Jack (The Family Simon 2)

Harry and Morgan jumped up and down, their little faces alive with excitement. “Me! Me! Me!” They both shouted.

“Are you coming?” Morgan asked, her big eyes on Donovan.

Donovan shook her head and though Jack knew she was still pissed, she gave the girl a smile that would make anyone feel special.

“No darlin’. I’ll join y’all later. I’ve got some stuff to get done first before I can head down to the beach.” She emphasized stuff and gave Jack a fuck you look. He knew this wasn’t over and that he was just buying some time, but for the moment he was fine with that.

“Let’s go then,” Harry shouted, tugging on his mother’s arm and trying to push her toward the door.

“Are you sure?” Sabrina asked, her eyes on Donovan once more.

“We’re sure,” Jack replied, moving past Donovan and scooping his aviators from the kitchen counter. He slipped them over his eyes and pushed open the door. “You guys coming?”

It wasn’t a question he had to ask again. The kids ran out the door yelling all the way down to the dock, and Sabrina followed him out.

“How’s Brett this morning?” he asked, eyes on the kids as they galloped across the dock and disappeared into the boathouse.

“Tired,” Sabrina replied. “But good. He’ll be up for a fire tonight, but right now he’s resting. Nine is a late night for him, so last night was tough. He’s so glad you guys are here though. He’s been so closed off from anyone knowing how bad it is. It’s like if no one really knows, then it’s not real. You guys give him something positive to focus on, and right now anything positive is great. ”

Jack had gotten the entire story from his friend the night before. He knew that Brett’s cancer had spread to his pancreas, lungs and liver. His diagnosis was terminal. He’d opted out of further treatment so that he could spend what time he had left with Sabrina and the kids, without suffering the side effects of chemo or radiation.

Everything about the situation was all wrong, but life wasn’t always about being right. He thought of his brother, Tucker, and what he’d endured. Life wasn’t fair and it sure as hell had no rhyme or reason.

Harry and Morgan ran up and down the beach like a couple of crazies, while he and Sabrina worked to get the boat set up for tubing. He’d just filled the tank with gas when Sabrina sat on the edge and lifted an eyebrow.

“So, you wanna tell me what’s really going on with you and Donovan?”

“Nope.” He wasn’t in the mood to get into it with anyone.

“She pregnant?”

He glanced up sharply, setting the empty gas can down on the dock. For several moments, he held Sabrina’s gaze as the water gently lapped against the boat and then shrugged.

“I don’t know.”

Sabrina’s eyes widened in surprise. “What do you mean, you don’t know?”

“I mean that she might be.”

“You guys have heard of pregnancy tests right?”

At a loss for a few seconds, he didn’t answer right away because Jesus fuck, he’d not thought of that. “I…it just happened.”

Okay. Could he not feel any more like a goddamn freshman?

“Have you not heard of a pregnancy test? You can find out before you’ve even missed a period.”

Huh. How the hell had he missed that one? How the hell had Donovan not thrown that in his face?

“Maybe you’re not ready to know yet,” Sabrina said, getting up from her perch on the edge of the boat.

“It’s complicated,” he said slowly. Complicated was one hell of an understatement.

“I’m sure it is,” she replied. “Love is always complicated.”

“I don’t love her, and she sure as hell doesn’t love me,” he replied darkly. Love? That four letter word didn’t exist for them. Not anymore.

“Then why is she here?” Sabrina asked lightly.