Janet (13 page)

My eyes widened. “Wow…”

“Sorry,” he said quickly.

“Kyle.”

“Dumb.”

We both laughed loudly.

I thought of another word. “Toy Story.”

“Tear jerker.”

“It really was,” I said.

“When I went with my niece and nephew, we all walked out crying.”

“Kids.”

“Three.”

“Three?” I asked.

“I want to have three kids,” he said.

“Oh,” I said. “Janet.”

“Yowza.”

I laughed. “Good answer.”

He winked at me.

“Lawyer.”

“Suit.”

I rubbed his chest. “Car.”

“Sex.”

I raised an eyebrow.

He shrugged. “We should try it sometime.”

I rolled my eyes. “Boat.”

“Immigrant.”

I laughed. “Hippo fish.”

“Uh…what the hell is a hippo fish?”

“Just answer the question,” I said.

“I don’t know….Africa.”

I laughed. “Mexico.”

“Aztecs.”

“Marriage.”

“You.”

I stilled at his response.

He stared at me like he didn’t say something he shouldn’t.

I kept going. “Harry Potter.”

“Best book ever.”

“Morgan Freeman.”

“In every movie ever made,” he said.

“That’s totally true,” I said with a laugh. “Basketball.”

“The Kings.”

“Purple thong.”

“Janet.”

I smiled. “Good answer.”

He stared at me. “Boyfriend.”

“Scott.”

He nodded. “I like the way you think.”

I sighed. “I guess I should just accept it.”

“You really should.”

I moved my hand down to his stomach and felt every muscle. He was perfect. I pulled the covers down and moved on top of him, kissing his chest. He lied back and sighed quietly, enjoying the feel of my lips on his skin. His hand moved into my hair.

I licked his nipples then trailed my kisses to his hips and sides. His skin was warm and tasty. I felt like I was kissing concrete because he was so hard. “I love your body.”

He moaned.

I trailed my lips to his neck then gave him a gentle kiss on the lips.

“Can I kiss you?” he whispered.

“It won’t be as fun.”

He sat up and laid me down. He lifted up my shirt and kissed my stomach. His lips moved across the surface, tasting me. Scott moaned while he explored my body. I lied back and watched him. When he moved closer, I felt his enormous erection. I moaned when I felt him press against me. My thoughts became more sinister than they already were.

Suddenly, he pulled away. “Enough of that.”

“What?”

“I’m not going to be a gentleman if I keep that up.”

“Maybe I don’t want you to be.”

He stared at me, looking into my eyes. Scott said nothing for a long time. Finally he lied down and stared at the time on his phone. “I have to be at work in a few hours.”

I sighed. “I hate work.”

“Me too.”

“At least your job is awesome.”

“It’s stressful,” he said.

“But you make a difference in the world.”

“You do too, baby.”

“Not in the same way.”

“There are pros and cons to every job,” he said.

“I know.”

He cuddled me to his chest. “I can’t keep my eyes open.” His hand moved to my lower back and he held me close. I wasn’t tired because of all the caffeine but I loved lying there, staring at him. I could do it forever.

11

When Beatriz came back from her run with Scott she was in a better mood than she had been for the past month. She was sweating and breathing heavily, but she looked like she had some energy. “Hey,” she said as she wiped the sweat from her forehead.

“Did you two have fun?”

“We did if you think running three miles is fun.”

I smiled. “That’s far. Congratulations.”

“My ass is going to fall off.”

I laughed. “I bet it’ll look really nice in a few weeks.”

She poured herself a cup of coffee and took a sip. “I’m so tired I could go back to bed.”

“Nope,” I said. “I have errands for you to do.”

“Errands?”

“I just need a few things from the grocery store. It’ll get you out of the house.”

“I have my soap operas to watch.”

“Please tell you’re joking.”

She sighed. “Fine, I’ll go.”

“And we have your first meeting tonight.”

“What meeting?” she asked.

“Your Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.”

“I don’t need to go to go that,” she said. “I haven’t been drinking since I got here.”

I stared at her. “You’re g
oing. I need to know that you won’t start again as soon as I’m gone.”

“I won’t.”

“And you need to prove it to your family. Participating in a program and getting a sponsor is a good way to prove it to Hank.”

“I really don’t want to be around a bunch of losers all night.”

“What makes you think you’re any different than them?”

She glared at me.

“You’re going.”

“Whatever,” she snapped.

“It’ll be good for you.”

“You know what will be good for me?” she yelled. “Seeing Joey. I want to see my son! It’s been over a month.”

I grabbed her by the shoulders and steadied her. I knew she was about to have a breakdown. “I’ll talk to Hank and see if we can arrange something.”

A tear fell down her cheek. “I just want to see him. Even if it’s for just a moment. I want to hold my baby.”

I hugged her and rubbed her back. “I’ll talk to him.”

“Please,” she begged.

“Okay,” I said. “Okay.”

“Thank you.”

I pulled away. “I need to get to work. Have a good day.”

She wiped her tears away. “Okay.”

I gave her a nice smile before I left.

When I got to work
, Ryan was standing in front of my office, looking pissed. His arms were crossed over his chest and he was glaring at me. I unlocked the door and walked inside.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Callahan?”

He stood next to me, the anger still plastered on his face. “So you’re with him?”

“Yes, I already said that.”

“And you were playing me the whole time?”

I was starting to get mad. “We went on one date, Ryan. That was it.”

“So? You intentionally mislead me.”

People were walking by my office so I shut the door. I didn’t want anyone to hear this conversation. “Ryan, I’m sorry. What more do you want from me? Nothing happened between us. I didn’t kiss you and I didn’t mislead you. We went out, and we didn’t hit it off. Unfortunately, I hit it off with someone else. I apologize for hurting you. I really didn’t mean to. I think you’re a great guy and I would like to get back to normal.”

He put his hands in his pockets while he stared at me. His eyes still shined with hatred. I’d never seen him act that way before. He was known as the office sweetheart. I clearly had made the wrong decision when I agreed to go out with him. “Fine.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “I hope you accept my apology.”

He didn’t speak.

I opened the door then waited for him to leave.

He stepped toward me then came close to my face, staring me down. The threat in his eyes was unmistakable. For the first time in my life, I actually felt scared. I didn’t know what he was planning but I knew it was something bad. He looked like he was after blood. He left my office and didn’t look back.

I returned to my computer and stared at the screen, trying to digest what just happened.
My heart was beating fast in my chest and it was starting to slow down. I thought about walking to his office and apologizing again, but I knew it was pointless. Besides, I didn’t do anything wrong. We went out once and it didn’t work out. He could deal with it.

When lunchtime arrived, I went into the break room to make a co
ffee and grab the salad I packed. Jeffrey was sitting at the table, reading from a magazine. He smiled at me when I walked in.

“Hey, pretty lady.”

I stilled at the comment. Jeffrey had never spoken to me like that. I didn’t respond.

He stared at my body. “You look nice today.”

“Thanks.”

He tossed the magazine aside and patted the table. “Why don’t you take a seat?”

“I have to get back to work.”

“Come on.” He smiled at me. “We should get to know each other a little better.”

He and I never made an effort to talk and we had worked together for years. This behavior was very odd. “Thank you but I really need to get back to work.”

He stood up and came close to me. “We could come back to my office…”

“Excuse me?”

Jeffrey continued to smile. “Hey, I won’t tell anyone. But I know how much you like anal.”

My hand shook because I wanted to slap him but I kept it back. “Don’t talk to me like that.”

“What?” he asked incredulously. “Come on. It’ll be quick.”

I abandoned my lunch and stormed out, my hands shaking. I couldn’t believe that asshole talked to me like that. I had no problem reporting it to my supervisor. When I walked into my office, I picked up the phone.

“Hey,” Connor said from the door.

“I’m busy,” I snapped.

He came inside and sat on my desk.

I thought this behavior was even weirder. “Get off my desk.”

“I will if you hop on.” He patted his thigh.

What the hell was going on?

Connor grabbed a strand of my hair and tucked it behind my ear.

I slapped his hand away. “Don’t touch me!”

He stepped back. “Hey. I just wanted
to invite you over tonight. It’ll be fun.”

“Get out of my office!”

“What did I do?”

I slammed the phone down and marched to Ryan’s office. “What the hell did you do?”

He smiled at me, clearly pleased with my reaction. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

I slammed the door and walked inside. “Why are all the men hitting on me?”

He shrugged. “Maybe they think you’re easy.”

“And why would they think that?”

He shrugged again. “I have no idea.”

I shook my head while I stared at him. “You’re unbelievable. I said I was sorry and I meant it. I didn’t mean to hurt you. But now you’re just being spiteful. I’m going to report you to Mr. Garrison.”

“That’s fine with me. What proof will you use?”

“The men in the office.”

“And do you think he’ll get rid of three lawyers instead of one receptionist?”

“I’m not a receptionist,” I snapped.

“You’re still easily replaceable. We, the best lawyers in the state, are not.”

“Fuck you.”

He smiled. “Have a good day.”

“This is so unfair.”

“And I know exactly what unfair feels like.”

I glared at him then stormed off. I was so angry for the rest of the day I could barely concentrate. A few of the guys stopped by my office, handing me money in an envelope in exchange for sex. I yelled at them until they left. Beforehand, all the guys were great and left me alone. Now I was a beacon that attracted them. I loved my job here but now it was ruined because of Ryan. I hated that asshole.

When my shift was over, I practically fled the building. I didn’t watch where I was going on the sidewalk. I didn’t go to the gym like I normally did because I was too angry. When I came home, I slammed the door then flipped my table over.

Beatriz stared at me, her eyes wide. “Bad day?”

I paced the room, gripping my hair.

“I take that as a yes.”

“Shut up.”

She flinched.

“I’m going to bed. Don’t bother me until your meeting.”

“We don’t have to go tonight.”

I walked into my bedroom and slammed the door shut. I lay in bed and stared at the ceiling, trying to calm myself down. There was a way to fix the situation. There always was. I just had to think of a way, outsmart Ryan. Now I wished Scott had ripped his throat out.

My phone rang and I looked at the screen. I was surprised to see Hank’s name. “Hello?”

“Hey, how are you?”

“Fine,” I lied. “What’s up?”

“Well, Joey keeps saying your name.”

That made my anger disappear. “Really?”

“Yep. He misses his auntie.”

“That’s so adorable.”

“Well, he gets it from me.”

I laughed. “Can I see him?”

“I was hoping you’d come over tonight.”

I thought for a moment. “Hank, I wanted to ask you something.”

“What’s up?”

“Can Beatriz see him?”

He paused for a long time. “I already said no.”

“She really misses him, Hank. Can she just see him for a moment?”

“No.”

“She’s going to an AA meeting tonight. You can meet us afterward. Please.”

He sighed. “I want Beatriz to get better but I have to protect my son.”

“I understand that but nothing is going to happen. We’ll both be there. And we’ll meet somewhere. She won’t know where you’re staying.”

He was quiet.

“I’m begging you. She’s been crying about it for days.”

“Okay,” he said. “Only five minutes.”

“Thank you so much. Thank you.”

“Yeah.”

“We’ll see you after the meeting.”

“Okay. I’ll meet you at Pete’s Coffee.”

“See you then.”

I hung up and went into the living room. “Beatriz, I have good news.”

She stared at me incredulously. “Is that how you look when you’re happy?”

I rolled my eyes. “Hank said you could see Joey after your meeting tonight. But only for a few minutes.”

She covered her face. “Really?” Tears started to fall immediately.

I nodded.

“Thank god,” she said. “I’m so happy.”

I smiled at her. “He’ll be excited to see you.”

“I hope my baby hasn’t forgotten me.”

“Of course not, Beatriz.”

“I have to find something to wear and pick him up a gift.”

I smiled at her enthusiasm.

A few hours later, we left the house and went to her AA meeting. She signed
in then we moved to the back row. Everyone talked about their addiction and why they were there. Beatriz stood up and told her story, breaking down in a flood of tears. Everyone listened. I clapped loudly when she was done, proud that my baby sister was moving past the incident. We stuck around for cookies and juice until she got her first token.

We left the building and walked to the coffee shop. I could tell Beatriz was nervous by the look on her face. She was fidgeting, dropping Joey’s gift on the ground a few times.

I patted her back. “It’s going to be okay.”

She nodded.

When we walked inside the coffee shop, Joey was sitting in Hank’s lap, playing with his toys on the table. Tanya was sitting beside him, looking angrier than usual. Beatriz blinked her tears away when she approached the table. I stood beside her and kept quiet.

Hank stared at her for a moment, saying nothing.

Beatriz looked at Joey, who was concentrating on his toys. “Honey?”

He looked up. “Mommy?”

Beatriz burst into tears. “Honey, I missed you.” She reached for him, but Hank kept his hands on Joey. He picked him up and gently put him in her arms, making sure she wouldn’t drop him. I thought that was extreme but I said nothing.

Beatrix held Joey in her arms and cried, patting his head.

Hank stared at her, his eyes becoming teary.

Tanya glared at Beatriz.

“Mommy, why are you crying?”

Beatriz sniffed. “I’m just so happy to see you.”

Joey pulled away. “Where have you been?”

“I—I’ve just been busy.”

He turned to his toys. “Look what I made.”

“They are wonderful, baby.” She grabbed the bag from the floor and handed it to him. “I got you something.”