Manic Monday

by Piper Rayne

  “How did his parents die?” I ask, turning to face Reed again.

  It’s none of my business and if he wants to tell me to buzz off, I won’t be offended.

  “Car accident.” The corner of his lips turn down.

  My heart breaks for the small boy and I look over to him again. You’d never guess he’s been through so much, except for his quietness.

  “Ned is kind of old school—doesn’t want Henry running and jumping in the house. I think that’s why he’s quiet. But once you get to know him, you’d be surprised.” He stares over at him with such love and affection that I can practically feel my pupils morphing into cartoon hearts.

  I pinch the skin on my arm. Ouch, that damn well hurt, but at least I’m not looking at him all googly-eyed now.

  “Well.” I straighten in my seat, grab my notebook and pen from my purse and lay them out in front of me.

  “We’re back to business I assume.” His gaze flicks to my notebook.

  “Well, that’s why we’re here.” I poise my pen over the paper.

  “I wondered how long you’d let the casual conversation continue.” The smirk on his face says he’s not surprised that I’m not acting like I’m all sorts of impressed after learning all the admirable things he does for Henry and this city.

  “I don’t want to hear it from Darcie, so we need to get going on this. If you don’t have any ideas, I have one.”

  He stands up, unzips the small zipper at the top of his pullover, grabs the hem of the jacket and pulls it over his head. His shirt rises, giving me the pleasure of seeing his love arrow in all its glory. His groin cleavage and happy trail are an arrow pointing south and everything in me wants to see where the road leads. Preferably with my tongue leading the way.

  The shirt falls down, covering my sneak peek, leaving only Reed’s amused expression on display.

  “So...” I swallow a large gulp and attempt to focus on the sheet of paper.

  His large frame slides back into the booth, where he clasps both hands in front of him on the table, waiting for me to continue. Thankfully, he makes no sly comment about catching me ogling his body.

  “I was thinking we do something different. Who’s paying for the tickets?”

  “Darcie said it was the parents,” he says.

  “Okay, I have an idea. We get a car from a junkyard, remove the fluids, and anything else that’s dangerous. Then we sell tickets to let someone have at it for a few minutes to release all their pent-up aggression.”

  His smile grows as he leans back in the bench seat. “I like it. I think a few of the moms—Darcie included—could unleash a shitload of sexual frustration. Will she approve it though?”

  “I didn’t plan on telling her. I was going to make it a surprise.” I look over at him with my most serene, full-of-shit smile.

  “Man, I knew I always liked you.”

  I roll my eyes and a second later a fry hits my forehead. “Did you just throw a fry at my head?”

  He glances over his shoulder and points to the elderly woman in the next booth.

  The smile won’t stop teasing my lips as I look at him. He’s so easy. Too easy. There has to be something wrong with him.

  Duh, my subconscious chimes in—he was the best man at your wedding and he’s a lawyer. Double whammy!

  Chapter Eight

  On Monday, despite myself, I’m giddy knowing I’ll see Reed again. The fact that I bought a new outfit yesterday and dragged myself out of bed early this morning to do my hair and makeup is because I want to feel good about myself, not because I care whether Reed Warner notices me or not at school drop-off.

  Jade and I are trying to avoid the cracks on the sidewalk as we make our way to St. Pats, playing that old school ‘step on a crack break your mother’s back game.’ When we’re only a block away, a car slows down next to us.

  “Jade!” Henry screams out the window and Reed raises his hand in hello and then returns to the task of tying his tie, the clip between his teeth once again.

  And there goes my stomach on the new rollercoaster ride it seems to be finding so much enjoyment on. Yes, he’s in the back of an Uber, but it’s an intimate portrait of the man as he readies himself for the day. Every man is different. Pete used to have to stand in front of the mirror to do his tie up in the morning and it was always a studious process. I miss that part of being a couple—knowing the intimate details no one else does.

  “Hi Henry!” Jade’s voice draws me from my thoughts. She runs down the street trying to keep up with the car. “I’m gonna beat you!”

  “Hit the gas!” Henry yells at the driver.

  “Jade,” I warn, stepping up my pace, but she ignores me. It’s not that she’s so far ahead I can’t see her, but there are so many cars coming and going at this time of day that I worry someone won’t see her when they’re leaving the parking lot to our right.

  A short sprint later and I’ve caught up with her. I’m sure all my efforts at appearing put together were wasted after the impromptu morning jog Henry and Jade forced on me. Not Reed though, the man strolls from the car like he’s a half hour early to an appointment and doesn’t have a care in the world, looking completely put together in his grey three-piece suit. He slides his wallet into the front pocket of his suit and rounds the back of the car.

  “Did you hear what happened?” Georgia asks Darcie to my left.

  Not really feeling like getting into the St. Pats’ gossip mill this early on a Monday morning, I set my gaze on Jade who’s now talking to a group of kids at the bottom of the stairs.

  “Morning Sunshine,” Reed says when he reaches me, his voice smooth and sultry.

  “Hi.” I smile nicely and then tap Jade on the shoulder.

  She turns, holds up her finger and then continues telling her friends how she and Henry went to McDonald’s on the weekend. Henry offers a smile but adds nothing to the conversation. She says something about the toys and all the kids laugh. Then I see why Jade is such a perfect friend for Henry. The other kids initiate conversation with Henry about what happened and Jade steps back, letting Henry take all the credit for whatever they all find so amusing.

  I choke back tears realizing that the divorce, the move, the less than involved father hasn’t screwed her up too badly because she knows how to be kind and compassionate to someone who needs it.

  She turns to face me and must see some of the emotion on my face because she gives me a funny look for a second. “Bye, Mom.” Jade wraps her small arms around my neck and squeezes.

  “Have a great day, okay?”

  “I will.” She leaves me without another look. “Let’s go, Henry.”

  Henry says goodbye to Reed with a fist bump and then the two of us stand in the middle of the concrete walk-up watching the two of them enter the school with a crowd of other kids.

  “Want a ride?” Reed’s voice has me turning slowly in his direction.

  “No, thank you.” I sip my coffee and step toward the sidewalk.

  “So, I guess dinner is out of the question?” he asks, and I stop.

  He doesn’t fidget, his cheeks don’t flush. In fact, his hands are in his pockets and he’s rocking back on his heels. You’d never guess that he just put himself out there and asked me on a date. I’m sure he must know the answer before I even say anything, yet, he’s not too intimidated to ask me anyway.

  “I’m not into dating right now but thank you for the offer.”

  He clasps his heart dramatically, his head falling back while he groans.

  “Don’t even act like I just ruined your life.” I shake my head with a smile.

  He stands upright. “You can deny me, but don’t do it so politely. Tell me the real reason you won’t go to dinner with me.”

  I glance to the side finding Darcie and Georgia watching on with narrowed eyes. What do they care? They each have diamond rings on their fingers worth more than my annual salary.

  “You’re a smart guy, Reed. I’m sure you can figure out why t
his won’t work.” I motion with my finger between us.

  “I’m not friends with Pete anymore. Maybe an acquaintance, but—”

  “It’s not just Pete. I mean that’s a huge part, yes. You have two strikes against you though. You’re a lawyer like my ex and you were the best man at my wedding.”

  A deep intake of breath followed by a murmur has me glancing across the small courtyard.

  The MM’s—Mean Moms—are gathered together, Georgia’s mouth ajar.

  “Now we’re the scuttlebutt.”

  He follows my gaze and then steps forward.

  “I’m nothing like Pete.” His voice is lowered so we can’t be overheard. When I don’t answer, he lets out a sigh and says, “Come on, let me give you a ride. I’m due in court this morning and it’s right near your building.”

  “How do you know where I work?” I cross my arms over my chest.

  “I’m the ADA for the county, I know almost everything.”

  I stare at him and he finally smirks.

  “I may have Google’d.”

  My heart does a leap in my chest that it shouldn’t. What I should be thinking is that his behavior is borderline stalkerish, but instead I’m finding it worthy of a TV rom com.

  “I’m just getting on my feet again after our move. Trust me when I say that I have so much shit you don’t need to deal with.”

  He nods to the waiting Uber. “It’s just a ride to work, Victoria.”

  “I’m sorry. I can’t.” I place my hand on his arm and he looks down at it. Is he feeling the surge of energy between us, too? I quickly retract my hand and turn away to head to the train station.

  I don’t have the guts to turn around. Instead, I keep my eyes forward and thankfully my cell phone rings in my purse. Happy for the distraction from the magnetic pull drawing me back to him, I answer on the first ring.

  “Hi, Hannah.”

  “Victoria, how far away are you from the office?”

  I can tell from her voice that she’s flustered.

  I glance in front of me at the houses on either side of the road as I walk. “I’m just about to hit the train station,” I fib.

  “This new dog I got has gone into heat and I have to drop her off at the veterinarian. I told myself not to book an appointment for a Monday morning. NO!” she screeches. “My new Persian rug. God, how much blood can come out of one dog?”

  “I’ll get there, Hannah, you take care of Lucy.”

  “Thanks. Can you pick up a pastry plate or something? My meeting is at ten and I was going to stop, but now…”

  “Yep. I’ll handle everything.” I sling the strap of my purse further up on my shoulder and quicken my pace.

  “Come on,” she pleas, to the dog I assume. “The dog won’t walk on a leash. How do you get a dog to walk on a damn leash?”

  I stifle a laugh. “I have no idea. I’m a cat person.”

  “I should be a cat person. Thanks, Victoria, you’re a lifesaver.”

  Click, the line dies and I’m about to climb the stairs to the L train when I realize there are people standing everywhere. It’s even more crowded than usual and taxis are arriving in droves and driving away just as fast.

  “What’s going on?” I ask a woman who is about to climb into a taxi.

  “Not sure, but it’s delayed by like an hour I heard.”

  I cringe. “Seriously? Can I share the taxi with you?”

  She smiles. “Where are you going?”

  “City. Downtown.”

  That smile turns down immediately. “Sorry, I’m not going that way. I’m going Southside and if I go through downtown, I’ll be late.” The woman honestly looks like she feels bad and I’m not about to make someone else late.

  “Go,” I wave her off. “I’ll grab another one.”

  She slides into the back seat. “Good luck.”

  The taxi pulls away and you’d think the world is about to end the way people are cutting in front of one another for the taxis.

  I walk a block down figuring if I can get away from here, I’ll be able to catch one before it reaches the station. I’m only walking for a few moments when I notice a car double-park a few cars up from me. A window rolls down and before I hear his voice, I already know who it is.

  “Care for that ride now?” Reed’s smug face appears like he knew the entire time catching the train today was going to be impossible.

  “Am I going to have to take out a restraining order?”

  He opens the door, steps out and motions for me to join him in the car. A few taxis behind him honk, but it doesn’t faze him as he waits patiently.

  “I guess I know what you need before you do.” He winks. On any other guy, it would come off cheesy as hell, but somehow on Reed, it’s charming.

  I step forward and stop just outside the door. If I stepped any closer our chests would touch. “One ride and I need to stop for Danishes on the way.”

  He chuckles. “So, I get breakfast, too. Sounds like a date.”

  I slide into the car and scoot over to the far side, giving the driver a small smile of thanks. Reed slides in next to me and takes up the majority of the space, his knees hitting the back of the passenger seat.

  “It’s not a date,” I say once I’m settled.

  “Yet.”

  “Never.”

  “If you say so.”

  He shrugs, and though he may sound like he’s in agreement, the cocky smirk splashed across his face says differently.

  Chapter Nine

  Wednesday night when I arrive home from my evening class, Jade’s laughter echoes from behind the door and I smile to myself. Inserting the key into the lock of my childhood home, my body craves the serene comfort of my daughter and our new life.

  I don’t mind going to school. I actually enjoy it more than I did eight years ago when I was only a year away from earning my degree. I could strangle myself every time I think of the bad decision I made, knowing full well at the time that that’s exactly what it was. No, it wasn’t the fact Pete and I didn’t use protection and ended up pregnant with Jade. It wasn’t marrying him quickly so that his family didn’t have the shame of an unplanned pregnancy to their name. I loved Pete and when I walked down that aisle, I truly thought he was my forever. The mistake I made was letting him convince me to leave college with one year left so I could follow him to Los Angeles.

  I knew it wouldn’t be easy—raising a baby and finishing my degree—but I naively thought Pete signed up to stand beside me, not in front of me.

  Pete had other plans though. Maybe it was because it’s all he knew growing up. Who knows? He had a stay-at-home mom while I had two working parents. To me having it all meant a family and a career. Pete felt differently.

  He envisioned coming home to a home-cooked meal, a perfect wife who brought him a drink at the end of the day and wore lingerie to bed every night. I didn’t miss the disgust in his eyes when I swapped out my satin for flannel. But I’m not naive enough to believe that our bedroom problems were the only reason he strayed.

  Pete was someone who was never fulfilled with what he had. He’s still that way.

  I hate the memory of the weakness that lived inside of me while we were married. I was trying to make something of us while losing myself in the process. When I signed those divorce papers, I made a promise to myself. I’d never let a man run my life again.

  “Mommy!” Jade screams when I walk through the door, getting up and running toward me dressed in her rainbow emoji pajamas.

  My mom glances over from the chair, a curious look in her eyes. “How was school?”

  I hug Jade tight against my body. “Good, but I’m glad to be home.”

  Jade runs back to the couch to watch some game show on the television. “Grandma is so smart. She’s getting every answer right.”

  My mom smiles and pats Jade’s head as she gets up from her chair and walks by her. “I saved you some dinner.”

  I drop my book bag on the entryway bench and follow
my mom into the kitchen.

  “Thanks.” I slide into a breakfast bar chair and my head falls into my hand.

  The caregiver my mom is, she sets the plate in front of me before heading over to the silverware drawer. “Drink? Wine?” She sets the cutlery beside my plate.

  “Sure.” I pick up the knife and fork, cutting into the chicken. “Thanks, Mom. I’m not sure what I would do without you.”

  She sets a glass down in front of me and pours the white wine she keeps in the fridge for me into my glass. “I feel the same.”

  We share a look expressing how grateful we are to have each other. Two scorned women who want their independence but find refuge in one another. The hardest decision my mom ever had to make was probably asking me to move back to Chicago.

  Technically, she didn’t ask. She didn’t have to. I’d never put her in the position of feeling like she had to beg me to return.

  When she called me and told me that all the issues she’d been having had been diagnosed as multiple sclerosis, I was handing in my resignation to Jagger the next day. You can imagine how that conversation went until I trusted him enough to be honest about my reasons for leaving.

  Jade can still see her dad. He has the money he so desperately wanted, so he can fly here whenever he wants to see her. Even when we lived in the same city, he barely made time for her. Now that we’re back, his family only lives thirty miles from us, not that they’ll go out of their way to see her.

  “So.” She slides into the stool on the other side of me. “Jade was talking about a boy named Henry today.”

  From her tone I know exactly where this conversation is going.

  “Her friend, yes.”

  “Apparently he’s some man named Reed’s little brother.” Her eyebrows shoot up.

  I roll my eyes. “Not biologically.” I chew the chicken.

  “What?” Her forehead creases in confusion.

  “He’s part of the Big Brother/Big Sister program. Henry’s parents died when he was young, and his grandparents raise him.”

  “Oh.” Her hand covers her heart. “That’s so thoughtful of him.”