The Halloween Divorce

By Eve Morton

Jesse Potter returns home to his parents' neighborhood to housesit for one week. He expects to get some school work done, maybe watch some movies, but nothing else too extreme. Even when the cute neighbor named Patrick catches his eye, he knows he's out of reach. Not only is Patrick married, but Jesse's not sticking around.

Then there's the clown to consider.

Patrick's lawn is filled with Halloween decorations, all of which are terrible to the Halloween-hating Jesse, but the clown with a red outfit is the worst. Especially since the clown seems to have it out for Jesse. As stranger and stranger things keep happening, Jesse falls more and more for Patrick. And when Patrick's husband divorces him one night -- it means there's nothing in the way between the two men.

Except for that clown again ...

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Oct 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9781685500528

Book preview

Chapter 1

Jesse Potter had just turned the corner on his parents’ street when he first saw the clown.

Son of a—

He stopped in his tracks, his entire body jerking away from the sight. The clown was hung up across a pine tree, its limp arms spread out wide and a half-torn red suit hanging down by its sides like demented angel wings. The face was painted white with red and blue jagged shapes around its eyes, which were yellow. The mouth was open in a hideous grin, and its hair was bleached white and thinning up into the air. It was horrible. Jesse’s grip around his backpack tightened. The clown wasn’t touching the lawn.

It also wasn’t real.

He stepped back and surveyed the rest of the Halloween lawn display. There were skeletons playing poker at a table, along with big spiders hung on the garage roof, and lights strung up around the frame that would no doubt glow orange and black come dusk. It was only mid-afternoon now, and barely into October. Jesse had been heading home to house-sit for his parents, as they went away on a long-overdue vacation. Since his graduate studies could pretty much be done anywhere at this stage in his academic career, he was looking forward to being in a place with more than one floor, a pantry that had endless amounts of snack food, and a house that he didn’t have to worry about heating. Maybe he’d actually get some reading done in the quiet, too—but not with that…thing hanging out close by.

Jesse sighed as he realized the house that was decked out with the fiendish clown was directly across the street from his parents’ place. The entire subdivision was decked out in Halloween—or at least thematic fall—decorations. Jesse didn’t think that many people in this subdivision had kids anymore. Wasn’t this an area full of retirees? Why were they so interested in spooky things instead of a typical pumpkin and gourd display, along with maybe a rustic looking wooden panel that said Welcome Fall.

I fucking hate Halloween, Jesse murmured under his breath. He tried not to let the display bother him. He could handle skeletons—hey, we all had one—and spiders, especially since this one was a bright purple and not the scary brown or black ones in his shitty one-bedroom place.

But that clown. Damnit. Its eyes were yellow and black, and he swore it stared directly into him. It wasn’t even one of the recognizable clowns, like Pennywise or Pogo, the one that John Wayne Gacy pretended to be. This was generic, like the skeletons. Probably a half dozen of them on this block alone, though he hadn’t seen anymore yet. Thankfully.

Jesse, his mother greeted from the porch. Her long dark gray hair was tied behind her back. She wore her casual jeans and a tucked in shirt. So glad you made it. How was the bus?

Fine. Jesse shrugged off the clown and greeted his mother. They hugged, she told him he was looking too skinny, and he put his bag in the front hallway just like always. He hadn’t stayed at his parents’ house like this in such a long time, but he marveled at how quickly he slipped into that mindset again.

Professor, his father said as he approached from the basement. How are your classes?

Fine. And I’m not a professor yet.

Better get used to it, anyway. His father gave him his hand, a more formal gesture he’d only started doing once Jesse was a PhD student. It made him feel more like he was part of his dad’s business than his son, but he appreciated the respect it bestowed. Now, his father said, clapping his hands and getting down to the heart of their reunion. Let me take you through the house, show you how to reconfigure the alarm, turn off the water in case of emergencies, how to use the flood lights, all that fun stuff. We’ve updated since you’ve left.

And then there’s pie in the kitchen, his mother added. "Be sure to eat some. The Uber will be here soon