CHAPTER THREE
Three Days Later…
Reba blew her bangs out of her eyes in frustration as she stared at the contract in front of her. She was sitting in her swanky new office at the real estate firm in downtown Houston, one of the perks of being the firms top selling agent and while it was great to have a nice quiet place to focus and work most days, it was not working to her benefit today. It had been three days since her dinner with Jack and she was all over the place. She had not gotten back with him with a decision on whether she was willing to give them a chance for a third time and to his credit, other than a quick text to ensure she had made it home safely the night of their dinner, he had not pestered her for an answer.
She knew he had to be going crazy waiting for an answer. Hell, she was going crazy trying to figure it out herself. And she owed him an answer soon. She needed to figure out what she was going to do but she really needed to talk to someone, but who? Barbara Jean was so caught up in her work lately and even if she hadn't been, Reba wasn't exactly sure she wanted to talk about Jack with her despite their newly formed BFF status. Brock was out of the question, sure they were friends and she enjoyed spending time with him, but he always got so weird when she talked about relationships. An impressed whistle brought her out of her thoughts.
"Woah Mom, nice digs. You are going to be running this place before long. Who needs Dolly Majors when Reba Hart is in town?"
Reba beamed up at her very pregnant daughter who stood in the doorway to her office. "Cheyenne! What are you doing here?"
"Well, your grandson here is about to drive me crazy in anticipation waiting for his arrival and that cute little baby boutique down the street called to tell me the last few items we had ordered for the nursery were in so I thought I might as well get out of the house for a few hours and come get them and since I was in the area, I thought I would see if my mom could spare some time for a lunch date."
Reba shuffled the papers in front of her and quickly placed them in the desk drawer in front of her, locking them away and grabbed her purse. "Baby girl, your timing couldn't be more perfect. Let's go, my treat."
"Oh my gosh! What a tragically romantic story."
Reba laughed at her daughter's response of her retelling of her evening with Jack. "Cheyenne, I think your pregnancy hormones might be making more of it than it is."
Cheyenne smiled and shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I don't know Mom; I've watched Lifetime movies with less compelling storylines. Think about it, Jack made absolutely sure he was over his wife at your request but then he did the honorable thing and took care of her even though he was hung up on you and then he came back here to find you as soon as could. Completely tragically romantic. What did you do?"
Reba took an awkward sip of her water. "Told him I would think about it and let him know. That was three days ago."
"What?!" Cheyenne's eyes almost bugged out of her head, and she grabbed her stomach. "Mom! You should have taken that man straight home and to your bed."
"Cheyenne!"
"Oh Mom, stop acting like I'm still your 14-year-old daughter. He obviously has really strong feelings for you. What in the world are you waiting for?"
"I don't know, I guess I just worry about putting myself back out there again. What if you guys need me? What if he breaks my heart?"
Cheyenne shifted again in her seat. "Well, first of all, if he knows what's good for him, he won't break your heart. But even if he does, you are a strong woman. Way stronger than you were when everything went down between you and Dad. If something were to happen, you would hurt for a little while and then you would pick up and move on. And as for the rest of us, we are always going to need you in some way, but we are also all growing up and doing our own thing. I'm not saying you need to call Jack and have him over for a booty-call, take things as slow as you want, but I think it's time for you to put yourself out there again."
Reba looked down and then smiled. "It is time, isn't it? Gosh, I need to call Jack. Let me get the check."
Reba was busy trying to get the server's attention and talking out loud to herself about what she would say to Jack when she spoke with him that didn't notice her oldest daughter grimace painfully and clutch her stomach. "Mom, I think you should wait to call Jack."
Reba turned to her daughter in confusion. "But Cheyenne, I thought you just said…"
"Mom, I think you should call Van instead. Have him meet us at the hospital. My water just broke."
Two Weeks Later…
"Midnight moonlight shining through the curtain lace
Paints a perfect picture on your perfect face
One sweet angel sleeping in my arms
You are the promise I knew God would keep
You are the gift that make my world complete"
Reba trailed off quietly as she looked down at her grandson she held in her arms. He had been sleeping peacefully for a bit, but she couldn't bring herself to get up from the rocking chair and put him in the the bassinet. She leaned in closer, inhaling his sweet baby scent and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. "Mmm, sweet baby Mason, you are perfect."
"Is he finally asleep?"
"Yeah," Reba spoke softly, looking up at her daughter. "He's been out about thirty minutes. He sure put up a fight for awhile though."
Cheyenne smiled as she watched her mom put her son in his bassinet, soothing him when he stirred slightly. "I don't know if this family can handle another fiery red head."
"Hey now. I for one think fiery red heads are fabulous and I'm happy to have another one in the family."
"Maybe it will mellow and be more strawberry blonde like Elizabeth's." Cheyenne joked hopefully.
Reba shook her head. "Nope. I can tell. It's going to be a as red as an Oklahoma sunset. Kids probably going to freckle like the dickens too. You are probably going to want to start stocking up on sunscreen now. And the temper? Well, just don't ask your dad how to deal with it. He never was very good at it."
"Mom, thanks for everything this past couple of weeks. You've been a life saver."
"It's been my pleasure helping out and getting to spoil my new grandson. Are you going to be ok with me staying home tomorrow and then going back to work in a couple of days?"
"Yes, we will be fine. Van is finalizing things with some of his clients today and will take the next few weeks off so he will be around. Elizabeth will be at school during the day. We will manage. Just keep your phone close." Reba laughed. "Hey Mom, with everything going on this past week, I never asked how your conversation with the good doctor went."
Reba walked past her daughter leaving the nursery and stepping out into the Montgomery's living area. "Well, with everything going on, I never actually called Jack."
"Mom! It's been almost three weeks since you had dinner with him. You're telling me you haven't spoken to him at all?"
Reba plopped down on the couch. "Well, like you said, with everything going on I got distracted for a couple of days and then…well then, I got nervous about it."
Cheyenne sat down next to her mom and took her hands. "Why nervous?"
"I don't know, I guess just opening myself back up to love again."
"You know Mom, I've been thinking about this and after Jack left two years ago, you didn't really date again. You kind of buried yourself in your work and us kids as much as we let you, but you certainly didn't open yourself up to a new relationship. Do you think it is possible that you had already opened yourself up to love and you've just been waiting and hoping that it would come back to you?"
Reba reached over and pushed a stray hair from her daughter's face and tucked it behind her ear. "When did my daughter become so wise?"
"I had a great teacher but I still have a lot to learn so don't stop teaching. Mom, I know you value relationships and that's why you've guarded your heart for all of these years, but Jack is amazing and he's out there waiting…for you. It's time to take a leap of faith. You deserve it."
It was just after 9 pm when Reba crawled onto her bed in her favorite silk pajamas with a glass of her go to red wine and her cell phone. She took a healthy sip of her wine and a long deep breath before dialing the number she had pulled up on the screen. With each ring her pulse quickened and she was just about to give up on an answer on the other end when the call finally connected.
"Hello there."
His voice was like warm honey and Reba felt herself relax. She had been afraid that he would be angry after the delay in her reaching out but there had been no sign of that in his greeting at least. "Hi Jack."
"Wow, I had just about given up hope that I was going to hear from you. I thought I was getting ghosted."
Reba laughed. "I'm sorry Jack. I never would have just ghosted you. I'm not that hip. Things just got crazy there for a bit. Just when I was about to reach out to you, Cheyenne went into labor and had her baby and then I spent awhile with them helping them get settled in with the new baby."
She could hear the smile in Jack's voice when he replied. "Congratulations! Hopefully mom and baby are doing well?"
"The labor was long so it took Cheyenne a minute to bounce back. That's why I stayed with her the last couple of weeks, but she's doing good now. Now, little Mason Aaron Montgomery is 8lbs 13oz of red headed perfection."
Jack laughed. "Oh Lord, another redhead? What is this world coming to?"
"Hey! Why is everyone throwing shade to redheads today? I think redheads add spunk to life."
"You are right. In fact, I happen to quite like one particular redhead."
"Listen Jack…" Reba started.
"Oh," Jack interrupted quietly, "here comes the letdown."
"What?" Reba asked confused, then realizing what he must be thinking. "Oh no, Jack! I was actually wanting to confess something to you about why it took me so long to call you, other than my new boyfriend Mason."
"There's more?"
Reba took another drink of her wine. "In full disclosure, I may have used Mason's birth partially as an excuse to avoid calling you because I was nervous. Nervous to put my heart back out there, nervous to rush into something with you again."
"Reba, I completely understand. And in the vein of full disclosure, I am nervous too. I am nervous that I will screw up somehow again and hurt this amazing person who means so much to me and deserves only the very best. And honestly, after the last two years I have had, I am in no hurry to rush into anything. We can take this at whatever pace you want, all I am asking for is a chance to try."
"And a chance is what I want to give you…what I want to give us."
Jack smiled on the other end of the line. "That is the best news I've heard in almost two weeks. I just wish you were here in person so I could take you in my arms and kiss you."
Reba felt her cheeks flush hot. "Well, speaking of seeing each other in person, when do you think we can make that happen again?"
"Well, if you are interested, I actually have two tickets to Wicked for tomorrow night. I was just going to skip it because I didn't have a date but now that those prospects seem more promising, I could be talked into it."
"Are you kidding? Wicked? I've been dying to see that show. I would love to go. Dinner before?"
"That sounds perfect. Shall I pick you up at home before hand?"
Reba thought for a minute. "Actually, I have a couple of closings tomorrow and will be downtown anyway, why don't you just pick me up at the office. I will just get a room at a hotel and stay overnight so I don't have to drive home so late."
"Or you could just stay with me."
"Uhhhh, Jack, we're taking it slow remember?"
Jack laughed. "Reba, I have a guest room. I promise, no funny business. I just thought maybe you could stay here, and we could enjoy breakfast together before you went home."
"No funny business?"
"Scouts honor."
"Something tells me you were never a scout," Reba mumbled and then smiled when Jack laughed on the other end of the line. "Ok, it sounds like a date. I'm looking forward to it. See you tomorrow. Goodnight Jack."
"I can hardly wait. Goodnight Reba. Sleep well." And sleep well she did.
The next morning…
Brock and Barbara Jean were quietly eating breakfast at the bar in their kitchen. Henry had left for school minutes before and now they were alone again, suffering through the awkward silence that seemed to surround them all too often lately. Silence or arguments. There never seemed to be an in between. But tonight, Brock intended to correct that.
"Hey BJ, what are your plans for this evening? Are you working?"
Barbara Jean shook her head. "No, not tonight. I finally have an evening off. Figured I would just spend a quiet night at home."
"That's great. I would love for us to be able to spend some time together and really have a conversation about us and what is going on with us."
Barbara Jean was just about to respond when there was a loud rap at the back door. They turned and saw Reba peering in at them from beyond the glass. Barbara Jean smiled at her friend and waved her inside while Brock rolled his eyes, irked at the interruption.
"Hi Reba! Long time, no see."
Reba stepped inside the house and hugged her friend. "Hi Barbara Jean. It's good to see you. We've both been so busy, I feel like it's been a while since we've had time to chat. And unfortunately, I can't stick around now. I just stopped by to see if Jake could spend the night with you all tonight."
Brock was about to tell Reba that Jake couldn't spend the night because he and his wife were going to be spending the night working on their marriage when Barbara Jean cut him off. "Of course, Jakey can spend the night over here. You got a hot date or something?"
"I actually had an old friend invite me to go see Wicked this evening and I've just been dying to see that show so I couldn't pass on the opportunity. But since it is going to be such a late evening, I am going to stay the night downtown and I don't want Jake alone all night."
Brock cleared his throat. "This wouldn't be the same old friend you were out with all night a couple of weeks ago, was it?"
Reba turned towards Brock and smiled. "Not that it's any of your business Brock, but yes, it is. And I wasn't out all night. Thank you, guys, I will make sure Jake knows to come here after school. I should be home tomorrow by lunch so if you have something going on in the morning, just send him on home. I've gotta get to work. Have a good day."
They watched as Reba left as quickly as she came. Once the door closed behind her, Barbara Jean broke out in a sing-song voice. "Reba has a boyfriend."
"Oh my gosh! I can't believe how amazing that was." Reba gushed as they stepped out of the theater onto the sidewalk with the other theater goers.
Jack had picked her up at her office earlier that evening and they had enjoyed dinner at a lovely French restaurant before dropping her overnight bag at his apartment and then taking a cab to the theater for the show. Jack laughed at the almost child like excitement on her face. "I have to admit, I'm kind of surprised. If I remember correctly, you used to always prefer country music. I didn't figure you would be a big fan of the musical theater thing."
Reba's eyes sparkled brightly under the marquee lights. "Well, you aren't wrong, I do love country. Loretta, Tammy, and Merle will always be some of my favorites. But I just love music in general. You don't know this about me but in another life, I was actually working on pursuing a music career. I had a band and was singing in bars and dance halls; I had even recorded a few demos and had planned to go to Nashville."
Jack looked down at her in awe. "So, what happened?"
Reba shrugged. "I met Brock and I let my priorities change. We fell in love and got married and his becoming a dentist seemed like the safer option than me pursuing music career. So, I went to work and put him through school. The plan was always for me to go back to school and become a music teacher so I could pursue my love of music in some way but then kids came along and well… you know the rest of the story. But my love of music and by extension musical theater never stopped."
Jack reached over and ran his thumb across her cheek. "Just when I think I can't be surprised by how amazing you are, you go and do it again. And you gave me a great idea for a date night."
"Oh, I did? What's that?"
"Karaoke."
Reba laughed. "It's been years since I have sung in front of people. You would have to get me pretty drunk to get me up in front of people again."
Jack smirked at her. "Even better." Reba playfully slapped his arm. "My place is just a few blocks away, feel up to walking or would you like me to get a cab?"
Reba took a deep breath and looked up to the night sky. "It's a beautiful night. Let's walk."
"Perfect." Jack pointed them in the direction of his apartment and let her set the pace. After a few minutes, he reached down and grabbed her hand and was pleased when she laced her fingers through his. They walked quietly for a few minutes. "You know, I've really enjoyed this evening. I had almost forgotten how much I enjoy your company."
"It is pretty amazing how easy it is with you. I always just feel so comfortable with you."
"Well, speaking of being comfortable," Jack stopped them, "my apartment is right upstairs. Before we go up though, I want to make sure you are comfortable. If you are unsure at all, I can sleep on the couch at my office or we can get you a room somewhere, I just want to make sure you are good."
Reba blushed and looked down at her feet before looking back up at Jack. "Jack, I trust you. You promised me no funny business and I believe you. Besides, I will be in the guest room and I'm not quite ready for our night to be over. Let's go upstairs and have a nightcap."
Reba checked her appearance in the mirror one last time before taking a deep breath. They had agreed to retire to their separate rooms to get more comfortable before sharing their nightcap and she was relieved to be out of the little black dress and high heels she had been wearing since early that morning. She had paired it with a conservative blazer for work and then lost the blazer for their date, but she was ready for the comfort of the simple form fitting navy t-shirt and plaid flannel lounge pants she wore now. She brushed her teeth and quickly refreshed her lip gloss before heading back out to Jack's living room.
She found Jack in his kitchen wearing his own version of lounge wear in black joggers and a gray t-shirt and pulling wine glasses from the cabinets. Reba pulled herself into one of the stools at the bar and Jack smiled over his shoulder at her. "Did you get comfortable?"
"Yes, since we agreed no funny business I decided to go for comfort over sexy."
"I hate to break it to you Reba," Jack walked over and leaned across the bar getting close enough for her to feel his breath on her face, "but you failed at the not being sexy part. But then, I'm pretty sure you would make a potato sack sexy."
Reba blushed and cleared her throat. "Flirt. Do you want to pour me a drink?"
"White, red or something stronger?"
Reba laughed. "I will stick with white. Anything stronger and I would think you really are trying to get me drunk."
Jack handed her a glass of white wine and allowed his hand to linger on her arm. "Are you exhausted? I know you have had a long day. Do you want to go to bed?"
"It has been a long day, and I am tired but I'm not ready for the evening to end just yet."
Jack took her hand and pulled her out of the bar stool and towards the living room. "Let's go sit on the couch and talk."
Jack sat on the couch and Reba snuggled in beside him allowing him to rest his arm comfortably around her shoulders. "Tell me more about this left behind signing career."
"When I first went to college I was dating a guy named Terry. He owned a bar and I went to work as a waitress for him. One night the singer he had booked to play didn't show up, so I volunteered to go on with the band. I had always sang in school back in Oklahoma and we even had a little country band that I was a part of because the school wasn't big enough for a traditional band, so it just seemed natural for me to step in. Anyway, it wound up going really well, better than anyone expected, and the band asked me to become their lead singer. After that, Terry started having us play every weekend. Crowds got bigger and bigger, one thing led to another, a promoter found us, and we started working on demos. We were talking about going to Nashville and then I met Brock, and everything changed."
Jack let his fingers rub a circle on her shoulder. "Do you ever regret it?"
Reba took a drink of her wine but quickly shook her head. "No, not really. Not to say I don't ever imagine what would have happened if we would have gone to Nashville but if I did ever find myself getting a little too deep into the wishful thinking all I ever had to do was look at those three amazing kids of mine and it made it all worth it. I wouldn't trade them for anything."
"Well, selfishly, I'm glad you didn't move off to Nashville and become a famous singer either. I probably never would have met Reba McKinney the famous country singer, but I sure am glad I met Reba Hart the amazing mother of three. However, I would like to hear you sing someday. Are you sure the karaoke date isn't a great idea?"
Maybe she was just feeling extremely comfortable in Jack's presence or maybe she was feeling a little tipsy but the next words out of her mouth were laced with more innuendo that she had intended. "The only place you will hear me singing is in the shower."
Jack smirked. "That sounds promising."
Reba's face flushed hot. "Stop it. You know what I meant."
Jack leaned in close to her ear. "I do know what you meant. Doesn't mean a guy can't have goals."
Reba shivered slightly at his breath on her neck. "Well, you play your cards right and you might just have a chance."
She turned her face towards his and suddenly their lips were mere inches from the others. She could see the beginnings of his end of day stubble forming on his face and the mixture of his cologne and the wine on his breath was more intoxicating than her own glass of wine. She saw the silent request for permission in his eyes a mere second before she pressed her lips to his.
She had almost forgotten how soft and supple his lips were. They were a sharp contrast to the tickle of his stubble on her cheek. Reba felt Jack shift towards her and she turned her own body towards him, somehow managing to set her wine glass on the coffee table in the process. His hand grasped her side and pulled her closer to him and she felt the warmth of his body covering every inch of hers.
Reba felt the tip of Jack's tongue tentatively touch her lips seeking permission for entrance. Reba allowed her lips to part and Jack's tongue slipped quickly into her mouth and not to be out done she returned the favor. Soon, their tongues were in a passionate duel for dominance. As their kisses began to heat up, Jack's hand slipped to Reba's hip and pulled her closer to him while his other hand played with the edge of her shirt and let his fingers slide onto the bare skin of her back.
Reba's heart was racing, her skin was on fire and her nerves were electric. Everything in her wanted him, to throw caution to the wind and take him to her bed, but the part of her mind that was logical kept breaking through telling her to slow things down. If she wanted the opportunity for a future, a real relationship with Jack, take things slow and build something solid before falling into bed together. So, after another frantic moment of dueling lips and groping hands, she finally found the wherewithal to place her hand flat on Jack's chest and push away from him.
"Jack." She breathed heavily, resting her forehead against his.
Jack closed his eyes, trying to gather himself. "I'm sorry, Reba. I promised you no funny business. I just got caught up in the moment."
"Don't be sorry. I got caught up in the moment too. And I was enjoying every second of it. But I do want us to take things slow so I think it might be best for me to call it an evening and head to bed."
Jack stood and and took her hand and began walking her down the hall towards the guest room. "I had a wonderful time this evening."
"It was a lovely evening. I look forward to many more lovely evenings together."
Jack ran his thumb across her lips and then tucked her hair behind her ear before he leaned in for a chaste kiss. "Good night, Reba."
"Good night, Jack," she replied before stepping into the guest room, closing the door behind her.
To be continued…
