Johnnie #3
Once they left, he didn’t anticipate a lengthy absence.
Nothing to scar the kids due to parental desertion.
Once shit settled down and Christopher remembered they were family, and once Megan missed Johnnie and reminded Christopher they were family, Johnnie and Kendall would return.
If the thought of not having Kendall at his side didn’t panic him, he’d leave her with their kids.
However, he wouldn’t survive an extended period without her.
Sleeping alone in that little bed was hell and she was right down the hallway.
Having thousands of miles between them was untenable.
She was the best thing that ever happened to him, the bright spot in a world of darkness.
If he really had to run, he couldn’t leave her behind, even for their children.
Once again, he hoped he was overreacting. Escaping someone ordinary would take several weeks of planning. Escaping Christopher? He’d need several months and a lot of preparation. Though he’d accomplished a lot, he still had much more to do, even though it was a contingency plan for the time being.
If not for the family get-together, he probably would’ve spent the night in Seattle. No one would miss him, anyway.
The thought depressed him, which was why he headed to Hortensia Mall for a gift for his wife.
He always gave her a present on Rory’s birthday.
This year had been the exception and he wanted to make up for that.
If he would’ve thought about it, he would’ve bought Kendall something while he was in Seattle and he didn’t feel like driving to Portland.
Several newly opened stores promised more upscale items and a particular department store now anchored the mall. There was even a gourmet grocery store at one of the side street entrances.
He went to the gift shop that had once been the most expensive store in the mall and picked out a crystal Scales of Justice. Once he paid for it, he’d head to the florist and buy Kendall ten dozen roses. She’d love them even more than she liked Bash’s.
Johnnie’s would be bigger, redder, and bolder. She’d need a champagne tub to keep them in, not just an ordinary vase.
Champagne!
Yes, he was such a fucking genius. He’d go to that new grocery store and see how gourmet it was. He’d buy Kendall the most expensive champagne they offered and toast her tonight. He’d buy her the creamiest Belgian chocolates, too.
No! Fuck no! He’d call De Smet, the president of their chapter in Tessenderlo and wire him money to overnight Kendall fresh Belgian chocolates.
She’d see how much Johnnie loved her and realize Bash, or Christopher, or Mortician could never love her as much as he did.
Once he paid for her gift, he headed to the food court for an order of fries to hold him over until dinner. He didn’t want to eat too much and ruin his appetite but he needed something before he finalized all the gifts he’d give Kendall.
Smiling and quite pleased with himself, he dipped a handful of fries into his ketchup.
“John Boy!” Gypsy sat in the seat across from him and smiled. “What are you doing here?”
The woman had definitely seen better days. She’d gone from a smokeshow to an old hag. Years of smoking ravaged her voice as much as the time she’d spent in the sun damaged her skin. He wasn’t sure if it was overeating or age that added so much weight to her once gorgeous figure.
“Shopping makes a man hungry,” he said, pushing away his uncharitable thoughts. He was so used to his rocket of a wife, he couldn’t understand how a woman let herself go and ended up as Gypsy. “What are you doing here?”
She shrugged. “Window shopping.”
“Derby must appreciate your frugality.”
“Hopefully,” she said, glancing at him through her lashes. “If he notices.”
Johnnie nodded, then slid his fries to the middle of the table. “Have some, sweetheart.”
“I would love some, but I’m watching my girlish figure.”
Girlish? Her? In her fucking dreams.
“I understand,” he told her. “But two or three won’t hurt. You once loved fries.”
Judging by her pudginess, she still loved them.
“I don’t want the fries, Johnnie, but there’s a purse I’d love.” Her gaze wasn’t as sexy as she thought. Her lashes were too short. “I’d be so appreciative if you bought it for me.”
Shaking his head, Johnnie pulled his fries away. “I have a wife.” And Gypsy had a fucking husband, in case she’d forgotten.
“She doesn’t have to know.”
“I would know, Gypsy,” Johnnie said irritably. “Didn’t you just spend a couple of days with Kendall? Now, you’re willing to stab her in her back?”
“Unless you want to fuck me in exchange for the purse, how is that stabbing her in the back?”
“You aren’t a part of our family,” he said as patiently as possible. “Kendall will never try to fucking kill me for spending my money on her fucking friend.”
“Friend?” Gypsy scoffed. “Kendall doesn’t like me.”
“She’s a very smart woman. Perceptive.”
“I think she’s jealous because she knows you and I used to fuck.”
“Bullshit! I’d never betray her with another woman. Maybe, her problem is you. You probably come across as phony. She’d know if you were handing her bullshit.”
“I wasn’t. I’m not. I haven’t,” she amended. “Buy me the purse and consider it a gift to an old friend. Kendall has your cock on lockdown. Does she have your wallet chained up too?”
“I’m telling you this once, Gypsy. Because of our history and because of Derby. Don’t fuck with my wife. What I do for her is not your fucking business. Don’t ever make the fucking mistake of thinking that it is.”
“Of course it isn’t my business, John Boy, and I apologize if I came across that way. I’m just in a shitty mood. My sidepiece and I had a falling out. He was a kid, so he didn’t have much money but enough for hair products and little things.”
Johnnie couldn’t imagine a “kid” wasting his time on a harpy like Gypsy. At certain angles, she was still kind of pretty. Mostly—no. “How old is your kid? Twenty-three? Twenty-four?”
Her disingenuous smile annoyed Johnnie. “A little younger.”
“Twenty?”
She shook her head.
“You’re fucking an eighteen-year-old?” he asked, knowing she’d never look at an underaged kid. She’d never been stupid. Just a little pathetic. But even sad sacks like her knew better than to break the fucking law. “You’re going to get that boy killed.”
“Derby knows and doesn’t care.”
Stuffing more fries into his mouth, Johnnie chewed thoughtfully. Her request that he buy her a purse made more sense now. “He’d care if you sucked my cock, wouldn’t he?” he asked once he swallowed the food.
“The only way I’ll know is if it happened.”
Johnnie couldn’t dredge up anger toward her. It was more charitable to pity her than expend energy on fury. Besides, he just didn’t give enough of a fuck about her to care. “You’re playing a dangerous game, Gypsy.”
“I love Derby. The purse I want is in the gift shop. I can’t afford it.”
“Do you want Derby to die?”
She snapped her brows together.
“If I bought the purse, which I already told you I won’t and I’m not changing my mind, you’d beeline to Derby and tell him. He’d confront me over stupid shit. My patience is worn fucking thin. I’d fuck him up.”
“Suppose I swear not to tell him?”
“I’m still not buying it, Gypsy. If you want it that bad, call Kendall or Megan.
” He got to his feet and snatched Kendall’s present, so he could get to the gourmet grocery store.
He’d call De Smet and the florist from his car.
“I’ve done enough to my wife to last a fucking lifetime.
The one thing I’m not doing is ever giving another woman money. ”
No one would disagree that he was leagues better than Christopher in that regard.