Jordan's Return (5 page)

“That was it?” she asked herself out loud. She stood, dumbfounded, rooted to the spot. Secretly, she had hoped he would at least try to kiss her or ask to see her again, but instead he had retreated as soon as he had the chance. She heard his car pull away. This was what she had wanted, wasn't it? She didn't want him hanging around, letting her kids get attached to him.

Why, then, did she feel so rejected and alone?

Three days later, the boys were
still
talking about Rob. His name was the first thing she heard when she woke up, the last thing she heard when she put them to bed, and
damn
if he wasn't all that she saw in her dreams! Placing her face in her hands, Jordan had to stop and count to ten to get through yet another Rob story.

“Hey, Mom!” Jake called from the kitchen. “Can we go to a movie today?”

Yes!
she thought,
a movie. A good movie.

A movie of
their
choosing! A movie that would erase all conversations about anything else in the world for at least a day. It was such a simple plan that Jordan had to stifle a giggle.

“What a great idea, Jake!” she gushed. “Why don't you guys pick the movie, okay?” This was exactly what was needed. Normally, she picked the movie, but in her desperation to clear their minds of Rob and move on to another subject,
any subject,
she'd sit through just about anything. Jordan found herself almost frantically doing a Google search of the local theater and movie times. The sooner the boys were engrossed in the quest for a movie, the sooner her mind would be cleared of all things Rob.

They decided on a matinee of the latest action flick that involved robots and the end of the world.
Fun
. Jordan cringed a little at the thought of it, but in the end, it would all be worth it. If her boys thought it odd that their mother suddenly had no problem with action movies filled with violence, they chose to keep that observation to themselves. Smart children.

The drive through town was uneventful, and Jordan found herself straining her field of vision a little as they drove past the place where they had first seen Rob. Was that possibly his office he had been standing outside of that day? She had never asked. Either way, she saw no signs of him. Just a glimpse would have been nice. With any luck, the darn movie would clear
her
mind as well. Luckily, the boys hadn't noticed where they were driving past, too wrapped up in conversation about the upcoming movie and all the blood they were going to see. A couple of times Jordan actually felt her stomach roll at the vivid pictures they were describing, and she hoped against hope they were exaggerating.

After parking the car a block away from the theater, but several blocks from Rob's office, they climbed out and got in line for tickets. Since the tourist season was over, the line wasn't too long—just long enough for her boys to take note of the man walking on the opposite side of the street.

“Hey, look! There's Rob!” Joseph yelled. Jordan rolled her eyes.

This cannot be happening!
she thought, frustrated.

Looking amazing in faded blue jeans and a snug red T-shirt, Rob smiled brightly as he spotted them and jogged over. Her sons were jumping up and down, waving him over.

“Hey, you guys!” he said, beaming at both boys. “Doin' a movie today, huh?”

“Yeah! Mom let us pick the movie and we're gonna see explosions and blood and everything!” Jake said excitedly.

Rob looked at Jordan with amusement and she shrugged. “Wow!” he said with exaggerated enthusiasm. “She
is
a great mom!” Rob had to suppress a laugh because he remembered well how much Jordan hated violence in any form. If she was willing to sit through this particular action flick, she had to be truly desperate.

The boys dragged Jordan forward with the line, barely able to stand still for all their excitement.

“Can you come with us, Rob?” Joseph asked.

Rob looked at the boy, who seemed to have a trace of desperation in his eyes. “Well, that's up to your mom,” he said diplomatically, firmly placing the ball in her court, although secretly hoping she'd think it was a good idea.

“I'm sure Rob is working right now and far too busy to take the afternoon off to go to a movie,” she said with confidence. “Aren't you?” she urged, hoping he'd get the hint.

But Rob decided to have some fun with her. “You're in luck!” he said with a huge grin. “Today's my day off and I had been hoping to see this movie. I hear it is especially bloody.” He watched Jordan pale. The boys jumped up and down, cheering with glee, and Rob nearly choked when he looked back at Jordan, who was shooting daggers at him with her eyes. This probably wasn't the best way to get in her good graces, he realized a little too late.

For days, Rob had been trying to come up with a believable excuse to see Jordan and her boys but could come up with none. It was just a coincidence that he had seen them here today and he was thrilled.

It had taken every ounce of strength he possessed to leave Jordan's house days earlier. His original plan had been to stay after the boys had gone to bed and try to rekindle some of those old feelings they'd once shared. He'd longed to take her in his arms and kiss her senseless. At some point while they had sat and talked, sanity had returned and he'd realized he would need to proceed slowly and with caution. They weren't kids anymore and Jordan had kids of her own to consider. Plus, she had been put through the wringer with Eric. She might not be feeling too kindly toward the male sex as a whole right now.

No, he couldn't act impulsively. He would have to earn her trust and respect, as well as the respect of her sons. Somehow, he felt he'd achieved that part already as he looked down and saw Jake standing close to him, looking up at him with a wide, bright smile on his young face.

“You excited, sport?”

“Yes, sir,” Jake said, clearly pleased with the nickname. “Mom never lets us see these kinds of movies. This is going to be so cool! I'm real glad you're here to see it with us.”

“Me too,” Rob said as he placed his hand on Jake's shoulder. Once the tickets were purchased, they went inside and lined up at the concession stand to pick out snacks.

“Remember what I told you on the way here, guys,” she reminded them as they pressed their faces up to the glass. She was only allowing for popcorn and a shared soda. Each boy whined at the reminder. Rob, meanwhile, decided on several different boxes of candy, nachos, and the jumbo-size soft drink.

Jake and Joseph stared at him in awe. “Is all that for you?” Jake asked in amazement.

“Nah,” Rob said as he tried to balance his bounty of junk food, “it's for all of us to share.”

Jordan wanted to slap him. Didn't he hear what she
just
said? These were her kids, for crying out loud! Did he have any idea how consumption of all that junk food would affect her small children? They'd either get tummy aches or be bouncing off the wall by the time they got home! Either way, she'd end up being miserable.

She'd have to have a talk with him about this after the movie. There was no way that she would sit back and let him make her look like a wet rag while he portrayed the cool hero. Clearly he had no idea what it was like to be a parent and the importance of not letting your children overindulge on junk food. Sure, it didn't make you popular, but as the adult, you sometimes had to make decisions based on practicality, not popularity.

Sometimes being an adult really sucked.

Once inside the darkened theater, Jordan went first into a row near the middle of the theater. She'd expected one of her children to follow, but they shoved Rob in after her. Oh, they were sneaky, these kids of hers. They knew that with Rob between them, she wouldn't be able to see all the junk food they were going to consume.
Fine
. Let them eat junk. One less meal for her to cook later. But the mom in her couldn't help but also imagine the mess she'd have to clean up if they got sick from it all. Just the thought of it all was beginning to make Jordan sick.

After they were all settled into their seats, Jordan turned to talk to Rob about his indulgence of her kids and his lack of respect for her rules, but as soon as she tried to speak, he held up a hand and shushed her!

“I love coming attractions,” he whispered, his eyes never leaving the screen.

Well, of all the… She was furious! How dare he shush her!

Jordan sat back in her seat none too gently and huffed. She didn't even have her popcorn! She had let Jake carry it and now she had nothing to do with her hands. To show her mood, she sat ramrod straight in her seat and folded her arms stiffly across her chest. No one even noticed.

Joseph and Jake were excitedly sharing snacks, drinks, and awed expressions with Rob. As the movie got into gear, Jordan tried to force herself to relax. As soon as she eased into a more comfortable position, Rob placed an arm around her and handed her the bucket of popcorn—all without looking at her.

The man was infuriating! She grudgingly took the popcorn and thought of shoving his arm off her, but wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing he was getting to her. So she let him keep it there during the whole movie, but she sat stock-still, not leaning into it, not accepting its strength, warmth. It was harder to do than she'd thought.

Back when they had dated in high school, they'd sit like this as they watched a movie, but Jordan would lean her head on his shoulder and eventually, the movie would be forgotten and his mouth would be on hers. Jordan had to stifle a groan at that kind of memory. Her mind toyed with the question of whether Rob was thinking the same thing. Would their kisses be all that she remembered, or was she just over-romanticizing the experience of first love?

Of course she was over-romanticizing. If things had been as wonderful as she thought they had been, they would never have broken up. Rob had broken her heart all those years ago. The very last thing she should have been doing right now was thinking of that time of her life with anything but anger. If Rob had been faithful, her heart never would have been broken. She never would have dated Eric and she… Jordan stopped herself and sighed. If all those things had never happened, she'd never have had her boys.

Before she could examine that thought any further or figure out what was going on in the movie, the lights came back up and it was time to go. As soon as they were out of their seats, the nonstop chatter started up again. Her sons were beside themselves with the whole movie experience.

“Did you see when that plane blew up?”

“Wasn't it cool, Rob?”

“It was
so
awesome when that guy fell out the window…”

“Did you like it, Rob?”

“I can't believe he shot all those robots…”

“Can I finish the soda, Rob?”

Jordan groaned. Now she'd have to sit and listen to the reenactments of the movie
and
more stories of Rob the Great! Would she never catch a break? How had the day gotten so out of control? This had been a foolproof plan! Okay, it was time for some damage control. With a couple of firm words to Rob and those traitorous kids, she'd be the one back in charge.

As they stepped back out into the afternoon sunshine, the brightness of the sun struck with full force and Jordan swayed. It took a minute to adjust, but luckily Rob was right there to put an arm tightly around her waist and steady her.

“Are you okay, Mom?” Joseph stepped forward and asked nervously.

“I'm fine, sweetheart,” she reassured him. “The light just got to me, that's all. Don't worry.” The boy didn't look too sure and Rob made a mental note to talk to him about that when they had some time alone.

Walking them to their car, Rob watched as the boys climbed into the backseat; Joseph was still eyeing Jordan cautiously. Rob wanted an answer; he wanted to find out what would cause a young boy to be filled with the kind of anxiety Joseph was exhibiting right now. If he didn't do something quick and make definitive plans with Jordan, he wasn't sure he'd ever get the chance.

“What are you doing for dinner tonight?” he asked when the boys were out of earshot. Rob hoped he sounded casual, that his desperation to be with them again wasn't too obvious.

“Look, Rob,” she began with as much enthusiasm as a funeral procession, “I appreciate all you did today, and I know the boys loved that you went to the movies with them, but I have certain rules with my kids and I don't appreciate you ignoring them.” She couldn't quite remember why she was so angry, though. So he'd treated her boys to some snacks. Wasn't that really part of the whole moviegoing experience?

“I'm sorry,” he said seriously, knowing full well he had gone overboard today. He couldn't seem to help it; these kids looked like they needed some fun and extra attention, and if he could see to it, then why shouldn't he?
Because it's not your place. These aren't your kids. Remember that.

“Maybe Claudia doesn't mind you spoiling her kids, but I don't want you getting involved here because it will be that much harder when we leave.”

Harder on who, Jordan? You or them?

Suddenly the thought of leaving this place and never seeing Rob again filled Jordan with great sadness. It had only been a week, and yet she knew for sure that walking away from Rob Tyler a second time would kill her. Both she and the boys would feel his absence for a long, long time. Oh, sure, she was complaining about it now—the constant mentioning of his name, his insinuating himself into their family outings—but truth be told, Jordan was enjoying her time with him.

Rob reached out and traced a line down the side of her face with the tips of his fingers. He stared deeply into her eyes, and Jordan found herself unable to look away. His touch was whisper soft and yet it touched Jordan to her very soul, making her long for things that had been denied her for way too long.

“I don't want to do anything you don't want me to do,” he murmured as he moved a little closer. “I'm sorry if I offended you today. That was never my intention.” His words were spoken softly and Jordan just let them wash over her. They were almost touching from head to toe, and Jordan closed her eyes as he continued to stroke her face.