The Truth About Fairy Tales

by Annie Walker

  “Is that why you put up such a tough front?” he asked gently.

  “Maybe…I guess.” He leaned down and kissed the tip of my nose. He wasn’t trying to hide the tenderness he felt any longer. It was right there in those eyes. “I should go.” I hated that my voice actually shook as I said those words. “I have to study.”

  He wasn’t fooled. “Okay, tough guy, but not before you have your breakfast.” This time I didn’t get out of bed. It was safer this way, really. I let him shower and dress and leave me alone with my uncomfortable thoughts.

  Chapter Five

  When Jackson parked in front of my little apartment building, my intent was to simply get out, tell him good-bye, and walk away. His intent, was slightly different.

  He killed the engine and I turned to him, surprised.

  “What are you doing?” I asked.

  “You were going to show me your apartment, weren’t you?” I wanted to tell him no. No way, but I couldn’t seem to say a word. “I thought so.” He got out of the car and opened my door.

  As we walked up the stairs together, I tried to remember the state I’d left my little one bedroom apartment in and tried not to think about how upset poor old Sidney was going to be that I’d left him alone all night once again.

  My fingers actually shook so much that I dropped my keys. When I picked them up, Jackson quietly took them from me and unlocked the door.

  I walked inside and took in all the little lived in details I’d left lying around the place. At least I’d had the guilty foresight to put that ridiculous book away.

  I watched as if caught in a spell while Jackson, the man that could buy me and everything I owned at least a thousand times over, walked around my little cramped apartment and smiled.

  “This is definitely you. So, are you going to give me the grand tour?”

  There really wasn’t much to see. From where he was standing, he could see the living, dining and kitchen areas. All that was left was my tiny little bathroom… and of course the bedroom.

  I opened the door to the bathroom first and saw his brow edge up a little more while I tried to keep from smiling. I knew what he really wanted to see.

  I was just about to open that door when I heard old Sidney let out an excited yelp from beyond the door that told me he had held it just about as long as he could.

  “What was that?” Jackson asked when I opened the door and my little stiff-legged dog shuffled out and yelped again, this time at Jackson.

  “Is that supposed to be a dog?” He shot me a questioning look while reaching down to tickle Sidney’s ears. Much to my surprise, Sid didn't remove any of his fingers. It was love at first sight.

  “I have to take him for a walk before, well, he's been cooped up in there all night.” I didn’t show Jackson my bedroom, but instead I reached for Sidney’s leash and started for the door.

  “And I’m sure you have things you have to do so…” I turned back to him when he made no move to follow.

  “Uh-uh. I’m not going anywhere, little bit, except maybe for a walk with you and old Sidney here.”

  “But…” I need time to get myself together I wanted to tell him. I need time to understand what’s gotten in to me. I need time to pray for forgiveness for all the terrible, terrible things I’ve done with you.

  “But nothing. I’m not going anywhere so relax. If you want to study, you can study. I’ll just sit here and quietly read the paper and maybe get better acquainted with Sidney. I think we have one thing in common, other than you that is. We’re both old.”

  I let him take Sidney’s leash. The three of us must have made quite an odd little assortment that day. Me still dressed for work, Jackson in jeans and a pullover that I’m sure probably cost more than I made in a month, leading around my little half-blind, dog.

  Once Sidney was satisfied and fed, I told Jackson I needed to change. He offered to come help me, reminding me that my bed still wasn’t broken in, but I refused his kind offer. Damn, that was hard to do.

  I changed into my favorite faded denim shorts and tee shirt. With my reading glasses in place, books in hand, and not bothering with makeup, I left my bedroom.

  The second I walked into the room, I had his full attention. “I hope you don’t plan on getting any studying done dressed like that?” he told me, his eyes only confirming the meaning of those words as they swept over what I would have thought would have been the worst turn off any man could see.

  “As a matter of fact I do, so just get your mind out of the gutter, Mr. Riley.” I noticed he'd found my one and only comfortable place to stretch out and relax. Sid had positioned himself next to Jackson. I shook my head. What a bunch of old men.

  I tossed my books on the floor and stretched out, ready to hit them, when I heard him groan.

  “What?” I asked without bothering to look up.

  “You can’t be serious? You’re going to lay there in front of me dressed like that with your…” He didn’t finish and I wasn’t sure if he was serious or just trying hard to make me smile.

  “Yes, and if you’re not going to behave, you can go home.”

  I have to admit, Jackson was a good boy. At least for part of the day. He sat quietly sneaking peeks at me while reading his paper, until early afternoon. Then, he decided I’d tortured him enough.

  He put the paper down, gave my little dog a pat and a scratch behind his ears, and then he stood, knelt beside me, and removed my glasses. Jackson closed my books and carried me into uncharted grounds, closing the door on Sidney, the world, and its cares for a little while.

  It might have been virgin ground for us, but it didn’t take Jackson long to become part of my bedroom memories. Now, today…forever. I would never be able to look at my little bed in the same way again.

  “What time do you have to be at work tonight?” he asked me sometime later, after we’d both drifted off to sleep in each other’s arms.

  “Mmmm, what time is it now?” He told me and I let him know that I still had a few more hours before my shift began.

  “Good, I’ll drive you over. And since there’s absolutely nothing in your fridge to eat, we either go out or order in.”

  “I usually get pizza…”

  “That stuff will kill you. Let me handle it, okay.” He was dressed and had the food ordered by the time I emerged from the shower.

  He’d ordered Chinese, another one of my favorites, from a restaurant I’d never heard of before.

  He closed the door and held out the bags to me.

  “One of your routines?” I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking him if he'd shared this routine with any of his other women. Instead, I concentrated on the seafood medley on my plate, because I didn't trust myself to look at him.

  “It’s good, I promise. Try it.” He leaned over and kissed my cheek.

  “I know, and it just so happens I love Chinese food almost as much as pizza.”

  We spent the rest of the day holding each other and doing little else until it was time for me to leave for work.

  Jackson parked beside my little car and waited to make sure it would start. For some reason he had his doubts. I didn’t tell him I’d had that car since high school. A hand me down from Lee. It might be a relic, but it had gotten me through quite a few difficult situations.

  Jackson didn’t appear to be in any hurry to leave, which had me wondering what Miss Monday night might be thinking.

  “What time do you get off tonight, little bit?” When he asked that question, I forced myself to squelch my happiness. I wasn’t going to wait around, and hoped he’d get around to calling me.

  “Eleven.”

  “So late? Then I’ll call you to make sure you get home, okay?”

  Everything about Jackson thrilled me including his thoughtfulness.

  It was unbelievably hard to say good-bye to him and I was more upset with myself, because I’d let Jackson mean too much to me. I’d probably never see him again and if I did, it would only be for Saturday
or possibly Sunday nights. I wouldn’t be anything more to Jackson than just another rotation in his schedule. Was I willing to settle for so little?

  My shift that night seemed endless. All I wanted was to be alone with my thoughts. I’d been with Jackson since my last shift ended and I needed time to think.

  I was desperate to get the old, focused Maggie back, but she seemed to have softened into one of those foolish little girls that could no longer concentrate.

  I spent most of the evening dropping things, screwing up orders or simply forgetting why I was there in the first place. By eleven, everyone around me wanted the evening to end.

  I’d just turned off the lights and climbed into bed when Jackson called.

  “Hi there—you made it home okay, huh?”

  I couldn't remember being this aware of another human being. Every single pitch in his voice was seductive and I tried to analyze the meaning of each of them.

  “You weren't sleeping were you?” Oh, my God, did he have any idea what the sound of his voice was doing to me? I prayed not.

  “No,” I somehow managed to get words to come out.

  We talked for a little while, but I couldn’t remember anything he'd said because I was just listening his voice and getting lost in remembering things.

  Somehow, through it all, I fell asleep. I awoke to the sound of someone ringing my doorbell and the dial tone blaring next to my ear.

  I hung the phone up and went to answer the door only to find Jackson holding an overnight bag in one hand.

  “Hi. You fell asleep on me.”

  I couldn’t say a word. I still wasn’t convinced I wasn’t dreaming this whole thing.

  “Do you want me to go?”

  I shook my head and he closed my door, tossed the bag on the sofa, and took me back to bed.

  It was still very early when he got out of my bed. I was exhausted physically as well as emotionally from the crazy range of emotions Jackson brought out in me.

  He showered and dressed and then he came back to kiss me one more time.

  “Go back to sleep, Maggie, it’s still early.”

  Once he’d closed the door I wondered how he thought sleep would be possible without him there beside me. When I opened my eyes again, it was light out and Sidney was sitting on the bed barking at me.

  “I’m sorry, baby…I’m sorry.” I threw on some clothes and took him for a walk. I’d just unlocked the door when my phone began to ring.

  “Maggie, guess what?” This was Genna. It was always the same with her. No ‘hi, how are you,’ just straight to the heart of the matter.

  “You’re pregnant?” Her silence confirmed I’d guess the truth. “You are? Really? Oh, Genna, that’s great! When did you find out?”

  “Yesterday! Isn’t it wonderful? I’m so excited and you should just hear Layne. He’s positively euphoric. I can’t wait to start picking out baby clothes.”

  I smiled to myself. Genna’s dreams were all coming true.

  “Have you told Serena yet?” I knew the answer already. I’d been the first she’d called.

  “No, I’m going to call her next. I can't wait for lunch tomorrow. We have so much to talk about and plan.”

  “That’s great. She’ll be thrilled as well. How far along are you?” For the first time in my life, I was actually jealous of Genna. This wasn’t like me. I’d been replaced by 'pod girl' and 'pod girl' was crying.

  Genna caught onto this about the same time as me. “Maggie? Are you all right? You sound, well strange, like…” Now she couldn’t actually say the words, because frankly, she hadn't seen me cry. She simply dismissed it as something else. “Are you sick?”

  I grabbed at the excuse she offered like a lifeline. I’d all but forgotten that technically I was still suffering from the effects of a cold.

  “Yes. I have a cold, but I’ll be fine by tomorrow. I’ll see you then."

  “Oh, course. Ooh, I can’t wait to see you both.”

  I hung up feeling a hundred percent better.

  There wasn’t anything wrong with me. I'd been sick. I wasn’t going soft because of Jackson. There was no way he of all people was going to be the one to change my dreams.

  I'd actually begun to feel quite cocky when the object of my confusion called, and the newer, softer Maggie returned to fill the old girl with doubts.

  I closed my eyes and tried to steel myself against the sound of his voice. Don’t let him know, don’t let him know, my conscious screamed, but it was so hard not to be thrilled just by the sound of his voice.

  “Hi…” I whispered in a softer more feminine voice. Who was this woman?

  His laughed quietly. Had he seen the change in me?

  “Okay, little bit, if you’re going to answer the phone like that then I’m probably going to forget I’ve got a meeting in ten minutes.”

  I smiled and was so glad he wasn’t standing there in front of me. I didn’t want him to know that I was blushing all the way to my toes and back.

  “Sorry…” Gees, what was wrong with me? I sounded like…like Genna. Dear sweet, soft, optimistic, full of nice thoughts Genna.

  “Oh, don’t be. Because when you talk to me like that I remember last night and the night before and the night before that…”

  I could only imagine he was also picturing my embarrassment as well because he was laughing again and I was blushing.

  “Shouldn’t you be going to your meeting?”

  “Probably.” But he didn’t seem in any hurry to do so. “What time do you get off work tonight, little bit?” The old, confident, don’t-let-anyone-sway-my-course Maggie would have cringed at being called little bit by anyone. Coming from Jackson, well, I couldn’t get enough of it.

  “Same time as last night, Mr. Riley. That hasn’t changed.”

  He said something under his breath. “I’m going to have to have a talk with Frank.”

  “No…” Too late, I realized Jackson was only teasing me.

  “Relax. I would never come between you and Frank. That’s not to say I’m happy he's keeping you so late. Anyway that was only part of the reason I called. I want you to have dinner with me tonight at my house. Let me make you dinner.”

  I grinned with sheer happiness and tried to hide it by asking, “Can you even cook?”

  He made a sound that was half shock and half pain that I doubted his talents in the kitchen. I didn’t really. I’m sure he was good at whatever he chose.

  “Did you forget I was the one making you breakfast the other morning?”

  “No…” I stammered my answer, embarrassed again. I hadn’t forgotten anything about that time, including all the things I’d told him that I shouldn’t have told to him.

  “Good, then why don’t you come over to my place when you get off work? I’ll be waiting for you, little bit.”

  Tell him no. Tell him you have to study, my conscious screamed all the while the new Maggie was readily agreeing to anything he cared to suggest.

  “Look, my assistant is giving me the evil eye so I’ve got to go. I’ll see you tonight. Don’t stand me up, little bit, because I know where you live now.”

  For the rest of the day, I floated on a cloud, oblivious to the world around me.

  I took the test I’d been dreading for days, and didn’t care what my grade might be, which should have sent the old Maggie squirming like crazy.

  For the rest of the day, I argued with myself right up to the time I rang his doorbell at half past fate, and he opened it. Fate sealed. Old Maggie forgotten.

  Chapter Six

  Jackson possessed none of the same uncertainties I’d struggled with most of the day. He knew what he wanted, even though I was still a little confused. It wasn’t Saturday or Sunday night, but here I stood. What was up with that?

  He took my hand, brought me close, and kissed me with more self-control than I possessed. Then he led me out onto the deck and to the most beautiful candle-lit dinner, I’d ever experienced.

  The old Maggie would h
ave had a field day with this sappy stuff, but this new girl was eating it up. I wanted to cry, another first for him and for me.

  “You went to an awful lot of trouble…” I tried to sound unmoved, but I think he’d figured me out.

  There was a certain gentling in him as well. “You’re worth it and so much more.” He took my clenched hands in his, easing them apart. Oh, yeah, he was quickly figuring out all of my little quirks.

  “Come sit down.”

  As I was quickly learning, Jackson was just a little bit old fashioned. He held out my chair, his fingers lingering against my shoulders before he reached down to kiss the nape of my neck.

  I found out Jackson most certainly could cook and definitely more than just pancakes. The meal and the wine were perfect, but having him all to myself was the best part of the evening.

  After dinner, he put on some slow music and asked me to dance. Seductive, sexy, he knew all the right things to do and say to melt my cranky little heart and shatter my self-control.

  At the thought of the other women who shared the rotation cycle with me, I felt my softer side harden. I didn’t know where I stood here, but I didn’t want to be one of those ladies waiting for my turn.

  “I should go,” I told him when another slow song began.

  “No. Don’t go. Spend the night with me, Maggie.” He didn't let me go. We were no longer dancing. He stood looking down at me with that expression in those blue eyes that made me want to do anything for him.

  “But I have class tomorrow.”

  “And I have work.” He watched as I let go of all the arguments the old Maggie wanted to throw in his face and then I was in his arms and somehow in his bed and we were in a race to see which of us could get the other’s clothes off first.

  ****

  I had no idea whether or not Jackson actually owned an alarm clock, but it didn’t go off the next morning.

  I awoke sometime just after eight to the bright sunlight streaming through his bedroom windows.

  I sat up in bed and then remembered I wasn’t wearing a thing.

  “Where do you think you’re going, Miss Monroe?” Jackson said as he reached for me.