A Lesson on Love

by Sharon C. Cooper

  Despite the friendliness of the man’s smile, something felt off. Rayne’s heart rate inched up. Anxiety crept through her as he drew closer.

  “Sorry to bother you, but can I use your cell phone?” He nodded his head toward a gray sedan parked near the building. “I locked my keys in the car and need to call my brother.”

  Rayne opened her mouth to respond, but before she spoke, someone hit her from behind. Blinding pain exploded in her skull, and she cried out, reaching to grab onto something, anything as her world started spinning.

  Oh, God.

  Bile rose to her throat and panic roared through her body as black spots clouded her vision. Her knees went weak. Stumbling, she bumped into a trash can before crumbling to the ground, and the side of her head collided with a concrete slab just before everything went black.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “You wanted to see me?” Jerry asked from Nick’s doorway. He’d been on his way out of the building when the receptionist mentioned that Nick had been looking for him.

  His cousin glanced up from his laptop. “Yeah, come in for a minute.”

  Jerry strolled across the large space and sat in one of the chairs that faced the desk. “What’s up?”

  “Couple of things. You’re all set for the conference in San Antonio. Tammy should’ve emailed you the hotel and rental car information. I trust that you and CJ can share a vehicle without any problems, right?”

  “Yeah, shouldn’t be a problem, and I saw emails this morning,” Jerry said. He wasn’t looking forward to spending five days away from Rayne and Stormy. He already knew if he invited her to go with him, she’d shoot him down, claiming she had to work.

  “Also, I’ll be meeting with Pilar Tillman to finalize some decisions regarding her new property and the one that she’s trying to sell.”

  “Please tell me that she’s ready to make some decisions,” Jerry said. They had worked with this customer a few times over the years, and she always had a hard time deciding what she wanted.

  “A few, but mainly we need to go over the changes that were made to the plans for her new house,” Nick explained. “I know you’re trying to finish the Providence property today, but Pilar requested that you be in on this meeting. She wants your opinion on light fixtures for both places.”

  Jerry studied his cousin, sensing that something else was going on here. “I already gave her a list of the ones that I think would best work in the space.”

  “Maybe your opinion is not all she wants.”

  Jerry shook his head and stood. “If you’re implying that I’ve been flirting with her or giving her the impression that I’m giving up more than just my opinion, then you’re wrong. Nick, I’m serious about getting that foreman’s position. All of my interactions with our customers have been professional. Nothing else.”

  Nick nodded. “I know. I just wanted to see what you were going to say. I’ve seen the changes in you. I guess that means that things are getting pretty serious with you and Rayne.”

  “Yeah. She’s it for me,” Jerry said simply. “I can’t explain how I know or when exactly it happened, but she’s the woman I’m going to spend the rest of my life with.”

  Nick chuckled, running his hand over his low-cut fade. “I get it, man. Been there. That’s how it was for me with Sumeera. And my stupid ass almost lost her because I was trying to fight the inevitable.”

  Jerry smiled, remembering that time. Now Nick and Sumeera were married with a little girl and a baby on the way.

  Jerry also thought about something Liam had told him at Nate and Liberty’s wedding reception months back.

  It’s been said that when a Jenkins man meets—the one—he immediately knows.

  That had definitely been the case for Jerry regarding Rayne. The first few months after she moved in next door, he had thought it crazy that his feelings for her were so strong when he didn’t even know her. After a while, all he wanted was to be anywhere she was, even when she shot down his advances.

  Jerry leaned on the back of the seat that he had just vacated. “Listen, I’ll be here for the meeting, and I’ll make it clear to Pilar that the only thing I’m offering her is my knowledge on anything electrical.”

  Jerry’s cell phone vibrated, and he pulled it out of his pocket. When he didn’t recognize the number, he let it go to voicemail.

  “So, we good?” he asked Nick.

  “Yep, but just let Pilar down easy. We ain’t tryin’ to lose no business here.”

  Jerry chuckled and headed to the door but stopped when his phone vibrated again. The same telephone number showed on the screen and this time he answered.

  “Jerry Jenkins.”

  “Mr. Jenkins,” a professional voice sounded through the phone line, but it was a child crying in the background that caught his attention.

  “Yes. Who is this?”

  “This is Miss Crawford, the secretary at Starbright Learning Center. I’m calling regarding Stormy.”

  “Is she all right?”

  “Yes, and that’s her you’re hearing in the background.”

  “Is she sick? Hurt?”

  “Not that we can tell. Her teacher said she was fine earlier, and then all of a sudden she burst into tears. We tried reaching Ms. Ellison, but she hasn’t returned our calls. She has you down as an emergency contact.”

  Rayne had mentioned that to him when she first enrolled Stormy into the summer program, but Jerry never expected to ever get a call.

  “Can I get you to at least talk to Stormy? Sometimes just hearing a familiar voice will calm a child.”

  Worry crept through Jerry. Stormy wasn’t a crier. She was good at pouting, but he couldn’t ever remember her crying.

  “Yes, put her on the phone.” He heard some rustling, and the secretary trying to coax Stormy into talking, but she continued crying.

  Anxiety grew inside of him, and Jerry rubbed his chest as if that would keep his heart from leaping out.

  “I’m sorry, she’s still not cooperating. I’ll hold the phone to her ear.”

  “Ladybug? Hey, baby. What’s going on?” Jerry called Stormy’s name a few more times and she cried harder. Nothing he said helped, which was unusual.

  “Is it possible for you to come to the center?” the secretary asked when she got back on the phone.

  “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  “What happened?” Nick asked after Jerry disconnected the call. “Is Stormy all right?”

  Jerry shook his head and dialed Rayne. “No. Somethin’s up. I need to go down there since they haven’t been able to reach Rayne. Actually, I should’ve heard from her by now, too. She usually takes a break around this time.”

  When Jerry got Rayne’s voicemail, he left a message, letting her know that the center was trying to reach her and that he was heading there.

  “I’m gonna get going, but I’ll be back before the meeting.”

  “Okay, keep me posted. Hopefully, Stormy is all right.”

  Yeah, hopefully.

  Jerry arrived at the center in record time and jogged across the parking lot to the entrance. The moment he was buzzed into the building and started down the hall, he heard Stormy. She wasn’t as loud as she’d been a few minutes ago, but it bothered him that she was still upset.

  “I want my daddy. I want my daddy!” she cried, catching Jerry off guard. He stopped just before he reached the office, and his heart lodged in his throat. She’d been pretty young when her father died and Jerry had never heard her mention him. Why now?

  He strolled up to the office door, where he saw two secretaries at desks that were behind a long counter. One woman was on the phone and the other on the computer. When he glanced to his left, his heart plummeted down to his stomach at the sight of the little girl who had come to mean everything to him. She was sitting in one of the chairs against the wall, her eyes and face puffy from crying.

  “Ladybug,” he said, and her head jerked toward him.

  “Daddy,” she sobbed
and tore across the room, leaping into his arms.

  Daddy?

  Stunned into silence, Jerry just held her close and kissed the side of her head. She sniffled, her tiny body shaking against him. Hell, she could call him whatever she wanted. He just didn’t like seeing her so upset.

  “It’s okay. You’re okay.” He rocked her in his arms.

  The woman who was sitting in front of the computer stood. “Mr. Jenkins?”

  “Yes, I’m Jerry Jenkins.” He moved closer to the desk, and Stormy held him tight. She buried her damp face into the crook of his neck and curled into him, as if afraid he was going to put her down.

  Jerry rubbed her back. What the hell had happened? Normally, the moment she saw him, she started talking or planting sloppy kisses against his cheek. She was the happiest kid he knew, and this…this wasn’t her.

  The school secretary approached the counter, her long red curls bouncing with each step she took. Jerry didn’t miss the way her dark gaze did a slow crawl down his body. He was a big guy and used to the reaction, but right now all he wanted were answers.

  “I’m Ms. Crawford.” Her smile, a bit friendlier than he thought appropriate, brightened and Jerry frowned. I’m the one who called you.”

  “Did you guys ever find out what happened?”

  “As far as anyone knows, nothing happened to Stormy. The teacher tried to get her to tell her what was wrong, but she wouldn’t stop crying, saying she wanted her daddy. And we still haven’t heard back from Ms. Ellison.”

  Hearing her mother’s name, Stormy sobbed quietly, her arms tightening around Jerry’s neck.

  “Yeah, I left a message for her mother after I heard from you. I should hear back soon. In the meantime, I’m just going to step out into the hallway for a minute with Stormy and—”

  “Actually, I’ll need to see some ID before I can let you take her anywhere.”

  He shifted Stormy in his arms, concerned that she still hadn’t said anything, and dug out his wallet. He handed the woman his driver’s license.”

  “Jerry Jenkins. Thank you.” She returned his license, and he put it away. “If you plan to leave with your daughter, we’ll need to get her belongings from the classroom, and she’ll need to be signed out.”

  “All right,” he said, not bothering to correct her. “For now, I’m just going to talk to her, but I’ll let you know if I decide to take her with me.”

  Jerry headed out of the office and found a bench a few feet away.

  “Okay, Ladybug. You want to tell me what’s going on?” Jerry continued rubbing her back. When she still didn’t speak, he shifted, forcing her to lift her head. His chest tightened at the sight of her tear stained face.

  “Baby, tell me what’s wrong. Did someone do something to you?”

  She shook her head and wiped at her tears with the back of her hand, but they fell faster. Now he was getting concerned.

  “Are you sick? Are you hurt? Talk to me. I can’t help if I don’t know what’s wrong.”

  “I—I’m sad. I…I want to cry.”

  “Why are you sad?”

  She shrugged her little shoulders and dropped her head to his chest. Instead of asking more questions, he just sat rocking her, hoping that she’d start talking eventually. Minutes ticked by and she remained silent.

  “Why did you call me daddy in the office?” he asked quietly, aware of a few people walking through the hallway.

  After a long hesitation, Stormy lifted her head slightly. Her teary, light-brown eyes met his.

  “I want you to be my daddy and…you make me stop being sad.”

  Again, she had him at a loss for words. Considering Stormy always had something to tell him, she never mentioned anything about wanting him to be her daddy. Of course, he thought about it a thousand times, but his and Rayne’s relationship was still new. Marriage, fatherhood, or anything like that hadn’t come up. But Jerry wanted nothing more than to have Rayne as his wife and Stormy as his little girl.

  “God, I love you.” He kissed her forehead. He wasn’t sure if he was crossing a line in telling her that, but he couldn’t help himself. It was true. He had fallen in love with her and her mother. “I’m going to always be here for you, and I never want you to be sad. Okay?”

  She nodded but didn’t say anything.

  His cell phone dinged, signaling a text message, and he dug it from his pocket and opened the message.

  Martina: I’m at the Providence house. Where are you?

  Jerry: Had an emergency at Stormy’s school, then heading back to a meeting at J & S. I’ll hit you up soon.

  Martina: Cool. TTYL

  Stormy lifted her head, her droopy eyes red. “Do you have to go?” she asked, her voice hoarse.

  “Yeah, I need to get back to work.”

  Her bottom lip trembled and then the waterworks started over again. “But I do—don’t want yo-you to.”

  He wiped his hands gently over her face. “Baby, you’re killing me with these tears. You know your mom and I have to work. Why are you crying?”

  “I do-don’t know,” she sobbed louder, dropping her head back to his chest. He hated seeing her like this. There was no way he could leave her.

  “Shhh, stop crying. It’s okay.” Jerry rocked her and used his free hand to shoot Rayne a quick text that he was taking Stormy with him. He had no idea how she would react, but this was a judgment call. He’d deal with any fallout later.

  “All right, Ladybug. Let’s go get your things so we can get out of here, okay?”

  Jerry expected that news to perk her up since she always wanted to go wherever he went, but all she did was nod and then sighed against his chest.

  No cheering.

  No smiling.

  No, I’m so excited.

  Nothing. She was just limp in his arms.

  And I still haven’t heard from Rayne.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Where the hell is she?

  Jerry paced the length of the staff lounge at J & S, trying to figure out where Rayne could be. She still wasn’t answering her phone. She hadn’t called him back. And he had just found out that she’d been laid off.

  Damn. Jerry knew Rayne had to be devastated. Even if she was looking for another job, she had no intention of leaving this one until she found a new one. Seemed she just couldn’t catch a break. Now he just hoped she hadn’t done anything crazy.

  He glanced at the sofa where Stormy had been sleeping for the last couple of hours. Instead of going back to work after they left the center, they went to the house, hoping to find Rayne there. When they checked a few other places that she might’ve gone, and didn’t find her, Jerry had taken Stormy to McDonald’s. He had hoped to coax her into eating and playing in the play area. Nothing worked. She wasn’t herself. She complained of having a headache, which he assumed was from all of the crying, and shortly after that, she had fallen asleep.

  What baffled him though, was that she hadn’t asked about Rayne. Even when Jerry told her that they’d hear from her soon, Stormy didn’t comment.

  “How are you holding up?” Nick asked from the doorway of the staff lounge, his laptop tucked under his arm. “Liam mentioned you being out of control.”

  After a few hours of not hearing from Rayne, Jerry had been on a rampage. Unfortunately, Liam had been on the receiving end of his anger when he didn’t give up Charlee’s telephone number fast enough. When Jerry finally reached her and filled her in on what little he knew, she made some calls and found out that Rayne had been laid off.

  “I hate waiting,” Jerry finally said to Nick. “I hate not knowing where she is. What if she’s hurt and somewhere by herself? God, if something happened to her…”

  “I know you’re worried, but don’t go imagining the worse. Her cell phone could be dead, or maybe she just needed a little time to herself. Either way, I’m sure she’ll be in touch soon.”

  Jerry wanted to believe that, but deep down he knew something had happened. Rayne would’ve called hi
m by now if she could.

  “Did you call, Craig?” Nick asked of their cousin-in-law. A former detective, Craig still had connections at the police department. Rayne hadn’t been missing long enough to file a missing person’s report, but Craig promised to make some calls.

  Jerry glanced at his watch. “The meeting still on?”

  “Yeah, but I’ll give you a pass on this one.”

  Jerry rubbed the back of his neck, trying to work out some of the stiffness. “Thanks. I was planning to attend, but I can’t leave Stormy. I know I could get my mom down here, but even with that, I…”

  He stared down at Stormy, her tiny body curled into a ball and her soft snores drifting up to his ears. His heart was so full, it felt as if it would explode.

  “I recognize that look,” Nick said when Jerry met his gaze. “You can’t let her out of your sight. I get it.”

  Jerry nodded, emotion clogging his throat. He had become so attached to Rayne and Stormy, if anything happened to either of them, he didn’t know what he’d do.

  Nick squeezed his shoulder. “That’s love, man. She’s a lucky little girl to have you. Hell, they both are.”

  Again, Jerry nodded, too choked up to speak. He was the lucky one. All it took was for something like this to happen for him to realize just how important they were in his life.

  He hadn’t told anyone about Stormy calling him daddy earlier, and she hadn’t mentioned it again, but it did have Jerry thinking about his future. Their future.

  “I’m not usually a worrier,” he said, “but damn if she and her mom don’t have my nerves shot.”

  Nick chuckled and headed to the door. “Well, get used to it. Worrying about their well-being is part of the deal, but having them in your life makes it all worth it.”

  Jerry jumped when his phone rang. Glancing at the screen, he saw that it was Craig. “Please tell me you know something.”

  “Found her.”

  *

  Jerry followed a nurse down a long hallway, his nerves as raw as stripped wires as he tried ignoring the usual hospital sounds and smells. He’d only been there a few minutes and already the beeping, doctors and nurses talking to patients, and the crying was starting to get to him. Add the smell of disinfectant and other chemicals and he was about ready to run up out of there—but not without Rayne.