Breaking the Rules

by Tinthia Clemant

  The muscles on the sides of his jaw twitched, and she cautiously added, “I’m just trying to help.”

  “Shut up and let me think.” A sinister look spread over his face. “I get it: you want Chad out of the house so you can fuck your boyfriend.” When she didn’t offer a response, he continued by saying, “Did you think I wouldn’t find out?”

  She released an uneasy snicker. “You’re not making any sense.”

  “You see, that’s where you’re wrong, Shannon. I’m making perfect sense. Chambers told me everything, like how you spent yesterday afternoon fucking St. John.”

  “What? Leeann made me miss the bus. Dee sent—”

  Justin came her way, reached out, and squeezed her jaw. “Why do you lie to me?”

  The way she saw it she had two choices: take Chad and leave the house and never come back or buy herself some more time. While a barnyard full of chickens clucked madly in her ears, she cast her eyes down and said, “I’m sorry.”

  “So, you admit you slept with St. John.”

  He released her, and she nodded quickly. “I’m sorry. Yes, I did. Please forgive me.”

  “That’s my girl.” He held her in a tight embrace, pinning her arms to her sides.

  She held her body rigid and suppressed the scream lodged in her throat as he whispered, “You know I always find out if you’re lying.”

  “Drop Chad at the lodge,” he said, releasing her, and removed a hundred-dollar bill from his wallet. “Peg said you girls might go out tonight; buy them a round of drinks on me.” He swiped his keys off the counter. Before leaving, he added, “I want to make something crystal clear: I don’t care if you fuck the entire town, but if I find out you’ve been with St. John again, I’ll destroy you. Have a good night.”

  She stared at the closed door. “But you have destroyed me, Justin. You have.”

  The climb up the steps seemed to take forever, but she eventually reached Chad’s bedroom, where she found him face down, his pillow pulled over his head.

  “Munchkin?” She sat and rubbed his back. “Are you okay?”

  She wanted to slap herself for asking the question. What kid would be okay after the day he’d had so far? In a few short hours, his mother had lied to him and abandoned him— leaving him at the baseball field—and then he’d had to witness his father’s wrath. It would take most people years of therapy to get over that kind of stuff.

  “Sit up, Chad, so I can look at you.”

  He did as he was told and wiped at his eyes. “I hate Daddy.”

  “Don’t say that, Chad. You love him.”

  “No, I don’t,” he said, shaking his head. “He baressed me.”

  “He what? Oh, embarrassed you. Yeah, there’s a lot of that going around.” She dipped her head and kissed his grimy brow. “How about if I take out the sprinkler? You can invite some friends over.”

  “No,” he said through a pout. “They’re at the party.”

  “What party?

  “For pizza.” He slipped from her arms and stood and faced her, his face eager. “Can I go, please, can I?”

  She smoothed his bangs to the side of his forehead. “Slow down. When? Where?”

  “The Stone Pizza.”

  “The Pizza Stone? When?”

  “Today. Every guy is there. All my friends. Coach John took them.”

  “Coach John had a pizza party? Sweetie, it’s probably over by now.”

  “No, Mama, he said to come. He told me.”

  “Who, Coach John?” She did a quick assessment. Why not go? She’d showered when she came home from the field, so she was ready, and Chad could get by with only a face washing and change of clothes. Dee and Peg would be there and…and she’d get to see St. John. Only to get the baseball paperwork. She added the lie just in case the universe was listening.

  Chad pulled at her hands and pleaded, “Please, Mama, please can I go?”

  “Let’s do it. Change into clean clothes and come into my bathroom so I can wash your face. Ready… Set…”

  “Go,” Chad shouted and tore at his clothes.

  In the master bath, Shannon applied her makeup. An image flickered in the mirror. She held the tube of mascara and blinked. The small house from her vision appeared. Again she saw Chad happily playing in the front yard and then running over to the black truck arriving in the driveway.

  She released the image and grinned.

  Maybe there was hope for her after all.

  Chapter 15

  “Trust yourself and your instincts.”

  R. M. Rilke

  In the back seat of the SUV, Chad sang quietly about baseball and pizza. Shannon hummed along with his little tune, content in her happiness that, after his emotional morning, he’d found a reason to sing.

  At the Pizza Stone, she parked in the rear of the lot, off toward the side, near where MacMillan Development’s eighty-unit condo project was underway. Last year an expansive field of feathery corn stalks had filled the land. Today, in its place yawned a gaping hole with steel rods protruding from the rocky subterrain like tentacles from some futuristic octopus.

  The sign advertising the project stated the condos were The Future of Wexford. And what a glorious future it will be—each unit had its own balcony, the lower floors looking out at Stone Pizza’s parking lot and for the residents lucky enough to afford the units on the upper floors, the town dump across the road.

  At least St. John wasn’t involved in this scar on the landscape. Still, he had his name on plenty of others, although not condos. Nope, no high-rise buildings for him, only houses the size of small mountains suited his taste. It was quite possible he built the humongous homes as a way of compensating for a small penis. Hopefully, she was wrong.

  As she walked toward the building, Chad pulled on her skirt. “Mama, hurry up, all the fun will be gone.”

  “I don’t think you have to worry about that munchkin.”

  He urged her to keep up and only relaxed when they passed through the door. Once inside he became completely dejected. “They’re gone.”

  “Check again.” She pointed to a wall of windows looking into a large room on the opposite side of the dining room.

  “Come on.” Chad leapt away, knocking into a waitress carrying a pizza tray.

  “Hey, little buddy, watch where you’re going.”

  Shannon took hold of his hand. “Apologize, please.”

  “I’m sorry. Now can we go, Mama?”

  “Yes, but slow down and walk nice. We don’t need you destroying the place.”

  “Fine.” He solemnly walked beside her. When they reached the door, he huffed a loud “Finally” and burst into the room, his face lighting up when his teammates called out his name.

  Shannon scanned the crowd around the long table. Kids at one end, adults at the other. Dee and Peg were close to the door but no St. John. She came up behind her friends and hugged both women. “Hey, ladies.”

  Peg swung around and shouted, “You made it,” and nudged her chair to the left. “Grab that chair.”

  Shannon shoved the chair into the spot Peg opened up. Shannon tried to sound innocent as she asked, “Where’s the coach?”

  “He had to leave,” Dee said. “Hot date. So, tell us, everything okay with Justin? He was pretty angry when he left the field.”

  “Yeah, he’s fine.” Shannon had given up trying to keep count of her lies. “He even gave me a hundred dollars to buy you guys drinks tonight.” At least that part was true. Did a truth cancel out a lie?

  “Yippee for Justin,” Peg yelled.

  Shannon scanned the pizza choices. “I need to get Chad’s T-shirt back and his cap. Also, I need the papers. Can one of you reach me a slice of veggie?”

  “Adam has everything in the back of his truck,” Peg said, tapping the woman next to her to reach for Shannon’s slice. “I don’t think he’s coming back. Right, Dee? He looked pretty eager to go and meet his friend.” She emphasized the word friend with air quotes before accepting
the plate with pizza the other woman offered.

  “I get the picture.” Shannon studied her food. She didn’t like that she was feeling a teensy bit jealous about him being on a date. What had she thought—he’d forgo his lifestyle until she lay down for him? “When is the first practice?” she said.

  “Check the school website. All the practice and game times and dates will be posted there. St. John had to shuffle things a bit and add two more teams,” Dee said. “Seems you weren’t the only one who didn’t register.”

  “Leeann was flipping out,” Peg added. “Shouting at people to go away until Adam reined her in. Do you think they’ve slept together?” Peg looked at Dee across Shannon’s chest.

  “Are you kidding me?” Dee cleared her throat and said in a gruff voice, “I never sleep with married women or women from Wexford.”

  “Good impersonation,” Peg said.

  Dee stood and reached for a bottle of water. “Shan, want something to drink?”

  “Water, please. Does he ever break his rules?”

  “St. John?” Dee replied. “Nope, never, so get the idea out of your head.”

  “Maybe he has, and you just don’t know it,” Peg piped in.

  “It’s possible, but at least I know he hasn’t broken the rule about not falling in love or something silly like that.” Dee placed her hand over her heart and pretended to sob. “The poor baby’s been hurt.”

  “He’s been cheated on, Dee,” Peg reminded her.

  Peg described to Shannon how St. John’s first wife had cheated on him with his best friend and that his second and third wives had cheated on him too. At the end of her story, Peg asked, “So, now that you’ve met him, do you still think Adam is some mean ol’ developer?”

  Shannon stretched for the nearest pizza pan and snatched a slice with mushrooms on it. “Business practices aside, he seems like a nice guy. It’s too bad about the marriages.”

  Dee scowled. “His failed marriages are his own fault.”

  “Aw, come on, Dee, he loved Coleen.” Peg added, “If she hadn’t lost the baby, they’d probably still be married.”

  “What baby?” Shannon switched her gaze from Dee to Peg. “Who’s Coleen?”

  Eager to share what she knew, Peg explained, “She was St. John’s girlfriend in high school. They were like this fairy-tale couple, even the king and queen of the senior prom. She became pregnant, and they got married. When she lost the baby, it shattered her and St. John too.”

  “Coleen started spending time with St. John’s friend, and the rest is history,” Dee included. “The bottom line is Adam St. John is an emotional train wreck.”

  “Yeah, it’s too bad.” Peg sighed. “He’s the kind of guy who’d run into a burning building to save the woman he loves. Unfortunately, he was the one who set the place on fire.”

  “That’s sad,” Shannon said.

  Dee gave her a suspicious look. “This is a big turnaround for you, Shan. You used to think he was ruthless.”

  “I never called him ruthless, and all I meant was it’s too bad he’s had such bad luck with his marriages, which it is. I can barely accomplish one divorce, and he’s been through three. I didn’t say I wanted to marry the guy.” Shannon tapped Dee’s hand. “Let’s not forget, young lady, who sent him to rescue me yesterday. Did you want to tease me by dangling the carrot I can’t eat?”

  Peg snorted and grabbed a napkin. “I couldn’t believe it when I found out. Way to let the wolf loose in the sheep’s pen, Dee. You’re lucky Shannon’s still in one piece.”

  “He promised he’d behave. He did, right?” Dee watched Shannon. “Did he behave?”

  “He was a perfect gentleman. So, where are we going tonight?” Shannon said. It was time to change the subject before she said something that would get St. John or her in trouble with Dee.

  “I think we should stop at Adam’s nightclub,” Peg said. “He’s very generous about providing free drinks, and the chicken wings aren’t half bad.”

  Shannon held up her hand. “Wait a minute. St. John owns a nightclub?”

  “More like a pick-up dive,” Dee said. “He owns it with Jimbo and his lawyer. We’ll start at Elements and figure out the rest as we go.”

  “You three look like you’re plotting the takeover of the world.”

  Three sets of eyes focused on the owner of the deep voice. St. John stood behind them, looking dashing in a tailored blue suit. He’d slicked back his dark blond hair, and even the wayward strand was behaving.

  Shannon managed a discreet sniff. Dear goddess, she’d love to wear him on her skin. Since Justin already thought St. John was her lover, she wouldn’t be cheating, technically, if she slept with him—she’d just be tying up loose ends, that’s all.

  Peg let loose a catcall. “Wow, Adam, she must be pretty special to get you all dolled up. What are you doing here?”

  St. John adjusted a gold watch under his left cuff. “Contrary to popular belief, I’m not a complete hick, and I’m here because I wanted to check on things.”

  “Every thing’s under control,” Dee announced. “The kids are soaring high on sugar, pizza, and more sugar, and we’re planning a girls’ night out for tonight.”

  “Really? Tell me where you’re going, and I’ll catch up with you. My meeting shouldn’t last long.”

  “Screw ‘em and lose ‘em,” Dee snickered. “That’s your motto, eh, St. John?”

  “For your information, Denise, this is a business dinner about the Hancock farm. I have no plans on hitting on the woman, or her husband.” He offered his devilish grin and added, “However, that doesn’t mean I won’t find someone for later.”

  Shannon sucked in her bottom lip when he settled his blue eyes on her.

  “I’m glad to see you made it,” he said. “I have Chad’s stuff in my trunk. Got a minute?”

  Peg nudged Shannon. “Go. We’ll watch Chad.”

  St. John held up his index finger. “In a minute.” He walked over and stood by his assistant coach and clapped to get the kids’ attention. “Give me a sec, will you guys?” he said. “And ladies,” he added, smiling at the team’s female players. “Coach Enders and I couldn’t be happier with how hard you all worked today during the tryouts. One thing we want to know is, did you have fun?”

  Most of the parents covered their ears at the volume of the chaos he’d unleashed. Dee shouted to Peg and Shannon, “He sure knows how to work a crowd.”

  Shannon spoke into Peg’s ear. “I don’t understand. Why does he act like he’s in charge?”

  “Because he is. It’s his money that’s paying for everything. The town cut baseball for six- and seven-year-olds.”

  “Oh, wow.” Shannon clapped along with the rest of the adults. The more she learned about St. John, the more confused she became. She wanted to dislike him. Be attracted to him, yes, sleep with him, double yes, but dislike him none the less. Yet, he really seemed to be a decent man.

  St. John stopped to talk with a few parents and eventually stood by Shannon. “Ready?” When they reached the exit, he held the door and said, “I’m parked in the back, next to you.”

  She entered the steamy heat of the afternoon, enjoying the feel of it wrapping around her bare arms and legs. She gave him a quick smile. What would he say if she asked him to take her away, someplace far removed from the town? A remote beach house perhaps, someplace where two people who’d been beaten up by love could pretend nothing existed except for the two them.

  “Are you okay?” He lightly touched the bruise on her arm.

  “What?” she said, surprised by his expression of genuine concern.

  “Justin did this.”

  It wasn’t a question but a statement of fact. She shook her head, however. “Yes. No— I mean, I have something I need to talk to you about.”

  “Gee.” He grinned. “I wonder if we both want to talk about the same thing. Does it have anything to do with us having an affair?”

  Chapter 16

  “The only
way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it.”

  Oscar Wilde

  St. John noted Shannon had changed into a white, flowing skirt. In the few days since he’d met her, he’d seen three such skirts, and he was enjoying this one more than the others thanks to the way the sun filtered through the sheer gauze. A slip or something blocked the view of the tops of her legs, but that was fine. He was quite capable of filling in the missing pieces. She wasn’t a cluttered witch, like the ones that hung around Portsmouth, and he liked that. Christ, with all the bells and jangly stuff, you could hear them a mile away. Except for the silver pentagram earrings she wore, he’d never seen any other type of jewelry on her. Not even a watch. He also liked that her hair wasn’t blue or purple. Midnight black was fast becoming his favorite color.

  They reached his car, and he walked around to the driver’s side. “I heard a rumor today. Want to know what it is?” he called out.

  Shannon didn’t respond at first. Instead, she unlocked the front passenger door of her SUV and leaned in to insert her key in the ignition. The way she was bent over the seat gave him all sorts of ideas, each one ending the same way—her calling out his name as she climaxed.

  His crotch tightened, something he relieved with a discreet adjustment.

  She lowered her passenger window before facing him. She still didn’t respond to what he’d asked, so he kept talking while he opened his own car and hung his suit coat on the hook behind the driver’s seat.

  “You and I are sleeping together.”

  “Don’t believe everything you hear,” she said, a half-smile on her lips.

  “Usually I don’t, but this one came from the horse’s ass, so it must be true. Although…” He rubbed at his chin and slipped on a confused expression. “I’m really disappointed I can’t remember any of it. How was I?”

  “Fair.” She crossed her arms.

  She didn’t miss a beat, and he enjoyed that about her. “Hmm, that sounds about right. You must have been lacking too, or else I’d remember something about you.”