10. Chapter 10
Chapter ten
Walking around the new house, I trailed my fingers over the taped-up boxes.
There seemed to be more than when I’d packed.
Maybe some of this should have been purged, but I wanted it done fast. It was going to take time going through these boxes now.
And hell, they’d been sitting here nearly a week, and I’d only opened a couple. But today was the day.
And where the hell to start? I huffed and grabbed a smaller one at random, cutting into the tape with my pocketknife and revealing body wash, hand towels, and a toothbrush holder. I didn’t bother taking anything out. Instead, I put the whole thing in the bathroom and grabbed a bigger box.
Before I cut the tape, my phone bonged Eddy’s tone. I answered quickly, ready for a break before I’d even really gotten started. “Hey, Eddy. What’s up?”
“I, uh, need a favor. For tomorrow.”
“Okay. Sure. What do you need?”
“Can you pick me up at Jackie’s on the way into work? Brock is doing shit with him, and they need the truck, and before you say anything…No. I am not taking the bike. I like riding behind, but I don’t have my license to drive—”
“Not a problem, boss.” He would go on forever about that motorcycle of Brock’s if I let him. “Is eight too early?”
“N-No. That works.” What the hell was he so nervous about? Like I’d ever tell him no to something like that.
“Sure, I’ll be there.”
We hung up pretty quickly after that, leaving me once again to work on these boxes.
After a few hours with not much progress, I called it a night and ordered pizza.
Work the next day consisted of much the same, only electronically rather than physical boxes.
Making sure things were in order for the next big data transfer scheduled for the end of the week, now that all the testing was complete.
That was the number one thing in my world, and I was determined to make that happen with minimal disruption.
At least it would be faster than unpacking these boxes.
The sun was barely up when I jumped in my Cruiser and headed to Jackie’s. I wasn’t planning on even getting out of the car, so it was no big deal. But the truck was not there when I arrived. Fuck.
I parked to the side in the drive so the truck could pull in around me and waited. After a few minutes, I checked my watch. It was after eight, so I was going to call Eddy for the ETA, when Jackie walked out on the porch and waved me in. Damn. So much for the not seeing Jackie plan.
I opened the car door and stood there.
“Come in. Please.” He beckoned again. Obviously, Eddy was not here. “I have coffee.”
Well, those were the magic words I needed, but I still huffed as I shut the car door and headed over to the porch.
As I entered the dark house, Jackie put an arm over my shoulder. “Sorry for the ruse, but, uh, Brock and Eddy aren’t coming. It was the only way to get you over here. Oh, and he said to take the day off to make up for it.”
“Whatever. I can’t. Too much going on and this is wasting time, Jackie.”
“Just wait. I have something to show you, come on.” He walked me around to the kitchen and dining room area, where, in the corner, he had set up a café-style table. The walls around it had been painted with chalkboard paint, and he’d written on the wall.
And
He escorted me to the round table, decorated with a vase of wildflowers, a linen napkin, and a porcelain cup and saucer. Admitting it was cute was going to be hard for me, but it was and very. “What’s all this?”
“I went to Seattle and checked out the scene. I wanted to try and recreate it here, you know, so you wouldn’t want to leave. So anytime you want some good Seattle brew…” He waved at the cute corner. Light streamed in through the bottom of the window as the sun rose higher.
“Cute.” Look at me being nice. “But.”
“Yeah?”
“You said coffee, and this looks like a café, so…” I rolled my hand for him to get on with it.
Jackie smiled and bowed, then went into the kitchen that he had curtained off with a blue and white checkered material.
In a minute, he returned with a fancy coffee pot and poured for me.
“Oh. Cream and sugar. Hold on.” He ducked back into the kitchen and returned carrying the most beautiful cream and sugar set, blue with swirls that reminded me of a day at the beach.
“These are actually yours. A gift from Seattle.”
“What?”
“Thought you might like to try them out here first, but yeah.”
He’d bought me something I actually loved. I fingered the sugar bowl before using the tiny spoon to dump some into my coffee. I added cream, then set it back on the matching tray. “This is nice, Jackie. I love it. Uh…thank you.”
“You are more than welcome. You deserve it.”
Oh, damn, my heart. I hadn’t been fair to Jackie at all, but how did I explain it when I didn’t understand it myself?
He was probably the first person in my life who thought I was actually worth something.
Worth the effort. I sipped the coffee, and it was definitely not from Seattle.
It was Brock’s. “This is…” I held the cup up.
“It’s Brock’s blend. But it’s so much better than anything I drank there. However, I have crumpets ordered, and you’ll have to come share them when they get here.”
“Crumpets?”
“Yeah. They’re good.”
I sighed. He’d really gone out of his way to impress me. “Jackie. Sit down, please.” When he pulled up the chair next to me, I reached for his hand and squeezed his fingers. “First. I’m sorry. I’ve been pretty cold—”
He started to deny it and shook his head, but I squeezed his fingers again. “Okay,” he said softly.
“I’ve been dealing with a lot of changes lately. You know?”
“The moving?”
“Yes. It’s been an upheaval in my life. Finding a new place to live, a new office, a new town. And I don’t do well with change.”
“What are you trying to say?”
“I don’t know. Maybe I’ve been taking it out on you. It’s all been crazy, and I don’t know. I guess I’m still dealing with it all. I mean, hell, my new place doesn’t even have a pool, but here I am.”
“You had a pool before?”
“Yeah. I love swimming. It’s my thing. My go-to exercise but here.” I shook my head. “I guess if I stay, I can add one, but right now, it’s not the same. Everything is different, and I’m totally a mess.”
“I want to understand, but I grew up here. I mean literally here.” He raised his hand and looked up at the ceiling. “This house was my uncle’s, and the only place I spent more time growing up was at Brock’s. When he left it to me, it felt natural.”
“I don’t know what that’s like, Jackie. I’ve never been in one place long, and I think that’s why I’m taking this move harder.”
“I don’t understand.”
“My place in the city was fantastic. Exactly how I wanted it. And my job was perfect. I felt settled, at peace.”
“Oh, and now you’re not.”
“No. Not at all. But…” With a huge sigh, I continued, “I will try to do this getting-to-know-you thing. But don’t hold out hope. I am not an easy person.”
Jackie wiggled his eyebrows. “Lucky for you, I am.”
I laughed; he was so stinking cute. “Okay. Well, if I’m getting the day off, I want to put it to good use.”
Jackie frowned as if I was going to leave him behind. “What’s your plan?”
“You can help me unpack. Come on. We’ll pick up something for lunch on the way.”