The Will(165)

*

Jake was up on a stepladder at the side of the front door to Lavender House that afternoon when Josie drove up in her Cayenne, Ethan in the passenger seat.

Ethan got out, dashed into the house and did this saying, “Yo, Dad!”

He didn’t miss a step or slow. He had a fridge to raid.

Josie got out and walked slowly up to the front door on her high heels, her hips in her jeans swaying in a way he liked a f*ckuva lot.

She stopped, looked at the lamp he was installing then down to the boxes of lamps piled on the ground.

“Motion sensors. Every outside light. You got about a million of them,” he explained and regained her eyes.

Soft eyes. Sweet eyes. Eyes that said a f*ckuva lot.

Then she smiled a soft smile. A sweet smile. A smile that said a f*ckuva lot.

After that, she said quietly, “Be careful, darling,” and walked into the house.

That was when Jake smiled.

*

Josie slid in bed beside him after going to the bathroom and cleaning up.

When she did, Jake curled an arm around her, rolled to his back taking her with him and stretched out an arm to turn out the light.

When he settled them in, her mostly on him, partly on his side but still pressed deep, their legs tangled, she said into the dark, “I like ungloved.”

He’d had his checkup and the results were in. They were good to give up the condoms, thank Christ.

“I like it too, baby,” he replied, knowing he liked it a whole lot more than she did.

She was silent as she cuddled closer and he thought she was sorting herself to go to sleep when she called hesitantly, “Jake?”

“Right here,” he said on a squeeze of his arm around her.

“I, well…have something to tell you.”

Shit, the way she said that didn’t sound good.

Even so, he encouraged, “Tell me.”

“Um…well, you know, Amond is coming tomorrow.”

“Yeah.”

“And you know he’s a friend of mine,” she went on.

“Yeah, Slick.”

She took in a deep breath and gave it to him.

“What you don’t know is that we had a night together some time ago.”

Shit.

Jake said nothing.

She lifted her head and he felt her eyes through the dark.

“You said not to keep anything from you,” she reminded him, her voice soft and cautious.

He did say that, f*ck him.

“I said that, Josie,” he confirmed.

She didn’t go on nor did she move and he felt her vibe, her body beginning to get stiff. No longer cautious, she was getting scared. So he lifted his hand and wrapped it around her jaw, using his thumb to stroke her cheek.

“He’s gonna be here with you, I gotta know this. I can tell you know I don’t like having that history but I gotta have it. You gave it to me. I appreciate that. But more, baby, I know you didn’t live in a nunnery the last twenty years and you know I was no monk. It’s gonna come out because it has to, like me havin’ to share about Terry. So don’t be afraid of letting it out. It’s life and we share our lives, yeah?”

“Yes, Jake.”

“Now settle in and sleep.”

“Okay, darling,” she said right before she settled back in.

He gave her another squeeze when she did.

“Thanks for the honesty,” he whispered.

“You’re welcome,” she whispered back and he felt her relax against him.

She fell asleep before him.

But in her bed, in her house with his kids close and Josie tucked tight, he wasn’t far behind.

*

“Ohmigod, holy crap, ohmigod, this is gonna be epic,” boy Taylor breathed and he did this because Ethan just ran into the room and announced loudly that, “About fifty thousand Escalades are pulling up the drive!”

This meant rap star Dee-Amond had arrived.

It was the next afternoon and not surprisingly, after hearing the news he was coming, Amber showed up after school with both Taylors in tow and Conner had switched his shift with a bud so he could be there.

As for Jake, no way in f*ck he wasn’t going to be around when Josie’s friend who also was her ex-lover showed. Mostly because he was male, rich, famous, good-looking and an ex-lover.

Actually, totally because of that.

At Ethan’s shout, Josie shot from her chair at the kitchen table and walked quickly on her heels out of the room.

The kids followed her, Jake coming up the rear.

When he got outside, he saw his son was exaggerating but that didn’t mean there wasn’t a cavalcade of flash Escalades in the drive.

Five of them.

The middle one closest to the house had its back door opening and Josie was rushing to it.

Jake stopped, crossed his arms on his chest and watched as Dee-Amond hefted his bulk out of the SUV, flashed a smile at Jake’s woman and folded her in his arms when she threw hers around him.

Shit.

“So…totally…epic,” boy Taylor declared.

“I can’t believe this,” girl Taylor whispered.

“I thought I was freaking out with Lavon Burkett but now I’m really freaking out,” his daughter announced in a breathy voice. “I mean, he’s right here, in Magdalene at Josie’s house.”