“Do you want me to get you something to eat?” she asked, trying to be careful not to say anything to anger him further.
Rather than speaking, he turned and backhanded her. She hadn’t expected the blow, and its force knocked her to the floor. She refused to cry, because that had fueled his anger the first time. As she tried to get back to her feet, Wayne kicked her hard in the side, and she couldn’t suppress the shout that escaped her when something cracked inside her.
“Shit!” he yelled, and threw his glass. The heavy leaded crystal broke against her cheek, and a warm wetness spread across her face. “Why do you make me do these things, you fucking bitch? Why do you spend all your time with those fucking dykes and make a fool out of me? I know you’re sleeping with that friend of yours from San Francisco. If I ever catch the two of you together, I’ll kill you both.” He stormed out of the house without another word.
Jessie stayed on the floor for a few minutes, not believing what had happened. When she was certain he wasn’t coming back for another round, she slowly dragged herself to the living room. Her side hurt too much for her to attempt to get to her feet. She did manage to get the phone off the end table, called Karen, and told her what had happened right before she lost consciousness.
“So, that wasn’t the first time he hit you?”
If Lynn was any angrier than she’d been before Jessie’s explanation, she didn’t show it. She seemed to be more concerned than anything else, and Jessie was grateful for that.
“No.” Jessie was ashamed she’d gotten herself into the situation in the first place, and she looked away from Lynn, staring into her untouched coffee. “I’d always told myself I’d never get involved with a man like my father, but I certainly didn’t jump to end the relationship after the first time he hit me. He apologized, and things really were better for a while. I’m still not completely sure what set him off that last time. It happened in April, and you’d been back in California almost four months, so I have no idea where he got the idea that you and I were sleeping together.”
“This is from the broken glass?” Lynn again rubbed her thumb gently over the scar on her cheekbone, and Jessie closed her eyes for a moment.
“Yes. It took six stitches to close it. I also had two broken ribs, and evidently I hit my head on the corner of the counter here,” she touched it to show Lynn what she was talking about, “which gave me a pretty severe concussion. But I honestly don’t remember that part. I also don’t remember landing so hard that I broke my collarbone and dislocated my shoulder. I was in the hospital for over a week.”
“I wish I could have been here for you, Jess.” Lynn’s voice was barely audible, and she was clearly trying to hold back tears.
“I was just so scared he would hurt you,” Jessie said, and she couldn’t stop the sob that escaped her. She didn’t resist when Lynn stood, pulled her up, and wrapped her arms around her. Jessie automatically put her arms around Lynn’s waist and they held each other, her head resting on Lynn’s shoulder.
“I’m here for you now, Jess, and I’ll be here for as long as you want me.”
Chapter Twelve
“So, your brother tells us you’re being auctioned off Friday,” Lynn’s father, Robert, said after they were seated for dinner on Wednesday night. The restaurant was quiet, and Lynn looked around to make sure no one overheard. “When were you planning to let us in on the fun?”
“I didn’t think you’d be interested.” Lynn looked from her father to her mother and smiled in surprise. She was happy that he wanted to know about her life, period. He usually stuck to safer topics, like sports, religion, or even politics.
“We want to be there,” he told her as he opened his menu.
“We do?” Rose asked, winking in Lynn’s direction.
“I know I do.” Charlie sat back with a smug expression, and Lynn kicked him under the table. He rubbed his shin with a grimace. “Stop that.”
“Stop fighting, you two,” Robert said without looking at them. He covered his wife’s hand on the table. “It’s our fortieth wedding anniversary, and your mother and I won’t be putting up with this crap.”
Lynn stuck her tongue out at Charlie before she turned to their mother.
“It starts at seven, at The Family Room.” Lynn picked up her own menu. “I’m not sure you really want to go, though. These things can get pretty crazy.”
“I want to see what my daughter’s worth on the open market,” Rose said, grinning. “But what exactly do you mean by ‘crazy’?”
“You know, girls dancing with girls, boys with boys, that kind of thing.” Charlie laughed when Lynn glared at him. “You just better make sure nobody hits on me.”
“Trust me, none of those boys would want to dance with you, Chuckie.”
“What do you mean?” He gave Lynn the reaction she was hoping for, and she laughed. “I’m not bad-looking. Maybe I can change one of the lesbians.”
“Grow up, Charlie,” their father said. He lowered his menu and glared at him. “You can’t change one of them any more than one of those boys could change you.”
“Who are you, and what have you done with my father?” Lynn asked. Robert allowed the slightest hint of a smile before blocking his face with the menu again. Lynn glanced at her mother, but Rose was studying her own menu. The whole scenario was completely opposite from their past interactions. Usually her father never mentioned her lesbianism, like a case of don’t ask, don’t tell. He knew what she was, but apparently didn’t want to talk about it. She suspected her mother had something to do with the sudden broadening of his mind. Lynn put down her menu and got up. “Order me a glass of merlot. I need to use the restroom.”
She had to walk through the bar area to get to the ladies’ room, and as she neared the end of the bar, she saw Jessie sitting alone, a glass of wine in front of her. Lynn walked up behind her and touched her elbow.
“Fancy meeting you here.” She couldn’t conceal her delight when Jessie turned to face her.
“Hey, you.” Jessie’s expression let Lynn know she was genuinely happy to see her, which caused a warm feeling in the pit of Lynn’s stomach.
Lynn hadn’t wanted to leave Jessie’s the night she’d apologized, but she knew Jessie needed some time alone to think. Jessie was physically exhausted after telling Lynn about what Wayne had done to her, and Lynn had helped her get into bed, giving her nothing more than a chaste kiss on the cheek.
“You said you had plans tonight. I didn’t know the plan was to sit alone at a bar.”
“I’m not alone,” Jessie said, and Lynn felt as if she’d been kicked in the stomach.
“Oh.” Lynn glanced back toward her own table, and when she looked at Jessie, her attention was there as well. “Some friends of my parents wanted to throw them a surprise party. We’d planned on doing dinner here anyway, so their friends are getting the house ready now. I’m sorry I bothered you.”
“Lynn, you aren’t bothering me.” Jessie looked confused for a moment and put a hand on Lynn’s forearm. Something over her shoulder had diverted Jessie’s gaze, and Lynn turned to see a man approaching. The same man Jessie had been talking to at the restaurant last Friday night. Jessie was smiling when Lynn faced her again. “I want you to meet someone.”
Lynn shook her head in disbelief. Jessie wanted her to meet her date? After all they’d talked about the other night? That was a red flag if Lynn had ever seen one. Jessie obviously wasn’t ready to give up the straight life yet. Could she be a bigger fool?
“Lynn Patrick, I’d like you to meet Rick Tompkins, my—”
“Nice to meet you.” Lynn stuck out her hand for Rick to shake. He took it, but looked confused also as he glanced at Jessie. Lynn pulled her hand away quickly and said to her, “I should be getting back.”
“Lynn, you don’t have to go.” Jessie stood and placed a hand on the small of her back, but Lynn pulled away feeling as if she’d been stung. “What’s wrong with you?”
“I’m sorry I int
errupted your date.” Lynn quickly headed back to her table, forgetting that she needed to use the restroom. Her need to get away from them trumped her need to pee. Lynn had definitely never experienced jealousy before and never wanted to again.
*
“Date?” Rick asked when Lynn was gone. He raised an eyebrow in amusement. “You told her we were on a date?”
“No, I did not.” Jessie shook her head and continued to stare in disbelief at Lynn’s retreating back. She finally faced forward and looked at Rick, who was standing a little taller with his chest puffed out. She slapped him playfully on the arm. “Stop it. You’re like a brother to me, and I’ve told you that every time you’ve tried to get me to go out with you.”
“Siblings date in some parts of the world.” He shrugged before placing his forearms on the bar and wiggling his eyebrows. “You know I’m not serious about dating you, and my girlfriend would kill me anyway. You could certainly do a lot worse than me, though, Jessie. I’m a gentleman.”
“Wayne was a gentleman too. At least in the beginning.”
“I’m nothing like Wayne.” Rick sat on the bar stool next to her and motioned for the bartender to give him a draft. “Wayne Paulson is a prick of the worst kind. He’s a disgrace to men everywhere.”
“I know you’re nothing like him, Rick, and I’m sorry.” She couldn’t help but glance over her shoulder toward Lynn’s table. Her heart sank when Lynn met her gaze for a moment, then turned away quickly, her eyes distant and hard.
“Oh, crap. That’s Lynn? The Lynn you said Wayne was jealous of?”
“So what if she is?” Jessie glared at him.
Rick turned to look at Lynn again, then smiled as he faced the bar once more. “I can certainly understand his being worried. She’s extremely attractive, Jessie. If my girlfriend was spending a lot of time in that woman’s company, I’d be a little jealous too.”
“He wasn’t jealous, he was obsessed. And Lynn has been my best friend since second grade, you ass.” It suddenly struck Jessie that Lynn was jealous. After everything they’d talked about a few nights before, she was angry that Lynn would still second-guess her intentions. She resisted the urge to twist in her seat and look at Lynn again.
“I asked you this before, Jessie, but I need to ask it again, especially after that encounter.”
“No, I have not slept with her,” Jessie said, forestalling his inquiry. But I sure want to. “After I met Wayne, I was never involved with anyone else, but we’ve already talked about all that.”
Rick held up a hand as he reached into his pocket for his phone, which had apparently been vibrating. He turned the other way so Jessie couldn’t hear his conversation, and she took the moment to study her wineglass.
The entire situation was ridiculous. If she and Lynn were ever going to have anything between them, they definitely had to communicate better. The whole jealousy thing wouldn’t work, but it was flattering. She liked knowing she could elicit such strong feelings from Lynn. She looked up at Rick when he pocketed his phone.
“I need to go, but remember what I said. If Wayne causes problems for you, it’ll probably be in the next few days. Be careful, and keep a lookout for him. If he’s intent on seeing you, a restraining order won’t do much good.”
Jessie nodded and he bent down to kiss her on the cheek. She waited a few minutes after he was gone before strolling over to Lynn’s table. Rose gave her a big smile when she stopped there.
“Jessie! What are you doing here?” Rose glanced at Lynn, seeming properly annoyed. “Why didn’t you tell us you invited Jessie to dinner?” Rose’s eyes were twinkling.
“She had other plans.”
“Rose, don’t bother.” Jessie looked at Lynn, who finally turned her attention to her, obviously perplexed. “I planned to meet you here for dinner. Your mother asked me at Charlie’s birthday dinner, because she wanted to surprise you. She seemed to think you might enjoy my company.”
“I don’t understand. Then what were you doing here with Rick?”
“Rick’s my attorney. He’s also Karen’s boss and a good family friend. He called me this afternoon because he wanted to let me know that Wayne’s going to be served the divorce papers tomorrow. I figured since I’d be here for dinner tonight, it would be more convenient for him to meet me here to discuss the situation.”
“You’re not dating him?” Lynn had gone pale. Obviously she’d realized she’d stuck her foot in her mouth once again. Jessie smiled, but wasn’t quite ready to let Lynn off the hook.
“No, but perhaps I should consider it. He’s asked me out often enough.” Jessie waited a moment for the words to sink in, then placed a hand on Rose’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Rose, I don’t think I should stay for dinner, but thank you for inviting me. Congratulations on forty wonderful years together. I hope you enjoy forty more.”
She turned and walked away, but before she could make it to the front doors, Lynn was behind her, lightly gripping her elbow.
“Jessie, I’m sorry.”
Jessie looked at her and motioned for Lynn to follow her outside. They walked to Jessie’s car without speaking, and once they were there, Jessie faced her.
“Maybe you should think things through a little more, and then you wouldn’t keep doing or saying things you need to apologize for. It’s nice to know that you care so much, but I really can’t deal with jealousy. I had enough of that with Wayne. I need someone who can love and trust me, Lynn. Just because I talk to a man, I’m not necessarily sleeping with him, or even want to sleep with him. Like I said before, I honestly don’t know where this thing between us is headed, but I do know it won’t go anywhere if you react like a sulking child every time I talk to someone else. I already have one child—I don’t need to deal with two.”
Without allowing Lynn time to respond, Jessie got into her car. She glanced up at Lynn before backing out of the parking space and could have sworn she saw a tear rolling down Lynn’s cheek. She hoped Lynn didn’t see the tear she refused to remove from her own cheek before she pulled out into traffic.
Chapter Thirteen
Surprise parties had never been one of Lynn’s favorite ways to spend an evening. She stayed about ten minutes, because her mother asked her to, before deciding to go out and get a drink. She was a little taken aback to find Sarah tending bar on a Wednesday, but she couldn’t deny that she was happy to see her. When they were together, Sarah had always been able to make the bleakest situation a little brighter. She desperately needed Sarah’s optimism tonight.
“What are you doing here? I thought Jessie went out to dinner with you and your family tonight.”
“Give me a draft.” Lynn really didn’t want to talk about her evening. She hated admitting to failure. “I fucked it all up again.”
“What did you say this time?” Sarah set the full mug down, then poured herself a cup of coffee before settling in. Lynn told her everything that had happened at the restaurant, and Sarah listened without interrupting, but shook her head when Lynn finished. “Jesus, Patrick, when did you go and get all possessive? It isn’t like you to be jealous.”
“I know, right? I don’t understand it. I’ve never felt like this before, Sarah.” Lynn hung her head, resting her elbows on the bar. “I feel like I’m running in circles and can’t get out of the cycle. I keep saying things I shouldn’t and assuming things that I should know aren’t true. What the hell’s wrong with me?”
“You’re in love, that’s what. It can do crazy things to a person—make them do really stupid things that they wouldn’t normally do.” Sarah noisily sipped her coffee, and when Lynn didn’t raise her head, Sarah touched her forearm, causing Lynn to finally look up. “Jessie’s going through a rough time right now, and you need to let her work through all these feelings. I know patience has never been your strong suit, but if you really want her, you need to understand she has to get rid of Wayne. He’s scared the living crap out of her, and she’s afraid to get involved with anyone right now. Are you wi
lling to tough it out with her?”
“Absolutely.” Lynn ignored the barb about her patience, because it was true.
“You haven’t tried to force her into anything, have you? I know you can get a little pushy when you want something.”
“No,” Lynn said vehemently. “I told her she would have to be the one to make the first move, because I didn’t want her to feel like I was pushing her. We’ve kissed a few times, but nothing more.” Lynn smiled slightly when she recalled dinner at Jessie’s house. “She asked me to spend the night with her last week, and I was the one who said no.”
“What?” Sarah made a show of placing her hand on Lynn’s forehead, and Lynn laughed as she swatted her away. “What’s wrong with you? You don’t consider that a first move?”
“We’d both been drinking.”
“Right, like that’s ever stopped you before.”
“I’m sick of going home with random women, Sarah.” The reality of those words caught Lynn by surprise, but they were, in fact, true. “The night before I drove up here, I went out with my friend Bri. Two different women tried to pick me up, and I went home alone.”
“Wow.” Sarah looked impressed. “That’s definitely not like you, Lynn.”
“I’m really tired of living that way, Sarah. I’m sick of waking up in the morning and not remembering the name of the woman in bed next to me.”
“Yeah, I can see where being the object of everyone’s desire might become tiresome.”
“I’m serious.” She glanced at her reflection in the wall-length mirror behind the bar. “You used to be the same way. Would you trade what you have with Karen to go back to that?”
“Not in a million years.” Sarah grinned. She held her hand up to signal Lynn to wait a minute and picked up the phone. “Family Room.”
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