Chapter 26
CHAPTER 26
I tucked a damp Chloe with a blanket onto the couch. Matt scowled while he ate leftover Thai food.
“How are you?” I walked into the kitchen.
He ignored me, reading something on his phone.
“Chloe's a cute dog. You're going to fall in love with her,” I turned on the espresso machine.
Nothing. I looked over my shoulder at him. “Matt?”
He looked up at me with disgust on his face. “You need to get rid of her.”
I crossed my arms. “No.”
“Emily, this isn’t up for discussion.” He turned on his lawyer voice for this discussion. I hated his lawyer voice. It sounded arrogant and know-it-all.
I held my ground. “I agree. The idea of sending her to a shelter isn’t up for discussion.”
His eyes widened. “You’re kidding me.”
“No.”
“Well, I don’t want to live with a dog. ”
“Matt, you haven’t even given her a chance. She’s such a sweetheart.”
“It's my final decision,” he dismissed.
“You always want your way.”
He looked up at me. “If my way is the right way, yeah.”
“You never listen to what I want.”
“Yes, I do.”
“No, you don’t,” I yelled. I never yelled. I never raised my voice.
He looked at me in shock.
“Well listen up, Matt,” my tone was sarcasm laced with hurt, “I want Chloe. And I'm keeping Chloe. If you think it is okay to make veto decisions in this relationship then I can too. And this is my final decision. I'm keeping the dog.”
He stood up. “Like hell you are.”
“I'm keeping the dog."
“You're going to get rid of it. This is just one of your stupid, impulsive moves. Dogs are a big commitment. You don’t have it in you to commit to a dog.”
My mouth gaped open. My chest rose and fell in anger. “Marriage is a commitment.”
“That’s different.”
“No, it isn’t,” I said in disbelief.
“Dogs are too much work. They take up too much of your time.”
“I'm keeping the dog.”
He pointed his finger at me. “You're incredibly selfish. And immature.”
My eyes narrowed. “I'm keeping the dog. I love that dog.”
“You’re supposed to love me,” he bellowed. “I'm the only one you're supposed to love.”
I stared at him. When it came down to it, Matt needed to be the only one that was loved. He couldn’t share. And now he couldn’t stand to watch me love a dog.
“I can love more than one person, Matt."
He picked up his plate and threw it. I ducked, and the plate exploded against the brick wall behind me, spraying me with food and shards of glass. I ducked my head into my arms. A wine glass sailed towards me, shattering next to me on the granite counter.
“Leave,” a voice spoke from behind Matt.
I looked up. There behind Matt, towered Jackson. He looked dangerous with his corded neck, flared nostrils and green eyes that were mean slits. Jackson was gone, and a big fucking badass navy SEAL stood in my kitchen. He looked like he was ready to rip Matt’s head off.
Matt took a step back. His voice sounded unsteady. “This is none of your concern.”
“Get the fuck out.”
Matt looked at me, giving me a death look before he grabbed his phone and keys. He kicked the dog bed on his way out, causing it to sail across the room. He slammed open the door and then was gone.
I huddled into myself.
The wine dripped down onto the floor, breaking the silence that deafened the room. I was in shock. Had Matt just thrown his dinner at my head?
My eyes lifted to Jackson. He still looked fierce. He walked towards me. I couldn’t help it. I flinched when he raised his hand to my chin.
“I'm not going to hurt you,” he said in a voice that was so gentle, it almost made me cry. He tilted my face. “You’ve been cut.”
I blinked. Nothing was making sense. My brain was frozen. Unable to process what had just happened. I reached up and touched my forehead, wincing. My fingertips had blood on them.
“Come here,” he said, steering me to the island. He lifted me to sit up on the countertop. I watched as he ran a clean tea towel under the water and then he was gently dabbing at my face. Only five hours earlier, in this exact spot, he had kissed me. Now he was tending my wounds from my fiancé’s violence.
“Has he ever been like that before?” he asked in a very calm voice .
“No.”
Green eyes stared into mine. “I think this is just a scratch. It won’t scar.”
I worked to breathe. Nothing in my life was making sense anymore. “I should clean up.”
He put one massive hand on my knee.
Our eyes met.
“Emily.”
I covered my eyes with one hand and started to cry. “I’m not ready.”
That made no sense, but those are the words that came out of my mouth. He lifted a hand to cup my cheek tenderly. “Try and get some sleep, okay?”
I felt tired and sad. “Okay.”
I picked up Chloe’s bed from where Matt had kicked it and then I called Chloe. She stretched, jumped off the couch and followed me upstairs.
Chloe’s bed remained on the floor unused. She climbed into bed and curled up to me. I lay there, my hand stroking her soft damp fur, and stared into the dark. How could I get everything back to normal? I could feel my entire world breaking and shifting, and it scared me. I needed to get Matt back on track. Things would go back to normal. They had to. We needed things to go back to the way they were.
I decided to plan the wedding. We needed to make it to that day, and everything would be fine. Matt was under so much stress at work. This whole Jackson thing wasn’t helping either. The two of them had a lot of stuff to work through.
My heart pounded when I thought of Jackson. I forbid myself from thinking about him. He had no place in my life. He was a Navy SEAL who lived a dangerous life. He didn’t want marriage. He didn’t want kids. Jackson and I were about as compatible as a fluffy bunny and a giant wolf. Yes, he was stupidly attractive, but my excuses were over now. I needed to think of him as only my pseudo future brother-in-law. Because I was pretty sure the success of my marriage would depend on my ability to abolish Jackson from my mind.
Something woke me up. Chloe was snoring delicately in my bed. I looked at the clock. It was after 2 AM. Another noise. It was the sound of the garage door. Matt was home. I crept to my bedroom door and opened it. I peered down over the glass balcony railing. The mudroom light was on casting long shadows in the room below. I noted that Jackson had cleaned up the kitchen. I glanced over at his shut bedroom door.
I stood in the shadows and heard the heavy door slide open and then shut. Matt strolled in, not looking up. I watched as he walked to the island, and dumped his pockets. Keys and phone and change clattered on the granite.
Out of the shadows, behind Matt, materialized Jackson. I covered my mouth. He looked frightening. Like a monster ghost appearing out of thin air.
“Jesus,” Matt startled, jumping back. “You scared the fuck out of me.”
Jackson just stood there. Legs planted, arms crossed. “Want to explain what that was about?”
“What are you the domestic police now? Why don’t you mind your own business?"
Jackson moved forward with incredible speed. Matt staggered back. A stool almost took him down, but he recovered. Jackson backed Matt up against the counter. He towered over Matt.
“Jackson,” Matt sounded breathless. “It’s me, Mattie.”
A long pause. And then Jackson spoke in a voice that was so low that it was a growl. “I'll rip you apart until there is nothing left of you if you ever get violent with her again.”
“Jackson,” Matt said, sounding like he was about to argue.
Jackson grabbed Matt by the throat. Matt grabbed Jackson’s hand with both of his own. Jackson lifted him up so that Matt was on his tippy toes. “This isn’t up for debate, Matt. I'll fuck you up.”
Matt nodded wildly. And Jackson dropped him. Matt put his hands around his neck. Jackson spoke in a normal voice. “Get some sleep. You smell like a brewery.”
“Oh fuck,” Matt croaked, bending over, holding his neck.
Jackson turned around and looked up towards me. Our eyes held for a long moment and then I stepped back into my room and shut the door.
I put my head against the door. Desire, lust, and awe washed over me. I looked at the ceiling trying to catch my breath. I could feel my heart in my stomach.
“This is crazy,” I whispered.
Chloe raised a sleepy head and looked at me. I rushed to the bed and wrapped my arms around her neck. She smelled sweet and fresh, like a puppy.
“It’s okay,” I soothed her, my mouth against her fur. “Everything is going to be fine. Trust me. It’s all going to work out.”