Everybody Falls

by J. A. Hornbuckle

  "Well, he was pissed when I picked him up at the church and after, you know, that scene with my mom. He was better after he talked with you," I admitted.

  "Oh, thank God," she said and our eyes caught. "Thank you, Lace. You may not realize it, but you're saving him."

  "Saving him?" I asked incredulously. "Me?"

  She released my hand and brought hers to cup my face. "Oh yes, sweet girl. He's got it crazy bad for you and you, being the delightful thing you are, are helping to become himself again. The real Jax he used to be. Something I haven't seen since he was my little man."

  I didn't know what to say.

  She grabbed a tissue from beneath the sleeve of her cardigan, wiping her eyes and face.

  "Now, why don't you show me how to bake these bad boys," she suggested when she was done, levering herself out of the cushions and reaching for my hand.

  Chapter 17

  While the croissants were baking, Edie, which she insisted I call her, brought out two huge photo albums and placed them on the old, scarred breakfast table.

  Jax had left a few minutes before, dragging me out of the house to walk with him down to the garage, his lips meeting mine every few steps.

  "You'll be here when I get back?" he asked finally.

  "Lord willing and the creek don't rise," I answered back, echoing something Grandma Lilly was fond of saying.

  "What?" he said with a chuckle, his eyes shining down into mine. "I don't even know what that means."

  "That means yes, honey," I whispered, going up on tiptoe to kiss him again. I got a soft pat on my ass in response.

  When the croissants were done cooking, Edie opened the first of the well-packed scrap books.

  "I thought you might like to see what Jax was like when he was a little fella," she said, the love for him so evident in her face, in her soft smile.

  I bent over the page, my heart catching on the little black-haired boy with the big, brown eyes looking out at me. He had been gorgeous even when he was small.

  The pictures, which often included Denny in motion, captured moments which Edie or her husband had thought were picture worthy. Jax at the piano while Denny twirled; Jax sitting on the back steps while Denny was jumping off the top step; Jax asleep in his car seat, Denny climbing over to the front part of the car.

  "Denny was a rascal, wasn't he?" she said fondly, her head bent over the page. "Jax, though, he was my joy, my shadow."

  I nodded, seeing how Jax's personality, that calm charm, was clear as day even in just snapshots.

  My cell, tucked in my back pocket vibrated.

  "Excuse me, Edie. It's the bakery," I explained and moved out onto the screened-in porch to take the call.

  "Yeah, Beth, what's up?" I asked.

  "We've got a problem, Lacey," I heard Beth say, her voice high and shaking.

  "What. What is it?" I asked quickly, my heart beginning to pound.

  "There's a whole mess of people with cameras shoved into the store and an array of news vans on the street. They're trying to reach either you or Jax," she explained and, honest to God, she sounded scared. Her voice dropped as she continued. "It wasn't me, Lace. You've gotta believe it wasn't me."

  I heard the phone move as it was shuffled. The next voice I heard was Sarge.

  "Lacey, girl, we've got paparazzi surrounding the place. What do you want us to do?" he asked, even his voice sounding tight.

  Peaches in cream.

  "Oh, crap," I moaned.

  "What?" I heard Edie yelp from behind me. I moved the phone away from my mouth and explained as fast and as simply as I could. "Paparazzi. Bakery. Asking for me or Jack."

  "Shit," she drawled and I saw her body begin to tense.

  "Get everyone out and lock the doors. Announce that we are closing early," I instructed. "Call the police if you feel the need and hang in the kitchen until you feel safe."

  "Got it, Lace," Sarge growled. "What about the stock?"

  "Screw the stock," I growled right back. "You guys before the stock, right?"

  "Clear. But, girl, you've gotta stay away, understand?" His voice held a warning note. I was trying to imagine what they were seeing yet, honestly, I couldn't catch a mental picture that equated to how his voice sounded.

  "I get you, Sarge. Keep our Beth out of it, though," I directed.

  "I'll handle it. Call me later and keep his ass out of sight," he shot back.

  "Thanks. Will do," I said around the lump in my throat. My employees were freaking out because of a bunch of publicity hounds had invaded our space looking for me and my boyfriend.

  Shit on a chocolate covered graham cracker!

  "I sent Jax a text asking him to come home. They should be finishing anyway," Edie said after I'd hung up and tucked my phone back in my pocket.

  I reached for her and felt her gather me in for a tight hug.

  "Do you think it'd be on TV?" I asked.

  "Let's go look," she suggested, pulling away and walking determinedly down the hall.

  Oh yeah. It was on TV, on all the local stations anyway.

  There were even aerial views of my street and we could hear the thumping of a helicopter from here at the farm.

  "We're here at Lacey's Bakery on the south side of Old Town Auburn where Jax Wynter is reported to be holding up with his current lover, a Miss Lacey Emerson, owner of Lacey's Bakery. Reports have it that he and Miss Emerson, a complete unknown, have been…" the pretty, young reporter was talking earnestly into the camera.

  She's just doing her job, I reminded myself, however having our business being splashed over the TV pissed me right off.

  Edie muted the television.

  "Lace? He may be in a bad place when he gets home," Edie said, turning worried eyes to me. "He hates this stuff and…"

  "I know, honey," I said back, grabbing for her hands.

  We heard the truck pulling down the driveway. I raced out of the house to meet him as the garage door slowly closed.

  "Inside now!" I yelled and scanned the skies to ensure no helicopter hovered over the farm to get a glimpse of him or me.

  "What?" he said, his smile of greeting fading. I saw him look up, trying to see what I was looking for.

  "Paparazzi are at the bakery," I explained, grabbing his arm and pulling him back towards the house.

  "What the fuck!" he exploded and began to run across the yard, tugging me with him. "Is Gram okay?"

  "Worried, but good," I panted. He was moving fast.

  I was right behind him as he raced into the house, down the hall before skidding to a stop in front of the much shorter woman. I caught a glimpse of her worried eyes that shot to us as we careened into the room.

  "You alright, Grams?" he asked tenderly as he carefully gathered her against his chest.

  "Yeah, Hot Stuff," I heard her murmur. "But, Lacey's people are trapped in the shop and she's going to have to scrap her stock."

  Jack moved his eyes to me before reaching out a hand, pulling me into his side after tucking his grandmother into the other. I watched as his eyes went to the TV and saw the chaos displayed.

  "Motherfucker," he moaned, his voice almost a whisper.

  "Beth said it wasn't her who told," I said, trying to keep my voice even. He needed calm and steady. "I don't know how it got out."

  "It doesn't matter now, does it?" he asked ruefully. "It's out and they've dragged you into it, Baby."

  I don't think I've ever heard anyone sound so contrite, so damn sorry, before in my life.

  He was blaming himself.

  "Who called?" he asked finally.

  "Beth, originally. She was freaking out, so Sarge came on the phone and…" I recounted.

  "Let me talk to Sarge," Jack interrupted firmly and I pulled my cell out.

  "Yeah, Lace?" I heard him answer.

  "Jack wants to talk to you," I announced before handing the phone to my man.

  "Sarge? Yeah. Talk to me, Dude. Uh-huh. Yeah. Did you call the cops? Okay. You feel comfortable ge
tting stuff put away?"

  I heard Jack chuckle.

  "Publicity slut! Yeah. We owe you, Sarge. Yeah. Late."

  Jack handed me back my phone and gently, oh so gently, led his Grams to the sofa before he sat down next to her. His eyes came to me.

  "The cops are there and moved everyone off the porch of the mall. While they were doing that, Beth snuck out the back and Sarge stayed in the kitchen. He says he'll put everything away and it'll all be good."

  "Why'd you laugh?" I asked quietly, amazed that he wasn't coming unglued.

  I sure was.

  "Because he said that he'd welcome having his picture back in the news. That'd been a long damn time since anyone found his hard-rock ass pretty enough to snap," Jack said and he chuckled again.

  Edie and I joined in, finding the words just as funny as he had when Sarge first said them.

  Jack shifted and pulled his cell out of his back pocket.

  "Program my phone, Tiger," he instructed. "I want your cell, the bakery and Sarge in there just as fast as your fingers can move, okay?"

  He turned to the older woman sitting, pressed up against him. "You need your pills, Pretty?"

  "No, darling," she replied, gazing up at him. "I'm good. Just worried about you and Lacey."

  "We're good, Grams," he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder, patting her upper arm. "Aren't we, Lace?"

  I dragged my eyes up to his and plastered a smile on my face as I paused in loading the numbers he'd requested. "Yeah, we're good. It's all good, Edie."

  I actually wasn't, yet seeing the care and concern that was in Jack's eyes, I was willing to go along with it. She looked a little pale, but seemed to be doing okay.

  "Let's let this go for the moment, alright?" he said, reaching for the remote and turning the TV off.

  I handed him back his phone and watched as he scrolled down the screen. A few seconds later, my cell vibrated.

  "That's mine, Lace. Add it to your contacts except don't use my name, alright?" he instructed before scrolling again. "Sarge? Jax. This is my cell, but don't add my real name to the contact. What? What the fuck do I care what you call me? Dirtbag! Whatever floats your wood, Dude. Yeah. Late."

  He was still smiling as he tucked his phone away, shaking his head.

  "What?" I asked.

  "I can't repeat it, Lace. I gotta tell you, Sarge has a wicked imagination when it comes to contact names," he said, that smile staying in place.

  "You okay, Jax?" his grandmother asked, her eyes huge behind her glasses.

  "More than good, Grams," he said, turning towards her. "I've got my two best girls, in the same place, at the same time and all to myself. What's not good about that?"

  I saw her breathe a sigh of relief.

  "How about I start on lunch, then," she said, pulling herself to the edge of the couch and standing up.

  "Sounds good," he replied. I saw him hold his hand steady and firm, allowing her to use him as leverage when she stood.

  When she was out of the room and we could hear the fridge opening and closing, Jack shot his eyes to mine.

  "Is she really okay, Lace?" he asked, his voice sharp with concern.

  I moved from the chair to sit next to him on the couch.

  "Seems to be. She was more worried about you and your reaction to all of this," I explained, keeping my voice low.

  "She has heart issues," he advised, just as low. "Pretty severe ones. We need to keep her calm and evened out, okay?"

  "Absolutely, honey," I agreed.

  My back pocket vibrated again.

  Aw, cream cheese with strawberries.

  It was Ricki.

  "Hey, Ricks, what's up," I answered.

  Her squeal was so loud I had to pull the phone from my ear.

  "He was at your bakery? Ohmigod. Ohmigod. Ohmigod," she panted. "Did you see him? Did he talk or just point in that badass, rocker way? Is he as gorgeous as the poster?"

  "Slow down," I said, rolling my eyes.

  "Tell me everything, Lace! Absolutely everything!" Her voice was still too loud and I was sure that I'd lost the hearing in one ear.

  I saw Jax roll his eyes too, before he left the living room going towards the kitchen. Probably to check on Grams.

  I paused. I wanted to be truthful yet now was not the time, nor the place to have this particular conversation.

  "I didn't wait on him, Ricks," I said, glad I wasn't lying. If I needed to, I would. "I took the morning off and Beth was the one that called me about it."

  "This thing they're saying about you being his lover, though…" she asked, except I wouldn't let her finish.

  "C'mon, Ricks. If I was with Jax Wynter do you honestly think I would write it across the sky?" I asked. And that, too, wasn't a lie. I wasn't denying I was with him, just only saying I wouldn't announce it to the world. "Honestly, I don't know any more than you do."

  "Well, crap. Here I was all excited that my best friend was doing the nasty with the God of Rock. Oh! They just got another sighting. I've got to go, Lace," she announced before she disconnected.

  Crikey. He used to go through this shit every day?

  I'd be mental, too.

  I moved to the kitchen, asking what I could do to help.

  "If Jax can set the table in the dining room and you put together a salad, Lace, I think we'll be set," she said, putting a large dish into the microwave.

  "We're getting fancy for lunch?" I heard Jax tease.

  My arms filled with the bounty from Edie's vegetable drawer, I turned back and drawled, "Your grandson used almost that exact same phrase yesterday when I put out plates for fast food!"

  Edie glanced between both of us.

  "It seems, Lace, that you've got some educating to do here," she responded, her voice sounding serious, yet there was a slight twinkling of a smile trying to escape her lips.

  "Yes, ma'am, I think I do," I said and turned away. I was not as gifted as hiding my smiles as she was.

  "Educate away, Ladies," Jax said, his hands piled with plates, cutlery and glasses. "At least I'd be learning from the best."

  Things were almost ready when Edie asked me to get another bottle of salad dressing from the pantry. And what a pantry it was! Glistening home-canned jars of different fruits and vegetables lined the different shelves with huge crocks of flour, sugar and the like filling the other portions.

  I heard the sound of their soft voices as I came back into the room.

  "Lacey, you're staying here tonight, okay?" Edie asked, however her voice sounded more like it was a foregone conclusion.

  I shot a glance to Jack who was grinning.

  "Uhm, okay. Yeah," I replied. "Thanks."

  The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur.

  We played cards until Edie announced she needed her nap. While she slept, I rummaged around and found everything needed to make a peach cobbler and discovered a roasting chicken shoved in the back of the freezer. I set the chicken in some water to help speed the thawing process and Jack sat at the small breakfast table as I put together the cobbler.

  "I don't think either one of us was prepared for how sick the other one was when I came here," I heard him say into the quiet of the kitchen. "I was a fucking mess when she was on, like, twenty different kind of pills."

  I glanced at him, making a low noise in my throat to acknowledge his words, hoping he'd go on.

  "So I was loopy with all the shit they had me on while she was guzzling these fucking horse pills to keep her heart pumping. Fuck, Baby. It wasn't until I weaned myself off them that I realized what was happening," he continued, his eyes unfocused as he remembered.

  I popped the cobbler in the oven and checked the status of the chicken. Hadn't I seen a small bag of red potatoes in the bin of the pantry?

  "I wrote down all the names of what shit she was taking, started looking them up online. She was swallowing one kind of pill then taking another for the goddamn side effects of the first. There were three different types that were co
untering acting all the benefits of two others. It was a fucking mess," he said, shaking his head, his eyes lost in memory. "So I took the list to the pharmacy the next time we went up to new Auburn. The pharmacist about went ape-crazy. Seems the old gal hadn't disclosed all the shit she was taking."

  I placed the pan of peeled and quartered potatoes into the fridge. Great, there was bacon and I moved back to the pantry for another canning jar, this one of green beans.

  "She's down to only five different pills that she takes a couple of times a day. She's lost weight, which the doctor had recommended. Now she's no longer complaining of dizzy spells. Christ! If my doctor's at the rehab had known of her goddamn condition…" His voice trailed off.

  "So, you like being here, then?" I asked.

  "Hell, yeah," he said fervently. "I didn't even know she was still alive, Lace. I didn't know that she and Denny stayed in touch or that she was listed as our emergency contact on all our legal shit." His voice wound down. "It took her and me a while, you know, to find our way. But, I love her so much."

  "I can see that, honey," I murmured, half-turned towards him from my place at the countertop. "She loves you, too."

  "I know. In spite of everything, she really does." His voice held a note of wonderment as he almost whispered.

  Oh, my God.

  My insides were melting and I realized that no matter how many warnings I gave myself, no matter what my logical mind tried to tell me, I was falling completely, utterly in love with this man.

  My man.

  Chapter 18

  "Okay, here's your room. Down there is the bathroom with Jax's room just beyond." Edie pointed as she explained. "My bedroom is way down there on the other side of the staircase and I sleep like a log, just so you know."

  We'd finished dinner and, like he'd told me earlier, Jack cleaned the kitchen. I don't know if Edie had been put out about me cooking, but she seemed to like the rosemary roasted chicken, with mashed potatoes, pan gravy and green beans seasoned with cumin, pepper and bacon.

  I knew she really, really liked the peach cobbler.