Love Amplified (Heavy Influence Book 3)

by Ann Marie Frohoff

  He shook his head yes, still frowning. “Whad’ya say?”

  The frown dissolved from his baby face. “Can I please have it?”

  “Here you go.” I offered it to him and he took it with two hands. He peeled off the rest of the cupcake wrapper and shoved it in his mouth, dangling the trash at me.

  I looked to Grace as I took the trash. Ethan wiped his hands down the front of his white t-shirt.

  Grace cried out. “No, Ethan! Oh geez.” She dug napkins out from her purse.

  I leaned back on the bench and watched her clean him up, thinking of what life might be like having a kid Ethan’s age. On cue, Grace asked about my trip.

  “So?”

  “So what?” I smirked.

  She rolled her eyes. “Was Florida a bust?”

  “Not at all.” I said in a sardonic tone.

  Grace looked at me with one eyebrow raised. “Okay.” She responded, stretching out the word.

  I stood. “Let’s take a walk to the water.” I suggested and jut my chin toward Ethan. “He can dig in the sand and we can talk.”

  “Oh no.” She said, worried, and eyes me warily. “I don’t like the sound of this.”

  “It’s a whopper.”

  We’re silent until our feet hit the sand. Ethan ran ahead of us. He stopped and took off his little black flip-flops and threw them at us and turned hightailing it toward the water. Grace bent down to pick them up and told me to spit it out.

  “Without further ado…” I paused for dramatic effect. “I found out I have a three year old kid…a boy.”

  Grace looked at me like the wind had been punched out of her, mouth gapping wide. She gasped over and over again, looking toward the water and back at me.

  She exhaled heavily one last time. “Who’s the mother?”

  “This is a great one…it’s Sienna. My dead best friend’s wife.”

  She stopped walking and plopped down in the sand like a bag of bricks. She didn’t look at me. She watched Ethan and allowed what I’d said to sink in. Finally she said, “This is definitely not what I was expecting to hear.” She looked at me. “How the hell did you find out?”

  I ran my hands through the sand, sifting it through my fingers, and laughed at how it all happened. “Aly ran into her at a store in Key fucking West. Can you believe that?”

  “No. I can’t.” She threw me a sorry stare and looked back to Ethan, whose elbow deep in a hole he’s dug. “Did you see him?”

  “Yes.” I paused and see his face clear as day. “His name is Jackson.” I told her, but I didn’t look at her. I can’t because I feel like crying and with a deep breath I push away my emotions by stuffing my hands as deep as they’ll go down into the sand, until the tips of my fingers hurt. I go on to explain how it all unfolded. During this time, Ethan finds a little girl to play with, which allows me more time to continue my story in detail. “So, Sienna invites me back over…you know, I think I’m gonna play with Jackson like earlier that morning. But she’s got her fucking attorney there…and long story short she wants me to sign my parental rights away.”

  “Uh oh.” Displeasure sprouted between her eyes. “What are your plans?”

  I shrugged. “Part of me wants to…um…” I sighed, and rubbed my hands together, brushing off the sand. “Aly and I talked about getting married.”

  Grace’s eyes stopped blinking and then restart at a faster pace. “What does Aly say about it? Are you engaged?”

  I gave the word engaged another thought. “We touched on the marriage subject. We’re gonna give it another go.” I watched Ethan for a moment before I spoke again. “No, not engaged, if it even has to be an official thing.” The thought of it made me warm inside. “She says she doesn’t care either way what I decide about Jackson; that it’s up to me, my choice. She knows about the legal papers. She knows what Sienna is asking for.” Grace and I locked eyes. “Aly went to see Sienna. She confronted her. Supposedly threatened her. Aly doesn’t know that I know. She didn’t tell me she went to see Sienna. But Sienna came back with her own threats.”

  “What kind of threats?”

  “That she’d be dammed if Aly would be Jackson’s stepmom and that if I didn’t let this go, like it never happened, she would make it as difficult as she could for me to see Jackson.”

  “She’s that vindictive? A woman scorned?” her voice pitched. “Was she in love with you?”

  I hung my head. “Quite the opposite. She basically wants to tell Jackson that Dump…Victor is his father.”

  Her gorgeous face looked stricken by the news. Every time I thought about it, I felt the same way. My mind wandered to the future – should I fight for my son? The waves crashed at the shore, loudly blending with the laughter of children playing at the water’s edge, deepening my sense of direction.

  As if she read my mind, she asked, “What is your first instinct, Jake?”

  The question stabbed at my heart and sunk my gut.

  “This is our chance, Aly and me…you know…she’s not running. She said she didn’t feel like running anymore.” In a frustrated move, I thrust myself onto my back, lying in the sand. I covered my eyes with one arm. “Like, this is the most fucked up thing that could come between us and she wants to stay, even knowing she might be a stepmom.” Shielding my eyes from the sun, I peeked at Grace. She stared off toward the water, nodding her head. I continued, “My first instinct is to give Sienna what she wants. I don’t want my future with Aly to be filled with a battle that will ensue for a lifetime. Sienna made it clear she would make our lives miserable.”

  “Did you feel any connection to Jackson when you were with him?”

  “Yeah, I did.” It tore me up inside admitting it. “That’s why I’m so confused.”

  Grace sighed and reached over rubbing my thigh. “You would make a great father, Jake.” She pulled her knees up, hugging them to her chest saying ever so faintly, “Boys need their dads.”

  I know.

  21

  Jake

  I departed Grace and Ethan and the combative shriek of seagulls fighting over someone’s lunch, left alone and exposed. Normally, I’d help out by shooing the birds away and cover their food filled shopping bags with their towels. Instead, I just watched, entranced, as the birds annihilated their snacks. Beach rookies. I thought and shrugged. Next time, they’ll put it away. With a heavy heart, I drudged across the sand heading to my mom’s house. I was about to inform her she was a grandma.

  Kill me.

  I covered my eyes with my shades and began the long walk up the hill, cutting through the back alleys of my beachside town. Dodging shoppers, and tourists was always a top priority. Salty old beach bums strolled by with their heads down, while dog walkers gave courteous nods and stay-at-home moms getting their fitness on glanced my way. The back alleys were the best way to travel through town as a resident.

  Sweaty from the half-mile walk up hill, I turned right onto my childhood street, slowing my steps – lagging on purpose, the dread of confrontation filled me up like a sandbag. I took off my shirt, allowing the breeze to cool me down, and wiped my face with it. The bend in the road revealed my one story boyhood home, and Aly’s two-story yellow Craftsman sat right next to it. A sudden honk from a black BMW going by made me jump. A hand flew out of its sunroof and waved. In a knee-jerk reaction, I wave back and immediately regret it. The taillights illuminated and the car slowed to a stop. Oh great, who the fuck is this? Arizona license plates – no one I know. I quickened my pace and tried not to acknowledge the stopped car only feet away as I passed it.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me!” A familiar voice from another lifetime tugged me to a stop. I turned and looked at the windshield. I could only see a silhouette. The car slowly rolled toward me and stopped at the passenger window. “It’s Rachel!” The voice rattled my brain.

  No fucking way.

  I slid my glasses on top of my head as I bent down to look inside the car. It’s her, all right. An older her, but it’s Rach
el – big eyes, button nose. Her hair no longer cut severely punk rock. It was now soft blonde and shoulder length with a light wave, professional. She still wore heavy eye makeup but her lips were nude, not blood red, as I’d known them in the long, forgotten past.

  “Wow.” I said, with a lopped-grin and rested my forearms on the car door, peering inside.

  “Yeah, wow!” She said excitedly. “What are you doing here?”

  “No place like home.” I answered with a facetious smile.

  “I can’t believe I ran into you.” She paused studying my face and looked away, over the hood of her car. “I’m visiting my mom and dad. My dad isn’t doing too well. He’s having heart surgery…”

  “Aw man, sorry to hear it…”

  With a blasé flip of her wrist, she smacked away my condolence. “Don’t worry about it, he’ll be fine.” She said, quickly, and ran her hand tactfully through her hair. She leaned toward me. “So bizarre…just last night my mom got a call from Sienna looking for me.”

  My heart stopped beating for a second, I was sure of it. I smiled, trying to hide the fact that I was struggling for air. I nodded and said, “Cool. Did you talk to her?”

  She glanced down at her hand and nodded. My mind raced. Did she know? Why would she know? Sienna didn’t want anyone knowing I was her son’s father.

  “We only talked for a quick minute. She was in the middle of a meeting when I called her back. But she did say she might be coming back to LA soon and might need me for a character witness in some lawsuit. Totally sucks to be the reason to get ahold of me.”

  I felt the blood drain from my face. I pulled the glasses back over my eyes and stood up. She kept talking and I listened as I watched her through the sunroof. She shook her head and her brow wrinkled. “I feel bad that I never stayed in touch with her. I sent my condolences to her after Dump passed…”

  I slapped the roof of her car. “Hey, it’s life. Don’t beat yourself up.”

  “I suppose.” She said, unhappily.

  “So…Arizona huh?” I asked, changing the subject, but what I really wanted was to move the hell on.

  “Yeah. I went to college at ASU, got a job interning at a public relations firm, and fast forward…I own my own event planning company.” She explained, proudly. “I stayed in Arizona. Phoenix.”

  I smiled, genuinely pleased at what she’d made of herself. “Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” I remarked with a smile, recalling that her mother was also a successful event planner.

  We smiled awkwardly at each other for a short moment, and then she said, “So weird I ran into you…here. I’m driving by on purpose, feeling nostalgic after talking to Sienna last night. I actually thought maybe I’d run into you and here you are.”

  “Yeah, totally weird.” I was freaked out about it.

  She reached over to the passenger seat and dug in her purse. Her hand shot up through the sunroof, holding a business card pinched between her fingers. “Don’t be a stranger.”

  I took the card. “You got it.” I grinned. “Take care.”

  With a fan of her fingers, she took off down the road.

  I have to call Aly.

  There were no cars parked at Aly’s house and only my mom’s was parked in her driveway. Notting’s truck wasn’t there and I wondered if she was home or if they were away together. I wasn’t ready to face her by myself, so I sat on the front porch steps deciding to text Notting – Are you home? I took note of the time, 2:22 PM, Tuesday, June 21st. As I waited for Notting to reply, I hit Aly’s phone number. I needed to hear her voice.

  “Hi.” She answered, breathy.

  “Hey, is this a bad time?”

  “No, no. I was gonna call, too. I have a tournament in San Francisco next weekend…was hoping you could visit.”

  “Oh, um…let me think.” I rubbed my eye with the heel of my hand. “I’m at my mom’s. What are the dates?”

  “It’s Fourth of July weekend.”

  My stomach tumbled. “Of course it is. That’s the weekend Notting arranged a show at the Hard Rock in Vegas.”

  She gave a disgruntled moan. “Okay.”

  “I miss you. I promise I’ll come visit as soon as I can.”

  Her heavy sigh leaked into my ear. “Did you tell your mom?”

  “Something just happened, making me rethink this. I’m not sure telling her she’s a grandma is the right thing to do, seeing as I might take Sienna up on her offer.” I hung my head between my legs and picked up a dead leaf lying next to my feet. I crumbled it in my hand. Aly was silent. “Hello?”

  “I’m here…I…I’m surprised to hear that.” Her voice sounded thin.

  “You are?”

  “I think so…I…”

  “I just ran into Rachel.” I blurted out, not thinking, and a swath of silence filled my ear, “Aly?”

  “Yeah.” She replied, flatly.

  “Did you hear me?”

  “You ran into Rachel Schaffer?” Aly’s voice sharpened.

  I didn’t blame her tone. The universe was throwing everything it could at us to see if our love would conquer all. “Another jagged piece to the puzzle.”

  “What now?”

  “Sienna called her to be a character witness if we end up going to court over Jackson.”

  Her silence wormed its way to my heart. I ached for the feel of her, to make this whole thing better. “Hey…where you going next?” I asked shifting gears. I didn’t want to dwell on Sienna, Jackson, my mom, or anyone else anymore. “I’ll come visit after Vegas.”

  “Chicago. The windy city.”

  “Text me the dates and I’ll make it happen.”

  “Are you sure? I don’t want to get excited.” I could picture her pouting.

  “I’m pretty sure, but let me get back home and check things out and I’ll let you know later tonight.”

  “Okay.”

  “I love you, Alycat.” I felt desperate for her to know it a million times over. “Running into Rachel was like a fucking omen. I’m here at my mom’s to tell them what’s happened…and what are the odds that I run into her? Rachel tells me just last night she talked to Sienna. I don’t think I have this fight in me, Aly.”

  “Just like you said, you don’t have to make a decision right away.” Her voice cracked gently through the phone.

  “I just feel like I have to make a choice before I can do anything else. It’s paralyzing.” I said miserably and stood, stepping toward the street. I’d address the issue with my parents another day.

  “You don’t have to do anything right now. Just focus on your gig and I’ll see if I can come home between tournaments, gotta figure out the finances.”

  Her offer perked me up. “Just give me your flight info and I’ll make it happen.”

  “Jake, I don’t…” She was about to protest my generosity, like she always had.

  “Stop it, Aly.” I said, a little too firmly and softened my voice. “If we’re gonna be together, you have to let me take care of you.”

  Silence met my invitation and with a heavy sigh, she finally conceded. She had always hated taking anything from me and was the only girl who ever did. After our goodbye, I walked heavy-footed and sweaty back down the hill to my house. I strolled through the wide streets of the Hill Section, weaving down to 2nd Street, and cutting over to 8th Street, down to the Greenbelt that would take me to my house. So much had changed since I was a kid, with beach cottages being replaced by mammoth McMansions. Every now and then I passed a home that was somewhat an original one-story ranch-style. Those would probably be gone soon, too, though. Practically every fifth house I passed, an original structure, was gated off by chain-linked fence in preparation for being demolished. Soon, they’d all be gone.

  Nothing stayed the same, does it? Except for the way I felt about Aly.

  I went straight to the shower, for a cold one. Not only was I soaking wet from the excursion of walking up and down hills in eighty-degree heat, after talking to Aly, all I could think
of was what it would be like when we saw each other again – soft skin, wet lips. I had a chub the whole way home. When I got out of the shower, a slew of texts from her were waiting, informing me that she could come home after Chicago. Unfortunately, that was just under three weeks away. Waiting to see her was a killer, but was a good idea after looking at the dates on the calendar.

  I’d let something slip my mind. Staring at my computer screen, the square for Sunday, July 17th was marked SECRET SHOW in big red font. It was a date set for a local show, a free show for Concerts at Polliwog Park. Usually, the musicians who played were top-rate cover bands, but because this was my hometown when I was asked, I said yes. It was being slated as Hometown Hero.

  Aly would be home a week before.

  Could I just sleep until then?

  22

  Alyssa

  I rolled over onto my side and reached out, expecting to feel warmth. Instead I felt a cool sheet beneath my hand. My eyes fluttered open. Jake wasn’t next to me. It was still dark and I looked to the nightstand, checking the time, 5:22 AM. I lifted my head, looking toward the bathroom and listened. No sound.

  I threw my legs over the side of the bed and pushed myself up. My eyes adjusted to the hazy darkness and the sliver of light shining through the cracked bedroom door. I walked sleepily toward it. Lights from downstairs brightened the upstairs hallway. I leaned against the banister and called out Jake’s name. No answer.

  I padded back into the bedroom and turned on the bedside lamp, looking over the bed for a note…anything. I located my phone sitting on the chair next to the nightstand and saw Jake had sent me a text – Couldn’t sleep, went to the gym. I was surprised I slept. The talks we’d been having since I got back three days ago had been a roller coaster of what-ifs – and last night, it had escalated with a call from Notting, his father. Jake had been avoiding him. He regretted telling him about Jackson, leaving the conversation with, “I don’t even really know if the kid’s mine. She could be lying for all I know.” He knew. We both did. He just wanted to get Notting off his back.