Chapter 4

After Frannie went home Jon and Richie were playing pool in the pub and having a beer when Richie finally posed the question that had been plaguing him all night. “What’s her story Jon, why did Frannie look like a scared rabbit ready to bolt all night long?”

Jon wasn’t sure how much he should share with his friend. He didn’t want to breach the trust he had established with her that day. Richie could sense his hesitation, “look man, you know I won’t say anything to anybody; take it to the grave if need be bud.”

Jon got them each another beer and they sat down at a table. He told Richie everything he had learned from Frannie earlier that day. “What do you think you can do for her Jon?” Richie knew his friend better than anyone else and knew that he would want to try to make everything all right for this girl.

Jon didn’t answer Richie right away. What did he think he could do for her? He hadn’t really given it much thought past what he had told Frannie. He wanted to help her find her way back to who she had been before. More than that, he liked her, he didn’t know much about her, but his gut told him there was something there. He always followed his gut. It had gotten him to where he was today, well that and a lot of hard work, but following his instincts had gotten him this far and he wasn’t about to change that now. He looked at Richie, he was waiting for an answer to his question. “I’m not sure. I want to be there for her but I don’t want to scare her off.” He studied his beer before continuing. “Maybe I need this as much as she does.” Richie raised an eyebrow in surprise. He knew Jon had been in a bad way, but this was not at all what he expected to hear. He looked over at Jon, “what do you mean?”

Jon drained his beer and looked up at Richie, “I’ve done the starlet thing and been with this girl or that, but I need someone who isn’t about the business Rich. I need someone who wants me for me, not for who I can introduce them to or for where I can get them. I miss the stability of just a normal everyday girl, of what I had with Dot. I want that again. I don’t care how slow I have to go with her or how long it takes.”

Richie nodded his head in understanding. He knew where his friend was coming from. He was in the same boat.

They talked for a while more before heading back to the house. Richie went back to his mother’s and Jon ambled up the stairs, heading toward his room. He passed by the kids’ rooms, empty and quiet now. He paused briefly before opening the door to his room, fully realizing just how lonely he was.

He lay in bed, thinking about Frannie and how the day had gone. He had been surprised and pleased that she called. It was rare day when he had little going on but he was glad it had worked out that way today. He had enjoyed the time they had spent together. He thought about what he had told Richie and decided he was going to make it impossible for her to resist him. He would take it slow, but he was going to make her see that she had nothing to fear from him.

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When Frannie got in bed that night, she replayed the evening in her head. She had had a nice time, once she let herself relax. She thought about Jon and how attentive he had been to her and Sophie. And Richie, he was just too funny. He had her laughing more than she could ever remember. Her thoughts ran back to Jon. She could see him, in her minds eye, smiling at and jabbering to Sophie, laughing at something Richie had said, watching her when he thought she didn’t know. Frannie felt herself grow warm just thinking about him. She hadn’t had any pleasant thoughts of a man in so long she had almost forgotten what it was like.

The more she thought about Jon the more she wondered if she could have a relationship with him. She thought she might want to, but knowing what that would entail worried her. She wasn’t sure she could be with a man again and that scared her more than she was willing to admit. She so badly wanted to be that girl she had once been. She wanted to be in control again and not be afraid of being held and touched by a man..

Shaking her head, she pushed those thoughts away and pictured Jon’s face once again. She knew she was going to have to paint him. He was just too beautiful. His eyes were as blue as the summer sky, and his smile, when it was genuine, lit up his whole face. She closed her eyes and could feel his lips on her cheek as he kissed her goodbye; they were warm and soft, just like she had thought they would be.

Frannie drifted off with a smile on her face and she slept better that night than she had in more than a year. There were no nightmares that night, only pleasant dreams of a man with honey brown hair and bright smiling blue eyes.