Eric (Men of Honor 2)

I jumped out of bed, mad at myself for almost giving in to that weakness. But I was still looking around the room at a loss as to what to do next. Where would it hurt her most? A shower, I do some of my best thinking when I’m in there the way some people do their best singing.

It took five minutes of me standing under the spray of warm water to come up with an idea. By the time I flicked the water off, I was smiling like a hyena. I had to do some research first, though, so as much as it pained me, I went online and looked up Janine’s social media posts. Why people love to tell the world their every move is beyond me, but hey, to each his own.

Next, I made a phone call and got the response I was expecting. “Please tell me we’re gonna beat her ass in an alley. We don’t have to kill her or anything, but a good work over is just what old girl needs to set her dumb ass straight.”

“Janelle!”

“Okay-okay, come pick me up. I’m not even going to make you pay me by letting me drive that car of yours. This, I will do for free. Wait, does Eric…”

“No, he doesn’t know, and you can’t say anything to him either.”

“Oh shit, I’m putting this out there right now. If shit goes left, you take the fall. Your husband has bitch teeth in his mouth when it comes to tattling to my husband and that one’s on some other shit about nursing mothers shouldn’t do this, and nursing mothers shouldn’t do that.”

“Oh…shoot, I forgot about the baby, maybe you shouldn’t…”

“Girl, kill that noise. This Vaseline, in my bag, has been waiting for the day. Oooh-wheee.” She hung up the phone and left me wondering if I’d made a mistake calling her.

Justine

I got over my angst about Janelle. It was no surprise that she wanted in on whatever I had planned for Janine even without being told what I had in mind. I’d learned when filling in for her at Eric's office that she had a strong dislike for my husband’s ex and made no bones about it.

The fact that she genuinely seemed to like me is what gave me the push to make the call, and reservations aside, I’m glad I did. In the almost year I’ve known her, she’s become someone I consider a friend, something I haven’t had since high school since most of our mutual friends had sided with Sam and Kristen in the divorce.

And if I’m honest, it was her no-nonsense tell it like it is attitude that had helped squelch some of my earlier reservations about Eric. I guess I figured back then that if someone as straightforward and bluntly honest as she could love and trust him, then there must be something there to like. Not to mention the stories she told of how he’d been there for her since her early teens.

She was also the one who’d filled me in on a lot of Janine’s past shenanigans before the other woman turned her attention on me. All in all, I can’t fault my decision to get her involved. Not that I was going to let her do much of anything; she was going as purely ballast. It’s time I stand up for myself, way past time in fact, and today felt like the day.

I paid especially close attention to my clothing and even did a little bit more with my makeup. It was shallow and stupid, but these are the things Janine puts much stock in. Not that I don’t make myself presentable for my husband, it’s just that I think who a person is on the inside carries more weight than any color scheme they can find in a makeup palette.

The winter white pantsuit that I remember Eric buying for me because he said it would look good with my coloring really did highlight the soft tan undertones of my skin, and my dark hair shone around my shoulders, standing out even more against the brightness of my jacket.

I wore the simple diamond studs Eric had bought me just because and smiled at the fact that he’d bought some for Lora as well, even though her two-carat stones were two carats less than mine. It still warms my heart the way he looks after my girl, picking up where her dad had left off so long ago. Is it any wonder I’m crazy about him?

Thinking about how good he is with the children also brought to mind our morning lovemaking session. Although I could tell that there was something bothering him when I woke up this morning to find him staring at me in bed without uttering a single word, when he pulled me into and then under him, the flash of worry I’d felt had dissipated right away.