The McCallans

by Hadley Quinn

“No,” she shook her head, watching him curiously. “But Camryn does. Teague might too, if Cam mentioned it to him, but I’ve never told anyone about it.”

  “So what do you do with the lyrics? Do they get put to music eventually?”

  Melanie chuckled, but her smile was sad. “No. They just pile up in here,” she tapped the notebook. “Lynn played around with one of them a few weeks ago and it was really pretty. It wasn’t really her band’s style of music, but she said there were plenty that could use my lyrics.”

  “Lynn’s band is the one Jordan is in, right?” Jay asked, even though he already knew.

  “Yes, but I was only with Lynn that day. She just put something together acoustic for it.”

  Jay knew he was being territorial, but he didn’t want any little reason for that fucker to be around Melanie. “She’s right. There are tons of musicians and bands that hire songwriters. You should talk to a few people about it.”

  “A few people?” she repeated with a chuckle. “I don’t know any musicians besides Lynn. And besides, I just do this for fun. It’s kind of my therapy.”

  “You need therapy?” he smiled at her.

  “Everyone needs therapy. Do you miss playing your guitar?” He only rolled his eyes at the parallelism so she added, “Well, this is good for me. Helps me to really think and put some of my thoughts down, things that have happened in the past. I’ve never kept a journal, but this is as close to it as I can get.”

  “I understand,” he nodded. He reached over and pulled her lounge chair closer to his. He leaned forward next to her ear and said, “Got any good songs about me?”

  He heard her stifle a laugh, and when he pulled back to look into her eyes, she was studying him intently. It was those eyes that pulled him under every fucking time, and just when he thought she was going to devour his mouth with hers, she said, “Actually the dark and miserable songs that Lynn liked were the ones about you.”

  He cocked an eyebrow as a response, but her mouth was just too irresistible to pass up. Sliding his hand behind her head, he pulled her to him and took her lips with his. He got about three seconds into the kiss when he heard Teague’s truck pull into the driveway out front, so he made the most of the next few seconds, pressing his tongue against hers and sucking her lower lip.

  He stood when he pulled away, feeling pretty damn happy that Melanie looked totally worked over and breathless. He gave her an arrogant smile before heading to the back door.

  “You’d better get rid of that massive boner,” she called from behind him.

  “No shit,” he replied, but he couldn’t hold back the massive grin that went with it.

  Dinner seemed to take forever this time, and even though Jay loved spending time with Camryn and Teague, he couldn’t get the last couple of days with Melanie out of his head. He had to watch what he said and did in front of Teague or he would know he’d been in her pants. They just knew these things about each other.

  Trying to revert back to the way things were before was tough, and Jay was worn out by the end of the night. Once he’d even said something that was probably a little too rude to Mel, just because he felt like Teague was giving the two of them funny looks all night and something needed to throw him off. Telling Melanie that her cooking attempts were far from edible was not only rude, but a total fucking lie.

  “Just remember that you owe me strawberries, asshole,” Melanie pointed her fork at him from across the table.

  “Hey, we got you strawberries,” Jay answered.

  “No, Teague got me strawberries and I know he had to drag your ass there. Plus, that was an entirely different incident, so in my opinion, you still owe me strawberries.”

  “Walk to the store yourself,” he said, taking the last bite of his baked potato. “You’re so worried about pregnancy weight gain, it will be good for you.”

  “You did not just say that,” he heard Camryn mumble. Even Teague was shaking his head at him.

  “How ‘bout this,” Melanie smiled at him. “Get me the damn strawberries you owe me, or I castrate you in your sleep.”

  He almost said, “That would suck for you,” but caught himself. All he could do was try not to laugh, but it came out sounding like he was trying not to choke. And from the gleam in Melanie’s eye, he could tell she felt the victory on that one.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “I can’t believe you’re even thinking about selling the 429,” Kyle said, shaking his head. “You’re out of your mind.”

  “It was the plan from the start,” Jay answered as he collected his belongings from Beck’s shop. “It’s what’s gonna get me my own shop.”

  Beck was out for the day so it was the perfect opportunity, but Kyle’s chatter was slowing him down. Jay scanned the shelves on the far wall of the garage until he spotted a battery charger that belonged to him. He dropped it into the crate of tools with his other things.

  “But still… I mean you’re gonna make a shit ton of money on that car, but it’s been your dream to own one of those.”

  “Well, life changes now and then. I wouldn’t be hurting for money right now if I’d made better choices out of high school.”

  “Forget the past, Jay. You’ve come a long ways. Don’t beat yourself up over things you can’t change.”

  He’d heard those words a dozen times, first from Teague, then from his grandpa, and now from Tyse and Melanie. He knew they were right, but it didn’t mean he’d gotten past his mistakes just yet.

  “I’m working on it, but new things keep popping up at every turn.”

  Fuck, was he really going to whine to Kyle about his life right now? Kyle who was barely over twenty-one and whose goal in life was to marry a supermodel?

  Hell, Melanie was twenty, but she seemed way beyond that these days. She was only three years younger than Jay, but had more of her life in order than he did. Well, she seemed more comfortable with it, at least.

  “Well you have another job now,” Kyle stated, breaking his thoughts. “I sure miss you here, but at least you’re employed, right?”

  Jay knew he was throwing his own words back in his face, but he wasn’t in the mood. He’d been working a new job for three days now and it fucking sucked. He’d been offered a job from all three of the businesses he’d inquired about because of his last name, no doubt. He picked the auto shop that seemed the most legit when it came to cars, but he was beginning to realize the little comments from his co-workers, the random customers that dropped in to “visit” the shop, and the way his boss seemed to think he could do no wrong were obviously not a coincidence.

  And the bottom line was that it just wasn’t Beck’s shop.

  “Hey, thanks for the help,” Jay said as he hauled the crate of belongings to Teague’s truck. He slid it into the back with the other items, including a set of rims and a carburetor.

  “Any time,” Kyle nodded. “And if it means anything to you, Beck still hasn’t hired anyone new.”

  “I’m irreplaceable, baby,” Jay smirked as he climbed into the cab of the truck.

  “Yeah, I know,” Kyle laughed. “And Beck knows it too. Just give him time, okay?”

  Jay didn’t have a response as he pulled away, but his first thought was that Beck could crawl on his hands and knees begging for his return and he’d give him a great big ‘fuck you.’

  When he pulled into Teague’s driveway after unloading his stuff at his own house first, he couldn’t even believe whose car was parked on the street. And then he saw the bastard sitting on the porch step with Melanie and instant rage filled him.

  Jay hopped out of the truck and headed straight for the front door as Jordan jumped to his feet.

  “Stay the fuck away from me,” Jordan warned him.

  “Or what?” Jay laughed sarcastically.

  Melanie was already standing between them and put her hands against Jay’s chest. “Enough. We’re just talking. Teague’s inside, so chill out.”

  The front door opened just as she spoke Teague’
s name, and he was right there on the porch with them. He didn’t even say anything and motioned for Jay to come inside, and although it took everything in him to do it, one look at Melanie’s silent plea convinced him to comply.

  He followed Teague into the house, but never took his eyes off Jordan the entire time. The piece of shit tried to hold his ground, but looked away when Jay forcefully brushed by him.

  Slamming the front door behind him, Jay said, “That is not okay.” He pointed through the door to the porch and shook his head. “How can you even let that asshole step foot on your property?”

  “Because Melanie wanted to talk to him,” Teague replied firmly. He was obviously pissed about being spoken to the way he was but Jay wasn’t sorry. “And yes, this is my house and I would rather her do it here with me present than somewhere else. And while you’re questioning me, how ‘bout I question you for a little bit, huh? This is not normal.” Teague did his own pointing from Jay to the front porch. “I understand you want to protect her just as much as I do, but why don’t you tell me the truth, Jay? And don’t fucking lie to me because I can see right through you.”

  “Why don’t you expound a little since I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about,” Jay growled back.

  Teague shook his head with disbelief. “You and Melanie. And don’t tell me it isn’t true because I already know without a doubt that you two have been hooking up. What I want to know is why the fuck you are when I warned you against it, and why the fuck you’re doing it behind my back.”

  “What I do in my own time doesn’t have to go through you first.”

  Teague took a deep breath and ran his hands through his hair. “Oh holy fucking shit, it really is true.”

  Holy fucking shit was right. That motherfucker was just baiting him into confessing? He thought Melanie might have finally said something, so Jay didn’t bother to question it.

  “What is it to you what two adults do when they’re not under your watch? I mean seriously, Teague. You and Camryn have been practically babysitting her every move. When do you ever let her make choices on her own, huh?”

  “For your information, I do not tell her how to live her life. This has to do with you, and it has to do with me telling you to stay the hell away from her! I have never been adamant about any female that you’ve hooked up with, but she is my wife’s sister, for shit’s sake! Camryn has lived her entire life trying to be there for Melanie. The one thing I could do to help was keep you away from her, and I couldn’t even fucking do it!”

  “Well that’s just a bummer you couldn’t keep the big bad wolf away from your sister-in-law. If Camryn has that low of an opinion of me, then why the hell am I even here? Am I your goddamn project too? Seriously, Teague, if you fucking tell me that your only wish where I’m concerned is to stay away from your wife’s sister, you can blow me.”

  “I care about you, Jay,” Teague sighed. “And I care about Melanie. I can’t do it, okay? I can’t stick up for you and pick up the pieces at the same time. I just can’t.”

  “So nice that you think so highly of me.”

  “Don’t be a damn baby. If you can stand there and tell me that you have every intention of staying with Melanie—now and after her baby is born—then I will back the fuck off. But if you’re just in this for the fun of screwing around with her, then I highly suggest you stop right now.” Jay only glared at him so Teague asked, “So? Which is it?”

  “I don’t need this shit right now,” Jay finally answered, tossing the truck keys in the air.

  Teague caught them without even looking and Jay pulled the keys to the Nova out of his pocket. He opened the front door, dreading the faces on the other side. Jordan and Melanie were still standing there and Jay sighed, wondering if either of them had heard his argument with Teague.

  He stepped by them and headed for his car parked on the road, hoping that his mood was being read loud and clear. But when he heard Melanie behind him, saying his name, it was like everything inside of him did a one-eighty. He slowed to let her catch up, and when he got to his car, she stopped beside him, worry and concern etched all over her face.

  “What’s going on?” she asked quietly. “Where are you going?”

  “I’m going home. I was just swapping Teague’s truck after using it.”

  She was quiet for a moment and bit her lower lip. “How’d work go today? And did you get what you needed from Beck’s?”

  He barely nodded. “Yeah.”

  “And?”

  He looked at her for several long seconds and slowly shrugged. “And what, Mel? What are you asking?”

  “I’m asking if I can come home with you.”

  She wrapped her arms around him and laid her face against his chest, and just like that, the rest of the unease and bitterness seemed to dissolve. He kissed the top of her head and glanced toward the porch where Jordan was watching them, awkwardly shifting his stance.

  “Of course you can, hon,” Jay answered, even if it was out of irritation at the moment and to spite the prick that he despised so much. “I’ll wait if you need to grab anything.”

  “Ha, I’m not leaving you out here with him,” she answered, moving for the car. She waited for him to unlock the door and then climbed in, so Jay shut her door and made his way around to the driver’s door. By then Jordan was walking away from Teague’s house, hopefully for his own car, but Jay didn’t stick around to find out. He squealed away from the curb and headed for home.

  “Did you have a fight with Teague?” Melanie finally asked. “I heard loud voices.”

  “And?”

  “And what? No, I didn’t hear what it was about. I’m just wondering what I can do to help.”

  Jay was silent for several blocks as he contemplated an answer. Finally he said, “He knows we’ve been sleeping together.”

  “It’s none of his business,” she replied instantly. “Nor is it Camryn’s business.”

  She sighed and shook her head, and Jay could totally understand how she felt. Camryn would give her the same crap that Teague had given him if she knew.

  He reached over and grabbed her hand, and when she smiled at him, thoughts of anyone else disappeared. “You wanna get something to eat with me? I’m starving.”

  “Yes,” she smiled bigger. “You choose because I would eat anything right now, and probably two.”

  “Hmm, not very picky, huh?”

  “No,” she laughed. “I barely ate lunch because I knew Jordan was stopping by.”

  “And why did he stop by, might I ask? What the hell does he need to see you for anyways?”

  “I’m the one that asked him to stop by,” she admitted, turning to face him a little better. “I needed to just…tell him a few things and…”

  “Tell him what?”

  “That I want him out of my life for good. He keeps bouncing around different ideas all the time. One minute he’s talking about paying child support and weekend visitations, the next he says he’s going to be touring and doesn’t have time for any of it. He wants me back, he doesn’t want me back, he wants to see his kid, he doesn’t want a kid… I can’t deal with the constant changes. And he needs to lay off the drugs. He needs to just step out of the picture and let me do this on my own. I can’t stand his texts and phone calls all the time. I told him so, and told him a bunch of other stuff, and I just need him to back the fuck off!”

  Now that was grounds for pulling the car over. Jay never heard Melanie swear like that and it was a huge warning sign.

  “Why are we stopping?” she asked with a frustrated sigh, looking at their surroundings. “This is a creepy neighborhood.”

  “Because I’m missing something here and I’m not driving until it’s clear to me. I thought the whole point of meeting with Jordan before was to settle some things and get him to quit calling you. Isn’t that why your uncle met with you guys? To make sure it all got sorted out?”

  She didn’t answer at first as she leaned her head against the window. Fi
nally she said, “I didn’t know what I wanted at the time. All I established with him was that I wasn’t moving in with him. Maybe I had some hope that he would change, yes, because at the time I didn’t know if there were other possibilities. But this time I gave him my final answer and it was that I’m done dealing with him. I have better things in my life right now.”

  She looked at him briefly and then straight ahead through the windshield. The reality of Teague’s words were finally starting to hit Jay when he realized how much he was impacting—or could impact—Melanie’s life. And not just hers, but everyone else’s—including a child’s. Would he always be there for her? Yeah, of course. But to what extent was he actually available? He was no more reliable than her loser ex, and as much as he liked the fact that she didn’t want to be with Jordan, Jay was starting to feel the pressure.

  He was at a loss for words and decided to just pull away from the curb to head for home, but Melanie suddenly got out of the car. He thought maybe she was pissed with him for some reason, but then he heard her yelling at someone from the sidewalk.

  Jay got out of the car to see what the hell was going on, just in time to see a guy kicking a dog one last time before he turned his attention to Melanie.

  “What the hell are you doing to that poor thing?” she shouted at him, and then she marched down the sidewalk to the yard two houses down.

  “Oh shit,” Jay murmured to himself. He rushed after her while she was still yelling for the guy to leave the dog alone. The asshole actually had the audacity to kick it again, just to spite her.

  “Mind your own business, bitch,” he snarled at her. He snorted up some phlegm and spit it her direction.

  “You’re a disgusting pig,” she said, and she kept walking toward him. “Give me the dog or I’ll call the police. That is not okay! You are abusing an innocent animal!”

  “Mel, stay away from this guy,” Jay said quietly as he grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

  “Oh my God Jay, look at him,” she said. Her last few words choked up as she stared at the poor animal whimpering at his abuser’s feet.