Chapter Thirteen JACKIE
Chapter Thirteen
JACKIE
Mercifully, the house has been more peaceful these last couple of days.
My brother says Adam left for New York the morning after our little run-in by the stairs. Whatever that was, it still has me rattled.
At least I can roam the place now without checking every room before I step in, or constantly listening for his footsteps.
With the tension dialed down, I finally try to catch up on work. Sitting cross legged in the middle of the bed, I open my laptop. And immediately regret it.
The red notification bubble stands out like a sore spot.
750 unread emails.
My reflex is to slam the lid shut, to make the mountain of tasks… disappear. This is what I wanted, though. Some work to keep me busy. Proof I still have a life outside this house. I take a deep breath and open it again.
An hour later, my eyes blur and I’ve only gone through a quarter of the emails. I escape downstairs to stretch my legs and breathe some fresh air. When I step onto the back porch, the armchairs are empty.
I’ve gotten used to seeing Adam there, book in hand. We usually pretend not to notice each other while I sip the extra cup of tea he always brings out.
It’s alright. I can make my own tea.
I turn on my heel, ready to march into the kitchen, but stop short. What blend did he use again? It was just what I needed in the morning.
Coffee it is then. The machine at least does everything by itself. I just need to press a button.
With a fresh mug in hand, I return outside and sit at the low table overlooking the lake. The water is calm today, sunlight skating across the surface.
Two sips in, I feel like something’s missing.
Maybe it’s the lack of barbed commentary from behind the book? Or maybe I just chose the wrong type of coffee. That must be it.
There’s not much else to do. Will and Blanca left yesterday, so no more sightseeing with them. Carter is off somewhere, forgetting he should be keeping me in the loop, while his fiancée’s gone to check on a project site. At least she’ll be back later today.
And Adam…Well, I don’t care about him, obviously. I’m definitely not missing him.
In the afternoon, I go for a walk and decide to check up on Blanca. By this hour, she should be done with the mandatory Sunday family lunch.
I make my way along the shoreline, nudging pebbles into the water until she finally picks up.
“Miss me already?” She chirps on the other end.
“You know I do,’ I say, picking up a small piece of driftwood. “How was it this time?”
“Eh. You know.”
Yes, I do. At first, I didn’t get it, I was too young. They just looked sterner than the other parents. Then, as we grew up and went through school together, I watched her cry in bathrooms and back seats more times than I can count.
I’d take my father treating me like an afterthought over Blanca’s dad’s type of parenting any day. He’s a mean, despicable man. And his wife is just…there. Mirroring her husband in the way she presents herself. But more disturbingly, in the way she treats Blanca.
“Want me to send some anonymous bomb threats your way?” I offer, only half-jokingly. “You’d have an excuse to hide out here with me then.”
“No offense, babe,” she says dryly. “I’d rather sit through two hours of my parents nitpicking every aspect of my life than live there. Even temporarily.”
I’ve always suspected Blanca’s hunt for a husband has more to do with wanting to escape her father’s clutches than anything else.
She’d never admit it, though.
“Your loss,” I tease. “I’d even let you show me this year’s potential husband catalog.”
“Yeah, yeah.” I can picture her giving me a look. “Laugh it up, but that’s how you get a good match. We can’t end up with some pauper. Looks aren’t everything.”
“Tragic,” I deadpan.
Smiling at her thesis on strategic matrimony, I head back toward the house, just as the front gate opens.
A familiar rental car slowly rolls in on the gravel drive. The driver steps out and leans against the open car door, arms crossed. He’s looking straight at me, and my steps falter.
The heat of his hands on me is still humming against my skin, and I can still feel the warm rush of his breath. I know he was just being an ass, looking to get a reaction out of me, but it’s terrifying how badly I wanted to close the gap between us.
“I was beginning to think you’d ditched me,” Lilly trills through the loudspeaker.
“Sorry, slept through my alarm. Let me find a spot.” The confusing knot of fury and arousal still lies heavy in the pit of my stomach, and I’ve barely got any sleep the past couple of nights.
“Sure you don’t want to skip the session today?”
“No!” I’m wound so tight, my hands are shaking. The shade on the lake shore looks like a good place to get my head back on straight. “We can start in a minute.”
Before I step onto the lawn rolling down to the lake, movement behind the office window catches my eye. Curiosity is sometimes my worst enemy.
Adam is mid-call, casually talking and gesturing to the people on the other side of the laptop screen. But that’s not what stops me in my tracks.
His outfit is odd to say the least. Waist up is committee hearing with a jacket, shirt, and tie. Waist down is pool party, barefoot in fitted swimming trunks. I know the exact moment he cracks a joke, the smug satisfaction when he gets the answering laugh he wants.
“Jackie? Still there?” Lily’s velvety voice yanks me out of the trance.
But not before Adam’s gaze slices from the laptop screen and latches onto mine, unblinking, heavy with intent.
My skin prickles. Then, just like that, he’s right back to business, leaving me flustered, like I’ve been caught peeping in the boys’ locker room.
I scurry away as fast as possible.
“Yeah. Switching to video.” I prop the tablet against my water bottle, trying to keep my voice steady.
Lilly, always so perceptive, didn’t miss the temporary glitch in my brain. “Is everything OK?”
The mat is plush under my toes, and I take a breath of humid, earthy air. Maybe I shouldn’t have avoided him all these years. Now he’s too much, overwhelming in every way. Being near him makes me feel unmoored. Like part of me is drifting, untethered, unsure where to land.
“Adam is here,” I mutter, sitting cross-legged, my hands resting on my knees, doing my best to focus on my breathing.
Lilly mirrors my pose. “Then let’s find you a little peace. Breathe. Close your eyes.”
Wishing the light breeze would take my fluster away, I let my lids fall, but it does nothing to erase the feel of Adam’s breath on my neck, the memory of his body so close to mine.
“Let’s flow into downward dog,” she says.
I lift my hips and do my best to focus and clear my mind.
Lilly continues gently, “Lift your leg upwards.”
I’m still not locked in. My joints rattle and my balance wavers.
“Is Adam the reason your knee looks about ready to give out?” Lilly snickers.
Of course she’d notice. But I don’t know what to tell her. I don’t know myself what’s going on.
“Tried to make Carter kick him out,” I grit out, doing my best not to fall into a clumsy heap on the mat. My brother asked too many questions, so I gave up. “No luck, unfortunately.”
“Isn’t this a lovely sight?” Adam’s voice drawls from far too close.
My leg buckles. I’m ready for the searing pain in my knees, but warm hands clamp around my waist. He’s right by my side, holding me, snuffing out my ability to speak.
“Morning, Lilly. Long time.” His tone is light. “Saw you on The Morning Show.”
My heart is thumping in my chest, and the heat from his palms spreads down my back, pooling low in dangerous places.
“Did you do the routine with me?” she teases, knowing damn well you’d have to sedate Adam to keep him still enough.
I can feel him grinning behind me. “Had my tights and everything,” he deadpans, “but these old hockey knees aren’t what they used to be.”
Their banter drags me back to the summer he graduated, all lopsided smiles, and boy-next-door charm. Back when he was himself, and he made me giddy.
Now? The easiness is gone. Whenever I see him at events, mingling and networking, he makes a show of it. I’ve witnessed the real deal, and the faux debonair grates on my nerves.
“You can let me go,” I finally snap at him, desperate for air.
He takes a small step back, his palms sliding off me painfully slowly, like he’s savoring every shred of connection.
I place my foot back on the ground, turn my heel, and lift my arm up, toward the clear blue summer sky, pretending I can disregard the weight of his stare. “Ignore him, Lilly. Let’s finish.”
She cackles, her forehead covering the screen. “Shoot. Forgot to charge my phone.”
“Don’t you dare hang up!”
“It looks like it’ll shut down—” The call drops.
Perfect.
The yard feels too small with Adam so close. The entire world is restricted to this spot, and every nerve in my body comes alive under his attention.
He bends and whispers in my ear. “If you wanted a window show, all you had to do was ask.” He chuckles, and I feel it deep in my bones.
“Good thing it was free, because it was nothing spectacular,” I bite back.
This time, he throws his head back and bursts out laughing. “You were never a good liar.”
“If you don’t mind, I like my personal space, thank you very much.”
“I like your personal space too,” he says, edging closer. I know he’s doing it to annoy me, but I can’t help the tremor shooting down my spine.
“And I’d like you better with a toe tag. But we can’t all have what we want.”
“So, naked, on a flat surface?” He finally steps away, laughing to himself.
Not far enough, unfortunately, choosing to sit a couple of feet away, leaning against the closest pine tree.
I try everything. Breathing mindfully, going through every part of my body to release the tension, picturing myself on the beach in Bali. Nothing helps. I feel the burn of his gaze all over me. In the end, I’m left grunting and fussing, more unraveled than when I tumbled out of bed.