Читать книгу M.O.E. - Linda Blum - Страница 4

Their tongues met, driving her crazy. She leaned into him trying to get close. When his hand reached inside her shirt and began stroking her breast, she was on fire. Her hand inched down as she undid his pants. The sound of a voice calling out interrupted them from going any further.

“Jonathan... Jonathan...”

Hope looked up into his handsome face. His eyes were filled with desire as he looked down at her.

“There’s a back door,” he whispered. “We could leave and no one would see us.”

Hope’s brain was spinning in confusion. A part of her wanted to go with him, yet she knew it wasn’t right, this wasn’t right. The sound of Joyce’s voice brought her back to reality. She shuddered at the thought of what she had done.

“I’d better get going.” She stepped away.

He grabbed her arm stopping her from leaving.

“Come with me,” he pleaded.

“I can’t,” she said.

“Jonathan Winters, where are you?” A voice shrilled in the background.

In a swift movement he grabbed her and pushed her into a large closet.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“This.”

He slammed his mouth over hers. His kiss was demanding. Hope tried to resist his assault, but her body wasn’t cooperating. Eventually she pulled away from him.

“Stop that,” she demanded.

“No.”

She glared at him.

“I am not going screw around with my cousin’s date,” Hope huffed.

“We are not dating. I only came here as a favour to Joyce as she didn’t want to go solo.”

“That’s nice, but I’m not available,” Hope said.

Jonathan grabbed her left hand.

“I don’t see a ring on your finger,” he said.

“I live with my boyfriend.”

“A boyfriend is not the same as a husband. Boyfriends are dispensable.”

“They are not!” Hope countered. “I love the guy I’m with.”

Jonathan snickered. “Sure you do. That’s why you were swapping tongues with me.”

Hope glared at him. “I don’t know what happened back there, but that was not me. You put some kind of spell on me.”

The words that shot out of her mouth sounded ludicrous, but yet somehow they rang true. It felt like he had weaved some kind of enchantment on her causing her to act like a slut. Thoughts of her mother’s words came crashing back to her.

“A spell!” Jonathan laughed. “That’s priceless.”

“Whatever,” Hope snorted. “I’m out of here.”

Hope went to leave, but Jonathan stopped her.

“You can’t deny we are attracted to each other,” he whispered in her ear.

Hope felt the pull of desire come over her as she looked into his eyes, but tried hard to ignore it. Jonathan went for her lips again, but she stopped him. She made a move for the door, but he stopped her again.

“Please let me go,” she pleaded.

“I’ll only let you leave on one condition.”

Hope groaned. “What do you want?”

“Your phone number.”

Hope began to protest, but was stopped.

“It’s either that or I’ll never let you out of this closet.”

Little did he know his threat was all for not, considering Hope would rather hide out in the closet than go back to the party. However, she would want to hide out alone, not with him.

Hope sighed. “Oh, all right.”

She grabbed a pen and piece of paper from her purse, wrote down her number then shoved it in his hand.

“There, are you happy?”

He just smiled.

“Jonathan, you are really starting to piss me off,” an angry voice screeched.

“You better go,” Hope warned.

He gave her a mind-bending kiss before making a quick exit. Hope was about to leave, but stopped when she heard Joyce’s voice.

“Where were you?

“I was in the men’s room,” Jonathan said.

“You were gone a long time,” Joyce huffed.

“Sorry. I got sidetracked.”

“Well come on, I want you to meet my aunt.”

Jonathan got pulled away, leaving Hope a chance to escape. Judy was at the table when she returned.

“I was about to send a search party. What took you so long?”

Hope told her what happened, censoring what she said. Judy gave a low whistle.

“You didn’t really give him your number, did you?” Judy questioned.

Hope shook her head. “I gave him a number, but it wasn’t mine.”

“You just better hope Rick doesn’t find out about what happened. He’ll go ballistic.”

Hope cringed at the thought. She wasn’t about to tell Rick, as she was still trying to figure it out herself.

“Judy I really don’t want Rick to know about this, all right? I just want to forget it ever happened.”

Judy looked at her friend with concern. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

“No,” she said sheepishly.

“Hope,” Judy pushed.

“No!” Hope blurted. “I just want to forget about Jonathan, all right?”

“Okay,” Judy said reluctantly.

Hope made sure she stayed as far away from Jonathan as possible for the rest of the night. Jonathan, on the other hand, tried his best to do just the opposite, but failed. By night’s end, Hope had succeeded in avoiding him and made a fast exit. Jonathan smiled as he watched her leave. She may run from him, but she can’t hide. Now that he had her number he was planning to get what he wanted, her.

Hope woke up the next day with a headache. Some would assume it was from a night of drinking, yet it wasn’t. Spending time with her family always caused her head to throb. She chuckled at the thought of how both her and Judy were affected physically by their family gatherings. Judy broke out in acne while Hope got headaches. Both were a pain, yet Hope would have opted for a case of acne, as she had to go to work.

She rolled out of bed and headed for the medicine cabinet. When she opened the door she noticed the lone bottle of ibuprofen sitting there. Hope wasn’t into taking drugs, except for the occasional painkiller, so her cabinet was pretty bare.

She popped a few pills in her mouth then downed them with a glass of water. The phone rang just as she was putting the bottle back.

“Hello,” Hope croaked.

“Tied one on last night, did we?”

It was Rick.

“No.”

“Well you sound like hell.”

“Gee thanks. I’m going to hang up now.”

“Seriously, are you all right?”

She heard the concern in his voice and forgave him for the insult. She told him about her night, omitting the part about her encounter with Jonathan.

“Sounds like fun. Too bad I missed it,” he commented dryly.

“You wouldn’t have if you had gone with me like we planned, instead of bailing,” she griped.

“You knew I got called into work,” he said apologetically.

Rick had agreed to go to Hope’s family Christmas, but had to cancel. Being a police officer on a unit that worked 24/7 made it hard for him to make plans and keep them. It also meant that sometimes his work kept him from coming home at night.

“You owe me, especially since you weren’t in my bed when I woke up this morning,” Hope said.

“Sorry.” Rick yawned over the phone. “It was a long night. I’m just wrapping things up here and then I want to go see Judy about some police business. After that I’m heading home. Will you be there?”

“Sorry I have to go to work.”

“Damn,” he muttered. “I was hoping to see you, as well as do other things to you.”

Hope’s insides shivered at the thought of what he wanted to do to her.

“You’ll have to hold that thought until I get home.”

“How about if I take you out to dinner tonight to make up for last night,” he offered.

“I’m afraid to accept in case you cancel again.”

Hope said it as a joke, but Rick didn’t take it that way.

“You must think I’m a total asshole,” he said dejectedly.

“Hey, I was just kidding. You know I think you are wonderful and I’d love to go out with you.”

After she hung up, she began to feel guilty. Thoughts of Jonathan filtered through her mind. A part of her wanted to tell Rick about what happened, yet she still wasn’t sure exactly what went on.

Thinking back to the encounter, she remembers being pulled into his arms; then from there it gets fuzzy. She vaguely remembers kissing him and trying to unfasten his pants. She tried to recall exactly how this happened, but her mind went blank. That’s why she got the feeling Jonathan had some kind of control over her making her do things she didn’t want to do. This sounded crazy even to her.

Just then the phone rang.

“Hi Hope.”

“Hey Judy.”

“You don’t sound good. Is everything all right?”

“I’ve got a headache,” Hope groaned.

“Why don’t you come over and I’ll do a Reflexology treatment to take it away.” Judy offered.

Judy’s husband Ren had taken a Reflexology course and Judy decided to join him. She found the treatment fascinating and was starting to build up a small clientele.

“Can’t I’ve got to go to work,” Hope groaned.

“I thought you took the day off after family events?”

“I normally do, but I had a meeting today so I couldn’t.” Hope replied.

“I was going to invite you over for breakfast.”

“Thanks, but I really have to get going.”

They talked for a while until Hope hung up and got ready for work. Hope was the Head Librarian at the local library and her hours were flexible, so she could normally come and go as she pleased, except for today.

As she walked to the bathroom, her eyes strayed to the bed. She wished she could wait for Rick to get home and go in later today, but she couldn’t. She was meeting with the managers from other branches to go over their program schedule and had to be there.

Judy was making breakfast when Ren walked in. He came up from behind, wrapped his arms around her and gave her a kiss.

“Good morning,” he said.

Judy turned around to kiss him back. “Good morning.”

Jay raced into the room and sat down at the table.

“What’s for breakfast?”

“Chop the heads off.”

That was Judy’s nickname for soft-boiled eggs since you had to take the tops off to eat them.

Jay made chopping motions in the air in front of Sam, who got up and began jumping and barking excitedly, ready to play.

“So how did it go last night?” Ren asked.

“I thought only my family was dysfunctional,” Judy replied.

“That bad?”

“Hope’s relatives are just plain mean,” Judy said. “They insult each other, call each other names, and are just plain miserable people. I can never figure out how Hope turned out they way she did.”

“Yeah, it does make you wonder doesn’t it,” Ren agreed.

“Hope and her aunt Millie are the only two nice people out of the bunch.”

“I’m sure Rick was thankful he got out of going last night,” Ren said.

Judy was grateful that Rick didn’t go last night after Hope had that encounter with Jonathan. Her senses were still reeling over that. There was something Hope wasn’t telling her that happened between them.

When Judy first met Jonathan she got the strong feeling that he was a charlatan. She tried to tap into this to find out what that meant, but he didn’t stay long enough for her to examine this. After Hope’s run-in with him, she began to wonder. She wanted to discuss this further with her friend and hoped that she would meet with her today.

Ren noticed the troubled look on his wife’s face.

“Judy, are you all right?” Ren asked.

“I’m fine,” she lied.

“Did something happen last night?”

She shook her head. “No.”

Ren gave her a doubtful look. “I think you’re full of it.”

“What is she full of?” Jay asked.

“Nothing,” Ren replied.

Judy was glad for the interruption. She really didn’t want to tell Ren about Jonathan. While Ren and Jay were talking, Judy checked on the eggs.

“Breakfast is ready,” Judy announced.

She dished the eggs into their cups, got the plate of toast and carried everything to the table. Once breakfast was over, Ren headed off to work and Judy drove Jay to school. It was a snowy day, so the drive was slow. Along the way, they picked up Jay’s friend Dillon. Judy dropped the boys off at the door just before the bell rang then carried on to the restaurant.

The restaurant was bustling when she arrived. Judy always felt a sense of pride when she stepped through the doors of one the most successful restaurants in town. It’s success was due to the locale, it was situated long the picturesque Grande River, the menu was to die for, it was filled with variety of dishes to please many, her uncle set up a playroom for children that gave parents a chance to have a quiet dinner with their kids close by, and it catered to Kitshener’s German heritage, by serving cultural dishes. Another drawing card was the décor. Two stone fireplaces flanked the dining room, the walls were painted in earthy tones, and plants were scattered throughout the restaurant giving the place a homey ambiance. The tables were made of wood, the tablecloths were lace, and the one could sit either overlooking the river or reserve a quiet table to enjoy their meal.

Her uncle had worked hard to create a place where people could come and relax. As Judy looked around she noticed that many were doing just that, as there wasn’t an empty table in the place. She knew she was going to have to help her staff, but she had paperwork to do first. So, she advised her staff that she’d assist them as soon as she could.

When she stepped inside the office her heart caught. She could still envision Uncle Will sitting behind the desk. Oh how life can change so dramatically in the blink of an eye. Why, it seemed like yesterday that Judy was sitting in this very chair talking to him about her dreams and those damn symbols, hoping they would lead to her mother’s murderer. Well, lead them to the killer they did. Unfortunately it also led to his death, as well as the death of Aunt Vera. Who would have thought Aunt Vera had killed her mother in a jealous tirade over her father, than years later turn around and kill her brother because he found out, then herself.

Guilt washed over Judy as she thought back to all the times she felt something terrible was going to happen to someone close to her. Why could she never figure out that it was her uncle who was that someone? If only she did, then maybe he would still be alive.

As she contemplated her actions, a tingly feeling came over her. She searched the room until her eyes stopped on the ethereal figure sitting behind the desk. Judy smiled as she looked at her uncle.

She was never able to see spirits before her uncle died.

“Would you stop this?” Uncle Will pleaded.

“Stop what?”

“Thinking that you could have saved me,” he answered. “Like I told you before, it was my time to go so nothing would have stopped the inevitable.”

Judy held back the tears that were forming in her eyes. “I know, but it still bothers me.”

“Well don’t let it. What’s done is done,” he said. “Besides, I may have left this earthly plane, but I’m still here in spirit to keep you in line.”

“That you are,” Judy muttered.

“I’m proud of you,” Uncle Will said changing the subject.

His comment startled Judy. “Why?” she asked.

“You are doing an awesome job at running my restaurant.”

“I can’t take all the credit, Ren helps out a lot.”

“I knew that man was good for something,” Will joked.

“That he is,” Judy agreed.

“Besides Ren’s assistance, you’ve have been doing well,” her uncle said. “I knew you would be. That’s why I had been bugging you to come back to the restaurant.”

Another round of guilt washed over Judy at his comment. Her uncle had been trying for years to get her to work with him, but she always turned him down. Now she felt like a heel for being so reluctant to do so. She was always afraid that they would fight, until her uncle had pointed out that most of their squabbles happened when Judy was a teenager, and an unruly one at that. Judy realized he was right and decided to work for him again, only it was too late coming. Her uncle died the day she was slated to start.

“Now Judy,” her uncle warned. “You have to work on stopping that guilt trip of yours. It will do you no good. What happened in the past is done and over with. oncentrate on the here and now.”

“Easy for you to say,” Judy mumbled. “You’re dead, so you’re not wrapped up in all this emotional stuff anymore.”

“That’s not exactly true,” he countered. “Seeing you beating yourself up like this worries me.” “I know you say that nothing could have stopped your death, but a part of me doesn’t believe you.”

Will sighed. “You have to accept the fact that I am dead and move on. Holding onto the “what ifs” will only eat you up inside.”

Judy could feel the tears in her eyes. She understood what he was saying, but part of her guilt came from the fact that she couldn’t let her uncle go. She knew that she should, but found it hard to think of her life without him. Sure she still talked to him in spirit, but it wasn’t the same. There were no more hugs, kisses or physical contact of any kind. That was the problem. She was still physical and he wasn’t.

Somehow she had to get over this and be grateful for what she had with him now.

“I’m trying to move on,” Judy sniffed. “It’s just hard.”

“I’m still here, maybe not in the form you want me to be in, but I’m not gone,” Will said softly.

“I know,” Judy said sadly.

“We tend not to appreciate what we have,” Will commented. “I was guilty of that myself when I was alive. That’s why it’s important to be grateful for all the good in your life, especially when things are bad. This helps get you through the rough times.”

“I hate to say it, but right now I don’t feel very grateful.”

“Well then work on it. Every day make a list of what you are grateful for, even if it’s just the small things like the food you eat, or the air you breathe. Say this every day and eventually you will start to feel better and the cloud of sadness will disappear. Mind work is like a physical workout. When you start to work your body it doesn’t feel too good, but as time goes on you start to feel better and even enjoy the workout. Your mind tends to retaliate at first, but if you keep doing it eventually you will feel more control of your life and things will be better.”

Judy started to feel better after the talk with Uncle Will. It carried on all day until she got a distress call from Hope.