A Woman Scorned
Chapter 5
“Well this just shits,” Brian grumbled as he, Justin and Bree drove home from Pittsburgh.
What’s that expression, the best laid plans of mice and men? Thanksgiving turned out to be not what they had all had in mind. Instead of a nice quiet dinner with family and friends on the lane the residents of the conjoined cottages were split up and drawn toward different parts of the state.
Learning that Melanie was back, Liberty Avenue appeared to be divided. Debbie insisted that she and Carl were going to host Thanksgiving. However, since Brian and Michael were currently not on speaking terms, Debbie’s guests consisted of Michael, Ben, JR, Melanie, Hunter and his partner Dr. Nick.
Emmett got a bug up his nose and decided to do a Tremont Family dinner. With Lacy’s help, he hosted a potluck dinner in their Tremont building which included all the building’s residents and Lindsay and Candy. Since Brian’s loft had the largest open space to accommodate all of them, Emmett asked for permission from the man himself. Brian graciously gave his consent, “Just one stain or anything broken and you’re dead, Honeycutt!” Emmett called it a victory and happily cooked up a storm.
Claire and Steve thought a Thanksgiving dinner at the farm was long overdue, so John, Bobby and Patrick went there to spend the long weekend.
Jennifer put her foot down and demanded that Justin bring his family to her. She and Seth hosted Thanksgiving for the Taylor grandchildren and their parents.
“Brian, keep your voice down, she’s asleep,” Justin pleaded. Bree was fast asleep in the back of Justin’s Cherokee.
“Justin, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. She’s out until the morning. I have no idea why she’s so exhausted. All she did all night long was gab to JR on the phone and give Taylor dirty looks,” Brian groused.
“Don’t exaggerate.”
“Tell me I’m wrong,” Brian dared. Justin said nothing. “Something’s up with Bree and if she doesn’t spill the beans soon I’m going to ship her off to her...”
“Don’t say it,” Justin growled. Brian shut up and stared out the window as Justin continued to drive them back to the lane.
“Justin, how can we help her if we don’t know what’s wrong?” Brian softly asked as he reached over to place his hand on Justin’s thigh.
“I’m not sure but Mom and Molly are coming to the lane tomorrow. They offered to spend the weekend with Bree. Maybe they can figure it out.”
“I hope so,” Brian mumbled. Bree was only ten. Brian wasn’t sure if he was going to make it through her teen years without lots of booze and some serious drugs.
*****
“Good night, Daddy! Good night, Dad!” JR gushed as she kissed her dads then bounced her way up the stairs to her room. Oblivious to her father’s bad mood, JR was jubilant over having spent the whole evening with her mother.
“Well at least someone had a good time tonight,” Michael griped as he hung their coats in the closet.
“Michael, JR’s happy. What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing! Except...”
“Except you don’t want her to be happy. Not with Melanie, anyway.” Ben scowled at his husband.
“That’s not it,” Michael spat out practically stomping his foot.
“Then what?”
“She shouldn’t be happy. Melanie left her without any consideration for anyone. And now she’s back and she thinks she can just pick up where she left off.”
“You don’t really believe that, do you?”
“You don’t?”
“No, Babe, I don’t. I think Mel’s changed. She’s realized how important her family is.” Michael made a noise and turned his back toward Ben. Ben came up behind his spouse to give him a hug. “Michael, give Mel a chance, she has no one except for us. Her parents have never accepted her, Lindsay has moved on and Gus is more a Kinney than he ever was her son. She only really has JR and us.”
Michael sighed. He was tired and couldn’t keep arguing, he just didn’t have the energy.
“Come on, Babe, it’s bedtime,” Ben urged his mate up the stairs. Michael went willingly.
*****
“Patrick, will you help me with dessert,” Claire leaned out of the kitchen to call to her grandson.
“Be right there, Grandma!” Patrick replied as he began to bring in the last of the dinner dishes.
“Get the tray down for me? You’re going to be as tall as your father soon,” Claire proudly pronounced. Claire knew there was something wrong with her grandson and she was determined to get to the bottom of it. “What’s wrong, Patrick? You can discuss anything with me, you know that, right?”
Patrick nodded as he took down a big serving tray from a high shelf. Claire gave him a damp cloth to wipe it down before piling the cups, saucers and dessert plates on it.
“Your father would get that look,” Claire smiled at Patrick. “ All quiet and brooding, like he lost his best friend in the whole world. I worried about him not growing up with a father but he had Steve and the ranch hands. And he had his Grandpa Aidan for a while. We were closer than most mothers and sons. We had to be, living out here in the middle of nowhere. He told me about his girlfriends and the boys he hung out with at school. And he confessed a few things that most sons wouldn’t dare reveal to their mothers, but for most of our lives it was just him and me. I’ve kept his confidences as he keeps mine. We still do,” Claire said gently as she raised Patrick’s chin with her finger.
Patrick’s eyes grew sad.
“Sweetheart,” Claire whispered as she drew the young man in for a hug. In between the quiet sobs, Claire understood what was hurting her grandson.
*****
"Ashley, Thanksgiving was so awful this year," Bree said forlornly into the phone.
"Why?" Ashley asked with concern in her voice.
"We didn't even spend Thanksgiving with Patrick," Bree practically moaned. "I thought maybe I could talk him into dumping Brittany and taking me to the dance, but I didn't see him all day yesterday."
"How come? You guys always have a big dinner together with tons of people."
"Not this year! Patrick and his dads went to Grandma Claire's, and JR was with her dads and mom, and Auntie Emm had Thanksgiving in Pittsburgh and we went to Grandma Jenn's. It was a mess, and Taylor kept bugging me the whole time."
"But you love Taylor."
"Sometimes," Bree admitted reluctantly.
"That must have been really hard for you with everybody all over the place."
"You're the only one who understands," Bree said with a tremor in her voice. She could always count on Ashley knowing what she was going through.
"Don't cry, Bree. You can still go to the dance without Patrick. I'll dance with you, and I'm sure some of the boys will dance with you too."
"You don't know that!"
"I know I'll be there for you," Ashley said trying to find something to say that would make Bree feel better.
"Thanks," Bree whispered softly.
"So what are you going to wear for the dance?"
"I don't know. I asked my dads for a new dress, but Dada went ballistic and told me that I had hundreds of dresses and this wasn't the prom and I should use what I had in my closet."
"Wow! Your father doesn't usually react like that."
"He thinks I need to learn the value of what I have. He threw that in as part of his tirade."
"Wow! I'm so sorry, Bree."
"Thanks, but I still need something that will make me look as good as Brittany."
"You look better than Brittany all the time," Ashley told her friend in all sincerity.
"Thanks," Bree replied with a smile finally appearing on her face. "You always make me feel better."
"Good."
"I better go. Auntie Molly's coming over soon. Maybe I'll get her to help me pick out what to wear."
"Good idea."
"See ya, Ashley," Bree said before hanging up.
*****
"Auntie Molly, Auntie Molly!" Bree shouted as she ran down the hall to the front door. As soon as the front doorbell rang, she had raced out of her room. She flung open the door and grabbed her aunt in a crushing hug. "I'm so glad you're here," she said taking Molly's hand. She started dragging her aunt down the hall.
"Hey, what about me?" Jennifer asked. She had arrived with her daughter and grandson, but had been completely ignored by her granddaughter.
"Hi, Grandma Jenn," Bree shouted as she and Molly disappeared into Bree's bedroom.
"Well, Taylor, I guess you and I are chopped liver," she said to her grandson who was holding onto her hand.
"And very fine chopped liver you are," Brian said as he came up to Jennifer and her grandson. He had just come down from his office in time to see Molly and Bree disappear into Bree's bedroom. He gave Jennifer a peck on the cheek.
"What's with Bree these days?" Jenn asked. "She was so grumpy and uncommunicative at Thanksgiving dinner yesterday."
"I know. I'm hoping Molly can find out exactly what's up while they spend some time together." Jennifer nodded in agreement. "Let's get some coffee," he suggested.
"Juice," Taylor demanded.
"And juice for the little man," Brian added as they headed for the kitchen.
In the bedroom Bree was chattering away a mile a minute. "Aunt Molly, I need your help. I hafta find something to wear to the dance at school. I need something really special and nothing in here looks any good." She gestured towards her closet. "I want to look perfect at the dance and ... older."
"Perfect and older, that's a tall order," Molly said.
"I looked in the closet and I don't like any of my clothes. Can you find something, pleeease," Bree begged.
"Let me have a look," Molly said moving over to the closet. She began looking through Bree's extensive wardrobe. "Why do you want to be older?" she asked casually.
"Um, because ... everybody thinks I'm a baby because I'm short. I want to look older and ... more grown up," Bree fibbed, although most of it was true. It just wasn't the real reason she needed a special outfit.
"I see," Molly said as she continued to sift through Bree's clothes. "Is there perhaps a boy involved in this need for the perfect outfit?"
Bree considered lying, and then thought better of it. "Maybe," was all she said.
Molly smiled to herself before turning around and extending four dresses towards Bree. "Let's try these."
Bree made a face. She really wanted a new dress, but that idea had not been well received by either of her fathers when she had broached the subject. "Okay," she agreed reluctantly.
"Try this one first," Molly suggested handing Bree a pink dress with a lace collar.
"This is so last century," Bree said sounding so much like her older father.
Molly laughed out loud. "You are so right," she managed to say while she couldn't stop laughing. "Try it on anyway."
Bree pulled the dress on and turned for Molly to zip her up. "I look about three years old," Bree criticized as she studied her reflection in the full length mirror on the back of her door.
"It is kind of babyish," Molly agreed. "But then I want you to stay three," she said using her best Brian Kinney voice and trying to arch her brow.
Bree giggled. "That was so bad, Auntie Molly. He'd say it like this." She repeated what Molly had said using just the right inflection and arching her brow in a perfect Brian Kinney imitation. They both giggled hysterically.
"What about this dress?" Molly asked holding up one of the other outfits after they had regained some self control.
Bree arched her eyebrow once again. "I wouldn't wear that to a drag queen's wake," Bree said pretentiously.
Molly gasped to keep from bursting out laughing once again. Bree certainly could channel Brian Kinney. "Briana Victoria Kinney-Taylor, where did you ever hear such a thing!"
"One guess," Bree giggled, happy that she had got such a reaction.
"Your dads should be more careful about what they say around you."
"Sometimes they forget that I'm here."
"They need to pay more attention," Molly observed.
"Yeah," Bree agreed.
Molly shook her head. Her niece was one precocious little girl - not so little anymore, she corrected herself. "I think this is the one," Molly advised as she held up the next outfit.
"It's okay," Bree sighed. "I really want a new dress."
Molly pulled her niece into a hug. Bree was entering that dissatisfied stage of her life - meaning she was dissatisfied with everyone and everything including herself.
*****
"What do you think they're doing in there?" Jennifer asked as she sipped her coffee at the kitchen table.
"Probably vilifying me for not buying Bree a new dress," Brian snarked.
"Why won't you buy her a new dress? It's not like you can't afford it."
"Christ, not you too! That child has more dresses than Apple has Ipads. This is not a prom she's going to. It's just a fu...just a school dance. She has plenty of dresses she can wear," Brian said gritting his teeth.
"Okay, okay, I get the point," Jennifer said, gently touching Brian's arm. She saw his hand clenched around his coffee mug and wanted him to calm down. "It's just that you usually get her anything she wants."
"You may think I do that," Brian said not calming down at all. "And I do indulge her. But there is a limit to what I can be conned into doing. She needs to learn limits, and the value of things. Money doesn't grow on trees."
Jennifer chuckled and shook her head.
"What's so fuc...funny?" Brian demanded, not at all amused.
"That's what Craig used to tell Justin when he wanted new drawing pencils or clothes or ... almost anything."
"I hope the fuck you're not comparing me to that asshole!"
"Brian!" Jennifer nodded toward Taylor who was scribbling on a piece of paper on the floor.
"Sorry."
"I wasn't comparing you to Craig. You would never be so mean and uncaring."
"I would have in my previous life," Brian said hardly above a whisper.
"You mean before you met my son."
"Yes."
"I think that meeting under the infamous streetlamp was the most fortuitous thing that could have ever happened ... for both of you," Jennifer said gently.
Brian smiled crookedly. "There was a time that you didn't think that way."
"But we've both changed since that time. For the better," she added.
"I hear Justin's car. He must be back from the general store," Brian said abruptly. Justin had gone to pick up a few things since they hadn't hosted Thanksgiving dinner and didn't have leftovers as a result. Jennifer realized that their heart-to-heart was over. "I better help him with the bags," Brian said getting up from the table.
*****
Debbie plopped her butt in the back booth at the diner. She hauled all her bags in after her and shoved them along the seat. JR and Mel added their bags to the pile.
"I am fucking bushed," Debbie said with a long sigh. "Black Friday sucks, but we sure got some great bargains."
"Yeah, but paying for anything, waiting in those fucking lines was such a pain," Mel griped. "My feet will never be the same. I think we hit every shop on Liberty and several not on Liberty."
"I thought I was the old broad in this group but you two had trouble keeping up with me," Debbie laughed.
"I don't know how you do it, Deb."
"I don't fucking know either. I'd give my left tit for a foot massage right now," Debbie said as she reached under the table and rubbed the top of her foot. She wanted to kick off her shoes, but she was afraid she'd never get them back on if she did.
"I got a couple of nice outfits to wear to job interviews," Mel said. "And they were dirt cheap," she added proudly.
"There's nothing like a good bargain. Right, JR?" Debbie said finally noticing that her granddaughter was awfully quiet.
"Huh?" JR said.
"Earth to Jenny Rebecca," Debbie called.
"I'm here," JR replied.
"In body perhaps, but where is your mind?" Debbie asked.
JR made a face at her grandmother just as two women walked past their table heading for the restrooms in the back. JR watched them as they disappeared through the door.
"You have been awfully quiet all day," Mel observed as JR was once more silent.
"I'm sorry, Mom, grandma. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately."
"About what?" Mel asked. "You're not planning to go back to school, are you? Oh my God that would be so great!"
"No, Mom, I hate to disappoint you, but that isn't what I have been thinking about."
"I bet you're missing Curtis," Debbie threw out to the others.
JR snorted. Little did they know. She watched as the two women returned from the restrooms, their arms around each others' waist.
"What's the snort for, kiddo?" Debbie asked.
"Stop picking on the poor girl," Mel said giving her daughter a hug. "She's missing her boyfriend."
"Mom!" JR protested.
"What?" Mel asked as she let go of JR.
"It's not Curtis," JR replied. She took a deep breath. "Well, in a way it is," she added.
"Get to the point before I starve to death," Debbie admonished. "I want to order."
Just then Lacy rushed over. "Sorry," she said, "one of our waiters didn't show up. What would you like?"
"Coffee, cheeseburger and fries," Debbie said without hesitation.
"Make it two," Mel added.
"Three," JR piped up.
As Lacy hurried to put the order in, both women looked at JR.
JR sucked in another breath and decided it was time to tell them. "Curtis didn't miss me too much. He stayed in New York for Thanksgiving. And truthfully I was kind of glad he did." Both Debbie and Mel stared at the girl waiting to hear the rest of what was coming. "I think Curtis and I are over."
"Oh sweetheart," Mel commiserated and went to hug her daughter again.
JR pushed her gently away. "There's more." Mel and Debbie looked at each other and frowned. "I think I like girls," JR blurted out.
There was a stunned silence at the table as Lacy brought their coffees.