Free Lockdown by Cher Carson Page A

entertained guests. “What can I get you, Phil?”
    He smiled. “A cold beer would be great, if you have it?”
    She rolled her eyes. “Are you kidding? Tucker and Daddy wouldn’t be without it, especially on football Sunday.”
    “We missed you at church today,” he said, claiming one of the heavy oak chairs at the kitchen table.
    She didn’t feel much like giving thanks after last night. “I was kind of tired after the party yesterday. You weren’t able to make it?”
    “No, I had to work.”
    In truth, she hadn’t even missed him, but she tried to be polite. “That’s too bad.” She popped the top on a longneck and handed it to him.
    “Yeah, I was disappointed. I was hoping we could spend a little time together.”
    She heard her mother talking to someone in the dining room. Jake, no doubt. If only she could feign some mysterious illness to avoid him.
    “Hey there,” Jake said, crowding the doorway. Phil’s back was turned, so he had all the time in the world to survey her from head to toe. “How are you, Jess?”
    She refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing she was devastated. It was painfully obvious when he looked at Jared’s picture last night that he would never want his son to know what they’d done, and she’d be damned if she would consent to being his dirty little secret. She deserved a man who would be proud to call her his woman. “I’m fine, great, couldn’t be better.”
    He frowned. “Good to hear.”
    Phil stood up, extending his hand to Jake. “Hey, buddy, good to see you.”
    Jake’s lips tightened into a firm line as he accepted Phil’s outstretched hand. “I didn’t know you’d be here.”
    Phil laughed. “I couldn’t pass up Mrs. Carlton’s cooking. You know how it is, living alone.”
    “Yeah, I sure do.” His eyes drifted to Jessica. “Being alone sucks sometimes.”
    She wanted to tell him that he was alone and miserable because he chose to be, but she kept her mouth shut to avoid an awkward scene. “Can I get you a beer, Jake?”
    “Don’t trouble yourself, sweetness. I know where it is.”
    She clenched her teeth at the term of endearment. He’d called her that since she was a pre-teen, and she was getting tired of it. Even after last night, he still didn’t seem ready to accept her as a woman. Determined to prove him wrong, she claimed the seat next to Phil.
    Jake kept one eye on her as he made his way to the fridge. “Where’s Tucker?”
    “He’s outside helping Daddy with the grill. Why don’t you head on out there? I’d like to have a little quiet time with Phil anyways.”
    Phil grinned. “You would?”
    “I sure would.”
    She was wearing short white shorts and a pink halter top, too risqué for Sunday dinner according to her daddy, but she wasn’t dressing to impress him, or even Jake for that matter. After last night, the only person she intended to please from now on was herself.
    Jake’s eyes traveled the length of her legs as he brought the beer bottle to his lips. “Can I have a word with you in private, Jessica?”
    He didn’t call her by her full name unless he was mad at her. Too bad, he created this situation by ignoring her for years and brushing her off when he finally had the chance to make up for his past mistakes. “I don’t think so.”
    “I’m not asking you. I’m telling you I want to see you outside, now.”
    “Who the hell do you think you are? Ordering me around like I’m your…”
    His eyes darkened and she knew he was thinking about interjecting with a suggestive word like “lover.”
    Tucker walked in the back door and slapped Jake on the back. “Hey, man, I didn’t know you were here. How’s it goin’?”
    “Not bad,” Jake said, clenching the beer bottle in his fist. “You?”
    Tucker chuckled. “Okay, someone gonna tell me what the hell’s goin’ on here?”
    “Nothing,” Jessica said as she stood. She held her hand out to Phil. “How would you like to go for a walk, get to know each