I'm sorry, Marc," Jacqui groaned as her husband sat on the bed beside her, stroking her crumpled hair. "There is no way my head or my stomach are going to make it on a plane ride today. I way overdid it at the gala last night. I am not getting out of this bed.""It's okay, baby," Marc told her. "Maggie and I will make it a father-daughter day. Besides, it'll give you some recovery time. You did put away quite a few appletinis last night." He said that last sentence with a grin spreading across his face.She groaned again, wanting to bury herself in the pillow. "And I'm definitely paying for it. I spent most of my night in the bathroom praying to the porcelain god."He laughed as he moved his hand to her back, caressing it. "I know. I was the one holding your hair out of the way.""I was wondering how that happened." Maggie ran in and Marc caught her before she could leap onto the bed. "Mommy has a headache," he whispered to his daughter."Is Mommy still going on the plane ride with us
Morgan jerked the legs open of a folding table he had bought on his way to the new office. He had purchased some cheap folding chairs and office supplies, as well. While he wouldn't order furniture until the interior had been remodeled, he still needed a place to work until the temporary trailer arrived, which was to be there Monday. He at least needed a place to interview people. Barbie, Neal's assistant, had called that morning and told him that a man named Vince Andrews would be stopping by around lunch to be interviewed for the foreman position. If Morgan liked him, then the two of them could get things rolling and hire an office staff. "Hire more than you need, at first," Neal had told him. "It gives you a group to cull the weak ones from and prepares you for the influx of work that, hopefully, comes our way." Neal's motto was prepare for success and you may actually get it. Neal Rutherford was always successful. Morgan now stood inside the moldy smelling building staring at the b
Jacqui just stared. She had not been expecting anyone except Morgan to be there. When she saw Vince, it had completely thrown her off her reason for even being there, not that she really had one. She suddenly felt very silly. She wanted to turn and run but didn't want to seem like the idiot she probably already appeared to be for just stopping and standing there. With a deep breath and a forced smile, she continued to walk toward the two men standing by a cheap folding table. She had no idea why Vince Andrews was there, but she should not have been surprised that he would squirm his way into her project. It had been well over a year since she had last seen him, bought him out of the company he started with her husband and sent him on his way. She felt her face blush at the memory of why that had happened. "Good morning, Mr. Brewer. Mr. Andrews." She glanced around at the empty office. "When will you start making this your home?"Morgan stared at her, his smile making her look away.
Morgan flew out of the Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport at five that morning. He could have taken a later flight, but he was eager to get to Dustin for their overnight visit. He wasn't sure when he'd be able to see his son again and wanted as much time with him as possible. Morgan's back ached from being on the plane for over three and a half hours. He would have slept if he could, but a single mother of three had taken the same flight and little children don't do well on planes, at least not the ones on which he was a passenger. Of course, he didn't do well on planes either. He much preferred his truck and a road trip as opposed to being cooped up with a bunch of strangers who wanted to be nice and make small talk. He hated small talk. The only plus side to a plane trip was the female passengers, if he was able to get near one, that is. This trip, luck had been against him and he had to sit next to an obese man who didn't believe in deodorant. Or soap. At 9:30, the cab dropped
"Why don't we eat out on the back porch? It's gorgeous out and I'm tired of being cooped up inside." Bert sat in his wheelchair at the kitchen table as Jacqui chopped up green peppers for their salad. Sophia visited family and did personal things on Saturdays and Sundays, which gave Jacqui a chance to spend time with her father. At least, that was the goal. It didn't always work out that way, though. Work kept her busy far more than she wanted, but it was necessary. There were people hurting. She didn't want them to suffer simply because she took time off. Enough suffering had been caused because she had enjoyed herself too much.She didn't even glance at the back porch. "How about the front yard? We can make a picnic on the lawn. You're right; it is a lovely day out.""Front lawn? Why the hell would I want to sit on the front lawn? The back porch has tables, a view of the water, no nosy neighbors asking what I'm eating and making redundant statements like 'Having a picnic on the front
Jeannie had agreed to meet him at the park. It was always somewhere other than the house. Never the house. Since the divorce, he had never crossed the threshold of what was now his ex-wife's home. He doubted it had changed much, since it was the same house they lived in while married. Still, it was sad that he was no longer welcome in a house for which he was technically still paying. He just shook his head as he stepped out of his truck and into the April sunshine. No sense in drudging up my financial loss and her gain.The day was bright with a slight breeze keeping the sun from being unbearable. Winter never lasted long in Florida if it even showed up. April was back into the high seventies and low eighties, a perfect day for the park. Children were taking full advantage of the Saturday as they swung from jungle gyms and screamed down slides. Parents, mostly moms, sat on benches or stood at the edge of the playground, keeping an eye on their children, while chatting amongst themselv
He slipped his hands into his pockets and took a sigh. "Neal has me in Biloxi overseeing a new project and beginning a new office. I've rented an apartment. I came back this weekend to pick up some things and get stuff settled here. I'll come back to see Dustin as often as I can and I was hoping you'd be flexible on me seeing him. I'd also like to fly him out there to spend some time with me, maybe bring him up for a week. I don't want to disrupt his schedule too much, but I also don't want to go long periods without seeing him.""Then you should have told Neal no. I don't like the idea of Dustin on a plane alone. There's too many evil people these days.""Then I'd drive down and drive him back up. Biloxi is a nice area. I'd even bring you up and put you up in a hotel, so I could spend some time with him. You could have a small vacation." He kept his hands in his pockets, trying his best not to look argumentative. Jeannie never missed a chance to fight, no matter how hard he tried to a
"What are you working on now?" Jacqui's father sat in the recliner, staring at a newspaper that she doubted he even read. Still, he had held one every morning since she was old enough to remember. It was always the morning paper and a cup of coffee with her mother, the two of them so busy talking that neither would ever read the paper and the coffee always grew cold before it was sipped. Yet, they did it every morning—right up until the cancer claimed her mother's life four years ago.Her father had finally come out of his room after lunch, acting as if nothing had happened, grabbed the paper and slid himself out of his wheelchair and into the recliner. He didn't mention the earlier incident, only asked for a cup of coffee as he flicked the paper open. She had only rolled her eyes as she got out of her comfy spot to get him his coffee. It was better than listening to him grumble again.Jacqui glanced up from the stack of files she had been thumbing through. "The final notes for the com
Dropping the arm holding the towel to his side, he walked over to where Cherish sat and joined her on the bed. He reached out, placing a hand on her leg and gave her a reassuring squeeze. "I'm sorry you're having to deal with this," he told her. He gave a weak shrug. "I guess we never know the full extent of our actions and their consequences until it's too late." He quickly held a hand up, stopping her from saying anything else. "That wasn't a judgment. Promise."She offered him a weak smile. "I didn't take it that way." She shrugged. "Besides, you're right. I didn't realize while I was...you know...how it would hurt you or Jordie, and I sure as hell didn't realize how it would follow me to another job. I was too caught up in what I was doing to even think of anything else." She reached out, placing her hand on top of his. "I'm sorry I was such a selfish bitch."Glen leaned over and kissed Cherish's forehead. When he pulled away, he grinned. "You're my selfish bitch, so it's all good.
Cherish shoved her phone into her purse, closed the final file folder, and shoved herself away from her desk. This day was over, and she was more than happy to see it go. As she stood, however, she realized the day was not completely over. She stood at the edge of her desk, adjusting her purse on her shoulder, as Mary Overton stepped into her doorway, arms crossed over her chest, looking as if she had a corncob shoved deep up her ass. What Bernie saw in the woman, Cherish would never know. Cherish sucked in a deep breath as she paused, waiting to hear what had brought the grump of a woman to her door. "Is there something I can help you with?" Cherish asked.Mary glanced over the room, scowling as she took in the changes Cherish made to the small office. "I see you've rearranged. Making the place more to your liking." Cherish could have sworn the woman gave a disgusted sniff as she said it. "I thought the way Kim had it set up was quite efficient." She glanced around the room with a sn
Glen soaked in her naked body, making no qualms about devouring her with his gaze. He had always thought Cherish was gorgeous and hated when she started to hide her body in baggy shirts and shorts. He wanted to see more of her flesh, more of her body tempting him under tight clothes or low-cut tops. He wanted her to be seductive, sultry, sexy. Hell, he even wanted her to dress slutty for him.Reaching out, Glen ran a hand over her freckle-covered shoulder, up her neck, and into her strawberry-blond hair. Gazing into her eyes, he sucked in a breath as he stared at her. "You, Cherish Lansky, are beautiful."He saw her cheeks redden with her blush, felt her squirm under his touch as his words embarrassed her, but he didn't care. While he thought the words often enough, he failed to say them out loud for her to hear. She needed to hear them. He needed to say them. They needed to get back to the spark that was them when they first ignited each other's passions. Looking at her right then, he
Cherish took a deep breath, deciding to tackle the topic of Rutherford even if Glen hadn't brought it up. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Jed. It's been a pretty emotional week all around, and I swear, it just slipped my mind."Glen cocked an eyebrow at her. "A lot of things have slipped your mind lately. I should probably do something about that, eventually."She bowed her head. "Yes, sir," was all she said, but she couldn't deny the tingle between her legs at the thought of Glen punishing her again. She would never have thought the idea of him spanking her would have such an effect on her.He took a sip of his coffee as he studied her, and Cherish just stood there under his scrutiny. After a stretched-out moment, he said, "So, tell me about the conversation now. You said you weren't interested in returning. Is that the truth?"She shrugged. "I don't know, to be honest. And, in the way of full disclosure, it was sort of a mixture of him asking if I would want to return and me aski
Cherish placed the last of the glasses back in the cabinet, her back screaming at her due to the lengthy day she just endured. Jordie was already sound asleep in his bed, his tired little body crashing as soon as everyone left, and the constant energy faded away. She could relate as exhaustion tugged at her as well. She had to admit, however, Glen's idea of having the party at their house opposed to her parents' was definitely a winner, minus the cleanup part afterward. Jordie loved every gift he opened, and he and the other kids made full use of the bounce house. Even a few of the adults climbed inside to get their inner youth on while they made the little ones stand outside the giant inflatable while they took over. The children, of course, were far from happy about not being permitted inside, but they laughed like crazy as they watched their parents bouncing around, trying to do flips, and falling on their asses.Valerie surprised Cherish with how she interacted with everyone else a
Cherish felt the tears streaming down her cheeks, felt the anguish clutching at her heart as she sat there, staring at her mother, the woman crying openly now as she stared back at Cherish. How could her mother ever doubt Cherish's love for her? Because I did a shitty job of showing it. I pushed her with everything I did. Cherish reached out, taking her mother's hand in her own, squeezing it tight. "I've always loved you, Mom. You did nothing wrong. It was all me; I was the selfish bitch who never seemed satisfied and happy. I'm so sorry I ever made you feel that way." She squeezed her mother's hand again. "I should never have treated you that way."Her mother gave her a weak smile, squeezing her hand back before pulling it away. "I love you, too, and I'm sorry I ever made you feel as if you couldn't tell me you were pregnant." She shook her head. "Not a very good mother, huh?"Cherish settled back in her chair. "I think we both made mistakes, but that was then. This is now. I need to
Cherish left the others and walked over to her mother, taking one of the remaining chairs beside the other woman. "Why don't you come join the rest of us? Has to be better than sitting over here all by yourself."Her mother didn't even look at her, keeping her gaze on the children. "Why is she here?" she asked, her back stiff, hands clasped in her lap."There are a lot of shes here," Cherish said, even though she knew to whom her mother referred. "You'll have to be a little more specific.""Your sister's new friend," her mother said, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Why did they have to bring her to a family event? It's rude."Cherish glanced over and watched as Tracey Williams laughed at something Arni said, her feet barely touching the ground from where she sat in the chair. "She's close to Selby and Faith," Cherish said with a shrug. "We permitted Brent to bring Bonnie; why wouldn't we allow Faith and Selby to bring Tracey? She seems to be getting along with everyone all right."
Glen stepped back out into the yard, two camp chairs in his hands. Valerie Driscoll was accustomed to calling all the shots, and he knew she set up her area far away from his mother to try to force a division in the party, drawing the crowd to her, so she could show off. That was one of the reasons he wanted the party at his house, so she wouldn't be able to pull a stunt like this. Yet, she still wrecked division wherever she went.Glen moved to the middle of the yard, close to the bounce house, and set up the two chairs. He turned to find Cherish near her mother, two beers in her hand as she watched him, one eyebrow raised and a smirk turning up the corner of her lip."Excuse me," he heard her tell her mother. "I think I'll go join my husband." She then left her mother's side, Valerie's mouth ajar as she gawked at her daughter's retreating back. When Cherish reached him, she handed him his beer as she slid into her chair. "Your beer, sir," she said, smiling at him.He glanced over at
Glen just needed a few minutes to calm his temper. He knew he had acted rude since returning home, and he didn't mean to snap at everyone, taking out his frustration with Cherish on everyone but her. He shoved his way inside the house and headed for the bedroom at the back of the house. Just a few minutes, that's all he needed.However, what he needed and what he received were two different things. As soon as he plopped down on the bed, his hands clasped together as he rested his elbows on his knees, doing his best to take deep breaths, Cherish walked into the room, shutting the door behind her. He didn't even turn to look at her. He couldn't right then. She had lied. Again. That's all she ever did lately.Cherish walked in front of him and dropped to her knees, sitting back on her heels, her hands on her thighs as she stared up at him. She said nothing. Just knelt there, waiting.Glen closed his eyes, taking another fortifying breath. Before opening them again and staring at his wife.