Page 88 of Art of Love
Damn it, those stupid tears. They came. They spilled down my cheeks as I nodded.
“Yes, I already have.”
He smiled and rose to press his lips to mine, and it felt like coming home.
He sat next to me and took both my hands into his.
“Thank you, Jia.”
I felt now was the perfect time to clarify my relationship with Stephan.
“There’s nothing going on between Stephan and me.”
“You don’t have to explain. You shouldn’t have had to prove anything to me, but I know I can trust you. Jia you could have kept all the info. John told you to yourself.”
“No, we both know I wouldn’t do that. But while I’m opening up I should tell you about Stephan. We were a couple before, when I worked at Impasso before. He cheated on me and hurt me deeply.”
Anger immediately flashed in his eyes. “What? The fucking wanker.”
“Yes, I agree with you. He was and I could never be with anyone I couldn’t trust in that respect. I forgave him because he proved to be a good friend. And that is all we’ll ever be. Friends. Simply friends and maybe not as close as that because in my mind there’ll always be that thing he did to me. It’s the sort of thing that you might be able to forgive, but not forget.”
“Thank you for telling me. I guess months ago, if I’d known he was with you before me it would have made me crazy. Crazier. But, I’m sorry love. I’m sorry he did that to you. You have my word that won’t happen with us.”
He didn’t need to tell me that. I knew him. “Thank you.”
“Now... here’s what should have happened last night. I should have gone over to you and asked you what’s wrong. Then I should have pleaded for you not to keep shutting me out. You’ve told me a lot, and a lot has happened in the last twenty four hours. But there’s more. Something’s been... not quite right with you. Something worse than losing all that money.”
He knew. Of course, he would. I would have been surprised if he didn’t guess from my first outburst after that whole fiasco of pretending we slept together when I’d first met him.
“I left Impasso three years ago, after my brother died. That was why I left. I needed to take care of my niece. I needed to make sure she had someone there for her who loved her, who she could rely on. The way he was there for me with everything.”
“I didn’t know that. I just assumed... well, I assumed you had other relatives. Your dad maybe.”
I could just about shake my head. “No. I know I told you I hadn’t seen my father in a while, but that wasn’t entirely true. Thatwhilewas more like years. Not since I was ten, and then he was with his other family. I was the child he didn’t want. An accident from an affair with my mother, who worked for him.” I’d never said that out loud before. Not even to Sam or Bernice.
I’d told them a version of that story that skipped all the painful parts.
Those who knew the full story, knew. Those who didn’t assumed, and most often assumed correct. Then there were others who didn’t ask and were better off not knowing, but they might have guessed that something was amiss with my family.
“Jia,” Hunter breathed.
“Yeah, I was the bastard child. That last day I saw him, my father told my mother to stay away and keep that thing away from him. He was talking about me, probably because I looked like a beggar in my rags and dirt on my face. We lived in a trailer park with nothing. He worked in the State Attorney’s office and fired my mom when he found out she was pregnant and made sure she didn’t get a job anywhere else that could have her. He didn’t want her talking. She went into beauty instead. To make a quick dollar. She died of an undiagnosed heart condition, but I’m pretty certain all that he put her through helped put her in her grave. Art was my only escape. I used to imagine escaping to the fantasy world, where I could be a part of all those creatures and beings. That was me.”
This was the most I’d ever explained to anyone about myself.
Hunter cupped my face. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay. It’s just awful to be made to feel like nothing.”
“No, but you aren’t. You’re the woman who stole my breath away when she looked at me from across the bar that first night I met you. You’re the woman who dazzled me with her imagination and creativity. The vision. Jia, you are everything, and as long as I live, no one will ever make you feel like that again.”
I smiled at him, loving him even more.
“Thank you. That means everything.”
“I mean it. Now, what can I do to make that smile brighter?”
I didn’t have to think. “Make love to me.”
