Page 39 of Jackson's Redemption
“Your father planted the drugs in the trunk of my car. Part of it had to do with getting my brother to flip. Part of it was because of you.”
“Me?” I said, looking up at him.
“Because I dared to take you home that day. Your father didn’t think I was worthy of you. Turns out he was right.”
9
Kate
He reached for me then as if I needed a hand getting to my feet. I shifted away from him and ended up falling on my ass. Crab walking backward. “Don’t touch me.”
“Kate…”
“Don’t fucking touch me!”
I scrambled to my feet. I hadn’t brought my firearm. I knew he had one in the cabin. I considered trying to get around him, racing him into the cabin to get the gun. It wouldn’t work. There was no way I could beat him.
I stepped farther away and considered my other option. Flat-out running. It would be stupid to follow me without a shirt. Through the heavy brush it would cut him up, which meant if he tried to follow me, I would at least have a head start.
“I don’t know what you’re thinking right now.”
I laughed bitterly. “I’m wondering if you brought me up here to just fuck me or kill me.”
“That’s not what this is about,” he said.
“Right! My father set you up to go to jail. Took away two years of your life because you fucking took me home one day and you don’t want revenge? Sorry, not buying it. But how far does it go, Jack?”
He winced again.
“After all, I sucked your cock, rode your dick. You got to jizz all over my tits. Is that enough punishment? Add to that my utter humiliation because, at the time, I loved every minute of it.”
He took a step forward, but I put up my hand to stop him. His expression was now hard. “That’s not what this is about, Kate.”
“That’s my name,” I said, pointing to his arm. “You wanted to remember why you were there. Who sent you to Perryville.”
“No.” He shook his head. “Yes, but it’s not like you think.”
“Why today?” I asked him, even as I put more distance between us. “You knew if I saw the tattoo, I would put it together. Inside the cabin it was took dark. Down by the creek one of us needed to keep watch. You’re standing here on the coldest morning so far without a shirt. Why?”
“Figured it was time for you to know. Didn’t know how else to do this.”
That’s it. That’s all he said.
“You planning to hurt me?”
It gutted me to think it. To think that the man I had been with this whole time was not my lover, but my secret enemy. Just one more person to turn against me. I forced back the sobs. I didn’t have the luxury of not being able to see him clearly in case he made a move toward me.
His face grew darker. “Think I’ve been doing something other than hurting you this past week, Kate.”
“Well, you hurt me pretty good today,” I told him. I didn’t have time for that, either. To feel the betrayal which, as crazy as it sounded, was worse than what my own father had done to me.
Jackson had been my redemption. Now he was taking away all of that, leaving me with even more pain and heartache.
“This is what’s going to happen,” I said calmly. “I’m heading back to the truck alone—”
He shook his head. “No. You and I are going to talk this through.”
“There is nothing for us to talk through,” I said, swallowing another burst of bile. “I understand. What happened to you was a horrible thing and if I had known that leaning on you for support that day was going to result in what it did, I would have crawled home on my hands and knees. I’m not going to sit here and pretend we’re even. One week of my life for two years of yours doesn’t count. But if there is any hint of humanity inside you, you need to let me walk way. Now. I know how to hardwire a truck and I know the direction we came. I’ll send someone for you as soon as I get to Hope’s Point.”
