“I’m going back out there and wait for the police,” Ron remarked as he made his escape.
The police finally arrived and took statements from everyone. After ascertaining that Linda had instigated the fight and continued her threats against Jaci even in their presence, they arrested Linda. They told Jaci she would have to file charges against Linda, and advised Jaci to seek a restraining order to restrict Linda to a certain distance.
As soon as the police finished with her, Jaci left the building like it was on fire.
“Where’s Jaci going so fast?” Cecelia asked, looking at J.P. strangely.
“Oh, Mom, didn’t you know? J.P. is blaming Jaci for everything that happened here today. Told her he was tired of dealing with her. So, Jaci said she wasn’t staying anywhere she’s not wanted.”
“Boy, have you lost your mind?” Cecelia yelled at J.P. “You better go catch that girl. You know doggone well Jaci didn’t start this mess. We told you a long time ago what Linda was after. And you didn’t do anything about it, so if what happened is anybody’s fault, it’s yours.”
“I’m not blaming Jaci for what happened,” J.P. said tiredly. “I’m just upset that she didn’t handle things differently.” He made an impatient sound. “You know what? I just wish everybody would leave me alone.” He turned, hurried down the hallway to his office, and closed the door behind him.
Now that he was alone, Jason walked across his office to the window and got there just in time to see Jaci’s Jeep leave the parking lot. He grabbed his head, groaning as though in deep pain. “What have I done?” he asked himself.
He sat down behind the empty desk and looked around the office. Everything was ready to be moved. Everything from the walls, bookshelves, desk, and credenza was carefully labeled with appropriate numbers. There would be no problem placing things where they belonged.
His office was ready . . . made ready by the woman who had told him she hadn’t slept the past several days. But in spite of that, she worked hard in here all morning to help him. He knew of no other woman in the world, other than maybe his mother, who would have done this without thought for herself. He started feeling like the jerk he knew he had been with her. What in the world got into me? he wondered.
He sat in deep thought, ignoring the knocks on his door and the ringing phones. He needed to face up to some things where Jaci was concerned.
She loved him—almost as much as he loved her. By necessity, she was extremely independent, preferring to handle her own problems and issues. She had told him that from the start. He had to accept the fact that she might never reach the point where she was comfortable with his need to take care of her and protect her. She was also as stubborn as a mule when she believed she was right.
She was caring, loving, loyal, dependable, and all those things she had told Ron and Walt on Thanksgiving Day about love. She was cautious and leery. But once her mind was made up, she was in it all the way.
She’d been honest and up-front about everything from the very beginning.
He wanted to kick himself as he questioned the reasons for his anger with her today. Especially when he came up with only one reason. Male pride. What was that Scripture about pride goeth before a fall? Why was he upset with her? For standing up to a crazy woman because she loved him? For failing to tell him the extent of the woman’s harassment and trying to handle it by herself? When was she supposed to tell him? He’d been putting her off all week, telling her he didn’t have time. Hadn’t she taken the day off just so she could come to him and tell him what was going on? Maybe if he had taken the time to talk to her he could have kept this from happening. Was this move so important that he would jeopardize their relationship?
Absolutely not! The whole company could go down the drain as far as that was concerned.
He picked up the phone and dialed her number. He knew she hadn’t had time to make it home, but he could leave her a message. He had to get her a decent cell phone. Hers didn’t work half the time.
“Jaci, I’m so sorry, baby. Just chalk it up to fatigue and stupidity. Will you call me as soon as you get home?”
Forty-five minutes and eight messages later, he still hadn’t heard from her.
His door flew open and his dad, who had been out running errands, stormed into the room, a scowl on his face. “I hear there’s been some tail kicking going on around here today, and it ain’t over yet. ’Cause if you treated Jaci the way they say you did, I’m getting ready to kick yours. Have you lost your blasted mind?”
“Yeah, Pop. I guess I have. I really don’t know what got into me. And I don’t need you to kick me, I’m doing that real well myself.”
“Well, I guess you did Linda a favor,” his dad answered. “She’s getting exactly what she wanted—Jaci out of your life.” He left the office, slamming the door behind him.
Consuming fear at the thought of life without Jaci filled him and caused tears to fill his eyes. He picked up the phone and dialed her number again. “Sweetheart, please call me! And you may as well know, I’m not giving up.”
Jaci
Jaci erased all the messages and turned the ringers off. “I’m not talking to you anymore today,” she said loudly to the last message.
Feeling dirty and stressed out, she ran a hot bath, pouring a generous portion of bath oil into the tub. She lit her favorite scented candles, stripped, and sank into the hot water, where she stayed until the water had cooled and she was about to drift off to sleep. She got out of the tub, slipped into a nightgown, and was asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. She slept soundly for three hours and was jerked awake by her pager going off. She knew it would continue to beep until she stopped it.
She realized she had slept through several pages and hadn’t heard a thing. Evidently, she had taken the edge off her exhaustion enough for the sound to finally permeate. Of course, they were all from Jason, with the exception of one from Randi. She quickly dialed Randi’s number, knowing her daughter would be worried about her if she didn’t call her back.
“Hey, honey. What’s up?”
“Mama, what’s going on with you and Jason? He’s called me several times looking for you. He said if I talked to you, to tell you he’s really sorry and to please call him. What did he do?”
She briefly ran down the situation to her. “If he calls back, tell him I said to go suck a rotten egg.”
“I’m not telling him that!” Randi replied. “You’ll have to call him and tell him that yourself. So how long is this woman going to stay in jail?” she asked worriedly.
“I have no idea. I’m just sick and tired of the whole situation. She knows now that I can whip her butt, so she’s not going to get too close to me again.”
“Well, I think you and Jason need to go down there and file charges on her, like the police said. And get that peace bond against her. It’s no telling what that crazy woman may do next.”
“Yeah. You’re right. But I’m not going to talk to him today. I’m still too angry. Maybe tomorrow. I’m going to get some more sleep now. I’ll talk to you later.”
Jaci snuggled back into her pillow and went back to sleep, praying Linda was still behind bars.
Randi dialed Jason’s number as soon as she finished talking to her mother. “Jason, I talked to my mother. She’s tired and trying to get some sleep. She said maybe she’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Is that all she said?” he asked.
“Nope. But I can’t repeat it. She’s still pretty mad at you.”
“I don’t blame her. I acted like a jerk. Do you know if she’s going to work tomorrow?”
“The way she sounded, no. But you know Mom. If she wakes up and feels like it, she’ll probably go in.”
“Okay, Randi. I appreciate your help. And don’t worry, I’ll get things worked out with your mother.”
Jaci slept through the night and awoke early Thursday morning, still tired but feeling better. She decided not to go to work since she was off the next day anywa
y. She would just treat herself to a minivacation (to heck with Wynola). She called the office and after she ascertained that Gloria and Bill had things under control, Jaci went back to bed and slept another couple of hours.
She finally got up, took a shower, and ate toast before checking the messages on the answering machine. The tape was full of messages from Jason, but there was one from Lena, who had called that morning.
She quickly called her back. She needed the kind of conversation she knew she would get from Lena.
“Hey, girl, it’s Jaci. How’s it going?”
“Hey! I’m free for lunch. Want to treat me?”
Jaci’s spirits lifted. “Sounds good to me. Where you want to go?”
“Olive Garden on South Main. Twelve-thirty.”
Jaci hurriedly got ready. This was a welcomed distraction.
She expected Lena to be waiting for her, but when she didn’t see her, she sat down by the door to wait. When J.P. walked in, she didn’t acknowledge him, just simply turned her head. He walked over and sat down beside her.
“Guess what?” he asked without a greeting. When she didn’t answer, he said, “I’m your lunch date. I got Lena to set this up for me.”
Jaci stood and walked out the door without a word. He figured she would do that, so he followed her all the way to her truck. “I know I blew it yesterday and I’m so sorry for the way I acted. Will you please forgive me?”
“Sure. I forgive you,” she quickly answered to his surprise. But before the relief he felt could set in, she continued. “Now leave me alone and go suck a rotten egg or something.”
“Doggone it! I knew that was too easy!” he groaned. “Jaci, we love each other. Remember? We can’t let this come between us like this. Will you come to the house with me so we can talk?”
“No.”
“I need you, sweetheart. In so many ways I can’t name them all. If you don’t forgive me, I’ll never be complete again. You’re my essence, the part of me that makes my life meaningful. Honey, I don’t even want to think about living without you. Please come with me.”
“Just leave me alone! I’m not going to let you hurt me again, Jason. I may be stupid, but I’m not a glutton for punishment. I know when to get off the short bus.”
“You’re not stupid. I’m the one who fills that role. Please talk to me, Jaci. At least give us a chance to work this out.”
“Ma’am? Do you know this man? Is he bothering you?” The security guard who had been watching them from across the parking lot walked over to them.
“No, thanks officer. I’m fine.” She looked at Jason. “Now see. I asked you to leave me alone. Do you want to get arrested out here on a parking lot?”
“If that’s what it takes,” he answered. “Jaci . . . We have to talk. . . . Please! You owe me that much.”
“I don’t owe you anything. But since I’m not interested in becoming a spectacle on this parking lot, let’s go.” She paused, then added, “But I’m not promising anything.” She followed him to his house, parked in the driveway behind his SUV, and walked with him inside. He led the way into the family room. “Do you want anything to eat or drink?”
“No. Let’s just get this over with so I can go.”
They spent the next hour hashing out their feelings and differing opinions. Jaci knew all along that she loved him too much to let the thing with Linda destroy them. But she was still just angry enough to let him stew a little. She understood Jason’s reaction yesterday. He wanted to be her protector and fight her battles for her, while she wanted him to learn that he couldn’t take care of every situation for her. Some fights a woman has to fight for herself.
They finally reached a truce, realizing that her need for independence, and his need to protect, made it a temporary one. They both knew this would be an ongoing issue.
“Are you working today?”
“No, I took the day off.”
“Will you come back to the office with me? I could really use your help. Your hard work yesterday helped me get relocated a lot quicker. But now, I need your help getting the new office unpacked and set up. Besides that, there’s a line of people waiting to kick my butt if I don’t bring you back with me.”
“I guess so. But I’m not promising how long I’ll stay. Have you heard anything from Linda today?”
“No! And I confess I’m concerned about what she might do next. She’s crazy. That’s another reason I’d like to keep you close to me. If I didn’t have so much to do today, we’d go and file charges against her, but hopefully we’ll be able to do it tomorrow.”
“I’m not afraid of her.”
“I know you’re not,” he said with a sardonic look. “I’ve heard several versions of how you took her down. But I am scared, and I don’t intend for her to get close enough to you to hurt you.”
“Here we go again!” Jaci said in exasperation. “I can take care of myself, Jason!”
“Maybe. Come on, ride with me.”
Tired of arguing, she almost agreed, but the thought of not having her own transportation so she could leave when she got ready prompted her to say, “No, I’ll drive myself.”
When he began to argue she retaliated, “Look, you’d better be glad I’ve agreed to go with you. Don’t make me change my mind.”
Maxie
It’s almost Christmas! Maxie thought peevishly as he headed toward Jacetta’s house. Randi made him wait all this time before contacting him. Despite his efforts, he hadn’t been able to force a meeting with his daughter until she and her mother were good and ready. He pestered Jacetta, leaving messages that she never responded to, or if she happened to answer when he called, she only said, “I’m out of it, it’s between you and Randi,” before hanging up. His demands that she at least talk to him and tell him what was going on went unanswered.
The only thing that pleased him was their agreement to meet at Jacetta’s house. That was right up his alley. He couldn’t have planned it better himself.
Finally, he would have the opportunity not only to meet his daughter and grandchildren, but also to satisfy his curiosity about Jacetta. He really wanted to see the woman who had teased his senses with that husky, sexy voice for months. He pressed down a little harder on the accelerator, anxious to get there.
He found his way to Jacetta’s street and noticed there were cars already parked in the driveway and along the street in front of the house. Oh well, he thought. Looks like a real party’s going on. He rang the doorbell and waited.
A beautiful, curvaceous woman dressed in navy capri pants with a navy and gold matching top opened the door and motioned him in. Silky, thick, reddish-brown hair hung to her shoulders in loose curls, and skin that had the look and smoothness of honey tempted him to reach out and touch it. Wow! Who is this? he thought to himself. He entered the foyer and looked to his immediate left through an archway that led into a spacious formal living room, where several adults were laughing and talking as they ate from plates piled high with food. He followed the woman farther into the house, admiring her shapely legs and still wondering who she was.
They entered a family room occupied by more people. On the opposite wall, sliding patio doors provided a view of the backyard, where he saw a large swimming pool. It was too cold to swim, but the yard was full of activity—people playing a loud game of volleyball and children running around getting in their way. He could hear a baby crying somewhere in the house as he searched faces, trying to pick Jacetta and Randi out of the crowd.
“Randi!” The woman who had let him in stuck her head around the door leading into the hallway and called out in a loud voice, “Maxie’s here.”
His head snapped around as he looked closely at the woman. Shock registered on his face as he asked, “Jacetta?” He couldn’t believe the beautiful woman standing before him was the same woman he remembered only vaguely.
A dramatic change had taken place in her appearance. Gone was the chubbiness, the short Afro hairstyle, the bad complexion. The woman d
idn’t say anything, simply stared back at him from large green eyes set in a heart-shaped face with high cheekbones and a flawless complexion. The bow-shaped, kissable lips tempted him to lean down and taste them. But before that thought could take root, a tall muscular man stood up from the sofa and stepped between him and Jacetta, effectively blocking his view and his haywire temptations.
“I’m J.P. Gilmore. And, yes, this is Jacetta, but she’s known as Jaci to all her family and friends now.” He slipped a possessive arm around Jaci’s slender waist as he spoke. “Randi and the baby will be out in a moment. You want to have a seat or help yourself to some food or refreshments?”
Maxie realized the man was effectively staking his claim. He sat down in the recliner in the corner directly behind him. Noticing all eyes were focused on the interchange among himself, the man, and Jaci, he sought a way to divert the attention from them. “No thanks. I’m fine right now.” Ignoring J.P., he spoke to Jaci. “Nice home you have here, Jaci. I’m sure your neighbor across the street told you I came by to see you a while back. How long have you lived here?”
“Ten years,” she answered, and made no other effort to continue the conversation.
“Looks like a pretty nice neighborhood. Quiet and peaceful.” Not like my drug-infested, run-down neighborhood, he thought to himself.
“It is.”
He was floundering. The next question in his mind was, do you live here alone? But he thought better of asking it, with the Gilmore guy standing there watching him like a hawk. He was wondering what to say or do next, when a slender younger man stepped up to him, hand extended.
“Hi, I’m John, Randi’s husband. Our son Sean is running around outside in the backyard. If you want, I’ll take you out and introduce you. Randi’s changing the baby, so she might be a while.”
Seasons Page 22