It was a packed SUV that swung into
Rachel’s driveway a prompt thirty minutes later, a slightly frazzled looking
Jon grinning out from behind the steering wheel, the tired circles underneath
his eyes cementing the fact his kids were in town.
Jumping into the middle seat
beside Romeo who was happily beaming at her from his booster seat, Rachel greeted everyone
with a wave and a good morning.
“All set?”
Jon glanced in the rear view mirror to
check she was good to go before swinging the Suburban back down the drive.
Sitting on the other side of Romeo, Carol smiled across at Rachel from behind
her dark sunglasses.
“Beautiful morning isn’t it? They’ll
be in short supply soon I’d imagine!”
Rachel nodded in agreement and smiled
wistfully out the window at the clear blue sky. “Yes, it won’t be long before
we’re wrapped up in winter coats! I’ll have to go elsewhere to get my sunshine
fix!”
“John and myself will be heading for
our home in Florida soon…” Carol nodded towards Jon’s father seated in the
front passenger seat beside his son. “….our brittle, old bones can’t cope with these East Coast winters anymore!”
“How lovely! I must admit I’m not
exactly relishing the thought of my first winter over here! I’m willing
to bet I’ll be checking out winter vacation spots before Thanksgiving even!”
“It does get cold out here.” Carol
confirmed Rachel’s fears as Jon turned them onto the main road into town.
“Where’s your favourite place to go?”
“Hawaii!” Rachel replied without
hesitation, her smile bright as flashbacks of the idyllic islands floated
through her memory. “We used to vacation there a lot……”
Jesse’s young voice popped up from the
seat behind them, interrupting the conversation. “My Mom says Hawaii is
overrated…….we always go to St. Barts or somewhere cool like that.”
Detecting some possible tension in the
thirteen year old, Rachel twisted in her seat to smile encouragingly at his undeniably defiant face. “Wow, I've never been to St. Barts but I've heard it’s beautiful!
What’s your favourite thing to do there?”
Caught off guard, the teenager thought
for a second before he stared right back at her with crystal blue eyes
identical to his father’s. “My Mom and I do loads of cool stuff……like going to
the beach and snorkelling or getting some jet skis.”
Eyes wide with wonder, Rachel played
right along him. “Really? I've never been on a jet ski – you’re lucky to have such
a cool Mom, I don't think my kids ever thought I was that cool!”
Jesse nodded, his cool stare
never faltering. “Yeah she’s the best. She’s really famous in martial arts you know?”
“Martial arts huh? I tried
that for a few months but I couldn't handle it, it’s really hard – your Mom
must be in great shape!”
“Yeah….” His young face softened
somewhat at the interest Rachel was displaying and he smiled proudly at her.
“…….she’s really strong too – she’s helping me condition for football.”
Still twisted in her seat to face him,
Rachel pointed to her shoulder. “You know I've been trying to get my arms in
better shape but nothing seems to work – what do you think I should try?”
“You have to lift weights!” Jesse
offered one of his slender yet toned arms and pointed confidently to his flexed
bicep. “Girls think they can't lift weights because they'll get muscular but if
you use three pound weights then you'll tone without getting big muscles like a
man.”
“Thanks Jesse, I’ll try that out!”
Smiling appreciatively at him, Rachel turned back to face forward just as Jon
pulled the car into the parking lot of the diner. She hadn't expected his
kids to welcome her with open arms and if that was as bad as it was gonna get,
well she could easily deal with that. She knew it couldn't be easy on them
seeing another woman in a relationship with their father.
With everyone out of the car, Jon
shouldered Romeo and grabbed Jake’s hand to walk him across the parking lot.
With a little grin he winked at Rachel beside him and murmured quietly under
his breath, “Nicely done back there.”
Winking back, Rachel shook her head
and laughed lightly. She'd been pretty sure the adults in the car had been
listening to every word of her conversation with Jesse and she wouldn't have
expected any less. When all was said and done, she was still an intruder into their family circle albeit a welcome one.
After a calorie laden but delicious
breakfast in what Rachel had to agree with Jon on being possibly the greasiest
diner she'd ever eaten in, everybody returned to the Bongiovi house with the
kids intent on enjoying their last day in Jersey. Jon’s parents were dropping
them back to Dorothea’s place in the city that evening on their way home before
they all headed back to their respective schools in the morning. After a vote
decided on spending the last of the warm weather down on the water, Rachel and
Carol teamed together to pack a picnic for the boat.
Ushering the kids out in
front of him, Jon turned to smirk at the sight of their two heads bent over a wicker
hamper, both deep in conversation as to what snacks the kids might prefer later
on.
“Um….Rachel? You've seen my
dock…….right?!”
Rachel’s head snapped up and her eyes
narrowed at his mischief laden question, the summer tan hiding the deep blush
that heated her face at the memory of the first evening she had spent with him
on that particular dock. Responding dryly, she glowered at him.
“Yes Jon, I've seen your dock!”
Shoving his sunglasses back up his
nose, Jon grinned widely. “Great! Just wanted to make sure you could find your
way down there……you know, in case you couldn't remember……”
Carol, her hands full of snack bars,
glanced up at him in annoyance. “For heaven’s sake Jon! It’s in plain sight!
She can’t miss it!”
As Rachel raised her brows in a silent
smirk, Jon gave up and backed out the door laughing leaving his mother frowning
after him. Turning to Rachel completely unaware of Jon’s cryptic message, she
rolled her eyes and shook her head.
“I like to think my son is an
intelligent man but sometimes.....”
Laughing at the older woman’s
frustration. Rachel finished packing the hamper with her in an easy silence. The
relationship Jon enjoyed with his parents was obviously a solid one based
on nurturing family values, something that she'd come to realise mattered more
than anything. Filing away a mental note to check in with her own parents
before the day ended, she was about to haul the heavy basket off the counter
when Jesse came barrelling through the kitchen carrying a selection of
impressive looking water guns. Pulling up short when he spotted Rachel
attempting to lift the basket, he thrust the guns into the eagerly waiting arms
of Jake following close behind.
“I’ll take that down for you…… I'm stronger.”
Rachel momentarily blinked at him in
surprise before standing back to let the teenager effortlessly swing the basket
down, his toned arm muscles flexing easily with the load. Grinning at her, Jesse shrugged
cheekily before marching toward the French doors, Jake happily running on ahead
wielding the assortment of water pistols.
“You better stick to the weights I was
telling you about!”
Rachel suppressed the urge to laugh
out loud at the teenager’s cockiness; he was a mini version of his father
through and through. Thanking him she turned back to see if Carol was ready to
leave only to find her watching the little exchange with a less than subtle
amusement.
“I think you have an admirer my dear!”
Chuckling loudly, Carol folded a picnic blanket over her arm and winked up at
Rachel with a warm smile before walking outside. Pausing for a moment Rachel
suppressed the feeling of a sort of triumph from bursting onto her face, she
had been stressing about how Jon’s family would take to her. It seemed as if by some miracle that she was being offered a glimpse of a second chance at family life....
