A Gift of Time (The Nine Minutes Trilogy Book 3) (14 page)

He
remembered kissing her then, slowly making his way down her neck, stopping to
ask her to kneel up so he could take one of her full, beautiful breasts into
his mouth. He mourned the loss of her warm tightness as she raised herself off
of him, but quickly reveled in the taste and feel of her nipple as it hardened
beneath his tongue. He remembered.

A loud knock
on his cell door jolted him from the memory. He barely had time to shove his dick
back into his pants when the door swung open.

The guard
stood there with a shit-eating grin on his face. He’d obviously peeked through
the slot and knew what he’d interrupted. The murderous look Grizz gave him
caused his smile to fade, and his discomfort became obvious.

“Errr ...
someone here to see you. Maybe she can help you finish what you started?” He
gulped and tugged at his collar. It suddenly felt tight around his neck.

The guard
stepped aside, and a woman that Grizz didn’t know breezed inside the cell like
she owned the place.

“Lighten up,
Grizz. I told him to make sure we weren’t interrupting anything.”

She glanced
at the tented area of Grizz’s pants and raised an eyebrow. Cocking her hip to
one side and hooking her well-manicured fingers through the loop in her jeans,
she said in a voice that Grizz recognized immediately.

“Looks like
I got here just in time, honey.”

Chapter Twenty-One

Mimi

2000,
Fort Lauderdale (Two Days After the Execution)

Mimi clung tightly
to Elliott’s back as they sped through
the streets of South Florida.

The
motorcycle vibrated between her thighs as she rested her chin on his shoulder.
The wind so strong against her face, blocking out the scent she’d come to
associate with him. She loved how Elliott smelled, and her emotions were so
conflicted at what had happened two days ago that she wanted more than her chin
resting on his shoulder. She wanted to feel his arms around her. To bury her
face in his chest. She wanted to feel safe. She wanted to feel loved.

She wanted
to feel special.

“I promised
Edith we’d have a late breakfast with her. Hope that’s okay with you,” he said
loudly as they idled at a red light.

Mimi gave
him a thumbs-up, and twenty minutes later they were sitting across from Elliott’s
grandmother at the tiny table in her cozy kitchen. Elliott had introduced Mimi
to his grandmother not long after their first date at Marcella’s earlier that
year. She’d yet to introduce Elliott to her parents. She still wasn’t ready.

“My friends are
picking me up soon,” his grandmother told them. “We’re going to see “Death of a
Salesman” at the community theater. I’m sure there are plenty of tickets left.
Would you two like to come?”

Elliott
smiled at his grandmother. “I know you’re worried about leaving us alone in the
house—”

“Young
unmarried couples were never left unchaperoned in my day,” she told him in her
gravelly voice. Elliott had told Mimi his grandmother had been a smoker up
until she’d had a lung removed five years ago. Her voice always sounded like
she needed to clear her throat.

“We won’t be
here long after you leave. We’ll clean up the kitchen as a thank you for making
this great breakfast.” Elliott looked at Mimi, who gave a quick nod. “Then I’m
just going to take Mimi for a nice long motorcycle ride. Maybe up by the
beach.”

Edith looked
at her grandson with an expression Mimi couldn’t read. She patted his cheek a
little too roughly as she stood to excuse herself. She would need to brush her
teeth and freshen her lipstick before her friends arrived.

“Just don’t
do anything that would make me ashamed of you, Elliott.”

Her voice
almost had a pleading sound, and Mimi could see the worry on her lined face.

Elliott
stood then and gently took her by the elbow. “Those days are gone, Grandma. I’ve
straightened up my life, and you know that. I’ve proven it to you.”

“I guess
you’re right. I thank the good Lord every day that you stopped your shenanigans
before you got into any trouble with the law. You’re blessed, boy. I hope you
know that. You don’t have any record, and the Lord’s seen fit to give you a new
start. Use it wisely.”

“I am,
Grandma. I’m trying to prove to you and God and my new girlfriend,” he paused
and winked at Mimi, “that I can do something with my life.”

He gently
guided her out of the kitchen. Mimi could hear him continuing to give his
grandmother gentle reassurances that he wouldn’t be going back to his old
habits.

Mimi smiled
to herself and started to clear the breakfast dishes. She remembered her first
date with Elliott and how he had shown her the beautiful cross tattoo on the
underside of his forearm. She remembered how she took his arm in both of her
hands that day and slowly turned it over, noticing some of the tattoos on the
other side. She’d stiffened when she saw a heart with the name Edith in the
center of it. She shook her head now as she loaded the dishwasher. She’d had an
instant jolt of jealousy after seeing that name and knew she blushed when
Elliott had quickly explained, “Edith is my grandmother.” She thought she
remembered him blushing, too.

She had just
closed the dishwasher when she felt arms surround her from behind and a soft
kiss on the side of her neck.

“You
should’ve waited for me to help,” he whispered in her ear.

She turned
her face sideways so his mouth was now against her cheek.

“You can
wipe the table,” she answered, her voice coming out like a squeak.

They pulled
apart when they heard a horn honk, and Elliott went to find his grandmother.
After a quick hug goodbye and an insistence that Mimi come back to see her,
Edith let her grandson escort her to the waiting car of her elderly friends.

Back inside
the house, Elliott took Mimi by the hand and led her to the sofa. He sat down
and pulled her onto his lap.

“Do you want
to talk about it?” he asked gently.

She chanced
a look at his face, and her eyes filled up with tears.

“It’s done.
It’s over with. I only saw my dad for a few minutes before you picked me up. I
haven’t seen my mom yet, so I don’t know how she’s going to act.”

“How did
your dad act?”

“When I got
home this morning I found him in the den by himself. Just staring at the wall.
When I tried to get his attention he barely heard me.” She got quiet then and
looked at Elliott’s chin. “I lied again. Told him Lindsay and I were invited to
spend the day at Courtney’s. I have until late tonight, so we can do anything
you wanna do.”

She
swallowed hard and chanced a glance into his eyes. What she saw scared and
excited her.

Elliott
stared for a second without answering.

“I know what
I want to do, Mimi,” he said without breaking away from her glance. “For God’s
sake, I’m a guy. Do I need to spell out what I want to do? What I’ve always
wanted to do? But I’m not going to. I’m not going there with you. Not yet
anyway.”

“But,
I—”

“No. You
heard Edith. You heard her talk about making the right choices. She’s right,
you know. It’s a miracle I didn’t get arrested for all the shit I’ve pulled.
I’m lucky my friends got caught, but I didn’t. Lucky they didn’t point the
finger at me. I know it’s a shitty way to think, but it’s true. They have
records now, not me. I can’t blow this.”

“How is
being with me going to blow it?” But she was secretly relieved. She wasn’t sure
how she felt about the physical awakening her body had been experiencing. She
was raised in the church and knew premarital sex was wrong.

“You know
how. Our ages. When I turned eighteen, you became officially off limits to me.”
He sighed and in one quick motion hefted her off his lap and placed her next to
him on the couch. He adjusted his pants. “I shouldn’t have pulled you down on
my lap like that.”

“What are
you waiting for? My parents’ blessing? Because there is a pretty good chance
that won’t happen.”

“And it will
definitely never happen if I don’t meet them.” His voice turned hard. “How can
I ask for their blessing if they don’t even know about me?”

She started
to say something, but he put up his hand to stop her.

“You told me
you were going through some heavy shit, and you needed time, and I understand
that. Man, all that crap you told me about your real father and the reporter
approaching you and all that. Yeah, I get it, Mimi. I really do. I even
understand why you’ve had a serious hard-on for your parents all these years.
They should’ve told you.” He saw her chin start to quiver and reached out to
steady it with his hand.

Tilting her
face up to his he continued, “I’m sorry, Mimi. Maybe this isn’t the right time
to bring up meeting your parents. I just really care about you. I want to be
able to meet your dad for the first time, shake his hand, and look him in the
eye knowing I didn’t do anything to disrespect him. I feel bad enough sneaking
around behind their backs, and I’m even lying to Edith. She’s asked me more
than once if your parents approve of me.” He looked away, shaking his head.
Then something occurred to him. “Are you crying because he’s dead? You got
tears in your eyes when you told me he was dead.”

“Oh,
Elliott, I don’t know what’s wrong.” She swiped her fingers beneath her eyes.
“Maybe I feel bad about it in some way. I mean, a guy is dead. Or maybe I feel
guilty for helping Leslie behind my parents’ backs. I don’t know why I’m
crying.” She sniffled. “We get so little time together, and I don’t want to
spend it blubbering all over Edith’s couch.”

She smiled
at him then and sat up a little straighter.

“Can we go
for that long ride on your bike now?”

He took her
hand and gently kissed it.

“Yes. And
I’m limiting my kisses to your hand, because if I start kissing you the way I
want to, I’ll never stop. It’s probably not a good idea to be here alone, you
know. Unchaperoned.”

They both
laughed out loud at his use of Edith’s antiquated term.

Late that
night, Elliott laid on his bed and listened to Judas Priest’s “You've Got
Another Thing Comin'” blaring through his earphones. He thought about his day
with Mimi and how when they weren’t on the motorcycle, she had opened up more
about her biological father and some of the more recent tidbits she’d learned
about him from Leslie.

The
journalist had been filling Mimi in on some of the stories she’d been pulling
out of Mimi’s mother. Apparently, Leslie hadn’t told Mimi anything since her
accident a few weeks ago, but Elliott hadn’t known about that. Today was the
first day he’d spent with Mimi in almost a month.

He shook his
head as some of those sordid tales sunk in. He’d definitely heard the name
Grizz before and tried not to let Mimi see the recognition on his face when
she’d first started confiding in him. Her real father was one bad motherfucker.
Good thing he was dead.

A
combination of his dark thoughts and the loud music were starting to make him
antsy. He wanted to scream, shout, put his fist through a wall, raise hell. He
wanted to do anything but lie in his bed and do nothing.

He reached
for a cell phone on his nightstand and quickly sent a text, smiling at the
reply that came back almost immediately.

He then sent
another text. This time to Mimi.

Did you talk
to them? Can I meet them this week?

Mimi’s reply
was almost immediate.

No. My mom moved out today.

“Fuck!” he
shouted out loud as he threw his phone across the room.

He sat up
quickly and pulled his boots on. He left his room and grabbed his helmet off
the chair by the front door.

He wouldn’t
worry about his motorcycle waking up Edith. She slept like the fucking dead.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Ginny

2000,
Fort Lauderdale (After the Execution)

That first time
I took Mimi to the shooting range hadn’t
been perfect, but it was a start. I shuddered when I learned how much Leslie
had been sharing with Mimi. Things I’d shared with the reporter only as a way
to help provide a truthful foundation for my real experience. They were never
going to be in the article, and they certainly shouldn’t have been told to my
fifteen-year-old daughter. I’d been so stupid.

I surmised
from my conversations with Mimi that Leslie had stopped talking to her around
the time Grizz beat her up at the prison. This told me Tommy was right. Mimi
didn’t know Grizz was Tommy’s father. We would have plenty of time to get to
that.

One thing
came as a welcome surprise after that first day together. Mimi started making
an effort to spend time with me. It wasn’t easy, because I still had to manage
my time equally between running our household, church, work, and volunteering.
Tommy and the kids were my first priority, and I didn’t want the new attention
I was getting from Mimi to take away from my two best guys, so I told Tommy
after that first week that I was giving my clients notice they needed to find
somebody else to do their bookkeeping. It might’ve seemed like I was jumping
the gun, but I was so excited to have Mimi back in my life on a deeper level
that I would’ve done anything to hold onto it.

Tommy had
been standing in front of our dresser adjusting his tie. He couldn’t get it
right. I’d noticed he’d been acting differently since the day I’d taken Mimi to
the shooting range, the day he’d met Jo for lunch. I figured it was a
combination of worrying about the big reveal we’d be making to Mimi, or maybe
he was just sad about Sarah Jo’s move. A lot had happened these past months.
Grizz’s execution, our separation and reconciliation, his childhood friend’s
announcement that she’d be moving out of the country. I was even concerned that
maybe he was still upset at my outburst in the kitchen the morning he told me
that Mimi knew about Grizz being her biological father.

Maybe it was
all just too much.

I walked up
behind him and tiptoed to peek over his shoulder. I could see his reflection in
the mirror over our dresser. He was frowning as he undid and redid his tie for
the third time. Something was definitely on his mind because Tommy could put on
a necktie with his eyes closed.

I guided him
around to face me and slowly undid the third mess he’d made.

“What’s
bothering you?” I looped the tie gently. “You haven’t been yourself since that
day I talked to Mimi. I figured it can’t be her because I’ve noticed a positive
change in her attitude with us. I know it’s only been a week, but she seems
different somehow. Don’t you think so?” I glanced up to meet his eyes and
quickly looked back at his necktie. I could feel his eyes on me as I worked.

“Things with
her have been better than I thought. She still has some attitude, but—”

“She’s a
teenager.”

He smiled
and nodded. “She’s a teenager. Which is what I was going to say if you’d let me
finish my sentence.”

I pulled
snugly on the tie and, satisfied with my job, sat down on our bed and looked up
at him.

“I think
this week with her has been fabulous since we’ve been trying to set right a
secret that she’s been keeping inside for almost three years. She seems almost
relieved, Tommy. Like she’s just been holding her breath and finally let it
out.”

“I know that
feeling. It’s how I felt at Grizz’s execution.”

I wanted to
look away from him then but wouldn’t let myself. I had to bite the inside of my
cheek so I didn’t scoff out loud at the thought of the execution that never
happened.

“You still
don’t seem right, though,” I said. “Is it because of what we still need to tell
her?”

“Yeah, it’s
that, Gin. But it’s other things, too. Like Leslie using our daughter, and then
telling her some of the more serious things that you shared with her in the
interview.” He shook his head. “I still don’t know why you ever agreed to give
Leslie that stupid interview. You had to know Mimi would’ve been able to read
it. That everybody would be able to read it.”

Intense and
immediate anger flared. I jumped up from the bed then and stood inches from his
face. My fists were tightly clenched at my sides.

He stepped
back. I wasn’t sure if my anger was because what he was saying was true, or
because I was furious with myself for being so gullible. I’d wanted to please
Mimi so much that when she told me that she’d eavesdropped on Tommy and me
discussing it, I’d let down the carefully constructed walls that had been in
place for years. I’d allowed Leslie into that sacred place because I’d felt it
would be a connection back to my daughter. Little had I known that Mimi hadn’t
eavesdropped on my conversation with Tommy. She’d been goaded into persuading
me by Leslie.

“You know
why I did it! And you also know I went into it never intending to tell Leslie
some of the things I ended up telling her. We agreed on anonymity and that
certain things would be left out.” I paused for effect. “Like the billy-club
incident.”

I felt a
small stab of guilt as I watched Tommy cringe.

“I don’t
know why I told her more than I should have,” I added in a calmer tone. I could
feel my anger slowly deflating. I looked at Tommy apologetically. “I guess it
was kind of therapeutic. Talking about it.”

He nodded
slightly, an indication that my unspoken apology had been accepted and that he
understood why I’d agreed to give Leslie the interview. We’d had a conversation
after my first day at the shooting range with Mimi. I’d told him that evening
about my anger toward Leslie and how I’d planned to have a serious discussion
with her. Possibly I could even file a complaint with the state press
association over her unethical tactics.

Tommy had
convinced me to let it go, saying that Leslie was out of our lives now, and
while using our daughter was wrong, we didn’t need to dredge it up. Enough was
enough.

“I’m sorry
for bringing it up, Gin,” he said now. “I’m the one who told you to let it go,
and then I go and bring it up. I guess I’m just feeling—hell, I don’t
know what I’m feeling. I know you’re spending a lot of time with Mimi. I know
she’s asking you details, and I’m guessing you’re not holding a lot back.”

He gave me a
questioning look. I shrugged.

“She’s
handling it pretty darn well. I told you I wouldn’t tell her the other thing
until we could do it together. It’s not time yet, and I promise you I won’t do
it without you,” I said. And I meant it.

“It’s not
that.” He took my hand and seated us both on the edge of the bed. “You’re going
to think I’m being ridiculous, Gin. And I am being ridiculous. I’ve always been
her father. I guess I’m afraid that when she hears how much you loved Grizz,
she’ll look at me differently. I don’t know.” He swiped his hand through his
hair. “I can’t explain it. I’m afraid she won’t look at me like she used to. I
was her hero up until a few years ago. I was the only man who would lasso the
moon for her mother. I wonder if she’ll see me differently when she knows I’ve
not always been the only man in her mother’s life. That there was somebody
before me. And then we’re going to add into the mix that she and I have the
same father? I don’t know if I can do it, Gin. I just don’t know.”

I saw the
pain and emotional devastation on his face. He was at war with his feelings,
and here I was so excited to have a connection with Mimi when Tommy’s only
connection would be shattered when we told her the truth. Did I believe she
would be able to handle knowing Tommy was her half-brother? I had to seriously
rethink this.

I swallowed
hard and turned to him, and took both his hands in mine.

“Tommy,
maybe we don’t have to tell her. Hearing you say it like that does make me
wonder if it’ll do more harm than good. Can we agree that we’ll wait? We have
our Thanksgiving cruise coming up and then Christmas. Let’s get to know our
daughter again, okay? You had some alone time with her, and now I’m starting to
have time with her. How about we start having some together time with her?
Would that make you feel any better?”

“I don’t
know, Ginny. I don’t know if I want to see the look on her face when she asks
you something about Grizz and you tell her honestly, like we agreed you should.
I don’t think I can bear to see her as she mourns the father she’ll never know.
I don’t think I can handle it.”

This
surprised me, and I sat back to look at him.

“What?” He
gave me a funny look. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“You already
know I’ve been answering her questions all week, right?” He nodded, so I
continued. “I was thinking it would be a good idea for the three of us to talk
about Grizz. I need your help with something.”

He raised an
inquisitive eyebrow. “What do you need my help with?”

I sighed and
answered Tommy honestly.

“I need you
to help me convince Mimi not to hate the man that she will only refer to as the
evil sperm donor.”