“Okay. Just let me finish this.”
A soft snore breaks from her mouth and I know she’s asleep. She’s soft and curvy and she’s in my bed and my fingers are sliding through her hair and her hips are so round and perfect and she’s full of life and…she’s asleep.
So I continue, like the total perv I am, soaking up all the Katie I can while I have her here, because I know soon enough that it will be over.
23
Katie
I wake up to a dark room and blink my eyes, trying to figure out where I am. I reach behind me, feeling for Jake, but my hand swipes air. The last thing I remember is Jake stroking my hair. I roll to my back and get wrapped up in the blanket someone laid over me.
The hallway light is on, casting a small amount of light in the room. A flash of white on the bed catches my attention. In big, dark letters, there’s a note.
You–sleeping like a really pregnant, debauched angel Me–on your couch, wishing like a total perv that I was in bed with you Your kids–safely tucked in their beds, with Sally guarding them Rest for as long as you want. I’ll watch over your kids.
Oh, my God. I left my kids at home while I fell asleep in Jake’s bed. I turn my wrist over so I can see my watch. It’s two in the morning. Tossing the covers back, I get up and stretch. I can’t believe I fell asleep in Jake’s bed.
My back doesn’t hurt nearly as much as it did before I fell asleep. I make a quick stop in the bathroom and then go to collect my computer.
The kitchen is flooded with light and I find Mr. Jacobson at the kitchen table, where he’s putting together a jigsaw puzzle. “Morning, sunshine,” he says. “Sleep well?”
I smile. “I did, actually.” But I wish I hadn’t fallen asleep.
“Good. You probably needed it,” he says quietly. I close my computer and hitch it under my arm.
His voice is soft and not at all like the Mr. Jacobson I’ve known since I was sixteen. Now he’s different. He stares into my eyes, his blue gaze shiny like oysters in a shell. “Is everything all right?” I ask him. Why is he up at this hour?
He nods slowly. “I’m a little worried about my boy.”
“Jake?”
“That’s the only boy I have,” he retorts, sounding a little more like himself.
“Why are you worried?” I pull out a chair and sit down across from him without him even inviting me to do so.
“He’s had a tough year.” He attaches one piece of the puzzle to another, pushing it to make it tight.
“He told me a little about it.”
“Did he tell you about Laura?”
I nod. “A little.”
“He was a mess for a while.”
“He looks like he has it together now.”
He nods. “He’s getting there.” He looks down to put together another piece of the puzzle. “So don’t break him again, okay?”
I lay a hand on my chest. “You think I’m going to break him?” Surely he doesn’t mean that.
“He’s needy right now.”
No, he’s not. He’s just Jake.
“I think you’re needy too.”
I am. I can’t help it. “Do you want me to go?”
He shakes his head. “When your dad called me and told me your situation, I didn’t think Jake would be here, so I didn’t realize there could be problems. Then he saw you, and he immediately had a light in his eyes that I haven’t seen in months. He has a skip in his step, and I’m not worried he’s going to go on a bender again any time soon.”
“That’s good, right?”
“It’ll be good until you leave to go back to your life. Then you’ll break his heart. And my boy has had enough heartbreak this year.”
I shake my head. “I wouldn’t hurt Jake.”
“You wouldn’t do it on purpose. But you’ll do it.”
“I won’t,” I protest.
“You will. You won’t even realize it. Neither will he. But you’ll be gone, and the light in his eyes will go dim.”
“I won’t hurt him.”
He stares into my eyes. “Don’t.”
I shake my head again. “I won’t. We’re just friends.”
“You need saving, and he’s in the mood to save someone so he can avoid his own problems.”
I get to my feet. “I don’t need saving.”
“I invited you to come here. I wouldn’t have done that if I’d known Jake was going to be here and you’d be…” He looks down at my stomach. “…you’d be like you are,” he finishes. “I thought you were just running from trouble. Not that you’d be the trouble.”
“I’m not trouble, Mr. Jacobson.” I stare hard at him, watching for clues. “If you want me to leave, just say so. I can find somewhere else to stay.”
He shakes his head. “I need to keep my eye on Jake. And I’d prefer to keep an eye on you, too.”
I throw up my hands. “I don’t know what you want me to do.”
“When you leave and take all that with you”–he motions from my head to my toes with a sweep of his hand–“take care with his heart, okay?”
“Okay.” I nod. “I will. You know that what was between me and Jake was in the past, right?”
He snorts. “Yeah. Sure. That’s why he’s at your house with your kids so you can get some rest.”