Rock Me Gently (6 page)

“I don’t know what to say.”

“I realize you’re going through a tough time with the divorce and all and dating is probably the last thing on your mind but…”

“Dating?” she blurted, clearly aghast by the notion. “You said talking.”

“Okay, talking. Whatever you can handle. Whatever you want. Talking. Walking. Coffee. You set the pace.”

“Well, I don’t know,” Lainey said, bewildered that a guy like Jason would want to get to know her—especially right now. She was a mess. Maybe that’s just what he needed, though, to spend some time with her and find out just how damaged she was. He would go running, no sprinting in the opposite direction. Especially once he got a taste of the nasty tricks her soon-to-be-ex liked to play. It would be too much for any man to have to put up with. This wouldn’t last long. But for a little while it would be nice to talk to someone different—an adult. Particularly one that looked like Jason. It most definitely wouldn’t be a hardship. He’d already shown her that she might actually enjoy sex again someday. Her parts were undeniably thawing with him around. Taking Jilly’s advice, she blurted, “How about coffee? Like we did this morning.”

He smiled and the simmer in her stomach bubbled again. 

“Coffee would be great. What are you doing right now? Do you have to rush home to Jill?”

Lainey bit her lip. Did she want to jump right in? Or should she use Jill as an excuse? But as she gazed up into his dark eyes she made the decision. “No, I don’t have to hurry home tonight. Jill goes to her father’s every other weekend.”

She felt validated when his face showed utter revulsion at the thought. Apparently he knew enough about their life and still wanted to get to know her. It’s not like their dirty laundry wasn’t public knowledge and town gossip. “Court ordered. I don’t have a choice and neither does Jill for exactly eight more months until she turns eighteen. Then she only has to visit him when she wants to. But she’ll be going off to school right around then too. And she won’t be seeing either one of us much.”

Jason saw the dread cross her face at the prospect of Jill going away to school.

Lainey started to walk again and he followed.

“This is my car,” she said, pausing near a nondescript gray compact.

“How about we have dinner and then coffee?” he suggested, hopefully.

She hesitated, then agreed, slowly. “Where would you like to eat?”

“I’m really not familiar with the restaurants here just yet, other than the fast food ones, that is. What do you suggest?”

“Do you like Italian?”

“Of course.”

“One of Jilly’s favorites is just around the corner. Batallio’s.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard of that place.” They fell in side by side again and strolled to the restaurant. “I’ve heard it mentioned in the staff room before. I think there’s even a menu kicking around the table but I’ve never checked it out.”

Jason opened the door for her when they reached the entrance and she thanked him politely. The hostess greeted them immediately. It was quiet for a Friday night crowd.

“What, no Jill tonight?” the hostess asked recognizing Lainey.

“No, I’m sorry,” Lainey said.

“But you have another friend I see.” She looked up at Jason. “For two then?”

“Yes please,” Lainey said.

Jason was panicked as the hostess continued to stare at him. He knew he was about to be outed and his chances with Lainey would be over before they had begun. 

“You look familiar. You look like that singer,” the hostess stated.

“Yeah, I get that all the time.” How people recognized him without all the long hair and the scruffy beard, he’d never know.

The hostess laughed. “Oh well, then I hope I didn’t insult you.”

Not until she’d said that. “No, of course not. He’s a great-looking guy, if I do say so myself.” Jason waited until Lainey had slipped into the booth then slid in the other side so he could watch her. Another time, he’d sit right up close to her, but for tonight he wanted to learn every nuance of her face.

“Can I start you off with a drink?”

“Want some wine?” Jason offered.

“No, I’d better not, I have to drive.”

“Right. We both do,” he said, with disappointment. He would be going home alone tonight.
Slow, Jase
, he reminded himself. Back in the day, he would have had a whole bottle of wine and not worried about how he was getting home. Nine times out of ten someone would pour him into the bus and they’d drive all night to the next gig and he’d sleep it off. Take an upper to get on stage and a downer when he stepped off the stage and start the cycle all over again. “We’ll both have coffee.” The hostess left them with some menus.

“What singer does she think you resemble?” Lainey asked, scrutinizing him over the table.

“I don’t know. Some lead singer in some band. I get it all the time.”

“I can’t think of what band you mean. I’ll have to ask Jilly. She’ll know.”

“She might not. It’s a band that broke up years ago. Kids as young as Jilly, I mean Jill wouldn’t know.” He hoped she didn’t ask her daughter. He was certain that Jill wouldn’t lie to her mother and he wouldn’t want her to. “What do you recommend?”

“I really enjoy the manicotti, but Jilly loves the spaghetti with mushrooms. The chicken cacciatore is good too.”

“Mmm, it all sounds good.”

“It’s all good. You can’t go wrong here.”

The waitress brought some garlic bread. “Are we ready to order?” she asked, looking from one to the other.

“I’ll have the manicotti please,” Lainey answered.

“I’ll have the same.” Jason gathered their menus and handed them to the waitress.

Her eyes rounded and so did her mouth. “Hey! Aren’t you from that band? Aren’t you Ja—?”

“No, that’s not me,” he interrupted. “We just went through this with the hostess. Not me. Pass it on.”

“Sorry. But you look just like him.”

“Him who?” Lainey asked.

“Don’t encourage it, Lainey,” Jason cautioned gently.

The waitress walked away.

“I just wanted to know. I want to Google him. I want to see for myself if you look like this guy,” Lainey explained smiling, obviously enjoying his discomfort.

“Why? I’m better-looking. Period.”

“And modest too.”

“I’ll have to tell Henry that we must have hit that line twice too.”

“What?” she laughed. “Henry?” Her smile tilted a little. “How is Henry? I haven’t seen him in a while. He and Jill were kinda tight there for a while.”

“He’s good. He made the football team.”

“Ohhh. That explains it then.”

So, he had been right. “Too much like her dad?”

Her gaze met his. “I’m guessing. How much do you know about my life, Mr Westlake?”

“Mmm, back to Mr Westlake. Not good. I know some but it doesn’t matter to me. Everyone has a past.”

“So then tell me about yours.”

That was the last thing he wanted to do. Out and out lying to her was not an option. When the time came and she found out about him he didn’t want her to accuse him of just that. Then she’d never trust him. He’d be no better than her dishonest cheating husband and Jase didn’t want that. “I don’t want to talk about me. I want to get to know you.”

“Everything about my life leads back to my divorce and I don’t want to think about it let alone discuss it.”

“Okay, so let’s talk about your hobbies. What do you like to do?”

“I like to read.”

“What do you like to read?”

“Anything.”

“History books perhaps?” He grinned.

“Yes. Sometimes.”

“How about romance novels?” he teased.

“I haven’t read one of those in a very long while.”

“Maybe you should.”

“Maybe
you
should,” she countered.

“Maybe I will.”

“Get a historical romance. That’d be right up your alley.”

“Is there such a thing?” he asked, naively.

“Oh, your knowledge of romance novels is sorely lacking, Professor.” She smiled and took a small sip of the water.

“I will endeavor to be more informed. What else do you like to do?”

“I like to hike, which I also haven’t done in a long time.”

The waitress brought their food.

“Wow, that’s really quick,” Jason commented.

“They don’t fool around here.”

“I guess not. Smells delicious,” he said, inhaling the spicy aroma. He cut into it to let some of the steam out so that it would cool off. His mouth was still a little tender from the hot coffee this morning.

“So how about tomorrow?” he asked.

“Tomorrow?” she asked, passing him the Parmesan cheese after sprinkling some onto her pasta.

“Hiking. You and me. Tomorrow?”

Her face showed disappointment. “I can’t. I have to work.” Although he was let down that she had to work, he was encouraged by her reaction.

“How about Sunday then? Do you open on Sundays?” He took a bite of the pasta. It was incredible.

“No, I don’t. But I’ve recently started going back to church. I grew up going every Sunday when I was a kid. Well, forced to by my father. It’s different when you choose to go, somehow. And since everything that’s happened, I don’t know,” she shrugged. “I just feel like I need something to believe in again, you know?”

“Yeah, I get that. Had an epiphany of my own once.”

“Really?” She took a dainty bite.

“Yeah, the day I decided I wanted to be a teacher.”

“Tell me,” she pleaded her eyes shining with unconcealed interest.

“I will but not today. What time does church end?”

“About noon.”

“Then you’ll hike with me?”

“Sounds good. I’ll pack us a lunch.”

“That sounds even better.”

“What do you like on a sandwich?”

“I’m easy.”

“Most men are, but what do you like on a sandwich,” she teased.

“I will have you know, I am cheap but not easy.”

She giggled. “That looks like a very expensive suit, Professor. 
You
are not cheap.”

He chuckled. “This is really good, Lainey.”

She thought that he was talking about the food. “I think it’s the best Italian food in town.”

All of a sudden a cellphone chimed making them both jump. “Oh, that must be Jilly. She must be at her dad’s by now. She calls when she lands so that I don’t worry. Do you mind?”

“No, of course not, get it.”

“It’s just a text.” She sounded disappointed. She dug into her purse and pulled out her cell then slid on a pair of reading glasses. After reading the text, she seemed to wilt.

“Is everything all right?” Jason asked.

“Yes. I just wish she’d called. I like to hear her voice. I can’t tell by a text how she is really feeling but I always know by the inflection in her voice. Even when what she is saying sounds good, I know when things are not. It either means her father or someone else is in the room, or she’s just trying to make it sound like she’s having a good time so that I’m not worried and unhappy the whole time that she’s gone. Sometimes I wonder who’s the parent?”

Jason reached across the table and touched the back of her hand. “You are a great mom, don’t you ever doubt it.”

“That’s very nice of you to say, but you don’t even know me.”

“Maybe, but I’m getting to know you and from what I’ve seen you are doing a fine job. And I’ve known Jill longer than I’ve known you and she’s a great kid and great kids come from good parents. You kind of get to know what kids are like seeing them every day and how they act. You know what kind of home life they have by the way they cope and by the way that they treat other people regardless of what kind of grades they pull down.”

Gazing down at the screen, she sent a response.

“And you look damn sexy in those glasses, Lainey.”

She blushed but laughed. “They make me look old.”

“Naw-uh, you look like a naughty librarian.” He grinned and raised his eyebrows repeatedly in a lascivious manner.

She took the glasses off and slid them and the cellphone back into her purse. “And you are a naughty teacher, Mr Westlake,” she commented, returning his gaze.

“Why do you say that? I haven’t taught you anything naughty…yet.”

She looked away and she pushed her food around the plate. There was a definite tilt in her mood since she’d read Jill’s text. Even though Lainey tried to hide that it wasn’t bothering her, it was obvious she was worrying about her daughter being under her father’s care and influence.

“Have you ever been married, Mr Westlake?” she asked, out of nowhere.

“Nope,” he answered taking the last bite.

“Any children?”

“Only about the hundred and twelve that they trust me with in a day.” He paused adding, “Well, that I know of anyway.” He knew the minute it was out of his mouth it had been the wrong thing to say.