Page 54 of Forever Fickle

“It’s nothing.”

“Then let’s go inside and talk.”

“I really don’t want to…” she breathed, feeling almost frightened of this moment and how exposed she felt right now. She was coming to care for him and if she opened up, then the last line of defense around her heart would be gone.

She needed this shield, this last bastion, to cling to… even if it was warped and twisted by her imagination, time, and insecurities.

Jace cursed under his breath, leaned over and turned off the car, yanking the keys from the ignition.

Karen looked at him in disbelief, stunned that he was basically disabling her escape route and forcing a confrontation between them.

He got out of the car, looking at her unwavering through the windshield as he walked around the front towards the driver’s side door. Part of her almost reached for the switch to lock the doors childishly, but another part of her was curious what exactly he was planning on saying or doing.

She didn’t have long to wait!

He opened the driver’s side door, reached in, and unbuckled her, before pulling her out bodily, cradling her in his arms. He kicked the driver’s door closed and began to walk quickly towards the stairs to her condo.

She was so shocked and stunned that it took her a moment to realize that he was actually hefting her up the stairs like some helpless damsel in distress.

“Jace! Put me down… this is ridiculous.”

“Nope.”

“You do not have to carry me.”

“I know,” he said flatly, not looking at her, taking the steps quickly. “I would have thought that too, but nothing was being accomplished sitting in the car and we keep circling around the same things… so we are going to talk. I want to clear the air, and if you need to get mad, cry, scream, or yell – then I want to give you a chance to do it in the privacy of our home.”

“Myhome,” she corrected breathlessly.

“Whatever,” he growled, sounding upset for the first time since she’d met him. That surprised her. He’d been so laid back, smiled so much, and rarely moody or grumpy… that she knew she struck a nerve with him.

Karen hesitated – just long enough for Jace to set her down while he dug her keys he’d taken out of his pocket.

“Which one is for the door?” he asked bluntly.

“The gold square one,” she replied, looking at him curiously.

“Nope.”

“Are you mad at me?”

“I’m frustrated… but not at you.”

“Then who?”

The front door finally opened, and he walked inside, bold as could be, before reaching for Karen’s hand and pulling her inside only to shut the door behind her a little loudly.

She flinched at the noise.

“I have neighbors.”

“They might be getting a show,” he snapped, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at her. “Now, we are going to talk.”

“About what?”

“Don’t play dense, Tink… I want to know who I need to throttle within an inch of their life for making you think you aren’t good enough,” Jace said in irritation, running his hand through his hair and looking at her.

“I mean, my gosh – you could do so much better than me andI’mthe one who should be sweating buckets about not being good enough for you,” he said bluntly. “I’m sure not the one who should be giving a grown woman a pep talk, telling her how incredible and beautiful she is.”

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