“Everything.”
“I’d be lying if I said that I was doing okay, but being here with you has never felt so good. Thank you for giving me another chance, Jess. I love you so much.”
He smiled and kissed me on the lips, slowly.
Chapter 14
Jessie
Waking up in bed with Heather, and not regretting it, was something new. I don’t know how it had all happened. One minute I was ready to walk away from her for good and the next I was feeling bad that I hadn’t just forgiven her and let us be a real family.
I turned and watched her sleeping peacefully. She was so pretty, laying there on her stomach. Her naked back had a couple freckles across it. I ran my fingers over her creamy skin. She stirred and got comfortable again, before opening her eyes. “Hey. I thought I was dreaming.”
“Do you need me to pinch you?” I teased.
She laughed. “I’d rather you not.”
I leaned up on my elbow and looked right at her. “So, this is different.”
“I keep feeling like you’re going to change your mind.”
I leaned in and kissed her forehead. “I’m not.”
Little footsteps could be heard running against the hardwood flooring. Jacob came into the room and jumped on the bed. Realizing that neither of us had any clothes on, we pulled the covers up. “Did Daddy sleep in here too?”
Heather looked at me. I just laughed. “Yeah, buddy. I slept in here with Mommy. Is that okay with you?”
He started jumping around on the foot of the bed. “Yeah!”
“Jacob, you’re going to fall off the bed. Please don’t do that.” Heather’s attempts at getting him to listen never worked.
“Jacob, did you hear your mother?” He stopped immediately.
Heather groaned and put her head into the pillow, face first. She hated when he listened to me so quickly. I put my arm around her and stuck my head near her ear. “What are your plans for today?”
“I have to start going through things, I guess. The lawyer is coming this afternoon to go over my mother’s estate.”
“What’s an estate?” Jacob climbed up between us.
“It’s the belongings of a person that has died,” I explained.
He started jumping again. “I want to get out of here! Let’s go play!”
I sat up and gave him the look where I was about to punish him. He froze.
Heather finally turned around and sat up. She looked at Jacob and then back to me. “Buddy, I have to clean out the attic too. I bet there is some cool toys up there that you can keep.”
“Really?” His eyes got huge. “Let’s go now!”
Heather looked at me and rolled her eyes.
“How about you go watch television while Mom and I get dressed?” I pointed toward the door.
“Get dressed? Why don’t you have clothes on?” His eyes went toward the covers. I got that he was being curious, but he was way too young for that explanation.
“Jacob, just go watch one of your shows. I’ll be right out.” I motioned toward the door one more time.
He ran out, like he was afraid of me. Heather started laughing and pulled the covers over her head. I ducked down under the covers with her. “Are you hiding from me?” I pulled her close to me.
“Of course not. I’d never hide from you.”
I started to tickle her. Just one touch and she was wiggling around and screaming. Her boobs were so close to my face that I was starting to get aroused. Since I had to pee, I needed to stop before I was locking the bedroom door and taking some morning loving. “I’m getting up.”
She reached down and felt me. “I can tell.”
I rolled out of bed and held onto my jewels like I was protecting them. “Jacob is waiting for us, you know?”
She pointed to my morning erection. “You’re the one with the problem. I was perfectly content until you started touching me with those sexy hands.” Heather was giving me that look and I needed to get into a cold shower to calm myself down.
I pulled on my boxers and waved as I walked out of the bedroom. A pillow came flying at my head and I heard her laughing. I liked seeing her smile. She hardly ever did, so it made it more special.
A little later, after my shower and some cereal, we headed up to the attic. Heather’s mom’s attic wasn’t like the kind with the pull down stairs. It was a door that you opened and walked up a set of steps. I imagine that some people would finish it off and make it an extra bedroom. She had set hers up as storage on one side and a sewing room on the other.
Heather bypassed the sewing room and headed right for the slew of storage boxes. I noticed her mother had been working on several blankets that she had hanging up. Pushed to the side was a wrapped package. Thinking that it was for someone, and she had put a lot of time into it, I picked it up to see if there was name attached to it.
It was labeled:
To Heather, Love Mom.
The box was pretty big. I just assumed that it was a special blanket that she’d made, since that was what she always made for people. “Babe, there’s a box here with your name on it.”
Heather handed Jacob a container full of matchbox cars and started walking toward me, without saying a single word. She had this blank look on her face as she sat down next to me looking at the wrapped package. “Where was it?”
“Sitting down there in the corner.”
She pulled the tape off of the corners and lifted the box open. I couldn’t have been prepared for what she pulled out.
First, it was a note. She read it out loud.
“Heather, I wanted to give you this in person, but if you’re reading this than the timing wasn’t right. I hope that one day you will be able to wear this. I made it with love. Please don’t be sad if I’m gone. I will always love you. I’m so proud of the mother that you’ve become. You’re so beautiful and I know this will be stunning on you. Love, Mom”
Heather was crying as she pulled back the tissue paper and lifted out a satiny white bunch of fabric. As she stood up, I finally understood what it was. Her mother had made her a wedding dress. Heather held it close to her chest and continued to cry. She finally sat back down and folded it into the box. “Aren’t you going to try it on?”
She looked at me and said nothing. With tears running down her face, she traced the fabric with her fingers. In a whisper, “I’m afraid.”
“Of what? She worked hard on it.”
Heather looked right at me. “It’s not like I can wear it.”
It wasn’t like she was pressuring me to ask her. She didn’t say it like that. I knew she wouldn’t push me on issues like marriage. We were starting over and needed time to work things out before we took a step like that. “What am I supposed to say?” I felt terrible. Her mother had made her something so special. Was I being a dick for not dropping down on one knee and popping the question?
“It’s bad luck for you to see me in it anyway.” She tried to smile through her sobbing.
I leaned over and touched her arm. “I appreciate that you’re considering that I’d be the groom. I think you should keep it nice. Maybe we could use it on a rainy day when there isn’t anything else to do.”
She took it as a joke, which was good since I meant it that way. She shoved my side. “You’re lucky I like you so much.”
“Maybe you can remind me how much you like me, a little later?”
She smiled. “Maybe I will.”
Heather took her time putting the dress back in the box, after she’d pulled it out and admired its detail. Her mother really was a talented seamstress. The woman took care of people at the hospital and then came home and made things. It seemed liked a boring life. Maybe she liked the fact that Heather kept her on her toes.
We spent the rest of the afternoon going through boxes. It was tedious, but when it as all said done, we’d made good progress.
The lawyer showed up right before we started to cook dinner. He had called and said that he’d be late, so we
just stayed in the attic longer. Jacob had acquired a bunch of new toys to play with. He stayed in the living room setting up little cars and tracks.
Once Heather and the lawyer were sitting down, I joined Jacob. Her mother’s affairs weren’t my business and I didn’t want her to feel like I was intruding. It was something that she needed to handle on her own.
I’d no sooner sat down with my son when he started getting curious. “Daddy, how come you slept in bed with Mommy?”
“Because I wanted to.” I readjusted something he had set up.
“Why?”
Of course he would ask that. “Isn’t it okay if I want to hug Mommy and sleep next to her?”
“Yes.”
“Mommy and I talked about it. We want to be a family and be together again. Is that okay with you?”
He put down his car and looked at me. “Does that mean we can live together and you don’t have to pick me up anymore? I don’t like leaving Mommy alone. It makes me sad.”
I hadn’t thought about our living arrangements yet. This decision of mine was unexpected. “We can talk about it. Would you like that?”
“Yeah. Just make sure you don’t leave my toys.”
Of course, he would mention his most prized possessions. The kid didn’t have a clue about relationships. This was just another reminder.
After playing cars for over an hour, I saw Heather walking the lawyer out. She didn’t look happy and I could tell that he must not have given her good news. Once she shut the door, I waited for her to approach before asking questions. “You alright?”
“It wasn’t good.” She shook her head and walked toward the kitchen. “Apparently, she had to cash in her retirement to cover my brother’s attorney costs. She spent forty thousand dollars and he still was found guilty. That should be a crime in itself. They robbed her!”
I couldn’t believe it. “Wow. She’s his mother. That’s what parents do.”
“I know.” She let me hug her. “I just hate that she worked so hard and lost it all. I guess it doesn’t matter since she wouldn’t have been around to spend it. It wasn’t like I was counting on getting rich. I was just hoping that I could put something away for Jacob.”
“If we live together, than we can afford to start saving for him.”
“I’m not moving in with you just for that. I never asked you to change your life around because things got hard for me. Besides, my mother had life insurance. It will pay for her funeral and then leave a little I can put into savings.”
“What about the house?”
“She took out a loan on the house. I have no idea what it was for, but now she has a mortgage of fifty grand. I can’t pay it, so I have to put the house on the market.”
I knew that the house was a big memory of her mother. Giving it up would be difficult. Heather wasn’t just saying goodbye to her mother. She was saying goodbye to everything.
I hugged her in my arms. “We can do whatever you want to do. If you want to keep the house, I can help you make the payments. If you live with me, you will be able to afford the mortgage here. You don’t have to lose everything, babe.”
She looked up at me, with those blue tear-filled eyes. “Are you sure?”
I kissed her on the lips. “Yes. I’m sure.”
Chapter 15
Heather
It was all too good to be true. I knew it and it was just a matter of time before he did too. Then there was the dress. I had no idea that my mother had planned on making me a dress for my ‘someday’ wedding. It was shocking and upsetting at the same time.
Since I had so much on my plate, it was necessary to take one day at a time. As much as I would have liked to think that my happily ever after was really going to happen, I knew it was far-fetched.
The sad part was that I wanted to be with Jessie more than anything. Still, he was a live wire, sitting and waiting for me to fuck up. It was the same story, but always a different day.
Jacob made out like it was Christmas from the toys we found in the attic. He was set up with cars and army men. For the rest of the evening he played with his newfound toys, quietly. Even Jessie played a little bit with him, reminding himself that he was once a kid too.
After the lawyer left, I felt like I had a lot to think about. Between Jessie asking me to move back in with him, and thinking about letting go of my mother’s house, I knew which one I wanted to choose. It was hard to not be excited, even when I felt like we might be rushing back into things. I don’t know why it was a big deal. We’d lived together before and been happy. I knew it could be that way again.
When we finally sat down for dinner, it was great to be together holding hands and saying grace. Jacob was little, but I think he knew how special it was. His daddy and I hadn’t been spending any time together for months. This was a huge deal.
I think Jessie could tell that I was happy. Considering why we were there, I wasn’t siting around crying. For the first time in months, I was optimistic.
After dinner the three of us decided to go out to a movie that was being held at a local church. It wasn’t the one that my mother attended, but the whole town was invited. The feature was a kid friendly movie and family’s could lay blankets and chairs on the grass and cuddle up together.
I figured that it wouldn’t be a big deal since it wasn’t happening until it was dark. Even if someone was there that didn’t care for me, we wouldn’t have to see them.
I was wrong.
The movie had started and we were comfortable on our little blanket. Jacob had a juice box and some fruit snacks to eat. Jessie was holding me in his arms, playing with my hands. It was heaven.
Then Jacob had to use the bathroom, which was a porta-pot that had been set up in the parking lot. Jessie offered to take him, but it really wasn’t a big deal, so I insisted. Once I got him inside, I closed the door and waited outside. To my left I could hear someone getting sick. They were in one of the portable bathrooms. Instead, they were hunched over in the grass beside it. It was so dark that I could only make out that it was a woman. She kept gagging and hurling.
I rushed into the porta-pot and grabbed her some paper to wipe off her face. When I reached her again, she was still getting sick. “Miss, I grabbed you some tissue. Are you alright? Do you need me to call someone?”
She shook her head and spit a few more times. “My family is here. I’ll be okay.”
“How about I just stand here with you until someone comes?”
She nodded, but continued to throw up. I watched her pull out her phone and send a message in the midst of her vomiting. At one point she gagged so much that I held onto her back. She was smaller than me in stature and wore a baseball cap with her hair pulled out of the back. I felt so sorry for her and her family. They had come out for a family night and she was so ill.
I heard his voice and didn’t have to turn around to know who it was.
“Baby, I was looking for you. I told you to stay home and rest.” Ty’s voice was just as familiar to me as it had been when we were children.
I froze.
How was I suppose to react?
At that same time, Jacob came rushing out of the porta-pot. I looked over and saw Jessie approaching. He must have gotten worried because I was taking forever. Jacob ran out to him. “Dad, I could hear my poop falling into that toilet hole. It was so cool!”
Jessie looked over and saw me standing in between two strangers. “Babe, you okay?”
I couldn’t speak. Realizing that I was right in between Ty and Miranda was horrific. I just looked at him with worried eyes.
“Heather, are you alright?” He asked again.
In one second, Miranda was spinning around and Ty was grabbing my shirt. They both just looked right at me. Miranda, having just puked up her organs, shoved me back, almost into her husband.
Jessie wasn’t having someone shove me. He put Jacob down and approached us. “What the hell, lady. Don’t touch her like that!”
Ty walked up and
shoved Jessie. “Back off, dude. You don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Jessie wasn’t one to back off, though. He came at Ty. “What the fuck is your problem?”
Finally, I knew I couldn’t have them fighting. I pushed them apart and looked from one man to the other. “Jessie, stop!”
“What?” He looked at me puzzled.
I put my head down. “This is Ty and his wife Miranda.”
“Did they follow you over here?” He seemed angry.
“No! I saw someone getting sick, so I wanted to help. I didn’t know…”
“You’re the last person that I would ever want help from. I’d rather keel over and die than get help from you!” Miranda hated me. That wasn’t anything new.
“Hold on a minute. It’s been years. How about we act like adults?” Jessie was attempting to help, but I could tell that it wasn’t going to go well.
Miranda pointed at me. “This bitch almost killed me and my boys. I don’t ever have to be nice to her. Why don’t you take her pathetic ass back to whatever town you came from and don’t come back!”
Jacob was hiding behind my legs. I felt so bad that he was a part of all of this. “Please. Our son is here. Can we just walk away, before he hears anything else?”
“Please! Walk very far way!” Miranda added.
I grabbed Jessie’s arm, but he pulled away from me. “What do you mean, she almost killed you?”
Ty grabbed Miranda. “Leave it alone, baby. Let’s just get you home.”
She tugged her way out of his arms. “No! he needs to know the monster that he’s living with. He needs to know what this bitch is capable of.”
Before anyone else could speak, I saw Conner walking between us and right up to his sister. “Enough, Randa!”
I hadn’t seen the man so mad since he’d told me his intentions of getting to know me. We all just stood there watching him directing his sister. “He needs to know.”
Conner shook his head. “It’s not your place. She didn’t make you drive that car and you know it.”
She pointed toward me again. “She made sure that I wanted to leave. She wanted me out of the picture.”
Losing Him (Mitchell Family Series Book 8) Page 9