by Piper Rayne
“It’s not my place to say.”
“Rusty, you can’t warn me off like that and not say anything.”
He stares at me, contemplating whether to share or not. It feels like he’s not going to say anything and then he opens his mouth. “Her last boyfriend cheated on her and when it all came out, he took off. Leaving her with nothing but Betty, a huge debt, and a broken heart.”
“Shit, that’s rough.”
“Yeah, so don’t fuck with her.”
Before I can say anything else, he stands up and walks out, leaving me sitting here playing what he said over and over in my mind. No wonder she hates me, well, men. That guy is a total jackass, she’s better off without him. If she was mine, I’d never hurt her like that. I’d worship the ground she walked on and shower her with love and affection.
The bell rings, startling me. Looking around, I realize the lounge is empty and I’m alone, some principal I am. Standing up, I make my way back to my office. Taking the long way, as I walk past Reese’s classroom, she looks up and smiles at me.
Our relationship is changing, for the better, and Mom’s words about her being ‘the one’ pop into my mind. I never saw myself settling down but if anyone were to make me change my mind, it would be Reese Turner.
7
Reese
The rest of the day flies by and before I know it, I’m walking down the hall to meet Jesse so we can head to D&K Auto Repairs and pick up our cars. Stepping through the door into the office reception, I smile when I see Mrs. Thornton.
“Hello, Reese, dear. You look lovely today.” She turns to Jesse. “Doesn’t she look lovely today?”
“She always looks lovely, Mom,” he says, his words shocking me. My cheeks heat at his kind statement; I wish he could be like this all the time.
“Thank you, Mrs. Thornton, and thanks for the lift. I really appreciate it.”
“It’s the least I can do since my son hit you.”
“It was an accident, Mom,” Jesse says.
“He’s made up for it. He sent me a gorgeous apology bouquet.”
“Ohh he did, did he now?” She beams at her son’s actions.
“You raised a nice boy.” Sometimes, I silently add.
“That I did.” She looks to Jesse and I see nothing but admiration in her eyes for her son. “Well, let’s get going. I need to get to bingo early so I can get a good table. I’m not letting that Stefanie woman get the good spot, or win tonight. She doesn’t stand a chance because my palm’s been itchy all day.”
Jesse rolls his eyes at his mom’s superstition, and her rivalry with Stefanie. He locks up the office and the three of us head toward the exit. Mrs. Thornton in front, while Jesse and I follow behind. I giggle to myself as she continues to prattle on about Stefanie and her latest antics. Stefanie Arnold and Jenny Thornton have had a rivalry going on for as long as I can remember, no one knows what it started over but it’s one that will go down in history, that’s for sure.
Jesse places his hand on my lower back as we walk down the hallway, even though he’s not physically touching me, it heats my skin. Closing my eyes, I breath in deeply, but that’s a mistake because I’m assaulted by him. He still wears CK One, just like he did back in high school.
We reach Mrs. Thornton’s Pontiac, Jesse opens the back door for me. Looking at him, I smile and climb in. Pulling my seat belt on, I’m shocked when the door on the other side opens and Jesse climbs in. Looking over at him, I scrunch my eyes in confusion.
“Mom’s front seat is full,” he says, looking like a giant in a small clown car right now. His knees are up around his ears, he’s pissed off.
“Comfy?” I snicker toward him, unable to hold back my giggle.
“Very,” he sarcastically replies. “It’s fine for a short-legged midget like you.”
“I think the term you are looking for is vertically challenged.”
“Tomato. Tomahto.”
“Whatever the case,” I add, “my short legs and I are quite comfortable right now. You aren’t, your gangly trunks are squished like sardines in a can.”
“Bite me, Short Stack,” he snaps, staring intently at me.
“You wish, Thornton,” I sass back.
He turns his head to look out the window and I’m one-hundred-percent sure I heard him quietly say, “Hell yes I want you to bite me.”
A short time later, we arrive at D&K. “Thank you, Mrs. Thornton,” I say, as I turn to climb out.
“You’re welcome, dear.”
Smiling at her, I open the door and hop out. She and Jesse chat while I walk into the office.
“Well, if it isn’t my most valued customer,” Darryl teases.
“Hardy har,” I sass back. “Maybe next time I’ll take it to Guido’s instead.”
“I love that you know to say next time,” he air quotes next time, “and don’t be harsh. You are my best customer…ever…and I’ve been in the repair business for forty-odd years now.”
“Hence, why I come here, you are the best…for an old man.”
“Respect your elders, missy.”
“I’m sorry, ohh wise old one.”
“Such a smart-ass, when are you going to settle down? Make an honest man out of someone.”
“Just haven’t found Mr. Right yet.”
“He may be closer than you think.” I notice he’s looking over my head, not that it’s hard. I turn around and see he’s looking at Jesse.
Turning back to Darryl, I shake my head. “Not in a million years. Not in a million years.”
“Famous last words.” He winks at me and hands me the keys to Betty. “See you soon, Reese,” he cheekily adds.
“Bye, Darryl.” Turning around, I throw a wave over my shoulder and step out of the office and over to Jesse.
“Thanks again for the lift.”
“It was my pleasure.”
We silently stare at one another, it's awkward but at the same time not. Maybe this car crash was the catalyst we needed to move forward. The honking of a car horn startles me and I jump in fright. This causes Jesse to laugh and with the afternoon light behind him, he looks carefree and hot as hell. Before I make a fool of myself, I decide to leave. “Have a good weekend, Jesse.”
“You too, Short Stack,” he says. I ignore the Short Stack comment and walk over to Betty. Her fender is all shiny and pink again; she looks beautiful. “Hey, girl,” I say to my car as I unlock the door and climb in. Running my hands over the steering wheel, I smile, “it’s good to have you back.”
Sliding the key into the ignition, I start her up and I drive out of D&K’s and head home. Stopping at the liquor store, I pick up a bottle of wine—hey, it’s the weekend—and a bottle of rum to make a test batch of rum balls.
Later that night as I climb into bed, I feel happy and light. Betty is home and the balls I made tonight were the ducks nuts—that ribbon is mine, Thornton. Closing my eyes, I drift off to sleep and dream sexy things about Jesse Thornton biting me, and what it would be like to feel his scruff between my thighs.
8
Jesse
I’m on my way to meet Mom and Dad for brunch, I’m tired because I didn’t get much sleep last night. Every time I closed my eyes, I dreamt about Reese and all the dirty, nasty things I want to do to her delectable body.
Mom smiles when I enter the kitchen. “Morning, Mom.” I kiss her on the cheek and take a seat at the ginormous, island counter in Mom’s kitchen. She really has a dream kitchen, hence why she’s a super baker.
“Morning, Jesse. You look tired.” She walks over to the coffeepot and pours three coffees.
“I am. It’s been a long week.”
“Winter break will be here soon.”
“Not soon enough,” I whine. Picking up the mug Mom placed in front of me, I bring it to my lips and breathe in deeply. A smile appears on my face as I take another deep breath. The smell of coffee is just as cathartic as the liquid itself. Taking a sip, I close my eyes and savor the flavor.
; “Should your mother and I leave you and your coffee alone, Son?” Dad says, slapping me on the back as he takes a seat next to me.
“Hardy har, old man.”
“Ease up on the old.”
“If the old shoe fits,” I tease in reply.
“You’re never too old for a spanking, Son.”
Raising my hands in defeat, I joke, “Fair enough…Grandpa.”
Dad shakes his head at me but when I look to Mom; I realize what I said. Ohh shit, here comes the ‘when are you going to settle down and give me grandbabies’ lecture.
“When are you going to make us grandparents?” Mom asks, as she plates up brunch.
“Moooom,” I complain. “First I’d need a girlfriend and second, I’d need a girlfriend.”
“Reese is single,” Mom says, handing Dad the cutlery and plates to set the table.
“Reese Turner?” Dad questions.
Mom nods. “Yes, she and Jesse were together yesterday.”
“Mom, we were not together, together. We picked our cars up from the same place.”
“I heard you had a run-in with her and Betty.”
“Not you too,” I whine.
“Hey, I don’t name mine but I can appreciate those that do.” He looks to Mom, and I see the love he has for her etched on his face. They’ve been together for thirty-six years and I think they love each other just as much today as they did back then.
“Jesse, Son, don’t listen to your mother. You will know when you’ve met ‘the one.’ They will annoy you to no end,” he looks over to Mom, “love you Jen Jen.” He turns back to me. “But at the same time, you can’t stop thinking about them. They are your first thought when you wake, and your last thought of the evening.”
“Who knew you were such a softie?”
“I did,” Mom coos, as she finishes dishing up.
We each take a seat, and as I eat my breakfast, I think about Dad’s words and surprising me, Reese is the person who comes to mind.
After brunch, I head to Home Depot to pick up a few things and I bump into Drew and Rusty.
“Hey, guys.”
“Jesse,” Drew curtly says, looking to Rusty. “I’ll be in the bedding section.” She turns around and walks away from us.
“She’s clearly Team Reese.”
Rusty laughs, “I don’t know what her problem today is. I think it’s that time of the month.”
“Dude, I don’t want to know that about your wife.”
“Well, it means we aren’t pregnant.”
“Ohh.”
“Yeah, ohh. Bring on tonight so she can get drunk and we can forget about it for a few hours.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. I didn’t realize you were trying.”
“We have been since we got married.”
“You’ve been married for a year now.”
“Yep,” he says letting the ‘p’ pop. “I want to give up trying, let it happen naturally but Drew is determined to become a mom. I think the pressure is adding to why we can’t.”
“Maybe,” I say. I have no idea about this stuff so I’m really no help. “Well, I hope tonight helps you both.”
“She will chat and drink with Reese, and I will play designated driver and be the responsible one. They’ll drink like they think they are still in college and if I’m lucky, I’ll get laid before she passes out.”
“Good luck with that.”
“You should come.”
“Tonight?”
“No, next year. Of course tonight. I could use the company.”
“Ohh, so it’s a pity invite to keep your miserable ass occupied.”
“It’s not like that…even though it seems like that.”
“I’ll think about it.”
Sitting on my sofa, I lean back and close my eyes. A vision of Reese appears before me. She’s wearing that sexy as fuck dress with the buttons down the front, her hair cascades over her shoulders. She’s smiling and it lights up her face. With a sigh, I open my eyes and realize that once again, I’ve been thinking about her. Ever since Dad’s speech this morning, she’s been at the forefront of my mind. Hell, I swore I saw her everywhere I went. Even the sky is fucking with me today; it’s a blue-gray color that reminds me of her eyes.
My phone beeps with a text. Lifting up, I pull it from my pocket.
RUSTY: You in tonight?
I read over his text several times. It’s like the universe is trying to get Reese and me together. First Mom and her words the other day. Then Dad at brunch this morning, and now an invite from Rusty. I mull it over and think, why not? A night out drinking sounds good, maybe I can get drunk with Drew and melt some of her iciness toward me.
JESSE: Sure, got nothing else locked in
RUSTY: Great. We will be at BB’s at 7
JESSE: See you then
Throwing my phone onto the sofa next to me, I wonder what tonight will bring.
9
Reese
When Drew and Rusty pick me up, I’m well passed tipsy. I woke up in a pissed-off mood. Last night I slept like shit, and it’s all Jesse Thornton’s fault; damn sexy jackass. Every time I closed my eyes, he appeared and did wicked, wicked things to me and my body. At around 3:00 a.m. I reached into my top drawer, grabbed Buzz, and went to Orgasmicville. Even after my self-induced orgasm, I was still in a foul mood. Just after sunrise, I climbed out of bed and decided to get some baking done.
Baking always makes me happy, but not today.
Everything I made was a disaster. My cake stuck to the bottom of the pan. My icing was too sweet and runny and then I burned my snickerdoodles, and that pissed me off more than anything. I kept thinking about Jesse-fucking-Thornton and his winning ones. It’s completely unreasonable to be pissed at him for that, but I don’t care, I need to blame someone so I’m choosing him.
After lunch, I decide to make rum balls. I think I drank most of the rum and I ended up with chocolate balls, but they were delicious so I finally got a baking win.
I cleaned up the kitchen and then jumped into the shower to get ready for tonight. Glad for the distraction that a night drinking with Drew and Rusty will bring. I will not think of Jesse Thornton.
Just after five, they pick me up and we head over to Bonza Burgers. I was glad we were eating because I need to soak up what I’ve already drunk. I need to be in top form so I can start on round two with my best friend and her husband.
After we each devour a double bacon cheeseburger and washed it down with a homemade ginger beer, we head over to BB’s. Drew and I grab a booth, while Rusty heads to the bar.
“I’m so full,” Drew says, leaning back, resting her hands on her stomach.
“Me too. Bonza sure know how to make a mean double bacon cheeseburger.”
“I can’t believe you eat that crap and stay so thin.”
“Says the thin one.”
“Wish I wasn’t thin,” her eyes well with tears, “I wish I was fat and pregnant, sitting here watching you and Rust drink yourselves silly.”
“Ohh, babe,” I say, reaching across the table, I squeeze her hand. “It will happen when it’s meant to.”
“What if it never happens?” she cries.
“Don’t think like that. You need to have as many positive thoughts as you can.”
“I’m trying, Reese, I really am, but after both of us testing fine, we should be pregnant. Why can’t I get pregnant?” The tears break free, I knew they would come, but I didn’t think it’d be this early in the night.
Shuffling out of the booth, I slide in next to her and pull her in for a sideways hug. I let her get it all out, I don’t say anything because I know nothing I say right now will ease her pain.
“You really are the bestest friend in the whole entire world, you know that, don’t you, Reese?”
“Well since I have the bestest friend in the whole entire world, I don’t know how I can hold that title.”
“It’s one we share equally.” She looks up at me and sniffles, “I rea
lly am lucky to have you.”
“And when you get pregnant, Baby Richards is going to have the most kick-ass parents and aunty.”
She smiles at me, a genuine one, and I know she’ll be just fine. She pulls me in for another hug. Wrapping my arms around her, I squeeze her back, and I feel her breath hitch. She pulls back from me wide-eyed, “You may not feel so kick-ass when you see who’s at the bar with Rusty.”
Looking over my shoulder, I see none other than Jesse Thornton with Rusty and the two of them are heading our way. Fuck me sideways, he looks hot as hell tonight, but any hotness evaporates when he opens his big, fat, stupid mouth.
10
Jesse
“Drew. Short Stack,” I say in greeting. “Drew you look lovely tonight and Reese you look—” My eyes rake over her body; I’m at a loss for words at how gorgeous she looks. But clearly, I’ve already said something wrong because Reese is currently shooting daggers at me.
“I’m what?” she snaps. “Grotesque? Fugly?” She stares intently at me and if looks could kill, I’d be six feet under right about now.
“No,” I scoff in reply, shaking my head side to side. “I have no words. Reese, you…you look beautiful tonight.”
Her mouth opens and closes. Her eyes are wide open in shock, she’s at a loss for words. “Well, thank you,” she snaps, “You look pretty spiffy tonight too.”
Spiffy, I think to myself, I’ve never been called spiffy before but I’ll take it.
While Reese and I have our Mexican standoff, Rusty stands awkwardly next to me. He clears his throat, and Reese looks to him and slides out, letting Rusty sit next to this wife. She shuffles into the booth across from them. The three of them look up at me, standing here like a fool. Sitting down next to Reese, I can feel her presence beside me. Even though I’m balancing on the edge of the booth seat, trying to stay away from her. With each drink we consume, I find myself sliding closer and closer to her. I’m being pulled toward her by an invisible force.