Jenna nodded.
“She thinks you guys would be great together.”
Jenna had no comment as she headed to the bottom of the stairs to call Blake.
“Hey,” Asher stopped her. “I’m sorry about bringing up the stuff with your mom. I know it’s hard for you to talk about it.”
“It’s not as hard now that she’s dead.” Jenna shrugged and turned.
“She’s dead?” Asher turned her back around.
Right. Jenna never told him because he was in California with Blake. The James thing happened and then when she came out to Hope Falls, he was getting together with Ava.
“Yeah, actually she died the day I found out about James and Bree.”
“What?! Why didn’t you tell me?”
A tear Jenna didn’t even know was there slid down her face, but she quickly wiped it away. She was not going to cry for that woman. “I didn’t tell anyone. Well, actually I told Deacon.”
“You toldDeacon?” Asher looked shocked and maybe hurt.
She put her hand on his forearm. “I didn’t know it washim. I had just come from the hospice?—”
“Hospice?”
“She was in hospice for a year. I went to see her twice a week.”
“What thefuck? Twice a week? For a year? Did James know?”
Jenna shook her head.
“Blake never said any?—”
“Blake didn’t know. I wouldneverlet Mallory around Blake.”
Asher stared down at Jenna, his eyes filled with care, love, tenderness. He knew her mom. He lived with her for two years basically from the time Jenna was fourteen till she moved out at sixteen. Her mom tried to sleep with Asher, on more than one occasion. If anyone would understand why Jenna never allowed Blake to meet her grandmother it was Asher.
“So for a year you dealt with your dying mom by yourself?”
Jenna felt her lower lip tremble, but she stiffened it. Her ex pulled her into his arms and hugged her, tight.
When she felt herself about to breakdown, she stepped out of his arms and sniffed back her emotion. She lowered her voice as she explained, “It was fine. But anyway, um, she died, I went to the parking lot, sat in my car, got a notice to renew the spy software I had put on James computer a year earlier, looked up what had been cloned from his phone and computer, went home, caught him, then I went to a bar and Deacon was there, bartending, or I thought he was the bartender. He asked if I was having a bad day, I told him my mom died and my husband was cheating on me, thinking he was thebartender. Because he was behind the bar serving drinks to customers in a white button down and black slacks.
“Then after about an hour later I see a funeralannouncement, a man comes out from the back, kisses thebartenderon the cheek, thanks him for covering because the man’s wife was having Braxton hicks. It turned out Deacon’s friend owned the bar and after Deacon’s parent’s funeral service she went into premature labor so Deacon came and covered for him.
“Right after that James showed up because he found me on my Find My Friends. Deacon, who I had no idea was Deacon St. Claire, I thought his name was D, offered me a ride and I took it. I spent the night with him, still didn’t know who he was, and didn’t see him again until Niko brought him over to be the fourth for trivia night when we won.”
Asher was quiet for a minute as he stared down at her. “He’s lived here for like six months. How did you not know it was him? Were you that drunk that night?”
“No, I wasn’t even drunk when I spent the night with him. I’ve never seen him around town before trivia night. I knew Deacon St. Claire moved to town but why did I care about meeting abillionaire.”
“Right, but you’renotdisgusted by his money,” Asher said flatly.
Jenna shook her head and pushed her ex towards her front door. “Go away. Go take our daughter to get socks. She needs them for the float. Blake!” Jenna called out, actually feeling lighter for telling her ex the entire story.
Asher let her push him but turned back towards her. “He’s a good guy, Jenna. Billionaire or not. A good guy. And you deserve good.” He bent down and kissed her on the top of the head. “You deserve all the love in the world.”
30
