Last First Kiss (20 page)

“
Yes ma’am, I will.”

Before leaving the group, Jeanette leaned over and patted Giselle’s shoulder comfortingly.

Giselle tried her best to have fun, but felt self-conscious about everything Jackson said or did for the remainder of the night. She pushed her grilled shrimp around on her plate, until she finally set it aside, and asked for a ‘to go’ box.

Tired of dodging Jackson’s curious glances, she nearly cried from relief when they finally got up to leave. So distracted she nearly walked off without her purse. When Jackson handed it to her, she thanked him quietly and remained silent during the drive home. Finally home, she clamped her jaws tightly when Lexie asked if Jackson could stay to watch the movie with them. Her shoulders sagged with relief when he declined.

“
I appreciate the invite, Lex, but I have to work tomorrow.” Whining their disappointment, the girls hugged him and ran into the house with their friends.

Giselle murmured a low volume goodbye and tried to close the door. She had no choice but to face him when he put an arm out to keep it from closing.

“
Something happened in that restaurant,” he said. “Did I do something to upset you?”

“
No, it wasn’t you. I can’t talk about it right now,” she said, fighting to control her emotions.

“
We’re friends, Giselle...Talk to me,” he pleaded.

“
Go Jackson, I’m just a little emotional, that’s all.” She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “Thanks for supper, Goodnight.” She closed the door softly in his face.

CHAPTER 12

Still confused fifteen minutes later, Jackson answered his ringing cell phone to speak to Carrie.

“
Jackson, how was Giselle when you left her?”

“
Not good, and I have no idea why. She went into the restroom with the girls, and when she came back, she was on the verge of tears. She was nervous and distracted the rest of the night. I don’t know what happened.”

“
I do. I got a phone call from Jeanette Ross, Joe’s mom, and she told me about something they overheard in the restroom.”

Once he heard what had upset Giselle, Carrie had to convince him not to go to her.

“
Jackson, trust me, she won’t want to see you right now.”

“
I have to call her.”

“
Let me talk to her first. I just didn’t want you thinking you’d done anything wrong. I’ll call and let you know what’s going on.”

“
Call me soon, Carr. I’m already going crazy.”

“
I will.”

Giselle turned toward the urgent tapping on her bathroom door.

“
Open the door, honey.”

She opened up the door to let Carrie in. “Hey,” she said, “What’s up?”

“
I know what happened at the restaurant,” Carrie said. “Jeanette called me, furious with those two tramps. You are
not
going to let what they said ruin your night, are you?”

Giselle stared at her own reflection in the mirror, puffy-eyed from crying, and feeling foolish.

Carrie got a wash cloth out of the cabinet, wet it with cold water, and handed it to her. “Here, put this over your eyes—it’ll help.”

Giselle took the wash cloth and met her friend’s gaze. “Is that what people are saying? That Toby’s only been dead five months and I’ve already moved on?”

“
The only two people that have said it are the ones you overheard in that restroom, and they’re the two biggest tramps in Kenton. You know, of course, that Toby never looked at Izzy Allen.”

“
I know that, but Jackson hanging around as much as he does, coming to the girls’ games. People may think...”

Carrie released a sigh rife with exasperation. “Damn, but you are determined to feel guilty about something, aren’t you? Those two men are here to help your girls through a bad time, and I think they’re doing a wonderful job. Jackson has his own issues to deal with, so maybe helping your girls is helping him. He didn’t have it easy, you know. He had to learn the hard way just how little his wife cared for him.”

“
I know that, we talked about it at the park.” Giselle stood and wiped her eyes. “Carrie, this has made me see things from another viewpoint. I can’t be seen anywhere alone with Jackson Broussard or any other man, even if he is just a friend. You know gossip in this place spreads like wildfire. I won’t have people thinking I loved my husband so little that I’ve moved on and left him behind already. The way I feel now, I may never move on. Toby was the only one for me.”

Carrie placed her hands on Giselle’s shoulders. “You two had a wonderful relationship, and it would be the sincerest form of flattery to Toby if you were to remarry. He’d want you to find that happiness again, hon.”

“
I can promise you it won’t be anytime soon. I’m still so much in love with him.”

Carrie nodded. “I know you are. All I’m saying is, one day you may decide you have feelings for someone else. If it happens, don’t push him away because of some misguided feelings of loyalty to Toby...he wouldn’t want that. Now, I’ve got to go home. I have to work in the morning.”

Giselle stood up and rinsed the wash cloth again. “I suppose you’re going to call Jackson so you can tell him everything that we discussed?” Giselle and Carrie’s gazes locked in the mirror.

“
I won’t if you call him yourself. He’s worried sick about you.”

“
I guess I’ll do it—it’s the least I can do.”

“
Don’t wait too long to call.”

“
I’ll do it as soon as you walk out the door, I promise.”

As soon as Carrie left, Giselle picked up the phone and dialed Jackson’s number. As proof of how upset he was, he answered on the first ring.

“
Hello.”

“
It’s me,” she mumbled.

“
Are you alright?”

She heard the anxiousness in his voice. “I’m better, but, I’ve made a decision and I don’t want you to think it’s because of anything you’ve done.”

“
I’m listening,” he said, bracing himself.

“
Look, Jackson, you and Bill are welcome to spend as much time with the girls as you want, but I think I need to distance myself from you for awhile. I can’t have people thinking... things like that.”

“
Giselle..I wasn’t trying to..it wasn’t a date or anything. It was just a meal...with four little girls,” he stammered.

“
We both know that, but in small towns like this one, people gossip. It’s better this way.”

“
What about the ballgames and their birthday party?”

“
You’re welcome at the games, and the party is still on.” She heard the relief in his voice.

“
Thank you, Giselle. I’m sorry you were upset, but thanks for calling.”

She knew he was assuming nothing would change, but by the time Lexie’s game rolled around on Thursday, he discovered the truth of the situation.

<><><>

Giselle refused his offer of a ride and drove to the next game. She sat in the stands next to Gretchen and Lauren, and spoke to him only if he asked her a direct question. She made sure she was never alone with him, and the easy camaraderie they’d developed seemed to vanish overnight.

After a solid month of hurt feelings and frustration, Jackson finally spoke to Carrie about it.

“
When is this going to end? I feel like I’ve lost
another
friend.” He walked over to his window and stared out of it, his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his slacks.

“
This is temporary, Jack. She doesn’t want to give anyone the wrong idea. As time passes it’ll get easier.”

“
Easier for her, but more difficult for me,” he growled, then stopped to roll his sleeves up over his bulging biceps.

“
Good Lord, have you been working out?”

“
With no Toby for basketball, no Chloe to chase after, and Giselle avoiding me like the plague, working out is all I have.” He turned to face his friend. “You don’t know how bad I dread the end of baseball season.”

“
Maybe you should slow down a little.”

“
I can’t. It’s the only thing that keeps me sane.”

“
You need a hobby,” she commented. “Get a dog.”

“
I don’t want a dog,” he snorted. “I
have
decided to build a patio deck, though, and I ordered a motorcycle.”

“
What’d you order—a Harley?”

“
Overdone and screams middle aged crises. I went with America’s first motorcycle.” He turned to Carrie and froze at her horrified expression. “What’s wrong?”

“
Please tell me you didn’t order an Indian,” she managed to spit out in a hoarse croak.

Jackson cocked his head to the side. “Yeah, but how do you know about Indian motorcycles?”

“
My dad had one a long time ago. It was second hand but from what Mom said, he loved that damn thing.” She released an anguished groan and slapped both hands to her head. “Do you realize what you’ve done to me?”

He gazed at her in confusion. “Apparently not.”

“
Sam has wanted one for
years!
”

“
I know...that’s where I got the idea.”

“
You
knew
that. And you ordered one anyway,” she said in dry tone. “Some friend you are.”

“
Am I missing something?”

“
I’ll never hear the end of it. My husband is going to whine endlessly for one just like
yours.
He’ll bitch and complain until he wears me down and I tell him to buy one just to shut him up. You men and your damn, expensive toys.”

Jackson splayed both hands in front of him. “You
just
told me to get a hobby.” She stared at him and sighed in seemingly reluctant acceptance before she turned to exit his office.

“
Why didn’t you just get a damn dog?”

“
Too much trouble,” he called out, before he heard her give one last snort of disgust.

<><><>

The Saturday before the girls’ birthday party dawned bright and sunny. Jackson and Bill were halfway to Mackenzie’s tournament in a nearby town when Jackson got an unexpected call from Giselle.

“
My truck won’t start,” she said, sounding frantic. “I tried to call Sam, but I can’t get a hold of him, and everyone else is either on vacation or at the tournament already.”

“
Sam and Carrie are in Gardiner for the day, I know that for certain,” he told her. “It’s probably just the battery. We’re only a few minutes from you, so just hang tight.”

Ten minutes later, Jackson pushed the hood of her truck closed. After depositing the dead battery in the bed of his pick-up, he turned to her. “If you ride with us to the tournament, we can pick up a new battery for you and install it when we get back later this afternoon.” He reached inside his truck for a package of wipes to clean his hands. “You should be safe enough,” he muttered, as he sent her an accusing glare. “Bill will be with us the entire time.” It came out sounding sharper than he meant, but he wasn’t about to apologize.

Giselle stiffened her back as she pushed Lexie ahead of her to his truck. “Thank you, we’d appreciate the ride.”

To Jackson’s satisfaction, Lexie insisted that ‘Paw Paw Bill’ sit in the back with her. He watched Giselle, tight-lipped, and stone-faced as she slid into the front seat.

“
I guess it’s a good thing I sent Mac along with Gretchen this morning,”

He nodded, but remained silent as he put the truck in reverse, and backed out of the driveway. He tried to ignore Giselle’s furtive glances his direction. They got as far as the end of the city limits before he confronted her. “Is there a problem, Giselle?”

As soon as she had come outside to meet them, she’d noticed the difference in Jackson. His arms bulged, as well as his neck and shoulder muscles. Her gaze had moved down to his muscular thighs, which strained against the material of his shorts.
Adonis has been working out.
She tore her eyes away and stared straight ahead.