Our Chance (Los Rancheros #4) Read online

  "Oh, lovey, you didn't have to do that! I made apple crumble cheesecake!" she exclaims, giving me a tight hug.

  I squeeze her back. “But it's your favorite. And thank you for making mine!"

  She waves a hand. "It's the least I could do after I invite you over here and Brody goes and invites that woman. Honestly, I don't know what he's doing."

  I shrug. I don’t blame him for having a girlfriend. Not at all. I just don’t want to see her. Glen comes back and starts pulling bottles out of a cabinet. "I have just what we need to get through it, though. Don't you worry.”

  “Holy shit, we’re getting tanked,” I say as I watch her pop the cork on a bottle of red wine. She sets it beside an iPod dock and goes to the fridge. With a lime and orange in hand, she comes back to me asking, "Do you remember that movie? Practical Magic?"

  I laugh. "Of course I do! I only wanted to be a witch for forever."

  She smiles back at me. "And I had to talk you out of stepping off of the roof with an umbrella."

  She pushes play on her iPod then starts slicing the fruit, so I grab a knife and help. When I hear “Coconut" by Harry Nilsson coming from the speakers, I throw my head back and laugh loudly. Glen and I start moving our hips and singing. She puts the fruit in a round pitcher with the wine, ice, brandy, and triple sec. She gives the sangria a stir with a wooden spoon before using it as a microphone.

  I grab another spoon from the cabinet, joining Glen as she dances over to the kids. We hold our spoons out to them to sing the 'Doctor' parts. We get the kids up and dancing with us, along with George, who is spinning with Harper. We mix the drink mixture with Sprite into wine glasses and keep dancing until George stops suddenly. Glen and I look at him, still laughing, then look to where his eyes are going to see Brody with a pretty, petite blonde. She's young, that's the first thing I notice. The second is her eyes are wide, like she can't imagine what we're doing.

  My eyes go to Brody and he looks half-amused, half-annoyed with the scene he just walked into. Harper jumps forward.

  "Brody! You brought your girlfriend! Hi, I'm Harper, Jules's daughter." She sticks out her hand like a grown up, and I have no idea why I'm shocked to see my seven year old act with manners, but I suddenly want to yank her back.

  Maggie sticks her hand out and says her name in a soft voice. What is this woman doing with Brody? Glen asks her, "Maggie, dear, would you like some sangria?"

  I mumble under my breath, "Better card her first." Glen snickers and swats my hand, reaching for a glass.

  "Tea, please," comes the answer behind me. I roll my eyes and open the fridge. George meets me there, getting a beer out for him and his son.

  I hold my hand out as I pass over the tea. "Hi, Maggie, it's nice to meet you."

  She smiles and shakes my hand. "A pleasure, Jules." Her hands are cool and tiny, making me feel huge and old. I look to Brody when she does and see his eyes going back and forth between us warily. I smile hugely, enjoying his discomfort.

  I turn to Glen and take the drink from her, chugging it back. This is going to be fun.

  We sit down minutes later to homemade lasagna, with everyone making small talk. Glen puts down the pitcher between us with a thunk and Brody looks up, pissed at his mom's passive aggressive attitude. We hold hands for grace and I take Jet's small one in mine along with Glen's soft, older hand in the other.

  "Heavenly Father, thank you for the bounty before us and our family made whole again. Amen,” George says.

  I smile warmly at him then turn to Maggie. "So what do you do, Maggie?"

  She smiles. "I teach." A freaking teacher.

  "What grade?"

  "Kindergarten."

  I look between my Jet and Maggie, suddenly uncomfortable. "Which school did you say?"

  “Oh, I teach over on the coast. Where are your kids going this year?"

  I can't help sagging in relief. I don't know what I would do if I had to see her all the time at the school.

  "Juliet," Brody reprimands me in a quiet, stern voice. I meet his eyes with a pleasant expression; I know he can't blame me.

  "Juliet?" Maggie asks. We all look to her and notice her expression has changed.

  I point to my chest with my thumb. "Juliet."

  Her eyebrows come down. "I thought you were Jules?"

  George leans forward. "It's a nickname, honey."

  She looks between Brody and me. "So... you are Juliet, his middle name is Romeo, and Glen is constantly talking about how amazing Juliet is and how she's the one that got away?"

  My kids are all over this. Trigg starts laughing loud, pointing at Brody, "Romeo! HA! Romeo!"

  Harper says, "I knew you guys were supposed to get together! Mom read us that book!"

  I lean forward. "It's a play, dear."

  Jet sits up suddenly. "Hey that's weird! Romeo dies, but you're alive and my dad is dead."

  We all freeze and Glen's fork falls out of her hand, clanging loudly onto her plate. I swallow hard. "Jet—"

  Brody speaks over me. "That's what's called irony, Jet. Terrible irony."

  Jet scrunches up his face. "What's that?"

  I explain, "It's like that song, when the guy who is afraid to fly gets on a plane for the first time and the plane crashes. Like that."

  His face clears. "Oh, okay. I get it. Weird."

  Maggie turns to me. "So you can tell me all about Brody when he was young. I understand you guys grew up together."

  I nod cautiously before grabbing the pitcher and topping off my drink.

  Glen holds her glass out, too. "We did. How long have you guys been dating?"

  She smiles and leans her head on his shoulder. "Almost a year now. We've been talking about moving in together."

  I pause with my drink to my lips and bring it back down. "Where?" Surely, surely he is not going to move her into my garage apartment.

  "Oh, I have a condo on the beach. It's got a balcony and everything!"

  My eyebrows go up. Condo. The Brody I used to know would hate that. He never wanted to live anywhere but on a farm. Then again, he was a freaking SEAL, so what do I know?

  "Wow, that sounds awesome! Guess I should start looking for a new farm boy," I say.

  Brody puts his elbows on the table as he leans forward. "I'm not a farm boy."

  I wave him off. "Ranch hand, foreman? OH! How about Orchard Overhauler?!" I snort a laugh and realize the sangria is getting to me, because I stopped eating. I pick up my fork and set down my glass.

  Maggie asks Brody, "What does she mean?"

  He sighs. "Her grandmother is Mrs. Pierce. She left it to Jules."

  I point to him with my fork. "He lives in my garage."

  Maggie looks stricken and says softly, "I didn't realize."

  George booms from the end of the table, "Wow! This is amazing lasagna. Hope you kids saved room for dessert!"

  Trigg bounces in his seat. "I did! There's two. Grandma Glen's favorite and Mom's. I want both!" The other kids yell out their agreement.

  I get up from the table and gather their plates, taking them to the sink. Glen dishes out two small slices of cake to each person and we sit down again.

  Maggie takes a deep breath. "So, Mrs. Denton, which is your favorite?"

  Glen smiles at her. "The Black Forest. The only time I get it anymore is on my birthday. It's such a treat that Juliet brought it tonight."

  Brody gives his mom a dry look. "And you made her favorite, too?"

  Glen looks sharply at her son. "Of course I did! She hasn't been home in over ten years! Why would I not make my girl her cheesecake?!"

  Brody sighs and puts his arm around Maggie. You can see her fighting not to be insecure about all of this. I feel sorry for her. She had no idea what she was getting into tonight.

  "So what do you do, Jules?"

  Harper sits up straight and tells her, "Mom has a blog and does videos on YouTube."

  Maggie raises her eyebrows and I can see some of her confidence coming back.

 
; Trigg goes on. "Yeah, she makes a ton and wins awards and stuff." Well, I do love that boy. I shrug self-depricatingly.

  "Plus, Mom just sold the house for a whack," Jet says loudly and holds his hand out for me to high five. I cough and high five him.

  "Not that much. He just likes the word." I’m trying to explain to a kindergarten teacher why my pre-k'er is using this language. Not to say I don't think it's funny, because it is.

  Trigg says with his mouth full, "Mom, you should drink up."

  I instantly squint my eyes at him and ask suspiciously, "Why?"

  He shrugs and eats more, so I look at Jet who caves immediately. "We wanna hear you play. You usually do when you start snorting."

  "That is not flattering at all," I inform them.

  Harper leans forward. "Will you play for us? Please, Mom."

  I look from their pleading faces then over to Brody. "If I play, Brody has to, too."

  Maggie asks, "Brody? Brody plays what?"

  My eyebrows go up. Miss Maggie doesn't know he loves instruments? Interesting.

  Glen pops up, saying hurriedly, "Oh yes! I'll get the guitars! I know right where they are!"

  George says, "Well this is a treat. Both of you on the strings again."

  I look to Brody, who is watching me, clearly grumpy. "I gave it up a long time ago."

  I slowly shake my head. "You may have given up performing in front of people, but I bet you know how to play some new songs, Brody Denton." Not waiting for an answer, I get up to do the dishes. Brody is moody on a good day. He’s quiet, keeping everything hidden until he explodes. Playing the guitar did for him what video diaries has always done for me.

  We all settle on the back patio with the two guitars that used to be George's. He taught us to play when we were really small. The only reason I cared to learn was to have that time with Brody. Glen made up a fresh batch of sangria while I cleaned up, so I take a drink and settle on the couch next to Brody.

  We're at opposite ends with the middle cushion between us. We take the old guitars that still have the J+B scratched into the outside of one. I resist the urge to trace it with my finger. We got in a lot of trouble for that carving.

  Brody does a chin lift to me and says, "Ladies first."

  I roll my eyes and set up my hands to start my favorite Cher Lloyd song, called Oath, which is about promising to stay with your best friend and having a past with them. The kids clap and sing the words, they love this song. It’s about being someone’s best friend and how they can annoy the shit out of you, but are still the most important person to have at your side. After I'm done, I laugh and lower my head in a bow as everyone claps. Well, everyone but Brody.

  I watch him as he eyes the strings he's strumming and compare him to a different time for a second. His hands are scarred now, forearms veined and thicker than I remember. His biceps flex as he plays and show through his gray button up shirt. I finally recognize the song and snicker.

  He stops playing and looks up with sharp eyes. "What?"

  I shrug. "It’s Chris Daughtry and you sound exactly like him. The first time I heard him on the radio, I had to do the app thing on my phone to see who it was."

  Trigg says helpfully, "Shazaam, Mom."

  Maggie gasps and jumps a little. "You sound like Daughtry? Oh my gosh! I never realized you liked alternative."

  I look at her, confused again, because the old Brody lived alternative, down to the boots he’s wearing right now. How could she not know that?

  Brody starts playing again and I hear him sing for the first time in eleven years. He starts singing about finally finding what he’s been looking for, for so long. He watches Maggie the whole time, and if my eyes weren't blue they would definitely be green right now. His voice is magic, and he only brings it out for backyard bashes or in private.

  He takes me to another time when we used to jam out to Train and Bon Jovi in his room. But he's watching Maggie. When he finishes the song, she jumps up and tackles him screaming, "Oh my God! I can't believe it! Why aren't you on the radio?!"

  He shrugs uncomfortably. "Never wanted to."

  Maggie scoffs. "What?! That's crazy!"

  I start strumming and come up with a song I shouldn't sing. It's another Cher Lloyd song called Call Your Girlfriend. It's about telling the current girlfriend that it's not her, you just found somebody new. I glance at Brody every so often and everybody else is flicking their eyes back and forth between us as the kids cheerfully provide the words.

  I don't look at Maggie. I just sing off key with my kids, occasionally looking at Brody. His face is hard and his eyes glaring. He looks good and pissed.

  When I finish the song, Brody starts singing Masters of War right away. Now, I'm the one pissed. He's singing about young kids going off and dying in front of my children.

  When he is done, Trigg immediately asks, "Can you teach me to play that song?"

  I pop up. "We’re done. Thanks for dinner, Glen. It was amazing. George, you’re as handsome as ever. We’ll come by later to let the kids see the animals. I love you."

  We give hugs and I usher the kids out the door, completely ignoring Maggie and Brody. We walk home, even though I feel my buzz has worn off with his choice of song, I’m not getting behind the wheel of a car with my kids now. When we get home, I shoo the kids into the shower, then read them some of the Odyssey before tucking them in.

  After changing into pajama shorts and a wide neck sweater, I let the dog out one more time. As soon as I step outside and shut the door, I see a shadow walking towards me—fast. I pull back and hit the side of the house, siding digging into my back. The light is on right above me, so I see it's Brody about two seconds before he flies up the stairs of the porch and into my face.

  The skin on his cheekbones is tight and his eyes are glaring. I suddenly remember I'm mad at him and have no idea why he's in my space, since he stopped only six inches away from me. I throw my hands up and push as hard as I can. He rocks back on a foot then steps in even closer to me.

  Bending down to get in my face, he growls, "You had no right to do that to Maggie."

  I pull back and my head hits the house. "Me? Who cares about your little Barbie! You do not. Ever. Have the right to do that to my kids. That was inappropriate and you know it."

  "Don't call her a Barbie. What's wrong? You can go off and get married but I can't?"

  I pause. "Married? You're gonna marry her?"

  "What is it to you if I did, Juliet? Fuck. You left me!"

  I shake my head. "You didn't fight for me. You let me go."

  His hand comes up and grabs my neck, not squeezing, but like he needs to make sure I'm not going anywhere. "I shouldn't have had to! Things were casual! We knew we were supposed to be together! Damn it!"

  I start shaking and whisper fast, "We were broken up. Seeing other people. Besides, I was pregnant."

  His face collapses, like he's in agony, and he wraps his other hand in my hair, pulling so my head tilts up. Through gritted teeth he grates out, "You weren't supposed to sleep with him."

  I try to shake my head, confused, but I can’t move. “What? You never slept with any of the girls in high school? I never slept with anybody but him the whole time. You were off laying girls all over. Don’t be a hypocrite."

  Brody puts his forehead on mine and rolls it back and forth, letting out a long sigh. I close my eyes and breathe him in. "Jules. What are we doing?" He sounds gutted and it makes me hurt, too.

  "I don't know," I answer quietly. I feel his hand flex in my hair and hold my breath as he tilts my head back more but doesn't lift his. We breathe each other's air as he slides the hand around my neck to cup my jaw, his thumb on one side and fingers on the other. He pulls back to look at me in the light, then slams his mouth down on mine.

  It's savage and violent. He squeezes my jaw to open my mouth and lunges his tongue inside. I whimper in my throat and sob a breath. It's been so, so long since I've been touched. Forever long. Six years, and before that a
lifetime since Brody has touched me like this. Well, he was never this violent, everything was gentle and slow. This is like a volcano erupting. I throw my hands around his head and try to climb up his body. Brody rocks against me. I can feel how turned on he is.

  He suddenly pushes me back and lets go of my hair. In a guttural voice he asks, "Did he do that for you?" I shake my head, my thoughts dazed and not making sense. "Did he get you hot this fast?"

  My breath catches as my blood cools immediately. "Fuck you."

  "What, you can't answer a question?" he asks mockingly.

  I glare at him. "Does she make you hard this fast, Brody? Your girlfriend? The one who isn't dead? The one you just cheated on?"

  "You left. You had babies and named them our names. You can't just come back here and expect me to drop everything to be with you."

  I shake my head, incredulous. "I never said I wanted to be with you! You're the one who came to me. You're the one who kissed me. You're the one in a damn relationship. What are you doing?"

  He turns away and looks out into the yard, running his hands over his hair. "Fuck if I know. Maggie's a good girl." He sits down on the first step and I move to sit next to him. We both look at the moon and stars that are shining, small in the sky, instead of each other.

  I rub my lips over each other, his taste still there. "She's your Sebastian. You know what the difference is with that, though, don't you?" I ask him.

  He answers, "I haven't knocked her up yet?" My stomach heaves at the thought of him having sex with her.

  "I was going to say you don't have to be with her out of obligation."

  He turns his head to look at me "You didn't have to be with him, either. I can tell you right now, with all that tail I was getting in high school, if something would have happened somehow, no matter how careful I was, I would damn sure take care of my kid. But I would never have left you."

  I shrug helplessly. "It doesn't matter anymore. We were seeing other people. I didn't think you would want me with another man's baby. I was scared. He said he would take care of me. And I can't regret that because I have my babies, Brody. I learned to love him and we were happy. Shit happened. Bad, terrible shit I wouldn’t wish on anybody. And now I'm here."