Deborah chuckled. “You still like to
flatter the ladies don’t you, Jack?”
“Only
with my comedic genius,” he deadpanned.
“Hmmm,
I wasn’t thinking about that,” she said, turning around in his arms to kiss
him.
“Yuck!”
they heard from below them. But when they pulled apart and looked down, Michael
was smiling and seemed anything but grossed out.
“Head
to the table, short stuff,” Jack said, grabbing the spaghetti off the counter.
“Dinner is served.”
“Hey
Deb, remember my fourteenth birthday dinner?” Jackson asked, halfway through
the meal.
She
looked up from her plate, her eyes wide. “You wouldn’t.”
Jack
smiled and stuck a meatball on the end of his fork. “I would.”
“You’ll
teach your son how to get into trouble.”
He
turned to Michael with a serious look on his face. “Don’t ever do this
without permission. Okay, son?
“Okay,
Dad,” he smiled.
Jack
flicked his fork forward and hit his son on the nose with the meatball.
Michael
giggled and tossed a couple of noodles back at his dad. Deborah ducked under
the table as the spaghetti noodle war raged above her. It was enough just to
hear father and son bonding and having a good time. Moments like these were
truly priceless. And it made her wonder if things could work out with Jack. They
still seemed to be compatible and she loved him more every minute. And best of
all, he was a great father, a natural.
“Hey
Mom, you can come out now,” Michael called.
“First
one of you to toss anything covered in spaghetti sauce on me is grounded for a
month,” she called out, peeking around the edge of the table. Both Mannon boys
sat there with their hands in the air, so she came all the way up and sat in
her chair. She surveyed the damage – two spaghetti sauce covered boys, a
trashed table and noodles with meatballs on the floor.
“Jack
since you started this you are in charge of bath time. I’ll clean up the
kitchen.”
“Aww
Mom, you’re no fun,” Michael pouted. “I don’t need a bath.”
Jackson
chuckled. “I think your Mom’s right, kiddo. I think we both need to wash up.
Head on into the bathroom and I’ll meet you there.”
Michael
slunk off, dreading the clean-up process.
“And
don’t touch anything,” his parent’s yelled in unison.
Jackson
stood up and walked over to Deb. “Thanks for letting us do that.”
“You’re
welcome,” she smiled. “Just don’t make a habit of it.”
She
stood up to grab some cleaner and the mop when Jack stepped in front of her.
“You deserve a hug for being such a great mom, but I won’t because of the
mess." He started to turn to leave, but switched back and grabbed her in
one of his famous bear hugs. Dropping her quickly, he ran for the safety of the
bathroom.
“Jackson
Steven Mannon!” she yelled.
“I
didn’t toss anything sauce-covered on you,” he hollered back.
“You’re
still gonna pay!” she called out just before the water started to run.
By
the time the boys came out of the bathroom, Deborah had the dining room cleaned
and was reading a book she’d grabbed out of her SUV.
**********
“So
Jack, how are things with you and Deb?” Thomas asked as he crawled into his
bed.
“It’s
like we were never apart, most of the time. Kind of strange how one day we were still like high school sweethearts and the next we are grown up lovers, but everything feels
the same.”
“I
can’t even imagine,” Thomas sympathized. Things between him and Vanessa had
felt different, but the love and passion had still been there.
“I’m
afraid one day we will wake up and realize things have changed too much,” Jack
worried.
“As
soon as you get home and say goodbye to Maryann, you really need to get to know
each other again. But hell, you never know, maybe the changes of eight years will
slip naturally into your lives.”
“Yeah,
maybe,” Jack agreed. “But that doesn’t make the fear of the unknown any less.”
“I
think you two were meant to be together though,” Thomas reassured him.
“I
know, right?” Jack smiled. “I mean, otherwise why would we have been thrown
together again like this?"
“You
could look at it that way.”
“Well,
it’s not like my mother could have planned this like she did for the rest of my
siblings, right?”
“I
wouldn’t be so sure. Your mother is an amazing woman.”
Jackson
scoffed. “You just think she’s amazing because thanks to her, you get to play
tiddlywinks with my sister again.”
“Speaking
of tiddlywinks, have you been playing some with Deb yet?”
Jackson
laughed. “None of your business, man.”
“Dude,
I’ve known you since we were in grade school. And you were wound tighter than a
virgin on prom night during the cruise.”
“And
your point?” Jackson asked.
“Jackson
got laid, Jackson got laid, and he’s not acting like an ass anymore!” he sang.
A
pillow went flying through the air and landed on Thomas’s head just moments
before Jack slammed into his body, catching him in a wrestling hold. Within
seconds Thomas released himself, but was still unable to move Jack off of him.
“If
you don’t get your knee off my nads Jack, I might just have to tell you all
about how your sister will kiss them better for me.”
“Oh
gross!” Jackson yelled, jumping over to his own bed. “Now I’m going to have to
burn out my ears and my brain. That’s just sick, Tommy!”
“It
got you off of me, didn’t it? And don’t call me Tommy!’
They
both laid in their own beds contemplating what the future would hold for Jack
and Deb.
“Hey
man, I’m glad you seem to be happy again,” Thomas murmured in the dark.
“Thanks
Thomas. And thanks for all of the help. I couldn’t have done it alone.”
“No
problem man, that’s what best friends are for. By the way, my car needs
washed.”
Release Day: 
