Chapter 13
Maia
Holy hell! Jackson is one skilled man, I’ll give him that. I lay in bed, wrapped in my comforter, inhaling the scent that he and I have left on the sheets. My thighs squeeze together involuntarily as I remember how he felt. My hero, my Superman. My heart seizes slightly when I remember the night’s events before we came back. I was impressed with my composure at the grill. Truthfully, my stomach bottomed out, and my world spun when Jackson told me about his ex and daughter. The insecure part of me invades my thoughts with what ifs. What if seeing his daughter reminds him how much he loved Shana? What if I’m not what he wants after all? What if my fucked up life is not something he can handle? I should be mad, and I need to be careful. There’s a very real possibility that this could all go to shit, and fast. There is a solution: keep my distance emotionally, that way he can’t unintentionally hurt me. All of a sudden, my blissful bed becomes a cocoon. and I pull the blankets tighter around me. Thank god it’s Saturday, so no classes.
I must have dozed off, because I open my eyes to a rustling on Jade’s side of the room. Still completely unclothed I sit up in my bed and squint my eyes against the offending light of day. Only it’s not Jade, it’s… Morgan? “What the hell?” I ask, my jaw completely hitting the floor as I see Morgan and a suitcase perched on Jade’s bed.
“Yes,” she breathes out, bored. “Imagine my surprise when I discovered who my new roommate was.” Roommate?
“I am not your roommate, Jade is my roommate. And I can guarantee you it won’t be pretty when she comes back to find you in her bed,” I reply sarcastically. Then again, Morgan might be Jade’s type. In spite of the situation, a small laugh bubbles in my chest.
“Well, princess, I don’t know about that. All I know is that admin called me last night to say that a dorm space had opened up for this semester,” she answers, already over this conversation.
I’m so confused by this. Where the hell is Jade? And why is she not going to be back ‘til next semester? And more to the point, how am I going to get this bitch out of my space?
The door swings open, and in walks a pair of legs and a box. “Babe, where do you want this?” Bryce’s irritating voice fills the room.
He lowers the box, and glances at a very clothing deficient me, gaping at him. His lips curl into a seedy smile. God, how I hate this guy. Morgan clears her throat dramatically and he immediately averts his eyes back to her. “Meet my new roomie,” she says cattily.
Hey, your man is a dog, which is clearly obvious. I chose to let him go. Why the hell hate on me? But Bryce, in true asshole form, walks over to my bed and extends a hand. “Bryce, nice to meet you.” I look at it as if he has leprosy. “Morgan should have warned me that her new roommate sleeps in the nude.”
I pull the covers tighter up my neck. Just the sight of Bryce makes me feel dirty. As I open my mouth the retort, a soft knock interrupts me and the door slowly opens. I have never been so thrilled to see Jackson in my life. Standing there in a white V-neck tee and grey jeans, holding two coffees, his golden god-like features make Bryce look like a pasty-faced school boy.
He examines the situation slowly, clearly baffled.
“Out!” I say to Bryce and Morgan. “I’d like to change.” Morgan opens her mouth to protest, but Bryce grabs her hand and they walk out the door. I slump onto my bed as Jackson walks over to kiss me gently on the forehead. Taking my coffee from his hand causes my cover to slide down, and Jackson’s eyes fill with lust as he offers me a cheeky grin. Like me, he’s probably replaying last night in his mind.
“What was that about?” he asks, gesturing towards the closed door where the banes of my existence had recently exited.
“I have a new roommate apparently,” I say still shocked by the turn of events.
“So, Jade’s staying in Atlanta, I’m guessing.” Jackson’s eyes fall to the floor.
“I’m sure it’s just for this semester, that’s what Morgan said.” I gesture to the offending door. “But now, I need your help,” I continue, standing and letting the covers slide to the floor.
Jackson’s eyes widen as he takes me in and leans forward, grabbing my hips. “Happy to oblige,” he grins, still not looking up.
“Hmm, sounds tempting,” I say running my fingers over his head and down his neck. “But I need your help apartment hunting.”
Jackson finally looks up. “Now? That’s expensive, and I doubt you’ll find a lease mid-semester in this area.”
He’s probably right, unless... I grab my phone and dial my investment firm’s number for the elite clients 24-hour service. After a few quick checks on apartment listings and the arrangement of funds, the investment adviser gives me the okay to go ahead.
Jackson eyes me suspiciously. He thinks that my money comes from daddy like the spoiled brat waiting in the hall. I have yet to tell him my actual net worth.
“You’re buying an apartment? Just like that?” he asks, astounded.
“Good investment in this area according to my financial advisors,” I shrug, walking over to the closet to grab clothes and my towel. “What? Did you really think I was gonna stay in this dorm room with Lucifer and his bride?”
Jackson agrees to wait in the car while I shower and change. Thankfully, when I leave the room, Bryce and Morgan are nowhere to be seen. After a longer than usual shower, I change and walk over to the Mustang. Jackson is leaning against the passenger door, phone in hand, oblivious to anything around him. He is truly a god. His not too huge biceps amply fill the sleeves of his t-shirt, as do his broad shoulders. His just tight enough jeans give me a full silhouette of that oh so tempting bulge. And his caramel skin looks almost edible. For a moment, I stop and just observe, taking in the Adonis. Until he looks up and catches me. His face alights into a wide grin as he exaggeratedly opens the door, chauffeur style, and gestures for me to get in.
We pass by a few real estate agents on the way into Providence, some of whom take one look at me and assume that I am looking for a two square-foot studio apartment with barely enough room to swing a cat, because that’s all I can afford. I get it. I dress simply, with barely any makeup. I don’t look like the type of trust fund brat who could afford a decent apartment owing, to my lack of gold and ridiculously expensive six-inch Manolos.
Finally, we come across Cindy, an agent in her mid-twenties who doesn’t baulk at what I’m willing to spend, and offers to show me everything in that price range. Admittedly, Jackson also baulked when I said the budget out loud.
Seeing the surname on my driver’s license, Cindy’s eyebrows perked. “You sure you don’t own property in the area already?” she asks.
“My family does,” I reply and the word family grinds out of me. It’s better than saying my father. Noticing that this was a point of contention, she doesn’t continue to question why I don’t just occupy one of my father’s apartments. Instead, we start the trek into town to see what she has to offer.
I hate the first three, and so does Jackson. None of them have windows or views of anything. In fact, the only window the first one had looked over onto another building, directly into a window wherein a middle-aged woman was strategically bent over her husband’s torso. Jackson suppressed a laugh and Cindy and I rolled our eyes, smiling.
The fourth apartment was just a few doors down from the Clever Bean. It was a front facing top floor apartment, with bay windows in each room that overlooked the busy street below. It had two decent sized bedrooms and hardwood floors, and I was in love.
Always being one to trust my own instincts when it came to money, Cindy, Jackson, and I headed back to her office to sign the paperwork. “Can I move in soon?” I ask her excitedly, after completing the paperwork and funds transfer.
“I really shouldn’t allow it until the funds clear, which will be Tuesday,” she answers regretfully. I’d be treading carefully, too if I had just made the amount of commission she had for two hour’s worth of work.
I think of spending the next three days with Morgan in the bed next to me and cringe.
“It’s okay,” I smile.
After hitting a few furniture and appliance stores to buy some essentials and have them delivered on Tuesday, Jackson and I make our way back to the campus. He’s been rather quiet since we left Cindy. I notice his hand wringing the steering wheel periodically as he stares at the road ahead.
“Wanna share?” I ask, almost scared of what I’d hear. Maybe he does think I’m some spoiled rich girl. Maybe his opinion of me has changed. Before he can answer, I interject. “I should have told you I had that kind of money, since we said no secrets. It’s just, it’s not that important to me. Honestly, I invest it and forget about it.”
Jackson lays a hand over mine. “Why would that bother me?” he asks looking at me.
I breathe a sigh of relief, which is short lived. If that’s not it, then what?
“I was thinking of asking, maybe seeing if you wanted to come down to Atlanta with me. See Jade. I was going in a few weeks anyway to see my folks, but now you need to get away ‘til Tuesday…” Jackson speaks apprehensively as if he’s not sure that he really wants this. “Shana and Daniella will probably be there, too. It’s bizarre, but I feel like I need you with me to face that.”
Shit! What the hell am I supposed to say? Saying no makes me look unsupportive, after his last comment. But do I really want to land myself in the middle of the shit fight that will probably ensue? Am I really ready to meet families? To be honest, after only recently emancipating myself from my own family, did I really want to get anywhere near another? My stomach knots but before my brain has a chance to derive a good excuse, the word ‘sure’ rambles out of my mouth. Holy freaking hell! What did I just do? Jackson loosens his grip on the steering wheel and his shoulders visibly relax as the tension in them releases. After dropping me at my dorm to pack a few things, Jackson heads off to do the same at his. I book two business class flights to Atlanta, before shutting my laptop and leaving to meet him.
We arrive at the airport just as twilight breaks. The chill in the air only adds to the nervous tension in my stomach. Jackson pulls out his wallet as we approach the counter to book the flights.
“Oh, wait. I took care of it,” I say, handing the clerk the credit card I used for the booking.
Jackson’s averts his gaze across the terminal and grows quiet.
“What?” I ask as we make our way to the boarding gate.
“Maia,” he sighs, not meeting my eyes. “I don’t need charity from you, or anyone for that matter. I invited you to come with me and I told you that I would take care of the tickets.”
“I…I just figured…” I stumble for an explanation.
“Figured what? That I couldn’t afford it?” Jackson looks well and truly pissed off, and it’s a look that I’m not used to on him.
Tears sting my eyes as a nervous knot rises in my throat. He looks towards me and his face softens. “It’s fine, okay,” he says wrapping an arm around my waist. “Thank you. Just next time, can you at least talk to me about these things first?” I blink back the tears and nod solemnly. Ever since I was a child I’d learned to avoid conflict, and my automatic mental reflexes made a note to never do that again.