Chapter 10
”It”s my bad for waiting until the last minute to invite people,” Domineau earnestly explained while Becca folded laundry. ”I blame Rafael. He gets these crazy ideas all the time but doesn”t act on them, so when he does, I”m left scrambling.”
”It”s summer,”Becca replied. ”Also known as the season of surprises and ever-changing plans. No worries. Our calendar is covered with scribbles and cross-outs—and as it happens, I”m freeandso is Kori. We enjoy a good cookout. Can I bring something? Cookies, perhaps?”the harried mom asked.
Domineau chuckled at the intended ha-ha. ”Kori”s on a cookie-baking kick?”
Nodding, Becca also rolled her eyes.
”Let me guess,”Domineau drawled. With satirical glee, she asked, ”That Fucker Finn?”
Slapping another folded towel onto a growing stack, Becca didn”t hide her amusement at the snark-laden epithet that Family Justice had bestowed on Finn O”Brien. Snorting at Domineau”s dry delivery, she nodded.
”To the kids, he”s the unofficial pied piper of Bendover. Whatever Finn says, goes.”
Domineau made a funny face. ”Beantown fucker.”
”That is so politically incorrect!”
”Well, it was either that or ginger fuck.”
They shared a hearty laugh, and she thought, Poor Finn. He puts up with so much shit.
”Back to the cookies. Rafael will eat anything. He”s got an iron stomach, and nothing upsets his system. Bring whatever you have; believe me, nothing will go to waste. Justice noshes like unattended kids at a picnic.”
”What a funny way of saying they have equal-opportunity stomachs.”
”Side effect of battlefield rations. Once you”ve experienced partially cooked spaghetti covered in ketchup packets, you”ll eat anything.”To make her point, Domineau pretended to gag.
Slamming the dryer door shut, Becca gave the basket of clean laundry an approving look.
”I was never much of a cook, but I made it work when I was first married and had a baby,”she admitted. ”No one has ever accused me of competency when it comes to housekeeping and all that shit. The landscape changed, though, after my in-laws branded me a terrible mother and tried their darndest to steal custody of my kid. True story,”she said in a somber tone. ”To shut them down, I earned a homemaking certificate from our community college. It took a year and many classes, but my effort impressed the court.”
She shrugged, but Domineau”s expression let her know that nobody else blew off the accomplishment.
”At the time, getting that certificate was my subtle fuck you to Kori”s unctuous paternal grandparents. Now? I”m glad I persevered. School doesn”t prepare us for grown-up stuff like living on our own or becoming a parent. Sometimes, I think the Army was easier than some of this real-world stuff. All the bullshit and the legal skirmishes almost killed my spirit, but Kori is worth every second.”
”Your kid is amazing.”
”So is yours,”Becca quickly replied.
”Molly? That”s all Rafe. She was already amazing before I entered the picture. He”s a wonderful dad.”
”All hail single parents! I fully applaud his choices.”And she did. Rafael D”Alessandro knew what he wanted and didn”t wait around for luck or providence to intervene. Fatherhood meant so much to the Team Justice alums that he took the road less traveled—found a surrogate and emptied his bank account to secure what he thought would be his only chance at parenthood.
Then Domineau Rivera came back into his life, and the rest, as they say, is now part of legend.
”Do you think you guys will give having another kid a shot?”
”Oh, shit, Becca. Haven”t you heard?”Domineau hooted merrily. ”I want the whole deal. Full smash. No workarounds, starting with a fairy tale wedding and a to-die-for dress. I don”t care if my bridal vision seems cheesy or juvenile.”
Mimicking an unimpressed facial expression, the tall female warrior raised her middle finger.
”Yeah? Eat me. I don”t give a fuck what anyone else thinks, and I think I”ve earned the privilege,”she tersely added.
Then, with a wink and a smirk, she said, ”Après-wedding, my priorities include sexy lingerie, expensive champagne, and baby-making in every time zone from here to there. Does that answer your question?”
”Yes, that answers beautifully, and may I just say that I fucking love all of that for you. And Rafe.”
”I got scared and left him so many times,”Domineau admitted. ”Too many times. What”s that saying about waiting for the right time? We”re that couple, and since this is a forever wedding, we”d be stupid to have anything less than our heart”s desire.”
Becca swallowed a sudden, unexpected wedge of emotion clogging her throat. In Domineau and Rafe”s case, the love they always had needed more time. Even though their final parting felt permanent, and both went on with their lives, destiny brought them back together here, in Bendover, where, as it”s said, all things are possible.
And now look at them—blissfully in love, co-parenting Molly, living life to the fullest, and planning a wedding extravaganza sure to be recorded in the pages of Justice history.
Their love story was unique.
I”ve never been in love, she thought. And frankly, I don”t know if love is something I”m even capable of.
In her head, she heard Tina Turner belting out, What”s Love Got To Do With It?
”If it helps any, Kori and I are giddy about your Disney destination wedding. I”ve never been able to give her a cool vacation, so a chance to do the whole Florida tourist and amusement park geek thing plus get dressed up for a fancy wedding—come on!”She chuckled. ”Winning!”
Domineau”s expression changed. Becca was still considering what it meant when her first real friend asked a surprising question.
”And what about you, Mrs. Tate? Anyone tickling your fancy these days?”
Much to Domineau”s obvious amusement, Becca blurted out, ”I don”t think my fancy has ever had the pleasure of being tickled.”
”Sorry to hear that, but while we”re on the subject, I”m advocating a battery tax write-off for any female not claiming a spouse. Insurance covers boner pills, so batteries should enjoy the same status.”
It took Becca ten full seconds to pick up what her friend was throwing down.
And then she laughed.
Heartily.
While blushing.
Without any prompting, Becca took it a step further. ”My ex was an inept lover—and believe me, I”m being kind. We were young, and I was stupid. Sex was a one-way street.”She raised her brows. ”Know what I mean?”
”Totally,”Domineau responded forcefully. ”Him getting his rocks off was what mattered.”
”There you have it,”Becca snarled.”At some point, I stopped with the fake orgasms because he wasn”t paying attention anyway, so why bother?”
”What about after you ditched the ex? Surely someone …”
She cut Domineau off mid-sentence. ”No. Never. I”m either a lousy lover or have the worst luck in bedroom history.”
”Gurl,”Domineau drawled. ”Do you need me to point out that Bendover is ground zero for manly men? Grab hold of one and fuck his brains out for Christ”s sake.”
”Ican”t do that.”Becca shrugged. ”Controlling an all-male workforce means being a starchy bitch. It”s hard enough to earn their respect. Guys talk, so sleeping around would only make things worse.”
”The guys that talk are not who you should go after. Little boys versus a fully functioning adult male—huge difference.”
”That idiot Josh Gordon tried hitting on me at Pete”s. In front of my daughter. Shithead.”
Domineau made a rude gesture, indicating a hand job. ”Josh is a certified jagoff.”
”Word,”Becca drawled. ”Other than that, the pickings are slim.”
”Not necessarily.”
The brief appearance of a twinkle in Domineau”s eyes gave Becca pause. What was she thinking?
”Have you met my new lieutenant?”
”Ididn”t know you had one.”
Domineau grunted. ”Yeah. Alex sat me down for one of his lectures. He has opinions about everything—offloading the grunt work is one of his favorite themes.”
Interesting. ”So, who is this guy?”
”Joe Smith.”
”Witness protection?”Becca joked.
”I know, right? I”ve seen his birth certificate, and all I can say is that his parents had zero originality in name choice.”
”Is he gay?”
”No.”
”Are you sure?”
”Yes. He”s divorced, has a kid in another state, and a purple heart.”
Becca drawled, ”I might have led with the purple heart.”
”Probably right.”Domineau shrugged. ”But the takeaway on Joe Smith boils down to this—he survived Jason Cameron”s deep dive into his past. What more do you need?”
True. The Justice payroll was more heavily vetted than the White House staff. Last year, an incident caused by people inside the organization with revenge on their brains changed how Justice operated.
While Becca considered the possibilities, Domineau silkily posed a question from far left field.
”There”s always Jamie. He”s got the looks.”
”Dr. Hunter? Can you imagine?”Becca snorted. ”Gah!”
”You”ve got to admit he”s sort of yummy.”Shivering theatrically, Domineau added, ”Those cinnamon eyes of his are hypnotic.”
”I”ve seen him naked,”Becca murmured.
The expression on her friend”s face was priceless and made her think, Maybe I shouldn”t have said that out loud.
”Wait, wait, wait, wait!”Domineau”s snort was half laughter and half curiosity. ”You, Rebecca Tate, saw Jamie Hunter in his birthday suit? So, Kori wasn”t joking a while back when she let this naked tidbit out of the bag?”
”Uh, yeah.”
”Where the hell was I when this happened?”
”New York.”
Domineau”s mouth formed the word ”Oh.”
”It was an accident.”
”Ohh-kay.”
Clearing her throat, Becca pushed hair behind one ear and tried to explain.
”Um, it really was. Unbeknownst to each other, we were in the old gym at the same time. We, uh, stumbled into one another outside the showers.”
Domineau whistled—loud. She made a time-out gesture. ”Hold up there, sis. You were both naked—not just Jamie?”
”Oh. Well, yeah. Did I forget to mention that part?”
”Holy shit!”
”That”s what I said,”Becca drawled.
”Holy shit,”Domineau barked a second time.
What made me tell her? Becca thought as embarrassment flooded her system.
”How was it?”Domineau eventually inquired—her prurient interest on full display.
Please don”t say it, Becca”s conscience screamed to no avail.
”Impressive,”she answered with a bit of elation in her delivery.
Grinning and wagging her brows suggestively, her friend asked, ”And what about you? Was there a 70s situation down below or a welcome sign?”
Jesus! A welcome sign? Oy. She covered her eyes and shook her head.
”The runway wasn”t clear, but it wasn”t a bushwhacker situation either.”
”Was there lift-off on Jamie”s part?”
”Domineau! Fuck! Did you hear yourself just now? Lift off? Seriously?”
Acting as if inquiring about the grumpy doctor”s erection status was no big deal, Domineau kept on talking.
Gleefully talking.
”Don”t play the prude, Becca! It”s a reasonable question, and you know it! When I tell the ladies . . .”
”No! Oh, god, don”t. Please.”
Domineau shrugged. ”Okay, but I”m telling Rafael, and trust me, he”ll ask for an up or down call from the referee. Guys, pssh. It”s how they think.”
”Well, I”m not answering.”
”Why not? Is there cause for concern about his, um, equipment?”
Gritting her teeth, she replied, ”None that I saw.”
”Great!”Clapping once, Domineau rubbed her hands together. ”We need a plan.”
”A plan for what?”
”To find out if our aloof veterinarian is a fancy tickler.”
”I already regret telling you that.”
”Too late!”Domineau”s happiness was off the chart. ”Operation Tickle Her Fancy is underway. I suggest a salon visit.”She pointed at her waist and then her feet. ”Navel to toes. Head optional, but I recommend a blowout. Works wonders for a gal”s confidence.”
With an indignant huff, Becca muttered, ”I am not getting a blowout or having my girly bits waxed.”
”Your call—but Jamie Hunter strikes me as a man who appreciates the finer things.”
”Are you implying he”s a connoisseur of lady parts?”
”Iwasn”t, but I”m here for whatever bougie word fits!”