A Matter of Trust (5 page)

“
Yeah, I’m here. And they
weren’t hanging
around
him, as I recall, they were hanging
on
him. He didn’t seem particularly
interested, so I helped him out and took him out of circulation,
that’s all.”

“
Uh huh. So, what happened
when he took you and Eva home last night?”

“
Nothing. Josh carried Eva
inside, and Jake … saw me inside. Since I’m waking up in bed, I’m
assuming he helped me get here.”

“
Are you
naked?”

“
Callie! I can’t believe
you asked me that. Of course …” – she took a quick look down – “…
I’m not naked. I’m not even in my jammies. Jake is a true
gentleman. And besides, we’re just friends.”
Boy is my friend a good kisser, too
.
Oh shit – did I ask him to spend
the night with me? Did I dream that? Surely, I dreamt it. Please,
God, let me have dreamt it.

“
Uh huh. I must say,
you’re very territorial over your friend, Jake. Eva and I both
noticed a little spark of interest there, and it did not lean
toward the platonic side, either. But, hey, that’s okay. If that’s
your story, and you’re sticking to it, that’s fine. But I expect
full disclosure if and when that status changes.”

“
It’s not going to change,
Callie. My plate is full with raising babies and running a
business. I don’t have the time or the inclination to start a
relationship right now, and I’m sure I won’t for at least another
twenty years. By then, I’ll be too old, and that’s fine with
me.”

“
What about sex? Don’t you
miss it?”

“
Sometimes, but I have my
battery operated boyfriend for those times, and he’s nothing if not
trustworthy. And if he ever fails me, I’ll toss him out and get
another one. That’s more than I can say for a lot of
men.”

“
You think Jake’s not
trustworthy?”

“
I didn’t say that,
Callie. Of course he’s trustworthy. He’s a great guy, but I’m just
not interested in starting a relationship.”

“
You know, Trish, you kind
of remind me of Eva. She didn’t want to trust another man either,
and she never thought she would. But Dubeck men are a cut above the
average male. I’m not just saying that because they’re my brothers,
but Josh and Jake are true blue. They know how to treat a lady, and
they stick.”

“
It’s different when you
have kids, Callie. They’ve already lost their dad. I can’t be
bringing men home and having them get attached, then moving on to
the next guy and repeating the cycle. My kids need more stability
than that. God knows they’ve had very little since Pete died. I
have to be careful for their sake.”

“
I can understand that,
girlfriend. You be careful all you want. When push comes to shove,
though, I don’t think it’s the kids that make you hold back. I
think it’s you. More specifically, I think it’s something hurtful
in your past. I’m not being nosy, but if you ever want to talk
about it, I’m here, and Eva is, too. You know we have some pretty
shaky skeletons in our closets when it comes to past
relationships.”

“
I appreciate that,
Callie, I really do. Maybe someday I’ll take you up on
it.”

“
You do that. Anyway, I
called to invite you to one of our famous barbecues. Where else
besides El Paso, Texas could you have a barbecue in October?
Granddad called and asked me to tell everybody.”

“
Hmmm. I’m not sure. I
kinda sorta have plans tonight.”

“
Uh huh. Do these plans
have anything to do with my big brother and your dear friend, Jake,
by any chance?”

“
Now, Callie, don’t read
more into this than there is. Jake brought me lunch a couple of
times last week in exchange for dinner. That’s all. He came by on
Friday, and he’s coming by tonight. Then we’ll be even. There’s
nothing more to it than that.”

“
Uh huh.”

“
Now see, you’re making
more of this than there is. When you call Jake, ask him what he’d
prefer, dinner here or over at your Granddad’s. Whatever he wants
to do is fine with me.”

“
Okay, I’ll do that. And
I’ll have him call you to tell you what he wants to do. How’s
that?”

“
That’s just fine. I’ll
probably see you later. Right now, I’m going to jump in the shower
and take a couple of Advil, not necessarily in that
order.”

“
I’m going to finish
making these calls and then have morning sex with Cade.”

“
That’s just so hateful of
you to tell me that.”

“
Hey, next time you’re
asked, say yes. Nobody’s there to witness or chaperone.”

“
Goodbye,
Callie.”

****

Half an hour later, Trish
had just dried off from her shower when the phone rang. She checked
the caller id.
Shit, shit, shit. It’s
Jake. Should I answer? Of course I should answer. Friends answer
friends’ phone calls.

“
Hello?”

“
How’s the
headache?”

“
Hi, Jake. The Advil is
starting to kick in now. I’ll live.”

“
Glad to hear it. You were
pretty far gone last night. You said all kinds of crazy
things.”

“
Yeah, about that … I’m
really sorry for being such a lush and an idiot. I’m not sure what
all I actually did and what I dreamt I did, but none of it lacks
for embarrassment.”

“
Well, I’d be happy to
clear things up for you and separate the fantasy from the reality,
if you’d like.”

“
Uh, maybe it’s best if we
let sleeping dogs lie.”

“
So, you don’t remember
making love? That sure burns my ego.”

“
What?!”

“
Just kidding, Trish the
dish. Relax. Nothing … much … happened last night. You did mention
that you wanted your own place, do you remember that
part?”

“
Yes, you said something
about knowing about a couple of rentals. Do you know if they’re in
the Socorro school district? I’d hate to move Trevor to another
school in the middle of the year.”

“
As a matter of fact, one
of them is. You want to take a look at it this
afternoon?”

“
This afternoon? Ah, sure,
if you’re not too busy, that would be great. Are you sure you don’t
mind?”

“
What are friends for,
Trish? Oh, do you want to give me a rain check on dinner for
sometime next week and go to the barbecue or not?”

“
Ah, sure, if that’s okay
with you. That sounds like a great idea.”

“
Good, that ought to shut
my sister up. She bet me ten bucks we’d opt for dinner at your
place. I think she’s got ideas about us.”

Trish let out a nervous giggle and
agreed to be ready in an hour to look at the rental.

Jake hung up the phone with a grin on
his face. This was working out nicely. He’d been patient and kept
himself from moving in on Trish for several months, and now he
planned on taking the next step. Last night had been enlightening
on several levels.

First, Trish definitely felt attracted
to him. Second, Trish did not want to feel attracted to him or
anyone else. Third, something had gone drastically wrong in Trish’s
marriage, which obviously what made her so hesitant to enter into a
new relationship. To sum things up, the time to act had arrived,
but he knew he had to be careful in moving forward. It wouldn’t
take much for Trish to spook and shut him down before he’d even
gotten started.

So, he liked the idea of a barbecue,
because the whole family would be there, and Trish would feel
comfortable in that arena. Between looking at the house for rent
and eating dinner in a safe atmosphere, she should be lulled into a
sense of relaxation and well being. That’s when he would
strike.

****

Trish, who usually got ready to go in
twenty minutes, took the whole hour to get ready. Instead of
brushing her hair into a ponytail or braiding it, she blew it dry
and curled it, wearing it as she had the night before. She told
herself several times that it had nothing to do with Jake’s comment
about wearing it down more, but she didn’t really believe it. Then
she took extra time on her makeup. Highly unusual. She didn’t pile
it on or anything, but she did put on the whole works instead of
just a little blush and mascara. Then, she had to decide what to
wear. What a nightmare! Jeans and a light sweater? Slacks and a
long sleeved blouse? Everything she tried on looked too teacherish.
Or too motherish. Oh brother! She finally settled on jeans and a
long sleeve button down cotton shirt. She thought she looked okay.
She put on some loafers and grabbed a sweater, although it looked
like a nice day.

Jake honked the horn when he pulled
into her driveway, just like he always did, and she grabbed her
purse and locked the door behind her.

“
Hey.” Trish climbed up
into his truck and reached for the seatbelt.

“
Hey yourself. You don’t
look the least bit hungover. In fact, you look real nice. Ready to
go look at the house?”

“
Yep. Thanks for picking
me up and acting as the middle man.”

“
You bet.” He pulled out
and drove the short distance to the rental and pulled into the
driveway. He used a remote control to open the garage door, and
they let themselves inside.

“
It’s got three bedrooms
and two baths, a nice sized back yard, and two living areas, one of
which could be used as an office. No formal dining room, and the
laundry room is small but serviceable. Go ahead and look
around.”

“
It’s really nice, Jake,
but I don’t know if I can afford it. What’s the rent?”

“
It’s negotiable. What
ballpark are you looking at?”

“
I can’t go more than
about eight hundred or so, and that’s a stretch, although most
apartments are close to that. I’m sure the owner wants more than
that.”

“
Actually, I can go as low
as six fifty, so the price is right. Now let’s see if it’s what
you’re looking for. Take a look around.”

Trish fell in love with the little
house. It wasn’t very big, but it was big enough for her and the
kids. The master bedroom was a nice size with its own bathroom and
walk-in closet. The other two rooms were on the small side, but
then so were her babies. The kitchen was small, but had plenty of
storage, and the living room had a fireplace in the corner. All the
kitchen appliances were part of the deal, and the other living area
would indeed make the perfect office space. The more she saw, the
more she liked. She opened the back door and sighed. Not only was
it grassed in with raised flower beds on the sides and back, it had
a shiny, new looking swing set.

“
I absolutely love it,
Jake. Can’t you just see the kids all over that swing set? Where do
I sign, and when can I move in?”

“
Well, great. The owner
will be thrilled it won’t be empty anymore. I’ll work on getting
the paperwork. It’s ready to move into when you are.”

“
Yay! The kids will be so
surprised, and my parents will be, too. This is so exciting.
Someday, I’m going to buy my own house, but for now, this is great.
Thank you, Jake.” Trish threw her arms around his neck and hugged
him hard, thrilled at the prospect of having her own place
again.

It took every ounce of self control
that Jake Dubeck possessed not to grab hold of Trish and kiss the
living daylights out of her until she begged him to make love to
her. It was truly a testimony of his inner strength and
determination to think of the long run instead of the here and now.
Somehow, he managed to break away from her without jumping her
bones. He planned to make up for lost time later that
night.

“
I need to start finding
boxes and packing, although we really don’t have that much stuff. I
sold most everything before I moved back to El Paso. Oh my gosh,
I’ve got to … I can’t take it after all, Jake.” Trish looked like
she was about to cry, but she stiffened her back and threw her
shoulders back and turned around to head for the garage.

Jake stopped her and made her turn
around. She wouldn’t look at him, so he put his index finger under
her chin and lifted it until she met his eyes. “Why can’t you take
it, Trish? I know you want it.”

She blinked away tears rapidly. “I
don’t have any furniture, Jake, and my credit is so shot, I could
never qualify for a loan. If it was just me, that would be fine. I
could sleep on the floor, but the kids … I can’t do that to them.
I’ll have to save up the money for furniture and look again when I
can afford it.”

“
Trish, I can cosign for a
furniture loan if …”

“
Absolutely not. I’ll wait
till I can do it on my own. Thanks, anyway.”

Jake thought if she straightened her
back anymore, it might snap. “Okay, but we can still work around
that. Josh and Cade have furniture in their garages that they don’t
want anymore, since their women told them it had to go. You’d be
saving them the trouble of getting rid of it if you took it off
their hands. I’ve been looking to upgrade myself, and I had planned
on just giving the furniture I’m getting rid of go to Good Will or
some such place. It’s not in real bad shape, although it’s used,
and I don’t know how you feel about that. You might at least take a
look at it.”