Not a smile, not a wink. He wouldn’t react to her playful attempts. He wouldn’t help her bury her feelings. “Honey, listen to me. It’s not. Your. Fault.”
“I don’t want to talk about this.”
“I know.”
“Then why are you pushing something you know nothing about?”
She took a step back, trying to extricate herself from his grasp, but he wasn’t making it that easy. He circled one arm around her back and shoved his free hand through the mass of curls to cradle the back of her head.
“There’s a lot of shit I don’t know in this world, but this,” he said with emphasis, “this I do know.”
Tears filled her eyes and a single drop slipped over the edge. In the moonlight it shone like a fluid crystal trailing over her cheek. She shook her head slightly, still trying to deny his claim. “Jackson, please…don’t…”
“Do you have any idea how amazing I think you are? You practically raised her when you were a child yourself. You protected her, sheltered her, from as much as you could while growing up in conditions no child should ever experience.”
“I know,” she said, her voice trembling, “but I…”
“Made her into a strong, proud, self-sufficient woman. She might not have the life you want for her right now, but that doesn’t mean she won’t eventually.”
Releasing a shaky exhale, Vanessa curled into him, resting her forehead on his chest. He rubbed her back slowly, up and down, letting her work through her emotions as they inevitably flooded to the surface. When she spoke again it was soft, almost muffled against his shirt, but not enough that he couldn’t hear what she said or the anguish behind her words.
“I’m just so worried about her all the time, and…” She sniffed back her tears, sighed, and raised her eyes to his once again. “I miss her so damn much.”
“I know you do, baby.” Framing her face, he gently kissed away the new tears streaming from her moonlit eyes then wrapped her in his embrace again. “I know you do.”
For several minutes he just held her as she cried. He rested his cheek on the top of her silky hair and ran a hand over her back, soothing her as best he could. When she at last seemed like she’d worked through the worst of it, he pulled away and said, “Let’s go back to the room and get you taken care of.”
She didn’t object to his coddling like he expected. Exhaustion lined her face, and she was only too willing to let him lead her around the room as he finished taking care of her hand and instructed her to go through her nightly before-bed routine. When she finished, he humored her by letting her face away from him as he helped her into her pajamas, since her hand was too sore to do certain parts.
Once she was all set for bed, he sat on the couch and let her lay down with her head in his lap while they watched the old eighties movie Say Anything on the local cable channel. He idly played with her hair while Lloyd Dobler tried desperately to impress the girl of his dreams, Diane Court. By the time Lloyd thoughtfully pointed out broken glass for Diane to step around, Vanessa was sound asleep with one hand tucked under her cheek and the other resting on his thigh.
After covering her with the lightweight blanket he’d set off to the side, Jackson settled in to watch the rest of the movie while making plans for his last official day with her. If all went according to plan, tomorrow would be just the beginning.
Day 5: Thursday
“Don’t I even get a hint?”
Vanessa looked over at Jackson from the passenger seat of his Jeep. She held hair in one hand to avoid the inevitable snarl wars in her curls as a result from traveling in a vehicle with no roof. Or doors, for that matter.
He spared a quick glance in her direction with what could only be described as a model-perfect smile. All gorgeous white teeth, laugh lines behind the dark shade of his stubble, and she’d bet laughing topaz eyes behind his dark wrap-around sunglasses.
“Nope.”
That was it. He wouldn’t say anything else no matter how many guesses she tossed into the wind. Considering she wasn’t fond of surprises—after all, one can’t prepare for what one doesn’t know is coming—it was utterly infuriating. And really sweet. Damn him.
Finally giving up, she slid on her own sunglasses and let her head drop back. The late afternoon sun bathed her face and upper body, and she wondered how many new freckles she’d come away with by the time she flew home. She didn’t have any on her face like Kat did, but she sported some light ones on her arms and shoulders. It was a damn good thing she’d slathered herself in suntan lotion before they left. She’d have to remember to reapply later if they were going to be outdoors.