Mad Love

Mad Love Chapter Four

He emerged right behind me, making me whip around. He grinned hugely, making me giggle. "What on earth do you think you're doing?!" I laughed, moving back.

"This," he said, reaching out to me. My mouth fell open as he pushed hard on the top of my head, submerging me. I kicked out at him underwater.

When I came back up, I gasped for air, and my hair had fallen over my eyes. I shoved it out of the way, hearing his laughter. I glared at him, surging forward. I tried to dunk him, but he grabbed onto my arms every time, quickly stopping me.

We splashed and kicked and laughed like children. Out of breath, I paddled to the far right of the pool, where he stayed on the left. I panted, and sat down on the steps leading out of the water. The water was up to my chest where I sat, and I leaned my head against the concrete side. Looking at him, we both began to giggle.

Jamie slowly swam over to me, his arms casting large ripples across the surface. I gave him a half-hearted splash, attempting to stop him, but he didn't stop. He sat down next to me on the steps, looking out at the water.

We sat there in silence for awhile, and our breathing quieted until it was barely audible. The night air seemed chilly suddenly, but I hated to leave the water. I wiggled my fingers and toes, testing their pruney-ness. Yep. Definitely pruney.

"Do you miss Houston?" I blurted out. It was something I had pondered for awhile now. It was hard to find good employees, ones that would stay with the company for several years. As much faith as Dad and Rob had in him, I couldn't help but wonder if Jamie would be here for the long haul. What if he quit? What if he let Rob and Julie down? What if I never got to see him again? Well, it would suck.

"I miss my Mom. It's kind of hard to miss Houston," he said, looking at me. "I'm not crazy about big cities. Houston definitely had it's pluses, but I'm glad to get away from all the hustle of it."

I nodded. I don't really have any comparison. I've lived my whole life in this small town. Oak Forest, population of 6,436. I can't wrap my head around the anonymity of a metropolitan area. I can go to any of the three grocery stores here in town, and run into someone I know on every aisle. Maybe that's too close for some people, but it's a tight-knit community. Yes, we're gossipy and nosey, but we're also supportive, and caring.

"What's your mother like?" I asked him, picturing the woman in the photo I had seen.

"Oh, she's great. She's a real cutup. She works as a receptionist for this doctor's office. My dad was this piece of shit, sorry," he said, with a chagrined expression as he glanced at me, "that walked out on us before I can even remember. Mom worked two jobs, sometimes three, until I graduated."

"She sounds tough," I remarked. The woman in the photo didn't look like some haggard, overworked single mom. She looked like an aging model.

He gave a bark of laughter, "Nah, not Mom. She worries too much, but she's a total softie. Can't cook worth a damn, though."

"Really?" I asked smiling. "Neither can Dad."

"Yeah, he told me that's why he leaves the cooking to you."

"No kidding. My whole year of first grade I had to use the microwave in the teacher's lounge because Dad packed me tv dinners." I nodded my head at his incredulous expression. "Dad had no clue what to do with me when my Mom passed away."

"What happened to her?" Jamie asked.

"She was killed in a car accident when I was four. Mom was hit by this driver who wasn't paying attention. The other lady wasn't drunk, or sleeping. It was just this really tragic accident."