Chapter 37
Chapter Thirty-Seven
TWO WEEKS LATER
Emily
As I was changing the clothes on one of the mannequins, Evelyn walked into the shop with a wide grin across her face.
“Good morning, my beautiful friend.” She kissed my cheek.
“Good morning.” I smiled. “Who put some happy pills in your coffee this morning?”
“I’m just high on life.” She twirled around.
“Okay. What’s going on?”
“Dylan and I are moving in together!” she screeched.
“That’s wonderful. Your place or his?”
“Actually, both of our leases are up, so we’re going apartment hunting today.”
“You two should look at my building.”
“I already thought about that, but no two bedrooms are available right now.” She pouted.
“You’ll find something. I’m so happy for you.” I hugged her.
“How are things with Jackson?” she asked.
“Things are good.” I smiled.
“And you’re happy?”
“I am. After doing some thinking and self-reflecting, I realized that my life is almost perfect. I have this amazing business that is doing so well, I have great friends and Jackson. What more could a girl ask for? Why try to fix what isn’t broken? Right?”
“Right.” She narrowed her eye at me. “Listen, I just dropped by to tell you the news. I have to go. I’m supposed to meet Dylan in fifteen minutes. I’ll call you later.”
“Have fun apartment hunting.”
“Thanks.” She turned and smiled as she walked out of the shop.
The truth was that I wasn’t about to risk my relationship with Jackson because I wanted more from him. Everything in my life was going so well, and there was no need to compromise it. Since I stopped dropping subtle hints, Jackson returned to his old self. The past two weeks had been wonderful, and I wanted to keep it that way.
Just as I was getting ready to leave the shop to go home and change for dinner, Jackson’s mother walked in.
“Hello, Emily.”
“Hi, Gwen.” I smiled. “Welcome to my shop.”
“It’s very cute. I will admit I have never been in here.”
“That’s fine. This store isn’t for everyone. What brings you by?”
“I was hoping to have a little chat with you.”
“Sure. Would you like a cup of coffee?” I asked as I led her over to the espresso bar.
“That would be nice. Thank you.”
“Jen, two coffees, please.”
“Coming right up, Emily.”
“Please, have a seat.” I waved my hand to the small round table. “What did you want to chat about?”
“My son.”
“Oh,” I spoke with surprise.
“I would like you to do me a favor, and please try to talk some sense into him.”
“About?”
“His father and me. His sister can’t seem to do it, and since the two of you are close and have this weird relationship, I figured I’d come to you.”
“I don’t know, Gwen. It’s none of my business.”
“But it is, Emily. As long as this is affecting him, it’s affecting you.” She reached across the table and placed her hand on mine. “Please. I know it’s asking a lot, but we want our son back. His father and I have found our way back to each other, and we want our family to be whole again.”
Wow. She really knew how to pull at the heartstrings. There was no way Jackson would listen to me, but it was worth a shot for Gwen's sake.
“We’re having dinner tonight. I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you.” She squeezed my hand.
After Jackson and I had a wonderful dinner at Daniel, we headed back to my place for the night since the last two nights were spent at his. As we walked through the door, I took off my heels and carried them to the bedroom while Jackson followed behind and took off his suitcoat.
“Have you, by any chance, talked to your mom?” I asked.
“No. Why?”
“Just wondering if you maybe settled things with them yet.”
“If I had, I would have told you.”
I walked into the bathroom and grabbed a washcloth, and poured some makeup remover on it.
“Why are you bringing up my parents?”
“Your mom came into the shop today. She asked how you were doing.”
“Did she come in to shop or specifically to see you?”
“To see me.”
“Interesting.” He walked into the bathroom.
“She asked me to talk to you since we have this weird relationship thing going on.”
“Did she say ‘weird’?” He stood with his arms folded as I finished removing my makeup.
“Yes.” I smiled at him through the mirror.
“Well, I’m just going to stop you right there.” His tone was harsh. “I’m not interested in hearing what you have to say because, frankly, Emily, it’s none of your business, and my mother should not have come to you.”
I was in the middle of rinsing my face, and I froze over the sink. Hearing those words come from his mouth, anger and hurt crept up inside me. I grabbed a towel and dried my face.
“Why do you have to be so rude?” The words just fell out of my mouth.
“How am I being rude?” he asked as I walked past him.
“Telling me that it’s none of my business. This whole thing with your parents is affecting you, which in turn affects me.”
“Why the hell would it affect you? It has nothing to do with you. How I feel about the situation is nobody’s business but mine.”
I turned and looked at him as an expression of shock stumbled across my face.
“Who are you, and what have you done with Jackson?” I cocked my head.
“I’m here. This is me.” He held out his hands and spoke with a cocky attitude.
A showdown was emerging, and I knew it wouldn’t end well. I refused to let him get away with speaking to me that way.
“You know what, Jackson?” I walked over to him and pushed my finger into his chest. “You have everything you want out of life. You have two parents who love you, a successful business, more money than you know what to do with, and this fucked up relationship thing we’re in. You have it all, and you take so much for granted that it makes me sick! You’re so consumed about how you feel that you don’t give a damn to stop and think about other people’s feelings.”
He inhaled a sharp breath as his nostrils flared. I had just pushed his anger level to the limit, and he was about to explode.
“You want to know why I’m so worried about my feelings?” he shouted so loud that the tone of his voice made me flinch. “Because I’m the only fucking person who does! Did my parents ever once stop to think about my and Jules’ feelings growing up? Did they ever once ask how we were or how we felt? NO! They just hopped from one relationship to another without giving a damn about our feelings, and now they think they can just get back together after all these years and undo the damage? And another thing.” He pointed his finger at me. “You agreed to this fucked-up relationship thing! It’s what we both negotiated and wanted, not just me, but you too. And now, all of a sudden, it’s fucked up in your eyes? Why is that, Emily?” he shouted.
He knew. He knew, and he wanted to hear me say it. I stood there, shaking in my skin, scared to death of the next words coming from my mouth. The words that could potentially end our relationship. The more he yelled, the more I lost control over my emotional state.
“Answer my question!” he yelled.
I lunged at him and placed my hands on his chest, pushing him back.
“You want to know why? Because I fucking fell in love with you! I’ve been in love with you, and I want more. I don’t want a damn contract. I just want you.” Tears filled my eyes.
He stood there, tall and in complete control, as he stared at me for a moment. A moment in which I was sure that he was going to tell me that he loved me too.
“You weren’t supposed to fall in love, Emily. You broke rule number nine,” he spoke in a calm tone. “And you know what that means.”
“Are you serious?” I narrowed my teary eyes at him. “You can just walk away after everything we’ve been through and done together?”
“I can and I will. We had an agreement, and this complicates things now.”
“Complicates things? How? You don’t feel anything for me?”
“I love you as a friend and nothing more. We had a good thing, and if you only would have stuck to the rules, we wouldn’t be having this conversation right now.”
He stabbed me in the heart and twisted the knife slowly, causing an unbearable pain that almost sent me to my knees.
“I’m sorry things had to end this way,” he spoke in a serious tone.
I couldn’t even look at him because I would go for his throat if I did. I was that unstable at the moment.
“Get out,” I whispered in a low voice.
He grabbed his suitcoat from the chair in my bedroom, and as he walked out, he spoke, “You shouldn’t have broken the rules.”