Chapter 19
Josie’s joy was boiling over the morning she was to pick up her sisters from SeaTac airport.
“Take the Audi,” Chance insisted.
“My Honda’s fine.”
“I’ll feel better if you take the Audi. Your tires need to be replaced, and the roads are wet.” Chance held up the keys. Josie just shook her head, and took the keys, knowing it was useless to argue. She had decided not to have the guys go with her when she picked up her sisters, because she didn’t want to inundate them with their presence before they’d even had a chance to unpack their bags. Chance and Sam understood completely.
It took her two hours to get to the airport, and she was an hour early. She bought a cup of coffee to sip while she waited. Becca texted her when they landed, and she went to the baggage claim area. Josie was waiting for them, when they stole behind her, yelling her name, causing her to spill her coffee. Some things never changed.
“Welcome to Seattle!” She grabbed each one into a huge hug. Josie noted that their identical wavy brown hair, hazel eyes, and tall frames were garnering a fair share of male attention. Her girls had blossomed in the few months away at college. She hadn’t noticed that three weeks ago when she had visited.
“Josie, I couldn’t believe how many trees there were when we flew over, and that mountain was gorgeous! What’s the name of it?” Sarah asked.
“That’s Mt. Rainier. It is beautiful. I love living here. I can’t wait for you to see where I live and meet everyone.”
“Where are Chance and Sam?” Becca asked, looking around.
“They didn’t come. I wanted to have you all to myself for a while.” Josie saw Becca perk up. She looked over at Sarah who just shrugged and rolled her eyes. Josie spotted one of their suitcases and reached for it, and Becca slapped her hand.
“Little sister, we’ll handle the luggage. You just point us to the car.” It had been a running joke in the family to call Josie the little sister, since the girls had been thirteen and outgrown Josie’s height of five foot one. Protective of Josie, they were always conscious of her bad back, and rarely let her carry anything. They made their way to the parking garage, where Josie led them to the Audi.
“Very fancy,” Becca crooned. “Who does it belong to?”
“It’s Chance’s. He insisted I drive it, since it was raining,” Josie explained as the girls put their luggage into the trunk.
“I dibs the front!” Becca shouted.
“Hey, I wanted to sit up front,” Sarah protested.
“You don’t like cars as much as I do,” Becca said. Sarah nodded in agreement and climbed into the backseat. Becca played with all the dials and buttons, and soon had everything figured out, showing Josie features that she hadn’t even been aware of. “So Chance has money, huh?”
“Yep.”
“What about Sam?”
“I know he gets disability from the Marines and he gets a bunch of stock statements in the mail that he throws in a drawer. But he hasn’t disclosed his financial status to me, and I haven’t asked him.”
“He was a Marine? How long?” Becca asked.
“Two and a half tours in Afghanistan.” Becca turned on the radio to a country music station, and after a while, Sarah asked when they would be meeting the Hutchinses and where they were staying.
“You’re staying in the apartment above Sweet Dream Desserts, while I stay with Sam and Chance at their house. I’ll leave the Honda with the two of you. I have some bad news, though. On Thursday and Friday I have to put in some long hours for the town festival and dance on Saturday. But today through Wednesday, I’ve taken off, so I’m all yours.”
“Don’t you have to spend time with Sam and Chance?” Sarah asked.
“Well I was hoping the five of us could spend some time together. I’d really like you to get to know them.”
“Are you in love with them?” Becca asked.
“I was pretty close to it when I came down to Florida. Now it’s a done deal. I can’t imagine my life without them. But—” Josie stopped herself.
“You’re not letting Becca stop you, are you?” Sarah exclaimed.
“What Becca thinks and feels is very important to me.” Josie softly answered. “But there’s more than that. Relationships are tough, and we still have issues of our own to work out. Hell, I still have trust issues, and so does Sam.”
“It’s not that because of that asshole Russell is it?” Becca snarled. “He wasn’t good enough for you.” Josie glanced over at her sister’s fierce expression.
“Seriously, Josie, we know he put you through the wringer. But he was a creep, and he was abusive. You shouldn’t let anything he said stand in the way of your happiness.”
“Yeah, what Sarah said,” Becca concurred.
“I think it goes deeper. I think it’s stuff that’s just ingrained because of Mom—”
“Josie—” the twins spoke out in one voice.
“Hold on!” Josie stopped them. “I’m trying to work through this. I’m talking to you, aren’t I? And to tell you the truth, Sam and Chance have been wonderful about it. They seem to really get me, no matter how messed up I think I am. They love me. I’m really considering building a life with both of them.” The country music filled the car for the next few miles.
Finally, Sarah started commenting on the scenery and Becca asked about the town, and what kinds of activities were available to them. Josie told them that they might want to take the ferry over to Snoqualt on Friday, but that Saturday’s Festival and Dance should be a lot of fun. She took them straight to Sweet Dream Desserts, where she introduced them to Elise and Rob. Bill had already gone home for the day. Then they trooped up to the apartment, stored their belongings, and squabbled over who would get the bed and who would get the couch, finally deciding the matter with a game of rock, paper, scissors.
While Becca was in the bathroom, Sarah took a quick moment to talk to Josie.
“I talked to Becca, and she is going to at least have an open mind about all of this. So, it’s better than when you left Florida.”
“Sarah, you didn’t have to do that.”
“Yes. Yes, I did,” Sarah said fiercely, giving her sister a hug. Then they broke apart before Becca came out of the bathroom.
When the girls were both in the small living room, Josie looked them over and said, “Let’s get you fed. I think the best food in town is at Hart’s Diner. The fact that they serve my baked goods might make me a little biased.” Josie led the girls down the block to the diner, where Tammy set them up in one of the larger booths.
“Karen will be with you in a few moments, she’s back there arguing with Dale and Jace.” Tammy laughed and handed out the menus. “She’ll tell you about the specials. In the meantime, what can I get you to drink?”
Josie looked at her sisters. They nodded and she requested three sweet teas. “I thought you said this was a small town,” Becca whispered. “Did everybody decide to eat out today?”
Josie laughed as she looked around. “It’s always packed at lunchtime.”
“Why’d we get such a large booth?” Sarah asked.
“Well, Karen will probably sit down with us for a while, so Tammy gave us an upgrade. You’ll really like Karen. She’s one of the first friends I made here. She’s so bubbly and friendly, you can’t help but love her.”
There was a loud crash in the kitchen, and then the door slammed open. “How dare you, Jace Hart? I expect that kind of thing from Dale, but how dare you treat me like that!” A blonde virago stomped out into the middle of the restaurant and looked wildly around until her eyes clamped on Josie. Then she burst into tears, running straight for her booth. “Josie,” she wailed. Becca and Sarah glanced around in stunned wonder as her sister rushed toward the woman and hugged her, immediately settling her into the booth.
“It’s okay, honey. Just tell me what’s wrong. What did Jace do?” Karen grabbed a handful of napkins out of the holder.
“He said…he s
aid…he…” And she started to cry again. Josie just hugged her and rocked her. Finally, Karen seemed to settle herself, and was able to start again. “Jace said that the tray I was carrying was too heavy,” she wailed.
Josie saw her sisters look at the crying woman, dumbfounded. “Did he say anything else?” Josie coaxed.
“He didn’t want me to come to work today. He was worried about me.”
“You’re pregnant, aren’t you, sweetie?” Josie asked as Karen blew her nose. Karen nodded and gave a wide but soggy smile.
“Yes, and we’re all so happy. I knew Dale would lose his mind and be crazy, but not Jace. Jace was supposed to be the sane one. I’ve been having morning sickness, so Jace thought I shouldn’t come to work today, and then he thought the tray I was carrying was too–too–heavy.” And Karen dissolved into tears again.
As Josie enveloped Karen into another hug, she saw Jace and Dale rushing out of the kitchen.
“Sweetheart, Jace is an idiot. Don’t cry.” Dale slid into the booth beside Karen and tenderly pulled her out of Josie’s arms. Jace stood over the booth and glared down at his brother.
“Dale, she needs to be home, she was sick this morning.”
“The doctor said that was normal for a pregnant woman, you big oaf,” Karen shouted up at her husband. Becca and Sarah heard a couple of chuckles around the restaurant.
“You’re carrying our baby, and don’t let Dale fool you. He’s as concerned as I am, he just doesn’t want to sleep on the couch,” Jace grumped.
“And he won’t, because he’s not driving me crazy!” Josie and others in the restaurant laughed outright at Jace’s outraged expression.
“Why don’t you have some ginger ale, talk to Josie a while, and then get back to work. Okay, sweetheart?” Dale suggested.
“That sounds good.” Karen gave her husband a kiss, and he got up, pulling his brother back into the kitchen.
“It’s not fair,” Jace was saying as they headed back. “You’re worse than I am, but you’re just pulling the wool over her eyes.”
“Face it, I’m older and smarter.” Dale smirked.
“So which one is worse?” Josie asked.
“Oh, definitely Dale,” Karen answered. “He just waits, because he knows that Jace will always say something, or he can prod him until he does, so he doesn’t have to be the one to get into trouble. Like today, Dale was dying when I lifted that tray, and Jace didn’t notice until Dale mentioned it to him, then Jace hit the roof.” Karen giggled.
“I don’t get it, which one are you married to?” Becca asked.
“Oh, I’m married to Dale officially, so in the eyes of the law, he’s my husband. But I had a commitment ceremony with both of them. I consider them both my husbands.”
“How long have you been together?” Sarah asked.
“For seven years. Some days it feels like thirty.” Karen winked at them. Jace brought over a ginger ale and put it on the table.
“Thanks, Jace.”
“So am I forgiven?”
“Yes, you don’t have to sleep on the couch tonight.” He leaned in and kissed her.
“You’re the best, honey.” He walked back to the kitchen whistling.
“Making him sleep on the couch punishes me more than it does him,” she said to the three other women in the booth. Then she caught Josie’s frown, and looked over at the two younger girls sitting in the booth staring at her. “Oops. I’m sorry, girls. I think the pregnancy hormones are making me run off at the mouth. Just forget I said that.”
“I’m not going to forget it. I’m going to ask for details!” Sarah said, holding out her hand. “I’m Sarah Compton. You can tell me from my sister Becca by my eyebrow piercing.”
“Good to know.” Karen shook her hand, and then shook Becca’s hand. “I’m Karen Hart, and you just met my husbands, the overprotective idiots, Jace and Dale. You can tell them apart because Dale has the wider shoulders and Jace has the fantastic ass.”
“Karen, I think your mouth needs to go on lockdown,” Josie admonished.
“Really? I remember how you described Chance and Sam,” Karen said with a sideways glance.
“Yeah, but I didn’t say it in front of impressionable youth.”
“How about it, girls, have you ever noticed how men were put together, and those parts of them that were really put together well?”
“I’ve noticed,” Sarah said, taking a large gulp of her sweet tea, “but I didn’t realize that my big sister noticed those kinds of things.”
“Honey, with all three of you as gorgeous as you are, I imagine you have plenty of men hovering around. Of course y’all have noticed. And Sam and Chance? Have you met them?” Becca and Sarah shook their heads. “Well, wait until you do. You’ll notice, too.”
“Okay, Karen, I don’t care if you’re pregnant with twins, your break is over.” Josie waved her out of the booth. Karen stood, pulled out her order pad, and snagged her pencil from over her ear.
“What do you want to order?” Becca and Sarah just stared at her.
“Dale made vegetable lasagna for the lunch special, but there’s always the bacon cheeseburger.”
“I’ll take the bacon cheeseburger,” Becca piped up, “and a chocolate milkshake.”
“I’ll take the vegetable lasagna and a chocolate milkshake,” Sarah said. Karen made a face but wrote it down. Josie chose the lasagna and decided to stick with her sweet tea.
After Karen left, Becca turned to Josie. “Her two husbands are hot.”
“Kind of over protective,” Sarah noted. Josie just nodded her head. They went on to talk about the girl’s time at school. Josie laughed as the girls both ordered second milkshakes.
Chapter 20
When they drove to Sam and Chance’s house, Josie was careful to give the twins clear directions how to get back. “Josie, it’s basically a mile inland from the harbor, and then just follow around the lake for a half mile, I think we can handle it,” Becca said as they pulled into the driveway.
“Yeah, but you’re going to drive back in the dark, and the Honda doesn’t have GPS,” Josie reminded her.
“She worries, she can’t help it,” Sarah said from the backseat. “Anyway, with all these trees, we might get lost.”
“Oh, you’re right. We’ll follow you back.”
“Jeez, Josie, I was kidding. You need to mellow,” Sarah said. “So which one is which?” she asked, tipping her chin to the two men standing at the top of the porch steps.
“Karen wasn’t kidding. They’re hot too, Josie. Good going!” Becca said. Josie didn’t know whether to take that as a good thing or a bad thing.
“The blond is Chance, and Sam has the dark hair. Let me introduce you.” The men were already down the steps opening their car doors by the time Josie had finished her sentence.
“Welcome, ladies,” Chance said with a wide smile. Sam just smiled and hugged Josie as he opened her door.
“You doing okay, baby?” he whispered. She gave a tiny nod.
“Hi, I’m—” Sarah held out her hand to Chance, and Becca shoved in front of her. “Hi, I’m Sarah, I’m the one without the eyebrow ring.” Chance raised his eyebrow.
“Hi Becca, it’s good to meet you.” Sarah laughed, and stepped forward. “Hi, Chance. I’m going to like you, if you can see through my sister’s bullshit that fast.” She gave her sister a snarky look. Josie looked over at Becca and just shook her head.
“How’d you know?” Becca asked.
“You can’t kid a kidder, kid,” Chance said, then gave her a big hug. “Welcome to our house. I hope you’ll both make yourselves at home.” He turned to Sarah and gave her a hug as well, then put his arm around both of them, and walked them around up the stairs. “I’ll give you the grand tour.”
“What the hell was that about?” Sam asked Josie.
“Becca still isn’t happy about this, but I don’t think her heart is hurting as much, I think she’s more frustrated and confused, which is a lot easier t
o deal with. Plus, Sarah told me they had a talk, and Becca promised to come in with more of an open mind. Her idea of an open mind is to tease.” Josie smiled happily.
Sam just looked at her in confusion, put his arm around her, and walked with her up the stairs.
Once inside, they could hear Chance talking and both girls giggling, and the two of them strolled out to the deck to chat. “So, Josie, you actually took two days off? Are you going to have sleepovers with the girls?”
“No, the apartment is too small. They already did rock, paper, scissors over the bed and the couch. I decided we didn’t have to do that, cause I already dibs the middle of the bed.”
“Damn right. I like Chance and all, but not enough to snuggle up next to him. By the way, we talked about it. No more leaving the bed and leaving without waking one of us. It’s just creepy waking up without you between us.”
“Is that a rule?” she asked innocently. Sam laughed.
“You did that on purpose,” he accused.
“Did you end up cuddling?”
“No, thank God. It wasn’t a cold morning. But, yes, it’s now a new rule in this household.” Josie got a warm feeling at the term household. She was thinking more and more of this place as their home, rather than just Chance’s and Sam’s house.
“So what did you do with the girls today?”
“We went over to Hart’s Diner for lunch, where drama ensued.” She told Sam the story, and he smiled.
“Jace told me about them trying for a kid. I’m happy for them.”
“Yeah, Karen was really upset, when they were having trouble getting pregnant.”
“I don’t suppose that’s something you would ever want?” Sam probed.
“Why would you say that?” Josie countered, a little shocked.
Trusting Chance [Fate Harbor] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 22
