Part 3 (1/2)

As soon as I saw the sliver of light disappear in my parent's room through the crack in my door, I ran to the window and shoved it open.

Royal stood below, under the knotted old tree in front of my bedroom. He leaned against it with legs crossed at the ankles in a casual and confident stance. A billow of smoke s.h.i.+mmied through the air, suspended and delayed by the late-night fog.

The wood frame creaked, and I pinched my thighs together when he smiled up at me, flinging his cigarette into the street. He anch.o.r.ed his foot on a low branch and pulled himself up the tree, limb by limb. It was something else watching him move up the wooden monstrosity. His strong arms gripping and pulling his body up and over, and his limber legs pus.h.i.+ng against the trunk as he made his way up.

Everything he did made me tingle. Of course, the ample amount of teenage hormones and the excruciating flutters of first love were the reason, but every day I found more and more things about him irresistible.

Finally, he pulled himself through the open window and landed with a soft thud on my carpet. I jumped into his arms immediately. My dad banned me from seeing him after a break in curfew, and it'd been weeks since we'd been together. It was driving my fragile teenage heart into heartbreak. I was miserable. Every minute that ticked by killed me. I stayed in bed for days, listening to love songs and cursing my dad. I missed Royal. I yearned for him. I literally ached.

He wasted no time, and soon I was on my back with his body pressed against mine. His kisses made me dizzy. I felt like I was floating on a cloud of bliss, and even though it sounded just as stupid in my head, I couldn't help it. Being in love with him was exactly what I imagined it would feel like when I dreamed of finding true love.

With one hand beneath my pajama s.h.i.+rt and the other making its way into my shorts, he worked his magic until I was completely disrobed. Inside, I started to panic. We hadn't talked about s.e.x yet-we'd barely made it past first base-and he was touching me everywhere. I felt the wetness between my legs increase and cringed. What if he thought it was gross that I was... that... down there?

It didn't seem very appealing to me, but once his deft finger dipped inside of me, all my fears and doubts took a hike-along with my ability to think or speak.

”So soft... wet... f.u.c.k,” he breathed.

Knowing he liked it sent me into a whirl of incoherent thoughts. His hips pushed between my thighs, and the way his fly rubbed against me was fantastic. A jolt of electricity flashed through my body, and I raised my hips to get more friction. I wanted to cry out, right there, but I was afraid of sounding needy, even though I was.

I didn't exactly know what I wanted, but I knew I wanted more of it. And I wanted it right there. His finger curled inside of me, and I let out a small yelp in surprise. The hand caressing my breast went over my mouth, and he chuckled when he saw the look of surprise in my eyes.

”Shhh, cookie. You have to be quiet, or your dad will come in here and kill me.”

I nodded and then shook my head. I would be as quiet as a mouse-I'd do whatever it took, but I sure as s.h.i.+t didn't want my dad interrupting us. He'd already forbidden me from seeing Royal, so walking in on him with his hands on my crotch would be a signed death warrant for sure.

Then a soft knock at my door startled us both. Royal's fingers stilled inside of me, and my hands flew to my b.r.e.a.s.t.s, covering them up. My mother's voice from behind the door stopped my heart completely.

”Jenna,” my mom whispered.

”What, Mom?” I called out in a voice way too full of panic and volume to be considered discrete.

”Jenna, baby, you need to get Royal out of here before your father wakes.” Her voice was barely a whisper but full of warning.

”s.h.i.+t,” Royal whispered. ”I gotta go.” He leaned down and kissed me three times on the lips before slipping out the window into the darkness. I pulled my clothes on frantically and swung the door open to see my mom standing with her arms crossed over her chest and a bemused look on her face.

”You're safe this time, young lady. Next time, you may not be as lucky. Be careful, that's all I ask. I don't want to have to go down and bail your father out of jail at this time of night. What would the neighbors think? Me out and about in my curlers and robe!” Her lips quirked into a small smile, and she winked before heading back to her bedroom.

My mom had been a big help back then, helping me understand how things were between a man and a woman. I wanted so badly to talk to her about what was going on now, but I was ashamed. Our family thought we had an indestructible relations.h.i.+p.

Most of the time, I had to agree.

My children were beautiful and well-behaved. Our marriage had survived tragedies and hards.h.i.+ps most couples never experienced, and most of all, we'd proven everyone that doubted us wrong. We married too young, but we'd defied the odds.

Until the odds caught up to us.

My mother loved Royal and respected all he did for our family, but she knew he wasn't perfect. She was the impartial party I needed to help evaluate the situation.

Everything was too fresh, though. I didn't even know where to start. Plus, I was too chicken s.h.i.+t to open my mouth and ask for help, so I decided to keep it to myself.

Laney strolled into the room and thankfully steered my thoughts into another direction. ”Did Macy help you practice your lines?” I asked as I tossed the vegetables into the salad.

Laney was so excited about the end of the year musical at school. It was her last year, and it was an honor to go out with a bang. She couldn't wait for the high school drama productions, and I knew she'd do just as well as she had in middle school. She was a natural-so talented and fearless.

”She did. She's so good at it. She should totally try out for the winter musical next year,” Laney said excitedly. ”Want me to start the garlic bread?”

I smiled. ”Thanks. That'll be great. So did you tell Macy she should try out? That'd be a lot of fun if both of you were in it together,” I commented.

What I wanted to say was that it'd be nice to have two kids in the same place at the same time instead of running all over town in different directions.

But I didn't say that.

”She said it's not her thing. Besides, she said she needs to focus on grades. You know, for college,” she said with a shrug.

A cold s.h.i.+ver ran up my spine at the mention of it. College. It seemed unreal that my daughter was already preparing to go away to college. I was proud, so proud, but I was also extremely sad. I knew it was coming, but I was in denial. If I didn't think about it, it wouldn't happen.

Even though she was a pain in the a.s.s a lot of the time, she was also just as sweet. The house would be empty without her exuberance and humor. She kept things lively, and I just didn't want to imagine not having her there.

Of course, I was planting seeds in her head about the local schools so she could live at home. But my daughter was stubborn. She was looking forward to the whole college experience. It made me shudder just thinking about all the things she'd see and do. I trusted her-she was a good girl-but I also knew that if a boy came along with a charismatic smile and fancy words, well, I'd been there. I knew what happened to a young girl's brain.

”Well, maybe she'll change her mind, and if not, you always have a partner to practice with.”

”Yup,” she said, dropping the plates on the table in the dining room and floating back into the room. ”So, is Daddy going to show up to my performance this time?” she asked.

I gave her a weak smile. ”Of course, baby. Just be sure you tell him about it ahead of time. I'll be sure to remind him, too.”

She nodded. ”I'm going to work on my lines a little more before I start my homework.” She leapt away, her arms straight out in front of her and her legs kicking behind. I loved how free and funny she was, how she never let much get her down. She brought suns.h.i.+ne to our home.

It was times like these when I wanted to wring Royal's neck. It killed me to see her worried about him and his attention. I knew he was busy working, but lately he'd been putting it before the girls. It was unacceptable.

Just as the irritation started to flare up, the phone rang.

”Mom?”

”Skylar, where are you?” I asked, looking at the clock on the wall. It was half past seven, and she'd been out of practice for over thirty minutes.

”I'm at school. Who's picking me up?” she asked.

I shook my head and headed toward the front door. ”Your dad was supposed to pick you up on his way home. I'm on my way. Stay under a light. Are you alone?” I asked.

”No. There are a few of us still here and Coach Tucker is still here.”

I grabbed my jacket and keys and held the phone to my ear with my shoulder. ”Okay. Good. That's good. I'll be there as fast as I can.”

”Son of a b.i.t.c.h,” I muttered as I ended the call. ”Laney, I'll be back in a bit. I need to pick up Skylar at school. Can you watch dinner, please?”

I hurried to the truck and headed out of the driveway. I didn't even bother trying to call Royal. I was too p.i.s.sed off, and it was too dark to dial and drive. Thankfully, the school wasn't too far away, and I pulled up in the parking lot ten minutes later.

Skylar ran to the truck and hopped in, flattening her palms against the heater vents to warm up. ”It's so freaking cold,” she said.