Forever & Again

by Allie York

  Torin laughed. “It’s all she’s fucking worth, being a side chick.” He turned to leave, thinking he had the last word. Without another thought, my fist flew out, catching him in the nose. The satisfying crunch of knuckles smashing cartilage filled the silence and Torin dropped his knees clutching his bleeding face. “What the fuck, old man? You just sucker punched me, you motherfucker!” Torin shrieked through the blood.

  I stooped to get in his face. “Be glad she didn’t hear you say that, and if I find out you have been sniffing around my woman again, I will be feeding your tiny cock to you. Got it?” I left him on his knees to go get in the car with Lydia and Oliver. I handed the giant stuffed bears into the back seat and slammed the car door. Lydia and Oliver stared, but neither said a word as we watched Torin struggle to his feet and drag his arm across his bloody nose. Lydia started the car, leaned over to kiss my cheek, and pulled off toward my house.

  Chapter Thirteen

  LYDIA

  “Jacob punched him?” Cori licked the back of her yogurt spoon and gestured for me to go on with my story.

  “That’s all there is. We went home, I cleaned up his cuts and we went to bed.” I shrugged, putting another bite of frozen yogurt in my mouth.

  “It’s kind of hot, though.” Jovie pointed her spoon at me. “All defending your honor and shit.” My sister had a point. Watching Jacob slam his fist into Torin’s stupid nose was really sexy. I hadn’t brought it up since. Well, not to him. Instead, I took frozen yogurt to Cori and Jove at work and talked to them about it.

  “I just wish Ollie hadn’t seen it. The last thing I need is him fighting with someone because he thinks it’s okay.” They both agreed. Both of them being parents meant they understood. The conversation turned naughty fast, as things tend to when three women start chatting. Cori grumbled over her lack of love life, but didn’t sour the mood. After her ex-husband went to prison for running drugs and she was attacked and raped by some low-life dealer, she had sworn off men and sex. I couldn’t blame her. The girl had been through so much more than any person should. Cori was raising her daughter alone and doing a damn good job. The shitty hand she was dealt didn’t make her bitter, at least, not that she let on. She always played the edgy card, but was a huge sweetheart.

  “Well, ladies, it was good to see you, but I am going to have my body mutilated.” I hugged them both, tossed my empty cup in the trash, and left them to groom dogs. Two blocks later, I pushed into Needles to find Reese already there. Jovie had impulsively gotten a tattoo a few months back in honor of our late aunt, Lynn. Lynn helped our mother raise us and was the most supportive person in my life when I found out I was pregnant with Ollie. Her love for her nieces was only overshadowed by her love for Rod Stewart. So one night after leaving her graveside, Jove stopped and got a shoulder tattoo. “Forever Young” only seemed appropriate.

  It was Reese’s and my turn to get the matching ones.

  “Ready, ladies?” Hattie came running up front and hugged her best friend. Reese and Hattie went to high school together and our mother housed her and her brother for a while when their parents were killed in an accident. She was the piercer at Needles and her brother was an artist and co-owner. Reese and Hattie talked for a few seconds before she led us back to the tattoo room where Waylon and Griffin were waiting.

  Griffin winked at me and I rolled my eyes. Always such a whore. He had tried for months to get Jovie in bed with him to no avail, so had set his sights on me again until Jacob came back into the picture. Griff had grown into a beautiful man with a head full of blackish hair and piercing blue eyes. Waylon was shorter, stockier and looked like a biker with a shaved head and a long goatee. Both were covered in works of art and two of the nicest guys ever.

  “I hear you’re officially off the market?” Waylon snapped his black gloves around his wrists.

  “Yeah, I guess so.”

  “I don’t see a ring.” Griffin started his gun and adjusted to start on Reese’s tattoo. “No ring makes it fair game, Lydia. No matter how long you’ve been banging the teacher.” I resisted the urge to throw my shoe at him. Always such an ass. The banter went on with them all reminding me that I screwed our math teacher. Griff had been in my class too, so he thought that gave him some sort of privilege. I couldn’t wait for some woman to walk into his life and knock him flat on his ass. It was bound to happen.

  They finished up our tattoos, we paid, and left Needles. The conversation kept my mind off of why we had chosen to all three get that tattoo, but once I was in the car, I was reminded. Lynn hadn’t directly taken her own life, but prescription drug abuse had played a huge role in her health issues. Time hadn’t even begun to take away the sting of her absence. My aunt not being at Ollie’s party was painful, but I touched the fresh ink on my shoulder and tried to remember the good times with my aunt.

  I made my way to my house for the first time since the accident. Jacob wasn’t hurt other than a few scrapes and cuts, but we stayed with him for a few weeks after. It eased my mind to have him next to me. The wreck could have been so much worse. Sarah’s stupid ass could have cost me my son and Jacob. Then there was the fact that I was sleeping with a man who was otherwise committed to someone else. It just solidified my title of worst decision maker in history.

  A weird feeling of dread struck me as I pulled in my driveway. The house looked fine, like it always looked, but something was off. I couldn’t put my finger on it. The door was still locked, so that was good, but a distinct sinking feeling pulled me down. The house was empty and exactly the way I left it. Ewan had Ollie and Amelia out fishing so I had a few hours to kill with nothing to do. My unease slacked as I did a lap through the house. Nothing was out of place. I noticed the light on my answering machine blinking and pushed the button. I never actually used my house phone except for parents to reach me on. I didn’t really want my students’ parents to call my cell so I gave out my landline to them in case they needed me. It was a win-win. I could talk to them when it was convenient for me, but they still felt as if I was taking a personal interest in their child. I unloaded the dishes listening to telemarketer after telemarketer try to sell me crap I didn’t need or want. Then the last call made me freeze.

  “You can’t avoid this forever, Mr. Teller and neither can your wife. We know where you are, where your mistress is, and where your son is at all times. Cough up the money and this goes away. Don’t and things are going to get ugly fast. We have ways of getting our money, Mr. Teller.” The machine went silent and I just stood there, staring at the phone. Then I picked up my cell from the table and called Jacob. It rang then went to voicemail. I replayed the message while going through the phone for a number to call back. Blocked number. His wife? His mistress? They had mentioned Ollie. My hands were sweating, shaking, and my mouth was dry. What the hell? I called Jacob again, still getting noanswer. Then I called Ewan. I needed to talk to Ollie, to hear his voice. The message had been left the night before while I was with Jacob. He hadn’t mentioned anything being wrong.

  Ewan answered, assuring me that they were all fine and letting me talk to Ollie. I replayed the message again. It was definitely for Jacob. Calling the police crossed my mind, but I didn’t want to make any impulsive decisions until I talked to him. Unfortunately, Jacob wasn’t answering the damn phone. I double checked that my door was locked and pulled out my laptop. Looking up marriages and divorces was pretty easy courtesy of the internet. What if he had lied? What if he was still married? What money were they wanting?

  After a few clicks, I found out Jacob and Tera were divorced. The paperwork had been filed exactly like Jacob said and he was no longer married to Tera Sterchi Teller. Then I googled her. It came up a dead end other than her profile on the Marston High School directory where she was listed as the assistant principal and still had the last name Teller. I tried calling Jacob again, but it still went to voicemail. My man never ignored phone calls, especially when I was the one calling.

  So, I called his dad. “Hey,
I’m so sorry to bug you, but Jacob isn’t home, is he?”

  “No, Lyddie, Jacob’s not here.” William started calling me Lyddie the first day I met him. But my nickname sounded forced and he seemed uncomfortable. “Left a bit ago. I’m not sure what he’s doing, Lydia, he told me to tell you that he was asleep because his head hurt. I can’t lie to my girl, though.”

  “Thanks, William. I can’t get ahold of him and was just worried. I’m sure he’s fine. I’ll be by again later.” I lied my ass off. Something was wrong, Jacob was in trouble, and I had no idea what to do. There was no way for me to look for him, no way I would even know where to start. The man was lying to me, keeping things from me, and in some kind of trouble. Trouble having to do with his ex. It was bad enough that Jacob was keeping something from me, but her involvement made it worse.

  Chapter Fourteen

  JACOB

  It didn’t matter how many times I told the man in the driver’s seat that I was divorced, he still kept driving. I was the reigning champion of fuck-ups and my decision to get into the back seat of the man’s car just drove that point home. My phone rang in the front seat but the man just kept ignoring it and me. I gave up, leaned back, and watched the scenery. I could at least keep track of where I was going. Lydia was going to have lunch with Jovie, Oliver was with Ewan, and I was dumb enough to get in a stranger’s car after the asshole made threats.

  When I opened the door, the man started a speech about selling insurance but then held up a picture of Lydia, Oliver, and me at the skate park. The guy was taller than me and a lesser man would be intimidated by him. He handed me the stack of pictures, still rattling off about life insurance. There were pictures of Lydia and me at Jake’s, Oliver going into Jude’s house, and then the three of us at the park. With a threat like that, I followed orders. I had no idea where I was going, why I was going, or what they wanted from me, but with my family not safe, I went. My phone rang yet again, but the man ignored it. Lydia was going to flip her shit. We made it into the west side of town and he parked the car in front of a strip mall that had a laundry mat, a pool hall, and one of those predatory loan places. Whatever I had done, it was not a good thing.

  He pocketed my phone and walked around to open my door, jerking his head at the pool hall. It was too early in the day for it to be busy, but I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. I walked in, followed too closely by the meat-head driver, and the smell of cigarettes nearly smothered me. My captor shoved me toward a door in the back and I spun to face him. I could follow orders, but I was not getting shoved around.

  “Tell me where to go, but don’t fucking touch me again,” Him and I were eye to eye and I was being more than agreeable. There was no way I was getting pushed around when I knew I could beat his ass. The three bikers playing pool stopped to watch us and my escort nodded once before shoving around me. They resumed their game and I followed the man through the door. I felt like I had just walked into a seedy strip joint. The man behind the desk had his hand in some woman’s hair while she sucked his dick and a man in the corner was screwing some other woman from behind, not even noticing the audience walking in. I made a disgusted noise and turned away. What the fuck is going on?

  I heard some more commotion then the man spoke. “Thanks baby.” The two women retreated, both of them eyeing me as they went. “Mr. Teller. Once we conclude our business, feel free to have a go. I’m a generous man.”

  “Uh, no thanks. I’ll be happy if you just tell me why the hell I’m here.” I memorized the man at the desk, struggling to move past the fact that he was just having his knob polished. He was maybe fifty with receding gray hair and looked as greasy as his pool hall. The boss man resembled a toad with his bulging eyes and wide mouth.

  “Your wife has gotten herself in some trouble as I’m sure you are well aware.” I had no idea what the hell the grease ball was talking about. “She assured us that you would be good for her debt, but all of our attempts to reach you came up empty. My patience is running very thin here and now she has vanished on us. Poof, she’s gone and left without squaring up.”

  He stopped leaving the ball in my court. “I think you have me confused. I’m not married and have no fucking clue what debt you are talking about.” Was there another Jacob Teller? “All I know is that your friend here showed up at my Dad’s house, showed me pictures of my girlfriend and my son, and we left.” I held up my left hand. “Not married buddy. So, if I could get my phone and go that would be fantastic.”

  The man laughed. “Are you trying to pull one over on me, Mr. Teller? At this point, I am willing to let your wife work the debt off, if you know what I mean, but your shitty attitude is putting me in a bad mood. So, you can cough up the twenty grand in the next twenty-four hours or this gets ugly for you.” He leaned forward, tenting his fingers on the desk and staring me down. Twenty grand?

  “I’m not fucking married!” I screamed at the man and the two men behind me rushed me, locking my arms behind me and dragging me toward the desk. The more I fought, the more pain shot through my shoulders. My face was slammed down on the metal desk on top of a stack of pictures by one guy while the other held my arms firm. I grit my teeth. “You have the wrong guy.”

  Boss man held a picture in front of me and everything snapped into place. Fucking Tera. The phone calls, the confusion about me being married. “You do recognize your wife, don’t you? When we find her you may not, but this picture jogs your memory, doesn’t it?” The man let go of my head and I jerked upright. Blood filled my mouth from biting my cheek. He fanned the photographs in front of me then laid them out, spreading them so I could see them all. Several of Tera placing bets at a window were first then one of Lydia and Torin walking into his condo. My stomach clenched. It was impossible to tell when the picture was taken, but the others were pretty recent. Then I noticed the dress.

  “Tera isn’t my wife. You need to check your research. My ex-wife fucked one of my friends and filed for divorce months ago. She’s called me, but I never answered. Asshole behind me has my phone if you want to check. I haven’t seen her or talked to her since the divorce. I’m not sure what the fuck is going on, but I know this is not my problem.” I jerked free from the meat head’s grip. “So, leave my kid and Lydia alone.”

  The man studied my expression, obviously deciding if he could trust me or not. “Tera better turn up in the next twenty-four hours.” He waved his hand and I was snatched up again. They didn’t get a jump on me that time. I turned and kicked one in the knee and hit the other in the jaw, causing them both to stumble back. “Give the man his phone, Lance.” My driver rubbed his jaw, taking my phone from his pocket.

  “I get that she owes you money, her gambling debts got really out of control, but Tera isn’t my fucking problem anymore. I’ll give her a call once I am far away from this shit hole, but that’s all you’ll get from me. Leave my family the fuck alone.”

  Before the sleaze bag could answer, the door opened and Torin-Fucking-Phillips struts in. “Heard you had a fighter, Boss.” He settled his eyes on me, “Oh, are you shitting me?” We glared at each other, waiting for the other to move. I was grossly outnumbered and not a man with a death wish, but beating his ass was at the top of my to-do list and getting higher by the second.

  “Your hired muscle can actually vouch for me here. Not married to Tera Sterchi.” Trying to keep my head level was a struggle. Between trying to talk my way out of that office and trying not to get my ass beat by four thugs, I was not optimistic. The picture of Lyd and Torin going into his place had me in a really bad mental state.

  “Nah, this motherfucker is getting my sloppy seconds. Can’t blame him; woman’s a fucking wildcat. He throws a mean punch too.” I rolled my eyes and pushed past all of them to get the hell out of there. I could almost forgive Torin after doing me that solid. Hopefully. it meant I was out of the woods with Tera’s bookie.

  By the time I made it outside and cleared my lungs of the smoke, I felt like it was a bad dream. What h
ad Tera dragged me into? They had made no promises to leave me alone after what I told them, but surely one of his men vouching for me meant something. Then there was the fucking picture. It was the same purple dress she wore to the spa on Oliver’s birthday. I paced the sidewalk in front of the pool hall, trying to wrap my head around what had just happened. The day had gone to shit and then some. I had planned on asking them to move in that night. It wasn’t right for my family to live anywhere but with me. But the picture was fucking with my head.

  I pulled my phone out and flipped through the missed calls. Lydia, Dad, and Tera. Each one had called repeatedly. Instead of returning any calls, I called for a cab to take me home. I could deal with it all later. In that moment. the only thing registering was Lydia going in Torin’s house in the dress she wore on our son’s birthday. All I could think was her fucking him while I had Oliver at Dollywood. Had they planned to show up at the wreck at different times? Her reaction to seeing him there had been pretty damn convincing. The night of the wreck she threw up before we even made it in the house and she had me hold her all night, calling herself a homewrecker and a whore.

  Had I missed it? Had I overlooked that she was fucking around with him? By the time I got home, I was livid, spitting mad. Her car was in the driveway and I was ready for a knockdown, drag out fight. I saw the fucking picture; she was with Torin on our son’s birthday. Before I could even get out of the cab, she came running out of the house. Her face was etched with worry as she threw her arms around me.

  “Where were you? Why didn’t you answer?” She tried to kiss me but I pushed her off. “What’s wrong?” The look on her face sated my anger, but only slightly. Tears welled in her eyes and she bit her lip.