by R. A. Lee
“Why did you come all the way here?” he asked agitated. Jenny was distractingly beautiful and he was too upset to have a conversation about her betrayal.
“You have to understand, darling,” she pleaded seductively. The waiter brought them drinks. Waiting until he left, Jenny sighed and flipped her hair. She was now agitated at him.
“You could have called me,” he said, not falling for her fake anger. “When the Count passed, you could have come to me.”
Sighing indignantly, Jenny produced a tear.
“You don’t understand, darling,” she said, “I didn’t have a choice. He cut me out of the will.”
“You could have come to me,” he leaned forward and whispered angrily.
Jenny met his anger with insult.
“You still don’t get it, Jake,” she shot back. “I need this title. I’m nothing without it.”
Jake didn’t like Jenny much at that moment.
“You could have at least talked to me before you ran off and married his cousin just because he’s a Duke,” Jake snapped, shaking his head in disgust.
Sitting back in the booth, he glared at the beautiful woman. He only felt betrayal.
“You didn’t tell me before you went out and got married,” she retorted and Jake laughed.
“You’re unbelievable,” he said, finishing off his club soda.
“Maybe we shouldn’t see each other anymore,” she said.
Jake agreed.
“You can go be happy with that boring housewife of yours,” she snapped.
Jake laughed to himself. Standing, he threw some bills on the table.
“It’s been fun,” he said and headed out.
Walking, Jake didn’t stop until he was exhausted. Grabbing a taxi back to his condo, he took a hot shower and lay in bed still angry.
When the Count died, Jake had tried calling Jenny, but she never returned his calls. He didn’t know where she was. He would have flown to her, wherever in the world she was.
Instead, she just married immediately without informing Jake and somehow he was to blame.
Jake knew the irony in feeling betrayal when he was sleeping with a married woman while he was married.
Jake may have hesitated, but he knew Brooke would have understood if he left her for Jenny. It was part of their agreement.
In the mountains, he had been depressed because he had received news that Jenny had remarried without giving Jake a chance to offer his intentions. Sensing his depression, Brooke just held his hand.
Lingering behind to grab something in case she wanted more than a walk, he thought he was looking for human contact. Frustrated at his loss, he thought it would be helpful to have someone to relieve the tension with and have no emotional baggage involved. Brooke did offer human contact and it was more satisfying than any momentary pleasure.
Brooke offered more than just tension relief. She offered her understanding and support. Jake just needed to know he wasn’t alone. Staring at the stars, he was able to work out his feelings and he had come to the conclusion he needed to separate from Jenny.
Marriage wasn’t what he wanted from Jenny if she didn’t want it as well. All he ever wanted was to be with her and she rebuffed him at every opportunity. Jake was not good enough for her. He was common, only good enough for trysts when she was bored.
The phone rang. Jake answered and waited for the person to talk.
“I’m downstairs, Jake,” Jenny said desperately. “I really need to see you.” Jake knew she was being dramatic. She had a key to the elevator.
“We don’t have anything to say,” he said.
“I can’t leave this way,” she pleaded.
“Come up,” he said. Jake put on sweatpants and stood with his arms crossed, waiting for the elevator doors to open. When they did, Jenny walked right up to him and hugged him. Jake could never resist her touch.
Before he knew it, they were naked in bed and she was moaning and writhing beneath him. Jake rolled away from her and onto his side. Cuddling up to him, Jenny consoled Jake by massaging his back and arms.
“This doesn’t change anything, darling,” she pleaded through kisses along his shoulder and arm. Turning, Jake looked up at her and pushed her hair back to see her eyes.
“When you’re ready to give up your title,” Jake said through a tight throat, “you come back to me.” Eyes of calm blue turned fierce with stormy fury.
“I expected more from you, Jake,” she muttered as she gathered her clothes. The last thing Jake saw as she walked out was the perfect outline of her naked sexy backside.
Staring at the ceiling, Jake let his mind go blank. He couldn’t comprehend the impact of what he just did. He just sent away the woman he loved.
Jake knew he would feel the pain later. The numbness gave him enough time to ignore the urge to run after her and beg her to come back.
Falling asleep, one thought popped into his brain. Closing his hand, he thought about sitting under the stars while holding Brooke’s hand.
Chapter 14
Jake stayed in the city as long as he could before his mother urged him to come home and visit her.
If he went home, he would have to play the husband and father and he didn’t want to be either at the moment.
It wasn’t until Brooke called that he decided to return.
“Your mother really misses you,” she asserted. “Just visit her for a couple of hours.”
“I can’t right now, Brooke,” he said, choking on his words.
“You can tell her what’s bothering you, Jake,” she insisted. “If you’re alone out there you should come home. You don’t have to visit MJ and me. Just go and see your mother.”
Without promising anything, Jake said he would take her suggestion into consideration.
That night, Jake got in his car and headed for his condo. On the way, he changed his mind and turned around.
There was someone to whom he needed to talk.
Knocking on the door, he waited patiently and the door opened.
“Can we talk out back?” he asked. Pulling her robe around her tightly, Brooke nodded and followed him to the backyard.
Jake told her about Jenny and she just listened.
As she placed her hand on his, Jake hung his head and wanted to cry, but it didn’t come easy to him.
Sitting there, Brooke eventually pulled him up and led him to her room. Pulling off his belt, Brooke told him to lie down. Jake wasn’t looking for that kind of consolation.
“Just lie down, Jake,” she whispered. On his side with one hand under his head, Jake closed his eyes. Brooke got in bed behind him and pressed her clothed body against his like a shield. Reaching over to hold his hand, she just lay with him in silence.
Cradled in her embrace, Jake came as close as he could to crying. Brooke held him tighter and soon he fell asleep.
When he woke up, he was alone, but he felt better.
Bacon and eggs beckoned him to the kitchen. Brooke had the door closed and Jake waited until she had gotten MJ off to school. Jake liked MJ, but her son took a lot out of him and he was already depleted. He would see him later for dinner.
Opening the door, Brooke said it was all clear.
“I made bacon and eggs,” she tempted him. “There’s a fresh pot of coffee.”
Jake was hungry.
Sitting at the island, he ate all the bacon she could make and dipped buttery toast in the yolks of four over-easy eggs. His morning run would be delayed.
Sitting across from him, holding a mug of steaming coffee, Brooke watched him eat.
“I don’t want to be your rebound, Jake,” she said out of nowhere.
Puzzled, Jake looked up.
“I don’t mind hooking up, as they say, once in a while, but I don’t want to be your rebound,” she explained.
“Where is this coming from?” he wondered, not hungry anymore.
Brooke got up and walked into the living room. Baffled, Jake followed.
Sittin
g on the couch, Brooke stared at the cold fireplace. Standing with his hands on his hips, Jake wanted to know what she meant.
“There’s nothing more to say,” she said, not looking at him.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he asserted. Brooke turned to him.
“Have a seat, Jake,” she said. Huffing, Jake sat at the far end of the couch away from her.
“You just broke up with the love of your life,” she explained slowly. “You’re going to seek solace or vengeance with your next lover. I prefer you get it out of your system with someone else.”
“I wasn’t looking for anything,” he said still confused.
“Not now you’re not,” she insisted. “I don’t want to be caught in the middle of what you’re going through personally.”
Jake understood. It would jeopardize their relationship.
“I guess that’s good to know,” he confided, holding his head in his hands, his elbows digging into his lap.
Jake’s mother came in from the kitchen.
“I saw your car out front,” his mother said. Looking at Jake, she decided to come back at a better time. “Visit me before you leave,” she said and left through the French doors. “Don’t take too long,” she sighed.
Brooke stood and went to her bedroom. Jake heard her door close.
Groaning, Jake stood and went to his room. Changing into his sweats, he took a long run. Showering when he got back, Jake went to lie down in bed. Sighing, he realized it was time to see his mother.
Knocking on her door, Jake greeted his mother who made him tea, and they drank in silence while sitting in her living room surrounded by family photos.
There were new additions to her collection. Family Christmas with MJ, and Jake and MJ at the birthday party had a place of honor among the other photos. All the cracked frames had been replaced and they never spoke about the incident again.
“When I was younger, I had many suitors,” his mother said and he listened. “Your father was among them. I really wanted this one guy, Harold. He was in the army. Your father sent me flowers, all my admirers tried to win my heart. I wouldn’t have it. Harold was the one I loved.”
His mother put down her tea and placed her hands in her lap. Looking out the window, she continued as if Jake weren’t there.
“When I look back, when I think what I would have missed if I didn’t choose your father, I can’t imagine any other life,” she said.
“Did you love him?” he asked softly. Jake wasn’t aware his mother had any feelings about her life with his father except love.
“Jake,” she reprimanded her son. “I didn’t know I loved him. I was blinded by my lust for Harold.”
Jake spit out his tea.
“Lust?” he said in disbelief.
“Don’t get tea all over my photos,” his mother scolded him and wiped imaginary drips from her precious memories.
“Yes, Jake, lust,” she said. “Lust looks like love. Love doesn’t look like love.”
When Jake looked puzzled she explained it to him in terms he would understand.
“If you’re only with someone because they make you feel good, that’s lust,” she explained. “The person you love makes you happy and angry and frustrated. It doesn’t seem like love at first. Once you realize it, you can’t see anything else. You can distinguish between the two. You have to truly fall in love to understand. Until then, you’ll make mistakes. I just hope you learn from them.”
“Did you talk to Brooke?” Jake asked. He had told Brooke about Jenny in confidence. It was supposed to stay that way.
“I don’t have to talk to Brooke,” his mother admonished him. “I can see you’re unhappy. You’re confused. I’m your mother. I know what worries you.”
“There’s no way you could know about my personal life in the city,” he insisted.
“You have a lot to learn, son,” she said. “Just don’t confuse your emotions.”
“What does that mean?” he asked. It seems he had heard that before.
Why did everyone feel the need to lecture him about his life?
“So you’re suggesting I just settle?” he said sarcastically. “Find some woman to have kids with? Is that what you did with dad?”
“You think that just because I didn’t have lust for your father I didn’t love him?” she scoffed. “You think just because she’s not gorgeous like Jenny that Brooke’s boring? You’re just not looking. I know Brooke, and she will defend her family, Jake. You think that’s boring? Having someone you trust to be there for you always? You have to look beyond what you think is beautiful, Jake.”
Jake sighed.
“Go back to the city, Jake,” she urged him. Giving him a reassuring squeeze on the arm she insisted he go back to his single life. “It’s too confusing for you here. Too many distractions. Go back to the city and come back home when you’ve figured it all out.”
Jake nodded.
“Make sure you have dinner and play catch with MJ first,” she said. “He’s missed you. Then head back to the city.”
Jake nodded and got up to leave.
“I love you, Jake,” she said. Jake had never seen his mother so calm.
When MJ came home, they played catch out back and had dinner together.
Sitting in the living room, Jake waited for Brooke to put MJ to bed so that he could say good-bye.
“Jake,” she called and he stood. Brooke was holding a book. “He wanted you to read a story.”
Hesitating, Jake stood and shook his head. He had never read a child a bedtime story.
“It’s just a story, it’s about leaving, you’ll enjoy it,” she coaxed him. Jake walked up to her and explained he’d never read a child a bedtime story before.
With her famous “you’ve got to be kidding me” stare, Brooke handed him the book.
Jake took the book. It was mostly pictures with a few words.
Sitting by his bed on a step stool, Jake cleared his throat and commanded MJ’s attention. The kid had a question about every page and each page only had one sentence.
“Alright,” Brooke said rescuing Jake. “Say good-bye, he has to go back to the city and work.”
Holding out his arms, MJ wanted a hug. Jake looked into his eyes. Hugging the boy, he sighed. Letting go, he stood and left.
“Bye, daddy,” he said and Brooke turned out the light and closed the door just so.
“I’ll walk you to the door,” she said. Standing outside in the driveway, Jake tried to say his good-bye.
“It’s going to get harder, Jake,” she said, hugging her robe close to her chest. “Don’t think about us. You won’t be doing any of us a favor.”
Nodding, Jake turned and walked to his car.
Driving away, he thought about Brooke and MJ and his life at the house.
His mother was right. He had to get away.
How could such a simple life be so confusing?
Chapter 15
With Jake gone to sort out his love life, Brooke went back to her routine. Spending most of the day in her room, she only left to take care of MJ and teach art part-time.
Waking up, getting dressed, making breakfast, walking MJ to school, picking MJ up from school, making snacks, helping with homework, dinner, bath, story and then she was back in her room. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, she added teaching art. On the weekends it was the park or the backyard or both, then to her room.
On weekends she visited her mother and was always happy to see that her mother was doing well at the new facility.
Then it was back to her room.
It was the only place she felt at home. The rest of the house was not hers; it belonged to a bachelor who wanted to show a family living in his house. Brooke made sure MJ didn’t make a mess in the common areas or ever climb the stairs to Jake’s room.
The backyard had plenty of room to play in and the kitchen was a good place for him to hang out at other times. It was a roof over their heads, but it wasn’t their home.
“I know I’m leaving them in good hands,” she had told Brooke.
Wanting to cry and beg the sweet woman to stay, she hugged her instead and wished her well. Brooke didn’t feel that way about her new family.
The other mothers tried to get Brooke to join their clubs or do other mother events, but she had no interest.
As long as MJ was doing well in his classes, that was all that mattered.
Lying in bed after dropping MJ off at school, Brooke stared at the ceiling thinking about nothing.
That’s always when Matthew popped into her thoughts and she relived happy memories, but they only made her feel more alone with each passing day.
She hadn’t prepared for this, for life after Matthew. Their life had been promising until the accident.
Ripped from the life, the path she thought was straight and forever, Brooke stumbled when it suddenly had forked. Brooke was lost and making plans no longer made any sense.
Rolling toward the happy family photo, Brooke fell asleep.
Waking to the sound of her mother-in-law, Brooke opened her eyes and rolled over.
“I can’t take the two of you like this,” she scolded Brooke. Sitting on the edge of the bed, his mother told her to get her jacket.
“Today is the new official spa day,” she declared and Brooke was puzzled.
“I’ve got to pick up MJ,” she corrected her mother-in-law and rolled over.
“Get up,” she said, rolling Brooke toward her.
“Why?” Brooke whined like a petulant child.
“Because,” she explained. “I can’t help my son, but I sure can get you out of the house once in a while.”
Begrudgingly, Brooke was driven to a day spa, had what was supposed to be a relaxing facial, then a back massage. In a better mood, she would have had a great time.
While manicurists painted their toes and fingernails, Brooke knew his mother would want to talk about everything.
“I can’t believe my son lets that woman control his life,” his mother complained.
