Chapter 12
Twelve
“ A re you free for Jack’s birthday?” Jackson asked as the waiter set their beers down in front of them. John had dropped Katy off with Grace and laughed when she shoved the two of them out the door. Katy was so engrossed in playing with Jack that she hadn’t even said goodbye to John. He just smiled, placing a kiss on her head before he headed out the door with Jackson. Katy would be such a good big sister one day.
Shit. Why was he thinking about that? Maybe because Jackson and Grace were so vocal about trying for baby number two? Sure, Katy had been an unexpected surprise, but that didn’t mean John didn’t want to settle down and have a large family one day. He sighed, peeling the edge of the label on his beer.
“Hey? You in there?” Jackson tapped his drink on the table.
“Yeah. Sorry. Lots on my mind. You’re doing his party on his actual birthday, right?”
“Yup. Figured we’d host family dinner since it’s a Saturday. The only thing is, we’re doing it out at Daisy and Hank’s. They’ve got more room and since we’re inviting friends too, we need it.”
“You checked in with Grace that she’s okay being back out there?”
Last year, when Jack was just two weeks old, Grace’s abusive ex beat her close to death in the field behind Daisy and Hank’s house.
“We talked about it. I think there are some things she needs to work through, with the memories and everything as we get closer to the day, but she swears she’s okay.”
“Just keep an eye on her.”
“Okay, Mom.”
That made John laugh. He had been so happy for his brother when Grace came back into his life, and to watch him almost lose her right after she had their son… yeah. It’d been tough for everyone.
“Mom gave you the same speech?”
“Of course she did. Grace tripped over herself trying to change the subject. Went on and on about how much Jack is banging his head now that he’s up and walking, which is true. I swear he’s like one giant goose egg right now.”
John laughed, because Katy had been the same way when she was first learning to walk. His sweet and spicy daughter had nearly given him a heart attack three times a day during that phase.
“Kids are sturdy. With you as a dad, I’m sure he has a thick skull protecting his brain.”
“Funny.” Jackson rolled his eyes as he took a pull from his beer bottle. “Oh, Grace wanted me to ask about taking Katy to the pumpkin festival. Mom mentioned you have to work and with dad’s knee surgery coming up, she doesn’t want him hobbling around on it down by the lake. I think there’s a costume involved, and she’s going to come home pretty sugared up. Grace’s list of things she wanted to eat was a mile long. I only remember the urgency in her voice when she mentioned caramel apples, caramel corn, and apple pie though.”
“Sounds like she’s pregnant.”
Jackson’s face dropped. Fuck, he’d messed up.
“No.” Jackson lifted his drink and took a pull of beer from the bottle. “Don’t mention it to her, either. She’s driving herself nuts with tracking everything and blaming herself because it’s not happening. Just wild to think that Jack happened after one night when we definitely weren’t trying, and now, months and months of trying and still nothing. It was just supposed to be fun. I shouldn’t have pushed her.”
“Shit, yeah. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything. Look, I’d love for you guys to take Katy, but I don’t think I’m working it anymore. I switched with another deputy to free up some time to take her. But we could all go together. It’d be nice. Aside from family dinners, we haven’t really had time to hang out.”
“Family life is a lot to juggle. I probably owe you about a million apologies for all the times I gave you grief about being a homebody once Katy came along. Thinking about taking Jack out now that he’s so mobile and energetic…” Jackson shuddered dramatically. “Yeah, no. I’d rather just keep him at home.”
John laughed. “Yeah. It’ll be good to get the kids out into some fresh air. We’ll run ‘em ragged and then maybe they’ll conk out early.”
“Now that sounds like a plan. Hey,” Jackson said, pushing his arm into John’s side. “I didn’t think we’d see your girl out tonight. And definitely didn’t think she’d be out with another guy.”
John whirled around to see Abby at the bar, a man he didn’t recognize sitting next to her. For fuck’s sake, what the hell was she wearing?
She looked fucking amazing. A dark red dress molded to her body, but he didn’t miss how the collar-style of the dress still covered her neck. In fact, the fabric looked like it covered her completely in the front, but exposed her back from her shoulders down to her waist. For a second, her smile flashed brightly across her face, but she moved back as her date pushed closer to her. His fists clenched at his sides as he watched the man she was with touch her arm.
“She’s not my girl,” he growled.
“Chill out. You look like you’re ready to murder that guy.”
“He doesn’t look like he can take a hint. She’s clearly uncomfortable. See how she’s leaning back while he leans in closer?”
“Yeah, I see it. So what are you going to do about it?”
“Nothing.” John wasn’t anything more to Abby than a friend. Yet. He wanted so much more. And clearly, he needed to make sure she understood that.
“Hmm.”
“What now?”
“Well, it’s just interesting to me how protective you are of her. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Mom told me there were sparks between you two at dinner the other night.”
“I want her, Jackson. I know it’s not a secret, and I’ve done a shitty job hiding it. But I just don’t know if she’s ready. She’s still struggling with what she went through. I don’t want to feel like I’m taking advantage of her.”
“What if you ask her to explore a relationship and she says yes?”
“It wouldn’t matter. She’s Katy’s teacher. Isn’t that like a conflict of interest?”
Jackson laughed. “She’s not your doctor or your lawyer, and you’re not her boss. There’s nothing wrong with being attracted to her.”
“Did I tell you she braided Katy’s hair the other day? Katy was so excited to have princess hair, and I asked her to show me how she did it, because fuck if I can even get Katy’s hair to lay flat for five minutes in the morning.”
“She loves Katy. I see it every time I pick her up.”
“She loves all her students.”
“You’re a blind idiot.”
“You can’t say that to me. I’m older than you, and I’ll always be smarter and stronger.”
“Yeah, you are pretty fucking old. That’s why you’re not asking her out? Don’t want to die when she’s on top of you?”
John took another sip. “I don’t know. It feels weird. I haven’t been involved with anyone since Katy’s mom, and we all know how well that went. Besides, Abby is like ten years younger than me. Not to mention she’s Sam’s sister. What the hell would he think?”
“Maybe he’d be excited that his friend, who is a really great guy, is interested in his sister. Maybe he wouldn’t have to worry so much, knowing you were there taking care of her. If you like her, don’t let a stupid thing like age stop you. You’re both consenting adults. And Sam will either be on board right away, or he’ll get on board. I don’t think you need to worry about him.”
“You look stunning in that dress. Red is my favorite color.”
“Oh, um, thank you. You look nice, too.” Abby already knew the date with Luke was going nowhere. He’d been rather charming in their exchanges online, but there was something pulling in Abby’s stomach since the moment they met in person outside of Sprinkles. At least he’d been chivalrous enough to pick her up, although he hadn’t opened her door…
Her mind drifted to John. Of course, she’d seen the second he walked in with his brother, but when he sat at a table on the other side of the room, she realized he hadn’t seen her. Probably for the best. The last thing she needed was him coming over.
“Abby? Did you hear what I said?”
“Oh, no. I’m sorry, my mind wandered.”
“Am I not interesting enough for you?” he huffed.
“God, no. Sorry. It’s just been a long week.”
“And you know that guy?”
Heat moved up her neck. “What guy?”
“The guy you’ve been looking at on and off since he walked in here. Look, you’re a really nice girl, but if you aren’t into me, then I’m going to bounce.”
“No, no. Please. He’s the father of one of my students, and I was just distracted. What did you say before?”
“I was asking if you wanted to play a game of pool?”
“I’ve never played before.”
“Not even in college?”
“Uh, no. I wasn’t really into the whole ‘go out and party’ scene. I stayed back and studied. A few of my friends had a local bar they liked to go to, but I rarely tagged along.”
“I don’t know why that’s surprising to me. Your profile just made you seem like a good-time girl.”
Her jaw dropped. “Excuse me? I think I should be offended.”
“No! No, I didn’t mean it in a bad way. I’m more of a homebody, so I was kind of in awe of you. But the attraction didn’t make sense to me. Now, I see why. I had categorized you wrong.”
Yup, handsome nerd indeed.
“Are you a pool shark? A sleeper agent who is going to pretend to be bad to make me not feel terrible about my lack of skills and then try to make a bet against me? Because I’m terrible and I don’t want you to feel like you have to hustle me.”
He laughed. “No, I’m not that good, either. And that’s not being modest. Video games are more my speed. Just thought it might be nice to get up and move around.”
“Sure, let’s do it.”
Abby stood and made her way towards the pool tables.
“Hey, you forgot your drink.” Luke handed her glass to her before taking a sip from his.
“Oh, thanks. Alright, how do we do this?”
“Something’s fucking wrong.” John watched Abby swaying as she stood, gathering her purse.
Jackson’s head turned to look in the same direction as John was facing. “What are you?—”
Shit. She wobbled again and he pushed away from the table so fast that his chair toppled to the ground behind him. He didn’t care. All that mattered was making sure she was okay.
“Abby, are you okay?” He slipped his hand around her waist, steadying her.
Her big blue eyes looked up at him. “John?”
“Hey, man. Back up. Who the hell are you?” The man she was with took a step closer to John, who tightened his hold on Abby’s arm.
“Who the hell am I? I’m her friend. Who the hell are you?”
“Her date, man. She’s fine. Apparently more of a lightweight than she thought, but I’m just about to bring her home.”
Abby moaned, bringing her hand to her head and winced.
“What’s wrong?” John lifted her chin to look into her eyes. They were glassy and unfocused.
“My head. I think that beer was strong.”
“Is it a migraine?”
She didn’t respond, instead grabbing onto his arm for support. Her head fell into his chest and she took a small breath in.
“You smell so nice. Like walking out of a forest towards the ocean. I saw you earlier and hoped you would come over.”
John smiled as he cupped the back of her head.
“How much have you had to drink tonight, beautiful?”
“Just one… I think.” She smiled as he lifted her face with his thumb tucked under her chin. “I feel like I might be drunk, though.”
“I think I should take you home.” John reached to take her purse off her arm.
Her head went back to laying on his chest and he couldn’t resist wrapping his arms around her in a hug. He felt her hands slide up his back, returning the embrace.
“That night, I remember being so scared, so numb, but somehow I could smell you, and it made me feel so safe,” she mumbled into his shirt.
“Abby? I’m going to get you out of here, okay?”
Her date reached for her other arm. “Hey man, just let me get her home, okay?”
There was no way in hell John was about to let Abby go with him. Something was wrong, and not just because she’d been drinking. He’d watched her nurse that beer for almost an hour. He had a hunch something else was going on.
“Yeah, no. I’ve got her. Your date is over.”
“Look man, I’m just trying to do the right thing. I drove her here, I’d like to make sure she makes it home safely.”
“Safely, huh? Why don’t you take a sip of her drink? Tell me if it seems extra strong to you.”
“No.”
“Why not? Is there something wrong with her drink? Did you fucking spike it with something?”
“I’m not going to drink and then drive, asshole.”
John knew that wasn’t true. The fucker had three empty glasses at his spot on the table.
“I’m taking her home. You can fuck right off. But seeing as how I’m an off-duty deputy with the Clarence County Sheriff’s Department, how about you tell me your name before you leave, in case I have any questions about how she ended up like this?”
“The fuck? You don’t need to know my name. This bitch isn’t worth it. I already knew she wasn’t going to put out, but I was going to do the decent thing and make sure she got home safe. I’m outta here.”
“Don’t fucking move.” John saw red, but just as he was about to bury his fist in that fucker’s face, Abby’s body went slack and her legs buckled from beneath her. He caught her, sweeping her up into his arms and immediately turning for the exit.
“Whoops,” she mumbled into his neck. “Thanks… the catch.”
“Jackson! Don’t let that guy leave.” He was too late. The asshole shoved the table and was running across the bar to the back exit. “Fuck!!”
“I’ll run out and see if I can catch him leaving.” His brother took off after the guy.
John walked out the doors and into the muggy air.
“Abby?”
“Sorry. I’m dizzy.” She groaned as she turned her head into his neck.
“Okay. It’s okay. I’m going to take you to the hospital and they’ll make sure you’re okay.”
“No,” she protested weakly. “I’m fine.”
“Yes. We don’t know what you ingested, sweetheart. We need to make sure you don’t have a bad reaction to it.”
“Please…” His heart clenched at the plea, but he wasn’t going to budge.
“You can be mad at me all you want later, but for now, we are going to get you sorted. And that means seeing a doctor.”
John opened the passenger side door and slid Abby onto the seat. He reclined the seat back, not knowing how her slack muscles would hold up during the drive, and secured the buckle around her.
“John. Is she okay?” Jackson ran up, a bright red spot blooming across his cheek.
“I’m not sure. What the fuck happened to you?”
“I almost caught the guy coming around the corner. I got a good shot in on his left eye, but he clipped me enough that I got off balance and he took off again. Sorry, man.”
“It’s all good. He had to have done something though, right? Why else would he run like that?”
Jackson shrugged. “Do you want me to come with you guys? I can call Sam.”
“No. Get home to Grace. I’ll let you know what’s going on when I know, and I’ll call Sam if she wants me to. Right now, I just want to make sure she gets checked out.”