Belle didn’t know why they narrowed. All she knew, through a vast amount of experience, was this was not good.
“Oh my God!” Rachel shouted. “You two have been fooling around!”
Belle’s body gave a surprised jerk as she felt Jack’s go solid behind her.
Mom wasn’t finished.
“You’re fooling around with my daughter while there are ghosts in the house!” she accused Jack as if this was an act akin to rounding up innocent citizens randomly in order to torture them just for kicks. Then, bizarrely, she backtracked, “Not that I frown on fooling around, because, you know, everyone needs a bit of nookie. Especially on a Sunday afternoon.” Mom turned to Yasmin and shared, “Best time of the week, Sunday afternoon.”
Mortified beyond any mortification Belle had felt in her life (and that was saying something), Belle found her voice and snapped, “Mom! Shut up!”
Her mother looked back at Belle. “I’m just saying.”
Lila started laughing, Joy was biting her lip and Yasmin was grinning ear-to-ear but, although she couldn’t see Jack, Belle knew he was done.
She knew this because, in his oh so scary low and rumbly voice, he declared, “Enough.”
Belle saw Mom’s body give a small twitch and her eyes went to Jack.
Then Jack went on and she realised he was not just done, he was done and he was angry.
“Rachel, enough,” Jack repeated, the words vibrating with fury. “I cannot imagine, since you bore and raised Belle, that you and your mother have no idea how much you embarrass her. You are who you are and you behave as you behave, which is a credit to you both as you clearly don’t give a damn what people think of you and that’s commendable. Further, your behaviour is mostly interesting and often quite humorous. That said, from this point forward, you’ll consider your daughter’s feelings and control it when it might cause her discomfort.” While Jack was making this speech, Mom’s mouth had dropped open as had Gram’s but Jack wasn’t quite done. “Am I understood?”
“See here –” Gram snapped, moving forward.
Jack’s arms tensed on Belle’s chest and he leaned forward, only slightly, but very threateningly (she didn’t see it, she felt it), taking Belle with him and Gram halted.
“Am I understood?” he asked, his tone so far past low and rumbly, it was not funny.
“She’s my daughter,” Mom noted in a far quieter tone.
“She is,” Jack replied, his voice less menacing. “But there’s a time to discuss personal things and Belle isn’t comfortable doing it with an audience. I’m simply asking that you consider her feelings. Something I’m sure you’ll have every desire to do.”
Belle decided it was time to intervene and she looked up at Jack’s jaw.
“I really don’t mind,” she lied softly.
Jack moved back a few inches so he could catch her eyes.
“You do, poppet. I feel it, I see it but you’re too kind to say it.”
He was right.
“Is this true?” Mom asked and Belle looked at her as Jack shifted to her side, his arm around her waist keeping her close.
“Kind of,” Belle answered.
“Honeypot, you should have said something,” Mom said softly.
Belle shrugged, about as comfortable having this conversation as she was when her Mom was announcing to everyone that she and Jack had been fooling around (okay, so, she was more comfortable with this conversation but still).
Jack, somehow, felt that too and announced, “We’re moving on.”
Then Jack led Belle toward the couch and Belle saw Gram was studying Jack, a thoughtful look on her face but there was a smile playing about her lips.
Belle thought this was slightly more ominous than Jack’s tone earlier (and this was also saying something) but she decided to ignore it.
She had other things to worry about.