by Jen Andrews
“You ready for company?”
“I am. Thank you for talking to Jeremy about what happened, Reese. I have a lot to think about. And I’m going to take some time to see what Cammie does.”
“Just take your time, hooker-face. If he loves you as much as he says he does, he’ll wait until you’re ready.”
Smiling at him, I sat up on the bed, arranging our food and drinks, while he kicked off his shoes and changed into basketball shorts. After starting the movie, he hopped into bed with me.
“Is Sonny joining us?” I asked.
Reese grinned and scooted to the center of the bed, making room. “Sonny! Get that cute booty of yours in here. It’s time to introduce you to chick flick night.”
Sonny came in and made himself at home on the California king-sized bed with us. He let out a laugh when Reese told him we were watching Fried Green Tomatoes.
“I love this movie. Kathy Bates is epic.” He grabbed a handful of popcorn then settled in to our new group of three.
Halfway through the movie, Reese’s cell phone rang. After looking at the screen, he said, “It’s for you,” and handed me the phone.
“Holy shit balls, Teagan,” Jackie whispered excitedly. “You are never gonna believe this.”
“What am I never going to believe, Jacks?”
“There’s a cop here, and he’s talking to Cammie. It doesn’t look like a social call, if you know what I mean.”
Cammie is being questioned by the police? “Get your butt closer and see what they’re talking about,” I told her. “I want to know what’s going on.”
“I’m on it. Let me sneak over there.”
I waited on the line while Jackie found a way to hear what the officer was saying to Cammie. The whole time, she trilled the theme song to Mission Impossible and it was hard not to laugh at her.
“Okay, Teags. I am closer, but it’s hard to hear them.”
“Thank you, Jacks. I owe you for this.”
“Alrighty, he just said that she could be charged with trespassing, for starters. Oh, you should see the look on her face. Now he says what she did is a felony. Oh crap, he moved and I can’t hear him.”
There was a long pause on the line before Jackie spoke again. “Um, he just asked her what would happen to a man if he snuck into a woman’s house and did the same thing. Holy shit balls, Teagan, she is freaking out. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a fake tan fade that fast! She’s turning as white as a ghost.”
Holy crap, I wished I could see what was happening. “Now what’s going on, Jacks?”
“Shit, they almost caught me. I’ve got to get out of here before they see me. Hang on.”
Dead silence filled the air before she came back on the line. “Sorry Teags, I didn’t want to get busted.”
I snickered at my sneaky friend. “You’ve done more than enough, girl. Don’t get in trouble on my account.”
“It’s all good, I’m safe,” she laughed. “The last thing I saw was Cammie crying as the cute, baby-faced cop mentioned felonies and jail.”
Baby-faced cop? Is it Kyle, Andy’s cop friend? It has to be.
“Thank you so much, Jackie.”
“That’s what real friends do for each other, Teags. By the way, Nat and I are missing you like crazy. Can’t wait to see ya when we go for our night out.”
“I miss you guys, too, but I am so happy to be out of that hospital.”
After we hung up, I set Reese’s phone down on the bed. “Sorry everyone has to call your phone, Reese. I can’t believe I lost mine.”
“It’s fine hooker-face, my phone is your phone as long as you need it.” Reese put on a pouty face. “I don’t want you to go back to Brit’s tomorrow.” He threw his arms around me and pulled me closer. “Snuggle with me right now, hooker-face.”
Sonny laughed at our antics.
But, of course, I snuggled the hell out of Reese.
The next morning, I woke up to a thigh poke from Reese junior before I hopped in the shower. Later that morning, I had several errands to run, a new phone to buy, and to make a trip to the bank. After I’d attended the funeral for Eloise Larsen, my final patient while working for Denver Home Hospice, her estate lawyer had approached me, because apparently, she’d left me something in her will. I laughed, thinking it was the Duck Dynasty DVD collection I had sent for her birthday. She had been obsessed with the show and I’d endured hours of watching it with her.
Boy was I wrong. Well, partially wrong . . .
When I’d taken my seat on the plane home, I’d had the Duck Dynasty DVD’s and a check in my purse for fifty thousand dollars.
At my new job, I was paired up with the patients who were extremely ill because of my hospice experience. I worked my rotations with Dr. McGuinness, who was brilliant. She knew how to treat her patients, the staff, and how to dress.
Seriously, that woman worked a pair of five-inch heels and a pencil skirt like nobody’s business. I didn’t know how the heck she wore those heels every single day. Depending on what I was doing, my feet barely made it through a day wearing my expensive and well-padded nurse’s shoes.
To celebrate surviving my first week at my new job, I was on my way to Dub’s to meet Jackie and Nat. I knew Jeremy might be there and a part of me hoped he would be.
Every day, I woke up missing him more and more. I wished things between us were different, but with Cammie still around, I couldn’t risk sacrificing the peace and quiet I’d found through my new job by becoming involved with him. But most of all I couldn’t be with Jeremy because of the vision of him and Cammie together. Once that vision of them in our bed popped into my head, I struggled to banish it.
I hated it.
I hated what it did to me and how it made me feel.
I hated that because of it, I couldn’t get my life with Jeremy back.
Because that’s what I wanted—him in my life, but that couldn’t happen until I could get the vision of him and Cammie out of my head.
I needed time—lots of time to recover from this. After seeing Jeremy and Cammie together, I’d realized how deeply all the cheating in my life had affected me, Gary’s as well as my cheating prick father’s.
Arriving at Dub’s, I found my friends waiting for me with a tray full of tequila shots. I dropped down on the couch next to Nat and noticed she had a cat-that-ate-the-canary look on her face.
“What happened now?” I asked, knowing it had something to do with Cammie.
Nat wiggled excitedly and clapped her hands with a huge grin on her face. “She’s gone. Today was her last day!”
Holy crap.
“Where did she go?” I asked, still unable to believe what I was hearing.
“Rumor is she’s been in and out of HR all week, so I’m not sure what happened. All I know is she’s moving to Portland where her dad lives.”
I turned away to hide the tears that pricked my eyes.
She’s leaving town. But not to go to jail where she belongs. Jeremy must not be pressing charges. I wondered why, but it was his decision, not mine.
Would my misery finally be over with her out of the state? I picked up a shot of tequila in each hand and slammed them back quickly.
“Teags, you okay?” Jackie asked me.
“Honestly, I don’t know.”
Suddenly, I was angry. “That stupid bitch has fucked up my life for months and ruined what I thought was going to be—” I was so mad, I slammed back two more shots of tequila then I took several deep breaths. “I thought Jeremy and I were going to be together . . . then her stupid ass swoops in with her fake tits and craziness, and in five fucking minutes, she’s taken everything away from me. She’s ruined the lives of two people and is getting off scot-free by moving away.”
Jackie spoke up first. “Teags, do you really think it’s ruined? If you and Jeremy love each other, you can get through this.”
“Easier said than done, Jacks. All I can think about is what I saw that night. I know in my heart he is a victim o
f Cammie’s, but I still see them on the bed as clear as day. I can’t get it out of my head. Will I ever be able to?”
“I don’t know, sweetie,” Jackie replied, her eyes full of sympathy. “All I know is you love him, and he loves you.”
After a few moments of silence, Nat voiced her opinion on the matter. “Personally, I think we should hop in the car, drive over to her house and cunt-punt her to fucking Siberia where she belongs.”
As I laughed, Jackie asked Nat to show her how to perform said “cunt-punt” while I covered my ears because I hated the C-word.
“Why did you have to say that word? It’s so gross!” I yelled.
“Well, when she-who-rarely-curses starts dropping F-bombs and calling people bitches, I thought it was fitting,” Nat said with a devious grin on her face.
“Come on bitch, show me how to cunt-punt!” Jackie begged Nat. “I am definitely on a need to know basis.”
Nat jumped up from the couch, danced around, and then pretended to kick a field goal before she and Jackie jumped up and chest bumped each other.
Oh my God, my friends are nuts.
“What the hell was that all about?” asked a voice from beside the couch. The three of us looked over to find Eric and John watching us.
“That was me cunt-punting Cammie to Siberia,” Nat said, still dancing around like a boxer in the ring waiting for his fight to begin.
“Stop saying that word! I can’t take it anymore.” I yelled and covered my ears again to the amusement of my friends.
Finally, Nat calmed down and took a seat on the couch.
“It’s good to see you back here, Teagan,” John said.
It is good to be back here.
“Thanks John.” I glanced toward the door hoping to see Jeremy, but I only saw Sonny making his way over to us.
Eric pulled me up off the couch into a bear hug. “Red, glad you’re back. Maybe now Jeremy will stop walking around like a damn zombie.”
He set me down and I sat next to Sonny. I gave him a sideways glance and said my hellos. Maybe Jeremy wasn’t coming. I picked up another shot and slung it back to hide my disappointment.
Soon, the fights were underway. As we watched, John’s phone rang and he had a quick conversation with someone. It was amusing to watch, because whoever was on the other end of the line was getting short answers of “yep” as John refused to take his eyes off the TV.
Half an hour later, I had downed a couple more shots and was really in to the fights. The two competitors were going at it and everyone in the bar watching, was standing on their feet, cheering and yelling at the TV’s. And I was right there in the middle of them.
“Oh shit, here we go again,” John said loudly.
Someone blocked my view of the TV. I opened my mouth to ask him to move. Then I realized it was Jeremy.
After looking at him for a few seconds, I noticed he didn’t look right.
In fact, I wasn’t quite sure how he looked.
He appeared pissed, relieved, miserable, and . . . happy? The next thing I knew I was tossed over his shoulder, and he was stalking out of the bar.
“Jeremy, can you put me down, please? I can walk, you know?”
“No.”
Alrighty, then.
He didn’t put me down until we were around the side of the building. Then he pinned me against the wall with his body and caged me in with his forearms on either side of my head.
“Do you still love me?” he asked. He was obviously wound up by the way his eyes glowered.
“What are you do—”
“Do you still love me?”
Yes, I still loved him, but right now, he was a little intimidating. “Jeremy, please calm down. You’re scaring me,” I whispered.
He relaxed and eased back, but left his arms against the wall.
“I’m sorry.” His shoulders slumped slightly and he rested his cheek against mine. “Teagan, please . . . I need to know. Do you still love me?”
“Yes, Jeremy. I do, but—”
“Please, come home,” he whispered, his mouth so close to mine I could feel his breath, cool against my skin. He was breaking my heart.
“I can’t.”
“Please . . . I can’t be in the house without you. When your text said you were going to Denver . . . I swear I fucking lost it. Then I called and your phone was disconnected and I couldn’t find you anywhere. Then I went to Reese’s to see if you were with him and got the surprise of my life when I found Sonny living with him instead of you.”
“I know . . . I’m happy for those two.”
I felt him smile against my cheek as he nodded.
“I’ve been living with my cousin, Brittany. I went to Denver to attend the funeral for a former patient . . . and to just get away for a few days. Jeremy, when you saw me that night at the pizza place, I’m sorry I confused you. I was there on a job interview. I don’t work at the hospital anymore, but at Nanna’s home.”
“Does that mean you’ll give me another chance?” he asked.
The hope in his eyes broke my heart.
Jeremy kissed my cheek and twisted a lock of my hair between his fingers. “I’m so happy you’re home. I love you so much, and it’s driving me crazy not being with you.”
“I miss you too, Jeremy . . . but I can’t be with you right now. I need time. Please, just give me a while. Every time I close my eyes, all I see is you and Cam—”
“Stop, please. Please, don’t say her name. I’m so sorry about everything. I should’ve known it wasn’t you, Teagan. I should have fucking known.”
“Jeremy, I understand, and I don’t want you apologizing again for it. It’s all Cam—her fault. Reese told me everything you told him.” I wouldn’t admit to him that I had been there and had heard his explanation with my own ears because I didn’t want him to be mad at Reese and Sonny.
“Can I tell you how sorry I am about Halloween night? I didn’t want it to be like that, Teagan.”
His words went straight to my heart. “Are you saying you regret us having sex?”
He shook his head. “No, pretty girl, I would never regret making love to you. I wanted it to be different for us . . . special. I wanted to take you away for the weekend, some place private and quiet.”
A strange look came over his face, and he reached down and rested his palms on my stomach. “Are you pregnant?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
I chuckled at the memory of ten pregnancy tests laying in a perfect row across the top of Reese’s bathroom counter. “Yes, I’m positive. I took ten freaking tests to be sure because I was so late, Jeremy.” And I’d gotten my period yesterday. Finally.
He pulled me away from the wall and wrapped his arms around me. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you.”
“Jeremy, you’ve got to stop apologizing for everything. You know you’re as much of a victim now in this whole situation as I am, right?”
He released me and took a step back. “It doesn’t make me feel any better.”
“What’s it going to take to make you feel better?”
“Please, come home,” he said, embracing me again.
“I can’t, Jeremy. I said I need time.”
“How much time?”
“You’re very impatient, you know?”
He laughed against my cheek. “Only when it comes to you, pretty girl. I love you so much and want to go back to the way we were before.”
“Me too. Please give me time, that’s all I’m asking for.”
He took a step back and looked in to my eyes. “I’ll be waiting. Impatiently, but I’ll still be waiting. For as long as you need me to.”
Jeremy cupped my face in his hands and kissed me gently on the lips. “So, I’ll see ya when I see ya?”
Nodding, I couldn’t help but smile. “Yeah, you’ll definitely see me.”
Without another word, Jeremy turned and walked away. He stood at his car door and looked back at me one last time.
“Jeremy?” I called out to him. “I love you.”
“I love you, too, Teagan.”
“Jeremy, wake up!” Through my exhausted brain, I heard Zoey’s panicked voice as she shook my shoulder and smacked me on the arm so hard it stung.
“Where is Hannah? She’s gone!”
“She’s not here, Zoey,” Andy growled and I knew right then that my life depended on my ass waking the hell up.
On her knees next to the couch, Zoey smacked me again just as I opened my mouth to speak. “She’s with Jay and Heather. Quit hitting me!”
Z backed away from me and dropped onto the floor in relief next to the coffee table.
“What time is it?”
“It’s two-twenty. Why is she with Jason and Heather, Jeremy? Was she too much for you to handle?” Andy asked, his glare aimed right at me.
“No, not at all, she was a perfect angel. They dropped by to take her out for ice cream with them and the kids. I’m surprised you didn’t pass them on the road because they just left.”
Shit, I had only slept for twenty minutes.
“Why didn’t you call and tell us, Jeremy?” Andy asked, the accusation in his tone deliberate.
Jesus, they really didn’t trust me, did they?
“I didn’t call because you said you were going to be home by two-thirty. I knew you wouldn’t mind them taking her and planned to tell you when you came home. I didn’t intend to fall asleep.”
Andy still glared at me, but Zoey had a relieved expression on her face.
“I’m sorry,” I said as Andy burned holes in my face with his icy glare. “You can trust me with her, Andy. I would never let anything happen to her.”
He finally relaxed, and I hoped it was because he realized I would die for that little girl. She would always be safe with me.
Today they’d asked me to babysit her so they could go to lunch and a movie. While they were gone, my Sweet Pea and I had picnicked on the living room floor, played, and watched The Little Mermaid.
I hated that movie because it reminded me too much of Teagan and a much happier time.
Happy.
An emotion I hadn’t felt over the last month.