Rescue My Heart by Jean Joachim Page B

sex with his dad, but now that he was
well past thirty, his father had relaxed a bit, sharing off-color
jokes and an occasional remark about the rack or the butt of an
attractive woman. Hack noticed that having a disabled wife, who was
unable to censor him, gave Monty free rein to be inappropriate from
time to time.
    “ Not exactly.”
    “ Not exactly? Then, what
exactly?”
    “ That’s what I need your
help on.”
    “ Shoot.”
    Hack explained his dilemma—engaged to
a woman he’d never marry and in love with one who wasn’t in love
with him.
    “ Wow. Nothing small about
that problem, Hack. What do you intend to do about it?”
    “ Come to you for advice.
That’s why I’m here, Dad. I need help.”
    “ Hell, I don’t know what I
can do.”
    “ Do you think Mom’ll freak
out if I break up with Felicia?”
    This time, his father turned deepening
shades of red. “Damn right, I do. She’s in a delicate balance. The
holidays are coming up. Don’t tip the applecart. Screw this chick
all you want, but leave things the way they are.”
    “ I’m not screwing
her.”
    “ Maybe you should. Get her
out of your system. She’s not from the same social class as
Felicia. Probably not as good a fit, anyway.”
    Anger bubbled up inside Hack. “It’s
not like that. I’m never going to get her out of my system. I don’t
care what social class she’s from.”
    “ How do you know until you
try? Lay her. You’ll see how fast her attraction wears
off.”
    “ This charade was a bad
idea. Felicia’s getting carried away.”
    “ Are you screwing her
too?”
    Frustration colored Hack’s face again.
“No! I’m not screwing anyone!”
    “ Maybe that’s the problem.
Get some. Relieves tension.”
    The younger man pushed to his feet.
The waitress arrived with a plate of nachos and another one of
potato skins with sour cream and bacon. She put them down then
left. “This was a bad idea. I thought you might understand. You
were once in love with my mother, or so I thought.”
    Monty grabbed his son’s arm and pulled
him back. “Sit down, Son. Sit down.” Hack settled uneasily into his
seat again and took a big swig of his drink.
    “ I still love your mother.
That’s why I’m encouraging this stupid, phony engagement. You’re
right. We never should have let it get off the ground. Should have
nipped it in the bud from the start. Of course, you could do worse
than marrying Felicia…”
    “ I don’t love her. She’s
not for me at all.”
    “ Okay, okay. I don’t mean
to shove her down your throat. It’s because I love your mother that
I want you to continue with this.”
    “ Or because you love peace
in the house even more?”
    “ Of course, it’s better
when your mother is calm. Yes, for me, as well as her. Am I being
selfish? Maybe. It’s not easy watching someone as smart and
wonderful as her go down the drain slowly. It’s painful, damn
painful.”
    The men each took an appetizer. They
looked at each other over the silence between them as they
chewed.
    “ I’m sorry, Dad,” Hack
said after he swallowed his food.
    “ It’s all right, Son.
You’ve got a problem. If it’s your future happiness, well, I’d say,
go for the one you love. We’ll find a way to break it to your
mother. Can’t ask you to be miserable and maybe lose the woman you
want.”
    The heaviness on his heart lifted.
“Thanks, Dad.”
    “ Please, give me some
time. I don’t know what your mom remembers, so let me scope it out.
We’ll make a plan. Let her down easy.”
    “ Who knows? Maybe she’ll
like Rory better.”
    “ Are you sure this girl is
up to dealing with your mother? Is she committed to
you?”
    “ I haven’t made a play for
her yet, because Felicia’s in the way. But when that situation is
over, well…I guess we’ll find out.”
    “ Let’s leave Mom out of
this until you know for sure this broad likes you as much as you
like her.”
    “ Okay. Fair
enough.”
    “ How are the
nachos?”
    “ Great!