Janet (14 page)

“Ooh! What is it?” he asked excitedly.

“Open it,” she said with a smile.

He tore the bag apart and pulled out the Lego box. “Cool!”

Beatriz sniffed when she saw the joy on his face.

I felt my eyes become blurry from watching.

“Thanks, Mom!” He shook the box then looked at the pictures on the back. “Are you coming to my birthday party?”

Beatriz looked at Hank, asking for his permission.

“No,” Tanya said.
“Your mother will be busy, Joey.”

“Oh,” Joey said sadly.

Hank looked torn. I could see the indecision in his eyes. “She might be able to make it,” he said. “We’ll see how it goes.”

Beatriz breathed a sigh of relief. She turned to Joey and stared at him, running her fingers through his hair. I saw the love in her eyes when she looked at her son. I admit my sister made a mistake but I knew she loved him more than anything. She was miserable without her family.

“We should go,” Tanya said.

“Just give me one more minute,” Beatriz begged.

Hank looked at his sister. “It’s okay,” he whispered.

“No,” Tanya snapped. “Her five minutes is up.” She reached for Joey and took him away.

Beatriz started to cry again, this time from agony.

Hank stared at her with a forlorn expression.

Tanya grabbed her purse than walked outside.

Hank stared at Beatriz. “I’m sorry.”

She wiped her tears away. “I just want to hold him. I miss him so much.”

“I know,” he whispered.

“And I miss you.”

Hank averted his gaze.

“I’m trying, Hank,” she said. “I haven’t been drinking. I’ve been sober for weeks. Janet keeps an eye on me. She’ll vouch for me. And I’ve been going to AA meetings. I’m doing everything I can to get better. Please don’t take my son away.”

He fidgeted with his hands. “I—I don’t know, Beatriz.”

“Please,” she begged. “I promise I’m better. I made a mistake and I’ll regret it forever. But please give me another chance. I need my son. I need my husband.”

Hank sighed. “We’ll see how it goes.”

“Can I see Joey more often? Please let me come to his birthday party. Please. I need to be there for his third birthday.”

“I’ll monitor your progress through Janet. We’ll go from there.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“I don’t want to take him away from you,” he said gently. “I’m just trying to protect him.”

“I understand,” she whispered.

He nodded.

“I miss you, Hank. I really miss you.”

Hank stared at the table.

“I love you so much. I’m so sorry about everything. Please give me another chance. Don’t divorce me. I’m different. I swear I am.”

“Beatriz…I just don’t feel the same way anymore.”

She covered her face.

“I’m sorry.”

“You might if we tried.”

“I don’t want to try.”

She sobbed.

The sight broke my heart. My sister lost everything. It was clear that Hank would never give her another chance. And I completely understood his reasons. I couldn’t fix this for her. “We should get going,” I said gently. I patted her shoulder.

She nodded.

Hank nodded at me, silently thanking me.

Beatriz stood up then walked to the door without looking at Hank. She stepped outside and waited on the sidewalk.

I looked at Hank. “If there’s anything still between you, I hope you can forgive her and try to work this out.”

He said nothing.

“Thank you for letting us come by.”

“You’re welcome.” He stood up and hugged me. “Keep me posted.”

“I will.”

He pulled away then opened the door for me. We walked outside then joined Beatriz.

Hank looked at her and nodded. “Have a good night.”

“I love you,” she blurted. The tears fell down her cheeks.

Hank looked at the ground.

“I just want you to know that,” Beatriz whispered.

Hank sighed then looked at her. He placed his arms around her and held her for a long time. She cried into his shoulder, sobbing hysterically. I walked away to give them some more privacy. Hank held her until she stopped crying. I knew he still loved her if he was willing to give her such affection. He finally pulled away and looked at her. “I’ll always love you, Beatriz. I want you to know that.”

She nodded.

Hank walked away.

I placed my arm around her shoulder and walked her home. She was still crying quietly. When we got inside, I led her to the bedroom and tucked her in. I stroked her hair until she closed her eyes and fell asleep. When I stared at her face, I imagined the agony she must be feeling. My sister put herself in this situation but I hated seeing her in pain. It killed me.

I went into my bedroom and got ready for bed.

My phone rang and I smiled when I saw Scott’s name. “Hey,” I said.

“Hello, beautiful. How was your day?”

“Horrible.”

“Tell me.”

I told him everything that just happened with Beatriz.

“Wow…that’s a bad night.”

“Yeah,” I said with a sigh. “It breaks my heart.”

“Do you think they would ever get back together?”

“I don’t know. Hanks seemed pretty hurt.”

“Well, I can’t blame him.”

“And he doesn’t trust her. All of that would have to be repaired before anything happened.”

“Has your sister been drinking?” he asked.

“No.”

“Well, maybe we should set something up.”

“Like what?”

“When I wanted to date you, I had
to trick you. You should do the same.”

“That isn’t my style.”

“Give Hank a chance to see how much she’s changed,” he said. “Their son doesn’t have to be there.”

“I guess I could try…”

“It wouldn’t hurt.”

“But I don’t want to betray Hank’s trust.”

“You could have just brought Beatriz to his sister’s house but you didn’t. I think he’ll understand you mean well.”

“I’ll give it a shot.”

He sighed over the phone.

“Are you in bed?”

“Yeah. Are you?”

“Yeah. I wish you were here.”

“Me too. You’re an excellent cuddler. The best I’ve ever known.”

I chuckled. “I used to sleep with a teddy bear so I have some experience.”

“I’m jealous of this bear…”

“I still have him.”

“Now I’m even more jealous.”

I laughed. “He hasn’t seen me in my purple thong.”

“Okay, I feel a little better now.”

“Scott, I miss you.”

“I miss you too.”

“I want to kiss you.”

“I could kiss you all day, baby,” he said.

“I might have to look at your picture tonight.”

He was quiet for a long time. “I never got a hard on that quick before.”

“You don’t judge me?”

“I think that’s the hottest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Well, now you know what I’ll be doing after we hang up.”

Scott breathed into the phone. “Why don’t you just do it now?”

We were both silent for a while. My heart raced in my chest when I processed his words. I’d never had phone sex in my life. I wasn’t that type of person. But that sounded really appetizing at the moment. “I will if you will.”

He continued to breathe into the receiver. “Deal.”

I grabbed my compute
r and opened it, finding the page. “You’re so hot, Scott.” I heard the phone move as he did something. A few seconds later, I heard him moan into the phone.

“Are you doing it,
baby?” he said with a sexy voice.

I moved my fingers in my underwear and touched myself. “Yeah…”

“Are you thinking about me?”

“Yeah…

“I’m thinking about you.” His breathing grew heavy and shallow. I imagined him jerking himself and got more turned on by the idea. I stared at his picture, eyeing the bulge in the front of his underwear. I felt the heat flush through my body. I started to writhe on the bed, enjoying every second of our nasty interaction.

“Scott…”

“Come for me.”

“I—I am. God, I am.”

“Oh…yeah.”

I bit my lip
so I wouldn’t scream. My head rolled back on the pillow as I caught my breath. I heard Scott breathing just as hard. A few extra moans escaped his lips as he came down from his high. I heard him move for a second then become still.

“I’ve never done that before…” I whispered.

“Neither have I,” he said. “But I really enjoyed it.”

“I did too.”

“I can’t wait to be inside you,” he blurted.

My spine shivered. “Yeah.”

“You’re making it difficult for me to wait.”

“How?”

“You’re so sexy,” he said. “It’s hard not to think about it.”

“We can fool around.”

Scott was quiet for a while. “Are we ready for that?”

“I am.”

“Then I am too.”

I pulled the blankets over me then set my alarm. I like
d listening to him breathe so I didn’t speak. I didn’t want him to hang up. If I heard him, I could pretend he was next to me. I closed my eyes and sighed, finding sleep immediately.

12

Work was just as bad as it was yesterday. Guys came into my office and asked if I’d be willing to be videotaped. Every guy seemed to think I was either a prostitute, a whore, or into hardcore bondage. It was like Ryan told each person a different story. I got so fed up with it that I went to Mr. Garrison, the owner of the firm.

“Yes, Janet?” he asked when I walked into the office.

“Sir, I’ve been having some work environment issues.”

He was flipping through the pages on his desk, not looking at me. “And what would that be?”

“The other employees are making sexual advances at me, harassing me, offending me, and distracting me from my work.”

Mr. Garrison finally looked at me, his white hair looking thin. “Who?”

“All of them.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Everyone in the office is harassing you?” he asked incredulously.

“I know it sounds weird,” I said. “But it’s a long story. I dated Ryan—”

“You dated one of my employees?”

“Well, no. We just went to the gala together.”

He stared at me, his face set in a scowl.

“We just didn’t hit off and now he’s upset that I’m dating someone else. As a punishment, he’s spreading rumors about me in the office.”

“Are they true?”

I felt my anger rise. “Of course not. Now they won’t leave me alone. They are making me feel very uncomfortable. I know they would stop if you said something.”

He glared at me. “Do you realize I’m
working on the biggest case of the year? You think I have the time to talk to each employee about your problems?”

I knew he was angry. This was a bad idea.

“And you shouldn’t be dating someone from work. It’s frowned upon.”

“But not prohibited,” I said. “And we didn’t date. We just went to the gala once.”

He shook his head. “I have more important things to deal with than high school drama. Thank you for wasting my time. You’re dismissed.”

I felt my heart fall. Now I was his least favorite employee. I left his office, keeping my chin tucked in and my shoulder
s square. I couldn’t believe I was being treated this way. I knew Ryan was one of Mr. Garrison’s favorite lawyers, but he shouldn’t have favored him.

When I sat at my desk, I didn’t get to work. Instead, I looked up new jobs. I couldn’t stay
there any longer, not after that. Hopefully, I’d find something soon. When I reached for my coffee, I saw a dildo sitting on my desk. There was a note underneath with a name and a phone number. I threw it away and tried not to scream.

I didn’t eat lunch that day. I couldn’t go in the break room and I couldn’t g
o out either. Knowing my luck, I’d run into someone I knew. I found a few positions on the computer and immediately applied. The sooner I got out of there, the sooner I could put this behind me. I was afraid I wouldn’t find a job that paid as well as this one did, but at this point, I didn’t care.

I hadn’t mentioned anything to Scott because I knew how he would react. And since he couldn’t help me, there was no reason to bring him into it. And killing Ryan would only complicate my life.

When the workday was over, I was the first one out the door. My brother called me when I was walking to my apartment.

“Hey, how’s Beatriz doing?” he asked.

“Alright,” I said with a sigh.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“I just had a bad day.”

“You want to talk about it?
”

“Yeah.”

“What’s up?”

I told him what happened.

Tony was quiet for a while. “Your boss isn’t going to do anything?”

“Did you hear what I said?”

“And you applied for jobs?”

“Yeah. I hope I find something.”

“This is what we’re going to do,” he said. “Quit your job tomorrow and look for a new one. Until then, I’ll give you money for rent and stuff.”

I was moved by the gesture. “You’re so sweet, Tony.”

“You’re my baby sister. I’d do anything for you.”

“But I can’t accept it. I’ll stick it out until it dies down or I find a new job, whichever comes first.”

“No,” he said firmly. “I don’t want you there.”

“Tony, I’m fine. I can handle myself.”

“Stop being a brat,” he snapped.

“Tony, drop it.”

He sighed. “I’ll ask around and see if anyone knows of anything.”

“Sometimes I wonder if you work for the cartel.”

He laughed but didn’t deny the claim.

“Can we have dinner tonight?”

“Sure.”

“I want you to meet my boyfriend.”

“Sounds serious,” he said.

“It is.”

“I’ll give a very thorough older brother check.”

I rolled my eyes. “Just don’t embarrass me.”

“That’s the first thing I’ll do,” he said with a laugh. “It’s my job.”

“Fuck you, Tony.”

“What? You know you love me. You wouldn’t be introducing him to me if you didn’t care about my opinion.”

“I already know you’ll love him.”

“We’ll see….”

“Come over at six.”

“Later.” He hung up.

I called Scott next.

“Hey,” he said. “I just left the gym.”

“Ooh,” I said. “That sounds hot.” When I remembered what we did last night, I blushed.

“You know what I was thinking about all day?”

“I can guess,” I said with a smile.

“I’ve been obsessed with it, really. I’ve been hot for you ever since.”

“I was pretty satisfied.”

“My satisfaction was short lived,” he said. “I want the real thing.”

I felt my body flush with heat. “I actually called to talk about something else…”

“Yeah?”

“You want to have dinner with my brother tonight?”

“I’d love to.”

“Can you be at my place at six?”

“I can.”

“Okay. I’ll see you then.”

“Bye, baby.”

“Bye.”

When I got home, I started cooking and preparing for dinner. I marinated some chicken and grilled it, made homemade mashed potatoes and grilled some asparagus with balsamic vinaigrette.

My sister walked around the room like a zombie.

“Scott and Tony are coming over for dinner tonight.”

“You guys have fun,” she said sadly.

“You’re joining us.”

“I’m
not in the mood.”

“Then you should get in the mood,” I said.

“What am I going to say to Tony?” she said. “I can’t lie about what’s going on.”

I turned to her. “I told him everything.”

She glared at me. “You promised.”

“I promised not to tell Mom. And you need Tony’s support too.  He just wants to help.”

Beatriz shook her head. “You’re unbelievable.”

“I told him I needed help. I can’t always take care of you. He said he wants you to stay with him sometimes.”

“No thank you,” she snapped.

I sighed. “Don’t be like this. I meant well, okay?”

She avoided my gaze.

“I’m sorry.”

Beatriz walked into the bedroom and shut the door.

When six o’ clock arrived, Scott knocked on the door.

I opened it with a smile on my face. As soon as I saw him, I felt the skin between my legs burn. He looked so handsome in his collared shirt and jeans. I wanted to kiss his body everywhere, touch him intimately.

He stared into my eyes, giving me the same look of desire. Scott grabbed my waist and pulled me into a deep kiss. His tongue darted into my mouth, making me moan. His hand glided over my body, feeling the curves of my waist and back. He moaned as he kissed me, like he couldn’t get enough. His erection was pressed against my thigh, throbbing with wanted release.

“Ah-hem.”

Scott stepped away.

Tony looked at me. “You could have closed the door.”

I rolled my eyes. “I wasn’t expecting you to be on time. You’re never on time.”

“I am when food is involved.”

I grabbed Scott’s hand. “This is my boyfriend, Scott.”

“Let me size you up,” Tony said.

“He’s joking,” I whispered.

“No, I’m not,” Tony said. “My sister asked me to embarrass her as much as possible and that’s what I’m going to do.”

Scott laughed. “I already like him.”

Tony extended his hand. “I’m Tony, the older brother, hottest sibling, and the sexist bastard in this city.”

“Nice title,” Scott said.

“I wanted to keep it short,” Tony said.

“Well, you’re successfully embarrassing me,” I said.

“Mission accomplished,” Tony said with a smile.

Scott held up a bottle. “I thought we could use some sparkling cider.”

I smiled at him, realizing how thoughtful he was. It would have been rude to bring wine when my sister was a recovering alcoholic. “Thank you.”

“And I brought Twinkies,” Tony said.

“That’s not appropriate,” I said.

“What?” my brother said. “They’re good.”

“I love Twinkies,” Scott said.

“Why are you so weird?” I asked.

“You’re weird,” he snapped. He turned to Scott. “Get out while you can.”

Scott laughed. “She’s pretty crazy.”

I held up my hand. “You aren’t supposed to gang up on me.”

Tony shrugged. “I need a partner.”

“He hates the Yankees,” I said.

Tony cringed. “Just when I thought we could be friends…”

Scott smiled. “I’m a Mariners fan.”

“Get away,” Tony said. “Just go.”

I laughed. “I’m glad I broke up this arrangement.”

“We’ll recover,” Scott said.

I turned toward the hallway. “Beatriz, come out for dinner.”

There was no response.

“Is she five?” my brother asked.

“I told her that I told you everything,” I said. “She’s mad about it.”

Tony sighed. “Set the table and I’ll fetch her.”

“Thank you,” I said. “I guess you are good for something.”

“I’m good for a lot of things,” he said over his shoulder. “Like giving you money while you look for a new job.” He walked into Beatriz’s bedroom and shut the door.

Scott stared at me. “What’s he talking about?”

My heart raced in my chest. “Nothing.”

He didn’t seem convinced. “I’ve never lied to you. Please don’t
disrespect me by lying to me.”

I sighed. “We’ll talk about it later.”

“I want to talk about it now.”

I glared at him. “Not now.”

Scott backed down. “Okay.”

“Thank you.”

Tony came back into the room with Beatriz in tow.  “I knew I could convince her.”

Beatriz sat at the table and sighed.

“Let’s dig in,” I said.

We gathered around the table and started to eat. Beatriz was silent the whole time, angry and depressed.

Tony looked at Scott. “My sister says you two are getting serious.”

Scott nodded. “We are.”

He sighed. “Well, I have to grill you. It’s my job.”

Scott smiled. “Fire away.”

“What do you do for a living?”

“Lawyer.”

“Have any kids?”

“No.”

“Have you ever been married?” my brother asked.

“No.”

“Are you into drugs?”

Scott laughed. “No.”

“Then we’re good,” Tony said.

“Well, that was easy,” Scott said.

“And inappropriate,” I said.

Tony ignored me. “A Mariners fan? Really?”

Scott shrugged. “They got a good team.”

Tony shook his head. “My sister has weird taste in men.”

“Because he likes a different baseball team than you?” I asked incredulously.

“Hey,” Tony said. “It’s important. What if you two got married? How would we function? What if the Mariners and the Yankees play each other in the world series?”

“Like the Yankees would make it,” Scott teased.

Tony narrowed his eyes at him. “Watch it.”

I rolled my eyes. “I think we’ll manage.”

“And what about your kids?” Tony said. “You couldn’t raise them to like the Mariners.”

“We’re getting a little far ahead,” I said. “We’ve only been dating for a month.”

“You fell in love pretty quickly,” Tony said.

I glanced at Scott, but he didn’t react to the words. I stared my brother then glared at him. I didn’t want Scott to think I already loved him. He would think I was psycho and clingy. It was way too early to say something like that. I didn’t want to chase him away.