The Night She Got Lucky by Susan Donovan Read Free Book Online

Please shut the door. How's it going, Larry?
    Joshua, the youngest by two minutes, stopped to pick up HeatherLynn on his way through the foyer. He held her close and high on his chest, so the dog could tuck her head under his chin. You doing okay, Mumu? he asked, using his childhood nickname for her as he hugged her quickly. You knew this might be coming, right?
    I did, sweetheart. I'm okay.
    Jason came up and kissed her on the cheek. That sucks, he said, the identical sentiment expressed by Bea earlier in the day. Unfortunately, Bea's and Jason's vocabulary rules weren't identical. Ginger was trying to teach Jason how to behave like a gentleman, while Bea had long ago stopped caring about the rules of polite society.
    Ginger sighed. Jason, how many times have I told you not to use that word in the house?
    Sorry, Mom. Jason flashed a charming smile eerily similar to Larry's. You getting fired really blows.
    Ginger raised an eyebrow, watching her sons stampede past her to get to the kitchen. Doors to the cabinets and the refrigerator were thrown open, and the makings of an afternoon snack began to pile up on the tabletortilla chips, leftover mashed potatoes, Oreos, roast beef, and kaiser rolls. Ginger was grateful for Larry's generous child support payments, if only because it cost a small fortune to keep the boys supplied with carbohydrates.
    Keep in mind we'll be eating dinner in less than two hours, she told them.
    Awesome, Jason said, his cheeks puffed out with the contents of his sandwich. I'll be starving by then.
    Hey, you got a minute? Larry hadn't fully entered the kitchen, but lingered in the foyer, looking sheepish. It had always fascinated Ginger how, after that night he got caught with his pants down, he'd instinctively stopped treating this house as his home. He'd left that night with a duffel bag, and hadn't slept here since.
    Sure, Larry. Ginger followed him into the living room. He took a seat in an armchair and she curled up on the sofa. It felt awkward to be with him here, in the living room they'd painstakingly furnished and decorated together, in a house they'd had custom-designed with every comfort and personal preference in mind.
    It had always struck Ginger as odd how Larry turned around and bought a house just two blocks away, in the same development, and had it decorated in an almost identical fashion. Whatever made him happy, she supposed. And it certainly made it convenient for the boys, who split their time equally between their parents.
    So what are your plans? he asked, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands in front of him. He was sporting an unfamiliar platinum pinkie ring. How is this going to affect our calendar?
    Ginger paused a moment, smiling at him sweetly. Gee, she said. I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at, Larry.
    Well, it's just that, you know Larry's pale blue eyes twitched nervously toward the kitchen, where they could hear the boys arguing and laughingwith their mouths full. My plans. My schedule. How's this going to affect all that?
    She knew it! She knew he was going to go there! Ginger had just been fired from the only job she'd ever hadher world in turmoiland Larry was worried how it might affect his freedom to shag every coed on campus. If only University Hospital's administrators knew how their chief of urology whiled away his free time.
    It's just that, you know, I'm planning on going away to Maui next week, remember? And I wanted to make sure any new job wouldn't, you know, conflict with my plans.
    Ginger maintained her vacant smile as she put all of this in its proper perspective. Back in the day, during his first trip through adolescence, Larry Garrison had been a California fraternity hottie with a.359 batting average, a 130 IQ, and an unholy hankering for pretty girls. That's the man Ginger fell in love with. She knew what she was gettinga top-shelf guy who was a little on the selfish side. And today, deep in the quagmire of his second