Not So Timeless
Ashton
I watch Jordy leave, feeling the loss of it rip through me like a silent shift in the earth.
There’s so much I want to say, I’m sorry being at the top of the list. I feel like the biggest tool by believing that asshole, Alexander Winslow, before ever talking with her first. Now, she’s leaving. I’ll never see her again.
I turn to Bec and realize she’s been staring at me, and not just her—everyone is watching me.
“What?”
“What do you mean, what ?” Bec says. “Are you going to go after her?”
I laugh, then shake my head. “Why would I? I royally messed up, and it’s not like she seemed all that interested in talking things out.
She’s so ready to go back home, and trying to make something out of this would be ridiculous.
” But even as I say it, my heart is already chasing after her.
I want to run to her, kiss her, tell her I was an idiot.
Tell her I’m not ready to let her go, and I don’t think I ever will be.
But who am I to stand in the way of her future? She’s already had one guy jerk her around before dumping her for her cousin. I’m a small-town guy and she’s a big city girl. Our worlds are too far apart to make sense, and I don’t want to stand in her way.
Bec takes Lottie from my arms and gives me a gentle push. “I can see your mind working against you right now. You have that moody furrowed brow thing going on. Stop thinking so hard and go after her.”
“But—”
“No buts,” she says. “You’re crazy about that girl, and you’re only torturing yourself by not pursuing her. Go tell her how you feel, grovel if you have to. Do what it takes, but do not let her leave this town without knowing how much you care about her.”
I glance at Griffin, seeking some kind of sign from my closest friend in this town. He nods then juts his chin towards the door.
“She’s one of the good ones,” he says. “And I’ll personally kick your ass if you don’t go after her.”
I shake my head, but with a smile on my face. “I love you guys.”
Then I run from Charred, ready to tell Jordy everything, and possibly win her back.
But what I see outside the restaurant makes me stop.
There’s Alexander, his back to me as he faces Jordy pressed against the wall of Timeless.
At first, my heart sinks, believing I’m catching a romantic moment between them.
But then I notice the tightness of her body, how she’s making herself small while he towers over her.
She’s afraid.
I don’t remember how I got there, but next thing I know, my hands are on the back of his jacket as I pull him off her.
I have the element of surprise on my side, I also have the muscle to back it up.
He might be taller than me, but I’ve spent more hours hoisting hay and lumber than any of his hours at the gym.
His face is furious as he whips around, but then relaxes into a political smile when he sees it’s me.
“Mr. Elliot, what a surprise! You know, I’m glad I caught you. I realized that Mr. Felix missed a whole packet of papers to sign when we finalized the deal last month. I was going to drop by the farm on my way out of town, but maybe you can get him to meet me here.”
“Are you okay?” I ask Jordy, ignoring him. She nods, moving to stand behind me.
“Mr. Elliot, I—” he starts, but I stop him with a glare.
“What were you telling Jordy?”
“Nothing.” Confusion washes over his face. “Just employee, employer stuff. Nothing for you to worry about. So, about those papers?”
“You can talk with our lawyer about it,” I say. His expression darkens, and he narrows his eyes.
“May I remind you that you came to us about this sale?” He smiles as he steps back and brushes off his coat.
“And it was to your benefit. I paid more for this shop than it’s worth, all to help your family keep the farm.
” He looks to Jordy. “It was a pleasure working with you. I’ll have my secretary send you everything we owe you, minus a few items we didn’t agree on. ”
Then he turns and walks away.
Jordy looks like she’s going to cry. Her hands are trembling, and she shivers despite the warm morning.
She starts to move away, but I take her into my arms. Her body stiffens, but then she relaxes, her shoulders shaking as she leans into me.
I hold her, rubbing her back as she cries.
I’ll stay here all day if she needs me to.
She pushes back after a few moments, her nose red from crying, her eye makeup completely messed up, her face blotchy and fallen—and she’s the most beautiful woman I know.
“What did he say?”
She shakes her head, then looks over her shoulder.
I wrap an arm around her and guide her back to the hotel.
She leads the way to her room, using her keycard to get inside.
On the other side of the door, her luggage is stacked, her bed made.
All she has to do is grab her luggage and go, leaving me forever.
Instead, she sits on the bed. I join her, taking her hand.
“He said he couldn’t trust me. He thought we had a good partnership, and he was ready to tell everyone he knew to work with me.
It’s all I’ve been wanting since I moved to New York.
I thought he could open doors for my business.
I wanted to make a name for myself. Instead, he told me that if I didn’t continue working with him here in Lahoma, he was going to ruin me.
He said that after he was done with me, no one in the whole country would hire me. ”
She looks at me then, her mouth trembling. “So I told him to do his worst, because I wouldn’t work for a fuckhead like him if my life depended on it.” Then she buries her head in her hands, a sob racking through her.
I place my hand gently on her back, my heart breaking for her even as anger simmers just below the surface. This is her dream—something she’s poured herself into, something she’s damn good at—and because Alexander can’t control her, he’s trying to take it all away.
He’ll walk away unscathed, no matter what. But she’s the one left to deal with the fallout. He’s using his power to make her pay for standing her ground, like she’s nothing more than a piece in whatever game he’s playing.
I can’t stand it.
“That fucking asshole,” I say through clenched teeth.
“It gets better. He’s refusing to pay for any of the local items in Timeless.
Rather than return them, he’s taking it out of my contracted fee, which will basically leave me nothing.
He’s also cut off all business expenses, which means I have to return the rental car today and book my own flight home. ”
“Do you need money?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “No, I have it. It’s just an inconvenience.
I wasn’t even going home yet, I was going to hold on to the rental car a few more days so I could visit my cousin in Southern California before I figure out what’s next.
” She looks up, then nudges me with her body.
“Listen to me. I’m crying over fixable problems. I guess I’m just tired.
All I really want to do is curl up in a ball and sleep until I can forget all of this.
” She looks down at her hands. “I don’t even know what to do next.
I had all these plans…” She wipes at her eyes, then offers a watery smile.
“And now everything’s changed in a day.”
Jordy stands, moving to peer out the window.
I join her, looking down toward Timeless.
Alexander is there, signing papers with a delivery person.
Through the large windows of the shop, I can see dozens of balloons at the ceiling and flashes of light as the tech guy messes with visual effects.
The official grand opening is tonight, and judging by the luxury cars lining the streets, Jordy is right—not one person in attendance will be local.
Griffin even told me there was a party boat scheduled to dock this evening, with a huge crowd of people who’d made reservations at his restaurant.
For now, this is the upside of whatever Alexander has planned.
But give him enough time, and he’ll probably get his clutches on Charred too.
I wrap an arm around Jordy’s waist, and she leans into me.
When she looks up, I press a kiss on her forehead.
“I’m so sorry,” I say, “I’m sorry about your job, that Alexander is such an asshole.
I’m sorry that this town treated you like shit when you didn’t do anything to deserve that.
Most of all, I’m sorry that I doubted you for even a second, because you’re the most incredible woman I’ve ever met.
I wish we had more time because I think this could be something, and I’m sorry I’m saying this now, because you’re leaving, and you have every right to never speak to me again. ”
She turns in my arms and traces a line over my face with her finger.
Her eyes follow as she caresses my eyebrows, my cheeks, the bridge of my nose, my lips, then she tilts her head and kisses me, long and slow.
Her hand wraps around the back of my neck, and I pull her closer at the waist. I want to devour her, to make up for one night of lost time, to make this goodbye count by tasting every inch of her body.
But I restrain myself, knowing it’s enough that she’s in my arms.
This woman. I could lose myself completely to her.
She ends the kiss and touches her forehead to mine, our breath mingling in gasps. “What do we do now?” she whispers.
“I don’t know.”
She pulls away so she can look me in the eye. “What do you want to do?”
I see the hope in her eyes because it’s mirrored in my heart, and I know I can’t keep this inside. I have to tell her, even if my pride is screaming not to.
“I want to make this work,” I say quietly. “I’ve never met anyone like you.” I take a breath. “We’ve only just met, and somehow it feels like I’ve known you forever. The thought of saying goodbye…” My voice catches, “It’s eating me alive.”