Plain Jane and Mr. Wrong (Plain Jane Series Book 4)

by Tmonique Stephens

  Chapter Forty

  “This is all your fault,” she mumbled as the car rolled to a stop.

  He laughed. “I accept that.”

  “I’m too old for the walk of shame.”

  “But was it worth it?” His hand dropped onto her inner thigh and squeezed.

  She stared into his smiling face and nodded. “So fucking worth it.” Asking when she’d see him again balanced on the tip of her tongue and stayed there. A quick kiss goodbye turned into a longer one in full view of four security guards. Jentry broke away and yanked the door opened before she had a change of heart and stayed, kissing him all day. Not a word was said as she walked from the car to the front door. Each step closer to the judgment zone.

  In for a penny, in for a pound. Her walk of shame just turned into a runway strut. Naomi Campbell, eat your heart out. Until she gripped the knob and braced.

  Yes, she was still glad to be here with her sisters and parents, glad she had a place to go to when the going got rough and the pain too much, grateful for her mother’s comforting arms around her and the strong shoulder to cry on. But long term, no.

  Two women can’t live under the same roof. Her mother spouted that whenever her daughters gave her too much lip and not enough respect. The meaning was clear: If you think you’re grown, move out and do it on your own, because there was only one hen in the house and Laverne Playne was the hen. The rest of them were just chicks.

  It took a while for the girls to understand and not think their mother was a grumpy, territorial, old woman. Now, Jane and Jentry completely got it. They each had their own way of doing things. Cleaning, organizing, cooking, their mother had taught them well. Whether they retained the information, changed it, and made it their own, was at their discretion, and Laverne’s scrutiny.

  “Jesus, take the wheel,” she murmured ’cause He was the only thing getting her through this. Bracing herself, she smoothed the wrinkles out of her clothing. It was a futile attempt, yet… “Ah hell.” She opened the front door and strolled inside.

  Depending on the point of view, Jentry’s father had the misfortune or good fortune of being born on the last Thursday in November, which meant regardless of the year, the date always fell close to the holiday. This year, it fell on the actual holiday. Which meant his birthday was celebrated at noon and Thanksgiving dinner was at five.

  Jentry strolled into the house at twelve thirty. And everything stopped when she entered, except for her sweet baby girl who squealed at seeing her mommy.

  “Oooooh! Where’ve you been?” Jesenia screeched. The fifteen-year-old had no filter.

  “Mind your business and stay in your lane.” Laverne, mother, queen bee, and T2 Terminator, addressed her youngest, then turned to her second oldest. “Well, don’t just stand there. Your father’s about to open your present.”

  Jentry joined the family in the living room and took her squirming child from her mother. Her father eyed her, disapproval in his glare, but her father was a man of few words. He had no choice married to her mother.

  Gerard had come through for her in a big way. He showed up yesterday with the ad hoc man crate for her dad filled with everything a grill master could desire. He even wrapped it for her and brought a card.

  Her father took in all the stuff and came to her with a smile and his arms outstretched. “Thank you, baby,” he said, then whispered. “He better treat you right or I’m gonna have a talk with him.”

  Oh no, he wouldn’t. Aghast, she shook her head while her father nodded.

  “I don’t know who he is, but I’m gonna have a talk with him. Man to man.” Her father walked away and resumed opening boxes.

  Jentry needed alcohol and a shower. She passed Allie off to her sister Josette and headed for her temporary bedroom. By the time she washed the night away and returned, the extended family had arrived. Not many would pass up dinner in a multimillion-dollar mansion. Cousins she’d never seen before had crawled out of the woodwork, cleaned themselves up, and dragged their asses to Montauk.

  She had to admit, it was nice catching up with everyone. Then Calista showed up with Julius. Jentry really shouldn’t still be pissed at her cousin, but it was hard not to be with Calista’s highhandedness. But, in light of the day, she was thankful Calista was the catalyst to Jentry and Harden making the leap. Though, it was bound to happen, eventually. The heat between them couldn’t be denied. Neither could the emotions. She’d fallen for the man. Hard. And if he hadn’t lied, he’d fallen for her. Hard.

  All they had to do was survive his half brother and some Russian dude. Easy, right?

  Calista grabbed Jentry as she strolled past with Allie on her hip. “Everything okay at Casa Harden?” she whispered.

  Guess her mother hadn’t given Calista the update. Jentry’s heart swelled. “Everything’s fine.” And walked away. A few minutes later, before dinner was served, Julius dropped to one knee. Of course, Calista said yes. She loved him, and by the size of the diamond and the speech he gave, he loved her too. A black and white diamond. It was perfect and so fucking romantic.

  Jentry buried her head in Allie’s shoulder to hide her tears. But Jane saw her through the sheen in her own eyes. What had happened between her and Nick? Inquiring minds wanted to know. Jentry wanted to know.

  It was a good night—family, food, friends, and fun. Calista and Julius disappeared for their own personal fun. The lovebirds were happy and Jentry… She had no idea what she was, happy, sad, confused. Sigh.

  With Allie on her hip, she headed toward her temporary bedroom, stolen from Jesenia, who wasn’t pleased having to room with Josette, who was just as anal as Jane.

  Four Sisters. Jane and Josette, type A personalities. Suck-ups and pleasers. Both were the apple of their mother’s eye. Jentry and Jesenia. The rebels. The former black sheep of the family. The latter—according to their mother—following in Jentry’s footsteps.

  Jentry disagreed.

  At fifteen, Jentry was twice as rebellious, smoking pot, sneaking out, and cutting class. That’s why she ended up in a Catholic high school, not that it changed the trajectory of her life. The strict rules of her Catholic school had validated her rebellious streak.

  She heard Josette’s and Jesenia’s angry voices well before arriving in front of the bedroom door. On a good day, the two were frenemies. On a bad day, they were mortal combatants, much like their older sisters had been. Today, she opened the bedroom door to find the two rolling on the floor. Jesenia had the heavier, taller Josette in a headlock, which was an impressive feat until Josette flipped Jesenia onto her back. Outweighed by fifty pounds, Jesenia held on in vain. A headbutt and a jab to the stomach allowed Josette to slip free and round on her sister. Pinned, Jesenia blocked the fists flying at her.

  “Stop it! That’s enough!” Jentry placed Allie on the bed and yanked Josette away. Both girls lunged for each other. Jentry stepped into the gap and got pummeled on both sides. Shoving them in the opposite direction, she shouted, “Don’t make me whip both your asses.” Damn it, she sounded like her mother. “What the hell is going on?”

  Huffing and puffing like two bulls about to charge, neither said a word. Their lips were sealed.

  Tempted to step out of the path of destruction and let them kill each other, Jentry plopped her fists on her hips and got down to business. She was done being nice. “Start talking…or I’m getting Mom.” It was the best threat Jentry could come up with.

  Ripped shirt hanging off one shoulder, Josette scowled at her, not in the least bit intimidated. “Don’t bother. I’ll tell her myself.”

  Well that backfired.

  “I’ll tell her how Jesenia is a slut.”

  On a scale of one to ten, there were worst things to call a female. Shit, slut was the least of what Jane had called her. But it was a shock to hear the word coming from seventeen-year-old Josette directed at fifteen-year-old Jesenia.

  “You’re jealous!” Jesenia screamed and Allie joined her.

  “Of what? You se
nding pics of your A-cups to some dickhead you met on the internet? I don’t think so.” Josette rolled her head one way and her eyes the other way.

  What? “What!” For a few critical seconds, Jentry’s mind literally shut down.

  Josette headed for the door. “I’m telling everyone.”

  Jentry fisted Josette’s torn shirt and hauled her back into the room. Slammed against the nearest wall, she pinned Josette to the surface. “You are not walking out there and humiliating your sister in front of the entire family. In fact, you’re taking this to your grave.” Josette opened her mouth and Jentry snatched her bottom lip. “I will handle this. Not Mom, not you.”

  Josette’s glare was a big, fat, fuck you.

  “Do not cross me, Josette. No matter what, you don’t betray the sister code. You do this, Jesenia will never forgive you, and neither will I. Nod if you understand.”

  Josette slapped Jentry’s hand away. “Sister code? What sister code when you left home and never even called us? What sister code when you haven’t strung two words together since you came crawling back home? You don’t like us, don’t want us around, so screw the sister code.” And screw you, her hard, unflinching glare screamed silently.

  Startled by her sister’s vehemence, Jentry paused and instead of lashing out, she assessed the fury her sister spewed. To her chagrin, Josette wasn’t wrong, but she wasn’t right either. Should she tell the truth or spin a pretty lie?

  Jentry’s gaze fell on her daughter. One day, in the far future, she knew this conversation would have to happen. Well, she’d get some practice today.

  “I fucked up. I was in love and thought I knew it all.” They didn’t know what Carl did to her. She never wanted them to know. “Allie’s father was older than me and he manipulated me to get what he wanted. Once he got between my legs and made me think he loved me…” God, this is hard. She closed her eyes and on a slow exhale, she said, “He pimped me out. I did it because he spun it to make it seem like I was doing it for us. It didn’t take me long to realize he was doing it for himself. By then I was pregnant.” She could tell them more but didn’t. The amount of pain she went through, they didn’t need to know.

  Jesenia sobbed into her arm, bawling, while silent tears leaked from Josette’s eyes. Jentry picked Allie up and rocked her, giving everyone a moment to compose themselves because the conversation was far from over.

  “Sit down and hold your niece.” She ordered Josette. Only when Josette had planted her ass on the bed and had a screaming Allie on her lap did Jentry turn to Jesenia. “Girl, start talking, fast.”

  Jesenia dried her face, then froze.

  “She sent him a picture of her boobs and is planning to meet him if she can get away from the guards.” Josette volunteered.

  Jesus. I’m way too sober for this. Jentry stuck out her hand. “The phone. Unlock it and hand it over.”

  Jesenia hesitated and Jentry wasn’t having it. “It’s me, or Mom.” The unlocked phone magically dropped into her palm. She went to Jesenia’s camera roll and right there was a topless photo of her sister. Jentry saw red.

  But she had to calm down. She had one chance to reach Jesenia and she couldn’t go postal, like her mother, even though she desperately wanted to.

  And just like that, she understood what her mother went through when Jentry left home at seventeen. How furious and helpless she must’ve felt when faced with her willful daughter who couldn’t see the consequences of her disastrous decisions. Because her mother could see the consequences—each and every one—the hungry nights and the struggle to keep a roof over their heads and clothes on their backs. Laverne could see it all, while Jentry was blinded by a cute guy with a nice car, and what she thought was good dick.

  Shit! She would not allow her little sister to walk in her shoes, not while she had breath in her body. Quickly, she took a screenshot of the guy’s online ID and sent the photo to her phone.

  Allie had finally stopped crying. Jentry plopped her on Jesenia’s lap. “Is that what you want, because that’s where you’re heading sending naked pictures over the internet to some stranger!”

  “I-I… No?”

  “No?” Jentry and Josette uttered in unison.

  “Jesenia, I love Allie, but if I could go back and not meet her father, I would. If I could go back and not have a child at eighteen, I would. I don’t want you to go through what I did, either of you. I learned the lesson and paid the price for thinking I knew it all and didn’t need to listen to the people that loved me. Learn from my bad example and don’t repeat it. Please.”

  Jesenia bit her lip and nodded.

  Jentry wasn’t buying it. “Promise me, Jesenia. You will not contact this man again.”

  “I promise.” She sighed.

  A few moments of deep contemplation, then Jentry nodded once. She brought her sisters together for a group hug with Allie squashed in the center.

  “Alright. No more fighting, and make sure you wash your faces before heading back out there.” Jentry watched them go. Allie was finally calm and staring at her mother, a little too aware of the situation. If only she could talk. “No boys and no nude pictures, young lady.”

  Allie’s gummy—two teeth—smile mocked her. Jentry had the distinct feeling Allie would test her in ways she wasn’t prepared for. “Let’s get your pamper changed and ready for bed, young lady.”

  On the way back from the bedroom, the sound of an approaching helicopter caught her attention. She paused in the glass hallway connecting the guest wing to the main house to peer out at the beach. Where was it coming from? she wondered and headed to the kitchen for Allie’s bottle.

  Everyone had moved to the expansive living room windows by the time she rejoined them, only to have security—with their weapons drawn—order them to fall back. Jentry backed up. Security didn’t randomly draw their weapons, she’d been around them long enough to know that much. She spotted her parents near the fireplace, Jane in front of the sliding glass door, but nowhere were Josette and Jesenia before everyone panicked, which worked in security’s favor, until gunfire sounded from outside and everyone bolted.

  With Allie glued to her chest, Jentry ducked and darted down the hallway. Really dumb with all that glass, especially if it weren’t bulletproof, and what were the chances of that? Since she had no idea, she shielded Allie as best she could and ran to the door at the end of the hallway which led to the laundry room and the housekeeper suite with its separate entrance. She paused, unsure whether to stay put or bolt. A round of bullets pinged close to the room. The choice was made. She bolted for the door leading to the garage. Keys dangled on a peg board. She snatched the first one and pressed the key fob for the door to unlock.

  Her mother’s Lexus was unlocked. She climbed into the driver’s seat with a screaming Allie in her lap. No car seat and no choice. She ripped off her sweater and wrapped Allie in it and stuffed her baby on the floor of the passenger seat. She gave her the bottle she forgot she had in her hand, hoping it would quiet her. It worked, though Allie was far from pleased, she glared at her mother.

  She hit the garage door opener and barely waited for it to clear the windshield before she gunned the engine. She wasn’t the only one to flee. Most of the cars were gone and the iron gate was wide open. She left skid marks in the driveway, speeding to freedom, and taking that first hard left without slowing down. To her right an explosion and an orange fireball lit the beach less than fifty yards from the house.

  Allie wailed, bouncing around. “I’m sorry! So sorry!” Splitting her attention between the road and Allie was impossible without killing both of them.

  Bruno had warned her, but she refused to listen. Bullets and babies don’t mix, he said. And he was right. Her stupidity would get herself and worse, her baby killed.

  But they’d escaped. They were alive. Focus on that!

  “We’re alive! We’re alive!” she chanted.

  What about her mother, her father, and sisters? Calista and Julius? Tears ran freel
y down her cheeks. They escaped, they had too. At least, she saw her parents, Josette, and Jesenia running in one direction. She didn’t see Jane. What if—what if… She couldn’t finish the thought. The possibility of one of them no longer here, alive, and well, she couldn’t go there. Unfortunately, she was already there, torturing herself.

  She ran and left her phone. Calling anyone was impossible when she couldn’t remember their numbers. No one did that when they had a contact list. A list that was on her phone, which was in her purse, in the house she hightailed it away from. Leaving, getting them to safety was the only thing she could do.

  Now to keep them safe. But where to go when the places that were supposed to be a haven weren’t? She needed to think, but she couldn’t do that driving down the road in thirty-degree weather in just her bra and her baby stuffed in the footwell of the passenger’s seat.

  Allie wailed louder. On the floorboards of the car wasn’t how she usually traveled.

  “Alright!” Jentry shivered, whether from the cold or violence she just witnessed, she couldn’t tell. “I know where to go, baby. I know where we’ll be safe.”

  Chapter Forty-One

  Colin O’Rourke entered the restaurant through the front door with two bodyguards on his heels. The bodyguards were provided by Alezandar Karpovilov. He didn’t like it; however, the man had facilitated his release from prison—with chains attached. He didn’t like chains. But he liked prison even less.

  He wasn’t going back, and he wasn’t a puppet for some asshole Russian oligarch. He, Colin O’Rourke, was the leader of the Irish mob, and no bastard Russian or half brother would or could ever take that away from him.

  Harden thought he was an idiot. Colin would have to be to fall for the ploy of Leonid Markovich—lackey to Harden—reaching out to him for all those years, sending letters, and putting money into Colin’s prison commissary account. As if he couldn’t see the letters and money for what they were, a sham. Currently, there were rumors of a deep rift between Harden and Nick Wright, his third in line. His brother hadn’t been pleased with Nick losing Colin at the heliport. The glory for that went to Mikhail. All of Harden’s ingress and egress had been under surveillance for months. Once word of the hit on the Bratva and Colin’s capture went out, add the knowledge of his side piece’s kid in the hospital, it made sense he’d take a copter back to the city and not risk the long drive back to NYC with Colin to protect and a kid to rush back to.