Page 29 of Loving Jared

Sixteen

The next day Jared moved Amy and the kids in with him. Amy had tried to protest, but it'd been weak. The reality was, she didn't want to stay in her family home anyway. And now that she and Jared had sex, she was even more convinced that he was the man for her.

Super hot. Check.

Sexy as hell. Check.

Good with a barbecue. Check.

Fucking phenomenal in bed. Check.

Protective. Check.

Had an ass that she could bounce a quarter off. Check.

Yup, the man checked off all of her requirements for long-term boyfriend. He didn't even seem to mind that she worked part-time as a phone sex operator. She'd be willing to give it up for the right guy, but even better if she didn't have to. She made decent cash at it and it fulfilled the secret dirty part of her soul.

Vincent, Jenna and Enrico showed up to help with the move. Jenna mostly hung out with Amy, helping her unpack over at Jared's house, while Vince and Enrico helped Jared move boxes, furniture and toys. Enrico was starting to grow on Amy, even though he didn’t do more than politely grunt in her direction. She’d taken to calling him Rico, which Jenna wholeheartedly endorsed.

They hadn't talked about what Amy was going to do with the house yet. She just wasn't sure. Somehow, it didn't feel right to sell. She didn't know if it was because her mother had died in that house and it was the only connection she had left. Or, perhaps she couldn't let it go because it was the only home her two younger siblings had known.

"You must've been so terrified when you walked in the door and found everything tossed." Jenna and Amy talked while they unpacked boxes in the living room. Jenna continued, "The same thing happened to me. My ex-husband went through my place when I wasn't home. Thank God Jared was there with me or I would've completely freaked out."

"I didn't know that," Amy said softly. "Did you lose anything important?"

Jenna's eyes misted over and she nodded. "A few keepsakes from my parents. At the time I hadn't any contact with them, so I cherished those items. But now, I see my folks all the time. My mom loves coming to town to spend time with the children."

A shaft of pain, and a tiny amount of jealousy, went through Amy at Jenna's words. Amy would sell her soul to have her mother back, but she didn't blame Jenna for talking fondly of her own mother. In fact, Amy liked hearing about relationships between other people. It helped her feel more normal, less like her family was one big dramatic story for the media.

They moved on to other topics, chatting more generally. Amy suspected that Jenna had been sensitive to her pain and quickly changed the subject. Amy was grateful. She hoped that her friendship with Jenna would continue to blossom, as she really liked the other woman.

They moved upstairs to the guest room and were unpacking for Millie and Sarah, when Amy's phone rang. It was Teagan.

"Just checking in. Heard from Jared that you guys are moving in with him."

Amy bit her lip, pondering what to say to her brother. Their relationship had been slowly improving over the weeks that Jared had been in their lives. She didn't want to say anything to screw that up and she couldn't tell by Teagan’s tone of voice whether or not he was pleased with this new development.

"Yeah, he thinks it's safer, and to be honest, I feel better living with him right now. He's not moving everything over, just the stuff that we need." She took a deep breath and said the next part hesitantly, worried about what Teagan would say. "He's prepared a room for you too. He put it in the basement. He thought that's where you’d prefer to be. More space and all that. I hope that's okay."

There was a long pause that made Amy cringe with worry. Then Teagan spoke, erasing all of her concerns. "That's awesome! I can't wait to see it. I'm getting a little sick of being over here with Keith. His mom's a shit cook and he plays too many video games. I'm not getting any sleep or homework done."

Amy burst out laughing and then clapped a hand over her mouth. Jenna looked over at her with wide eyes and a tilted head.

Amy uncovered her mouth and said, "Make sure you watch your language when you get back over here. It's not polite to call someone's cooking shit. But we're looking forward to having you."

She meant it. She’d been on such bad terms with her brother for so long that it felt like a miracle to have him speaking to her in a civil tone. Even though she wasn't sure what kind of magic Jared had cast over the teenager, she was grateful. Very grateful.

The two women continued chatting and unpacking until it was time to go pick up Millie and Sarah at their friend’s house. Amy had planned to go by herself, but Jenna insisted on driving her. Amy was starting to suspect that between Jared, Jenna, Vincent and Enrico, there was a plan that she and the kids never be alone.

As they drove, the two women continued to chat. "So, when is your last day at the factory?" Jenna asked, her tone casual.

"Last day?" Amy asked. "No, you have it wrong. I still work there. I go in tomorrow at 5:00 AM."

"Oh, I'm sorry. Jared told me you wouldn’t be working there anymore. I assumed if it hadn't already happened, that your last day would be coming up soon."

Amy frowned. Had Jared really said that? She doubted Jenna was lying, but maybe she misheard. Then again, Jared could be a little high-handed. He tried to couch his arrogance in protective attitude, but he still sometimes overstepped. Amy was okay with him doing whatever he wanted for the girls, they could only benefit. But when it came to her, she liked to make her own decisions in life.

"No," she said stubbornly. "I still work there. I'll set Jared straight."

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