by Lesia Reid
“Maybe, how do you feel about that?” Sebastian asked.
“What about the bad germs?”
Deana sank into the chair some more. This was getting out of hand.
“Right now, because we have just started dating, we take precautions to prevent your mom from getting my bad germs or me from getting her bad germs, though I don’t think either of us have any. When you’re older, I’ll show you how to protect yourself from getting bad germs.”
“Are you going to be having babies?”
“Perhaps, if we decide that it’s right for us later. But we can also protect ourselves from having babies,” Sebastian said.
“And you’re going to get married like Uncle Carl and Aunt Thelma?” “When the time comes,” Sebastian said.
Deana was surprised Sebastian was handling this so well. For a man who’s not had a kid, he was not half bad. He even did a better job than she might have, but she wouldn’t let him know that.
“Will I have to call you dad and change my name?”
“I hope you will want to change your name, and you can call me dad only if you want to.”
“If you have kids, will we live at the new house?”
“No, you will live at my house or we will buy a different house.”
“Cool, because the other house is still too small for more than one kid. If you want to have fun with my mom in her room, that is fine. Is it time for pizza yet?”
The four left to the kitchen. Deana felt a weight off her shoulders but couldn’t quite explain it. She had merely intended to explain a kiss to Joey. They had gone from that to a version of the birds and the bees. She knew this talk with Joey had to come at some point in the future, but she was hoping for a nice growing up age of fourteen or sixteen if she could just keep him thinking girls were made up of all the bad things. Perhaps Sebastian wasn’t so bad after all, who knew you could relate sex to playground fun.
Deana watched with interest as they ate their pizza. If Sebastian had any single talent, it was making Joey feel he was the center of the world while they were together, not that Britney was excluded from anything. Perhaps a leap of some sort with this man was not so bad. He was good with and to her son. She left the table to get the oven at first beep. The baking was over.
At ten o’clock, with Joey snoring softly in his bed and Britney in hers, Deana joined Sebastian in the living room. He stretched his legs and turned off the television. She sat beside him in the gloomy living room, lighted only by the soft glow of a mood light.
“I don’t want to keep you up,” Sebastian said. “It looks like you will have a busy day tomorrow.”
“I will, but I don’t usually turn into a pumpkin until closer to midnight. Thanks for the help with Joey.”
“You didn’t trust I could explain a kiss to him,” he noted. “And you eavesdrop very well,” she countered.
“So we both want to protect him,” Sebastian conceded. “There’s nothing wrong with that. If anything, it should be a bonus that he has two adults who loves him and want to take care of him. Now I would like to hear this grounding bit.”
“Grounding was the way Joey understood us being apart for the past two weeks. I’m afraid if we don’t work out, he’ll miss having precisely what he had this evening—two adults that love him. And it’s not fair for me to expect or want you to suddenly be father to a nine year old.”
“I can promise you if we don’t work out, I will still love your son. And even when or if I have a family of my own, I will love him just the same,” Sebastian said. “I might not be a father in the traditional sense of the word, but I know kids. Do you think Jaime and Bridget would leave Britney with me if they didn’t trust me? I am thirty-five years old, Deana, I must have been around a few kids in my life.”
“You must think I’m a paranoid fool,” Deana said. “My mother never really wanted a daughter, my father skipped town when I was Joey’s age and my step-father, he was powerless against my mother and his son. As a child, I never felt quite grounded to anyone or anywhere. I don’t want that for Joey. I don’t want to smother him either. I just want a happy well-adjusted child.”
“I think you’re a great mother, Deana. It’s tough to take care of a child by yourself, but you do it. For that alone you are tops in my book and Joey couldn’t have done better. It’s hard to let go and allow someone else in your lives, but I can promise, whatever goes bad between us will never affect Joey. Though, I hope nothing ever goes wrong between us. I am starting to think of you both as my family.” His lips were against hers. The kiss was soft and she enjoyed it knowing this man had no intentions of hurting her or her son. He wrapped her hair around his hand as he pulled her into the kiss. He gently eased her back onto the sofa. Her body fit perfectly below his. He trailed kisses down her cheeks, her chin, her neck and back to capturing her mouth again. He felt the fire of desire uncoiled in his belly and he moaned against her lips.
Deana was enjoying herself. She felt him tremble under her embrace and her own skin ran hot and cold with shivers. It felt like being washed away in a tide of heat. She kissed him greedily, wanting more of this heat, more of the same feeling, knowing she was with someone who wanted her. Her breath caught in her throat as he teased her earlobe.
Fortunately for her, he was going to be a gentleman tonight. There was no need to rush into this. She would need time to think about them being together. God, she tastes so good, he thought as he eased off her.
“I should let you get to bed.”
“Okay.”
Her eyes were heavy with emotions. He thought about her tongue now as she licked her lips.
“ Nonlo tenti!” he said.
“Tempt you with what?” she asked.
“If I don’t leave now, I might not be able to. What time do you get off tomorrow?”
“I don’t know, sometime after noon. I deliver the cookies and cakes about nine in the morning. Then I have final exams and I take Joey to get a haircut.”
“Final exams?”
“Yes, my business course ends tomorrow,” Deana said.
“When does school let out for Joey?”
“Next Friday. He will complain about summer school for three weeks and then it’s off to summer camp. This is his first and he’s excited.” “You don’t sound excited.”
“This is the first time he’s going to be more than a few houses from me,” Deana said. “When he’s at the Wayne’s I can walk the seven houses between us and get him. For summer camp he’ll be gone for three weeks over a hundred miles away. I can’t yank him now. He and Trevor have been looking forward to this since the start of the year.”
“It will be a good experience for him.”
“I know.”
“And moving?” Sebastian asked.
“I’m getting to it. It’s just a little harder than I imagined,” she said, following him up the stairs.
“I could get movers for you. They’ll come in and pack everything, then unpack exactly the way it is now.”
“No,” Deana said. “Unfortunately that is expensive.”
“It’s my treat.”
“No. Our relationship so far is like a rollercoaster. I’m not sure when the crazy ride will be over and I’ll be damned if—”
“Shhh,” he whispered, turning on the landing to look at her. “Must you always look a gift horse in the mouth?”
“If it has a mouth like yours then looking is only half the fun.” “What’s the other half?”
“That’s a secret. But, I can’t pass a certain spot in this house without thinking of that mouth.”
“You’re such a tease.”
“Am not.”
“You are. First you don’t want to talk to me then…. I’ll just enjoy this part.”
“I don’t talk to you because you can be pushy. Plus, I need time to think.”
“About my mouth?”
“Now who’s being a tease?”
“I have a feeling I’m going to regret not staying tonigh
t.”
Sebastian lifted a sleeping Britney from the bed. Her head rested on his shoulder as he took her down the stairs. He kissed Deana lightly on the lips then left. Deana waited until he was out of the driveway before closing the door. She locked the door then meticulously walked through the house checking every door as was her nightly ritual.
Chapter 9
The stranger watched intently as the man and child left the house. He felt the smooth edges of the scar across his face. He had been watching this house for two months now. There was never an opportune time for him to get the boy. The boy was never left alone and never left with other kids.
It wasn’t chance that made him find the boy and the mother. For nine years he’d meticulously tracked her down. He was always a few steps behind, but now he had caught up with her. She either thought the deal was over, or that she was impossible to find.
He could wait longer. He would wait longer. The bastard boy and his mother will eventually let down their guard. And who was this man, this stranger whom they had accepted in their lives? Well, he smiled to himself as he rolled silently from the driveway five houses away; every woman needs a little John every now and then.
On Saturday, Sebastian knocked at their door around noon. Britney was with him.
“Hey sport,” Sebastian said when Joey opened the door. “Nice hair cut.”
“I think it looked better when it was long,” Britney said. “Me too,” Joey agreed. “But Mom thought otherwise. Come on in. I was in the middle of a book.”
“No video games?” Britney asked as she swept pass him. “Nope, Mom needs to think and this book is interesting anyways.”
“I can’t read very well,” Britney said, “but I’m only seven so it doesn’t matter.”
“Where’s your mom?” Sebastian asked, closing the door. “In the garage,” Joey said. “It’s her quiet place. She goes to the garage when she needs to think.”
“Britney, why don’t you go fetch Aunt Deana—it’s through the kitchen and to your right. I want to have a talk with Joey.”
“Okay.” Britney took off.
“Are you ready to move?” Sebastian asked Joey.
“We’re not quiet ready, but mom says we’ll make it. Moving sucks! I thought we’d live here forever.”
“It can be fun sometimes,” Sebastian encouraged. “Remember I said I’d help?”
“Yeah.”
“Well, I have a few guys at the new house right now waiting for you and your mom. They will fix the house in no time, and it won’t feel like you’re moving except you have a bigger house.”
“Cool,” Joey said.
“Hey,” Deana was entering the room. “I heard you were here.”
“Yeah, thought we might take a look at the new house together.” Sebastian moved towards her and kissed her cheek.
“Yes, Mom,” Joey said excitedly. “Let’s go.”
Deana locked her house and they started the short walk to the new house. She frowned when she saw the two trucks parked in the driveway of the new house. Sebastian had the two kids and they were skipping towards the house. She was wondering who would have parked two work trucks in front of the house when a large burly man started walking towards them. Her heart skipped a beat for a second until Joey shouted, “Juan.”
Joey high-fived the man as they met in the middle of the driveway. There were six or seven other gentlemen sitting on the front porch in work clothes. Deana had not seen them from the street.
“Hey, little man,” some of the men greeted Joey.
“Hey, Pepe,” Joey shouted. “How’s Tania?”
Deana gathered Joey knew these men from his ‘bring-your-kids- towork’ day that Sebastian had taken him on.
“Don’t look so surprised,” Sebastian whispered in her ear. Only then she realized her mouth was wide open as she stared at pallets of construction material. “This is your construction crew. Let me introduce them.”
Deana didn’t hear much of the introduction. She shook one hand after the other trying to figure out how to stop Sebastian on a task he was hell bent on completing.
“Just tell us where you want to start, ma’am,” one of the gentlemen said.
“I’m sorry,” Deana said. “I don’t know. I wasn’t expecting a crew.” “We should take a look inside and you can tell us what you want done,” Sebastian suggested.
He had to put pressure on the small of her back to get her to move. Britney and Joey were already ahead of them.
“Sebastian,” she whispered. “I told you not to.”
“So I’m stubborn, you can ground me later. In more ways than one,” he said. A sly knowing smile crept over his face and Deana blushed.
She opened the door and crew, kids and Sebastian spilled into the vacant living room. A slightly musty scent clung to the air. She’d promised to have the house vacuumed and aired before moving in, but that would be later in the week.
They kept the children close as they walked through the house. Deana was trying to picture it in her mind, but all she came up with was the current house. The angles, textures, colors even arrangement of the furniture eluded her. How strange it was to become so attached to a small piece of property. But it had been their property—the first thing she and Joey ever owned. She’d never taken the time to analyze her feelings before making the decision to sell and start over. She’d thought nothing else but the income the sale would bring and how it could help Joey’s future. It was an economically sound plan, she knew in her heart that was her first home. Not even living with her mother was home.
“They brought a color selection guide, hardwood samples, blinds, everything you might want to try except tiles,” Sebastian was saying. “Just say what you want.”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I can’t picture it in my head.”
“Deanna,” he said, “what’s the matter?”
“Nothing, I’m just a little overwhelmed, I guess.”
“They can use the same colors as the other house,” he suggested.
“That would be cool,” Joey said, exiting his new room. “Four bedrooms, that’s a lot bigger than our other house. Maybe I can get a game room like your house, Sebastian.”
“Only when you start paying the electricity bill,” Deana said.
“Well, if it’s my crew then they could come over and see what I like.” The men followed her to the house. They were impressed by the dazzling colors and upgrades. They were even more impressed when
Sebastian told them Deana had done the job herself.
“You’re tailor made to be a Torrance,” Juan said. He was obviously more than just an employee to Sebastian, and Deana blushed at his words. “Every Torrance, I’m told, knows how to wheel a hammer, even the gorgeous and delicate Alexis Torrance, his mother.”
“Juan’s been with the company forever,” Sebastian explained. “He’s a very good friend of the family and all our projects pass through his hands first.”
“The style here is very eclectic,” Juan continued. “You could drop in and teach our interior decorators a thing or two. I would surely like you to design some of our models. Sales would flow like water off Niagara. Where’s your office?”
“What office?” Deana asked.
“You’re an interior designer, no?”
“No,” Deana said. “I don’t know a thing about interior designing.” “You’re wasting your talent.”
“Tell her that after you try her pastries,” Sebastian said. “Now there is some real talent waiting to be discovered.”
“I’m looking forward to it, ma’am. If you don’t mind, the boys and I will start clearing out the old stuff and get ready to lay the floor. We have a sample of hardwood close to what you have here. Would you like something else?”
“That’s perfect,” Deana said. “I’m a little tied up over here and might not be able to drop by but if you need anything—”
“We will let you know,” Juan said and he and the men left. “Mom, can I go with them?” Jo
ey asked.
“No.”
“Please. I’ll stay with Juan or Pepe. They wouldn’t mind.”
“No. You can play games with Britney or continue reading your book. Later you can help me take over a bite to eat, how’s that?”
“Okay,” Joey said in a dejected voice.
Deana didn’t need to tell Sebastian to follow her to the kitchen, one motion of the head and he got the message.
“Uh oh,” Britney said. “You’re in trouble again, Uncle Sebastian.”
Deana shook her head and smiled. Britney was so acute to all the subtle hints she gave Sebastian. It reminded her that it was something Joey might never know. When he was older and started dating, how would he be able to pickup on subtle women’s gestures that meant so much in a relationship? She would have to teach him more than she anticipated.
“Not this time,” Deana told Britney.
“Aunt Deana, why don’t you live with Uncle Sebastian if you’re selling your house? His house is huge and he lives by himself,” Britney said. “Ah,” Deana didn’t quite know how to explain this to Britney. She looked towards Sebastian. “A little help please.”
“This is all yours.” He grinned and passed her making his way to the kitchen.
“Ah…well…”
“They are not married as yet,” Joey put in.
“Yes,” Deana agreed, wondering why she never thought of the answer as simple as that. But she knew why. Joey said not married yet, she would say not married but Britney was told by her father to call Deana Aunt Deana.
“You should just get hitched and then you wouldn’t have to move again,” Britney said.
“Hitched?” Deana asked.
“Yes, that’s what they said on TV. You can go to a place call Vegas and get hitched in one day, especially if you have been making babies. They always envelope and get hitched.”
“Elope,” Deana said.
“What?”
“Elope not envelope, but that’s only in the movies.”
“No, because Mom always says if I ever envelope—I mean elope— when I get older she would kill me.”
“But Sebastian and I are not getting married.”
“Okay,” Britney said as if Deana hadn’t a clue what was going on.