That Night | JenLisa FF

Part 15

FOUR MONTHS LATER

*****

Jennie scrolled through screens on her phone. "Thursday at ten," she told Rebecca. The gallery owner nodded brusquely before cutting through the crowd to inform the buyer when they could pick up their Lalisa original.

Jennie couldn't help but smile at the brittle set to Rebecca's shoulders. It was mean and petty, but Jennie didn't care. Rebecca and Lisa had been lovers off and on for the last few years. But when Rebecca tried to pick things up again four months ago, she was met by a very cold shoulder. And now that Lisa was becoming an extremely hot commodity in the art world, Rebecca couldn't afford to keep her pride. She had begged to host her latest show.

As much as Jennie had begged Lisa to tell her to take a flying leap, she hadn't done it. And in retrospect, Jennie had to admit she'd been right. The show at Rebecca's gallery was a success beyond any of their wildest dreams. The evening was only half over, and she'd already sold all but two pieces. Jennie was certain those two pieces would be sold long before the evening was over.

Smiling, she walked over to where Rosé was doing her best to ignore Bambam. Since being introduced at one of Lisa's shows four months ago, Bambam had been following Rosé around. Though in her defense, he'd been doing his best to make it more flattering and less stalkerish. But so far, Rosé wasn't having any of it. She continually gave Bambam very polite but firm set-downs.

Jennie's vision sifted idly through the crowd, and she smiled here and there. As her eyes locked with a pair of icy blue, she stopped cold. Jiho looked at her intently, cutting through the crowd.

"Fancy seeing you here," he said somewhat lamely.

Jennie bristled. "What are you doing here?" she demanded.

"Not exactly keeping a low profile anymore," he said tightly. "I read in the Times that you were going to be here tonight."

Jennie's gaze immediately searched the room, and she took a deep breath as she saw Chiquita hanging off her dad's arm as usual. As always, Lisa didn't seem in the least bit perturbed by her exuberant behavior, ruffling her hair good-naturedly as she ignored a very famous art aficionado to intently listen to her latest theory.

Jiho followed Jennie's gaze, and his posture went rigid. "Looks like Canny's getting pretty chummy with your new friend," he said, condemnation ringing in his voice.

"She has every right to be close to my new girlfriend," Jennie countered smoothly. "She's, her dad."

Jiho looked at her sharply for several moments. "I always assumed that Pete was just giving his paranoia free rein," he said.

Jennie smiled tightly, catching Rosé's eye and nodding to her. "No," she said, "he wasn't her father. Lisa is." Jennie didn't wait for her to process the information. "Why are you here?" she asked again.

"Why not?"

She shook her head, lips pursing together tightly. "I'm not going to play this game with you anymore, Jiho," she said. "You are not welcome here. Please leave."

"Hey," he said sharply. "I think I deserve a little better than that after all I did for you and Canny."

"All you did," Jennie repeated slowly. "You mean all the times you knew that Pete was beating me, that he was a danger to Canny? You mean all those times you helped maintain the status quo because it made it easier for you to swoop in and save the day?"

"I never - "

"You did," Jennie said, cutting him off. "Even after I left Pete, you encouraged me to be terrified, constantly whispering in my ear to be on the lookout, to know that the only person I could trust was you."

"I never intentionally hurt you," he said seriously. "But I did come here to tell you that Pete is in town."

"Thank you," she said tightly. "Now please leave."

***

"Good night, baby," Jennie whispered, pressing a kiss to her daughter's forehead later that night. She tucked the covers more tightly under her chin and slowly backed out of the room, leaving the door open a crack.

She was still standing in the hall, looking at the door to Canny's room when Lisa wrapped her arms around, pulling her back against her chest. She sighed, leaning back in her embrace.

So much had changed in the last several months. Under her guidance, Lisa's career skyrocketed. She left the loft to Jackson and moved Jennie and her daughter into a respectable apartment in TriBeCa only a few blocks from the private school Canny attended. Together, they were making serious progress at becoming a family. They were going forward with legal proceedings to have Lisa formally recognized as Chiquita's dad, and Jennie and Lisa had had some serious discussions about marriage.

Gently, Lisa steered Jennie towards their bedroom. She went quietly. Lisa merely watched as she went about her nightly routine, hanging up her dress, slipping out of her stockings and undergarments, and shimmying into a nightgown. Lisa waited as she removed her makeup and brushed her teeth. She was sitting up in bed, reading, when Jennie finally joined her.

Jennie crawled under the covers, facing away from her. Putting her book down, Lisa burrowed under the covers, spooning around her body. "You going to tell me what's wrong?" she asked.

She sighed. "Jiho Lee was at the opening tonight," she said. She felt Lisa go rigid behind her. "He just popped in to check up on me and Canny. Decided to let me know that Pete's in town. He insinuated that his little brother would probably be making an appearance in our lives again."

"Why didn't you tell me he was there?" Lisa asked, her voice taut.

Jennie rolled over, looking at her lover. "Because you would have beaten the shit out of him, and it would have ruined your show and probably upset Canny."

Lisa's lips pursed together tightly. She didn't give a damn about the show, but Jennie was right. She wouldn't have wanted to subject Chiquita to that scene. Lisa shook her head, trailing her fingers lightly over the exposed flesh of her shoulder and upper arm. There were tiny little scars marring her flesh every few inches. It had taken Jennie months to finally admit to Lisa what they were, scars from a belt buckle Pete used to beat her. "I'm not letting him near either of you again, Jennie," she said vehemently.

Jennie reached out, cupping her cheek in her hand. "I know."