For years the good people of Mirabelle have wondered who Little CoQuette’s father is. Well, the mystery has finally been revealed and it’s more than a little troubling.
CoQuette’s mother, Jeze Belle, was a loose, immoral woman. Jeze started bed hopping at a very young age, so it’s no wonder she had her first out-of-wedlock child when she was eighteen, and the second bastard child came along only six years later. It’s been speculated that CoQuette’s father was a married man, and as it turns out he is.
Superintendent Charming MyAss moved down twenty-five years ago when he was hired as the principal of the high school. He worked there about twenty years before he decided to run for superintendent. He’s up for reelection this year, but how many people are going to vote for him now that they know he has an illegitimate child running around? For all we know, CoQuette is just one of many.
At a dinner honoring Superintendent MyAss, Wrongfully Accused showed up to spill the beans. Wrongfully Accused has been friends with Charming MyAss’s son, Loyal MyAss, for over twenty years. Apparently Loyal MyAss has been known to get drunk on more than a few occasions, and his loose lips are going to sink his daddy’s ship.
According to Wrongfully Accused, it’s been no secret in the MyAss household, that Charming MyAss is CoQuette’s father. MyAss’s wife, Friendly MyAss, has a habit of getting drunk off of a few too many gin martinis and throwing Charming MyAss’s infidelity in his face, that along with one of her drinks. It would appear that the MyAss family has a problem holding their secrets, their liquor, and their pants up for that matter.
Grace couldn’t escape the knowing looks wherever she went. Some people looked disgusted, like the confirmation that her mother had slept with a married man made Grace less of a person. Others looked at her with pity. Grace didn’t care for either sentiment. Really she didn’t care what anybody thought of her. People were entitled to their opinions, and she was entitled to think they could shove those opinions right up their asses.
The constant ache in Grace’s chest was just as bad a week after she and Jax broke up. She’d had to learn to just deal with the pain, because it wasn’t going anywhere. She ventured out only when it was absolutely necessary. She hadn’t seen him since she walked out of his house. There was no doubt in her mind that the first time she saw him she was going to fall apart, and she had absolutely no desire to deal with that.
She’d hung out with Mel, Harper, and Preston on alternating nights, but she knew she wasn’t much company. They didn’t want her to be in her apartment all by herself every night. So to stop their loving but annoying babysitting routine, she’d started working late at the café. This worked out well for Grace for another reason. It meant she was at the café for less hours during the day dealing with people and their stupid looks.
On the Saturday night that was one week and two days after the breakup, or the day Grace’s heart had been ripped out, Grace was making two dozen cupcakes for Annie Madison’s son’s second birthday. Apparently Carson loved trains, so Grace was taking up time laying tracks on every cupcake. The kids at the party weren’t going to pay much attention to the details, they were all under the age of five, but Grace needed a distraction.
She finished decorating at nine and cleaned up her mess. She was drying the last cupcake tin when there was a knock at the side door. Grace turned around to see Shep on the other side.
For one fleeting second her stomach had flipped; she thought Jax might be on the other side of the door. It was a stupid thought. He wasn’t going to be stopping by ever again.
“Hey, stranger,” Grace said as she unlocked the door and pulled it open wide enough for him to step inside.
“Hey, Gracie,” he said, giving her a sad half smile as he pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. “What are you still doing here?”
“Staying busy so I don’t go crazy,” she said as she pulled back and walked over to the tray of cupcakes. “You working tonight?” she asked as she put the cupcakes into a box.
“Yeah, but we weren’t that busy so I left.”
“Not busy? It’s a Saturday,” Grace said, looking at him skeptically.
“All right, so it was busy. Austin is working tonight and my dad said they could handle the crowd.”
“And you just happened to drive by and see the light on?”
“I figured you were either going to be here or at your apartment. I haven’t seen you in a while.”
“I haven’t seen anyone.” She pulled the refrigerator door open and slid in the cupcakes.
“Yeah, I figured.”
It was taking everything in her not to ask how Jax was doing. Not to ask if he was struggling as bad as she was. Paige had told Grace about the fight between Brendan and Jax, though Brendan wouldn’t have been able to hide it considering he had a bruised cheek and a cut above his left eyebrow. Grace hadn’t heard how Jax fared. Brendan was furious with Jax, and as of the moment the two of them weren’t on speaking terms. So the only person she could really get news from was Shep, but in the end knowing wasn’t going to help her, so she kept her mouth shut.
“You done here?” Shep asked.
“Yeah.” Grace nodded, turning to look at him.
“You have plans for tonight?”
“No, but I don’t really feel like going anywhere. Not in a seeing people type of mood.”
“I know. I was thinking we could hang out at your place,” he said.
“Will there be alcohol involved? Because I could really use some tequila.”
“Already in my car,” he said, giving her one of his customary Shep grins. “You got any spare cupcakes?”
“Sure do.”
“All right, I’ll meet you at your place.”
“You know, you really don’t have to spend the night babysitting your best friend’s pathetic sister,” she told him.
“First of all,” he said, taking a step forward, “you are not my best friend’s pathetic sister. You’re my pathetic friend. And I hate seeing you like this. Second of all, I’m not going to be babysitting you. I’m going to get drunk with you. And third of all, I might have my own sorrows to drown, so you won’t win the award for most pathetic of the night.”
Grace rolled her eyes and was surprised when the first genuine smile she’d had in days curved her mouth up.
* * *
“Ready? One. Two. Three. Shoot,” Shep said right before they licked the salt off their hands, threw back a shot of tequila, and picked up a wedge of lime to suck.
It was after midnight and they’d had more shots than Grace could remember. She’d stopped counting after five. They were currently sitting on her sofa, her coffee table being used as a bar and for cupcake wrapper disposal.
“So why are you sad and pathetic?” Grace asked, looking over at Shep.
“I didn’t say sad and pathetic.”
“You said pathetic. Pathetic is way worse than sad. So tacking that on doesn’t make it that much different.”
“I suppose you’re right.” He studied her for a second before he turned back to the movie playing on TV. It was one of those ridiculous guy comedies, but as there wasn’t a love story in it, she was fine with it playing. Grace was pretty sure Shep wasn’t going to answer her, but after a moment he cleared his throat and turned back to her.
“Before my grandfather died he told me I needed to stop messing around.”
“With women?”
“With my life,” he said, shaking his head sadly. “He told me that my grandmother changed him. That loving her, and being loved by her, was the best thing that ever happened to him. He said that settling down in life isn’t about settling, but about being with the one person that makes waking up every day a gift.”
Grace’s eyes were watering. Damn Shep and his philosophical insights into life.
“Have you ever had that?” she asked, blinking hard.
“I thought I did once.”
“Hannah?”
“Hannah.” He nodded. “But sh
e wasn’t mine to keep, at least not at the time. She’s the girl that I’ve compared every other girl to. Because she’s the only girl I’ve ever loved.”
“Why didn’t you ever go after her?”
“I didn’t want to hold her back.”
“That’s stupid.”
Shep laughed. “It was almost twelve years ago. I was a different person when I was eighteen. She’s probably a different person now, too. Most likely she doesn’t even think about me anymore.”
“But you think about her,” Grace said.
“Yeah, I do. And I love the girl that I knew all those years ago. It’s quite possible I’m holding on to something that doesn’t exist anymore.”
“If that’s the case, then I’m screwed,” she said, closing her eyes.
“No, you’re not, Grace,” Shep said softly.
“You still love Hannah after twelve years,” Grace said, opening her eyes. “And you only had her in your life for a couple of months. Jax has always been in my life and I’ve loved him since I was six. You think you could be holding on to something that doesn’t exist anymore. But Jax doesn’t love me, so I’m holding on to something that never existed. So you tell me, how am I not screwed?”
“Well, when you put it like that.”
Grace laughed, unable to stop herself, and after a second the laughs turned into sobs.
“Shit, Grace,” Shep said, pulling her into his arms and letting her cry on his chest. “He’s an idiot.”
“Everyone keeps saying that. Yet I’m the one who feels so stupid.”
“I wish I could tell you something that would make you feel better.”
“You don’t have to,” she said, shaking her head. “Thanks for being here.”
“Always, kiddo,” he said, kissing her hair.
* * *
Jax still couldn’t sleep the whole night through. Every night, he’d wake up searching for Grace, desperate to pull her into his chest, but she wasn’t there. More often than not, he found himself curled around the pillow that still smelled like her. But it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t anything in comparison to her.
God, he missed her.
He missed the little things. Walking into the bathroom after she showered, with the smell of her soap lingering in the air. Driving in his truck, her hand in his while she hummed along to the radio. Coming up behind her while she was cooking and pressing his nose into her hair. Kissing the hollow of her throat. He missed her smile, her laugh, the sound of her voice.
Everything felt empty. He felt empty. It had been ten days without her, but it felt like years.
Jax occupied his time working on the house. Brendan obviously hadn’t been around, but Shep showed up a few times to help. He didn’t ask any questions, or say anything really. Bennett was there on occasion, too, or sometimes Tripp, but for the most part it was just Jax, working alone.
Everything was finished except for the kitchen. For some reason he saved it for last. He was working on installing the cabinets that morning with Shep and Bennett, and when they finished they moved on to the countertops. The new appliances were scheduled for delivery that week, and then everything would be done.
Jax had been working on the house for eight months. Eight fucking months of grueling work, but as he looked around at it, he felt nothing.
“I’m going to go get lunch,” Jax said, needing to get out of there. “Burgers okay?”
“Works for me,” Bennett said.
Shep only nodded. Not making eye contact with Jax before he turned back to the counter.
Jax called in the order to Bubba’s Burgers as he got in his truck, but the place was packed when he got there, so he took a seat at the bar and waited for the food.
“Tough break, Deputy.”
Jax looked over as Chad slid into the seat next to him.
Yeah, this wasn’t going to end well.
“I don’t care about whatever it is you’re about to say. So why don’t you go bother somebody else.”
“I thought we could commiserate together. You know, two guys that have been screwed over by Grace King.”
Jax stilled.
“I had no idea you two split. Was it because she was sleeping with Shep? Or did that happen afterward?”
“What?” Jax asked, turning to Chad before he could stop himself.
“Oh, you don’t know. Well, that’s just perfect.” Chad grinned. “Apparently, Shep’s Mustang was outside of Grace’s apartment all night and well into this morning. Someone even saw him leaving looking thoroughly used up. You can read all about it in Bethelda’s blog.”
Jax’s ears were ringing so loud he could barely hear the little waitress who handed him his order a second later.
Jax grabbed the bag of food and walked out of the restaurant. He sat in his truck for a full minute before he grabbed his phone and pulled up the Web site.
THE GRIM TRUTH
THE WHORE DOESN’T FALL FAR FROM THE TREE
A little over a week after finding out who her father is, Little CoQuette is out stirring up trouble and proving that bad choices are hereditary. It’s no secret that CoQuette has been playing around in Deputy Ginger’s bed recently. But she’s apparently gotten tired of the redhead, because she’s moved on to different pastures.
Wild Ram is the newest conquest on CoQuette’s post. Wild has run the local watering hole, the Den of Iniquity, with his family for years. Wild has his own reputation for tempting a plethora of women into his bed, probably some at the same time. He’s a known heartbreaker and he shows absolutely no remorse for that. And that’s not the only thing that he lacks morals on. He’s also one of Deputy Ginger’s best friends, or at least he used to be, that probably isn’t the case anymore.
An eyewitness says that they saw Wild Ram’s Mustang outside of CoQuette’s apartment late last night and when he left this morning he apparently looked ravaged. It would appear that CoQuette has taken after both of her parents cheating ways.
Jax sat there stunned. He thought something was up, as Shep had barely been able to look at him all day. But he couldn’t fucking believe that Shep would do this. That he’d sleep with Grace.
The ringing in Jax’s ears was getting louder and louder and when he pulled up in front of his house five minutes later it was all white noise. Jax ran up the stairs two at a time and when he opened the front door all he saw was Shep leaning against the counter, a stupid, smarmy grin on his stupid, smarmy face as he talked.
Jax crossed the room and Shep saw him a moment before he clocked him in the jaw.
“I can believe you slept with her,” Jax said as they both went down to the floor hard, but Jax only got in a few hits before Shep had him in a headlock.
“Listen, listen,” Shep said as he struggled to restrain Jax.
“I can’t believe you. I always knew you’d screw anything in a skirt, but not her, not Grace.”
“I didn’t sleep with her, you moron,” Shep said, tightening his hold as Jax continued to try to fight. “So do you want to talk about it or continue to flail around like an idiot? Because I’m bigger and stronger than your punk ass.”
Maybe it was the loss of oxygen to his head, but Jax stopped struggling. Shep pushed him away and got up.
“I don’t think you have any idea how badly I want to deck you in the face right now,” Shep said as Jax got to his feet.
“The feeling’s mutual.”
“You don’t get to talk,” Shep shouted. “Do you really believe that we slept together? Do you really think that of me? Of Grace, for that matter? She’s in love with you. You want to know what happened last night? She was working at the café after nine, for the fourth night in a row, and I was worried about her. I don’t like her working late. Not because I’m in love with her, but because I love her like a sister. We went over to her place, got drunk on tequila, and she cried on my shoulder because she thinks she’s never going to get over your stupid ass.” Shep pointed his finger at Jax.
“I don’t get you,”
Shep said shaking his head and still yelling. “I don’t get how you can have the woman you love in front of you and not do anything about it. And don’t you dare claim to not love her, because you told me you did the night you got drunk after she slapped you at the bar. When I drove you back to my house all you did was talk about her. Talk about how much you love her, and that she was the only woman you would ever love.
“And you know what, Jax, it didn’t even take you saying it to make it painfully clear to everyone that you love her. Everybody who’s worked on this house knows it,” Shep said, indicating the walls around him with his arms. “Especially because of this kitchen. This is her dream kitchen. Do you think that fact has escaped anyone’s notice? Because it hasn’t. You built this for her.” He paused to let that sink in.
“Do you want to ruin every relationship you have? You let Grace walk out of your life like she was nothing. Brendan’s done with you. Was it your goal to piss me off, too? I screw anything in a skirt? Fuck you, Jax. You’re screwing up your life. Is this what you wanted? A house to live in all by yourself for the rest of your life? Because if that’s what you want, you’re well on your way to it. How did you find out anyways?”
It took Jax a second to realize Shep had asked him a question. He was still trying to process the fact that he’d just gotten his ass handed to him.
“Find what out?” he asked unsure of what Shep was talking about.
“That I stayed at Grace’s?”
Jax took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Chad was at Bubba’s. He told me about Bethelda’s latest blog post.”
Shep just looked at Jax dumbfounded before he reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose. He dropped his hand after a moment and shook his head. “Did you listen to the words that just came out of your mouth? You took the words of Chad Sharp and Bethelda Grimshaw over twenty-five years of friendship? Are you joking?”
“I…I wasn’t thinking,” Jax said, still dazed. “I haven’t been…” not since he’d messed things up with Grace. That was the last time he’d thought clearly. The last time he’d felt even remotely good about anything. What the hell was wrong with him?
Undeniable (A Country Roads Novel) Page 26