by J. P. Comeau
Exhausted from our extensive lovemaking, my body fell forward onto the bed, and he collapsed next to me. We were breathing so hard that it took a few minutes to compose ourselves.
“That was,” he began to say while panting.
I rolled over and leaned into his chest.
“Yeah,” was all I could muster.
We laid like that, both of us naked and under the skylight, for a while. We didn't say a word to each other. Just the two of us, breathing and caressing each other.
We eventually fell asleep beneath the stars, and when I woke up the next morning, I noticed he wasn’t in bed. I slid out and briefly used the adjoining bathroom to freshen up. By the time I was done, I had heard his footsteps walking up the stairs.
“Good morning,” he said, holding out a mimosa for me.
“Good morning.” I grinned almost abashedly, taking the drink.
I wrapped the robe he had left me around my body and followed him downstairs. We spent the morning drinking our mimosas and cuddling on the loveseat by the window, gazing out toward River Valley. There were so many animals there. Birds, squirrels, and even a woodchuck, which I had never seen in the wild.
“I’ll have to tell my father about the woodchuck,” he said while finishing his mimosa.
“Awe, he looks so cute.”
“There’s nothing cute when they begin to destroy the foundation of a house,” he said as he stood up to get dressed.
I tilted my head, my heart going out to the little furry creature. “Please tell me you’ll have him humanely removed."
“Yes, dear,” Jake said and kissed my forehead.
I laughed and stood up, walking over to get my clothes, which he had brought down and neatly folded for me.
Jake glanced over as he rolled up his shirt sleeves. “Would you like to get some breakfast? I thought we could meet Caley, Annie, and Richard at one of the diners. I’m starving.”
“That sounds great,” I said. “But I can’t go to breakfast wearing the same clothes from last night.”
He walked over to the closet and showed me some pants, shirts, and even shoes. “I picked up some clothes from you.”
He winked and motioned for me to come over.
“You’re amazing,” I said, looking at everything he bought. Every item was in my size. I looked up at him and smiled. “What about you? Or do you have clothes here, too?”
He opened a dresser drawer and revealed his own secret stash of clothes. He had thought of everything. The whole thing couldn't have been more perfect if it were part of a fairytale.
We met Annie, Richard, and Caley at a local diner. By the time we got there, all three of them were sitting in a booth talking. It felt so natural to see them waiting for us, as though we were all meant to be one big family.
“Mommy!” Caley jumped out of the booth and ran over to me.
I scooped her up and gave her a big kiss. Even though the night before had been magical and much needed, I still missed her. “Did you have fun last night?”
She nodded and held onto me as tightly as she could, happy to be back in my arms.
“And what about you two?” Richard smiled coyly at Jake, then over to me.
Annie shot him a look that told him to be good.
“Yes, we had a great evening. Thank you.” Jake fist-bumped Richard and then slid into the booth.
Richard narrowed his eyes. “Did you put any dents in my car?”
“Yes, but you can’t tell.” Jake smiled and then winked at his brother, who shook his head and went back to looking at the menu.
The two of them chit-chatted while I looked over at Annie. “How was last night?”
“Caley and I made pizza, and then we watched the remake of the Lion King.”
“Wasn’t as good as the first one,” Caley replied in her young, matter-of-fact voice.
“Well, aren’t you the little film critic,” I said while sitting her down in the booth.
After we placed our order, we all sat there talking with each other. Richard told me stories from Jake’s childhood, like the time he got caught sneaking out just to see an early release of a Star Wars movie. Jake reminded him of the time he set the kitchen on fire just by boiling pierogis.
The whole morning felt so normal, as though it was always supposed to be that way. Jake and I got along so well, and not just in a romantic sense. We shared the same political views, taste in food, and even enjoyed some of the same movies.
Annie and Richard went out of their way to play with Caley, too. That meant a lot to me because she needed to get as much adult attention as possible. My daughter needed good role models in her life, especially since her father was hardly in the picture anymore. I quickly removed him from my thoughts, though. That morning was all about us.
Simply put, my life was perfect.
16
_____
JAKE
ONE MONTH LATER
I couldn’t believe that it had been a full month since that night at the lake. It seemed like only yesterday we were making passionate love underneath the stars, Julianna's legs had been wrapped around my back as I drove her to the edge and back.
After having breakfast with Annie, Caley, Richard, and Julianna the following morning, I’d continued to work remotely from Richard’s guest house during the day. During the evenings, I’d go to Julianna’s, except I had yet to sleep over. That would be a massive step since Caley would see me the next morning. Given everything she was going through with her father, I knew we had to tread carefully.
That night we were playing one of Caley’s favorite board games. Even though it was designed for children, it was pretty fun for adults too. She was starting to show her competitive side.
“I win again!” She threw her hands up in the air, and Julianna and I shrugged.
“What can I say,” Julianna said after playing it for the fifth time in a row. “You’re one smart cookie.”
“You just have to accept that I’m the best,” Caley said while sipping on her milk.
“Wow, girl, you really have quite the personality, don’t you?” I laughed, tickling her.
Caley giggled and fell into my lap, letting out a big yawn.
“I think Miss Personality needs to go to bed,” Julianna said, putting the board game away.
“I wanna play again.” She gave us a pouty face, but we could tell that she was falling asleep.
“We can play tomorrow night again,” I said.
She looked over at me and smiled. “Do you promise, Jakey?”
“Pinky swear.”
She held out her pinky, and we shook on it.
“Mommy, can Jakey put me to bed tonight?”
Julianna smiled and nodded, so I scooped her up and carried Caley into her bedroom.
“Tonight was so much fun, Caley. You’re really getting good at those board games.” I tucked her into bed and booped her on the nose with my finger.
“Tomorrow night, I’m gonna win every game!”
I found her childish voice to be adorable, and it only cemented the fact that I wanted to be with her and Julianna as much as possible. “What do I get if you don’t, though?”
“Hmmm, I’ll give you my favorite purse!”
"I would look pretty ravishing," I said, standing up and taking a sashay around the room.
Caley giggled loudly. I smiled and walked over, giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Go to sleep. Your brain needs it."
She snuggled in as I turned the light off and gently shut the door. By the time I got downstairs, Julianna was in her usual spot on the couch with a glass of wine. I poured myself a glass and sat next to her.
“She’s smitten with you,” she said as I placed my hand on her knee.
“I’m smitten with both of you,” I replied. “So, can we talk about the future for a minute?”
“Sure, what about?” She turned toward me.
“I’m just curious about what you want out of life. For example, how’s everything at the a
rt gallery going?”
She sank back into the couch and closed her eyes. “It’s going pretty well. Slow, but well. We need more interactive showings with artists. Maybe it’s because everything is so readily available online, but I want to bring art back to life. I want people to actually get excited about going to art showings, to meet local artists, and to learn about it, too. My biggest pet peeve is that it can be so pretentious, and I know that turns a lot of people off.”
She took a sip of her wine and then looked at me.
“I think that’s a wonderful idea. Make art more attractive for the common, blue-collar worker. And I agree about people thinking it’s being pretentious. Plus, most people don’t have five-figures to drop on a piece, let alone four.”
She sighed and nodded. “It’s a slow process, but I know it’ll eventually happen. My boss and I talk about it all of the time. She’s trying to get a few local artists to do a showing soon, and I think that’ll be good. They’re supposed to be pretty down to earth. I just don’t think I can handle much more of the puffy-shirt scene, watching people wash down cheese with wine while trying to dissect art they have no intention of buying.”
“What about the divorce?” It was a question I had wanted to ask for a while, but only when the timing was right.
She shook her finger at me as she swallowed her drink of wine. “Above all else, I want the divorce to be finalized. But I have to get the papers signed, and I’m still waiting on my lawyer.”
I knew that she would end up getting full custody of Caley. That was a no-brainer. Cam had cut back on calling her, and I couldn’t even remember the last time he made any attempt to actually see her. The poor girl deserved so much better than what her deadbeat of a dad was giving.
“I’m sure he does, too. Especially since he’s spending all of his time with what’s her face.”
“Lydia,” she spat out. “That’s all he cares about. He doesn’t even seem interested in how Caley’s doing in school. Hell, he probably forgot what grade she’s in!”
I rubbed her knees to try and get her to calm down. I didn’t want a perfectly good evening ruined by thoughts of her ex-husband and how poorly he treated their daughter.
“But I do,” I said while leaning in and kissing her on the cheek.
“Yes, and I can’t thank you enough. The good news is that Cam's willing to give me everything I’ve asked for. The bad news is that in the divorce agreement, he wants to share custody.”
“And you know damn well that he won’t hold up his end of the deal,” I said.
She silently nodded and stared out the windows. “Jake, he hasn’t made any attempt to see her. How dare he want to share custody! He has no right doing this to Caley, coming in and out of her life. She deserves to have a positive father figure. He’s got some balls.”
I reached over and began to massage her shoulders. I listened to Julianna go into more detail about the divorce, how he willfully signed the house into her name, and let her keep everything inside. Of course, he did. Men like him only cared about one thing, a hot woman to go to bed with every night. If that meant giving up all of his earthly possessions, including his own daughter, then he’d do it.
It made my stomach twist with anger.
“So, what’s the hold-up?” I didn’t want to come across as too brazen with her, but Cam needed to be kicked to the curb.
“Just waiting to hear from my lawyer,” she said as I massaged her shoulders a little deeper. “Truth be told though, I’d give him this house and everything in it in exchange for his regularly scheduled visits with Caley. He doesn’t even have to have her spend the night at his place, even though I know Caley would love that.”
“You wouldn’t, though, not with the girlfriend there.” I knew that Julianna despised Lydia, even though she no longer had feelings for Cam.
“She’s not a good mother figure if that’s what you’re getting at. What kind of woman actually encourages her man to stay away from his own daughter?”
I could hear the anger in her voice. Julianna was not a selfish person. Her whole world revolved around Caley. Even her wardrobe was reasonably minimalistic, which I knew was because she spent as much money as possible on her daughter.
It was probably to make up for having a deadbeat father. “Women like her are, to be blunt, only good for one thing and after a guy’s wallet.”
She closed her eyes as she leaned into me. “I hope he does to her what he did to me.”
“He will,” I said into her ear. “And he’ll never mature. He’ll just always be that guy chasing one woman after another.”
I said it both to assure her that he was a jerk, and also as a subtle hint that I’d rather be with her than chasing women like Lydia.
“Thank you. I needed to hear that. I often wish that I’d never even met Cam.”
I rubbed her back. “But you got Caley out of the deal, so not all of it was bad.”
Sweet, beautiful Caley. She and I had been getting so much closer lately. Between game nights, ice cream trips, and bedtime rituals, I found myself missing her just as much as Julianna whenever we were apart.
“That’s true. I wouldn’t trade her for anything in the world.”
I tilted Julianna's face upward. “And I wouldn’t trade you for anything in the world, either.”
It was getting dark outside, and I was pretty tired. A part of me wanted to just fall asleep with her right there on the couch, with her wrapped up in my arms and then sneak out in the morning before Caley woke up.
“As usual, I think it’s time for me to head home.”
She let out a disappointed but sexy moan and then flopped her head against my shoulders. It was the part of the evening that both of us hated.
“Don’t,” I said and nibbled on her ear.
“All I did was sigh,” she said in an innocent voice.
“That was a moan baby, and you know it.” She playfully ran her hand up and down the outside of my pants, hovering it very carefully along the zipper. “Why don’t you spend the night?”
The thought of spending the night with her stimulated the animal in me, and my zipper started to bulge. “What about Caley, though?”
Julianna turned around and looked at me. We stared at each other for a few moments. I knew she was searching for security, to know that if she let her daughter wake up and see me that it wouldn’t be a one-time thing.
“I think it’ll be alright,” she said. “You two have been bonding so much lately, and she’s a lot smarter than other girls her age.”
I knew the last part was her subtle way of saying, hey, if things don’t work out between us, she’ll be okay.
“It’s a big step though, and with her own father never even coming by anymore. I just want to make sure that you’re one hundred percent on board.”
She took my hand in hers and rubbed her thumb back in forth. “I love having you here, and so does she. You see how excited she gets whenever you come over to the house. Hell, she even has her own nickname for you!”
“Jakey,” I said in her voice, and we both laughed.
“She asked you to put her to bed tonight, so imagine how happy she’ll be when she sees you in the morning.” We sat in silence for a few moments. “So, what about it?”
“I’m in,” I said, leaning in and giving her a kiss on the lips.
She moaned and sank into it, pushing her voluptuous breasts against my chest and turning it into a make-out session.
“You’re a really good kisser,” I said breathlessly.
“You’re not so bad yourself, mister.” She playfully pushed me away and stood up, but I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her into me.
We wrestled a little bit on the couch and eventually ended up on the floor. She was sitting on top of me, legs straddled on either side, with her long hair cascading over her shoulders. In just a loose t-shirt and capri pants, she somehow seemed sexier than when she was in one of her tight dresses.
I began to run my han
ds up under her t-shirt, caressing her soft skin as she arched her back. My hands found her breasts, but she quickly pushed them away.
“I think we need to take this upstairs,” she said as she stood up with a huge smile on her face.
“Yes, ma’am.”
I watched her walk away and realized that right then, at that moment, I was one of the luckiest men in the world.
17
_____
JULIANNA
Jake and I made our way upstairs, tiptoeing quietly so as not to wake up Caley. She tended to be a light sleeper, and the last thing I needed was for her to see Jake going into my bedroom. Just the thought of having that conversation with her was stressful enough.
Once we were inside, I shut the door, and he immediately began to get undressed.
“Oh my,” I said as he took off his shirt. “Why are we rushing?”
He slid off his pants, and yet again, I was blown away at how sexy he was. Those washboard abs were about to get a workout from my long nails, his muscular legs would soon be pounding me from behind, and his chiseled arms were about to be wrapped around my breasts.
“This is what happens when you tease a man,” he said while walking toward me.
“When did I tease you?” He grabbed my waist and pulled me into his.
Jake’s rugged muscles brushed against my delicate arms while his warm, hot breath on my face dared me to lean in for more.
“You’re always teasing me,” he said before kissing me passionately.
Jake picked me up, and I wrapped my legs around his body as he carried me toward the bed.
“I need to shower first,” I said.
Immediately, he changed direction and carried me into the adjoining bathroom.
“What a coincidence, because so do I,” he said with a grin.
Jake sat me down on the tile stairs that led up to my jacuzzi bath, the same one that Cam installed himself after we bought the house.
I lifted up my t-shirt and slid off my pants, and his eyes immediately zoomed in on my black lace bra. He effortlessly unhooked it and dropped it to the floor. Once my breasts were exposed, Jake got down on his knees and began to suck on each nipple.