Tiffany scratched her hair, completely unfazed by this. After all, Jackson never complained whenever she stood in front of him or rode on him. “Got it, thanks…” she replied absent-mindedly.At around 3PM or so, Tiffany began to feel sleepy. Suddenly, she heard Summer’s voice, “Tiffie, are you working with us now? Jackson was just talking about how reluctant you were. Looks like you’ve finally thought things through. It’s like I’ve said, how can someone else’s land be better than ours? When did you get here? Would you like me to…”Before she could finish, Tiffany jumped up, reached out, and covered her mouth.Both women were in shock. Tiffany broke out into cold sweat. What had she done? Covered her future mother-in-law’s lipstick-lined lips with her hand! She could feel the lipstick on her hand, which must be very red by now. She was finished…“Mrs. West… It’s fine,” she said, trembling fearfully, “I’ve spoken to Mr. West. There’s no need to do anything for me. I can do this on my
A smile shadowed Summer’s lips. “I knew you still cared about your mommy, which, by the way, you should, since I’ve hauled my bum just to rear you to the fine young man that you are today. This is why Mom would like you to do something for her,” she said sincerely. “Please, don’t give you dad your nasty grimaces, okay? He’s got a thin skin much like yourself, you know. Anyway! About your engagement with Tiffany, should you need my help, just ask. You know I don’t have much to occupy my time these days.”Jackson nodded in understanding and responded with his own advice, “When you see Tiffie, make sure you don’t leave any hint that you know, okay? She will kill me if she finds out about my goof.”Summer gave a sprightly okay and left. Passing by the cubicles, she greeted Tiffany as she usually would, “I’ll be off. Godspeed in your work.”Tiffany rose from her seat and watched Summer leave. “Thank you, Auntie. Take care.”Evening came. Jackson picked Tiffany up by the curb after work and
The duo’s arrival at the West family residence was immediately welcomed by a banquet-sized feast that almost exclusively served Tiffany’s favorite dishes.As Tiffany’s eyes took in the food laid before her, she realized how much she enjoyed being cared for by someone. The notion of being seen as important warmed her heart.Time passed, but Atticus West continued to be absent. Knowing Jackson was avoiding the question, Tiffany took it upon herself to ask Summer, “Where’s Uncle Atticus, Auntie Summer? I don’t see him.”Summer snuck a glance at her son. “Oh, he’s around alright… All cooped up in his study upstairs. He’s concerned that Jackson might be upset if he shows up, so that stubborn old man has shut himself in after ignoring my advice. Well, Tiffie dear, would you take Jackson with you and invite him over for dinner?”Jackson did not attempt to hide his repulsion. “Nope, no can do. I’m not gonna beg him to eat with us. To eat or not to eat — it’s none of my concern.”Tiffany jabbed
Watching him go into a stone-like silence abruptly sparked an ugly blaze within Tiffany. Suddenly, she despised the man standing in front of her. She despised him so much that it harkened back to the last time they had an altercation that stung enough to make her consider splitting.It was not like she wanted Jackson to surrender to her demands or go through hell to make her happy or even completely absolve the faults Atticus had made as a deadbeat dad. All she wanted Jackson to do was to put at least an ounce of forbearance; to summon a little bit more grit — just enough that when he was in the same room as his father, no one had to feel terrible.Among the four of them, Tiffany was the outsider, the tack-on. That alone was enough ground for trepidation that could easily escalate into crippling anxiety. The last thing she wanted was to be stuck in the middle of a cold war while already embroiled in discomfort. It mortified her. It made her want to quit and never bother with it again.
Jackson froze. He lowered his eyes as his emotions returned to whence they came. “I’ll call my mom and apologize to her too… right in front of you. Fine?”Tiffany suddenly found Jackson inscrutable. Worried that he was only trying to make her happy by making things even harder for himself, she demurred, “Look, I didn’t say I want that. But… I guess… I guess I agree that you should give your mom a call.”Without another word, Jackson dialed Summer’s number and connected his phone to the car speaker through Bluetooth connection. When the call was through, it was loud enough for Tiffany to hear every word Summer enunciated.“Jackson? Is that you?”“I’m sorry for losing my cool just now, Mom. I won’t do it again.”“Oh. Well, it’s alright. I understand. You were acting out against your father’s display of passion, weren’t you? But surely you’re aware that art is… well, art is your father’s lifelong devotion; he can’t help but act the way he did… Listen, I’m not asking you to treat him like
Summer took a seat on the couch as she remarked, “What’s the rush? It’s not like anyone’s gonna deduct your wage over it or something. Now, about last night… Thank you. I have no doubt that you did something to convince Jackson to apologize to me over the phone. It’s hard for him, I know. I don’t blame him.”As Tiffany had only just woken up, she was not precisely at her most sober. “Huh?… I mean, just doing my job! Yeeeeap.”Suddenly, Summer’s expression changed before pulling out a bra from underneath her. “What the…?”Tiffany froze. If she remembered correctly, her bra should not have been the only thing tucked inside the couch cushions — there should have been something else that was way, way more embarrassing! God, last night, they took such a direct dive into their passion that neither of them had the thought of tidying things up!Her thoughts returned to the present, and she lurched forward, snatching the bra from Summer’s hand. “Oh, I’m so, so sorry about this! Um, this place c
Jackson had imagined their eventual confrontation to be a severe one; however, the sight of jealousy pouring out of her mien was somehow a pretty enjoyable sight. “Well, what do you think?”“What do I think?” Tiffany was on the verge of an eruption. “‘What do I think?’ I’ve been fuming at the idea for the entire evening, Buckaroo, and here you want me to think about it even more? I ain’t playing this game… You tell me yourself!”Jackson could not stop himself from laughing. “Oh, Lord, what did that brain of yours cook up, huh? Alright, I admit, I used to swing around a lot, but! My escapade never involved people of my inner circles. Perhaps you should ask Aye about this; she would tell you that I only have relationships with women outside our company. Everyone knows that I’ve never slept with any of the female employees,” he explained. “Sure, Miss Lane is bodacious, and that body is pretty damned sexy, but too bad! She is my secretary, which according to my rul — ”“Too f**king bad?” H
Jackson appeared by the steps leading to the Lanes’ residence the next morning while it was bright out. Behind him, a striking procession of cars lined up in a neat row outside the entrance to the complex.Tiffany had only (reluctantly) rolled out of bed after a call from her beau before dragging herself to wash up. Lillian, in contrast, was much more excited for the event. She was already all dolled up, so she lent her daughter a hand with the latter’s make-up.“Uh, youngsters nowadays! I told you to head to bed early last night, but did you listen? Now look at you — your eyelids are practically glued close!” she chastised. “Jackson’s waiting for you downstairs, young lady. Just look at all those cars lining up outside — pooh! Now that’s the Wests for you. But if all of this is for a mere engagement ceremony, then how grand would the wedding itself be?”Tiffany cracked yet another jaw-breaking yawn in front of the dresser. “Can’t we do this at, uh, a later time or something, Mom? As l