Two days later, Jackson strode into the living room, restlessly bouncing his keys in his palm. He’d met with that frigging counselor today and danced and dodged the questions he’d been asked. It was an old habit to skirt real issues and withhold information about his “family of origin” and “how that might have affected” his response to the death of the kids and pets.
The kids’ deaths sucked. End of story. There was no point wading through his past.
A growing knot of tension in his stomach fought with his enthusiasm over his “great idea” to stage an intervention with Jake—the idea that he hadn’t told Blaire about yet. He’d been waiting for the right time. Now seemed as good a time as any.
The dogs bombarded him with their usual cheer. He dropped his keys in his pocket, scratched their heads, and told them each what good dogs they were. Then, he took a deep breath to prepare himself for telling Blaire the news.
He found her in the kitchen, dressed in body-hugging workout gear, stirring a fabulous smelling concoction that made his mouth water. Stepping up behind her, he squeezed her shoulders. “Hey, baby.” Then, he dropped his head to her neck and planted a trail of kisses across her tender skin.
“Mmm,” she moaned, leaning into him. She rested the spoon in a ceramic spoon holder which had a cartoon firefighter holding out his hands as if to receive the said tool.
“You’re hot and sweaty. You just work out?” he said into the curve between her damp neck and her shoulder.
“I just got back from a run about ten minutes ago. I prepared this earlier, so made sure to get home in time to get it on the stove before you came home.”
She pressed her back into him, making his cock twitch.
“How’s my hero?” she said, grinding her ass against his growing erection.
“Better now that I’m home,” he said, before kissing the top of her head. “Who needs a counselor when I have you?”
He longed to forget about sharing his idea with her and simply enjoy her, physically. But, his logical mind told him to get this over with so they could move on.
“How are you? Good day?” He turned and leaned against the counter to give his ardor a chance to cool down.
“Sure,” she said, reaching for a jar of spices resting on the stove. She unscrewed the lid and sprinkled it into the stew. “What’s not to like about styling people’s hair? Especially when they’re old and have nasty, crusty oil deposits in their scalps.” She scoffed while placing the lid back on the spices. She set it down with a noisy thwack.
“Yuck. That sounds unpleasant. Is that code-speak for ‘I didn’t have the best day?’”
“Hardly code-speak. But, no, I didn’t have the best day. Somedays I don’t like my job. But, I don’t have anything else to pursue at this moment, and it pays the bills, so…” She shrugged, pivoting to face him. “This has to cook for a bit. Let’s go out to the front room so you can relax.”
“Sounds good,” he said, ignoring his impulse to play a seduction game with her. But, dang, he couldn’t help himself. Everything about her was sweet and scrumptious, begging to be tasted, teased and pleasured. He pushed away from the counter and headed out of the kitchen.
“So,” he said, once he’d rested his backside on the front room sofa.
“So,” she said, snuggling up to him.
“I had this idea,” he began. His stomach clenched.
“Do tell,” she said.
He took a deep breath and huffed it out. “You know how I promised to set some boundaries with Jake, right?”
Her head tilted to the side. “Right,” she said, dragging the word out.
“He and I used to go camping all the time. I thought we could all go camping, and I could stage a sort of intervention in the woods.” There. I said it. He pasted a smile on his face.
Her lips parted, and she stared at him, wide-eyed. Then, she began to blink.
“I thought it a good idea,” he continued, leaning forward slightly. “He and I practically raised one another. We’ve been responsible for one another for a long time. It makes sense. If I get him away from his usual environment, maybe I can talk some sense into him. You know…tough love.”
Her mouth snapped shut. “Isn’t that the parent’s responsibility?”
“Oh, sure,” he said, wishing he hadn’t hinted at his past. “I only meant that he and I were close growing up. He’ll listen to me.”
She moved away from him, scooting to the other end of the sofa. “You’re shitting me, right? You want to go into the woods with your brother and do what, exactly, besides wish you hadn’t done it in the first place?”
A pointed stab of ire pushed its way through his belly. He rose from the sofa and turned to face her, propping his hands on his hips. “Helping him get clean. Letting him know how much it affects us and we’re done catering to him.”
A deep furrow formed on her brow. “And you need to do this in the woods? Why?”
Perhaps sensing the ratcheting tension in the room, Midget and Maxine trotted toward him and began to bark and twirl around his legs.
He tried to step around them.
Maxine lurched in his path. He stumbled, catching himself on the stone fireplace mantel.
He straightened himself upright and stared down at the dogs.
“To bed,” he commanded, snapping his fingers.
Tongues lolling, both dogs wagged their tails.
“To bed,” he said again.
The dogs slunk toward their respective red and blue plaid flannel beds near the fireplace. They each laid down with a groan of protest.
Jackson turned to Blaire who still sat on the sofa with her arms and legs crossed.
Right now, Blaire stared at him with a fixed, narrow-eyed gaze which made his whole body seem nailed to the floor.
“Come on, baby.” Jackson’s fingernails bit into his palms. “Jake won’t get better without treatment. He needs to be held accountable.” The accountability word had become his new mantra. “He won’t seek treatment unless he’s forced. It’s a good idea.”
“You come on,” she said, sitting forward. “It’s ridiculous to do an intervention on your own. You’re supposed to do that with qualified professionals.”
She swept her arm out in front of her as if a few addiction counselors might instantly pop up in their living room.
“He’ll be suspicious if anyone else comes along.” He splayed his hands, trying to get some of the tension out. “Besides, you’ll be there.”
Her body grew rigid, and her face flushed. “You’re crazy, you know that, right? No way will I go camping with your loser brother. Hell, he’ll probably stab us both, steal all our money, and try to find drugs to buy from a park ranger.”
“Park rangers aren’t typically dealers,” Jackson ground out through gritted teeth.
“He’ll find the one that is,” Blaire said.
He waved his hand in her direction. “We’re not going where there are park rangers, anyway. I thought we’d head up Egg Ranch Road.”
“Even better,” she said, her eyeballs drawing a half-circle in the air. “No witnesses.”
Ignoring her commentary, he said, “I’ve got a buddy, Rick Heller, who lives on Egg Ranch Road who said I could camp up there. He purchased a house at the end of the road before all the wealthy moved up there. There’s a really pretty little lake in the forest the tourists rarely get to. And hot springs…”
“Uh-huh. So, you’ve talked to a buddy about this trip before mentioning it to me. Nice, Jackson.”
“What? I didn’t really do anything other than ask around to see if it’s feasible.” He folded his arms over his chest. “He’s the guy who sold us the car and renter’s insurance we got through the department. He came into the station yesterday to see if any of the new volunteers needed insurance. I asked him if the offer still stood.” Like a time-bomb waiting for the countdown, he kept his anger in check. He’d never yelled at Blaire and didn’t intend to start.
“Don’t forget…you’re talking about the guy who ripped me off in my own home,” Blaire said, fire in her eyes. She launched to her feet and faced him, about a yard away.
That was the match to his fuse. He threw his hands in the air. “Why the fuck are you tripping? Do you want to fight is that what you want?”
“That’s what we’re doing, isn’t it? We’re fighting about Jake,” she hissed, thrusting out her chest and clenching her hands into fists.
He grabbed his chin and cracked his neck from side to side, trying to ease some of the tension shooting through his bloodstream. “No, we’re fighting about a difficult decision I made and didn’t consult you.” His lungs bellowed. He forced air into his cheeks and slowly let it out.
She shook out her hands and looked to the ceiling.
For a few seconds, they both avoided one another’s gaze.
Finally, letting out a long breath, she said, “I know you’re trying, Jackson. When are you hoping to do this stupid plan?”
Hope bloomed in his heart, causing his heart to stop pounding. “Fourth of July weekend. It’s the only time I could get off.” That’s usually the day that Jake acts out the worst. That’s when Dad left. He’s played more stupid pranks on me on the 4th than I care to count.
Her arms resumed their stranglehold across her chest. The purple Swarovski crystal necklace he’d bought her for her birthday two weeks ago hung from her neck. It sparkled in the late-day sun, lighting the room.
“I see,” she said. “So, you’ve already got this arranged with the station, too. I thought we were going to head into Seattle to watch fireworks with my sister Tessie’s kids.”
He groaned. “You know what a long drive that is, and half the time your sister has invited the whole neighborhood over. It’s pretty chaotic, remember? The last time we went to your sister’s for her kid’s birthday party, you said, ‘never again.’”
Her cheeks flushed, and she stared at the dogs while fiddling with the hem of her sleeveless workout shirt.
The dogs took her focused gaze as a good sign. Both got to their feet.
“Down,” Jackson said, snapping his fingers.
They each sat, and then scooted their paws out in front of them and rested their heads on top of their legs.
“What about the part about you already arranging this before you checked with me? Is that the way we do things, now?” She raised one eyebrow on her pretty face.
His face grew hot. “I checked into available dates when I met with the counselor today,” he said, matching her defensive arms-folded posture. “And, like I said, I only asked Rick, the insurance guy, in passing. Look…you said I needed to do something. I’m doing something. I won’t lose you over my jackass of a brother.”
“No, we’ll both be dead in the woods instead,” she said, directing her gaze at the dogs again. She backed toward the sofa and slumped onto one of the cushions.
“I hate this.” Blaire’s voice cracked, and a few tears slipped along her cheeks.
His heart sank like a stone. “Don’t cry, baby. Please don’t cry.”
He rushed toward the couch. He sat next to Blaire and put his arms around her, pulling her close.
She sniffled into his shoulder. “I hate to fight with you.”
“I know. Me, too.” He kissed the top of her head, inhaling her fruity shampoo scent.
“We argue about bills and stuff sometimes,” she said. “But we fight about Jake.”
Her words were like a knife to the heart. “I know,” Jackson said. “I’m going to change it this time. I’m making a commitment to you right here and now to fix things.” He brought his fingers underneath her chin and tipped her face up to meet his gaze. “Understood?”
Her watery lilac-colored eyes met his gaze. Tears clung to her long eyelashes.
“By doing something stupid, that could get us both killed?” she said, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. She held the hand in front of her and grimaced. Then, she cast her gaze around the room. “Where are the tissues I put on the end table?”
“I had to clean up something Maxine yakked up earlier, and they were handy,” he said. “I’ll go get them.”
He eased away from her, pushed to his feet, and hurried into the foyer. Stooping, he retrieved the leaf motif decorated tissue box from the floor where he’d left it. He returned to the living room and handed her the box. Then, he sat down next to her again.
“My brother’s not a murderer,” he said, continuing the conversation. “He’s a lot of things, but he’s not that.”
Blaire dabbed her face with a tissue. “If you say so.”
Maxine padded over and put her nose in Blaire’s lap.
Blaire scratched the top of her furry head and then traced the white streak down the middle with her fingertip.
Midget took that as a cue and trotted over to Jackson.
He absentmindedly ruffled the white side of her half-white, half-black face, and she licked his hand.
“What if it’s not an intervention, so much as a conversation? Things have been tense between Jake and me for years. Maybe getting out in nature will do him good and remind him of simpler times.” He placed his hand on Blaire’s thigh. “He seemed to warm to the idea when we spoke the other night.”
She looked at the ceiling and shook her head.
Just like the dogs, he took this as a good sign of her flagging resistance and scooted closer to her. “It will just be for a couple of days. You and I haven’t ever gone camping. It will be fun. And,” he said, his mind whirring, “if it’s not fun, we’ll bag the whole thing, and I’ll take you to those hot springs and let Jake fend for himself.”
“We’re not going to leave your brother alone in the woods, Jackson,” she said, caressing his leg. “He can’t even take care of himself in town.”
“That’s not what I meant. We can tell him we’ll be back in a couple of hours. I know how much you like hot springs. There’s a great one in the woods near the lake. Just you, me, and the trees, girl.” He waggled his eyebrows.
“Don’t give me that adorable look,” she said, suppressing a smile.
“What, this one?” He reached out and turned her face toward him, widened his eyes, and whined like a dog.
Midget barked at him.
Blaire laughed. “She thinks you’re sending out a distress signal.”
“I am,” he said, curling his fingers under his chin.
She playfully pushed him away. “You win. But if this goes south, we’re going to do it my way.”
“What way is that?” he said, his forehead furrowing.
“Tough love. If he can’t figure out how to live on his own without your help, I’m going to insist we move away from here.”
“But I like my job,” he protested.
“I don’t want to move, but as long as Jake interjects himself between us, we don’t stand a chance.”
He sighed. As much as he wanted to argue, she was right.
“Okay,” he said. “I hear what you are saying. If this doesn’t work, tough love it is. I cut him off.”
He shrugged outwardly but tensed inside. No way could he cut off his brother.
“Good,” Blaire said.
Relieved that the moment had passed, Jackson stroked her back.
“Kiss and make up?” he said, moving his face toward her.
“I’m all sweaty,” she said. “Let me shower first.”
“I love you just the way you are, sweat or no sweat,” he said. His lips parted, eager to connect with hers.
She inclined her head to the side but said nothing.
Jackson took the gesture as an invitation to nibble her neck with his teeth, the way she liked.
She moaned, leaning in closer.
He pushed his hands underneath her soft lavender top and then worked his fingers inside her bra so he could tweak her nipples.
She stiffened.
His fingers stilled. “What?”
She pulled away from him, and her gaze roamed around the room. She chewed her lower lip in a manner that made him worry she’d draw blood.
He backed away. “What? Tell me.”
She tugged down her top. “I, uh…We need to talk.”
“About? We just got done with talking. Now I need to tell you things with my body.”
“That’s just it.” Her breath began to quicken. “I think we need to cool it with the sex.”
The phrase landed with a boom and a bang in his chest.
“What kind of request is that?”