SWNOVELS Class Act: Chapter 21
straight to the bathroom and puked, spewing out everything I’d just had for dinner. God, this is painful. More painful than I could have imagined sitting in their kitchen and playing nice while Teresa did all sorts of shit to try to win over Abe. As if she was deliberately mocking me, throwing it into my face that he was still hers.
A few stolen moments didn’t make him mine.
My stomach hurt, and sweat beaded on my forehead. Why did she return this morning? The way she’d dismissed me had left a bad taste in my mouth. She’d always appeared kind before, even when she tried pimping me out, but this morning she’d been a bit hurtful, as if reminding me I wasn’t a part of her family.
She’d spent the day making little digs at me. Or was that my guilty conscience? First, she’d interrupted Mandy, Abe, and me when we’d been hanging out at the pool in the afternoon. She’d worn the skimpiest two-piece string bikini known to man. Not even the stretch marks on her hips had been a turnoff. She flaunted them proudly as a reminder that she’d born the man I loved a child. Something I could never do.
She already had me beaten in so many ways. Would he really go through with the divorce from such a woman? I wasn’t so blinded by jealousy and love that I couldn’t recognize she was a formidable woman. She had beauty, poise, and intelligence, traits I could never dream of. Hell, I wasn’t even sure what I wanted to do after high school. I’d applied for some in-state colleges just because it was expected, not because I wanted it.
As soon as she’d joined us, I’d left the pool, admitting defeat in that round. If I wanted to come out of this the winner, then I needed to know who my opponent was. How could I see her as anything else? Not when she kept making it blatantly obvious she was after reconciliation, though Abe had been frank about his wish to part ways.
Back in the guest room, I’d searched her up on the Internet, and none of what I’d found had set my mind at ease. She was even more successful than I had thought. She was a well-respected criminal attorney. Teresa gave guest lectures and had been a keynote speaker at numerous conferences. Analysts even talked about a possible career in politics.
No way was I going to top that. The only thing I had going for me was that Abe loved me. That was enough. Right?
With a groan, I pushed to my feet and flushed the toilet. I brushed my teeth and, after rinsing, studied my features in the mirror. Was I beautiful enough for him?
“What am I doing?” I whispered. He’d said he loved me, and he meant it. I would hold on to that for as long as I could.
Thinking about Abe’s love calmed me down, and I returned to the bedroom. I might not sleep in his arms tonight, but I’d done so last night. For now, that was enough.
I came to a halt, and a nervous flutter set off in my stomach. Why was Teresa in the bedroom? I’d left them all downstairs, rushing to the bathroom to throw up after she’d sat in Abe’s lap.
Did she suspect us? She wasn’t saying anything, just sizing me up from head to toe.
“Mrs. Cooper, is something wrong?”
She smiled and sat on the bed, then patted the spot beside her. “Of course not. I just thought we could talk.”
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Abe, where are you?
I glanced over at the door, which was ajar. Surely, if she’d meant to talk about that, she would have closed the door.
“Come on. Don’t be shy. I just want to continue the last conversation we had.”
Oh. That.
I let out a long breath and sat next to her. She took my hand in hers.
“Emery, you know Abe and I care about you like a son, right?”
“Umm, yes?” I hadn’t wanted to pose it as a question, but after what Abe and I had done in the shower, the idea of him seeing me as a son was amusing.
“Good. We only want you to be happy, and we’re worried about this situation you are in with your father. No one deserves to go through what you are. To be chased out of your home because of the fear of being abused. Just know that you are always welcome to stay here.”
I dropped my gaze to where our hands touched on the bed. She said all the right words, but something was off. What was it? The way she was looking at me? Or was it my own guilt?
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
“I’m also concerned about your future. Mandy has already been accepted into the college of her choice. Have you decided what you want to do yet?”
“Not really. I’m still deciding.”
“Look, I know finances are tight for you, but sometimes we have to do what we need to, right? Have you given some thought to what we last talked about?”
“About…”
“Clients—friends of mine I told you about—can ensure your future is secure. You wouldn’t struggle the way you are now. Abe and I do what we can for you, but there’s only so much we can do.”
“I… don’t know. It feels a bit like selling myself.”
She laughed. “Dear boy, you’re such an innocent, aren’t you? Relationships with one partner doting and taking care of the other have existed since the beginning of time. You’re thinking about what other people will say when the only one who matters in this is you, your needs and having them provided for.”
Would she have wanted the same for Mandy? To sell herself to someone just for the money?
“You’re a beautiful boy.” She touched my cheek, and I fought against the impulse to pull away. “Don’t let it go to waste. Make it work for you. Think about it again. I’ve told a friend about you, and he would love to meet you. When you’ve decided, come and see me. I can set up a meeting as soon as next week. You don’t have to struggle so much, Emery. It’s up to you to change this.”
She rose to her feet and sauntered out of the bedroom, leaving me alone with my guilt. I fell back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. Maybe she really wanted to help, but what she was suggesting was inappropriate.
As if I wasn’t involved in a very inappropriate relationship with her husband.
My phone vibrated, and I grabbed it. Damn, it wasn’t Abe. Instead, Mandy asked me if I wanted to watch a movie with her. I would have preferred spending time with Abe, but that wasn’t happening, and I needed to keep myself busy.
Me: Sure. I’ll be right down.
Forcing my conversation with Teresa from my mind, I walked out of the bedroom and skipped down the stairs. In the living room, Mandy was whacking the remote control.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I dunno. It won’t come on.”
“The TV is plugged in, right?”
“Yeah, and I changed the batteries for the remote, so that’s not it.”
“Lemme see.” I took the remote control from her and checked she hadn’t placed the batteries in the wrong way.
“Seriously, Em?”
I shrugged. “It doesn’t hurt to double-check.” The TV remained black. I handed back the remote to Mandy. “Seems like it’s broken. No movie for us, then.”
“We can use Dad’s den. I’m bored, and despite Mom leaving me off the hook, I doubt Dad will say yes to me going out tonight, so I won’t even ask. The next best thing is to watch a good movie, and I have one that’s perfect.”
Mandy knocked once on the door, then pushed it open and stormed in, dragging me in after her. Abe was lounging on the couch, sipping a beer. He shook his head before Mandy could say anything.
“Nope. Forget it. You’re not leaving the house this weekend. Take the time and think about your actions from last night.”
Mandy pouted. “Dad, I wasn’t even going to ask you that. Can Emery and I watch with you?”
“What happened to the TV in the living room?”
“It won’t turn on.”
With a sigh, Abe got to his feet. “I’ll look at it.”
As he walked by us, I inched over to the left so he had no other choice than to brush his arm against mine. It still wasn’t enough. I wanted more contact. I wanted back on that couch like the first night he’d kissed me here.
I wanted every room in this house to remind him of me.
Mandy dropped my hand and dove for the remote on the couch.
“Don’t get too comfortable,” Abe said and left.
“Ugh,” Mandy grumbled. “He can be so strict at times.”
“At least he’s that way out of love.” I sat next to her and pulled my legs up on the sofa to get comfortable.
She opened the Netflix browser and scrolled through the Trending Now section. When she clicked a new vampire horror movie, I groaned.
“Are we really doing this?”
She giggled. “It’ll be fun. I read the reviews online, and it’s supposed to be scary good.”
“You know I don’t like horror movies.”
“But it’s the right time of the year for it.” She flung her arms around me and hugged me to her. “Don’t worry, Em. I’ll protect you.”
Abe cleared his throat, and we both looked up. His frown turned into a smile, but I’d seen it. He didn’t like me being so close to Mandy at all.
Didn’t he know I wasn’t attracted to women? I loved seeing him this irrationally jealous. I’d never had someone care enough about me to feel that way.
Who said jealousy couldn’t be a good thing in a relationship?
“Well, the TV’s definitely not working,” he said.
“I guess this means you’ll have to watch what we’re watching.” Mandy beamed a smile at her father. “Hope you’re a fan of vampires.”
Abe made a face. “Hard pass. If I can’t watch my sports, I’ll leave you two to the TV.”
“Daddy!” Mandy drawled the word sweetly. “Can you get some popcorn for your favorite daughter?”
“There are two of you. Why doesn’t Emery get it? He knows where everything is. Turn the lights off when you leave.”
He walked out of the den, leaving me alone with a pouting Mandy.
“It’s fine.” I stood. “I’ll get it.”
“No, you already did so much for me last night. Let me.”
I beat her to the door. “I’m just stacking up favors. Now you owe me, like, a hundred times.”
“Don’t be bitchy.”
Laughing, I made my way to the kitchen, where Abe was opening a new box of popcorn. It hadn’t been just my imagination, then. He’d meant for me to follow him.
“Is something wrong?” I moved closer to him but kept a respectable distance in case someone came in.
Abe set the box on the counter and pulled me into his arms. I melted against him and tilted my head up. His lips crashed down on mine in a kiss that was way too short to satisfy.
One minute I was in his arms, and the next he was putting a packet of popcorn in the microwave.
“What was that for?” I asked.
“I’ve been wanting to do that all day,” he whispered. “Today’s not really going well, is it?”
“I’ve made it work, but yeah, it’s hard seeing you with her and pretending not to care.”
“Emery.” His eyes were full of conflict.
“You still care about her.” Panic knocked against the walls of my heart.
“No, not like you’re thinking, so stop that right now,” he said fiercely. “You don’t spend over twenty years being close to someone for that to disappear overnight. But nothing—nothing compares to the way I feel about you.”
I swallowed and bit my bottom lip. What he said made plenty of sense, but… “Do you still want her the way you want me?”
“No. I haven’t looked at anyone else since we started flirting with each other.”
That made me feel much better. “Okay. I think I can bear this for one more day.”
“Why not stay longer? Your dad—”
“Usually calms down after a few days. I’ll try to avoid him.”
“And if you can’t?”
“I’ll think of something.”
The microwave beeped, and Abe grabbed the bag of popcorn and gave it a hearty shake, then poured it into the bowl. He handed it to me. “Here you go.”
“Thank you.” But when I had my hands around the bowl, he didn’t let go. “Abe, something’s bothering you. It’s not about the camboy stuff, is it? Because I haven’t done it again since you found out.”
He shook his head. “No. It’s not that.”
“Then what?”
“Promise me you won’t do it,” he said, his eyes full of desperation. “That you won’t let her find you some rich, terrible man just for the money. Promise me, Emmy.”
“Of course I won’t. I love you. Did you overhear?”
“Yes, I went to your bedroom to check up on you. The door was ajar. I heard everything she said to you.”
“Shit.”
“I’m going to confront her about it.”
“What? No, you can’t.”
“Why not?”
“If you’re defending me, she may start looking too closely at us.”
He released the bowl and brushed my cheek with his hand. “It’s not just a you-and-me thing. It’s the principle. What she’s suggesting you do is horrible.”
“Some could say that about what we’re doing, Abe,” I said softly. “On what moral high ground can we stand and judge her?”
“It’s different. She’s making this proposition to a teen, a high school student.”
“Who you’re sleeping with.”
Abe swallowed hard. “It’s different. I care about you.”
“But to someone else, you’re a teacher taking advantage of a student who’s down on his luck. You know that’s what people will say. Among other things.”
“Fuck.” Abe sagged against the counter. “How can I not say anything?”
“It’s sweet how you want to protect me.” I went up on the tips of my toes and kissed his cheek. “But I keep telling you I’m a big boy who can take care of himself. I can handle this without you interfering.”