Just Sex (18 page)

Chapter Nineteen

Fairy lights twinkled in the midnight darkness and reflected off the gift-wrapped presents Kat had put under the Christmas tree after Sam had fallen asleep. She sat and stared at her tree. A noise sounded behind her, startling Kat. She turned. “Dad, you scared me. What are you doing up? It has to be after two in the morning.”

“I couldn’t sleep. I came down for a drink.” He walked around the sofa. “What are you still doing up?”

“I can’t sleep either.”

“Do you want to talk?”

Maybe the one man in Kat’s life who had loved her unconditionally could help straighten the mess she had made out of her life. Kat rested her head in her hands. “I’m so confused. Patty isn’t talking to me. The man I love is having a baby with someone else and I’m moving fifteen hundred miles away from my home in a few months.” Kat gazed up at her father and mentor. “How did my life get so messed up?”

Axel sat next to her. “Honey, life has always been messed up. You take it day by day.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and gave her a hug. “I know you are concerned about all the what-ifs.” He let her go and took her hand. “But if you let the what-ifs control you, you will never have a full life.”

She rested her head against the sofa. “I don’t know what to do.”

“Let’s eat this elephant one bite at a time. First, Patty loves you and you two will be fine in no time.”

“I don’t know about that. Patty says I want to be unhappy.” Kat couldn’t think about how Patty’s words cut her to the bone. “She says I have been unhappy for so long that being happy is an uncomfortable emotion for me.”

“Is she right?”

“Perhaps.” She rested her heavy head against the sofa. “That’s the least of my problems.”

He smiled. “Second problem, the mill. As I said before, you can travel back and forth. The mill needs your experience.” He sat back. “I let things go for too long. I should have called you in before it got so bad. I’m sorry.”

She turned her head and took in her father’s haggard expression. Her heart twisted. “Don’t worry about the mill. I’ll have it back up and in the black in no time.”

“I have no doubt you will.” He hung his head. “But I’m still sorry. I let my ego get in the way and I almost ran the mill into the ground.”

Kat shook her head. “But you didn’t. I have been going over the books and we can fix it.”

“Now for the big problem. Your love life.” He glanced over at her and she cringed.

“Dad, this is weird.”

“Yes it is, but you and your mother don’t have,” he waved his hands between the two of them, “this kind of relationship.” Axel rose from the couch. “You need to decide if he is worth fighting for.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“All I know, Katherine, is that I have not seen you this happy in years. So what if he’s younger and having a baby with someone else. He’s not still with her, is he?”

Her heart squeezed painfully in her chest. “No, but…”

“But nothing. You’re young, attractive, smart and a good person. Instead of thinking that you are lucky to have him, you should think J.J. is lucky to have you.” Axel held out his hand. “Honey, you can be happy.”

She placed her palm in his and let him help her stand. His strong grip reassured her more than his words. “Thanks, Dad.”

“Honey, it’s time to take control of your life.” He pressed his lips to her forehead and left.

She paced the living room and thought of how to take her life back. She walked into her office, fired up her computer and did what came natural to her, spreadsheets. By the time the south Florida sun hit the horizon, she had reams of paper spread out over her desk.

They listed out the next five years of her professional life. In the wee hours of the morning, she outlined her and Sam’s life. The one thing she couldn’t put on a piece of paper was J.J.

How was he going to fit into her outlined life? She would not be the most important person in his life. He was having a baby, someone else’s baby. Kat rested her head on the pile of papers and sighed. “Screw it. If this is meant to be, then it will be.” Her mind made up, she fell asleep in the midst of her listed life.

* * * * *

“Mom!” Sam’s excited voice plowed into Kat’s sleep-filled brain. “Mom, wake up, it’s Christmas.”

“What time is it?” Her heavy eyes cracked open.

“Seven.”

Kat sat up and peeled a piece of paper off her cheek. She rotated her stiff neck. A loud popping noise echoed in the room. “Are Grandpa and Grammy up?”

“Yup, they’re in the kitchen making coffee. Hurry up, I want to see what
Santa
brought me.”

She pushed her sore, stiff body out of the chair. “I don’t know, Sam.” Her legs shook when she took her first step. “I was up all night and I didn’t hear him come in.”

He grabbed her hand and rolled his eyes. “You weren’t up all night. I found you sleeping.” He yanked her toward the door.

Kat stumbled. “If you put it that way, let’s see if he gave you coal this year.”

Sam laughed. “You say that every year and you always get me what I want.”

“I got you underwear. If you have something else under the tree, Santa brought it for you.” She wrapped her arm around Sam’s shoulder. “Let’s see if you were on the naughty list this year.”

He rolled his eyes again. “You say that every year too and I’m never on the naughty list.” He tugged away, grabbed Kat’s hand and led her to the living room.

She sat on the couch next to her perfectly coiffed mother. “Katherine, what happened? You look like death warmed over.”

“Merry Christmas to you too, Mom.”

Axel handed her a mug and winked.

“Thanks, Dad.”

“Did you figure things out last night?” he asked.

She sipped the hot hazelnut caffeine. “Some.”

Sam rummaged under the tree and dragged out a large Santa-wrapped box. “I hope this is the new Rip Stick I asked for.”

Kat grinned into her coffee. Sam had nagged her for the new and improved Rip Stick for months. “Open it and see.”

He tore the paper. “Yes!” he exclaimed.

A cell phone rang in the kitchen. “I’ll get it,” Axel said. He stood and made his way to the phone.

Sam opened the box and slid out the strange-looking skateboard. “Cool, it’s even the color I wanted.”

“Santa must know that green is your favorite color.” Bev shoved discarded paper and cardboard in a trash bag.

Sam was under the tree when her father came back into the room. Kat smiled up into his pale face. “Is everything all right?”

He gave his head a brisk shake, mouthed the word “no”, sat in a chair in front of the tree and stared out the window.

Fear skidded up Kat’s spine. She gave her mother a questioning look. Bev shrugged.

Sam raced outside with his new toy. Bev followed him.

Kat rose and walked to her father. “What’s wrong?”

He turned to her, sadness covering his face. “There was a fire at the mill.”

Shock hit Kat like a tractor-trailer truck. She grabbed for her father’s hand. “What happened?”

“I’m not sure.” Tears glistened in his eyes. “The fire department thinks it was an electrical fire.”

“Was anyone hurt?”

“No, thank God. Everyone went home early and there was no one working last night because of the holiday.”

She gave her father a reassuring hug. “I’ll get us plane tickets for this afternoon.” She released him and hurried to her office.

Axel followed behind her. “What about Christmas?”

She spun. “The mill needs us right now.” She rested her palms on his shoulders and gave them a shake. “Our employees need us.” Kat went into crisis mode and started to make phone calls and lists.

* * * * *

J.J. knocked on Patty and Ron’s front door. He’d had a great day with his mother. She loved the Caribbean cruise for two he gave her. When he originally purchased it, J.J. thought she would bring her friend Linda.
I guess now she’ll bring Juan.
He adjusted the bottle of wine and knocked again.

“Coming,” he heard Patty say.

The door swung open. “Merry Christmas.” Patty enveloped him into a hug.

He kissed her cheek. “Merry Christmas.” He scanned the room for Kat.

“Kat’s not here,” she said.

“Is she coming?” he asked and handed her the wine.

She led him into the living room. “No.” The timer sounded in the kitchen. “I’ll let Ron tell you what happened.”

“Merry Christmas.” He shook Ron’s hand.

Ron squeezed J.J.’s palm and patted him on the back. “Back at you, buddy.”

“Where’s Kat?”

Ron motioned to the couch. “Have a seat.” He sat in the chair next to the sofa. “There was a fire at the mill.”

J.J. collapsed onto the couch. “What happened? Was anyone hurt?”

“No one was hurt. Apparently it was an electrical fire that started in the offices.”

“Was it a total loss?”

“All I know is Kat and her father left this afternoon and Bev and Sam are coming for dinner.”

“I guess you don’t know when she’ll be back.” He rubbed his hand over his face.

“I think she’ll be up there at least a couple of months.”

He stood. “What? What about Sam?”

Patty hurried into the room. “Dinner will be ready in a half hour.”

She plopped down next to Ron. “Bev will stay with Sam and Kat will fly back and forth.” He rested his arm over Patty’s shoulders and tugged her close. “Sam really likes that video calling, so I guess they will do a lot of that.”

“What about us?” He paced the floor.

“Kat’s first priority is the mill,” Patty said. “But I think you should fly up for New Years and surprise her.”

“That’s a good idea. I’ll do that.” He sat back in his chair and smiled at Patty. “Don’t tell her I’m coming.”

Patty crossed her heart and grinned back at him. “I promise not to tell Kat, but we should let Bev know.”

Confusion must have shown on his face, because Patty continued. “Bev and Sam are meeting Kat and Axel in Maine in two days. If we convince her to help you, she can make sure everyone is out of the house for your reunion.”

“Will Bev do that?” J.J. asked.

“I think so.” The doorbell rang. “Turn on the charm, J.J.” She stood and walked to the door.

Sam raced in. “Uncle Ron, look at the new game I got.” He dropped on the couch next to Ron.

Bev strolled in after Sam. “Where are your manners?” she scolded.

He rolled his eyes. “Sorry. Merry Christmas, Uncle Ron and Mr. Adams.”

J.J. couldn’t help but chuckle. “Merry Christmas. I hope Santa was good to you this year.”

Sam rolled his eyes. “I’m eleven years old. You don’t need to pretend there is a Santa Claus.”

He fixed on his most convincing expression. “What do you mean? Santa still comes to my mom’s house.”

“Did you get what you wanted?”

He glanced over at Ron and Patty. They held each other under the mistletoe. “Not yet, Sam. Not yet.”

“Well, I got almost everything I asked for.” He rose. “Do you want to see the new game I got on my iPad?”

“Sure.”

Sam handed him the device. “This game is so cool.”

“Battleship is a cool game. It was my favorite when I was a kid.”

“Wow. It’s that old?”

The room erupted into laughter. “Sam,” Bev said. “I played that board game with my brothers when I was a child.”

Sam brightened. “I bet you didn’t have Super Weapons when you were a kid.”

“Super Weapons?” Ron grabbed his smart phone off the glass-top coffee table. “I’m loading that game on my phone. You and J.J. against the master.”

“Oh you’re going down,” J.J. said. “Sam, let’s beat his as—” Bev cleared her throat. “Butt,” J.J. finished.

J.J. and Sam kicked Ron’s ass. The three of them played for over an hour. After dinner, Sam asked J.J. if he wanted to play flag football. J.J. couldn’t remember the last time he had so much fun without alcohol or a woman. He threw the ball to Sam. The kid went long and caught it. “Nice.”

Sam frowned.

“What’s up?” He took the ten steps to the boy.

Sam shrugged.

He shoved his hands in his pockets. “What?” he asked again.

“You made my mom upset.”

The child’s words shocked him. “I’m sorry. I never meant to upset your mom.”

“You made her cry.”

His stomach rolled. “Can I tell you a secret?”

The boy lifted his shoulders.

J.J. continued. “Your mom made me cry.”

“You probably deserved it.”

Good boy,
he thought. “I probably did.” He sat on the grass next to Sam. “I love your mom.”

Sam stood over him and frowned down at J.J. “Love stinks.”