Once Burned Read online

  “Paris Xiomara Ibarra, if I ever hear you say that again, I will beat you.” It was an empty threat, but Paris knew if her mother threatened to beat her, she would lose all of her privileges, including the cell phone.

  Paris loved her cell more than anything else. The girl even slept with the phone in one hand and took care of it better than she took care of herself.

  Malik just looked at the damage and glanced over her as if to make sure she was okay. When he didn’t see any apparent injury or bandages he smiled, a crooked grin that showed off perfectly white, perfectly straight teeth.

  Juniper parked the car in front of their two story home and let the children inside. She wasn’t going to stay as she had a few more hours left in her day. But she could get dinner started and have a quick snack before she headed back.

  She was lucky she had such a wonderful employer and that she could take whatever she needed when needed. Juniper wasn’t the type to take license with liberties though, so she had never had some of the issues her co-workers had over the years. And that was one of the reasons the owner gave after he hired her as the facility manager, despite her lack of experience.

  Juniper had frozen a few casseroles on Sunday night, and it was nothing to put one in the oven to finish off. Malik could be trusted to watch it for the few hours it needed to warm up at low temperature while she went back to work.

  “Malik, come here for a minute!” She called out after she swallowed a mouthful of almonds.

  “Okay mom!”

  He trotted to the kitchen entrance and looked at her questioningly.

  “I have to go back to work. Check the oven for me every half hour to make sure it doesn’t bubble over. And the service guy should be here between four and five today, so please answer the door when he gets here, okay?”

  “Sure mom, I’ve got this on lock.”

  Whatever that was. Sometimes she would hear her children speak and wondered what half of what they said truly meant. It was like they spoke another language that grown people didn’t understand.

  And the worst part was, she had no idea when she had fallen so out of touch with pop culture. When did someone cross that irrevocable line that delineated adult from child? Eighteen? Twenty-one? Twenty-five? Thirty?

  For her it was likely the moment that she realized her husband had found love with another woman. Several at that.

  That was probably the part that burned the worst.

  Juniper walked out to the car, thoughts burdened with the way her life had turned out. She never imagined when she married her ex at seventeen that she would be a divorcee just a few years later with a seven and five year old.

  But it was partly her own fault. She had seen the signs, but she was too afraid to open the Pandora’s Box that lay nestled within unproven accusations. Just a year later, none of that mattered, as he didn’t want to waste another minute on her or their children. He was kind enough to leave her the small house they had bought together and her car. He took his clothes and left like a thief in the night.

  When she came home at seven thirty that morning, her husband was gone and the only thing five year old Paris would say was that he went to the store to get milk.

  But she didn’t allow herself break down as she looked at the empty closets and dresser drawers. She made Paris and Malik a bowl of cereal with the milk already in the fridge that morning as she worried about what she would do that night for child care.

  She wasn’t very close with her parents. The disappointment when they were in the same space was palpable. The relationship had been on the mend, but still fragile.

  At the sudden realization that if she didn’t make it happen, no one else would bother, Juniper felt numb. She had to make it work.

  That was the turning point of her life, the moment the rose colored glasses fell away and she could no longer pretend like everything was okay.

  It wasn’t and it was too late to do anything more than damage control.

  But from that moment forward, she spent every waking moment trying to make her children never realize the lack. She couldn’t be a man and she was too wary to seriously date, therefore the last years were spent all alone.

  She didn’t even have a lover, nor was she looking for one.

  But there were some moments where she wished she had more in life. Not that she was ungrateful for what she had been blessed with already.

  It would be nice to have a plus one for the Christmas party, instead of showing up stag as she had done every other year. It would be nice to have a man that could grill a mean stack of ribs or steaks in the summer and keep her warm in the winter.

  In all honesty, that had become a vague plan for the future, the same way she had “send Malik to college”, or “take a real vacation” penciled in on her mental agenda.

  And she didn’t even have to give men the brush off, it had been so long since she had seen a man of her age that was single and drama free that she didn’t have to bother. All a man could get from her at this point was a blank look when they hit on her.

  No words necessary.

  But as she headed back to work, she thought about the choices in life that had led her here. Her stupidity for having a baby at seventeen. Her stupidity for not standing up for herself. Not to mention, her stupidity for letting herself go, the way she’d let her body fall south and never rubbed herself with the stretchmark cream or bothered to wear anything save sweatpants.

  After she had Malik, her parents allowed her to go to college with their help. She had gotten her RN after three years of hard work. But even her mother told her to lose the weight she’d gained from the first baby as she was going to lose her husband.

  But did she listen? No.

  She sat on her behind too much and didn’t try to lose the “baby weight”, a whopping extra fifty pounds that seemed to straddle her hips. That wasn’t the entire problem. She got pregnant with Paris and didn’t bother to take that weight off either. So by the time all was said and done, she had gained seventy pounds and at five six, she could little afford that much added weight on her frame.

  But here she was, minus everything she had gained and she looked the best she ever would. She had figured out the way to take care of herself best, with healthy living and light exercise. The only thing that saddened her was the fact that she had lost the pounds in an attempt to stick it to her ex after Javier left their family.

  She hoped he would return and see that she had changed. Maybe even drool a bit. But that never materialized. Juniper never saw him in person again.

  There was the occasional magazine cover, sometimes he was on the news as the anchor discussed whatever match was upcoming. Even the divorce was handled simply. He gave her everything they had, down to the children and child support was sent every month.

  In the end, she kept it off for herself. Her weight was maintained with a raw diet of fruits and vegetables with nuts for the majority of the week. The two days left, she ate whatever she wanted. Although, she wouldn’t mind a wedge of lasagna tonight instead of the salad she would eat instead.

  But she liked the way she looked now. She had so much more self-esteem. No man would ever use and toss her aside again. Despite her jumbled thoughts, Juniper arrived back to work without incident, but she had two more interviews before she could go home.

  However, her interviews always were notoriously long. The new residents usually liked to talk, and she liked to listen.

  When she met Mr. Emerson at four, he was easily a perfect fit for their facility. His wife was still alive, but close to the end of her mortal coil in a hospice. Mrs. Emerson was riddled with cancer in the final stages. But despite that, he was still vibrant and unbeaten.

  She could tell he mourned the loss of the woman he’d spent his life with. But he also was pragmatic enough to see his wife’s suffering on a daily basis. More than likely, she was ready to go.

  The meeting had made her feel even more maudlin, as she thought about who would watch her pass from the
land of the living to the land of the dead. At this rate, her children would be the only ones there, if she wasn’t lucky enough to have grandchildren.

  But there would be no husband.

  Juniper shook her head. She knew logically that as a single woman there would be times that she would long for companionship. Moments where she would want to have a lover and a friend by her side.

  But she had long since gotten herself out of the mindset that she needed a spouse. Taken herself out of the thinking that she had to be with someone to have value. It was just that some points in her life were more difficult than others.

  Shoot, it would have been nice to have someone to dig around her temperamental water heater earlier, instead of her inept attempts to tinker with the thing for herself.

  Her thoughts were broken up when she heard a knock on the door.

  “Hey, Juniper?” She saw a full on fro pop into view. Ebony’s hair was bigger than the woman was.

  “Yeah?”

  “Your last resident is here with her son.” She had forgotten about that for a moment.

  “You can send them in.”

  Juniper stood up and waited for the door to open.

  “Hullo!” A chipper woman walked inside with a beatific grin on her face.

  The woman reminded her of an aging debutante, all southern gentility and ladylike manners, packaged with crisp tennis whites, and short silver hair.

  “Hi, Ms. Pines, would you like to have a seat?” Juniper shook the elder woman’s hand.

  “Of course!” The woman took her seat and looked expectantly at the door.

  After a long moment of silence, Juniper dived into the quiet with a question. “Are you waiting for someone?”

  There was a graceful nod of head just before Ms. Pines spoke. “Well, I hoped that my son would come in and talk to you too. But he dashed off to the bathroom.”

  “I can ask Ebony to send him in if you want.”

  “Thanks.” Juniper dialed the lobby desk extension.

  “Hey Ebony, can you send Ms. Pines son back?”

  “Sure. He went to the bathroom and just came back to the desk. Hold on a sec, okay Juniper?”

  Juniper listed to Ebony practically fall all over the guy as she offered him something to drink and then gave lengthy directions back to her office.

  Ebony took a deep breath and released it into Juniper’s ear. “God, that man is hot in all caps.”

  “Huh?”

  “You’ll see.”

  Ebony hung up the phone and Juniper smiled weakly at Ms. Pines after the handset was back in the cradle. “He should be here in just a moment.”

  When the door opened, Juniper looked up. She didn’t expect much as she and Ebony had different ideas on what “hot” was.

  Ebony was a colorful woman who liked bad boys. But then again most women did.

  But Juniper had been burned once, and now she was twice as shy.

  However, when the door opened, the most amazing man entered and Juniper was forced to stop herself from fanning her face right then and there.

  Goodness, Ebony was right.

  He looked over at his mother and smiled. Then he looked over, at her. The space seemed to close in on and she could feel electricity arc between them, in spite of the distance. If he was able to hypnotize her without so much as a word, she was admittedly curious as to what his would handshake feel like.

  Would he have a too strong grip as if he would crush her into submission? Or worse, a limp one that made him seem weak natured?

  Juniper had never imagined that people actually had “chemistry” but now she kind of understood what the actual meaning was.

  He was handsome in a way that all women would have to admit that he was attractive, even if he wasn’t their personal type. Not too much taller than she was, the man was about four or five inches over her in flat shoes. He had a cap of short red hair, not auburn, but a bright color that she suspected would turn a strawberry blonde with sunlight and skin that would freckle as well.

  If she could claim a preference, she wouldn’t have envisioned him. She had never been into gingers or the wholesome Opie type. But with his twinkling blue eyes and generous mouth, he was attractive to say the least.

  And he had a thick build, like a blue collar man would. Like her father had.

  Although, when their fingers met, the static leapt back and forth between them and Juniper looked south at the stark colors in comparison. She forgot to speak, to introduce herself. The sensation was enough to make her want to rub her hands over her hair, as if the locks stood on end.

  But at odds with her former assumptions, his hands were very soft and well cared for, so she dismissed the idea that he was a blue collar worker.

  Her throat barely worked and she had to swallow twice before she could form a simple sentence. “Hi. I’m Juniper Berry.” He smiled and the expression was so open, she wanted to trust him.

  “Spencer Pines, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” She tried to dismiss the notion, but his voice only forced her instincts to deepen their hold on her.

  “Likewise.”

  He held her hand too long and Juniper was never more grateful for her dark skin as she was at that moment. She knew she would show the blush if her skin was any lighter. Shoot, she could feel the heat under her cheeks descend into a scalding bloom over her chest.

  Juniper took a sip of her water and looked back at her desk, shuffled the papers to make herself look busy even though she knew everything from the paperwork Ms. Pines filled out.

  Juniper cleared her throat. “So why did you decide to move to Sunset Villa, Ms. Pines?”

  “I wanted a place I could be active and have a life, but not have to worry about anything. I can cook if I want to, but I don’t have to. I want to go to the Pilates class and blow glass too. The vacations sound nice and my son is footing the bill, so I get to retire in genteel luxury. Plus, I heard this is a hot bed of dating round these parts for ladies my age. My good friend Amanda Pearson used to live here.” The other woman winked as if Juniper knew what she meant.

  Juniper nearly choked on her water. Dating?

  “Mrs. Pearson was one of my favorite residents. I attended her funeral last year and it was beautiful. But I don’t know about the dating aspects. The programs here are truly nice though, and I have more on the agenda for next year.” Although, Ms. Pearson, God rest her soul, always had a new male friend on her arm.

  “Spencer? What do you think?” The elder asked her son.

  “I think you would have fun here, mom. And you know I have no problem paying for it.”

  What a nice son.

  And a handsome one.

  Juniper rushed through the meeting. And it was because of the obvious reason.

  Because of one Spencer Pines. He was too attractive and she couldn’t stare at him but so much before she had urges. The same urges that she had been certain had died a pitiable death years ago. His mother had to notice, in fact the older woman seemed to stall and ask every question twice.

  Half an hour later, Juniper handed the mother and son a bunch of random leaflets along with a lease agreement for the unit. The units were paid for up front in most cases for one year before the occupants could take possession of the keys.

  But Spencer was apparently as gung ho as his mother and wrote the check up front for three years.

  Juniper wasn’t sure if she was comfortable accepting the check without a full tour though. “Don’t you think you should wait and come back for a day tour before you do that, Ms. Pines?”

  “Oh no. I’m not letting anyone snap my apartment up behind my back.” The older woman laughed heartily and she could see where the son had taken the bulk of his looks from.

  She had addressed the question to the mother, but Spencer chimed in with his two cents. “My mom was set on this place two years ago. She’s sick of living with her bachelor son. Take pity on her, please.” His tone and huge grin lent levity to the discussion.

  Junip
er would have assumed the opposite. “Oh. Well, the unit becomes available on the twenty eighth, so you can get the keys then. But I do have an extra parking pass for you if you are bringing your car. Each unit only gets two passes though. Any more than that is a hundred dollar surcharge per year. The HOA fees are also a hundred a month, due by the fifteenth. Those fees pay for the classes, supplies and the quarterly trip off site. Any other questions?”

  Spencer shook his head and strolled over to the office door.

  His mother nodded and leaned towards Juniper. “Are you single? I know it’s nosy, but I didn’t see a ring and you are too beautiful to be alone.” Ms. Pines whispered as they shook hands, but the volume seemed too loud for actual discretion.

  She chuckled. “It’s okay, I find that most of my residents are like my family, so I don’t take exception to much. To answer your question, I am happily single.”

  Although, Juniper couldn’t help looking at Spencer as she answered it. She wondered if he cared about that fact at all. The real question was why did she care about how he thought about it?

  “Happily huh?” Spencer said with a quickly flashed grin.

  “Pretty much.” Juniper gave a smile of her own in response.

  Down girl!

  But it had been so long since she noticed a man at all that she wasn’t quite certain how she was going to deal with the feeling of it. Juniper shut down the computer and grabbed her purse on the way out.

  Although, she couldn’t help but to take a look at the back of Spencer as he walked down the hallway. His shoulders were wide and tapered nicely to the thick length of legs. The view would be as good as the front side if she could see his smile.

  Not bad.

  Not bad at all.

  Chapter 2: Big Bounce Theory

  A short while later, she picked up her rental with little fanfare and zipped as fast as she could home. The SUV didn’t have the get up and go of hers and she missed her car with every passing mile.

  That evening, Juniper ate her dinner with her children later than usual.