Page 14 of Chasing Blue
I take in everything that’s Scarlett, from the tan boots she’s wearing to that gorgeous red hair of hers, all piled up on the top of her head, and everything in between. The passion in her voice as she spoke earlier about what she wants to do with my bar, the way she didn’t mess about discussing the elephant in the room—our past history. The mix of cute, stylish, and professional, all while being full of sass and attitude, already has me convinced I want to work with her and turn this place intotheplace to be. Then, or maybe even at the same time, I want to work on us. Fix what went wrong, and maybe explore if there’s still something there because, for me, the vibe I’m getting is that there’s more than just a spark.
“Can we do that without you killing me?” I ask.
“It’s not gonna be easy, but I can try my best,” she replies with a straight face.
“Then let’s go for it. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“I could end up doing time for murder. You could end up dead.”
“Well, let’s both be on our best behaviour and not let it come to that.” I offer my hand for her to shake, and when she takes it, I shock myself probably more than I shock her when I pull her towards me and wrap my arms around her. Pressing my mouth against her ear, I say quietly, “You’ve no idea how good it is to see you, Blue.”
“I’m pretty special, Jackson Cole, so really, it’s totally understandable.”
“Oh, got tickets on yourself much, Ms O’Brien?”
“Damn straight I have. Do you have a name for this place by the way?”
“It’s not settled yet; I was thinking, maybe Finns, with two n’s?”
She steps back a little, allowing her the space she needs to look up at me.
“Your old nickname . . .” It’s a statement, not a question, and I like the fact that she’s remembered what everyone back home still calls me.
“That and the fact it’s also my son’s name.”
She lets out a breath and visibly deflates a little in front of me before pulling free of my hold on her hips.
I watch as she pulls the scrunchy thing from her hair allowing it to fall around her shoulders, hitting me with a waft of her shampoo or perfume as it moves.
The colour’s striking and makes the blue of her eyes even more vivid. She’s fucking gorgeous, more gorgeous than I even remember her being.
“I was never with her ya know?” I say quietly. The overwhelmingly desperate need I have to explain things has my heart pounding, making me feel like I’ve just caught an epic wave. “I supported her, but we never got back together after I found out she was pregnant.”
Scarlett’s body jerks, her mouth opens and closes, and she shakes her head. Brows drawn together, I can’t work out if her expression is one of surprise or horror.
“You never got back with her?” she whispers the question.
“No. Finn shared his time between the two of us and then when he was two, Eden met someone new. She moved up to Far North Queensland before her husband was offered a job in the States. She knew I wasn’t going to give up custody, so rather than fight it out through the courts, she decided it would be best if he lived with me. She’s back in Australia now, and he sees her, but he’s lived with me since then. He’s a good kid. Having him has given me purpose, made me want to succeed, to be a good bloke.”
Her head is tilted to the side, and I still can’t get a read on her wide-eyed expression.
“He’s yours, I don’t doubt that he’s a good kid. As young as you were back then, you were already a good bloke.”
She chews on her bottom lip for a moment before giving her head a shake. “I didn’t know that, about you and Eden not being together.” She shrugs, unscrews the cap on her water and takes a swig. “When I moved down to Sydney for Uni, I . . . Well, I’d heard you were getting back together.
Later, can’t remember who told me, but I heard you’d had a little boy, but no one ever mentioned you and Eden weren’t together.”
“I thought . . . hoped you would’ve reached out when my son was born.”
She gives an emphatic head shake. “Why the fuck would I? No, I was still hurt and angry with you.”
Moving her hair from over her shoulder to her chest and then back again, she lets out a long exhale.
“Yeah, I get that, but at the time, I didn’t know, you didn’t know I wasn’t with Eden, and I just hoped . . .” I trail off. Unsure why I’m admitting all this to her. “I never even saw you back in town again. It was like you just didn’t exist.”
She nods.
“My entire family had moved away from Palmers by the time I’d finished Uni, so I had no ties or contacts with the place for years,” she says with a head shake and a one-shouldered shrug.
