After Victory: A Searching for Glory Novel (A Second Chance Love Story) (4 page)

I watched him put Jack into his stroller, strong and loving arms holding him gently. In that moment, I made up my mind.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, alarmed by the strange look on my face. “Is it the baby?”

“No, no.” I rubbed my stomach absently. “Well, maybe. I’ve just been thinking.”

“About what?” he sat next to me on the bench and took my other hand.

I looked into his steel blue eyes, never more certain of anything. “Will you marry me, Johnny Carter?”

CHAPTER SIX

Kate

“The principal will be with you in just a moment,” the school secretary said as I waited in the cramped office.

An hour earlier, I had gotten a call from the high school. Denton had started a fight during lunch and was going to be suspended. My son sat next to me, his lip bloody and swollen. I hated to think what the other kid might look like.

As far as I knew, Denton had never been in a fight. He had always been a good kid – quiet and a decent student. I got glowing reviews from his teachers saying that he was bright and polite. I had never gotten a call like this one.

“What happened, Denny?” I asked, still in shock. “Why did you hit that kid?”

“He started it,” Denton muttered, eyes on his feet.

I let out an exasperated sigh. When I had attended this high school, the principal’s office had been a pretty regular stop. I skipped school frequently, got caught smoking, and generally had a bad attitude. But I had never expected to be here because of my son.

“Ms. Tanner?” The principal stepped out of his office.

“Cooper,” I corrected with my maiden name. I had switched it back one week after the divorce was finalized.

“Sorry. Ms. Cooper.” He smiled at me grimly. “Please bring your son.”

His office looked just as a remembered it. A new principal, but the same décor. Even the chair that I dropped into was the same.

“Let me start by saying that it’s unfortunate we had to call you in under such terrible circumstances. We’ve come to expect more from your son.” Principal Kent’s eyes darted between us. “Fighting is not acceptable under any circumstances.”

“Of course.” I felt like I was being judged as much as my son. “Denton has never done anything like this and he will definitely be punished. I’m not sure how a suspension is going to help matters.”

He folded his hands on the desk in front of him. “It will give him some time to think about his actions.”

That was a bunch of crap and we both knew it. Denton already knew that it was wrong to start a fight and staying home from school wasn’t going to add any valuable lesson.

“Can you at least tell me what happened?” Fighting with the principal wasn’t going to do me any favors.

“Apparently the young man said something to your son that he didn’t like. Denton then proceeded to punch him in the nose.” The principal held up his hands. “As you can see, this type of behavior is completely unacceptable on school grounds.”

I turned to Denton. “What did he say to you?”

“Nothing,” Denton grumbled, eyes still pointed at his feet.

“Fine. If you don’t want to talk about it now, we’ll talk at home. It looks like you are going to have a lot of time now.” I turned back to Principal Kent. “How long is his suspension?”

“Three days. He can return next Thursday. We will have someone collect his assignments.” He actually dusted his hands, signaling that we were officially dismissed.

“Alright. Let’s go, Denton.” I was annoyed that the principal wasn’t being more helpful. He seemed annoyed at me as well, so at least the feeling was mutual.

Denton refused to talk on the way home. All that he would say was that the kid, Peter, totally deserved to be punched in the face.

“Is this because of your dad and the new baby? Are you acting out?” I asked at one point. I was rewarded with a stare that said I was the dumbest person alive.

It was a look I knew all too well. When you had a teenage son, you got used to that look.

After we were inside, I sat him down at the kitchen table and said, “If you don’t tell me what really happened, your sleepover with Chris is going to be canceled.”

“That’s not fair, Mom.” He sounded like a little boy again and not an angry teenager. “I was defending you.”

“Me?” I asked. “How were you defending me?”

“Peter said that John left you for Gloria Star because she’s way hotter than you.” His face turned bright red. “He was being a jerk.”

Slowly, I took in a deep breath. I knew that the incident had to be more complicated than the principal had indicated. This made more sense. “Denton, I understand how upsetting that was, but it doesn’t give you the right to hit someone.”

“I know.” Denton looked at me, still angry. “Can I go to my room now?”

“Yes, but leave your phone. You’re in trouble, young man.”

He tossed the phone on the table and stormed away. A few seconds later I heard his bedroom door slam shut. It was times like this when I wondered if Denton would’ve been better off if I stayed married to Brad. Would a stable male presence have helped him control these outbursts?

I had closed the shop in order to go to Denton’s school and now I couldn’t exactly leave him at home. Someone needed to be there to enforce his punishment, otherwise it would just be a fun day off school for him. In the spare bedroom, I had set up a mini-studio to work on my art. The shop had been really busy in the last few months and I was starting to fall behind on orders.

It actually ended up being a blessing having the afternoon free. I was able to get lost in my work, occasionally taking a break to clear my head by staring out the window. A few hours after I started working, a familiar truck appeared in the driveway. I hurried to the door, getting there just as the doorbell rang.

“Wow. You clearly recovered better than I did.” Jake greeted me with a smile.

He wasn’t giving himself enough credit – I thought he looked pretty fantastic. I, meanwhile, was wearing a stained smock and had paint all over my hands and probably my face.

“Not that it’s not great to see you, but what brings you by my house on a Friday afternoon?” It hadn’t snowed in a few days so he couldn’t be there to shovel my driveway.

“When I was here last weekend I noticed your gutter is starting to come loose. It’s supposed to warm up tomorrow and then the snow will start to melt. You might have a bad situation if it doesn’t get fixed.” He held up his right hand which was holding a toolbox. “Thought I’d come by and save you some trouble.”

“Oh.” I was taken aback and not sure what to say. I wasn’t used to people— men in particular – going out of their way to take care of me. “That’s really nice of you.”

“It’s not an entirely selfless offer. I’m hoping you’ll go around town telling everyone what a great guy I am.” This time when he smiled, my heart did a little jump.

“Deal. I’ll even get some coffee brewing to warm you up when you are done,” I said. “Do you need a ladder? I think we might have one in the garage.”

He waved away my offer. “Nah. I threw one in the back of the truck. Go get started on that coffee.”

I hurried to the kitchen and shoved a filter and coffee grounds into the brewer. While it brewed, I dashed around tidying up any visible living space. The house wasn’t exactly a disaster, but with a teenage boy living there, we always had shoes and video games strewn about.  For some reason, it was important to me that Jake not see the house in disarray.

That didn’t take as long as I expected so I had some time to gawk from the window while he worked. The thing I found most fascinating was the way he never got frazzled or annoyed. Even when he dropped the screwdriver twice in less than two minutes, he just climbed down and got it. Whenever Brad had fixed things around the house, he had only done so after days of begging and then proceeded to swear and grumble the entire time.

This was certainly a new experience.

“All fixed,” Jake proclaimed when he popped his head through my door. “It should hold up just fine.”

“Come in! The coffee is ready.” I had already poured two mugs. “How did you know I would be home today? I’m normally downtown at the shop.”

He took a seat across from me at the table. “Just got lucky, I guess.”

“Smooth.” I hid a smile behind my coffee mug.

“Actually, I was hoping to fix it while you were out. I didn’t want to interfere with your day,” he said quietly.

I knew that wasn’t the real reason he had come by in the middle of a weekday. He had really been hoping to fix the gutter without me ever even knowing. He didn’t want the credit, or for me to feel beholden to him in any way. Jake was a good guy.

“I got called into Denton’s school. Apparently, he punched another kid.” It felt good to have someone to share my day with. Especially someone like Jake that would understand.

“Denton started a fight? That doesn’t sound like him.” He sounded just as shocked as I felt. It was reassuring to know that I wasn’t just blind to my child’s true nature. “Who did he hit?”

“Peter?” I had never even heard Denton mention a kid named Peter.

Jake nodded in understanding. “Peter Burke. Chris has mentioned him a couple of times. He runs his mouth a lot.”

“What about?” It would be nice to hear that I wasn’t his only target for trash talk.

“Things that are none of his business,” Jake said. “Why did Denton hit him? What did he say?”

“Just usual teenage boy stuff, I guess.” I don’t know why I didn’t want to tell Jake the truth.

He smiled faintly. “When my kids were little, I used to think how easy it would be once they got older and could take care of themselves. Now I’ve come to realize that being a parent never gets easier.”

“I don’t know how you do it with four of them. One is hard enough.” I thought about how strange it was to have a friend that completely understood my situation.

Because I had gotten pregnant with Denton when I saw still in my teens, I had spent the last fourteen years on my own in my circle of friends. Only now some of them had started to have kids. Their experiences were so much different than my own. They were grown adults with jobs, happily married. They had gotten a chance to go to college, date, and travel the world. I hadn’t done any of those things.

“Hey, about that thing I asked you last night…” I suddenly felt very shy with Jake. When I’d run into him and John at the bar, I had been so uncomfortable that I had drank more than I ever would normally drink at dinner. The alcohol had made me relax, but it had also loosened my tongue. One minute, we were making awkward small talk and the next minute, I was asking Jake on a date.

“You mean the part where you asked me out?” Humor danced in his eyes. “I have to admit, I did not see that coming.”

My cheeks flushed. “Yeah, that part. I’m really sorry if I made you uncomfortable. You probably only said yes to keep it from getting even more awkward. I totally understand if you don’t—”

“You asking me out was the highlight of my night.” His eyes were warm and inviting when he looked at me. “Heck, it was probably the highlight of my year.”

It had been a very long time since a man had looked at me that way. I was more than a little unnerved by it, and by how good it felt.

“So.” Jake cleared his throat softly. “I’m guessing Denton is going to be grounded this weekend?”

“It’s what a good parent would do…” I was tired of being a good parent. Sometimes I just wanted to let Denton eat ice cream for dinner and play as many video games as he wanted. “Sometimes I’m really tired of being the disciplinarian. Brad never has to deal with any of this stuff. I’ll ground Denton this week and he’ll hate me, then next weekend he’ll be with his dad and get to do whatever he wants.”

Jake surprised me by laughing. “I’m sorry. It’s not funny. It’s just that I know exactly how you feel, except my fair-weather ex is actually my sister-in-law. Anytime I’m barking orders at the kids, I worry that they would rather be with Glory.”

“Well, I definitely know that feeling,” I said without thinking. I had spent a good amount of time when I was with John worrying that he would rather be with Glory.

There was a long moment of awkward silence and I worried that I had just ruined everything. Then Jake laughed again and my heart thudded happily.

“We are both such a mess,” he said between chuckles. “It’s a good thing we found each other.”

I held out my coffee mug and we clanked together in a commiserating cheers, and I said, “I couldn’t agree more.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

Jake

“I never thought that I would be telling you this. It seemed like this wasn’t something that was in the cards for me. I was pretty comfortable being miserable.”

It was Saturday and that meant I was spending time with Vic. I wouldn’t have felt right spending the morning anywhere else. But now that I was here, telling her about Kate, I wished that I was somewhere else.

“The thing is, I really think I need to do this. I’ve been so depressed these last two years, so complacent in my grief. I know it’s affecting the kids and that isn’t fair to them. They need to know that it’s okay to be happy again.” I was sitting in the snow, leaning against a tree that was just a few feet from her tombstone.

It vaguely occurred to me that I wasn’t really justifying my decision with Vic. I was trying to justify it with myself.

“I don’t know why I’m telling you this. Of all people, I know you would understand. You were the one that told me to move on even before you were gone.”

I remembered how I had brushed away her demand. It was just a couple of weeks before she died and we were alone for a rare moment. She told me that she wanted me to let her go. She knew that I loved her, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t love someone else after she was gone.

At the time, I couldn’t imagine loving anyone else, or even wanting to love someone else. I had already had my one great love story and I was okay with that. But now I understood what she had been saying. I was only in my mid-thirties, a lifetime still ahead of me. A lifetime was a really long time to be alone.

“Jake.”

For just a second, I thought it was Vic saying my name. Or maybe I was just wishing for it to be her because I knew deep down that it couldn’t be her.

“Glor.” I was more than a little surprised to see her standing about ten feet to my right. In two years, I had never once run into her at Vic’s gravesite. I was even more surprised to see that she was holding Jack on her hip, his tiny body covered in a bright blue snowsuit.

“Sorry to interrupt,” she said, her cheeks pink from the cold.

I had known Glory since she was a young teenager, long before she was voted Sexiest Woman. But there was no denying her ethereal beauty. Even without a whisper of makeup, with her blond hair tangled by the breeze, and covered in a puffy winter coat, Glory Stark was undeniably a stunning woman.

“You have snot running down your face,” I said with a grin. One of my favorite hobbies was teasing her mercilessly. “Come sit with me.”

She set Jack on his feet, waiting until he stopped wobbling before wiping her nose with a tissue. She glared at me when she realized that it was dry.

“You never change,” she said with a shake of her head.

When she sat next to me, she didn’t keep any space between us. Her body pressed against mine warmly, but also platonically. I knew that she viewed me like an older brother and I enjoyed being that person for her.

“What brings you out in this god-awful weather?” I looked up at the falling snow.

“I wanted to give Johnny some peace and quiet for a change. Thought it would be good to get Jack out of the house.” She watched carefully as Jack stumbled two steps forward and then plopped onto his bottom in the snow. “We were driving past and suddenly I just really wanted to bring Jack here.”

I guess I wasn’t the only one that wasn’t ready to let go of Vic. “I’m glad you’re here.”

Glory smiled at me, the faintest hint of tears in her eyes. “Me too.”

Jack crawled forward, his mitten-covered hands sinking into the snow.

“We’re having a girl,” Glory said hollowly. For such happy news, she sounded overwhelmingly despondent.

“That’s great, Glor. Really.” I raised a questioning eyebrow. “Isn’t it?”

“Yeah, of course.” She leaned her head back against the tree and sighed. “I’m scared, Jake. I don’t know why. When I found out I was pregnant with Jack, I was so happy. Johnny and I were finally starting our lives together and it was such great news after losing Vic. It almost didn’t feel real. But this time… it just feels different.”

I noticed that her lower lip was trembling. “You’re just psyching yourself out, Glor. Having a second kid can be overwhelming. One is hard enough. But everything is going to be fine. You’re an amazing mother and John is the most natural father I’ve ever seen.”

“Yeah,” she said, sounding far away. I don’t think she heard a word I said. “Julia told me something the other night. She told me in confidence and I promised her I wouldn’t say anything to you, but I think that was wrong of me.”

I hesitated. Knowing that Julia was a teenage girl, I had a few guesses what she might have told her aunt that she hadn’t been willing to tell her father. My mind was already racing, making guesses. But as much as I wanted to know, I was even surer that Glory shouldn’t tell me. “Keep your promise to her.”

“What? You don’t want to know?” Her mouth dropped open in surprise.

“Of course I want to know. I have a few pretty good guesses. But Julia doesn’t have a mother anymore and she needs someone to confide in. I’m just glad that person is you.” I forced a weak smile for her benefit. “When you have your little girl, you’ll understand. If Julia wanted me to know, she would’ve talked to me about it. But she didn’t.”

“She’s a really good kid, Jake. You should know that. Mature beyond her years and smart as a whip.” Glory hugged her arms around her chest and shivered. “You’ve done such a good job with her these last couple of years. Vic would be proud.”

I frowned. Was I the only one that saw I was barely keeping it together? The fact that the kids had survived, let alone thrived, was a minor miracle. “I can’t take any credit. Vic did the hard work before she left.”

“I don’t think that’s true and I really hope you don’t either.” She patted my knee with her shaking hand. “You are the very best man I’ve ever known.”

We both watched as Jack pulled himself up using Vic’s headstone for balance. Then, very confidently, he leaned in and kissed it, right over her name.

“It looks like Jack might give me a run for my money,” I said, feeling choked up.

“I’m fortunate to have an abundance of amazing males in my life.” She smiled up at me, mischief in her eyes. “So I’m willing to share you with Kate.”

I blushed all the way to my hairline. “John told you?”

“Of course he did. Johnny gossips more than the women in the knitting club.” She turned serious. “I think she could be really good for you. And you for her.”

“So I have the Glory Stark seal of approval?” I felt relieved when she nodded.

“Just do me a favor?” she asked.

“Sure.”

She pulled at the stubble on my chin. “Shave. And maybe don’t wear a flannel shirt on your date. And comb your hair.”

“This dating thing sounds like a lot of work,” I joked. “Maybe I’ll go back to being a hermit.”

“No way.” Glory shook her head furiously. “I’m already planning the awkward double dates we are going to have.”

I groaned. “The more you talk, the worse this whole idea seems.”

“The best things we ever do in life start off as bad ideas,” she said, glancing toward Jack who was still enamored by the glossy stone. “Besides, I know without a doubt that Vic would want this for you. She would want you to be happy.”

“How do you know that?” I asked, needing more convincing.

“Because Vic was a better person than me.” Glory’s face was serious, but I knew that she was joking when she said, “If it was me that had died, I would want everyone to mourn me forever and never get over me.”

I threw an arm around her shoulders. “Don’t you know, Glor? There is no getting over you. That’s how you landed John ten years later- you are completely unforgettable.”

“You’re too good to me, Jake Delroy.” She leaned her head on my shoulder with another sigh. “Thank you for loving my sister so well.”

I kissed the top of her head and said, “It was my pleasure.”

We stayed there for a few more minutes until Glory began to worry that Jack was getting cold. I walked them to their car, carrying Jack in one arm. It had been a long time since any of my kids had been small enough to hold that way.

“Big plans for the rest of the day?” she asked as she buckled him into his car seat.

“Dropping Chris at the school for basketball practice. Taking J.J. to karate and then Marta to ballet. Julia is cheering at the game tonight, so we’ll all be there for moral support.” I grinned. “I lead such a glamorous life.”

“You really do,” she agreed with a smirk as she climbed into the driver’s seat. “Johnny and I are coming to the game. Save us some seats?”

“Of course.” I stepped back from the car and waved. “Drive safe. See you tonight.”

A few seconds later, I was alone in the cemetery again. As familiar as the feeling was, I never got used to it. For the first time, I didn’t want to get used to it. Being alone was lonely.

Then I spent six hours dragging kids to their different activities and wondered if being alone was really such a bad thing. After making pleasant small talk with the other parents, breaking up at least ten fights in the car, and treating a bloody nose when J.J. threw a toy right at Marta’s face, I wanted to crawl into bed and sleep for about ten hours straight.

But there was no rest for the weary in the Delroy household. So I fed the kids a quick dinner and then loaded them into the car. It took longer than it should have to do those things, but that’s what happened every time I tried to organize all four kids at once.

Julia got a ride to the game with her boyfriend, something I was still getting used to. Last time I checked, she was still supposed to be sitting a in a car seat singing along to Disney songs.

The second we walked into the gym, Christopher disappeared with a group of his friends. J.J. spotted a kid from his karate class and then he was gone as well. Now it was just me and Marta.

“I see Uncle John!” Marta jumped up and down excitedly and took my hand. “Let’s go, Dad.”

She pulled on my hand, forcing her way through the crowd. Several people waved greetings to us and only a few people gave me a pitying smile. Marta was oblivious to all of it as she yanked me forward.

John and Glory sat three rows up, cuddling like teenagers. It was adorable in an annoying way. Marta scampered up the bleachers and pushed her way in between them.

“I don’t want to alarm you, but it seems you’ve lost your child.” I took a seat in front of them.

“Jack is with my dad,” John explained, twirling one of Marta’s pigtails around his finger. She looked up at him with adoring eyes. “This is our date night.”

“Fancy,” I joked, looking around the school gym. “At least your date is age appropriate.”

“Yours is pretty darn cute though,” he said, smiling down at Marta.

All of my kids loved John, but Marta was particularly attached. Maybe because she was the youngest and didn’t always get enough attention for her parents. Or maybe because John always seemed to have a soft spot for her.

“I’m thirsty,” she announced confidently.

“Alright.” I sighed, knowing that I shouldn’t have let myself get comfortable.

John waved me away. “I’ve got it. Come on, Marta. Let’s get you something to drink.”

“He is so screwed,” I said as they headed toward the concession stands. “That daughter of yours is going to have him wrapped around her finger.”

Glory moved down to sit next to me. “I think she’s already got both of us whipped.”

“What does that mean?” I asked suspiciously.

“I asked Johnny to marry me.” Glory kept her eyes straight ahead, utterly fascinated by the teenage boys that were running layup drills.

“You what?” I nearly laughed. It was the last thing I expected her to say. “Why did you do that?”

Her head whipped around and she glared at me. “Because of you.”

“Whoa now. I’m fairly certain I can’t be blamed for this.” I chuckled at the look of distress on her face. “Did you mean to do it? Because you look like you’re about to be sick.”

“I meant it. We were at the park with Jack and I looked over at Johnny and suddenly I just really wanted to be his wife. So I blurted it out.” She smiled weakly. “I’m such a girl.”

“Nothing wrong with that.” I bumped her with my elbow. “What did he say?”

“Nothing. He said nothing. Jack started crying and he said we would talk about it later. He hasn’t mentioned it since.” She bit on her lower lip, looking like her sister. “Did I mess up? Was it a totally stupid thing to do?”

“Totally stupid? Nah.” I spotted John across the gym, Marta’s hand firmly clenched in one of his, the other holding a box full of snacks that she had no doubt convinced him she needed. “Honestly, it was probably the best moment of John’s life. But knowing him, he’s probably working it over in his head. He knows how you have felt about marriage until now, and he’s probably worried that you’ve changed your mind. Just give him some time.”

Glory nodded, smiling slowly. “You really are the best brother I could’ve ever wished for. How’d I get so lucky?”