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Devin cursed. “I’m sorry.” He pulled her up and onto his lap. “Don’t cry, Jan. I’m sorry, baby girl.” He tightened his arms around her and held her while she cried, like when she was younger. “Everything’ll be okay.”
She hoped so, because as it stood right now, she couldn’t imagine things ever being okay again.
* * *
Terrence sat at his kitchen table toying with the food on his plate. His grandmother had come over and cooked breakfast to “cheer him up.”
“Baby, you need to eat. And you look like you haven’t slept well in a while.”
“I’ll be okay, Grandma. I need to figure out how to fix something.” He hadn’t spoken to Janae in almost a month. Since making a mess of his life, he hadn’t been able to concentrate on anything. He forced himself to get through the days at the office, but hadn’t made any progress where his own music was concerned. At this rate, his project wouldn’t be completed on time. The funny thing was he didn’t care.
“Well, don’t take too long. Are you expecting someone this morning?” she asked when the doorbell rang.
“No.”
“You stay here and eat,” she said, pointing at his plate. “I’ll get the door.”
She came back with Donovan trailing. “I made breakfast, Donovan. Get yourself a plate.”
“Yes, ma’am. Hey, T,” Donovan said, going to the bathroom off the kitchen to wash his hands. He came back and fixed a plate, then took a seat across from Terrence. Donovan quickly blessed his food and dug in.
“Oh,” he groaned. “These are the best waffles in the world, Grandma.”
“Grandma?” Terrence asked with a raised eyebrow. “Since when did you start calling her Grandma?”
“Since she said I could,” he answered, smiling around a full mouth.
“What are you doing here?”
“You left early yesterday, and I wanted to see what was up.”
“Nothing’s up,” Terrence grumbled. Donovan and his grandmother eyed him speculatively.
“Well, since Donovan is here to keep you company, I’m going back to the cottage. Your grandfather and I will be in the pool, and then we have a couple of errands to run.” Both men stood. “It was good to see you again, Donovan. Don’t be a stranger.”
He hugged her. “I won’t, especially if I can get breakfast every Saturday morning.”
Terrence rolled his eyes. “See you later, Grandma.” He hugged and kissed her, watching until she was out of sight. He slowly lowered himself back in the chair.
Donovan dropped back into his chair and continued to eat the waffles, eggs and bacon piled on his plate. “Man, I wish my mom lived close. I’d be over there every week.”
“You could always learn to cook, you know.”
He snorted. “So what’s going on?”
“Nothing.”
“Tell that to somebody else. It’s Janae, isn’t it?” He leaned back in his chair. “Man, you and misery have been shacking up for quite a while now. Don’t you think it’s time for a new roommate?”
“I had a visitor yesterday.”
“Is that why you left? Mrs. Lewis was fussing about some woman upsetting you when I stopped by the office. Oh, by the way, I met Trina Jackson. Is that the best Audrey could find to fill in? I think she’s going to be a handful.”
“All I need is for her to answer the phones and put everything else where Mrs. Lewis told her.”
“So who was the woman?”
“My mother.”
Donovan paused in midchew. Terrence recounted their conversation.
Donovan shook his head. “Unbelievable. Janae is nothing like her, T.”
“I know. I messed up, Don,” he said emotionally. All night he’d tossed and turned, thinking about not being able to have Janae in his life. How he’d let the selfish actions of his mother dictate his approach to relationships. And how he’d hurt the one woman who’d asked nothing of him but himself.
“Have you talked to her yet?”
“She won’t return my phone calls. I don’t know what else to do.”
Donovan shook his head in exasperation. “Boy, do I need to get you some cue cards or something? You can’t settle something like this over the phone. You gotta do it face-to-face. We’re going to Seattle on Wednesday. We can do a quick stop in San Jose.”
Terrence had thought about going to her house, but nixed the idea out of fear of rejection. But if he wanted her back, he’d have to take a chance. Their trip would only be overnight, he mused. A plan started to formulate in his mind. He hoped it worked because, if it didn’t, he and misery would be permanent roommates for sure.
