Fringe Benefits

by Sandy James

  “Guilty,” the woman replied, returning the smile. “I’m Jackie Brennan. You must be Danielle.”

  “Guilty,” Dani echoed. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

  “Oh, hell yeah.” Jackie nodded toward the truck. “Nate, go help your brother.” Then she glanced to Dani. “Where’s the door to the apartment?”

  Having no idea what Nate had told his mother about the basement suite, Dani could only reply honestly. Thankfully, he beat her to the punch.

  “There isn’t a separate entry, Mom. We can just carry stuff through the front door.” Directing his attention to Dani, he added, “We brought extra rugs to put on the floor to protect it.”

  “Thanks, but there’s no need,” Dani replied. “Robert brought over shrink wrap that movers use about half an hour ago. It’s ready to go.”

  Damn. Now Jackie probably thought that she was OCD about her home. She was, but she didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot with Nate’s mother.

  “Good thinking.” Jackie’s tone seemed genuine. “Now, about that coffee…”

  Relieved yet still nervous, Dani led Jackie to her kitchen. After setting down her own mug, she grabbed another from the cabinet and filled it. She slid it in front of Jackie, who’d taken a seat on one of the barstools that pulled up to the kitchen island.

  Dani put the ceramic container with sweetener closer to her guest. “Would you rather have sugar?”

  “No, the pink stuff’s great.” Tearing two packets open, Jackie let the white powder sluice into her mug. “Do you have any half-and-half?”

  “Can’t drink coffee without it.” Dani retrieved the carton from the refrigerator and set it next to the sweeteners. She also fetched a clean spoon. “Can I get you some breakfast? I have cereal. There’s oatmeal or—”

  Jackie waved the question away. “Thanks, but no. Patrick and I stopped on the drive over. The coffee’s great, though.”

  Silence reigned between them until Jackie had taken a few sips of her drink. Cradling her cup much the same way Dani did, Jackie let her gaze bore through Dani. “So you’re Nate’s boss?”

  “I’m his department head. You were a teacher, right?”

  Jackie nodded. “I have to admit, I’m a little… concerned.”

  Cocking her head, Dani set her nearly empty mug aside. “Concerned? Why?”

  “This is Nate’s first job.”

  “And?”

  “I don’t want him living with you if you’re going to be thinking about him as an employee while he’s here.”

  Unsure of what Jackie was implying, Dani had to ask, “Are you telling me Nate is different in his personal life than at school? Should I be worried about noisy parties or—”

  Another wave of Jackie’s hand dismissed the thought. “No. No. Nothing like that. I just know how hard that first year of teaching can be. I want him to have a place he can relax and not worry about keeping on that ‘teacher mask.’ Make sense?”

  This, Dani understood. “Yep. Sure does. He can be himself here. No worries.”

  “If he has to see you every single time he comes home…” The thought was left hanging in the air.

  Part of Dani wanted to reply with typical sarcasm. He can’t see me if I’m upstairs. Or doing laundry. Or out in the yard. Or plain not home. But it probably wasn’t a good thing to piss off Nate’s mom when they’d just met. “I’m sure we’ll learn to give each other space. Nate didn’t seem to mind that there isn’t a kitchen in the basement.”

  Jackie’s eyes flew wide. “Wait… what?”

  “The suite doesn’t have a full kitchen, but—”

  “He won’t have a kitchen?” Jackie hopped off the barstool and hurried away, leaving her barely touched cup of coffee behind. “Please excuse me, but I need to talk to Nate.”

  She was out the door before Dani could explain.

  Great. It only took two short minutes to make Jackie Brennan hate me.

  * * *

  “Uh-oh. Here comes trouble.”

  Nate was trying to hold on to the dresser and had absolutely no idea what had made Patrick stop and issue that warning. While he stood on the driveway, Patrick was supposed to be lifting the other end down off the truck. As it was, it seemed like Nate was bearing all the weight. “C’mon, Pat. I don’t have time for teasing. This sucker’s heavy. Let’s get it out of the truck.”

  “Nathaniel, may I have a word with you?” From the volume of his mother’s question, she had to be standing right behind him.

  Not that he could see her. His cheek was pressed against the dresser as he held up his end. “A little busy, Mom.”

  “There’s no kitchen?”

  “Mom… kinda busy here.” At least she held the door open for him. When he and Patrick reached the basement door, Nate said, “Need a breather, Pat. Put it down for a second.”

  “Sure thing.”

  Once Nate had a moment to rest his arms and gather his thoughts, he finally turned to his mother. “There’s a kitchenette. It’ll be fine.”

  Patrick snorted. “Like Mom would know whether it’s a good kitchen or not. We all know she can’t cook to save her life. Have you forgotten the first Thanksgiving with Mark?”

  A smile spread over Nate’s face. “Forget that fiasco? Never.”

  “What happened?” Dani asked.

  Since he hadn’t seen her come up behind him, he jumped at her question.

  Her hand settled gently on his arm for a quick moment, and she offered him a sweet smile. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  He tossed her a wink in return. “No worries.”

  “So tell me about Thanksgiving.”

  Jackie folded her arms under her breasts as her eyes shot daggers at her sons. “Hasn’t that story grown stale by now?”

  “Not in the least,” Patrick replied before glancing at Dani. “She set the turkey on fire. Nate had to jerk the smoke detector off the wall to get it to stop blaring at us.”

  “We ended up eating side dishes for Thanksgiving dinner,” Nate added. “And my stepfather wasn’t even scared away by it. He actually proposed to her that day.”

  “The man’s obviously a glutton for punishment,” Patrick said before Jackie playfully punched his upper arm.

  Had his mother not been standing right there, Nate had no doubt that Dani would have burst out laughing. As it was, she was pursing her lips tightly, and her eyes were bright. In the time he’d spent with her, he’d enjoyed her sense of humor. Hopefully his mother would learn to enjoy it as well, because he planned on seeing exactly where his attraction to Dani might lead.

  He just had to convince Dani to give him a chance first.

  “We should get this downstairs so we can get the bed next,” Nate said. “I need a place to sleep tonight that doesn’t have as many lumps as Mom’s mashed potatoes.”

  Jackie let out an indignant gasp. “Who decided this was pick-on-Jackie day?”

  “Didn’t you hear?” Patrick asked, tossing a wink to Dani. “Congress passed a resolution that every Saturday is pick-on-Jackie day!” He hefted up his end of the dresser. “Let’s go. You’re slacking, little brother.”

  With a grunt, Nate lifted his end. At least the dresser was the only truly heavy piece of furniture. The rest would be easy. Not that there was a lot to move anyway. The basement had great furniture, and he almost felt guilty that he was going to be the one to break it all in.

  There had been a small quarrel between him and Dani over the rent. What she’d proposed had seemed ludicrously low, and Nate, wanting to be fair, told her what he thought he should pay. They finally settled on a price somewhere near the middle.

  He was getting the better end of the deal, and he damn well knew it. He also appreciated that she clearly remembered how difficult it was living on a first-year-teacher’s salary. The price was more than reasonable, especially for a furnished suite in such a great house.

  After they set the dresser in the bedroom, Nate waited while Patrick bounded back up the stairs.
His mother stayed downstairs, a familiar expression fixed on her face that said she needed to dispense what she always thought was worldly wisdom. Nate would let her have her say; then he’d probably set her opinion aside.

  Although Jackie Brennan was a very intelligent woman, she often let that intelligence get overrun by her emotions, especially where her sons were concerned. What she had to remember was that Nate and Patrick weren’t children anymore. It was no longer necessary for her to protect them; she needed to let go.

  “You really think this is a good idea, Nate?” his mother asked.

  At least Dani had remained upstairs and didn’t have to hear the worry in Jackie’s voice. He sure didn’t want her to think his mother’s concern was personal. “Yes, Mom, I do. A very good idea. I’ll be able to save enough money to consider buying a house in the near future instead of pouring money down the crapper of some shitty apartment or rental house.”

  “I know that extended-stay hotel wasn’t great, but there have to be other alternatives.”

  “You do realize how small Cloverleaf is, don’t you?” he asked.

  “Of course I do.”

  “Then you know why I made this choice. The only decent apartment complexes have six-month-plus waiting lists because of the Barrett Foods factory bringing in so many new employees.”

  “What about a house?”

  He shook his head. “I’m not discussing this anymore. I made my decision.”

  “You don’t even have a kitchen.”

  Grabbing her shoulders, he turned her toward the kitchenette. “Sure I do.” Instead of keeping up the verbal fencing, Nate cut to the chase. “What’s the real reason you’re against this move?”

  Jackie crossed her arms under her breasts. “She’s your boss.”

  “So what? It’s not that unusual to rent an apartment from someone you work for. Didn’t Patrick and Caroline live in his supervisor’s rental house?”

  “Well, yeah, but—”

  “You worry too much, Mom. This will be fine. No, more than fine. This will be perfect for me.” He put his hand on his mother’s shoulder. “I mean it. Perfect.”

  Jackie thought it over a long time before she spoke again. “You like her, don’t you?”

  Seeing no reason to deny it, Nate nodded.

  “I just worry about you. You had such a bad time after Kat.”

  “Of course I had a bad time after Kat. We lost a baby together.”

  “I know that was rough, but I’m not talking about the baby. I’m talking about how horribly sad you were when you two broke off the engagement. I don’t want to see you go through something like that again. That’s all.”

  While he loved that she cared enough to be concerned, he also needed her to ease up and let him live his life. “Relationships don’t come with guarantees.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Don’t I know it.”

  Nate squeezed her shoulder. “Spit it out, Mom. Quit beating around the bush.”

  “Fine. She’s older than you are. A lot, judging from her being department head.”

  “Yep. She is.”

  Why did she always have to look so shocked when he was honest? “I mean… she doesn’t look that old. But she’s got to be well into her thirties if she’s chairing the English department.”

  Whistling a happy tune, Patrick came down the stairs carrying the nightstand.

  When Nate recognized the song, he leveled a frown at his mother. “For God’s sake, what did you tell him?”

  Her brows knit. “What are you talking about?”

  “He’s whistling ‘Mrs. Robinson.’ ”

  “Sure am,” Patrick said as he walked past them to put the nightstand in a corner. “Quite a cougar you’ve got there, bro.” With a grin, he started singing, “ ‘And here’s to you, Mrs. Robinson… ’ ”

  Jackie frowned. “I can’t help believing this is a big mistake.”

  “Seriously?” Nate dropped his hands to his hips, wanting to shout at her, yet knowing he couldn’t. Not only would Dani hear, but also Jackie was his mother and deserved his respect. That didn’t mean he wasn’t going to set her straight, though. “First of all, I’ll remind you it’s my life.”

  “I know that,” she snapped.

  “Do you? ’Cause it sure doesn’t feel like you’re letting me live it.” His stance relaxed, as did his anger. “Second of all, she’s really not that much older. Even if she were, none of this really even matters. We haven’t even been on a date yet. How about you relax and just wait and see what—if anything—happens?”

  Jackie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Nate. You’re right. It is your life. I shouldn’t be sticking my nose into your love life. Sometimes it’s so hard to remember that you and Patrick aren’t kids anymore.”

  She sounded forlorn, so he gathered her into his arms and gave her a hug. “It’s okay. You’re only looking out for me.” After she hugged him back, he turned her loose.

  “I’m going to go finish the coffee Dani got for me. You can get your bed put together and get some clean sheets on it.” As she trotted up the stairs, she passed Dani, who was on the way down.

  “Want some coffee?” Dani held out a travel cup. “Just sugar, right?”

  Nate took the cup and sipped the drink. “Perfect. Thanks, Dani.”

  She cast a glance back toward the stairs. “What’s up with your mother? She doesn’t seem to like me much.”

  “It’s not you. Not really. She’s just a little overprotective.”

  Although Dani didn’t look at all convinced, she nodded. Turning on her heel, she tried to take a step away.

  Snaking a hand around her upper arm, Nate stopped her. “So after we get everything set up, do you wanna… maybe go out for a bite to eat?”

  “With your family?”

  “I imagine they’ll want to get back on the road soon.”

  At least she thought it over before she shook her head. Then she softened the blow. “How about I fix us something here instead?”

  “Sounds like heaven.”

  Chapter Nine

  Dani was slicing a zucchini when Nate came through the basement door. His door. It was sure going to take some time for her to get used to seeing him move so freely around her house.

  “Brought some music,” he said as he headed into the great room. “Is that okay?”

  “Sure. Is it on an MP3?” she asked.

  “Yep.”

  “Then use my sound system. It’s on the shelf just to the left of the TV.”

  “Saw it earlier.”

  All she could see was his back as he fiddled with her equipment. He’d dressed casually—a polo and khaki shorts.

  She’d chosen an outfit every bit as relaxed. This wasn’t a date, she had to remind herself. They were only sharing a meal, something they’d probably be doing from time to time. The tone needed to be companionable, not romantic.

  “This setup is amazing,” Nate said.

  “My dad got it for me.”

  The elaborate entertainment equipment had been a gift from her father, but as always there was guilt attached. When the house was finally finished, her parents had come all the way from California to see it and brought along the present of cutting-edge technology. Of course, Dad had to comment on how he’d originally planned on buying her everything she and the husband she really didn’t need would require when they started a family.

  Could’ve used this money for the perfect nursery, Dani-girl, he’d said, as though buying something solely for her was a waste of his hard-earned cash. It wasn’t as though he didn’t have plenty to spare, so why the guilt trip?

  Accustomed to her father’s snark, Dani had reacted in her usual way. She’d let his criticism slide. He loved her. But being his only child put a lot of pressure on her to be what he wanted her to be.

  Her mother never pressured her to settle down and have babies, probably because she knew her daughter well enough to understand that Dani was exactly like her father and cou
ldn’t be nagged or bullied into doing something she simply didn’t want to do.

  “This is an amazing sound system,” Nate said a moment before strains of “My Girl” filled the house.

  Quirking a brow, she asked, “Motown fan?”

  “Hell yeah.” He joined her at the island and planted his palms on the granite surface. “What can I do to help? Or are you a cook who prefers working solo?”

  “Feel free to jump right in. I’m going to sauté some vegetables to go with the chicken. I tossed that in the oven not too long ago.” She picked up her cutting board and slid the slices of zucchini into a bowl. “I think I’ll add some yellow squash if you like it.”

  “Yep,” he said with a charming grin. “Never met a vegetable I didn’t enjoy.” A thoughtful tilt of his head. “Unless jalapeños are vegetables. Can’t stand those.” He picked up the bottle of salad dressing. “Planning a salad? Can I help with that?”

  “Sure. Grab the romaine from the fridge. You can wash it and rip it up.”

  The man sure made himself at home quickly. Moving around her kitchen, he acted as though he’d always cooked there, not even tossing her awkward questions. He seemed to instinctively know where everything from the colander to the knives waited.

  “Big or little?” Nate held up the freshly washed head of lettuce.

  “Pardon?”

  “Big or little pieces of lettuce?”

  “Oh… little.”

  That damned dimple… “A woman after my heart. I can’t stand huge pieces of lettuce in my salad. I always end up feeling stupid when I stab one with my fork and then try to open my mouth wide enough to shove it in without looking like a baby bird that’s expecting to be fed.” He got right to work.

  Accustomed to the Ladies’ husbands rather reserved natures, Dani enjoyed Nate’s tendency toward the same kind of companionable silence. When he did have something to say, it was succinct. A few words about school or about his students. Dani kept working on supper, finding herself smiling at the humor Nate tended to toss into his dialogue. She loved his voice, a light tenor that would make him a great audiobook narrator. Eager young women would flock to that voice.