Chapter Eighteen
At Least Twice
The next morning, I opened the door to Maude’s House of Beauty and only had one foot inside when I heard Alyssa command, “Get over here, get those fancy-assed pumps off and sink your feet in the drink, babelicious, ‘cause I…got…news.”
I looked into her excited eyes, then moved my gaze and saw she had the pedicure chair ready and even had a glass bowl filled with foamy water sitting on the ledge by the arm of the chair.
She was ready.
With a look back at her face, I wasn’t sure I was.
But I nevertheless hurried to the chair, took off my jacket, plopped it and my bag in the chair beside it and pulled myself up.
I barely got my bare feet into the warm sudsy water before Alyssa reached out a hand, grabbed my wrist, plonked my fingers in the bowl and announced, “Got bitch dirt, and by that I mean Donna Spear and Terry Baginski bitch dirt.”
I felt my back go straight and my eyes go wide as I asked, “Really?”
“Really. Big dirt. A freakin’ avalanche of full-on mud.”
Oh dear.
“Is it good?” I queried.
“Uh…sister,” she started, yanking one of my feet out of the tub, setting it on the pad, dabbing it with a towel then reaching straight to her cart of implements to grab some cotton wool, doing all of this talking. “Would I be nearly creaming my pants to tell you if this shit was bad?”
“Um…no,” I replied.
“Right, no. Now, listen up,” she ordered and sucked in a huge breath.
I braced, furtively looking around and seeing two of her hairdressing chairs were taken, stylists working on clients, but they were all the way across the salon so we had a least a little privacy.
My gaze went back to Alyssa when she launched in.
“Soooo, Donna’s got a best friend, they been tight for freakin’ yonks. Her name is Rita. She’s a good gal. Really like her. She’s been a client for a long time, got a couple kids who are the same ages as a couple of my kids. We did the carpool thing back in the day and—”
“Not to be rude, sweetheart,” I cut in gently. “But do I need this Rita history prior to you telling me about Jake’s ex and the woman who seems to have it out for me?”
“Right,” Alyssa mumbled and switched my feet, doing this talking. “Just to say, she’s cool. And the way she’s cool is that, first, she stood by her girl for a long time and a lotta that time was hard time. And second, you know this ‘cause you two are scary open in a way that gives me the heebie-jeebies”—her eyes came to me—“but you told me that Jake laid Donna out this weekend.”
I grinned at her “heebie-jeebies” comment, especially when it was caused by honesty between partners, and confirmed, “Yes, I know it.”
She nodded and looked back to my feet. “Okay, so Donna was cut up about this, like, in a big way. Called her girl over to moan about Jake and do it inhaling rum. Now, Rita’s been listenin’ to this sad song for a long f*ckin’ time and that night, she got over it. Way over it.”
“Oh my,” I whispered.
“Yup,” Alyssa agreed then carried on with my pedicure right along with her story. “So Rita decided to perform a one-woman intervention right there, though with bad timing seein’ as Donna was drunk off her ass. But that didn’t stop her from laying it out for Donna, telling her everyone in town knew Jake was a no-go for her and was never gonna be a go for her again. She also shared that most people in town thought it was sad, and by that she meant pathetic, that Donna fell into her cougar ways. Not done, she told Donna that everyone in town also thought she was a shit mom. Thought mega-less about her because of it. Thought Jake was the bomb ‘cause he stepped up so huge in takin’ care of his kids without her help. And new talk in town was that everyone was super excited that Jake found you ‘cause folks have always wanted him to get himself a good woman, and he did. But more, they wanted his kids to have a good woman in their lives and they got that too.”
This felt very nice, that I had the townspeople of Magdalene’s seal of approval as Jake’s woman, but I was still concerned about this Rita woman laying it out for Donna.
“And how did Donna take this?” I asked.
“Not real great ‘cause Donna is not about honesty. Donna’s about denial. Gettin’ it straight from Jake and her best friend all in the same night?” She shook her head. “Had a piss fit. A big one. Kicked Rita out then called around to the rest of her crew to start moaning about Rita. Problem with that was, she did this, they all agreed with Rita and walked right through the door Rita opened to tell her that shit.”
“Oh goodness,” I murmured.
“Mm-hmm,” Alyssa replied, grabbing some cuticle clippers. “So, I’m sure it won’t surprise you that Donna didn’t nurse her hangover thinkin’ things through and deciding to get her shit together. Nooo. Instead, she nursed her hangover, walked into work yesterday morning and gave notice. Word is, she’s moving to Boston.”
I felt my entire body get tight.
“Pardon?” I breathed.
Alyssa looked at me. “She’s chucking it in. Another client of mine said that a friend of hers said that she talked with Donna in the grocery store and Donna told her she can’t live in the same town with a Jake Spear who has another woman, so she’s gone. That woman didn’t ask Donna but she did ask my client how Donna managed to miss the fact that Jake had two other wives and a few others besides but apparently her dream world was a fortress until Jake blew it to smithereens and she missed this shit.”
I was barely listening.
I had only one thing on my mind.
“She isn’t thinking of trying to take Conner and Amber with her, is she?” I asked urgently and Alyssa stopped working on my toes, wrapped a hand around my foot and squeezed reassuringly as she looked up at me.
“Honey, no,” she said gently. “Has that woman ever considered her children when she’s made a decision?”
I had only known her a very short time but what I knew of her, the answer to this was no.
But I answered, “I don’t think so.”
“No. She hasn’t. Donna thinks of one thing: Donna. Strike that. She thinks of three things: Donna and Jake or gettin’ laid by someone who looks like him.”
I bit my lip.
Alyssa studied me before she noted, “You don’t look happy.”
“Boston is two and a half hours away,” I reminded her.
“Yeah, and Junior’s got no exes that had his ring on their finger but if he did, I’d be a lot happier they were two and a half hours away.”
“I would be happy, if that didn’t mean she wasn’t also two and a half hours away from her children.”
Her face got soft and she muttered, “See your point.”
“Do you think she’ll follow through with this?” I asked.
“No clue. She could have had a wild hair and now think better of it. Or she could be gone. She’s got a good position as a manager at Anderson’s dealership. Be stupid of her to give that up.”
“I need to tell Jake this,” I pointed out the obvious.
“Well, hang tight, babelicious, because I’m not done.”
Marvelous.
I “hung tight,” Alyssa refocused on my toes and kept talking.
“This is the big shit and I saved the best for last.”
I hoped so.
She kept her eyes to my toes as she said, “Okay, well, I got a client, she’s a paralegal at Weaver, Schuller and Associates. She came in right before you and she told me this on the hush-hush so I’m gonna work on your feet and act like I’m just gabbin’. Think she doesn’t know I’m tight with you but she lets shit spill all the time. I don’t say crap but seein’ as all that’s goin’ down with you is goin’ down, you gotta know. But she’s a good gal so you just let this play out and don’t get her in trouble, ‘kay?”
“Okay,” I said quietly.
I had, of course, told Alyssa all that was happening since we talked daily. Something she started and something I kept up because she was funny, kind and becoming a very good friend.
“So, the thing is,” she carried on. “Boston Stone and Stone Incorporated are clients of Weaver, Schuller and Associates.”
“Oh no,” I whispered.
“Hang on, babe,” she replied. “Now, see, Terry Baginski is an associate part of that ‘associates,’ not a partner. And Davis Malone’s got nothin’ to do with Stone Incorporated. So, when he ‘approached’—and I can’t use my hands to put that in air quotes, honey, but you get me—no matter he did it through Stone, she shoulda told him that it was a conflict of interest seein’ as Mrs. Malone, and by extension you, were long time clients. Instead, she made the decision to make Stone happy by takin’ on that case. Or at least that’s what she told Schuller when Schuller got wind of it. She advised they take on your uncle and leave you hanging out to dry. Problem is, she didn’t have the authority to do this seein’ as she’s an associate. Only a partner can make the decision on which client they want to represent.”
I took in a deep anticipatory breath.
Alyssa kept talking.
“Thing is, that firm actually drew up your granny’s will so they can’t exactly not defend it when it gets contested. And Arnold Weaver may be on a leave of absence due to the sad fact that his wife just passed but he didn’t die with her and Schuller and him have been partners a long time. They’re best buds. And they don’t do shit without there bein’ a consensus between them so when Schuller took this to Weaver, apparently, Weaver lost his ever-lovin’ mind.”
Suddenly, I felt better.
Alyssa continued.
“Weaver went into the offices and he and Schuller dragged Terry in and told her to pack up her desk, she was out. Flies came outta the woodwork then, assistants and paralegals tellin’ the partners that Baginski did to other clients what she did with you, that bein’ pushing a variety of Stone Incorporated crap on them including advising sales of properties and investment of assets and this was because she’d invested and heavily. Now, don’t have any legal knowledge but this didn’t make Weaver or Schuller all that happy so I’m thinkin’ this isn’t a good thing.”
I didn’t have any legal knowledge either so I couldn’t confirm or negate.
“Anyway,” she went on. “Stone got wind of this and walked into the office without an appointment, demanded to see the partners, told them they had to reinstate Terry and take on your uncle’s business or they’d lose his. They asked him where he’d like his files sent.”
“Good God,” I breathed.
“I know,” she agreed. “But, way my client tells it, Stone might be loaded but Weaver and Schuller have pretty much cornered the market on legal counsel in this county. There are a couple ambulance chasers here and there but if you want someone who knows their shit, you go to them.”
I started smiling.
She looked up at me.
I finished smiling and did it big.
“So they called his bluff,” I noted. “What did he do?”
“Blustered, sayin’ he’d inform them who he was goin’ with and took off. He’s only got one real choice. Terry.” The light in her eyes dimmed when she concluded, “And now she needs the work and he’s a big client even if he’s only one so I don’t think this is over for you.”
“But hopefully it means my attorney will phone me,” I replied.
She grinned before looking back to my toes, saying, “Hopefully.”
“Thank you for telling me this, honey,” I said. “And I’ll be discreet about what you shared from your client.”
“Wouldn’t have told you if I didn’t believe that to be true.”
“I’d give you a hug if I wasn’t pretty certain that I’d fall out of the pedicure tub trying to do it.”
She looked up at me and grinned.
I looked into her warm brown eyes and swallowed.
Then I told her, “The best decision I ever made in my life was to give up the life I had and stay in Magdalene.”
Those warm brown eyes got bright and she ordered, her voice husky, “Now, sister, don’t go makin’ me cry. Cuttin’ cuticles and swiping polish may look easy. But it isn’t.”
“Okay, I won’t make you cry.”
“Instead, let me know which outfit of yours I get to borrow for when we go out with you and Dee-Amond to The Eaves tonight.”
These were our plans for the evening. Jake, me and the kids, Alyssa, Junior and their kids and Dee-Amond and his posse at The Eaves. His manager had sorted it. They were setting up a function room for us.
I couldn’t wait.
I smiled and invited, “Come over whenever you can and you can have your pick.”
“I just decided to cancel my last client.”
My smile got bigger. She returned it and then turned her attention to my toes.
I took in a deep breath and let it go.
An hour and a half later, I gave my friend a big tip.
She tried to refuse.
But I refused to let her.
And after that, I finally got to give her my hug.
* * * * *
I tripped on my fabulous Christian Louboutin pump the instant I walked into Jake’s gym.
This was because Jake was in the middle ring wearing loose gray workout pants, boxing shoes, boxing gloves, one of those padded things on his head and nothing else.
And he was slick with wet and sparring with a gentleman I didn’t even look at.
I didn’t look at his sparring partner because I felt a spasm in a nice place and had to concentrate on walking as I moved further into the gym, noting distractedly that it was quite full.
This was something I found a minor marvel, as it was quite full frequently, even now, mid-day, when most people should be working.
It was fuller today because Amond’s entire crew was working punching bags or weights. All except Amond, who had on a very flattering tracksuit but was standing close to the corner of Jake’s ring.
Jake being focused, it was Amond who turned to me and called, “Hey, beautiful.”
I got looks and greetings from the men I knew as I made my way across the gym but I was still concentrating on Jake even as I called, “Hello, Amond.”
I heard Jake grunt a garbled, “Hold,” this being garbled because he had a mouth guard in his mouth.
His partner moved away and Jake turned my way, lifting a glove and spitting the guard into it, his eyes on me, his lips lifting in a smile.
“Yo, Slick,” he called.
“Hello, darling,” I replied.
He met me at the ropes.
Then he did something lovely, bending his big body over the ropes so he could get his face close to mine.
I took his invitation, tipped my head back and lifted a hand to cup the padding of his headgear at his jaw. He touched his mouth to mine and moved back an inch.
It was then I said quietly, “I have news.”
His eyes roamed my face before they locked on mine and he asked, “Yeah?” right when my phone in my purse rang.
“Hang on, honey,” I murmured. “I’m hoping for a call.”
I looked to Amond and gave him a smile before I dug my phone out of my purse, saw a number displayed on it I didn’t know but took the call anyway because that number was local.
“This is Josephine Malone,” I said in greeting.
“Josephine, my dear, this is Arnie.”
I looked to Jake, my lips still curved. “Hello, Arnie.”
Jake’s brows shot up.
“Listen,” Arnie started. “I’d like to begin by apologizing that we haven’t responded to your calls until now. We’ve had some internal issues that needed my attention. But we’ve sorted those out and I just wanted to inform you that I’m aware that Lydia’s will is being contested and I’ll be dealing with this issue personally.”
“Arnie,” I said softly, shifting my eyes to Jake’s chest, deciding that was too distracting a view so I moved them to his feet. “That’s not necessary. In this time—”
“It is, Josephine,” he interrupted me to say. “I drafted that will. It’s sound. I’ve known Lydia for thirty years and know her mind was sound. This is a nuisance lawsuit and I’ll be handling it as a priority.”
I lifted my eyes to Jake’s when I replied, “That gives me much relief, Arnie.”
“If I should need you, my dear, I’ll call. But first allow me to see what I can do when Mr. Malone has found new counsel.”
Faking confusion and hoping I pulled it off, I asked, “New counsel?”
“He was erroneously taken on at Weaver and Schuller. We’ve dealt with that matter and it’s been explained to him he needs to find alternate representation. I’ll let you know when he has and how things will proceed.”
“I’d appreciate that,” I told him.
“And don’t worry, Josephine,” he assured me, his voice low but firm. “As I said, this is a nuisance suit, it’s my top priority and everything will be just as it should be in the end. That being you having what Lydia wished for you to have, Lavender House, her monies and her possessions.”
“Thank you, Arnie,” I said softly.
“My pleasure,” he replied.
“Until we speak again,” I said as my farewell.
“Until then, my dear. Take care.”
“You too.”
He rang off and I looked up at Jake, smiling big and declaring, “As I mentioned, darling. I have news.”
He grinned at me, straightened and turned to the man in the ring. “We’re done, Troy. But meet my woman,” he invited and the man moved our way. “Troy, Josie. Josie, Troy,” Jake finished.
“Lovely to meet you, Troy,” I said.
“Same,” he replied in a garbled way on a black grin since he hadn’t taken out his mouth guard. He spit it into his glove and looked to Jake. “You’re dropping your left.”
“Noticed that,” Jake replied.
“Bring it up,” Troy returned, jerked up his chin, punched Jake affably in the shoulder and then moved to the ropes and through them.
I took a step back so Jake could do the same and Amond was at my side when Jake jumped down.
“Gear, gloves, babe,” Jake ordered between his teeth seeing as he had the laces of one of his gloves between them.
He tugged.
I watched and felt another spasm.
He tugged at his other one.
I again watched and felt a spasm.
Then he shoved his hands my way.
That must have been what he meant by “gear, gloves, babe” so I pulled his gloves off.
Amond demanded to know, “What’s the news?”
I looked to him to see him looking intently at me.
I looked back to Jake to see him yanking off his headgear as he explained, “Filled him in at the club last night, Slick.”
My eyes went back to Amond. “It’s really not a big deal.”
“What’s the news?” Amond repeated.
I sighed and looked to Jake.
Jake held my eyes but reached behind him, grabbing a sweatshirt from the side of the ring and saying, “Let’s go into the office.”
We moved there and once there, Jake dumped the headgear on his couch, took his gloves from me, they joined the headgear and then he yanked on his sweatshirt.
Once he had it down his stomach, I started, “I—”
“Didn’t want to bother your friend with your shit,” Jake finished for me. “I get that you want to have a good visit, babe. But you gotta get that you got a problem, you throw every resource you got at solving it.”
Now I was confused.
“Pardon?”
“Don’t matter,” Amond entered the conversation. “What’s the news?”
I looked to him then to Jake and said, “Obviously, I now have counsel.”
“Give us more,” Jake immediately replied.
I sighed and told them everything Alyssa had told me including asking them to keep it on the hush-hush. Although Amond would have no one to tell, Jake could.
“Good. That bitch got canned,” was Jake’s reply.
Once he said this, he looked to Amond and so did I.
Amond was looking at Jake. He lifted his brows.
I looked to Jake and saw Jake shake his head.
I looked back to Amond who had his mouth tight and he looked to his feet.
This was when I announced, “I am aware that I have a uterus but I’ve not known that ever to interfere with a woman’s ability to speak English or deal with a variety of situations, including stressful ones.”
At that, I got two highly attractive grins.
However, I got no words.
“Well?” I prompted.
Jake’s grin died and he said, “Stone and your uncle still need to be taken out.”
“Indeed,” I agreed.
“So we’re not out of the woods yet,” Jake went on.
“I haven’t opened a bottle of champagne, Jake,” I pointed out and got another grin.
I also got, “Keep bein’ a smartass, Slick, and your man here is gonna get an eyeful of just how much I like your mouth, even when you’re usin’ it to be a smartass.”
At that, I closed my mouth.
Jake’s grin got bigger.
“Thinkin’ I need to give you two the room,” Amond noted and I looked to him.
“Sorry, Amond. But actually you do. I have other news for Jake that’s private.”
“Not a problem, beautiful. Came here to get my sweat on and been jackin’ around. I’m gonna go do that.”
On those words he left with a low wave and closed the door behind him.
“What’s the private news?” Jake asked the minute the door clicked.
I turned to him then I got closer to him and when I did, I shared what I learned about Donna.
This news was clearly not welcome and I knew it when Jake’s eyes heated with anger and the room heated right along with them.
“The bitch is gonna take off?”
“We don’t know that for certain, darling. This is beauty salon news. We probably shouldn’t jump to conclusions.”
It was like he didn’t hear me.
“My boy Ethan’s bitch of a mom took off. Calls him whenever somethin’ reminds her to feel guilty she left his ass, which isn’t often. Sends birthday cards with a shitload of money in them, expensive presents for Christmas, neither replacing him not havin’ a f*ckin’ mom. Makes plans she doesn’t intend to keep for me to send him down there in the summer and on spring break and then breaks them. Now my other kids’ bitch of a mom is gonna hightail her ass outta town?”
I said nothing.
“I don’t believe this shit,” he clipped.
It was on that I went to him and put both hands on his chest. “Jake, we don’t know she’s leaving for certain.”
“She’ll leave. She’s finally clued into the fact that everyone in town thinks she’s a joke, she’ll clue in she’s dug a hole she’s gonna find it hard to dig out of. And unfortunately, she’s not the kind of woman who understands that it’s worth scratchin’ and clawin’ your way out of the pits of hell if it means takin’ care of your kids.”
I pressed my lips together even if I liked very much that that was how he felt about his children.
“She’s a bitch,” he bit out.
I pressed in at his chest and moved closer. “Would you like me to contact her?”
“No,” he clipped. “I’ll get a hold of her ass.”
“Uh…just to note, darling, that the last time you got a hold of her ass led to this reaction. Perhaps I can be more diplomatic.”
He clenched his jaw.
“Let’s think on this,” I suggested gently. “Give it some time and see what she does. There’s no reason to react, spending that emotion and maybe creating more bad blood if she eventually changes her mind.”
Jake moved his hands to curl his fingers around my hips as he agreed curtly, “Right, Slick. We’ll do that.”
I slid my hands up to curl them around the sides of his neck, pressing closer as I said, “I’m sorry that I upset you.”
“You didn’t pick her, I did,” he replied. “F*ck,” he ground out. “Thank f*ck I finally f*ckin’ picked right the last time.”
My stomach dipped, my body melted into his and my hands clenched into the muscles at his neck.
When the latter two happened, he focused on me.
“I’m glad you think that,” I said softly.
“Don’t think it. Know it,” he said firmly and that got another stomach dip, bigger than the last and much better.
However, even feeling it, I advised, “Please stop being hard on yourself. You were in love, and the man I know, I trust there were reasons for that. What these women are doing is their choice, their responsibility and in the end, Jake, they’re missing out on great beauty and that’s their consequence. You’re not. You sacrificed for your children and you give them everything you can. They’re going to understand that one day and feel deep gratitude for it, if they don’t already.”
“Love your words, baby, but hard not to kick myself in the ass for the choices I made.”
“Well…” I rolled up on my toes and finished firmly on a squeeze of his neck, “Try.”
He looked into my eyes for some time and finally his lips quirked as his hands moved so he could wrap his arms around me.
“Smartass and bossy, what got into you today?” he asked.
“I’m just handling my man,” I answered.
His lip quirk turned into a full-blown laugh as his arms convulsed around me and he roared with his amusement.
I watched, nestling in and enjoying it.
I enjoyed it more when he noticed me doing it, dipped his head and kept doing it but with his mouth on mine.
Oh yes.
I enjoyed that more.
A great deal more.
And I showed him how much by sliding my arms around his neck.
At that, Jake got serious and I let him.
I enjoyed that even more.
So in the end, not only Amond but his crew and several of the members of Jake’s club got a good view through Jake’s office windows of just how much he liked my mouth.
And I didn’t care.
Not one bit.
* * * * *