Dog Days of Summer

by Fiala, PJ

  “Yeah.” Joci sighed.

  Chapter 31

  The Employee Appreciation Party

  Joci closed her eyes as the warm water caressed her body. A loud moan escaped her lips.

  “I love listening to you moan, babe, but usually, I’m inside of you somewhere.”

  Joci opened her eyes and smiled at the beautiful man in front of her. “I vaguely remember something like that.”

  “Vaguely?” Jeremiah stepped further in the shower and wrapped his hands around Joci’s smaller ones. Slowly, he lifted her hands and kissed the back of each before pulling them up over her head. He pushed his body against hers and backed her up against the shower wall. He hooked her hands over the ledge in the wall above her head. “Keep your hands up there on the ledge. Don’t let go. OK?”

  Looking into those green eyes she loved so much, Joci whispered, “Yeah.”

  Jeremiah bowed his head and lightly pressed his lips to hers. His palms slid down her body, stopping at her breasts. He gently squeezed them, then his hands continued their decent. His palms gliding easily over her wet skin, he cupped her ass and pulled her into his erection.

  “You are my everything, Jocelyn James. You are the air I breathe. You’re the food that sustains me. You’re the liquid that quenches me. My heart beats stronger because of you.”

  “Jeremiah.”

  Sliding his right palm along her thigh, Jeremiah lifted her leg and pulled it around his waist.

  “Don’t let go, baby.” Feather-light kisses rained down across Joci’s forehead, down her cheeks, and across her lips as Jeremiah’s rigid length slid inside of her.

  “Oh.”

  Holding her bottom in his hands, Jeremiah began driving into her.

  Joci hung on to the ledge with all her might. She wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around Jeremiah’s shoulders and hold him tightly to her. Her orgasm was building like a tsunami, rolling in fast and furious. The leg she was standing on began to shake.

  “Jeremiah…please.”

  “Come for me, Joci. Let go, baby. Jesus, you feel so fucking good. Your tight little pussy feels like heaven.”

  Joci cried out his name as her orgasm crashed through her body.

  “I’m with you, babe.” Two more thrusts and Jeremiah poured himself into her.

  An hour later, Joci walked out of the bedroom and into the living room. Jeremiah was sitting on the sofa. His eyes looked over his laptop. As she entered, he froze. His eyes traveled the length of her body. A low whistle slipped from his lips.

  “I say we stay in tonight. I’m not going to be able to think of anything but getting you out of that dress all night.”

  Joci smiled. She had found a slinky, red, hi/lo hem dress with a black leather yoke and key holes in the front and back. It hugged her curves perfectly. She finished the outfit off with a pair of black strappy heels that showed off her ankle tattoo. She thought it was the perfect dress for her. She looked at Jeremiah in his black dress pants, black shirt, and red tie and licked her lips. “I’ll be thinking about taking your clothes off as well. I love what’s underneath more.”

  Jeremiah rose off the sofa and wrapped his arms around Joci. He grabbed her hand and placed it on his swollen cock.

  “See what you do to me?”

  He ground against her as she rubbed up and down. She moved her hand and pressed her pussy against him. Jeremiah groaned and slid his hand down to her ass and held her close. He kissed her temple.

  “God, I love you crazy, baby.”

  Joci giggled. “I love you crazy, too.”

  A little later, they stood around greeting the employees and their spouses or significant others. Almost everyone was there, except of course, LuAnn and Chase. Joci was a little hopeful that they just wouldn’t come, but as soon as the thought entered her mind, LuAnn popped through the door. Joci should have known by now that LuAnn liked to make an entrance.

  LuAnn looked her nasty self. She was wearing a very tight black dress that barely covered her butt. She had on ridiculously high heels and was even having a hard time walking in them. Her hair was some blonde frenzied, big, wild mess. She actually looked like she was wasted already. She and Chase walked over to Jeremiah and Joci to say hello. LuAnn never looked at Joci. She leaned in to give Jeremiah a kiss on the cheek and of course, to rub her breasts on his arm. He stepped back quickly and put his arm around Joci. Chase looked at Joci with a shrug and hustled LuAnn off quickly. Jeremiah looked down at Joci, and she just shook her head. As long as LuAnn worked there, this behavior was going to continue.

  They visited for a while more and then were told they could go into the dining room, where the meal would be served in about half an hour.

  Once everyone was seated, Jeremiah stood, said thank you to everyone, and handed out their bonuses. When he was almost finished, Joci stood next to him.

  She whispered, “I have a little surprise.”

  Jeremiah smiled at her and then announced, “Joci has a little surprise.” Joci walked over to the computer, started the slide show, and dimmed the lights. As soon as the Rolling Thunder Motorcycle, Inc. logo popped up on the screen, everyone clapped and whistled. They sat in silence listening to the music and watching the video.

  Jeremiah leaned forward at one point and whispered in Joci’s ear, “I love it, Joci. It’s the perfect surprise.”

  Joci looked at him and kissed his cheek. A few minutes later, the last picture showed on the screen. Jeremiah did a quick intake of breath. Everyone was quiet in the room and someone got up and turned the lights back up. Joci turned to look at Jeremiah. His eyes were bright with moisture. He reached forward and hugged her tight.

  “Thank you, baby. That was perfect, just perfect. I love you.”

  Joci smiled at him and the room broke out in applause. Joci blushed and Jeremiah kissed her lips, which brought on a few whistles. The servers brought out the food and everyone started digging in.

  LuAnn was sullen after the video had played. She pushed her food around and ordered two drinks from the waitress as she brought food. She looked over at Jeremiah several times, but he wasn’t looking at her. He was talking to Joci and the boys.

  After dinner, everyone headed out to the bar to have a couple of drinks. Then, they were on their own. Jeremiah didn’t want to fill them all up with alcohol, so he wasn’t sponsoring anything like that. He had bought them each three drinks, gave them a big meal and dessert, and that was it.

  As they were standing at the bar, Joci excused herself to go to the restroom. She walked quickly to the bathroom and ran to a stall as soon as she was in the room. She threw up once and heard the door open. Joci closed her eyes and waited for the nausea to end. As soon as she was able, she walked out of her stall. LuAnn was sitting on the counter waiting for her. Joci sucked in a deep breath and waited for what LuAnn had to say while she rinsed her mouth and washed her hands.

  “You know he’s going to get tired of you, right? I mean, look at you. Sure, you’re kind of pretty, but he likes this.” She gestured at herself and her body. “If you’ve seen Barbara, you would know I’m right. I’ve been giving him some time to get over you, but you’re a pesky little gnat, hanging on so tight. So, I thought I would just let you know that Jeremiah will get married, but it will be to me, not a little plain Jane like you.”

  Joci smirked at LuAnn. She didn’t know why she thought that was kind of funny, but she did. Then, she couldn’t help herself, she burst out laughing.

  As soon as she composed herself, Joci said, “I could almost take you seriously except for the fact that you can barely speak because you’re wasted. But also, what you don’t see is, while I might be plain compared to you, I am original. You’re a carbon copy of the loose, classless piece of biker trash who got herself knocked up and took off after having her twins. She rolls through town once a year begging for money and then leaves. Jeremiah doesn’t look for her, wait for her, or in any way want anything to do with her when she comes to town. What you did to you
rself was make him steer clear of you because of your silly little-girl imitation of what he doesn’t want.”

  With that, Joci turned and walked out the bathroom door with a smile on her face.

  Joci walked back to the bar where Jeremiah and the boys were talking. He was watching her the whole time. He saw LuAnn walk in the bathroom after her and wondered if he should go and see what was happening. When Joci was next to him again, he put his arm around her and leaned down to kiss her forehead. He pulled back and looked at her with his brows furrowed.

  “Honey, you’re very warm. Are you okay? Did LuAnn…”

  “I’m okay. I don’t want to cut your night short. If I start feeling really bad, I’ll go take a nap in the truck.”

  “No, you won’t. I did what I needed to do here tonight, Joci. There’s nothing more important than making sure you’re okay. Let’s go.”

  They said their good-byes to everyone. Joci hugged the boys. When she hugged Gunnar, he looked at her with alarm in his eyes.

  “Mom, you have a fever. Are you okay?”

  “She’s not feeling well, Gunnar. I’m taking her home. We’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  Jeremiah hugged each of the boys and they left.

  As soon as they got out to the truck, Joci started shivering. The air outside just felt so cool to her skin.

  Jeremiah was as worried as hell about her. He kept looking over at her. She was pale and shivering and sweating at the same time. Joci leaned back against the seat and closed her eyes. Bad idea. The movement from the truck was making her nauseous again.

  “Baby, pull over, please. Real fast.”

  Jeremiah pulled over to the side of the road and Joci grabbed the door handle and almost fell out of the truck trying to get out in time. She tripped and caught herself, then kneeled down and emptied anything that may have been left in her stomach. Jeremiah ran around the truck and knelt alongside of her. He rubbed her back and felt powerless to help her in any way. She retched and retched, even though her stomach was already empty. When she finished retching, she started shaking again.

  Jeremiah reached into the truck, grabbed a couple of tissues, and handed them to her. After she had finished wiping her mouth, he picked her up and set her down in the truck.

  “Joci, I’m taking you to the hospital.”

  “No. I just want to go home. I must have the flu.”

  “Joci, people don’t get the flu in August.”

  Joci leaned her head back against the seat. She couldn’t even argue about this. Jeremiah leaned over and grabbed her hand.

  “Honey. Let me take you to the hospital. I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

  “I’m just tired and need something like tea in my tummy. I’ll be fine tomorrow.”

  Jeremiah continued driving. Shit, he was at a complete loss here. He decided to take her home and tuck her into bed and then call his mom. She could tell him what to do. Joci looked so pale and frail. That just wasn’t Joci. She had been warm all day. He should have made her go to the doctor earlier today. She had slept for a long time that afternoon, which wasn’t like her either. She’d been so tired lately.

  Jeremiah carried Joci into the house and laid her on the bed. He gently took her dress and shoes off. He left her underwear on and tucked her under the covers. “Relax, sweetheart. I’ll make you some tea.” She smiled a weakly and closed her eyes.

  Jeremiah called his mom. “Mom, sorry it’s so late. I don’t know what to do. Joci’s sick. What should I do for her?”

  “Tell me what’s going on with her, son.”

  “She’s been warm all day. She took a two-hour nap this afternoon and then some aspirin before we went to the employee dinner. She threw up while we were there, and again on the way home. She’s hot now and so pale and she’s sweating and shivering at the same time.”

  “Make her some weak tea and bring her some crackers, and I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

  Jeremiah did as his mom told him. He took the tea and some crackers into the bedroom. “Joci, honey, can you sit up?”

  Joci nodded and pushed herself up. He pulled one of his t-shirts out of the drawer. “Mom is coming over to help. Let’s cover you up.”

  Joci pulled the t-shirt over her head and leaned back against the headboard. Jeremiah handed her the cup of tea and she put it to her lips and took a little sip. He gave her a cracker and sat alongside of her on the bed. He was rubbing her leg and watching her very closely. She took a couple nibbles of the cracker and leaned her head against the headboard.

  They were sitting like that when Emily walked in the bedroom. Jeremiah looked over at his mom and she smiled at the worry on his face.

  “How are you doing, dear?” Emily asked softly.

  Joci opened her eyes and smiled at Emily. “I’m sorry you felt you had to come over. I just think I have the flu.”

  “How long have you felt badly, Joci?” Emily asked solicitously.

  Joci shrugged a little. “Off and on, a couple of weeks. Today was the worst.”

  Emily looked at Jeremiah with her brows raised. He shook his head. She had never said anything to him. While they had been at the rally in Milwaukee, she had been tired a lot and didn’t eat, but that could have been the bullshit with LuAnn.

  “Baby, why didn’t you tell me you weren’t feeling well?”

  “I didn’t want to worry you. Just when I thought I should go to the doctor, I started feeling better, so I didn’t go. Today is the worst. Before this, I’ve just been really tired and a little warm.”

  Emily walked over and touched Joci’s forehead. “You’re not very warm now. Are you starting to feel better?”

  Joci nodded and took a deep breath. “A little. Still a little queasy.”

  Emily looked at Joci and then at Jeremiah.

  “Joci, could you be pregnant?”

  Joci’s eyes flew open and she looked at Emily. She shook her head no slowly.

  “Are you sure, honey?”

  “My doctor just switched my birth control about five weeks ago because my periods were irregular again. They did a pregnancy test then.”

  Emily cocked her head to the side and watched Joci’s eyes. She smiled softly at Joci, “Get get some rest, dear.” Emily kissed Joci’s forehead and walked out to the kitchen. She had made all of her daughters-in-law ginger tea when they were pregnant. It helped their tummies feel better. She would make Joci some ginger tea and see how that worked. A lot of women had night sickness instead of morning sickness. That could be Joci.

  She started boiling the water and mixing up her tea when Jeremiah walked out to the kitchen. He sat at the counter and watched his mom. He didn’t say anything.

  Emily turned and looked at him. She smiled as she mixed her tea. When she had a moment, she looked at Jeremiah and sighed.

  “Any other symptoms?”

  Jeremiah nodded. “She told me a couple of weeks ago that her nipples were tender. She’s been tired and taking naps, which isn’t like her at all. She’s been very emotional. I thought she was just working too hard.”

  Emily smiled again.

  “You think she’s pregnant, don’t you, Mom?”

  “Well, I’m not a doctor, but I do think it’s a possibility. She needs to go to the doctor and make sure one way or the other. If she isn’t pregnant, there’s something going on for her to be so tired and now sick. Usually, the flu only lasts a day or two at most.”

  Jeremiah looked at his mom. They stared at each other for a few moments and then a broad smile spread across his face.

  “I want her to be pregnant, Mom. I want it bad. Since I first met her, I just knew she was the one for me. Since our first actual date, I could picture her big with my child.”

  Emily smiled at him, “Don’t get too excited until we know for sure.”

  Jeremiah nodded. She was right, of course. But, he couldn’t help himself. He wanted to have babies with Joci. He really did.

  Emily finished making her tea and took it back to the
bedroom. Joci was still sitting up with her head leaned back into the pillow behind her. Her eyes were closed. Emily walked around the bed and set the tea on the bedside table. Emily touched Joci’s forehead again, she was cooler now. Joci opened her eyes and smiled at Emily.

  “I brought you some ginger tea. It’ll help calm your tummy. Will you try it?”

  Joci nodded and Emily handed her the tea. Emily sat on the edge of the bed and Joci moved over to make room for her. She sipped the tea and smiled. “This is good.”

  Emily smiled. “You need to go to the doctor, Joci. If you’re pregnant, you’ll need to take proper care of yourself and the baby. If you’re not pregnant, there might be something else wrong with you. Jeremiah worries about you like crazy. We all do.”

  Joci smiled. “I don’t want to worry anyone. I’m on birth control because I haven’t had a regular period in a few years. It’s common in my family.”

  Emily patted Joci’s hand. They sat quietly for a few moments. Then Emily said, “Jeremiah won’t leave you, Joci. He loves you. He has never loved anyone other than the boys and us. He told me right away that he felt so strongly about wanting to make a family with you.”

  Tears trailed down Joic’s cheeks. Was she pregnant? She didn’t know. When she was pregnant with Gunnar, she had morning sickness like normal women do. She hadn’t run a fever. Nothing like this. The thought of having a baby with Jeremiah made her giddy. She would love to have his baby. But, she wanted to be married first. Plus, she was 44 years old. When this baby was 20, she would be 64. It wouldn’t be fair to a baby to make it have old parents. But they would be good parents. Jeremiah loved his boys; he had raised them without Barbara. Joci loved Gunnar; she raised him on her own.

  Her doctor thought she had developed an immunity to her previous birth control and that it was time for a change. Joci thought they ran a pregnancy test on her when she went in. Joci wiped at the tears on her cheeks.

  “Are you feeling better, Joci?”

  Joci blinked and looked at Emily. “Yes, actually, my stomach feels much better. Thank you.”

  Jeremiah had been standing out in the hall listening. He knew it was wrong, but he had to know if she was pregnant and hiding it from him. They had a rough time of it lately. He was relieved as hell that she wasn’t hiding it from him. She really didn’t know if she was pregnant or not. They were going to find out together. Monday morning. Maybe he would go and buy those home pregnancy tests so they could know sooner. When Joci was feeling better, they would talk about it.