by Rachel Hanna
"Sorry. I was just thinking. Can you please ask if I can have more time?"
"I really can't."
Jenna's anger started to well up inside of her like a raging river with nowhere to go. Why was the Universe or God or whatever doing this to her?
"I'm not leaving," she said without thinking.
"Excuse me?"
"My daughter is five years old. Her father left us here with nothing. She was up all night with a stomach virus and a fever. I've gotten like two hours of sleep. You don't want to mess with me right now. I've taken wonderful care of this house, and I'm not going to tear it down now that your boss owns it. You can tell him I will get out within the week, which is a more reasonable time, but I'm not leaving today."
"Ms. Watson, we are supposed to start cleaning this house out today. My boss needs to get it ready to resell."
"I don't give a rat's butt what your boss needs. If he wants me out, tell him to get his rich butt over here and remove me himself," she said as she slammed the door and locked it.
As she leaned against the door, she took a big breath and wondered what was about to happen next.
* * *
"Hello?" Kyle said as he sat at his desk. Working from his home office, Kyle had started the morning in a bad way. The offer a buyer had made on one of his investment properties had been too low, another buyer's financing fell through and cost him time on the market and unnecessary hassle, and his dog, aptly named Cat, had sneaked out of the house, played in the ocean, and then rolled in the sand until he was so caked in it that Kyle had to bathe him outside. It wasn't the best start to a day, and he was in no mood for more bad news.
"Hey, boss," Oliver said. Oliver had been leading Kyle's cleaning crews since the beginning, and he was one of Kyle's most reliable workers. "Bad news."
"Lovely. That's just what I need today. What is it?" Kyle snapped as he threw down his pen and ran his fingers through his thick, dark hair.
"The owner of your new property is refusing to leave."
"What? So call the police."
"Well, this is a unique case, boss."
"Oliver, they are all unique cases. Everyone has a story, an excuse, as to why they can't move out or why they couldn't pay their mortgage. I don't care about all of that. Call the police on him."
"It's a her."
Kyle paused for a moment. "It doesn't matter."
"She has a five year old daughter. Says she didn't get the notice until she got home last night and then her daughter was up all night throwing up with a fever."
"And you believe that?" Kyle asked shaking his head.
"Actually, I do. She looked pretty shaken up. She's asking for the rest of the week."
"No way. I've got workers lined up to get that house ready for sale. I can't let some kid throwing up mess up my plans for the house."
"Kyle, you know I will do just about anything for you, man, but I'm not calling the police on a woman and her sick kid. Karma will bust my ass for that."
Kyle sighed and then laughed. "Fine. I don't want your ass to get busted. Tell ya what. Go ahead and leave, and I will run out there in a little bit to talk to her."
"Good luck, boss. She's a bit of a spitfire," Oliver said laughing.
"I've had my share of spitfires. I think I can handle her," Kyle said chuckling as he ended the call. One spitfire came to mind quickly, and he didn't like to think about her. No, she brought up painful memories of a young man standing in the road watching the love of his life choose another man. A richer man. A man with a better future. A man who would never have loved her like he did.
Kyle drove down the road ready to confront the unruly homeowner. He wished that people could just be civil and not cause him so much trouble. He paid his house payment, and he had a certain level of compassion for those in situations that weren't as stable as his, but investing was his business and this woman wasn't going to cause him grief.
He stepped out of his Jeep and walked up the cobblestone walkway to the front door. It was just after lunch, and his cleaning crew was waiting on standby for the phone call from Kyle. They were like Tasmanian devils moving through a property and getting it ready for renovations. Although this property didn't look like it needed much of anything from what he could tell. At least this would give him the ability to see inside a little bit, unless the woman came to the door with a shotgun or something.
Kyle knocked and put his hands in his pockets, turning to look at the beautiful ocean view. Yes, he thought to himself, this property will be a big seller. With dollar signs dancing in his head, he heard the front door lock click open. As he turned, nothing could have prepared him for what he saw.
Feeling like the air had been sucked from his lungs, he stood with his mouth gaping open in shock. Jenna. How could Jenna be standing in front of him all these years later? Was he at the wrong house? Maybe he wrote it down wrong.
She stood staring back at him, hollow eyes that were outlined in puffy redness from crying. Holding her hand to her heart, she attempted to speak but nothing came out.
"Jenna?" he said, barely able to conjure up more than a whisper.
"Kyle," she said, all at once sounding relieved and stunned.
"I don't understand. What are you doing here?"
"I live here. I own this house... well, at least I used to..." she mumbled with her eyes darting around in confusion.
"J.A. Watson," he said, more as a matter of fact than a question. "Ashley. Your middle name."
"I'm confused, Kyle. Why are you here?"
"Jenna, I'm an investor." He watched as she put two and two together in her mind. Her face went from shock to anger in a split second.
"You did this to me? What was this? Your way of getting revenge?" she seethed.
"What?"
"You bought this house and tried to kick me out so quickly because you hate me?"
"Of course not. Jeez, you know me better than that. Well, you used to, anyway. I had no idea you lived here."
"So this was just a coincidence? You expect me to believe that?" she asked with her hands on her hips.
By this point, Kyle had recovered from the shock and replaced it with his own version of anger. "I don't really care what you believe, Mrs. Watson. I'm here to inform you that you need to vacate my house before I have to call the cops on you." His teeth gritted, he did his best to avoid thinking back to those days when he loved Jenna more than anything on Earth. No, right now she was just another person in his way.
Jenna began to shake visibly before she broke out in sobs. She leaned against the doorframe for support before she started to slide to the floor. Kyle's heart started to pound as he realized what he'd just said to her. Call the cops on her? Sure, he was angry with her, but he would never have called the police to remove her. She was Jenna. His Jenna.
"Oh, God, Jenna. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. Come on..." he said as he crouched and slid his arms under hers. One touch and he was taken back in time. Her skin, the smell of strawberries in her hair, her presence. He pulled her up and was taken by how womanly she looked with curves. She wasn't that young girl anymore, but she was better looking now than when they were younger.
He walked her to the sofa and then shut the front door. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around herself. She'd always done that as a protection mechanism. As her sobs slowed down, she finally looked up at him. One moment of eye contact felt like a dagger in Kyle's heart.
"What happened, Jenna?" he asked softly as he sat across from her.
"Mommy?" Kaitlyn said as she rubbed her eyes and stumbled into the living room. Kyle was taken aback by how much she looked like Jenna. With her sun kissed auburn hair and bright green eyes, the little girl took his breath away for a moment.
"Hey, baby," Jenna said, jumping up and kneeling in front of the little girl. "How are you feeling?"
"Hungry," she said and Jenna laughed as she hugged her.
"That's a good sign," Jenna said as she f
elt her head. "No more fever. Let's go make you some toast. Kyle, I'll be right back," she said looking back at him. He nodded and watched her walk into the kitchen. As he listened to mother and daughter talk, he realized how long it had been. She was a mother now. Someone called Jenna "Mommy." How could that be? Hadn't they just had their first kiss on the big rock at Emerald Cove? Didn't they just go to the prom, Jenna all fancied up in her pink dress?
A few minutes later, Jenna reappeared in the living room, now wearing a pair of tight fitting jeans and a V-neck t-shirt that showed off the changes in her now womanly body. Kyle's heart skipped, and he had to remind himself that he was there on business and she was only a part of his past.
"Sorry about that. She was so sick all night. I barely slept myself," she said running her fingers through her hair with a slight smile. He remembered running his fingers through her sweet smelling hair many times.
"You look..." he started to say beautiful without thinking.
"What?"
"Nothing. I was just going to say sorry she was sick." Jenna eyed him carefully for a moment, and he could almost sense a hint of a smile. Had she known what he was about to say?
"Thanks."
"So, tell me what happened, Jenna. When last I saw you, you were speeding off into a life of glitz and glamor and money. I never imagined we'd meet up again this way."
"Well, where do I even begin? I helped put Nick through medical school, supported him through residency, gave birth to his daughter, and then he repaid me by screwing a nurse at his hospital and leaving us with nothing." Kyle struggled with his emotions, which were ranging from anger to some kind of "I told you so" feeling. Because he had told her so.
He’d stood with his hands in his pockets as Jenna stood across from him with her head down. "I don't understand, Jenna. We had plans. We were going to get married one day. I love you," he'd said to her. She couldn't look at him.
"I love you, too. You know that. But I have to do what's best for me, Kyle."
"You mean what's best for your parents. When are you going to live for yourself?" he'd asked her.
She sighed and looked up at the sky. "Why are you making this so hard?"
"Hard? Are you kidding me? Hard is when the love of your life comes home from college to visit and tells you that she’s dating another guy because he can give her a better future. How do you think that makes me feel? Not only did you apparently cheat on me, but now you tell me I have no future?"
"Kyle, it's just that my Mom and Dad think I deserve more..."
"More? What kind of more, Jenna? More money? He might be able to provide that. But more love? More devotion? More loyalty? Not a chance. No man will ever be able to give you the love that I can. I've spent years loving you, and whether you believe it or not, I've left my mark. You'll see. He can't love you like I do, Jenna," he'd said as he walked closer to her, his lips only inches from hers.
"Kyle, I..."
"Don't worry. I'm not going to kiss you. The next time I kiss you, I want you to crave it. I want you to know that I'm the only man for you. You know deep in your heart that this will never work. He's not your soul mate, Jenna. Your parents are about to ruin your life, but I'm not going to beg."
She had stepped back, unable to meet his gaze.
"I'm sorry. This is what I have to do. Don't wait for me," she'd said. "You need to move on with your life."
He hadn't said anything else and watched as she drove out of sight and out of his life.
Chapter 5
"Kyle? Are you still with me?" Jenna asked looking at him.
"What? Oh, yeah. I was just thinking about something." Kyle didn't know how to feel. Should he kick her to the curb and laugh all the way home at the thought of her being homeless and sad? Should he scoop her up in his arms like he wanted to do? Of course not. That part of his life was long over, and he wasn't signing up for more hurt from Jenna.
"Thinking that you told me so?" she asked looking down at her lap. She'd changed so much over the years, but some things hadn't changed at all. The way her hair smelled, even from a few feet away. The way she looked down nervously when she thought someone was angry with her. He'd seen her do it with her parents many times. Even the way her voice lilted in that sweet Southern way that drew him to her in the first place.
"No. Of course not," he said, lying through his teeth.
"It's okay, Kyle. You have the right to gloat."
"Fine. You want me to gloat?" he said standing up, finally unable to hold back his words. "You left me standing there like I didn't even matter, Jenna. Like our five years together meant nothing to you. So, yes, there is a part of me that feels pretty vindicated in all of this. He might have money now, but you didn't get the benefit of that, did you?"
"I'm so sorry, Kyle. I should have handled it all better. I know that. I knew it the moment I drove away and saw your face in the rear view mirror. You didn't deserve that, and maybe that's why I'm being punished now."
Before Kyle could speak, the little girl came running into the room. Amazing how fast kids could bounce back from vomiting all night.
"Mommy, who is this man?" she asked as she tugged on Jenna's shirt.
"Honey, this is one of my oldest friends in the world, Mr. Parker."
"How old is he?" she asked with her eyes. Kyle let out a chuckle as Jenna tried not to crack up herself.
"No, sweetie, that just means I've known him for a long time. He's the same age as me, which is very young," Jenna said smiling.
"Oh."
"Kyle, this is my daughter Kaitlyn," Jenna said. The little girl looked up at him with her big green eyes and Kyle suddenly felt like the world's biggest jackass.
"Hi there, Kaitlyn. I'm Kyle. Nice to meet you. Are you feeling better?"
"Yep. Lots better. Going to play with my dolls now!" she said before she bounded up the stairs singing all the way.
"She has plenty of energy," Kyle said.
"Yes, she does," Jenna replied with a look of sadness on her face as she sat back down.
"When did he leave?"
"About eight months ago."
"I'm sorry you and Kaitlyn have had to go through that. I wouldn't wish a nasty breakup on my worst enemy," he said avoiding eye contact.
"Not even on the person who did the very same thing to you?"
Kyle cringed a bit at her statement and then didn't respond to it. "He doesn't pay any child support?"
"He's supposed to, but he hasn't so far. He's angry with me, and he doesn't want me to have any of his money even if it means his own daughter goes hungry, I suppose."
"Mad at you? Why? I thought he was the one who cheated on you."
"He did."
"So what is he mad about?"
"Never mind. It's not important now. Look, about the house..."
"Relax, Jenna. Even though you're probably my least favorite person in the world, I wouldn't put you and your daughter out in the street. I'm not that kind of man." He was lying; she wasn't his least favorite person in the world.
"That makes me sad."
"What does?" he asked.
"That I am your least favorite person in the world. I really screwed this up," she said standing up and looking out the window at the ocean. "You know, when we bought this house, Nick promised me that we'd spend our off days as a family picnicking on the beach. We never went on one picnic. Now I won't have the chance to do that with Kaitlyn."
"Jenna, you'll have plenty of chances to build memories with her even if they are without her father. I'm sure you’ll meet someone one day who will be your real soul mate, and he can be a father to her." It pained Kyle to say "soul mate" as they had talked so many times about how they were meant to be together forever.
"I had a soul mate," she whispered just loud enough for him to hear. Kyle's phone started ringing just in time to break the tension in the room.
"Sorry, I've got to take this," he said as he pushed the answer button. "Hello? Yeah. Tell him I want the holes patched on the
main floor and that damaged wall in the guest room needs to be sheet-rocked again. Right. I'll see you guys in about an hour."
"You seem to be in high demand these days," Jenna said smiling as she watched him type something into his phone.
"I guess so."
"How's business?"
"Good. You know Mom has the real estate company. I worked as an agent with her for quite awhile before venturing out on my own a couple of years ago."
"I used to see your signs when I would pass through January Cove."
"You did?"
"Yes. I’m embarrassed to say that I dialed the number on the sign many times, but never hit send."
"You wanted to call me?"
"Of course. I've missed you. You were my best friend in the world, and now I'm your least favorite person on the planet. That's hard to digest," she said just as Kaitlyn came bounding down the stairs again.
"Mommy, can we get a puppy?" she asked out of the blue.
"No, sweetie. We're moving soon, and we can't have a puppy where we're going."
"We're moving? But I don't want to move out of my house, Mommy!" she said as her eyes welled with tears.
"We will talk about this later, Kaitlyn." The little girl stomped back upstairs yelling the whole way about how she didn't want to move. Kyle felt horrible and realized he had to do something.
"Listen, Jenna, I don't want you guys to have to rush out of here. You've got enough stress on you as it is. There's not much that has to be done to get it ready for sale, so why don't you stay here for another week or two while my guys do the work?"
"Seriously? You would do that for me?"
"I would do it for Kaitlyn. She seems like a nice kid, and she's already had one man disappoint her. I'm not going to be the second one."
"Thanks," she said softly as she looked down at her feet. "I appreciate it more than you will ever know." Their eyes met for a long moment as the tension built between them, and Kyle knew that was his cue to leave.