Her eyes narrow into tiny slits as she gifts me with an evil, scary-as-fuck look. “Are you saying that if I don’t forgive being kept from my granddaughter, my blood, that you’ll keep me away?” The hiss she ends with has me stepping back an inch or two. Jacey is now attached to my spinal column; her tits are smashed into my mid-back and I can’t help but close my eyes and try to think about purple unicorns and pink cats. It’s the only things I can think of in order not to pop a boner at her closeness.
“Pretty much,” I conclude as Jacey’s other hand grabs the bottom of my T-shirt. I can feel how shaky she is, her hands are twitching in nervousness. As her breathing picks up in pace, the hot air that leaves her is like a whisper on my neck. Bumps are forming up and down my body.
As I go to react to my mom’s venomous tongue, I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket. We have enough evidenced compiled. You can let Jameson go. With Jacey’s affidavit, the check stubs and other proof that has been collected over time, we have enough to pursue legal charges against him. My lawyer’s text gives me a fleeting moment of delight before reality comes crashing back into my life. I send a thumbs up emoji, because I need to be paying attention to the happenings inside of this room. I find my sisters have now come to the house and haved joined us in this spectacular showdown with our parents. I nod my head at them. This is my indirect way of letting them know that we have work to do later on today. If possible, anyway, a lot depends on our parents and the conclusions they choose to make.
“I still feel like there’s more to talk about, but we can do that over time. There’s no need for all of this open hostility,” my dad speaks up.
“I agree, Keith,” Mona, Jacey’s mom, speaks up and agrees.
“I still have questions, but Keith and Mona are right,” my mom concludes as she plants herself on Jacey’s couch.
“That’s some progress anyway,” Jacey says. As she whispers these words to me, a tingling sensation runs up and down my spine. Again.
I pull her along with me as I make my way over to her stuffed chair. I grab her by her hips and position her in my lap. There are two reasons for me doing this, one is so we can present ourselves as a united front, the second is because I don’t want anyone to witness the way my dick is standing at attention and made itself predominantly present in my tight jeans.
“So, how do we proceed from here?” David, Jacey’s dad, pipes up and asks.
“This is a bit awkward,” Mona interjects as she is inserted in her husband’s lap, much in the way I’ve positioned Jacey in my own. But I doubt it’s because David is facing the same issue as I am currently.
“Our first priority is and always will be, Hadley. We both agree that we don’t want her growing up feeling tension and becoming torn between everyone. If there isn’t forgiveness in your heart for Jacey, then you don’t need to be around Hadley. Y’all can go ahead and take yourselves home if that’s the case. Neither of us want her to become attached to any of the four of you only to have y’all ripped out of her life later down the road. It’ll be easier on her if she never meets you as opposed to perceiving your anger toward her mother.”
“Rayne, we’d never do that,” my mother supplies. “It’d be wrong for Hadley to be in the middle of anything. Out of all of us, she’s the innocent one in all of this.”
“I agree with Nicole on this one,” Mona interjects her thoughts.
“Is nobody listening to me?” I scowl at everyone. “She’s a perceptive little girl. She’ll catch on if you all have hurt feelings toward her mother. You either all forgive Jacey and move on from here or get the fuck out.”
“There’s no need for foul language, young man,” my mom scolds me.
“I’m a grown-ass adult, I can talk any way I please. And right now, I’m upset that what I’m saying isn’t sinking into y’alls brains. It’s simple, yes, I forgive her, or no, I can’t and we’re leaving right now. Which one will it be?”
16
Jacey
I feel as if the timeclock should be ticking by and the theme song from Jeopardy should be playing in the background with Rayne’s last words spoken. I can envision Alex Trebek in the background saying time’s up.
And just as if it’d been rehearsed, I hear Hadley calling out for me. “I’ve gotta go get her. Do you want me to bring her out here, or keep her occupied?”
“I need you to stall for as long as you can, Jace,” Rayne says in a sweet tone directed toward me, yet his eyes never leave the parents.
“I’ll see what I can do,” I tell him as I get up from his lap. His hands go under my rear end as he pushes me up in assistance to stand.
As I go to walk away, his hand reaches up and grabs me by my wrist. “Are you forgetting something?”
“Um, I-I don’t think so,” I reply, biting on my bottom lip as I contemplate if there’s something else he needs from me before tending to Hadley.
“Your lips, Jacey,” he says in a commanding tone.
“What about them?” I absently ponder. It goes over my head of what it is he wants from me.
“You shouldn’t take them from the room without placing them on mine.” He winks at me.
Confusion swamps me. I know this is something he never let me walk away from without doing, but that’s when we were a couple, we aren’t that any longer. Are we?
He squeezes tighter gaining my attention. “Jacey, please.”
The word please spouting from his mouth is what ultimately helps me decide. Leaning over, I lightly brush mine against his before quickly pulling back and running away. I didn’t used to be shy when it came to kissing him in public, those displays of affection never bothered me in front of our families. Around them was the only time I could be free and enjoy the couple that we were. But we’re not a couple now, so why is he insisting that I kiss him before leaving a room? Confusion once again swamps me, I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around things. Are we truly and irrevocably working our way back to one another, or is he trying to make a point to our family that we are one solid unit no matter what?
No matter which it is, I need to keep my guard up and not allow it to crumble until he and I have had a chance to sit down and discuss it like mature adults. Mind made up, I walk into my girl’s room and see her sitting up on her bed, her tiny fists rubbing her eyes, trying to wipe the sleepy haze from them.
“Did you have a good nap, baby girl?”
“Yes, Momma. Where’s my daddy’s?” she asks with sleep still evident in her voice.
“He’s in the living room, Hadley. Let’s get you to the potty and wash your hands then we’ll go see him, okay?” I don’t want to tell her about our other guests in case Rayne’s kicked them to the curb.
“I has to go number one,” she informs me as she crawls out of her bed. “You come wiff’s me, okay, Momma’s?”
“That’s the plan,” I singsong, causing her to giggle. For some reason, all the stress I was feeling entering her room dissipates with that harmonic tune leaving her mouth.
Her smiles, her laughter, even her temper tantrums make the ache that Rayne left behind in my heart seem to ‘poof’ away like a cloud of dust and take flight into the midnight air. She’s the reminder of all of the good times, and right now, I need all of those memories to keep my soul glued together.
Rayne
Now that Jacey’s gone to grab our daughter, I let my anger seep out through my look toward the ones who are supposed to be the bigger adults in this situation. The ones with more life experience behind them than any of us kids have combined.
“You have three minutes to either get your shit together, or get the fuck gone. I’m not playing around. This is my family, that is my woman and daughter and neither one of them need to be subjected to your emotional or mental abuse. Figure it out. I want a damn answer from each one of you now.”
“Rayne,” Billie gasps as she takes in the shocked looks on each of the parent’s faces. But I’m standing my ground. If I can get past the hurt, then so the fuc
k can they.
“Hadley’s the biggest loser in this scenario.” Sibley steps up and backs me. “Rayne’s right, the hurt and anger need to go away, quickly. That little girl and her mother are worth it. We can either choose to hold hate in our heart, or we can be the bigger people and open our arms for them.”
“I agree with Sibley and Rayne,” Justine pipes up, walking over to stand with the two of us. “People make mistakes in the heat of the moment, and when that happens, sometimes we can’t figure out how to crawl ourselves out of the hole we’ve dug. Don’t you guys think she regretted her decisions? Especially after Hadley was born. But at that time, she was still mending a broken heart.”
“I’d have been an emotional wreck and not know which was the right road to take.” Billie finally finds her courage as she too comes and stands with us. “There’s no takebacks. Once your decision is made, you need to stick to it and find a way to move on.”
“We understand that all the disappointment won’t disappear overnight, that’s not what we’re asking of you all,” I blurt out. “We just don’t want Hadley to feel any of this. Either you put your game faces on for her and Jacey, or you go. I don’t know how to make this any clearer.”
“We’ll get over this in time. Jacey and Hadley are our family.” My dad steps up and as always is the voice of reason. “We can manage to deal with our hurt feelings on our own time, Son. Jacey and Hadley won’t feel an ounce of our pain or hurt. Right?” Dad puts his fists on his hips as he glares at the other three. It feels good to have one of them on our side.
They all nod their heads in acknowledgement and agreement, and just in time. I hear the pitter-patter of little feet as they hit the hallway. Then I hear that word that always turns me into mush, “Daddy!” Hadley yanks her hand from her mother’s and runs over to me. When she leaps through the air, my heart stalls as I reach out and grab her. She’s such a damn daredevil that I don’t know how much more I can take without breaking down and wrapping her in damn bubble wrap. She believes she can leap and bound over any obstacle and come out the other side with no bumps or bruises.
Once my heart rate returns to a normal beating pattern, I stand up and place Hadley on my hip.
“Mom, Dad, Mona, David, this is your granddaughter, Hadley,” I introduce them. As soon as I say the word ‘granddaughter,’ Hadley gasps.
“Daddy,” Hadley says my name to get my attention solely on her. She pulls on the V of my T-shirt to make sure that I know she wants my eyes on her.
“Yes, love bug,” I say in response as I pull my shirt away from her tiny, closed fists. I found out earlier today that Hadley has a thing for ladybugs and I’ve been contemplating all day if I should be calling her something other than baby girl. I want her to have a moniker that means something special and is solely intended for her and her alone. So I took the bug and added love in front of it. I should really get a pat on the back for my injunivity. I’m a damn genius.
“I have Nonas and Papas just like Darek does?” A growl leaves my chest when I hear a boy’s name leave her voice.
“Who’s Darek?” I snap at Jacey, wanting to know if this little cretin is after my little angel.
“Put your growly bear away, Rayne. Darek and Hadley have grown up together and been in nursery school since they were in diapers.”
Hadley cups her hands around her mouth and attempts to whisper a secret to me. “Darek’s still in pull-ups and I’m in big girl panties.”
The tension in the room is cut as all the adults laugh vigorously at her words.
17
Jacey
I catch my mom every once in a while, looking over at me from the corner of her eyes. I know she wants to talk to me alone, but now is not the time for that. I’ll plan a time during the week around my lunch schedule so she can come and see what I’ve made of myself. I want her to see all that I’ve accomplished so that she can be proud of at least one thing I’ve managed to do right.
Hadley has kept all the adults entertained with her stories of her life and giving them all a tour of our home. Papa K, as Rayne’s father has been dubbed by her, is currently holding Annabelle. Every time he attempts to set her to the side, Hadley gets a heartbroken look on her face and he quickly picks her back up. Rayne is in the kitchen with me, helping me prepare sandwiches for lunch. It feels nice, intimate, domesticated, something I’ve longed for but didn’t realize what it was that was missing, until just this moment.
A breeze moves over my neck as Rayne moves my hair to the side. He leans down and places a gentle kiss in the crook. “I’ve missed you, Jacey. I’ve missed us.”
“There’s a lot of hurt and anger on both ends, Rayne.” I turn around and come face-to-face with him. “I’m not sure that we should pursue anything outside of co-parenting.” I lie, I want more, but I’m not sure I could withstand another devastating blow from him.
“I made a mistake, Jacey. I fucked up the best thing that was in my life. Promises have ways to be broken so I’m not going to make any to you now. What I am going to give you now is my vow. I won’t ever hide us from the media again. I’m gonna put a ring on it and share a last name with you. I’m going to love you and Hadley with everything I’ve got. Tours are going to be limited from this point forward. I wanna put down some roots with you, Jacey, and watch them flourish and grow. I’ve never stopped loving you; I just didn’t know how to fix my mistake of letting you go. I was a coward, please forgive me and give us another chance.”
“I want to, Rayne, I really do. But I’m scared.” I admit my insecurity as it pertains to us and any future we could have. He doesn’t let me get another word in edgewise as he leans down and captures my lips with his. It’s a gentle caress, a whisper of a touch, but it’s enough to ignite that flame that I thought I’d done a good job of burying. My arms lift up of their own accord and wrap around his neck. After a few seconds, my fingers mindlessly begin combing through his hair. I get lost in his embrace and hitch my leg up and over his hip. His hand drops and helps hold it up as he grinds his erection into my jeans-covered core. With his hand tucked beneath my knee, he leans closer into me to where I can feel every inch of him.
“Uh-hum,” I hear an amused voice clear behind us. I jump out of his arms as if I were burned and bump my head into the cabinets above the sink. How the hell did we end up over here? We started off at the chopping block in the center of my kitchen on the island. I don’t remember feeling my body being moved, but Rayne has the capability to cause me to lose all train of thought. “Just thought you may wanna know that we can all see everything you’re doing,” Sibley advises with cherry tomato colored cheeks. I’m sure my own mirror her shaded ones.
“Sorry,” I squeak out, embarrassment swimming through my system. Without saying another word, Sibley gives us a shy look then heads back into the living room. What were we thinking? My house is an open floor plan, meaning that everyone witnessed the first kiss we’ve shared in years. How damn humiliating.
I look over and see Rayne’s shoulders shaking, then I look at his face and see it crinkled with amusement. “I don’t see how this is so freaking funny, Rayne,” I scold him as I put a serious look on my face. I see how hard he’s working to straighten his expression out, but it must be an impossible task because he bends over and barks out with hilarity.
“Y-your face,” he wheezes out as he points at me.
“What about my face?” Now, I’m getting a bit angry and a whole lot perturbed at his chosen words. “Grow up, Rayne,” I snap, finally losing my cool and allowing my temper to rear its ugly head.
“Momma’s don’t fights wiff my daddy!” Hadley stomps her foot, which I can clearly hear from the other room, and jabs her finger accusingly at me.
“We’re not fighting,” I call back out to her. “We’re having a very in-depth conversation.”
“I does not know what’s that means, but I don’t want y’all doing its no more,” she pouts. It’s the wobbling of her lower lip that finally cools my tirade.
“I’ll apologize to your daddy, Hads,” I promise.
“We’re just playing around, love bug.” Rayne saves the day. She gives us both a skeptical look, one filled to the brim; screaming out ‘I don’t believe you’ before returning her attention to her grandparents, whom she has wrapped around her pinky finger.
“Um, I’m not sure who the parent is here,” I say with a confused tone.
“Yeah, I’m on the same page. It’s crazy how with a look or a pout she’s able to put us in our proverbial place.” Rayne tilts his head to the side as he says this and it’s like a slap to the face. Hadley does the same exact thing. I knew she had some characteristics of her father, but I didn’t recognize she has a lot of the same mannerisms as he does. He hasn’t been around for her to pick them up. Crazy how genetics play a role even when the other parent has been absent for a period of time.
Rayne
As the night winds down, our parents finally leave to head to the hotel that they’ve made reservations at. I just hope it’s not at the same location as my sisters and I are currently occupying. Not because I don’t love my parents, it’s just that sometimes I feel smothered when they’re around. Mom misses us so much that she wants to spend every waking moment with us.
It’s fucking suffocating.
I do my best not to show her that’s how it makes me feel. The last thing I ever wanna do is hurt her feelings. She gave me life after all. What kind of asshole would that make me if I spent her visits hiding away like a scared little kid?
I turn around and my eyes zoom in on Jacey’s sweetheart-shaped ass as she’s bent over cleaning up some of Hadley’s toys. My tongue comes out and swipes across my lips as my mouth waters wanting a taste of her skin. Knowing that I won’t get a good night’s sleep unless I quench my thirst for her, I walk up behind her and wrap my arms around her chest. I lift her upper half up and pull her hair to the side. “I need to feel your lips on mine, Jace.” As the whispered words leave me, chill bumps swarm up and down her arms. I can see the fine hairs standing on end and I know she’s just as affected by me as I am of her.
Uninhibited : Savage Wilde Page 9
