Pat was still coming over to be with me and Meadow whenever he could. I felt a little guilty about seeing Jake as well, athough it made me a little angry to feel this way. After all, Pat went back to Julia time and again instead of choosing to stay with me and Meadow. I couldn't help but wonder whether or not his marriage was still just a publicity stunt.
I had the sneaking suspicion and nagging fear that this was no longer the case, but didn't have the nerve to come out and ask him. I guess deep down I really didn't want to know.
One day I threw a casual little get together at the house and had some people over. My neighbor Jeck Runningwave had become friends so he was there too, and when he got there we spent some time catching up with each other.
I was pretty sure that Pat must not like Jeck. I didn't think it was my imagination that he was watching us like a hawk. Or maybe he just didn't like Jeck paying attention to me? Could he be jealous, I wondered?
I decided then and there that I wasn't going to tell Pat about Jake, at least not any time soon. I was afraid he would never want to see me or Meadow again if I did.
Pat continued to come over to see us, but it wasn't as often as it used to be; sometimes he stayed for dinner from time to time. I practiced my cooking skills on him and luckily for me, he didn't seem to mind at all.
Occasionally we would meet each other in small, out-of-the-way places like the Squeaky Wheel just to spend some time together.
But I also continued to see Jake. He was a wonderful person and I had to admit that I enjoyed being with him. I was falling for him, hard.
One evening after a fun date together, I invited him over to the house. One thing led to another, and he ended up spending the night.
I knew I should probably feel bad about it but the truth was I wasn't sorry at all. It was a wonderful night, Jake was wonderful, and I was absolutely crazy about him. But I also couldn't help but realize that my life was just getting way too confusing and complicated! Something was going to have to change soon. I just truly didn't know what the solution was yet.
