Chapter 39
Kori bit the end of a carrot with an audible snap and regarded Becca with a blank stare.
The vacant expression and sarcastic chewing got to her as a mother.
She didn”t sigh even though she wanted to—parent rule number one was never to show your hand when the person across from you is a preteen.
Nobody told her how freaking hard it is to single-parent a twelve-year-old.
Wondering which of them would blink first, she waited for her daughter to answer a simple question that did not need much thought.
”Mom, ugh,” Kori finally grunted. ”Come on. Why bring up the sperm donor named on my birth certificate? You know I can”t deal with dickweed Darryl.”
Oh, lord. Her daughter just used the term dickweed in referring to her father.
”You don”t need to take my temperature about the whole dad thing. I”m not the first kid to get stuck with a terrible father.” Kori took another snapping bite of carrot and gave her a dry look. ”Maybe your next husband won”t be a loser.”
Now, her daughter brought up the idea of a second husband. Was the universe clowning her? For real?
Gah!
There was a time in the not-so-distant past when Kori resented everyone—Becca first, Darryl, and his parents came in a close second. The kid had ample reason for her hostility—the custodial tug-of-war and in-fighting she endured had destroyed her childhood. It took time, patience, and a butt-load of truth-telling for mother and daughter to weather the rocky times and look forward instead of reliving the past.
Honesty was their bedrock. Their foundation was built with truthfulness and age-appropriate candor. With that in mind, Becca had opened a dialogue that began in the past—something that did not thrill her daughter.
Clearing her throat, she spoke slowly—choosing her words carefully.
”As a parent, I”m responsible for checking in with you occasionally and hearing how you”re handling …”
Kori cut her off with a dismissive snort. ”Mom! Don”t come at me with therapy speak.”
”Therapy speak? My lord, Kori. How do you come up with these things?”
Shrugging, the twelve-year-old, who was going on thirty, exhaled. ”Pheebs and me—we talk about this stuff. Her parents do the same thing. They blab lines they”ve been fed by their family therapist. It”s so dumb.”
Becca”s mouth dropped open.
”I know you”re not supposed to say bad things about Darryl. It”s like part of the custody deal—right? Whatever.”
Kori held up both hands to make a W, and in that moment, Becca was certain the day was fast approaching when mentions of her absent father would earn a middle finger salute.
”I”m telling you, Mom. When I have a work permit and get some part-time cash rolling in, I say F Darryl and his monthly support payment. We don”t need his stupid money.”
Now that she had top-shelf benefits and an excellent salary to count on, Becca agreed that they didn”t need the money. Her ex”s support checks were a pittance anyway. Mostly, the monthly drop in the bucket felt like an insult and if she could deny the support, she would. But the system wasn”t set up that way.
”Whatever you earn is yours. Spend or save is up to you, okay? I”m perfectly capable of handling all of this on my own. The trickle of funds your father is legally required to cough up means nothing to us and hasn”t for some time. Honestly? I”d torch the checks, but he”d like that, and we can”t give him the satisfaction.”
”Thanks for saying we.”
”We”re a team. That”s our mother-daughter superpower.”
”Cool.”
”And you know what?”She chuckled as a thought bloomed in her mind. ”How about from now on, we take our support check and blow it on stuff and nonsense?”
”Tee he he,”Kori snickered. ”That”s Grandma”s favorite phrase. Stuff and nonsense! I”m here for it. Can we get the Mommy and Me mani-pedi experience at the new day spa in Dare Gulch?”
Girls hanging out and having fun, Becca thought with a smile.
”You mean the one with the luxurious robes and flavored ice water?”
Kori nodded enthusiastically. ”They have a menu of cool things like face stuff and even what music you want pumped into your treatment suite.”
”Why do you know this?”
”Pheebs and her mom go. Mr. Marshall pays for it.”Kori smirked and ducked her head.
Sensing something in the air, Becca asked, ”What?”
”You can”t say anything, alright?”Kori said sternly.
”Okay.”
”I think Mr. Marshall is trying to get back with Mrs. Marshall. Pheebs thinks so, too. She says they”re always texting each other, and her dad comes by nearly every day.”
”Maybe they”re just good friends. Not every divorced couple goes to war with each other.”
”Well, sure, but Pheebs also says there”s a lot of giggling and touching—especially when they think she”s not paying attention.”
Kori”s description contained a lot to unpack. Was Holly open to rekindling things with Davis? She wouldn”t be surprised. Despite their deep love, life did not come with a happiness guarantee. Their breakup and eventual divorce were sad.
Taking the off-amp Kori provided, Becca used the Marshalls” situation to steer the subject closer to home.
”How does Phoebe feel about her mom giving her dad a second chance?”
”She”s cool with it.”
”What about you, Kori? How do you feel about me dating Dr. Hunter?”
”I”m cool with it.”
Seriously? That was it? That”s all she had to say? Kids—gah!
”Can you expand on that answer, please?”
”Sure. I say it”s about time.”
”What does that mean?”
Kori looked at her thoughtfully. ”Well, things started to change with you two at Christmas time. You guys still faced off occasionally, but not as often. Then, when everyone was in New York, something happened, didn”t it?”
Feeling like a deer frozen in the headlights of a speeding truck, she was incapable of moving as the vision of Jamie Hunter, fresh from a shower and wearing only his skin, took center stage in her mind.
Damn right, something happened!
”I figured as soon as you started getting dressed up and whatnot, you were open to romance.”
Now, there was a string of words one never expected to hear from their only kid. Raising Kori to be outspoken and stand her ground also meant that, as her mom, she was on the receiving end of those things.
”I like him a lot.”
”Duh.”
She pushed hair behind her ear and went for it. ”And he likes me a lot.”
Kori”s brows shot up.
”Like a lot, a lot,”Becca added.
Hoping Kori was on board, she murmured a critical question and crossed her fingers.
”I think I should go for it—don”t you?”
”Go for it,”Kori mumbled. ”Is that your way of saying this is serious?”
”Um, well, yeah. Is that okay?”
”Is he nice to you? Are you happy with him? That”s all I care about.”
”This involves you, too. Are you open to exploring what a family that includes Jamie might be like?”
Kori laughed. ”I”m already there, Mom. Sheesh! Do you think I”d let you go out with just anybody? I hope he”s the one, okay?”
Becca thought she might cry. Her baby girl was so grown up and way wiser than she”d been at the same age.
”I”m happy to hear you say that because we”ll probably spend more time together. Sometimes, all three of us.”
Non-plussed, Kori looked at her and said, ”Greatbutcan we work on your wardrobe? There”s more to living than blue jeans, sports bras, and plaid shirts. You can”t get by borrowing from friends.”
”Hey, be nice. I bought a bunch of stuff for Sophie and Jace”s wedding. Nice stuff—pricey stuff. It”s just not stuff you wear every day.”
”So that means we have to go shopping!”
Becca sighed. ”We?”The idea of a shopping spree and giving her daughter a say in the process worried her.
”Yeah! We”re a team, remember?”
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how a heartfelt comment about the mother-daughter bond came around again to bite her on the ass.
”I hate clothes shopping.”
”No,”Kori snickered. ”You hate malls. Everyone hates malls. Too many people make it hard to think.”
She was right. How in the world had her kid gotten so wise?
”Too true. I”ll talk to Holly and see if she has any ideas.”
”She can come too, Mom! Mrs. Marshall knows about style.”Kori”s expression brightened considerably. ”I can”t wait! Clothes shopping! What fun!”
* * *
Rebecca recountinghow she got bamboozled into a wardrobe overhaul by her too-savvy kid made Jamie”s night. The way she went on and on about skin tight this and way too revealing that tickled his funny bone.
”What”s wrong with jeans anyway?”she grumbled.
”Petulance suits you,”he teased. ”A reminder that you”re human.”
With serious things to talk about on a night when they couldn”t get together, they were giving video calls a shot. He was lounging on the sofa with Cat curled up next to him. A selfie stick that converted into a tripod sat on the coffee table for hands-free chatting.
Sometimes—actually, a lot of the time—it seemed like technology was taking over every aspect of day-to-day living.
His remark about being human triggered her eye roll.
”Uh uh uh,”Rebecca grunted. She wagged her finger, too. ”What did I say about no talking?”
A stupid grin moved onto his face. He liked her frosty side. Nobody did boss bitch better than his lady.
Catching her breath, she then continued with her rant.
”I don”t want a walk-in closet. Who needs hundreds of square feet dedicated to hangers and shelves? It”s too much. A drawer for jeans, another for T-shirts. Cotton shirts on the rod, a few sundresses and a small section for grown-up stuff. More than that is overkill.”
Cat rubbed her face on his jeans. He scratched her head and thought about his closet situation.
”I have a walk-in. Most of it is empty. I think it”s designed for two people.”
”Your place is newer. A nice primary with an ensuite and closet is mandatory these days. My little place was built in the post-war 1950s. Small bedrooms and closets the size of a phone booth. We make it work.”
Focusing on her face, he noticed the slight grimace around her mouth. She was stretched way too tight. He wished she was within reach so he could redirect the excess energy.
For the fiftieth time today, he worked up several scenarios involving him and Rebecca living together—with Kori, of course. His place was plenty large enough—lots of unused space. With little effort, he could expand the bedroom wing for more suites—in case of … what?
More children? Is that where his mind was going? Did he want kids with Rebecca?
The idea of fucking a baby inside her was certainly way appealing. So was watching her body change as their child grew.
His part, though—the fatherhood thing—made him nervous. Being a dad was one of the times when fucking up was not an option.
”I would like a mom lounge, though. Someplace to do crafts, read books, and stare out the window. It”s a way better use of real estate than a closet.”
Interesting. He stored this piece of inside information away for future consideration.
She”d run out of steam—he could see it in her body language.
”So, um, reading between the lines of my rambling speech, I guess you caught the part about how it looks like we worried for no reason. Not only is Kori fine with us being together, but she also had a bit to say about our evolving relationship.”
”Do tell.”
”She knows something happened when Family Justice went to New York, and we were left here, running things.”
”I”m not surprised,”he chuckled. ”She”s an intuitive kid, which explains why she”s so good with little kids and animals.”
The temperature of their conversation rose. He was surprised by how easy it was to feel her energy.
”You are my first smoke show.”Her eyes twinkled and flashed. ”Seeing you naked made me weak at the knees.”
”Is that so?”Happiness rushed into his center and spread.
He wasn”t vain by any means but hearing her say she was weak-kneed inflated his ego.
”Yeah.”A deep, rosy blush appeared on her face. ”I liked looking.”
Chuckling at the memory, he yanked her chain. ”I noticed your downward gaze and, in that moment, wasn”t sure from your reaction whether you”d ever seen a cock before.”
She honked with laughter. ”Never been impressed before is more like it. There”s more difference than just size between a little dick and a big cock.”
He laughed. ”You said cock.”
Leaning close to the camera, she mock whispered, ”I”m eager to meet yours—up close and personal, finally.”
”No shit Sherlock,”he grinned. ”You”re making no attempt to hide that you are, in fact, gagging for it, to borrow an indelicate expression.”
Her gentle laugh soothed his soul.
”Is gagging the desired outcome? Asking for a friend with little experience or understanding.”
Now, it was his time to rant.
”Sex education as taught in schools only covers the penis-vagina Venn diagram for the sole purpose of avoiding STDs and pregnancy. Beyond that, what they teach is useless. Men don”t know what a clitoris is or how to find it. Women have zero understanding of how a penis works. It”s a mess if you ask me.”
”I never thought about it like that, but you”re right. What”s missing is a sexually oriented anatomy lesson. Maybe then, the oral arts would be more a source of pleasure than anxiety.”
”Is this your way of asking for a dick lesson?”
”I think it is,”she laughed. ”I”m clueless in this department. Advance knowledge of the terrain and what techniques work for you would be nice.”
”So many nice words strung together. It”s amazing how vanilla you made that sound!”
”I know, right?”She cackled merrily into the camera.
”I could send you an informative how-to video. Nothing creepy. It”s a video series from a licensed therapist. A sex worker, if you must. Her focus is modern erotica and the BDSM lifestyle. I”d suggest putting a towel down when you watch. It”s quite explicit.”
She giggled and blushed again.
”Send it, and after Kori”s asleep, I”ll check it out. Will you be available for consultation if I have questions?”
He”d seen the video and figured she”d have quite a few—especially about his preferences, grip strength, and pleasure zones.
”But of course!”he answered with a cocky smirk. ”Ask nicely, and I might give a hands-on demonstration.”
Her. Face. Was. Priceless.
After ending the call, he quickly forwarded the video file and continued his business.