by Liz Crowe
Jack pulled away from Sara then, leaving her alone on the sidewalk. He deposited the girl in his SUV, shut the door and turned to her. "So help me, Sara. If you ever pull this shit again…"
"Me?" She was shocked. Had hoped the whole thing might have even made them closer.
"Yes. You. A fucking kitten has a better mother than my daughter." Sara took a step back. He closed the gap she had created. "Don't make me sue for custody Sara. Because I will win." She gasped, started towards him.
Blake started to say something but Rob put a restraining hand on his arm. Evan cleared his throat and Julie put an arm around her. Jack ducked into his car without another word to anyone and left her standing there, surrounded by her friends, his friends and her family.
No one said a word.
****
Sara cried herself to sleep. Her dreams were a muddle of images between Jack yelling at her and Katie crying and a weird alarm that wouldn't stop clanging. She fought to be awake, and saw her phone screen. Jack. Calling her at two a.m.
"What do you want?"
"Katie's sick."
"So, you're perfect. You heal her." She rolled onto her back.
"She is burning up and crying about her ears."
"Yeah. Ear infection. Give her some Tylenol and I'll take her to the pediatrician tomorrow."
"I'm going to the ER now. Meet me there if you want." The phone went dead.
Great. Yet one more example of her has shit mom of the year. Maybe she should let Jack raise the kid. Her face heated up.
Fuck that. I carried her. I had her. I nursed and raised her. Fuck him.
She leapt up and pulled on clothes before heading to the emergency room.
Once there, she could hear the girl's wails of agony from the door. They were tinged with a familiar sound. One Sara knew was Katie's drama queen voice. She shoved past the angry-looking nurses and yanked open a curtain revealing her daughter, in her Scooby Doo pj's, crying her eyes out while the attending doctor tried to look in her ears. Jack stood to one side looking pale and helpless.
Sara ignored him and scooped the girl into her arms.
"Mommy!" She wailed. Sara looked up at Jack then held her daughter close.
Later, after a healthy dose of antibiotics and a whopper of a pain killer the girl slept, thumb in her mouth, against Sara's shoulder.
"I'm sorry." Jack muttered next to her. She ignored him.
"Whatever." She spoke into the girl's sweaty hair. "It's not as fucking easy as you think. Okay? Stop making me the bad guy. You have no idea what I've gone through with her for the last almost five years.
Jack slid onto the hard uncomfortable bed alongside her. Sara tried to stay mad but his strong arms went around her. His lips touched her ear. "I know. I'm so sorry Sara. You are a great mom. I'm such a shit. But I," He stopped and sucked in a breath. "I just pictured her, you know... Never mind."
Sara took a deep breath. "I love you." Jack sighed.
"Good to know. Might be too little too late. Go ahead and take her home. I'll call you tomorrow." He rose and walked out.
Chapter Sixteen
Two Years Later
"No, Mom, you don't have to do anything." Sara had her mind half on the conversation and half on the crisis unfolding with one her newest agents. The guy had flat out forgotten to sign a buyer's agency agreement and had the nerve to sit and moan when they bought from a seller's agent at an open house. She read the latest email from him, begging for her help. "I gotta go. I'll see you and Dad tomorrow night, at the party. How long are you staying?" She winced at the answer. "Sure, great. Yeah, Julie and I planned the whole thing. I think we are good to go."
"Chris!" She yelled into the intercom. "Send him in here."
"Got it." Within minutes, the agent in question appeared at her door. Tall, nervous-looking, with an air of resigned desperation, he represented one of her first bad calls when it came to taking on new agents. Handsome, as required of the agents downtown, but that was about it. She sighed and pointed to the seat opposite her desk.
"You don't have a leg to stand on. So stop whining." He started to protest but she cut him off. "Stop talking. Stop sniveling. Stop emailing me. Stop all of it." She leaned in, pinning him with her anger. "Sign the fucking buyer's agency, David, before you waste any time, gas, or effort on anyone. You skip that step; you will get screwed, just like you did. Now go." The guy left without a word.
She leaned back in her chair, frustration coursing through her. Didn't help she had to host her daughter's seven-year birthday party. All forty invitees had said yes, there was a giant bouncy castle, a zillion white lights in her trees, a tent, Blake and Rob in charge of food and booze for the parents, and the weather promised to be brutally hot, just like the day she'd been born. The added bonus of her parents' presence promised a new level of stress.
Her father could not get past Jack's involvement in the girls' life. The endless arguments she'd had with him for the last seven years and nine months, his harping on her decision to keep both men out of her life for so long, had suddenly shifted. Now that Jack was around, her father couldn't stand it. Jesus. She could not win. Keeping Jack at arm's length, their only real communication terse and clipped, as if they were a grumpy divorced couple already, was taking its toll on her, made her jumpy and quick tempered around everyone else.
Julie called then. She smiled and answered it. "I'm headed to your place. The girls are sleeping in the car now, but will undoubtedly be ready to party later. Your brother has the food and stuff sorted right?"
"Yeah."
"What's wrong?"
Her friend had a way of divining the slightest change in Sara's mood. "Sorry. Nothing."
"He'll be there right?"
"Yes."
"And you have what you need for later, right?"
"I suppose."
"Don't you dare chicken out now, Sara. I mean it. I got Evan back. Now I am fucking determined that you and Jack be together. It's meant to be."
"Whatever." Sara turned onto her street, and sighed at the sight of her father's Caddy in her driveway alongside Jack's Corvette. "See you in a few."
She sat in the driveway a minute, letting her mind wander, remembering the moment about a year ago that she and Jack breached the wall she'd thrown up between them.
She'd been at work, late, on a summer evening, assuming Katie was safely ensconced with her sitter, buried in sales forecasts and the infernal budgeting Jack insisted on from every manager. Her phone had rung, three times in a row after she ignored it, unwilling to hear any more from Jack about whatever had crawled up his ass regarding her latest budget proposal.
"Where the hell is Kate?" He'd yelled into her ear. He had adopted a shortened version of her already short nickname. "Uncle Jack" called her Kate, no one else did. Sara had been speechless, her brain attempting to process that he had reason to ask that question.
"What..." Jack cut her off.
"She just called me Sara, from inside the track at Pioneer," he named the high school that lay a solid ten blocks from her house. "She rode her bike, climbed the fence and now can't get out. Goddammit Sara I told you I didn't trust that sitter. Has she even noticed? Fuck! Never mind, I'm on my way there now."
"We had a fight this morning." Sara had slumped into her chair. "She…she told me she wanted to live with you, all the time." The parallels to the moment two years prior, when the girl had marched herself nearly three miles from their home to try and find his house thrummed in her ears. That moment had been a turning point. One that had made Sara realize that perhaps being with Jack was not the answer.
"I never suggested that to her. You know I don't spoil her. She eats healthy, gets plenty of sleep, I..."
Sara ran a hand down her face. "I know Jack." She did know.
It had been Katie's infernal ability to provoke Sara. It had escalated, and the last words out of the girl's mouth as Sara shut the door were, "You are terrible, mean, and I hate you!"
"You should go,
" Jack said, his voice quiet. "If it's an issue between you two, I shouldn't get in the middle. I don't want her to consider me her rescue option with regard to her mother."
"Why are you so fucking infernally logical?"
He'd laughed then, and the iceberg around her heart cracked, ever so slightly. She spoke without thinking.
"I miss you."
The silence on his end stretched out. She grabbed her keys and headed to the door.
"I know. Let's talk more after you get her. Tell her next time Uncle Jack says if she can climb over the fence to get in, she can climb over and get out."
"Okay. Thank you."
"No problem."
After that, they had eased back into a wary friendship and the entire Stewart Real Estate Company rejoiced because it meant fewer fraught meetings. Jack Gordon was a hard-ass manager, tough, firm and had already turned Stewart around. But for almost a year he'd been nearly impossible to live with – antsy, quick tempered, never seeming to leave the office even to sleep or eat except on Tuesdays and Thursdays – the days he had Kate at his house.
Their conversations lasted long into the night nearly three or four times a week and between sorting through work issues and discussing theories of raising a successful future woman, they'd drifted into more personal details.
"So…" she'd asked at one point, needing to know but dreading the answer at the same time. "Have you, um, moved on, like I told you to?"
"Since when do I do what you tell me?" She'd shivered at the sound of his voice. It had compelled her in so many ways, for good and bad. She needed to hear it, like she needed to drink water.
"Never mind."
"And you? Find a new boyfriend yet?"
"Yeah, in all my spare time, I'm out clubbing, picking up guys."
"Well, there is the internet."
"That's sick. You gonna answer me?"
He sighed. "I've been down at the club again. Playing." Sara shut her eyes.
"Why didn't you ever take me there? I would've…" He cut her off.
"You weren't ready and every time I thought you were, you'd scream at me to get the hell out of your life, if I am not mistaken."
"Yeah, I guess so. We sure are great at bad timing, aren't we?"
"Uh huh. You, my dear, are the queen of overreaction. But I still love you."
Her scalp had tingled and she snuggled down in the covers. "Don't know why. I'm a real bitch, I hear."
He chuckled and her thighs tightened at the sound. "You horny baby? That what this is about?" She'd bitten her lip.
"You psychic?"
"Only as relates to you."
"Good night Jack. See you tomorrow."
"Wait – let's have phone sex. It'll be fun." It had been her turn to chuckle.
"You are so…"
"Blue-balled? Seriously Sara. I may be messing around downtown but I don't…I can't…oh hell why am I telling you anyway. You'll just gloat."
"No, I won't. Tell me."
"Another time. When you're on your knees, begging me."
"Dream on."
"No, you will." She shuddered, her whole body on fire now with need for his hands, his lips, his voice.
"Stop it."
"I'm not doing anything." She'd sighed, realizing the hopelessness of her whole relationship with him.
By the time she got home, Katie was a whirling dervish of excitement. The sitter looked harried as she relayed the afternoon's events.
"She's changed outfits three times and was obsessing over how to keep two of her favorite men – Uncle Jack and Grandpa – from ruining her party with arguments." The young woman had grabbed her bag, eager to get away for the day.
"Just make sure he has his whiskey. Momma," the girl sagely advised as she sat up on the counter and watched Sara making coffee. "He'll be okay then."
Sara laughed and patted the girl's knee. "You're almost too big to sit there. And who gets the whiskey? Grandpa or Uncle Jack?"
"Grandpa. Definitely. Uncle Jack doesn't drink that much anymore, you know." She raised an eyebrow at her mother, making Sara bite down on the urge to remind Katie she'd known her Uncle Jack a lot longer. But gave up, realizing it was petty and would only lead to a fight. The girl leapt down and met her Uncle Rob at the door with a huge hug.
"Princess!" Rob hauled her up onto his shoulders. Sara watched as her daughter charmed yet another family member. Her chest got tight a minute, realizing the girl didn't make that much of an effort with her anymore. "I have your birthday feast, exactly as you requested. Want to help me set it up?'
"Yes! Yes! I'll help." He winked at Sara and took the chattering, already over stimulated girl outside.
Sara sipped her coffee and watched the party take shape. The bouncy castle inflated, the tent went up, tables, plates, utensils all set out by Blake and Rob's catering company. Katie danced around from person to person, running her mouth. Every adult in the place was in the palm of her hand within minutes. The girl knew no strangers. She wore her heart on her sleeve, twenty-four seven. You never had to wonder what she had on her mind. Sara marveled at it, remembering her own guarded personality, even as a child.
Sara smiled, watching her. The older she got the more hazel her eyes got and her hair had darkened to a deep chestnut brown. Her long, strong legs flashed under the crazy purple skirt she'd chosen. Sara's eyes skipped over the carefully laid out backyard. Julie sat holding one of her girls, Evan the other. The twins had been a real surprise. But the man seemed to be utterly taken by his new role as dad. Her friend smiled at her.
Katie tugged at her sleeve. "Mommy! Can I go to Jason's next week? He wants me over for a play date."
"Only on Fridays, remember?"
The girl's week already had a regimen born of busy parents and her own commitments. Sara had made Jack promise to handle all aspects of the new "soccer thing" and he had so far. But she wasn't oblivious to the potential the coaches already saw in her daughter and figured she would be in for some bleacher time soon.
Sara finished her coffee and wandered out onto the patio. The bar had been set up; everything was ready to go. The doorbell rang.
It starts.
Sara, wishing she'd reached for alcohol instead of caffeine, squared her shoulders and opened the door to find a man she hadn't seen in over a year. His deep brown eyes and still too-long blonde hair had not changed a bit but a surprisingly attractive light red beard covered his jaw. She put a hand over her mouth. Dear God she looks like him. Craig gathered her in his arms and held her close. She closed her eyes and melted into his embrace, ignoring her father's smug face.
Craig held her and inhaled.
"You're here." Sara's voice muffled in his chest.
"Uncle Craig!" The squeal of delight made him release Sara and look across the yard. The girl ran straight for him and he'd swear she actually looked more like… He frowned and glanced up at Sara. She smiled at him while accepting a beer from Blake. Katie launched into his arms, and he spun her around, thrilled, and shocked at how much she'd changed in a year.
"C'mon, let's bounce!" He took her hand and let her lead him to the castle, already starting to teem with small bodies.
"You go ahead honey, I'll watch." Katie shrugged and climbed in, joining the fray and quickly becoming just another squealing participant.
"Craig." He turned, and shook Jack's hand. The man had gone a little grey at the temples but otherwise looked the same, tall, handsome, confident, and comfortable in a pair of dark jeans and a polo shirt. "Good to see you. In for a few days?"
"Ah, no actually. Moving back and joining a practice."
Jack narrowed his eyes but slapped him on the shoulder. "Of course you are. Can't keep things simple around here too long can we?" The two men smiled at each other and walked towards Sara and her parents still standing up on the patio.
Chapter Seventeen
After a couple of hours, Sara thought her head would explode from noise and stress. She and Julie had planned it all out, but the act
ual implementation took a ton of energy.
"So, he's quite the success isn't he?" Her father walked up to her as she took a breather from the kids.
"Who?"
Matthew pointed over to Craig, who stood admiring Julie's twin girls.
"Sure. I guess."
"Would be quite a catch I'd say."
Sara turned to her mother. "Keep him away from me or I'm gonna kick him out."
Blake walked up holding a plateful of food. "How in the hell did all that get eaten? My God we brought enough food to feed an adult army battalion." She glanced at him then dashed over to defuse some kind of seven-year-old ruckus near the water balloons.
"Please, the next time anyone suggests 'water balloons' and 'birthday party' in the same sentence, shoot them." She tossed over her shoulder.
She saw Jack emerge from the bouncy castle, a little green around the gills. The few parents who hadn't stuck around for the free food and booze started showing up, took one look at the chaos and started eyeballing Sara as if she were an evil stepmother, at best.
Katie sat nestled in a group of her soccer and school friends ripping paper from gifts without even noticing what they were. Sara caught Jack's eye over the heads of the crowd hoping like hell he got the message to shut the thing down, now. He did. Plucking Katie up and perching her on his shoulders he let a few kids latch onto his legs and he walked the whole crowd over the patio like a tall, handsome Pied Piper. Sara smiled and turned to some mom who'd just appeared at her elbow, bitching about "gluten-free cake" and "tree nut allergies."
It took a grand total of twenty minutes to divest her backyard of thirty-eight small, over-stimulated kids, leaving her to collapse into a chair. Just in time to catch her father and Jack arguing. "A little over the top wouldn't you say Gordon? The girl is only seven after all."
