Chapter 26
“Hey, you got a second?” Zac questioned into his phone.
“Um, yeah, I guess. What’s going on?”
“Mind if I drop by?”
“No. Nat and Ezra are out for the afternoon.”
“Good.” The doorbell sounded. “Open the door.”
Taylor got up from his seat, checked the peep-hole, hung up his phone, and opened the door. “Everything alright?”
“Not quite.” Taylor motioned for Zac to come in.
He did so and sat on the couch. Taylor was seated across from him.
“I saw her today.”
Taylor looked confused. “Who?”
“Who else?” Zac took a breath. “Jody.”
Taylor felt his back stiffen at the sound of her name. He knew he had done something very wrong in cheating on her with Natalie, but he didn’t know what to do about it.
“How’s she doing?”
“She looks terrible.”
Taylor squinted at Zac, trying to convince himself that Zac was wrong. “No she doesn’t.”
“Yes she does. She looks like she hasn’t slept in weeks. She’s gaunt and thin as a rail.”
Zac looked at Taylor expectantly.
“What?” Taylor returned the look. “What do you want me to do about it?”
“Um, fix it maybe?"
Taylor shrugged indifferently. “Jody and I are going to meet up tomorrow and talk.”
Zac fidgeted for a moment. “So what are you gonna say to her?”
The next morning, Jody spent more time than usual in front of the mirror. She had run an iron over her work clothes to ensure that they were perfect. She fussed over her hair for the first time since high school and was absolutely meticulous with her makeup.
Dana and Horace noticed immediately.
“You look really pretty, Jode,” Dana said.
“Thanks,” Jody said with a smile as she glanced toward the door.
Dana studied Jody for a moment. “You seeing him after work?”
“Yup.”
“First time since the big breakup?”
“Yup.”
“You nervous?”
“Terrified.”
Jody glanced toward the door again.
Two hours later, and five minutes before her shift was over, a familiar face walked into the store.
Taylor barely recognized her. Sure her hair was a little bit longer, but Zac hadn’t lied- Jody was thin as a rail with huge bags under her eyes that denoted a lack of sleep. That special spark about her was gone and she seemed to just be going through the motions. But to him, she was still beautiful.
He approached the counter somewhat nervously and waved a little to get Jody’s attention.
She picked up on his motions and the two locked eyes.
The spark between them was still there.
“I’ll, uh,” he stammered as he cleared his throat, “I’ll be over at the table.”
The only thing Jody could do was nod as she grasped the counter to hold herself up.
Dana approached Jody after Taylor was seated. “You gonna be OK?” Jody nodded again. Dana glanced at Taylor and then back at Jody. “You know that you guys almost lit the store on fire with the way you looked at each other, right?” Jody nodded again, still barely able to support herself.
“There’s something there, Dana,” Jody responded after a brief pause. “There just is.” Jody shivered.
“I know,” Dana said softly as she, yet again, glanced Taylor’s way.
Taylor wasn’t blind to the fact that Dana was talking to Jody and looking his way. It was a little spooky when people on the street did it, let alone someone he knew. He internally freaked out just a little more.
The five minutes Jody had left on her shift seemed like an eternity for both of them. Taylor couldn’t stop fidgeting and looking around and Jody lacked any semblance of focus. She knew she couldn’t skip out early from her shift considering all the times Dana had covered for her and all the times Horace had let her go early because she was too emotional to continue working that day.
The exact moment that the clock turned to 3 PM, Jody all but ran to the back to gather her things.
Tossing her jacket around her shoulders, she grabbed her purse and headed back out. With one final deep breath of courage, Jody began walking toward Taylor.
She noticed little differences about him as she walked toward him. He was doing something different with his hair now and she wasn’t quite sure she liked it. Mostly he was the same- same sense of style, same walk. But there was something about the way he was seated, about his posture, that let her know plain and simple that he had been hurting just as much as she was. It was strange, but that single observation made Jody feel just a little better.
“You, uh, ready to go?” she questioned.
“Yeah,” he said as he looked up at her. “Let’s go.”
The two exited the store in silence as Taylor held the door for her. They made a right and continued up the block.
After sneaking little glances at her in the silence, Taylor was going mad. Not being able to control himself, he slowly slipped Jody’s hand into his.
She froze in her tracks.
“Taylor, what are you doing?”
“I just...” He looked at his feet. She kept her gaze on him. “I need you, Jode.”
Jody looked at him and their surroundings. “Let’s uh, let’s not do this in the middle of the street,” she answered slowly, making the executive decision to go somewhere more private.
Just a few minutes later, they were seated in yet another Starbucks.
“Ah, someplace new and different,” Jody said with a smile as she settled in with her caramel apple cider. Taylor opted for hi usual raspberry chi tea.
“There’s just nowhere else to go.”
“I know,” Jody said, “I was just joking.”
There was an unbelievably awkward silence.
Jody spoke after a minute or two.
“Let’s not avoid this any more.”
Taylor’s head snapped up. “What?”
“Let’s get this over with. We need to talk, so let’s talk.”
“OK,” Taylor said. “We’re both adults...”
“...Yeah...”
Jody looked up at him and bit the bullet.
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“Don’t play dumb, Taylor. Why’d you cheat on me?”
Taylor fell silent. He couldn’t answer her.
Instead, he shrugged. “I dunno, Jode.”
“I’m not stupid, Taylor.”
“I know.”
She surveyed the situation again. “Was I not enough?” she coaxed in a gentle tone that even surprised herself.
“You were. You were more than enough.”
Jody sighed. “I don’t understand.”
Another silence.
“So that’s it. That’s my explanation,” Jody stated.
Taylor shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
“I don’t know what else to tell you.”
“Well you can be more specific for starters.”
Jody’s defenses were up and Taylor knew it.
“What do you want to know?”
“Why, Taylor, why? That’s been the point of this conversation. Instead, all I’ve heard is that I was ‘more than enough’ which is directly conflicted by the fact that you slept with someone else.” She eyed him angrily. “So no matter what you say, all I’m hearing is that I can’t measure up because if I was all that you said I was, you wouldn’t have needed anybody else.”
He couldn’t look at her. To see the hurt that he put in her eyes was more than he could handle. Instead, he fiddled with the cup for his raspberry chi.
She ran an exasperated hand through her hair to try to ward off the tears.
After a solid five minutes of silence, Jody picked up her purse, put her jacked back on, and was ready to go.
“Jody, wait.”
“Why? You’re not saying anything.”
“I know.” He glanced at her. “Just stay.”
As much as it hurt her, she tossed her purse over her shoulder and stood up. “Not this time.” She paused a moment before continuing. “Call me when you’re ready.”
Jody’s leaving signified Taylor’s incompetence. He kept rethinking what she had said- his actions spoke volumes more than his words ever did.
But the truth of the matter was that he needed both Natalie and Jody. He had a child with Natalie. There was no plausible way never to see her again even if he wanted to. She was a permanent fixture in his life. He loved Natalie in a way he never loved anyone before.
But then there was Jody. She was genuine and kind and wonderful and everything Taylor thought he’d never find again. She loved Ezra and didn’t bat an eye at the situation.
He desperately needed them both.
A tap on his shoulder nearly sent Taylor through the ceiling.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,” a female voice said.
“No, it’s OK.” He looked up to see a pretty blonde girl around 16 years old.
“Are you Taylor Hanson?”
He nodded.
“Oh my G-d! Can I have your autograph?”
She quickly handed him a piece of paper.
“Sure.”
Taylor was scribbling away when the girl asked a question.
“Was that Jody who was sitting here?”
“Yeah,” Taylor responded. “It was.”
“She’s pretty.”
Taylor looked up as he finished signing. “She’s something else.” He handed her the paper and her pen.
“She’s a big hit in the fan community.”
“Really?” By this time Taylor really wanted to leave. Any more talk about either Jody or Natalie and his head was going to explode.
“Yeah. A bunch of fans met her and they said she was really nice and took pictures and stuff.”
Taylor smirked as he stood up. “Yeah, that sounds like Jody.”
“She’s a great girl.”
Taylor cleared his throat. “Yeah, um, I gotta run.”
“That was it?” Eve questioned.
“Yeah,” Jody sniffed. “No explanation or anything.”
“What a jackass.”
“No shit.”
“Did he even apologize?”
Jody sniffed again. “No.”
“I’m telling you, he’s a jerk.”
“Yeah, but I still love him.”
Eve sighed. “I know.”
“So what do I do?”
“The way I see it is that there was 2 options. Option 1- leave him.”
“Eve, I don’t know if I can do that again.”
“That’s why there’s option 2- make him choose.”
“Is that fair?”
“Was it fair when he slept with Natalie?”
I guess that’s why they call it cheating, right?”
Eve smiled. “Now you’re thinking.”
Chapter 27
Index
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