Clearwater Romance (21 page)

The following afternoon, Rebecca sat sandwiched between JC and the small window of a plane. Her palms were sweaty, and nerves turned her stomach upside down. Closed spaces did little to help the tension coursing through her body. The worst thing about living in Clearwater was flying in and out of the airport on the small planes. The airport didn’t have big enough landing strips for large planes, and there were never enough passengers unless it was winter.

“I didn’t realize you were scared to fly.” JC tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear. “You should have told me.”

“Sorry.” She smiled, halfhearted. “I agreed to come. I’ve never let my fears hold me back from anything I want to do, and I’m not about to start now.”

“You’re an amazing woman. Thank you.” He lifted the armrest between them, sliding his arm around her to pull her closer.

“Hello, sir. It’s nice to see you’ve chosen our airline again. I hope you enjoyed your visit to Clearwater.” The flight attendant stood next to the aisle, a hint of hostility colored her eyes as she stared down at Rebecca.

“Actually, I live in Clearwater now. We’re going to visit my family.” JC’s fingers tickled over Rebecca’s shoulder.

“Oh. Please fasten your seatbelts, we will be departing shortly.” She shot a glare at Rebecca before moving down the aisle.

“Did you know her?” Rebecca glanced at JC.

“I met her when I flew in.”

“To give me a threatening stare as she did, I would have thought you had history.”

“Do I detect a hint of jealousy?” The plane began to move, picking up speed as it made its way down the runway. A shiver of fear coursed through her again. He ran his arm down her arm, his touch trying to make her forget they were hurling down the runway about to be airborne. If people were meant to fly they’d have wings.

“Do I have anything to be envious about?”

“Not at all.” He kissed the top of her head. “You’re the one I want.”

* * *

Night had fallen over the area when JC parked the rental car in front of the apartment building where his family lived. He didn’t call to let them know he was coming, he wanted to surprise them. If his mother knew he was coming home after only a few weeks in Clearwater, she’d be suspicious. Shoving the gearshift into Park, he took a deep breath. “Are you ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be. It’s nerve-racking to meet someone’s family for the first time. I hope they like me.”

“They will.” He opened his door, slid out, and walked around the car to open her door. He took her hand and led her up the walkway.

“JC?” Laya opened the door, surprise evident in her eyes.

“Laya.” He released Rebecca’s hand and rushed toward his sister. She was so mature, standing there with Kelly clinging to her hand. “It’s so good to see you, I’ve missed you both.” He wrapped his arms around Laya before bending to pick up Kelly.

“What are you doing here? I thought you were in Clearwater for that job.” Laya glanced between JC and Rebecca.

“I needed to speak with mom, and the whole family.” Settling Kelly in one arm, her hands locked tightly around his neck, he wrapped his other arm around Rebecca’s shoulders. “Laya, this is Rebecca. Rebecca, this is my oldest sister, Laya, the one who keeps her twin, Lee, and the rest of our siblings, in line.”

Rebecca and Laya exchanged greetings while he enjoyed the youngest of the Marquez siblings in his arms. Kelly was four, and he had been the only father figure she had known. She yawned and nestled her head into his shoulder. “I think Kelly is ready for bed. Is Mom upstairs?”

“Yeah, she just got home. Kelly was sick today, so Ms. Betty watched her while Lee and I took the rest to the park. Since she was sleeping, Ms. Betty kept her while I fixed dinner and got the other kids settled for the night. Come inside.” Laya stepped aside, letting them enter the house.

They followed Laya, and by the time he entered the living room, Kelly was asleep in his arms.

“Mom, guess whose home?”

“Shhh, Laya, the younger kids are in bed.” JC’s mother walked out of the kitchen. “JC!” Tears fell over her cheeks as she ran to him.

Rebecca moved to the side, giving his mom full access to him. He wrapped his arm around his mother as she came in for a hug. She clung to him, like she hadn’t seen him in years instead of only a few weeks.

She pushed back from him, tears flowing freely down her face. She glanced between him and Rebecca. “Why didn’t you let me know you were coming?”

“I wanted it to be a surprise.” He handed his sleeping sister to Laya. “Would you mind putting Kelly to bed? I need to talk to Mom.”

Laya reached for Kelly.

“Mom, could we sit out on the porch, I’d like to talk to you before the rest of the family.”

“Of course, honey.” She turned to Laya. “When you get Kelly settled can you make sure everyone else is still in bed. I gave a few of them permission to read for a little while, but lights out in ten minutes.” Laya nodded and walked down the hallway toward a bedroom. His mother smiled at Rebecca. “Since my son has lost his manners, I’ll have to introduce myself. I’m Jackie and you are?”

“I’m sorry, Mom. This is Rebecca.” He held out his hand to Rebecca and drew her next to him.

“Let’s go outside then.” She pointed toward the sliding glass doors off the kitchen.

On the small patio, JC let his mom and Rebecca sit on the only two chairs, while he leaned on the iron railing. With the cool night air dancing around him, he glanced out to the city. He missed the lights, but the noise he could do without. Hopefully he’d be able to put North Carolina behind him, and his family could join him in Wyoming.

* * *

Rebecca hoped she didn’t appear uncomfortable as she listened to JC explain the benefits of moving to Wyoming. He told his mother what he had planned. She felt like an outsider, eavesdropping on a personal family moment. JC needed time with his family, to convince them to move closer to him. He didn’t need to have his girlfriend hanging around.

Girlfriend?
When did she start considering herself his girlfriend? Maybe it happened when they booked one hotel room, instead of two. At that moment, she realized she wanted more than a friendship with JC.

“How do you play into this?” Jackie’s question dragged Rebecca from her thoughts.

She fidgeted unnervingly on her chair, glancing briefly to JC for support. His smile gave her the encouragement she needed. “It was my father’s idea.”

Jackie glared at her son, anger lighting her eyes. “You told her father about our situation?”

Rebecca refused to let JC take the blame. “Ms. Marquez, that was actually my doing. I’m sorry. I was only trying to help.”

“Mom, Rebecca and I were going to look at apartments, to find somewhere for you to live closer to me. Robert’s solution is better for everyone. I’ve put an offer on the land and we can begin building in three weeks.” He leaned forward, handing his mother the folder. “Will you at least look over the plans and think about it?”

“I’ve made up my mind already.” She didn’t take the folder, just pushed it aside.

Lee slid the door open, walked out on the patio, and hugged his brother. “JC, Laya said you wanted to talk to Mom privately, but Kelly’s throwing a fit. She wants you to tuck her in bed. Could you come in for a moment?”

JC glanced toward Rebecca. She nodded and he turned back to his mother. “Mom, stay here until I get back, please.”

Rebecca could see the disappointment in JC’s eyes. He wanted Clearwater to be a place for his family to start over, but he would have a difficult uphill battle to convince his mom.

Once JC and Lee left, Rebecca turned to face Jackie. It was time for a woman-to-woman chat. Hearing about the plan to move from an outsider was going to go one of two ways, either Jackie would realize it was best for her and the family to move to Clearwater to be with JC, or Jackie would take offense to Rebecca for butting into family business. “I apologize if I might be out of place to speak about this, especially since I haven’t known JC for very long, but I do know his family means the world to him. He enjoys living in Clearwater, and it’s been very healing for him, yet being so far away from you and his siblings is difficult.”

When Jackie opened her mouth to respond, Rebecca raised her hand. “Please, just hear me out. JC told me a little about you. That you’re working two jobs to support your family. JC joined the Marines to help the family, but…his injury prevents him from doing that now. He’s starting over in Clearwater and wants to continue providing for his family. You’re going to turn him down without hearing him out? I realize your pride is at stake, but isn’t keeping your family together more important?”

“Do you have children?”

Rebecca shook her head. “I don’t, however if I did, I’d want to be close. I know it’s not possible for all families, but it is for you. You don’t know how much longer you will have that opportunity. Lee and Laya are finishing their last year of high school, and then maybe they’ll be off to college. JC tells me Lee’s an amazing football player and is up for a scholarship.”

Jackie glanced down at the folder before returning her stare to Rebecca. “Your kids aren’t supposed to help you financially, or raise their siblings. That’s been JC’s whole life. He doesn’t deserve that responsibility any longer.”

“He can’t turn off something he’s been doing for years. Being away from you is tearing him apart. Clearwater is giving him a chance to rebuild a new life without the daily reminders of the military. Unfortunately, he won’t stay with such a distance between him and his family.”

“You seem to know my son rather well.” Jackie’s eyebrow rose.

Not knowing how to respond, Rebecca went with the truth. “We’ve become very good friends and have talked a lot about you and the kids.” She left out the part about sharing a few kisses. Their relationship was moving slow and she was okay with that. She wouldn’t rush JC. He needed time to adjust to the new developments in his life without her pushing him for more.

“It seems like there’s more between you and my son then just a few chats about family.” Jackie’s eyes were filled with curiosity.

Thankfully JC chose that moment to return. He slid the patio door open and stepped outside. “Kelly’s asleep. I checked on everyone else and they are either sleeping or reading in their rooms. Lee went for a run and Laya is studying for an upcoming exam.” He placed a hand on Rebecca’s shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

She hoped he wouldn’t pick up on the tension that had settled over Rebecca and his mother.

“Mom, it’s been a long trip for us. We’ll go settle into the hotel and get some rest. Maybe tomorrow we can take you and the kids out for lunch?” JC pulled out Rebecca’s chair for her and took her hand in his as she stood.

“Hotel?” Jackie’s voice rose.

“Staying in a hotel is only practical. Lee is in my room now and there’s no room for us here. I didn’t want to put anyone out. We are just down the street. We’ll be back in the morning.” He slid his hand around Rebecca’s waist.

“If you would have called, we’d have made room for you. It’s crazy to waste money on hotel rooms when you could have stayed here.” His mom rose, meeting JC gaze.

“Mom, we’ve already checked in and we are only here a few days. There’s no reason to cram the kids any more than they already are.”