Chapter 28
Brodie
Until Jess had asked that question about his scar, Brodie had almost forgotten where they were. That they were even in a house full of his work colleagues, their partners, his boss and a whole heap of staff.
He’d noticed her looking at his scar. Everyone did.
It had bothered him at one time and then over the years he’d just ignored it.
Women always asked about it and a part of him hated that Jess had, but another part of him recognised that she wasn’t doing it with the same voyeuristic interest he was used to.
‘What do you tell people?’ she asked.
Brodie looked up at the ceiling for a moment because it was hard to look at her. She was so beautiful, and her eyes were so big and open and sucking him in. Her hair in tousled just-fucked waves over her shoulders.
He brought his head down. Forced himself to meet her eye. ‘I tell people that I got it in a fight in school, or that I fell off a skateboard...or that a cat scratched me.’
‘Big cat,’ Jess remarked. Brodie looked at her. ‘But it wasn’t a cat...or an accident or a fight?’
He’d never told anyone this. But he realised a part of him was weary. Weary of his past. Of protecting others who didn’t really deserve to be protected.
‘It was a fight, but not my fight. And it was an accident.’ He took a breath. ‘It was my mother.’
Jess’s eyes widened. ‘Your mother?’
He nodded and waited for the guilt and shame, guilt and shame that wasn’t even his.
But it didn’t come. ‘She and my father were having a fight. They were always fighting. I thought it was passion...love, but, actually, I think it was just deep animosity for each other. They’re so much happier now they’re not together any more.
’ As he said that, he realised it for the first time.
They hadn’t really been in love. They’d been together probably due to chemistry and his mother falling pregnant with him. They’d had little choice but to marry, pressured by their families.
‘How old were you?’
‘About twelve.’
‘What happened?’
‘As I said, they were arguing. And they were drunk. My mother had accidentally smashed a wine glass and was pointing at my father with it. They were never violent with each other in an overtly abusive way, it was just chaotic. He was shouting at her. But I was afraid she’d actually cut him and so I put myself in the middle, and she lost her balance, or something, and my face got in the way. ’
Jess’s eyes darkened with emotion. She shook her head. ‘I’m so sorry...that must have been so traumatic.’
Brodie was surprised at the surge of a desire to go to Jess and have her touch him.
He curled his hands into fists. ‘There was a lot of blood. My sister, Skye, saw it all too. She has a phobia about blood to this day because of it. And my mother... Obviously it’s a reminder of something she’d prefer to forget, so I don’t see much of her. ’
‘Did the police get involved?’
Brodie shook his head. ‘I told them at the hospital that I was messing and that it was my fault.’
‘You covered for them.’
He nodded. ‘My mother tried to make me go to a plastic surgeon to get it covered up.’
‘But you weren’t interested?’
Brodie shook his head. ‘It’s cosmetic. If it makes people uncomfortable, that’s their problem. Also it serves to remind me of what I don’t want in my life.’
‘What’s that?’
‘Emotional drama. Chaos.’ He made a face. ‘I’m sorry, it’s not a very sexy story.’
Jess shook her head. ‘I wasn’t looking for a sexy story. I’m sorry you had to experience that. It must have been terrifying to see them go at each other like that.’
It had been. His insides had liquefied watching them fight. It had been terrifying to think that there hadn’t been anyone in control of the situation. That’s why he’d stepped in. He’d been aware of Skye and he’d been the one who’d had to stop it. He’d grown up overnight.
Jess looked at him as if she was considering something. ‘The event the other night – you weren’t just there for show, were you?’
Brodie felt self-conscious. ‘No, I’m on the board of a charity that raises money for kids at risk.’
Jess absorbed this. She opened her mouth to speak, but then a fluorescent overhead light came on and they both blinked as a voice said, ‘Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there.’ A young woman in jeans and a shirt was pulling on an apron. ‘I’m on the early shift to make breakfast pastries.’
Jess jumped off her stool. ‘I’m so sorry, we were hungry – we’ll clean up and get out of your way.’
The woman couldn’t hide a little smirk. ‘Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it.’
Brodie could feel Jess’s embarrassment as he took her hand and led her back out of the kitchen. He forced a smile at the woman as they passed her. He knew it wasn’t a big deal to be caught like this, but the sense of exposure prickled over his skin.
Once again he was being spontaneous in a way that he’d never usually allow. He hadn’t even been like this with the actress, the woman he’d fancied himself half in love with for about five minutes. That lapse in judgement had made him pull up the walls even higher.
Spontaneity had always been a little too close to disorder and potential chaos for his liking, and yet from the moment he’d met Jess he’d had this urge to break free.
They were back at the room now and he closed the door behind them. Jess looked up at him and the tangled knots in Brodie’s brain melted. There was nothing to see here except her. It’s just sex, man, stop freaking out.
Tomorrow this moment of lust-induced insanity would be gone and they’d go back to London and get on with their extremely different lives.