“Jagger, you finished just in time to start your session with David.”
I dreaded those therapy sessions. They were all apart of this rehabilitation crap. Maybe it wasn’t crap but being out here basically just meant I was away from temptation. I didn’t know any dealers and I didn’t have any credit cards or money to buy any booze. I wasn’t cured because I regularly thought about not being able to buy drugs and booze.
I was living as Jason Smith. I decided to make him American. I never thought I would have to actually pretend to be him. I knew if I messed this up I would have to go to one of those well-known celebrity rehab centers. If that happened it could be catastrophic for my band. Paparazzi would get images of me for sure. Staff would sell my medical information to the tabloids. The Daily Mail would be the first to fabricate stories that were far from the truth. I had to get this right. I had to stay clean. In my heart, sobriety was easy, but in my brain, it had a severe level of difficulty.
Therapy with Dr. David was the thing that helped me manage my day. I had a level of anxiety before I entered his home office. The problem was I couldn’t take anything for my anxiety because I was an addict. At this point, I wasn’t allowed any mood inhibitors. I wasn’t even sure David would give me a pain pill if I had a migraine.
Chapter 4
KATRINA
Jason was here and he arrived on time. That was a good thing. I’m not sure why I’d thought that I wouldn’t see him again. He did a lot of work on his first day. He stayed the entire day yesterday. He didn’t have any experience and that was easy to figure out right away.
Regardless of his inexperience, he was a good worker and very helpful. I thought that maybe I worked him too hard. Young people nowadays were extremely lazy. I still had problems with my son putting his dirty clothes inside the hamper. It seemed that he preferred to strategically place them in piles on the floor. These piles were like landmines if you walked into his room at night with the absence of light. I already missed my son despite his messiness.
Jason didn’t forget to bring his identification and that was a good thing. I had to pay him a meager salary. He didn’t seem to mind minimum wage. It was all I had to give. I hadn’t really come up with a schedule but his availability would make that very easy.
He did everything I’d asked without the attitude of a teen. He was twenty so maybe he’s gotten all the brooding and angst out of his system. I don’t know why I was even thinking the worse. Jason seemed like a good kid. At least I thought so until I saw the tattoo on his bicep. The ink was creeping out the bottom of his short sleeve. I wondered what it could be but I wouldn’t dare ask.
Jason had been here for four hours and adolescent girls were coming in and buying candy. Some of the girls I recalled seeing just yesterday. I didn’t think it was a case of a sweet tooth. I think Jason had a fan club. He had all the attributes that would make a teenage girl swoon. He was tall. He was slim and muscular. He had meticulously coiffed bad-boy hair and his smile was pretty charming.
A long time ago I married one of those perfect, pretty boys. It seemed like a long time ago because it was two decades ago. I can’t call it a mistake because I have my two wonderful kids. I just wished I were smarter. I never planned to marry again. My ex-husband was a handful. Getting out of that marriage was hard so getting into another one wasn’t in the cards for me— ever.
After one gang of girls left the store. There was another that followed soon after. Jason Smith was pretty damn popular. I was free of giggling young hot-tailed girls for almost an hour when the bells on the front door rang and three girls of about thirteen came inside and started eyeballing the candy. I had a feeling they were looking for Jason. I tilted my head up to see that they were ignoring me. I put my head down on my laptop and continued to check my never-ending stream of emails. I started with one hundred and twenty-two. I was down to sixty-six. I was making some progress. Hallelujah! Amen.
Jason was on a bathroom break. He emerged from the hall and walked right up to me.
“Did you clear out some of your emails?”
I sighed. “Some.”
He smiled with his teeth and noticed that the three girls were noticing him. I’m sure the owner of the flower shop across the street could see these teens gazing at Jason. It was that obvious.
“Hey girls.” He greeted them because their eyes were already glued to him. It would’ve been impossible not to notice the intrusion. He seemed unbothered by the girls. I thought that was a good thing. His good looks didn’t seem to be going to his head. Maybe he didn’t know he was overly attractive. Nah, he didn’t seem slow.
Most kids loved candy. Clearly, these teens were far more enthralled with my hunky new employee. Why did I call him hunky? I don’t think I’ve ever used that word in my life.
All three of the giddy girls rushed to the counter where Jason stood beside me. I was tempted to look back at my laptop screen but I was intrigued. The girls were cute but they were fast in the ass. They were trying unsuccessfully to look casual. Jason was too old for them and when I was their age I never even gave older boys a thought. This was a new dawn
