Chapter 28
CHAPTER 28
“Tell me about Mark.”
“Who?
“Private Mark Novikov, in his seventh week of BUDs.”
“I have no idea who that is.”
“He was feeding you his burger.” Jackson's voice sounded terse.
My eyes went wide. “I didn’t even know his name, how did you find out his name?”
“If a man is hitting on my wife, I make it my business to find out who he is.”
I felt bewildered by this conversation. “He wasn’t hitting on me, he was being nice.”
“You said he knew what was going on with your food. What did you mean by that?”
I glanced over my shoulder at Jackson. He looked pissed. “It was nothing.”
“Tell me.”
“He understood why I wasn’t eating, that’s all.”
“Care to share that with me? ”
Did I want to share with my husband just how awkward I was in social settings? “Not really.”
“I’m asking you to.”
I sat there for a long moment. I hated this conversation. “I get anxious to the point that I can’t eat. He saw my plate and said that he understood how I felt because his sister is the same way.”
“Why were you anxious?”
“Jackson,” desperation tinged my voice. “Can’t we just chalk up that BBQ as a big stupid moment and forget about it?”
“What happened?”
My face flushed with shame. I didn’t want him to know how much I was hated here. I didn’t want him to see that I was a social outcast, already failing miserably to fit into his world. “The wives don’t like me.”
“Why do you think that?”
“They don’t want to get to know me.”
“What happened?”
“Well, they didn’t like my clothes. They thought I was stuck up. They didn’t think I was pretty enough for you. And they also said that you and Harper were secretly meeting to go running together. And that you discussed our marriage with Harper who now believes it’s doomed. So she's just biding her time until you leave me for her.”
Jackson’s entire body went still. “They said all this to you?”
“Most of it I overheard when I was coming back from the bathroom.”
“I didn’t deliberately go running with Harper. We’ve run together for years, and we have often used the same routes. It didn’t seem like a big deal when we ended up on the same route. I never took it as anything other than coincidence.”
“Okay.” I believed him. I wasn’t so sure that Harper’s intentions were so pure, but I believed Jackson when he told me that he didn’t deliberately go out of his way to meet up with her.
“I've never discussed our marriage with her. Not once.”
I looked over at him. Our eyes met. “Okay. ”
“Nothing is going on between Harper and me,” he was emphatic.
Yet . A small voice whispered to my heart.
“Fine.”
“I don’t cheat, and I expect the same consideration from you.”
My head whipped back, and I looked at him. “Excuse me?”
“I think I’ve been pretty clear.”
“I don’t think you have any concerns in that department.”
Silence hung between us.
Finally, he spoke. “It isn’t easy to be married to a soldier, but it’ll get easier if you can play nice with the other wives.”
Disbelief rippled through me. “You think I wasn’t playing nice?”
“I’m just saying, that you might want to make that one of your goals.”
His words cut like a knife. My husband was telling me to get some friends. Humiliation burned my stomach. At that moment, I had never felt more alone in my life. Didn’t he understand what was going on here? They didn’t like me because they were siding with his ex-girlfriend.
I couldn’t even look at his face as I stood up. I was convinced I would burst out into tears. “I’m going to bed.”
When I woke up, the sun was shining. My cast made things awkward, but the pain had receded to the point of being manageable. There wasn’t much I could do about my face. The swelling on my cheek was gone, but the dark bruise was impossible to hide, even with make-up.
Jackson: Let’s go out for dinner tonight
I stared at his text. I almost couldn’t take the tension between us. I was done with fighting. I was almost crumbling under all the pressure.
Me: Ok
We went out to a local surf and turf restaurant that had a spectacular view of the boardwalk. Jackson had said very little on the drive. I studied him. He looked casual in his t-shirt and faded jeans. There was no expression on his face. Thanks to Irene and her years of abuse, my husband could do blank better than anyone I knew.
“Where did you learn to play baseball?”
He took his time answering. “I played as a kid.”
He had been so good that professionals had scouted him.
“Were you in a league?”
Green eyes glanced my way. “Ted loved baseball more than life himself. He got me started.”
“Ted did?”
“He’s the one that came to all my games.”
“What about Matt’s dad?”
“He was busy.”
My God. This man wanted to share nothing with me. Nothing at all. That hurt.
“My dad was big into archery,” I offered.
“Oh yeah?”
“He wanted me to take an interest. I got this beautiful bow and arrow. I took private lessons. I was in a league for ages, but then they kicked me out.”
His eyes looked at my face. Interested. “What happened?”
“I accidentally shot a judge in the arm.”
“You didn’t.”
“I was terrible. I was worse than terrible. I have zero hand-eye coordination.”
He openly laughed. “And your archery career ended.”
“My dad had dreams of me going to the Olympics.”
His smile was easy. “Was he upset?”
“He was resigned. He knew I sucked. I think he appreciated that I hung in there for five years. ”
“Five years. That’s impressive.”
“I hated archery, but I loved how excited he was and how that was our thing.”
“I guess that’s what it’s about.”
“Promise me that if Alien has my athletic ability, you’ll be patient with him.”
His smile broadened. “I’ll be patient.”
His phone rang. He looked at the screen. “I gotta take this.”
I watched as he walked out of earshot. The conversation looked serious.
“Hey, if it isn’t 45 calories!”
I turned and looked up to see the tall blond guy from the BBQ. “Burger guy.”
His smile dropped as he looked at my face. He glanced down at my cast. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I just had a little accident.”
He looked around and spotted Jackson across the boardwalk talking on the phone. His voice went low. “I had no idea your husband was Jackson Hunter.”
I shook my head. “Sorry I didn’t tell you.”
He leaned down on the table. “If he’s hurting you, I can help.”
“You think my husband is hurting me?”
“I saw how pissed he got at the BBQ.”
I waved my cast in the air. “This was an accident. I’m clumsy. That’s all.”
It was the truth, but it didn’t sound like the truth.
“I’m just putting it out there that if you need help, I can help.”
“I’m good,” I tried to give him my most reassuring smile.
“Hi, Mark.”
From behind us, Jackson’s voice sounded deceptively casual.
Mark stood up straight. “Sir.”
Jackson stared without blinking. He didn't move, he just stared.
Mark cleared his throat and took a step back. “Nice running into you again, Mrs. Hunter. ”
“You too.”
Jackson watched as Mark walked away before he sat down across from me. He lifted his beer and took a long sip. There was a mild expression on his face, but his actions were too deliberate. My husband was pissed.
“Bad phone call?”
“I turn my back for one minute.”
I crossed my arms. Jackson was completely unreasonable. “Why this sudden concern about Mark?”
His response was the look.
I picked up my virgin mocktail. “Pretty hypocritical if you ask me.”
“Excuse me?”
“You spent three years with Harper, and you guys make googly eyes at each other, but since you tell me nothing is going on, I’m just supposed to believe you. I spent ten minutes talking to one person at the BBQ, and you go all Navy SEAL on his ass. Even after I told you nothing was going on.”
He looked away from me and took a sip of his beer. “That’s different.”
“What? No, it’s not!”
He looked back at me. “Fine. Let’s drop it.”
“What was your phone call about?”
“I have to report to work tonight.”
I felt my face fall. “Again? You just got here.”
“I knew this turn around would be short.”
“How long will you be gone for?”
“Just a couple of weeks.”
I leaned back in my chair, the breeze blowing the hair off my face. This was what I had signed up for. He had warned me, but I was only just starting to understand what it meant to be the wife of a SEAL. I already felt lonely. “I get it.”
“What do you get?”
“I need to make some friends.”