Millie smiled at the thought. She may be an old woman, but she was no prude. Sometimes a good roll in the hay did wonders for the soul.
Her granddaughter walked into the room as she was still smiling at her own thoughts. Jessica Marie tilted her head at Millie and then proceeded to tuck the hand-knitted afghan Millie had made, even more around the old woman’s body. Even though Millie couldn’t have been cocooned any farther into it, and even though she’d have a heck of a time unwrapping herself in she ever needed to get up, she appreciated her granddaughter’s sentiment. Yet another son had raised their child right. It made Millie very proud.
“Happy to be home, Grams?” Jessica asked her politely.
She patted the young woman’s arm, hoping that Jessica found a good man to care for someday. Someone who deserved the nurturing love that the girl was so quick to give. “Yes, dear.” Sighing, she snuggled into her assortment of pillows. “I’m very happy to be home.” Smirking to herself, she added, “Although, I will miss Susan and her never-ending stories.”
Jessica Marie smiled at her as she straightened. She shook her head a little, seemingly amused that Millie had so quickly bonded with her caregivers. Millie contained a smile. If it was one thing Millie had learned at her age, it was that you didn’t waste the time you were given. Millie was quick to love and quick to laugh, because really, that could end at any time for her. For anyone, she supposed.
Smiling, Jessica said, “I’m going to go make you some lunch, Grams. Do you have any tomatoes in your greenhouse? I could make you a nice, juicy BLT?” She rubbed her stomach after she suggested it and Millie smiled, wondering if that was what Jessica had a hankering for.
“I believe there are still some in there. Thank you, Jessica.”
Jessica Marie smiled and asked if Millie needed anything else before she went outside. When Millie told her she was fine, she smiled wider and nearly skipped out of the room. Millie raised an eyebrow at her granddaughter. Maybe she’d already found a boy to look after? She certainly seemed like a woman in love. Although…Millie had seen slight frowns and a light misting of the eyes on her at times. Whatever her charming granddaughter had gotten herself involved in, it didn’t appear to be a completely easy situation. Millie smiled wider and closed her eyes. She knew from experience that the best relationships were never the easy ones.
She started to doze off, thinking about her own, at-times, passionate relationship with her husband. There were many years of love, laughter, and heartache for Millie to flip through, and she was just on the cusp of sleep when she heard a clink of a plate being set on the coffee table.
Her granddaughter gave her apologetic eyes as she glanced up at her. “Sorry, I wasn’t sure if I should wake you or not.”
Millie yawned and stretched out what parts of her body that she could still move in the burrito-like blankets wrapped around her. A small pain shot up her hip when she did. Trying to hide the flinch, she casually answered Jessica. “Oh, you didn’t, dear. I was only reminiscing.”
As Millie smiled warmly at the trip down memory lane she’d just taken, Jessica frowned. She’d apparently caught the slight flinch in the old woman’s face. “I’ll go get your pain pills.”
Jessica was up and out of the room before Millie could even protest. Sighing, she reached over and grabbed the plate with an absurdly large sandwich on it. Shaking her head, she wondered just how her granddaughter thought her small stomach was going to handle the mountain of food before it. Especially since the pain pills that Jessica was so politely bringing for her, had a habit of giving her belly slight bouts of nausea.
Grabbing the smaller half of the sandwich, Millie sat back and took a small bite. She wouldn’t make her the sweet girl feel bad by refusing to eat the meal she’d so graciously prepared. Millie could suffer through an upset stomach to make her family happy.
Jessica came back with the nausea-inducing pills and Millie graciously took the two she handed her with a small glass of water. As they were sliding down her throat, Millie hoped they didn’t bring the BLT back up it. Not showing any of that turmoil to Jessica, she smiled brightly. “Thank you so much, Jessica Marie.” Laughing a little, she added, “Between you and Kai, I’ll be the most well-fed woman in town.”
It could have been her imagination, but Millie almost thought she saw Jessica twitch at the mention of Kai’s name. Not like the other day, when she’d seemed like she hadn’t wanted anything to do with him, just an odd, involuntary movement at his name. Kai had mentioned that Jessica was taking good care of him. Millie hoped that meant that whatever weirdness had been between them, had passed.
As Jessica only smiled politely at the comment, Millie decided to add to it. Watching Jessica sit in the plush chair kitty-corner to the couch, she took another small bite of her sandwich. “We should find Kai a girl.”
Jessica’s eyes widened, her mouth dropping open a little. Curious, Millie added, “He’s too good of a boy to not have someone to love. Don’t you think?” It was about as indirect that Millie could be, asking if everything was alright between the two of them.
Jessica swallowed and tucked her hair behind her ears. Grabbing a curl on one of the long strands, she started twisting it around her finger. It was an old childhood habit of Jessica’s. One that Millie was a little surprised to see pop up again. “Yeah, he’s really great…but, he just got here. I doubt he’s looking for anything yet.”
Millie watched the girl twist the strand of hair around her finger so tight that she was practically cutting off the circulation in the digit. “Nonsense. What boy his age isn’t looking to sow his oats a bit?” Millie smiled softly and took a bite of her sandwich.
Jessica’s face flooded with color as she gaped at Millie. “Grandma!” she exclaimed.
Millie laughed, not sure if Jessica was prudishly against the thought of a man trying out different partners, or surprised that her grandmother was not. Millie patted her knee. She hadn’t raised her family members to be prudes, and she’d certainly never have expected that from Jessica Marie. The girl must just be surprised. “Oh, relax, dear. No harm in a man…exploring his options.” Curious, what her reaction would be, Millie raised an eyebrow at Jessica pointedly. “A woman either, dear.”
Millie had to laugh at her granddaughter’s face going an even brighter shade of red. She immediately turned away from Millie and began jerking on the strand of hair in her fingers so hard, Millie was sure she’d pull the whole piece out by the root. “Well, sure…I guess,” she muttered, still seemingly flabbergasted by the whole conversation.
Millie chuckled and took another bite of her sandwich. “Do you know anyone he could date?” she asked Jessica casually.
The bright red immediately drained from Jessica’s cheeks as she shook her head. “No…and I really don’t think he’s interested in being…set up.”
Wiping some crumbs off of her lip with her thumb, Millie sighed. “I know, he said as much.” Shaking her head, she said, “But, men are stubborn, and don’t always know what they need.”
Studying the strand of hair in her fingers, Millie thought she heard Jessica mutter, “He doesn’t need that.” Millie couldn’t be positive of her hearing though, and just when she was going to ask her granddaughter to speak up, Jessica lifted her eyes to Millie’s. “Well, I don’t know anyone…for him.”
The way Jessica paused over that sentence, Millie had clearly heard the words, “anyone ‘good enough’ for him” in the section she didn’t say. Millie smiled that they had indeed bonded. “Well, keep an eye out.”
Jessica sighed and leaned back in her chair. Studying her hair again, she softly said, “What if I don’t want to give him up yet?”
Millie paused in taking a bite of her sandwich, about the last bite her stomach could handle. “What do you mean, dear?”
Jessica flushed, looking embarrassed that she’d actually said that out loud. Sputtering a little, she added, “I mean, he just got here, and I’m finally getting to know…my cousin. Wh
at if I just want him to myself for a little bit? Before I have to share him with a girlfriend?”
Millie smiled and set her sandwich down, her stomach too queasy to take another bite anyway. “I’m glad to hear you say that. You two seemed so…odd, the first time you met. I’m glad things are better.”
Jessica Marie flushed again, looking completely away, to the large window looking out into the front yard. An empty bird feeder took a place of prominence in the view and Jessica seemed to study it, like it held all of the answers to life’s biggest questions. “Yeah…we’re better.”
Millie watched her granddaughter curiously, wondering where her head was at. Young people. Everything was so dramatic. Resting back on her cushions, Millie watched Jessica’s unfocused eyes, apparently lost in thought. Not wanting to disrupt the girl’s inner voice, Millie closed her eyes and pondered how long she had to rest before she could sneak past her grandchildren and get back to her greenhouse. She had some herbs she wanted to grow for Kai. Something to spruce up his life a little bit. Rosemary, maybe?
Chapter 9
An Invitation
Jessie was having a long week. After seeing Kai Monday night, life had kept her too busy to see him again for a few days. Well, life and taking care of Grams. Jessie found that she missed the interaction with him. Missed it in a way that was a little disturbing to her.
She cringed whenever she thought about telling him that she was falling for him. Really, what had that been about? She couldn’t fall for him. It wasn’t allowed…or acceptable. It was definitely a path she didn’t need to go down. Thank goodness Kai had been asleep and hadn’t heard her mutter that. How embarrassing if he’d heard.
While getting dressed for her Friday morning shift at the clinic, she thought over the past couple of days. Instead of visiting Kai, she had spent the free time with Grams. Helping her to recover went a long way in helping Jessie…move on. Not entirely though. Grams had a way of bringing him up every five minutes. She hadn’t appeared to be testing the waters, seeing what, if anything, was between them, but out of concern for her grandson, she mentioned him frequently.
She was always asking Jessie to make sure she checked on him, make sure he was getting along in the city okay. It could be confusing to a new person, finding out where everything was. Jessie assured her that she’d take him out sightseeing when she got some free time, maybe this weekend they’d go exploring. Grams had loved that idea.
She also seemed intent on setting Kai up. Jessie hated that idea. Kai was fine, being young and single. Jessie didn’t see why he needed to be immediately saddled down with a relationship. Although, in a bit of a shocking revelation, Grams had made it seem like she wasn’t necessarily talking about a “relationship” for Kai. She really couldn’t believe the old woman was actually suggesting her child’s child sleep around. Just the thought of her grams suggesting it was sort of disturbing to Jessie. Shouldn’t all parental type people be opposed to such a thing? At least on the surface?
Jessie blushed horribly while she pulled her hair into a curly French twist. She couldn’t even think about Kai’s love life without thinking of their own moment. It haunted her sometimes, slipping into her mind at the most inopportune moments. Jessie was a little relieved that she hadn’t seen him in a few days, regardless of how much she missed him. He just had a habit of looking at her, being close to her, or well, just breathing on her, that shoved her thoughts into that “do not enter” zone. Space was good. Distance was good.
And hard.
Jessie was ready to see him again. Aching for it really. Once she was home for the day, she imagined herself leaving again and knocking on his door. She pictured how surprised he’d be and imagined him laughing and sweeping her into a hug. And of course, he was almost always shirtless in those little fantasies. Jessie couldn’t help it. He had a pleasing shape. Wrong as it was, she ached to see it again too.
Jessie did wonder how he’d been getting along without her. Not that he needed her or anything, but she liked to think that he was equally missing her. She didn’t have to wonder too much about “what” he was doing though. He called Grams often and the old woman had a way of relaying every single conversation back to Jessie. If Jessie were a different sort of woman, she might have gotten just a tiny bit jealous over how close Kai and his grandmother were. But she wasn’t that type of girl. And really, it only reaffirmed why they had to stay away from each other. He was family – beloved family. There was just no way to get around that fact.
Gram’s conversations about him usually centered around his job. She always seemed concerned when she brought up his work. Jessie couldn’t be sure, but she felt like Grams was waiting for something bad to happen there. Jessie had no idea what. From all of Gram’s stories, it was pretty clear that Kai was loving it there. He’d healed from his bee fiasco, and luckily hadn’t had any other sting incidents, and was thoroughly getting into the plant and animal life of the Rocky Mountains. He’d even apparently shifted to the new time zone and wasn’t suffering from as much exhaustion.
Jessie was glad to hear it, remembering how tired he’d seemed when he’d fallen asleep in her arms, his own wrapped around her. Those warm, strong arms…
Sighing, Jessie gazed at herself in the mirror. A couple of not tamable strands fell out of the clip securing her thick locks and Jessie tucked them behind her ear, refusing to redo the style. She shouldn’t think about cuddling with Kai, about him whispering if it was alright, then telling her that she felt good. Those words should not give her stomach a jolt of electricity.
Watching her deep brown eyes start to water, Jessie shook her head and turned on the faucet, splashing her face with cold water. She really shouldn’t linger on that last kiss either, her pressing into his mouth, him ever so slightly responding. The softness, the heat, the light exhale along her skin… She had to move on and so did he. Maybe Grams was on to something. Maybe she should set him up with someone. Maybe April, since she still asked Jessie near nightly if her cousin was making an appearance anytime soon.
Jessie straightened, dried her face, and started doing her makeup. Their tryst had only been a week ago. A week ago tonight. Was that long enough for her inebriated friends to forget his specifics? Jessie had no idea. Only one way to know for sure, she supposed.
Slipping on her shoes as she sat on her bed, Jessie glanced out her bedroom window. On her cement deck, under a shaded overhang, was a small patio set. It was the wrought iron type that you might see outside a small Parisian café. Jessie stood up and walked over to the window to look at it closer. It was a tiny, round table with two matching chairs. The girls never really used it. Jessie occasionally went out back to read a book in the sun, but she generally sat in the more comfortable lounge chair when she did. There were even a couple of spider webs across one of the seats, further emphasizing its generally lack of use.
Jessie smiled, remembering how Kai was eating his meals on his bed, or probably, standing in the kitchen over his sink. She recalled mentioning to him that he should get a small table for his place. He’d made a joke at her comment, but hadn’t seemed opposed to it. More like he felt Jessie was doing too much for him. She didn’t’ think that was true. Really, besides buying him some more nutritious food, all she’d done was given him a bunch of odds and ends that she really didn’t need cluttering up her own place.
Decided, Jessie headed out back through a slider in the living room. The set was pretty light, and Jessie got it through the house and into her truck with relative ease. She even wiped off the stray spider webs. Smiling as she closed the end of her truck, she realized that she now had a legitimate reason to knock on Kai’s door again.
Nervous butterflies flew through her at just the thought of seeing those ocean-like eyes. Oh boy, she really needed to stop that.
Moments later, Jessie was walking into the warm, cheery office where she worked. As she smiled hello to the receptionist, she took in the large space that was her current home away from home. Soft rock p
iped in through the speakers inlaid in the ceiling, and every wall was painted a butter-cream color. The accents were done in various shades of green and the result was a waiting room that felt peaceful and relaxing. A dozen or so padded chairs were lined around the walls with several round tables sprinkled throughout, each holding various forms of entertaining magazines. Currently, one or two clients were already there, flipping through the pages, waiting to get their chemical peel or facial scrub from the esthetician, or maybe even waiting for a body rub from Jessie.
As she walked back into the room delegated as her working space, she tucked her purse into a drawer in her small desk and hung up her jacket on an awaiting coat rack. The room was designed for ambiance with her massage table taking center stage. The plush, padded slab had a circle cut out of the top so a person could rest their head straight down, keeping their spine perfectly aligned for Jessie to work all the kinks out of it.