Chapter 209: Mimi XXVI--I Doubt You Ever Will
“How come Daddy’s no fun when you bring him home from the airport?”
Michele smiled and patted Jana’s pale hair, but she didn’t look at the little girl. “What do you expect little one?” She replied, “He is sleepy, and beat up, how fun are you when you’re sleepy?” She smirked to herself, no fun indeed!
“Well Daddy’s extra no fun,” Jana said with a sigh, “He SWATTED me this morning. And I HATE him.”
Michele raised her eyebrows with absolutely no memory of this. All she could remember was his powerful arms, his hot breath, every low, moan that had left his lips… “He what?” she asked. She couldn’t recall any incident or commotion that morning. She looked down at her daughter as the little girl was rummaging through the boxes of shoes on the bottom shelf of the mall shoe store they were in. Jana retrieved a pair of glittering, pink heels and grinned through her teeth.
“OOOO,” Jana chirped, “Mommy get these I like theeeeese!”
Michele
frowned. “No, they are for teenagers not mommies, now what did Daddy do?”
Jana frowned. “I got up for a
glass of water and I tried to get into bed with you and Daddy told me to get
back in my own bed, and I told him that I don’t want to and he said to OBEY and
I stuck my tongue out at him and he swatted me. Right here.”
Jana pressed her hand against her left ear.
Michele really didn’t know who to be mad at. “Well, what were you doing sticking your tongue out at him? Were you expecting a kiss?”
Jana shrugged. “I hate him. Princesses aren’t supposed to get swatted.”
“And you’re too old to be acting like a brat and a tiny girl,” Michele replied as she dropped the pair of shoes she had been looking at in their box and tossed it on the empty space on the top shelf. “Don’t be crying for my sympathy, you know you should be acting more like your own age. We’ve spoiled you too much.”
Jana crossed her arms and her royal blue eyes sparked with fire, “Why don’t you act your age!”
Michele frowned. “That doesn’t mean a thing Jana, now don’t try to fight with me or I will take everything you have in that bag and return it back to the store, and when we get home you will apologize to your father.”
“But..” Jana said in a pleading tone and she reddened. The fire remained in her large eyes and she paused, Michele could actually see her little brain going over her options before she nodded. “I was wrong,” she said. “I’m sorry, Mommy.”
“Good,” Michele said, but she could see the dancing anger in Jana’s eyes. The girl was probably only sorry she had told her and was now filing it away in her “disclosed wrong things to Mommy” section of her brain. What irked her even more was that Patrick had told her none of this, why? Because he knew that she would be liable to punish the girl in some way as soon as she found out, and he was right. As soon as they were getting home all of Freddy’s chores were going to be inherited by Jana for the next week. It would last for three days before Patrick would be at her with begging eyes about being easy on her….
“Hey, Mom we’re back!”
Michele saw
Jonathan first, taken aback for a moment by how much taller he was than
“Jonathan!” Jana exclaimed, “I love you!” She dashed into her brother’s arms and squeezed him. Michele rolled her eyes and then giggled when she saw Jonathan mouth out, “What did she do now?”
“We got some video games,” Freddy said eagerly. “You said we could right?”
Michele nodded. “Of course,” she replied, “But did you check the ratings? If I find another game with..”
“Yeah Mom,” Jonathan said quickly. “You can even check the bag if you want.”
Michele glanced at her watch. “We still have a few errands to run before we get home, do you kids want a snack?”
The smiles
that sprouted on the boys’ faces were an answer enough for Michele and she
leaned over to plant a kiss on
“Hey, Mom, there’s Mrs. Keane and Mrs. Foote,” Freddy piped as they were walking to the food court.
Michele
peered down the long hallway and saw Tammy, Jennifer, a couple of the other
wives and Chris Drury’s new girlfriend, Rory. “So it is,” she replied feeling a
twinge of annoyance. None of them had told her they were taking Rory out. “Well
then, I can ask Tammy if
“Yesss!” Jana exclaimed. “Pleeease!”
“Tammy!” Michele called out as she began to walk at a brisk pace down the hallway, “Over here!” She frowned when Tammy didn’t seem to hear her or any of the others for that matter. Well, she didn’t want to yell, but as she walked a little more swiftly towards them, the group of ladies began to walk quickly away from her. At this pace, Michele knew she would have to full out run to them and scream. She stopped, felt slightly disturbed, a familiar ache… she pressed her hand against her stomach and then she saw it. Rory peeked over her shoulder, looked directly at her and smiled briefly before turning back around. And the group continued on.
Michele felt her cheeks burn with what she knew was embarrassment and she didn’t want to turn around to look at the children. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Felt the false charm, put on the smile she knew she had to use, and she turned around.
“I guess they couldn’t hear me,” Michele said as brightly as she could, trying to ignore the obviously irate look on Jonathan’s face, trying to concentrate on the younger ones. “I’ll call her when we get home.”
Even Jana’s face had a crumpled expression, there was almost no use. “Mom why did they do that?” she whispered.
“Do what?” Michele asked, feeling helpless. What did one say when it was obvious to children?
“They did what we do at school when we try to make someone sorry,” Jana said in a whisper. “But you didn’t do anything wrong!”
Michele swallowed. “Darling I…”
“God dammit!” Jonathan snarled. “I’m gonna go over there and fuc-“
“Jonathan!” Michele snapped squeezing the boy’s shoulder, “Don’t you DARE use that language and forget about it. I’m sure there was a misunderstanding.”
Jonathan glowered in reply.
“It was a misunderstanding,” Michele repeated, “Now let’s go get you something to eat.”
“It’s okay, Mom,” Freddy said with a sigh, “I’m not hungry anymore.”
“Me neither,” Jana said.
Michele looked at Jonathan and was blasted with the force of the anger in his eyes, but he didn’t say anything more about what he thought.
What could have happened? Michele thought to herself later that day when they had come home, and she had dropped her tired body onto the bed next to Patrick’s perennially napping frame. Patrick mumbled something in a low voice and immediately enveloped her under his body before dropping back off to sleep. Michele grimaced and rolled him mostly off her but she didn’t leave him.
Tammy Keane had never liked her, of course with good reason, Michele thought. Of course she wouldn’t hold Tammy’s disdain against her, but Jennifer Foote? Michele had never tampered with Adam before, and she wrinkled her nose at the thought, and with good reason! She had never touched anyone on this team really, except for Chris but he had been unattached at the time, nothing for that Rory college girl to worry about. Of course there was Pascal, that annoying boy and that was only because he had pulled a brilliant game to get her.
Danny? Well that was a different story, of course she was… would be guilty of snatching pretty Danny but which of them really cared at all for the likes of that green eyed nanny? And who of them would know really?
Debbie wouldn’t have told, Michele thought. Debbie would never betray her like that. Was Cecile sobbing to Jennifer? That ungrateful little bitch, after the great pains she had pulled for her…. And Jennifer would be more than willing to exaggerate whatever Cecile had told her to Tammy who would be more than happy to spread it to everyone else. And then of course, Rory would have piped in with her suspicions of the other day. Yes, things can snowball like that.
Michele felt her blood scald the inside of her skin, she wanted to scream, instead she pressed her lips against the cool skin of Patrick’s bare shoulder and she pinched it with her teeth… hard.
“Ow!” Patrick barked, waking up and sitting up. “What was that for?”
Michele blinked at him in the dim room, a slice of fading sunlight cutting in through the curtains, shining on his pale flesh. Michele didn’t sit up, remained flat on her back and she slid her hand up his bare knee, slid it up under the thigh of his boxers. “Jana said you hit her this morning?” she whispered.
Patrick sighed loudly and Michele squeezed his thigh, felt the hardened muscles, she closed her eyes and slid her hand up further.
“I didn’t hurt her, I just got a point across.” He said slowly and she felt his hand press up underneath her blouse, over the bare skin of her tummy.
“Mmm,” Michele sighed. “I told her to apologize to you.”
Patrick didn’t say a thing and Michele didn’t open her eyes as she felt his body press down upon her own, and just as she felt the heat of his lips over her mouth, she said. “Jennifer annoys me.”
“Really?” Patrick said, “And what else is new?”
“She really bothers me,” Michele whispered and she felt the tickle of his hair flutter against her face, she opened her eyes, ran her fingers through his ridiculous mane and she pushed it from his eyes. “Like your hair.”
“I can help you on one of your annoyances.” Patrick said, his fingers unclasping her pants.
“It better be the right one,” Michele whispered.
“I’m sure I know something about your heart.”
“I doubt you ever will.”
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