When it’s my time to order, I step to the counter and smile at Margie. “Morning, Boo. I'll have my usual ….”
Her face contorts with excitement as she bounces up and down. “Oh my god! Jorja!”
“Cancel that. I'll have whatever you have had.”
“Jorja!” She leans over the counter. “He's home. Jocko Malone is home!”
The blood drains from my face.
Margie jumps up and down with a crazy clown grin plastered on her face. “He came in a little while ago. Jesus! Jorja! He is huge!” She spreads her arms wide. “Oh my god! He is 6’4” filled out gorgeous gloriousness! I dropped the coffee pot. I was so shocked and …” She leans to me and whispers, “Damn! Turned on!” She pauses, lost in her memory, visualizing his manliness. “He is ALL MAN!”
She regains her composure and shouts my order over her shoulder. “One gigantic vanilla latte and a piece of peach to go!”
As she rings up my order, swiping my credit card, she fills me in with more details. “I nearly fainted when he remembered me. Gawd, he's swoon worthy. But he only remembers me because you and I are tight.”
She looks me right in the eye. “He asked how you were doing and wanted to know where you worked. Of course, I bragged you're Modern Family Magazine’s top feature writer. He seemed impressed with that.”
She takes a breath, “I asked if he was just visiting. He said, no, he's settling down here for good. Isn’t that great?”
She pushes my credit card to me. I pick it up and put it in my satchel.
“Oh my god, I couldn’t wait to tell you this morning. I wanted to text you right away, but this news needed to be told in person.”
She fans herself. “I’m here to tell you, girl. I nearly fainted! He is so f-ing fine!”
She turns when Mario delivers my order to the counter with a grin, then slides it to me. “Here you go, boo.”
As I reach for my coffee and cake, I notice my hand shaking.
She leans in as I scoop them up. “He has come back for you!”
I press my lips together. “Don’t be delusional, Margie.”
“What?” Her mood dampens, and I sort of hate myself for it. She was so happy for me.
“You need to keep this real.”
She crosses her arms and sets her jaw. “Are we going to have the kiss argument again?”
I cut my eyes to see if anyone's listening, then I lean forward and tell her through my clenched teeth. “That kiss was him satisfying his ego.”
She shakes her head. “You were wrong then, and you are wrong now. That kiss was more than a kiss. It was … everything a kiss should be, and he has come back for you.”
Gawd, I close my eyes in frustration. “It was humiliating, and he has not!”
She puts her hands on her hips. “I’m not wrong about this, Jorja.”
I back away as I assure her. “Yes, you are.”
She mouths, ‘No, I’m not. He has come back for you!’
Jocko
When Lucifer and I walk into Doggy Style, Desi Whitman’s dog grooming business, Desi pops off, “Well, look at you two studs!”
She walks around the counter, making a big deal about sizing us up. Then she opens her arms and gives me a big hug. “Welcome home, Jocko. Who's your beautiful boy?” She kneels and offers her hand for Lucifer to sniff.
He offers his to shake, and she laughs.
“Lucifer.” I introduce him.
She cuts her eyes at me and laughs out loud. “Does Lucifer suit him?”
“Only in combat.”
“He is beautiful!” She admires him as she shakes his paw. “Please tell me you're going to board him with me?”
“Maybe later. Right now, he's still adjusting to civilian life.”
“Umm, I see.” She nods as she scratches his chest. His lips curl, and his ears go limp in different directions as his eyes close in ecstasy. “Does that feel good, boy?”
“Apparently, it feels terrific.” I laugh at him, as a leg starts to quiver.
“I know how to please a man.” She ruffles his fur, then stands up, puts her hands on her hips, and gives me a look that says that was an innuendo.
I smirk. Desi's easy on the eyes with legs that could wrap a man up in fantasies for a long, long time, and if it wasn’t for Jorja, I would've tapped her way back when and be more than willing to take her up on that offer now, but ….
“So, what brings you by if neither of those is it?” She smirks.
“I stopped by to ask if you had any dogs who could use some extra exercise. Lucifer and I run every morning, and he could use the socialization with other dogs.”
“As a matter of fact, I do have a candidate. Ms. Jenkins has a high-strung Doberman. How far do you run?”
“Five miles.”
Her eyebrows raise. “That would bring her energy level down. What days and what time?”
“Every day at 5:00 AM.”
She looks me up and down again. “And that's why you look like you do.”
“It’s a contributing factor.”
She walks around to the counter, takes a business card, flips it over, and writes on the back. “I'll speak to Ms. Jenkins. If she agrees, I'll work out the details for Tipper to join you. Maybe not every day, but three times a week. Give me a call in a couple of days.”
“Excellent. Thanks, Desi.”
“No problem.” She hands the card to me. “I’m glad you're home in one magnificent piece.”
“I have my boy to thank for that.”
“You know, I’m a sucker for war stories.” She tilts her head and raises her eyebrows.
“There are several to tell.”
“How about knocking a few beers back with me Friday night at Hooligan’s Bar? Say nine?”
I hesitate, and she laughs. “Bring Jorja. But if she turns you down? Well, I won’t.”
I snap my fingers and walk to the door, then pause and look back, grinning, “See you there.”
At the truck, my phone rings. I load Lucifer as I answer, “Sup?”
“Jocko?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“This is Sidney Malone, Gray’s wife. Betsy gave me your number. I hope you don’t mind my calling.”
“Hi, Sidney. Of course, not. I’m looking forward to meeting you. What’s up?”
“Likewise. Listen, I have an idea I would like to run by you.”
“Sure. Shoot.” I crank the truck and pull out of Doggy Style, turning toward Willow Bend Street. When Sidney tells me what her idea is, I can’t believe how perfect it is. “Oh, absolutely! I am all in,” I inform her.
“Excellent! I'll set it up.”
On the way, I get a group text from Aunt Betsy. She's included all the brothers and their wives.
Welcome Home party for Jocko tonight at 7.
I smile. It is good to be home.
When I pull into the vacant house next to Jorja’s, Maxine is already there. She greets me at the door and walks me through the layout. It has three bedrooms and two baths. The kitchen is small, but the living room is large.