One eyebrow rose questioningly. Jack knew Lauren had little knowledge of his time playing football.
So she said, “Jade,” which was sufficient explanation. “How did it happen?”
He emptied his wineglass with one last swallow and placed it on the table. “I went in for a tackle and blew out my knee.” He bent and rubbed the old injury. “I missed the rest of the season, and when I recovered my knee was never the same. I couldn’t give my team one-hundred percent. So I retired.”
“That’s a shame. Do you think you’d still be playing today if it didn’t happen?”
Jack stirred the sauce and took it off the heat. “For a while I thought I’d be playing into my late thirties. I convinced myself I was invincible and could still be a key player for the team.
But then I cleared the bullshit from my eyes and knew reaching thirty and still having the success I had was incredible.” He drained the spaghetti and poured the rich-smelling sauce over the pasta.
“Do you miss it?” she asked as she refilled their wineglasses.
“I’m still around the game enough to feel like I haven’t given it up completely. It’s enough for me.” He dished the pasta into two bowls and carried them to the table. “And to be honest, I’m kind of glad I don’t have such a grueling workout schedule. I don’t have the energy for it anymore.” He tapped his stomach. “I’ve let myself go.”
Lauren scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Yes, you need to do something about that.” Jack laughed at her sarcasm.
They sat in silence as they devoured the delicious tasting meal. Then Jack pointed his fork at the fridge and asked, “Who’s the older woman in the photo with you and your friends?”
She turned her head to the fridge. “That’s Lillian. She lives in the house out front. She’s gone to Europe for two months with her two sons.”
“You look close.”
In the photo Lauren had her arms wrapped around Lillian’s shoulders. Lillian’s dark brown head was touching Lauren’s and their cheeks pressed together. They both smiled widely at the camera.
“We are. She’s like a mother to me.” Lillian had only been away a month, but Lauren missed her terribly and was counting down the days until she came home.
Standing, Lauren picked up their empty plates, rinsed them in the sink, and wiped the counter. When she’d run out of things to keep busy, she sat back down at the table. Jack hadn’t said anything about the way he’d found her outside of the coffee shop, but she could tell he was still waiting for an explanation.
Lauren took a deep breath. “I met with my sister Belinda today. She came to collect money for my mother’s medical bills and to tell me my mother died and had already been buried. I told her she should’ve called me, but Belinda didn’t think I needed to know. She only wanted me to pay for it.” She shredded a napkin in her hand. “I don’t know if I would have gone to the funeral, but Belinda took that choice away from me.”
Jack slid his hand along the table, but she pulled away and placed her hands in her lap.
Being comforted for the loss of someone she didn’t really care about felt wrong.
He raised an eyebrow when she pulled away, but he didn’t comment about it. “She should have told you. You needed to make that decision for yourself, but it’s over now. You don’t need to see Belinda ever again.”
A short, bitter sound came out of Lauren’s mouth. “I still need to give her more money or she’ll…” She bit her lip to stop herself from saying anything else.
“Or she’ll what?”
The chair made a loud scraping noise as she pushed it back from the table. Standing, she
paced the small kitchen. Jack blocked her and put his hands on her shoulders.
“Or she’ll what?” he asked again, his voice low and serious.
With a deep, shuddery breath she answered, “Or she’ll sell my sordid story about Graham to the media.”
Jack frowned. “Why would she do that?”
“It’s what she does, calls and asks for money, and if I don’t give it to her, she threatens to go the media with what she knows.”
“She’s blackmailing you?” An expression as dark as thunder clouds grew over his face.
Looking away, she nodded.
“How long has this been going on?” The words were soft but laced with acid.
