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CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Sunday morning, 6:30 AM

Jill tapped on Mike and Val’s door. When no one answered, she knocked. Naked, Mike jerked open the door just as her hand moved to pounded on it. She thumped him on the sternum.

“Sorry.”

Mike nodded and swung the door closed.

“WAIT,” Jill said. She held the door open with her hand. “There’s a bunch of people here for you. They’re in the kitchen. They came through the tunnels. Alex said she knew the codes because she set them up?”

“Alex?”

“It’s Alex Hargreaves and her twin Max and a bunch of people speaking French….”

“OH CRAP. Val! You have to get up!”

Mike moved into the hallway.

“Clothing?” Jill asked.

“Right,” he said.

He went back into the apartment. Jill stood in the doorway until he came out pushing Valerie in front of him. Valerie was wearing one of his dress shirts and his boxer shorts. Her hair was tied in a loose knot. In this unguarded moment, Valerie was stunningly beautiful. Mike pulled a t-shirt over his head as they started down the hall.

“Pants?” Jill asked.

“Oh crap. Keep her here.”

Mike jogged back into the apartment for a pair of jeans.

“Why are they here, Mike?” Val said.

The sleeves to his dress shirt hung over her hands. She rubbed her large hazel eyes with the shirt’s cuffs. The moment he was near her, she clung to him. He lifted her into his arms.

“Sorry, we just fell asleep,” Mike said. “She’s like this when she doesn’t sleep. She’ll snap out of it when she sees people.”

Jill grinned when she heard them kissing behind her. Jill jogged down the stairs to give them some privacy. When she entered the main kitchen, Alex was making coffee. Jill could see a crowd of people laughing and talking in the main Castle living area.

“Are they awake?” Alex asked.

“Barely. They are a little….”

Alex raised her eyebrows. She nodded her head toward the stairwell where Mike held Valerie in his arms. Mike was clearly trying to talk Val into meeting their guests; Valerie was only interested in kissing him.

“They’re always like that,” Alex said.

“I never knew there was a ‘they’,” Jill said.

“They have all this drama about whether they are together or not. But get them in the same room?”

Jill nodded.

“ROPER.” Alex commanded.

Mike’s head jerked up. Alex pointed toward the Castle living room. He carried Val through the kitchen and into the living room.

Valerie squealed.

Jill had to step out of the way as Valerie ran past her. Val took the stairs two at a time. Valerie’s footstep pounded overhead. Wham. Their apartment door slammed closed.

“What was that?” Jill asked.

Mike poked his head into the kitchen. He looked at Jill then Alex.

“She’s a little excited,” Mike said.

Alex and Jill laughed.

~~~~~~~

Aden woke alone on the cramped twin guest bed.

And certain he had never felt so very alone.

Jill told him to go slow. He had tried to go slow. But last night….

He lost her.

Standing from the bed, he stretched his sore body. He smirked at himself in the guest bathroom. His neck, chest and back bore the unmistakable marks of passion created by Sandy’s teeth and nails.

And his heart ached with loss.

Sandy was gone, probably forever.

How could one man experience so much wonder and so much loss at the same time?

Hearing the water run, he remembered that the kids were home. He slipped downstairs to his bedroom, showered and dressed then went to find the kids. They weren’t in their rooms. Standing in the hallway, he heard Nash’s voice then Noelle’s voice coming from the kitchen. He went down the hall to find them.

“Oh, don’t worry, Sandy, we know all about sex,” Noelle said. “I haven’t had any sex. I don’t think Nash has had any sex either.”

“Nope,” Nash said. “But we saw a bunch this weekend.”

“Yeah,” Noelle said. “I didn’t like it. It wasn’t like Daddy said it was.”

“What do you mean?” Sandy asked.

“Well, Daddy says that sex is how adults play with each other. Like Nash plays soccer and I play gymnastics.”

“It didn’t look very fun,” Nash said.

“Why did you see sex?” Sandy asked.

“Because Nuala was doing drugs and having sex with men,” Nash said. “I told her that we couldn’t be around drugs. But she just laughed at me.”

“What do you mean?” Sandy asked.

“Daddy says that we have addict parents,” Noelle said. “Do you know what an addict is?”

“Sure do.”

“Dad says that because we have addict parents, we are more sensitive to drugs and alcohol. We can’t be around it,” Nash said. “That’s why I locked us in the closet.”

“That was a very smart and brave thing to do, Nash,” Sandy said.

“My brother was amazing,” Noelle said. “You should have seen him. He wouldn’t let them take me or….”

“Take you?”

“Into the other room,” Noelle said. “They wanted to have sex with me. But I told them that I was NOT a grown up and I did NOT want to play with them. Then Nash locked us in the closet.”

Aden’s heart seized with rage. No wonder Nuala was so adamant that she wanted the kids this weekend. Nuala’s party plans included his daughter. He rushed forward to comfort his kids but stopped in his tracks. Sandy’s neutral kindness was helping the kids. He paced back and forth to cool his rage.

“That’s why you called the police?” Sandy asked.

“Yeah,” Nash said. “Dad gave me a phone and told me to call him if I needed him. I was going to call but then I hoped he was with you… on a date. Dad said he was going to see you when we talked. So I called the police.”

“I think you both are very brave,” Sandy said. “Muffin?”

Aden heard the kids move forward. Blowing out the last of his rage, he walked forward into the kitchen. Noelle sitting on a bar stool at the kitchen median while Nash was sitting in front of the kitchen computer. They were both eating muffins.

“DADDY!!” Noelle said.

She jumped off the stool to hug Aden. Nash joined them.

“We were just talking to Sandy,” Noelle said.  “We like her a lot. Plus, she made blueberry muffins. Don’t they smell great? She made coffee too. Do you want some? I can get it.”

Aden kissed Noelle’s head, then Nash’s.

“It’s great to have you here” Aden said. “I need to steal Sandy from you.”

“Ok Daddy,” Noelle said. “She has to go anyway. But she said she would come back to see us.”

“Can we go to splash fountain today?” Nash asked.

“And the zoo?” Noelle asked.

“You bet.”

Taking Sandy’s hand, Aden led her into his basement bedroom. He wrapped her in his arms and she giggled.

“Last night was….”

“Incredible,” Sandy said. “Yeah.”

He brushed her lips with his lips.

“I thought you’d gone… that I’d blown it… that….”

Sandy put her finger over his lips.

“I heard Noelle crying. She was standing in the hall looking for you. She didn’t want to disturb you… us…. She seemed to know who I was - which was weird….”

“We don’t have a lot of secrets around here.”

Sandy smiled.

“I’m glad. I told her I would make her some blueberry muffins. She woke Nash. We talked. That’s all that happened. They had an awful time at their Mom’s.”

“Sounded like you’re really good with kids.”

“I took care of my little sister and brother a lot.” Sandy shrugged. “I think they need you. Can you take Monday off?”

“I can but keeping to the schedule helps them feel more normal than hanging around with me.”

“Jill’s baby Katy is like that.”

He tugged her toward him and she rested her head on this chest.

“I have to get going,” Sandy said. “I meet Jill for breakfast and church every week. We’re hanging out today. Val said she would let us go through her old dresses since we didn’t find anything at the mall. Plus, it’s the one week anniversary of the non-date. Delphie told Katy she would make a cake.”

“Quite a week.”

Sandy stepped back a bit to look at him. “Thanks for… last night.”

“When do I get to see you again?”

“Call me.”

“Sandy… what did you decide?”

“About?”

“Dating exclusively.”

“After last night?” Sandy smiled. “Oh yeah.”

~~~~~~~

“I’m Frederic,” a young man said in heavily accented English.

“Nice to meet you, Frederic. I’m Mike.”

“Yes. I need you to take your clothing off.”

“Why?” Mike asked.

“I have to see what your body looks like in order to make sure we get something that looks right…um… right for you.” The man touched his arm. “I can’t tell with this on.”

“But…” Mike said.

The young man cocked his head and laughed. He said something in French and they all laughed.

“Why don’t you hit the showers?” Alex asked. She pointed to his unbuttoned 501s.

“He’s not coming into my shower,” Mike said.

“You’re such a homophobe,” Alex said. “Chill out. I’ve had to take my clothes off in front of everyone too. Scared them with my scars. Frederic? You want him in underwear.”

The young man said something in French. Everyone laughed.

“Do you have any briefs?” Alex said. “He won’t like your boxers.”

Mike looked at Alex then nodded.

“Great. Wear those,” Alex said. She whispered to him, “They’re very particular about undergarments. They usually just buy mine but they know my sizes and stuff.”

Mike nodded to Alex and started walking toward the kitchen. When he turned into the stairwell, he foundValerie peeking around a corner. Valerie was dressed with full make up and her hair was curled. She looked every bit the movie star.

“Do you know who that is?” Val whispered. “That’s Claire Martins. She’s a world famous designer. Designs for the Queen and…. No one in Hollywood has worn her dresses… and they’ve tried. I….”

Mike shrugged.

“I mean real ‘A-list’ stars have begged to wear her gowns. Remember that vintage Dior gown that Reese wore? Her stylist camped out in Paris for a week to see if he could get a Martins’ gown. He found the other gown while he killing time between begging. He though that beautiful dress was a good second. A second to a Claire Martins gown! And…”

“She wants to talk to you, Val.”

“Where are you going?” Val asked.

“Alex said shower. Just following orders.” Mike shrugged. “Honey, just go talk to them.”

He gave her a little push toward the living room.

Val stood in the doorway to the main Castle living room watching Mike’s guests. Alex and Max were clearly a part of this little group. Claire Martins had a long black braid down her back and was carrying a baby in a bjorn across her chest. There was a young man stretched out on the couch. They seemed so happy together…and so French. Val’s heart raced with panic.

“Hey Val.”

Max saw her from across the room. She couldn’t escape now. She raised her hand to say ‘hello.’

“This is my dear friend, Claire,” Alex said. She came over to give Val a hug. Leaning in, she said, “She speaks English but she’s impossible to understand when she’s excited. Do you speak French?”

Val shook her head.

“No problem, I’ll translate,” Alex said. “Claire brought a few dresses for you to look at. I guess you’re having a party next week?”

Val nodded her head.

Alex puzzled at Val’s timidity then shrugged, “Claire has a line of clothing coming out in the Fall. She wanted to know if you might take a look. She thinks the clothing will look great on you.”

Val nodded. Smoothing her hair, Val glanced at Claire just as Claire’s baby peeked over at her. Val’s heart melted. Her anxiety slipped away in the dark eyes of the six month old baby.

“Meet Gerard,” Claire said. “Would you like to hold him?”

“I… I’m a little baby crazy right now,” Val said.

“I’ve always been baby crazy,” Claire said. “Why don’t you hold Gerard and I will take some measurements. Ok?”

Val nodded. She took the baby from Claire. Enraptured by the warm bundle in her arms, she didn’t notice Claire buzzing around her.

When Mike returned to the Castle living room, Val was singing to the baby. His heart stood still at the sight. She looked up at him and smiled.

His Val.

He jerked back to the present when the young man touched him. Frederic was holding a couple pieces of fabric up to him.

“What are you doing?” Mike asked.

“I need to know what colors work on you and get your measurements,” Frederic said. “Don’t worry man, you’re not my type.”

“You’re not gay? I mean, I don’t care if you’re gay, I just don’t want….”

“My girlfriend would hate it if I was gay,” Frederic said.

“How come you do this?” Mike asked.

“We don’t choose our gifts,” Frederic laughed. “My mother is a great designer. You’ll see when your wife tries the off the rack. Maman also brought a couple of her gowns.”

Mike nodded his head as if he understood. He mostly hoped the young man would stop touching him. Mike didn’t like to be touched very much. In fact, outside of a quick hug from people close to him, the only person who touched him was Val.

“What are you comfortable wearing?” Frederic asked.

“Jeans, t-shirts.”

“Your legs are too big for these Levis,” Frederic said. “They can’t fit well.”

“They don’t. But I like them.”

Frederic shook his head, “Bring me what you have.”

Mike went off to the apartment for his jeans. When he returned, Valerie was wearing a brown pencil skirt with a jacket. The brown was just a shade lighter than her dark hair. She was so beautiful that he had to stop to catch his breath.

“Wow.”

“Wait until you see the gowns,” Frederic said. “This is our first attempt at an off the rack line. It’s nice. Yes?”

“Yes,” Mike said. “What does that mean? ‘Off the rack’?”

“It’s a line that can be sold off a rack in a store,” Frederic said. “My father retired and needed something to do. This was his idea. So, we’re trying women’s clothing in the fall and men’s in the spring. Maman wants to create children’s clothing as well.”

Mike nodded again as if he understood.

“These are the jeans?” Frederic asked. “Can you put them on?”

One after another Mike put on his jeans while Frederic watched. Finally, he shook his head. He said something in French and Max came over.

“He wants to know if we can get you some other jeans,” Max said to Mike. “Where did you get these?”

Mike shrugged. “What’s wrong with them?”

“They’re too small,” Max said.

“They fit the waist,” Mike said. “I just deal with the leg thing.”

“That’s why they rip right here.” Max pointed to rips near the crotch of each of Mike’s jeans. “I’ll keep a list. We already have undergarments. Jeans are easy. Levis?”

“Yeah. But they can’t be too big. They fall off me.”

Speaking very slowly, Max said, “Frederic will tailor them. That’s what he does.”

“Oh,” Mike said. “Sorry this is all….”

Mike stopped talking when Valerie turned around in the gown. He put his hand over his heart certain it had stopped beating. Valerie caught his look and smiled.

Max tapped his arm.

“Frederic brought a tux for you. He had to guess at the size. He thinks it’s too small. Do you have a tux you wear when you drive?”

Mike nodded. Frederic made a motion with his hand.

“We’d go back there but you were….” He said a word in French.

“Frightened,” Max translated.

“Oh, come on,” he said.

One by one, Mike tried on his clothing while Frederic shook his head and spoke in French to Max. To Mike’s surprise, Frederic liked some of his favorite shirts and pants. Before he could figure a pattern, they had exhausted his closet.

When they returned to the living room, Val was wearing a pant suit. Claire was speaking in very rapid French with Alex was translating. Val looked over at him in desperation. He slipped his arm over her shoulder.

“What’s going on?” He asked.

“Claire just asked Val to be her exclusive media representative,” Alex said.

“Exclusive…. What?” Mike asked.

“That’s spokesmodel to you! I think Val’s a little overwhelmed. She looks great in the clothing. But there’s a Ramon…?”

“You look so much better than in anything he’s put you in,” Mike said. “Let’s ask Jen. She’s still in town right?”

Val nodded, “She’s setting up Oprah.”

“Oprah?” Claire said. She nodded. “That would be very good for us. This line is not expensive but well-made. For the every day woman who wants to look….”

“Classy,” Alex finished Claire’s sentence. “Where’s Jill? Claire thought Jill would be perfect too but she disappeared.”

“She went back upstairs,” Mike said. “She’s painting and wanted to finish the trim before Mass.”

Alex and Claire spoke in rapid fire French for a moment.

“Can you get Jill, Mike? We think she would look great too.”

At the mention of Jill, Valerie lit up.

“We could both be spokesmodels?” Val asked.

“Two exclusive media representatives?” Alex frowned.

“Oui,” Claire said as if it was obvious.

While Valerie hesitated to hurt someone’s feelings, in this case Ramon’s tender designer feelings, she loved to spread good fortune. And Val loved Jill. Mike smiled at the change in her and kissed her nose.

“Call Jen and I’ll get Jill.”

Val nodded.

Denver Cereal continues next week….

~~~~~~~~

Denver Cereal is a serial fiction set in Denver, Colorado.

You can get your daily dose of Denver Cereal at DenverCereal.com

Chapters are posted on Saturdays on this blog.

claudia hall christian is a novelist.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Two Denver Police officers came in the gate to Aden’s backyard. Aden popped to his feet.

“Are you Aden Norsen?”

“Yes.”

“Would you mind stepping out of the hot tub, sir?”

Sandy stood when Aden hopped out of the hot tub. She watched the police say something to Aden. His mouth dropped open and his face blanched white. He shook his head back and forth.

Before they could tell her not to, Sandy got out of the hot tub to call Jill. Jill’s cell phone rang once… and ADEN WAS IN HANDCUFFS!!

Rang twice… and Jill pushed opened the glass sliding door from the house. In two steps, Jill encircled her best friend in a hug.

“You can hang up,” Jill said.

Terrified and humiliated, Sandy clung to Jill.

“I don’t know what happened. He was just telling me funny stories…. How did you get here so fast?”

“I live with a psychic who has Aden’s house key,” Jill said. “Let’s go inside.”

Dripping wet, Sandy and Jill went to the nearest bathroom for a towel. Jill wrapped the warm towel around her shivering friend.

“Stay here,” Jill said. She took another towel and left.

Sandy stood in the bathroom shivering from the shock. Just like every other experience in Sandy’s life, her moment of blissful happiness was shattered by something awful.

She wanted to cry.

She wanted to scream.

Instead, she felt the familiar sinking numbness. The image of Aden in handcuffs bounced around her brain. Once again, life confirmed that she did not deserve to be happy.

“They want to search the house,” Jill said. “Did you guys drink tonight?”

“No, he can’t drink. He’s an alcoholic.”

“Great,” Jill said. “Why don’t we make some hot chocolate? Aden’s in the backyard. I gave him a towel but I bet he’s cold.”

“He’s not arrested?”

“Not yet,” Jill said. “They’re checking the house for drugs.”

“Drugs?”

“They want us to stay in one area of the house.  I told them we’d be in the kitchen.”

Jill helped Sandy dress in her clothing. Taking Sandy’s arm, she led her into the kitchen.

“Now what do I do?” Jill asked.

Sandy shook her head at Jill and Jill stepped aside.

The kitchen was a place of comfort for Sandy. Ever since they were kids, Sandy made hot chocolate for Jill when they were upset. While the police worked their way through the house with dogs, Sandy’s mind turned to the step by step process of cooking. Her anxiety unwound and her confidence returned in the normalcy of making hot chocolate for Jill. She even whipped up a pan of brownies. The police were still working when Jill and Sandy went to the backyard with mugs of hot chocolate and a plate of fresh brownies.

Jill opened the sliding door to the back door for Sandy to go through. Aden’s back was to the door while he talked to Sam. Feeling their movement, Aden turned. He was so delighted to see Sandy that he rushed to her. Sandy blushed at his unrestrained delight. Jill took the brownies from Sandy. Aden lifted her off the ground in a hug.

“Hi, I’m Sam Lipson,” he said to Sandy after Aden released her. “I love brownies. Do you mind? Delphie made some today. They disappeared with Katy before I could have even one.”

Sandy nodded her head. Sam took a brownie off the plate.

“What happened?” Sandy asked.

“They raided Nuala’s house,” Aden said. “I guess there was some drug something… making drugs… something… I don’t know. They found Noelle and Nash locked in a closet. Nuala said that I was her drug supplier. Well, they ran my record and…. I’m so sorry this happened to you. I… I’m sorry.”

“They were just going to arrest you?”

“That’s what happens,” Aden said. “I have a record for drug dealing and violent behavior. They restrain first, ask questions later. Luckily, Big Sam came by.”

“Aden left his phone at a site. I picked it up on my way to the rehearsal dinner,” Sam Lipson said. “I thought I would just drop it by on my way home.”

Sandy would have believed Mr. Lipson’s story if Jill hadn’t laugh when he said it.

“Is that what you told them?” Jill asked.

“Uh huh, you were supposed to meet me here,” Sam said.

Jill shook her head at him and he smiled.

“You wanted a full update from the rehearsal dinner.”

“Trevor’s rehearsal dinner?”

“You were at the engagement party,” Sam nodded and Jill laughed.

“How did Mr. Lipson help?” Sandy asked Aden.

“Please call me Sam.”

“They do drug testing at Lipson,” Aden said. “My last arrest was twelve years ago… the year I started working at Lipson. When Jake took over, he insisted on hair follicle testing every employee. We have a zero drug tolerance policy. Everyone knows that about Lipson. Big Sam offered to provide all those records.”

“We’ll probably have to, but….” Sam’s voice trailed off when a policewoman came out the sliding glass door.

A little boy pressed passed the policewoman followed by a little girl. They threw themselves at Aden. Aden held them both in a tight embrace.

Watching Aden with his kids, Sandy felt a strange pang in her heart. The children were crying and talking at the same time. These three people, the two children and their father, just fit together.

The Police stopped to speak to Aden and Big Sam before leaving. They didn’t find drugs. Yes, Aden would be available for questioning. No, he wasn’t going anywhere. His children hung on him the entire time. When the police cleared out, Aden took Noelle and Nash to their rooms.

Jill and Sandy set to work. The Park Hill bungalow had been turned upside down by the Denver Police. Together, the women righted the furniture, straightened what was amiss and swept up what was broken. By the time, Sam came for Jill, the house was in order.

“I’m going to leave my car,” Jill said. Sandy’s attention jerked to Jill. “You can go home whenever you want.”

“I’ll go with you. I’m sure Aden would like to be with his kids,” Sandy started.

Jill shook her head then hugged Sandy.

“I think he’ll need your special help,” Jill said in Sandy’s ear. “You know what it’s like to come home from an awful experience. You could really help. I bet Aden will need you when the kids get to bed.”

Jill gave Sandy the Lexus keys.

“Your car?”

“Yeah, I just found that out. I guess Jacob bought it for me for our non-date.” Jill hugged Sandy again. “I’m going with Sam. Love you Sandy.”

Sandy stood at the front door to Aden’s house and waved. When she closed the door, Aden came running from the back of the house. Seeing Sandy, he skid to a stop.

“Will you stay? The kids are exhausted. Noelle’s already asleep. Nash should be out in a moment. I could really use… a friend.”

Sandy nodded.

“Good.” Aden kissed her. “Thanks.”

~~~~~~~~

On the living room couch of Aden’s Park Hill bungalow, with her leg tucked up under her, Sandy felt a part of her unwind or melt. Her soul listened to this man talk about his life. His eyes and mind turned to her with an open caring she’d never imagined coming from a man. She craved more - more connection, more warmth, more of Aden Norsen. With her head on his shoulder, she fell asleep on the couch. He woke her then insisted she stay in his guest bedroom.

Sandy came out of the small guest bathroom to find Aden asleep on the twin guest bed. He’d waited for her to say good night. His eyes opened the moment she was close.

In a rush of emotion, he scooped her up. After six years of longing, his simple gesture sparked a blaze inside her. She was swept away by her own passion for this man.

Lips pressed, hips merged and they joined in a dance of sensation. Her fingertips burned with the plush texture of his skin. Her body responded at the nip of his teeth against her nipples, her neck and her ears. Her mouth pulled kiss after kiss from his lips. Each pulse brought deeper waves of connection. Fast and slow, on top and under him, she felt only her fervor for this man.

Their final blaze of glory brought with Sandy’s long held pain. While his lips kissed her face and eyes, she wept. His arms held her tight through the passing of nameless pain and sadness.

When the storm passed, Sandy attacked. She pulled and pressed at him. She bit at his body and allowed her fingernails to rake at his flesh. Aden matched her with sheer animal passion. In this pure, honest physicality, Sandy felt her soul open to him. Her hands above her head, her body conquered, she called him to join her. Without hesitation, he followed her into oblivion.

Sandy felt her very being join his to dance among the familiar stars. Around and around they waltzed until, one breath at a time, they rejoined their bodies on the cramped bed in the guest room of his Park Hill bungalow. They fell spent to the bed. Wrapped around each other, they slept.

~~~~~~~~

Mike had asked but Valerie didn’t want to go out. In fact, Valerie didn’t want to leave the bed. She wanted to be tickled, cuddled and loved. He got up at some point and brought Brie, strawberries and champagne back to bed. With her head in his lap, he fed her the fruit and cheese. Looking into her hazel eyes, he saw her love for him shining back. Around midnight, they migrated to the large bathtub.

“It’s been a week,” Mike said.

He slipped her hair over her shoulder to use a sponge on her back. She lay back into his lap. He kissed her lips and she smiled.

“Are you…. Do you…. I mean….” Mike scrunched his eyebrows together. Valerie’s thumb smoothed out the crease between his eyebrows.

“There’s only one time in my life that I’ve felt this right… complete.”

“In Monterrey?”

“In Monterrey.”

He pulled her between his knees. She tucked her arms over his knees then leaned back against his chest.

“Are you going to start….”

“Our usual argument?” Valerie finished his statement. “You always start our usual argument.”

“I do? How?”

“‘You’re just going to leave again’,” Valerie imitated his voice. “‘You may as well just go.’ Or, my personalfavorite, ‘If he’s that great, why don’t you just marry him?’”

“Ouch,” Mike said. “Wes?”

“The other two were just for the press,” Valerie said. “Yes, Wes.”

Mike stared at the wavy glass block window to the Castle garden. The moon hadn’t reached them yet. The distant street lights reflected off the glass creating a wispy dance of light. He sighed.

“Sorry. You just went on and on and on and on about him.”

“I did?” Valerie asked. “Really?”

“He was smart and sophisticated and went to all the cool parties and knew everyone and wore designer clothing and produced the best films and…. I figured you were already fucking him so…. Were you?”

“Not until you told me to leave,” she said.

She didn’t dare look at his face because she knew the pain she would see there. She wasn’t proud of herself or her actions. She and Mike danced this dance so long that she wasn’t really sure what were her decisions and what were his. Did he make her sleep with Wes? No. But he told her to. Or did he? She sighed.

“What’s wrong?” Mike asked.

“Oh, I was thinking about us.”

“What about us? Are you leaving again?”

She hit his leg with her hand and he laughed. She tipped her head up to kiss the underside of his chin.

“I….” Val started.

She shook her head. The thoughts bounced around her head like ping pong balls until a single image floated to the surface - Mike’s back as he left for basic training.

“I stood at the door for three hours hoping you would come back. You’d change your mind and work for my Dad. I was sure that you’d never, ever, ever leave me.”

Hoping she would continue, Mike let the silence lag. She almost never talked about herself, and never talked about this time in their life. She took a breath the let it out before saying anything else.

“I met the mailman at the door every day for three months. And when your random and rare letters came, I’d sit in my room for a day, at least, and read them over and over again. I was sure you’d be home in time to take me to prom or homecoming or… see me graduate. When you finally came home, you were so grown up, mature. You’d traveled all over the world. I could almost taste the women on you. I was just some stupid little small town high school girl and you were a man.”

“Val, I….” Mike started quickly then stopped. This was her turn, her story. He could wait. He kissed the top of her head. Leaning back, he stretched his long arms to reach her brush on the marble counter. She almost purred when he began brushing her hair. “I want to hear what you have to say.”

“When I went to UCLA, I was going to find someone else… someone who’d stay… with me. But I never did.”

Valerie sighed.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I was trying to be good enough for you… for you.”

“Push, pull, push, pull, push, pull.”

Valerie jerked around in the bathtub so fast that the hairbrush flew out of Mike’s hand.

“Tell me this.” Her index finger jabbed his chest. “Who have you loved? Who? Who? Tell me. WHO?”

“I’ve only ever loved you, Val.”

“THEN WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?”

Her eyes blazed her anger and pain. He saw her at sixteen year old standing at the door waiting all those hours. He saw her clutching his half-assed letters. He saw her face the last time they made love before he left for basic. And the betrayal on that same face when he returned from his first tour. He’d changed. She hadn’t.

He’d left and never came back until long after she stopped waiting for him.

In that moment, her finger bruising his chest, he saw every twist and turn of their relationship. His big hand covered her hand and finger. He raised her hand to his lips then kissed it.

“I left because of me, and me only. I came back because of you. I’ll never leave again, Val and….” Mike stopped talking. His eyes caressed her face. “I’m sorry.”

“Please finish.”

“I will fight every day to stay right here… by your side….”

Their eyes held. She leaned forward and their lips touched. Sighing, she leaned against his chest.

“But if you want to be with Wes, fine. Hell, torture has it’s privileges. I can tolerate almost anything every once and a while as long as I don’t have to fuck him.”

Valerie smiled and shook her head. This was one of the things she loved about Mike. He could diffuse any situation with a tangential reference to something absurd.

“He can have you on Wednesday nights.”

“Wednesday?”

“While I play hockey.”

“Hockey?”

“Yeah, he can spend a couple hours while I’m at hockey if that’s what you want but….”

Valerie kissed him quiet.

“But when we’re in tournament….”

“Stop,” she said. “I don’t want to be with Wes. I only want you. I love you.”

He kissed her lips.

“Please don’t leave me again,” she whispered.

“Never by choice.”

“Never by choice,” she repeated his vow.

Mike retrieved the hair brush from across the room. Turning on the hot water to warm the tub, he kissed her head and returned to brushing her hair.

“So no more hockey tournaments?”

“Now Val, be reasonable….”

Denver Cereal continues next week

~~~~~~~~

Denver Cereal is a serial fiction set in Denver, Colorado.

You can get your daily dose of Denver Cereal at DenverCereal.com

Chapters are posted on Saturdays on this blog.

claudia hall christian is a novelist.

Previous Chapters

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Saturday Morning, 3:30 AM

Jill spun the empty ceramic mug on the table in the main Castle kitchen. Not wanting to bother anyone, she sat alone in the dark. Without work, or Katy, Jill felt lost. Mike and Val had even taken Sarah and Scooter to the fishing cabin overnight.

And Jacob was out of the picture. The nurse caught him working yesterday afternoon and called the doctor. They sedating him until Sunday just to keep him still long enough to heal.

For the first time in her life, Jill just had Jill to think about.

“But Jill is so boring,” she said.

“Is she?” A male voice said from behind her.

Jill turned to see a man come into the kitchen. He retrieved a mug from the cabinet and poured himself a cup of coffee.

“You’re Celia’s hot boyfriend. That’s what she called you. Her ‘hot boyfriend’,” Jill said. “I used to see you guys walking when I got off work.”

“We walked you home a number of times,” he said. “I’m Sam. Sam Lipson. We passed in the hospital but with emotions high, I imagine you don’t remember much.”

He held his hand out for her to shake. Jill shook his hand.

“You’re Jacob’s father.”

“Valerie’s too,” he said. “It’s nice to see you again. Celia was in so much pain those last months. The only thing that helped was walking. We’d walk for hours. Celia was always excited to walk you home. You brought her a lot of joy that year.”

He held up the coffee pot and Jill nodded. He filled her cup then sat down next to her.

“You don’t seem very happy,” he said. “I can explain all the complications but my guess is that you aren’t sitting in the dark here wondering about my life.”

“Oh.” Jill nodded. “Yeah.”

“What’s wrong, Jill?”

Jill looked at the man sitting next to her. His eyes held the same patient receptive quality she found so attractive in Jacob.

“It’s been a tough week,” she said.

“You mean your normal doesn’t include your child almost dying, losing your job, injuring yourself and seeing your boyfriend attacked?” Sam laughed.

“What boyfriend?” Jill asked.

“Well that too,” Sam said. “I bet last week this time you were in a very different place.”

Jill nodded. She glanced at Sam. He easily summed up how she felt.

“I’m not working. And have no idea when I’ll work again. Katy’s gone. I don’t cook or clean for myself here. I can’t go home because Trevor’s stalking the apartment until he gets married to some other girl and leaves for his Honeymoon tomorrow. I’m supposedly engaged to this guy that I don’t even know. My best-friend is appropriately caught up in her own world.” Jill stopped talking as abruptly as she started. After a few moments of silence, she took a breath. “I can’t even work out!”

“Why don’t you come with me today?” Sam asked. “I spend Saturdays going from site to site. You could come along with me. You’d learn a little bit about our business. Maybe you won’t feel so strange.”

“Is there a lot of walking? I tried to shop and couldn’t really do that.”

“No,” Sam said. “Do you need to rest?”

Jill shook her head, “I think I’ve slept more this week than I have all of my life.”

“I need to say good bye to Ruth. Why don’t I meet you here in ten minutes?”

“Oh, that’s why you’re here… you and Delphie?”

“I live here,” Sam said. “I have a room on the ground floor. We’ve just missed each other this week. But, to answer your question, Delphie and I are seeing each other. We have for the last few years.”

“What about your wife and kids?”

“Surely, you know that my children live at the Castle, Jill. As for Tiffanie? My marriage-in-name-only will end soon. Thank God.”

Sam looked toward the door where Delphie stood in her bathrobe. He stood to hold her. They were still talking when Jill returned from Jacob’s apartment where she and Katy were staying. Delphie hugged Jill then went back to her apartment.

Because Valerie made a big show of leaving for the mountains, the paparazzi had retreated from the Castle. Sam and Jill went to his Lipson Construction truck parked in the driveway.

“Ruth thinks that you should go ahead with your plan for the walls,” Sam said.

Jill blushed. “How did she know I was doing that?”

Sam laughed.

“She thinks, and I agree, that you will feel more at home when you make it homey,” Sam said.

“That’s assuming this will be my home.”

“It’s odd for you and I. Val too. We fight against accepting what’s right in front of us. But be honest Jill. Don’t you feel like this is exactly where you belong?”

In answer to his question, Jill buckled her seatbelt.

“I’m glad you came along today. Saturday is my favorite day. We start with breakfast at four. Aden and Blane will meet us at the Gyro Palace. Although, now that you and Jacob are an item, we can go back to Pete’sKitchen. Jacob could never handle a workday after seeing you.”

“He really likes me?”

“He’s crazy about you, Jill.”

Jill smiled.

“You’re right. I feel like I belong. But…”

“But?”

“I’m not sure why.”

“Welcome to my world,” Sam laughed.

~~~~~~~~

Saturday Afternoon, 3 PM

“Who are you?” Mike asked.

He walked into the kitchen where a short, slim blond woman was riffling through the cupboards. The woman made a disgusted sound and began tossing the boxes of cereal in a five gallon trashcan.

“What are you doing?” Mike grabbed box after box of cereal.

“I’m cleaning the junk out of this kitchen. You must be Mike.”

Mike set the cereal on the table to grab more boxes from the trashcan.

“STOP.” Mike yelled.

The woman looked up at him with a bright smile.

“Like your cereal do you? Well, it’s not very good for you.”

The woman grabbed a box of cereal that Mike was holding. They tugged the box back and forth between them.

“Who are you?” Mike asked.

“Oh, I’m Valerie Waters,” she said. “Val calls me ‘Waters’. I’m her trainer.”

“And you know who I am?” Mike asked.

“You’re Lipson’s husband,” Waters said.

“How do you know that?”

“I figured it out. I mean come on. Lipson comes home from her ‘Colorado retreats’ all dreamy and happy. No amount of yoga does what a good man can do for your stress levels. Plus, she told me about you a long time ago.”

“What’s all this ‘Who is Valerie’s husband’ crap then?” Mike asked.

“I don’t know. I didn’t know there was any,” Waters said. She moved toward the stack of cereal boxes on the table, but Mike blocked her way. She put her hands on her hips and said, “This is not even food. Why are you protecting it?”

“Jacob eats cereal. He likes it. I like it too. We eat it together,” Mike said.

“Oh. I’m so sorry. I’ve never met Jake but I know what a great guy he is.” The little woman stood on her toes to give Mike a quick hug. “Should I put it back?”

“We don’t eat too much. We eat other healthy stuff too. We just like cereal.”

“Does Lipson eat it?” Waters said.

“I don’t,” Valerie said. “I eat only wholesome food prescribed by my awesome trainer. Hi!”

The women hugged.

“Mike, you know Valerie Waters. She’s the one who is responsible for….”

Valerie turned around and pointed to her high firm rear end. Mike’s raised his eyebrows in appreciation. Valerie Waters laughed.

“Waters is here to help me get ready for Friday,” Valerie said.

“You’re thin,” Waters said. “We have work to do.”

“Wait. If everyone knows about me,” Mike said. He looked at Valerie and she smiled. “Why is Wes so upset?”

“UGH! Wesford. He’s totally another story,” Waters said. “He’s always known that Lipson was married.”

“I told you that,” Valerie said.

“Then why….”

“Drama. Hollywood. I don’t know,” Waters said. “I like him, Lipson. I like him a lot.”

“Oh good. I’m planning on keeping him,” Valerie said.

“Now, where’s the gym?” Waters asked.

“Basement,” Mike and Valerie said together.

“Bye, bye hot husband,” Waters waved her hand. “We have work to do.”

“Bye,” Mike said to the women’s backs as they retreated to the basement. “I have an appointment….”

Knowing they didn’t hear him, he shrugged, picked up a set of keys and left for the garage.

~~~~~~~

“Oh,” Jill said. She was sitting in the passenger seat of Big Sam’s work truck.

“Oh?” Sam asked.

“Well, I just realized why people say that Jacob is gay.”

“Because of Blane.”

“They look a lot alike. Is Blane your son?”

“No,” Sam said. “We think he’s either my brother’s son or my Dad’s son. My brother died of AIDS in the late 1980s. Even as an old guy, my father was fairly promiscuous. He died right after my brother. Blane was dropped at a hospital when he was about three months old. They never found his parents so he spent most of his life in foster care.”

“Did you do DNA?”

“Yes,” Sam said. “Celia insisted on it when she found him. She wanted him to know that we were his family.”

“He’s younger than Jacob,” Jill said.

“By a few years,” Sam said.

“Why does he look so old?” Jill asked.

“He has AIDS,” Sam said.

“Oh, that’s why….”

“Exactly.”

~~~~~~~

“What do you mean I have to undress?” Mike asked.

“How can I wax you with your clothing on?” Jessie Dillard asked. A small woman with long golden hair and a bright smile, she said, “Alex? Are you staying here?”

“Yeah, I’ll stay,” Alex Hargreaves said. “I’ve seen him buck naked before.”

“But… you see… I…” Mike sputtered.

“I’ll let you two work this out,” Jessie said. Standing with the door half open, she said. “I’ll be right back.”

Alex and Mike watched her pull the door closed.

“I don’t know about this,” Mike said. His eyes flicked toward the door.

“You want to fit into Val’s Hollywood world don’t you?” Alex asked. “How many men said you should get waxed?”

“Everyone I asked.”

“Did they say it would kill you?”

“No,” Mike said. “But it might.”

Alex plopped down in the armchair in the corner.

“Strip.”

She pulled out the handgun she always wore at her sacrum and pointed it at him.

“Strip.”

“You won’t shoot me.”

“Wanna bet?” Alex asked.

Mike sneered at her then took off his clothing. Alex pointed to the sheeted table and he lay down. She threw a towel at him to cover his genitals. There was a tap at the door.

“Shooting people?” Jessie asked.

“Oh sorry,” Alex holstered her handgun.

“What are we doing?” Jessie asked. She looked over Mike’s body. “Can you sit up?”

Mike sat up.

“What do you think?” Alex asked.

“The unibrow has to go. You’re seeing Michael Moore?”

“Next week.”

“I’ll clean up the eyebrows but leave something for Mr. Moore to do. We should take off all the hair from his shoulders, back and butt,” Jessie said. She lifted the towel. “I think we can leave his chest hair. Arm hair too. There’s not too much of it. It’s just long. You’ll trim it?”

“Sure,” Alex said.

“Why do I have to do this?” Mike asked.

“You don’t,” Jessie said. “You’ll just look better on television and in photos. The hair presses your clothing off your skin.”

“Oh,” Mike said. He lay back on the table.

“We’ll get rid of this hair too.” Jessie touched his public hair.

“What?” Mike sat up again. “Why?”

“You’ll see,” Alex said. “Go ahead, Jessie. Do what you think is best.”

Mike sat up and rotated his legs to the edge of the table.

“You know Val has never complained. It’s not like we’ve EVER had any….”

Alex pointed her gun at Mike again. He dropped back to the table.

“I’m just saying,” Mike added in his defense.

Jessie laughed.

~~~~~~~

Jill pulled the Lexus SUV up to Megan’s house. Before she could fully stop the car, Katy flew out of the front door. She hopped up and down until Jill got out of the SUV.

“MOMMY!!”

And Jill knew she was right where she belonged.

~~~~~~~~

“Hi,” Val said. She ruffled his hair. “I wondered what happened to you.”

After Jessie, Mike received his first professional haircut from George at Luxe Salon. George clipped, trimmed and shaved until Mike’s hair hung in curls just below his chin. Alex then took him back to her house where he stood on the deck and had his remaining body hair trimmed. Alex dropped him at the workshop to shower.

“No, I mean it,” Val thread her hands around his neck. Her finger slipped under his shirt. She sighed into him. “What happened to you?”

“I asked some friends for help,” Mike said.

Val pulled off his shirt. Her fingers played with his trimmed chest hair. He had to grab her hands to stop her from taking his pants off in the middle of the main Castle kitchen.

“We’re supposed to meet with some designer.”

“Ramon already picked out three dresses for me. I don’t need another dress.”

“It’s for me,” Mike said. Breaking off from a kiss, he said, “Mostly. They want…”

Valerie kissed him. He stepped back.

“Oh,” Valerie said. “Ramon already picked out something for you too. Who’s the designer?”

“Um …. Sorry, Alex told me but I forgot. She wants to ask you if you’d like to be a spokesmodel for some clothing thing they have coming out. She hoped to talk to you while they were in town. They live in Paris.”

Val shrugged then kissed Mike.

“You’ll talk to her,” Mike said.

“I like meeting new people,” Val said. “When are we meeting them?”

“Tomorrow morning early.”

Val dropped his pants.

“Oh Mike….”

She dragged him into the sitting room.

~~~~~~~~

Saturday, 9 p.m.

Sandy leaned her head against the rolled towel Aden slipped behind her head. In the warm safety of the hottub, he rubbed her feet one at a time. If she wasn’t so full, she would be completely limp.

Over the course of the day, her resistance to dating Aden had waned. Of course, a dozen white roses waiting on her doorstep, a large bouquet of spring flowers waiting for her at her station, AND her favorite lunch delivered from Pasquini’s - Caesar salad with chicken and no dressing - helped. He picked her up from work in a Saab sedan which led to the ‘Is this your car?’ conversation that made him laugh. And after all of that, he made her favorite dinner - cheeseburgers with homemade French Fries.

Turns out, Aden had paid attention all those years at the gym.

But for Sandy, the flowers and food wouldn’t matter if he hadn’t been so attentive. He listened to her stories about clients and laughed at her jokes. He charmed her by talking about his worries about taking over Lipson Construction.

And he’d wanted to go out with her almost as long as she wanted to go out with him. All those years that she thought he wasn’t interested, he was just going to school and raising his kids. In fact, he said that he thought SHE wasn’t interested. Just the thought made her smile.

And, outside of a little kissing, he hadn’t mauled her or expected some payback for his attention. At least he didn’t act like he wanted payback. He had been a complete gentleman. He even insisted they wear t-shirts and shorts in the hot tub.

When he brought up birth control, they had the most mature conversation Sandy had ever had about birth control.  Condoms?  He had ‘no problem’ wearing them.  Even after he learned she was on the Depo shot!  It was up to her.

Only Jill would be crazy enough to think about love. Love was something that happened to people who’s hearts weren’t permanently broken. Love didn’t happen to people like Sandy.

Still.

Watching the summer stars, Sandy felt a definite… like for Aden. She nodded at the stars. She definitely liked Aden. When he sat next to her, she rested her head on his shoulder.

“I spend every Saturday night right here,” he said. “The kids go to a sports camp on Saturdays so they’re in bed early. I sit right here. Just me and the stars.”

“What a great way to end the day,” Sandy said.

“I’m glad you’re here,” he said.

“Me too,” Sandy said. “Do you know the names of the stars?”

“Names? Yes, Sandy, we’re on first name basis. See that star?”

He pointed to the star right above his head.

“Uh huh.”

“That’s Frank. He thinks you’re the most beautiful creature he’s ever laid eyes on.”

“Frank’s a little forward.”

“He’s just trying to get in your pants,” Aden said.

Sandy giggled.

“You can never trust a star. Take Fred here.”

“Which one’s Fred?” Sandy asked

“Right over there. He’s a shy guy. Much more discrete than Frank. Still, his girl….”

“Francine?”

“How did you know?!” Aden said. “Francine says that Fred’s a bit of a swinger. Likes the boys and the girls. LOTS of boys and LOTS of girls. Even Frank says….”

“Excuse me.”

Two Denver Police officers came in the gate to Aden’s backyard. Aden popped to his feet.

“Are you Aden Norsen?”

Denver Cereal continues next week….

~~~~~~~~

Denver Cereal is a serial fiction set in Denver, Colorado.

You can get your daily dose of Denver Cereal at DenverCereal.com

Chapters are posted on Saturdays on this blog.

claudia hall christian is a novelist.

Previous Chapters

Jill thought she knew everything there was to know about Sandy. They had been best friends since Sandy converted to Catholicism and Jill made it home from Costa Rica. They shared every trial, every tribulation and every triumph.

But Jill had never seen Sandy in love, or even in like, for that matter. In fact, Jill was certain that Sandy would never let any man get close to her. Certainly, not after what her ‘real’ Dad did to her on his weekends.

Standing in front of a dressing room mirror at Nordstrom’s, Jill felt a stab of intense jealousy. Sandy and that cutie, Aden, had flirted and chatted the entire way to the mall. They weren’t ignoring her. They were just consumed with each other.

As fast as Jill’s jealousy came, it disappeared leaving her strong desire for Sandy’s happiness in it’s wake. Like Galadriel in that Ring movie, Jill felt like she had passed a test - The Girlfriend Jealousy Test.

Jill wanted Sandy to be happy. Period.

She squinted to herself in the mirror. She had to talk to Aden. But what should she say?

Should she tell him about Sandy’s prick father? No.

She could tell him that Sandy was only promiscuous to keep people away. Yeah, that’s not going to work. But if she didn’t tell him, Sandy would push it, sleep with him then dump him like she did every other man. Crap. Jill made a face at herself in the mirror.

Coming out of the dressing room, she saw Aden shake his head at Sandy. He gave her another skirt. Sandy wagged her eyebrows at Jill when she went into the dressing room. This was Jill’s chance.

“You like Sandy a lot,” Jill said. She sat next to him.

Aden’s head jerked to look at Jill.

“Is it that obvious?”

“Yeah.” Jill smiled at Aden. “Go really slow.”

Jill said it in such a low voice that she wasn’t sure Aden even heard her. Aden made no indication he heard anything. Instead, he stood to greet Sandy as she came from the dressing room. Jill joined him. Together they encouraged Sandy to get something a little more Hollywood and a little less Hollywood Boulevard.

Sandy laughed then pulled Jill into the dressing room with her.

“Well, what do you think?” Sandy asked.

“About the skirt?”

“Aden. He’s the guy from the gym that I….”

“I remember.” Jill took the skirt from Sandy and put it on an hanger. “I think he’s great! I’ve told you that for years and years. Did you find out about his wife?”

“He’s divorced. Like you told me, it was just some jealous girl,” Sandy said. She pulled her jeans up. “You don’t think he’s too old for me?”

“I’ve never thought he was too old for you, Sandy,” Jill said. “I liked him when you talked about working out with him. Now that I’ve meet him, I really like him. He’s smart and funny and cute. I love his smile and he smiles at you…a lot.”

“What would Tanisha and Heather say?”

“They’ll say what they always say,” Jill said.

Together they said, “How big is his dick?” They laughed.

Sandy picked up her purse then impulsively hugged Jill.

“Thanks,” Sandy said.

“Just go for it,” Jill said. “You’ve always been really happy around him. You seem really happy today. Why not just enjoy that?”

Sandy nodded.

Watching Sandy greet Aden, Jill smiled to herself. Her little plan worked.

Sandy let Aden hold her hand when they walked through the mall. Sandy even did the unheard of - let him buy them coffee at Starbucks. Sandy never let a man buy something for her. Period.

When Aden dropped them at Denver Health, Sandy asked if he might take her to work. While Jill waved, Sandy made funny faces out the passenger window of his SUV. Smiling, Jill went into the hospital to see if Jacob was out of surgery.

Maybe both Sandy and Jill could find love. Jill beamed with delight.

Love.

Yeah.

~~~~~~~

Mike was in a complete panic. Pacing back and forth in the Castle kitchen, his mind worked overtime to convince him that he was not right for Val. He was too ugly! Not Hollywood enough! Too hairy! Those stylists knew the truth. Val couldn’t be seen in public with him. Sure they’d spent a lot of time together over the years. But it was always in private, away from the camera. Who wanted to be married to someone they couldn’t be seen in public with??

With his panic, his rage grew.

Why had he even tried? How could he ever believe that she would be his partner? His wife? Who did he think he was? He wasn’t famous! He wasn’t a star or a producer or a model or anything but a fucked up traumatized asshole. Jerking open the liquor cabinet, he reached for a bottle of whiskey. With his hand on the bottle, he saw the phone number he wrote on the cabinet for moments just like these.

“Yeah.”

“I need….”

“Where are you?” she asked.

“Castle,” Mike said.

“We just got back. Meet us at the workshop. We can’t deal with the photographers,” she said. “Get going, Michael. We’re going to lunch.”

Mike sighed.

Alex’s voice always meant freedom and safety. Help was on the way. He wasn’t alone. Mike’s panic seeped from his pores. Alex would save him.

Again.

Mike almost skipped through the tunnels. He paced the workshop for five full minutes before Alex Hargreaves’s Jeep CJ screeched to a stop on Detroit street. Alex, John Drayson, and a couple other guys piled out of the Jeep.

“Annie’s for lunch?” Alex asked. She hugged him then kissed his cheek. “How’s Jake?”

“He’s in surgery. He should be out in an hour or so,” Mike said. He pulled the workshop door closed. “But he should be home in a couple days.”

“That’s great news,” John said.

The men greeted him with hugs and pats on the back. Mike fell in beside them for the short walk to Annie’s Café.

He was going to be all right.

~~~~~~~~

“Hi.” Jill leaned over Jacob’s bed in the Recovery Room.

“Hi. How did you get in here?” Jacob asked.

“I told the nurse I was your wife.”

“We got married? Did I miss our wedding night too?”

Jill laughed.

“Was I amazing?” Jacob asked.

“I hope so,” Jill said.

~~~~~~~~

“Chocolate chip?” Delphie asked.

“Yes! Yes! Yes! Can we make brownies?!? Mommy likes brownies and I like brownies and I bet my Jacob likes brownies and I bet my new Auntie….” Katy stopped talking. Her face scrunched up in puzzlement.

“Valerie?”

“Right, Valerie, likes brownies and I can bring some to Aunt Meg’s house tonight. I go to Aunt Meg’s house every, every, every Friday night. THIS time, I’ll bring brownies!”

Delphie lifted Katy onto the counter in the main kitchen of the Castle. Delphie retrieved Katy from school early so they could spend some time together.

“I thought you wanted cookies,” Delphie said.

“Aren’t brownies a kind of cookie?” Katy asked. She took a sipper cup of milk from Delphie.

Delphie nodded her head at Katy’s logic. Moving around the kitchen, Delphie pulled all the ingredients for brownies from the cupboards and refrigerator.

“Would you like to crack the eggs?”

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Katy clapped her hands and bounced on the counter. “I NEVER get to really cook. They say I’m too little but I’m FOUR. FOUR is not too little to do anything.”

Delphie held Katy’s hand and they cracked an egg together. Katy squealed with delight when the liquid dropped into the bowl.

“I wanted to ask you about being four,” Delphie said. She gave another brown egg to Katy. “Together?”

Katy bashed the egg against the bowl. The egg crushed in her hand.

“Ooh not so hard,” Delphie said. Using a dishtowel, Delphie wiped the egg from the girl’s hand.

“I’m sorry!” Katy’s dark eyes filled with tears. “Did I ruin the brownies??”

“No honey,” Delphie said.

“Oh good.” Katy held her hand out for another egg and Delphie laughed.

“Yes, just like that. Tap, tap, tap,” Delphie said. “You’re three years old.”

“I AM NOT! I AM FOUR!” Katy shouted. Her lip vibrated and tears dropped from her eyes. “I’m no baby! Three year olds are BABIES. I’m a BIG girl.”

“Katherine, you can only be what you are.”

“NO! Don’t say that! NO! NO! NO! I’m FOUR.”

Delphie raised her eyebrows at the little girl. While Katy worked through her tantrum, Delphie set up the blender. She plugged it in next to Katy.

“Would you like to blend?”

“Yes.” The storm of emotion left Katy’s face bright red. “Are you mad at me?”

“No, honey. I don’t understand why four is better than three,” Delphie said.

“It just is.”

“Hold it steady.” With on hand on the blender and one arm around the child, Delphie reassured the child. Katy leaned into Delphie’s warmth.

“I had a Daddy….” Katy whispered.

While tears dropped from Katy’s eyes, Delphie’s hand moved softly over Katy’s back.

“He didn’t love me…. I tried to be really, really good but he didn’t even like me… even one bit. He was always mad… at me.”

Delphie turned off the blender. Keeping her arm around the little girl, she dug in the bag for a handful of chocolate chips. She opened her hand to the crying girl. Katy took one chip after another until Delphie’s hand was empty.

“He didn’t want stupid baby like me. He made Mommy so sad. She cried forever.” Katy shifted away from Delphie. She whispered, “and it was all my fault.”

Delphie held Katy in a tight hug.

“I woke up in that place… that hospital place? And I thought Mommy left me too.”

“Your Mommy will never ever leave you.”

“But she might if she finds out I’m bad.”

“Oh honey, how are you bad?”

“I’m a needy, whiney, stupid baby.” Katy’s voice was barely over a whisper.

Delphie heard a snort then felt movement behind her. Delphie stepped aside to let Jill hold Katy. While Delphie finished preparing the brownies, Jill and Katy cried and whispered back and forth. Delphie was about to leave the kitchen when Jill stepped away from Katy.

“She’d like to ask you something,” Jill said.

Katy’s hand twirled in her hair. She whispered into Jill’s ear.

“Ask her, Katy-baby,” Jill said. “She won’t lie to you.”

“Do you think I’m a needy, whiney, stupid baby?” Katy asked.

“I think you are a beautiful, funny, smart girl. It’s a pleasure to know you,” Delphie said. “But I also think you’re three years old.”

“But do you think I’m a needy…”

“No Katherine. You are not a needy, whiney, stupid baby.”

Katy’s face scrunched up as if she was thinking about something hard or complicated.

“Mommy says that sometimes people don’t know what they’re saying. She said that my old Daddy wasn’t telling the truth when he said that about me,” Katy said. “Do you think that my Jacob wasn’t telling the truth when he said he would be my Daddy?”

Delphie laughed. The timer rang for the brownies and she pulled the pan from the oven. She tossed several handfuls of chocolate chips on top of the hot brownies. Holding another handful of chips out to Katy, Delphie said, “I’ve known your Jacob a long, long time. I’ve never known Jacob to say something he didn’t mean.”

“He said ‘no matter what.’ And we pinky swore. Does ‘no matter what’ mean that when I’m a needy, whiney, stupid baby he will STILL be my Daddy?”

“No matter what,” Delphie said. “I think that’s true for all of us.”

Delphie made a movement with her hand. Valerie came into the kitchen from the sitting room where she had been secretly listening.

“I’ll be your Auntie forever,” Val said.

“I’ll be your Mommy all of my life,” Jill said.

“And I’ll be your Delphie.”

Katy nodded her head.

“Ok, I’ll be three.”

~~~~~~~~

He hadn’t meant to kiss her. But she leaned in and…. Aden could barely breathe. Desire pumped through him like he was fifteen again. With effort, he stepped back. Jill said go slow but oh my god….

“I’m sorry,” he said. “Tomorrow is a very big day for me. And….”

“What is it?” Sandy said.

“I can’t have anything in my life right now that’s not one-hundred percent,” Aden said.

He took her hand and led her from under the bright porch light to the porch steps.

“What do you mean?” Sandy asked. She sat next to him on the step.

“There’s not one thing I’d like more than to.. be.. with you… tonight.” Aden fumbled for words. “That kiss was… incredible.”

Sandy blushed. She took a few slow breaths to slow her panic filled heart.

“Why don’t we go inside?”

“Because… I… I can’t,” he said.

“We don’t have to do anything. I mean Jill and Jacob just slept in the same bed. We could….”

“I don’t have that kind of self control,” Aden said. “No, Sandy. I can’t do that.”

“Why is tomorrow such a big day?” Sandy asked.

“Tomorrow is the first day I will act as the head of Lipson Construction. If I didn’t know better, Jacob set this up to get me out there.”

“Head of Lipson Construction? I thought you were an assistant.”

“I’m supposed to take over the running of Lipson Construction in January,” Aden said.

“Oh,” Sandy said. Her heart sank. He was saying she wasn’t good enough for him. “I can see why you don’t want to….”

“I want to. You have no idea how much I want to.”

Sandy turned so she could look at his face. Her eye reviewed the shape of his brow, his eyes and the set of his mouth. There was no lie in Aden Norsen’s face.

“What’s going on?” Sandy asked.

“I’d like to date you, see if we work - you and I - and go slow. As much as I wish I did, I don’t have Jacob’s skill at figuring the future. I have to go one tiny step at a time.”

“Date?”

“Yeah. Date… exclusively. Like I hoped you might be my date to Valerie’s party next week,” Aden said. “And I wondered if you were available for dinner tomorrow night.”

“You want to date,” Sandy said. “Me?”

“I’m not much of a catch,” Aden said. “I have two small kids and I work a lot. You’re young. You should enjoy your unfettered time.”

“Porn? Prostitutes?”

“I got over porn decades ago,” Aden said. “I’ve never paid any woman for sex. Before you ask, I’m only attracted to women.”

“Diseases?”

“They check us every year at Employee Health. I’m clean. No diabetes either. You?”

Sandy shook her head. She didn’t make her usual ‘just boy crazy’ joke.

“Other girlfriends?”

“Not in years,” Aden said. “I have two small kids. I’m their only parent. And I work a lot.”

“Date?”

“Exclusively.”

“Me?”

“Yes, Sandy.” Aden flushed. Humiliated, he was about to get up when, for no reason at all, he said, “Dinner tomorrow? I’ll be exhausted. It’s my long day.”

“Saturday is my long day too,” Sandy said. “I’d like to see your house. Before I decide, I’d like to see your house.”

“I’ll make dinner. Can I pick you up?”

“I get off at six,” Sandy said.

“I’ll pick you up at work.”

“Great.”

Smiling and blushing, they stood in front of each other. Aden kissed Sandy’s cheek and went to his car. Sandy stood on the porch waving until he was out of sight. Turning into her building, she took the stairs two at a time to her apartment. When her black and while cat Cleo gave her a scolding, she started laughing. She laughed as she fed Cleo and changed for bed. Staring at the ceiling, she absolutely beamed.

Aden wanted to date… her… exclusively!

Denver Cereal continues next week….

~~~~~~~~

Denver Cereal is a serial fiction set in Denver, Colorado.

You can get your daily dose of Denver Cereal at DenverCereal.com

Chapters are posted on Saturdays on this blog.

claudia hall christian is a novelist.

Previous Chapters

CHAPTER NINETEEN

“Maybe you can stop going to every hair stylist in the city,” Jacob said.

“I… I… I….”

“Go.”

“But….”

“Go!” As Aden ran toward the door, Jacob yelled, “Just leave the….”

Aden stopped at the door and threw the box to Jacob. Aden ran past a stunned girl standing at the door.

“Jill?” Aden asked as he passed.

The girl nodded.

“Aden. Go on in. He’s waiting for you.”

Just as Aden rounded the nurses station, he heard the elevator bell ring. With a burst of speed, he slipped through the closing elevator doors.

~~~~~~~~

“Hi,” Jill said.

Jacob scooted over in the bed. Jill sat down next to him. She leaned toward him, closed her eyes, and was swept away, again, by his lips. Each delicate kiss led to a deeper kiss. The motion of his lips brought a well of warmth that rose through her core. If she thought it possible, Jill would swear she had kiss orgasms. Breaking off the kiss was like coming to the end of a great ride at Disneyland. He left her willing to wait in a long, long line for the chance to take the ride again.

“I have something for you,” Jacob said.

His left hand stroked her hair. The bruise on her cheekbone was turning purple and a little yellow. He kissed her bruised cheek.

“I can’t really get on bended knee, but the moment I can, I will.”

Jill jerked back from him. She puzzled at his statement. Shaking her head slightly, she said, “What?”

“Shh,” Jacob said. “I’ve practiced.”

“You… I… I mean….”

Jacob sighed. Jill wasn’t going to make this easy for him. He put his fingertips over her sputtering mouth.

“Will you marry me?”

Jacob removed his fingertips from her mouth. Jill’s face broke in to a huge blushing smile.

“Really? I mean, I know that I said that I would marry you… and you asked at Pete’s but….” Jill’s words came in a flood. “You haven’t even known me a week. And we’ve only had sex once and you don’t know… I mean, I suck in bed… and I have a child and….”

Jacob flopped back on the bed. Jill laughed at the exasperated look on his face.

“Well what about the sex thing?” Jill asked. “I really don’t know anything and….”

“I think people learn from each other. I don’t know anything, not one thing, about really pleasing you,” Jacob said. “But I’m more than ready to spend a lifetime learning from you.”

Jill blushed and looked at her hands.

“So what do you say?” Jacob asked.

At that moment, the nurse propped opened the door to Jacob’s room. Two male attendants followed the nurse into the room. Moving quickly, the nurse began unhooking Jacob from the machines by his bed. Jill stood from the bed.

“What’s going on?” Jacob asked.

“There’s an opening in the surgical suite. The doctor that was here this morning?”

“Gersoff?”

“He put you on an unofficial waiting list,” the nurse shrugged. “They’ll do your fusion today.”

The attendants pushed the bed away from the wall.

“Right this moment?” Jacob asked.

“It was a last minute cancellation. The scheduled patient just spiked a fever,” the nurse said. “You’ll be out this evening sometime. I’m sure you two can talk then.”

Rolling toward the door, Jacob retrieved the box from it’s hiding place under the covers. He tossed it to Jill. She caught it.

“I love you, Jill. Go shopping. I’ll see you tonight. Tell Aden to check his Blackberry.”

The room door closed and Jill looked at the box in her hand. She opened the tattered old box to find a plush ring box. Biting her lip, she couldn’t decide what to do.

Should she wait for Jacob?

Should she just open it?

ARG!

~~~~~~~~

The closing elevator doors clipped Aden’s shirt then bounced open again. Sandy’s head jerked up when he rushed into the elevator. Her stunned face switched to annoyance.

“Are you stalking me now?” Sandy asked. She pressed the Lobby button over and over again until the elevator doors closed again.

“Stalking?” Aden asked. “I…. Listen, I’ve looked all over the city for you. I’ve been to every hairstylist Jake or I could find.”

Sandy raised an eyebrow and smirked. “You came to MY salon.”

Aden nodded.

“Ok, you don’t want to talk to me. I get that. But I… I’d like to just understand. Jake says that people tell you what’s going on if you ask. So I’m asking.”

Sandy crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head.

“We worked out together for six years. Same machines. Same weights. Same time. We talked… a lot… every day… for years. Then the one time I asked you out, you never came back to the gym.”

“Oh I go, just not when you’re there.”

“What did I do?” Aden asked. “I asked you out. You said you’d like to go out with me. You said you’d been waiting for me to ask for a long time. Then you changed your number or gave me a fake or…. I thought you liked me.”

“Hmmfpt.”

“Well I liked you… like you.”

The elevator bounced when it hit the ground floor. The doors slid open.

Sandy tilted her head to the side. She sneered, then said, “But you love your WIFE? Is that it?”

Aden grabbed her arm when she pressed past him. Sandy glowered at him.

“Will you hear me out?”

Knowing she had to wait for Jill anyway, Sandy shrugged. She would never admit it, but she had missed him. She’d always looked forward to seeing him at the gym. Even now, when she KNEW he wasn’t there, she still looked for his car in the parking lot.

Holding her arm tight, he guided them through the hospital to a shady spot just outside the door.

“I’m not married,” Aden said. “I was married… a long time ago. But I haven’t been married in ten years. I haven’t even dated in… eight or nine years. Why do you think I am married?”

“Why should I believe you?”

“We can go upstairs and ask Jake,” Aden said.

“Right like a guy isn’t going to lie for his buddy.”

“Jacob Marlowe is my boss, and my friend. We aren’t buddies. Plus, Jacob Marlowe doesn’t lie. He just doesn’t.”

“Oh,” Sandy said. “I…. I thought you were a biker.”

“A biker?”

“Because of your tattoos,” Sandy said.

“Oh,” Aden flushed. His arms, neck and back had been covered with tattoos. Thanks to laser technology, his adolescent gestures at identity were almost gone. “No, I work for Jake. I’m his assistant.”

“Jill and I went to high school with his assistant.”

“Molly?”

Sandy nodded her head.

“Molly is Jake’s bookkeeper for his rehabilitation business. I work for Lipson. Jake has me and an other assistant, Blane.”

“Oh,” Sandy said.

“Why did you think I was married?”

“I went into the locker room and this girl told me line and verse about you, your wife, your kids, all this stuff. I….”

“Tall? Think? White blonde hair?” Aden asked.

“Very pretty. A lot prettier than me,” Sandy said.

“Lexi.”

“Right. Lexi.”

“I call her Lexi Luther because she’s like my arch-nemesis,” Aden said. “Ok. Well that makes more sense. Thanks.”

Aden and Sandy stood facing each other. The uncomfortable silence stretched.

“Are you married?”

“No,” Aden said. “I was married. She left when our daughter was a couple months old. We weren’t actually divorced until four years ago. I kind of hoped she would disappear but…. Jake made me file.”

“Jake’s had a big impact on you,” Sandy said.

“You could say that,” Aden replied. “I have two kids. They live with me most of the time. Would you like to see their pictures?”

Sandy nodded. Aden opened his wallet and pulled out his favorite picture of Nash and Noelle.

“I dropped them at their Mom’s house before I came here. I…. They’re my life.”

“Why would Lexi say all that stuff?”

“Oh,” Aden sighed. “Because I fucked up. After Nuala left, that’s my ex-wife, I wasn’t in a great place. I was still… drinking.. and I was going to be a rock star. Mostly, I worked during the days and spent the nights at clubs. I didn’t know what it even meant to have kids…. I thought that women took care of all of that. Real evolved, huh. I thought if I got another woman right away, I could just keep living the way I was… you know, not have to change. Lexi and I… got together and …. It didn’t go well.”

“What happened?” Sandy asked.

“I can’t imagine you want to hear all of this crap,” Aden said.

“Actually…,” Sandy said. She dared to look at his face for the first time. “I do want to hear about it. My dad left my mom when I was a couple months old… and I have a particular interest in stories just like this… stories like mine.”

Aden sighed.

“Lexi moved in right away. But Noelle, my daughter, never liked her. She cried until I got home from work. I was at work one day when Lexi called to say that she had moved out. Fuck me and fuck my stupid kids. I….” Aden shook his head. “It was totally my fault. I just had no idea of what I was doing. What happened with you?”

“My mom got jobs to support us. It was hard on her… really hard… like it’s been for Jill. She met my step-dad when I was eight or nine.” Sandy smiled. “He was Catholic, so we all converted. And, he was a really great guy. He was my Dad.”

“Was?”

“He smoked… He was older than Mom by fifteen years or so. He died a couple years ago. Lung cancer. So, you can see that I want to know what happened with you and your kids.”

“I was such an idiot. People at work leave their dogs in the car so I thought I’d just leave the kids in the car. They mostly sleep anyway. I would see them on my breaks.”

“WHAT?”

“I know,” Aden said. “I told you I was an idiot.”

“What happened?”

“I went on my first break and I saw this woman by the car. She was singing to Noelle and rocking her side to side. My son, Nash, was sitting on the hood of the car eating a candy bar. When I got close, she looked up and said, ‘She’s really just lonely. How about if I take them today?’ I was like, ‘What?’” Aden laughed. “That was Jake’s mom, Celia. Big Sam Lipson came up behind me. He looked at me, then Celia. He just laughed. They started a daycare for Lipson employees the next day and you know what? A hundred kids showed up that day and a hundred more the following Monday. Nobody had day care for their kids. No accidents, that’s what Celia said. ‘It’s no accident Sam invited me to lunch today.’ I…. Yeah.”

~~~~~~~~

“Oooh Val, from behind what plow did you find him?” Ramon said. A slight Asian man, Ramon’s exaggerated inflection and silk, leopard print caftan announced “GAY HOLLYWOOD STYLIST” like a neon sign. “He’s absolutely Neanderthal dreamy. Look at all that hair!”

“I met him skiing on Copper Mountain,” Val said. “I was twelve.”

“Oooh,” the man said. “Well, he’s a big boy now.”

He reached to squeeze Mike’s leg, and Mike slapped his hand away. When Ramon lifted Mike’s shirt to ogled his flat stomach, Mike stepped back.

“You must take your clothing off,” the man lisped.

“No,” Mike said.

Mike backed away. Ramon took a step toward him. Mike stalked out the back door toward his studio. He heard Ramon and Val laugh the entire way across the garden.

~~~~~~~~

Sandy and Aden stood together in close companionable silence. Sandy shifted from foot to foot. Her familiar draw to Aden made her even more uncomfortable. She was about to leave when she saw Jill step of the hospital elevator.

“Thanks for talking to me,” Aden said. “I better get back up there.”

“There’s Jill,” Sandy said. “Hey. I thought I’d have to pry you away.”

“They took Jacob to get his neck surgery today. He told me to go shopping. I… I think I should stay here but….”

“Ah shit,” Aden said.

“Jacob said to tell you to check your Blackberry,” Jill said. “I packed up the computers.”

Jill gave Aden his computer bag. Aden dug out his Blackberry from the front pocket.

“Excuse me,” Aden said. He stepped away from Jill and Sandy to read his daily list from Jacob.

‘Heya Aden,

Here’s your list:

1. Take the girls shopping.

2. Tell them about Val’s party next week. Make sure they both get something… nice.

3. Have fun tonight.

Oh, and the sites? They ready to start again tomorrow morning so don’t have too much fun tonight. You’ll need to cover for me tomorrow.

–J’

Aden curled his lip. Even in the hospital, Jacob Marlowe managed to disrupt Aden’s drinking plans.

The next email was from Blane, their assistant, with confirmation from every site manager that the sites would start up tomorrow morning at 5 AM.

The last email from Jacob said, ‘Get the ring box back from Jill.’

Shaking his head, Aden wandered to Sandy and Jill. Jill was holding the box out to Sandy.

“May I have that?” Aden asked.

“But… but….”

Aden opened the ring box to show Jill that it was empty. He raised an eyebrow and laughed at her shocked face.

“You play with the Marlowe, you’ve got to expect a little intrigue.”

“But he asked me and… I….”

“Did you say yes?” Aden asked.

“I….”

“When you’re ready to say ‘yes’, there will be a ring in this box. At least I hope so.”

Aden made an ‘it’s my ass if it’s not’ face. Jill and Sandy laughed. He bowed slightly in his best butler imitation.

“Mr. Jacob has asked me to take you ladies shopping. He would like me to invite you to a fete at the Castle hosted by Miss Valerie in a weeks time.”

“What?” Sandy asked.

“Val’s having a party with all her Hollywood friends. She wants to celebrate Jake’s survival and introduce Mike to her friends. Jake wanted to invite Jill as his date. He thought Jill would feel more comfortable if her friends were there.”

“Oh… We would mix with Hollywood people… But….” Jill bit the inside of her lip.

“Good thing you’re taking us shopping,” Sandy said. “You buying?”

“Mr. Jacob,” Aden said.

“Great. Jill? Will you call Tanisha and Heather?”

While Jill dialed her cell phone, Sandy looked at Aden.

“How old are you?”

“38. You?”

“26.”

“Is that a problem?”

Sandy shook her head. “I’m really sorry. I should have asked, but….”

“I understand,” Aden said.

“Do you still want to…?”

“I have to coach soccer at 5 but I’m otherwise free today. You?”

“I work from two to eight but….”

“Perfect,” Aden said. “What if we shop this morning and I’ll take you to dinner tonight?”

Sandy blushed, smiled, then nodded.

~~~~~~~~

“Honey, please,” Val pleaded. “I want you to share all of my life. That means you have to look the part.”

Mike looked at her then sagged. He followed her to the main level of the house. A severe matronly woman stood in the middle of the main Castle living room. The complete opposite of the flamboyant Ramon, she arched a penciled eyebrow at Mike then shook her head.

“Neeooo.” She annunciated her ‘no’ as if she was Peppy Le Pew.

Mike raised his eyebrows at her. Not sure of what to do, he held his hand out to the woman, “I’m Mike.”

The woman looked at Mike’s paint stained hand and crossed her arms.

“You cannot take this… this… creature out in public,” the woman said.

“What?” Val asked. “Why?”

“He is… too old, too hairy and too….” The woman made a disgusted face.

“But Wes is 67 years old. Mike’s only 32 years old,” Val said.

“Wesford takes care of his skin. What products do you use on your face?” The woman asked.

“Um.” Mike felt like he was answering a trick question. “My face?”

“You see, completely unworkable.” The woman sneered at Mike. Looking at Val, she said, “Why is it that you left Wes? He was the perfect companion for you. Tall, thin like you are… no so… beefy hillbilly….”

“Sounds like you don’t need me anymore,” Mike said. “Val, honey, I’m going back to my studio. Nice to meet you, ma’am.”

The woman’s harping voice drifted through the kitchen. Standing at the garden door, Mike had enough. Turning in place, he stormed back to the living room. The woman waved her finger in Val’s face while Val wept.

“Get out of my house,” he said to the woman. “You have no right to come in here and say anything - to me or to my wife. You certainly don’t know me. You can’t know Val if you talk to her like this.”

He picked up the woman’s bag and threw it out the side Castle door. He held the door and pointed for her to go.

The woman looked from Val to Mike.

“You have ruined your career,” she said.

“I don’t care,” Val said. “Please leave.”

With a smug I-told-you-so look, the woman marched out of the door. Mike scooped up Val and held her until she stopped crying.

“We’ll figure something out,” he whispered into her hair.

“I don’t care if I ever act again,” she said.

“Oh honey, we don’t live like that. You love acting. You can do what you love. We just have to figure out how to make it happen.”

Val nodded and wiped her tears.

“Who’s next?” Mike said.

“I have a facial appointment. I thought I would leave you here with her but… I forgot how awful she can be…. ”

Mike held her face between his big hands. His eyes caressed her beautiful face then he kissed her lips.

“I love you, Val. Whatever you need is fine. You like that Ramon guy.. um, person. Why don’t we talk to him tonight?”

Val gave him a watery smile then nodded. He walked her through the tunnels to her Mustang. Val clung to him before getting in the car. He waited until she was down the street before he went back to the house.

Laughing, he made his way back to his studio. Then panic set in.

He’d waited a life time to be with Val. What if he wasn’t right for her life? He was going to lose Val because he was too hairy-beefy-hillbilly. There was no way to fix any of those things.

Right?

Denver Cereal continues next week….

~~~~~~~~