"Tony, what's going on with you and Mom?"
"What?" Tony asked distractedly.
"You and Mom! What is going on with the two of you?" Jonathan asked again.
"What do you mean? We're fine."
"Oh yeah sure. You've just been staring at her for the last hour." Jonathan rolled his eyes and shoved some pretzels in his mouth.
"I have not been staring at Angela. I've just been looking ahead."
"Tony, you've been staring."
"Have not!"
"Have to!"
"Have not!"
"Have to!"
"Have... you know what, forget it!"
Jonathan smirked.
"Okay fine. I have been staring-a little."
"Told you!"
Tony shot him a look.
"All right, so why have you been staring at her? And more to the point why aren't the two of you sitting together. Normally you would be."
"You're right."
"And you would be discussing ways of bringing Sam home-though I think you should leave her in New Mexico for the rest of her life."
"Jonathan!" Tony growled.
"What?! Hey, she would say the same about me."
Tony had to admit he was right.
"But she's sitting with Grandma and we're sitting three rows behind them."
Tony shrugged. "I guess she thought we could use some guy time."
"Tony, give it up. That is not the reason. Mom has been giving you the cold shoulder since yesterday. And come on, she couldn't find a row where we could all sit together?!"
Tony sighed.
"See there is something!"
"Okay, there is. But you're too young."
"Tony, I'm fourteen and will be fifteen soon."
'I know how old you are. But this is grown up stuff." Tony picked up his cup of ginger ale and took a swallow.
"Oh, is it about sex?"
Tony coughed and sprayed the ginger ale all over himself. He glared at Jonathan and wiped his shirt off with some napkins.
"Ah, we are getting somewhere." Jonathan laughed.
"No, we are not!"
"Yes, we are!"
"No, we…. You know what? I'm not getting into this with you again!"
"Come on Tony, just talk to me. Look, whatever it is, maybe I can help. Even though I'm only fourteen." He rolled his eyes.
Tony knew talking to him would be a bad idea. And it wasn't just because of his age. Ever since he had decided to date Kathleen the dynamic of the family had changed. Sam and Jonathan had become withdrawn and had refused to talk to him at first. Eventually they had both come around-a little- but things were still a little dicey. If he told Jonathan that he was making out with Kathleen on the family couch that could be shot all to hell.
"Jonathan, I can't talk to you about this. And it's not just because of your age. I just don't want you hating me like your Mom does."
"What? Mom doesn't hate you."
"Yeah, she does. I.. I did something stupid."
"What?" 'Beside getting involved with Kathleen?!' He thought but didn't verbalize.
'Okay, fine. I'll tell ya. I'm sure Angela has already told Mona so you might as well know too."
"Finally!"
"So, yesterday, I invited Kathleen over when you all were gone."
"You did? Why?" Jonathan started getting a sick feeling. Maybe this was about sex.
"Because, we needed to go over our classes for next semester."
"Oh. well that sounds okay." Jonathan inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Yeah, well that was my plan but Kathleen had other ideas."
"What?"
"Well she started kissing my neck and nuzzling my ear and I tried to resist but before I knew it we were making out." Tony said turning red.
Jonathan was too but it wasn't from embarrassment
It was from anger.
"You made out with the woman you betrayed my Mom with-our family with on the family couch?!"
###################################
Sam was going over the week's schedule when she felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around her.
"And how is the cutest girl in New Mexico?"
Sam turned around and glared at him.
"Just New Mexico?!"
He laughed. "Okay, in the whole world!"
"That's better!" Sam smiled and lifted her mouth to his for a kiss.
"So, how is Samantha doing?" She asked, referring to his pregnant mare.
"She's getting close. I'd say in about 72 hours we will have a new colt."
"Oh, I can't wait!"
"Me either. Hey look Sam, you never did tell me how your Dad took the news about you staying here."
"You're right. I haven't."
"So? How did it go?"
"It…. went as well as can be expected. I guess."
"In other words he's not too happy."
Sam sighed. "Yeah, not that I expected him to be. I wouldn't be surprised if he showed up here to drag me back to Connecticut."
"Come on Sam, he wouldn't do that!"
Sam scoffed. "You don't know my Father. I just hope he doesn't bring Kathleen with him." She made a disgusted face.
'Ah yeah. His girlfriend. You don't like her that much do you?"
Sam sighed. "It's not that I don't like her. She's perfectly nice and everything. She just isn't Angela. Angela is the one my Dad should be with! We-Mona, Jonathan, and I- all thought they were building towards being together but then he goes and gets involved with Kathleen!"
"Well maybe Kathleen is who he needs to be with for now."
Sam glared at him again only this time it wasn't out of a playful matter.
"No, he belongs with Angela!"
"Sam, look I'm just trying to give you an outsider's view point. All I'm saying is that maybe your Dad isn't ready at this time to be with Angela."
"Well he should be." Sam pouted.
He laughed. "Hey, if it's meant to be, they will be together."
"I hope so because Dad is driving all of us crazy!"
###################################
Tony knew talking to Jonathan was a huge mistake.
He looked like he wanted to strangle him.
"Uh…yeah I did."
"I don't believe you Tony! How could you?! On our couch? The couch where we watched movies together?! The couch where you and Mom would fall asleep together?! The couch where you would fall asleep waiting up for Mom when she came home late?!"
"You knew about that?"
"Of course I did! We all did!"
"Oh, well I just wanted to make sure she got home safe."
"Because you love her."
"No, because she is my friend."
"You love her Tony. Okay, maybe at first it was because she is your friend and yeah the two of you became best friends but you love her."
"Jonathan…."
"But for some reason you decided to get involved with Kathleen and break my Mom's heart and totally disrupt our family."
"Jonathan, things between your Mom and I are complicated."
"They don't have to be."
"But, they are. I work for her. "
"You won't be for long and come on, the two of you haven't acted like employer/employee in years!"
"You're right we haven't."
"Okay, then. Dump Kathleen and tell my Mom that you did a stupid thing and that you love her!"
"It's not that simple."
"Why not?"
"Because we both agreed that we would see other people now."
"You mean you decided and my Mom had no choice but to go along with it!"
"No, it was your Mom that said we should explore our options and broaden our horizons."
"Yeah, because you had sex with Kathleen!"
"Jonathan!"
"What?! It's the truth isn't it? If you hadn't we wouldn't be in this mess now!"
Tony rubbed his hands over his face.
"Okay, yeah. If I hadn't gotten involved with Kathleen we wouldn't be in this mess."
'Well then, you're a housekeeper, clean it up!"
##################################
"ANGELA! ANGELAAAA!"
Angela heard Tony calling for her and he sounded miserable. Well join the club because so was she!
She couldn't get the image of Tony and Kathleen sucking face out of her mind no matter how hard she tried. She had been so incensed by it and had taken it out on Sam telling her that they were taking her teen-age butt home. Yeah, some of it had to do with Sam herself but most of it was because she was so angry with Tony. She laid her arms on the fence and looked out to the pasture. It was beautiful here. And normally Tony and her would be flirting with each other and maybe taking a long walk. But after everything that had happened the last few months-and especially the day before she didn't want to be anywhere near him.
"ANGELA!" Tony whined coming up behind her.
She sighed and turned around.
"What is it? Did you and Sam come to an agreement?"
"Yeah…. She has decided to come back home."
"Well that's good. It's what you-we-wanted."
"If it was just her it would be fine."
"What do you mean?"
"Matt told me he is moving to Connecticut in a few months." Tony growled.
"He is? He must really love her. I mean he would be leaving his entire life."
"Yeah, whatever. I still don't like it!" Tony pouted.
Normally, she would try and console him some more but she wasn't in the mood.
"Well, I guess I'll turn in now." She started to walk away.
"Angela, wait! Please don't go!"
"Why not?"
"Because we haven't spent that much time together lately. I miss you."
"Don't you have to call Kathleen? I'm sure she misses you! Hey, maybe you can make kissy noises over the phone! I know it's not the same as the real thing but hey beggars can't be choosers!"
Tony sighed. "I guess you're still upset huh?"
"Oh gee you think?!"
"Yeah, Jonathan isn't too happy with me either."
She glared at him. "You told my fourteen year old son you and Kathleen were making out on our couch?!"
"Well yeah ummmmm you see he could tell that things were tense between us. And I tried to stall, I really did but I ended up telling him what happened. And hey I'm sure you told Mona!"
"Okay, yes I did tell Mother. But that's different. She dragged it out of me!"
"Well Jonathan dragged it out of me! I mean not for nothing but I think we have a mini-Mona on our hands." He chuckled in an attempt to lighten the mood.
She wasn't in a laughing mood.
"Okay, look. I know I messed up. Please tell me what I can say or do to make it up to you!" He begged.
Angela felt her eyes filling with tears and wiped them away. He noticed and felt a stab in his heart. In the past he would have taken her in his arms and let her cry on his shoulder. But given the fact that he was the cause of her tears he knew it wasn't possible. He recalled the last time something like this had happened. The day after he had slept with Kathleen and decided he wanted to keep seeing her. Angela had been teary eyed then and as much as he had wanted to comfort her he knew he couldn't.
"Well, I don't know what you can say or do. You are the one who decided to date Kathleen! You are the one who invited Kathleen over to our house so you could be alone with her!"
"Angela, I invited her over so we could go over our class schedules for next semester." He reminded her.
Angela rolled her eyes. "Uh yeah, so how were you doing that Tony? With your mouths pressed against each other?! With her tongue down your throat?! But hey I guess it's par for the course for the two of you isn't it? I mean one minute you're studying or in this case deciding what you are going to study- and the next minute you're ripping each other's clothes off."
"Angela, that wasn't going to happen! Yeah, we were kissing but I would never have sex with Kathleen or any woman in our house. We made that deal remember because of the kids?"
"Yeah, when they were little. But come on! Sam is going to college and besides no one was home. The two of you could have snuck up to your bedroom and had yourselves a good old time!" She wiped away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks.
"Angela! Come on, I would never..."
"You know what? I don't want to hear it! I just…I have to get away from you!"
With those words she stomped away from him. She turned a corner and ran smack dab into a man coming around the side of the barn.
He caught her by the arms and looked down at her.
She looked up at the most incredible emerald green eyes she had ever seen.
"Well, hello there gorgeous!"
Tony watched her walk away. He knew he should follow after her but something was holding him back.
'Go! Follow her!'
'No! Leave her alone!'
The voices in his head were battling for control.
He sighed and laid his head on the fence.
"So I heard you got caught with your pants down!"