Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

“Mommy, can I play the caterpillar game?”

Colby’s voice sounded behind Jen, and she turned to look at him. He was already dressed for church, and she was still in her pajamas. Thank goodness for her mother. She grabbed a brush from the dresser and brushed his wavy locks to the side. “Maybe just for a couple of minutes while Mama gets ready.”

He held his hands out eagerly. Grabbing her phone from the dresser, she smiled to herself. She’d exchanged a few sexy texts with Jason throughout the night, and for the first time, she’d woken up feeling a little more hopeful about her dismal love life. But she didn’t want Colby to come across them, even if he couldn’t read. Closing her messages, she opened the game app and handed the phone to him.

He left the room with a bounce, traveling down the hallway. She closed the door behind him and went to the closet. Keeping some clothes here came in handy on days like this.

She’d spent the night at her parents’ house rather than dragging Colby to their apartment in the middle of the night. Something about sending secret messages to a guy while spending the night in her old bedroom at home made her feel like she was in high school again sneaking around, though.

And it was precisely why she didn’t want to move home. Her parents were wonderful and helpful, but she’d struggled too hard to prove she could make it on her own. Have her own freedom. She was sick of always being the screwup who had to come home with her hand out.

She threw her hair up into a ponytail and then started on her makeup. Knowing that a guy out there thought she was still sexy enough for a random hookup felt like a confidence boost. Especially when it was a man like Jason. She’d never met someone like him before.

A few minutes later, a soft knock sounded on her door. Checking her watch, she frowned. If she didn’t step it up, she’d make her parents late for church. “I’m almost ready, Mom.” She went to the door and opened it, then startled.

Dan stood at the door, arms crossed. What was her brother doing here?

“Hey.” She grinned. “What’s up?”

Dan waved her phone. “You got a text message while Colby was playing with it.”

She felt the blood drain from her face as she reached for it. Oh no.

Holding the phone back, away from her, Dan’s dark eyes grew even darker. “Who’s Jason?”

She snatched the phone from his grip. “None of your business.”

“It’s my business when your son tries to figure out how to clear the message ‘still woke up wanting to fuck you’ from his game.” Dan’s eyes flashed. He looked down the hallway and stepped inside, lowering his voice. As he closed the door, he hissed, “Can you imagine if Colby had given that to Mom or Dad to clear?”

“It’s still none of your business.” But his words found their mark. A stab of guilt went through her. “And thank you for not saying anything to them.”

She cleared the message from her screen and put the phone face down on the dresser. Her face burned. If there was one person she didn’t want to have this conversation with, it was Dan. She wished he would leave, but his stance made it clear he had no intention of going anywhere. He crossed his arms. “So who is he? I thought you were dating some guy named Brad?”

“Brad dumped me.” Jen shrugged as though it was old news. It really wasn’t, but it felt like it. “Because I kissed Jason on Friday.”

“When did this happen?” Dan looked less than pleased. God, no wonder her brother intimidated guys. He filled up the entire door frame. And he was a cop.

“When did what happen?”

“When did Brad dump you?”

“Um...last night.” Jen searched under the bed for her heels.

“He dumped you last night? And you’re already exchanging texts like this with Jason? Jason who?”

“Jason...” What had he said again? “I think he said his last name was Sutter.” This sounded awful.

Maybe because it was bad.

Dan’s eyes bulged. “You don’t know his last name?”

“Sutter. Definitely Sutter.” She grimaced. Dan was clearly unconvinced. “Anyway, um, so after work the other night, I drove Jason back to the cabins because his car got towed, and we ended up in the middle of the street during the A Christmas Carol. It wasn’t like we meant to kiss.”

“Why to the cabins?”

Trust Dan to catch these details. “Because that’s where he’s staying.” She balanced on one foot, then the other, pulling her heels on.

Dan drew a sharp breath. “When exactly did you meet this new guy?”

God, he was grilling her. But she was used to this annoying questioning from him.

He wouldn’t like this. She should just lie. But if he found out she’d lied to him, that could just be worse in the long run. “Thursday.”

“What the actual fuck?” Dan stormed closer, his face red. “You meet a guy Thursday, kiss him Friday, then spend Saturday night with him?”

She leveled her gaze at him. It sounded irresponsible and horrible when he put it that way. And it was also true—almost, anyway. But still. “It’s none of your business who I sleep with. Do you give any of your buddies at work this sort of inquisition when you swap stories?”

Dan raked his fingers through his hair. “You’re not a dude, Jen. You’re my sister. I give a damn what people are saying about you.” He scowled. “And you should be better than this. You have a kid. You can’t afford to expose him to whoever, whenever.”

Now her own temper flared. “Did I say I was in a relationship? Or introducing anyone? You’ve made it impossible for me to date in this town, big brother. And now a rich, handsome stranger comes into town and isn’t afraid to have sex with me. Forgive me for considering the option. I know you’d prefer for me to be a frickin’ nun, but I happen to enjoy sex, same as everyone else our age.”

Dan crossed his arms. “Real mature.”

“Oh, shut up. Don’t tell me you’ve never thought about screwing someone for fun. You can pretend to be a robot all you want, but you’re not.”

They squared off, and finally, Dan stepped back, letting out a frustrated breath. “I don’t want to know the details of your little arrangement. But can you please promise you’re being safe about it?”

Yes, because I’ve messed up everyone’s life by having unprotected sex before. She’d learned her lesson. She narrowed her gaze at him and pointed at the door. “Out of my room.”

“Jen, sweetheart! We have to get going,” Mom called down the hallway.

Dan didn’t move. “Look, Mom and Dad have been through a lot with you. You’re right—it’s your life, and I can't stop you if you want to be irresponsible. But don’t expect them to foot the bill if you screw up.”

She followed him out the door, so angry with him it was a struggle not to slap him. “You know, it’s not like you’ve never screwed up and put other people through hell with your actions. Remember how my baby almost died because of you?”

Stopping at the top of the stairs, Dan stared at her, hurt in his eyes. He took a shaky breath. “I’m trying to protect you. You deserve better than some asshole who wants to use you for a one-night stand. And you know I’ll regret that until the day I die.”

“I can take care of myself.” She had forgiven Dan for his actions the year before because she knew he hadn’t forgotten the terror she’d experienced for those hours when Colby had been missing. But it was hard to let go, especially considering Colby’s night terrors. She lived with his horrible oversight every day. Dan did not. And she was angry.

She pushed past him, hurrying down the stairs. Colby waited for her at the bottom, looking up at her with bright eyes.

“Mommy, can I have the game again? Uncle Danny took it from me.” He held his hands up.

She shook her head. “No, we’re all done with Mommy’s phone right now.” She helped him into his coat.

“Can I ride in Uncle Danny’s police car?” Colby looked at Dan as he came to the bottom of the stairs.

“No, Pop is going to drive us.” She pulled his winter hat down over his ears. Letting him ride with Dan was easy enough, but she was too angry with her brother to let Colby go with him.

“Pwwwwwwease?” Colby whined, holding his arms out to Dan. “I want to ride in Uncle Danny’s car.”

Dan set his mouth to a line. He gave Colby a sympathetic look. “It’s up to your mom.”

“And Mommy said no.” Jen yanked her coat on.

As Colby cried, Dan’s face softened. “For God’s sake, don’t punish the kid because you’re mad at me. I can drop him off at the church on my way to work.”

She couldn’t control much right now, but she could control this. Forgiving Dan didn’t mean that she had to forget the havoc his actions had wreaked on her life. Letting her anger get the better of her, she said, “I’m not punishing anyone. He’s just going with me. He’s my responsibility, end of story.” She picked Colby up and stormed out, leaving Dan behind.