Golden Trail (74 page)

“Good,” Gabby hissed, leaning forward. “I’ll
tell Jas and Tripp that you had me removed by security and they
might not like Saint Rocky so goddamned much anymore.”

“They might not, then again, they might
wonder why you’re on my doorstep before seven o’clock forcing a
confrontation,” Rocky shot back and Layne’s mouth twitched because
his boys loved their mother but they also knew her, Gabby knew that
therefore Rocky had Gabby there.

“
You think this is funny?
” Gabby
squealed, taking five quick steps into the house and Rocky closed
the door behind her. He’d been looking at Roc, he missed
Gabrielle’s eyes coming to him.

“Yep,” Layne replied.

“This is not funny,” Gabby’s voice was
rising, indicating she was going to lose what little hold she had
on her control and that was never pretty.

This meant Layne was done enjoying the show.
“Why are you here?”

“My son got home after two o’clock in the
morning,” Gabby answered without hesitation. “I dragged his ass out
of bed an hour ago and he told me what happened last night. He did
not call and tell me he was going to miss his curfew. He did not
call me when he was in trouble. He came home and went to bed like
he lives in a fucking hotel and his mother isn’t tossing and
turning waiting up for him and worried out of her brain.”

“You’re tellin’ me this because…” Layne
prompted.

“I’m tellin’ you this because
you
should have told me what was happening and if you didn’t, since
you
were with Jas last night,
you
should have advised
him
to share the minute he got home,” Gabrielle
returned.

“We had it covered,” Layne replied.

“I’m his mother!” Gabby shouted.

“Jesus, Gabby, keep it down,” Layne
ordered.

“Fuck you,” she shot back.

Layne uncrossed his arms and put his hands
to his hips. “All right, woman, you’re his mother and he fucked up
last night, he had a couple of beers. He let his girl have a couple
of beers. He’s seventeen, that shit is gonna happen. I did it, you
did it, everyone does it. It wasn’t right but he was bein’ smart,
he didn’t get drunk because he was drivin’. But his girl got
slipped a mickey and it freaked him out. He cares about her. He
didn’t know what to do. So, if I didn’t advise him and he didn’t
decide to let you in on that shit, it’s his call. He had enough to
deal with considering his girl got drugged against her will on his
watch and her stepdad was pretty fuckin’ displeased. If he didn’t
feel like puttin’ up with your shit after that, I don’t fuckin’
blame him.”

“He doesn’t
get
to decide if he gets
to put up with my shit, Tanner,” Gabby returned. “I’m his mother,
he’s seventeen. You treat him like he’s thirty-five.”

“He’s a smart kid,” Layne replied.

“Yeah, he is, he’s smart but he’s still
seventeen. He’s still a kid.” She threw her arms out and her eyes
shot fire. “You let them curse, both of them and Tripp’s only
fourteen. You think that shit doesn’t leak to
my
house?
Tripp told me straight out you let them cuss!”

Shit, but Tripp sometimes had a big
mouth.

Gabby carried on. “And this business with
the Youth Group, I don’t know what’s happening with that, all I
know is, neither of my sons have found Jesus. It’s not like I
haven’t heard people talking about that so it makes me think I
should
know what they’re doing there because my guess is
you’re involved somehow, it’s dangerous and no seventeen and
fourteen year old boy should be involved in one of your
operations.”

He skirted right around Youth Group, a topic
which would make Gabby’s head explode, and he had to admit,
rightfully so, and he focused on something that might not.
“Gabrielle, they cuss at school, they cuss with their friends, who
gives a fuck if they cuss?”

“I do!” she yelled.

“That’s ridiculous,” Layne returned.

“It’s being a good parent, Tanner,” she
snapped back.

“Do not go there, Gabby,” Layne warned. “I’m
a good Dad.”

She nodded and crossed her arms on her
chest. “Oh yeah, yeah you are. The best Dad ever. The
coolest
Dad in the world. News flash, Tanner, you didn’t
have one so let me educate you.” she announced bitingly. “Bein’ a
good Dad does not mean bein’ a
cool
Dad it means bein’
a
Dad.
”

Layne took two steps toward her and as he
did it he watched her brace which he figured was a good call on her
part, considering he’d lost patience and didn’t hide it.

“I know my boys, I know what they’re capable
of and we communicate. They’re both almost men and they gotta learn
how to be good ones,” Layne told her, his voice low, rumbling, he
was pissed. “You made it clear from the beginning, even before we
got divorced, that we were both in this parent thing on our own. We
never agreed, you never compromised. So, you do it your way, I’ll
do it my way but since you made that decision, you don’t get to get
in my face and tell me to do it your way. I’ll raise my boys as I
see fit.”

“Right, so it’s okay they curse, fuck this
and shit that, and it’s okay your fourteen year old son is
already dating
and he can’t even
drive
and it’s okay
that your seventeen year old son is fucking his way through five
different high schools. That’s all okay because,” she stepped back
and flung an arm toward Rocky, “that’s the kind of man
you
are and that’s the kind of man
you’re
teaching them to
be.”

“What’s that mean?” Rocky entered the
conversation on a hiss.

Gabby swung to her. “You don’t have
children, Saint Rocky, so you won’t get this but it is
not
okay and does
not
teach good lessons to have Dad banging the
high school literature teacher right under their noses.”

Before Layne could speak, Rocky did.

“You know that’s not right,” she whispered
but she was whispering in order not to yell.

“I do?” Gabby flung back.

“You know it’s not right,” Rocky
repeated.

“You know what’s not right? Someone like
you, who has it all, who’s
always
had it all, taking more.
Taking more and more and more,” Gabby snapped, striding to Rocky
and Layne moved with her so he was at Rocky’s back. Gabby didn’t
even look at him when she stopped two feet from Roc. “You don’t
have enough with your clothes and car and mansion, you need my kids
too?”

“You don’t care about your kids, Gabrielle,”
Rocky said quietly. “You care about Layne.”

Gabrielle’s torso shot back and she pushed
out a puff of air. “Please.”

“You want him, you’ve
always
wanted
him,” Rocky replied.

“Had that,” Gabby stated, her mouth a sneer,
not glancing at Layne, “got rid of it.”

Layne rolled his eyes to the ceiling but
Rocky laughed and it was laughter without humor so he rolled his
eyes back to his woman.

“You are so full of it, Gabrielle,
completely full of shit,” Rocky said quietly.

“Trust me, honey, you ever stick around long
enough to get his ring on your finger, you’ll throw it back too,”
Gabby stated.

Layne went still but Rocky went solid.

That didn’t mean Rocky didn’t speak. She
did, to say, “Right, so, to get his ring on my finger, what’s your
advice, Gabrielle? Should I quit taking birth control and get him
drunk?”

“Bitch,” Gabby hissed on a forward lean.

“Oh wait,” Rocky threw down. “
I
don’t
have
to get him drunk for him to want to fuck
me
.”

Fucking hell.

“Women,” Layne growled.

Both ignored him.

“Go to hell,” Gabby snapped.

“See, full of shit,” Rocky went back to her
earlier theme.

“What’s full of shit is you bein’ Tripp’s
guide to all things girl and you playin’ matchmaker to get Jas what
he wants. Yeah, I know, I hear Tripp on the phone, I saw you with
Keira Winters at the game and then,
poof
,” her hand flicked
out, “Jasper’s dating the most popular girl in school. Shit, you’ve
crawled so far up their asses, it’s a wonder they can walk!” She
ended on a shout.

“Tone it down, Gabby,” Layne warned but
Rocky spoke over him.

“Um… let me educate
you
, Gabrielle,”
she said. “I’m a teacher, I see it year after year, Keira’s the
most popular girl and Jasper’s the most popular boy. That shit
happens, the most popular boy and the most popular girl hooking up.
It was going to happen one way or another but, just so you know, I
didn’t work Keira, Keira worked
Jas.
”

“Right, Keira hasn’t been to
my
house
for dinner,” Gabrielle retorted.

“Then ask her,” Rocky shot back.

“This is goin’ nowhere,” Layne cut in and
his eyes locked on Gabby. “And this is not cool. You said your
piece and, as usual, we don’t agree. Now we move on.”

“Oh no, no we don’t,” Gabby told him, her
eyes still shooting fire and he knew, from experience, by the look
on her face, she was about to step way over the line. And she did.
“You want to know what isn’t cool? What isn’t cool is you two
teamin’ up to take away the only things I got left, my boys. And
what’s also not cool is
you,
” she jabbed a finger at Layne,
“lettin’ them do what they damn well want to do whenever they want
to do it. I leave here only if we have an agreement and that’s
gonna be that
she,
” she jabbed her finger at Rocky, “doesn’t
stay at your house when the boys are there and
you
,” she
jabbed her finger again at Layne, “learn how to suck it up and be a
decent father!”

Layne clenched his teeth and started
counting to ten even though he knew that didn’t work, he had to try
something so he didn’t lay his hands on the mother of his
children.

Rocky didn’t count to ten.

She marched to the door, opened it and
ordered, “Get out.”

“No way, Saint Rocky, you wanted me in, the
drama happens here,” Gabrielle retorted, pointing to the floor at
her feet.

“Get out,” Rocky repeated.

“You horned your way in on this discussion,
you see it out,” Gabby retorted.

“I didn’t
horn
my way into anything,
Gabrielle, this is
my
living room!” Rocky’s voice was close
to a shout.

“Enough,” Layne clipped and both women’s
eyes came to him but his eyes were on Gabrielle. “I’ve put up with
your shit for a long time, penance for fuckin’ up with my boys, but
that’s done. I’m warnin’ you right now, Gabby, that’s done. You
fucked up and I straightened your shit out. I’ll remind you of
somethin’ you forgot and it sucks I gotta throw it in your face, I
wanted to avoid that but you forced my hand, but woman, you no
longer have the high ground. You obviously didn’t pay even a little
attention to me the last time we talked so you’ve again made a
choice, the wrong one, but it’s your choice.”

He moved into her space, looked down at her
and dropped his voice.

“You do not tell me how to raise my boys.
You do not tell me when my woman can sleep in my bed. You do not
bring drama to my doorstep or her doorstep at six forty-five in the
morning or at
any time.
You get your support payments and we
share sons. You exist for me only as their mother and that’s it.
The bridge has been smoldering a long time, woman, but you just
burned it to the ground. We… are… done.”

“That’s not going to work,” she shot back,
leaning in and getting up on her toes to get in his face. “I know
you hate it Tanner, but I’m their mother and you don’t have a
choice but to deal with me.”

“Jas is in college next year, Tripp’s three
years behind him. They’re nearly gone, Gabby, it’s gonna work
because I’m gonna make it work.”

“Then we’ll see what the court has to say
about you fucking Saint Rocky with the boys in the house,” she
returned.

“Yeah, they’ll probably not like that, you
know, a single man havin’ a girlfriend. They probably never heard
of that. But, a single woman havin’ a live-in boyfriend who’s also
an enforcer for a loan shark, they’ll like that, you reckon?”

Her face paled, she’d made a faulty play,
she knew it then, she knew he had her but Gabby, being Gabby,
didn’t give it to him. She went into stare down. She wasn’t as good
at it as Rocky mainly because she did it with her face twisted and
bitter instead of full of adorable attitude. It wasn’t nice to look
at and it wasn’t fun at all.

Layne stepped back, ready to move things on
but Rocky spoke and she did it softly.

“It’s almost sad,” she said and Gabby’s eyes
and body swung to face her, “how much you want him and what lengths
you’ll go to for his attention.”

And Rocky sounded sad, she looked it too,
her eyes were no longer flashing, they were filled with
understanding.

But Layne didn’t process that mainly because
his gut squeezed and his eyes moved to Gabby whose face had lost
all of its color and she looked like she’d been struck.

Jasper had said it but Layne hadn’t really
heard it.

I see the way she looks at you, it’s the way
Mom always looks at you when you don’t know she’s lookin’, but it’s
more.

Jesus fucking Christ. It was Jarrod Astley,
Gabby-style.

“Gabby,” he murmured and her gaze shot to
him then over his shoulder.

“Screw you,” she whispered to his shoulder
then turned to Rocky. “Screw you too.” She walked to the door,
stopped, turned back and swept them both with a glance that didn’t
really connect with either one of them. “You have it all, do what
you want, you always had it all and did what you wanted. I should
have known that would never change.”

“You think that, Gabby, you haven’t been
payin’ attention,” Layne said quietly as he moved to stand behind
Rocky.

Gabby looked at him then her eyes moved to
Rocky then down them both then back to Layne.