spencer spoke up after a minute.
“Wow, this is pretty shocking news. It’s going to take a little getting used to.”
“You said it, Spencer,” Justin said and he laughed somewhat mirthlessly.
“Congratulations Justin,” Carole said. “How does it feel to be a father?”
“A little overwhelming,” he answered. “It seems like a huge responsibility.
“Well it is. But I’m sure you’re up to the task,” Carole said and smiled at him. She walked over to him and patted him on the back.
“If you need any advice, just holler,” said Jim. “I think I’ve been through most everything with my four kids.”
“Thanks, Jim. I appreciate your offer,” Justin answered.
Maggie and Justin felt relieved that the members of their band seemed to accept their news well. Most of the band members had already known that Maggie and Justin had slept together while they were on tour in the early days of the band, so they weren’t as surprised as they might have been.
The band spent the next couple hours playing their new songs. When they felt like they were sufficiently rehearsed, Spencer recorded them on his tape deck. They wanted to send a cassette of the new songs to their record producers Abbie and Jerry to get their reaction. Abbie and Jerry had been encouraging Little Maggie to release a new album, it had been over two years since the last one mostly because Maggie had been living in Nashville with Tucker.
By the time they finished recording, Maggie’s children were more than ready to go home. After hugging Spencer, Carole and Jim goodbye, Maggie and Justin loaded the kids into the back of the car and then drove back to Maggie’s house. Zak was still staying at Sarah’s so they had the place to themselves. After a quick dinner, the children deposited themselves on the couch to watch their favorite television shows, while Maggie and Justin sat out on the porch and relaxed, tired from a long day of playing. Suddenly, there was a soft knock on the door. It was Zak and Sarah. Maggie and Justin hadn’t heard their car over the din of the television.
“Can we come in, Maggie?” Zak asked.
“Sure, no problem,” Maggie said as she moved over on the couch to make room for their guests. Justin got up out of his chair and sat next to Maggie, offering his chair to Sarah.
“What’s up, Zak?” Maggie asked.
“Not much, I just wanted to drop by and hang out with the kids for a while. I didn’t see them much this weekend. How was your practice at Spencer’s?”
“It went well, we made a tape of the new songs to send to Abbie and Jerry. They’ve been after us to make a new album.”
“I was wondering if you were going to be taking the kids to Nashville soon,” Zak asked. “Sarah and I were thinking of going on a vacation. She would like to visit her sister in Colorado.”
“I hadn’t really decided on a date for that yet. We’ve been kind of playing it by ear,” Maggie replied.
“What about you, Justin? Are you going back to California soon?”
“I’m not sure Zak. Now that I know Jake’s my son, I want to spend some time with him. We have a lot of catching up to do. I feel bad that I wasn’t around for the first five years of Jake’s life.”
“Maybe you should come to Nashville for a while with me and the kids, Justin. I’m sure that Tucker wouldn’t mind if you stayed in the guest house. We were planning on staying at Tucker’s for a couple months before we go on our world tour,” Maggie said.
“I was sort of thinking that maybe you and the kids would like to come to California with me, Maggie. I’d like my parents and friends to meet you and Jake. Jake is my parents’ only grandchild, I’m sure they would like to see him.”
“Oh...” Maggie said and thought for a moment. “Speaking of parents, I’m sure that my parents would like to spend some time with you and the kids. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen them.”
“Well, maybe we should plan a trip to Boston too, Maggie. We could do our own little world tour with Jake and the kids,” he said smiling at her fondly.
“I can see you need to talk about this,” Zak said. “Let me know what you decide so Sarah and I can book our flights.”
Zak and Sarah left to go into the living room with the kids, leaving Maggie and Justin alone. Justin took the opportunity to put his arm around Maggie. He leaned close to her and whispered in her ear, “What do you think Maggie? Should we introduce our son to the world?” He looked deeply into her eyes and then at her half-open mouth. She found herself w
ishing he would just kiss her. When he finally did, she didn’t resist. She had been feeling increasingly attracted to him, and didn’t want to fight that feeling any longer. It felt right to her that they were finally together again, especially now that they knew they had a son. Maggie kissed Justin back just as enthusiastically as he had kissed her until Zak walked in the room.
“Oh sorry,” he said, feeling a little embarrassed that he had interrupted their intimate moment. “Sarah and I are going home. Just let me know what you want to do.”
“O.k. Zak, we’ll figure it out,” Maggie said.
After he left the room, Justin said to Maggie, “Have you ever noticed how much Sarah looks like you when you were a little younger?”
“Just because she has blonde hair and blue eyes?”
“You two could be sisters. It’s kind of creepy,” Justin said and laughed.
“Well, that would be creepy if it was true, but it’s not,” Maggie retorted. She hit Justin with a small pillow that was on the couch. Justin hit her back with another small pillow from his side of the couch.
Just then the kids came into the porch to see why Maggie and Justin were laughing. They were shocked to see them acting like teenagers. They always thought of their mother as being the mature parent in their lives, so they didn’t know what to think about this new behavior. Maggie and Justin sobered up and put the pillows back and then asked the kids to sit down for a minute.
“Justin and I were just discussing that maybe we would like to take some trips with you. We had already planned on going back to Nashville to stay with Tucker, but Justin would like us to come out to California to meet his friends and family. He thought that Jake might like to meet his grandparents.”
Jake looked confused. “I thought my grandparents lived in Boston,” he said.
“That’s my parents, Jake,” Maggie replied. “Justin would like you to meet his parents. They’re very excited to see you since they don’t have any other grandchildren. We were also thinking about going to Boston so you could see my family.”
The Sweetest Gift (The Gift) Page 5
