Tate Family Holidays

by Hope Ford

  “Oh, Megan,” she says softly and I can hear the pity and the worry in her voice.

  “So, I’ll be home tomorrow and maybe we can get together this week for dinner or something. I just wanted to call you so you would stop worrying. I’m fine. I love you, Abbs!” I smile into the phone.

  “Love you, too Meg. Please be careful.”

  8

  Jackson

  I didn’t realize that Abby walked off the job site until I asked someone and they pointed at the door. When I go outside, I hear her say into the phone, “Just come home. We can work this out.” And instantly I know that Megan is on the other end.

  I walk straight up to Abby and try to take the phone. She gives me the death glare and points her finger in my chest. I’m like three times her size, I know I can overpower her, but there’s something in the look on her face that stops me.

  When she hangs up the phone, I ask her, “Where is she? Is she okay?”

  “What the fuck did you do?” Now, my sister was raised in construction. Our dad always had us at the construction site when he was working. Enough that Abby and I followed in his footsteps. But she never usually cusses. Unless she feels she needs to get her point across.

  I hold my hands up in front of me like I’m surrendering. “What? I didn’t do anything.”

  She eyes me for a minute and then really calmly explains, “She said she went to your house the other night. She said that Emily answered your door wearing only your T-shirt. Emily told her that you were in the shower and you two were getting back together.”

  It’s like a bomb has been dropped. My mind is whirling. My eyes dart everywhere as I try to puzzle all the pieces together. Seconds go by and then it finally hits me. “That bitch,” I scream.

  “What is it?” Abby asks me.

  “I didn’t do that. She was at my house, but I wasn’t. Fuck. Where is Megan?” I stutter out.

  “She’s at a cabin in the woods,” she tells me then laughs.

  “Where is she, Abby?” I ask her again, not the least bit amused.

  “She wouldn’t tell me. She did say she will be home tomorrow because she has to work Thursday. But that’s it.” She starts walking back inside.

  I stand there for a minute trying to come up with a plan. “Let’s get to work. I’m taking tomorrow off,” I tell her as I stroll past her and back into the house we are working on.

  Megan

  Since I hung up with Abby, my mind has been working double-time. Could it have all been a mistake? Could Emily been pulling one over on me?

  As soon as I start to have my doubts, I realize that I know what I saw. She was half naked in his house… in his T-shirt. No matter what really happened, I know I don’t want to be with a man that allows his ex access to his home.

  I spend the rest of the day and half the next hiking through the woods and enjoying the scenery. On my drive back into town, I feel a little bit better than I did when I left. But I still have the soft ache in my chest.

  Pulling onto my street, the first thing I see is Jackson’s truck in my driveway. I want to turn around. I don’t know if I can deal with this now, but I get myself together. I’m not going to run from him. I might as well get this over with. It’s bound to happen and I’d rather it be here than at the shop.

  I get out of the car and he’s sitting on my front porch. He stands when I get out, but he doesn’t come any closer. I take a minute to look at him. He has a few days’ worth of stubble covering his face. He looks worn out and the light in his eyes is dim, but he still looks good. Damn, he still looks good.

  “Hey, Megan,” he says huskily.

  “Hey. What are you doing here?” I ask him, trying to keep the emotion out of my voice.

  “I had to see you. Just give me five minutes. If you still want me to leave in five minutes, I won’t bother you again.” He’s talking softly with his hands down to his sides. It’s almost like he’s afraid he’ll spook me and I’ll run again.

  “How did you know I was almost home?” I ask him as I walk up the steps.

  “I’ve been here since dawn. Abby said you would be home today,” he tells me.

  I stop with my hand on the doorknob and look up at him. That was almost ten hours ago. “Have you been sitting on my porch for ten hours?”

  “Yes, except for when I helped Miss Mason next door carry her groceries in and she let me use her restroom. She’s a nice woman. She likes you,” he tells me as he follows me in the door.

  I look around my small house and wonder what he thinks about it. To me, everything is so cozy. Wait, why do I care what he thinks?

  I sit down on the couch and look at him. He hasn’t taken his gaze off me.

  “Sit down. Let’s get this over with.” I point to the chair across the room from me.

  He sits down and looks at me for a minute.

  “Megan, you’ve known me how long? Do you really think I would ever do anything to hurt you?”

  I answer him without hesitating. “No, I don’t think you would ever hurt me on purpose.”

  He’s shaking his head. “No, honey, I would never hurt you… for any reason.”

  I take a deep breath and try to hold it together.

  “What do you want, Jackson?”

  He moves around to the seat next to me and I sit back in mine, trying to put some distance between us. He’s sitting on the edge with his arms on his knees, looking at me. “When I got home the other day, Emily was on my porch. She wanted to get back together. I told her no and that I would never be with her ever again.”

  I know that Abby probably already told him, but I’m going to say it anyway. “I was there. Emily was in your house. She answered the door in her underwear and your T-shirt. She told me you were in the shower and you… you were getting back together.”

  He puts his hand on my knee and I can’t look away from it. “She lied to you. I wasn’t there. I didn’t get there until you had already left. The only thing I can figure is that she still had a key to my house. Or hell, she used the one under the pot. I don’t know. But since then, I’ve changed the locks at my house and the only spare key I have is this one.” And he sets it down on the coffee table.

  I look between him and the key and back again.

  “Jackson…the key wasn’t under the pot,” I tell him.

  “Well, that’s how she got in,” he explains.

  There it is again. Hope flaring in my chest. And again, I do what I can to dampen it down. “Jackson… I just think this is probably good this happened. I mean, you need time…”

  He gets down on his knees in front of me. He’s caged me in and I can feel the sweet heat of him against my body and we aren’t even touching.

  “I don’t need time. I need you. The other day I didn’t tell you this because you were already skittish, but I’m telling you now. I want you, Megan. Not just for today, not just for tonight… I want you for always. I want to go to sleep with you in my arms and wake up the same damn way. I want you. That’s all I want.” His hands move from the arms of the chair and now they’re rubbing up and down my legs.

  Stunned, I stare back at him, and he must see it in my face, because I can’t help but soften toward him.

  “I love you. I feel like I’ve loved you forever. Please, don’t give up on us. If you need time, that’s fine. But just don’t give up on us,” he pleads with me, right before his lips touch mine.

  Epilogue

  Jackson

  I wish I could say it was smooth sailing after that. But it took some time. After a few kisses and me begging to stay with her, she finally let me stay in her bed that night. I was fully clothed and nothing but a few chaste kisses happened, but I was able to sleep with her in my arms. I definitely call that a win.

  It’s been the same way every night since then. It’s taking her a while to process everything. I wonder if a part of her doesn’t trust me. But I’m fine with it. I’m happy to prove my love to her. I try my best to be patient with her. If the roles were
reversed I would probably be destroyed, so I can’t blame her for needing time.

  A few weeks go by and I come home from work to take a shower before I go over to her house. When I pull in the driveway, Megan’s car is there.

  I smile broadly and take the steps to my house two at a time. I use the key to unlock the door, and as soon as I walk inside, I call out, “Honey, I’m home.”

  “I’m in here,” she hollers from the bedroom.

  I stride to the doorway and stop. My eyes about pop out of my head. Megan is lying on the bed with a black nightie on and her long blond hair high in a knot on the top of her head. She’s beautiful.

  When I don’t move any closer to her, she sits up. “I thought… I thought… well, I can get dressed.”

  “No!” I holler. I start pulling off my boots and stripping off my clothes. “Stay right there, honey. You just made all my dreams come true.”

  I lie down and cover my body with hers. Kissing her, I pull back when she tries to talk into my mouth. “What is it?” I ask her.

  “Before we did this, I just wanted to tell you too. I love you, Jax.” She smiles and then pushes me backwards before straddling me. I pull her face down to mine, kissing her and then I show her just how much I love her too.

  THE END

  Abby

  1

  Abby

  I put the phone on speaker and set it down next to me so I can put my boots on. “Yes, Mom. Jackson and Megan just left and I am waiting on Derrick to get here and pick me up.”

  “Well, was your brother all right? Was he surprised about Megan being his date?” she asks, and I can hear the excitement in her voice.

  I can’t help but laugh at her tone. “Yes. He was definitely surprised but I think it’s going to work out. Look, Mom, you have guests about to show up. Let me get off here and finish getting ready. I’ll see you soon. Okay?”

  “Okay. Love you, honey. Be safe,” she says before I hear her end the call.

  Picking up my phone to hit the end button, I walk back to the bathroom to look at myself in the mirror. Not bad, Abby. I picked an easy costume; most of it I had already in my closet. Since I’ve been working out at the boxing ring, I even had the boxing gloves.

  I’m applying a fresh coat of lipstick when I hear my front door open and “Honey, I’m home.”

  I paste a smile to my face and walk out to greet him, trying not to grind my teeth together. I hate when he walks in without knocking. I really need to remember to start locking the door.

  “Hey… Why do you have a suitcase?” I’m staring at it like it’s going to jump out and bite me. But it’s definitely not part of his lumberjack costume.

  He drops the offending object by the door and starts walking toward me. “I got kicked out. I’m going to need to stay here a while.”

  I put my hand out to stop him from coming any closer. This is my own fault. I should have ended this a long time ago. Why do I always date the men that need taken care of? “You can’t stay here.”

  His shoulders go rigid before he relaxes them and then walks over to me and puts his arms around me. “Sure I can. Just until I find somewhere else to stay. Plus, we’ve been dating for several months now, Abby. Don’t you think that it’s time we take this to the next level?”

  Sex. I know that’s what he means. But I’m not interested. At least not with him. Man, why didn’t I end this? Because you liked having a date, I answer my own question. Yep, growing up with three older brothers and working construction has not really made me a man magnet. Plus, the way I like to control things pretty much tells you what type of men I attract. But even with all that, it still hasn’t stopped Derrick from getting too handsy with me.

  I struggle to get out of his arms, but when his grip doesn’t loosen, I stomp on his foot. He releases me instantly. I go over to the door, put his suitcase outside and gesture for him to leave. “No. There is not a next level. I’m sorry, but it’s over between us. You need to leave.”

  “I don’t have anywhere else to go,” he whines and it takes everything I have not to roll my eyes. Man, I’m sick of men that expect me to take care of them. When am I going to wake up?

  I straighten my back and point out the door. “Derrick, you know that you can go to your mom’s house. Your cousin’s house. Your uncle’s house. You have a long list of places you can go. And I don’t care where you go, but you’re not staying here.”

  He walks up to me and stands so close that I press my back against the open door. I can feel his hot breath against my cheek. I can see the anger written on his face. “Fine. You’re too much damn work anyway… and not worth it.”

  “Knock, knock. Trick or Treat. Everything okay here, Mrs.?” At the sound of the voice, both our heads turn to the door. I didn’t know what I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting that. A tall man is standing at my door, his hands fisted tightly in front of him. His short hair, strong jaw and his stance exudes power.

  “Get lost, mister. This is none of your business,” Derrick says, but even I can hear the uncertainty in his voice.

  I get out from between the door and Derrick, slide into the hallway of my apartment and grab his bag, shoving it at him. I smile briefly at the stranger beside me. “Thank you for your help. But he was just leaving.” I point to Derrick.

  Derrick looks as if he may argue, but then when the man takes a step toward him, he grabs his bag and starts walking down the hallway.

  Derrick gets down the hallway before he calls over his shoulder. “I’ll see you at the party, Abby. And hey, mister, you’re wasting your time with this one. She doesn’t put out. Just so you know.”

  The man starts to go after him, but I stop him with a hand on his shoulder. “Trust me. He’s not worth it.”

  He stares at me…hard. My eyes are locked on him and I couldn’t look away if I tried. “No man should ever talk about you that way.”

  I almost laugh, but something stops me. He’s serious. I guess working with a construction crew has made me insensitive to the way that some men talk. “It’s not a big deal. Really. He’s harmless. So, uh, where’d you come from?” I look up at him and try not to appear like I’m leering at him. The man is hot. He has on khaki pants and a blue button-down shirt. The blue matches his eyes perfectly.

  He points to the door behind him. “I moved in this morning. I’m your new neighbor. I’m Brent.”

  “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Brent. Thank you for your help with everything. I’m Abby.” I slide my hand into his and ignore the jolt that shoots up my arm at the contact. I pull it back quickly, before I embarrass myself and cling on to him.

  “Well, it was nice meeting you.” When I turn to walk back into my apartment, he stops me. “What did he mean that he would see you at the party?”

  I grimace, turning back to him. “Shoot. Yeah, my family is big into holidays. They have a big Halloween party every year. Derrick’s family are friends, so I’m sure he’ll be there.”

  He presses his palms together firmly. “I, uh, don’t like it.”

  With confusion etched on my face, I ask him, “What do you mean you don’t like it?”

  He takes another step toward me and the manly scent of him and his soft cologne hits my nostrils. I take a deep breath, wanting to commit it to memory. His hands go up on the door frame and his shirt stretches across his muscled chest. Sweet Jesus, the man is insanely beautiful.

  “I don’t like you going to a party with him there. Maybe you should skip it.” His jaw is set with determination.

  I laugh this time; there’s no holding it back. “Skipping it is not an option. My parents and brothers would come and drag me there anyway. Nope, I have to go.”

  He doesn’t hesitate. “Well, then take me with you.”

  My forehead wrinkles. “You want to go to a Halloween party?”

  He brings his arms down from the frame and crosses them across his expansive chest. “If it means keeping you safe, yes I do.”

  I really am running lat
e now. I grab the boxing gloves, my phone and purse by the door and with everything held in my hands, I tell him, “I can take care of myself.”

  He doesn’t move. He doesn’t back up. He doesn’t take his eyes off me. His voice is husky when he finally says, “You shouldn’t have to.”

  A deep burn fills my belly at his words. I clench my legs together and ask him, “Do you have a costume?”

  Brent

  There’s something about her. When I was coming back to my apartment and saw her pressed against her door by that puny boy, I knew right then that I wanted to – I had to – protect her. A possessiveness like I’ve never felt before came over me and I knew that I had to tame it down a little before I killed the poor bastard.

  I walk her into my apartment and apologize for the few boxes lying around.

  “When is the rest of your stuff coming?” she asks. “I can help you carry it in.”

  I stop and turn to her. This woman… I can tell she is really in for a rude awakening. Like I would let her carry anything heavy. “Honey, I have people to carry stuff. Plus, this is it. I’m only here for a few weeks. I have a house being built and it should be ready soon.”

  She tries to hide the disappointment on her face, but she’s not successful. I see it and a thrill shoots through my chest.

  She taps her chin with her finger, looking me up and down. “So do you have any idea for a costume?”

  I take my time and look at her. Really look at her. Her blond hair is in curls down her back. The red boxer robe is hiding her curvy body from me and I would like to take it off to see what’s underneath. Her shorts are short and tight and her tank top is plastered against her large breasts. My manhood twitches in my pants. “Yep, give me five minutes. Have a seat.”