Chapter Two 1

Georgia stepped into the shower and let the wet heat erase her thoughts. For a moment anyway. Despite her best efforts to keep her mind blank, she kept returning to Leo's statement about having something up his sleeve. It was just one more detail that might go wrong, but hadn't been able to come up with a plan to deal with it. She'd call Regina after she got out of the shower and talk it over with her. They were usually on the same page regarding Leo, unlike Christina, who doted on him. And he on her. She snorted out loud at that thought. How ridiculous was it that Christina, who was so beautiful at 18 that she could wrap men around her little finger, wanted nothing to do with any of them but Leo. Leo. Unbelievable. Georgia shook her head to get them out of it and let the water stream over her. She'd finish up and call Regina. That was a good next step.

She toweled off and got dressed. She stared at herself in the mirror as she dragged a brush through her long hair. Forty, she thought, and I still look damn good. I could pick up a twenty-something and take him on a trip to Cougarville. She shook her head again. She was still married, even if Allen would rather watch chickens lay than lay her. She sighed and picked up the phone. "Hey Gina, it's me. Are you busy?"

"Just getting ready for tonight, what's up?"

"Have you talked to Leo lately?"

"No, not really. I hate talking to him. He either wants to know who hasn't paid their bills or talk about those damn dogs. Who gives a frog's fat ass about those stupid mutts of his? I think he's jealous that his studs get more action than he does and has to live vicariously though them."

Georgia could always count on Regina to say something inappropriate and funny. "You're probably right. He loves those dogs more than us."

"Which is okay because we don't give a frog's fat ass about him either."

"Damn straight. But, you're getting me off-topic. The other day, he said he had something up his sleeve about the party tonight. Any idea what's going on?"

Regina paused while she thought about it, "The lawyer called looking for him on Tuesday, but he wouldn't tell me what it was all about. I bet he's changing his will now that Christina is 18. And he probably wants to make some big deal about it so that everyone knows."

"God, I hope that's it. I can deal with that. I'd rather listen to him make a fool of himself over Christina than listen to him convince the band to let him sing."

"If I have to listen to him sing 'My Way' one more time, I might commit suicide. Keep your cooking knives handy just in case. We might need them."

Georgia heard the garage door go up, "Gina, I have to go. Allan's just got here and I need to have a talk with him."

"Okay G. See you tonight."

"Yep. See ya." She snapped the phone closed and put it on her dresser. She quickly slipped out of her clothes and wrapped the towel back around herself. She took another look at herself in the mirror to make sure it look like she'd just gotten out of the shower and headed downstairs.

"Where were you this time? The community compost? You look like shit." He didn't actually. He looked… mmm. His t-shirt had a smear of dirt on it and he was slightly sweaty. Dammit he's still so hot, she thought. Two years ago, he'd have walked through the door looking like that and we'd be on the kitchen floor before you could say 'hey there.' And look what I'm reduced to now; walking around half naked to 'try' to seduce my own soon-to-be-ex-husband. She didn't really want to be doing this, but it was the best way to a fight. To get him riled up. And maybe if she got him riled up, he'd actually want her.

"I was helping out at the fairgrounds. They needed help getting the tents and booths set up for the festival. Did you just get out of the shower?"

"Way to state the obvious, genius. I heard the garage door go up just as I was stepping out and I wanted to talk to you."

He stared at her cleavage, "Talk?"

"Yes. Talk. Why? Did you have something else in mind?" Georgia fingered the top of her towel.

He took two steps closer to her and reached out to touch her wet hair. Georgia took a step back out of his reach. The confused look on his face was priceless. "Hold it. That wasn't an invitation, you ass."

"It sounded like it to me."

"Yeah, well, maybe if you were actually interested in us anymore, it might have been. But you're off building the Land of Make Believe instead of helping me with last minute party stuff."

Allan shook his head, "You never need help. You always have everything under control. I don't even understand why you think you need me around."

"I don't need you, but I used to want you. I used to see how powerful you were, how you could manipulate your clients and your competition and it was a rush for me. Do you know how sexy it was to see you snap your fingers and have people jump to get you what you wanted? And when you came home, the first thing you'd do to get rid of the stress of your day was to drop your briefcase and grab me. Not play little seduction games, just grab me. A fuck before dinner. An appetizer. What happened to that man? Huh? That potent, sexy, commanding man that used to make me hot just by walking through the door? All I see before me is a weak, milky shadow of what used to be. You're pathetic."

Allan looked at her blankly. He said nothing for a few seconds, then turned and walked upstairs. Georgia heard the door to the guest room slam and growled in frustration.

2

Regina pulled four dresses out of her closet and put them on the bed. She stood in front of the mirror in just her bra and underwear taking turns holding them up in front of her until she could decide on what to wear tonight.

"It doesn't matter what you wear, you know it's going to end up in a heap on the floor before tonight's over," Ken said. He was stretched out on the bed, naked as the day he was born. "In fact, why don't we just practice that part right now. Come here."

She dropped the dress she was holding and turned to face him. Even though she'd never admit it, she loved that nothing was more important to him than her. She touched her left index finger to her lip as she slipped her right hand inside her panties. "Ken, you can see I'm getting ready for Leo's party tonight. I'm busy." She sucked her finger inside her mouth.

He grinned and rolled off the bed to come stand in front of her. She started to kneel in front of him as the phone rang. It had to be Georgia. Who else could it possibly be? She probably had some minute detail she needed to rehash for the forty-seventh time. Jesus, that woman needed to relax. She looked at Ken, who shrugged, then picked up the phone, "Hello?"

"Hey Gina, It's me. Are you busy?"

Just about to get busy, you interrupting cow, she thought. "Just getting ready for tonight. What's up?"

"Have you talked to Leo lately?"

Ken stepped around behind her and unclasped her bra. She wriggled out if it, "No, not really. I hate talking to him." He reached around and pinched her nipple. She swatted his hand away, "He either wants to know who hasn't paid their bills or talk about those damn dogs. Who gives a…" He had moved around in front of her and reached down and bit her nipple this time. She tried not to give Georgia any clue about what was going on, "frog's fat ass about those stupid mutts of his? I think he's jealous that his studs get more action than he does…" She squirmed out of his grip, turned around, grabbed his dick and squeezed, "and has to live vicariously through them."

Georgia murmured something about him loving the dogs. Regina wasn't really listening, but she responded "Which is okay because we don't give a frog's fat ass about him either."

Ken grabbed the hand that was holding his dick, stepped back and knelt in front of her. As his tongue touched her most sensitive area, she paused. She could hardly think. "The, uh, lawyer called looking for him on Tuesday, but he wouldn't tell me what it was all about. I bet he's…" She gasped as his fingers joined his tongue, "changing his will now that Christina is 18. And he probably wants to make some big deal about it so that everyone knows."

Georgia replied, "blah blah blah blah blah."

How fast could she get off the phone so she could get off? That was the pressing issue at hand, "If I have to listen to him sing 'My Way' one more time, I might commit suicide. Keep your cooking knives handing just in case. We might need them."

Georgia said something about Allan. Regina really couldn't care less, "Okay G. See you tonight." She hung up the phone and tossed it to the floor. She turned to Ken and pulled his hair. "You fucker." She wasn't really mad at him, but it was more fun that way.

He wiped his mouth and stood up. "You love it and you know it."

"That's not the point."

"I'll give you the point."

She laughed at the ridiculous entendre and leaped on the bed.

3

Christina stared at the plus sign and stared at Jack. This is not happening. It's not happening. I shouldn't have done this now. I've got to go to Dad's party and act like everything is ok when it's not. She blinked once, twice and then couldn't hold the tears back. Jack put his arms around her and just held her while she sobbed. He was kind and strong and considerate. It was why she loved him, why she'd given herself to him.

She was positive Leo wouldn't understand. He was so protective of her, it was suffocating. She hadn't really had a mother, so Leo was both parents to her and she loved him intensely; but she had been looking forward to getting away to UMass in September. Just for a little space.

She couldn't talk to Georgia or Regina about this. Neither of them had children and they both were so judgmental. They were manipulative and condescending to her. She knew it was because of how Leo had treated them. He'd been a different parent to them that he'd been to her. And neither of them had really had a mother either, so she could hardly blame them for how they turned out.

That left Jack. She did love him, but she wasn't sure she was ready for this. She straightened up and looked at him. She opened her mouth to ask him what to do, but nothing would come out.

He put his hands on her cheeks, "Chrissy, honey, if you choose to, you'll make a great mom and I support that. And if you choose not to, then I'll support you in that choice too."

She choked out a sob, "Jack, we're so young. I don't know if I'm ready to make a choice about what to do."

"You don't have to make a decision today, but you do have to think it through. Why don't you put it out of your mind for tonight. Go get in the shower, get ready, and we'll go to your Dad's party. We can leave early and talk about some options afterwards."

Christina nodded her head. Jack was right and she knew it. She got into the shower and let the hot water rinse away some of the shock. She was 18, legally an adult. If she wanted to go to the clinic and discuss terminating the pregnancy, she could do that on her own. She wasn't sure she wanted to do that though. She could be the mother she'd never known. She took care of Leo right now, so she knew how to be a care-giver; she could cook, clean, run a household. How many 18 year olds knew how to do that?

The hot water was soothing and it helped calm her brain. Jack hadn't freaked out at the plus sign, so she was pretty sure he'd be supportive no matter what she decided. He was right. She could put it out of her mind and put on a happy face for Leo's party tonight. She could. She would.