Devil Moon

by Dana Taylor

  She turned to Brent and said, "I need a break."

  Maddie left her post and exited out of the cafeteria toward the girls' bathroom. She sat on a stool several minutes, trying to compose herself. She couldn't, absolutely wouldn't spin out of control again. But she was close, really close. Breathe, Maddie, breathe. Then she heard someone come into the room and figured she should get out before somebody came looking for her. She opened the stall door to find Melissa standing wide legged, hands on hips.

  Maddie made her way to the sink groaning, "Why am I always getting trapped in bathrooms with Wilcox women?"

  She turned and faced Melissa. The girl was obviously working up the nerve to say something.

  Melissa's brown eyes reflected Phil's stubborn genes. "Do you love my dad?"

  Maddie took a deep breath. Now she was getting the third degree from the daughter. "I don't think this is an appropriate subject for us to be discussing."

  Melissa took an aggressive step toward Maddie. "Bull. He's my dad and if you love him, then I need to know."

  Maddie sighed. She was just too tired to lie. "Yes, Melissa, I love your father very much."

  Nodding her head, Melissa came to some kind of decision. "Then I think you should fight for him."

  Had she heard right? "What?"

  "I know all about my mom's threats to take me out of state and turn me against Dad. That's just a bunch of crap. I heard everything she said to you the other night. She doesn't have the money to go to the next county, let alone another state. Besides, I could always just call Dad and tell him where we're at. And she can't make me hate him any more. I'm not a little kid. I know what's going on. She needs to get a life, and it's not going to be with Dad."

  Maddie leaned against the cool sink. "I know how important you are to your father. I don't want to be a hindrance to your relationship."

  Melissa rolled her eyes. "Chill out, Miss Harris. Everybody I know has step mothers, brothers, or sisters. And despite what Mom says, I don't think you're a bitch at all. So, if you want Dad, I think you should go for it." Then she gave Maddie a shy little grin. "I'd kinda like to be a big sister."

  This sudden change of circumstances brought tears to Maddie's eyes. Phil's daughter had just bestowed her blessings. Hope surged through Maddie. She opened her arms and crushed Melissa against her chest. "Oh, sweetie, you've made me very happy."

  "Hey! Cool it, I can't breathe." Melissa gently pushed away. "Just don't tell Mom that you heard anything from me. And I'm going to have to pretend I hate you around her for a while or she'll make my life hell."

  "I understand. Your dad is right. You are a great kid." Maddie sniffed back welling emotion.

  "Thanks. I better be getting back." Melissa edged to the door. "Say, did you know a baby robin eats fourteen feet of earthworms a day?"

  Maddie smiled. "That's fascinating."

  "Well, see ya."

  "See ya." Maddie turned to the mirror as Melissa disappeared into the hall. She dried her eyes, squared her shoulders and said, "Okay, Grammy, I'm going to go defend the honor of all Harris womenfolk."

  * * *

  Phil and Pam sat across from each other at the end of a table near the dessert area. Melissa occupied the chair next to Pam, while Doug McCall was on Phil's right. Maddie gulped as she approached her target. It was now or never.

  Maddie took a position at the end of the table and looked Pam square in the eye. "Pam, I think you're a mean, nasty, sorry excuse for a woman. You're cruel, selfish, have abysmal taste in clothes and extremely poor grammar. You're not nearly good enough for a man like Phil. I hate to say this to anyone, but I think you're a slut."

  Phil spewed a gulp of his apple cider over his plate.

  Pam's eyes bugged and she choked down a wad of turkey. "Ooo, you are so going to pay for that."

  "And furthermore," Maddie continued, "I don't intend to let you have him."

  Phil growled, "What the hell is going on here?"

  Pointing at Pam with disgust, Maddie said, "This woman threatened to take Melissa out of state and completely ruin your relationship with her if I didn't bow out of the picture."

  Pam stood up in fury. "Liar!"

  Just as Pam was about to bitch slap the tar out of Maddie, a whipped-cream topped pumpkin pie mysteriously rose off the dessert table and flew right into Pam's face.

  Several people heard Grammy's raspy voice say, "Take that, you hussy."

  Pam wiped the goop from her eyes and nose, grabbed a handful of mashed potatoes and screeched, "I'll teach you!" Her arm arced back and she pitched a ball of glop at Maddie, who ducked. Becky Malone's big bosom received the splat on her one-of-a-kind decorated shirt.

  Becky gasped, then marched forward with the power of a Mack truck saying, "Pam Wilcox, I've hated you ever since I caught you kissing my boyfriend in the tenth grade. You are a slut!" And with that she reached down into an available plate, brought up cranberry Jello and smashed it in Pam's kisser.

  Recognizing a good thing when he saw it, George Finn stood on top of a table and yelled, "FOOD FIGHT!"

  Wherein, Vince did his brotherly duty and shot a good portion of yams onto George's forehead.

  Well, that was it. Pandemonium broke out as all the junior high boys heeded the call, sending Thanksgiving specialties flying wily-nily. Amanda yelped when peas and pie landed in her perfectly coiffured hairstyle. Brent shielded Mother Bailey with his body and took most of the hits that came their way. Beau joined the fray and flung handfuls of yams in retaliation. Miss Green leaned into Mr. Manchester and moaned when she saw her carefully arranged centerpieces torn apart for ammunition.

  Randy was soundly pelted as he took the mike begging, "Okay everybody, please settle down!"

  Doug McCall found himself tangled in an embarrassing jumble of big boobs and thighs as he tried to separate Pam and Becky, now engaged in a full-fledged catfight.

  "I'll rip out every strand of your ugly, mall hair!" Becky bellowed, twisting Pam's arm.

  "You and who else, fat ass?" Pam replied, as she tried to scratch Becky's face.

  Doug groaned when gouged by both combatants.

  Phil calmly remained in his seat, as all hell broke loose around him. He gazed across the table at Melissa, who appeared to be the only other person in the room not involved in food flinging. She shrugged, grinned, and then quickly ducked under the table to avoid a faceful of mincemeat pie. Maddie had somehow disappeared after starting all the chaos.

  He sighed and raised his iron body out of the chair. Leading with his shoulder, he knocked down George and Vince, as if mowing through the defensive line. He motioned to his scattered football players, who took his lead and began tackling wayward food warriors.

  He moved through the room and barked orders. "Cut it out…That's enough…No more, buddy."

  Soon, cowering mothers rose and took charge of their battling families (although more than a few women had gotten into the spirit of things) and the tide turned.

  Phil stood by an exit and surveyed the room. No one appeared mortally wounded, but all needed a bath. Pam came sniffling and limping toward him on the arm of Doug McCall.

  Phil put a hand out and stopped her. "Hey, is what Maddie said true? Did you threaten to keep Melissa away from me if Maddie didn't back out of my life?"

  Pam wiped her drippy nose with the back of her potato-encrusted hand. "I was trying to save you from her! You and I belong together. You know we do."

  Phil grabbed her shoulders, resisting the urge to shake her senseless. "Listen to me and listen to me good. You and I are never getting back together. I am not responsible for your life or your happiness. You've got to move on. The past is over and done. We'll always have Melissa tying us together, but beyond that, there is nothing. Zip. Zilch. Can I make myself any clearer?"

  Pam's lip twisted. "You're just hot for that school bitch. It's all her fault."

  Jeez, talking to this woman was like slamming into a brick wall of illogic, but he felt a need to set her straight.
"And another thing. Don't you ever try to use Melissa against me again. She and I have come to a good understanding. I won't allow you to use her as a tool of your hatred. If I have to, I will go back to court for custody and this time I think I'll win. So, let's just manage a working relationship and cut the rest of the crap. You get me?"

  Sniveling in defeat, Pam muttered, "You can be a real asshole."

  Phil shook his head and stepped back. Pathetic. "Take her home, will you, Doug?"

  McCall tugged her out of the room. "Sure. Come on, Pam. I'll bet you'll feel a lot better when you get all that pie and mascara off your face."

  Phil looked for Maddie among the recovering crowd. A honey blond head rose slowly from under a table and he watched her emerge from her hiding place unscathed by food missiles. Smart girl. He'd have been really pissed if she'd put their baby at risk in a stupid food fight. Their gazes met across the room and he read the uncertainty in her face as she walked toward him.

  He stood, arms crossed, face expressionless as she stopped before him. "What have you got to say for yourself, Miss Harris?"

  She took a deep breath. "I know I made you angry and hurt your feelings, but I didn't want to ruin your relationship with Melissa."

  He considered her impassively. "So?"

  She bit her lip. "You're not going to make this easy on me, are you?"

  "Nope."

  "Do you want me to beg? Grovel?"

  "Groveling is good."

  As much as she loved him, begging and groveling was too humbling and downright irritating. "You can be the most arrogant, bull-headed…"

  "That doesn't sound like groveling."

  Her eyes flashed. "Well, I won't grovel, but I will tell you this. I think you're a wonderful person. You have integrity, a caring heart, and you take responsibility for your actions. I admire you very much."

  "That sounds like a job recommendation. How do you feel about me, Maddie?"

  This was it. True confession time. She reached out and held his hands, giving in to the need to touch him. "I love you, Phil. I love your wonderful, broad chest and your big, strong arms. Just looking at you, makes me warm all over. I love the way you tease me and tear through my defenses. I feel like you're my missing half. You make me a complete woman. If you don't marry me, I'm afraid I'll turn into a spindly, mean, old maid."

  His eyes softened. "Funny. You make me feel like the man I'm supposed to be." He gripped her hands tighter. "When you told me you didn't love me, it felt like a punch in the gut."

  "I'm sorry."

  "It made me realize just how much I love you. I didn't know how much I wanted you, until I thought I couldn't have you." He tugged her closer to him. "This will be for keeps, babe. I want you by my side. I want that smart mouth of yours on mine when I feel like kissing a woman. If you sign on for this job, it's for life, sweetheart."

  Maddie's blue eyes misted. "Sounds good to me."

  His arms wound around her as he said, "Come here, cupcake." Then he kissed her in front of God and most of the population of Beaver Cove.

  Epilogue

  It’s like Déjà vu all over again

  Yogi Berra

  Phil flung the quilt on the sand. Then he placed the wine and glasses on the cottony surface. He lay back on the blanket and waited for his wife to join him under the full moon. God, that moon, filling the sky over the shimmering lake. He could see the dark craters against the white light that radiated into unending space, so similar to that night a year ago, when he first encountered the Moon Goddess. So much had happened in that year. The bitter, beaten, drunken ex-football player had transformed into an upbeat husband, father, coach, and teacher.

  Damn, you're a lucky man, thought Phil Wilcox.

  "Did you remember the glasses?" Maddie's voice sailed across the yard from the kitchen door.

  "Got 'em. I'm waiting, woman!"

  He turned over on his stomach and saw the lithe figure of his wife, now recovered from childbirth, heading his way across the dark yard.

  She stopped at the edge of the blanket and placed an electronic listening device down. "Your son is finally asleep. We'll be able to hear him on the monitor if he wakes up. Of course, Lucifer would come and get us anyway."

  He watched her walk to the water's edge. She lifted her hair and craned her neck. "It's so humid. I could really use a swim."

  "Go for it, Moon Goddess."

  She turned around slowly to face him in the silvery dark light and smiled a knowing, seductive smile. Her hands found the buttons of her blouse as she danced a strip tease shedding her shirt, shorts, and under clothes. Salome taking off the seven veils. He felt himself rising to the occasion and enjoyed moments of mental foreplay, knowing how she would feel, anticipating her delicious milky scent.

  She seemed to glide over to him. She knelt down and engulfed him with a mind-blowing sensuous kiss, bearing no resemblance to the Prim-and-Proper Miss Harris whatsoever.

  "Catch me if you can, Dream Man." She tore away from him, laughed and ran into the water, her gorgeous bare bottom glinting in the moonlight as she dove in.

  Phil stood and left his clothes in a pile on the sand.

  The pair splashed and played in the Ozark lake like a couple of country kids until their moves became decidedly more grown up. Phil lifted Maddie off her feet and carried his Moon Goddess to her soft makeshift bed.

  Laying her down he said, "You have such a great ass."

  "Oh, Coach Wilcox, you just melt a girl with your sweet talk."

  "Shut up, cupcake." His mouth swept hers as she pulled him down and tangled her white legs between his brawny thighs.

  And the air filled with iridescent glitter as they entwined themselves on the magic carpet of Grammy's quilt, twisting, swirling, loving under the satisfied gaze of that ol’ Devil Moon.

  About The Author

  Dana Taylor has had articles published in the Ladies Home Journal and various Christian magazines, hosted her Internet radio show, Definitely Dana! at HealthyLife.net and won several awards in the Romance Writers of America, including Best First Book from the Desert Quill Awards. Her published works include Ain’t Love Grand?, Royal Rebel, and Hope for the Holidays and a spiritual memoir, Ever-Flowing Streams of Healing Energy.

  On the Web:

  SupernalFriends.com

  DefinitelyDana.wordpress.com

  BookLuvinBabes.wordpress.com

  Amazon.com

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  Authors Den

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  **********************

  E-mail address:

  SupernalFriends@yahoo.com

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  Coming Spring 2012:

  Jaguar Jack: A Fantastical Adventure

  Jaguar Jack Campbell thrills cable TV viewers every week with his Aussie accent and dare devil adventures in the world’s remotest outposts. Major Maggie Savannah fights terrorism across the globe in covert Marine operations.

  Can these unlikely partners come together to rescue a kidnapped missionary caught in the grip of a mystical enemy?

  Prologue

  Paradisio Island, somewhere in the Pacific

  Time collided. Jaguar Jack Campbell froze in place on the jungle floor. He shook his head, disoriented. An explosion of buried images from the past flashed in his psyche.

  Jagged teeth.

  Earth crumbled around him as he burrowed into an animal’s den.

  A gagging smell.

  Roars and screams.

  A taunting voice—Coward, coward…

  Then, a white bird dove toward his face, arrested his attention, and brought him back to the present. The bird circled, squawked, and zoomed ahead. Tail feathers urged him to follow.

  Fully in charge of his senses once again, he glanced over his shoulder at the black feline pursuer and grinned.

  Then Jaguar Jack ran like hell.

/>   He jumped over fallen branches, dodged infested insect mounds, and scrambled around the huge trunks of trees that formed the canopy of the rain forest.

  “Rroww!” The big cat’s howl echoed in the humid air.

  Jack sensed the angry feline gaining on him. The sleek jaguar rounded a gigantic trunk, too close for comfort.

  You can’t outrun a cat, mate, and she’s not losing interest. Better come up with a plan B and fast.

  A gnarled kapok tree caught his eye, perfect for a man to catch a foothold and make a natural ladder to the green universe above. He zigzagged away from the tree, ripped the buttons of his shirt open and tore the garment off his back. He threw the sweat-drenched shirt into the branches of a prickly bush, ran through dense underbrush, and doubled back toward the kapok.

  The ferocious jag passed the kapok, following Jack’s path and stopped at the discarded shirt. She sniffed and pawed it, circled the bush for traces of the man.

  Jack hurled himself onto the rough-ribbed wood behind the stalled cat, gashed his naked chest as he found hand holds to climb toward the leafy ceiling. A flock of startled parrots lit out from tangled foliage as he reached the first limbs twenty feet in the air. Splashes of bright red and blue filled the sky as they surged to another roost. Their disturbed chirps caught the cat’s attention.

  Jack grabbed a thick branch thirty feet up, sturdy enough to hold his weight. Rope-like muscles of his biceps bulged as he hefted himself skyward. He swung his leg over the branch and gazed below. Sweat dripped off his forehead, but his breathing remained steady. Excitement surged his heart beat. Playing tag with cantankerous kitties really got the juices going.

  The perturbed black cat circled the base, tail whipping in the air.

  “Rrooww!” She let her roar rip.