Take My Breath Away

  Chapter 11

  Jason's mom must have slipped out the back, because her car was already in the driveway when we got to his house.

  "I meant what I said before," I reminded Jason.

  "Before what?"

  "Before all this. I won't disobey your mother. If she doesn't want me here then I'm not staying—and you're not coming with me either," I added.

  "She'll come around, you'll see."

  "Just sayin'." As we walked to the door I noticed the house wasn't decorated. Jason's mom seemed like the kind who went all out for the holidays so it struck me as odd.

  "Door's locked," Jason said, jiggling the knob. "That's weird."

  "Great, she locked us out. See what you did?"

  "Very funny." Jason walked over to his mother's car and felt the hood. "Hood's cold, must have ridden to church with someone else—neighbor I guess. Hey, I know—want to surprise her?"

  "Don't you think we've surprised her enough for one night?"

  "Come on."

  I followed Jason back to the shed. He fumbled around in the darkness looking for something. "What are you looking for?" I asked.

  "The Christmas lights. I saw them when I put the screens away for the winter."

  Since I could see in the dark, I found them.

  "Come on, help me decorate the house."

  Jason fanned out the strings of lights and I attached them to the gutters. We were just finishing up when a car turned into the driveway. It didn't stop, but kept coming and parked behind Mrs. Whitaker's car. The engine shut off, but no one got out. Finally the driver's door opened.

  "Aunt Madd, is that you?" Jason said. He raced over to the door and then gave her a huge hug. "You look great."

  "Jason? Sakes alive, your mother's been worried sick."

  "I want you to meet someone Aunt Madd." Jason motioned for me. "This is Izzy."

  "Well aren't you the cutest—oh, you're the one he ran off with."

  "Aunt Madd," Jason groaned. "That's not very nice."

  "But true," I added.

  "Yes it is," Jason's mom said as she closed the car door on the other side.

  Jason raced around the car and gave her a hug.

  She gently touched his sling. "You have some explaining to do—both of you." She looked toward me and then back to Jason. "Do you have any idea what it was like for me to see you walk up there injured like that and not know anything about it?"

  "I know, but I was anxious to see you and I knew you would be there," Jason said. "Wait right here, we've got a surprise." Jason grabbed the keys out of his mother's hand.

  While Jason unlocked the backdoor, his mother joined Aunt Madd who was next to me. Jason flipped on the lights.

  "My word," Aunt Madd exclaimed, "Aren't they beautiful."

  It looked like Jason's mom smiled momentarily. "They're beautiful, how'd you—"

  "Izzy helped," Jason said, joining us. "You like?"

  "Why don't we go inside, your aunt has trouble with the cold."

  "Jason, I should go," I said, hanging back.

  "Not a chance. We can work this out."

  As soon as we got inside I made a beeline for the bathroom—or at least I tried. "Excuse me, I need to use the ladies room—oh, unless you need it Aunt Madd."

  "Thank you, dear." It took Aunt Madd forever to get her coat off and get to the bathroom.

  I stood there silently waiting for her to finish. To say the kitchen was tense was an understatement. Jason nor his mom had said a word since we entered the house. Finally Aunt Madd came out of the bathroom and I quickly ducked inside. This was insane—Jason's mom was clearly upset with him—with me. No way was she going to let me stay here. It wasn't necessary—I'd be fine alone, although I didn't relish the idea. There was a tapping at the door.

  "We'll be in the family room when you're finished," Jason said.

  Beyond him, I could here Aunt Madd. "My goodness Nancy, you've scared the poor girl to death—I believe she's hiding in the bathroom for crying out loud."

  "You have no idea what she's put this family—"

  "It's Christmas," Aunt Madd whined. "Why I remember when I met Joe, his mother scared the bejesus out of me."

  I waited a few minutes, then flushed the toilet and ran hot water over my hands. The kitchen was empty when I stepped out of the bathroom. I hesitantly walked toward the family room. Jason jumped up when he saw me.

  "There she is," Aunt Madd said, walking over to greet me. "I'm Jason's Aunt Madd." She took my hand. "Sakes alive, you're freezing—come, have a seat next to the fire." She led me over to the hearth and sat me down in the over stuffed chair to the left. She turned her back to the fire and put her hands behind her bottom. "This is how a southern girl warms herself by the fire."

  "Izzy's family is from Georgia," Jason said.

  "Well then, I'm sure you know how it's done."

  "Is that where you were?" Jason's mom said.

  "Yes." Jason didn't elaborate.

  "Are you going to tell me about that." She pointed to Jason's sling.

  "I got shot."

  "What!" Jason's mom and I said simultaneously, but for obviously different reasons.

  "Hey, it's fine, Izzy got the bullet out."

  Jason's mom got up. "I'm taking you to the hospital this instant."

  "Come on, Mom, it's fine—besides, do you really want to spend Christmas Eve in the Emergency Room?"

  She flopped back down on the chair.

  Jason made a motion toward me. "We told you, no lies. Izzy's parents are in a real jam, there's some real bad dudes after them."

  "Then they're who shot you?"

  The teakettle started whistling.

  "That'll be for the hot coco," Aunt Madd said, starting toward the kitchen. "I'll get it—it's instant, but warm just the same."

  "Sounds good," Jason said, before turning back to his mother. "So, there's this biker gang that found them again—something that happened in the past, and—"

  "The Faulkner's are in witness protection?" His mom said with alarm.

  "You could say that. Anyway, when we caught up to them at the family plantation, well this gang attacked. We were able to hide in the cellar, but I got nicked in the mêlée."

  "That's horrible. Was anyone else hurt?"

  "Nah, just me. We were out in the middle of nowhere so there weren't any cops around so we basically had to hide out. Once the authorities—"

  "Here we are," Aunt Madd said, carrying a tray of hot chocolate.

  "Authorities?" I whispered while Jason's mom was distracted. "I thought we weren't going to lie."

  "Benjamin." Jason shrugged.

  "Oh, thank you." I took a steaming cup from the tray.

  "Thanks, Aunt Madd," Jason said, taking the next to last one.

  "You're welcome, dear."

  "So, like I was saying, the authorities figured out it was the same gang from before and that they were after Benjamin and Elizabeth. Since Izzy is adopted, these dudes don't know anything about her. They put Benjamin and Elizabeth back into hiding and I told them that Izzy could stay with us until this was all over."

  Jason's mom choked on her hot chocolate.

  "It's perfectly safe, they said they'd keep an eye on us from a distance. We'll never even know they're there."

  "An interesting story," Jason's mom said emphasizing the word story. "I suppose you have the same story?" she said to me.

  "No. I told Jason I shouldn't stay here. I'll be fine alone—I've been on my own before."

  Jason fumed silently.

  "Is that true?" she asked Jason.

  "Yeah," he huffed. "But no way am I going to leave her alone."

  "That's what I hoped you would say."

  "Then she can stay?" Jason's reaction was way too enthusiastic.

  "It seems like the least we can do—but with strict rules."

  "Yeah, fine, I know," Jason said.

  "I'm sure Izzy's parents are depending on us to return their daughter in the same co
ndition." Could she have been any more obvious? "Aunt Madd is in the guest room downstairs, so for now, Izzy can stay in the room upstairs next to mine, but once Aunt Madd goes home Izzy can have the guest room." She turned to me. "You'll have a little more privacy. You're parents are putting a lot of faith in strangers so I expect you to obey the rules just like Jason. So we're clear, you will stay out of each other's room's, period. No exceptions. Do I make myself clear?"

  "Yes Ma'am," I replied.

  "Yeah, yeah, sure, I get it," Jason groaned.

  "I'm serious young man—keep your adolescent urges under control."

  Jason's face turned beat red. We finished our hot chocolate in relative silence while we all adjusted to what just happened.

  "Why don't you kids bring your things inside?" Jason's mom suggested.

  "I don't have—"

  "Come on," Jason said, cutting me off.

  I looked at him skeptically, but followed him to the kitchen. I stopped and turned back toward his mother. "Thank you, Mrs. Whitaker. I can't thank you enough."

  "You're welcome. I look forward to getting to know you better."

  "Come on," Jason said, tugging at my blouse.

  "What are we doing out here?" I said when we got to the car.

  "I don't know," Jason pulled me into his arms.

  I gently pushed back. "No, Jason. Weren't you listening to your mother?"

  He looked around. "Nope, no room involved."

  I let him pull me back into his arms and kiss me. "You know your mom's not happy about this arrangement."

  "Don't worry about it, she'll come around."

  "Not if you don't behave yourself."

  "Me?" Jason patted the roof of the car. "I seem to remember—"

  "Cute. Honestly though, I don't want to disrespect your mother."

  He patted the roof again. "If Tink hadn't come in—"

  "Jason, thank goodness he did. I can't be that way with you, it doesn't matter what we want, or feel, its too dangerous."

  Jason bobbed his brow. "That sounds interesting."

  I slapped his chest playfully. "You're incorrigible. Come on, your mother will wonder what happened to us."

  "Listen, I know you don't sleep, but make sure you use the bed, Mom notices things."

  Jason's mom was on her way toward the kitchen when we walked through the doorway. "Where are your things?"

  "I forgot, Mom, things happened so fast—well—we don't have any."

  "Oh. Well, that's not so much of a problem for you, but I'm not sure what we can do for Izzy." She looked me up and down. "You're much to petite for any of my things."

  "She can wear one of my jersey's to bed," Jason said. "I'll be right back." He ran upstairs.

  "Why don't we go back in the family room?"

  "Sure." I followed her back into the room and retreated to my chair.

  Aunt Madd was still standing at the fire. "It's so nice to see Jason with a girlfriend. Are you two serious?"

  "Madeline! They've only known each other for a short time."

  "Humph, I knew the minute I saw Joe. Care for another cup of coco?"

  "No thank you."

  Jason came crashing down the stairs. "Here you go," he said, tossing one of his football jerseys across the room. "How's that?"

  I stood and held it up. It didn't make it to my knees, but was long enough to cover the essentials.

  "I know tomorrow is Christmas," Jason's mother said, "but I'm sure we can find something open to get you a few things."

  "Elizabeth gave me some money."

  "Well, don't fret over it, we can call it a Christmas present. I'm sure you'd like to wash up, there's a bathroom at the top of the stairs—a little more private than the one down here. Towels are in the linen closet at the end of the hall."

  "I'll show you," Jason offered.

  "I'm sure she can find everything just fine," Jason's mom said with an edge of mistrust.

  "Sure, I'll be fine."

  Jason pouted, but didn't argue.

  "If you bring your things down, I can wash them for tomorrow."

  "Thanks."

  Jason stepped toward me as I started for the stairs, but I stepped around him and went upstairs. A shower was a good idea, I still smelled like old gasoline. The shower was refreshing and despite the iron taste of the water—I assume they were on well water—the lavender scented body wash smelled wonderful. The water made my hair go all crazy, but Jason seemed to like that so I tried not to let it bother me. The warm water was soothing so I just stood there and let it run over me. I imagined that this was as close to heaven as I'd ever get. I heard Jason and his mom in the kitchen.

  "Shot! What am I going to do with you?" his mother scolded. "We're going to have to have that looked at by a doctor."

  "No way, Mom, there will be too many questions. Besides, Izzy cleaned out the wound with brandy after she got the bullet out."

  "Izzy took the bullet out? She doesn't seem—"

  "She was great, Mom."

  "Jason, I'm not sure we know enough—"

  "Don't go there. She's a part of me, like I'm a part of her. Nothing is going to change that. I wonder what's taking her so long? I think I'll go check on her."

  "You'll do no such thing, young man. Allow her some privacy, it sounds like she's been through a lot."

  "That she has and I know we can make her feel at home."

  "Yes, I'm sure we can."

  The faucet squeaked as I turned off the water.

  "Ah, she's done."

  "You stay put, young man."

  I dried off quickly and turned my attention to my hair. It had been a longtime since I'd done anything with it, but I decided to give the blow dryer a try. It was understandable that Jason's mom didn't like me—I mean in the past month her son had ditched school—chased me clean across the country and then, as soon as we got back, took off again—and got shot. And of course now, she finds out that my adopted parents are in witness protection—if it were really that simple. I could definitely sympathize.

  Well, the blow dryer was a disaster. My hair looked more like a tumbleweed than anything. I remembered what my mom used to do when it got this way and pulled it back into a ponytail. Even though Jason's jersey had a hint of fabric softener, it was still so Jason's. I pulled it over my head almost panicking when my ponytail got momentarily stuck. There was still a chance it might be too much. I would have to keep my breathing very shallow. I wrapped my underwear in my blouse, grabbed my jeans and headed downstairs.

  Jason stood as I came down the stairs. He was grinning from ear-to-ear, and although I was pleased, his mother's reaction spoiled the excitement. I wouldn't say she was displeased; it appeared she thought I was pretty—maybe that was the problem. I definitely had the feeling she would be happier if Jason and I weren't together. I set my clothes on the bottom step.

  "Wow!" Jason said. "You clean up nice."

  "Jason! That's no way to speak to her."

  To her, ouch. If I was going to win her over I had some work to do. I side stepped Jason and returned to my chair by the fireplace. I settled in and folded my legs under me.

  "Ah hum," Jason's mother cleared her throat.

  I quickly pulled the jersey down over my knees.

  "You have the most beautiful alabaster skin, my dear," Aunt Madd said.

  I flinched back when she reached toward me.

  Jason jumped up, "Jeez Aunt Madd, she's not some porcelain doll, she's a person."

  "Jason!" his mother warned. "Watch your tone."

  "Sorry, Aunt Madd."

  "You know," I said getting up from the chair. "It's been a long day."

  Jason's mom got up too. "I'll show you to your room."

  "I can find it."

  "Nonsense. Right this way." She stopped at the foot of the stairs. "Are these your clothes?"

  "Yes, Ma'am."

  "They'll be outside your room in the morning."

  "I couldn't ask you to—"

  Her icy stai
r cut me off.

  "Thank you."

  When we got to the room, she turned back the covers and pulled the drapes closed.

  "Would you like a glass of water?"

  "No, this is perfect."

  She lingered at the door, looking like she wanted to say something. I was pretty sure it wouldn't be good, but it was probably better if she got it off her chest—I could guess what it was.

  "Mrs. Whitaker, there's something you should probably know."

  "What's that?"

  "I love your son, and I'm pretty sure he loves me, but I'm a virgin and I plan on staying that way." That ought to ease her mind.

  "I should hope so. Girls these days—well I just don't understand how they can think so little of themselves."

  "I just wanted you to know. I really appreciate you taking me in and I won't take advantage of your generosity."

  "I'll put your clothes by the door. Goodnight."

  "Goodnight." I said turning away from her, toward the room.