Page 34 of Betting Blind
“Cassidy,” he says with a pleading look in his eye. “Don’t leave him alone tonight, please.”
I place my hand on his shoulder and nod. “I won’t, I promise.”
An intense amount of emotion begins to tighten my throat, and I swallow repeatedly so I don’t cry in front of him. I don’t know whether I’m terrified or angry, but the two emotions threaten to suffocate me.
When I pull into Jack’s driveway, I open the door to help him out of the truck, but he waves me off. “I can do it,” he says and grabs the handle above his head to pull himself forward. I grind my teeth watching him grunt and struggle, but he eventually slides his way out of the seat and onto the ground.
I help him up the walkway to his home and unlock his front door. Stifling a laugh, I look around at the barren space. “Nice.”
He huffs. “Yeah, I don’t decorate.”
I guide him into his bedroom, which is as plain as the rest of his house, and gently help him lie back on his king-size bed. It’s the only furniture in the room besides a tall dresser with a TV sitting on top of it. “You are the definition of bare essentials.” I snicker. “Where are your shorts? I’ll help you get changed.”
He points to the top drawer of his dresser, and I reach in to grab them, along with a T-shirt. Walking to the side of the bed, my heart skips a couple of beats. He has an arm draped over his eyes, and his bloodied shirt has risen, giving me a show of his abdomen. Even beat up and a little bit broken, he’s breathtaking.
Taking an encouraging breath, I lay the clothes on the sheets and begin to remove his boots. I fall right into my typical routine—caring and nurturing. I’ve done this my entire life with Momma, and I believe it’s why I’ve been drawn to the work industry I’ve chosen. Serving others is my God-given gift.
I undo his belt, and I’m about to slide his jeans over his hips when his hand grasps mine suddenly.
“You don’t have to be so methodical, you know. I’m not a nursing home patient.” He raises a brow. “Unless that’s the kind of roleplay you’re into?”
I finish sliding his jeans off his lower body, taking note of the ink covering his thighs. The images are larger, taking up more surface area, but his legs aren’t fully covered. The art covering his upper body stops just above the top of his boxers where the definition of his abdominal muscles cut to aV.
It’s difficult to keep my hands steady with his near nakedness brushing against them. “I don’t know how you can possibly tease me after what’s been done to you.”
I make quick work of covering him with his shorts before guiding him into a sitting position to replace his shirt. Jack reaches for my wrists, stilling my hands, leaving the dirty shirt in place. “We never had much,” he says quietly, searching my eyes. I’m standing between his strong legs, and his blue eyes hold me in place as he rubs slow, gentle circles over the tender flesh of my inner wrists.
“What do you mean?” I swallow hard when he soothes his touch over both hands, absently playing with the tips of my fingers.
“Me and Ben… You said my place is bare, and you’re right.” He scoffs. “We survived. That’s how I would describe my childhood. When we got relocated to our grandfather’s, we didn’t have anything to speak of, except for the clothes on our backs.”
Embarrassment heats my face. “I-I’m sorry… I wasn’t trying to offend you.”
“No, you didn’t. I guess I never thought about why I haven’t done more with my place, but it makes sense. We didn’t have the luxury of getting attached to material things when we were younger, and I guess I’ve carried that with me longer than I realized.”
I reach up and place my hand on the side of his face, lightly tracing a bloody scratch under his left eye. After the night we’ve had, I should call a cab and run far away from this man… but I can’t convince myself to leave him.
“You and Ben have always stayed close then?” From my perspective, Ben is selfish and foolish, but Jack knows him better than I do. If his brother is worth all this trouble, then I have no choice but to trust his instincts.
“Ben guided us through the hardest years of our lives. There were plenty of nights when we first moved here that he would go hungry just so I could eat. He’s never let me down, which is why I can’t believe he’s done what he’s done.”
My heartbeat ticks the seconds away before I get the courage to ask, “And what’s that, Jack?” I want him to tell me the truth so I can continue to believe that he’s the same good man I’ve come to know. The same man who would take a chance on a complete stranger just to help her get back on her feet.
He drops his hands from mine. “Cassidy,” he says on a sigh, but for once, I push back.
“So, what… this is it? I’m good enough to offer my body, but not good enough to trust?”
“That’s not fair,” he says, searing me with blazing eyes.
“Why bring me along tonight if you were going to keep me in the dark? You could have told me to get lost, but instead, I watched horrified as two men jumped you!” I take a moment to regain composure and more gently, I add, “This isn’t a game to me, Jack.”
His hands move to my hips, gripping them tightly. “I told you, I can’t give you the relationship you want.”
The laugh that escapes me is harsh. “Look me in the eye and tell me you can’t see us together… No, tell me youwon’tsee us together, and I’ll leave.”
“It isn’t about seeing us together, Cassidy. It’s… it’s complicated.”
My heart sinks. “Classic.” I repeat Juliana’s words to me the night she told me I was living in a novel.
