To Hire a Cheerleader Pt. 04

"What exactly are we celebrating?" Tori asked after the waitress had gone to fill their order.

"Why, my coming out, of course!" Jake's response got a laugh out of Tori. They turned their attention to the menu and decided on their meals. Since there were so many dishes that they both wanted to try, they decided to share two so they could sample them both. Jake placed the order, while Tori sat back and soaked in the experience of having her date act like the gentlemen did in the old black and white movies. She was glad that they weren't living in the 'golden oldies' time period, but it was still nice for Jake to take care of her.

Their food was delicious and the champagne tickled Tori's nose. She had never drank anything more than a sip of wine from her grandfather's glass. It didn't take much of the bubbly liquid to make her realize that drinking and thinking didn't really go together for her! When she found herself practically drooling over Jake, she figured it was time to leave.

When they walked outside, Tori knew that she couldn't drive. Jake laughed at her jumbled attempt to explain her dilemma to him. He pointed out that his driver was already there to take them home. He had called him earlier and asked him to drop by to pick them up, since Jake had planned to celebrate. The driver waved to them, then opened the door to the sedan that Tori had driven to the restaurant. Tori wondered briefly where the car was that the driver had arrived in, but she was too warmly buzzed to be able to piece together the sentence.

Tori didn't remember much of the drive home. She knew when Jake lifted her out of the car and she remembered him carrying her into the house. She had a vague recollection that he had walked her up the stairs and taken her into her bedroom. But that was all she remembered.

When Tori woke up in the morning, she realized that she was in her nightshirt and wondered briefly just how that had happened. Thinking back over the events of the previous evening, she realized that Jake had been the one to put her to bed. Her cheeks blazed as the thought crossed her mind that she really hoped he had enjoyed touching her body. She knew that she would have enjoyed touching his!

Struggling to get up caused Tori's head to spin, but thankfully, it quieted after a few moments. She giggled to herself wondering what she would be like if she got really drunk. At least this was only a minor hang over! She pulled herself to the bathroom and turned on the shower. After vigorously brushing her teeth, she stood under the running water and let it work it's magic on her tired body. By the time she emerged from the bathroom, she was feeling like a whole new woman.

Tori made her way downstairs to find the rest of the household. Sitting at the table in the kitchen, Tori found them all. Jake, Beatrice and George appeared to be deep in discussion. When they heard Tori entered the room, they all looked up at her. Jake held out his hand and pulled her close to him. Tori thought that he would guide her into the chair beside him. Instead, he unexpectedly tugged her toward himself. She ended up landing squarely in his lap. It took her a moment to realize that he had planned for her to sit there and he was perfectly comfortable holding her. Knowing that she would blush profusely if she thought too much about it, Tori decided that it was better to focus on what Beatrice and George were discussing.

The first thing Tori noticed was that, up close, she could tell that Beatrice was trying hard to not cry. That alarmed Tori and she turned to look questioningly at George. He, too, seemed to have tears in his eyes. Jake was the one who finally broke the strained silence. "Tori, George and Beatrice have just told me that they feel that it is time for them to move out. They have found a house a few miles away and are interested in buying it."

Tori was confused about the tears, then realized that Beatrice and George had lived with Jake for years. He was like a son to them. Even though they would still be seeing him during work hours, it would be hard for them to leave him.

Beatrice finally managed to say, "Now that you are here, Tori, we finally feel like Jake has a reason to get back into the swing of life. He doesn't need us the way he did in the past. We're just so very happy for him . . . " And with that, the older lady burst into tears.

George wrapped his arms around his wife and said, "Now, now, dear, we'll still see the boy. You've got to calm down. We aren't moving out today. It'll take a few weeks to get the paperwork done. Don't fret so." He continued to pat her back as her sobs quieted against his chest.

Jake shot Tori a playful look. "Looks like you have caused me to lose my roommates! What do you have to say for yourself?"

Tori elbowed Jake lightly in the stomach. She was careful not to be too aggressive, considering where her last teasing punch had landed her. She said, "I think you can handle it! You're a big boy!"

When Jake growled and pulled her face down to kiss her, Tori was shocked. She and Jake had become fairly comfortable touching one another over the past week, but she was still surprised. Even though the contact was brief, Jake made a statement with that kiss. Tori realized that she hadn't expected Jake to let others know that he liked her. She hadn't expected Jake to want others to know that he liked her. Tori recognized that this was some leftover baggage from her past. She knew that it needed to be dealt with later on, when she and Jake were alone. But for right now, she just wanted to bask in Jake's attention!

However, there were more pressing matters at hand. George and Beatrice were still tearful and were only just barely managing to smile through their pain. Tori turned to face Jake and whispered, "Why don't we go out to lunch so Beatrice doesn't have to cook?"

Jake beamed his approval at Tori. "What a great idea! I've been reading about this exhibit that the Museum of Art has right now. It is a collection of photography that supposedly stretches the boundaries of the old school style. George and Beatrice, you two used to go with Grandmother when she took her photos. What do you think? Would you like to see the exhibit? Then, we could eat at the Museum Cafe. I have always wanted to try their Crab Louie."

Tori noticed that Beatrice and George were staring at Jake just as intently as she was. Finally, it was George who said, "Are you sure you are up to that? There might be a lot of people there."

Jake shrugged his shoulders. "It's Saturday morning. It won't be that crowded. I feel like I can handle it. If I can't, Tori knows a drive through window where the employees are more than willing to extend their talents to meet my needs!"

Beatrice and George looked confused, but Tori just rolled her eyes and laughed at Jake. "Yeah, like I'm going to take you there again!" Turning to the older couple, Tori said, "So how 'bout it? Are you two up for it?"

Everyone agreed that it was a good idea and they headed out to the garage. Since it was Saturday, Jake's driver had the day off. Jake handed the keys to Tori. Tori noticed that Beatrice and George exchanged a surprised look, but she didn't really think too much about it. They all piled into the mid sized sedan and headed to the Museum.

The photography exhibit was incredible. Tori had never heard of the names of the photographers, but George and Jake obviously both followed the art. They discussed the parameters of dimension and depth of field and argued over the aperture settings on almost each piece. Tori and Beatrice followed for a little while, then they wondered off by themselves. Tori didn't mind. She was much more comfortable talking to Beatrice, than trying to decipher the conversation between the two men.

Beatrice pointed out a few pictures before claiming that her feet hurt. Tori found a secluded bench where they could see when Jake and George made their way past, then the two ladies sat back to relax for a few minutes. Beatrice was the first to break the comfortable silence. "Tori, I just can't tell you how much you have changed Jake. He's like a different man."

Tori tilted her head to one side as she considered Beatrice's words. "I can't take the credit, Beatrice. He has done the work himself. I am only glad to have been a part of his healing."

"You know," Beatrice said, "Jake has never let anyone drive his cars before. Well, I mean other than his driver. Jake actually used to drive quiet a bit, but over the past few years, he closed himself in, more and more. I'm not sure that he has told you about his foray into the dating world, and perhaps it's not my place to, but I wanted you to know.

"A few years back, Jake became a member of a support group for people living with scars. Some had scars from surgery, some had scars from abuse, a few had scars from accidents. They all had the disfigurement in common, though. Jake met several sweet young ladies who really seemed to enjoy his company. He found that there were several coffee houses he could take a date to where his features couldn't be detected by the general public. I think he actually took a few of the women out more than once.

"But then he met Candy. Candy wasn't a member of the support group. I never did figure out exactly what she was doing at the meetings, but she managed to ingratiate herself to Jake. He became enamored of her and she seemed to return his feelings. He even started taking her out to dinner at nice places, given that the restaurant was dark enough. They dated for about six months and Jake was falling hard for her. Then she stopped returning his phone calls.

"Jake is a detective, though. He knew other ways to find Candy. He pulled in a couple of his resources and discovered that Candy was a married woman. Her husband was spending time in jail for fraud. Seems her husband and Candy liked to run scams. Jake realized that Candy had ran a scam on him. He discovered that Candy had gotten ahold of all of his credit sources and maxed out a few of his accounts. Then he found out that Candy had disappeared.

"But Candy's final punch came when the police searched her apartment. They found a diary of sorts that she had addressed to Jake. After the police made a copy of it for their investigation, they turned it over to Jake. The girl had written their entire dating history in the book. She also included her personal thoughts. Each one of them lambasted Jake for believing that she would ever be interested in a disfigured monster like himself. She even made a note in it, laughing that Jake had asked her how she felt about having children. Her comment was that with a father who looked like Jake, the kid would be living in a horror movie 24/7.

"Candy was a bitch and she didn't deserve Jake. God only knows where the girl is now, but if I ever found her, I would tear her from limb to limb. She destroyed Jake's morale. He was finally making an attempt to function in the world and she pulled the rug out from under him. I know he doesn't talk about her, but I thought you ought to know. He's been hurt by a lot of people in his life. Don't add to that list, Tori."

Tori sat still, stunned at Beatrice's words. She was surprised that Jake hadn't mentioned the whole situation. When she thought about it though, she realized that he hadn't had much reason to mention it. It gave her a clearer picture of Jake, though. With a nod of her head, Tori murmured, "I'll try not to, Beatrice. I'll try not to." Then the two women sat, lost in their thoughts, until the men came into view.

When Tori saw Jake, she waved him over to the bench where she and Beatrice were waiting. Smiling at the two men, Tori said, "Jake, I'm hungry enough to eat a cow. And one of the pictures that I saw when we came in was of a cow. You and George both agreed that it was one of the best pictures you had ever seen. But if you don't get me some food soon, I'm going to go eat that picture!" Laughing, the group headed off toward the cafe.