All She Ever Wanted Page 15

  Julie’s blonde nemesis continued. “I’ve heard so much about you from Josh. I was so hoping you’d be able to make it!” she gushed.

  Despite her vow to behave, Julie could not resist the urge to be catty as the woman continued to grip her hand. “Oh really?” she replied. “He hasn’t told me a thing about you!” She cocked her eyebrow at the woman. “What was your name again?”

  Big breasts stopped shaking Julie’s hand, but never stopped smiling. If Julie’s comment had bruised her ego, she didn’t show it. “It’s Lorelei, darlin’, but you can just call me Lori, everyone else does.” Julie smiled patronizingly as “Lori” finally dropped her hand and showed her inside. Lori led her through a maze of hallways and rooms before they reached the backyard deck. It was an intricately designed three level deck that led down to an hour glass shaped in-ground pool. The second level hosted a generous sized hot tub and the third held a massive grill and very chic and expensive patio furniture. That was where Julie found Josh, swigging a beer and admiring the grill with a very brute, muscular man in a frilly apron. Julie assumed he was Lori’s husband.

  Shielding her eyes from the setting sun, Julie scanned the yard for her children. She found them in their bathing suits, swinging happily on a tire swing with a little girl with gigantic blonde springy curls. “Jesus” Julie thought, “Everything is bigger in Texas.”

  Satisfied that the girls were not swimming unattended, Julie followed Lori to the grill. Lori brushed her hand over Josh’s shoulder as she passed. Julie seethed inside. Obviously, she was going to have to fight for her man. Julie sidled up to Josh and grabbed his rear end, catching him unaware. In his shock, he nearly spilled his beer onto the smoking grill.

  “Julie!” he sputtered, wiping liquid from his chin, “Um, hi, honey, I’m so glad you could meet us.” He quickly recovered, putting his arm around Julie’s shoulder. “I assume you met Lori.” He beamed at their blonde big breasted hostess before turning to the massive mountain of muscle at the grill. “This is her husband Don.”

  Don wiped his beefy hands on his apron and extended one to Julie. He cupped her hand in both of his and pumped it heartily, causing Julie’s whole body to shake. “Pleasure to meet you, Julie,” Don remarked with enthusiasm.

  Julie smiled politely, replying affirmatively that it was also a pleasure to meet him. Poor fool, she thought sympathetically. He has no idea his wife has designs on my husband.

  She turned to her husband who was still grinning stupidly at Lori. He hadn’t even noticed her hair. Pangs of jealousy began to torment Julie. She stared at Josh and cleared her throat several times, but his eyes were still watching Lori’s rear end, as she descended into the backyard to push the girls on the tire swing. Julie punched him in the arm to get his attention.

  “What?” Josh whimpered, rubbing his arm. “Geez Julie, you’re rough tonight.”

  Julie ignored his whining tone as she fluffed her new hair style. “Notice anything new…”

  Josh squinted at her and then popped his eyes open wide, realizing he had not commented on her drastic style change. “Oh, yeah, yeah,” he replied. “It’s a little short, no?”

  Julie glared at him, annoyed he had not responded positively about her hair. “Well, yeah it is but it’ll be much more manageable and have more body,” she replied defensively.

  “It’s hair,” Josh remarked, turning back towards the yard. “It’ll grow back.”

  Julie stared at him as he swigged his beer. Was he really that clueless? He couldn’t say anything nice about her hair? He was too busy watching the half-naked Marilyn Monroe look alike bounce around the backyard.

  Bursting with annoyance, Julie marched off the top deck and headed to the yard. “Can’t beat’ em, join ‘em,” she mused. At least Josh would look at her if she was standing next to the pin up girl. Besides, she was here to play with her daughters anyway.

  As she crossed the yard to the swing, Kaylee spotted her and jumped down, running to her arms for a hug. “Mommy!” she shouted, squeezing Julie around the waist. “I missed you, Mommy!” Julie bent down to hug Kaylee. Molly ran over, grabbing Julie’s hand and dragging her towards the swing, causing Julie to fall forward into the grass.

  “Whoa, whoa, Molly! Let Mommy stand up first,” Julie exclaimed as she picked herself up from the ground and brushed her knees off. Fantastic, she thought, I fall flat on my face in the first ten minutes of meeting this woman.

  Kaylee grabbed Julie’s other hand and the two girls pulled their mother towards the swing, talking over each other. “Mommy come meet our new bestest friend,” Kaylee shouted, while Molly was going on about the tire swing and how awesome it was.

  “Girls, girls, slow down!” Julie laughed as she was dragged through the grass. When they reached the little girl and her robust mother, Julie couldn’t decide which one was more striking. The girl had huge blue eyes with fluttery lashes and a perfectly round face with porcelain skin framed by her sun kissed ringlets. Lorelei introduced the little girl as her daughter, Savannah-Georgia. Julie resisted the urge to roll her eyes as the little girl held out her dainty white hand to shake Julie’s. What six year old did that? And the name, really? This family was a little too pretentious for Julie’s tastes.

  Julie politely shook the little bony hand as Lori introduced her as “Miss Julie.” Julie cringed at the name. It made her feel like she was a nursery school teacher.

  The girls climbed on the swing, which was large enough for all of them, and the women took turns pushing them, Lorelei began to chatter about the town and how “lovely” everything was and “my word how sparkly is that pond” (she was talking about Lake Michigan). Julie became increasing agitated as Lori droned on in her Southern twang, but continued to utilize her public relations skills to smile falsely and nod at the appropriate times. She occasionally glanced up toward her husband and Don. They were deep in conversation hovered over the grill. Julie was hoping the food would be ready soon so she didn’t have to listen to anymore of Lori’s grating voice which was beginning to give her a migraine.

  Lori was rambling on about how different the local supermarket was here compared to her small town in Texas, when Julie abruptly interjected. “Do you need anything brought out for the meal? Condiments, plates?” Julie asked, smiling sweetly, while thinking to herself, Gun, valium?

  Lori opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by Don calling, “Steaks are up!” while holding up his spatula and waving it in the air.

  “Well, look at that,” Lori drawled. “Perfect timing! Let go eat, girls!” Julie’s daughters glared at her unenthusiastically. Neither was a fan of meat and both detested steak. Julie and Josh rarely made it.

  Savannah-Georgia, however, jumped off the tire swing and went running for the table, curls bouncing. Lori followed closely behind, breasts bouncing. “Come on, y’all!” she called, looking back at Julie and the girls. “Get the grub while it’s hot.”

  Julie stopped the tire with her hip and motioned for the girls to follow her. They both groaned as they jumped off the swing. Dragging their feet, they whined and muttered under their breath. They would much rather play than sit still for food.

  Julie climbed the deck steps with the girls in tow. She could see Lori already bustling around the glass table as her angelic little girl sat daintily at a small child sized table with an umbrella. Kaylee perked up at the sight of the little table. “Cool!” she shouted running over and pulling out a chair. “It’s like a tea party!” she exclaimed while sitting down.

  Molly glared at Julie as if to say, Do I really have to sit at that doll table? Julie sternly motioned for Molly to sit down next to her sister. Molly stomped over to the table and plopped down grudgingly.

  “You hoo! Jules!” Lori called, waggling her plump fingers at Julie. “Sit here, right by me!” She had a large comfortable patio chair pulled out for Julie. Julie gave her a thin lipped smile as she walked around the deck to the back of the table.

  “It’s Julie,” Julie remind
ed her, sitting down. She wondered if she should have added darlin’ but decided even ditzy Lori might realize she was being mocked. Instead, she turned her attention to Josh who was coming towards the table, balancing a tray of glasses and a pitcher in front of him. He set the tray down in the middle of the table and picked up one of the hurricane glasses, setting it in front of Lori. He poured her a drink from the pitcher before turning to Julie.

  “You’ve got to try Lori’s margaritas. They’re really phenomenal,” he decreed, lifting the pitcher to pour her a glass. Julie, who was thoroughly maddened that he had served Lori before her, placed her hand over the top of her glass and replied sweetly, “No thanks.”

  Josh stared at her. “Julie you love margaritas. This is really good,” he insisted.

  Lori piped in, “Living in Texas you learn some really good Mexican food and drink recipes.”

  Julie turned to Lori with a phony smile. “I’m sure. I just don’t feel like margaritas right now.” She turned to Don, “I’d love a beer if you’ve got one.”

  Don nodded and reaching behind the outdoor bar, produced a cold bottle of beer. “Bottle ok?” he asked. “We’ve got it on tap if you’d prefer.”

  Julie took the bottle from him and smiled pleasantly. “This is perfect, thanks.” She twisted the cap of and took a swig. Julie actually hated beer but she was not letting Josh have the satisfaction of her drinking Lori’s “killer margaritas” and she desperately needed some alcohol to get through the dinner without punching Josh or strangling Lori. Josh continued to stare at her in disbelief as she swiftly choked down her beer and requested a second.

  Josh shook his head and grabbed two paper plates off the table, handing one to Julie. “Can you get Kaylee a plate of food, please? I’ll take care of Molly. Or vice versa. Whatever you want,” he remarked. Julie could tell he was annoyed with her but Josh would never be rude in front of other people.

  Julie stared at him blankly. Since she never drank beer and she never chugged her drinks either, she was already feeling the effects of the alcohol. “Really, Josh?” she questioned, voice dripping with sarcasm. “You know they won’t eat steak. They’re just going to waste it.” She sat back in her chair as Don handed her another beer. Lori, obviously the ever perfect hostess, gasped.

  “Joshie!” Lori chastised with her dainty hands on her ample hips. She stomped a tiny foot as if she was actually scolding him. It was so cute Julie wanted to vomit. “Why didn’t you tell me they didn’t like steak? I would have whipped them up something they do like.”

  Julie pulled her beer away from her mouth and waved her hand in front of her. “Oh that’s not necessary. They’ll be fine with some veggies or something.” She had seen a tray of fresh cut carrots and celery on the table as she had sat down.

  Lori looked at her skeptically. “Are you sure?” she asked with a concerned face.

  “Absolutely,” Julie replied in between swigs of beer. She dipped a tortilla chip in the salsa in a bowl in front of her. “They can have chips, too.” The girls, who often didn’t hear her from half a foot away, heard her clear across the deck.

  “Yes!” Molly shouted. “Chips for dinner!”

  “Make sure you have some salsa, too,” Julie added with a laugh, “It’s got fresh veggies in it. I think,” she observed looking at the chip dripping with salsa.

  Lori plopped down in her chair with a defeated look, obviously disapproving of Julie’s dinner choices for her children. “Don makes the salsa fresh. He grew all the ingredients in the garden back there,” she mentioned.

  “Even better,” Julie replied munching on a chip. Lori took it to mean that Julie was thrilled the ingredients were fresh, when truthfully, Julie was just glad Lori had not made the salsa.

  “Delish,” Julie remarked, holding up a chip to Don.

  He smiled broadly at her. “Make sure you have one of my famous smoke house steaks,” he said, holding out the plate of smoking hot steaks to her.

  Julie smiled back as she reached out with her fork and took one. “Don’t mind if I do.”

  “Another beer?” Don asked, reaching behind the bar and retrieving one before Julie could answer.

  “Sounds perfect,” she replied, cutting the steak. She took a bite and the juices ran down her chin. “Oops,” she laughed as she put the fork down and grabbed her napkin. “They sure are juicy,” she giggled, mopping up her face. “You know how to make ‘em moist, I see.” Don laughed and nodded approvingly. Between bites, Julie washed her food down with the beer, which she was starting to enjoy.

  Josh observed the exchange between Julie and Don with a frown. She was obviously aggravating him, Julie thought to herself triumphantly. Good. Two can play at this game, Mister.

  Josh sat down in the chair on the other side of her and reached for a steak. Lori busied herself with cutting up her daughter’s meat into miniscule pieces before bringing it to the girls’ table. She then diced the carrots and celery for Savannah-Georgia. They were same vegetables that Molly and Kaylee were freely shoveling into their mouths, Julie observed. Once she had finished with that painstakingly thorough task, she slid into the chair between her husband and Josh. She glanced doubtfully at Julie.

  “Are you sure they don’t need something else to eat? It’s no trouble. I’ll just whip up a…”

  Julie cut her off with a snort. “Nah,” she replied pointing in the girls’ direction with her bottle. “They’ll be fine. Half the time they don’t eat dinner anyway.”

  Josh grabbed her swinging arm and lowered it. “Julie,” he hissed leaning toward her. “Cut it out with the beer. You’re embarrassing me.”

  “Ooooo, so sorry,” she replied rolling her eyes at him. Julie had a glass of wine or a mixed drink every now and again, but she was certainly not used to more than one or two drinks in a sitting. The fact she had put almost four beers away in a very short period of time, on an empty stomach, was definitely affecting her judgment. Her inhibitions and logical reasoning were diminishing by the sip.

  Josh glared at her as she continued to drink. “Just eat your food,” he commanded. Julie stuck her tongue out at him and turned back to Don.

  “Did I mention this is a fantastic steak?” she gushed.

  “Yes, yes, you did,” Don responded still beaming with pride. “Can I get you another beer?”

  “Absolutely,” Julie replied, ignoring the daggers Josh’s eyes were shooting her way. Don happily pushed his chair back and disappeared behind the bar. He emerged seconds later with both hands full of bottles. He set two in front of Julie and two in front of himself. Julie tried to twist the cap off the first to no avail. She handed it to Don and asked sweetly, “Can you be a dear and open that for little ole me?” She added batting her eyelashes for effect. Don chuckled, obviously amused by the inebriated Julie and complied with her request. Flirting with an appreciative Don, she could see Josh’s disapproving glares in one eye and Lori’s horrified staring in the other. Julie congratulated herself. She was certainly making a lasting impression with the new neighbors.

  Chapter 20

  The evening continued in a haze for Julie. She was aware of drinking several more beers before feeling Josh drag her to the car by the crook of her arm. She remembered hearing the girls complaining that they didn’t want to leave so soon, that they were having fun. Josh had replied to them that they had to leave because mommy was not feeling well.

  Josh pulled the car into the driveway after the thirty second drive up the block. Forcefully, he yanked Julie from the passenger seat and escorted her into the house. After instructing the twins to get their pajamas on, he tightened his grip on his wife’s arm and walked her into the bedroom.

  Julie plopped face down on their bed as soon as Josh let go of her arm. He left her to go put the girls to bed, but he soon returned to the bedroom.

  “Really nice, Julie,” he remarked in a hurt tone. Julie rolled over to look at him through her blurry eyes.

  “Huh?” she queried, confused by the situation. Jo
sh explained.

  “You’re drunk. You’ve never even met these people before and you made a total ass of yourself. We’ll be lucky if they even let their daughter play with the girls anymore.”

  Julie snorted at him. “Well I’m sure Mrs. Big Boobies will have no problem letting you play with her,” she retorted.

  Josh stared at her, perplexed. “What are you talking about?”

  Julie sat up tried to stare him down, a little trick she would often use to tell if he was being honest with her or not. Unfortunately, it did not work well when she was drunk and unable to keep her eyes open without blinking. “Lori,” she slurred, drawing out the name with disgust. “Lori and her perfect house and perfect kid and va va voom body that I’m sure you enjoy having you hands all over.” She flopped back on the bed, uninterested in his lying eyes.

  Josh’s mouth gaped open. “Where in God’s green earth did you get that idea?” he questioned, raising his voice slightly.

  Julie sat back up and leveled her face with his. “Pul-eese,” she sputtered in his face. Josh waved his hand in front of his nose.

  “Your breath is kicking. How many beers did you have? Obviously you’re tanked,” he commented with distain.

  Julie ignored him and went on, “Any idiot could tell you were swooning over her! You couldn’t keep your eyes off her. Apparently you can’t keep your hands off, either,” she remarked with disgust.

  Josh looked at her with bewilderment. “I didn’t touch her all night. What are you talking about?”

  Julie poked his chest as she spoke. “What were you doing with her when she stopped over this morning then, huh?” Josh’s face immediately turned bright red.

  “Where did you…how did you…” he stammered, unsure what to say.

  “That’s right, dear,” Julie smirked. “I’m on to you. I heard you joking to your buddies last night about how hot she is and then you had her over this morning. Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out.” she alleged, poking his chest once more before collapsing back on the bed.