Page 124 of Love & Other Disasters

Forty-One

J.P. got the job of business consultant. Violet didn’t have any doubts going in that he’d wow everyone, but, she didn’t expect hiring on the spot. He was beaming when he returned from his conversation with Doug. The banquet hall from the luncheon now mostly cleared. The staff handed out more glasses of champagne to the few of them left, and Doug toasted Jordan and the future.

Violet put aside her concerns; the best thing she could do for him was support him. He needed an income, and it was selfish of her to not want him to get a job there. People changed jobs, and because he worked here now, didn’t mean he couldn’t get a job in Nashville in a few months. After the luncheon, they visited his mom, Evelyn.

“What do you want to do for dinner?” J.P. asked, pulling the car out of the lot.

“All I can think about is getting out of this dress and these heels.” Violet pulled off her shoes and wiggled her screaming toes.

“I can get onboard,” he said. “I will get that dress off of you.”

She laughed. “I meant, I’d change clothes.”

“You said to get that dress off, but nothing about putting more clothes on.”

“You have a point,” she said.

J.P. fist pumped.

“That’s not to say that I’m not amending my prior comment.”

“No,” he laughed. “Don’t do that.” His laughter died when he pulled into the driveway and spotted another car parked behind the house. A man sat on the back steps and J.P. swore.

“Who’s that?”

“Ethan,” he muttered through gritted teeth and stepped out of the car.

Ethan stood, his eyes sliding over Violet. He wasn’t as tall as J.P., but he was broad and pudgy, built like a former football linebacker.

“You changed the locks,” Ethan said.

“Yes, Lou down at the hardware store said someone made five copies of the key. Since I have no idea who had access to the house, I thought it prudent.”

“I had the copies made because she kept losing them.”

“Then, I made the right move to keep you out of my house.”

“It’s not your house,” Ethan shot. “It’s Mom’s, which makes it both of ours.”

“Nope,” he grabbed Violet’s hand and pushed past Ethan. “This is Violet, by the way.”

Ethan gave a cursory nod in her direction, but he focused on J.P.

“What do you mean, nope? That’s not how this works.”

“I don’t care how you think it works. I lost my job because I was trying to split my time between here and Nashville because you refused to help in the slightest.”

Ethan opened his mouth, but J.P. jammed a finger in his face.

“Don’t you dare say a word about your wife or children. That’s an excuse. Now, I lost my job because you refused to lift a finger.” He turned and unlocked the door and ushered Violet inside, closing the door behind her. Violet pressed her ear to the door.

“They’re not excuses. You don’t know what it’s like to support four children and a wife.”

“If you can’t afford the kids, try a magical thing called birth control.”

“Dude, don’t be a dick.” Ethan shot and weight sat on Violet’s chest as she listened through the door.

“I can tell from the outside you’ve cleaned this place up. I’ve researched home values here, and if we sell, we can get a half a million dollars for this place. Do you know how much two hundred and fifty k would help me?”

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