Not Quite Dating (16 page)

Katie wouldn’t allow her brother similar years of pain.

He was in a tight spot and needed to think.

He needed his little sister to watch his back until he could come up with his own way of fixing the problem.

Sure, Katie could call this Jessie lady up and tell her the truth about her brother, but who knows how that would go? If it went south, Katie and Jack’s relationship would be strained more than it was.

She missed her brother. Her own trials in recent life reminded her how much she needed the tiny family she had.

She called room service, ordered a high-protein breakfast for her brother, and then asked the manager of food services to meet her downstairs with the acting manager of the hotel.

She had a few things to cover before she and Jack jumped on the plane.

In the manager’s office, Katie asked the two people to sit. “I have a big favor to ask of both of you, a private favor that needs to be between the three of us.”

For the first time in months, Katie started to feel good about herself.

Monica stood beside her sister
as they walked around the car lot full of shiny new chunks of machinery. Although Danny was feeling better, the cool day had made Jessie ask the neighbor to sit with him long enough for her to pick out a new car.

Something about the whole
We burned your car so come on over and pick out another one
thing bugged the crap out of Monica. If Jessie weren’t in such a funk, she’d be questioning the good fortune, too.

Nonetheless, they walked from cars to SUVs to trucks and discussed the merits of all the vehicles.

Mr. Gravis pointed out the attributes. “Navigation is a big thing right now. All the newer cars have hands-free Bluetooth connections for your cell phones, making it safer while on the road.”

“Fuel economy is more important than speed,” Jessie told the dealer.

“Do you like the hybrid?”

“I live in an apartment. Plugging it in would be a hassle,” Jessie told the man.

Monica hadn’t thought of that.

“Then a smaller engine with high miles to the gallon. You have a son, right?”

Jessie nodded.

“I think the crossover is perfect,” Monica said. “Room for five, plenty of storage in the back. The mileage is better than the bigger SUVs.” Monica led her sister over to the cars in question and opened the door of a blue one.

Jessie slid into the seat and placed her hands on the wheel. “It is nice.”

“Leather seats with heaters in them on the higher-end models, back-up cameras that display on the navigation system.” Mr. Gravis touted the car’s statistics while Monica climbed
into the passenger seat.

“What do you think, Jessie?”

“I like it…”

“But?”

“The trucks are nice, too.”

Monica’s smile fell. Jack’s truck was old. Even now, Jessie was thinking about him. Monica put her hand over her sister’s. “This is
your
car. Jack isn’t here.”

“I know.” Jessie glanced around the interior of the car and shook her head. “I guess this would be a good pick.”

“Might I suggest something?” Mr. Gravis asked.

“Go ahead.”

“Long trips are made easier with the entertainment package for the kids in the car.”

Jessie cocked her head to the side. “The dealer wants me to have a completely loaded crossover?”

Mr. Gravis smiled and nodded.

Jessie glanced at Monica. “What do I have to lose?”

“Take it.”

Jessie glanced at the dealer and said, “Show me this car loaded up and I’ll take it on a test drive.”

“Good choice, Ms. Mann.”

Monica stepped out of the car and followed the dealer and her sister around the lot.

When Jessie found the car with all the requirements, Mr. Gravis handed her the keys and let her drive off the lot by herself.

Both Monica and the dealer stepped into the shadow of the building.

“So, Mr. Gravis, do you mind telling me what the real story is here?”

Mr. Gravis glanced her way and
the smile on his lips faltered slightly. “It’s just as I said. There was a fire, and the dealer—”

“Dealership is responsible. Yeah, I heard that, but I’m having a hard time believing it. Where is Jessie’s old car now?”

“We towed it out of here.”

Isn’t that convenient?

She wasn’t buying it.

“Towed it where?”

Mr. Gravis shuffled his feet. “I’m not sure. Junkyard, I guess.”

“So if my sister left anything in the glove compartment…”

“Oh, we removed all of her personal items. No worries there.”

Yeah, right!

“Sometimes good things happen to good people,” Mr. Gravis said. “Your sister seems like a deserving sort. Between you and me, I think my boss is being very generous. Must be the Christmas spirit.”

Monica narrowed her eyes. “Christmas spirit?”

“Yeah, ’tis the season and all of that.”

She dropped it. She didn’t buy his crock of crap for nothing. But she dropped it.

A few minutes later, Jessie drove back into the lot and stepped out of the car. She smiled, but there wasn’t any real joy in it. It tore Monica up to see her sister so down.

“I like it. It has everything.”

“So shall we fill out the paperwork?”

Jessie nodded.

Two hours later Monica stood beside Jessie as she sat in her new car. “Christmas came early this year,” she said, trying to cheer Jessie up.

“I can’t believe this. Jack is going to flip…” Her voice trailed off, her eyes fell to her lap.

“Try and think of the good things going on
right now. No more broken-down cars or broken heaters. I’ll bet you won’t even have to roll the windows down on this car to get the air to start working.” Her other car was a pile of junk. It was nice to see it go. “Hey, I’ve got some errands to run. Are you going to be OK if I make it home in a few hours?”

Jessie smiled at her. “I’m a big girl, Mo. I’ll be fine.”

Monica reached into the car and hugged her sister. “I say we take a road trip the first chance we get.”

“Danny is going to be so excited.”

“See, that’s it. Think of the good things.”

Yet as Jessie drove away, Monica knew she was already in tears or near them thinking about Jack.

In her car, Monica drove straight to The Morrison and parked along the street to avoid having to tip the valet. She walked past the marble columns and massive glass doors as if she knew exactly where she was going. Inside, she found the signs pointing toward the lounge. Only a few people were in the bar, none of them Jack. Monica returned to the lobby and found the restaurant. At nearly one o’clock, the lunch crowd was in full swing. The hostess at the desk asked if she wanted to be seated.

“No, I’m sorry. I’m looking for a friend who works here.”

“Who are you looking for?”

“His name is Jack Moore.”

The hostess had the oddest expression on her face that Monica had ever seen.
“Can you wait here?”

“Sure.”

Maybe Jack had told the friends he worked with about Jessie and they were watching out for him. Monica thought of what her fellow students might do to help if she were in Jack’s shoes.

Monica didn’t have to think about it long before an older woman walked up to her, smiling. “Hi, can I help you?”

“Yeah, I’m looking for Jack. It’s kind of important or I wouldn’t be bothering him at work.” Monica
realized that her showing up at his place of employment might look bad for him, so she started to explain herself. “He doesn’t know I’m coming.”

“It’s OK. We’re not as stuffy as we look. What’s your name?”

“Monica. He’ll know me as Jessie’s sister.”

The lady wrote down her name. “Jack isn’t working today, I’m afraid. Why don’t you give me your number and I’ll get him the message.”

“Really? I mean, that’s nice of you.”

“You did say it was important.”

“Right. It is. Very important.” Monica gave her cell number. “Will Jack be in tomorrow?”

The lady seemed puzzled by the question. “I’m not sure. We allow our employees to switch schedules a lot during the holidays. Honestly, I’m really not supposed to reveal personal schedules.”

“Of course. I understand.” Monica held her hand out to shake the other woman’s. “Thank you.”

“My pleasure, Monica. Have a merry Christmas.”

“You too.”

As Monica left the hotel, she was sure a set of eyes watched her leave. For the second time that day, she thought the Christmas spirit had flown over the people of Ontario and they were all just a little too eager to help.

Jack pushed his horse into a
fast run, enjoying the cool air hitting his face. His head cleared for the first time in days. With that clarity, reason and regret wiggled in.

He’d messed up bad with Jessie. He should have kept his trap shut about marriage and given the girl more time for him to grow on her.

Now he needed to figure out a way to climb back into her life without her running away. More than ever, he needed to know if she loved him. Katie seemed to think she did, and Katie hadn’t even met Jessie yet.

“What did she say that made you leave her apartment?” Katie had asked in the plane on the way home to Texas.

“She said it was just sex.” Jack had opened up to his sister.

“And you believed her?”

“What was I to think? She turned me down and told me to leave. To find my dreams with someone else. Someone who didn’t have a kid that would strap me down.”

Katie shook her head and rolled her eyes. “Oh, Jack, you’re a fool. Don’t you see what she did?”

“I saw it clear enough. She said no.”

His kid sister sat forward across the aisle of the Lear and leveled her eyes to his. “When you’re riding Dancer, you think long and hard about what you just told me. Long and hard.”

Sitting on the back of his horse on
his father’s Texas ranch gave him plenty of time and silence to think.

Jessie was hurting when she’d told him to leave. Her eyes had glossed over with fear and then her jaw had gone firm with determination. The strong mom gene in her kicked in and she drew her line in the sand. Told him he had pushed too far…too fast.

Yet when she’d given him her reasons for saying no, none of them had to do with the persona he’d presented to her. She didn’t say no because he was a transient waiter in a go-nowhere job. No, she’d told him that he would regret asking her one day. So once again, Jessie had to be the adult and say no.

Only she didn’t need to say no. And she wasn’t the only adult in the relationship.

Jack pushed Dancer to the westernmost part of his father’s property and watched the sun move low on the horizon.

He pictured Jessie wearing a sundress and a smile, laughing in the field…a cowboy hat atop her head.

He and Danny could fish on the riverbank. Did Danny like to fish? Chances were the kid hadn’t had a chance to do that yet.

Jack’s throat started to fill with regret.

He needed to fix this. To make the picture he’d painted in his head come true.

“Is this Monica?” Katie asked when a woman picked up the phone.

“This is. Who’s this?”

“Monica, this is Jack’s sister, Katelyn. I hope you don’t mind, but I hijacked your number and thought I’d give you a call.”

Monica hesitated on the line. “I didn’t know Jack had a sister.”

“A meddling one that he would flip out over if he found out I was calling you.”

Monica laughed; the sound was warm
and genuine. “Looks like you and I are both in the prying profession. I went to find Jack yesterday, but the people at his work said he wasn’t there.”

“He needed to clear his head…you know, after.”

“After my fool of a sister turned him down.”

Katie smiled. “It doesn’t sound like my brother was very smooth in his proposal.”

“I wasn’t there. According to Jessie, it was abrupt. Don’t get me wrong, they’ve been flirting around each other for weeks. It’s cute, really. My sister is trying like hell to ignore him, and he’s practically flapping his arms to get her to notice.”

The thought of her brother acting like a king peacock made Katie giggle. “Oh, that had to be priceless to watch.”

“What’s sad is how much Jessie wants to disregard him.”

Now they were getting to the meat of the conversation. “Why do you think that is?”

“She’s scared. It’s that simple. Danny is her world. That’s my nephew. I’m sure Jack told you about him.”

Katie swallowed hard. The smile on her face fell, and her throat tightened. “Yeah. He said something about her son.”

“When you have a kid, things aren’t as cut and dry. She’s always been a worrier. Our mom isn’t exactly a stellar example of stability,” Monica told her.

“Neither is ours.”

“Well, Jessie wants to be nothing like our mom. I think if Jack had taken everything a little slower, things would be different.”

Katie liked Monica already. “I can see we are going to get along very well.”

“I think so, too. Maybe we can get them both to see reason.”

Not with a bunch of lies hiding under the tangled web. “Monica, there are some things about Jack that you should both know, but I’m not going to share those secrets. It’s not my place.”

“Oh God…please tell me Jack isn’t in some kind of trouble. No Texas Mounties or whatever you call them
are after him or anything?”

“No! Texas Mounties. That’s funny, Monica. No, Jack doesn’t have a record or any hidden bad side.” Quite the opposite.

“Oh, good.”

“Just tell me one thing.” Katie waited for Monica to speak.

“What?”

“Does your sister
love
my brother?”

Monica chuckled. “She cries every day and hasn’t eaten a whole lot since he left. She tells me she ‘can’t’ love him, but I know love when I see it. Your brother and my sister are made for each other.”

Katie felt her heart swell. “Then you keep your sister occupied until I can get my brother’s head on straight.”

“She has Danny, Christmas, work…and me. She’s busy.”

“Just remind her that Jack’s one of the good guys. He is, by the way.”

“Neither of us thought differently. Like I said. She’s just scared.”

“Yeah, well, I’m more scared of what it’s going to look like if they don’t make it. Jack was a mess.”

“Same with Jessie.”

Katie smiled. “So you and I will work together and make this work. Well, as much as we can, anyway.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Monica said before hanging up the phone.

Katie held the phone in her hand. “Now all I have to do is make Jack realize she loves him.”

Even with Christmas music playing and Danny tapping on the outside of packages, Jessie’s mood circled the drain of life. Even the weather gave its ugly opinion as rain ran down the window of the apartment. It had only been
a handful of days since Jack walked out of her life, but it felt like she hadn’t smiled in months.

Damn, she missed him.

Danny missed him, too. In fact, when she’d shown Danny the car for the first time, his first reaction was to call Jack.

Even now, Danny talked about Jack and the car. “We should go get Jack and take him for a ride,” Danny said from across the room.

“Jack is kind of busy right now.” Telling her son they might not ever see him again made her sick to her stomach. She couldn’t take any more hits. Danny would mourn the loss of Jack as much as she did. More, probably, because he couldn’t understand what had driven him away.

“Is he coming over on Christmas? We should invite him. His family is all the way in Texas, you know.”

“He’ll probably go home for Christmas, Danny.”

“But he can come here. He doesn’t even have to buy any presents or anything. He can play with me and my new toys. He said he likes to play with trucks.”

Jessie bit her tongue and tried a smile. “I’ll play trucks with you.”

“I know, but Jack says he used to play with trucks for hours when he was a kid.”

Danny reached under the tree and shook another box.

There was underwear in it. Not exactly a toy or a truck, but something to unwrap. She needed to do some more shopping, but Santa…or in her case, Mrs. Claus…was really broke. Jessie had made Monica promise not to buy her a thing and to spend anything she wanted on her son.

“I’m sure he did.”

“Did you play with trucks when you were a kid, Mommy?”

Jessie pushed away from the window and
moved to her son’s side. “Aunt Monica and I played with dolls.”

“Dolls?” Danny squished his face into a look of disgust. “Why?”

She sat on the sofa and pulled a pillow into her lap. “Probably because we didn’t have a brother to show us how cool trucks were.”

Danny liked that answer. “Well, when I get a little sister, I’m going to show her how epic trucks are.”
Epic
was the new adjective of choice in his kindergarten class. The first time she’d heard him use it, she doubled over laughing. Not that the word was funny, but such a strong word coming from her small son was strange.

Epic
wasn’t the word she was stuck on now. “Do you want a little sister?”

Danny returned the underwear gift and started over from gift one to shake and guess. “Yeah…sure. Or a brother. Grown-ups don’t like to play as much as kids. And sometimes you’re tired. So, yeah…it would be fun having a sister or a brother. That way we can move in together when we’re older like you and Auntie Monica.”

He’d never told her he wanted a brother or sister. Hearing him talk about a sibling drove home how much she’d messed up with Jack.

“I thought you were going to live with me forever,” she teased her son.

He stopped shaking gifts and pondered her words. “But then who is going to live with my brother or sister?”

Oh, the mind of a five-year-old. “Good point,” she told him.

Danny switched back to his original topic. “Jack is going to love the car. He can watch
SpongeBob
with me in the backseat. Jack likes cartoons.”

“I’m sure he’d love it.”

What had she done? Maybe she should call him and see if he would talk to her. Then again, maybe he’d already left, went home to Texas. Regrets, remorse, and what-ifs plagued
her every day, every night.

Christmas officially sucked this year.

Jack slid from the saddle and began the process of removing Dancer’s tack. The damp smell of hay and horseflesh permeated the walls of the massive barn. Smelled like home. Danny would love it here. The outdoors, the freedom to roam, ride, and explore.

The ranch house had been a great place growing up.

And Jessie…She’d light up like the red and green Christmas lights that twinkled around the edges of the house. The tired eyes she had following a long graveyard shift would drift away in a matter of days if she didn’t have to work so hard.