“Anne, Jason isn’t a child. I’m sure he knows how to tell if a woman is a virgin or not. He probably learned it in health class or sex education, if nothing else.” Lisa could tell Anne wasn’t going to change her mind at this junction so she decided to switch topics. “Franklin came to your office, today?” Lisa knew that the only time Franklin approached Anne was when she was at work.
“Yes. He was terrible. He accused me of trying to cause Alexia to miscarry. He was singing her praises the entire time he was there.”
“Are you trying to cause Alexia to miscarry?” Lisa asked, almost curious.
“Of course not. I may not like her, but I know how awful that is. I’ve lived through it, and I actually wanted the baby.”
“It sounds like Jason and Alexia want this baby, too,” Lisa conjectured softly.
“Jason does. He’d make a great father. He’s so strong, yet tender. His temper can be a little severe, but he’d love a baby.”
“You say Jason wants this baby, but what about Alexia. She has choices, you know. If she didn’t want the baby she could give it up for adoption, or even abort.”
Anne drew in her breath sharply. She’d never thought about Alexia killing Jason’s baby. He’d be so heartbroken. He honestly wanted this baby, Anne could tell from how protective he’d been of Alexia the entire time they were at her house; how he’d encouraged her to eat and drink. “She wouldn’t dare. Jason would never agree to it. He has rights, too.”
Lisa watched Anne, wondering if she’d realize just how hypocritical she sounded. This was one of the most frustrating parts of her job. “Anne, you don’t believe the baby is Jason’s, why would it matter if Alexia aborted?”
“Jason believes it’s his. I believe Jason. Jason has a right to see his baby. Alexia doesn’t have the right to just destroy the fetus when Jason wants it,” Anne said hotly.
Lisa looked at Anne. “If the baby is Jason’s, would you be excited about being a grandmother?”
“Of course. I love my grandchildren. I’m a little disappointed that his mother doesn’t want him, but Jason has enough love for the baby that I’m sure things would work out. He’s a wonderful man, and I’m sure he’d find someone to marry that would love him and the baby.”
“How do you feel about Jason and Alexia getting married? You said Jason was angry with you?”
“I don’t think she’s good enough for Jason. She’s just after his money. Jason basically told me he didn’t want anything to do with me. I doubt I’m invited to the wedding, but that’s fine because I doubt I’d bother going anyway. I did get an invitation in the mail to her wedding shower. I’m definitely not going to that.”
“They sent you an invitation even though the three of you argued?”
“Yes. I imagine it was sent out the day we argued, so they didn’t have a choice to take it back. I’ve half a mind to call them and tell them what I think of their sinful marriage.”
“I see. Well, I would recommend giving Alexia another chance. Remember, we’re trying not to make such immediate judgments, right? Maybe it was just a bad day for you both, and you just didn’t click.”
“I doubt it,” Anne said, looking at the clock. It never felt like she’d been talking with Dr. Martz for half an hour.
“I would also recommend that you talk to Jason. It sounds like your relationship is changing, and you may want to discuss your fight. Share your feelings with each other, but don’t be too aggressive. I see you in less than a week; try to talk with Jason before then, please”
Anne didn’t really know how to respond. Talk to Jason? Give Alexia another chance? She wasn’t sure she was willing. Jason would come around, eventually, perhaps. He was a smart man. He’d see through Alexia before too much longer, and then she’d be able to talk to him, comfort him even. After all, she knew what it was like to be betrayed.
Chapter Thirteen
Merle went home Tuesday evening after another long grueling day at work. He was determined to stay on schedule with the Anderson project. Jim and the mortar workers were pulling overtime to finish the fireplace, and he made the electricians pick up the pace so the drywall could be put in place. If they could keep up this speed, they’d be caught up by Friday, if not sooner. Anderson wanted to move in before Christmas, and Merle couldn’t blame him, but it was making things damned difficult. Tomorrow would be another full day, but he had one stop he planned on making that had nothing to do with work.
Anne had managed to convince Merle that he needed to donate blood. She didn’t know it, but she had. She reminded him of all the generous things Martha used to do to help the community, and he realized that in this way he could help in Martha’s memory. He would donate blood to help save a life. He was a healthy man, especially for his age, and there was no reason why he couldn’t donate on occasion. Tomorrow he would go in and tell Anne he wanted to sign up to donate. He could almost picture the smile of surprise on her sweet face when she saw him.
She was so convincing in the truck on the way back to her office, that Merle was almost ready to have every willing and able construction worker take a few hours off to donate blood. She highlighted the health benefits for the donor, and she really impressed Merle by describing all the ways the blood could be used. She told him stories of children whose lives had been saved because they were able to receive blood from a Red Cross donor. In less than five minutes she’d had him convinced hook, line, and sinker that he needed to donate blood, often.
Merle wasn’t able to make it to the Red Cross in the morning, so he took a late lunch hoping he’d be able to run by the office and catch Anne after lunch. When he walked in, he looked around, curiously, but couldn’t find her. The nice receptionist was more than willing to help him, however, and Merle signed up to donate at the next blood drive. He was waiting for the receptionist to input his name and address into the database when he heard muffled yelling from somewhere within the building. He recognized the sound of a door slamming, before a man walked out, shaking his head in disgust.
“I don’t know why he bothers,” the receptionist mumbled under her breath, gaining Merle’s interest.
“What’s that?”
“Oh, nothing. What did you say your name was again?”
“Merle Johnson,”
“Okay, and what was your address?”
“29653 West Corington”
“Oh. Anne lives on that road,” Claire said, surprised. “She’s the secretary here. I’m covering the desk while she’s in back.”
Well that explains why she was on the road Monday night. She was going home, Merle thought to himself. “Can I talk to Anne for a moment?” He wondered what she was doing in the back that would take her away from her receptionist duties, but he wasn’t familiar with the Red Cross, and couldn’t even wager a guess.
“Normally I’d say sure, but I’m guessing she’s not in the mood to see anyone, Merle. That was her ex-husband that just left,” Claire told him, assuming that since he lived near Anne he knew at least some of the situation. “They fight every time he stops in. I don’t know why he still comes here.”
“I see.” Merle would never have guessed Anne was divorced. Widowed maybe, but divorced seemed surprising. She was pleasant to talk to the other night; he hoped she hadn’t been in an abusive relationship. That would be too bad. Merle felt a sudden stab of sympathy for her. His mother had been in an abusive relationship with his father, and Merle had seen firsthand just how tormented and traumatized she’d been. He didn’t like the idea of Anne suffering such abuse.
“Okay, well you’re in the system now. I imagine Anne will be calling you every six weeks or so asking you to donate again. She’s quite convincing.”
“I’ve noticed that. She convinced me yesterday in less than five minutes.”
“Yeah, that’s our Anne.”
“Well, I better get back to work. You have a nice day now,” he said, nodding to her before leaving. He returned to the construction site to see a miracle. The space
heaters Jim was using to heat the hearth and chimney were working better than Merle would have imagined. The mortar and stones were going up beautifully. He stood back to look at the fireplace in pride. It would be done by tomorrow. A day early, even. Jim had a way with setting the stones that made the most unique designs Merle had ever seen. It was truly a gift, though Jim didn’t agree, and Merle loved to stand back and look at Jim’s work. Jim had actually set the stones on Merle’s fireplace at home, too.
Jim hopped down from the ladder when Merle came in. “You are a piece of work,” he hollered. “Why didn’t you mention using heaters before?” For the last week, Jim had struggled to get the mortar to set around the stones as he worked on the fireplace. He had a picture in his mind of exactly what he wanted it to look like, but every time he tried to put the pieces into place they slid down. Miraculously, the space heaters were making an immense difference.
“Didn’t think about it,” Merle replied, ignoring Jim’s eyes as he looked at the chimney. “It’s looking good.”
“Thanks.” Jim was always a little embarrassed when Merle mentioned his designs. He did it without thinking, and it seemed like Merle was giving him credit for work and talent he didn’t really possess.
“How are the electricians coming?” Merle asked quietly. It was a matter of contention among the construction crew that the electricians didn’t seem to want to finish their jobs.
“They should finish today, actually. The drywall should be finished tomorrow, and you can oversee the painting by Friday, I would think.”
“Wonderful. I knew you could do it.”
“Yeah, okay. It’s you who did it.”
“Get back to work. I bet I could set the stones faster than you at this rate,” Merle harassed. Jim didn’t waste time debating with him; he just climbed back up the ladder.
Merle watched Jim for a few more minutes before going downstairs to check on the electricians. He wasn’t surprised to see that Jim had forced them to finish one floor at a time rather than jump back and forth between floors. The work could have been finished two weeks ago, but they weren’t in any rush. They were getting paid to be on site. Anderson contracted the electricians out because he wanted the wiring done a certain way, so Merle had to oversee a group of men that were in no particular rush to finish. The longer they worked, the more they were paid. Merle finally threatened to call Anderson before he could get the guys to move their asses. Now they were nearly finished and Merle could call in the drywall crew. It would be a relief having most of the work done.
Merle went home content. Jim managed to finish setting the stones in the fireplace, though the finishing touches would have to be completed Thursday and Friday. A small portion of the drywall was in place, and the rest would be up tomorrow. By Friday the stucco and plastering would be complete, and painting could begin. Anderson would be happy to hear that everything was back on schedule.
Merle looked carefully as he drove home, wondering exactly where Anne lived on his road. There were a few small cottages that she could live in, but he didn’t see her car. Then again, her car could still be in the shop. Several large farmhouses sat back from the road further down, but he doubted Anne owned any of those. He had a feeling she lived alone. It wouldn’t make sense for her to live in a large place. He didn’t look for long, eager to get home and get some rest. Sherlock would be waiting for him, desperate to be put outside, and he had to finish with the deer before it went bad.
Chapter Fourteen
Saturday came much too soon for Jason and Alex. Jason was determined to talk to his mother. Alex tried to reason with him, but Jason refused to listen. He would not let his mother treat Alex so poorly. Jason lay in bed, watching Alex sleep for a few minutes before slipping out from under the covers as quietly as possible. He didn’t want to wake her—she’d just try to convince him to let things be with his mother. She was so uptight about everything that was going on that she was spotting, and the doctor said she needed to take it easy and rest. Too much stress could cause problems with the fetus, resulting in a variety of issues, not the least of which was miscarriage. Jason wouldn’t allow Alex to miscarry because of his mother. If it wasn’t meant to be, they would trust God’s judgment; but if his mother caused it, Jason doubted he could ever speak to her again.
He didn’t waste time getting dressed or showering. Closing the bedroom door quietly behind him, he walked down the dark hallway to the living room. He sat down on the couch and dialed his mother’s number. The sun was starting to rise, and the thin rays snuck through the picture window in the kitchen. It was only six in the morning, but his mother was an early riser. He was fairly certain she’d be awake. The phone rang; once, twice, on the third ring his mother answered, sounding slightly groggy.
“Hello?”
“Mom, it’s Jason.”
Anne was a little surprised that Jason was calling her back already. She thought it would take a week or two for him to calm down and look at the situation rationally. Maybe he was growing up. “What’s up?” she asked nonchalantly. She didn’t want him to know just how uptight she’d been about their confrontation.
Jason wasn’t sure what to say. He thought his mother would defend herself at the very least; instead she was acting like nothing had happened. It infuriated Jason that she didn’t realize just how cruel she’d been. “I’m calling to tell you that you were accidentally invited to the wedding shower. I don’t want you there.” It wasn’t what Jason had rehearsed, or anything close to what he’d planned on saying, but just hearing her voice, not at all remorseful or apologetic irked him. He wanted to hurt her, to be petty and mean.
“Excuse me?” Anne’s voice was a whisper. How dare he call her and act so disrespectfully.
“The girls sent out your invitation by mistake. You’re not actually invited.” Jason didn’t know what else to say. As far as he was concerned, the conversation was over. She had no right or reason to come to the wedding shower when she’d been so malicious to his fiancé. She made it no secret how she felt about Alex, and he wouldn’t tolerate her being rude or mean for the entirety of his marriage.
“I can’t believe you. I didn’t mean to make a scene. Alexia was being very rude and demeaning. I couldn’t just sit there and let her talk to me like that. You didn’t even defend me!” Anne was nearly crying by the time she finished talking. She was appalled by Jason’s spitefulness. She was only trying to protect him from a rather painful and embarrassing divorce.
“Oh can it, Mom. Her name is Alex, and she didn’t say anything I don’t agree with one hundred and ten percent. I can’t believe you care so little about me and your unborn grandchild that you would behave that way.” Jason’s temper was flaring. “You called MY child a bastard!” Jason couldn’t believe that she was actually arguing with him. It was so obvious that she was wrong. How she didn’t see it was completely beyond his comprehension. Alex had begged him to be patient and understanding with her, but he couldn’t find it in himself to treat her with such consideration when she obviously didn’t care to treat others thus.
“Jason, I can’t believe you’re talking to me like this. It breaks my heart to hear you say such things to me.” Anne was crying wholeheartedly now. When she’d heard Jason’s voice on the phone she thought he was going to apologize and tell her she’d been correct; Alexia wasn’t the girl for him. Instead, he was being horrible and treating her like some kind of disease-ridden garbage. It was almost too much to bear. She’d given everything to make him happy and raise him as well as she was able.
“Of course it breaks your heart, because it has to be about you, right? It doesn’t matter that you hurt me the other night, too. Or that Alex is so distraught over the situation and how terribly you behaved that she’s having complications. Nope, all that matters is what you want and how you feel. I forgot.” Jason’s anger was getting the best of him. He usually had impeccable control over his temper, except when dealing with his mother. Somehow she brought out the worst in him. “Yo
u’re the only one that ever matters.”
“Jason, you know that isn’t true. I would never intentionally hurt you. I was surprised. You didn’t give me any kind of warning.” Anne soothed.
“Mom, I don’t want you at the shower, end of story. If you can’t treat Alex with even a shred of respect, you don’t deserve to be near her.”
“She didn’t treat me with respect!” Anne practically screeched into the phone. How dare Jason accuse her of being at fault. She didn’t do anything to Alex. The witch did it to herself. She was turning Jason against her already.
“Do you think I wasn’t there? Have you forgotten that I was sitting next to Alex? Maybe you’re just hoping I didn’t hear what happened. You accused her of trapping me, Mom.” Jason was trying to control himself, but it was a struggle not to let his tongue fly.
“Well she did, didn’t she?” Anne accused.
“No, she didn’t. She wanted to wait until after the baby was born to get married. I was the one that insisted we get married sooner.” Jason took a deep breath. “You were wrong, Mom, and if you can’t see that, I don’t want to be around you; and I certainly don’t want Alex or my child around you either. I’m sorry.” Jason looked at the receiver in his hand for a second, hesitating, before saying, “Good bye,” and hanging up. He felt like a complete ass. It was a rotten thing for a man to do to his own mother, but what else was there? If he stayed on the phone he’d be tempted to say even more. It would be better if he didn’t talk to his mother for a while; a long while. He turned the ringer off and sat the phone in the charger on the table. Well, that didn’t go as well as planned, he thought.
Jason was so angry with his mother he didn’t really care if he spoke to her again for the next few years. He knew he’d have to talk to her sometime, but he was determined to wait until she could be more respectful. He wanted her to have a chance to think about what she was doing and just how poorly she’d treated Alex. He wouldn’t let her treat Alex the way she treated Brandon. Rose and Brandon might have the patience for it, but he didn’t. He wouldn’t live that way; always wondering if it was safe to leave Alex alone in the same room with his mother, second guessing every comment and gesture. He didn’t want to live his life in constant confrontation. He and Alex were quite happy with each other; he refused to let his mother ruin their contentment.
Yule Tidings Page 11