Jhondie
I was still floating more than walking when I rang the Carter's doorbell that afternoon. I had my bag with my clothes and stuff for the weekend, and I had a bucketful of cherry yum-yum. I was still feeling giddy over everything. Justin had been all I could have ever hoped for. It was like a dream made real. I knew we were going to have to be good today, and at some point we should go and get the disks for EO, but I was sure we could squeeze in some alone time.
We were going to have to be good today. Justin said his very conservative grandmother was going to be there, and I knew that he didn't want to have to deal with her telling him he needed to make up with his ex. For some reason his grandmother liked Justin's ex-girlfriend. I told him I would make a good impression, but I think that worried him a little more than helped him. My view of good was sometimes slightly skewed. At least I was dressed nicely though. Justin said that dinner was a dressy affair, so I was wearing a knee-length dark green dress. It had spaghetti straps over the shoulders and criss-crossing down the back, but that was covered with a jacket. It was one of those suits that went from very professional looking to very sexy by just taking off the jacket. I knew Justin would approve later when it was just he and I and I took off the jacket.
Justin answered the door, and he looked very relieved when he saw that it was I there. Was he that worried about his grandmother showing up? He grabbed my hand and took me into the kitchen quickly. He looked really worried about something. I put the yum-yum in the fridge before it could melt, and then waited for him to explain.
He put his hands on my shoulders, his eyes boring into mine. "Jhondie, I need to tell you something," he said urgently. "I just found out last night, and I had no idea this was going to happen, and I am really, really sorry, but…" the doorbell rang again, and Justin winced. I heard Brittany yell that she had it, and the door opened. "Just remember that I was serious yesterday when I told you I loved you," he said quickly. "No matter what, promise me you'll remember that."
Whatever was going on, it was important to him for me to promise. "I know you do," I said quietly. "What's going…" my words were cut off by a feminine squeal.
"Justin!" a girl cried out happily. I could literally see his hair stand on end. He straightened and turned around, and suddenly she flung herself at him, her arms wrapping possessively around him, kissing my boyfriend. To his credit, Justin peeled her off of him quickly. He glanced over at me, his expression pleading with me not to kill her. That was the only thing that saved her nasty little life at that moment.
She pretended not to notice that he practically shoved her off of him. She was smiling hugely, giving him a knowing look, like "I know you're just pretending in front of the girl." Justin quickly wrapped his arm around my waist. She didn't know it, but that was the only thing keeping me from jumping her rank ass at that moment. I had promised him that I would be good, but this was pushing my limits.
"Jhondie, sweetheart," Justin said, with a very fake polite smile plastered to his face, "may I introduce Denise O'Malley, my father's partner's daughter. Denise, this is my girlfriend, Jhondie Harris." That was Denise? THE Denise? I had always pictured a twisted psycho-looking chick, with unwashed tangled hair, and dirty nails and claw marks on her face. I was wrong. She was beautiful. I mean, like magazine cover, movie star beautiful. She had beautifully thick dark red hair that flowed in un-frizzed waves down her back, and bright emerald green eyes. She was tall and slim with long legs, and a perfect smile displaying some very good orthodontic work.
"Nice to meet you," I said politely, with the same false smile that she was giving me. Her expression was very clear. You don't stand a chance against me. Mine was a warning. He's mine. You had your one and only freebie. One more finger on Justin and I was going to make sure it took a team of California's best plastic surgeons to repair her pretty face.
"Well Justin, it looks like you've been keeping secrets," she said, staring at me. "How long have you two been together?"
"A little over six months," he answered quickly, still keeping a tight hold on me. He knew that I didn't want to hurt him and that was the only thing keeping me from shoving him off of me and kicking her back to whatever pit she had crawled out from. I'm really not the jealous type. I just have a problem with another woman putting her hands on my man.
"Oh, that was right after I moved to Boston," she said looking sympathetic. She shot me a little glance. A man might not be able to interpret that, but I could. He started to date me after she was gone and he couldn't have her. I knew the truth. It was actually right after the judge upheld the restraining order that she moved and he felt it was safe to date again.
I remembered suddenly that Justin didn't like her in his bedroom, and that always had upset her. I smiled sweetly at him. "I need to put my stuff in your room," I said. His eyes sparkled as he realized what I was doing. "Did you make a little room in your closet like you promised?"
He smiled. "Of course I did, love. Use what you need like usual." I caught Denise's expression in my peripheral vision. She looked like she wanted to claw my eyes out. Bring it on bitch. If she wanted to start a catfight I would be more than happy to show her how it was done.
I smiled at Denise. "Mr. Carter was nice enough to invite me to stay for the weekend while my mom is visiting her parents," I said. For a brief second she looked outraged, then reverted back to her smile. Mr. Carter had never let her stay overnight here. Justin said his dad was worried she might suffocate a twin if she thought one of them was distracting Justin from her. Justin told me once that he wanted to break up with her after about six months, but then she flipped out and the rest of their relationship was based on fear.
"Don't be long," Justin said. Our eyes met, and I could feel my stomach flutter. That wasn't for Denise's benefit. He leaned over and gave me a quick kiss before releasing me. I brushed past them and ran up to Justin's room.
I was furious by the time I got there. That bitch! I could not believe her nerve touching my boyfriend! I wanted to hit something, anything, but it would be rude of me to put my fist through the wall, and putting my fist through Denise would be excessive. I was pacing furiously in Justin's room, trying to work off the anger. This was my weekend with Justin. Now, I was going to have to deal with her. If she even thought about trying to get with him this weekend…even the slightest hint of "let's get together" and I was going to peel the skin from her nasty little…
"He's not interested in her in the slightest," Mr. Carter said from the doorway, interrupting my mental rant. I froze and turned to face him. He looked amused. He could afford to. He didn't know that I knew dozens of ways to kill someone in a painful manner. "I know my boy," he continued casually. "And I know that between you and her, she doesn't stand a chance."
"She kissed him right in front of me," I growled.
He nodded thoughtfully. "She probably wanted to do more," he commented. "Just remember, she's very jealous that Justin has moved on with his life. She might not want to admit it, but even she can see how he feels about you. That's not something she ever really got from him."
I had to smile at that. She really couldn't come between us, and if she decided to flip out, she was going to learn that it was impossible to intimidate the genetically engineered. Unless of course Lydecker was her date, but I doubted that. What could she do? I knew more about weapons, psychological warfare, explosives, and butt-kicking in general than she ever could. And most importantly, Justin was in love with me, not her.
The doorbell rang again. "That would be my mother-in-law," Mr. Carter said. I had to bite back a laugh. His expression was the exact same as Justin's when he realized Denise was here. "Denise is nothing," he said in a low voice. "This is the real dragon." Now I did laugh. I had faced down guards, guns, helicopters, and dogs that all had orders to terminate. This couldn't be nearly as bad as that. We both took a deep breath and headed downstairs.
