by K. C. Crowne
But it wasn’t Jeremiah. My assistant editor, Lucy, stood in the open doorway. “Is everything okay in here?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine.” I sat down at my desk, my gaze falling on the paper Jeremiah had left behind.
My pride and joy, my entire life’s work, was wrapped up in that paper. As the owner and editor of the Liberty Leader, it was my responsibility to bring the news to the people. It has always been my dream - maybe not so much in Liberty, but I aged, I felt compelled to return to my roots.
This was where I was happiest in life and I wanted to return to that.
Especially after losing my dad.
Lucy took a seat across from me and saw the paper. Her face scrunched up as she read the headline and the first few lines. “What was he upset about? I don’t get it.”
A sigh escaped my lips. “It’s a long story, Lucy. A very long story.”
This newspaper was everything I had worked for. My dream. I should be happy; I had everything I needed. Yet something was still missing.
“Well, if it’s any consolation, my mama always said that if someone doesn’t like what people say about them, maybe they should be a better person.”
I frowned. “Jeremiah is already a good person. One of the best people I’ve met. That’s the problem. I only wrote about the good things, the person I know and—”
Lucy wasn’t getting it. The lights were on, sure, and she was watching me with her big, brown eyes, but not an ounce of what I was saying would matter to her. Unless you knew Jeremiah - really knew him - you wouldn’t get it. He didn’t open up to just anyone, and most people would never get to know the side of him I did.
“Never mind. Let’s drop it. How’s the article on the Liberty basketball team coming along?”
“It’s coming along just fine. But, I mean they lost badly. We’re writing about it anyway. There’s not much else going on to replace it.”
The question was did anyone really care? We weren’t a sports town, which was fine. Our kids played basketball for fun, not glory. It kept the game a little purer, in my opinion.
“You know what? Nix it. Don’t write about them losing. Maybe interview the coach instead, talk to him about the teamwork or something else. Don’t focus on the negative.”
“But it’s the news,” Lucy said.
“Yes, but let’s be honest, Lucy, It’ll only bring the kids down, and this town doesn’t need another disappointment.”
I sighed and rubbed my temples. The fact was, print journalism was on the way out, and no one really cared about it much anyway. Liberty was small enough that everyone knew what was going on without picking up a paper. It was tradition for many families to do so, the older citizens, of course. But the younger generation had yet to pick up on that habit, if they ever would.
I was on a sinking ship, and I knew it. I knew it when I bought the paper from Jasper Townsend, but I thought I could turn it around. I thought there’d be some kind of news, talking to the local businesses, exploring the beauty of Liberty, and of course, covering the good side of politics.
Like how people like Jeremiah had real aspirations for our town.
“Sales down again?” Lucy asked, reminding me that she was still in the room.
“Sales were never up to begin with.”
“I’m sure something will work out.”
She was so sweet and naive, much like I was when I entered the industry. I became a journalist to try and make a difference in the world, to share the news and to hopefully open people’s eyes to the world around them.
The one thing that kept me getting out of bed was doing everything I could to keep our town from losing one of the best mayors we’ve had in decades, especially if there was something I could do to get him out of his own damn way.
Jeremiah didn’t want me involved, but this was about much more than our relationship.
Both he and my dad taught me to hold tight to what I believed in, no matter the odds. I wasn’t going to give up, not without a fight.
Jeremiah Jenkins may have been jaded by life from one too many disappointments, but I still believed that good could prosper evil.
He dedicated most of his life to others. It was my turn to be there for him.
And if I was being 100% truthful, it was my opportunity to once and for all to prove that was much more than just a kid.
I was going to go after what I wanted, and I wasn’t going to give up.
Chapter 2
Jeremiah
I arrived home well before I needed to pick up my girls from day-care.
Removing my clothes, I crossed my bedroom and made a beeline for my shower. Not even bothering with the hot water, I cranked the cold all the way and stepped underneath the massive rainwater spray.
The cold water fell onto my skin like needles, but I didn’t dare to warm it up. I needed the cold and the sobering effect it provided.
“What the fuck was that?” I muttered to myself as I thought back on my conversation with Elle.
I got what I wanted from our meeting and made my point about the news story clear. There was only one problem with me seeing her after five years - and I could feel it pulsing between my damn legs.
Never, not even in my wildest dreams had I imagined that the shy, awkward, scrabble-loving teenager I had once known would turn into a vixen with perfectly round hips, full tits, and the face of an angel.
To top everything off, she was smart, funny, and strong-willed in a way most women I came across weren’t.
She was one of those whole package women, except that she wasn’t. She couldn’t be.
At least, not for me.
She was Carl’s, daughter, and no matter how hot she was or how much my cock twitched at the thought of her, that was all she could ever be.
I groaned and straightened my body so that every inch of me would be under the frigid spray. Defying the laws of nature, my cock didn’t shrink at the cold. It remained awake and ready for someone that could never be mine.
My eyes closed in an attempt to focus my brain and find a solution to the problem. However, all I thought about was Elle.
Instinctively, my hand drifted down to my massive erection. Behind my closed lids, I saw Elle’s sweet mouth wrapped around my cock. I wondered how much of me she would be able to take and how deliciously smooth it would feel. I pictured her tits bouncing and her pretty hair wrapped around my hand as I worked myself in and out of her lips.
I knew that even fantasizing about her was wrong, but for some reason, the forbidden aspect of it made the whole thing even sweeter.
Before I knew it, my balls were tight, and my body felt like it was dangling from a precipice. I held onto the wall in front of me and kept Elle’s face and tits front and center in my mind as I sped up my movements, until my body finally erupted with one of the strongest orgasms I’d ever had.
Once I was done, and she was still in my thoughts, I stood under the cold water waiting for my breath to return to normal and realized one very true fact: I was incredibly fucked.
I pulled my coat around me as a crisp breeze filtered down the street, blowing up snow in its wake. The blanket of whiteness over the earth was as much a staple of the town as the local businesses.
We were, after all, in the mountains.
Liberty’s Main Street awaited me when I stepped out of my car. Everything was within walking distance downtown, if it could even be called a downtown at all. A few local shops, a B&B, a day-care, a café, and, the local paper. There were a few other little shops and diners. Most of them had been there as long as I could remember.
I inhaled the cold, Utah air. It was cold enough to almost hurt the lungs. If you weren’t born and bred for that kind of weather, it might be a bit too much. Some folks didn’t care much for snow and cold, but I preferred it over the heat out west and the humidity in the east.
Utah was my home; Liberty was Heaven on Earth, as far as I was concerned.
It came with its share of small town drama, but I was grateful
to be raising my daughters in the town I grew up in.
I trekked the block to Little Cubs.
I thought about my meeting with Elle the day before and had to adjust my pants from the erection that was coming.
Shit just the thought of her has me screwed up.
She’d grown into such a beautiful woman.
And the curves on her.
Shit.
She’d always been a curvy girl but I never thought about her as more than my best friend’s daughter. Until now.
Now, everything about her blew me away.
She was just a little too focused on her career and didn’t see the bigger picture around her.
Or maybe I just had a thing against journalists. She might be a good one, but as far as I was concerned, she was amongst parasites and leeches. It was far too easy for them to suck you into their world.
Plus, it had been a long ass time since I last saw her.
It was hard to believe that beautiful, blonde-haired, brown-eyed woman with the perfect figure was Carl’s little Ellie-bean. As soon as she’d turned eighteen, she’d run off to New York City and blossomed from a child to a woman.
I was sure the men in New York had been all over her - she was a stunner. She could have been a model, but anytime anyone had mentioned it to her, she scrunched up her perfectly upturned nose and said she wanted to use her brain, not her beauty, to get ahead in the world.
It was hard to believe the woman in that office was the same girl I used to play Scrabble with, who’d always manage to come up with the most obscure words to beat me. Sometimes I let her win…no, that was a lie. She always won fair and square; I just didn’t like to admit that a little girl could beat me at a game.
But she was smarter than anyone else I’d met, and I met a lot of people. I only wished she’d used her smarts for something other than writing about my personal life.
“Good afternoon, Mayor,” a voice pulled me from my thoughts.
I looked around and found an older woman, a face I recognized. “Well hello there, Mrs. Wilson.” I continued walking, my focus on the door of the day-care.
“I read about you in the paper. That was a real good story. I mean the recent article that seemed to paint you in a more realistic light. I enjoyed it a lot. You’re a good man for taking in those babies, you know.”
“They’re my daughters. I didn’t adopt them off the street or anything.” Mrs. Wilson flinched as if I’d slapped her, and I realized my tone was a bit rough. “Sorry, what I mean is - I’m no hero. Just a father, that’s all.”
“Well, you’re a lot like your father, so I say that makes you a hero. But what do I know?” She shrugged her shoulders and continued walking away before I could argue with her.
I was no damn hero.
Just a man trying to live his life, raise his daughters, and leave my personal life out of the damn limelight. But thanks to Elle’s article, everyone would think they knew me and my little girls.
I pulled open the door to Little Cubs and heard laughter. I’d always loved the sound of children laughing, but never thought I’d be hearing it in my own home. Sure, the girls were too young for laughing, but one day, the halls would be filled with it.
Tabitha, one of the teachers, was on the floor with toddlers all around her. She glanced up and smiled. “One second, Jeremiah. Piper should be right with you.”
Piper was the owner of the day-care and also happened to be one of Elle’s best friends growing up.
Shit, another reason I won’t be able to get Elle out of my damn head.
With Liberty being such a small town it was hard not to be acquainted with people in the same circles.
Like Elle, I remembered when Piper was no taller than some of the little ones surrounding Tabitha. It was weird to think of her all grown up and responsible enough to be watching other people’s kids, but she did a damn fine job of it.
Piper scurried from the back, a smile on her face.
“Hey! That was the quickest work emergency I’ve ever seen.”
“Yes, just a quick meeting, then I had some errands to run.” I frowned when I thought about what ‘business’ I really had to take care of after my run in with Elle in her office.
I cleared my throat.
“How are the girls?”
It had been their first week in day-care, and I was a little stressed about that. I was trying to find a nanny, but so far, none of the people I’d interviewed fit the bill. I’d known Piper forever, and I trusted her, but it was still hard leaving my children for the first time. At least she wasn’t a stranger.
“Oh, they’re angels,” she cooed, her hand over her heart. “And they were just fine, don’t you worry. Want to come back with me? I can help you carry them out?”
I nodded and followed Piper down the hallway to where the infants were kept. It had already been two months since I’d brought them home, and I still couldn’t believe it. I never expected to be a dad at all, much less to twin girls.
“I do hope you’ll reconsider and think about working with us in the future.”
“I appreciate you, Piper. I do. I think you’re highly qualified and run a top-notch day-care, but with everything going on, I’d feel more comfortable with someone watching them from home. I hope you understand.”
She nodded, her smile unphased. “I get it, I do. We’re always here for you. You know that.”
“Thank you.” I didn’t mention how I needed help at home too. One child was hard enough, but two? During feedings and diaper changes, when they were both screaming, it was hard. I was outnumbered and had gained a new respect for single parents.
Piper pulled open the door to the nursery and we stepped inside. Frannie was in the corner changing a baby. She turned her head and smiled when she saw me, immediately gushing, “Oh, your little girls are the sweetest!”
“Thank you.” I was always being told this, but I had no idea how to respond. I wasn’t sure how bad two-month-olds could actually be for any frame of reference. So I just nodded and smiled and said thanks. I hated leaving the girls, but as mayor, it was sometimes unavoidable.
The mere sight of my twin girls melted my cold heart. It was like their presence just melted all the stresses of my day away. They always had that effect on me.
Elle asked me if I wanted to get re-elected. Truth be told, I didn’t. I hated the job. I’d taken it out of obligation. It was meant to be a short-term solution after my father died, until someone suitable stepped up. No one suitable stepped up. So I remained mayor of the city I loved. I only did it because I loved Liberty; I had no desire to be in the public light. I had never wanted a career in politics. I had no idea how to run a city.
Now, with my daughters at home, I especially hated leaving them. They’d been through enough and needed a stable household. It was my responsibility to give them that. And I didn’t take that responsibility lightly.
I just wanted to keep my beloved hometown out of the wrong hands, and so far, I’d been successful, but my time was coming to an end.
And as much as I should worry about my competitor, part of me just wanted to step down and be done with it. I wanted to focus on my girls and maybe get back to running my construction business. Or retire. With my finances in order, that was also an option for me, but I wasn’t sure I’d ever be ready to stop working. Not at forty-five. Though I’d already made more money than I would ever need, I still had a lot of life left in me.
Piper carried Grace, while I carried Amelia. She made small talk, which I hardly paid attention to, as we walked to my truck.
Piper helped snap Grace into her car seat while I took care of Amelia. I was grateful for the help wherever I could get it. It often felt like I needed to grow another set of hands, which was one reason I wanted to find a nanny, someone to help me since their mother wasn’t in the picture. But I was too picky. Whoever I chose would have to be as careful as I was, to love them like I did, and I just didn’t think it was possible to find that in what was ess
entially an employee.
Perhaps I was being too picky, but they were my girls. My responsibility.
“Thanks, Piper,” I said, patting the young woman on the back. “I appreciate all your help.”
“No problem. I’m always around if you need me to keep an eye on them,” she offered. She started to say something, but stopped and smiled instead.
I’m sure she wanted to know what the work emergency was about. Everyone did. I was the talk of the town ever since one of my staff members spread rumours that I had taken bribes from the developers looking to mine the valuable lithium from the ground. Then he’d left town. Or so we thought.
James Fitzhenry had been our city treasurer. He hadn’t been seen in a month, shortly after he spoke about the supposed bribes. Poof. One day he was there, the next he was gone.
Now I knew why.
When it became obvious I wasn’t going to talk about what kept me busy for the day, Piper excused herself with a friendly smile. “Drive safely, Jeremiah.”
She hurried back into the warmth of Little Cubs, and I climbed into my truck to get it started and warmed for my girls. They were covered in blankets, but since they couldn’t wear their thick coats in their car seats, I blasted the heat up and hoped the truck warmed quickly.
You girls deserve the world. God as my witness I will do everything I can to give you that and more.
“Shh,” I whispered, rocking Grace in my arms while holding a bottle for Amelia at the same time. I wished I was an octopus, especially at feeding time. These two wiggly little bodies were hard to handle at the same time, and it never failed that when I was feeding one, the other would get fussy - either impatient for food or if they’d already been fed, from gas or boredom or God knows what.
Sometimes I wondered if I’d made a mistake. Staring at their sweet faces, with my mother’s nose and my father’s eyes, I knew I wanted them. But was I being selfish? Could someone else raise them better than me? Would an adoptive family have offered them a better life than I could?
Hell no.