Page 78 of Embers of You
“It’s been like twenty-four hours.”
“Yeah, a whole twenty-four hours since I kissed you. You’re lucky I survived it.”
I laugh. “Oh I’m lucky you survived it?”
“Yeah, I know that it was just as difficult for you.”
“You’re right.” I launch myself into his arms with another kiss.
Once we finally break apart again, I tell him that I saw his dad on my way over. Jameson scrunches his nose slightly at the mention of him.
“I take it that means things haven’t been getting better,” I assume.
“Unfortunately not. You know how some people just don’t seem like they ever want to fix things?”
“Oh yeah, I have a few of those in my life.”
Jameson looks at me, wide eyed.
“What?” I ask through a laugh.
“Did you just reveal something about yourself?”
I roll my eyes. “I’ve told you things about myself before.”
“Nothing about your past, your family, or what brought you here,” he goads.
I pull my bottom lip in between my teeth, suddenly feeling a pang of guilt that he’s right. He’s been open with me, brought me into his life and never asked for more than I’m willing to give. Yet, I haven’t given him much about my past, or what brought us together.
“Hey.” He grips my chin, forcing me to look up at him, and pulling my lip from between my teeth with his thumb. “I’m not complaining. You can tell me or not tell me anything you want. I’m here.”
I fall into him, wrapping my arms around his back, and burying my face in his chest. He smells like the mountain air mixed with a scent that’s purely Jameson and I want to bathe in it. “I want to tell you,” I say against his chest, unable to look up at him.
I know he still hears me, because he holds my cheeks, pulling me back to look up at him. “What do you want to tell me?”
I sigh. “Can we go for a walk?”
He nods. “Of course.”
We get the dogs to join us, and they run ahead of us as we keep our pace slow. We aren’t walking toward the barn this time and I find myself wanting to see more of the property that’s surrounded by tree covered mountains. It’s warm, but there’s the breeze from the ocean that makes it feel cooler. Jameson doesn’t rush me to start talking as we walk, but the moment he intertwines our fingers I feel myself sigh and find the confidence to tell him the insane story that led me here.
“I was living with my parents because I was saving up to buy a house and Los Angeles is expensive as I’m sure you know,” I start, knowing I’m going to over explain just so I can delay the inevitable of telling him the worst parts of the story.
And because Jameson is beyond perfect, he doesn’t say anything to rush me or move the story along, he just holds my hand. We both look ahead of us as I continue. “I have this friend—my best friend, really—and we were basically inseparable since we met at the first grooming salon where we started at eighteen. She started acting weird toward me. She started avoiding me and not wanting to hang out as much which I thought was weird, but figured she would tell me what was going on when she was ready. I ended up figuring out it was because she was seeing someone.”
I pause as Bennet and Duke zoom by us and I can’t help my laughter when they tumble slightly in the grass.
“I came home from work one day and learned very quickly who it was that she was seeing.”
Jameson tenses. “No.”
“Yup, but it’s so much worse. Not only did I catch her and my dad together on the couch mid…act”—I fight off the gag—“mymom was there, too. So she knew about it and wasn’t”—another gag—“involved in that moment but I wasn’t going to ask any questions. I grabbed my dog and left.”
Jameson finally speaks, “You really just grabbed Bennet and left? No plan or anything else?”
“Well, I went back later that night to get some stuff while everyone was sleeping, but I haven’t seen them and they haven’t seen me since that day I walked in.”
“That’s insane. How does anyone do that to their best friend, or their daughter?”
