“Sure Audrey. What’s on your mind?” Josh said. Turning to look at his niece, he wondered what was running through her little head.
“Do you think Auntie Callan and Uncle Clay would mind if we called them Mama and Daddy?” Audrey asked quietly.
Josh took a moment to answer. He needed to swallow down the emotion clogging his throat. Callan and Clay would be thrilled beyond words that the girls wanted to refer to them as their parents.
“I think they would like that very much,” Josh said, giving her an encouraging smile. “Have you mentioned it to Auntie Callan?”
“No,” Audrey said, playing with a cookie. “I didn’t know what she would say and I was afraid she might say no. I didn’t want her to say no.”
Pulling Audrey onto his lap and hugging her tight, he carefully chose his words. “Audrey, you can talk to Auntie Callan, your new mama, about anything. If she tells you no about something, it would only be because no is what would be best for you. But I promise you, if you ask her if you can call her mama, she won’t tell you no.”
“Really?” Audrey asked hopefully, looking up at her uncle with trusting eyes.
“Really,” Josh said, grinning down at her. Looking over at Emma, as she played with her cookie, he put a hand around her little shoulders. “What do you think Emma? Would you like to call Auntie Callan and Uncle Clay Mama and Daddy?”
“Yep. It was my idea.” Emma said, nodding her head. “I told Audrey we had to call them something different than our first mom and dad so that is why I said it should be mama and daddy. Auntie Callan, I mean Mama, calls Grampa ‘Daddy’ and I think it sounds nice. Don’t you?”
“Yes, I do,” Josh agreed. “It sounds better than nice. Now, how about you girls come with me out to the barn? I think I saw a new litter of kittens out there the other day. I bet if we tried real hard, we could find them.”
“Yipee,” Emma said, jumping off her barstool and running to the door. “Let’s roll!”
<><><>
By the time Callan arrived to pick up the girls, Josh decided he was thoroughly exhausted. He’d rather work outside digging ditch all day in hundred degree temperatures than try to keep two little girls entertained. They were on the couch watching Snow White when Callan walked in the door. Josh had collapsed in his chair and was enjoying a few minutes of rest.
“Hello,” Callan called as she came in the back door. “Anybody home?”
When the girls heard her voice, they both jumped up from the couch and ran toward her. Callan bent down to give them both a hug when Emma said, “Mama, we missed you!”
Josh knew he’d never forget the look on Callan’s face when Emma called her mama. It was a look of joy, wonder and love unlike anything he’d ever seen.
Sinking to her knees, she pulled both girls to her and kissed their heads. “Emma, did you just call me mama?” Callan asked.
“Yep. Uncle Josh said it would be okay. It is okay, isn’t it?” Emma asked, looking at Callan with her lower lip starting to pout.
“Oh, Sweet Pea, it is more than okay. It is absolutely wonderful,” Callan said, giving both girls another kiss then looking up at Josh with tears in her eyes. Mouthing “thank you” to Josh over the girls’ heads, Callan struggled to keep her tears from overflowing.
Josh grinned. “You’re welcome.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Josh was hot, tired and dirty. He was also out of sorts. He’d spent all day working in the fields and was ready for a nice quiet evening. Due to the girls getting Callan all wound up over calling her mama, she whisked them home to share the news with Clay and completely forgot to tell him what she found out from Jenna. When he tried to call her this morning, he kept getting her voice mail. He’d have to catch her after church tomorrow. Although he was dying to know what she found out, for now he was ready to call it a day.
Wondering what delicious thing Jenna had made for dinner, he shucked off everything but his jeans in the mudroom and walked into the kitchen to find it empty. No smells of dinner cooking could be detected.
“Jenna,” he called, walking through the house. “Jenna?” Going into their bedroom, he noticed the bathroom door was closed. Pulling out clean clothes, he was about ready to knock on the door when it opened and Jenna came out looking like a million bucks. Her burgundy cocktail dress hugged every curve, her hair was piled on top of her head and she was wearing more make up than usual. She had on a pair of strappy high heels and her perfume wafted out around him like a sensual vanilla cloud.
“Whoa, Jenna! You look fantastic. What are we doing?” he asked as he leaned over and kissed her cheek, afraid to get too close and get her dirty.
Jenna laughed at him, picking up a little evening bag and dropping lip gloss and a credit card case inside. “We aren’t doing anything. Don’t you remember? I told you weeks ago us girls were having a night out tonight. We’re going to have dinner and then go to the movies.”
“Who is we?” Josh asked, barely controlling his anger. He was certain there were no girls involved in this evening at all. If he was a betting man, he’d wager Jenna was off to meet Dennis Gillman.
“Oh, you know, Callan and Laken and a few other friends,” Jenna said, fastening on a necklace and looking at Josh in the dresser mirror. “So you are on your own for dinner and the evening. We might be late so don’t wait up for me.”
“But Jenna,” Josh started to say and was cut off by Jenna answering her phone. Although she walked into the front room, he followed close enough to hear the one-sided conversation.
“I know. I can’t wait to see you either. I’m wearing your favorite dress. No, he doesn’t know. Yes, Giovanni’s at seven. You too. Bye.”
Josh was about to blow a fuse. Jenna was having an affair. And she wasn’t even trying very hard to keep it a secret. Well, if she thought he’d just stand by while she violated their marriage vows and walked out on him, she had another think coming. Clearing his throat, he walked into the living room.
“So, Jenna, have a nice time,” he said, kissing her cheek again.
“Thanks, Josh, I will,” she said, dropping her phone in her bag and walking out the door with a wave of her fingers.
Josh looked at the clock on the wall. It was nearly 6:20. If he hurried he could get cleaned up, drive to Giovanni’s and be there to catch Jenna red-handed with lover boy. Just to confirm his suspicions, he called Callan and asked if she had plans for the evening. When she said no, he yelled “Ha!” and hung up the phone.
Running into the bathroom, Josh shaved and showered, pulled one of his suits with a crisp shirt out of the closet and slipped them on. Giving his good cowboy boots a swipe with a rag, he tugged them on and finished knotting his tie as he ran out the door. If he was going to prove who the better man was, he sure wasn’t going to do it dressed like a hick from the sticks.
Breaking the speed limit by several miles per hour, he wheeled into Giovanni’s parking lot with five minutes to spare. Hurrying inside, he went to the hostess station to see if she had seated Jenna, but then realized Jenna likely wouldn’t be using her real name. Glancing into the bar, there sat Jenna at a cozy table for two with a big burly cowboy. With his back to the door, The Gillman had on a black Stetson, pulled low over his face, and was wearing a black sports jacket. If he didn’t know better, Josh could have sworn the guy was a twin to Clay from the back.
Storming into the bar, Josh stomped up to the table and turned a furious glare on his wife.
“Well, isn’t this a cozy picture miss-night-out-with-the-girls,” Josh spat out, keeping his voice low even though the tone screamed his displeasure. Looking at Jenna with fire brightening his gray eyes, his entire countenance oozed anger and disappointment. “How dare you lie to me? How dare you cheat on me? How dare you!”
Jenna took on a look of innocence. “Josh, I…”
Josh cut her off. “Don’t you Josh me, missy. You answer my questions. How could you?”
“Now hold on a minute, there, city boy,” Jenna’
s date said, standing up from the table and pushing back his hat. “You might want to tone down those accusations.”
Josh’s head snapped up at the familiar voice and turned to look into the face of his brother-in-law. What in the world was Clay doing here with Jenna?
“So I’ve been betrayed by not only my wife, but also my best friend,” Josh said in disbelief. “This just keeps getting better and better.”
Instead of defending themselves, instead of admitting their guilt, they both laughed at him. Laughed!
“I’m glad you both find this so humorous,” he said, looking at them with disgust. “Maybe you won’t be laughing so hard when Callan finds out, Clay. Hmm? Will it still be so funny then?”
“Absolutely,” Clay said, with a teasing grin. Looking toward the bar, he stretched out his hand and Callan slid off a bar stool to clasp it in hers as she stepped next to the table.
“Josh, you have officially been had,” Callan said with a big smile. “We got you good.”
Josh, confused and still angry, was looking from Clay to Callan to Jenna and back again. “What is going on here?”
Jenna got up from the table and took Josh’s arm, pulling him toward the hostess station. Clay and Callan walked behind them.
“We’re ready for our table now,” Jenna said to the hostess, who then led them to a table for four back in a corner. Once the girls were seated, the men took their seats. Josh felt his temper continue to boil.
“Would someone like to explain to me what is going on?” he asked through clenched teeth.
“Well, little brother, you asked me to find out what was going on with Jenna and I did. I’ll let her give you the details herself, but I told you all along Jenna would never cheat on you. Of course, I was right,” Callan said smugly. “So we decided to teach you a lesson. Clay was more than happy to help.”
“I do what I can,” Clay said with a broad smile, leaning back and looking quite pleased with his part in the prank.
Josh didn’t know what to say. He had just been humiliated by his wife, sister and brother-in-law, accused his wife of having an affair and now they wanted him to sit and eat dinner all nice and civilized? He wasn’t sure he had it in him.
Glancing at Jenna, he realized he probably owed her an apology, a big apology, for jumping to conclusions and not trusting her. If he wasn’t such a chicken to have discussions that could involve some conflict he probably could have gotten to the bottom of things a couple weeks ago. As it was, a little conflict at home would have been better than the scene they must have made in the bar.
Picking up Jenna’s hand, he felt his temper cooling and remorse settling in. Raising her hand to his lips, he kissed her palm. “I’m sorry, Babe. You’ve never given me a reason to doubt you and I should have known you wouldn’t cheat on me. But all this still doesn’t make sense. Who is The Gillman? I know it wasn’t Clay calling our house non-stop and hanging up on me when I answered the phone.”
After the waitress took their orders, Jenna told her story of being harassed by Dennis Gillman and how she finally turned the problem over to her supervisor yesterday before Callan met her for lunch.
“I’m sorry, too, Josh. I should have told you upfront what was going on, but I wanted to handle it by myself. I didn’t want you to worry and I didn’t want you to fight my battle for me,” Jenna said.
“That’s what husbands do, Jenna. We live to fight battles for the honor of our women. Isn’t that right, Clay?” Josh asked, looking to his friend for support.
Clay grunted like a caveman and nodded his head. “Ugg and Zoog here to protect women.”
This made both Callan and Jenna laugh and drained away what tension was left around the table.
“So who was on the phone earlier?” Josh asked as they ate their dinner. “Someone called right before you left.”
“That was me,” Callan said with a sly smile. “Jenna hid in your bathroom and called me when she heard you come in. The plan was to wait a few minutes then call her back pretending to be Mr. Gillman. We knew you’d be furious and follow her and here we are.”
“Thanks for behaving according to plan,” Jenna said as she gave Josh a pat on the hand. He would have been irritated if he hadn’t looked into her eyes and started to fall into the warm pools of chocolate.
The four of them relaxed and relished a rare evening out together. They were all dressed up, eating at the best restaurant in town, enjoying one another’s company. Bobbi and Steve were keeping the girls overnight and without any little ones to get home to, the foursome decided to go to the movies and then stop for dessert before calling it a night. As they parted company for the evening, Callan suggested they start planning a date night once a month. Jenna readily agreed and they all promised the next time would not involve a joke at Josh’s expense.
Following Jenna’s car home, the drive gave Josh time to think of a nice apology speech. Pulling into the driveway while Jenna parked in the garage, Josh kept rehearsing what he would say. Even though Jenna thought she’d evened the score by playing the joke on him, Josh knew he owed his wife an apology. Despite incriminating evidence, he should have known without a doubt that Jenna wouldn’t cheat on him. He violated her trust, questioned her commitment and humiliated them both. Yep, he could be assured of his placement in the doghouse for a good long while.
Walking in the back door, Jenna was already in the kitchen placing her handbag on the counter. Turning to look at him, she kept her expression blank and shook her head at him. Folding her arms across her chest, she leaned against the counter and waited.
Taking a step toward her, Josh cleared his throat. This seemed a lot easier driving home than it was turning out to be in reality.
“Jenna,” he began, looking down at his boots. Jenna stuck a finger under his chin, bringing his gaze up to meet hers. Releasing a sigh, Josh took her hand in his and started over. “I’m so sorry, Babe. I should have trusted you. I should never have doubted you. I should have discussed my concerns with you rather than jumping to conclusions. I should have known you would never cheat on me. I’m the most jealous, stupid husband in the world and can only beg for your forgiveness. Please?”
“I don’t know,” Jenna said, looking at him with her big brown eyes full of unshed tears. “How could you, Josh? How could you ever think I’d have an affair? How could you think I’d treat our vows so casually? Disregard our love? I would never, ever do that and it hurts to know that is what you thought. You have absolutely no faith or trust in me.”
Pulling her into his arms, Josh rested his head on top of hers. “Jenna, that isn’t true. I think I knew deep down that you wouldn’t cheat on me, but in case you haven’t noticed, I can get a little jealous and slightly unreasonable. What was I supposed to think when that guy kept calling here?”
“That your wife had a problem and she didn’t know how to handle it,” Jenna said quietly. “Josh, I should have told you from the start what was going on. I was just so ashamed that I couldn’t stop it and then I was afraid what you would do if you found out.”
“Well, what did you think I would do?” Josh asked, suddenly curious to know how his wife thought he’d handle a problem like someone stalking her.
“Well, I thought you’d get unreasonably angry and go beat him up or show up at the office and make a scene. I’m truly sorry,” Jenna said, hugging him tightly.
Josh smiled inwardly. Jenna wasn’t far off in her assumptions of what he would have done, or at least felt like doing if she had told him what had really been going on.
“I’m as much to blame as you for not discussing the problem,” Jenna said, trying not to cry. “I know you hate to engage in anything remotely resembling conflict and getting defensive was a way of shutting you out. I should have been willing to discuss it with you.”
“Tell you what, Babe. Next time you have a problem, you talk to me about it right away and I promise I won’t go all caveman on you or jump to conclusions. Deal?” Josh asked, rubbing his hands soo
thingly up and down Jenna’s back, enjoying the feel of her silk dress beneath his hands. Her perfume still teased his nose and he suddenly hoped they could forget about this incident and end the evening on a good note.
“Deal,” Jenna said, pulling back to look up at him, her eyes molten and inviting. Lowering her voice, she said, “I think now would be a very good time for you to kiss me.”
Josh pulled her closer and bent his dark head toward hers, kissing her with a passion that left them both breathless.
“I love you, Jenna,” he said, his lips close to her ear, breath warm on her neck. “Always have, always will.”
CHAPTER SIX
Jenna was starting to wonder if taking this new job was a good idea after all. She had been traveling for the last month. In the past 30 days, she had been home for only five. She worked late last night, got up extra early this morning and hoped to arrive at the office by 8 a.m. if she kept driving straight through.
She hadn’t bothered to come home last weekend because it would have been an eight hour drive one way with her having one day with Josh before she’d have to turn around and drive back on Sunday. Instead she hung out in a hotel, missing Josh and wishing she were home. They talked or texted several times a day, but she still missed him, even more than she thought she would.
Josh was completely immersed in summer farm work. When he wasn’t working on their own place, he was either doing custom work or over at the ranch helping Steve and Clay. He liked to help out over there when he could because when he needed assistance they were always quick to provide whatever he needed, be it equipment or manpower.
Jenna sighed, as she watched the sunrise on this June morning. The bright orb on the horizon streaked rays of pink and gold across the warm blue summer sky, giving the promise of another beautiful summer day.
Today was their wedding anniversary and she hoped Josh would pull his head out of farming long enough to remember. The few days she had been home, he was so exhausted from farm work he barely paid her any attention at all. He ate his meals mostly in silence, thinking to ask her a few questions about her work before returning outside until dark. When he came in, he took a quick shower then collapsed in bed, asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. By the time she woke up, he was long gone out to the fields.
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